Read Online Intrusion by Cynthia Justlin - Free Book Online Page B

vision. Stepping over the cushions and a book on molecular properties, she sank to her knees. Shattered glass littered the floor. Beneath a heavy marble bookend a simple silver picture frame lay with a large dent at one of the corners.
    Her mother.
    The photo was the only one Audra owned—and a large shard of glass had lanced her mother’s face. Brushing away the broken fragments, she slid the image free of its frame and clutched it to her chest.
    She bit the inside of her lip to hold back the cry that threatened to erupt from her throat. “Do you think Joe...did he do this?”
    The muscles in Cameron’s face softened, one of his strong hands touched her chin and nudged it up. “I’m sorry, Audra, but I just don’t know.”
    She tightened her mouth at his gentle voice. He treated her with such compassion, as if she could rely on him to solve this mess. Dangerous thinking. Her heart took up a panicked flight and she barely suppressed her legs from following suit.
    He took hold of her shoulders, his grip firm yet tender, and guided her to her feet. His eyes wouldn’t leave hers, and his face grew serious in a way she hadn’t seen before, all rough angles and taut energy.
    If she’d thought her heart was pounding wildly before, it was nothing compared to the way it thumped in her chest now. Fear, longing, anticipation, all of them fought to take root—but she couldn’t let them.
    “We’ll figure out who did this. We have to. My reputation is on the line here, and I’m not going down for this.”
    “You’re not going down for this?” She shrugged out of his hold and moved away from him. “What happened to your liberal use of the word ‘we’?”
    “Audra, that’s not what I meant.”
    He reached for her but she dodged him, scooting around the piles of her trashed stuff and slipping into her bedroom. He didn’t care about helping her. This was all about him. His reputation. His hide.
    Her drawers had been yanked out of her dresser and overturned. Clothes were strewn all over the floor and the mattress had been shoved off the bed. She needed to get changed and get the heck out of here. This place was no longer home to her.
    She drew in a shaky breath and stripped off her suit jacket to reveal the lacy white camisole beneath. “That’s exactly what you meant. Cameron. ”
    And she wasn’t going to stick around and let him use her just so he could keep out of jail.
    “It’s Cam.” He filled her doorway, his gray eyes narrowed. “My mother was the only one who could get away with calling me Cameron, and—” His gaze slid down her body, halting at her breasts before veering back up to her face. “—you sure as hell aren’t her.”
    Her nipples tightened under his stare, and she fought to ignore the clenching low in her belly. “If I was, I’d remind you it’s not polite to use people.” She gripped the edge of the door. “Unless you want to lose your toes, I suggest you step back.”
    He leapt away from the door as she slammed it and clicked the lock. “What—”
    “I’m changing.” She jerked the camisole over her head. “And you sure as hell haven’t earned a free peepshow.”
    “Are you sure you don’t need any help?” The thick door couldn’t muffle the laughter in his voice. “I don’t mind giving you a hand. And, to set the record straight, I’m not just using you to keep my own ass out of jail. Although it is rather precious to me.”
    A smile escaped her mouth and she forced her lips back into a line. Yeah, he had a great sense of humor. Sure, his voice alone could melt the ice around her heart, not to mention the warmth of his touch. But that didn’t make him someone she could put her faith in.
    She stepped out of her wrinkled slacks and tossed them over the ripped up mattress. “How do I know I can trust you?”
    “Look, the cops would like nothing better than to get this case off their backs by pinning it on you and me. And once they catch us and put us safely in