Page 6 of Unlawful Seduction

Hank was one of the owners and had been here every time I’d come inside.

“How ya doin’, Mallory?” He was always so happy to see me. He’d been my father’s best friend, drinking and barbequing buddies right up until the end.

“Not too bad. Gotta rake some leaves that have been there a long time though.”

He laughed. “Your mother was the gardener.”

“I know.” She had some of the most beautiful flowers in the world.

“This gonna be it?”

I noticed the Gorilla Glue on the counter and placed one bottle closer to the register. “Now, I’m done.”

“Just let me know if you need any help on that big house. Happy to do so.”

As if I was going to let a seventy-some-year-old man follow in my father’s footsteps and climb on a ladder. No, thank you. I was a veterinarian, not a medical doctor, even though I’d initially gone into nursing. “I think I got it for now.”

Something huge filtered into my side view and I turned my head. While I didn’t know but so many people in town, the rough and tough looking man who walked in was a stranger to me.

He was also the most gorgeous hunk I’d ever laid my eyes on. With wavy dark hair cresting just over his collar and long, muscular legs, he was the epitome of masculinity.

I found myself craning my neck to try to get a better look at him.

Hank obviously noticed, snorting slightly. “He’s pretty new in town.”

“Who is he?”

“Keeps to himself. I heard he bought the Ryan place up on the side of the mountain, but that’s just town talk.”

The house he was talking about was a masterpiece, at least according to my father. He’d gone on and on about how much money the Ryans had put into the house. Then they’d endured tragedies of their own, all but abandoning their beautiful home and returning to California.

The unknown man moved down an aisle out of my line of sight. Sighing, I realized that living in the big farmhouse was a lonely experience. How disgusting was it that it took the sight of a hot dude in the male species for me to come to that conclusion.

“I heard about the clinic. Congratulations. Your dad would be so proud of you,” Hank continued.

“I just wish he was here to be by my side. You know?” I scrunched up my nose, a gesture my father had adored.

“I certainly do.”

“Thanks, Hank.” I grabbed the items and turned around, immediately locking eyes with the stranger who was headed toward the counter. He had intense green eyes, the color reminding me of the Aegean Sea. With his leather jacket open, I had a clearer picture of just how muscular he truly was.

His chest was broad, his shoulders easily filling a doorway. With his steel-toed boots and dark jeans, he appeared straight out of an action thriller movie.

He wasn’t blinking, almost as if he was searching for something inside of me. I suddenly felt uncomfortable from how piercing the look was and turned away. I don’t know why but I hesitatedbefore walking out, tipping my head over my shoulder to notice he was still watching me.

I felt no fear, just an intense intrigue.

With a smile on my face, I headed out, eager to get home to a glass of wine after hanging a few pictures. When the bag slipped from my fingers, I cursed and tried to grab it, only to dump at least a quarter of the box of nails onto the sidewalk.

I’d never been clumsy before. Why now?

I dropped down, scrambling to pick them up. The task accomplished, I rose to my full height, turning quickly out of embarrassment.

And smack into the man from inside the hardware store.

He was even larger up close, his massive body blocking out half the remaining afternoon sun. A crackle of something like electricity shot through me. They were wild, overheated sensations I’d never had happen before. The man was ridiculously tall, huge in fact. And so muscular that I had a feeling he could crush a man’s head with a single hand.

Where in God’s name was my mind running off to?

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