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Sorry Boss, I don t know where Martin keeps them. He s got his own filing system.
Thing is, he s already left for the night. You want for me to call him at home?
He let Tony sweat for a couple of seconds. No, tomorrow is fine. He reined in his
disgust and then allowed himself the satisfaction of slamming the receiver down .
The office was in good order. He had sanitized the keyboard, and yet he felt the
contamination. There were days he regretted moving from the old place. Mattie had never set
foot in this luxurious unit. Maybe that was what was wrong with this place? It lacked her
magic.
Leaving the home office, he strolled out to the terrace. The evening was soft, the sky
aglow with a flamboyant sunset. There was something malicious about the sun s decent that he
had never noticed before. Leaving the disciplined topiary decorated balcony, he sought
sanctuary in the serene interior of the condo with its luxuriant ivory and ecru upholstered
surfaces.
Detecting no hint of infection in the living room, he sank into the welcoming sofa and
allowed the reins of control to loosen.
Because of the record delay, and because tomorrow was already full, he wouldn t see the
faxed data until tomorrow night.
Another day lost. He didn t like it. However, it was preferable to getting Martin out of
bed to come across town. That would wave flags under Tony s nose, which was permanently
twitchy, and worse, alert Martin that something was wrong. He didn t want a suspicious
accountant added to an already volatile mix.
The club had a low employee turnover rate, membership was stable, and there couldn t be
that many guests in one month. There shouldn t be much to go through. He d scrutinize every
single record personally.
He knew guests were the weakest link. Members, who paid through the nose for
exclusivity, expected to be able to invite an old friend from out of town, or client they wanted to
impress, to their club. One prying newsman, one tiny crack in his fortress wall, and he was stuck
with hours of extra paperwork. However, he couldn t afford loose ends.
Delegation was way overrated. He didn t trust anyone else to use the same degree of due
diligence that he practiced.
Twelve days left, and then he pulled the plug. The payoff was worth every damn hour he
had spent babysitting morons and cleaning up other people s shit.
DANGEROUS SURRENDER Evanne Lorraine 31
Chapter Six
If her tongue hadn t been glued to the roof of her mouth Ciara would ve told him
something. She wasn t quite sure what. Either, take a flying leap, or take me. The second
option sounded undeniably good. Her lips parted and small shallow breaths escaped, but no
words formed. He stood so close she couldn t think clearly and her intention to explain about the
research for a story evaporated like advertising revenue in a recession.
He studied her as if she had the winning lottery numbers etched inside her pupils. Tell
me what you want.
Apparently, small talk was over already. Some inner vixen must ve possessed her,
because she heard herself asking him, What do you do?
She licked lips gone suddenly dry.
Everything, except kiss on the mouth. He sounded sullen.
You re kidding, right? She hoped he was joking. She wanted kisses.
He grinned. So he d been teasing. Was that the same as flirting? Was he serious? How
far would he go? He was on duty, right?
Yeah, I do everything.
She loved his matter of fact tone, as if nothing shocked him. Her pulse leapt into aerobic
range. Great, she squeaked her nerves skittering with anticipation.
He appeared disappointed. Did she sound too eager? What was the correct protocol
when hiring a man for pleasure? If she ran over the minimum, then what? Was it strictly cash,
did he expect a tip? She only had a twenty left.
Then a nasty thought hit. Was this whole thing a setup to bust her for solicitation?
Dad would understand. Heck, he d probably applaud, thinking it showed grit, or
something. But what about Aunt Maureen and her Junior League friends? What about Regan?
What about January? After all, she d gone out of her way to sponsor her. And now she
was about to get herself arrested, embarrassing everyone who had ever cared about her. A quick
replay of the conversation they d just had confirmed her fears. She d watched plenty of cop
shows. They always made the John, or in this case Jane, commit herself first by asking for a
particular sexual act and offering money.
What s the matter? Zach watched her with that same odd intensity. He was probably
worried that she was going to resist arrest.
She risked another peek from under her lashes. He had insisted on getting paid first.
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