by Lisa Jackson
“Neither does Henderson. Linda was out sick that week.” Adam told her about Henderson’s hunch and the perfume.
“That’s not much to go on,” she said when Adam finished. “Just because Kent was arguing with someone in the accounting department isn’t any big news. At least I don’t think it’s enough to indict anyone.”
Adam flinched at her sarcasm.
“Sorry. Sore subject,” she said.
“You have any idea who would be involved with Simms?”
“Besides me?” she said smartly, then sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. She thought about Dolores Tate. And Stephanie Bond. And Lila Montague, all women whom Kent had dated. “I’m afraid the list is miles long.”
“Good thing I’m so patient,” he replied, smothering a cynical smile, and Marnie almost laughed.
“Right.”
“Just think about it.”
“I will,” she promised as he stopped at a red light.
When the light changed, he stepped hard on the throttle, sped through the intersection and turned into the small drive leading to her apartment building.
He pulled into a vacant space, threw the rig into park, clicked off the headlights and turned off the ignition before turning all his attention in her direction. The cab of the truck seemed suddenly intimate. Mist drizzled down the windshield and the warmth of their bodies was beginning to cloud the glass. Adam’s presence seemed to fill the interior, and she knew that she had to escape before she made the same mistake with him that she had in the past.
Her voice was scarcely a whisper. “Thanks for dinner. I—”
“I want to come up.”
Her throat went dry. “You never give up, do you? You just keep pushing and pushing and never stop.”
“When something’s important, I go for it.”
She knew he wasn’t speaking of her, couldn’t be. He’d made that perfectly clear. “And when something’s dangerous, I leave it alone,” she said. “You know the old saying ‘once burned, twice shy’?”
“You don’t have to be shy with me.” He touched her hand, and she felt a shiver of delight. “As for that business about the danger, I don’t believe it.”
“Well, you’re wrong!” she argued, as his fingers wrapped over hers and she felt the pads of his fingertips, warm and enticing against the underside of her arm. Think, Marnie, think! But she didn’t pull her arm away. “Look, Adam, I don’t mountain climb, or play with rattlesnakes, or run into burning buildings.”
“But you do sail a boat in the middle of a storm, you do stand up to one of the most intimidating men in the state—”
“Meaning you?”
“Meaning your father. And you are willing to take a few risks, if you feel strongly about something.”
She blushed in the deep interior and reached for the door handle, pulling up on the lever and getting nowhere. Adam had electronically locked the door by means of some sort of child-protection device and she was trapped inside the rig with him.
“You barely knew me and you stood up to your father, as well as the board, in my defense.” With his left hand, he withdrew the keys from the ignition, and the only sound inside the four-wheel-drive vehicle was the soft jangle of metal. “You were willing to take a risk then.”
“That was before I knew that you’d use me or anyone else to get what you want.”
“All I want is the truth.”
The keys clinked softly—like wind chimes disturbed by a stealthy breeze. “I don’t see how I can help you,” she said, suddenly aware of a knot in her throat and the restless energy that seemed to radiate from him.
“It’s simple really. You’ve been hired by your father’s company, right? As a free-lance publicist.”
“Yes, but how did you find out?”
“I still have a few friends at Montgomery Inns.”
“Spies, you mean,” she said, flabbergasted. Hadn’t her father always been suspicious of disloyal people within the tight fabric of Montgomery Inns? Marnie had always thought that Victor was jumping at shadows, that his paranoia over the embezzlement was playing tricks in his mind. Apparently she had been wrong.
“No one ‘spies’ for me.” But the look he sent her caused her to shiver.
“Yet.” Cold certainly settled in the pit of her stomach.
“Yet.”
Oh, God! “But now you’re hoping that I’ll do your dirty work for you,” she guessed, sickened.
“Of course not.”
“I won’t betray my own father!”
He tugged at her arm, so swiftly she didn’t see him move. Dragging her close so that his nose was touching hers, he growled, “Let’s get a couple of things straight, Marnie. I’m not asking you to betray anyone or spy on anyone. And I’m not going to put either your personal career or your physical well-being in jeopardy. That’s not the way I work. Whether you believe me or not, I don’t expect you to plunder the company files, or sabotage the computer system, or be involved in any other corporate espionage b.s.”
