Chase by Flora Dain Read Free Book Online Page A

excitement. I can only hope he’s teasing. Finally he drops a kiss on my shoulder and with it another bombshell.
    ‘Now put on something pretty. We’ll have a sexy night out.’
    I fling my arms around his neck. ‘Must we? What happened to our sexy night in? I was looking forward to it.’
    He smiles slowly, his expression dark. ‘Me too. You can’t believe how much. But I feel like showing you off on a dance floor. Plus it’s my cook’s night off. Anyway, you deserve it. Tomorrow we’re invited to a civic reception to welcome the South American delegation to Boston.’
    I laugh and nuzzle his neck. ‘What, this is your revenge on me for causing you all this hassle in the first place?’
    His face grows stern. ‘Nope. This is both a family and a professional duty.’ He kisses me gently, his look hooded. ‘My revenge on you comes later.’
    We agree that first I have to call in at Billy’s tiny apartment to pick up some things for the next two days, since I arrived earlier than planned at his residence and was unaware we’d spend most of it black-tie. My trip across town is swift. I dive into the apartment and snatch up my bag, ready-packed for a wicked weekend but lacking any significant evening wear. I grab my cocktail dress and my newest long gown, drape both over my arm and make for the door. As I glance out of the window I pause a moment.
    There’s a woman standing across the street.
    People wait across streets from places all the time. Nothing special about that.
    I must be getting jumpy. Darnley’s obsession with security rarely gets to me but the thought that our weekend could be derailed this easily makes me nervous. Also, something about this woman is oddly familiar.
I’ve seen her outside the Academy.
And more than once, now I come to think of it. She seems to be staring right at my window. A chill runs through me.
    I slam the door impatiently and head for the stairs. I’m getting as paranoid as Darnley. Then I run back and double-check the lock, race back down to Bullen and try to forget about it.
    Getting ready takes a while because Darley insists on supervising every stage of my dressing and make-up, leaning casually on the dresser in my room and tweaking my nipples to hard pebbles to show under the modest neckline of my semi-respectable, tight-fitting cocktail dress and then scooping it down a little to spoil the effect, modesty-wise, so it ends up showing far more of me than I usually allow.
    I lift my chin, hoping to look unconcerned, until he runs a finger along my lowered neckline and grins, ruining that effect too.
    At last we climb into the car. Tonight the security detail comes with us. Two men sit silently in front, two in another car behind. I gather we’re on the lookout for Cola.
We start out sleek and high-end and work slowly down through the nightspots. But when we finally reach a nightspot popular with the Harvard crowd Darnley squeezes my arm. ‘Hey. Look over there. In the middle of the dance floor.’
    It’s Cola, dancing with abandon. All at once she spots us and bids a hasty farewell to her partner, who disappears into the crowd. She hurries over to greet us, but now I see Darnley tap a message into his phone. As she takes us both by the arm and leads us over to the bar, she chatters eagerly while we order cocktails, and happily settles onto a barstool, like she always hangs around in bars on her own. Darnley remains tight-lipped.
    Soon she sidles up to me. ‘Powder room?’
    We go together, arm-in-arm.
    ‘Having fun?’ I smile at her, puzzled. Her cheeks are flushed, her eyes bright. She’s a world away from the sullen child I met earlier
.
    I search for something to say. Babysitting spoilt rich kids is no way to use up our precious weekends. ‘I hope you enjoyed the play. You’re welcome to sit in any time.’
    She puts her head on one side. ‘Thank you. It’s such a sad story.’ All of a sudden her lip trembles. ‘And please, don’t tell him about me next