Now, because she’d not given him the phone number, he had ordered her to meet him at the construction site. Was he trying to punish her and test her fear of heights?
Her shoulders sagged. Her time was definitely running out at the company. Today, she had to locate those damning orders for inferior supplies and try to get more information on who else could be involved.
When lunchtime arrived, Kate rushed out of her office and headed to Purchasing. Cecilia wasn’t at her desk so Kate tried the door to the file room. When the knob turned, she exhaled a sigh of relief and entered. The place was silent and empty. Her nerves taut, she went up and down the several rows of Steelcase file cabinets until she located one cabinet labeled “Karger Building Project.”
Kate flipped through the last six months of files and checked the invoices. Three of them caught her eye. Strangely, the last three orders of drywall had been shipped to a warehouse in a shady part of town, and not directly to the Karger site.
Kate wasn’t sure what the purchase orders meant. She slipped the papers into her briefcase. She’d photocopy them and return the originals tomorrow, which shouldn’t be a problem. If Cecilia left the door unlocked at lunchtime, security was probably lax in this office.
A tap on a metal cabinet in the next row reverberated around the room. Kate’s heart raced and she froze in place. Several minutes ticked by.
Not knowing what, or who, had caused the sound, she edged silently toward the door and quietly slipped out of the room.
Her churning stomach was tied in knots by the time Kate reached her desk and collapsed in her chair. Had someone been in the file room? Had she been seen?
Kate checked her watch. She had missed lunch entirely. Her next appointments were back to back and would begin in a few minutes. She was to interview several potential employees and later meet Trent at the Karger job site as he had commanded.
Apprehension swept through her. She was concerned about stepping onto the building site where her brother had fallen. The memories were too recent and still too painful for her to fake a cool composure around Trent.
To top it off, now she wondered if whoever had been in the file room at the same time had seen her. Was she insinuating herself in too deep?
* * *
The afternoon sun lowered on the horizon as Trent strode through the construction site. As for the anonymous report of violations, OSHA had come and gone without finding any issues. Several men moved about completing various jobs before they wrapped up and left for the evening.
Two hundred feet away, Dr. Meyers paused outside the front gates. Her blond hair was knotted in a bun and gleamed in the late sun. Dressed in a drab white suit, she stood there staring up at the building, looking like a lost soul. Perhaps all this loud activity intimidated her, compounding her fear of heights.
Frowning at the uneasiness he might have caused her by making her come to the job site, he strode up to her. She whirled toward him, with an anxious expression. Taking in her pale face, he swore. “Hell, you look like you’ve seen a ghost. You actually do have a problem with coming here.”
She raised her chin. “It’s just that you startled me. That’s all.”
He shook his head in disbelief. “Yeah, right. I don’t believe you’re being truthful. I saw you from a distance and you looked like you were having an issue then.”
“I’ll be all right,” she whispered, through pale lips.
“If you say so. By the way, doc, OSHA just left. Luckily, they didn’t find any workplace violations.”
“Th-that’s good,” she said, swaying slightly.
“Are you sick?”
She shrugged. “No. I’ll be fine.”
He studied her face. “Is it the height thing that’s bothering you?”
She raised her chin. “I-I can manage.”
“All right, but I’m not convinced. Why don’t you tell me why you’re afraid of heights—or whatever it is that’s bothering you about being here?”
She raised gray eyes to him, distorted by the glasses, and something tightened in his chest.
She blew out a deep breath. “I suppose, like most people, you must think therapists don’t have any problems. Let me just say I had a traumatic experience with heights when I was a kid.”
“And…?” When she seemed reluctant to say more, he teased, “Should I guess? You fell out of your bunk bed?”
Her mouth curved upward, as he intended. “You read minds, too?”
“So you don’t want to tell me the real reason?”
Her lips compressed and she shook her head.
“I understand entirely your not wanting to tell me,” he said with dry sarcasm, “because then you’d have to explain why you went to work for a construction company that builds high-rises. You are an enigma, doc.”