She gulped, but managed to meet his gaze with her own. “Then what is it you want from me?”
“Nothing,” he ground out, then swore loudly and violently. “Or everything. I can’t decide which.” His gaze burned like molten gold as he glared down at her. “Damn it, Marnie, you’ve got me so messed up, sometimes I don’t know up from sideways. But I do know this much. I have never, never wanted a woman the way I want you!”
“And it frightens you,” she surmised with sudden clarity.
“It scares the living hell out of me!”
His fingers tangled in the pale strands of her hair, and his lips descended upon hers skillfully. He groaned as he felt her yield and give herself to him. She wound her arms around his neck and, lifting her face from his, managed a tremulous smile. She wanted him as much as he wanted her. If not more. “What’re we gonna do about this?” she wondered aloud, breathless.
“Give me twenty minutes, and I’ll show you,” he vowed, reaching behind him and unlocking the doors.
“That quick?”
His grin turned wicked. “Or two hours. Your choice, Miss Montgomery. Your every wish is my command.”
Once inside, he carried her into the bedroom and laid her gently on the bed. Marnie quivered as he kissed her, removing clothing and brushing his lips intimately against her skin.
She was on fire. All the emotions of the last few weeks running rampant through her willing body. Her skin aflame, her breasts aching for his touch, her lips anxious as they melded to his.
He took his time with her, touching her and running his hands and mouth against her skin, teasing her and waiting until she was ready, until she took his hand and pressed it to her breast, until she felt as if the hot, aching vortex within her would be forever empty.
Stripping him of his clothes, she closed her mind to all doubts, opened her eyes and watched as slowly his hard body found hers. She gasped at his entrance, and words of love sprouted to her lips, only to be lost as he began to move and she could no longer control her tongue or voice.
“Oh, Marnie,” he whispered against her ear, his skin slick with sweat. “Sweet, sweet Marnie.”
Chapter Eleven
“It’s good to have you back, even if it’s only temporary.” Kate Delany set a cup of coffee on the corner of Marnie’s desk, the desk she’d occupied while she still worked full-time for the firm, in the office that she’d come to look upon as a prison.
“Thanks. I need this.” She picked up the mug, let the steam drift toward her nostrils and sighed. “You know, I never thought I’d admit it, but it’s good to be back.” Despite her bid for independence, Marnie surprised herself by missing some of the people she’d worked with. She’d also had trouble adjusting to the slower pace of her own office. Now, working at Montgomery Inns, she discovered she enjoyed the bustle and energy of a hotel swarming with hundreds of guests and employees.
Cradling her own cup of coffee, Kate dropped into one of the chairs nea
r the desk. “So how’s it going for Montgomery Public Relations? Any new accounts?” She crossed one slim leg over the other.
“A couple. But this one—” she tapped the eraser end of her pencil on a press release she was working on for Montgomery Inns “—takes up most of my time.”
“Your father will be pleased.” Kate’s dark eyes twinkled. “He’s never gotten over the fact that you walked out on him.”
Marnie shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She didn’t expect a reprimand, not even a gentle one, from Kate. “I only needed a little breathing space.”
“I think he understands that now.”
“You talked to him about it?” Marnie guessed, sipping the strong, hot coffee.
Kate laughed. “For hours. It takes a long while to convince your father of anything.” At that her laughter died, and a cloud appeared in her eyes. Marnie guessed she was thinking of Victor’s reluctance to remarry.
Marnie said, “Well, since you championed my cause, maybe I can champion yours.”
