In Her Sights by Keri Ford, Charley Colins Page A

doing.”
    Julia moved in front of her, blocking the evening sun, and
held up two sundresses. “The red one shows off your curves better, but the
periwinkle brings out your eyes.”
    “Have you heard anything I’ve said since we started this
conversation?”
    “I’ve heard you. I think you’re being ridiculous. Clayton’s
attractive. I’ve seen you with far worse.”
    Clayton hadn’t become the best in the security and
investigation business by being stupid, and she had no interest in killing him
to protect her secrets. There was already something happening between them. He
noticed things about her that others didn’t. The circumstances of how they’d
met didn’t help. No. For all of their safety, she would do well to keep her
distance from Clayton Addison. “You do know what he does for a living, right?”
    Julia stepped out on the balcony, lifted on her toes, and
peeked over the edge. As if that would stop anyone from seeing her head stick
up. “I wouldn’t care if he shoveled manure with that body.”
    “You’ll care if you end up in jail.”
    She let out a low hum. “Look at his backside.”
    “I am not hearing this.” Lexie put her hands over her ears.
    “So the red one or the light purple?”
    Lexie shook her head and dropped her arms to cross over her
middle. “What about something in stripes that says Mississippi State Pen across
the back with a number? Because that’s what it’s going to be if he finds me out.”
    Julia laid the dresses over the end of the hammock and turned back inside. “As
fast as you love them and leave them, he won’t be around long enough to find
you out. But the mayor’s thing is soon if you can hold on to him for that long.”
    Since Julia walked back inside, Lexie didn’t respond. She
imagined that when she heard others say Mothers , this was what they
meant.
    “I forgot you had this lovely blue one.” Julia reappeared
with a blue sundress. The one with a low v in the front. She tossed it over the
end of the hammock with the other two. “Any of those will do.”
    “Not as well as the yoga pants and t-shirt I’m already
wearing. I have no plans beyond my hammock.”
    Julia stepped out to the edge of the balcony again and
looked over the backyard. A low whistle sounded out from her. “You would have a
lot of plans if you dated him. Look at those hips when he walks. Noticed them when
he left the house last night too.”
    “You mean after I caught him breaking in and trying to rob
me?”
    Julia gave her a dirty look. “Don’t act like you haven’t
noticed. And don’t hide behind that breaking and entering. You’re not fooling
me. I searched him on the Internet today. Besides, you wouldn’t have him in
your house today, fixing your security , if you were worried about him
robbing you.”
    She put her hands up, rolled off the hammock, and headed to
the bathroom. “The security update was all Uncle Sammy and Uncle Gabe. Take
that up with them.”
    “And the company was whose idea?”
    Theirs, but after thinking it over, it wasn’t such a bad
idea to use Addison’s Security. If she needed to be sneaky and have the system
tweaked to suit her needs, a little dirt on the boss never hurt to get what she
wanted. “You like him, you date him.”
    “Honey, if I was thirty years younger, you wouldn’t have to
tell me. Look at his hands next time. A man with good hands knows how to treat
a woman. I bet you anything—”
    Lexie flipped on the water in the sink and washed her face
to drown out Julia’s insistence before she started taking the advice. Sure, she
had a decent sex life. Casual relationships with men. There was too much of a
risk for anything more. There were only so many headaches she could have to
cover nighttime activities. So many excuses for skipping dinner or missing week-long
trips before they grew tired of it.
    But none of those men she dated made a living from snooping
into other people’s lives. She picked athletes and businessmen for a