Partner-Protector by Miller Julie

Author:Miller, Julie [Miller, Julie]
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Suspense
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2005-06-23T05:00:00+00:00

“T, LOOK AT THIS.” Kelsey sank down onto the couch in Ulysses Wingate’s office and flipped through more pages in the dusty, leatherbound volume she’d pulled off the bookshelves.

Since he loved a volunteer, Reverend Wingate had been delighted to see Kelsey and her detective friend back on his doorstep. They’d missed the opportunity to serve dinner, but in a big place like this, there was always cleaning to do. The residents who spent the night were responsible for keeping their quarters neat, but there was no staff who went into the offices.

T had been quick to offer their services, and in minutes Ulysses had loaded them up with dust rags, a vacuum and trash bags. He’d left them in his office and gone out to greet and preach to his evening guests.

Turning off the vacuum, T brushed the inevitable dirt off his gray slacks and sat beside her. “Did you find something?”

“It’s last year’s record of overnight guests.”

At T’s request, she wore only one glove, in the hopes that something at the mission would speak to her and point his investigation in a helpful direction. Technically, without a warrant, he couldn’t search through anything except the trash. But she had freer rein to explore. The books on the shelves she’d been dusting had spoken volumes.

“Here.” She turned to one of the last pages in the handwritten log book. Closing her eyes, she laid her fingers on the page and let the sensations wash over her. “There are a lot of sad stories here.”

“I imagine homelessness has its own set of fears and stresses.” She nodded, tuning out the garble of images and emotions, and focusing on the strongest, saddest voice. “You’re on December twenty-fourth.”

T’s announcement startled her. She clenched her fingers back into her fist and opened her eyes. “Is that important?”

“Delilah spent the night at the mission on December twenty-fourth.” T leaned in closer to look over her shoulder and read the list of names on the page. Though the lemony-chemical scent of furniture polish clung to his shirt, Kelsey didn’t mind the way his arm curled behind her back on the couch, or the way his golden scruffed jaw hovered so close to her cheek.

She was overwhelmed by the heat the man generated. Even without touching him, she felt his warmth flowing into her—a pervasive, comforting warmth, almost erotic in the thoroughness with which it moved throughout her body.

“Son of a bitch.”

Kelsey jumped at the curse, the hazy mood of sexual awareness broken by the sudden alertness in his posture. She turned her focus back to the book. “What is it?”

He pointed to an entry. “Sally Lattimer. She was last year’s holiday victim. Spent the night here Christmas Eve.”

“Do you think there’s a pattern?” She shifted the book to his lap and started to rise. “Do you want me to check the others?”

“No. I want to get a warrant, make it official.”

A tug on her hand pulled her back to her seat. It was the hand with the glove, so she shouldn’t have received any sort of image.

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