Under the Boardwalk (A Pajaro Bay Cozy Mystery + Sweet Romance) by Barbara Cool Lee

Author:Barbara Cool Lee [Lee, Barbara Cool]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance
Publisher: Pajaro Bay Publishing
Published: 2014-08-07T04:00:00+00:00

chapter six

Hallie opened her eyes.

The attic bedroom looked the same, the bookshelf with her gray pony on it looked the same, the sun shining through the open window looked the same. If the skin on her neck didn't feel like it was on fire, she might imagine she'd overslept and had been having strange dreams. But she hadn't been dreaming. She touched her neck with a gentle finger. It felt bruised and raw. She lowered her hand to the coverlet.

One other thing in the room was different. In the corner under the low eaves of the attic a man sat slumped in a chair, a phone clutched in his hand like a lifeline. This wasn't the charming prince she'd dreamed about. It wasn't just the gaunt face, gray with fatigue, the dark shadows under the eyes, the exhausted slump of the shoulders that made him different. Even relaxed in sleep his jaw was still tensed, his expression showing none of the warmth she'd grown so used to. The easy assurance that seemed to be the very core of his personality was missing. This man who had joked about the ghosts lurking all around him looked haunted, driven by his ghosts to the very limits of his endurance.

His lids opened and those emerald eyes met hers. He cleared his throat. "Are you ready for some soup?" he asked.

She nodded.

He pulled himself up out of the chair with an obvious effort. "I'll be right back."

She stared at the arched ceiling until he came back. He brought a tray—tomato soup and crackers and a big glass of milk. "It's soup out of a can," he said apologetically.

"It's perfect," she said. Her stomach grumbled its agreement. She sat up in bed and ate, finishing every bit, down to the last cracker. He sat back in his chair in the corner and watched her.

Finally she set the tray aside and smiled at him. "Where's yours? You look like you need breakfast in bed as much as I do."

He shook his head. "I've eaten. Chris and I had pizza last night and leftovers this morning."

"Last night?"

He gave a wan smile. "You've slept for a long time, Hallie. The doctor said that was best."

"The doctor?" She looked around the room. "Dr. Lil was here?"

Kyle nodded. "The doctor and the police, and Chris has been in and out. You gave a statement, well, sort of a statement, to Joe Serrano."

She put her hands to her head. The doctor and the police and Chris.

Vague images came back, of hands carrying her to a car, and voices talking to her. "Somebody brought me here?"

He nodded again. "You were pretty upset, but you calmed down after a bit."

She remembered something more: her voice calling for Kyle, and then his arms around her, and sinking into a blissful sleep safe in his protection. She didn't think that part was a dream. She felt herself blush. "Um, so, I slept for hours, huh? Did I miss anything?"

"Nothing but a couple of cold showers." Her eyes widened.

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