Read Online For Love or Vengeance by Caridad Piñeiro - Free Book Online Page B

approval. He wondered whether commendation from men was an uncommon thing for her.
    He wanted to make sure she’d get used to it. That maybe the change being drawn out of her from being around him would be a welcome and useful thing for her. A smile blossomed on her face as she seemed to realize it also and she added, “I guess we should get on it then, partner.”
    “For sure, princess,” he answered, the tone teasing. The emphasis on her nickname was decidedly endearing. He was pleasantly pleased when Helene didn’t complain about it.

    Hours later Miguel finally had the name of the cell phone provider and confirmation that the phones were sold in large lots. The carrier’s supervisor said he’d have to check their records to see who the phones had been sold to, but warned him that sometimes their buyers resold the phones in smaller lots to other businesses.
    “We’ll need that information as soon as possible. No later than tomorrow,” Miguel told the supervisor.
    “I’ll get working on it immediately,” the woman replied, and despite the tired tones of her voice, he got the sense she would do as she promised.
    He hung up the phone and met Helene’s gaze. “There’s not much to do now but wait.”
    She peeked at her watch. “It’s past midnight. We probably won’t hear from her again until the morning.”
    “Time to call it a night,” he said, and rose from the table. A stitch in his side made him wince, snaring her attention.
    “You okay?” Her rich manicured brows knitted together as she focused on him, her concern evident.
    “Just a cramp. Happens every now and then.”
    She motioned to his side. “Is that where you were shot?”
    He reached for his papers and began putting them in order, avoiding her question, but she didn’t get the message.
    “So, is it? The shot broke a few ribs?”
    He slammed his files shut, jammed his fists on the table, and reluctantly raised his gaze to hers. “Two ribs. I got off easy.”
    She walked over to him, her gaze never leaving his. When she was barely a foot away, she said, “Why does it bother you that you lived and she died?”
    Her gaze, that amazingly vibrant, nearly fathomless gaze, held no condemnation, only puzzlement. She truly didn’t get it. He wasn’t sure she ever would. He tried to explain because it was important that she understand him. Understand what mattered to him.
    “My job was to protect her,” he finally said through a tightness in his chest that threatened to strangle him.
    To his shock, she reached up and cradled the side of his face. Her palm was smooth. So smooth. So warm and…comforting. He had never expected that a woman as hard as Helene could offer comfort, but there it was, adding yet another intriguing layer to his partner. That sensation coursed through him, freeing up the tension in his chest so he could breathe again.
    “It was her time. Nothing you did could have changed that,” she said with absolute certainty.
    Her words resonated within him, bringing unexpected peace as if she were a priest who had just granted him absolution.
    He brushed his hand against the thick waves of her hair and urged them away from her cheek. Then he dug his fingers into their softness, cupped her jaw, and tracked his thumb along the edge of her mouth.
    “Thank you,” he said, at a loss to find any other words to express what he was feeling. Knowing in his gut that there was only one thing that might.
    He leaned forward until her warm breath spilled against his lips. Her gaze filled with part surprise and part anticipation. A heartbeat later, he allowed insanity to take over.

Chapter Nine
    Helene’s breath became trapped in her chest as Miguel closed the distance between them and covered her mouth with his.
    Craziness , she thought for a millisecond before all that he was—all that goodness and honor and sexiness—made her lose her head. Her supposedly more powerful refined goddess senses didn’t stand a chance against the wonder