Star Witness - By Mallory Kane Page 0,13
bedroom was decorated in cluttered Victorian, just like the living room she’d just walked through. Frilly, lacy white curtains graced the windows, and every surface was covered with doilies, vases of silk flowers and filigreed photo frames.
The room was much too girlie for her taste. It was beautiful and she certainly appreciated pretty feminine things, but she limited the lace and frills to her underwear. She preferred her clothes tailored and her furnishings and décor sparse and open.
“Ugh,” she groaned.
“What?” Harte said. “Is something wrong?”
She swept the air with her hand. “You tell me. Do I look like the type who would live among roses and lace?” She winced as she remembered the pink lacy panties and bra she’d donned this morning.
His gaze sharpened as if he were activating X-ray vision.
“That was a rhetorical question,” she said archly. “Why am I on the first floor? Wouldn’t I be harder to get to upstairs?”
Harte was still looking at her.
“That one wasn’t rhetorical,” she said.
He blinked and met her gaze. “Yeah, you’d be harder to get to, but also harder to get out. I don’t want you stuck with no means of escape.”
She frowned. “Means of escape? Really? I thought the reason you brought me here was so they won’t know where I am.”
He nodded. “That’s true. But it’s possible that someone could follow me or the police officers.”
She knew she had to have a police babysitter, but him? “You?”
“I’ve got to prep you for your testimony. And since we’re paying for this lovely place, we might as well use it. Besides, I don’t want you traveling back and forth to my office—or my home.” His mouth curved up in a quick, crooked smile, different from the knowing smirk he usually sent her way. It was a little comical and very charming.
Charming? Where had that come from? Dani shook her head.
“What?” Harte asked.
“What?” she retorted.
“You were shaking your head.”
“No, I wasn’t,” she muttered as she grabbed her suitcase and hefted it up onto the cedar chest that sat at the foot of the bed. “I guess I’ve got to unpack.”
“I guess you do, if you’ve finally accepted that you’re stuck here. I can promise you that a knight in shining armor is not going to sweep in and save you from protective custody.”
“A girl can dream,” she said on a sigh as she unzipped the case. Her makeup kit and hairbrush were on top. She picked them up and started toward the bathroom, then turned back and looked at Harte.
“So, are you taking the first shift?”
“No. I’m waiting to hear from Captain Mahoney, letting me know who he’s sending over. I’ll stay here until they get here.”
Dani straightened and propped her hands on her hips. “I don’t like this. You are way too serious. Shouldn’t I be somewhere farther away? Like maybe Seattle? If you’re that worried about them figuring out where I am.” She expected him to say no, that he was just taking precautions, but he didn’t.
That worried her.
“It’s possible they were just trying to scare you, but from the looks of your front steps, I’d say if you hadn’t managed to jump onto the porch, you might be in the hospital, or—”
“Do not say smudge on the sidewalk again. I get the picture. So when—?” she had started to ask when his cell phone interrupted her.
He held up a finger as he fished it out of his jacket pocket and answered it. “Delancey,” he said shortly, turning toward the picture window as he listened. “Hello? Hello?” He walked closer to the window. “Mr. Akers, I can hardly hear you. Hold on.” He looked at the phone’s display and muttered, “What’s with the bad reception? It was fine the other day.” He stepped into the living room.
Vincent Akers was the district attorney. Dani could hear Harte trying to talk with him. After a moment, she heard him utter a mild curse, and then he appeared in the bedroom doorway. “The cell service here sucks,” he said irritably, pocketing his phone. “Your day-shift officer just pulled up. I’ll get you two introduced and then I need to take off.” He glanced at his watch. “I’ve got a meeting with the D.A., I think.”
“Should you call back on the B-and-B’s phone and check?”
“Nah, by that time I could be halfway to his office.”
“Speaking of offices, when can I get some things from mine?” she asked. “My desk is full of stuff I have to read and reports and briefs I need to