Renegade Read Online Free Page B

wrapping one towel around her body and another around her head; she walked out of the bathroom and into her bedroom, falling across her unmade bed while vowing this would be her last assignment. After she identified the drug dealer or dealers at Weir she planned to hand in her badge and firearm and walk away from a lifestyle that once had been as vital to her as breathing.
    Summer glanced at her watch as she stood on the sidewalk outside her apartment building. Gabriel hadpromised to pick her up at six forty-five, and it was now seven. A heavy fog had blanketed the area, closing Logan Airport and reducing vehicular traffic to a thirty-five mile an hour speed limit.
    She peered down the street, squinting through the haze as a low-slung silver sports car eased up along the curb. The driver-side door opened and Gabriel alighted, popping the button on an umbrella.
    Smiling, he held the umbrella over her bare head. “Sorry I’m late. Good morning.”
    There was something so infectious about his smile that she couldn’t help but return it with a friendly one of her own. “Now, that’s debatable,” she teased.
    “You’re right about that. The fog is so thick along the shore that it looks like pea soup.” Gabriel moved closer, inhaling the sensual scent of a perfume surrounding Summer. Not only did she look good, but she also smelled good. Today she had pulled her hair tightly off her face and into a chignon on her long neck. “Don’t you own an umbrella?”
    She stared up at him, her gaze widening when she noticed two small gold hoops in each of his pierced lobes. It was the first time she had seen him wear the earrings. A black turtleneck sweater, wool crepe slacks and a pair of slip-ons flattered his tall, slender physique. “I own one, but it wouldn’t help in this weather. My hair frizzes up with the slightest hint of humidity. If I hadn’t put gel in it this morning it would be standing up all over my head like Don King.”
    Taking Summer’s overnight bag from her loose grip, Gabriel held the umbrella and bag in one hand as he leaned down and opened the passenger-side door for her. The hem of her raincoat parted and her skirtinched up her thighs as she sat down, revealing an expanse of long legs in a pair of sheer black hose.
    Clenching his teeth, he slammed the door harder than he had intended. There was something about Summer Montgomery that got under his skin. It was an itch he could not get to and scratch. As far as women went he did not have a
type
. He had dated tall ones, short ones, light and dark ones, but none of them had him measuring his every word like Summer. She had a beautiful face, perfect body, and a very quick tongue.
    He had chided himself for inviting her to spend the weekend with him once he had rethought his offer. They could’ve easily met at a local Starbucks or public library. However, whatever it was about Summer that annoyed him he prayed he would identify it by the time he drove her back home Sunday.
    Pressing a button on a remote device, the trunk opened silently. Gabriel placed her bag in the trunk, closed it, and then walked around the Porsche and slipped in behind the wheel. He put the key in the ignition and the engine turned over in a soft purr as automatic seat belts came down over his chest and that of Summer’s. Glancing at the side mirror, he pulled away from the curb.
    It was two weeks into the school year, and he had barely caught a glimpse of Summer or Desiree even though they shared the same office. He had left a note for Summer requesting her address, and she had complied, leaving a note in a sealed envelope in his mailbox in the school’s general office.
    “How has it been going?” he asked her.
    Turning her head, she stared at his distinctive profile. “More hectic than I thought it would be. I hadn’t planned on substituting for another teacher.”
    Gabriel gave her a quick glance. “That’s not a condition of the grant.”
    “I know, but I only volunteered