Free In Safe Arms by Lee Christine Page A

beeped again six minutes later, she’d polished off about two thirds of the meal.
    Nate filled two glasses with orange juice, and smiled at her near empty plate. ‘You sure can eat, princess, for someone so small.’
    Right away he knew he’d hit a nerve. She laid down her cutlery and the quick retort he’d been expecting didn’t form on her lips.
    ‘Hey, don’t stop eating because I said that.’ He searched his mind for a light hearted remark that would wipe the uncomfortable expression off her face. ‘I like a woman who can give her food a good nudge — as well as the alcopops.’
    To his surprise, she blushed to the roots of her hair, wouldn’t meet his eyes.
    Okay .
    This was strange.
    So unlike her.
    A troubling thought took root in his mind. Did she have food issues, some kind of eating disorder maybe?
    ‘When I was little, my mother would scold me for eating too much.’ She reached for her glass and took a small sip. ‘She lives by the creed, “You can never be too rich or too slim.”’
    ‘I see.’
    ‘She was paranoid I’d gain a whole lot of weight. Dad didn’t care.’
    Nate gave a slow nod. So that was it.
    No eating disorder.
    Just the product of a mother with high expectations.
    ‘Well you didn’t, and I’m paranoid you’re going to pass out.’
    He watched her take another sip of juice and thought back to the night he’d driven her home. There was no question Marilyn Valenti was a very attractive woman, though a little too over-groomed in his opinion.
    Her daughter was much more natural.
    And a healthy appetite was obviously a sore point between mother and daughter.
    He nodded at the remaining food on Josie’s plate. ‘Come on, eat up, you’re looking better already.’
    Christ , he sounded like a parent, and his feelings for Josie were, well — he wasn’t quite sure what his feelings were, but they sure as hell weren’t fatherly.
    She picked up her cutlery and began squashing peas onto the end of her fork. ‘Since I moved to Pyrmont, I rarely think of those things anymore.’
    Those things? ‘You moved out?’
    ‘Eighteen months ago.’
    A chill slithered down Nate’s spine, and it wasn’t the swig of cold juice he’d just taken. If Josie had been at her place last night, he wouldn’t have known where to find her. She would have made it to the police station, and with daddy’s money and influence, would most likely be winging her way to some exotic safe haven in the northern hemisphere by now.
    Instead, she was in his kitchen, eating a microwave meal, and he was still in with a chance of arresting both Kennett and the overseer.
    They ate the remainder of the meal in silence, then tossed the containers in the bin and stacked the dishwasher.
    ‘I might try and catch up on some sleep,’ she said. ‘Thanks for lunch.’
    She turned away and Nate stood in the kitchen watching her go. Josie was a dark horse, more mature than he’d given her credit for. He could understand now why Allegra Greenwood thought so highly of her. She was quick thinking, brave and feisty, and for that he was grateful. She’d need to be, to get through this. Hell, she’d been straight enough to point out in no uncertain terms that he should get a life.
    Like he needed to be told.
    Nate worked at the table in the living room for most of the afternoon, retrieving data from the biometric thumb drive he’d attached to a magnet and hidden inside the spare wheel of the ute. With its double password, fingerprint scanner and metal anti-tamper waterproof casing, the thumb drive was the best portable storage device on the market, more secure than an easily hackable “storage cloud”.
    While Josie slept, he copied the information onto the electronic notebook he’d taken from the floor safe, and printed out the mountain of information he’d collected.
    He’d shadowed every one of the Altar Boys’ inner circle on more than one occasion, and in the clubhouse, he’d hung with those who suffered loose lips