by Cara Summers
Lily slammed a hand on the table, then leaned forward until her nose was inches from Giles's. "I'm only going to say this one time. If anything happens to Tony Romano and if I find out you're responsible, I'll personally...I'll personally make you pay."
"Lily, I assure you," Giles lifted both hands, and Tony could have sworn that one of them shook a bit, "I'm not a violent man. You know that."
"What I know," she said between gritted teeth, "is that someone is desperate to get their hands on
Henry's Place and you're on the list of suspects. For all I know, this whole meeting was just a charade to get Tony out of the hotel so that he would be vulnerable. I never should have come here."
"You're being irrational."
She leaned closer. "As long as I'm being clear."
Giles inched back in his chair a little. "Yes. You're clear as crystal. But I'm not the one who's trying to hurt Tony Romano."
"Consider yourself warned." Then she whirled to Tony and grabbed his arm. "C'mon, we're getting out of here."
Tony had time to see a flustered Giles rise to his feet and extend a hand. "Mr. Romano, Giles Fortes—"
The rest of the name was lost because of the speed at which Lily was pulling him through the bar. It occurred to him that this was what it might feel like to be thrown over someone's shoulder and dragged off. The thought made his lips twitch, and for the first time since he'd learned that Lily had left the penthouse, his tension eased.
"You scared the life out of me," she said as she urged him down the stairs. "I never would have left the hotel if I'd known you were going to follow. You shouldn't have. How did you know where I'd gone?"
"I read the card that came with the flowers," he said when she paused.
She spared him one angry glance before she shoved him into the revolving door and then wedged herself in next to him. "Isn't that a federal offense?"
"I didn't see a postage stamp on it." For some reason, probably because he had truly gone around the bend, Tony was beginning to enjoy himself.
Out on the street, she pulled him to a stop beneath the awning of the hotel. "What were you thinking?" She poked a finger into his chest. "Someone took a shot at you this afternoon. You should never have left the hotel. Someone could have followed you here. This could have been a trap." She waved a hand in the direction of the street. "They could be out there right now—just waiting for a chance to—"
A blast from a horn drowned out her next few words. With the setting sun in her hair and fury in her eyes, she was beautiful. Later he would wonder why it struck him so hard right then. Even later, he would blame it on the fact that his mind had finally snapped. But right now all he could think was that she looked like some avenging angel who was determined to res- cue him. And he was delighted with her. Each thought she put into words was an echo of exactly what he'd intended to tell her. But right now, all he wanted to do was one thing. He grabbed her, pulled her close and covered her mouth with his.
Oh, it was a mistake. He knew that. And he'd meant to keep the kiss brief—just one sample that would last him until they were someplace safe and private. But the moment that her taste poured into him, he could feel his last thin grip on reality and sanity begin to stream away as quickly as chalk drawings on a rain-washed sidewalk.
And then he didn't think at all. Oh, in some vague corner of his mind, he was aware that pedestrians passed them on the street, and at least one gave a long, low wolf whistle. But the noises were just a buzz in his head. Her hands slid up his back to pull him closer, urging him to take what he wanted. And what he wanted was to explore every inch of her. The hunger that she ignited in him went from spark to flash fire in an instant. He should have been worried that they were on the street, exposed. But that warning voice was more background noise, muted, almost indecipherable as his mind narrowed to Lily.
Lily. He had to touch her. It had been too long. He drew his hand down her side to her hip and pressed her closer. The way she fit against him was so right. And her taste. He'd been craving that wild, sweet flavor—but each time he sampled it, there seemed to be something new, something that pulled him deeper and deeper. And there at last was the deep rich taste of her need. It was the echo of his own, and he knew that he would never get enough of it.
Far away came the sound of tires screeching, horns blasting. He was standing on a New York City sidewalk. In some dim corner of his mind the sounds reminded him of that fact. But the ground beneath his feet wasn't solid. He could have sworn that the world was tilting and he was falling....
