Keeping Claire
KBAlan
Claire’s been fantasizing about the owner of
her company since she first saw him. Ryan is
gorgeous, confident and sexy as hell. ...
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Keeping Claire
KBAlan
Claire’s been fantasizing about the owner of
her company since she first saw him. Ryan is
gorgeous, confident and sexy as hell. In other
words, so not her type. With the crazy life she
leads, it’s best to stick to men who are happy to do
what she tells them to, then disappear. Since Ryan
would never abide by those terms, it’s best to keep
him right where she’s got him—in her dreams.
Ryan gets up close and personal with Claire
while investigating a threat to his company. Once
he’s convinced she’s not out to hurt what he’s
helped build, he refocuses his more-than-human
energies on his intriguing employee. When she
quits, insisting it’s best if she leaves town, he’s
determined to convince her otherwise. At least
long enough to get a taste of her. And the more
he tastes, the more he touches, the more he
wants. Now he just has to convince Claire that
what they have is worth fighting for, and he’s
more than up to the task.
An Ellora’s Cave Romantica Publication
www.ellorascave.com
Keeping Claire
ISBN 9781419929779
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Keeping Claire Copyright © 2010 KB Alan
Edited by Jillian Bell
Cover art by Dar Albert
Electronic book Publication November 2010
The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks
of Ellora’s Cave Publishing.
With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not
be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing
without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave
Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502.
Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this
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(http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized
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author’s rights is appreciated.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons,
living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental.
The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and
used fictitiously.
Keeping Claire
KB Alan
Dedication
For Jesse, who believes.
Big thanks to Viv for helping me get my butt in
the chair and my hands on the keyboard, and to
Jilly for making me think it all through.
Trademarks Acknowledgement
The author acknowledges the trademarked
status and trademark owners of the following
wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:
Colossus: Six Flags Corporation
Daisy Duke: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Disneyland: Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Four Seasons: Four Seasons Hotels Limited
Jacuzzi: Jacuzzi Inc. Corporation
Magic Mountain: Six Flags Theme Parks Inc.
Mercedes: DaimlerChrysler AG Corporation
Popsicle: Lipton Investments, Inc.
Rabbit: California Exotic Novelties
Ritz-Carlton: Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co.
San Diego Wild Animal Park: Zoological
Society of San Diego, Inc.
San Diego Zoo: Zoological Society of San
Diego, Inc.
Sheraton: The Sheraton Corporation
Spock: Paramount Pictures Corporation
Sylvester: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Tinkerbell: Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Tylenol: Tylenol Company
Walt Disney World: Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Chapter One
Movement in the doorway to her office had
Claire lifting her head. Her stomach clenched tight
with the effort of not reacting to the sight of Ryan
and Jacob standing in her doorway. There was no
good reason for the two owners of the company to
have come looking for her—a hard-working but
mid-level paper-pusher. Clearly, the shit had hit
the fan.
Ryan Diel took a step forward, his hard body
stiff with anger. Shit, shit, shit. She’d kept to
herself and worked hard for the company—her
small way of making up for any trouble she might
inadvertently cause them. Their complete collapse,
for example. Which meant the only reason for his
rigid stance was that they’d discovered something
about her. And there was nothing good about that
possibility.
She rose, slowly pushing her chair back with
her legs. Ryan took another step forward when she
opened the desk drawer, so she angled her body,
allowing him to see the purse she pulled free. He
held out his hand and she gave the bag up without
question. Oh yeah, this was bad. Lips she’d
fantasized about tightened as he studied her face.
She made certain he saw only the blank expression
she’d honed with years of practice. Which seemed
to piss him off. He narrowed his bright-green eyes
for a minute before turning and walking out of the
room.
She allowed a tiny hiss of breath to escape
before squaring her shoulders and following him
out the door. Focusing her attention on the taut
ass in front of her helped tune out the sights and
sounds of her coworkers ...