Books of a Feather Read Online Free PDF Page A

a long moment of silence during which we spread butter and poured syrup on our waffles, I said, “I had a dream about you and Crane tormenting your teachers at Eton.”
    He chuckled. “I still have those dreams myself. Nightmares, actually.”
    â€œYou seemed really happy to see him.” I studied him, watching as his gaze shifted. I could tell his thoughts were a thousand miles away and I really wanted to know where those memories had taken him. And why they weren’t making him smile.
    We hadn’t talked much last night, since I’d fallen asleep the minute my head hit the pillow. So now I asked, “Why have you never mentioned Crane to me before?”
    He paused to chew a piece of bacon. “To tell the truth, Crane was a part of my past that I never thought I’d visit again.”
    â€œYou make it sound sad. What happened?”
    â€œWe were chums, best pals for years. Then we parted ways and I didn’t see him again for a long while.”
    â€œDid you have a fight?”
    â€œNo, no. We were in the final weeks of school when Cranereceived word that his father had died. The family expected him to come home at once and take over the family business. He was packed and gone almost before I could absorb the news.”
    I leaned an elbow on the table and gazed at him. “That’s really sad.”
    â€œIt was a bit of a shock, but he would’ve left a few weeks later anyway, when school ended.” He sipped his coffee. “Don’t feel badly, love. I’ve seen Crane off and on since then. But it’s been a while since the last time we got together. Almost six years now. And that was under rather shady circumstances, I might add.”
    â€œShady?” I stared at him. “What happened?”
    His lips twisted into a rueful smile. “I can’t go into too much detail, darling, but Crane was instrumental in helping us bring an elusive Middle Eastern prince to justice.”
    My mind reeled at the possibilities, but I knew Derek wouldn’t spill any government secrets, so I moved on. “So you were just kidding when you said you thought Crane would end up in prison.”
    His lips curled in humor. “We always used to wager which one of us would end up on the wrong side of the law.”
    â€œIt looks like you’ve both managed to avoid it.”
    â€œSo far.”
    I had to laugh. Derek was practically the poster boy for honorable behavior.
    After leaving school, Derek had joined the Royal Navy. From there he was recruited to work for MI6, the British equivalent of our CIA, and stayed for ten years before leaving to start his own security firm. Talk about avoiding the wrong side of the law. Derek was so lawful it was scary sometimes.
    I broke off a piece of bacon and popped it into my mouth. “Well, I really like Crane. He seems . . . centered.” I frowned and batted theword away. “Sorry. I sound like my mother. What I mean is, he seems to have a healthy attitude about the world. He didn’t spend a lot of time complaining about anything or competing with you.”
    â€œNo, he never did much of that.” Derek paused to sip his coffee. “He’s always been a stand-up sort of friend. Always there in a pinch if I needed him.”
    I gazed at him for a long moment. They hadn’t seen each other in almost six years and suddenly Crane showed up? Was there something I should know? “Do you need him now, Derek? Is that why he’s here? Is something wrong?”
    Derek reached over and squeezed my hand. “Nothing’s wrong, love. You heard Crane say he’s in town on family business.”
    â€œDo you believe him?”
    It was his turn to frown. “I’ll have to wait and see. I admit I’m concerned about him confronting Bai.”
    â€œMe, too.” I thought about my own family and was thankful we all got along. Derek’s family was the same way. “Will