Girl Least Likely to Marry Read Free Page A

as he towered over her. Two things
struck her at once. The man smelled incredible. Her nostrils flared as her
senses filled up with him. And it wasn’t his cologne, because she was pretty
sure she couldn’t smell anything artificial at all. Maybe a hint of soap or
deodorant.
    This was much rawer. More primal. Powerful. Overpowering, even.
It made her want to press her nose to his shirt and inhale him. It demanded that she do so and she had to actually put
her hands on the chair-back to stop herself.
    So this was pheromones.
    Scientists had known of their existence for decades, and
perfume companies around the world had been trying to perfect them for just as
long, but this man exuded it in hot, sticky waves.
    Her salivary glands went into hyper-drive and she swallowed as
she grappled with the urge to sniff him.
    The second thing was his eyes. They were an intense, startling
blue. The exact shade of an exploding star she’d once seen through the lens of a
deep space telescope. They were out of this world. They were cosmic.
Captivating.
    Tuck looked into Cassie’s upturned face. She was staring at
him, her lips slightly parted, the sound of her breath husky in his ears. He
glanced at Gina and grinned.
    Piece of cake.
    ‘Ma’am?’
    Cassie dragged herself back from the universe she could see in
his eyes, his intoxicating scent still singing to her like a Siren from the
rocks. ‘Oh, yes…sorry.’ She shook her head. What had he said? Name. He’d
introduced himself. ‘I’m Cassie,’ she said. ‘Cassiopeia.’
    And then she made the mistake of slipping her hand into his and
his pheromones tugged at her—hard.
    ‘So you’re the geek,’ he said softly, smiling at her.
    Another dizzying wave of male animal wafted over her and it
took a moment for Cassie’s brain to clear the fog.
    Yes, she was the geek. And he was the jock. She had him by a
good sixty IQ points—probably more. She didn’t get stupid around men. She didn’t
get stupid, period!
    So start acting like it!
    She pulled her hand from his abruptly. ‘And you’re the jock, ’ she said, as much to remind herself as a
statement of fact.
    Tuck refused to be offended. He shot Gina a faux insulted look. ‘Why do I get the feeling that
Cassie isn’t fond of jocks?’
    Gina lifted a shoulder. ‘Don’t take it personally. Cassie’s not
fond of men generally.’ He shot her a look and she cut him off before he gave
voice to what she knew he was thinking. ‘Not women, either.’
    Tuck grinned, then turned his attention back to Cassie. Okay,
so he had his work cut out for him. His momma always said things came too damn
easy to him anyway. Her eyes were even prettier up close. A grey-blue, like a
misty lake, with subtle charcoal and silver eyeshadow bringing out both colours
perfectly.
    He nodded at her place card on the table next to his and said,
‘Looks like I have the whole night to change your mind.’ Then he pulled out her
chair and smiled at her.
    Cassie didn’t move for a moment. She simply stared at him as
the deep modulation of his voice joined forces with his heady scent to drench
every cell in her body with a sexual malaise. Her nipples beading against the
fabric of the flimsy dress Gina had loaned her snapped her out of it.
    ‘I usually require several pieces of evidence from trusted
sources before I change my mind about anything,’ she said primly, taking the
seat.
    ‘Noted,’ Tuck murmured, stifling a grin as he took his seat. He
lounged back in it, regarding Cassie as she fiddled with her cutlery. ‘So, you
don’t sound like you’re from around these here parts,’ he said.
    ‘No.’ Cassie refused to elaborate. Just because Reese thought
it was a good idea to sit them together, it didn’t mean she had to be
agreeable.
    Gina rolled her eyes and took pity on Tuck. ‘Cassie’s
Australian.’
    ‘Ah. Whereabouts? Sydney? That’s one pretty little city you
have there,’ he said.
    ‘Canberra,’ Cassie said as she ran her finger up