Read In a Heartbeat for Free Online Page B

frowned. These kids were innocent.
    Was that the reason Lisa had chosen to work with children? To return to that time and place before she’d known the ugliness that existed?
    Had he ever been that young and innocent himself?
    No.
    Pushing aside his own bitter memories, he scanned the area for Lisa. When he didn’t see her outside, he strode up to the front door of the day care and went inside. A plump receptionist with dark curly hair and a gap between her front teeth sat at a desk, the director’s office to the right.
    “Welcome to Love ’N Play. I’m Deidre, what can I do for you, sir?”
    “I’m here to see Lisa Long.”
    “Do you have a child in her classroom, Mr….?”
    “Brad Booker.” He didn’t want to alarm her or reveal he was FBI. “No…um, but I’m considering moving to Ellijay and enrolling my child.”
    She pasted on a friendly smile, revealing dimples. “Well, she’s in class right now. But the kids are going to be dismissed in a few minutes, if you could wait.”
    “Yes, that would be fine.”
    “You can watch the class through the window if you want.” Deidre gestured to the hallway, toward a glass partition on the upper half of one wall. “Lisa’s an excellent teacher and day camp worker, one of our most loving helpers. The kids just adore her.”
    He was certain they did. The sight of the small children stirred unease in his gut as he peered through the glass. He’d never attended preschool, had never been around kids much, either, and he felt out of place.
    Music chimed through the room, and the boys and girls danced in a circle, waving bright, colorful scarves, twirling and giggling, some bumping into one another and tumbling to the floor with laughter. Lisa stood in their midst, waving a purple scarf around her head, swaying and laughing with them. She stooped and picked up a tiny girl, then twirled her around until the child giggled. Suddenly a chorus of other voices begging for the same treatment broke out. Lisa laughed and, one by one, gave each of the kids an adoring grin and followed suit, her skirt swirling around her.
    Brad’s chest tightened. She looked so damn happy, carefree even. So different from the traumatic woman during the months of the trial that he wanted to freeze-frame the image and leave her undisturbed by this latest horror.
    Knowing she couldn’t see him, though, he took an extra few minutes to study her. Her heart-shaped face had always seemed so delicate and pale, yet now a slight tan gave her a healthy glow, and her hair seemed shinier, blonder, with natural highlights. Her too-thin body seemed rounder and more sexy, her arms more muscular, as if she might have been exercising or working out in the yard.
    Today, she wore a simple white cotton blouse with gathers up the middle, accentuating her curves, along with a denim skirt that swirled around her ankles. Dainty sandals on her feet revealed long narrow toes with red-painted toenails.
    His body stirred with desire….
    He’d known that beneath the battered woman there was a beauty. But he hadn’t imagined how sexy and tempting she’d be when that traumatized look faded, and she actually smiled.
    The few times he’d visited since the trial, he’d noted the wariness reflected in her big blue eyes. Had known that seeing him was a reminder of the worst time of her life. Another reason he’d stayed away.
    She suddenly glanced up and spotted him. He felt like a voyeur for spying on her, but hadn’t been able to resist. Once again, as he feared, the smile froze on her face, the light in her eyes diminishing rapidly.
    He fisted his hands by his sides, hating to shatter her happiness. But he had no choice.
    Another woman’s life was hanging in the balance.
    THE MINUTE LISA HAD READ the paper this morning, she’d known Special Agent Brad Booker would visit today.
    Her stomach clenched as their gazes met. For a moment, she thought his whiskey-colored eyes flickered with emotions. Regret. Need.