The Fifth Kingdom Read Online Free PDF Page A

shot herself a quick look. Realizing that her formfitting T-shirt had ridden up during her exercises, exposing an inch or so of flat midsection, she self-consciously tugged it back into place. Following him to where he stood in the middle of the space, dwarfing it much as he had her office earlier, she gestured in the direction of her sofa.
    “Please sit, Special Agent,” she said in the kind of tone she used on her recalcitrant students.
    The flush along his cheeks deepened and his lips thinned into a knife-sharp slash. Clearly he didn’t like her taking control of the situation, but so be it, she thought. She remained standing while he finally eased himself onto the couch.
    He moved gracefully for such a big man, she thought, as he straightened his suit jacket and relaxed into the cushions, laying one muscled arm along the back of the sofa. The action exposed the broad wall of his chest and the first hint of his holster and gun once more. He tracked her gaze and shifted on the sofa to pull his jacket into place to hide the weapon.
    “I appreciate you agreeing to see me, Dr.—”
    “Deanna. I’m not big on titles.”
    “My friends call me Bill,” he offered, but if there was one thing of which Deanna was certain, it was that she wasn’t a friend.
    “It’s Guillermo, isn’t it?” she challenged, arching a brow and leaning against the top of a chair across from him. Having a higher vantage point created a sense of advantage, false as it was.
     
    Bill was grateful that the chair was hiding his view of her decidedly dangerous body. Coupled with the way she said his name, it was hard not to imagine hearing her utter it in a much more intimate setting. He tamped down his response, not wanting to embarrass himself in front of the good professor, who was looking anything but scholarly tonight.
    “Guillermo is a little too hard for the Anglos,” he explained, although that was only part of the reason for why he preferred to be called Bill.
    A wicked grin erupted on her face. “I’m only half Anglo, Guillermo.”
    He knew she had the power because this time there was no avoiding his reaction to the sexy way she said his name. Nearly jumping up off the couch, he rose and strode to the one wall in the living room which boasted waist-high built-in units. The various shelves in them were filled with an assortment of books and knickknacks. Above them on the wall were photos taken of unique spots all over Latin America. Machu Picchu. The Nazca Lines. Chichén Itzá. The Panama Canal. There was a passion in each of the photographs that spoke of the artist’s love for the subjects.
    “Beautiful,” he said, looking over his shoulder at her and realizing it didn’t only apply to the pictures.
    She approached and came to stand beside him, barely a foot away and he had to shove his hands in his pockets to keep from reaching for her. “Thanks. I don’t consider myself much of a photographer.”
    “You took these?” he said, unable to contain the surprise that was likely evident on his face.
    She laughed again, the richness of it sexy and disturbing as she glanced up at him, amusement in her gaze. “Is it enough ‘land of the living’ for you?”
    Sweat erupted at the base of his spine and heat flushed through his body. “I guess I was too quick to judge.”
    She narrowed her eyes, considering his almost-apology. “I guess I was too quick also,” she replied, although she tilted her head at a defiant angle.
    He faced her and rocked back on his heels, slightly uncomfortable with her perusal. “Why is that?”
    “I never expected you to admit you might be wrong.”
    With that she walked over to a small bar built into the corner of the wall unit. Grabbing two wineglasses, she went to pour each of them some, but he held up his hand to stop her. “Thanks, but I’m still on duty.”
     
    Deanna didn’t know what to make of him, but she did know one thing: Pushing his buttons seemed to bring her great satisfaction. So