Hear No Evil Read Free Page B

said. “She’ll probably raise hell. She usually does. Pay her no mind.”
    He had misgivings, but he said nothing. “When you go home,” she said, “I want you to unplug my business phone line.”
    Owen nodded. “I’ll do it.”
    “And don’t let Peyton in my office,” ordered Jessie. “She’s too curious by a damn sight.”
    “I’ll lock the door.”
    “Have you seen that new doctor?” Jessie demanded. “He come walking in here with a can of RC Cola in his hand, wearing jeans. He looks twelve years old. He asked me about my
ovaries
. I said, ‘You tend my leg, not my private parts.’ ”
    Owen patted Jessie’s thick hand. “Be nice. Maybe they’ll give you time off for good behavior.”
    Jessie’s expression changed. She gave him a waryglance. “It’s good of you to watch out for Peyton. I know it’s hard for you. That you don’t take to children.”
    He shrugged one shoulder. “It’s not for long. Your granddaughter’ll be here soon. She’ll take care of everything.”
    Jessie crossed her arms. She gave him a curt nod. “She better,” she said, a hard glint in her eye.

TWO

    E DEN’S COMMUTER FLIGHT TO E NDOR WAS NOT ONLY late, it hit turbulence, which soon mixed with a witch’s brew of lightning and violent rain.
    The plane made a particularly nasty lurch, and the woman behind Eden started to weep, plea-bargaining with God. Eden hung on to the arms of her seat, gritting her teeth and vowing to be brave. She sang under her breath.
    Then a blinding bolt of lightning turned the air of the cabin a crackling blue, thunder shook the fuselage, and she bit her lip so hard it bled.
    Eden crushed a paper airline napkin against her mouth.
No more singin’ in the rain
, she thought miserably and wondered if they all were doomed. But at last, asthe flight approached Endor, the tempest gentled into mere autumn rain.
    The plane landed on a wet black strip that shimmered with rainbow reflections of the airport’s lights. When Eden descended the narrow steps, her knees were still jellied, her stomach still queasy.
    The sky was pitch-black, and the thin, steady rain chilled her as she crossed the tarmac, lugging her carry-on bag. It was three-thirty in the morning, and she felt like very hell.
    She pushed open the glass doors into the terminal and wondered, dimly, if Owen Charteris had kept his promise to meet her. She hoped not; she was in no mood to be grateful.
    But almost immediately she heard a male drawl that she recognized as his. “Miss Storey?”
    She looked up and was taken aback to see a tall, lean man with jutting cheekbones. His hair was thick and silver-gray now instead of brown. He was unsmiling, and a frown line was etched between his dark brows. He was taller than she remembered.
    She was jolted by the surprise that, after all these years, she recognized him: the startling blue eyes, the high-bridged nose, the angular line of his jaw. He’d been a handsome bastard all those years ago; he still was, perhaps even more so.
    “Owen Charteris,” she said numbly, without pleasure.
    “Welcome back to Endor.” His tone sounded sardonic.
    She was too shaken to exchange pleasantries, even false ones, and could think of no reply.
    He said, “Maybe ‘welcome’ is the wrong word.”
    He reached to take her carry-on. She clutched itmore tightly and eyed him suspiciously. “You turned gray,” she accused, as if he’d committed some sort of betrayal.
    What a stupid thing to say
, she thought, but she found herself focusing on his gray hair, as if it were a fascinating illusion. The golden boy had become a silver man, and her words had simply tumbled out.
    A cold smirk flickered at the corner of his mouth. “Thanks for pointing it out. Do you want to give me that bag or do we keep fighting over it?”
    “I can carry it,” she protested, drawing back. It was as if by keeping hold of the bag she could keep a grip on herself as well.
    He shrugged as if he didn’t care. He was dressed