Soft focus by Jayne Ann Krentz Read Free Book Online Page A

do that. Think of me as your credit card. You're not leaving home without me."
    He studied her for a moment. "There are some serious logistical problems involved here."
    His air of forced patience set her teeth on edge. "Such as?"
    "Mirror Springs is one of those exclusive little boutique resort towns in the Colorado Rockies. Every hotel and motel in the area has been booked for months for the festival. You won't be able to get a room at this late date."
    "Really?" She smiled blandly. "How did you find a room?"
    He made a casual movement with his hand. "Called a friend of mine who's a vice president with one of the big hotels here in town. He pulled some strings with his second ex-wife. She manages a hotel in Denver. She pulled some strings with the concierge at a place called the Mirror Springs Resort. But even with all that, I had to pay triple the usual rate."
    "I'm sure I can turn up something."
    He gave her a wolfish smile that set all the hairs on the back of her neck on end.
    "If you insist on going to Mirror Springs with me, I might let you talk me into sharing my room," he said much too politely. His eyes gleamed with challenge. "But you'd have to ask real nice."
    "Thanks, but that price is a bit too steep for me." She forced another brittle little smile. "I'm sure I can find something a little less expensive."
    She turned on her heel and walked out the door.
    Oh, now, that was really mature, Elizabeth. You do have a way with men, don't you?
     

CHAPTER FIVE
    Jack heard the soft grunt of breath released, sensed the faint, indescribable disturbance in the air that telegraphed the slashing kick, and glided to the side, turning smoothly away from the blow. The striking foot missed his thigh by inches. If it had landed he would have gone down.
    He whirled, seeking an opening in the split second it would take for his opponent to recover from the move. He caught an arm and drew it toward him, taking advantage of the other's forward momentum.
    His half brother lost his balance, tumbled lightly to the mat, and grimaced. He got to his feet with easy grace and returned Jack's formal bow.
    "That makes three in a row," Larry growled as they walked off the practice floor. "You've been practicing too much lately. No fair."
    It was true, Jack thought. He had been spending a lot of what little spare time he possessed these days here at the dojo. The hard physical and mental exercise provided a badly needed outlet. It wasn't as if he had a lot of other ways to work off the stress. Sex, for example, at least with another consenting adult, was out. He'd been living like a monk for six months.
    "You almost took me down with that last kick," he said.
    "No, I didn't." Larry's dark brows scrunched together. "It's not good for my self-esteem to always lose to my big brother, you know."
    "Is that right?" Jack watched a pair of students working at the other end of the dojo. "Who told you that?"
    "Read it somewhere in a magazine, I think."
    "Larry, I've warned you before about reading those men's magazines."
    "I only read the articles," Larry said piously.
    "That's what worries me."
    Larry grinned. "You think maybe I should concentrate more on the pictures?"
    "Nah. Save your energy. I've tried the pictures. Hard work getting anything of a stimulating nature out of them."
    "Well, they sure as hell won't substitute for a social life, which is what you've been using them for during the past six months."
    "I've been busy." He realized he was feeling defensive. It irritated him to know that he was making excuses.
    He also knew they wouldn't go over. Not with Larry. For all his techie qualities, and they were legion, his half brother had a surprising degree of insight and intuition when it came to people.
    They had been raised apart and they had little in common except a father. Physically they shared very few traits except the color of their eyes. Larry was a couple of inches taller, with light-colored hair and a face that could have come straight