by Sara Orwig
This morning at half-past ten, she had an appointment with Keith Owens. It would have to be a very good offer to pull her away from her freelancing. She turned on her side to look at Jason as he slept. Locks of his unruly black hair fell over his forehead and his cheek. His muscled chest was bare, the sheet down below his waist. Her heart thudded, and she wanted so badly just to move into his arms and say yes, she would marry him, and forget all caution. But she didn’t want major regrets later.
His arm was draped over her. He held her always in the night, moving her close against him, even in his sleep. She brushed locks off his forehead. “I love you,” she whispered.
Sleep was impossible, and she was still awake when Jason stirred, tightened his arms around her and pulled her closer to kiss her.
They loved long and leisurely, yet with an underlying urgency. When she finally dressed to leave the ranch for her appointment with Keith, time was running out and she had to rush.
With her things packed and in her own car, she hurried through the house to find Jason waiting in the kitchen. He stood when she entered the room.
His gaze raked over her simple blue suit. “You look gorgeous.”
“Thanks, Jason. I hope I look professional. I have to run or I’ll be late to meet Keith.”
“Keith will understand if you call and change the time.”
“I’m keeping my appointment. Kiss me goodbye,” she said, walking up to him with her heart thudding.
His arms wrapped around her tightly and he pulled her close, kissing her long and taking her breath. She knew she should stop him. He was drawing out his kiss, rekindling desire that smoldered all the time. She pushed against him. “I have to go now.”
“No, you don’t really,” he said gruffly, his blue-green gaze intense and tearing into her. “And you could come home to me afterwards.”
“We’ve been over that.” She headed toward the door and he moved with her, holding the door of her car and closing it behind her.
Jason leaned down to take her chin in his hand. “I’ll meet you for lunch at the Royal Diner after your interview.”
When she nodded, he stepped away from the car.
She started the motor, shifted and drove away. Glancing in the rearview mirror, she saw Jason standing with his fists on his hips, his feet spread apart while he watched her drive away.
She hurt and wondered if she had just tossed aside a wonderful future. Was she making an incredible mistake by not saying yes and following her heart and rushing into marriage?
Tears streamed down her cheeks and she wiped at them hastily, not wanting to go to a job interview with clothes wet from tears. She didn’t particularly care about the interview, but Keith Owens had sounded as if he could make her an interesting offer, and he was very complimentary about her skills, even though he was basing his opinion on her getting into Dorian’s files.
When she walked into his office, he stood to offer her his hand. She looked into friendly brown eyes. “I’m glad to meet you again under better circumstances.”
He laughed. “You stirred us all up, but we need that sometimes. Have a seat.” Dressed in dark slacks and a button-down short-sleeved broadcloth shirt, he was casual in appearance and approach. He moved away from his desk, turning a chair to face her and looking relaxed. “Thanks for getting your résumé to me so quickly.”
“My sister sent a copy to me, and it was easy to send one on to you.”
“Your résumé is impressive. But getting into Dorian’s files is even more impressive. We have an opening I think you would be perfect for.”
She listened while he talked, and all through the interview, she kept thinking that if she took the job with Keith Owens’s firm, she would live in Royal and not be separated from Jason.
The longer they talked, the more interested she became.
“Would you like a tour of the place?” he asked, and she nodded, standing when he did.
As they walked through offices, in between introductions and explanations of various departments, he gave her a brief history of his firm. When they finally returned to his office, he faced her.
“Any more questions?”
“I’ve asked you everything that’s come to mind.”
He grinned. “You don’t know what salary I’m offering.”
“Some of the other considerations are more important, and I knew we’d get to salary before I left.”
He named an amount, and she whistled. “That’s a very good salary.”
“That’s to start. In six months we’ll review things and then you may get a raise. I hope you’ll think about working here.”
“I’m interested, and it’s a very attractive offer,” she replied. She stood, offering her hand. “Thanks so much. I’ll be in touch with you soon with my answer.”
“Good, Meredith.”
“Call me Merry. I go by Merry more than Meredith.”
Keith walked to the office door with her and told her goodbye again. As she crossed the shaded parking lot, she mulled over her choices. Stay here and date Jason and see what happened or go back to Dallas and date him on weekends or whenever they could get together. The job sounded worthwhile and the salary was fabulous.
Merry spent the afternoon picking up a few dishes, an air mattress, new sheets and a pillow so she could stay in her apartment until she had decided whether or not to accept Keith Owens’s offer. She went ahead and had a telephone installed so she wouldn’t have to rely completely on her cellular phone.
That night at Claire’s she discussed the offer with Jason. His reaction was what she had expected. He wanted her to take the job.
He took her hand. “You’ve got my head spinning and I can’t think about anything else except you and making love to you. There’s something I was supposed to tell you days ago.”
“Really? What’s that?”
