Truth or Dare Read Online Free PDF Page B

month when Ethan imported him from California to protect her while he and Zoe dealt with the threat from Zoe’s in-laws.
    Physically Harry bore a striking resemblance to a living skeleton. When he smiled he looked like a Halloween decoration. But in the few weeks they had known each other she had come to believe that they were soul mates.
    Harry’s card declared that he was a security consultant. From what she could tell, that term covered a great deal of territory. But she knew that in this instance it was a euphemism forbodyguard. Last week he had left to take a short-term position looking after the teenage daughter of a Texas businessman. The young woman was a senior in high school. She had been packed off to the West Coast to tour various California college campuses. The stated objective was to gather information that would assist her in deciding which institution of higher learning she wanted to attend. But according to Harry her primary interests thus far had been shopping and star-gazing.
    â€œRoutine,” Harry said. “The kid bought three more pairs of shoes today along with a couple of purses and a skimpy little shirt that shows off the ring in her belly button. She also picked up some jeans that are so tight I think she’s gonna have to paint them on with a brush.”
    â€œYou shouldn’t be noticing things like that, Harry. You’re a professional, remember?”
    â€œProfessionals are paid to notice every detail. After seeing her in that dinky little shirt, I’m pretty sure she’s had a boob job.”
    â€œAt her age?”
    â€œI get the impression that kids her age in her income bracket put boob jobs in the same category as getting their teeth straightened.”
    â€œHas she actually spent any time on a college campus?”
    â€œWe managed a solid fifteen minutes at Pomona and maybe half an hour at USC today.”
    â€œGood schools. Does she have the grades and SAT scores for them?”
    â€œDon’t know about that, but her daddy’s got enough cash to buy her way into any school she fancies.”
    The rock music boomed louder in the background.
    â€œWhere are you?” she asked.
    â€œSome kind of teenage club. I’ll be lucky if I don’t need hearing aids after this gig.”
    â€œHow much longer is it going to last?”
    â€œThe job or the music?”
    She smiled slightly. “The job.”
    â€œWell, I gotta tell you, my heart nearly failed me this morning when she announced that she wanted to extend her stay to the end of the month. But luckily her daddy phoned and told her that she had to go back to Texas in ten days.”
    â€œDo you have to fly back with her?”
    â€œNo. Daddy’s sending one of the people from his regular agency to pick her up here and escort her to Dallas. The only reason he hired me was because he wanted someone who knew the local scene while she was in Southern California.”
    â€œSo you’ll be home in ten days?”
    There was a lengthy pause. For a few seconds she thought his phone had cut out. Then she realized that she could still hear the hard rock in the background.
    â€œHarry?”
    â€œI’m here,” he said in an oddly neutral tone of voice.
    â€œThought I’d lost you. Did something happen? Do you have to get off the phone?”
    â€œNo. Just realized I hadn’t thought of Whispering Springs as home, that’s all.”
    â€œOh.” She did not know what to say. The truth was that, although she had lived there for a little more than a year, she had only recently begun to think of Whispering Springs as home,herself. She was not sure quite when that had happened. Sometime after she had met Harry, she thought.
    But whatever this place was to her, it was not Harry’s home, she reminded herself. His address was in San Diego. She should not forget significant facts like that.
    â€œYeah,” he said, no longer sounding the least bit