Don't Look Back (9 page)

CHAPTER FOUR

It wasn’t often that Felicity Pasquale stopped by any of her father’s businesses, and she never stepped foot in the bar. Greg Pasquale was, as he put it, raising his daughter to be a lady, and he didn’t hire ladies—but that day she saw her father, as he headed toward a little diner with a gorgeous man in tow.

Hey, it’s the guy from the desert! Oh crap, did I blow right past one of Daddy’s employees? Had his bike or car broken down or something? Worse, what if he had seen me?

Felicity was twenty-one, but she was sheltered beyond belief, and she knew it. She had gone to an all-girls school, attended college online, and now she worked for her father, if what she did could be called work. Basically, her entire job was to make sure the maid kept the house up, the gardener kept the lawn up, and the old man that kept up their pool kept the thing from turning green. Plus, she helped check over the lists of rental property every month, so her father would know who had paid their rent and who had not.

Felicity knew it was make-work, but she had no idea how to do anything else. It wasn’t that she wasn’t smart enough or ambitious enough. Trying to get away from her father’s overprotective grasp was like trying to hold water in a sieve.

There were plenty of days when she took off and headed to the city on the other side of the desert. She didn’t tell anyone, and she always took the turnoff that would take her in a loop around the bar where her father spent most of his time during the day. So far, she had not been caught.

She never did anything there, not really. She would explore the stores that they didn’t have in her own town, and she would eat at a restaurant she had never tried before. Today she tried Indian food. She had had to brush her teeth and shower well after she had gotten home to cover the spicy odor.

She had come back out to pick up some of the gelato her father was so fond of, and normally she would have left him alone while he was doing whatever it was he did but…but that guy was so damn cute. And if he had seen her, she had to make sure he knew not to tell.

She sat in her car, debating.
Maybe I shouldn’t bother, maybe popping up will just make the whole situation worse.

Felicity opened her car door, got out, and walked across the baking asphalt to the diner. As soon as she opened the door, the smell of fried meat and onions hit her dead in the face and she grimaced.
How can anyone eat all that heavy greasy stuff when it is sweltering outside?

Blaine saw the look on Greg’s face. He was pissed, so he followed the direction of his gaze to see the beautiful blonde who he had spotted in the desert walking toward them. He thought,
Why is he pissed at her? Does she work at the bar or something? Is she one of his girls? She doesn’t look like she would be. There is something fresh and innocent about her, something fragile and soft. Too soft, she would get eaten alive in that bar.

“Felicity, what are you doing here?”

“Hi Daddy, I saw you coming in here. I thought I’d stop in and ask if you wanted anything besides gelato from the grocery.”

Daddy? This is his daughter?
Greg gave her a smile, and she smiled back, but as soon as his lips formed that upward curve, he said, “No. Go on, go home. I have business to discuss, and I won’t be home until after dinner; so, Marie should only make enough of whatever it is she’s cooking for you.”

Felicity was used to her father’s terse commands. She gave the man sitting with him one last look. His clothes were old—almost falling apart. His face was slightly gray beneath the new tan—a tan acquired from walking in the desert—and his eyes had a wary, watchful look.

She thought,
I know exactly what he is. He’s a former convict looking for a job. Daddy is always hiring ex-cons. I’m interrupting his job interview. He is so hot though! And not just that— he has the look of a guy who will not take any shit but will not start it either. That’s a good thing and so rare.
Her belly filled with butterflies.

“It was nice to meet you.” She was hoping to catch his name, but all he did was nod his head and turn his eyes back to the menu. Disappointed and relived all at once, she left the diner, stepping back out onto the scalding streets.

The bar lay across the street, and she gave it a disapproving look. She knew it helped provide her with the lifestyle she had grown up with, but she couldn’t help but think that the place looked ugly. It had a rundown air to it.
Why does Daddy love that place so very much anyway?

In the diner, Greg said, “Stay away from my daughter. Do you understand?”

He did. “I don’t really like daughter-types.”

“That’s good, real good.”

Blaine knew that Greg was annoyed because he wanted to talk shop and Felicity had interrupted that.
So, he doesn’t let his daughter know any of his business. How much longer can he keep that up? She’s an adult, sooner or later something is bound to happen to let her in on it.

He knew he should pay attention, but he couldn’t seem to be able to do it. All he kept thinking of was china-blue eyes and a pretty, rosy, little mouth that seemed to beg for a kiss.

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