Dangerous Secret [The Pinnacles of Power Prequel] (BookStrand Publishing Romance)

by Jessica Lauryn

  Ryan had never looked so tense. He seemed to be resisting the urge to beat Shane into the ground. Abigail tried to catch his eye, but he wouldn’t look at her. It was as if he didn’t see even her, and the only thing driving him was pure, uncontrollable rage.

  “Come to think of it, the two of you have been spending an awful lot of time together,” Shane went on. “In the break room, the front office, out by the pool when you were—”

  “What are you, the police?” Ryan demanded.

  “Yes, if you want to look at it that way.”

  “Abigail and I cleaning the pool together was your idea. If you remember, I wanted to clean rooms in the old wing.”

  “And you certainly made an enormous effort to make it look like that’s what you wanted. Though it’s pretty obvious you had an ulterior motive, considering Abigail showed up that day looking like she’d won a wet T-shirt contest.”

  “You son of a—”

  “Was there anything else?” Shane said with a hint of warning in his voice.

  A dark shadow cast itself over Ryan’s face. “No. I think that about does it.”

  Shane glared at Ryan as he backed away. He left the room, slamming the door behind him.

  “What was that about?” Abigail asked. She came toward Ryan, laying a hand on his arm.

  “Nothing.” He shook his head. “I overreacted. Sorry you had to see that.”

  “What made you snap just now? Was it because Shane had his hand on my shoulder? ’Cause he didn’t mean anything by it. He was just being friendly.”

  “Friendly?” He looked at her. “Abigail, the guy did all but—”

  “But, what?”

  Ryan grunted. “Never mind.”

  Looking into his magnetic blue eyes, Abigail said, “Crazy night, last night, huh? Weird, I know, but…well, anyway. I just want you to know that, despite how it happened, everything last night was just…so perfect. This might sound corny, but I really had the best time of my life with you.”

  “Abigail.” Ryan smiled tautly. “Last night was…well, it was what it was. And it can’t ever happen again.”

  She had to be hearing things. She was still in the hotel room, listening to Ryan’s heartbeat. Surely she must still be asleep, because Ryan couldn’t have done what he had—taken her, knowing it was her very first time—if it meant as little to him as he was suggesting.

  Gnawing her lip, she said, “You don’t mean that. No, Ryan, I know you don’t mean that! Last night was special to me. Very special, and I know that it was special to you, too. Please, let’s sit down and talk. Maybe we can figure out why you suddenly—”

  “No, Abigail. Last night was a mistake. I really am sorry.”

  The room was spinning. And she was about to collapse. It wasn’t as though she hadn’t known that she was taking a risk, but Ryan was brushing off the fact that they’d made love as though it hadn’t meant anything to him. As much time as they’d spent together in the last few months, he’d never really seemed comfortable when anyone saw them together. Now, they’d slept together. And Ryan was throwing her away like yesterday’s trash!

  Abigail fought an overwhelming wave of nausea. Replaying the last few bits of their conversation in her mind, she opened her eyes wide and said, “This is because of the secret you’re keeping, isn’t it?”

  “Dammit, Abigail—”

  “What did Shane mean when he said you would probably know better than most that inter-office relationships aren’t allowed?” Before he could answer, she asked, “Is it about Kimberly? Did you get into some sort of trouble for having a relationship with her?”

  “This discussion is over,” Ryan said sharply.

  “I’m right aren’t I?” With pleading eyes, Abigail said, “If I am, just tell me!”

  Ryan opened his mouth. Then, he laughed and shook his head. “Look, I’m not sure what you and your girlfriend think you know about this guy, but Shane Dempsey is bad news. Aside from that, he has a tendency to mouth off and say things that don’t have any rhyme or reason. Let it go, Abigail.”

  “No, I won’t let it go.” She darted in front of him.

  “Oh you won’t, huh? Damn straight you’re going to let it go.”

  Tears welled in Abigail’s eyes.