It was the quick skip of fear that tightened his thin grip on reality. Fear of what Lily made him feel. Head swimming, he swore under his breath and gathered the strength to pull away. Somehow, he'd moved her so that she was against the wall of the building. He had no idea how they'd gotten there. Worse, he was almost sure he was trembling.
The moment he released her, Lily surfaced slowly. Sensations came first. Her skin felt hot and icy cold at the same time. She pressed her fingers to her lips. They were vibrating. She was sure of it. And her heart. She flattened her other hand against her chest to keep it from pounding its way right out of her. Only then did she become aware that she couldn't feel her legs. If her back hadn't been pressed against the brick wall of a building, she might have slipped right to the sidewalk when Tony dropped his hands and stepped back.
Because she couldn't trust herself to move, or speak—she was pretty sure her lips weren't yet capable of forming words—she simply stared at him. His mouth had flattened to a grim line. She didn't let her gaze linger there because just looking made her want the pressure of his mouth against hers again. His hair was mussed, and her palms still tingled from the sensation of running her hands through it. She wanted to run them through it again.
She wanted him.
The realization struck her in a blinding flash. Not just physically—though there was that too. She wanted the whole package—the man who could turn her brains to mush with a kiss or even a look. The man who would stand at her side and defend her, even if it meant going against his brothers.
The horrible thing was, she wanted him more than she wanted to get her father's approval, more than she wanted to take her place at McNeil Enterprises, more than anything.
And she wasn't going to be able to get him. Once he found out her real agenda for coming to Henry's Place, he was going to hate her.
A horn blasted on the street, and several others echoed it.
Tony swore under his breath.
It was only then that she noticed the fury in his eyes. But she hadn't tasted any anger in his kiss.
"C'mon," he said, grabbing her hand and heading toward the corner. "I paid my taxi driver to wait for us around the corner. I thought that would be safer than flagging one down in front of the hotel."
"You're angry," she said, increasing her pace to keep up with him.
"At myself," he said. "I'm not taking very good care of you. I should have anticipated that you'd come here. He sent you flowers, set up a romantic tryst. Any woman in her right mind would have been flattered."
"Flattered?" She stopped short as they turned the corner, and waited until he was facing her. "You can't think I came here because of that."
"Why did you? Are you still in love with him?"
"No. I met with him to find out if he knew anything about that shooter this afternoon."
Tony stopped to stare at her. "You thought he'd just spill everything?"
"No. But I wanted to see his face when I told him about the shooting. I also wanted to find out if he knew anything about why..." she hesitated, then said, "why someone is so desperate to get hold of your hotel that they'd try to get rid of you."
"Sam and Nick are checking into that."
Lily's stomach clenched and she prayed that whatever they might find out would not involve her family. "Good. But Giles is in the business. I thought he might know something."
"Did he?" Taking her arm, Tony drew her around the corner. People
had begun to trickle out of the row of brown-stones that lined the street. Many of them had been converted into small office buildings. As Tony steered her around a group of strollers, she gathered her thoughts. "Maybe. He's very smooth—and smart. And I can't say that I've got a history of reading him very well. But he made me a job offer." Pausing for a moment, she frowned. "There's always been a rivalry between Fortescue Investments and McNeil Enterprises. Giles admitted that influenced his offer. He also admit- ted to wanting to get even with McNeil Enterprises because my father reneged on the merger two years ago.
But there could be a third reason. If Giles thought I might have any influence with you, he might want me at Fortescue just so he could get his hands on Henry's
Place. My father..."
Breaking off, Lily bit down hard on her lower lip.
She'd been about to say that her father was desperate to get his hands on Henry's Place. Guilt tightened the knots that had already formed in her stomach.
Dame Vera's words came back to her—"deception on deception on deception." That was why the woman hadn't been able to get a clear picture in her crystal. And how could she expect Tony to get a real handle on what was going on unless she told him everything?
