Heart of Ice by Diana Palmer Read Free Book Online Page A

and find the friend you spent the night with?” she retorted hotly.
    His eyebrows went up and he grinned. “Did that bother you?”
    She brought her heel down hard on his instep, without warning; and while he was off balance, she slammed the door and locked it.
    “Kati!” he growled furiously.
    “Go ahead, break it down!” she dared him. “I’ll be screaming out the window until the police come!”
    There was a muffled curse; a door opening; Ada’s voice, almost hysterical; and Egan’s, angry but conciliatory. Minutes later, two doors slammed almost simultaneously. With an angry sigh, Kati started stripping off her clothes and heading toward the shower. She was furious enough not to mind that the water was ice-cold.

Chapter Five
    E gan was gone, blessedly, when Kati woke up late the next morning. Jack called to say he was back in town and asked Kati out for dinner. Grateful for the respite, she was waiting for him on pins and needles at six that afternoon.
    Ada had been sympathetic about her brother’s strange behavior, adding that he had a sore foot and it served him right. It was the first time Kati ever heard Ada say anything against Egan.
    “Do you think I’m scandalous?” Kati asked unexpectedly when she and Jack were relaxing over coffee after a satisfying steak.
    He stared at her. “You?”
    “Because I write what I write,” she added. “It’s important.”
    “No, I don’t think you’re scandalous,” he said honestly and smiled. “I think you’re extremely talented, and your books are a joy to read.”
    “You don’t think I lead a wild life?”
    He only laughed. “No, I don’t. What’s wrong? Are you getting unpleasant letters again?”
    “Oh, no. It’s…” She sighed and propped her chin on her hand. “It’s Egan.”
    “Please, don’t spoil a perfect evening,” he said with a restless movement. “He has a glare that could stop a clock.”
    “Tell me about it,” she muttered. “He’s giving me fits about what I write.”
    “Doesn’t he realize the difference between fiction and fact?”
    “Not if he doesn’t want to,” she said with a short laugh. “Egan makes up his rules as he goes along. He’s a law unto himself out West.”
    “I got that idea, all right.” He studied her sad face and reached out impulsively to pat her hand. “He’ll leave after Christmas,” he said bracingly.
    “Roll on, New Year,” she murmured, and sighed as she sipped her coffee.
    They went dancing after dinner, and for a while Kati forgot all her troubles. She drew interested glances in the black dress she was wearing. It had a peasant bodice with a full, swirling skirt, and left her creamy shoulders bare. With her hair in a highcoiffure, and a minimum of makeup, she wore the designer gown with a flair.
    She felt on top of the world, until she went into the apartment and found Egan waiting in the hall.
    “Where’s lover boy?” he asked, glaring past her at the closed door. “Doesn’t he come in for a nightcap?”
    He was wearing a dress shirt rolled up to the elbows and half unbuttoned in front, with his black slacks. Obviously, he hadn’t spent the evening at home, either, and his proprietary air irritated Kati even more. She was still fuming from last night.
    “He doesn’t wear a nightcap,” she said with sweet venom, “and I don’t lend mine.”
    His chin lifted at an arrogant angle and he looked at her long and hard, his dark eyes narrowing on her bare shoulders.
    Self-conscious with him, she hunched her shoulders so that the elastic top came back into place, demurely covering everything south of her collarbone.
    “Shy of me?” he asked quietly, moving forward.
    She felt like running. Where was Ada, for heaven’s sake? She couldn’t get past him to her room to save her life, and she knew it.
    “Where’s Ada?” she asked quickly.
    “In her room, talking to Marshal,” he said. “Why? You’re a big girl, now; you don’t need protecting, do you?”
    Oh, yes, she