Love Inspired Suspense February 2023--Box Set 1 of 2 by Sarah Varland

Author:Sarah Varland
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2022-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

NINE

“Need any help?”

Brian’s gaze was riveted by Adele as she came down the staircase. She’d put her hair up into a ponytail, revealing the creamy column of her neck. Would her skin be as silky as he imagined?

He averted his eyes from the place where her collarbone peaked out from beneath the sweater she wore and forced himself to focus on the task of cooking. It took a second for his mind to kick into gear.

“You can start toasting and buttering bread,” he said, his voice coming out huskier than he’d have liked. “I’ll make scrambled eggs with arugula, tomatoes and onion.”

“And he’s a gourmet chef, too,” she quipped as she headed to the loaf of bread sitting out on the counter.

“Toaster’s under the cabinet to your left.”

“Perfect.” They worked in silence as they prepared breakfast. When it was ready and the plates set on the dining table, Brian went to the screen door and gave a shout. “Breakfast.”

It didn’t take long for Conlan to join them. The three of them ate and their conversation was light, focused on mundane things like books, television shows and movies. He found it interesting that he and Adele shared many of the same tastes, both liking comedies and dramas that touched on serious issues while Conlan, being at least ten years younger, was more into sci-fi and horror.

After they ate and cleaned up their dishes, Adele asked, “Can we take a walk down to the lake?”

Brian looked at her slip-on black shoes. “Did you bring athletic shoes?”

“I did. I’ll go change.”

Brian watched her run up the stairs. He noticed the younger deputy watching, as well. Jealousy twisted through Brian’s gut, unexpected and unwanted. Still, he couldn’t keep the bite out of his tone. “Have you set up the alarm system?”

Conlan pivoted, his face flushing guiltily. “There’s a lot of access points from the lake. Or on foot, if someone were to park out of view and walk in.” His glance moved to Scout, who lay by the screen door, his head up and ears alert, no doubt hearing the squawks of the wrens who called the lake area home. “It was good thinking to bring a canine along.”

“He’s a good boy and will sound an alarm if anyone gets close to the house.”

“I marked spots for the motion detectors for the front porch and the back, but I need some tools. Also, I was thinking it might be good to do a wider perimeter. Any chance you have any empty soda cans we could string up between the trees?”

Brian nodded, liking the idea. “Old school. Good thinking. I’m sure there are some in the recycle bins in the garage, along with any tools you’ll require.”

Conlan looked pleased at Brian’s praise. “Shouldn’t take me too long to set it all up.”

“We’ll be down at the lake if you need us.”

Adele jogged down the staircase. Not only had she changed out of her dress shoes, but she had exchanged her black slacks and sweater for jeans and a zip-up hoodie in the purple and yellow colors of a popular Texas university.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.