Page 16 of Deadly Designs

He motioned sharply with his head. He thought theperson might still be there. She backed to the door while hemethodically searched her destroyed condo. Rage quickly replacedterror. Someone had broken into her home and invaded her privatespace. She might not have a gun like Christian, but she had fury onher side, which seemed just as good.

When she caught up with him, he frowned at her butkept looking for the culprit. Christian stood and stashed the gun.“There’s no one here now.”

“How did they get inside without alertingsecurity?”

“I’m guessing that hole isn’t to feel the cool seabreeze?”

Aja Blue looked at where he was pointing, and her jawhit the floor. A neat circle of glass had been cut from one of thewindows on her balcony.

“What in the hot flaming flamingo beach towelhappened?”

“Hot flaming flamingo beach towel?”

She glanced over to see one eyebrow cocked sexily,and she completely forgot her train of thought. “Huh?”

His lips, already quirked with amusement, curved intoa devastating smile. “Your colorful phrase about tall wading birdswith pink plumage . . .”

Oh, that.Aja Blue waved a hand. “I sometimesdevise alternate ways to express displeasure instead ofcursing.”

“I remember.”

Her eyes widened. “You do?”

“You did the same thing when we met in Sedona.”

She winced. “I did?”

He nodded, that sexy smile causing every nerve endingin her body to dance. “When you didn’t get a picture of the manfollowing you.”

“Oh, right. Well, get used to them. It’s ingrainednow, and I can’t stop them from spilling from my mouth.”

“Good. Don’t try. I think they’re adorable.”

“Really?”

“Oh, yeah.”

Sparks flickered around them, and Aja Blue felt as ifall the air had been sucked out of the room, probably by thatgaping hole in the window. That thought sobered her, and she walkedover to inspect the glass. “You think he climbed that high? It’swhat, one-fifty, two-hundred feet to the ground?”

Christian stopped beside her, looked down, then up.“Most likely, he repelled from the roof. That’s how I’d do itanyway.”

If she wasn’t so devastated by the invasion of herhome, she might’ve smiled. “Good to know.”

“This is a sophisticated stalker. Going from the topdown avoided any cameras that might be covering the property.”

“Sadly, that makes sense.” She turned to him. “Italso means I’ll never feel safe again.”

“That’s what I’m here for.”

A shudder wracked her body. Too, too tempting to fallinto his arms and beg him to hold her. “I need to grab some thingsif they aren’t destroyed.” Pictures had been ripped from the walls,the glass shattered. Cushions had been tossed from the furniture,and drawers were gaping open, their contents strewn across thefloor as if they’d partied too hard at Mardi Gras. From what shecould see, nothing had been left untouched. Why would someone dothis?

A hand on her arm stopped her. “Before you touchanything, we need to call the police. You’ll probably need anofficial report for the insurance company too.”

Aja Blue gasped as a thought struck her, and shegrasped his hand. “The police already know who he is. All we haveto do is get his information from the cop who detained him earliertoday.”

Christian nodded. “That’s a great thought. They mightnot be willing to share, but I’ll get his name.”

He made a call on his phone and left a message. A fewminutes later, it rang, and he answered.

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