Read A Hot Winter (New Adult Romance) (The Attraction Series Book 2) for Free Online Page B

yet?”  Contritely, both boys shook their heads.  “Go to the bathroom, wash your hands, and meet me in the living room,” Emma told them, her tone even but firm.
    Matt was impressed by the way Emma’s sons complied and didn’t give her an argument.  He’d worked at plenty of houses full of brats running wild and hapless parents bribing them for a shred of obedience.  When Matt’s eyes met Emma’s, she gave him a brief smile.  “Sorry about that.”
    “No, don’t be sorry,” Matt said, waving off her concern.  “They weren’t bothering me; I like kids.”
    On her way to the pantry, Emma said, “How’s everything going so far, anyway?”
    “Good.”  Matt couldn’t resist glancing at her again as she walked past him, swaying her hips in a sexy, feminine way that she was probably unaware of; a fleeting image entered his mind involving pulling her against him and running his hands under her sweater.  “The faucets are done,” he said, getting back to reality.  “I’m just measuring the floor.”
    Eagerly, Emma looked over her shoulder.  “Great! So how soon can you get the new flooring installed?” she asked hopefully.
    As his tape measure snapped, Matt said, “Well, I’m waiting on you.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “You said you want to paint in here.  I definitely don’t recommend painting after you’ve put new floors down.”
    “Duh, right,” Emma replied, walking toward him again, now with two snack packs in her hand.  “I need to do that first; I wasn’t thinking.”  With a weak-sounding laugh, she shook her head and said, “Sorry, I’ve been so scattered lately.”  Just as she said it, the pencil in her hair slipped out and fell to the floor.  “Oh--no…” she began, bending over to get it as it rolled across the tile and her hair spilled loose across her shoulders. 
    “Here, let me get it,” Matt said, reaching down for the pencil.  When he straightened up to hand it to her, he noticed how close her face was to his.  Their eyes locked for a second, before Emma cleared her throat and backed up a few steps.
    “Thanks,” she managed, taking the pencil and sticking it behind her ear.  “How’s that?  Does that look editor-y enough?” she asked breezily.
    “Oh, so you’re an editor?” Matt said.
    She nodded.  “For Alien Notion .  It’s a science-fiction magazine.  Ever hear of it?”
    “No.”
    “Yeah, you don’t look like a sci-fi buff.”
    Half-grinning, he asked, “What does one look like?”
    “Um…stereotypically speaking?  Not you,” was all she said, but grinned at him.  Hopefully he knew it was a compliment.
    “I see.”
    “Anyway, my job is the reason we’re moving.  The owner of the magazine, Derek, used to live in Ithaca and wants to move back.  So he’s relocating the whole operation over there.  He’s offered me a senior editor position if I go, too.”
    “Wow,” Matt said, impressed--but admittedly disappointed.  He hadn’t known why Emma was thinking of moving, but he supposed he hadn’t taken it that seriously.  After all, plenty of people got revved up and put their houses on the market--only to get discouraged pretty quickly and decide to stay where they were.  Now Matt realized that wasn’t going to be Emma’s situation.  This was more than a whim or a passing idea.  “So, editor, huh?” he said conversationally, stretching his tape again to take one more measurement.  “I guess you read and write all day long.”
    “Pretty much.”
    “Man, I could never do that,” Matt remarked offhandedly.  “It would give me such a headache.”  He wasn’t sure why he’d blurted that, even though it was the truth.  Still, he probably shouldn’t say more than that--so he didn’t.  “You’re sure about doing the painting yourself?” he double-checked.
    “Yes,” she insisted, though he sensed a fraction of hesitation.
    Just then one of her sons called out: “Mommy, can we come in the kitchen