Read Online One of Those Malibu Nights by Elizabeth Adler - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Elizabeth Adler
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you know?” She glanced inquiringly at them and they both nodded.
“Well, anyway when the divorce comes through I will be the next Mrs. Perrin.” She beamed at them and Sunny thought how attractive she was with her green eyes and wide sexy mouth. No wonder Perrin had fallen for her. Or had he?
“How did you two meet?” she asked, taking a sip of her lemonade.
“On an Internet chat room,” Marisa said, surprising her. “You can go visit people online, ask who they are, what they are, get to know each other before you even meet. I fell in love with Ronnie before I knew who he was,” she added defensively. “The fact that he turned out to be rich was a nice surprise. And Ronnie said the fact that I turned out to be so sexy was a nice surprise too. He loves the Internet, he says you never know who you might meet.”
She shrugged, staring down into her pretty pink drink. “The only thing is we can never be seen in public. We never go out together. I go to his Malibu home—he gave me a key. Or else he comes to my place out in the Valley, the suburbs really, where nobody knows what Ron Perrin looks like anyway. To them he’s just another guy on a nice Harley.”
A Harley girl, Sunny looked interested. “What does he have?”
“Oh, he has a couple, but his favorite is that real old one, not a Harley, the original … what’s it called?”
Sunny drew an envious breath. “The Indian.”
“Yeah, that’s it. A man like Ronnie can have anything he wants. Including women,” Marisa added, a touch bitterly.
“So you were alone at his Malibu house that night?” Mac prompted her.
She nodded, sending the floppy brim of the straw hat fluttering. “It wasn’t quite what it seemed that night though.” She hesitated, a little frown between her brows, obviously thinking. “I wonder, have you met Ronnie’s partner, Sam Demarco?”
“Haven’t had that pleasure.”
“Hmm,” she said, looking doubtful. “Anyway, Demarco told me Ronnie thought he was being followed. He said Ronnie was real worried about it, afraid some nut was going to shoot him, or else it was Allie Ray on the warpath. Or maybe the FBI keeping tabs on him. I asked Ron about it but he shrugged it off. I wanted him to get a bodyguard but he said that would only make him look like a guilty man.”
“And is he? ‘A guilty man’?”
Marisa’s eyes sparked with anger as she glared at Mac. “Why does everybody have to think that just because someone is rich he’s guilty of doing something wrong? It’s just not fair.”
“Okay,” Mac agreed mildly.
Then Marisa stunned them by saying, “Ron likes, kind of to be … dominated, y’know.”
Mac remembered that look in Perrin’s eyes, like a chastisedpuppy. “Okay, so you are the dominatrix, he’s the subject,” he said.
“Kinda like that, yeah,” she admitted. “But I really hate to hurt him y’know, I try to go as easy as I can on him and …”
“Still achieve the end result,” Sunny said helpfully.
Marisa hung her head. “It’s not really my scene,” she said. “But, y’know, like, I’m an actress, I can play any role.”
Watching her, Sunny wondered why, if she was such a good actress, she could tell Marisa was lying.
Marisa took a large gulp of the bitter Campari, shuddering as she swallowed. “I hate this stuff,” she said, “but everybody here drinks it.”
“So what happened that night?” Mac asked.
“Ronnie had a meeting and I was in the house alone. I went upstairs to wait for him. I had the TV on but I could still hear the surf outside the windows. I had a bottle of champagne waiting in the cooler, the way I always did. Then Ronnie called, said he was running late, he’d be back in an hour.
That’s
when I heard the noise downstairs.
“I thought
no
, I’m imagining things, it’s just the waves on the rocks, high tide or something. Anyhow, I turned down the TV and listened. I heard the noise again.
A footstep.”
She shivered. “You know those
“Well, anyway when the divorce comes through I will be the next Mrs. Perrin.” She beamed at them and Sunny thought how attractive she was with her green eyes and wide sexy mouth. No wonder Perrin had fallen for her. Or had he?
“How did you two meet?” she asked, taking a sip of her lemonade.
“On an Internet chat room,” Marisa said, surprising her. “You can go visit people online, ask who they are, what they are, get to know each other before you even meet. I fell in love with Ronnie before I knew who he was,” she added defensively. “The fact that he turned out to be rich was a nice surprise. And Ronnie said the fact that I turned out to be so sexy was a nice surprise too. He loves the Internet, he says you never know who you might meet.”
She shrugged, staring down into her pretty pink drink. “The only thing is we can never be seen in public. We never go out together. I go to his Malibu home—he gave me a key. Or else he comes to my place out in the Valley, the suburbs really, where nobody knows what Ron Perrin looks like anyway. To them he’s just another guy on a nice Harley.”
A Harley girl, Sunny looked interested. “What does he have?”
“Oh, he has a couple, but his favorite is that real old one, not a Harley, the original … what’s it called?”
Sunny drew an envious breath. “The Indian.”
“Yeah, that’s it. A man like Ronnie can have anything he wants. Including women,” Marisa added, a touch bitterly.
“So you were alone at his Malibu house that night?” Mac prompted her.
She nodded, sending the floppy brim of the straw hat fluttering. “It wasn’t quite what it seemed that night though.” She hesitated, a little frown between her brows, obviously thinking. “I wonder, have you met Ronnie’s partner, Sam Demarco?”
“Haven’t had that pleasure.”
“Hmm,” she said, looking doubtful. “Anyway, Demarco told me Ronnie thought he was being followed. He said Ronnie was real worried about it, afraid some nut was going to shoot him, or else it was Allie Ray on the warpath. Or maybe the FBI keeping tabs on him. I asked Ron about it but he shrugged it off. I wanted him to get a bodyguard but he said that would only make him look like a guilty man.”
“And is he? ‘A guilty man’?”
Marisa’s eyes sparked with anger as she glared at Mac. “Why does everybody have to think that just because someone is rich he’s guilty of doing something wrong? It’s just not fair.”
“Okay,” Mac agreed mildly.
Then Marisa stunned them by saying, “Ron likes, kind of to be … dominated, y’know.”
Mac remembered that look in Perrin’s eyes, like a chastisedpuppy. “Okay, so you are the dominatrix, he’s the subject,” he said.
“Kinda like that, yeah,” she admitted. “But I really hate to hurt him y’know, I try to go as easy as I can on him and …”
“Still achieve the end result,” Sunny said helpfully.
Marisa hung her head. “It’s not really my scene,” she said. “But, y’know, like, I’m an actress, I can play any role.”
Watching her, Sunny wondered why, if she was such a good actress, she could tell Marisa was lying.
Marisa took a large gulp of the bitter Campari, shuddering as she swallowed. “I hate this stuff,” she said, “but everybody here drinks it.”
“So what happened that night?” Mac asked.
“Ronnie had a meeting and I was in the house alone. I went upstairs to wait for him. I had the TV on but I could still hear the surf outside the windows. I had a bottle of champagne waiting in the cooler, the way I always did. Then Ronnie called, said he was running late, he’d be back in an hour.
That’s
when I heard the noise downstairs.
“I thought
no
, I’m imagining things, it’s just the waves on the rocks, high tide or something. Anyhow, I turned down the TV and listened. I heard the noise again.
A footstep.”
She shivered. “You know those
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