Guarded by Mary Behre Read Free Book Online Page A

it suddenly got very, very warm in her little office.
    Resisting the temptation to fan herself, Shelley bent over and unlocked Lucy’s cage. Gently, she tugged the sleepy pet from her paisley-green hammock and cuddled her close. Lucy nuzzled Shelley’s neck then sniffed the air.
    “Hello, Lucy,” Dev said, bending over to peer at the ferret more closely.
    Lucy twitched her pink nose.
    Then leapt into the air, claws extended, aiming for Dev’s head.

CHAPTER 3

    S HELLEY WAITED UNTIL Dev started his shower before she spoke to Lucy. The ferret, locked in her cage in the bedroom, had finally settled down. But from the moment she had seen Dev at the clinic, she hated him.
    “What is the matter with you?” Shelley asked, kneeling in front of Lucy’s cage and feeding her special ferret treats in very small pieces. Lucy accepted a treat, nibbled it, then gazed at Shelley. Her beady black eyes sparkled in the afternoon sunshine pouring in through the bedroom window. “He’s a great guy. Why did you attack him at the clinic?”
    It had only been Shelley’s quick reflexes and Dev’s backward jump that kept the ferret from landing on his head. The moment Shelley caught her, she’d shoved Lucy back in her travel cage and hadn’t let her out again until Dev was locked safely in her bathroom.
    “Come on, Lucy. Talk to me.”
    This time, Lucy answered. Sort of. An image of the ferret gnawing on Dev’s ear sprang into Shelley’s mind.
    “Okay,” Shelley said, struggling for patience. “I understand you wanted to bite him, but why? He’s a nice guy, and he came to town to help me.”
    Lucy gobbled the last bit of her treat then went into a weasel war dance. She hopped around, all fours paws leaving the ground. Her back arched and her tailed frizzed. All the time, she maintained eye contact with Shelley. That essential bond that allowed Shelley to read the animal’s thoughts.
    The anxious ferret sent a myriad of images flooding into Shelley’s mind. Some were nonsensical and appeared centered around the steak-bone–shaped food pellets. Others were of Shelley crying after Cam had walked out, six months before their wedding. And then there was a distorted image of Dev’s face. Overblown, like seen through a fishbowl, the black, red, and white image of the man’s face appeared much too close to the ferret, in the most menacing way. As quickly as it appeared, it zapped out and was replaced by food again.
    “You thought he was going to eat you?” Shelley frowned. “Gross. Just because you’re obsessed with sleeping and eating doesn’t mean humans are. I can guarantee you, Dev is a strictly non-ferret-eating kind of guy. Trust me. But what does that have to do with—?” Shelley cut her question short at the sound of the water being shut off. She leaned closer and whispered, “What is wrong with you?”
    Again the image of Shelley crying flashed through her mind. “Do you think Dev is going to hurt me like Cam? Not a chance. No one will ever hurt me like that again. Besides, we’re just friends. Now chill out.”
    Lucy leaped again. A new weasel war dance in motion.
    The bathroom door opened and steam wafted into the bedroom. Lucy ran and dove into the small cardboard box tucked into the right corner of the cage against the wall.
    “How’s she doing?” Dev asked, stepping into the room. Dressed in snug, faded blue jeans and a heather gray sweatshirt that hugged his upper body, the man looked even more delectable than he had in a suit. He shook his head, then brushed the damp strands out of his face. His hair appeared almost brown when wet. And with his feet bare, he looked like a calendar model come to life in her bedroom.
    “Um . . .”
Don’t drool, remember what he asked.
“Lucy?”
    The right side of his mouth kicked up in a half grin. “Yeah.”
    “She’s fine. She’s, uh, napping right now.” Shelley pushed to her feet, facing him. He was clean and smelled wonderful, like Irish soap. She, on the