“Rob and I talked about setting a trap for Dorian. After our meeting, Rob talked to me alone and suggested that we could give you a small recorder. We’ll find out when Dorian’s leaving work or going to the Royal Diner and have you casually confront him. It’ll be the two of you, but it will be daylight out in public with people around, and Rob and I will be watching so you won’t be in danger.”
“I’ll do it tomorrow.”
Jason ran his hand across his forehead. “Rob said you wouldn’t be afraid.”
“Why would I be afraid in public with you close at hand? Would you be afraid if you were the one to do it?”
“Hell, no, but that’s different.”
“I don’t know why. You think I’m too weak to take care of myself?” she asked in a haughty voice, and Jason couldn’t bite back a grin as he remembered how she had knocked him flat in the parking lot.
“Let’s go home and let me check out your muscles.”
She made a face at him. “Call Rob now and set something up. The sooner the better.”
Jason sighed and shook his head. “I should have known what your reaction would be.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cellular phone. In minutes he handed it to Merry.
“He wants to check things out with you. We’re set.”
He watched her while she listened and talked to Rob and all Jason could think about was taking her home. He wanted to talk her into coming back to the ranch with him. When had he ever had trouble talking a female into anything he wanted? Since he had met Merry. She could resist all his wiles. He reached across the table to run his fingers along her soft cheek. She returned the phone to him, and he talked to Rob, who said he would call back as soon as he talked to Sebastian, but they would plan on tomorrow afternoon when Dorian left work.
Jason put away the phone and stood to take her hand. “Let’s dance.”
He whispered endearments in her ear and then tried to talk her into going back to the ranch, but she was adamant about returning to her new apartment.
When he walked to the door of her apartment with her, she turned to face him, and he realized she didn’t ev
en intend to invite him inside.
“Aren’t you going to show me your apartment?”
“Not tonight. You won’t like it because it doesn’t have furniture in it.”
“Come home with me,” he said.
“We’ve been over that more than once. We need a little time and space. Or at least I do, and I think you should take a step back.”
“That’s crazy when I feel the way I do about you,” he said, wrapping her in his arms. “You’re not going to let me come in tonight?”
“No, I’m not.”
“I love you, Merry.”
Her heart thudded, and she wanted so badly to believe him, so badly to go home with him, but he had a history that worried her. “You were very convincing when I met you and you told me you never wanted to marry.”
“I wish I had kept my mouth shut. Don’t you know that I’ve fallen in love with you? It happens, Merry. Why can’t you believe me?”
“I want to, and maybe I will, but I want us both to do a few things that are logical.”
“Yeah? Well, where’s logic in this?” He leaned down to kiss her, his mouth covering hers, opening it as his tongue touched hers. Her heart pounded and she stood on tiptoe and clung to him to kiss him back. She wanted him desperately, wanted him to really be in love with her and she poured herself into her kisses until they both were panting.
“Give me your key,” he whispered.
She pushed against his chest. “As difficult as this is, I’m going to do what I said. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, and tonight was fun.” She unlocked her apartment, stepped inside and gazed into smoldering blue-green eyes that took her breath with blatant desire.
“’Night, Jason,” she said, thinking it was the hardest thing she had ever done and wondering how she was going to be able to leave him and go back to Dallas if that’s the decision she eventually made.
She closed the door and locked it, standing in the empty darkened apartment and feeling forlorn. In minutes she heard his car drive away, and she wiped away tears. She wanted to be with him, wanted to accept his ring. Did he really mean his declarations of love? she asked herself for what seemed like the millionth time. Or would he gradually disappear out of her life and go on to another woman? That possibility hurt. “I love you,” she whispered the words she had wanted to say to him so many times, yet she had to be sure about him.
She couldn’t see how he could be so sure about himself when he had spent a lifetime fighting the idea of marriage.
She shifted restlessly and tried to think about their plan for her to meet Dorian face-to-face. She would welcome the opportunity. And then she could prove to Jason that Dorian was lying about knowing Holly and her.
Late in the afternoon the next day, Merry opened the gate for Jason and watched as he drove his black car to the front of her apartment. Wanting to avoid showing him the empty apartment, she stepped outside quickly. His gaze went over her in a swift assessment, and she saw a momentary relaxing of his somber expression. “You look great.”
“Thank you.”
He kissed her lightly on the mouth and looked down at her solemnly. “Sure you don’t want to change your mind?”
“I’m dead certain. I want to talk to Dorian.”
“Come on. Let’s get this over with,” he said, taking her arm. He opened the door of the car for her, closed it when she was seated and strode around the car to get behind the wheel. As they drove to Wescott Oil, she glanced at him. He was in a dark suit and crimson tie. She, too, had dressed for the occasion, wearing her navy suit and navy pumps. Her hair was twisted and pinned behind her head, and she hoped she had achieved a businesslike, no-nonsense appearance. All she could feel was anticipation; she would finally be able to confront Dorian. It was Jason who amazed her today. She was both surprised and amused by his concern for her safety.
“It’s not too late to back out of this,” Jason said.
“Will you stop worrying about me! You couldn’t have been this edgy about yourself when you worked for the CIA.”
