Read Online Innocent Hostage by Vonnie Hughes - Free Book Online Page B

to apologize for…for”—he swallowed—“the ungracious thing I said to Doc Hargreaves. You are my friend, just as much as you’re Kit’s friend. How could we not be friends? You’ve helped us twice now, and you’re a very nice person. It’s just that the police rumor mill—” Running out of steam, he forked his fingers through his hair, then staggered back a step. “Weak as a kitten,” he muttered, leaning against the counter.
“You should be in bed,” Ingrid said. Even as the words left her mouth she felt a slow heat burn its way over her face and down her neck. What a buck stupid thing to say! Just for a second his eyes had flashed grey fire from beneath hooded lids. She shot from majorly embarrassed to smug in five seconds. “Enjoy the ride,” she told herself. “You won’t get another one.”
“I need to find out who attacked me and why. And somehow I have to find bloody Tania,” he muttered. “Until she’s found, I’m the main suspect. Well…in Detective Moffat’s eyes I am.”
“The man’s a dork,” Ingrid said. “I mean, anyone can see…” She trailed off. Let’s not go there, Ingrid. Stop while you’re ahead.
“If I didn’t have Kit I could do some sleuthing on my own—Kit!”
They rushed into the living room.
Kit was stretched out on the sofa, fast asleep.
Ingrid closed her eyes in relief and Breck grinned at her. Lord, he was so sweet when he gave that sexy, quirky smile. Well, perhaps ‘sweet’ wasn’t quite the right word for a toughened cop like Breck Marchant, but there was softness in his eyes when he looked at his son, and that was sweet to see.
He sat down heavily in an armchair beside the sofa.
“Does the wound throb?” she asked. Well, duh. Of course it hurt.
“Not really, but I couldn’t take on a bunch of assassins at the moment.” He leaned back against the chair and closed his eyes, frowning slightly. She wanted to go to him and smooth the frown away, but of course she wouldn’t do any such thing. Anyway, what was this nurturing thing that had suddenly attacked her? She cleared her throat and he opened his eyes again.
“What did you mean when you said you’d do some sleuthing on your own if you had the opportunity? What sort of sleuthing?” she asked.
“I’d like to get into the Kerr house now it’s no longer a crime scene. I want to know what secrets Tania is hiding that got us into this mess.”
Oh, yeah. Tania had many secrets. This straightforward guy sitting here in front of Ingrid wouldn’t have the hope of a snowflake in hell of figuring out what Tania was all about. Sure, he was a good cop and was supposed to know all about clues, but even though he’d been married to her for more than three years, Ingrid doubted Breck understood just how complex Tania was and what she was capable of. Ingrid did. She’d had experience of Tania’s vindictive side.
With Breck Marchant, what you saw was what you got. And that was a damned good thing. Drama queens like Tania caused mayhem wherever they went. They wrecked lives and got away with it. Breck Marchant was the other side of the coin, honest and trustworthy.
But there wasn’t anything Ingrid could do to help him.
She looked at Kit, murmuring in his sleep as he settled into a more comfortable position on the lumpy sofa, his hand curled beneath his chin, and then her eyes swiveled back to Breck Marchant. His head was propped against the chair back and he closed his eyes as he chewed over how to go about investigating the puzzle his life had suddenly become.
Tania had tossed these two guys aside as if they were toys she’d tired of. Tania was the stupidest woman on the planet.
Kit was a sweet kid, and how he’d survived life with Marty and Tania relatively unscathed was a miracle. It was also a testament to Breck Marchant’s influence, whether he knew it or not.
Ingrid smiled. Breck was half-asleep, his head lolling to one side, his hands relaxed and loose in his lap. The wolf and his cub, asleep,