Liar's Moon by Heather Graham Read Free Book Online

mind, she swept her hair off her neck into a neat little chignon and wore three-inch boot heels with a sweeping leather skirt and tailored silk shirt. She chided herself about her attempt at sophistication. After all, it had been her ability to appear mature and sophisticated that had been her original downfall. But she couldn’t help wanting to feel taller. Jamie was tall, and Leif was around six foot three, and somehow his knack for staring down at her was intimidating. Not that she could wear heels high enough to face him eye to eye—she was only five foot four. But any little bit of help seemed warranted here. She was not a child now; she had paid vast dues to become an adult, and she was going to be treated as one.
    Still, her hands grew clammy as she traversed the short distance of hall between her suite and Jamie’s. She took a deep breath before knocking and was still exhaling it when Jamie instantly flung the door open.
    “Wow,” he told her with a flattering appreciation. “You really are a knockout.”
    “Thanks, Jamie.” She gr inned, looking over his silver- buttoned black cavalry jacket, tight black jeans, and head full of gold-blond hair—hair worn a little lon g at the neck, but thick, wavy, and very attractive with his soulful eyes and youth.
    “So are you.”
    He grimaced. “I’m ‘cute.’ You’re beautiful.”
    She inclined her head to him, grinning. “Again, thank you. Have you got coffee in here?”
    “Sure— voila! I ordered everything I could think of because I have no idea what you like. Isn’t that something? You’re my sister, and I don’t know anything about you at all. I mean, are you a vegetarian? A health freak? Do you jog? What’s your sign? Do you use sugar?”
    Tracy started laughing at his rapid fire of questions while he led her to a table elegantly set before the windows of the balcony. He really had ordered everything. There were chafing dishes all over the table and baskets of toast, muffins, hard rolls, and bagels.
    “Jamie—this is wasteful!” she chided him.
    “But I’ m immensely wealthy!” he replied innocently, reaching for a silver coffee urn. “Coffee, madame! See—I don’t even know how you take it!”
    “Black,” Leif replied from behind them before Tracy had a chance to form the word.
    She spun around—defensive already. And then she was annoyed with herself that she could be so quickly unnerved. She would have never imagined that after all this time the mere sound of his voice could cast her into uneasy quivers that swept away all poise and control.
    Get it back, get it back! she warned herself. And she didn’t do badly at all. She glanced briefly at Leif, then smiled at Jamie. “Yes, black, please.”
    She accepted the cup of coffee, nervously aware that Leif was by then right behind her, reaching around her for the coffeepot that Jamie had set down. She didn’t really look at him, but he was next to her, so she was very aware of him. He’d just come from the shower and he smelled wonderfully of soap and after-shave. His dark hair was still damp and very sleek. He seemed exceptionally tall, sinewed, and tan in a yellow polo shirt and dark cords.
    She moved away from him, choosing a chair that looked out over the balcony. He seemed oblivious to her, too, sipping his coffee as he gazed out at the day, then sliding into the chair across from Tracy.
    She felt his eyes on her, and despite her will not to do so, she felt her gaze pulled from the window to meet his.
    She wanted to scream. Instead, she smiled pleasantly and felt all the more uneasy. Last night had been different. He had stared at her, but it had seemed a more natural curiosity. Today it was as if he wondered something, or had a clue to something—something that did not endear her to him in the least. Did he have her on the top of his list of suspects?
    “Gee,” Jamie murmured, interrupting her thoughts. “Just when did you two meet?” he asked innocently.
    Leif arched his