Guarding Raine Part 17

night.

He could have been working off some restless energy built up from the day.

For all she knew, this was his way of dealing with a particularly pesky

problem, striding back and forth in the moonlight until' a solution appeared.

But somehow she felt it went deeper than that.

Maybe her own experience had her a.s.signing like motivations to the man, but she thought he moved as a man driven.

Driven into the night to exorcise demons that preyed on the unconscious

mind.

She was familiar with those demons, and felt an immediate empathy for him.

She didn't'know what kind of ghosts were haunting Macauley O'Neill.

She didn't know what past experience had molded them.

But she knew without a doubt that they existed.

Chapter C.

ammering of the workers reverberated through the house for the next fewdays. And despite her promise to remain understanding about the noise, Raine frequently felt on the verge of screaming.

On the day the work had begun she'd been surprised to see Macauley comeinto the kitchen at breakfast. When he'd handed her a package of earplugs she'd laughed and thanked him.

But after three days she was no longer laughing.

For the fourth time that morning men had tromped across her studio and

were currently working at removing the gla.s.s from her windows.

She finally admitted defeat.

The earplugs had helped mask the noise coming from the rest of the

house, but they couldn't cover up the sounds in this room.

Nor could she work with the constant visual distraction.

She'd be getting no work done that day, so she cleaned her brushes and'

left.

Wandering through the house, she noted similar noises coming from all directions.

The job was actually going much more quickly than she'd imagined.

Already half the house sported the new gla.s.s Macauley had spoken of.

The tiny wires running through it were scarcely noticeable.

The front door had been replaced and adorned with a shiny new

deadbolt.

Men were at work in the kitchen taking that door down, also.

Raine sighed silently.

She couldn't deny that the precautions made her feel more secure.

Yet they were also a blatant reminder of why she'd felt unsafe to begin

with.

Wandering outside, she noted a car coming up the drive.

She shaded her eyes against the bright morning sunlight, trying to

detect the ident.i.ty of the driver.

A quick grin, crossed her lips when she recognized Sarah's bright red sports model.

Eagerly, Raine started down the steps to greet her friend.

If she couldn't work, the next best thing would be to spend some time talking to Sarah.

Her quirky sense of humor was just what Raine needed today.

"Hi,"

Sarah called as she climbed out of the car.

She paused after slamming the door and looked toward the house.

"I just knew that a trip out here was in order this morning. And look at the sight of all those half-naked men."

Several of the workers had shed their shirts in the warm sun.

She sighed appreciatively.

"I must have a sixth sense about these things."

Raine laughed and came around the car to give her friend a quick hug.

"I arranged it just for your benefit, too. That's the nicest thing

about you--it takes so little to make you happy."

Sarah's return smile was forced.

"I wish that trait ran in our family."

Immediately, Raine sensed her friend's mood.

"What's the matter? Is Joe in trouble again?"

Joe was Sarah's brother, younger by six years.

Their parents had died when Sarah was nineteen, and she'd raised Joe

herself.

He'd been in and out of sc.r.a.pes for the past few years, and Sarah was

constantly worried that someday he was going to land himself in something she couldn't get him out of.

Lifting a shoulder in response, Sarah simply said, "Joe is Joe."

She smiled slightly.

"Someday he'll grow up and become a responsible citizen, right?"

Raine wasn't so sure about that.

She'd had occasion to observe Joe quite a bit over the years, and she

thought he'd been spoiled beyond belief, first by his parents and then

by his sister.

Several times she'd suspected Joe was to blame for some odd bruises on Sarah's face, But when she'd mentioned her suspicion once, her friend had become angrier than she'd ever seen her.

It was the only time they had quarreled, and Raine had learned to leavethe subject alone.

Although she wanted desperately to help her friend, she respected the

boundaries she'd set.

She said only, "How can he miss with a sister like you to look up to?"