Ask Anyone by Sherryl Woods Page A

thought of a tattoo marring her soft, pale skin made him wince. But, then, curiosity got the better of him. Since no tattoo was visible, this raised some interesting possibilities.
    â€œWhere?” he asked, his gaze drawn to the faint curve of her breast exposed by the opening in her blouse.
    She elbowed him sharply in the ribs. “Not there.”
    He feigned an exaggerated sigh. “Too bad. I was hoping to sneak a peek.”
    â€œYou’re too late. It washed off.”
    He regarded her with disappointment. “It was a fake?”
    She chuckled. “Yep, but it did the job. My father almost had a nervous breakdown. Of course, that was nothing compared to the first time I brought home Nick Kennedy.”
    â€œYour husband?”
    â€œMy ex -husband,” she stressed quickly. “His tattoo was real, as was the diamond stud in his ear.” She glanced pointedly at the one Bobby wore. “I’m pretty sure my father would have left the house and gone straight to his cardiologist’s, but he was terrified to leave the two of us alone for a minute.”
    â€œBut you ran off and married this Nick, anyway,” Bobby concluded. His gaze narrowed. “Because you were pregnant?”
    Fortunately, she didn’t take offense at the blunt, personal question.
    â€œI can see why you’d think that, but no. Darcy might have been a surprise, but for me, she was a happy surprise a full nine months after the wedding. And, in my father’s view, she’s probably the one good thing to come out of that time in my life. In my view, too, for that matter.”
    â€œShe seems like a handful,” Bobby noted, thinking of the green hair.
    â€œYou have no idea,” Jenna said fervently. “I’m actually hoping our stay in Trinity Harbor will work some magic on her and on our relationship. She’s more rebellious at nine than I was at sixteen. It’s scary. I’m beginning to understand what I put my father through.”
    â€œYou’re expecting a miracle in a couple of days?”
    Jenna met his gaze evenly. “It’s going to take more than a couple of days to complete this waterfront project.”
    Bobby’s heart began to thud dully. “You sound awfully confident about getting the job.”
    â€œI am,” she said without hesitation. She met his gaze with an unflinching look.
    Bobby admired the confidence, even if he felt he had to discourage it. “Jenna, this is not a done deal, not by any means,” he said, fighting to keep the panic from his voice.
    â€œOf course not,” she agreed. “There are all those other developers pouring into town, right? The ones you told me about last night?”
    â€œExactly.”
    â€œHow many, precisely?”
    Bobby’s gaze narrowed. “Why do you ask?”
    â€œJust curious about the competition.”
    â€œYou’ve talked to Maggie, haven’t you? What did she tell you?”
    Jenna grinned. “No appointments. No developers. You lied to me.”
    Bobby was going to kill Maggie…or at the very least explain to her more clearly who her boss was. Not that that had ever impressed her before. This was what happened when you hired someone you used to baby-sit. The chain-of-command lines had long since been blurred.
    â€œThere will be more,” he insisted firmly. “I just hadn’t gotten around to telling Maggie to schedule the appointments.”
    â€œRight,” Jenna agreed with undisguised amusement. “In that case, we’d better take that tour right now. I want to have my site plans finalized and on your desk before all that competition roars into town.”
    â€œI thought you were just sticking around to make sure Tucker finds your missing carousel horse,” Bobby said glumly.
    â€œNot entirely,” she said cheerfully. “I’m going to be a thorn in your side until you agree to give Pennington and Sons this