thighs. He looked so different out of his tuxedo she had to wonder
if she wasn’t seeing things at first.
Until he smiled.
Then a rush of heat swept over her, so devastating it threatened to make her knees
buckle.
Elation rose before she could squelch it, followed by intense disappointment, embarrassment…and
a little fear. He’d caught her with her guard down.
And he shouldn’t have been able to find her in the first place.
Old fears tried to swamp her.
After the murders, her grandfather and his lawyer had hidden her identity so well,
not one of the tabloids or the news programs had been able to find her. But that didn’t
mean she didn’t have panic attacks about being found. About having her identity, the
one she’d built around herself, ripped away.
Damn, damn, damn that man.
How the hell had he found her? She’d used her personal credit card to charge the hotel
bill, the card her lawyer had set up so that neither her legal name nor any other
was attached to it.
He’d assured her it was perfectly legal and no one would be able to track her down
through it.
Yet, here stood Joshua Golden.
Had he discovered who she was? Was that why he was here?
Don’t assume anything. He can’t know for sure.
Drawing herself up to her full height, she pushed her unruly hair behind her ears
and stuck out her chin. No way would she let him see how flustered she was. After
a deep breath, she walked to the CD player and turned down the volume. She wouldn’t
turn it off because that would leave a silence to fill. And this was going to be bad
enough.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
She’d meant her tone to be hard, unconcerned. And mentally smacked herself when it
came out breathless.
That smile of his pumped her blood pressure even higher.
“I have something of yours.” His strong voice conquered the music and his smile had
disappeared. Staring straight into her eyes, his intensity shuddered through her like
an electric shock to her system.
She swallowed and wet her lips before attempting to speak again. His gaze burned as
it followed her tongue’s path.
“You have nothing I want,” she answered, proud of her now-steady voice.
That made his lips quirk at the corners in a staggeringly handsome way. God, the man
was too good-looking for her peace of mind. He had to go. Before she—
No, he just had to go.
“I thought I’d made it perfectly clear that I had no wish to see you again. In fact,
I never gave you my name.”
Jared just smiled. “I know that. But I’m happy to report that I have a friend who’s
a pretty decent investigator. You’d told me you were an antiques dealer so it became
a process of elimination. Next time, maybe you want to pick Mary or Kathy. Belle was
just too close to Annabelle.”
Okay. She could deal with this. She could deal with him knowing her name as Annabelle
Elder.
What she couldn’t deal with was his presence here. In her shop. Her world.
With what she hoped was just enough haughty disdain, she lifted her chin and prepared
to brazen it out. “If I ever decide to go incognito to another party, I’ll remember
that. Now, I have a busy agenda today, so if you—”
“Actually”—he grinned, and that really was a crime against women—“I do have something
that belongs to you. Two things, really.”
She frowned. Heat drenched her and her cheeks began to burn as he tugged on a small
swatch of green silk showing just above his front jeans pocket. The bastard
did
have her thong.
“But I’m only giving one back.” He left the silk where it was ashe reached into his shirt pocket with his other hand. The pin reflected the sunlight
pouring through the front windows.
Holding her gaze, he walked toward the counter. Even though she stood behind it, she
felt the need to step back, away from him. It was too easy for her to get lost in
his warm—or perhaps lying—gaze. She resolutely held her
if she wasn’t seeing things at first.
Until he smiled.
Then a rush of heat swept over her, so devastating it threatened to make her knees
buckle.
Elation rose before she could squelch it, followed by intense disappointment, embarrassment…and
a little fear. He’d caught her with her guard down.
And he shouldn’t have been able to find her in the first place.
Old fears tried to swamp her.
After the murders, her grandfather and his lawyer had hidden her identity so well,
not one of the tabloids or the news programs had been able to find her. But that didn’t
mean she didn’t have panic attacks about being found. About having her identity, the
one she’d built around herself, ripped away.
Damn, damn, damn that man.
How the hell had he found her? She’d used her personal credit card to charge the hotel
bill, the card her lawyer had set up so that neither her legal name nor any other
was attached to it.
He’d assured her it was perfectly legal and no one would be able to track her down
through it.
Yet, here stood Joshua Golden.
Had he discovered who she was? Was that why he was here?
Don’t assume anything. He can’t know for sure.
Drawing herself up to her full height, she pushed her unruly hair behind her ears
and stuck out her chin. No way would she let him see how flustered she was. After
a deep breath, she walked to the CD player and turned down the volume. She wouldn’t
turn it off because that would leave a silence to fill. And this was going to be bad
enough.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
She’d meant her tone to be hard, unconcerned. And mentally smacked herself when it
came out breathless.
That smile of his pumped her blood pressure even higher.
“I have something of yours.” His strong voice conquered the music and his smile had
disappeared. Staring straight into her eyes, his intensity shuddered through her like
an electric shock to her system.
She swallowed and wet her lips before attempting to speak again. His gaze burned as
it followed her tongue’s path.
“You have nothing I want,” she answered, proud of her now-steady voice.
That made his lips quirk at the corners in a staggeringly handsome way. God, the man
was too good-looking for her peace of mind. He had to go. Before she—
No, he just had to go.
“I thought I’d made it perfectly clear that I had no wish to see you again. In fact,
I never gave you my name.”
Jared just smiled. “I know that. But I’m happy to report that I have a friend who’s
a pretty decent investigator. You’d told me you were an antiques dealer so it became
a process of elimination. Next time, maybe you want to pick Mary or Kathy. Belle was
just too close to Annabelle.”
Okay. She could deal with this. She could deal with him knowing her name as Annabelle
Elder.
What she couldn’t deal with was his presence here. In her shop. Her world.
With what she hoped was just enough haughty disdain, she lifted her chin and prepared
to brazen it out. “If I ever decide to go incognito to another party, I’ll remember
that. Now, I have a busy agenda today, so if you—”
“Actually”—he grinned, and that really was a crime against women—“I do have something
that belongs to you. Two things, really.”
She frowned. Heat drenched her and her cheeks began to burn as he tugged on a small
swatch of green silk showing just above his front jeans pocket. The bastard
did
have her thong.
“But I’m only giving one back.” He left the silk where it was ashe reached into his shirt pocket with his other hand. The pin reflected the sunlight
pouring through the front windows.
Holding her gaze, he walked toward the counter. Even though she stood behind it, she
felt the need to step back, away from him. It was too easy for her to get lost in
his warm—or perhaps lying—gaze. She resolutely held her
Similar Books
