Read All Messed Up: Windy City Kink, Book 2 for Free Online

determined to keep things light and easy, she wasn’t about to dig deeper.
    But jeez. This guy was seriously making her hot for him. Brains, brawn and a wicked sense of fun were a potent combination. Her attraction to him was growing, a powerful tug at something deep inside her, a warming anticipation. A need. It was sexual, yeah. Because he was sexy as hell. But as they talked, it was more than that.
    “So, you grew up in California,” he said. “And you’re an only child. Did you have any pets?”
    “We had a dog. A Jack Russell terrier named Harry.” She smiled wistfully remembering her little dog. “Why are you asking that?”
    “It’s called making conversation. So, you’re a dog person then.”
    “I suppose. I don’t have one myself, but I like dogs. Harry was a little nutso but we loved him. What about you?”
    “We had big dogs. A golden lab when I was little and then a black lab. He was nutso too, actually. He could not stay out of trouble. One time we were all out and Ace—that was his name—found a big sack of flour in the kitchen. He ripped it open and chowed down on it, probably ate about five pounds of flour, then drank all the water in his bowl.”
    “Oh my God.” Her lips curved up.
    “Yeah. You can imagine the dough ball in his gut. It gets better though. Then he rolled around in the flour, which somehow got wet from his water dish, maybe dripping off his face, I don’t know, and then he was covered in glue. He was stuck to the leather couch when we got home.”
    Mallory burst out laughing and he chuckled with her.
    “You grew up in Chicago?”
    “Just outside, actually. What did you do last weekend?”
    She gave him a look. “Last weekend? Um. I went out with friends Saturday night to a blues club. Sunday I went for a run.”
    “You run? Cool. Me too. How far’d you go?”
    “What is this, twenty questions?”
    He grinned. “Con. Ver. Sation.”
    “I run about five miles, a few times a week.”
    “Awesome. Ever done a marathon?”
    “No. No desire to. I run to stay healthy. I don’t need to kill myself.”
    “So in your spare time you run, go out with friends… You like music?”
    “I love music. All kinds. And dancing. My friend Paige and I take hip hop lessons.”
    “Now that I’d like to see. What else?”
    “I work a lot.”
    “That’s not fun.”
    “For me it is. Or, it used to be.” She grimaced. “I go shopping with my friends, and I volunteer once every two weeks at a seniors’ home near my place.”
    “Really. What do you do there with the old folks?”
    “I dance with them.” She hitched a shoulder. “There’s a group of musicians who go every two weeks. They play some old songs that the seniors know. There are a few of us who volunteer and we get some of them up dancing. The ones who aren’t in wheelchairs. It’s sweet to see how much pleasure they get from something so simple.”
    “Yeah. That’s really nice. Okay. What’s your favorite day of the week?”
    “Definitely Saturday. I love my job, but I love sleeping in and going shopping, or for a mani-pedi and lunch, and then out Saturday night. You’re not answering any of these questions.”
    “I like Saturdays too. Although my work hours can be a little irregular, depending what’s going on. Are you a saver or a spender?”
    She paused and looked at him. She blew out a short breath and shook her head. “A saver. Definitely.” She gave a firm nod.
    “I’m a spender. But I’m working on learning how to save better. I’m not in debt or anything,” he assured her. “I just like to have good toys. And I have to have good equipment for my job.”
    “You have to pay for it yourself?”
    “Some of it, yeah.” He shrugged. “So, your life sounds pretty settled.”
    She nodded slowly. “Yes. Settled. That would describe my life.”
    He smoothed back some hair that had fallen in her face. “Why don’t you sound happy about that?”
    “I’m happy. My life is exactly how I want it. My