Release by Beth Kery Read Free Book Online Page A

moved restlessly in his sleep and shivered. She lifted the blanket she’d been using and draped it over his long, bent legs and torso, careful not to wake him. She flipped on the gas fireplace, hoping it would warm him.
    She hesitated for a moment by the arm of his chair before she turned away.
    She grabbed her cell phone and headed toward the kitchen. Genevieve hoped her Bujold Designs manager, Marilyn Marks, hadn’t tried to drive downtown from Skokie to open the store. When they’d spoken last evening before Marilyn left, Genevieve had warned her about the predicted snowstorm and made her promise not to come in if conditions got too bad.
    From the looks of things outside the penthouse window, Bujold Designs would likely remain closed this Saturday along with hundreds of other businesses in the city. But Genevieve had no other choice but to go out into the storm.
    Staying here with Sean just wasn’t an option.
    Thinking of Sean made her mind turn guiltily to Jeff. It was ridiculous to feel guilty about anything, of course. Jeff and she hadn’t even slept together yet. It’d been a very loose, casual dating relationship.
    Still, she felt guilty enough that she tried to call him. Relief swept through her when he didn’t pick up. She set down her cell phone on the kitchen counter after she’d left a brief message, and glanced around.
    She needed sustenance before she wandered out into the storm. Sean could sleep a bit longer while she ate, showered, and dressed. She’d wake him before she left so that he could unsecure the door. She’d have to call her mother and let her know she was going to stay with her and her aunt over the weekend.
    Where the hell was she going to stay after that? For a few seconds the image of the flames leaping from the dark outline of the mansard roof of the mansion sprung into her mind’s eye. Sean must have been right. She must have been in shock last night. Because even though she’d kept telling herself she must be upset, she’d felt entirely detached as she’d stood there watching her house burn.
    Watching Max’s house burn.
    It’d been like watching a neighbor’s house go up in flames. She’d been more worried about Jim than anything.
    When had it happened, this feeling of disconnection with that lovely, rambling house? Had she ever felt she belonged there? She felt more at home in her Oak Street boutique and design studio than she had in the mansion.
    Strange to think she’d hardly considered the fact that she was homeless the entire time she’d watched Sean sleeping.
    She was going to have to decide where to live. But first things first. Food and caffeine were required.
    And quickly.
    A few minutes later she’d done a quick survey of what Sean had available in the kitchen and started the coffee. As for food, there wasn’t much, but she did find some bagels in a bakery box in the refrigerator along with a few packages of cream cheese. There were apples in the crisper. When she pulled out a bagel, however, she discovered it was as hard as a hockey puck. She was debating whether or not the bagel would be edible if she toasted it when a phone rang.
    Genevieve started in surprise. It wasn’t her ringtone. In fact, it sounded like a residential phone. She hadn’t realized the penthouse even had a phone. No one had ever stayed here long enough to have a line installed. Apparently Sean had changed that, she thought as she picked up the receiver tucked behind a phone book on the kitchen counter.
    “Hello?”
    “Oh . . . hello. May I speak with Sean, please?” a woman asked.
    Genevieve imagined the blonde who’d worn the handcuffs last night. “He’s sleeping right now. May I leave a message?”
    “No, that’s all right. This is his assistant, Carol. I’ll just try to reach him later. He must have had a late night, huh?” Carol asked dryly.
    “Carol? Carol Fallia?”
    “Yes, who’s this?”
    Genevieve smiled as she clutched the phone to her ear and walked to the corner