Read Online The Darkness Beyond by Alexis Morgan - Free Book Online Page A

discussion about how you should’ve handled this, D.J. For now, if anyone asks, you’re on personal leave.”
    â€œThanks.”
    One of the knots in his gut eased up. That left only the worry about what the fallout would be for Reggie’s brief foray into the Regents’ server, not to mention why she’d been hunting for him. Despite her admission that she’d been out to best him at his own game, he sensed there was more to it than that.
    â€œHow long will you be gone?”
    He’d already decided to stay in Portland for the weekend. Nothing had happened to change that plan, but he decided to build in some leeway for himself. “I should be back by the end of the week at the latest.”
    â€œOkay, but in case you’re not?”
    â€œSend the cavalry.”
    â€œWill do. And, D.J., one more thing.”
    â€œYeah?”
    â€œWhatever this is, I hope you can fix it permanently. We need you back at a hundred percent. The place isn’t the same without you.”
    He had no idea how to react to the concern in his friend’s voice. Normally Devlin yelled; he didn’t coddle.
    â€œI’m trying, Dev. I apologize for running out on you. I promise I’ll explain everything.”
    â€œOkay, but watch your back. If you need to stay away longer, call. You know how Trahern gets when he’s worried. It’s embarrassing when he cries in front of all the guys, and the Others just laugh at him.”
    Another deep voice murmured something obscene in the background. D.J. grinned. It had to be Trahern. Damn, he missed the guys. He was so used to seeing them every day.
    â€œSee you soon, boss.”
    â€œYeah, see that you do.”
    The phone went silent, but even that small connection with his friends had left him feeling energized and ready to face the day. The only question was, what would be the most productive use of his time?
    Now that he had verified that R. Morrison was indeed Reggie, he could dig deeper into her personal business. She’d hate it, but turnabout was fair play. First things first. Shower. Get dressed. Eat breakfast. Then start shoveling.
    His day planned, he grabbed his clean clothes and headed for the bathroom.
    Saturday morning came way too soon. Reggie kicked her legs free of the twisted knot of blankets, the effort leaving her breathing hard and exhausted before she even got up. Not exactly the way she’d planned to start her day.
    Sitting on the edge of the bed, she waited for her head to catch up with her body. Finally, she staggered toward the bathroom hoping a splash of cold water would clear some of the cobwebs. The rest would have to wait until she’d brewed her favorite dark roast.
    Oh, yeah, that would work. Her mind journeyed back to the previous evening and memories of D. J. Clayborne. The trip was a short one because his image had filled her dreams almost from the second she’d crawled into bed to the moment she woke.
    She had no idea where the man was at the moment, but she really hoped he was as thickheaded and grumpy as she was. Luckily she’d set up the coffeepot before turning in for the night. All she had to do was flip a switch and watch the magic elixir drip into the carafe.
    While she waited, she booted up her laptop to check her e-mail. A couple of ads that she deleted. For the moment, she skipped the one from her boss probably asking for an update on her investigation. Finally, there was an odd one at the bottom of the list.
    She filled her favorite oversize mug with coffee and then doctored it with three spoonfuls of sugar and a dollop of real cream. Yeah, another reason she’d have to add a couple of laps to her morning run.
    As she took that first sip of caffeine, her conscience forced her to read Mr. DeLuca’s e-mail. Just as she thought, he wanted to know if she’d made any progress, saying he didn’t mean to pressure her. He was merely curious.
    She could just imagine his