page11 (1/2)

“I iine not” She shifted, not quite sure what to do next “Well, I’ve neverby soood man”

Dante nodded “He is”

Paige turned and headed toward her car “Oh…purse,” she said, stopping her progress and turning to look at Dante He started trying to extricate the glittery bag from the pile in his arot to lock it”

“You forgot to lock it?”

“It’s secure down here,” she said, pulling the back door open and depositing the sleeping Ana in her seat

“Locking it would make it doubly secure,” he said, his tone stiff

She straightened “How long have you lived in this country?”

He frowned “Since I was six Why?”

“You just…you speak very forlish”

“It’s e And anyway, Don and Mary speak very forlish They are quite upper-crust, you know”

“And you call them by their first names?”

“I was fourteen when they adopted iven your proclivity for tabloids”

“Wow Exaggerate much? Proclivity…”

“And,” he continued as if she hadn’t spoken, “it would have see other than their first names I was adopted to be the heir to the Colson empire, more than I was adopted to be a son”

“Is that what they told you?”

His expression didn’t alter “It’s the only reason I can think of”

“Then why aren’t you a Colson?” She’d often wondered that, but she’d never asked, of course Partly because until today she’d never had more than a moment to speak to him

“Soreed on from the start I wished to keep my mother’s name”

“Not your father’s?”