Concealed Read Online Free Page B

Sydney at the end of the counter. He gave the slightest nod of his head in her direction. There was a deep sadness in his eyes that made her heart ache. Without a word to anyone, he walked through the crowd and slid into a booth in the back corner of the diner.
    “I can’t even imagine how difficult this has been for him. He’s been in Greenville for hours.” Melissa shook her head. “You should go talk to him, Sydney.”
    “Why me?”
    “Yeah, why her?” Luke asked with a growl. “The guy’s been to Iraq, for God’s sake. If he can’t handle this, then maybe he isn’t the half man everyone seems to think he is.” As he walked away he mumbled, “Like I’ve been saying for years.”
    “He’s such a jerk when Wade’s around,” Sydney said, incredulous that the same guy who had flirted with them was now storming through the crowd like a missile. “Why the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde routine?”
    Melissa refilled a couple sodas before answering. “The two of them have a history. It goes way back. They’ve never gotten along well.” She shrugged. “You’d have to get the details from one of them.”
    Sydney could tell Melissa was avoiding the question, but there wasn’t time to get into it because they were swarmed with orders. Pete was piling the food on plates as fast as they could take it out. Cara was bussing the tables while Melissa and Sydney frantically delivered items. When there was a lull in the action, Sydney went back behind the counter and her gaze once again drifted over to Wade.
    He was deep in thought as the crowd continued to inch closer. They were desperate for information and he was the prize they were after. Once the first question flew, an endless stream of horrible inquiries followed, which were none of their business and completely inappropriate.
    “Was she naked?” Johnny’s disgusting question had Wade grinding his teeth together. He seemed to be using a considerable amount of self-control to keep from punching someone in the face. Without thinking, Sydney snagged a piece of his favorite pie from the rack and pushed her way through the crowd that had assembled around his table.
    “Do you have any manners?” Sydney gave a hard shove through the throng of bodies and found herself stumbling in front of Wade clutching the pie in one hand and a fork in the other. The tired smile he gave when she shooed the gawkers away melted her heart. Before she thought to stop herself, she was sliding onto the bench across the table and pushing the piece of pie toward him.
    “Hi.”
    “Sydney.” He plunged the fork into the crust and dug into the slice.
    Sydney watched his lips part to welcome the tiny piece of blackberry pie inside. His teeth were gorgeous and white and straight and… she was staring at him again like some sort of lecherous pervert. The man had been working a murder scene all day and she was thinking about curling up in his lap and kissing him. She quickly looked out the window and shook her head.
    “What’s wrong?” The deep rumble of his voice made her hyper-aware of how close he was. She could feel his leg stretch out under the table and bump against her knee.
    “Nothing, I’m just sorry that everyone’s forgotten how to behave like human beings.” She nervously tugged at her ponytail and twirled it behind her head into a messy bun. She enjoyed the way he watched her so intently. “So, how was your day?” The grunt of laughter he gave in response made her smile. “That good, huh?”
    He took another bite of pie, avoiding the topic. “This isn’t your night to work.”
    She hid a smile at his observation. So maybe he had been watching her a little. The thought sent a flutter of excitement through her stomach. She liked the idea of him watching her more than she should have. “Pete needed help when the vultures descended.”
    Wade shook his head. “Murder turns normal folks into gossipmongers.”
    “Want to know what the LBI has come up with?”
    “LBI?