Bear's Baby (Bear Heat Book 4) Read Online Free

forward and said quietly, “You could
have lied. Just fibbed about your job.” He batted his
eyelashes as he recited in an exaggerated falsetto, “Oh, I work
in finance, retail, advertising, management, marketing, whatever.”
    He took a breath and looked
her straight in the eye. “But you didn't throw any of those
lines at me. For some people, it's easy to lie. But not for you.
You're an honest person, Lindy. You would rather not answer my
question than to answer it with a lie.”
    The corner of her mouth
curved up. “You make a good shrink.”
    Baxter laughed. “Nah.
I don't have the patience to take a stroll through someone's
headspace. I'd rather just beat the truth out of them. Did I
mention that I'm one of the best interrogators in the Group?”
He folded his arms and gave her a cocky grin. But she could see that
he was just pretending to be a know-it-all and a show-off. He wasn't
bragging so much as poking fun at himself. And he wanted to warn her
that there were bad people around, people who had no qualms lying,
cheating, kidnapping and inflicting terrible hurt on others.
    There were monsters around.
She knew that. It was her job to study them, understand them and try
to identify a method to their madness. She had been trying to burrow
deeper into the mind of a killer just tonight. Those fevered
scribblings on her legal pad were the outline of a map. She was
mapping out the mind of a serial killer and this map might just lead
them to his hidey-hole.
    Lindy made her smile broader
and brighter, but that didn't seem to fool Baxter. The guy was
sharp, astute and observant, and she had no doubt that he was indeed
a top-notch interrogator. He was able to read his subject well,
understand the subtle body language and zero in on the person's true,
hidden thoughts and emotions.
    “Your work sounds
really interesting. But...I'm afraid there's nothing interesting
about my work. My work's boring. So, there's nothing much to say
about it. Just paperwork and admin stuff, you know,” she said
with a light shrug.
    Baxter nodded slowly. “Yeah.
I know.” I know it's not just paperwork and admin
stuff.
    He hadn't said that last
sentence aloud, but she could hear it clearly in her head as he held
her gaze searchingly, steadily.
    “This is a wonderful
little diner. The staff are friendly and this is a safe
neighborhood.” He kept his tone casual and nonchalant but she
read the genuine concern in his eyes. “Do you live around
here? Do you need a ride...”
    “Oh, that's my car
right there. I parked right in front of the diner,” she said
breezily, inclining her head towards the window. “It's just a
ten-minute drive home from here.”
    He nodded. “Okay. I'm
going to be upfront about this. You see that car at the side of the
road?” He pointed to a black BMW roadster. “I'm going
to tell you my license number, and I'm going to tell you right now
that I'll be following you home. You'll see me in your rear view
mirror, and I don't want you to freak out. I just want to make sure
you get home safe. I'll wait until you've walked through your front
door and locked up behind you. Then I'll drive away. I can assure
you I'm not a stalker, or some pervert. I promise you I won't...”
    “That's fine.”
She stopped him with a smile. “I was going to say you don't
have to do this, but I know you'll do it anyway. Thanks, Baxter.”
    He looked surprised and
pleased that she wasn't going to argue and fight him on this.
    “Let's get you home
then. It's getting pretty late.” He slid out of the booth and
went to the counter. She picked up her things and rushed after him.
She had her wallet out but he had already picked up the tab.
    “How much...” she
began but he waved her down.
    “I come by this diner
very often. Maybe we can meet up for breakfast one weekend. You can
buy me a coffee then.” Baxter held the door open for her. He
smiled uncertainly and mumbled, “That's if you'd like to see