Free Dead Perfect by Amanda Ashley Page A

coffee she had been drinking, the bacon and eggs she had eaten for breakfast, tastes that he had forgotten long ago.
    With a sigh and a faint smile, he surrendered to the darkness that dragged him down into oblivion.
     
    It was late afternoon when Shannah woke. Returning to the house, she tossed her sunglasses on the table, then sat down and tried to study the list of possible questions Ronan thought she would be asked. It hit her all of a sudden that in just a few weeks, she would be in New York City or Los Angeles pretending to be a successful romance author. People would interview her. She would meet Ronan’s readers. What if she said or did something to embarrass him or his agent or his publisher?
    Why had she ever thought she could pull off such a charade? He needed someone with acting experience, someone outgoing and self-confident. She was shy around strangers, quiet even with her family. She would tell him that she’d changed her mind when she saw him tonight. A glance at the window showed that it was almost dark now. He would be there soon.
    The thought of telling him “no” filled her with apprehension and she decided to put it off as long as possible. Hurrying up to her bedroom, she changed clothes and left the house, determined to eat dinner at a nice restaurant for a change.
    She had just ordered and was sipping a glass of raspberry lemonade when Ronan slid into the chair across the table from her.
    Shannah almost choked on her drink. “What are you doing here?”
    “I thought you might like some company with your dinner.”
    “How did you know where I was?”
    He shrugged. “Does it matter?”
    “Yes, I think it does.” She frowned at him. “And that reminds me, how did you find my apartment the other night?”
    “I followed you home.”
    She shook her head. “No one followed me.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Yes. No…” She frowned. She had been certain that no one had followed her that night, but she could have been mistaken. But he hadn’t followed her tonight. She was sure of that. He hadn’t even been home when she left. “How did you…?”
    “Did you forget you have an appointment tonight?”
    “What? Oh! I did!” she exclaimed. “Are we late?”
    “You have time to have dinner.”
    “Are you sure? I need to change. What should I wear?”
    He shrugged. “Whatever you think best.”
    The waitress brought her dinner a few moments later.
    “Aren’t you going to eat?” Shannah asked.
    “No.”
    She ate quickly, aware of his presence across the table, of the way his dark eyes watched her, like a cat at a mouse hole. She should have told him she had changed her mind when he sat down, she thought, told him she couldn’t pretend to be Eva Black, that there was no way she could remember everything, no way she would ever be able to convince his editor or his readers that she had written all those wonderful books.
    She took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. Maybe she would tell him later, at home. Yes, that might be better, since he was sure to be angry. Best not to cause a scene in a public place. She would tell him on the way to his house. She couldn’t let him spend good money on photographs that would never be used.
    A short time later, he paid the check and they left the restaurant. During the ride home, she tried to rehearse what she would say to him, but she couldn’t seem to form her thoughts coherently, not when he was sitting so close, when she could feel his gaze like a physical caress on her face, when his presence made her heart beat fast.
    Inside the house, she crossed her arms over her breasts and took a deep breath. “Ronan, I’m flattered that you think I could…”
    “Shannah, we don’t have time for that now.” Putting his hands on her shoulders, he turned her toward the staircase. “We’re going to be late as it is.”
    “But I can’t…I’m not…”
    “Later,” he said.
    With a sigh of exasperation, she hurried up the stairs. Fine, it wasn’t