Tall Order: The 15th Spider Shepherd Thriller
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‘I never said you were. It’s just that most of what I do is covered by the Official Secrets Act, you know that. I’m not even supposed to tell you where I’ve been.’
‘But I’m your girlfriend!’
‘Friends, family, it makes no difference.’ He pretended to look around and lowered his voice. ‘But I can tell you I was in Afghanistan, okay? But you mustn’t tell anyone.’
Her eyes widened. ‘Was it dangerous?’
Shepherd shook his head. ‘No, I was there in an advisory capacity. And the job’s done now so I can spend some time with you.’
Her face brightened. Then just as quickly she frowned. ‘You kissed her.’
Shepherd laughed. ‘A peck on the cheek. Katra, I swear, there’s nothing there you have to worry about?’
‘Cross your heart?’
He laughed again and made a play of drawing a cross on his chest. ‘I swear. She’s a work colleague, that’s all.’
‘Not a friend?’
It was a good question and Shepherd wasn’t immediately sure how to answer it. Shepherd had worked for Button, and alongside her, but he had always felt that there had been more to the relationship than just work. But friendship implied trust and the simple fact was that he didn’t think he could ever trust her, not one hundred per cent. He smiled and shook his head slowly. ‘No, she’s not a friend.’
Katra hugged him and buried her face in his neck. ‘I’m glad you’re home,’ she said. ‘And you can go back to working regular hours and I can take care of you and we can eat together every night.’
Shepherd kissed her lightly on the top of the head. He figured it probably wasn’t the right time to tell her that he was going back to operational work and while that meant he would be doing the job he loved, it also meant he’d be back to irregular hours and long periods away.
‘What’s for dinner?’ he asked.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Chapter 82