TouchofTopaz Read Free

They wouldn’t be looking for Topaz anyway. All the
attention would be on her sister. He felt bad for Emerald, but his concern was
for Topaz.
    The judge and jury exited and people began to quickly file
out of the courtroom as the defendant was taken away. John waited patiently for
Topaz and her family to make their way down to the entrance of the room. He
stepped in beside her as soon as they reached him.
    “Ready to go?”
    She shot him an annoyed glare. “I was thinking about having
lunch with my family.”
    He shook his head. “Not a good idea until the trial is
finally over. Better to split up and divide the media’s attention.”
    Aloysius Jewel heard his comment and nodded his agreement.
“He’s right, baby.” He put his arm around Topaz’s shoulders and dropped a quick
kiss on the top of her head. “I’ll take your mother, Emerald can go with
Jackson, Sapphire will go with Jake, and you can slip out with John.”
    Her frustration was palpable. “I’ll be glad when this is
finally over.”
    John caught the subtext. She’d be glad when he was finally
out of her life. Not going to happen. Not until they’d talked. If, after that,
she wanted him gone, he’d go, but not until he tried to talk her into giving
their relationship a chance. They had been together under nothing but stressful
situations. John wanted to be a part of her everyday life when it wasn’t quite
so crazy.
    “Let’s go.” He took her coat from her and held it until she
reluctantly accepted his help in putting it on. He caught a whiff of her subtle
perfume and his fingers brushed against her neck as he fixed her collar. A
delicate shiver went through her, but she squared her shoulders and turned
toward her family. He patiently waited while she hugged and kissed her sisters
and mother. He’d been around the Jewel family long enough to know they never
went anywhere without saying a prolonged goodbye. They were fascinating to
watch and he found himself drawn to their warmth and the obvious love they
shared for one another. He wanted that for himself.
    He glanced toward his brother, but Jake had eyes only for
Sapphire. He stood behind her, his big body blocking her from the view of all
but her family. He understood his brother’s need to protect his woman, and it
went far beyond just doing a job, for both brothers.
    As if sensing someone watching him, Jake turned his head and
met John’s gaze. He inclined his head, but the connection between them was
broken seconds later when Sapphire spoke. Jake leaned down to listen to
whatever she was saying to him.
    He wished his brother luck with her. He’d need it. They both
would. Although, he thought he had it harder than Jake did. Topaz was the
eldest sister and the most stubborn and bossy of the bunch.
    John stood back and kept one eye on Topaz and the other on
the people milling in the hallway. If they stayed here long enough the media
hounds outside might think they’d already sneaked out and disperse. They should
be so lucky. Some of those guys would do just about anything for a story and a
few minutes waiting wouldn’t deter them.
    Topaz finally turned to him, her smile slightly strained.
“I’m ready.”
    He wasn’t sure either of them was ready for what was coming,
but he knew it was what needed to be done. He glanced at her father. “I’ll take
care of her.”
    “I’ll see you this afternoon,” she promised her family.
    John put his hand on the small of her back and led her
toward an elevator at the far end of the corridor. It would take them down to
the basement so they could slip into the parking garage where he’d left the
car.

Chapter Two
     
    John’s hand burned where it rested against the base of her
spine. Topaz had never been so aware of a man’s touch. It frightened her and
made her angry at the same time. What was it about John Knight that drew her
like the clichéd moth to a flame? He was always ordering her around in his
overbearing, arrogant way.
    No, that