Текст книги "Tall, Dark and Deadly"

Автор книги: Lisa Renee Jones

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Текущая страница: 32 (всего у книги 40 страниц)

Julie watched his emotionless face as he listened, and then said, “I’m still considering it.” He listened a minute longer and then hung up without saying another word.

“Something wrong?” she asked, fairly certain that answer was ‘yes’. Luke might not have reacted to the call, but his lack of reaction in itself was telling.

“That was Elizabeth’s sister,” he surprised her by saying. “She was following up to see if we’d made a decision about helping or not.”

“That was fast,” Julie said. “It’s barely a full day.”

“And she called me, not you.”

“I noticed that,” she said. “Not that she had my number. Makes me wonder if she was using me to get to you.”

“You know what I wonder?” he asked but didn’t wait for a reply. “I wonder how she got my number when it’s a private line I don’t give out freely.”

Chapter Twelve

Monday morning, after Luke insisted on dropping her off, Julie headed up the steps in her office building with her cream colored heels clicking on the pavement. Protective as he was, she should feel suffocated, but she didn’t. Maybe it was how great the weekend with him had been, or maybe it was the nightmares about Elizabeth that continued to haunt her.

She turned to wave to him where he waited by the curb and then headed into the building. With a smile, she refocused on the glass doors, catching a glimpse of herself in a light blue suit dress. The reflection of a man drew her up short.

She froze, then frowned. The image had disappeared. It couldn’t have been who she’d thought it was. It was so ridiculous that she wasn’t even going to let herself finish the thought. She forced herself not to turn around again and to head into the building for fear of alarming Luke, but as she walked across the glossy white lobby floor she was more bothered than not. The thought she didn’t let herself finish came to her mind of its own accord.

The reflection had been of a man who looked just like the stranger from the Chicago hotel, the one from the elevator and the bar. Which again, she thought, was insanity. Julie waved at the security guard sitting at the long black glass panel, and headed for the elevator.

She stepped into the quiet lobby of the law firm she had considered her second home for years. Once she was in the private office area she found her secretary, Gina, already sitting at her desk working.

“Morning,” Gina said, her auburn hair twisted elegantly at her nape, her olive green suit matching her eyes perfectly. “Coffee’s ready. I’ll bring a cup in to you.”

Julie stopped in front of Gina’s desk. She was pretty and efficient, and even played cat sitter for Julie on this last trip, and yet Julie barely knew her. She didn’t let herself get close to people at work. She didn’t let herself get close to anyone but Lauren and...Luke.

“That’s thoughtful,” Julie said. “Thank you. I’m not sure I say that enough.”

Gina blinked and a stunned look slid over her face. “I’ve been bringing you coffee for as long as I’ve been here, and you have, uh, never said anything like that.”

Julie silently replayed Gina’s words in her head. Anything like that. Surely she didn’t mean ‘thank you’. When had she become that uncaring of others? Had she survived this life, this world of divorce, by blocking out the rest of the world to the point she didn’t even behave politely?

“Well,” Julie said slowly. “I should have. I’m really sorry.” Julie left Gina gaping at her, and the reaction twisted her in knots. She wasn’t liking the view of herself from her assistant’s eyes. She’d had to withdraw to survive her career, and it had changed her.

Julie walked into her office without another word. She deposited her briefcase on the credenza and her purse in a drawer before sitting down behind her desk. Dropping her elbows on the flat surface, she let her chin settle on her knuckles.

Julie’s cell phone rang and she answered it without looking at the caller. “Did you read it?”

Spine stiffening, Julie recognized the voice, so like Elizabeth’s, “Diana,” she said surprised, not wanting to say too much, too soon. “I’m working on it but reading someone’s personal journal is rather disconcerting.”

“I know,” she said. “But please read it. There are things in it that will change how you feel about her death, I promise you.”

“Okay, yes.”

“Thank you, Ms. Harrison. Thank you.” She hung up.

Julie looked up to find Gina standing in the doorway. “I didn’t want to interrupt. I have your coffee.”

“Yes please. Thank you.”

Gina set a cup of coffee in front of Julie. “Why are you a paralegal instead of an attorney?” Julie asked her.

Surprise registered in Gina’s expression. “It wasn’t by choice. It just sort of happened.”

Julie’s eyes narrowed. “Meaning?”

“Life, finances, a sick parent. All those things combined kept me from achieving all of my goals.”

Julie’s eyes dropped to her desk. She had worked herself through school, so she understood struggling. She just had never tried to understand Gina’s. Maybe she could help her finish school.

Impulsively, Julie looked at Gina and asked, “Would you like to go to lunch today?”