“I wish someone could,” Kate admitted, “but I don’t think it’s possible. Oh, well, no one can say I didn’t try.” She took a long swallow of coffee and seemed lost in her thoughts—nostalgic thoughts from the expression on her face. “I’d convinced myself after Ben and I divorced that I’d never find anyone else. Not that I was still in love with him or anything like that. Ben was far from perfect, a little boy who never grew up. Didn’t like the responsibility of marriage, wasn’t ready to support a wife, and wouldn’t hear of starting a family.” She smiled sadly. “But he was fun. The kind of boy you’d love to date but hate to marry. Anyway, it didn’t work out and I came to work here and I met your father and he was everything Ben wasn’t. Strong, dependable, steady as a rock. I couldn’t believe it when he noticed me, plucked me out of the secretarial pool…” Kate’s voice trailed off, and she cleared her throat. Tiny lines of disappointment surrounded her lips. “Well, that was a long time ago.”
Marnie hated to see Kate so defeated. “Don’t give up on him just yet,” she said.
“Never say never, right?” Kate asked, finishing her coffee.
“Right!”
“Okay. So enough of me crying in my beer—or coffee. What about you, Marnie?” Kate asked as she stood. “Why don’t you give Kent a second chance?”
Another little push from Kate. Marnie was surprised. “I’m not a glutton for punishment.”
“Was it that bad?”
“Worse, but it doesn’t matter,” Marnie said, uncomfortable at the turn in the conversation.
“Is there someone else?”
Marnie thought of Adam and his reluctance to commit to her. Yes, she was falling in love with him. They were treading water, waiting for the tidal wave that would eventually drive them apart. “No one serious,” she said when she caught Kate’s probing gaze.
Kate lifted a skeptical brow. “Victor told me you were seeing Adam Drake.”
Marnie didn’t comment, but Kate sighed and drummed her fingers on her empty cup. “Take my word for it, Marnie. That man’s trouble with a capital T. And if you ever want to hurt your father to the point that he’ll never forgive you, then I suppose you can just keep on seeing Adam. When Victor finds out, he’ll be devastated.”
“My father can’t choose whom I date.”
“Or marry?” Kate asked, and Marnie’s head snapped up. For a second a fleeting look of understanding passed between them and Marnie realized that she was much like Kate, caught in a love affair that could only end badly, emotionally tied to a man, who, for reasons of his own, couldn’t or wouldn’t allow himself to be tied down forever. Depression weighted her heart.
Kate stood, rounded the desk and touched her lightly on the shoulder. “Kent’s a good man, Marnie, though I know he has his faults. But he knows he hurt you, and I believe he’d never hurt you again. As for Dolores—”
Marnie’s eyes widened. Kate knew? Her cheeks flushed hot with embarrassment. How many other employees knew or guessed that Kent had two-timed the boss’s daughter? What about her father?
Her anxiety must have registered, because Kate said, “Victor doesn’t know. And not that many people in the firm had any idea that he was…seeing anyone while you were engaged. In fact, the only reason I knew was that I came upon Dolores crying in the ladies’ room one day and I took her back to my office to calm her down. She let everything out. She was nearly hysterical, sobbing and carrying on. Kent had told her he didn’t want to see her again and she didn’t believe him. She wanted to quit Montgomery Inns, but I convinced her to stay, at least for a while. But, from the looks of it, Kent broke up with her for good.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Marnie heard herself saying. She didn’t love Kent. Never had. And in the past few weeks she’d seen a side to him that was frightening.
“Probably not. I doubt if I’d ever forgive him, if I were in your shoes. But I thought you should know the full story. Done with that?” she asked, flicking her finger toward Marnie’s nearly empty cup.
“Yes. And thanks.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m just glad you’re back and back on your own terms. See ya later.” She swept out of the room, leaving Marnie restless and concerned.
She spent the better part of the first week working with the Montgomery Inns account and spending more time at the hotel than she did at her own office. Donna, ever efficient, swore that she had the situation under control, but the most difficult part of Marnie’s job was being so removed from Adam. After Kate’s rebuff, when he’d tried and failed to contact Victor, he’d decided not to call Montgomery Inns. Marnie had to content herself with seeing him in the evenings at her place. At the thought of their nights together, she smiled.
At the hotel, she worked with Todd Byers, who had assumed her position for the few weeks she’d been gone. Todd was about twenty-seven, with unruly blond hair and round, owlish-looking glasses.
