Free Familiar Strangers by Allie Standifer Page A

jailbreak, and making sure nothing happened to his guest.
    He’d already sent in a request to a friend at the Bureau and was sure, come morning, he’d know everything there was to know about The Bow Tie Strangler and his connection with Regin Neff. Saber Toussaint was one of the best in the business, and the former SEAL would send the information without question.
    All Galen had to do was enjoy the view, keep an eye on Regin, and wait till his pal came through. There were worse ways to spend his time, he thought with a laugh, than sitting on a porch swing with a cold beer looking out over the island. Yes, this wasn’t going to be a problem at all. At least as long as he kept his mind on the job and off Regin’s amazing body. “Yeah, no problem at all.” He muttered to himself. “Just don’t think about her. While I’m at it, might as well stop breathing and grow another head.”
    It was going to be a long night. ****
    Regin’s question, “Damon, you being here doesn’t have anything to do with Shawn Townsend, does it?” rang through him, over and over again. Even with years of self-discipline behind him, it took Damon a moment to control his expression before turning to look at Regin. She was sitting quietly with her feet tucked underneath her and her hands folded against the arm of the lounge chair. Her dark hair was loose and blowing gently in the breeze; her beautiful, mysterious eyes were wary and anxious. He didn’t want to lie to Regin, but she had given him no other choice. Her life was at stake and he was willing to sacrifice anything and anyone to keep her safe.
    He tried to make his voice sound as normal as possible. “What a thing to ask, Duchess!” He laughed, and to his own ears it sounded strained.
    “I wouldn’t have to ask if you didn’t keep avoiding my questions.” She raised her head and stared straight into his eyes, daring him to lie.
    Breaking eye contact with her was difficult, but he did and focused on the ocean just beyond sight but not sound. The rolling waves relaxed him and gave him something to focus on other than the woman sitting so patiently near him. “I’m not avoiding anything, really.”
    “Then why won’t you look at me?”
    He was dead meat. Regin would see the lie in his eyes before the words left his mouth. He needed to find some red herring to distract her, and there were only two things capable of making her jump track, the plight of people she cared about and the mention of her love life. He intended to use both.
    “I know you called him a Neanderthal before, but I was wondering if the situation had improved between you and the local flavor.” He held her gaze until she jumped from the chair and walked to the steps leading toward the beach. She avoided his gaze as he knew she would.
    She didn’t look back at him when she spoke. If he hadn’t been so worried about covering up his own lies, he would have delved deeper into her sudden restlessness. Instead, the situation slipped past without comment.
    “Local flavor, huh?” she repeated. “Somehow I don’t get the feeling he’s a year-rounder here.”
    “What’s makes you say so?” he asked, hoping to expand the topic until she was either satisfied or called it a night.
    She lifted a tanned shoulder, not answering his question but coming up with one of her own. “Why do you care if my interest in him changes? He’s just a strange Cajun man I’ll be working with.”
    He should have known better. Damon slunk further down into the chair thinking it would make a fine bed for the night, because he had an idea Regin was in no way through with her questioning. “I don’t care if your interest is about to change or not. I’ve just never seen you react so strongly with someone you’ve just met. Then you turn around and tell me he’s familiar to you, but you’re afraid of him.” He raised an eyebrow, making his swollen eye smart. “I think there might be something more going on than what you led me to