  “We may have had”—Ryan waved at the window—“whatever the hell last night was. But, I’m still your supervisor. Coffee break’s over, Abigail. Get back to work!”

  Abigail clutched her shaking stomach. Refusing to cry in front of the bastard responsible, she held her head high and fled from the room.

  Chapter 19

  Ryan stared at the wall, thinking seriously of smashing his skull against it. He looked behind him to see whether he was alone. Considering the way things had just gone with Abigail, having undoubtedly destroyed whatever good feelings she may have still had for him, the thought of ramming his head through solid plaster sounded relatively painless.

  He was an absolute ass. He’d have to be, to have brushed away a woman like Abigail so coldly. Fighting his nature for most of his life, he’d tried every way possible to avoid becoming like his father, whose drinking had only made his inborn temper even worse than it already was. If he hadn’t succeeded in doing so in the past, Ryan had just demonstrated the essence of his nature to Abigail firsthand.

  Of course, the last few minutes had been more theatrical on his part than anything else. Because if Becker and Dempsey discovered what he and Abigail were really doing between the hotel’s bed linens, they’d feed her to the lions. Men like their managers lived to exert their power, and they wouldn’t hesitate to use it to destroy an innocent young woman, particularly one who was working overtime to place herself in their crosshairs.

  There was a connection between the Red Fox and the Washington Valley Hotel. For a moment, Ryan had believed that connection could be Shane Dempsey. Then he’d thought maybe it was Mark Becker. He’d probably been wrong on both counts, but he had a feeling one or both of them knew something. He just needed to figure out what that something was.

  “Howdy, boss,” a voice from behind said.

  Turning around, Ryan forged a polite smile. “Good morning, Julia.”

  “What’s wrong, Newberry? Long night checking in guests? Cause I know I don’t have to tell you that we’ve barely gotten started.”

  “Thanks for your concern, but everything’s fine.”

  “You sure?”

  “Still trying to get that dinosaur of a printer to keep from jamming. But whoever said life was perfect?”

  “Beat the hell out of me,” Julia said. “But that isn’t what’s bothering you, is it?”

  Ryan sighed. He supposed he hadn’t really come to expect anything less from this woman. Biting his tongue, swearing he was going to regret this later, he said, “Can I ask you something?”

  “Shoot,” Julia said.

  “What do you think of Shane Dempsey?”

  Julia complexion became as red as her hair. Glancing at the open door behind them, she said, “That’s certainly a strange question. What exactly is it to you, what I think of the assistant manager?”

  Deciding perhaps he could trust Julia a little, at least so much that he could share his opinion of Shane with her, Ryan said, “I didn’t like the way he was acting just now. He was being aggressive with an employee. With Abigail.”

  Julia narrowed her gaze. “What did Shane do to Abigail?”

  “He had his hand on her shoulder.”

  “Geez, don’t go too crazy on me here, Newberry.”

  “I’m serious, Julia. It was the way Shane did it. It was as though he was trying to use his authority to take advantage of Abigail.”

  Julia’s lips tightened. “Abs may not be the most experienced pom-pom shaker on the squad, but she’s my best friend. If anything was going on between her and blue-eyes, I’d know about it.”

  “Sure about that?”

  “Course I am. Besides, Shane’s not interested in Abigail. He’s interested in me.”

/>   An odd feeling of relief shot through Ryan’s veins. Though, he wouldn’t exactly be surprised to learn that every female on their staff had been hit on by this jackass. “Considering the guy’s not-so-secret take on interoffice liaisons, the idea that he’s made some sort of declaration of his feelings for you seems a little hard to swallow.”

  “Well, not that it’s any of your business, but Shane and I were supposed to go on a date last night. He needed to take a rain check, but that’s beside the point. He’s interested in me. Not Abigail.”

