Shrouded in Darkness (Shrouded Series) Read Online Free PDF

cookbooks. She frowned, unable to find the volume or remember the exact title. All she recalled was the blue and white cover. Damn! She couldn’t lose it now. Not just because of Mark, but because the book contained Johnny’s favorite recipe. Any token memory of her brother was better than none.
    It didn’t help that the books were in a hodgepodge order. Strange. Margot could have sworn she’d gone through this room and alphabetized everything for year-end inventory, cross-referencing each title with her database.
    She’d have to give Mark a call and let him know. Margot went to her desk for the telephone book and opened the drawer. As she peered inside, her grip on the handle tightened. The stapler sat turned over in the far corner. The stack of fresh, yellow sticky, notepads had fallen, fanning across half the length of the drawer. Pens and pencils, usually neatly arranged inside the holder against the front were scattered over the telephone book.
    Someone had been in her desk drawer.

    Jake stared at the mirror in his room and hated the reflection that looked back at him. He barely recognized himself. He tugged at the dark brown wig. Before leaving Boston, he’d thought of dying his hair instead, but he’d decided the wig a better option. But he hadn’t counted on it being itchy as hell, and he should have at least picked a better color, something that didn’t leach the color from his face.
    The room’s bright light threw his features into a grotesque caricature. Nothing helped. Without the disguise, he’d always be some sick freak. Disgusted, he turned away and glanced at the dresser where a syringe rested on top of a small black case. He’d been about to give himself an injection when he’d heard Margot’s unexpected arrival. Damn, but he’d had a close call.
    Sighing deeply, he slipped on his gloves. It would have to wait now, he conceded as he put on his glasses, turned off the light and left the room. Hearing a noise from the den, he walked down the hall and stopped in the doorway.
    Margot stood leaning over the desk, muttering something under her breath. Reassured at the low lighting, he ventured further into the room.
    She glanced up and turned, her lips parting in surprise. Her black hair swayed with the movement and draped over a shoulder in a smooth glossy wave. The black corduroy jeans and red silk blouse clothed a body he hadn’t been able to keep his eyes off since he’d first stepped through her front door. The full breasts, tiny waist and flare of hips shouted sex. Thank God, Margot hadn’t a clue as to the effect she had on him, and he intended to keep it that way.
    Until the ability to attract a woman was stolen from him, he’d never realized how much he’d loved everything about them. It was far too long since he’d tasted a woman’s lips or breathed in her scent, caressed the soft skin of a rounded breast, and held the firm, naked flesh of a woman’s hips in his hands as he buried himself into her body.
    He noticed her narrowed eyed gaze and asked, “Is something the matter?”
    “Were you going through my things?”
    He flexed his fingers. Obviously, the wrong question to ask her. Stay calm, he told himself. Don’t antagonize. He just might talk himself out of this. As long as he remembered to play it cool and keep it as close to the truth as possible. He’d learned quickly these last couple of months. Had to in order to survive. A good lie, a convincing lie always had some basis of truth.
    “Yes.” Think quick. He saw her hand on the drawer handle. “I needed to make a couple of calls and was looking for your phone book. I was having a hard time connecting to the Internet. Why? Did I make a mess of things?”
    She shrugged and seemed to relax. “No. I was just wondering.” She closed the drawer and leaned back against the desk. The action stretched the silk material across her full breasts, and his body reacted. Damn it. Where the hell was his self-control?
    He focused on