His Wicked Celtic Kiss Read Free Page A

hadn’t expected that response as Julie wasn’t the type of woman he was usually attracted to. Yet, when he touched her arm, she recoiled in disgust. But he had felt a wave of heat move through him with such intensity he’d thought he’d been burned.
    Muttering colorful Irish curses he’d first heard from his grandfather, he ran his hands through his long hair in frustration. Why did this woman affect him? She wasn’t a classic beauty, but whenever she looked at him with those wide, stunning eyes—which were a glorious shade of hazel dotted with dazzling flecks of gold—warmth sizzled through his entire body. Her hair and face may be considered ordinary, but her skin had an attractive luminescence and her body had curves he’d love to explore. Since he usually dated tall, slim ladies, Lorcan had never expected a shapely woman to attract him. Especially not one who clearly thought he was a lowlife thug. But she did. Lorcan glanced toward the bakery. Julie was the farthest thing from those phony arm-candy model types. Maybe that’s what appealed. He wanted to get to know her better. She intrigued him very much, more than any other woman had in ages. Where did he want to take this? He had no idea. Didn’t want to think too far ahead. One thing he did know, he wasn’t going to give up so easily. He always did enjoy a challenge, and it had been too long since he’d felt his interest piqued this way.
    He strode into the back rooms and caught Nick and Veronica in a passionate kiss. Speaking of interest being piqued … “Bloody hell, you both need to be hosed down,” Lorcan teased.
    Nick and Veronica broke apart and laughed. Nick handed him a box. “Thanks for helping us out.”
    Lorcan flashed them one of his easy grins. “Aye, what are mates for?”
    • • •
    On her lunch break the next day, Julie made her way across the street to the small park area to enjoy the fresh air and warm August sunshine. After settling herself on a bench under a shady alder tree, she pulled a plastic bag of celery and carrot sticks out of the paper sack and frowned. Her lunch.
Yuck.
She reached in and drew out a small Tupperware container filled with fat-free ranch dip. Maybe if she closed her eyes, she could imagine the celery and carrots were actually mozzarella sticks, deep fried to a golden brown, and when she bit into one, hot, squishy, delectable cheese would ooze down her throat. A slight moan left her lips at the thought. Instead she had a Bugs Bunny buffet. How tempting it would be to swing by the White Owl pub on her way home and order the appetizer platter consisting of those mozzarella sticks, plus buffalo wings, deep-fried zucchini, and potato skins slathered in butter and sour cream.
    Drool clustered at the corner of her mouth and she wiped it away. Not a chance. Not tonight, at any rate. Julie bit into the celery stick and chewed as she glanced around at her surroundings. A goldfinch landed on a low branch above her head and twittered and warbled a musical accompaniment to her sparse, healthy meal.
    People from all walks of life strolled past, a few going into Titus Bakery across the way. Business had been fairly brisk since Ronnie opened. What guts to take such a big step, Julie marveled. Ronnie had left a good-paying job in California to move back to her hometown to a new business and new beginning.
    One of Julie’s regrets? That she’d never accepted her parents’ offer to attend university, tuition all paid. Since it hadn’t been a good time in her life due to her excess weight and her terrible self-image, she’d declined, and instead spent the last ten years in dead-end cashier jobs. She wanted more. But what?
    At that exact moment, a tall shadowy figure filled her gaze. Julie squinted, as it was hard to make out who it could be. Stepping out of the reflection of the sun and strolling toward her with a smooth, panther-like glide ... Lorcan Byrne. The man could be a walking supernova. Julie wasn’t sure if it