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First published in Great Britain by HarperImpulse 2015
Copyright © Dawn Treadway & Aaron Speca 2015
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Cover design by Izzy Ashford
Dawn Treadway & Aaron Speca asserts the moral right
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This novel is entirely a work of fiction.
The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are
the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to
actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is
entirely coincidental.
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Ebook Edition © August 2015 ISBN: 9780007594702
Version 2015-08-11
Jade Shear could feel the spark of emotion ignite; like a caged electrical storm it slithered up her skin and spread throughout her body. “No, damn it, not again,” she cursed into the air. Jade’s eyes strained shut as her long, French-manicured fingernails drew into fists.
Opening her stinging eyes she watched her customers begin to twitch and look around nervously. It was as if, suddenly, something ominous had just descended. She felt a wave of anxiety sweeping through their emotions even before the patrons themselves were aware of it. She let out an audible sigh and began trying to suppress the assault on her senses.
The patron’s responses were varied. Some began to look lost; others, more strongly affected, looked almost angry.
Jade opened her fists and tried to stabilize herself inside the circular wooden countertop forming the epicenter of her store. The emotion around her relentlessly crawled through her body, like a horde of ants on a mass exodus through the inside of her spine and limbs. She leaned forward and steadied herself, inhaling deeply. She closed her eyes, grabbing a thick, red curl between her fingers and began to twist. Fixating her mind she began deflecting the patrons’ feelings, pushing them away. Get out of my head!
Her eyes opened and Jade swore she saw a man-sized shadow move behind one of the crowded bookshelves in her peripheral vision. It disappeared so quickly she thought, for sure, it was her imagination.
“Hey, gorgeous, thought it was your day off!” Matt lilted accusatorily and sauntered toward the register. Nothing ever seemed to ruin his good mood. It was one reason she could stand to be around him. The other was that he was one of the few men she could be near and not read lascivious feelings about her pouring off of him. “You all right, sweets? You look like you need a drink.” His perfectly arched brows rose slightly for a moment. “And a hairbrush.” He chuckled and tried to tame her hair.
“Can you please not start with me?” Jade tried to shake out the last bits of the obtrusive emotions around her. She actually loved when Matt “started” with her.
“Now, darlin’, what in the world would be fun about that?” He moved his hand like a wand through the air when he spoke, a gesture he always seemed to make appropriate. Whether recapping a bad date he’d been on, appraising someone’s outfit, or generally talking trash about another of Jade’s employees, there was always “the hand” emphasizing his dramatic points.
He continued, without waiting for a response. “Girl, you need to stop with the workaholic spinster act.” He gave her a cursory disapproving glance from her disheveled hair down to her beautifully attired feet. She saw a small smile escape when he eyed her footwear. “Get out of here, go dig up a life, girl, get laid, fall down drunk somewhere.” He let loose with yet another wave of his hand around the store. “You know this place is fine. I’ve got the wheel. I make a fabulous captain.” Matt laughed; the man certainly loved to amuse himself.