Read Online Skye Cree 02: The Bones Will Tell by Vickie McKeehan - Free Book Online Page B

lately, no matter what she did, Julie couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that someone had been watching her. For the past couple of weeks she had the nagging suspicion someone followed along behind her wherever she went. Just the other day while she’d picked out vegetables at the marketplace, she’d felt a man standing way too close. And she knew how crazy that sounded. But when she’d gotten home, she’d even thought someone had been inside her bedroom. Her earrings were out of place. Each pair had been lined up in a different but neatly arranged way. Not the messy, unorganized place on the nightstand where she’d left them, but an almost too tidy lineup. Which was ridiculous she thought now, even silly since she’d only been living in Seattle a short time, not long enough to make that many acquaintances. Except for the people she worked with on a daily basis, no one even knew where she lived.
    At the sound of a car engine, Julie tilted her head to listen, once again, on alert. But the noise sounded like Tracy’s VW bug pulling to a stop in the driveway. Julie relaxed again, letting the bubbles and the foam relax her body.
    A few minutes later, Julie heard the sliding glass door open and Tracy joined her outside. She popped her head up to see Tracy carrying two glasses of white wine, one in each hand.
    Julie watched as Tracy handed a goblet out to her and leaned over the steamy tub. “Here you go. Thought you might need a nightcap.”
    “Thanks. Aren’t you getting in?”
    “Nope, I’m having this glass of wine and heading off to bed. Tonight, I plan to get my eight hours of beauty sleep. I don’t have to be at work on Fridays until ten o’clock. Besides, I’ve decided Kyle is a major bore. I’m sending him a text in the morning and dumping his ass.”
    Julie grinned. “What gave it away?”
    “He spent the entire evening tonight talking about how he wanted to move to Alaska. Alaska , Julie. I’m not moving to Alaska.”
    “I should think not. You’ve only known the guy three weeks.”
    “Well. Yeah. But I just spent the entire evening with a freaking windbag who wants to live in a cabin in the woods. That’s his life’s desire. Can you imagine me living in some shack in the woods?”
    Julie snickered and shook her head. “That’s a deal breaker all right. Who do you have lined up?” Julie knew Tracy and knew her roommate would always have a backup. Tracy had to have a guy waiting in the wings or at least somewhere on her radar to even consider breaking up with a man this close to Friday night and the weekend.
    “Oh Alaska is a deal breaker all right,” Tracy sang back in agreement while the two women tapped their glasses in complete unity. “Besides, there’s this hot-looking UPS guy who keeps asking me out. I’ve decided to let him.”
    When Tracy began to shimmy out of her jeans, Julie pointed out, “I thought you weren’t coming in.”
    She shrugged. “I’ve decided life is too short. I can always sleep. I’m gonna soak for a while and then swim a couple of laps. Then I’m texting that hunky UPS man and asking him out for happy hour tomorrow night.”
     

     
    By this time Frank had walked to the alleyway and positioned himself where he could watch Julie and Tracy in the backyard spa. But the adrenaline was already beginning to race through him. It took another twenty minutes before the two women finally decided to crawl out of the water to go inside.
    When they moved to the sliding glass door, Frank took a pair of gloves from his back pocket and slapped them on. He undid the latch on the gate to move in closer all the while keeping his eyes on the back door. He crept closer, so close that he could pick up bits and pieces of their ongoing convo.
    Tracy came back outside to pick up her jeans which she’d left draped on the chair. That made her the last one inside. Frank listened for the lock to flick into place. The women were so deep in conversation that Tracy hadn’t bothered