Fallen Angels: Beguiled / Wanton / Uncovered. Lori Foster

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СКАЧАТЬ That was almost too funny for words. As she pulled the door shut, she said, “I wouldn’t marry you if you were the last man on earth.”

      And she knew he’d heard her ill-advised words, because his fist thudded against the door.

      Well, that hadn’t gone off quite as planned. Actually, nothing like she’d planned. She’d hoped to seduce him, to regain his interest. She needed his help, his protection, and that was the only way she could think to get it. Sex had been the only thing he’d been interested in before, so it was what she’d planned to offer him now.

      Only it felt as if she was the one seduced. Damn, why did he have to have this effect on her? Her body was still warm and tingling in places she’d all but forgotten about, and all because of a man she thought she’d grown to hate.

      A man who had never affected her so intensely before.

      Damn fickle fate, and whatever magic had made Derek Carter into a man her body desired.

      CHAPTER TWO

      DANE HIT THE DOOR once more for good measure, vexed with himself and the turn of events. Dammit, he hadn’t meant to touch her. He had intended to get close to her, but not that close. He’d wanted to learn about her, to discover any involvement on her part, whether or not she could provide a clue to his brother’s death. But he’d also planned to keep his hands to himself.

      She’d made that impossible.

      He’d wanted her the minute he’d seen her. She was lush and feminine and seemed to exude both determination and vulnerability. He’d also been stunned because Angel Morris looked nothing like the usual polished, poised businesswoman his brother tended to gravitate toward.

      And then she’d demanded he kiss her.

      Without knowing the exact nature of her relationship with Derek, he couldn’t take the chance of turning her away without raising suspicions. And at the moment, given everything that had just transpired, he needed to keep her close, not drive her away.

      He’d suspected she was there for a purpose, but God, he’d never considered a child.

      Stalking across the office, he picked up the phone and punched in a quick series of numbers. His hand shook as he did so, and he cursed again. He could still feel the tingling heat of her on his hand, still pick up the faint hint of her scent lingering in the office. Angel might have been sexually aroused—her first time with him, to hear her tell it—but he felt ready to burst, not only with lust, but with a tumultuous mix of emotions that nearly choked him.

      If not for her injured leg, he had a feeling they’d have both found incredible satisfaction. He’d have taken her and she would have let him. He grunted to himself, disgusted. Making love in his brother’s office, on a damn desk, with a woman he barely knew and whose motives were more than suspicious. His own motives didn’t bear close scrutiny.

      “Sharpe here.”

      “Be ready,” Dane barked, frustrated beyond all measure. “She should be leaving the building any second now.” After receiving Angel’s note, Dane had gone through her file, learning what he could about her, which wasn’t much. When he’d first decided on the tail, he’d been reacting on instinct, his life as a P.I. making decisions almost automatic. Now he was driven by sheer male curiosity, and the possessive need to keep what was his. She had his nephew, and that formed an iron link between them that he wouldn’t allow to be severed.

      “Description?”

      All his agents were very good, but Alec Sharpe, a brooding, almost secretive man of very few words, was the best. Dane trusted him completely.

      “Blond, petite, probably limping a little. Wearing a long wool skirt and a dark coat.”

      “Got it.”

      The line went dead and Dane sighed, putting the phone down. Alec would contact him again using the cell phone once he was sure of his lead. He figured it would take Angel at least a few minutes to maneuver out of the building. If she was parked in the lot, that would take even more time. If she hailed a cab, no telling how long he’d be left waiting.

      Alec knew he was still checking out the circumstances of his brother’s death, but no one else did. So far he’d found only enough to raise his concerns, but not enough to form any conclusions.

      His brother’s home had been discreetly searched, his papers rifled through. And Derek had some unaccounted time logged in his otherwise very orderly date book that made Dane think he’d had meetings best left unnoted.

      Dane settled himself back behind his brother’s desk and began going through the papers and pictures Angel had given him. The first picture of the baby had shaken him and he stared at it again for long moments. It was a photo taken at the hospital of a tiny red-faced newborn that looked almost identical to the twin photos his mother still displayed on her desk. The shape of the head was the same, the soft thatch of dark hair, the nose. He traced the lines of the scrunched-up face and a tiny fist, then smiled, feeling a fullness in his chest.

      The next picture was more recent, and the changes were amazing. As plump as a Thanksgiving turkey, the baby had round rosy cheeks, large dark blue eyes, and an intent expression of disgruntlement that reminded him of Derek. Dane wanted to hold the baby, to touch him, make sure he was real. He was a part of his brother, left behind, and Dane knew without a doubt he’d protect him with his life. He hadn’t even met the baby yet, but already the little fellow had found a permanent place in his heart just by existing.

      Dane turned the picture over and found the words, Grayson Adam Morris. A very recent picture, only a week old. And the name, it was respectable, solid, except that it should have read Carter, not Morris. Dane intended to see to that problem as soon as possible.

      There were also copies of the birth records, and the baby’s footprints, not much bigger than Dane’s nose. He made note of the hospital Angel had gone to, the name of the doctor who’d attended her, and considered his next move. He shook his head, then looked impatiently at the phone. As if he’d willed it, the phone rang and he jerked it up.

      “Yeah?”

      Without preamble, Alec said, “She’s getting on a bus and she has a baby and some tall guy with her.”

      Dane went still, then shot to his feet. The baby had been here with her? “Are you sure it’s a baby?”

      “Bundled up in a blue blanket, cradled in the guy’s arms. I don’t think it’s her groceries.”

      “Who’s the guy? Are you certain he’s with her?”

      “Tall, dark hair, sunglasses. Wearing a leather bomber jacket and worn, ragged jeans. He’s holding her arm, they’re chatting like old friends. You want me to find out?”

      “No.” His hand clenched iron-hard on the phone, and Dane decided he’d figure that one out on his own. “Just concentrate on the woman. You can see if he goes home with her, but other than that, ignore him.”

      “I’m on it. I’ll get in touch when we reach a destination.”

      Again Dane hung up the phone, only this time he used a little more force than necessary. Damn her, had she been lying all along? Why would she bring the baby and a boyfriend with her when she claimed to have missed him—Derek? СКАЧАТЬ