"Tony, I—"
He cut her off by gripping her shoulders and turning her towards him. The fury was back, but it was banked. "He could also want revenge on you for breaking off the engagement. A man with that kind of ego wouldn't like to be dumped. That shooter could have been aiming at you just as well as me."
Still frowning, Lily shook her head. "Giles just doesn't have the passion for murder. Besides, it's been two years."
"You know what they say about revenge. It's a dish best enjoyed when it's cold." Linking his fingers with hers, Tony drew her back into the flow of pedestrians. "Or as much as I might hate to give him any credit, the man may simply be brilliant." He waited until she glanced up to meet his eyes, then continued, "He may have realized what an asset you'll be to Fortescue Investments. If I were in his shoes, that's all the motivation I'd need to hire you away from McNeil."
Lily merely stared at him as he raised their joined hands to his lips and brushed his mouth over her fingers. "You don't value yourself half enough," he murmured.
Warmth spread through her, thick and sweet as honey—along with another quick stab of guilt. He didn't know the real Lily. It was time he did. "There's something else I have to tell you."
"Let's get in the taxi first," he said as he drew her toward the curb. "I think we've tempted fate enough."
Lily spotted a cab sitting in a delivery space, about twenty yards away and across the one-way street. The moment the traffic cleared, Tony led her between two parked cars. She caught the movement out of the corner of her eye. By the time they'd taken two steps into the street, the car's motor was racing and it was hurtling toward them. Fear filled her in a flash so bright that it numbed her.
She couldn't seem to move.
"Run."
She wasn't sure if she'd shouted the word or if Tony had. But an arm clamped around her and her feet left the pavement. They were moving then, but so was the car. And it was faster. Much faster. A roaring filled her ears. The car was too close, the other side of the street too far. No time. Images bulleted into her mind, blurring together. A parked car blocking their path. The blue car, nearly upon them. A bald man with sunglasses behind the wheel.
Tony's arm banded her waist and they were airborne. An instant later, they smacked down hard on the hood of the parked car. Her body barely had time to absorb the impact before the car jolted. Metal screeched against metal. Then she was rolling with Tony onto the sidewalk.
Tony twisted to take the impact as they hit the cement. Before the pain had even had time to register, he leapt to his feet, dragging Lily with him. He was in time to see the blue car careen around the corner. Pedestrians scattered, horns blared. If he'd been alone, he would have run after it, chased it down. As it was, he was content to leave that job to the man Sam had assigned to follow him. He didn't want to leave Lily. He couldn't. He folded her into his arms and held her close. The coppery taste of fear was still lodged at the back of his throat.
"Are you all right?" he asked as he ran his hand up her back to the nape of her neck.
She nodded against his chest, but she didn't move except to tighten her arms around him. Neither did he. For the moment, he needed to be held. It had been too damn close. The scene kept replaying itself in his mind in one continuous loop. The car had been inches away
when he'd tightened his grip on her and vaulted onto the hood of the car. Another second and...
Lily ran her hands up his back, and he felt his tension begin to ease. Each time he held her this way, it felt more and more—natural. Just right. He was going to have to give that some thought. Just as soon as he figured out who was trying to kill her. Or him. Or both of them.
"C'mon," he said, finally drawing back. But he kept his arm around her. "We're going back to Henry's Place and we're both going to stay there until we have this figured out."
"Good plan," Lily said as they walked along the sidewalk toward the still-waiting taxi.
Lily stared into the bathroom mirror. Her damp hair was slicked back from her face and all she was wearing was a towel. Without the new hairdo and makeup, she looked very much like the old Lily. Despite two years of hard work and a seven-day success seminar in Tahiti, had she really changed at all?
Her own personal test of that was approaching with the speed of a runaway train. Just as soon as she toweled her hair and dressed, she was going to walk into the living room of the penthouse suite and tell Tony the truth about why she'd come to Henry's Place. She'd postponed that long enough.
