A Treasure Worth Seeking by Sandra Brown Read Free Book Online Page B

you might already have been asleep," he said, closing the door behind him.
    "No. I'm tired, but the day has been too tumultuous, I guess. I don't seem to be able to relax." The sight of him hadn't done anything to calm her. If she gave credence to her senses, his presence in the small room had increased her anxiety.
    "Would you like something from the kitchen?"
    "No. Thank you." His civility was as unnerving as his former hostility.
    She watched him warily as he took off the necktie that had been loosely knotted all day. He draped it over the back of a chair. Then he put both his palms to the small of his back and stretched, expanding his chest out in front of him. The play of muscles under his shirt was awesome.
    Finally, he released his breath in a long expulsion of air, and the muscles returned to their normal state.
    "Which blanket do you want?" he asked as he sat down in a deep overstuffed chair. With the toe of one foot, he pushed the heel of his loafer off the other foot.
    Staring at him, disbelieving his intention, Erin stammered, "You can't mean—I—you're not—this is—"
    "Could you be a little more specific, Miss O'Shea?" he asked sardonically.
    His teasing made her furious. "You're not thinking of sleeping in that chair?"
    He looked at the chair he was sitting in as if weighing its merits. "Well, I was planning to. But if you'd rather I join you on the couch—"
    "You stay where you are," she commanded, pointing an imperative finger at him as he moved to get out of the chair. "What are you trying to pull?" she demanded as she stood and took two steps toward him with her balled fists planted on her hips. "You must have a James Bond hang-up, thinking you can bully a woman all day and then seduce her at night. Well, I'm informing you now, Mr.
    Barrett, that unlike those libidinous females in the movies, I can and will resist you."
    "You're making far too much of this, Miss O'Shea," he said quietly and reasonably. Her tirade sounded ridicu-lous. "Rest assured that my reasons for sharing this room with you are strictly professional. Believe me, I'd rather be across the street stretched out on the bed I've been using for the past ten days than sleeping in this chair."
    "I don't require constant surveillance," she flared.
    Again his voice was annoyingly calm. "Probably not, but until I can confirm your identity, you stay under my watch. I wouldn't want to allow a gunrunner or drug dealer to escape into the night."
    "Oh, for Pete's sake!" she groaned, rolling her brown eyes heavenward.
    She flopped down on the couch in irritation and sulked for a moment while he began sorting through the blankets and pillows. His every movement attracted her attention and she couldn't help but stare. If she would admit it, the idea of spending the night in the same room with him was exciting. She wasn't nearly as irritated with him as she was with herself for the outrageous pounding of her heart and the murmurs of arousal that stirred her as never before.
    When he had divided the linens equally, he turned around to face her. Her disparaging expression was well-known to her employees. It usually portended bad news for someone who had made a stupid mistake. "I would like to take a shower."
    "Forget it."
    "I need to go to the bathroom!" she exclaimed.
    "That I'll allow."
    "How kind," she cooed. She pushed past him, picked up her two bags, and marched toward the door. "Lead the way, warden," she said.
    His golden eyebrows lowered menacingly over the
    piercing blue eyes, but he didn't remark as he opened the door and showed her down the dim hallway to a tiny half-bath under the stairwell.
    "Feel free to put on something more comfortable," he said. He was standing close and they were almost in total darkness. Without the benefit of her high-heeled shoes, he loomed over her, and Erin's knees suddenly seemed to lack the strength to support her. They trembled with the exertion.
    In defense of her own uneasiness she said, "You'd like that,