“That about does it,” he said, flopping back in a chair near her desk and resting his heels on another chair. “We should have all the publicity for Puget Sound West done for the next six months.”
Marnie rubbed her chin. She couldn’t afford to blow this account. “You’re right, but I’ll follow up just in case.”
Todd shrugged, obviously thinking she was overly careful. “The next project’s in California. San Francisco. Renovations are half finished,” Todd said. “Victor wants us to go there next month.”
“I know,” Marnie admitted, remembering her conversation with her father about her schedule and wondering how she was going to juggle her time as it was. She thought about leaving Adam, and her heart tugged a little, but she ignored that tiny pain.
“Well, I’ve got a few loose ends to tie up, then I’m outta here,” Todd said, dropping his feet to the floor and slapping his hands on his legs. “It’s almost seven.”
The time had gone by so quickly, Marnie had barely noticed. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said as Todd smiled, saluted her, and exited.
Twenty minutes later, as she was leaving, she bumped into Rose Trullinger in the hallway. “Just the person I wanted to see,” Rose said, though she was wearing a full-length coat and was tugging on a pair of gloves as if she were heading outside to her car. “I don’t have time to go into it right now, but I want the Puget West brochure changed. The pictures of the suites don’t do justice to the design.”
Marnie couldn’t believe it. “But you approved those shots.” A courtesy, since Rose really had no authority over publicity. But Marnie had tried to please everyone.
“I know, I know. I made a mistake.” She finished with the glove and met Marnie’s gaze levelly, as if she were daring Marnie to challenge her.
“The brochures are already being printed.”
Rose smiled thinly. “Then get them back,” she said. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“You bet you will,” Marnie said under her breath. She headed toward her father’s office, but discovered that he and Kate were already gone f
or the day. In fact, the executive offices were practically deserted. She should go home, work on the Jorgenson Real Estate account, her latest client, but she was in no hurry, as Adam was out of town, meeting with some investors from Los Angeles.
Rose’s strange attitude had reminded her of her conversation with Adam. Hadn’t he said one of the accomplices could be a woman? She hesitated as an idea occurred to her—maybe she could help find the culprit. She was alone in the building, with access to all the computer files…This might be her only chance to prove, once and for all, that Adam was innocent.
She walked down a corridor, turned right and entered the accounting area for the entire hotel chain. There were twenty desks, none currently occupied, in the bookkeeping area and three offices, partitioned off from the rest of the workers: a cubicle for Fred Ainger, one for Linda Kirk and one for Desmond Cipriano, the man who had replaced Gerald Henderson.
Feeling a little like a thief, she walked straight to Fred’s desk, and using her own code, accessed the computer files for the Puget West hotel. She printed out scores of records, accounting as well as construction and research, hoping for some clue as to who took the money. She believed Adam was innocent. There were times when she didn’t trust him, but she really believed that he hadn’t taken a dime from her father. If he had, why would he want to dig up all the evidence again? No, Adam was a man hell-bent to clear his name, and to that end, Marnie decided, she could help him.
For the next three nights, she pored over the documents, making notes to herself, reading all the information until the figures swam before her eyes, but she found nothing, not one shred of evidence concerning the missing funds. True, she wasn’t trained in accounting, and a dozen lawyers and accountants and auditors had gone over the books when the discrepancy was discovered, but she’d hoped…fantasized…that she would be able to unearth the crucial evidence that would prove Adam’s innocence, absolve him of the crime, and give him back his sterling reputation.
“You are a fool,” she told herself on Saturday morning as she dressed. Adam was due back in town later in the afternoon, and she planned on using the morning to visit the Marnie Lee. There was still the matter of Kent’s belongings on the boat, a point he’d made several times since she’d started work at the hotel, and she wanted all trace of him out of her private life. Of course, she’d have to find a way to buy out his half of the vessel, but that would have to wait until she had a little more cash or could talk to her banker. A loan would probably be impossible, though. She’d just started her own business, didn’t own her own home and her car was worth only a few thousand dollars. Her savings had to be used to keep her afloat until the receipts for the business exceeded the expenses.