Free That Summer Night (Callaways #6) by Barbara Freethy Page B

the window, she felt a little sad. "It's like he's in prison. The square panes of glass look like bars, don't they? The boy seems trapped."
    Reid frowned at her analysis. "I think you're reading into it, Shayla."
    "Am I? Didn't your parents put a lot of pressure on Robert to succeed?"
    "No more than he put on himself. They did encourage him to be the best, but even if they hadn't, Robert would have done it on his own. He was self-motivated. He'd race home from school to do his homework. He wasn't a prisoner in the house. He could have left. He could have come outside with us. He didn't want to. He always said no when I asked, and after a while, I stopped asking.
    "Well, prisoner or not, it's clear to me that Robert made you the hero of his graphic novel. And your dog," she added.
    "We didn't have a dog. I always wanted one, but we couldn't get one because Robert had allergies."
    She smiled at Reid. "Robert made you a superhero and gave you the dog you always wanted. You've got to like him for that."
    "I don't know if that was Robert's thinking."
    "Well, it makes sense to me."
    "Let's move on." Reid flipped through a couple more pages of Razor and Rocco battling demons, robots, and other supernatural characters, the setting changing from the suburbs to the woods, a lakeside pier, and then the rooftop of a skyscraper.
    "Razor and Rocco certainly get around," she said.
    "Yeah." He paused on a page that brought the story back to suburbia.
    She studied the drawing which showed Rocco in the back of a car, gazing longingly back at someone, the illustrator perhaps. There were two figures in the front seat, and in the distance was what appeared to be a university. "Rocco goes to college, but there's no sign of Razor." She paused, trying to put herself into Robert's head. "It's almost like Rocco is your brother. He's going to college. He's being taken away from his best friend, Razor." She touched Reid's shoulder in excitement. "I get it. Rocco is really Robert. This whole book is about the relationship between you and your brother."
    He stared at her like she'd completely lost her mind. "I don't know…"
    "I'm right, Reid."
    "Now who's being cocky?"
    She shrugged. "I know what I'm good at, and I'm good at figuring things out. Plus, I know Robert, and I'm getting to know you. From what you've told me about your relationship with your brother and your family, it all makes perfect sense."
    "It's possible," he conceded. "But let's bring it back to what's happening now. If you're so smart, tell me why Robert wants this notebook."
    She sighed. "I don't know. Maybe we haven't hit on the right sketch yet. How many more pictures are there?"
    "A lot. Almost every page has been used. My brother certainly spent a lot of time drawing the past few months."
    "This could take some time then."
    "I think so," he agreed.
    She settled back more comfortably on the couch, suddenly feeling incredibly tired. It had been a long day and an even longer week. Reid said something. She couldn't really comprehend the words, but the tenor of his voice was very soothing. Her eyes felt dry and heavy; she she couldn't keep them open for another minute. For the first time in a long time she felt safe.

    * * *
     
    Shayla was asleep, a sweet sexy angel. Reid watched the whisper of breath pass through her parted lips, the sweep of dark lashes that framed her eyes, the soft pink luster of her skin. She'd pulled the band out of her hair when she settled back against the couch, and now her long blonde hair tumbled over her shoulders in silky waves.
    He wanted to run his fingers through her hair, lean over and frame her face with his hands and kiss her until she came awake in his arms.
    But that would be more than selfish, he thought, trying to put on the brakes. Shayla was exhausted. She hadn't slept since she'd gotten back from Colombia, and she needed to rest, to let her mind take a break from all the fear and the worry.
    He suspected that she'd been pushing herself hard