She gave him a sideways glance. “Perhaps I thought I’d only be working in the offices,” she quipped.
“All right, since you’re not going to tell me, come on. Let’s go. I’ll show you around. I’d like you to see what we do.”
Glancing again at the building, she drew in a deep breath and squared her shoulders as if readying herself for the journey upward in the elevator. “I-It’s one thing to ride in those enclosed elevators at work, but these are so open.”
“If you’re so terrified of heights we will avoid the elevators today. Our tour will only be on the ground—although the elevators are perfectly safe. And since you’re here, you might as well see some of the site.”
He picked up a hard hat for her from the stack by the entrance gate. Something caught his eyes. About thirty feet down the fence line, and partially hidden by equipment and pallets of construction supplies, a bloodied mass was attached to the chain link fence.
“What the hell…?” he asked.
Behind him, Dr. Meyers gasped.
They strode toward the object. Blood oozed from the eyes, mouth and the neck of a woman’s severed head. Long, pale-blond hair spread out with a splattering of deep crimson red.
“Oh, my!” Dr. Meyers cried. “That wasn’t here when I walked by only minutes ago.”
“Don’t panic. It’s only a Halloween mask with some sort of fake gel to look like blood. Probably a kid’s prank.” Frowning, he stepped closer to the object. “I hope they’re not taking up some stupid antics, trying to make this place appear haunted after the accident months ago.”
He inspected the mask and found a cord with glasses dangling from the neck, just above the severed edge as if to appear a woman had been strangled first and then guillotined.
“Holy shit, doc—it looks a little like you.” He glanced at her face, now whiter than the dress shirt he wore with his suit today.
“I, uh, Mr. Farrington... I don’t feel well at all...”
When she sank toward the ground, he caught her by the waist and gently swung her up in his arms. Her glasses and hard hat fell off and landed on the ground.
“Hey, doc… Kate?” he asked.
Her head lolled on his arm and her shirt fell open at the neckline. His gaze dropped to a red heart-shaped birthmark at her collarbone, the same mark he’d seen the other night—on Grace.
When her eyes fluttered open, a jolt hit him. Now an exquisite gray color of steel mixed with blue sky, at one time he’d seen those eyes a different color. At the ball, they’d been a dark forest green. For a moment, her gaze locked on his.
She snapped her lids closed. “I-I’m okay. I didn’t eat lunch.”
“Are you sure that’s the reason you fainted?” he asked in a controlled voice.
“Yes,” she whispered.
If she’d been any other woman, he might have been tempted to dump her out of his arms for tricking him. However, now, instead of feeling stupid or angry, he couldn’t stop a simmering satisfaction that he had found Grace. No wonder he’d been attracted to both women. And this meant Dr. Meyers had not hated him on the night of the party—far from that.
She had obviously worn green contacts that night. Wh
y had she kept her identity a secret? What was her game?
“I’m all right now,” she muttered. “You can put me down.”
Still stunned about her deception, he stood her on her feet. She turned away from him, but nearly stumbled.
He caught her around the shoulders. “No, you’re not okay.” Surprised by his own protectiveness, he scooped her up again and strode to a nearby bench. He sat her down.
“Can you please find my glasses?” She dropped her face into her hands, while he went to retrieve them.
Only when she had adjusted her glasses on her nose did she turn and face him again. “Thank you. I am so embarrassed.”
“Are you better now?” he asked, after she’d rested a few minutes.
She nodded. “Yeah.”
“Come on, you’re shaking. If I’ve ever seen anyone in need of a drink, it’s you. I’ll have the thing removed while we go to the bar around the corner.”
Leaning on him, she hobbled beside him over the gravel and to the work site exit. “Do I look like I drink a lot?
“No, but unless you’ve a reason not to drink, today you could use one.”
When they neared the gates to exit the construction site, Greg strode through. “Hey, what happened?”
