In the Crossfire (Bloodhaven) Read Online Free PDF

been folded and there’d been a note with Naley’s name on them.
    She headed for the door that separated the garage from the main house. After scanning her prints and retina, she entered the locked entryway within where she keyed in her access code as well as passed the voice recognition system. If an intruder ever managed to get past the first round of security, he or she was guaranteed to be trapped inside the locked entryway until Isobel came to take care of business.
    The second she stepped into the hall, however, she scented the presence of two other people. Naley’s scent, she’d expected. The other gave her pause.
    She recognized that scent. She just hadn’t expected to find it within these walls.
    Isobel entered the living room. Naley was sprawled out on the sofa, tucked beneath an afghan while a movie played on the widescreen. A couple of plates, still bearing crumbs, rested on the coffee table.
    Liam sat in the armchair beside the sofa. His was the other scent Isobel had detected, a masculine sun-roasted cedar that was uniquely his.
    This was the first time he’d ever entered her domain.
    His eyes were already on her, immediately aware of her presence even though she hadn’t made a sound. He unfolded his tall frame from his seat and stood up to face her.
    Isobel removed her leather gloves with her teeth, never taking her eyes off him. Liam met her gaze squarely. Then a quick flicker, and his eyes fixed on a spot just above her right ear.
    “Hey there, Aunt Iz,” Naley called out, stifling a yawn. She shut off the TV.
    Isobel set Naley’s clothes and backpack down on the sofa next to the girl. Naley slowly sat up, tensing, but Isobel made no comment. Yet. She’d leave that talk for when it was just the two of them.
    She squeezed Naley’s shoulder, then glanced at the man standing before her. “Hello, Liam.”
    He frowned. Gunmetal eyes arrowed to first the cut above Isobel’s temple, then to the deep bruises along her cheekbone. His gaze flicked down for a quick perusal from head to toe, though it wasn’t as if he could’ve seen through her regulation uniform and detected any other injuries sustained. Isobel told herself that, yet heat blossomed on her skin all the same, his examination of her almost like a physical touch.
    Liam’s frown deepened as he studied her. Isobel supposed by most people’s standards, her condition would’ve been of some concern, but Naley had seen her come home in worse. Liam hadn’t seen her up-close and personal after a mission before. She hoped he wouldn’t get all uber-protective wolf on her, because she’d hate to have to hiss a warning after the kindness he’d shown her niece today.
    Brackets deepened on both sides of Liam’s mouth, but to his credit, he didn’t say anything.
    It really was a rather nice mouth.
    Off-limits, Saba.
    Liam jammed his hands into his jeans pockets, the movement drawing Isobel’s attention to his wide shoulders and long, corded arms. His skin, deeply tanned from working under the sun, was almost as bronze as her own. Dark brown hair hung a little too long over his eyes, glinting with gold highlights gained from hours underneath the sun.
    He was used to working outdoors. Used to working with his hands. There wasn’t an ounce of fat on him, nor was he one of those men with thick, bulky muscles pumped up from excess weight-lifting. Liam came by his chiseled state through natural hard work. His muscles were tight, compact, precise, as if he’d carved them out himself with the same delicacy he wielded with his tools.
    Not on your list.
    Isobel stubbornly tamped down the spark that flared in her lower belly.
    It was a good thing she still bore residues of the compound that all Council agents wore to mask their scent while on-duty. It came in handy when agents were hunting down suspects and didn’t want to give their presence away, but it also helped at times like these, when the last thing Isobel wanted was for Liam to scent her