Flirting With Intent Read Online Free PDF Page A

the start of week three and the ribbed look had faded somewhat but the little cat’s wariness remained. ‘Evening, C.’
    Such a pity cats didn’t talk back.
    ‘I met a man today. A man who saw straight through me, and I through him.’
    The little cat regarded her gravely.
    ‘That’s what I thought,’ murmured Ruby as she knelt, stretched out her hand and managedto touch the little cat’s shoulder with her fingertips before he retreated. ‘Scary stuff, but we managed a respectable distance, of sorts. Eventually. Hey, I got you a present.’ Ruby dug in her grocery bag and drew out a fluffy toy mouse and set it on the floor. The cat disappeared back beneath the lounge. So much for progress.
    ‘All righty then. How about some food?’ Ruby headed for the galley kitchen, switching on lights with her elbow as she went. She fed the cat, set soothing music to playing and put a plate of leftover stir-fried vegetables in the microwave. She poured a glass of white wine and sipped it as she crossed to the window and stared out over the vast and bustling Victoria harbour.
    This job for Russell West had only ever been a stopgap while she recovered from the blow of her father’s deception. She’d made of her duties what she could, and she would
always
be grateful to Russell for giving her safe haven when others had cast her aside, but it was time to move on and Damon’s observations had merely confirmed it. Domestic servitude wasn’t for her. She needed to find something else to do. Start her own business. Study a different type of law. Onenot associated with big business and big money. Something humanitarian.
    ‘What do you think, cat? Would I make a good human rights advocate?’ Sighing, Ruby pulled her headband from her hair and tossed it on the nearby table. ‘No? How about family law? Prenups. Divorce.’ Given her family history she knew plenty about both.
    Damon West had thought her headband ridiculous.
    Damon West had thought a lot of things about her, most of them accurate. Ruby in turn just couldn’t seem to stop thinking about
him.
    Whether those thoughts were accurate was anyone’s guess.
    ‘What do you reckon he is, C? A thief?’
    No answer from the little cat.
    ‘But then, Russell would hardly be proud of a thief. Maybe Damon’s a legitimate thief—moral ambiguity aside. Maybe he works for one of those government agencies no one’s ever heard of. Either way, we don’t want any part of him, right, Cat? We don’t like people who keep secrets. Secrets bite. You’d know all about bites, right?’
    Ruby took another sip of wine, and breathed a lonely sigh. ‘You think I shouldhave encouraged him, don’t you? Used him to get through the Christmas lonelies, and yes, he’d have been perfect for that. Then I could have handed in my notice come New Year and we’d have never had to see each other again. It could’ve worked beautifully.’
    She turned to look at the little cat and the little cat looked back.
    ‘I disagree,’ she said solemnly and hoped like hell that her decision would stick. ‘I’m lonely; Damon’s solitary. There’s a difference.’
    The little cat miaowed and Ruby nodded her agreement. ‘I know,’ she said. ‘It’s a big difference.’
    For once in his life, Damon couldn’t keep his mind on the job. He’d found his way to an internet café in Kowloon and logged on to an unsecured network somewhere in the vicinity. He had his laptop with him, the hardware he’d purchased earlier that day in place, he had need of information and he had the skill required to get it without anyone noticing. The clock said 1:00 a.m. Hong Kong time but he was wide-awake. He knew the codes, most of them anyway. All he had to do was bring up the page and start the run.
    Why then, instead of doing just that, was he sitting there at the shabby, semi-private computer station obsessing over his recent encounters with one Ruby Maguire? Rewriting them in his head so that they played out the way he