Free Books by Maggie Shayne by Maggie Shayne

two-wheeler and he's ding to show off for you."
    "I'll be there. Just one last report to file. I'd have been home before now, if D.C. hadn't calhxl in sick."
    She'd laughed.
    "Sick, huh? I think he was playing hooky. The boys and I ran into him at the mall today. He was talking to some man with--oh, hey, I'd better go. Someone's at the door. I'll tell you about it later."
    "Give the boys a kiss for me," he'd {old her.
    "If I can get them to come inside long enough," she'd replied, and hung up. And that was it That was all. And apparently she had got tea Josh and Jason to come inside, because they'd died with her in that damned explosion.
    And the pain was his. It was his alone. This job, this mission he was on was for them. He'd avenge their deaths. He'd get it right, this time. And he wasn't sure why, but he felt' certain Alexandra Holt posed a threat to that. Somehow, she'd try to keep him from exacting vengeance. It made no sense, but the knowledge was there, stamped indelibly on his mind. He couldn't let her do that. Could not allow this woman to come between him and his goal.
    He. stepped out of the bathroom, wearing his shorts and nothing else.
    Let her be shocked. Let her throw a prissy little fit and he could despise her for being pretentious and phony.
    But she didn't. She lay on the bed, curled on her side with her back to him. All that glossy hair covering her shoulder, a few curling tendrils reaching out. over the pillow as if in search of something to twist around.
    It damned well wouldn't be him.
    She didn't turn, didn't even move. He figured she must be sleeping.
    He dug the first-aid kit out of the duffel aad taped up his shoulder, though doing so one-handed was awkward and nearly impossible. But he managed. When she didn't stir to offer help, he was sure she was sleeping. She was too softhearted to let him struggle without jumping in like Mary Sunlight to help him. Even if she'd decided to hate his guts, which he dearly hoped she had.
    He ate. But the whole time, the image of her, lying there in the bed wearing his T-shirt now, with her hair spread around l~r like black satin, haunted his mind. She hadn't eaten. Nora bite. And she should have, because she was going to need her energy at its peak for the trip ahead. Either she was too fussy to settle for the rations, or she didn't have any appetite. Probably the latter.
    He ought to wake her and make her eat.
    He didn't.
    And when he'd cleaned his guns and loaded them and run out of things to do, be sat there on his own bed and stared at her.
    Why did he have to end up with a woman who could make a saint have impure thoughts? Why couldn't this job have provided only the usual risks, bullets flying over his head, that kind of thing? Why her?
    Palamaro hadn't been with a woman since Marcy had died. And, frankly, he hadn't wanted to. That part of his soul had died with his family.
    He hadn't been aroused since the night when his life had gone up in smoke, and that was fine with him. He'd planaed to just throw himself body and soul into the job, and hope to God the bad guys would win one of these times. Let them blow him away and put an end to this joke that passed for a life.
    But work hadn't made him forget. And with Doug Stern always watching his every move, x~ever quite believing Torch innocent in the bombing that had killed his family but unable to backup his suspicions, work had become impossible.
    Hell, he couldn't even blame Stern. The bastard had been half in love with Marcy when she and Torch had had to get married. If he hadn't gotten her pregnant, she probably would have ended up married to Stern.
    And maybe she'd still be alive Though he never said it out loud, Stern was a constant reminder of that fact. So Torch had chosen retirement. A life of ~lling time, waiting to waste away. But that hadn't worked out, either.
    He'd entered stage three now, he supposed. He was living for vengeance.
    That was all he can about; There was no room for sympathy or