Real Romance - By Ginny Baird Page 0,27

had to be the bookstore. Her car would be there, at least.

David crossed the street and picked up speed, his toned thighs swinging into motion.

What had she been thinking, he asked himself, his head pounding as he ran.

He maintained his speed, crossing the second street, which, fortunately, was free of traffic. His panic-stricken eyes continued to search side streets.

What if she'd wandered off? What if she'd gotten lost?

In Covesville?

David stopped at the crosswalk, acknowledging the absurdity of the notion. He was gasping for air, leaning forward to catch his breath, when he looked up and saw her disappearing into her car.

Oh, hell, no!

David ignored the Don't Walk sign and bolted into traffic, dodging angry drivers as several cars nearly collided, screeching to a halt in the middle of the busy intersection.

But by the time he got to the parking lot, all that remained of Marie were her tail lights fading in the night.

Chapter Ten

David kicked open the door and entered the optician's shop, scowling.

"Good morning to you, too," Caroline said from behind the counter. "Good thing my husband Jim likes the same ball teams you do, or you'd be out on your rear."

David motioned her away and stormed toward the coffeepot.

"I mean it, David! What if I hadn't been here to lock up last night? Would you have done the wild thing right in the center of the floor with a million"—she gestured to the mirrored walls of frames—"eyes on you?"

"Don't be cute, Caroline," he said, filling his mug.

"Oh, so I get it," she said, stepping around the counter and walking over with her own mug. "She blew you off, did she? Got you all hot and bothered, then—"

"You know," he said, bringing his coffee to his lips, "sometimes you just don't know where to stop."

"No, David," Caroline said, slamming her mug onto the table. "You don't know where to stop! Has it ever occurred to you that this is a business? That maybe one of our clients could have walked in here with a five-year-old child when you were in the middle of your amorous romp?"

David dropped his head, knowing she was right. It had been reckless of him, foolish. Different, if he'd had the foresight to draw the blinds and lock the doors...

"All this talk about Marie!" Caroline shouted walking back into her office and then returning with a book. "Marie, Marie, Marie. But you can't seem to figure out what she wants."

David brought a hand to his aching head and massaged his brow with his fingers.

"Here," Caroline said, thumping something hard into his chest. "Sally's better now, so take the day off. Do some serious reading."

"What's this?" he asked, staring down at the maroon cover.

David took the paperback in his hand and read the blurb before flipping it back over. For an inane little romance about a small-town librarian with the hots for the local doc, Check It Out displayed some pretty steamy artwork.

"Don't know who left it here," Caroline continued, "but it's good. I've read it. Maybe you should, too."

As David fanned through the pages, hoping for more suggestive artwork, a receipt fluttered loose and butterflied to the floor.

"Books & Bistro?" Caroline asked, snatching it off the carpet before David could even bend at the waist.

Caroline shook her head with a wry smile. "Now, I wonder who on earth this belongs to?"

Marie collapsed on the sofa and lifted the ice pack to her swollen eyes. If the puffiness didn't go down soon, she'd have to go in to work anyway. It was bad enough she'd called to say she'd be late. With Thanksgiving next week, Books & Bistro was under the gun to prepare for the pre-Christmas purchasing frenzy. And, with so many of her employees taking leave for next week's holiday, that meant that this Friday was the deadline she'd decided to go by. If she could get everything done and organized as she'd planned, then maybe even she would get a chance to enjoy some turkey and sweet potato casserole in peace.

It was draining enough for Marie to host the meal for her sisters and their husbands, plus her brothers Johnny and Mark and their significant others. Last thing she needed on top of that was work stress to face the next day.

Of course, when Marie was being honest, she didn't really mind having everyone over as much as she pretended. There was something comforting in having the flock gather and knowing she was still—in some small way—in charge of the fold. She had