Read Online Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult - Free Book Online

don’t mind,” she said. “If you think it will help you—”
    â€œI said no ,” Alex bellowed. His fingers, clenched white around the edge of the table, suddenly relaxed. “Cassie,” he said more softly. “The soda .”
    Cassie pushed back her chair and flew into the kitchen. A dishcloth. She spun around, intuitively opening the cabinet that housed a stack of simple folded cloths. She efficiently mopped up the tiles on the table and then, kneeling between Herb and Alex, she pressed the cloth to the carpet. She scrubbed for a full minute. In fact, she was so intent on cleaning the mess, she didn’t notice the breaking weight of the silence that settled on her shoulders, forcing her to bow her head, preventing her from looking up at Alex.
    â€œThere,” Cassie said to herself, breathless. She rocked back to her heels.
    Alex pulled her up to sit on his lap. “Sorry, Herb,” he said sheepishly. “You know how I get about her.”
    â€œWho wouldn’t?” Herb picked up the second half of his sandwich and began methodically sifting through the corned beef, eliminating every other slice. “Goddamn cholesterol.”
    Cassie watched him pile the meat on the side of his plate. She shifted uncomfortably, feeling Alex’s thighs beneath hers. She realized she was shaking, and almost as quickly, Alex banded his arms around her. “Cold?” he whispered against the curve of her ear, and before she could answer, he tightened his embrace.
    â€œI’m going to fly back to Scotland on Friday,” he said. “I’m taking Cassie with me.”
    â€œYou are?” Cassie said, turning in his arms to stare at him.
    Herb nodded. “UCLA’s giving her a sabbatical?”
    UCLA? Cassie struggled off Alex’s lap. “What does UCLA have to do with it?”
    Herb smiled indulgently. “Alex probably didn’t get around to telling you yet. You teach there.”
    â€œI thought I was an anthropologist.”
    â€œYou are,” Alex said. “You teach anthropology there.” He grinned at her. “Let me see if I’ve got it right this semester—you’re teaching Archaeological Field Training, The Australopithecines, and you’re heading a tutorial for Golden’s course on biology, society, and culture.”
    Cassie rounded on him, furious, her anger eating away at the distance between them and making her forget her quiet role as an observer. How could he have neglected to mention this? She’d told him about the hand she’d found in the library the day before, the first clue to her identity. And at the police station, when he’d confirmed her profession, she’d practically crowed. For someone so concerned with his own career, Alex should have understood. “Why didn’t you tell me this before? I’ve got to call someone there. I might have missed a class. They might have seen the paper—”
    â€œCassie,” Alex said, “calm down. I had Jennifer call to let them know you’re all right and to tell them you’d be taking off sick for a couple of weeks.”
    â€œAnd who the hell is Jennifer ?” Cassie yelled.
    â€œMy assistant ,” Alex said. His voice, low and soothing, ran over her shoulders and her back. He came to stand in front of her, grasping her upper arms and forcing her to look into his eyes. “Take it easy,” he said. “I only want you to get better.”
    â€œI’m fine ,” Cassie exploded. “I’m perfectly fine . I may not be able to remember who I am, Alex, but that doesn’t make me an invalid. I’d probably remember a lot more if you weren’t so intent on making all my decisions for me and—” Suddenly, her words dropped off. Alex’s voice had been soft as rain, and his arms were offered for comfort, but his fingers bit into her skin. Cassie looked down to a spot where a small smear