Greg’s gaze swept over Trent’s arm around Dr. Meyers’ shoulders. Was that a flicker of jealousy in his friend’s eyes?
“She fainted,” Trent said.
Greg turned toward the thing hanging on the fence. “Yikes. Is that what upset you, Kate? It certainly is gruesome. Someone’s got a depraved sense of humor.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Trent answered. “Must be a Halloween prank.”
Kate nodded. “I-It was silly of me. I-I over-reacted.”
“Would you get rid of it, Greg? I’m taking her to Hannigan’s Pub.”
On their way out of the construction site, Trent whispered to her, “And tell me the truth. It’s wasn’t only the mask, but you weren’t feeling all too well before you got here.”
She shrugged, but he had no doubt that her faint had been real. And with her withholding her identity from him on the night of the party, he felt he had every right not to tell her that he’d found her out.
She deserved a little bit of her own medicine, until he found out why she’d not revealed her true identity.
* * *
Away from the shadows of the Karger Construction site, Kate walked on trembling legs down the sidewalk toward nearby Hannigan’s Pub. Trent’s arm was draped securely around her shoulders. Despite her shock over the bloodied mask, she couldn’t help but notice how warm he felt against her and how her pulses leapt at his nearness.
Kate reexamined the facts and tried to hold on to her fragile control as they walked on toward the pub. No doubt, the grisly mask had been meant for her. The resemblance was too close. Was it only a warning, or some kind of threat? Whoever did this must have discovered she had a connection to Matt and why she was at the company. If so, her days at Farrington were definitely numbered—she had to leave soon.
But who could have done it? Anyone could know she was going to be here because she’d posted her intent to visit the Karger Construction site early in the day. It wasn’t Trent who placed it on the fence because the mask wasn’t there when they’d passed that spot earlier and they’d been together since they arrived. Unfortunately, from the time she’d been in the file room to now, this person had plenty of time to hang it on the fence to frighten her.
With all she’d come to know about Trent, she was convinced his smarmy cousin Roland was the ‘grandson’ Matt had meant in his last words. Had Roland been the person hiding in the file room? Sending such a hideous warning, indicated someone with a dangerous mind. The idea that someone knew who she really was sent a shiver through her. However, she couldn’t let fear stop her. She had to stay at the company and find out who was responsible for the equipment and the supply switches, which had caused Matt’s death.
Trent squeezed her shoulders. “Hey, you’re shaking. You can calm down now. It’s only a Halloween prank. You all right?”
Fighting the urge to sink her face into his muscular chest, she nodded and swallowed a lump in her throat. “Yeah…probably just a Halloween prank,” she said in a flat voice.
They soon arrived at the local Irish restaurant, only a few minutes from the construction site. Kate remembered hearing the place was a frequent happy-hour hangout for downtown business clientele and for nightlife.
Inside, the rustic pub had dark wood paneling, with candles flickering on the tables. When Trent removed his arm from around her, Kate sighed and took a seat across from him at the wooden booth.
After their drinks were served, Trent pushed the glass of blackberry brandy in front of her. “Drink some. It’ll help.”
As she sipped, the liquid burned her throat. She wrinkled her nose and glanced up to find him staring at her.
“You don’t like it?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I’m not sure. It’s strong.”
“Seemed like you needed a stiff drink.” He leaned back against the booth and studied her. “I’d say for a psychologist, you have a lot of phobias: afraid of heights, faints at the sight of fake blood. I could go on.” He pinned her with his dark gaze. “What shook you up so much that you fainted?”
Kate dropped her gaze to the table. “At first glance, the mask seemed so real,” she said in a low voice. That was the truth, but she had taken an extra jolt knowing it was meant for her. A chill prickled along the nape of her neck.
“But it wasn’t real.”
She toyed with the glass of brandy in her hand and tried to redirect the conversation, tried to gain her balance. “So I do have a lot of phobias. Have you ever heard the theory that those who go into the psychology field are likely people who are comfortable around psychologists—because they’ve been around a lot of psychologists?”
