Steele Trap (Heart of Steele) Read Free Page A

framed with black curls, beautiful blue-gray
eyes under defined brows and perfect porcelain skin. Her voice was perfect for
broadcasting, too; a warm contralto that you wouldn't expect from someone with
such a delicate face and petite body. Ashley loved her fiercely despite the
resentment she had harbored when Jessica came into the cocoon that her dad had
wrapped around her when her mom left. Seldom did she examine the complicated,
but mostly positive, set of feelings that she had for her stepmom. Jess had
been there for her since she was nine years old. Ashley was grateful to have
grown up with a mother substitute who truly loved her, but now she wanted
independence, and as long as Jessica hovered, she couldn't get it.
    Dad was better. He
hadn't turned a hair when Ashley asked for the red Porsche 911 convertible last
year for her birthday. And he apparently had no clue she had been working her
way through his employees, one by one, for the past six years. This new one
would be little or no challenge, so she hoped he was as good in bed as he was
to look at. But, she needed to find out where among her dad's interests to find
him. She hoped he wasn't at one of the mines, or the copper smelter.
    "Hi, Daddy!"
she chirped as she went around his desk to plant a kiss on his cheek.
"How's it going?"
    "Fine, Precious,
just fine. Did you come to take me out to lunch?"
    Ashley made a little
pout and said, "Oh, Daddy, I just had breakfast!"
    "How about an ice
cream, then?"
    "Daddy, I'm not
six. Besides, Jessica will kill me if she thinks I'm tempting you to eat ice
cream. We worry about that spare tire you're getting."
    "You really know
how to hurt a guy, Baby."
    "Well, get ready,
because I'm about to do it again. I came to find out where to find one of your
employees. I met him last night at the club. Dirk made a big fuss because I was
dancing with him when he got there, so I hoped I could apologize."
    "Who was it?"
    "I think his name is
Jake. Jake Daniels."
    "Oh, yes, I know
who you mean. Good man. He's not an employee exactly."
    "No? I thought I
recognized him from another time I came to visit."
    "You may have. But
he's a contractor, working on my new office building."
    "Oh, well, still.
I need to apologize. Do you think he's on site?"
    "As a matter of
fact, I left him there about an hour ago. I'm sure he's still around."
    "Oh, good. Bye,
Daddy." With another kiss to his cheek, Ashley left.
     
    Jake looked over at the
fence, where one of his crew was arguing with a woman who had parked her little
red sports car behind the construction fence, in a no-parking zone. He gave his
guy space to deal with it on his own, while he took the time to answer a
question about the blueprints before sauntering over to intervene. As he got
closer, Jake admired the lines of the red Porsche 911. He was admiring that,
rather than looking at the woman, when he got near enough for her to call to
him.
    "Jake! Tell this
man that I can park on Daddy's site if I want to!"
    At that, he lifted his
head and recognized for the first time that the woman, if you could call her
that, was the girl he met at the club last night. Ashley something. She never
told him her last name. Wait, did she say Daddy? Walter's daughter? That could
be big trouble. He slowed even more.
    Ashley couldn’t decide
whether anger or pouting would have a better effect. She settled on sarcasm as
Jake finally reached her.
    "You took your own
sweet time."
    "Sorry. Ashley, isn't
it?"
    "Give the man a
cigar, for remembering."
    "Hard to forget,
when your boyfriend dragged you out of there like fresh kill. So Walter Steele
is your dad?"
    "Yeah. And he pays
your wages, so it would be nice if you helped me get this goon off my back.
There's plenty of room here, I should be okay to park."
    "Well, except for
the slight matter of that crane swinging loads of steel overhead, I guess it's
okay. If you don't mind risking getting that pretty little car crushed."
    Ashley looked up and
saw no steel beams