Barefoot in Pearls (Barefoot Bay Brides Book 3) by Roxanne St. Claire Page A

couldn’t deliver on his promise to Cutter Valentine, the big-ass-deal ballplayer would likely say, Thanks, no thanks, I’ll find someone else.
    Shit, he was in a bind.
    “Look, I’ll find the paperwork and show it to you tomorrow. I promise it will put you at ease.” He hoped.
    Another bolt of lightning crackled, highlighting her face for one quick second, long enough for him to see doubt and distrust in her dark eyes. “And they won’t start bulldozing tomorrow?”
    “There’s no bulldozer. They use a backhoe,” he corrected, purposely not answering the question.
    “So will they start backhoeing?”
    Actually, they might. “I’m not sure.”
    Thunder rolled, the storm closer now.
    “Luke, you can’t!”
    “Look, I promise that all the paperwork has been done already, and I’ll—” The first fat raindrop splatted on his head. “We’re going to get soaked.”
    “Promise me,” she insisted, not moving. “Promise me you won’t destroy the land until you know it’s just that—land.”
    An archaeological inspection could take weeks—even more. To get the job, Luke had promised an estate home ready in five months. When he made that assurance, he knew he was pushing the limits, but it was a job, and a good one, on American soil.
    Possibly Native American soil. He huffed out a breath and ignored the next few drops on his head. “I’ll look into it.”
    She shook her head, hard. “That’s a lackluster promise.”
    “Arielle, listen to me.” His frustration increased with the rain. Why was he standing out here in a pending storm with a crazed woman? “All of the routine inspections are done. If something was wrong, we’d—”
    “ Wrong ? I’d hardly call land that was designated as hallowed ground centuries ago as ‘something wrong.’”
    “I mean if something’s not right with the paperwork, then I’ll do some digging—”
    “Damn right you will.” She dropped to her knees and pressed her hand to the ground as if she wanted to start digging right then. Barehanded. Even in the dark he could see her color was high as she challenged him. “I have a feeling about this.” She looked up at him, her hair spilling over her shoulders.
    “A feeling ?”
    She closed her eyes as if he’d hit a nerve. “It’s just a feeling, yes, but it’s strong and real. To me.” She added the last two words with a slight note of apology and just enough self-doubt to touch something inside him.
    Very slowly, he crouched down and got face-to-face with her, in exactly the same position, and possibly the same place, he’d taken with her this afternoon. And the same force field rolled off her and damn near pushed him over.
    What was it about this woman?
    Another bolt of lightning bathed them in an instant of searing white light, followed by a loud thunderclap not two seconds later. She looked up at the sky, possibly to gauge how far away the storm was, possibly to commune with someone or something. His whole body reacted with a mix of sexual desire and the urge to…help her. To hold her. To give her claims credence and…God, he wanted to kiss her.
    This was insane .
    He put his hands on her arms instead, trying to pull her up. “Let’s go.” The rain picked up with the next strong breeze, pelting them.
    “Not until you promise me you’ll look into it.”
    Two bolts of lightning cut overhead, so close they both startled. He stood as the ground rumbled under them, grabbing her shoulder with a little more force. “Come on, it’s not worth getting struck by lightning over.”
    But she didn’t move, her fingers digging into the dirt as if she could hold on to the ground and refuse to move. “ Make the promise .”
    “Or what? You’re going to stay out here and…test the universe?” He spat the last word, and she flinched, making him feel moderately bad, but still ticked off enough to make his point.
    The only answer was a crack of lightning so close the hair on his arms stood up. “Let’s go!” he