Скачать книгу

I never even opened them.” She didn’t add that she’d saved them, though. They were all lurking in a drawer in her bedroom.

      “Why?”

      “You know why.”

      “You think this whole thing is my fault, don’t you?” He propped his hands on his narrow hips. “What did I ever do but love you and take care of you?”

      And criticize and punish me. “I don’t want to go into it anymore.”

      A fleeting look of fear crossed his face, but he quickly masked it. He’d probably thought she’d come crawling back to him eventually, unable to function without him. Well, she was functioning, perhaps not well but adequately, and she was going to continue to stand on her own two feet if it killed her. Even though, after what had happened with Dillon, she felt weaker now than ever. More alone…

      “It’s Stacy, isn’t it?”

      “It’s you. It’s me. It’s us. We just don’t work. I wish I’d seen it years ago.”

      A knock at the door interrupted them. Grateful for the reprieve, Chantel ducked around Wade to answer it.

      “Hi.” Dillon stood on her front stoop, wearing a pair of faded jeans and a chambray shirt, the wind ruffling his hair. The sight of him made Chantel’s heart skip a beat and then go into triple time, even though her head warned her he was as dangerous to her peace of mind as Wade.

      “Dillon.”

      He slanted her a crooked smile. “Can we talk?”

      Chantel threw a glance over her shoulder, wondering what to do. Wade, always the jealous type, might say something to embarrass her, even though private punishment was more his style. When they were a couple, he’d withhold his affection and pout if he thought she’d paid too much attention to another man. Or, more times than not, he’d just get back at her by being obvious about the petite dark-haired groupies he sometimes slept with.

      But none of that mattered anymore, she reminded herself. Opening the door, she let Dillon in.

      “Dillon, this is…an old friend, Wade Bennett. He just got here from New York and stopped by to say hello.”

      Dillon’s face grew shuttered, speculative, telling her he recognized Wade’s name, but he nodded.

      “Wade, this is Dillon Broderick.”

      Wade didn’t bother to smile. Instead, he eyed Dillon from the top of his dark head down to his leather Top-Siders. Just over six feet, Wade wasn’t exactly a small man, but Dillon had a few inches on him, broader shoulders and a more powerful build. He also looked far less groomed. While Wade had no doubt checked the mirror only moments before to make sure every hair was in place, Dillon had probably come after a long day at work without bothering to fuss about his appearance. His hair was unruly, as though he’d been running his fingers through it, and a five-o’clock shadow covered his jaw. His “take me as I am” air made him all the more appealing, in Chantel’s opinion.

      “What’s he doing here?” Wade demanded.

      “Wade, don’t,” Chantel said, placing a hand on the doorknob. “You were on your way out. Don’t let Dillon stop you.”

      “I just want to know what’s going on. Is this guy trying to move in on my turf?”

      “You have no turf, at least not here,” she responded.

      “So what? You think he just wants to be friends?” Wade chuckled. “Then you don’t know guys. He’s just trying to get in your pants.” Wade spoke to Chantel, but his stare was a challenge, directed at Dillon. And Dillon seemed more than ready to answer it. His jaw tightened and his right hand curled into a fist.

      Chantel stepped between them. The crudeness of Wade’s words brought a heated blush to her cheeks, but she wasn’t about to let the two of them start fighting. “That kind of talk’s not going to help anything,” she said. “And you have no right. Now, please go.”

      Wade looked from her to Dillon and back again.

      Dillon put one hand on the door, opening it wider. “You heard her, buddy. Out.”

      “Who the hell do you think you—”

      Without even waiting for him to finish, Dillon grabbed Wade by the shoulders and tossed him outside. Chantel gasped, expecting her ex-boyfriend to come up swinging, but Wade merely scrambled to his feet, called them both a few choice names once he was out of range, and took off.

      Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

      Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

      Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

      Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.