He chuckled. “No.” He sipped his beer, but his gaze never left her face.
A blush heated her cheeks. “Well, it’s true. I’ve had my share of problems.”
Her statement made her sound like she’d been a patient, but actually her great-aunt had been the only psychologist Kate had ever known. Not that she couldn’t have used some help after a childhood spent with Bill Jackson—but she’d never been professionally treated by anyone. Her aunt had tried to help, but unfortunately, she had died over three years ago.
Kate took another sip of the strong drink. One, to steady her nerves because she was affected by Trent and needed a break from gazing into his dark eyes. And two, she was almost certain, because of the likeness to her, that the mask had been meant for her. It seemed like a threat of some kind and she wasn’t sure how serious. Was it placed there to scare her away? Or was it a more dangerous threat because she was getting too close to something?
With a shudder, she swallowed another gulp of brandy.
Trent leaned forward across the table and regarded her. “I see you’re taking my advice to drink for medicinal purposes.”
Kate gave him a faint smile and nodded weakly. “You sure you’re not trying to get me drunk?”
“Would it help?” he inquired in a bland voice.
Heat rushed through her at the memory of him saying he’d be available for warming her bed. She flicked him a wary glance. “I’ve never fainted before,” she said, ignoring his question. “But I think your suggestion to have a drink was wise. I’m better already.”
“Maybe you should eat something, too, since you skipped lunch, or you actually might pass out again for drinking on an empty stomach. They have food here, or we can go to a restaurant on Las Olas.”
That would be wonderful to spend more time with him. What was she thinking? Alarm swept through her. For the duration of her time at the company, she had to keep her relationship with him strictly dealing with business. “I can’t do that, Mr. Farrington.”
“Sure you can. Just say, ‘I’d love to go, Trent.’”
A pain tugged at
her heart. She wished she could reveal herself as Grace and pick things up from there, with no lies, other than a name, to interfere between them. She’d thought their evening at the ball was special to him and she would treasure those memories for a lifetime. But she supposed his evening with Grace had not been special enough that he wouldn’t hit on the first vulnerable woman, even one he’d shown little interest in before…
“But I work for you,” she said weakly. Had he forgotten the romantic night he’d shared with Grace at the benefit ball? He was fickle and not to be trusted with her heart. “And did you forget about my cousin already?” she prodded.
His smile turned into a chuckle. “Sorry, doc, if I’ve given you the impression I was asking you for a date. Is that what you assumed? It’s purely professional between us. I merely thought since you fainted I’d feed you and we could drop the sparring for the evening.”
Her face burning, she nodded. Of course, he didn’t like her the way she was, as herself. Perhaps he thought she was homely without makeup. Ever since her glasses had flown off her head, she’d been half worried he had recognized that she was Grace. She’d been waiting for his reaction and for him to denounce her. Obviously, there was no need. He still saw her as the plain-looking, unattractive doctor—which was exactly what she’d wanted him to think from the beginning.
She frowned and almost said something about men who were only interested in women because of the way they looked, when he held up a hand. “Now, Dr. Meyers, I’m not trying to make you angry. I only thought I would make amends for the way I demanded your cousin’s phone number.” He gestured to the space between them. “Nothing personal. You and I are hardly the same type, which we agreed upon before.”
Her shoulders stiffened. She had the distinct impression she’d been insulted further. She should be relieved he’d not recognized her, but she wasn’t. She regretted the entire charade.
“Deep thoughts?” Trent asked, raising his beer.
Her face warmed. “Yes.”
“I have a few of my own. Since I potentially saved you from another nasty fall, I thought we might be friends.”
“Friends? You want to be my friend?” She narrowed her eyes. “Or are you still trying to get Grace’s phone number?” she asked in a sour voice.
Disguised with the Millionaire (Dangerous Millionaires Series Book 2) Page 15