Shelter Me: A Shelter Novel by Stephanie Tyler Read Free Book Online Page A

about something I couldn't explain beyond a sudden random, bizarre fear of daffodils.
    I waited for the knock on the door, more nervously than I would've liked to be. I tried to wipe that all away and wasn't sure I'd succeeded by the time I met Dan Turner, who in turn gave me the once-over before an almost sheepish smile emerged and he disarmed me with an apology.
    "Sorry—your pictures don't do you justice."
    "Neither do the articles," I informed him with a smile of my own.
    Turner laughed appreciatively. I poured a cup of coffee and held it out to him. "That's great—thanks."
    He didn't look anything like a man I'd associate with insurance agenting. He was tall and bulky, but not enough to look beefy. He reminded me of a boxer. He was good-looking in a rough sort of way, his brown eyes bordering on hazel in the sunlight splashing across my kitchen table where I'd motioned for him to sit.
    "I didn't realize my stolen painting was still such a big deal," I admitted. "Not enough that they'd send someone out personally."
    He nodded, as if he'd heard that before and explained, "Art and antiquities is a big business. Insurance companies take a lot of precautions so they don't take huge losses from theft or fire and especially from fraud, which is what happens in the majority of cases."
    He wasn't telling me anything I didn't know—people did pretend that their priceless paintings had been stolen in order to collect millions…or they tried to, anyway. But that wasn't the case with my painting, so this still didn't make a lot of sense to me. "Was there a problem with any of the other paintings? Because Brayden didn't indicate anything…"
    "Not at all, Ryn. I'm just getting close to tracking down your stolen painting, and I wanted the opportunity to talk to you."
    "It's just that Brayden didn't mention this—"
    Turner interrupted, "I don't have to run everything by him. Not when I'm investigating a painting that no doubt quadrupled in price overnight."
    That last part should've been amazing news, and it was, but it also left me with a sudden pit in my stomach. Nothing in his demeanor changed, but the energy in the room did and I was uneasy again. He'd seemed friendly enough, but my unease was enough to make my inherent suspicions rise up—not having a memory left me open to the possibility that Dan Turner could be an enemy from my past."I think maybe this meeting should happen with Brayden. I'm not sure I can be of any help to you at all."
    He ignored that, pressed on with, "Do you have any theory about who stole your painting?"
    "No."
    "Brayden certainly knew what the value would become," he mused, almost as if he was only speaking to himself.
    "I think it would be best if you spoke with Brayden. I wasn't in New York when the painting was stolen."
    "To your knowledge, did it ever hang in the gallery or was it stolen in transit?"
    "Not in transit," I replied. In truth, I knew exactly when and where but I didn't like fishing expeditions.
    He stared at me, a frank assessment. "I heard there was quite a commotion at the show last night. And that Lucas Caine was in the middle of it all."
    I simply shrugged. "It's a blur."
    "I can imagine, what with it being your first real show." He paused. "Have you had any problems with stalkers?"
    Images of the daffodils flashed before my eyes. "No."
    "Are you sure? Maybe you haven't realized it yet, since you're more like, what did Meghan call you, 'feral Nell'? I guess she meant that you're not used to being out and about."
    Megan's words burned through me the way they had last night. "I live in a doorman building. I'm with Brayden the majority of the time when I go out, so I think I'd notice."
    Turner was looking at the open sketchbook that I'd left on the kitchen counter. He wouldn't know the sketch was Lucas unless he knew about the tattoos. But really, a lot of men had a lot of tattoos.
    He removed all doubt with his next comments. "Nice work. Interesting company you're keeping."
    "Why is