Tycoon's Tryst (Culpepper Cowboys Book 10) Read Free Page A

It was a relief that there were good men in the world. Not like the head of Culpepper Holdings, the jerk who filed the lawsuit. If she ever got her hands on him, she would wrap those hands around his neck.
    “You know what else I do that’s noble?” he asked.
    “What?” He was bantering with her, and she liked it. A lot.
    “I rescue damsels in distress.”
    Rachel laughed. She also saw visions of herself being swept out of the top of a tall tower and carried away to a magnificent castle…with a magnificent bed…
    “So what do you say?” Sly went on.
    “To what?”
    He shrugged, suddenly modest. “How about you and I get together later for a rescue supper? The diner where your P.O.S. rental is parked actually serves a mean burger.”
    “Sounds wonderful,” she answered, faster than she should have. Having dinner with strangers wasn’t on her agenda. Nothing was on her agenda but reading the riot act to the loser who was on the verge of destroying everything she’d been working toward for the last ten years and more. But she supposed she had to eat.
    They reached the hotel, and with her suitcase in one hand, Sly still managed to hold the door for her.
    “Thank you.” She nodded, giving him a fun, sultry look that she hadn’t even tried to use on anyone since college.
    He responded with a flush that said she’d raised his blood-pressure just the way she’d intended. Man, Sly was hot and noble, and he responded to her flirting just the way she wanted him to. She was a very good girl, as far as girls from L.A. with her background went, but she’d definitely consider a little bit of naughtiness with this hunk of man.
    “Ah, Mr. O’Donnell. Nice to see you in here today.”
    Rachel’s head whipped around at the greeting from the hotel clerk behind the reception desk. Not for her, for Sly. Cracks formed in the edges of her sexy mood.
    “Hey, Brian.” Sly nodded to the clerk. “Do you have a reservation for a Miss Rachel—” He raised his voice at the end of the question.
    Rachel swallowed. Mr. O’Donnell. Someone by the last name of O’Donnell was the CEO of Culpepper Holdings. She’d seen the paperwork. “S. O’Donnell.” Her lawyer had mentioned something about that O’Donnell recently having moved back to Culpepper after operating another company, O’Donnell Management, out of San Francisco. Too many dots connected.
    She cleared her throat and said in a hoarse voice, “Rachel Korpanty.”
    Sly’s grin fell away. His eyes grew wider. The flush on his cheeks burned redder.
    “Miss Korpanty, if I could just see your license and the credit card you made your reservation with,” Brian the clerk said.
    Rachel couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe. She’d just accepted a dinner invitation from the man who was about to ruin her life.

2
    R achel watched as realization dawned on Sly. He shifted uneasily, rubbing the back of his neck. His wide eyes narrowed to a wince.
    “Rachel Korpanty? Not from Korpanty Enterprises, by any chance.”
    Something hot and prickly shot up Rachel’s spine. How dare the snake have the audacity to look…was that bashful he was trying to pull off?
    And great googly-moogly, she was an absolute fool to find him so utterly sexy the way she did.
    “That’s me.” She squared her shoulders and took a step toward him, going on the attack. “Korpanty Enterprises is the company my father started forty years ago. It’s the company that’s been at the center of my life for the past ten years, and it’s been my responsibility for the past five years since he died.”
    “Oh, really?” Sly’s brow rose as if he was impressed.
    Impressed? How dare he!
    “And you are Mr. S. O’Donnell,” she went on, pointing a finger. She wished it was a dagger. “You’re the arrogant rat who thinks he can bring some frivolous lawsuit against me and try to ruin everything I’ve worked for my entire life.”
    She reached him with her pointed finger, stabbing him in the chest. It