Read Gabriel for Free Online Page A

difference I’ll make,” she continued. “But I need
     to find out the truth. He was my uncle, Gabe, a good man. He cared for me when I had
     no one—I owe it to him.”
    Bullshit . She didn’t owe Richard Pierce a damn thing. Her “uncle” was indebted to so many
     people he could hock his soul to the devil and still have a balloon payment due.
    “Sweetheart, you’re looking at Richard through the eyes of an eleven-year-old girl.
     If he’s dead, it’s not because he was kind to a child.” He paused, swallowed. “You
     know as well as I do there are tons of motives for murder. Greed, lust, jealousy.
     Whatever the reason, someone would’ve had a very strong one for killing him—and the
     reason hasn’t disappeared because twenty years have passed.”
    Leah rose from the couch, tossed the envelope to the table. “What’s your point?”
    Rage sparked alongside fear. “My point is,” he snapped, “it might be better to let
     sleeping dogs be fucking euthanized.”
    She rocked back on her heels, blinked. Then a corner of her mouth twitched.
    “Nice,” she drawled. “You might want to save that one for a book.”
    “I’m not joking, Leah,” he snapped. “Damn it.” He stalked across the room, pivoted
     before coming to a halt on the opposite side of the coffee table. “Digging up the
     past can sometimes cause more harm than good.”
    “For who?” She threw up her hands, humor replaced by exasperation. “For God’s sake,
     Gabe, it’s been two decades. I can finally provide answers and closure. Who can the
     truth hurt?”
    “You!” And, God help them, so many more people .
    Her face softened, the irritation bleeding from her expression. With a sigh, she reached
     out, grasped his hand in hers.
    “I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself,” she murmured. “But it comes down to this—
     he’s family. My family. If something happened to you, I’d move heaven and hell to find out where
     you were and how to help. It’s the same thing here. I need to know.”
    He slid free of her grip and steeled his heart against the flash of pain in her eyes. Shit . Part of him longed to drag her in his arms, hold her close…protect her. He smothered
     a curse. Him . Protect her . She wouldn’t appreciate the sentiment. And the need was futile, anyway.
    If she insisted on this course, nothing could shield her from the devastation the
     truth would rain down.
    “Why are you telling me all this?” he demanded.
    Her head snapped back as if his fist had tapped her on the chin. Her soft lips parted.
     “Why?” She frowned. “You’re my best friend. And I thought, maybe”—she hesitated—“maybe
     I could pick your brain. Get your ideas and feedback.”
    “I’m a writer, Leah, not a detective.” But he was an asshole. Yeah, during his career as a suspense fiction writer, he’d done his fair
     share of research, had spent hours with cops, and had even enrolled in several investigative
     forensics classes. But none of his supposed expertise or knowledge mattered right
     now. Hell, he was in survival mode. He wanted no part of this case. He didn’t want her to have a part in it.
    “I have work to do,” he muttered.
    “Gabe—”
    “No, Leah,” he bit out, shifting back a step. He loved her; she was his friend. But
     at this moment he only craved distance—to be away from her. She brought too much into
     his life—disruptions he didn’t need, compassion he didn’t want, desire he resented.
     After two years, grief and rage still clawed at his chest like an insatiable beast,
     but the emotions were…familiar.
    Leah used to be—but not anymore.
    She threatened the little piece of normalcy he’d retained, and he’d be damned if he’d
     turn it loose because of her misplaced loyalty and his wayward dick. “You’re going
     to do what you please, so go…do it,” he growled, already turning toward the hallway.
     “I just hope your need to know doesn’t end up biting you in the