Grave Destinations by Lori Sjoberg

Author:Lori Sjoberg [Sjoberg, Lori]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2013-10-29T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

By one o’clock the clouds had cleared, giving sun worshippers a window of opportunity to work on their tans. It didn’t take long before every lounge chair on the deck was occupied, the pool packed with bodies seeking relief from the blazing heat. Skin colors ranged from pasty white to lobster red, from light tan to chocolate brown, and every shade in between. The smells of cocoa butter and chlorine filled the air, while a lazy reggae tune played over the sound system, a catchy rhythm that had Ruby tapping her feet.

Reaching up, she adjusted the strap of her bikini top so the fabric would stop digging into her neck below the choker. Sunbathing wasn’t part of her normal routine. When she swam laps at the gym, she always wore a functional one-piece. After all, she went there to exercise, not primp for attention. Swimming served as a means to maintain muscle tone and physical strength, a cardiovascular workout that kept her body long and lean. And most important of all, it allowed her to eat the things she simply refused to live without. Like Doritos. And brownies. And mint chocolate chip ice cream.

The elderly couple in the neighboring lounge chairs got up, gathered their belongings, and ambled toward the exit. What a relief. Not because she harbored any ill feelings toward old people, but because the woman hadn’t stopped talking about her grandchildren since she’d taken the seat an hour before.

She hoped the next person who sat beside her wouldn’t be so darn chatty. It was hard enough to search the crowd for signs of the demon’s life force without someone chewing your ear off. She’d been at it for more than three hours now, and the constant mental strain was starting to give her a headache. Maybe she’d get lucky, and the demon would be stupid enough to hit on her.

“Working hard?”

Ruby peered up, squinting against the afternoon sun. Under normal circumstances, the sight of Jack Deverell wearing nothing but dark-tinted sunglasses and forest green swim trunks would have set her mouth to watering. Okay, that wasn’t completely accurate.

Under any circumstance it would have made her mouth water, and this time was no exception. All that tanned, finely muscled flesh was enough to tempt a nun. Unfortunately, she had a job to do, so she ignored the flare of lust heating her below the waist. “As a matter of fact, I am.”

“I see,” he said, looking far from convinced. He nodded toward the paperback in her hands. “What are you reading?”

She tilted the cover in his direction.

“Half-naked men?” Jack grinned, the derision obvious in his tone. “Why would you want to read that trash?”

“Have you ever read ‘that trash’?”

“Why would I?”

“Because then you wouldn’t be working under the assumption it’s trash.” Hackles raised, she marked the page and placed the book next to her sandals under the chair. “You know what people say about making assumptions. Or perhaps you’re better acquainted with the one about judging a book by its cover.

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