But first she wanted to reassure herself that she hadn't changed back into the old Lily—the Lily who cut and ran when the going got tough. She pressed a hand against her stomach where the old familiar knots had formed. Deep inside of her, she felt the same way she had when she was ten and she'd run out of her father's office with his laughter ringing in her ears. Truth told, she'd felt pretty much the same way when she'd informed Giles that she wasn't going to marry him. Unable to face her stepmother's wrath or her father's disappointment, she'd run away that time too.
It had occurred to her during her shower—which had lasted so long, her skin had crinkled—that she was about to repeat an old pattern. When she'd run out on the wedding, she'd ruined everything that her father and McNeil Enterprises had worked for two years to arrange. What she was going to do in a few minutes would ruin everything that McNeil Enterprises was hoping for again. She doubted that Tony would be interested in doing any further business with her father once she told him how she'd lied to him from the get-
She sank onto the toilet and dropped her head into her hands. Making love with Tony Romano had made her lose her focus. From that moment on, the goal that she'd been visualizing in her mind had begun to blur and change until all she could think of was Tony. All she could want was Tony. If she just hadn't crawled into that bed with him.
No. She sat up and straightened her shoulders. The one thing that she couldn't regret was everything she'd shared with Tony.
But he would surely regret it. She stared at the bathroom door. When she worked up the courage to walk through it, she was going to lose everything she'd ever wanted—her father's approval, any chance she had of a vice presidency at McNeil Enterprises, and she was also going to lose Tony.
And that damned motivational guru in Tahiti had made it sound so simple. Lily sighed as she toweled her hair and then pulled on sweats. She'd put it off long enough. When they'd gotten back to the hotel, the family had gathered in the penthouse again to get their assignments. Drew was running the license plate of the blue sedan. The man Sam had assigned to Tony had gotten it when he'd run after the car. She'd been able to tell them that it was the same car and the same man who'd taken a shot at Tony earlier in the day.
Tony was still insisting that she could be the inten
ded victim—but no one was really buying into that theory. It just didn't make sense. Sam, Nick and his wife, Tyler, were all digging into what might make Henry's Place such a "desirable" property. Dame Vera was gazing into her crystal ball. But the end result of their hour-long meeting had been that they still didn't have a clue as to why someone would want to hurt Tony or her or both of them.
The least she could do was clear away one layer of the "deceptions" that were clearly leading to disasters. Straightening her shoulders, Lily opened the bathroom door, but she stopped short the moment she saw Tony sitting on the side of the bed. Her throat went dry and all the knots in her stomach tightened.
"Hi," he said as he slid from the bed and held out his hand. "I've got a surprise for you."
She moistened her lips and ignored his hand. "No. First, there's something that I have to tell you."
His brows lifted. "It won't wait."
She shook her head, and made herself keep her eyes on his. "I should have told you sooner. I—I came here under false pretenses." She cleared her throat. "I lied to you. There's no new division in McNeil Enterprises that offers consulting services to hotels. When you refused my father's offer to sell Henry's Place, he sent me here to spy on you, to discover anything that he could use to force you to sell."
"And the plan you outlined for me earlier? That was a lie too?"
"No. The plan is solid. But McNeil Enterprises never had any intention of offering you a financial package. So—that part of it was a lie."
There. She'd said it. Confession was supposed to be good for the soul, but it hadn't make her stomach feel any better. Tony's expression hadn't changed since she'd started her little speech. And now the silence had gone on for so long that it seemed to be a physical presence in the room. Why didn't he say something?
"Well? Aren't you going to say anything?" she asked.
"It took a lot of courage for you to tell me that," he said.
She stared at him. He should be angry, but there was no sign of it in his voice or in his eyes. His hands were hanging loosely at his sides—no clenched fists, no white knuckles. She took a step toward him. "What's wrong with you? I just told you that I came here to trick you and to take your hotel away from you. You don't look angry. You don't even look surprised."