Page 69 of Stolen Ones

‘Not at this time.’

Kim regarded him for a few seconds, looking for any of the pointers Alison had offered, but right now he looked calm and relaxed.

‘I trust that you’re being taken care of,’ Kim said.

Alison’s last words had been to let him have his tea.

‘The food is as I imagined it.’

‘You expected to be taken into custody?’ she asked, raising an eyebrow.

‘Of course,’ he answered.

Again, the feeling that she was playing a part, following a script.

‘We spent some time at your home today.’

He smiled and from what she’d learned, the crow’s feet told her the expression was genuine. There was no tension. She’d been right. Grace was not there.

‘It’s a very nice home. Sympathetically restored but a massive space for one.’

He said nothing.

She waited.

‘Sorry, Officer, but that was an accurate statement, not a question. Is there something about my home you’d like to know?’

‘Why don’t you share it with anyone?’

He leaned back in his chair and met her gaze. She noted that he had not looked at Bryant once.

‘Having a partner doesn’t define me. I don’t understand the opinion that everyone must be half of a pair, unless you’re Mormon and it’s a whole different set of rules. It may be beyond your comprehension that I am perfectly able to function and be content as a single being. It is the wish of others that everyone must be coupled up. I am perfectly happy being alone.’

Actually, she could comprehend it. Perfectly.

‘Are you married with children?’ he asked, tipping his head to the side. He clearly already knew the answer.

‘Jenson Butler seems to think you’ve had no intimate relationships at all,’ she said, ignoring his question.

Harte threw his head back and laughed uproariously.

‘Oh my goodness, you’re taking the word of my builder on the history of my love life?’

‘He appears to have known you for some years.’

‘We met at university. We talked now and again. We had little in common, but he was a familiar face. We didn’t speak for years until I contacted him for a quote, so I fail to see how he can be an authority on my personal life when we’ve worked together no more than a dozen times over the last twenty-five years.’

Kim hoped Penn was listening. Now he’d know roughly how many joint projects he was looking for.

‘You’re not married now?’

‘This isn’t important.’

He was right but she wanted to test his reaction on whether it was a sore point. She’d detected no regret in his response. It wasn’t something she could use.

‘The house is very different to where you grew up, isn’t it?’

The first sign of tension entered his jaw. ‘It’s not important.’