Free Slade's Secret Son by Elizabeth August

country. He does all the Hollywood stars. And it’s not even going to cost me anything. It’s going to be one of those before-and-after bits.”
    With a laugh of pure pleasure, Rachel added, “I’ve even got a booking agent. He specializes in people with unique situations. I’ll bet he could find spots for a female detective. Do you want his name and number?”
    “Thanks, but no thanks.” Lisa mentally crossed Rachel off her list of suspects.
    The woman shrugged and turned her attention to Slade. “I’m sure he could find spots for you.”
    Lisa scowled. The woman was practically drooling. “Thanks, but no thanks for him, as well,” she answered for Slade. Irked by this flash of jealously, she rose. “We need to be going.”
    Following her lead, Slade rose, also. “We appreciate your time.”
    “It’s been my pleasure,” Rachel assured him, her voice near a purr as she rose and accompanied them to the door.
    Again Lisa experienced a jab of jealousy. The temptation to inform Rachel Miller that Slade was her fiancé suddenly surfaced. Claiming Slade for my own would be an act of lunacy , she conceded to herself. He belongs to Claudette and his fear of losing a woman he loves is going to keep him committed to her . The flash of jealousy quelled, she nodded a final goodbye to Rachel and exited the house.
    “And another suspect cleared,” Slade said as they returned to the car. “So who do we check into next?”
    Lisa turned in her seat and pulled a file from the box. “I was working on this one when I was shot.”
    Distracted by his view of her slacks-clad bottom, so nicely rounded and inviting to the touch, Slade barely realized she was talking.
    “Henry Ogden.” Lisa turned, slid back into her seat and opened the folder. “He’s the bridegroom who wanted his fiancée investigated.”
    Silently cursing her stubbornness and his inability to stop lusting after her, Slade jerked his mind back to business.
    “If Isabelle Montgomery found out I was looking into her past and she did have something to hide, she might have wanted me out of the picture.”
    Slade paged through the notes in the folder. “There doesn’t appear to be anything suspicious in here.”
    “No. But that’s just a surface check…education, names and addresses of close family members, job history, any past police record, the kind of stuff you can find with a computer or telephone. In addition, he’d requested a full month’s surveillance and a more in-depth look into her family history with short bios on her mother, father and their parents. I was just getting ready to start on all of that when I got shot and the case got put on hold. At least, as far as I know it did. Could be he found another investigator to take over. I suggested Amy Jacob and her father. We’ve worked together occasionally. But when they came to visit me in the hospital, they said he hadn’t called.”
    “So who do we go see first…the client or the fiancée?”
    “The client. My work is supposed to be confidential.If Isabelle Montgomery doesn’t know she was being investigated, I don’t want her finding out from me.”
    They tracked Henry down at his office. “I’m glad to see you back on your feet,” he said, rising from his desk and rounding it to shake hands with Lisa. Then, extending his hand to Slade, he grinned. “You her bodyguard?”
    “Something like that.”
    It was clear from the change in Henry’s expression that he’d been joking about the bodyguard business. His gaze swung back to Lisa. “I thought the papers said you were shot by accident. That it was that hood that was the real target.”
    “Could be the police were wrong about that,” Slade said.
    Henry’s gaze returned to him and fixed on Slade’s badge. “You’re a Texas Ranger. I’ve always wanted to meet one of you guys. But how’d you get involved?”
    “He’s an old friend,” Lisa said, finding it impossible to refer to Slade as her fiancé. Even “friend”