“Ah,” Gina paused as if she couldn’t figure out how to respond and then suddenly smiled. “Sure.”

“Excellent,” Julie said. “I’m looking forward to it.”

The phone in the lobby buzzed. ”I better get that,” Gina said, and rushed away.

The next few hours went by quickly, and not without a number of distracted thoughts of Luke, and a text message to check on her. She’d liked that message, too, far more than she would have ever expected.

It was close to lunchtime when Gina buzzed Julie’s office again. “Judge Moore is here to see you.”

Julie drew back in surprise. “I wasn’t expecting him, but...yes. Okay. Send him in.”

Dropping her pen onto the desk, Julie leaned back in her chair, resting her elbows on the arms. She had no desire to stand and greet the judge, regardless of the fact he deserved the respect if she was to keep him a courtroom ally.

Her office door opened and Gina poked her head in. Waving the judge forward, she offered him coffee and he refused. Good, Julie thought, he won’t be staying long.

The judge appeared in her doorway. “Julie,” he said with a nod, looking his normal proper self, in a blue suit that was custom-fitted to his trim fifty-something physique, his gray hair neatly trimmed.

“Judge,” she greeted.

Clearly taking the greeting as an invitation, in several long strides, the judge stood in front of Julie’s desk. Usually she would have moved to the conference table in the corner of her room. No doubt, he noticed that today she did no such thing.

He gave her an assessing stare, letting her know that yes he noticed, before sitting in a visitor’s chair.

“I’m sorry about Elizabeth,” she said when he didn’t immediately speak.

His expression was respectfully grim, his eyes surprisingly direct as they met hers. “As am I.”

“I was shocked,” she said, awkwardness expanding in the room.

“Yes,” he agreed. “I was as well. I had no idea she had taken this all so hard.” He sighed. “Obviously, I won’t need your services. That is, unless her family causes trouble over our assets.”

Julie went cold. She had a bad feeling this visit had a hidden purpose. “Do you expect them to?”

He ran his hand over the back of his neck as if all the tension in the room had settled there. “I doubt it, but the quicker I get this behind me the better. It’s hard enough –divorce, that is – without this turn of events.”

How hard was it, she wondered? “I assume there are no documents or will that I need to know about other than what I’m aware of?”

“She had life insurance,” he said. “I have no idea if it was left to me or her sister at this juncture of our relationship.”

“Sister?” Julie asked in a voice that was a bit too high.

“Her twin. Never did like me. She was always trying to get Elizabeth to leave me.”

“Considering that’s what you wanted, I would think you would like her.”

He shrugged. “I preferred to do the leaving on my terms.”

As do most rich men who want to shuffle their assets, but Julie didn’t say that.

He made a disgusted sound. “Believe me, Diana – that’s Elizabeth’s sister – is trouble. She only wanted her to leave me to take my money. If she can get an attorney to take the case, she’ll fight for some of it now. The life insurance won’t be enough for her. She’s a greedy little bitch.” He waved a dismissive hand. “There’s another reason I came by. You’ve handled a number of children’s charity functions and I know they’re dear to your heart. Elizabeth was in charge of a Children’s Cancer Association function tomorrow night and my artwork will be on display. I must admit I wish it wasn’t this week, but it was impossible to cancel with such advanced planning. I’d appreciate it if you would consider playing hostess in her absence.”

She hesitated. Because of the judge’s involvement, she was almost certain she could hear Luke warning her away from the man. But she couldn’t. Not when it came to this. “Of course,” Julie said. “It is, as always, kind of you to show your art for such good causes. Can you send me the details so I know what I need to do?”

“My secretary will email them within the hour,” he said and stood. They said their goodbyes and Julie watched him leave. Why did she feel so out of sorts, like she’d been set up?

She tried to dial Luke, but he didn’t answer. She felt uncomfortable leaving the building today. She didn’t want to cancel lunch with Gina, but maybe they could order in and talk. She headed to the lobby to find out.

“How would you feel about Chinese?” Julie asked Gina as she came up behind her.

Gina jumped. “Oh, you scared me.” She shuffled a few papers and quickly shut a file as she swiveled her chair around to face her boss. “I guess I’m wrapped a little tightly today.”

Julie smiled. “Sorry about that. I don’t blame you for being jumpy. It’s not every day a woman walks into our offices and then dies days later.”

Gina shoved her hair out of her eyes. “I must admit it’s a bit creepy. If I were one of the family members I’d be asking questions about her death.”

“Did you know she had a twin sister?” Julie asked, leaning a hip on the desk, and wondering just what Elizabeth might have chatted about in the lobby the day of her visit.

