every sweet inch of flesh, was sheer perfection in his eyes. He could still feel her skin beneath his hands, her hair between his fingers, the warmth as he moved inside of her. And, even now, he craved it all again.
Liam pushed open the door to the attic and stepped inside. The room was as cold and musty as he remembered, the windows still grimy. Sean had left his video camera set up at the window and Liam strolled over and focused the camera on Ellie’s apartment. He thought about the first time he’d stood in the window and watched her, wondering who and what she was. And now he felt as if they’d been destined to meet, as if some power greater than the both of them had conspired to put him in this attic and her in the apartment across the street.
He pulled the old chair up to the window and sat, determined to wait until she returned. But as an hour passed and then another, Liam started to worry. Maybe she’d run. She could have called Ronald and the two of them could have decided that it was time to go.
Liam fought back a surge of frustration. He knew in his gut she wasn’t an embezzler, but his brain still managed to come up with enough doubt to make him wonder. He cursed softly, then fixed his gaze at the end of the street. The longer he waited, the more foolish he felt.
And then he caught sight of someone coming around the corner. He recognized her from the way she moved, the quick, determined stride. He took a deep breath, then slowly let it out. Though he’d spent the past two hours trying to figure out how to explain, suddenly Liam wasn’t sure he could make it all sound right.
Hell, what did he have to lose? If she really was a criminal, then his explanation didn’t matter. And if she wasn’t, then he’d already screwed it all up so badly, it would likely never be fixed. She’d never trust him again.
He watched her start up the front steps to her building. And then she stopped. Slowly she turned around, her gaze rising up the building he now stood inside. Even from that distance, he could read her expression. She’d seen the photos and now she was wondering about his vantage point. Liam’s breath seized in his throat and he waited.
His first impulse was to step back from the window, but instead he pulled the tattered curtain aside so she could see him, offering her a challenge and praying that she’d accept. She slowly crossed the street. When he heard footsteps on the stairs, Liam turned to face the door. It swung open a few seconds later and Ellie stepped inside.
She looked so beautiful-her hair wet, her color high-and so damn angry. Her eyes glittered with rage, her gaze suddenly fixed on the video camera at the window. She slowly crossed the room and pushed the curtains aside, the room flooding with light. Leaning forward, she looked through the viewfinder. “You must have a very nice little collection,” she said. “Photos and video.”
“It’s not what you think, Ellie.”
“Oh, no? You have no idea what I think.”
“I can imagine,” Liam said. “But it’s not that bad.”
“Oh, that’s good,” Ellie said, tears filling her eyes. “Because it looks really bad to me. It looks like you’ve been spying on me-and taking pictures-invading my privacy-like some kind of pervert!” She snatched up the video camera, tripod and all. “What kind of pictures were you taking? Should I expect them to end up on some Internet site? Or are they just for your private enjoyment?”
Liam’s heart twisted. He’d never been good around emotional women. And once they started crying, he was completely at a loss for words. “Ellie, if you’d just-”
“I trusted you. I let you into my house. And into my body.” With a soft curse, she heaved the camera and tripod out the window, the glass shattering and falling to the street below.
Liam winced. “That wasn’t my camera,” he said. “That was Sean’s. But I guess that really doesn’t make a difference, does it?”
“Why would you do this to me?” She held up her hand to stop his reply. “Don’t bother answering. I don’t want to know. From now on, just stay out of my life.”
With that, she rushed toward the door, but Liam stepped into her path, blocking her way. “Just let me explain.”
Tears tumbled down her cheeks. “I don’t know why I thought you were different,” she murmured. “But I never expected you to be…weird. This is all just very sick and you need help.” She tried to pull away from him, but Liam wasn’t about to let this be the end of it. “If you don’t let go, I’ll scream.”
“Damn it, Ellie, let me explain.”
“Go ahead. Tell me you’re not some weirdo or some pervert. Because, coming over here, I tried to make myself believe that you were.”
“I was doing surveillance,” he said. “I’ve been watching you.”
She frowned, wiping her nose with the cuff of her jacket. “I don’t understand.”
“Sean is a private investigator and I was helping him with a case. He was hired by Intertel Bank in Manhattan.”
“I-I worked for Intertel.”
“I know. And right after you left, they discovered a quarter-million dollars of their money gone. Embezzled. And they think you did it. You and Ronald Pettibone.”
“You think I embezzled money?”
“
She stared at him for a long moment, doubt clouding her gaze. Then she shook her head. “I don’t need to tell you anything. I don’t owe you any explanation. Not after this.” She yanked her arm from his grip and hurried out of the attic.
But Liam wasn’t going to let her go. Not until he had an answer. He raced after her, taking the steps two at a time until he caught up with her on the second-floor landing. “Tell me the truth, Ellie. Did you and Ronald Pettibone steal that money?”
“Don’t come near me again. If I see you on the street or in this attic, I’m going to call the police. And this time you’ll stay in jail.”
She hurried down the stairs and Liam cursed as he heard the front door close. He fought the urge to go after her. Maybe it would be best to give her time. But he wasn’t in the mood to wait for answers. She’d never said that she wasn’t an embezzler. Had he really expected her to admit it? Hell, would it have made a difference if she had?
Liam sighed softly and started down the stairs. When he got to the street he searched the sidewalk for the video camera and found it resting against the building, one side smashed in, the tripod bent. A small price to pay for the trouble his brother had caused in Ellie Thorpe’s life.
Liam shook his head. What about Ellie’s deceit? She hadn’t denied her involvement in the embezzlement. Not once had she offered an excuse. What price would she have to pay? Ten, fifteen years in prison? And how long would it take for Liam to forget her? Somehow he suspected it could be just that long.
“I should never have agreed to this in the first place,” he murmured. “I should have told Sean to just take this job and shove it.”
Though he’d already spent some of the retainer Sean had given him, the majority of the money was still in his bank account. If he gave it back to his brother, less the cost of a new video camera, maybe then his life could get back to normal. But first he’d start by spending the rest of the afternoon and evening doing what he did best- occupying a stool at Quinn’s Pub.
He’d forget Ellie and everything that had happened between them-no matter how many pints of Guinness it took.
7
“SO, DO YOU LOVE HER?”
Liam sat at the end of the bar with Brian, the two of them sharing a late-afternoon meal. Quinn’s Pub was busy for a weekday, filled with all the regular patrons, the after-work crowd and a few tourists, as well. The pub had appeared in the latest edition of Roamer’s
