Manhunting in Mississippi

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Book: Read Manhunting in Mississippi for Free Online
Authors: Stephanie Bond
down to find her staring at him, wide-eyed.
    “Her,” she said, smirking.
    “I beg your pardon?” Ian asked.
    “The chief food scientist,” she said, stil smiling. “It’s a her.” She slung moisture off her smal hand and shoved it toward him. “Piper Shepherd, accident-prone chief food scientist, at your service.”

CHAPTER THREE
    Don’t waste precious time dallying with ne’er-do-wells, drunks, married men and other undesirables.
    IAN BLINKED. The clumsy little pixie who couldn’t maneuver her way from the parking lot into the building was in charge of the most important project on his drawing board? He took the damp slender hand she extended and gave it a light shake, lest he injure another part of her body—a part she would need for cooking. “My apologies,” he offered, feeling a flush climb his neck. “I’m Ian Bentley.”
    “So I gathered,” she said, smiling tightly. “Looks as though we’l be working together, Mr. Bentley.”
    From the expression on her face, Ian made a mental note to keep tabs on the butcher knives in her food lab. Flustered, he wasn’t sure what to do or say next. Thankful y,
    Edmund stepped in.
    “Piper, let’s get you to the infirmary so the nurse can take a look at your ankle.” His face creased in concern. “And that bump on your head.” He clasped her arm and eased her to her feet. She glared at Ian, as if daring him to offer to help so she could take off his head. Instead, feeling absurdly responsible, he col ected her dismembered shoes and fol owed them. Edmund bent at the waist to aid his petite patient, and Piper hopped on one foot, leaving a trail of water that dripped from her shrunken hem.
    People stared at him with accusing eyes as they traipsed through the lobby, as if he’d run her down in the wet parking lot. He averted his gaze from her round behind, but the glimpse of thin bra straps through the back of her transparent blouse seemed even more provocative, so he settled for staring at his own black tassel wingtips as they walked to the elevator.
    “Mr. Blythe, perhaps Mr. Bentley would be more comfortable waiting in your office,” Piper suggested, turning those incredible eyes his way.
    Her tone sounded deceptively generous, but Ian suspected she actual y wanted to be spared his company. The knowledge roused the perverse desire in him to remain close
    by. “I may be a menace, Ms. Shepherd,” he said with a slight smile, “but I’m a concerned menace. I’l tag along, if you don’t mind.”
    Her mouth tightened, but she nodded curtly.
    Edmund Blythe looked at him, then her. “What exactly happened, Piper?”
    Ian opened his mouth to take ful blame, but she cut him off. “Mr. Bentley saw me fal in the parking lot and he…came to my rescue.”
    Surprised, Ian lifted an eyebrow. Of course, she was supposed to be winning him over.
    “Mighty nice of you, Bentley,” Edmund declared, holding open the elevator door when it arrived. She limped in ahead of him, on her boss’s arm. If Ms. Shepherd’s skirt dried
    molded to her backside, Ian knew his attention span would be seriously compromised for the remainder of the day.
    Just as the doors started to close, an intercom crackled. “Mr. Blythe, please come to your office. Mr. Blythe, please come to your office.”
    Edmund frowned and blocked the door from closing with one stout arm while supporting Ms. Shepherd with the other. “Sounds like I’m needed upstairs. Can you manage,
    Bentley?”
    Startled, Ian nodded and moved hesitantly toward a wide-eyed Ms. Shepherd, whom Edmund passed over to him as if she were a slim runner’s baton. Then her boss strode
    out of the elevator, and the doors slid closed, shutting out curious onlookers as they craned for a better look.
    They stood in silence for several seconds, he holding on to her arm awkwardly and she alternately leaning into and away from him, as if she couldn’t make up her mind. She
    was a smal woman, of average height, but as

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