“Really? I had no idea.”

“Neither did I until she walked up to me at the the funeral,” Julie said. “Talk about making someone jump. It was like seeing a ghost.”

The buzzer on Gina’s desk went off, ringing from the main reception area on the floor above theirs that handled ten attorneys. “There is a man here to see Julie, a Luke Walker. I sent him to your floor a few minutes ago. Sorry. Would have called sooner but I got busy.”

The elevator dinged just beyond the lobby and Julie stood up and smoothed a hand over her dress, willing the butterflies in her stomach that no man had ever given her before, to calm down.

Gina arched a brow. “Someone good, I hope?”

Luke ambled into the room, tall and lean in a pair of black jeans, a black t-shirt and a leather jacket, looking as predatory as a panther on the prowl. The instant his eyes touched Julie, sweeping her from head to toe, it was clear she was that prey.

“Yes,” Gina whispered. “Someone good for sure.”

Yes indeed, Julie thought. She never got over the impact he made on her when he entered a room. “I hope this is a good news visit.” Like Elizabeth wasn’t murdered and all her paranoia wasn’t merited.

“It is if you’re hungry,” he said, giving Gina a polite nod and then fixing Julie with a hot stare from which it was impossible to misread the personal nature of their relationship. “I was hoping to steal you away for lunch.”

Oh how she wanted to have lunch with Luke, or better yet, have Luke for lunch, but she wasn’t going to forget Gina. Not this time. Not again.

“Actually,” she said, hating how hoarse her voice sounded, how easily he affected her, and how good he smelled, ”My assistant, Gina, and I planned to have lunch today.”

“I need to cancel anyway,” Gina said quickly, but she didn’t look at Julie. “I forgot I have to run an errand at lunch.”

“Luke could join us for lunch and then you could run your errand on the way back,” she offered.

Gina gave Julie a smile that didn’t quite meet her eyes. “This is going to take a while,” she said. “It just came up and it’s pretty important. Would you mind if I was a little late returning?”

“No, of course not, there isn’t anything pressing going on today. Maybe tomorrow we could try again. You know, for lunch?”

“Sure,” Gina said and turned back to her desk.

Julie frowned, feeling oddly uneasy with what had just transpired for no identifiable reason other than a shade of guilt because she really wanted to be alone with Luke.

Luke settled his hand on her back. “Can you leave now?”

Julie looked up into his warm brown eyes and almost sighed. Looking into his eyes was like flipping some switch inside her to the on position.

“Yes. Be right back.” She turned, a niggling feeling of unease in her gut she couldn’t put aside, even for the hot man in the lobby. She returned quickly with her coat on and her purse over her shoulder but paused at the door when she found Luke leaning against the wall by Gina’s desk, making small talk. Julie could just see Gina, and she wasn’t making direct eye contact with Luke any more than she had Julie. She seemed nervous, even uncomfortable, under his inspection.

“I’m ready,” Julie said, stepping to his side and then telling Gina, “Just forward the phones upstairs and lock up.” She’d eagerly volunteered to move to a separate floor, leaving some of the firm’s politics behind when space had become an issue for the firm.

The instant Julie and Luke stepped onto the otherwise empty elevator he pulled her close and kissed her, but any thrill she got from it, which was plenty, faded as he warned, “Be careful what you say around her.”

“Why?”

“She hates you and I don’t trust her.”

Julie drew back in shock. “What?”

“It’s in her eyes when she looks at you, and she wouldn’t look me in the eye. I never like that.”

Julie hugged herself, feeling his words like a blade. The elevator dinged and people got in. She stepped away from Luke, to remain professional, and to get some much needed space. She didn’t look at him but she could feel him watching her, willing her to.

“How about the Mexican joint on the corner?” he asked when they stepped into the main lobby.

“Yes, sure,” she said, tying her coat closed.

The wind gusted around them as they headed down the steps, chilly but not freezing, though she was feeling pretty darn cold.

“I upset you,” Luke said as they turned right on the sidewalk.

She cast him a sideways look. “You were just being honest and I prefer honesty, even when it’s hard to swallow.”

They passed a vacant shop, and Luke pulled her into the nook, out of sight, and wrapped her in his powerful arms, the heat of his body seeping into hers.

“I’m sorry,” he said, brushing hair from her face. “I shouldn’t have said that about Gina so abruptly. I’m feeling protective. The Walker men seem to be genetically programmed to get that way with our women.”

“Your women?” she asked, surprised by the comment.

“Yeah,” he said, lowering his mouth, his lips all but brushing hers. “My woman.” He slanted his mouth over hers and claimed it with a hot kiss that stole her breath, before asking, “You got something to say about that?”

