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Connor watched as Kendall and his date—a grand dauests If the news reports were right, Kendall’s decade-long o and he had since becoh-profile events

A sycophantic prig, he thought Allison was right Kendall’s social standing was clearly essential to hiations of embezzle to prison, but he’d be an outcast from the upper crust

For all his posturing, Kendall had little ain him entry to events such as the Cortland Ball

Connor had done so and he knew Kendall neither came from an old-line family nor shared old prep-school ties with the people here tonight

According to his investigation, Kendall had grown up in an upper-middle-class faraduating fro to Boston to start his ascent in the business world

Connor glanced over at Allison and noted she’d also , however, that she would avoid Kendall It would be i to a defendant in one of her cases

On the other hand, Connor reflected, Kendall looked at ease despite the fact that nearly everyone there tonight h Allison, as prosecuting his case, would be present

Connor narrowed his eyes If Kendall was their man, then Allison’s harasser was a cool cucumber Exactly the type ould be hard to catch And exactly the type he intended to watch like a hawk

Allison glanced around the ballroo Unfortunately, though, her parents were bearing down on her She braced herself as they approached “Hello, Mo back and looking searchingly at her face, concern etched on hers “How are you feeling? Are you having any trouble sleeping? Because if you are—”

“Mom, I’m fine” She’d spoken with her parents earlier in the week about the shooting incident, but she’d spared them the details, which would just have worried them needlessly

Her parents exchanged looks Her father was an older version of Quentin, but his dark hair was peppered with gray, giving hiuished look

“You should have told us you’d received another death threat in the ravely

Allison suppressed her irritation Connor, it seeain “I didn’t want to worry you and Mo the explanation was one they’d be satisfied with “You were on a business trip hundreds ofyou could do except worry even ”

“Of course ould have worried!” her mother exclaimed

Allison took a deep breath “Thanks to Quentin, I have a bodyguard, re precautions”

“Connor said that you’d gone out without him when you were attacked,” her father countered

Snitch What else had he told her parents? All she needed in order to ed the reason she’d left the house Aloud, she said, “Connor has been saying a lot these days” She turned as Quentin parted fro to another woman, and strolled up to join the, Quent?”

Quentin held up his hands “Hey, he’s only trying to help”

“I thought I was just getting a bodyguard,” she said indignantly, “but, apparently, Connor is doing double duty as a spy”

“Now, Allison—”

“You should have warnedto you and the rest of the fa to relay You knoild parties, dancing on tables,from the chandelier…male strippers…”

“Actually,” Quentin said dryly, “getting infor open a clam with your bare hands”

“Oh, co to deny he lost no ti incident last week? Even before I had the chance to pick up the phone?”

Quentin frowned “Only because I phoned hiht before I had gotten a call fro to do everything possible to try to keep the tabloid journalists at bay about the shooting One of the nice things about being a major donor to police charities is that the police brass re” Quentin paused and gave her a ”