Our Little Secret Read Online Free PDF Page A

with the answer. “Yes.”

    She didn’t need a premonition to guess that something was wrong. A quick stab of fear sent a shiver through her as she walked to Drew’s side, refusingto think about why standing next to him might offer reassurance.

    “What is it? Have you heard from Meg?” An icy feeling gripped her stomach. “Is she okay?” At least a dozen more questions flew through her mind in the second before Drew shook his head.

    “No, we haven’t heard from her.”

    Maybe no news is good news, she told herself. “Senator Creighton?” she asked.

    Across from her, Gerald shook his head.

    “Then what?” She looked from Drew’s weary face, unshaven and shadowed with stubble, back to Gerald’s pinched expression. “What were you doing all night?”

    “Searching the house,” Drew told her. “We hoped there might be a letter, or a notation on the computer, something that would hint at where they’d gone.”

    They wouldn’t look this concerned if the search hadn’t been successful. “You found something,” she guessed.

    “Not right away. Not until Gerald thought to check the safe. Meg told him she was going to the bank when she left here, and she’d been in Dad’s office, so we thought—”

    “
You
thought,” Gerald corrected.

    Lauren suddenly realized where this was going. The icy dread inside her mixed with hot anger as she turned toward Drew. “You son of a bitch. You thought she might have stolen something from the safe?”

    He didn’t flinch. “It was a logical possibility.”

    A rush of fury pulled Lauren’s hands into tight fists at her sides. With her remaining fingernails biting into her palms, she growled at him, “No, it’s not logical,not if you know Meg. My sister would
never
steal.” She whipped her head toward Gerald. “You claim to know her. Did you really think Meg would do something like that?”

    Pain creased Gerald’s forehead. “No, I didn’t.”

    A tiny wave of relief washed over her. At least someone believed in Meg.

    Gerald’s sad gaze shifted toward Drew. “I still don’t.”

    Responding to the defeat in his voice, Lauren’s stomach clenched with dread. “Still?” She turned back to Drew, nearly shrinking from the hesitation in his eyes.

    “Lauren…” Drew began.

    She shook her head to emphasize the denial because she knew her voice would sound weak. “No. She wouldn’t.”

    Drew’s voice was as hard as steel. “I’m sorry. But she did.”

Chapter
Two

    She didn’t believe him. He wasn’t sorry. And Meg certainly hadn’t stolen anything from Harlan Creighton’s safe.

    “Andrew,” Gerald scolded. “You don’t know that for sure.”

    “You said yourself, the key was there two days ago. Now it’s gone.”

    Lauren frowned. “What key? I thought you were talking about money.”

    “All the money’s there,” Gerald told her, with a meaningful glance at Drew. “Three thousand dollars. She didn’t take it.”

    “No, she aimed higher,” Drew said. “A fortune in jewelry, left to Miranda and me by our mother. It’s in a safety deposit box, and one of the keys to that box is missing. It was in the safe.”

    “And you think Meg took it?” Her voice fairly squeaked with outrage. “Do you have any idea how incredibly stupid that is?”

    Drew closed his eyes. “No, but I’m sure you’ll tell me.”

    “Damn right.” She poked his chest for good measure, ramming her finger into a solid wall of muscle. “My sister is the most honest person I know. She might be a little irresponsible at times, and she might go to a lot of parties, and spend too much money on clothes instead of saving it, and go out with the wrong kind of men—”

    Lauren noticed Drew’s interested look and changed direction. “The point is, Meg would never do anything to harm anyone else. She wouldn’t lie, she wouldn’t cheat, and she certainly wouldn’t
steal
.”

    “That’s a moving testimonial,” Drew said. “But it’s not proof.