Intrusion by Arlene Kay Page A

don’t cut it on the mean streets. The only test that counts is survival, and I might fail the course.
    The engine’s roar intensified as someone called my name. A car window rolled down, magnifying the volume. The driver flung the side door open wide.
    “Hurry.” The voice was unmistakable.
    I saw his face, made a choice, and jumped in.
    Lucian Sand saved my life.
    At first I couldn’t speak. Fear, misery or something like it robbed me of my voice. He floored the Porsche, aiming it toward Candy’s building.
    “How’d you find me?” I croaked.
    He calmly shifted into second gear, harnessing the machine’s five hundred horses. “ What, no thank you?” he asked with a grin, “after I just saved your life?”
    “You don’t know that. I was running to avoid the rain.”
    His smile was charming. Cocky, but charming. “You always run barefoot on the streets, Mrs. Buckley? Hard on the toes, no?”
      The man was impossible.
    “OK, you’re right. Did you see who was following me? Was it a man or a woman?”
    He swung into the underground garage adjoining Candy’s building and found a spot.
    “Couldn’t tell. Someone fairly tall, though. Could be male or female.”
    Lucian Sand was no help at all. I unsnapped my seatbelt and opened the door. “Thanks for the ride,” I said. “I’ll be in touch.”
    “Hold on.” He jumped out and locked his car.
    “Where are you going?”
    “With you.” He steadied me as I limped toward the elevator. “Ms. Ott invited me. Unless you object, of course. That’s where I was going when I ran into you.”
    I swallowed my pride and leaned on him as we entered the lobby. It felt good, leaning on someone else for a change. Candy lived on the penthouse floor, a perk that required a special access key. Her doorman recognized me and waved. “Go right on up, Mrs. Buckley. She’s expecting you.”
    Lucian and I retired to opposite ends of the elevator, each of us maintaining a stony silence. Suspicion hitched a ride with us, too. I don’t believe in coincidence, and Professor Sand’s sudden appearance was a big one. Perhaps he had engineered the whole thing. What better way to earn my trust and gratitude?
    “You never answered my question,” I said. “How did you find me?”
    He gave one of those elegant Gallic shrugs accompanied by a raised eyebrow. Like most Americans, I’d never mastered that trick. Tommy looked like Quasimodo when he tried it. Candy never even bothered. Only Kai was up to the task. He’d been the ultimate Francophile, honing his language skills and perfecting that shrug.
    “Never mind,” I said as the door opened.
    Candy was waiting for us, bouncing from one foot to another. She stopped short when she saw me. “Oh, my God! What happened, Betts?” She flung her arms around me in a stranglehold. “You’re wet! And what happened to your shoes?”
    It took her only an instant to size up Lucian Sand. “You must be the professor,” she said, eyes twinkling. “Perhaps I should call you Sir Galahad, since you saved my friend from drowning.”
    He bowed. “At your service, Mademoiselle.
    “That’s not all,” I said. “Someone was following me, I think, until Dr. Sand appeared.”
    Candy blanched. “Oh, no. This is too weird. When you called, I told Rao …”
    Rao ! Where was Arun Rao when I left Sweet Nothings? Candy’s building was so close, only two blocks. Maybe he had decided to surprise me. Thrill me to death.
    “Where are my manners?” Candy said. “Come in. Have a drink.” She herded us into her parlor with a skill reminiscent of Della.
    “Give me some hot tea, if you’ve got it. No caffeine, or I’ll never sleep tonight.”
    Candy grinned at Lucian Sand. “How about you? Tea or something stronger?”
    He turned bright azure eyes on her. “Both, if you please.”
    After lighting the gas fire, Candy bustled off to the kitchen to play hostess while I snuggled under her velvet throw and watched him. Impossibly handsome men have