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Chris saell-dressed couple standing outside the locked entrance, and set aside the ten thousand other questions she had "Here we go"

Helen Moran usually didn’t like the boys her daughter, Jane, brought home, but for once she’d found herself a nice, quiet boyfriend He wore the ne--it reminded Helen of the poland--and it seemed to fill the air whenever he came near her Jane explained that she’doff her community-service sentence

He was so thin and tired he could speak only in a whisper, and Helen felt so bad about his being homeless that she had i as he liked in their spare rooo into the spare roohter was alh to have an intimate relationship with a man She’d listened outside the door, but the sounds of pleasure Janey made reassured her Her new boyfriend was obviously a very skillful lover: soirl should have at least once in her life

Helen had been a little startled when he’d coht, but then he’d whispered what he needed into her ear, and she’d moved over to make room for him That he wanted to have sex with her didn’t bother Helen at all Janey was very young, of course, and she didn’t have the experience her mother did with men That and Helen hadn’t been to bed with any man since her ex-husband had left her for a twenty-two-year-old bookkeeper’s assistant at his accounting firm

The sex she had with Jane’s new boyfriend had blown Helen’s ined,hours he’d used her

If only they had tiain before they left

Jane did look a little pale as they got ready to go out, but Helen put that down to her daughter’s endless obsession with dieting She was so happy that was all over Froood for her and Jane Her new boyfriend would take care of the

"You remember where he wants you to park the car?" Helen asked She would be busy watching the side door for hiet his instructions

"Sure, Moency exit" Jane’s smile widened as he came into Helen’s bedroom "Did you sleep okay?"

He nodded

"That suit never looked that good onhi before we go?"

He curled his hand around her neck and drew her closer Helen’s eyes closed as he kissed her neck, and she moaned when she felt his teeth pierce her skin It was over too soon for her, and she clutched at him until he removed her hands and reached for Jane

Once he had been satisfied, Helen drove them all to the boutique dohere she worked She closed the shop at five, but as the er, she had the alar, so there was no probleh the service entrance The old base it opened for hih the old underground passage that ran the length of the street, he came back up into the shop

"Move the car to the side of the building," he whispered to Jane "Keep the engine running"

After her daughter left, Helen went to stand with hiallery next to the boutique "Are you sure you don’t want o with you?"

"You ait here" As he spoke, the sweet smell of pomfrey cakes intensified "When Jane returns fro that has happened between us"

"Wait Jane Forget" Helen’s eyes teared as part of her, the part that loved hiht the need to obey "But can’t Janey and I coh the"I leave your country tonight"

As all of the seigneurs had not yet arrived for le conseil supérieur, Geoffrey invited Michael and Alex to join hiether with the ones who had

"Gilanden ish to play billiards, and Tristan willon the pianoforte that he can sing to Which would be none of those that have been written since hed at his own joke and turned to Alex "Are you musical, lanced through theand spotted Braxtyn out in the gardens "If you boys don’tout with Brax She proave her a puzzled look, she added, "Walking through Geoff’s labyrinth"

Michael kissed her brow "Enjoy yourself"