“Maybe,” she said.

“Maybe?”

She leaned back, hands on his chest. “This thing with Gina is bothering me, Luke. It’s...I honestly stay so detached at work that I focused on how good she is at her job, not personal likes or dislikes, which suddenly feels very shallow of me.” Just like so many of her clients.

He studied her a long moment. “If anyone understands what it’s like to lock your emotions away so that you get the job done, I do.”

But he’d been a soldier, in war. This wasn’t what a person’s job was supposed to make them. She didn’t recognize herself. She didn’t understand what was happening to her, and she wasn't sure she could with Luke in her life, not when he took it over as he did. Maybe he was even the reason she was such a mess.

“I’m not hungry. I need to get some work done.” She pushed away from him and to her surprise, he let her. Julie walked away from him, feeling alone. Alone was familiar, and she tried to embrace it. Alone meant standing on her own two feet, that she would take actions to protect herself, never getting caught off guard. Alone meant she never had to walk away and be so ridiculously conflicted that she wanted someone – Luke – to pull her back, only to be disappointed when it didn’t happen.

***

Gina ordered a sandwich at the nearby deli and waited patiently at the take out counter. It didn’t surprise her that Julie had backed out of lunch. People like Julie always thought they were above people like her. She didn’t know much about Julie’s past, since Julie didn’t talk to her about anything, but she imagined her boss must have been born with a silver spoon in her mouth. After all, she was extremely young to have achieved such success.

Gina hated her.

If things had been different it would have been her who had such success. The fake niceness Julie had handed out today sickened her. Damn good thing lunch had been cancelled. She wouldn’t want to be sick at the table, and eating with Julie might just have done that to her.

When her food was ready, she accepted her take-out bag. Thoughts of Julie’s demise made her strides towards the door a bit more energetic. Shoving it open, she stepped outside and quickly turned the corner. She came to an abrupt halt as she ran smack into a very hard something.

Her balance faltered and strong hands steadied her. “Easy now, bébé.”

Something about the French accent insinuated itself into her senses like a soft breeze, caressing her nerve endings into awareness. She looked up into sky blue eyes that were alive with interest.

“Sorry about that,” she said.

The man was tall, with brownish blond hair that was a little too long. His body was Adonis-like, his smile sexy as hell. “Perhaps is fate, no?”

She tilted her head. This guy made her heart go pitter patter with a whole new tune. And that accent… “Perhaps, yes.”

He reached his arm overhead flattening his palm on the wall to support his weight. His eyes grazed her lips and lingered before settling back on her eyes. “I am Marco.”

She wet her lips and then offered him her free hand. “I’m Gina.”

He brought her knuckles to his lips and kissed them. ”A pleasure, cherie. I think we should take advantage of this chance meeting. When can I see you again?”

Gina wanted this man. He absolutely made her burn. The gods above seemed to have presented her with her own special sex toy. “Dinner. Tonight. My place.”

He smiled, his eyes reflecting his approval. Her gaze traveled down his body, to his belt, and below. He was hard. She stared a moment, not afraid of the boldness it represented. Then she looked up at him, and smiled her favorite wicked smile. “Tonight indeed. Got a pen? I wouldn’t want you getting lost or anything.”

There was a glint of something she didn’t quite understand in his eyes as he reached forward and ran a finger down her cheek. “I never get lost, so, ma cherie, plan on being found. ” He keyed her address in his cell phone and she sighed as he sauntered away. Once he was out of sight, she headed to her apartment to take her long lunch and break out some sexy lingerie.

***

A half hour after Julie had left Luke on the corner, she sat at her desk, her stomach growling, thumbing through a case file and the silence was deafening to the point of creepy. The creek of the wooden floor in the lobby actually made her jump.

“Hello?”

Julie walked to the lobby to find one of the guys from the mail department who ran errands holding a bag of food. “Ms. Harrison?”

“Ah yes.”

“Got food for you and a note that I put inside the bag.” He set it down on the desk and Julie could see it came from the Mexican restaurant she and Luke had been headed for when she’d left. “Paid in advance including the tip.” He waved and backed away. “Gotta run. More stops.” He took off for the hallways.

Julie’s stomach and her nose applauded the wonderful smells coming from the bag and she quickly went to find the note.

I planned to eat this with you, but Blake called and has something he wants me to see regarding that situation we discussed. I’m not calling because I’m going to pick you up from work and if I call you can tell me not to.

Luke

PS Lock the lobby door.

Julie leaned on the desk. Luke hadn’t let her walk away.