Her Last Chance by Toni Anderson Read Free Book Online

the
corridor, checking the latest bureau mandates pinned neatly to the corkboard
outside the interview room. The door opened and Josephine walked out, closely
followed by Special Agent Walker. She kept her eyes fixed on the floor and
would have marched right past him, except he blocked her way.
    Cold fluorescent light emphasized
the hollows beneath her cheekbones. The blue of her eyes was the only splash of
color in this sterile stretch of corridor. Even though he didn’t trust her, he
was helpless in the face of his fascination for her.
    Nicholl hustled out of the
interview room checking his wristwatch. Seeing Marsh, he slowed down and shot
out a modulated smile.
    “Thanks for the lead, sir.”
    He felt Josephine bristle. Her
childhood scars were more than a lead in a case. Shrugging off the thought and
knowing he might need Nicholl’s help if he wanted an inside track on this
investigation, Marsh shook the man’s hand. Special Agent Walker stood patiently
beside Josephine, resting a proprietary hand on the small of her back.
    Marsh stuck out his hand to Walker,
just to get him to stop touching her.
    “I’ll see Ms. Maxwell home.” Walker
smiled grimly.
    Not in this lifetime. “I’ve
got it covered.” Marsh released the agent’s hand fully expecting Josephine to
argue, but her eyes held only fatigue and defeat. “We’ve got a lot to catch up
on.”
    She flashed a narrowed-eyed scowl
at them both. At least she didn’t look defeated anymore.
    Moving quickly she got into the
elevator. He shoved his arm through the gap to prevent it from closing on him
and followed her inside. Finally they were alone.
    There was an air of fragility about
the normally fierce woman as she leaned against the stainless steel walls, her
finger pressing the button for the ground floor. It shot a little ache into his
chest.
    “What now?” she asked quietly.
    Her hair was caught inside her
battered army jacket. Unable to resist, he slipped his fingers inside her
collar and pulled it free, smoothed the silky silver tresses over the worn
olive canvas. Her lips parted, nostrils flared.
    She felt it too. He could see the
echo of uncertainty reflected deep in her eyes, the dance of awareness that
ignited between them even though they were both exhausted and wary and burnt
from their last encounter. Small white teeth bit pink lips and heat kicked
through his groin like a supernova.
    Too smart to play with the jaws of
a gin-trap, Marsh withdrew his hand. “We go back to your place and I sleep on
the couch.”
    He expected her to argue, but
whatever else she might be, Josephine Maxwell was no fool.
    The delicate skin beneath her eyes
was darkened, but she still managed to look fierce and battle-ready. “Tomorrow
I’ll clear out of town.”
    Her MO was to run. He should have
known that would be her answer and couldn’t explain why it pissed him off so
much. “And leave the UNSUB to kill more innocent women? I figured you were
braver than that, princess.”
    It was a low dig and Josephine
responded by baring her teeth. Something about her had always reminded him of a
wild animal—most dangerous when cornered. “It’s your job to catch the bad guys,
Superman. Why don’t you concentrate on that.”
    There was nothing defeated about
her anymore. This was the grit and balls Josephine he’d gone a few rounds with
in the spring. Theoretically they’d come off even, but he wasn’t so sure. He’d
never recovered, and aside from her encounter with a serial killer, she seemed
fine.
    It pissed him off.
    “He’ll come after you.”
    She narrowed her eyes at him, but
not before he’d seen the terror flash in their depths. Why couldn’t she drop
her guard for once? Why couldn’t he? Marsh crowded her against the elevator
wall conscious of the security camera that monitored every move. He wanted to
kiss her, wanted to keep her wrapped up safe until the danger passed. But
Josephine rarely allowed anyone to sense weakness, certainly never