Hiding in the Shadows Read Online Free PDF Page A

she knew it. And as always, she ignored the warning and reached eagerly for what he offered .
    A burst of heat raced through her and her heart began to pound, and when his hands slid down her back to curve over her bottom and hold her even tighter against him—
    Faith woke with a start, shaken yet also exultant.
    There was a man in her life. Or had been.
    She closed her eyes and tried to recapture the image of his face, pleased when it rose easily and vividly in her mind. That gleaming, spun-gold hair, a little longer than the current fashion, even a bit shaggy—and decidedly sexy. Gray eyes steady and intelligent, going silvery with laughter. Firm, humorous mouth, determined jaw. Deep, strong voice.
    And the way he’d looked at her …
    Faith shivered and opened her eyes, realizing that her cheeks were hot and she was smiling helplessly, that the quiver deep inside her was something otherthan fear and panic. She swore she could smell the cologne he used, that pleasant scent mixed with the sharper, clean fragrance of soap.
    Then that sensory memory abandoned her, leaving only his face distinct in her mind. She held on to it—fiercely.
    Her room was quiet but for the murmur of the television, tuned to CNN. She was almost sitting up, the head of the bed raised because she’d been looking through magazines before she’d suddenly fallen asleep. She still did that sometimes, even though it had been almost a week since she’d come out of the coma. Days of painful transition, of moving from a patient who was bedridden and totally dependent on the nursing staff to one slowly and cautiously reclaiming independence.
    Small movements had required a great effort at first, and walking even more so. Her muscles were weak and slow to obey her, though daily physical therapy was gradually changing that. Her blood pressure had stabilized, but her stomach still had trouble with solid foods.
    The removal of the feeding tube had been surprisingly painless and would leave only a tiny scar, but having the catheter taken out had not been pleasant.
    Three days ago she had actually made it into the bathroom on her own, and had spent long minutes staring into the mirror at a face she didn’t know. A thin, pale face, framed by mostly straight, dull red hair that fell just below her shoulders. Her green eyes were very clear and strong, but the remainder of her features struck her as less than memorable. Straight nose, generous mouth, determined chin.
    Some might call her pretty, perhaps.
    She had discovered that she was only a few inches over five feet, very slender, and fine boned. She had small breasts and virtually no hips—minimal curves at best. She thought her legs were okay, or would be once they began to hold her up for more than a few minutes at a time.
    Yesterday morning she had taken a long, luxurious bath, and though a nurse had had to help her dry her hair afterward because she’d used up all her strength, the results had been worth it. She felt much better. As for her hair, the dull red had become a rich auburn, which made her pale face look luminous.
    It was a face, she thought now, that might attract a handsome man with gleaming blond hair. A man with intelligent gray eyes and a way of leveling them when he spoke that said he was accustomed to getting what he wanted.
    What was his name? And if they were so involved that physical intimacy had been very much a part of the relationship, why had he never come to visit her?
    That bothered her. A lot.
    But the flowers from Dinah Leighton continued to arrive once a week, even after her own disappearance. Faith had gotten up the nerve to call the florist and had found that the order had been paid ahead for another week.
    Obviously, no one else cared enough even to acknowledge Faith’s presence in the hospital—or her absence from the life she had led before the accident.
    Where was that blond man?
    How could he be so vivid in her mind—her onlyreal memory—if he had not been a