As Good as Dead Read Online Free Page A

her mother, but only because it seemed the thing to do. Besides, with the house now belonging to Angel, it was more like Ma moving in with her.
    “Need some help?” Callen appeared in the doorway, looking more like a carpenter than a cop.
    “Thanks.” Angel handed over the heavy box and kissed his stubbly cheek. He was wearing a white T-shirt and khaki cargo shorts. A leather tool belt hung around his waist. Angel thought he’d make a great model—especially with the sheen of moisture on his muscular arms and legs and the Sheetrock dust in his dark hair.
    Callen had recently remodeled his own home and had offered to make some minor changes that would give Angel and her mother more space and more privacy.
    Angel followed him down the hall to what was now her master bedroom suite, or would be as soon as the remodeling was done. She pulled aside the hanging plastic drop cloths meant to protect the rest of the house from dust. Not that it did anything of the sort.
    Callen set the box next to the others on the newly carpeted floor.She thanked him again and walked over to where a portion of the old house had been removed. “It’s coming along. I can hardly remember what it used to look like.”
    “Like three small bedrooms coming off the hallway.” Callen chuckled. “Your brothers are mourning the loss of their rooms, but they’ll get over it.”
    “They’ll have to. Besides, I don’t feel too sorry for them. It was their idea.”
    Callen came up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Well, I had a little input. After all, one of these days you’ll marry me. We’ll probably live here and...” He paused to kiss her neck. “I thought it should be the kind of place we’d both enjoy.”
    “Ulterior motives, huh?” She leaned back against him.
    “You’d better believe it.” He rested his chin on her head, and they both looked out at the ocean. “This place has a great view. Almost as good as mine.”
    “Hmm. Pretty soon I’ll be able to lie on my bed and watch the waves. Have I thanked you yet?”
    “A few times.”
    Angel thought back to when her mother had asked Angel to move in with her, the day after Frank had died. Her brothers and Callen had huddled with her and Anna, talking about what they planned to do with the place and how they would handle the finances. Angel had been surprised to learn that her father’s will stipulated she be given full ownership of the house and that Anna would continue to live there. It had been a manipulative ploy on his part. Before his death, he’d asked Angel to take care of her mother, and this was his way of making sure it happened. Angel could have refused and actually did object, saying her brothers should have a share. Tim, Peter, and Paul argued that they didn’t want or need anything. They finally agreed that if and when they ever decided to sell the house, Angel could share the profits with them. They also agreed to let Angel pay them back for the money they put into remodeling, if and when she had the money to do so.
    Normally, Angel would have balked at being so blatantly manipulated by the men in her life. But she really did love the house and felt good about being there for her mother. The arrangementseemed the perfect solution, since Angel could no longer afford to live in her ocean view apartment. She’d been a police officer with Sunset Cove and on a regular salary when she’d moved in. That had changed, hopefully for the better. She’d taken a forced leave and needed more time, so now she was on leave without pay. Recently, she’d begun working as a private detective for Rachael Rastovski, her favorite attorney and friend. So far the PI business had been less than lucrative. But she had finished up an investigation this past week and felt pretty good about it and the money she’d earned. Angel had solved the crime and ended up with a gunshot wound to the arm.
    She couldn’t believe how much her brothers and Callen had accomplished in