“That was entirely different,” he replied grimly. A muscle worked in his jaw, and she smiled, placing her hand on his thigh.
“I’ll never be out of your sight. You’re armed to the teeth. There’s nothing he’s going to do, and I’m looking forward to this because I want to tell him what I think of him. Now you stop worrying.”
He glanced at her, swiftly returning his attention to his driving, but he put an arm around her shoulders and squeezed her. “All right, but if he tries anything, I’m moving in.”
“Just don’t do it if it isn’t necessary.”
“Don’t get into a car with him.”
“Jason—”
“All right. I’ll stop, but I’m worried about you.”
“I don’t expect to talk to him very long.”
“You better not.”
She smiled and leaned over to kiss Jason’s cheek. He shot another quick glance her way. “Come home with me after this. I deserve an evening with you after you’ve shredded my nerves.”
“Your nerves are all right because you’ve been these kinds of situations before. You’ll get through this.”
Merry appreciated his concern and she wanted to go home with him, but she wasn’t going to. Now every time she was with him, there was a tension between them that hadn’t been there before. Nevertheless she stood fast in her determination to put some time and space between them to see if he really was in love. She settled back against the car seat and watched him drive.
He slowed to a stop in front of an office building across the street from Wescott Oil. “Wait in the lobby. Sebastian will call me when Dorian leaves his office. Then I’ll call you. It’ll give you time to go to the corner, cross the street and get to the front doors about the same time he does.”
“Will do,” she said cheerfully, but he gazed at her as solemnly as ever. She climbed out of the car and entered the building without looking back, knowing he would circle the block and park where he could watch the proceedings.
She stood waiting, glancing at her watch. It was thirty minutes after five, only five minutes since she’d last looked at the time. The sun was angled in the west and traffic had picked up on Main as people came out of offices to go home. The minute the high-pitched ring of her cellular phone came, she answered and heard Jason’s voice.
“Sebastian said Dorian is leaving the building.”
“I’m on my way.”
“The recorder is on?”
“Yes,” she replied, switching it on, still amused and touched by his concern. She was certain he had never been this way with any operatives he had worked with. “’Bye, Jason.”
As she hurried out of the building and approached Wescott Oil, her pulse quickened. The glass doors reflected the sunlight, but most employees exited the back where the large employee parking lot was located. Only the executives could park near the front door. She kept walking toward the door, slowing because she would reach the front door before Dorian and she wanted it to look like a chance casual encounter out in front of the building.
And then Dorian strode through the door, sunlight catching glints in his brown hair. Dressed in a brown suit and tie, he was a handsome man who resembled his half brother, but there was something far kinder in Sebastian’s usual expression than in Dorian’s tight-lipped appearance.
She moved into Dorian’s path, blocking the way, with the western sun behind her so he would be facing the sun. “Dorian,” she said.
His gaze flew to hers and he stopped instantly.
Eleven
Briefly, she caught a flare of recognition in his eyes and then it was gone, but she knew she hadn’t imagined it.
“I don’t believe we know each other,” he said curtly. “Should we?”
“Dorian, I’m Merry Silver, and we know each other very well.”
“You must have mistaken me for someone else. Your reputation and actions precede you, Miss Silver, so of course, I do know you from your attacks
on me. Am I safe or should I be screaming for help now?”
She moved a step closer, aware of a faint scent of his aftershave, remembering Jason’s admonition to be careful. “You’re safe enough from me. You know me and you know Holly. When you left, you broke her heart, and you were rotten to take her money.”
“You do have the wrong person,” he said with an infuriating calm. “This is the first time we’ve met, albeit I doubt if it will be the last, since you persist in laboring under a delusion.”
“There’s no delusion, Dorian, and you know it.”
“There are laws to protect people like me from people like you. You can’t run around accosting me. I can go from here to the sheriff’s office. The police are willing to protect people from stalkers.”
“I’m not stalking you, and we both know that, too, as well as we both knew each other in Dallas. I don’t know why you’re ignoring me or what purpose it serves you, Dorian, but the truth usually comes out.”
“I hope it does and you pack up and go home. Now, if you’ll excuse me—” he stated in an impassive voice. After that first flare of recognition, there had been nothing but coldness in his expression.
Frustration rocked Meredith. The man was blatantly lying, yet there was nothing she could do about it. Why would he continue to lie? Jilting Holly had nothing to do with what had happened in Royal.
“Dorian, tell the truth!” she snapped.
“I’m going straight to the sheriff.”
“You can’t do anything when all I’ve done is say hello.”
“I’m sorry for you and your poor deluded sister,” he said. “Goodbye, miss.” He started to walk away and all of Merry’s frustration welled up. She shook with anger, clenching her fists more tightly.
“You’re going to get caught,” she said.
He looked over his shoulder at her and his eyes narrowed and for a few heart-stopping seconds, she felt a chill from the cold fury that glinted in his eyes. Then it was gone.