Hiding Jessica Read Online Free PDF Page B

that made her even more resentful.
    Why did he have to keep staring at her with such all-knowing eyes? Why couldn’t he just do his job and leave her in peace?
    She needed some time to herself, desperately. Some time away from this man. Besides, she had business to attend to.
    Very soon, she promised herself.
    She scanned the file.
    “Jessie McMoran,” she read aloud. “Isn’t that name too close to Jessica?”
    “Has anyone ever called you Jessie?” he quizzed.
    Silently she shook her head.
    “Good,” he told her. “And actually, we didn’t want to change your name too much. It makes slipups less probable. This way, no one can try to trap you by calling you Jessica. Though, by the end of the two weeks, you’ll be polished enough not to automatically respond to anything other than Jessie.”
    She nodded, though her eyes remained critical. “How about Jess? I’m not so sure I like Jessie. No one calls me Jess, either, for that matter.”
    With a shrug of his broad shoulders, Mitch agreed.
    “Saleswoman,” Jessica read under the occupation title. “No,” she said abruptly, “that won’t do. I want to be a schoolteacher.”
    “What?”
    “You heard me. I want to be a schoolteacher.”
    “Sweetheart,” he drawled once more, his voice definitely impatient, “this isn’t fantasy life. You can’t just choose whatever occupation you’ve ever dreamed about. You have to actually do it, which means you have to be qualified. And considering the fact you never went to college, you’re not in the position to be a teacher.”
    “I know this isn’t a fantasy life—that’s exactly my point. Whatever this occupation is, I’ll be living it day in and day out. Which means I want something I would enjoy doing. Schoolteacher. Second grade would be nice. But I’m willing to teach anything in grade school. As for qualifications, I happened to have taken a number of classes by mail during my career.” He nodded, having discovered that himself. “While none of them add up to a degree,” she continued, “I believe that’s beside the point. It doesn’t matter what Jessica Gavornée has, only what Jess McMoran does. I presume that proper credentials will be provided as part of the new ID package.”
    He nodded slowly, reluctant admiration filling him. She certainly caught on to the game quick enough. Still, he wasn’t convinced.
    “But you’ve never actually taught a class,” he pointed out. “And taking classes doesn’t equal teaching classes.”
    “I taught adult literacy,” she responded smoothly, “once a week for two years. While it was more of a one-on-one interaction, it taught me a lot of the principles of teaching. Besides, at the age of twenty-four, people would expect me to be inexperienced.”
    “What if you’re not twenty-four?”
    “Pardon?”
    “Look,” Mitch said, leaning forward in earnest now, “everyone knows you’re in the Witness Protection Program. So they won’t be looking for you. They’ll be looking for someone that fits the general characteristics of you. For example, someone with your height and build. Someone with your mannerisms and your age.”
    There was a long period of silence. She sat there, her blue eyes giving nothing away, as she appeared to be considering what he had said. She shifted once, bringing her hands down to her lap.
    Her hands were trembling—she could feel the tiny tremors—but she didn’t have the concentration just now to make them stop. There were so many things to think about, so many changes to be made if she was going to pull this off. It would be easier to handle if he wouldn’t keep looking at her, easier to take if he would stop leaning forward like that.
    She could see the stubble on his cheeks once more. It would feel rough and raspy to the touch. Really, he had a strong face. As a model, she could appreciate that. The cheekbones were well sculpted, his jaw square. His black eyebrows and black, glossy hair added to his masculinity,