  Ryan’s head was spinning. Not only was Dempsey a complete hypocrite, but the fact that he’d cancelled his plans with Julia was suspicious, too. Apparently he had cancelled a date on the very same night the men met in the old wing. Ryan hadn’t seen Dempsey’s car, but he hadn’t exactly gotten to a chance to look around while the men were parked. There’d been three men and two cars, which meant if his own car hadn’t been there, Dempsey still could have ridden with someone else.

  “Julia, you can do what you want. But, I think you ought to be careful. Something in my gut tells me this guy shouldn’t be trusted.”

  “And just why shouldn’t I trust him?” Julia demanded. “You know, Shane mentioned the no dating policy thing to me. But come on, the guy’s the assistant manager. We’re both adults, and it isn’t as if we’re hurting anyone.”

  “Sure about that?”

  Julia crossed her arms. “You know what I think? I think that you just don’t like the guy.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” Ryan said.

  “Yup. You don’t like Shane. You’re jealous that Abs and I see what a great guy he is. Well, you know what? You’re looking for a problem that isn’t there.”

  Ryan took a centering breath. He wasn’t getting anywhere with this and he needed to stop before he said something he couldn’t take back. “I understand why you feel the way you do, Julia. But I think there’s a lot more to Shane Dempsey than you realize.”

  Hardly believing he’d said all that aloud, even more suspicious than ever that Shane Dempsey was nothing but trouble, Ryan left the room.

  * * * *

  Shane took his buzzing cell phone from his pocket. He replied to the text messages he’d received in the last few minutes then put the phone away.

  The phone buzzed again, and he whipped it out a second time. He could understand why one of the senders might think it was all right to message him during work, but the other one ought to know better. He sent messages to both parties, saying that he was going into a meeting and would be unreachable for a while.

  As he shoved the phone into his pocket, Shane leaned against the desk and rubbed his tired eyes. Opening them, he spotted someone that instantly brightened his day. Julia was coming down the hall.

  Julia, with her wild red hair and mouthwatering curves, was easily one of the most attractive women on their staff. The hotel polo shirt she was wearing was too small for her, and the fact provided for a glorious daily viewing of her assets. Now that the hotel was open, she was wearing a skirt, too, which showed off her creamy, tanned legs.

  “Good morning, good-lookin’.” He greeted her with a suave smile. “Hey, did we ever get those brochures finished? Mark was asking me if we’d gotten them out.”

  “I think Abs is working on that. Actually, I think she’s waiting for me to help her, so—”

  He caught her arm. “You all right?”

  Julia didn’t answer.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  She hesitated. “Are you sure you want to do this? Go out, I mean. You probably don’t know this about me, but I can be a real pain in the butt.”

  “No kidding.” Shane smirked. “But that’s one of the things I like most about you, baby. You probably don’t know this about me, but I’m absolutely crazy about you.”

  Julia blushed. “Don’t put yourself out or anything.”

  “I like difficult women,” he argued.

  “Hey,” she said. “Watch it.”

  “Duly noted. Now, say you’ll be my date Saturday night. We can go anywhere you want—totally your choice.”

  “My choice, huh?” Julia was thoughtful a moment. “Well, there’s this expensive Italian place up on the hill. Looks like a castle, so exclusive I hear they check the food at the door.”

  “Then, that’s where we’ll go.” Shane took her hand. Lifting it, he brought it to his lips.

  Julia was smiling from ear to ear. She shot him a flirtatious wink as she backed away and turned the corner.

  After she’d wandered off, it took Shane several seconds to cool himself down. Julia revved him up in a way that only one other woman ever had. But that woman seemed to have lost her magic.

  He hadn’t been exaggerating when he called Julia a challenge. Challenges were something he’d had no shortage of during his lifetime.

  Hard work paid off in the end. And Shane had no intention of letting anything he’d worked so hard for slip through his fingers.

  Chapter 20

  Tension rose in Abigail’s chest as she stepped behind the front desk Wednesday morning. She held her hand over the computer mouse, hesitating to clock in. Glancing over her shoulder at the break room, thinking about the way Ryan had yelled at her the last time they were in there together, she realized that two days off had done nothing to make her feel better about what had occurred.

