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He owns the company, she added quickly.
Ah& Marcy visibly relaxed and her smile returned.
Well, give my best to my parents, Marcy. Shane and I need to get some meat
before the flies finish it off.
If she s ashamed of me, that s the only meat she s going to get tonight.
55
Ashlyn Chase
Chapter Six
Natalie admired Shane s taut ass while he jostled the full paper bag in one arm and
fished his keys out of his pocket. After opening the door to his apartment, he stepped
back and let her enter the foyer first.
Very nice, she said, gazing around the one-bedroom luxury apartment. A
surprisingly clean ivory carpet blanketed the place. His furniture reminded her of the
man who chose it. Sturdy yet sumptuous, black leather sofa and chairs and a mahogany
coffee table the size of a door. The ivory drapes along one wall shut out the afternoon
sun.
The kitchen s on the right.
Shane had been quiet while they finished their shopping and most of the way back
to his place, yet she hadn t asked him if something was wrong. Now that they were no
longer in public, she d find out. Hopefully, she hadn t said or done anything hurtful,
but something seemed to be bothering him.
She entered a typical galley kitchen, except that the curtainless window over the
sink overlooked the harbor. She set her bag on the counter and wandered over to take a
peek. She couldn t see the marina below, but that was because she was short. She did
see sailboats enjoying a sunny Saturday on the deep blue water and an endless cerulean
sky with occasional puffy clouds.
Shane this view is beautiful. Why do you have your drapes drawn in the living
room?
One side of his mouth curled. In case I want to walk around naked. I usually strip
at the tiled entrance and toss my dirty clothes in the laundry room next to the half bath.
That s the only way I can keep the carpet clean.
Ah, so that s your secret. I did wonder&
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Demolishing Mr. Perfect
He braced one hand on the counter and faced her squarely. Natalie, are you
ashamed of me for having a job that means I get dirty?
Huh? Was that it? What are you talking about? Did I say anything about getting
dirty? Because if I did, I m sure it was a double entendre. She tried her best coquettish
look but his stone-like serious expression didn t change.
It seemed as if I wasn t good enough for you according to your family s cook until
you jumped in and said that I owned the company.
You thought Marcy judged you as not good enough? Don t be daft. She wouldn t
care if you made mud pies for a living. She was probably concerned about what my
parents might think.
And what might they think?
Look, Shane, I m not going to lie to you. My parents, particularly my mother, tend
to think their children need to achieve greatness, and that includes marrying well. I
have a sister in Beverly Hills married to a plastic surgeon. My brother is a bona-fide
rocket scientist and works for NASA, and he s married to a former model. My other
sister is living in Paris with an up and coming designer. I m already the black sheep. I m
the youngest, but I should have become so much more than a nurse by now, at least in
their eyes.
Screw their eyes!
Shane s outburst surprised her. She d never seen him lose his cool and now his
brow furrowed and he paced the ten feet of the kitchen floor.
If they can t see and appreciate the person you are without all the bragging rights
attached, maybe they deserve to be shaken up a bit.
And you d be just the one to do it.
He stopped pacing and stared at her, his jaw set and eyes narrowing. Natalie
wished she could suck the words back into her mouth and swallow them.
57
Ashlyn Chase
Is that what I am? A useful way to lash out at Mommy and Daddy for putting too
much pressure on you?
Hell, no! Stop putting words in my mouth. Maybe you re just oversensitive.
Maybe I am. Shane s shoulders slumped. You re right. I didn t mean to
assume& Can we start over?
Confused, Natalie asked, From what point?
Shane stepped forward and pulled her into his grasp. From the point where I feel
damn lucky to be with you and you feel damn lucky to be with me.
Relieved, she said, Yeah, we can do that.
Good. Now let s unload these groceries so I can impress you with my culinary
skills.
* * * * *
Natalie came up beside Shane and rubbed his back as he was setting the rice to
simmer. Please can I help?
Uh oh. This sounds like a recipe for trouble. I ve got it, hon. He rolled up his sleeves
prepared to work on the meal himself. Why don t you just relax?
Because I d like to do this with you, not just watch you.
She looked up at him, pleading with her beautiful blue eyes. He could feel his
resolve slipping.
Okay, sure. You can puree the tomatoes in the food processor.
She pointed to the right appliance, thank God, and said, Just put them in there and
turn it on?
Pretty much. They re washed. Just cut the stems out first. I ll brown the meat while
you re doing that.
Shane retrieved the ground beef from the refrigerator and set it browning in the
pan. As he watched it closely, Natalie dropped the last of the tomatoes in the processor
58
Demolishing Mr. Perfect
and it whirred to life. Suddenly she shrieked and Shane was hit by something cold and
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