[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
Harry turned a cool look on her. Of course not. We broke up because she s a publicity hound. Jaye
Rae loved the spotlight, but I m a private man.
Ginnie stared at him, astonished. She was famous for those paintings?
Harry stared back, strangely intent for a moment. Then he glanced away. You d be surprised at the
public s gullibility.
Maybe. Ginnie had the feeling she d missed something.
She also had the urge to hug him. He could use a hug. So could she, for that matter. She wanted to
feel their bodies together again, the full length of his pressed against the full length of hers. Clothing
optional.
Something he said tickled her brain. Gold-digger, she mused aloud. Sounds like she was doing
pretty well already with those paintings. You must be seriously well-off for her to dig for gold.
I do okay. His voice was cool again.
So do I, she countered. It s a nonprofit, but Helping Hands pays okay.
That got his interest. Excellent. And you re investing wisely, I hope.
She shrugged, frowning. Investing wasn t high on her list of priorities at the moment.
But he persisted. A diversified portfolio is important. And so is a qualified financial advisor. It s
never too early to save for retirement.
Let me guess. You re a qualified financial advisor. She teased him. You trying to drum up
business here?
His mouth fell open. Drum up business?
www.samhainpublishing.com 45
Christina Crooks
Oh, I don t mind. It s cute. It s never too early to save for retirement. You re a nerd! She gave in
to the temptation that had plagued her since he first positioned himself so close and hugged him.
She felt his body remain stiff for a moment. Then with an exhale that tickled her ear, he wrapped his
arms around her too. The feel of him was better than she remembered. His warmth paired with his bulges
and muscles in all the right places made a thrill of wanting zip all through her like forks of lightning.
A nerd. That s a new one. His voice, low and amused, rumbled against her. And you, my dear, are
entirely too tempting. He held her even more tightly for a moment, letting her feel exactly how enticing he
found her, then stepped back. The items on the bench seemed to grab his attention. His voice still carried
warmth. And motivated and talented too. You ve already given Jeffrey a new arm.
Pleased, she pulled the string that controlled the arm and simultaneously levered the fingers. A wave.
I m sure you earn your pay at Helping Hands. As you would wherever else you chose to work. He
sounded approving.
I wish I earned it doing this all the time. The puppet trembled, then jumped to one side, cocking a
hip, lifting a knee. Waggled his behind. A complex boogie. Ginnie smiled, feeling both proud and sad. I m
in Events Management. Good money, right, very good, even, but& well, it s not a creative position. Unless
you consider setting financial goals, supervising grant requests and, most of all, controlling the workflow of
subordinates creative.
Controlling your subordinates?
Ginnie looked at him, but his gaze was on her hands as she untangled more marionette strings.
Someone has to set the performers and secretaries straight about the urgency of matters. Take the reins, be
proactive, motivate people to do more than the minimum. She didn t tell him she d been taken aside by
two of the older ladies last week. During that closed-door meeting, she d been accused of being a micro-
manager, too controlling, not a team player. But their reaction was due to being intimidated by her, Ginnie
was pretty sure. She d explained herself to them. I d sure like to be behind the stage instead, though,
Ginnie finished, wistful. It s a joy to make your work come alive, connecting with the audience and
inspiring imaginations in ways TV and Hollywood can t touch.
So, why don t you? If you enjoy it, do it.
It s not that easy. She should know. She d had the years of apprenticeship, building sets and
creating marionettes, touring with a medium-sized company. She d lived and breathed puppetry for the
better part of a decade. She d actually gotten quite good.
Then Rick happened, and the gravitational pull back into her mother s orbit and the accompanying
destruction of the confidence she d built up.
It s never easy, she said. Especially when the most important people in your life think it s a silly
habit of just playing with dolls. It s really not. It s a challenging form of art to operate a good puppet show,
not to mention making handcrafted, quality marionettes.
46 www.samhainpublishing.com
Hands On
He nodded. Hesitated. I occasionally perform construction on buildings along with the contractors.
Woodworking, mostly. It can be rewarding to build something complex with your own hands. I imagine it s
like that for you?
Yes. A warm glow of gratification unfurled inside her. He understood. Exactly. But then again,
bills have to be paid. Besides, they need me where I m at.
Supervising. Harry picked up a female marionette s wooden handle. He jiggled it, and the painted
girl jiggled too. He manipulated the finger-crank controlling her mouth open, closed and tugged on the
strings to make her bend her knees. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl wyciskamy.pev.pl
Harry turned a cool look on her. Of course not. We broke up because she s a publicity hound. Jaye
Rae loved the spotlight, but I m a private man.
