The Nosy Neighbor Read Online Free PDF Page A

diamond on her finger. Tears burned her eyes as she wondered if there would ever be a matching band on that finger. The FBI was wrong. They had to be wrong. Jonathan was Jonathan, not that Leo Banks or that Lucky Leo person. It was all some big misunderstanding. It had to be. It just had to be.

2
    Lucy’s thoughts turned dark as she found herself staring down at the emerald-cut diamond on her ring finger. Suddenly, she saw the gaudiness of it, the look-at-me statement it seemed to be making. The moment Jonathan had placed it on her finger she’d been reminded of the square solar lights that lined her driveway. She’d always wanted a marquise diamond, but Jonathan had wanted to surprise her and had picked out the ring himself. The thickness of the gold band plus the heaviness of the stone weighed down her hand. Suddenly, it didn’t feel right. She slipped it off her finger. Where to put it? Finally, she dropped it into the toe of one of her sweat socks and rolled it and its mate into a ball. Jonathan had made a point of telling her he’d insured the ring. She wondered if it was true.
    Five minutes later she was dressed in a navy blue sweat suit and sneakers. She rummaged in the vanity drawer for a rubber band for her ponytail. For some reason she was having a hard time getting warm. She was almost to the door of her bedroom when she realized how quiet the house was. Tiptoeing down the hall, she looked into the guest bedroom to see both dogs asleep side by side on the queen-size bed. Even animals need friends, she thought.
    Carrying a cup of coffee, she walked through the family room, where she tried not to stare at the muddy furniture, and turned the corner and walked up the steps to the room over the garage that she used as an office.
    The frog, or as the Realtor called it, the finished room over the garage, was a room of built-ins. Built-in desk, built-in bookshelves, built-in entertainment center, and built-in storage. The bathroom was small, with a toilet, tiny sink, and an equally tiny built-in shower. Sometimes she came up with Sadie just to sit and veg out with the TV. Maybe it was just to say she used all the rooms in the big house. Sadie loved running up and down the steps. Sometimes she would hide her toys and chew bones under the comfortable sofa.
    Lucy sat down and hugged her knees to her chest. She really needed to think about what the FBI agents had said to her. Really think about it. She was a lawyer, so that had to mean she was smart enough to figure out what was going on where her fiancé was concerned.
    For starters, how much did she really know about Jonathan St. Clair other than she’d turned her heart over to him. Jonathan, with the wicked sense of humor; Jonathan, with the laughing eyes and crinkly smile. Jonathan, who was never shy about telling her how much he loved her. He’d spun a tale for her about how wonderful and rich their lives would be once they got married. He’d said he planned on cutting back on his traveling so he could be home more because he wanted to be a hands-on husband and father. Four children, he’d said with a wicked grin. And he wanted them all to look like her.
    Was it Jonathan St. Clair or Leo Banks who had made all those promises? She wished she knew. She also wished there was a way to call her fiancé, not to tell him what the agents had said, but just to hear his voice.
    Her thoughts drifted to the last time she’d been with Jonathan. It was such a wonderful three-day getaway at a little inn on the Chesapeake that was private and secluded. Three whole days, half of which were spent in bed, the other half walking along the shore, holding hands, staring at one another as they both whispered promises they swore they would never break. He was the consumate lover, gentle, kind, considerate, passionate. A satisfying lover.
    Jonathan was a true romantic, something that had surprised her in the beginning. He loved giving her silly little gifts, then stunning her with a