  As she cleaned up the guest coffee area, and looked up how many guests were due to check in for the day, she realized that Ryan didn’t seem to be around. Maybe he wasn’t even on the schedule. That would certainly be a relief. Though, only a small one as she wasn’t exactly thrilled about the idea of working with him period at this point.

  Her dream job had become a nightmare. It was supposed to have been an opportunity for her to pay for her education degree, and maybe get some justice for her dad. But she’d made the astronomical mistake of falling for the wrong person. And that person had broken her heart.

  In spite of the horrible mess with Ryan, Abigail sensed she was onto something regarding her father’s murder. She could feel in her bones that the hunches she’d been having were dead-on. Even Ryan himself hadn’t been able to deny that there was a connection between her dad’s shooting and the strange things that were happening around the hotel. If she was right, then she refused to let whatever was going on between the two of them mess up this chance. She couldn’t bring her dad back, but somehow, she was going to get him the justice he’d never had.

  A friendly face approached her and Abigail managed a smile. Brushing away the tears that had trickled onto her face, she moved the computer’s mouse, making it look as though she’d just finished up with a check-in as Mr. Becker approached.

  “Hey there, Abigail.”

  “Hey, Mr. Becker.”

  He frowned. “What did we talk about?”

  “Sorry.” She bit back a smile. “Good morning, Mark.”

  “That’s much better,” Mark said, giving a flash of his white teeth. “Now I don’t sound like I’m pushing forty.”

  Abigail laughed.

  “Shane and Ryan have the morning off, but Kimberly and Julia will be in shortly to cover the desk with you. In the meantime, I was hoping you could help me out with a project. And when I say help, I mean take over the project, assuming you’re up to the challenge.”

  Abigail fought to keep up a smile. What exactly had she done to deserve this? She’d been doing all right with the day-to-day routine she supposed, but she didn’t think she was ready to buck for employee of the month.

  “I guess I could give whatever it is a try. Just as long as it doesn’t involve cleaning any more bathrooms.” Narrowing her gaze, she said, “It doesn’t, does it?”

  “Not a chance. But you might want to change into a pair of jeans, if you have them.” Mark gestured for her to follow him. After shouting a quick, “Good morning, folks,” to the guests who’d just stepped through the front door, he gestured for Julia, who’d just walked in as well, to get behind the des
k. He turned to Abigail and said, “Join me in ten minutes on the patio, miss.”

  After saying a quick hello to Julia and changing into the spare clothes she kept in her employee locker, Abigail went to the patio behind the lobby. The sectioned area was made of stone and there was a man-made waterfall built into the center, compliments of six weeks of effort by the construction crew. Lying on the ground in front of it was an enormous white banner. She struggled to make out the letters splayed across it in the bright morning sun. It appeared to say something about the grand reopening of the hotel. But since the letters weren’t filled in, it wasn’t easy to tell.

  “What is this?” She came around the enormous plastic, toward one of the lounge tables, which was covered with spray and poster paints.

  “Your new best friend? At least, I’m hoping for the next hour or so,” Mark said, gesturing toward the enormous blank canvas. “Sorry to ask you to do this so last minute, but I really don’t think that Joey the gardener would have much luck with a paintbrush.”

  Abigail eyed the patio table, which held enough selections of paint for a small artist’s shop. “And you think I will?”

  “Well, you’re an early childhood education major, right? My sister’s a teacher, too, and I know she’s always doing all those crazy art projects with the kids. I took a chance, hoping there might be an artistic bone in that body of yours.”

  “There might be.” Selecting a brush and a bottle of paint from amid the selections, Abigail said, “At least you covered me by getting two different kinds of paint. I don’t think I’d have much luck filling in this entire banner with spray cans.”

  “Actually, you have Kimberly Russell to thank for that,” Mark said as Abigail filled the bowl he’d provided with water from the side of the building. “I’m smart enough to know that I’m not qualified to do things like pick out paint.”