Armond, Joyce Ellen Bonds of Darkness

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Kate opened her eyes, looked deeply into his. She connected them with their eyes as
he had joined them below, and he saw nothing but Kate, felt nothing but Kate, knew
nothing but love. Absolute joy rose in his chest as an orgasm built below.
A light twinkled in Kate s eyes. Don t laugh, or I ll win.
Joy barreled through Paul, exploding out. His hips rocked. Kate cried out. He threw
back his head and laughed, just as the first rays of the dawning sun cut through the
clouds.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Kate pushed open the liquor shop door, sending the string of sleigh bells fastened to
the handle into a spasm of jingling. Be careful. She held the door open wide. Don t
drop it.
I m not going to drop it. The case of champagne balanced neatly in his arms, Paul
followed.
It was so expensive, Kate said for the tenth time in twenty minutes.
It s time you tasted good champagne, Paul said, completing the refrain.
Kate? The voice intruded on the intimacy of their exchange. Kate Scott?
Kate turned. There, framed in the twinkling red and green lights rimming the store
window, in all her bony glory, stood ADA Louisa Frischler.
Kate let out a breath that turned the air silver with frost. Louisa! What a complete
surprise.
Paul tilted his head, questioning.
The ADA.
Paul lifted his brow, then shifted his eyes to Louisa. I ve heard so much.
Louisa smirked and shrugged. The designer bag on her shoulder slid down her arm.
Sorry to hear you didn t have the guts to fight the war, kid, she said to Kate.
Kate looked at Paul, and Paul at Kate. They burst out laughing.
Louisa blushed and changed the subject, fast. That s a lot of champagne. What s the
celebration?
We re getting married tonight! Kate knew she was grinning like a fool, but
couldn t stop and didn t care.
Louisa pulled a face. That s sudden.
Still laughing, Paul said, My mother was always insufferably right about
everything. He nudged Kate with his shoulder.
It was really nice to see you again, Kate said, her tone missing sincere by just a
fraction, but we have so much do to.
They left Louisa, alone and chic, framed by the twinkling lights.
Paul put the champagne in the trunk of a sensible blue Corolla Kate s choice to
replace the totaled Mercedes. They drove out of the shopping center as the sun threw long
shadows on the snow that had fallen last night. Paul parked outside of Caf� Foy, right in
front of the blank wall where the For Sale sign had once hung.
They looked at each other, grinning.
Five weeks after Halloween, as they had stood over the still smoking remains of
Paul s house, a long dark sedan pulled up to the curb. A man in an Armani suit stepped
out of the back seat. He carried a black envelope.
Paul Dumond?
Paul stared wordlessly. Kate took the envelope. The man turned on his heel and
retreated to his waiting car.
Burn it, Paul whispered. Throw it in the ashes and burn it.
Kate ignored him and picked open the flap of the envelope. Inside she found a single
typewritten sheet. She held it up for Paul. It s an address in the city. Do you recognize
it?
Paul shook his head. I don t care where it is. We aren t going.
The next morning they stood outside a polished chrome office building with no
name, only a number, on the door.
I m not going in there, Paul said.
Aren t you curious? Kate took his hand. I ll protect you.
Ha.
They went inside. A sleek, artfully red-headed receptionist directed them to the top
floor. An equally sleek and artfully blonde secretary led them into an office of tinted
windows, dark wood and creamy leather. An angular, crisply-creased, white-haired man
waited behind a mahogany desk.
Paul Dumond?
Paul nodded.
The man explained a few things in a thick European accent. In the event of his
death, Mr. Wald made provisions that all of his assets be transferred to your control,
according to your directions. He tapped a few keys on his laptop, turned the screen
around to face them. We await those directions.
For a moment the office vibrated with silence as Kate and Paul sorted through the list [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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