2. Come Be My Love Read Free Page B

tried calling his apartment, but all I could get was his recording machine. I left messages, but there's no way of knowing when he'll get them. I also tried another number he once gave me in case of an emergency, but that didn't get me anywhere."
    "What do you mean?"
    "Oh, I got some sort of answering service. They said they never heard of a Tim Walker. I must have gotten the number wrong or something."
    "So you came here, hoping to find him."
    "Yes."
    "How did you get here?"
    She was quiet for several minutes before she answered in a quiet voice. "I took a bus from Denver, then had a taxi bring me up here."
    "A taxi! We're at least twenty miles out of town."
    ''I know."
    "Don't you think you could tell me what's going on?" he asked. Not only was his curiosity stirred, but he was surprised to discover a feeling of compassion for this woman, who was obviously on edge.
    Brandi replaced her cup on the table with a slight thump and stared at the insistent man across from her. 'Tm trying to get away from some men who are trying to kill me."

Chapter 2

    G reg recognized the distraught expression on Brandi's face. More than one client had come to him for help wearing a similar expression. He also recognized that she needed to talk. Speaking in a soothing tone, he slowly stood and said, "Why don't we take our coffee and sit in front of that gorgeous fire in there? We might as well enjoy it while we talk, don't you think?"
    He picked up both cups and led the way, confident that she would follow him. He placed her cup on the end table by the long, comfortable sofa facing the fireplace. Then he gracefully folded his long legs and sank onto the rug.
    Brandi felt as though she no longer had a will of her own. After a good night's sleep and a decent meal, she was beginning to feel as though she'd just awakened from a nightmare and that none of the strange happenings of the past few days were real. Only the man waiting so patiently for her in front of the fireplace seemed to have any meaning at the moment.
    He wanted her to tell him why she was there. At this point, she hardly knew herself. She had been running away, but she wasn't sure from what. She had been looking for Tim, but she wasn't sure why.
    ''Ahhh," he said, watching her as she slowly followed him into the room. "This is my idea of living. No phones ringing, no demands being made on my time. Just a warm fire—" he waved toward the scene on the other side of the glass "—a picture-perfect scene outside, and someone to talk with."
    Brandi sat down on the sofa and picked up her cup as though it were the only security she had to cling to at the moment.
    "What happened, Brandi, that has frightened you so?" he asked, his voice soft and gentle. It seemed to flow over and around her, soothing her somehow.
    "I live in a rural area, in the foothills," she began, staring down at the coffee in her cup. "I live alone, but it has never bothered me before, living alone. I like the quiet, the solitude, the opportunity to work long, uninterrupted hours."
    "What do you do?"
    Her eyes slowly lifted until they met his. "I make inlaid designs in wood—marquetry. Jewelry boxes, tabletops, room dividers, whatever I think might sell."
    "Sounds interesting."
    "I enjoy it. I spend a lot of time outdoors, looking for some of nature's designs that I can duplicate—" she glanced out the window and nodded "— such as that limb that is almost touching the deck railing."
    Greg glanced where she indicated and saw a branch weighted down with snow. Pine cones hung in a cluster at the end. He had never really noticed the symmetry of such an arrangement before.
    "You must have a special eye for beauty," he admitted with a smile.
    "I love nature. I enjoy each season, and I spend a great deal of my time exploring, snapping pictures, looking for ideas."
    "You seem very content with your choice of a life."
    "I am. At least I was, until I realized how vulnerable I am. I don't have any close neighbors." She turned