Ginnie stared at him, astonished. She was famous for those paintings?
Harry stared back, strangely intent for a moment. Then he glanced away. You d be surprised at the
public s gullibility.
Maybe. Ginnie had the feeling she d missed something.
She also had the urge to hug him. He could use a hug. So could she, for that matter. She wanted to
feel their bodies together again, the full length of his pressed against the full length of hers. Clothing
optional.
Something he said tickled her brain. Gold-digger, she mused aloud. Sounds like she was doing
pretty well already with those paintings. You must be seriously well-off for her to dig for gold.
I do okay. His voice was cool again.
So do I, she countered. It s a nonprofit, but Helping Hands pays okay.
That got his interest. Excellent. And you re investing wisely, I hope.
She shrugged, frowning. Investing wasn t high on her list of priorities at the moment.
But he persisted. A diversified portfolio is important. And so is a qualified financial advisor. It s
never too early to save for retirement.
Let me guess. You re a qualified financial advisor. She teased him. You trying to drum up
business here?
His mouth fell open. Drum up business?
www.samhainpublishing.com 45
Christina Crooks
Oh, I don t mind. It s cute. It s never too early to save for retirement. You re a nerd! She gave in
to the temptation that had plagued her since he first positioned himself so close and hugged him.
She felt his body remain stiff for a moment. Then with an exhale that tickled her ear, he wrapped his
arms around her too. The feel of him was better than she remembered. His warmth paired with his bulges
and muscles in all the right places made a thrill of wanting zip all through her like forks of lightning.
A nerd. That s a new one. His voice, low and amused, rumbled against her. And you, my dear, are
entirely too tempting. He held her even more tightly for a moment, letting her feel exactly how enticing he
found her, then stepped back. The items on the bench seemed to grab his attention. His voice still carried
warmth. And motivated and talented too. You ve already given Jeffrey a new arm.
Pleased, she pulled the string that controlled the arm and simultaneously levered the fingers. A wave.
I m sure you earn your pay at Helping Hands. As you would wherever else you chose to work. He
sounded approving.
I wish I earned it doing this all the time. The puppet trembled, then jumped to one side, cocking a
hip, lifting a knee. Waggled his behind. A complex boogie. Ginnie smiled, feeling both proud and sad. I m
in Events Management. Good money, right, very good, even, but& well, it s not a creative position. Unless
you consider setting financial goals, supervising grant requests and, most of all, controlling the workflow of
subordinates creative.
Controlling your subordinates?
Ginnie looked at him, but his gaze was on her hands as she untangled more marionette strings.
Someone has to set the performers and secretaries straight about the urgency of matters. Take the reins, be
proactive, motivate people to do more than the minimum. She didn t tell him she d been taken aside by
two of the older ladies last week. During that closed-door meeting, she d been accused of being a micro-
manager, too controlling, not a team player. But their reaction was due to being intimidated by her, Ginnie
was pretty sure. She d explained herself to them. I d sure like to be behind the stage instead, though,
Ginnie finished, wistful. It s a joy to make your work come alive, connecting with the audience and
inspiring imaginations in ways TV and Hollywood can t touch.
So, why don t you? If you enjoy it, do it.
It s not that easy. She should know. She d had the years of apprenticeship, building sets and
creating marionettes, touring with a medium-sized company. She d lived and breathed puppetry for the
better part of a decade. She d actually gotten quite good.
Then Rick happened, and the gravitational pull back into her mother s orbit and the accompanying
destruction of the confidence she d built up.
It s never easy, she said. Especially when the most important people in your life think it s a silly
habit of just playing with dolls. It s really not. It s a challenging form of art to operate a good puppet show,
not to mention making handcrafted, quality marionettes.
46 www.samhainpublishing.com
Hands On
He nodded. Hesitated. I occasionally perform construction on buildings along with the contractors.
Woodworking, mostly. It can be rewarding to build something complex with your own hands. I imagine it s
like that for you?
Yes. A warm glow of gratification unfurled inside her. He understood. Exactly. But then again,
bills have to be paid. Besides, they need me where I m at.
Supervising. Harry picked up a female marionette s wooden handle. He jiggled it, and the painted
girl jiggled too. He manipulated the finger-crank controlling her mouth open, closed and tugged on the
strings to make her bend her knees. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]