The Inheritance (Forever Bound #1) Read Free

now?”
    She shrugged. “Perhaps.”
    He snickered. “Then I did my job.” He pointed to the stool next to her. “Mind if I sit down?”
    She glanced at the stool. “Don’t ask me. It’s not my stool.”
    He smiled. His teeth shone like a Roman God’s. She quickly grabbed another drink as he slid onto the stool next to her. “I’m assuming you're alone, but my question is…why?”
    She glanced around, pretending to look for someone. “Who said I was alone?”
    He placed a finger to his lips. “Shhhh…I don’t usually divulge my secrets, but the empty stool gave it away.”
    She laughed, taking another drink. “They’ll be here soon.”
    He smiled. “Then I’ll keep you company until they show up. If you don’t mind, that is.”
    “If you wish,” she stated. He seemed pleased by her response, and he ordered himself a beer and they talked. It really wasn’t an enthralling conversation, as it started with weather and ended with the price of gas, but it was the way things had been for the past year.
    Once Joe broke off the engagement and left her hanging there, she immediately decided love wasn’t in the cards for her. She chose to lead a life of partying and meaningless sexual encounters so she wouldn’t have to face getting her heart broke…yet again. Things seemed better this way. She found herself looking down at his left hand to find an indentation of a wedding ring, or in some guy’s cases, an actual wedding ring. She vowed to never get involved with married men, and it was something she was serious about. In his case, she was pleased to see that he didn’t have a golden band on. When they finished their beers, he turned to her.
    “May I have this dance?”
    She scrunched up her nose, contemplating things, then eventually nodded. She stood up, and he reached for her hand. His eyes were locked on her, something that was also familiar to her. If the guy liked what he saw, he would be obvious about it. She enjoyed the attention. What girl wouldn’t?
    They made their way to the dance floor, just as one slow song ended and another began. He pulled her into his arms, and they swayed to the music. For a few slight moments, it was strictly two people gazing into one another’s eyes and moving to the rhythm of the music. Then he said something.
    “I don’t recall seeing you here before. Trust me…I’d remember.”
    She smiled and tilted her head. “Do you make a mental note of all the people you see?” she asked.
    He chuckled. “If they’re half as beautiful as you are.”
    “You do seem to know all the right words to say,” she commented.
    He twirled her around and pulled her to him, so she was even closer than before. His breath was warm against her skin. “I speak only the truth.” His voice was husky, and her eyes dipped down to his lips. She was two seconds from kissing him and making out on that dance floor when she felt someone tapping her on her shoulder.
    She pulled back, keeping her eyes locked on the strange man that had held her close. “Charity? You coming?”
    “Um…yeah…I’m…” she stuttered. Her mind went blank. He smiled at her, and she slowly regained her cognitive thoughts. “Thank you for the dance.”
    “My pleasure,” he said.
    She waved, then turned around and followed Ana to the table. Her heart raced hard against her chest. It hit her abruptly that he now knew her name. That was another thing that never happened between her and her one-nighters. They never divulged names. Although, this time, it was different. They never actually got to the sex part.
    Charity bumped into Ana when they reached the table. Ana turned around and gave her a peculiar look, and Charity just smiled. “Charity, I would like you to meet, Jesse Tremble. Jesse…this is Charity Parker.”
    He stood up from the table and produced his hand out to Charity. “Pleased to meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”
    Charity slowly shook his extended hand. “Likewise.” However, the