Book Details

Harlequin Enterprises,
Mass market paperback, January 2008, ISBN-13: 9780373773268

Harlequin Enterprises,
Original publication: Blaze # 17, Midnight Fantasies series, December 2001, ISBN: 0-373-79021-X

Chapter 1

He could get used to this. Jack glanced out over the pool to the glistening water beyond. The tangy smell of the ocean, the clear blue sky and the sexy women in bikinis. Yeah, he could get used to this. He leaned back in his seat and stretched his legs out in front of him. The sun beat against his skin, warm and comforting.

"Sorry I'm late. I had to run a few errands and they took longer than I thought." Mallory slid into the seat across from him, looking uptight in the same boxy blue dress. But she didn't seem upset over this morning's incident and he was grateful.

"Everything okay?"

She nodded. "We left in such a rush that I forgot a few things."

"Well I managed to catch up with Paul in the sauna. We spent an hour commiserating over needy women. It's way too soon to push him on making a decision, but he's starting to trust me and I've got some more facts to fill you in on."

"Sounds good."

"Drink first?" he asked.

She hesitated.

"Consider this more a vacation than a business trip. Seriously we're only here because Lederman wants to get to know us outside of the office. He's eccentric, like I said. So go ahead. Have a drink." Jack wanted to put her at ease. No way he could spend a week in her company if she looked like she was about to bolt at the first opportunity.

After his thoughtless comment this morning, he wouldn't touch the issue of her clothes now, but he didn't know how long he could watch her roasting in dresses beneath the blazing sun.

He gestured for a waiter. "The lady will have a ..." He narrowed his gaze, trying to assess what Miss Mallory would drink. "White wine spritzer?"

She shook her head. "Club soda, please."

Jack blinked, and refrained from rolling his eyes. "I'll have a refill." He lifted his glass that had contained Absolut on the rocks.

The waiter nodded. "Be right back, folks."

"Oh, wait," Mallory said.

He turned back around. "Change your mind?"

Jack actually held his breath.

"A wedge of lime, please."

He should have known.

"So what were you saying about Lederman?" she asked.

"Aside from complaining about marriage, he's hiding something." Jack finished the end of his drink.

"What makes you say that?"

"He got a phone call. The guy who relayed the message didn't say who was calling but Lederman bolted out of the sauna so fast he nearly lost his towel." He laughed and waited for her to do the same.

Her expression remained steady. He stifled a groan. He couldn't imagine she didn't find the image amusing, so he figured she was still angry with him after all. But he wasn't about to repeat this morning's conversation.

Better to focus on work. "At any rate, when he returned I asked him if everything was okay. I thought maybe there was an emergency at the resort. But he didn't cover well, and flushed, hemmed and hawed. He finally said his son had called from California."

Mallory shrugged. "Why are you so sure he didn't?"

"Gut instinct. Besides that's an easy enough answer without beating around the bush."

She nodded. "True. So what do you think he's hiding? It makes no sense to keep us in the dark. Not if we're on his side."

"Agreed. And I intend to find out just as soon as ..."

"Here are your drinks, folks."

The waiter exchanged Jack's empty glass for a full one that no longer appealed, but he thanked the man and turned his gaze back to Mallory. "I could have outright asked him what was going on, but ..."

"Excuse me sir, but this is for you." The waiter handed Jack a folded slip of paper.

"Phone message?" Jack wondered aloud.

"Actually the bartender asked me if I recognized the name on the top and since you'd just signed for your lunch earlier ..."