Every Step She Takes (Who's Watching Now Book 2) Read Online Free

look for her quarry. The sooner she found Sutton, the sooner she’d be on a plane out of this bucolic hellhole. Swallowing the tablets dry, she unzipped her suitcase and hunted for a pair of socks and sneakers, finding them under a pair of jeans. Suitably shod for hiking in the woods, she stuffed her mini recorder, a notepad and pen, a bottle of water and a couple of bags of airplane pretzels in a tote bag then headed downstairs.
    Their hostess, who had introduced herself earlier as Berta French, stood in the central hallway, a smile on her dimpled face as she talked to a boy who looked about seven or eight years old. The youngster tore off, letting the screen door slam shut behind him. Berta turned to face Grace. Curly red hair framed round cheeks and twinkling hazel eyes, reminding Grace of an elf.
    “Are you off to explore?”
    “I thought I’d take a walk in the forest. Maybe you could suggest a trail?”
    Her gaze dropped to Grace’s feet, and she frowned. “I recommend boots for a serious hike, and jeans. I’d hate to see you ruin those beautiful white pants.”
    Grace gritted her teeth. “I won’t go far. I’m sure there must be someplace close by that’s popular with your guests.”
    “The trail to the right of the lodge follows a creek. You can go for miles and miles, but there’s a lovely spot about a half-mile away with a gorgeous view of the valley.”
    “Sounds perfect. Am I likely to run into anyone else up there?” She held her breath, waiting for the answer.
    “Possibly. A few of our guests are out and about. Enjoy yourself.”
    Without coming right out and asking where she could find Casey Sutton, a.k.a. Mark Johnson, it was the best she could do. Surely the man would be on his way back to the lodge for dinner. She’d nab him on the trail before he arrived. Thirty minutes alone with Sutton would send her career soaring into the stratosphere.
    Grace found the trail without a problem. It was the same one she’d noticed when she arrived. Setting off at a brisk pace, the exercise felt wonderful after hours sitting in a cramped plane. As her muscles stretched and flexed, her headache disappeared. Maybe there was something positive to be said for hiking, after all.
    Patches of flowers lined the rocky path, blue forget-me-nots, and tall purplish-pink weedy looking things she didn’t recognize. At a flicker of movement, Grace glanced skyward. A hawk circled in an air current. Her breath caught at the grace and beauty of the creature as it dived toward the earth. A shrill squeal echoed in the still afternoon. Shuddering, she turned away as the bird rose with some helpless rodent clutched in its talons.
    “Did you see that?”
    “Geez!” Pressing a hand to her chest, she spun on the heels of her sneakers. “Oh, my God, you scared me to death.”
    “Sorry.” He didn’t look sorry. Travis’s eyes, the pale blue of the summer sky, glimmered with amusement. “That was amazing.”
    “Vicious and bloodthirsty is more like it.”
    “Hey, birds of prey have to eat, too.”
    “I suppose.” She studied him for a long moment, and her eyes narrowed. “I thought you were meeting a friend up here.”
    He shifted, his hiking boots scraping against a rock. “I haven’t seen him yet. He must be out for a walk.”
    The friend wasn’t a woman. The knowledge sent anticipation darting through her then nearly stopped her heart. There weren’t a lot of candidates for his missing buddy. If he was this Mark Johnson person, she’d come a long way for nothing. The breath left her in a whoosh.
    “Are you okay?”
    Hopefully there was some other explanation, a guest she hadn’t noticed on the registration ledger. Possibly an employee at the lodge. Or maybe Travis wasn’t just a gorgeous guy on a fishing trip. Her investigative reporter instincts kicked in. Does he have an ulterior motive?
    “Uh, I’m fine.”
    “You went a little pale. Do you want to sit down for a minute?”
    “Really, I’m