/9j/4ROfRXhpZgAATU0AKgAAAAgADAEAAAMAAAABAg0AAAEBAAMAAAABArwAAAECAAMAAAADAAAA ngEGAAMAAAABAAIAAAESAAMAAAABAAEAAAEVAAMAAAABAAMAAAEaAAUAAAABAAAApAEbAAUAAAAB AAAArAEoAAMAAAABAAIAAAExAAIAAAAgAAAAtAEyAAIAAAAUAAAA1IdpAAQAAAABAAAA6AAAASAA CAAIAAgADqYAAAAnEAAOpgAAACcQQWRvYmUgUGhvdG9zaG9wIENTNiAoTWFjaW50b3NoKQAyMDE1 OjA4OjEyIDE3OjIzOjQ0AAAEkAAABwAAAAQwMjIxoAEAAwAAAAH//wAAoAIABAAAAAEAAAXcoAMA BAAAAAEAAAfQAAAAAAAAAAYBAwADAAAAAQAGAAABGgAFAAAAAQAAAW4BGwAFAAAAAQAAAXYBKAAD AAAAAQACAAACAQAEAAAAAQAAAX4CAgAEAAAAAQAAEhkAAAAAAAAASAAAAAEAAABIAAAAAf/Y/+0A DEFkb2JlX0NNAAL/7gAOQWRvYmUAZIAAAAAB/9sAhAAMCAgICQgMCQkMEQsKCxEVDwwMDxUYExMV ExMYEQwMDAwMDBEMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMAQ0LCw0ODRAODhAUDg4OFBQO Dg4OFBEMDAwMDBERDAwMDAwMEQwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAz/wAARCACgAHgD ASIAAhEBAxEB/90ABAAI/8QBPwAAAQUBAQEBAQEAAAAAAAAAAwABAgQFBgcICQoLAQABBQEBAQEB AQAAAAAAAAABAAIDBAUGBwgJCgsQAAEEAQMCBAIFBwYIBQMMMwEAAhEDBCESMQVBUWETInGBMgYU kaGxQiMkFVLBYjM0coLRQwclklPw4fFjczUWorKDJkSTVGRFwqN0NhfSVeJl8rOEw9N14/NGJ5Sk hbSVxNTk9KW1xdXl9VZmdoaWprbG1ub2N0dXZ3eHl6e3x9fn9xEAAgIBAgQEAwQFBgcHBgU1AQAC EQMhMRIEQVFhcSITBTKBkRShsUIjwVLR8DMkYuFygpJDUxVjczTxJQYWorKDByY1wtJEk1SjF2RF VTZ0ZeLys4TD03Xj80aUpIW0lcTU5PSltcXV5fVWZnaGlqa2xtbm9ic3R1dnd4eXp7fH/9oADAMB AAIRAxEAPwDCCkEycJz0LKYEqLZeU752p6ztbKSUjQ1o80+9A9SSnDpSTxJw8qQeoMCJtSXhm0tK n7m/BVwSCrDDuEFBfEpGOlPbuaA9vPdBrcWug+KtFoc3aUCvj6gVqr2v0OjkQhUnsdW5W6n72+aR CYyJ0O4ZbtYPKSRAISQXP//QwiYCTLA7TgpROiEQWuTnoW0BOigRtnwUa7PHVHaWu80kjVqTBRGF EdjNdq0x+KmzFYOXE/gkoRK9evCPwNVEOYwQE0lxSZBootlTrMEJogJmn3IJCV4/TCPzoVpxiD56 oIbNwJ/NCK/VhQPRmiNyteyWT3CHQ6HR4o491Y8wqzdHpDalS3BbiSYatSQXP//RwwkWhyiJUgSn PQsfTI4TgkKYPiFIFncJJpTXlSDnHhWcanp5w8nNzbLa6sZ9VYFLGPc42i13+Gspb7PQVyzpWPiP 6iM3IsbV052O0OorbueMkOfU51eVZT6Hps2erXvSR7kQSCTp4Hrw/wDqyDnNZGruVNo1WgOk41LM rIysl/2bHpxshj62N9R7Ms7avUqttayl9f8AhGeqoV4FWT07Lz8O5zmYzw2uu1rWvsYGC/If+jfY z1KK99vpsd/M1ILhlh30sC6O8qr/AKbSe4AJVNlwV6jpNLttl91gqPTx1F5rY1zxNv2f0GNe9jHf v+puTXYRYcRuG/129Rf6WO57RW4WB7aLKr62ut2OrdbW7e1+x9fvSXDJEnf+Xzboq3brnRwBCLYY YSp34dWHdspu+00WsbbRkRt3sdLd2z83bay2tAvdDY8UOrPCQMOLvr9qWgzU1BcP0h+KLj/zQ+ag 7+cPxSG5SflCZv0Uk7eEkFz/AP/SwgpaKO4d9FIEHunPQrhw8CpB38kpAIlOw3VNdBa6xjSD3Bc1 rmpLnR6Rm2UYWbVj5rOnZNtmO6uy1zmBzK/X9VrXV1ZH+kr/ADFaf1llTOp2YV7WZeR9iItFQ23W 1+oeo5VdF1eytr7H+r+kqZ/pPz0H61YeDi2WZnTmeliepbiWVNGlWTRPt/da3Jx9mTV/1xW87p/T aPrD1gOojp3SaW3/AGZhLA9zqqfRx9491bLbnvfY9Br3il6zfrHHw1H/ACcsUfbl/elwKpz6zZ1H Jx89mHmdSow7fUc57Qy9rt/UaPU2XOb9F3/B7LdlfsQW512NjueMlmVns6hXlb2lzm2sGO+myXuZ Vuqs3/ZbfYhY91XWMbNqGHjYWbiYz8rGtxWura4Uketj31OfZ6u9r/0Vqr9cFLbaMvFaKsLPxq8q upn0WOj08qgf8Vcz/wAESXQjj4uEg2eh4f0Ix4Y8X7soRdO/M6Ub7MbDyWV47ulfZaLb9wDLDf67 MW1zG2u31Un6aFg5eJinHDLRk29OZk3tsAeK7crJ2UU1Vb203+ljUj1X3fov+CTDpFB6n0npDmNZ Yypt/VbTLXEvH2y6m137uPi1+jX/AMeo9Tqxg3HzsKn7Pi59HqsqH0WWMJpyamf1Hhj/APriSccY zlGBMjGQvWvVfHHf/W445Gd9+Nb07HYytmNZhvfUymveQaLB6wfvufa/9FkCz8//AAyzLHFzlu5m BiVZP2rIZ6XTMejHdaxntN972eo3DpP+

Скачать книгу