Free Not So New in Town by Michele Summers

terribly uninteresting and dull. I stayed busy, helping the bottom line, marketing day and night, and sometimes filling in when we were short temps.” Not working on her own career plan, like she should’ve been.
    “Were any of the jobs interesting?” Brogan fiddled with the nautical rope bracelet he wore on his right wrist.
    Some of the more off-the-wall jobs came to mind and made her chuckle. “You could say that.”
    “Like Stanley Cup Keeper? Paper Towel Sniffer?”
    “No, but I handed out jocks and socks at the gym one semester at Georgia Tech.”
    “The guys must’ve loved that.” He laughed. “What about golf-ball diver?” he asked “You ever done that?”
    “No, but I clipped coupons for my old neighbor, Mrs. Bunkins. She’s really loaded, but you’d never know it. Made me go through everyone’s recycle bins, hunting for coupons. She never spends more than forty-seven cents on groceries each week.”
    Brogan shook his head in disbelief. “Just my kind of customer. Hey, ever been a pet-food taster?”
    “No. But golf-ball diver sounds kind of fun. Don’t know if I could stomach pet-food taster. Has to be disgusting.”
    “Not any more disgusting than what you put in your system,” he said under his breath.
    “As opposed to garbanzo beans and nasty tofu?”
    “I’m with you on the tofu. Can’t handle the texture. But BetterBites has some great-tasting food. You should give us a try.”
    Lucy would like to give Brogan a try , but she was pretty sure he meant his food and not his tasty beefcake self.
    He tilted his head and gave her a long, unwavering stare. “You studied marketing in college?”
    “Yes. Marketing and PR. I had several jobs before I succumbed to the underbelly of Anthony’s obsessed rise-to-temp-stardom.”
    A sudden calculated look flashed across his face, or maybe she imagined it, because when she blinked, he appeared as relaxed and affable as usual. “Word around town is you’re pretty good.”
    She straightened in her seat. “Pretty good? Who’s been talking about me?” She hated being the topic around town.
    “Calm down, tiny dancer.” Brogan laughed. “At marketing. Bertie told me you did a great job for her, and Keith wants your help.”
    Lucy had helped Bertie market her interior design business, which had led to bigger clients for Bertie in other cities. If Lucy could sign more small businesses with little or no in-house marketing, she could put her own marketing plan in motion. She nodded. “I like working with small companies that need marketing. That’s really my focus.”
    “And Keith’s a shrewd businessman. If he’s asking for your help, then he must think you’re qualified.” He shifted toward her, taking up more space, along with all the oxygen inside the car. “I also might have a job to keep you busy.”
    Her mouth gaped open. Did his voice drop an octave in a sexy, suggestive way? Why this sudden interest in her? She forced her gaze past Brogan’s five o’clock shadow, firm lips, and white teeth. The teasing laugh lines at the corners of his eyes fueled her suspicious nature. “What kind of job? It better not require a French maid’s outfit, fur-lined handcuffs, or sneaking off to some Motel 6.”
    Surprise lit his face. “That thought never occurred to me, but now that you mention it—”
    “Let me warn you…I’m packing and have a black belt in karate.” She crossed her arms and tried for Julia’s bitchy glare-down. He appeared innocent, but she could never be too sure.
    “Little Lucy, we need to channel all this aggression you carry around into something more productive.” His tone playful, Brogan tilted her chin up with his finger and slayed her with his most endearing smile, designed to break hearts and cause all rational thought to flee from heads. “I’ve got the perfect solution.”
    Mesmerized by sparkling green eyes and his unique blend of scents filling her head, Lucy swayed toward his firm, wide mouth…
    “What