down.
“The phone call,” he finally said. “You want to tell me about it?”
Adria studied her coffee as if she expected wisdom to rise with the steam and penetrate the fog in her brain. What was wrong with her? She was thirty-one years old, married and divorced. Certainly well past the age of stuttering and blushing around men.
But it was no wonder he had her all tongue-tied. A man who was only interested in business had no business giving a woman “the look.” He was too in control of every facet of himself not to know what he was doing. Or what effect it had on her.
She wanted to groan in embarrassment. Did he know what she was thinking? Dear Lord. Tony had taunted her too often with herinability to mask her thoughts for her not to be aware of that particular shortcoming. It was still on the long list of things she was trying to change.
Dane’s chair scraped the floor, startling her. He’d shifted closer.
“When did the call come in?”
It wasn’t until she exhaled that she realized she’d been holding her breath. “Two-thirty. I called you right after.”
“And the first call? That came at three?”
Adria silently thanked him for keeping his attention on the notes he was making. “Yes. It was the same whisper. I think it was the same person.”
“What was the message this time?”
She swallowed the fear that knotted in her throat. “ ‘Keep talking and you’ll lose more than your job,’ ” she quoted, not entirely able to keep her voice steady.
“That’s it?”
“Isn’t that enough?” she shot back.
“I didn’t mean to imply it wasn’t,” he said, his manner offhand, as if he didn’t really care one way or the other that she’d been scared out of her wits. He was just an investigator doing his job.
A fact, Adria instructed herself with brutal candor, she’d better get real straight, real fast.
Even if he was being “just an investigator”alone with her in her small kitchen, at three-thirty in the morning.
“I haven’t spoken to Ms. Greene again,” Adria said, “or anyone else from the media. The only person I’ve talked to is you.”
“Do you want to call the police?”
The question took her off guard. What, exactly, had she expected? That Dane was going to protect her from this unseen menace? The answer was painful to admit. That was exactly what she’d been thinking, albeit subconsciously, when she’d called him.
Stupid move, Adria, she admonished herself silently. Haven’t you learned your lesson by now? She’d better hope so. Teachers didn’t come any better than Tony Harris.
“I wasn’t sure if notifying them was a smart idea.” She was glad that this time at least she’d managed to sound calm and in control. Truth was, with some nut out there threatening her, and the Predator sitting at her kitchen table, she felt anything but calm or in control.
“It’s up to you,” he responded. “They can put a tracer on your phone, try to find out where the calls are coming from.”
“And then what?” She went on without waiting for an answer: “I mean, you and I both know the chances of finding the person is small. It’s too easy to call from a pay phone, or a cellular. And besides, I’m not completelysure this person isn’t watching me. If my talking to you or Sarah Greene is making this person nervous, then I don’t want to make a show of having the police trooping in and out of my house.”
“But you called me. Let me come over here.”
He was right. All that had mattered to her was that she’d heard his voice and felt safe. When he’d offered to come over, she hadn’t wanted to say no.
“What makes you think you’re being watched? Have you spotted someone? A car or anything?”
She shook her head. “No. It’s just a … feeling.” What she felt right now was foolish for saying anything. Her tone was a bit on the defensive when she added, “I don’t know, I haven’t seen anyone or anything strange around here. Certainly not
“The phone call,” he finally said. “You want to tell me about it?”
Adria studied her coffee as if she expected wisdom to rise with the steam and penetrate the fog in her brain. What was wrong with her? She was thirty-one years old, married and divorced. Certainly well past the age of stuttering and blushing around men.
But it was no wonder he had her all tongue-tied. A man who was only interested in business had no business giving a woman “the look.” He was too in control of every facet of himself not to know what he was doing. Or what effect it had on her.
She wanted to groan in embarrassment. Did he know what she was thinking? Dear Lord. Tony had taunted her too often with herinability to mask her thoughts for her not to be aware of that particular shortcoming. It was still on the long list of things she was trying to change.
Dane’s chair scraped the floor, startling her. He’d shifted closer.
“When did the call come in?”
It wasn’t until she exhaled that she realized she’d been holding her breath. “Two-thirty. I called you right after.”
“And the first call? That came at three?”
Adria silently thanked him for keeping his attention on the notes he was making. “Yes. It was the same whisper. I think it was the same person.”
“What was the message this time?”
She swallowed the fear that knotted in her throat. “ ‘Keep talking and you’ll lose more than your job,’ ” she quoted, not entirely able to keep her voice steady.
“That’s it?”
“Isn’t that enough?” she shot back.
“I didn’t mean to imply it wasn’t,” he said, his manner offhand, as if he didn’t really care one way or the other that she’d been scared out of her wits. He was just an investigator doing his job.
A fact, Adria instructed herself with brutal candor, she’d better get real straight, real fast.
Even if he was being “just an investigator”alone with her in her small kitchen, at three-thirty in the morning.
“I haven’t spoken to Ms. Greene again,” Adria said, “or anyone else from the media. The only person I’ve talked to is you.”
“Do you want to call the police?”
The question took her off guard. What, exactly, had she expected? That Dane was going to protect her from this unseen menace? The answer was painful to admit. That was exactly what she’d been thinking, albeit subconsciously, when she’d called him.
Stupid move, Adria, she admonished herself silently. Haven’t you learned your lesson by now? She’d better hope so. Teachers didn’t come any better than Tony Harris.
“I wasn’t sure if notifying them was a smart idea.” She was glad that this time at least she’d managed to sound calm and in control. Truth was, with some nut out there threatening her, and the Predator sitting at her kitchen table, she felt anything but calm or in control.
“It’s up to you,” he responded. “They can put a tracer on your phone, try to find out where the calls are coming from.”
“And then what?” She went on without waiting for an answer: “I mean, you and I both know the chances of finding the person is small. It’s too easy to call from a pay phone, or a cellular. And besides, I’m not completelysure this person isn’t watching me. If my talking to you or Sarah Greene is making this person nervous, then I don’t want to make a show of having the police trooping in and out of my house.”
“But you called me. Let me come over here.”
He was right. All that had mattered to her was that she’d heard his voice and felt safe. When he’d offered to come over, she hadn’t wanted to say no.
“What makes you think you’re being watched? Have you spotted someone? A car or anything?”
She shook her head. “No. It’s just a … feeling.” What she felt right now was foolish for saying anything. Her tone was a bit on the defensive when she added, “I don’t know, I haven’t seen anyone or anything strange around here. Certainly not
Similar Books
