Ryan placed his hand on the doorknob, turning it only slightly before Kim disappeared around the corner. Peering through the crack, he watched as Abigail and Julia dug through the filing cabinet like bag-ladies at a flea market. Did Abigail not remember John Dillinger and his sidekick? He was just about to open the door when the one opposite it swung open. The other door opened to the outside. It must have been how the men had escaped. He watched as Shane Dempsey used it to enter the room.
“Ladies.” An unsettling look settled on Shane’s face. “Aren’t you two going to help clean the kitchen this afternoon?”
“Actually, we were looking for a menu,” Julia said as she closed the cabinet door. “Abs was in the mood for Chinese, and the salad I had at lunch was really scanty. Want anything?”
“You know, I actually brought lunch today. But for future reference, we keep the take-out menus over here,” Shane said, taking a manila folder from the pile of papers on the desk.
“Mr. Newberry,” a voice from behind said.
Ryan sucked in a breath. He turned, letting the door close behind him.
“You know we have a grand reopening one week from today,” Mark Becker said. “I should think you might have something better to be doing than lurk in the hallway.”
He could say the same. But Ryan didn’t suppose that Becker did have anything better to do than roam the halls. Particularly since he had made it his mission in life to track his every move.
“I was just helping myself to a cup of coffee.”
Becker stared at him as though he was looking through a piece of glass. “Are you sure that’s all you’re doing?”
“I’m not sure what you mean, Sir.”
“Oh no? Do you want me to spell it out for you?”
“Spell what out?”
“Get to work, Newberry!” Becker flashed a death warning then turned and disappeared inside his office.
Ryan held a drawn fist. Though he wanted nothing more than to beat the crap out of this guy, he knew that his doing so would do him a lot more harm than good. He forced himself to walk to the end of the hall. He kicked the door to the outside, making a noise that sounded like a gunshot.
Walking along the pavement, he released several short breaths. Becker certainly hadn’t eased up on being an ass any. Ryan had come to expect nothing less from the hotel industry. Just his luck, he supposed, that he’d be working for another tyrant while trying to solve the mystery that would secure his freedom.
Abigail had led Julia to that cabinet for one reason and one reason only. She didn’t seem to know it, but she was putting herself smack in the middle of a potentially lethal situation. His crazy attraction to the girl be damned, he needed to find a way to stop her before she succeeded in destroying both of their lives.
More convinced than ever that this mystery needed to be solved, Ryan walked across the property.
Chapter 14
“All right, team.” Facing the front desk staff members, who were standing beside him in a room that had been filled with bed linens earlier that morning, Ryan said, “We have exactly seven days left before opening day. Our task is to organize the remaining sheets, wash them, and finish making up the rooms in this wing. We’ll have some time to finish up tomorrow morning, but not much. The regional manager is coming by around eleven to give us a briefing. That’s probably going to take several hours, and then you’ll have new-hire orientation.”
“So then, let’s get going already.” Julia walked across the room, stopping where the sheets lay strewn across the floor. She bent down and began sorting through them, forming two piles that quickly became three and then four.
Abigail followed her lead, then Sheldon and Kimberly. Watching the group work, thinking that perhaps they really did have a prayer of finishing things up before the grand reopening, Ryan began to relax a little.
Sitting at the table by the window, he got to work on the paperwork he’d been ignoring for the last couple of weeks. There wasn’t a lot to do, but there were several unpaid bills Becker had asked him to take care of, along with a couple of checks that needed to be processed. Work would keep his mind off of impossible-to-solve mysteries, which almost made it a welcomed distraction. Though he would have liked nothing more than to do it in the quiet of the main office, he knew the group would work faster if he kept an eye on them.
Using the equipment he’d taken from up front, Ryan processed the checks then put them to the side and got to work on the bills. He’d just made out a check to the New Hampshire Electric Company when he heard the door to the hotel room shut. Looking up, he counted the heads of his employees. One…two…three…
Someone was missing. And he didn’t have to wonder more than a second who it was. Getting to his feet, he walked to the door. He ignored the other members of his team and muttered, “Keep working on those sheets. I’ll be right back.”
The sun was shining brightly as Ryan stepped outside. Looking around, he found the property empty, short of a few construction vehicles working on the east wing building. The area by the west wing was quiet and so was the main office. Trying to think like his missing employee would, he looked through a window in the lobby building, which showed him the inside of file room. He saw no one, but then another thought, one that was even more unsettling struck him. He walked up the hill, toward the farthest end of the property. Holding his breath, he looked up at the old wing.
Ryan’s eyes narrowed then widened. Abigail was running up the path. She stopped in front of the last door on the property. She looked over her shoulder then slipped through the entrance to the building.
What in God’s name was she thinking? Did the woman not recall that two murders had taken place inside those walls? After a fair amount of effort on the part of the managers, the cops had agreed to let them open the hotel on schedule. But the old wing was still a crime scene. And despite the fact that he had checked the building out briefly himself yesterday afternoon, Ryan wasn’t convinced that the perpetrator, or, perpetrators, weren’t using it as some sort of meet-up location.
Wasting no time, he charged across the lawn. Reaching the top of the hill, he entered the old wing and looked around. Unless Abigail was already in one of the rooms, she wasn’t on the first floor. Taking a chance, he backed up and climbed the stairs. He found the front section of the upstairs hall empty. Turning the corner, he came down the corridor that led to the room where they’d discovered the dead body. Abigail was wandering through it. She approached the last door on her right and opened it with her swiper.
“Quite a detour from the east wing.” Catching up to her in three steps, Ryan snatched the master key from her hand.
She shook visibly. “You scared the heck out of me!”
“Good, cause you ought to be scared.” Leery that someone might be listening, Ryan lowered his voice as he shut the door she’d opened. “In case you’ve forgotten, two murders took place in this wing.”
“You’re here.” Abigail crossed her arms. “There’s obviously a reason you followed me, so why don’t you tell me what that reason is.”
“I…” Ryan clenched a fist. Though his own search hadn’t born any fruit, he wasn’t ruling out the fact that there were probably clues hidden somewhere in that building. He wasn’t about to let her find them. “Because a member of my staff just took off in the middle of work. Not only is this not a designated break time for you, Abigail, but I just got through explaining that there’s a tremendous amount of work to be done. If you’d like to keep your job, I strongly suggest you get with the program.”
“This has nothing to do with my job! You’re trying to keep me away from this building so I don’t find out what you and your cronies are up to!”
“My cronies? Abigail, for God’s sake—”
“The ledger that fell out of the cabinet during the crash wasn’t there when I went looking for it again. I know you took something from that cabinet, and I also know that there was an enormous wad of cash sticking out of your pocket the
day you came into the Bear & Moose Ice Cream parlor.”
Ryan’s circulation stopped. “I’d just been paid.”
“In cash? You’re a liar and a criminal!”
“Quiet!” He put a hand over her mouth.
She shoved him off. “Oh no, you’re not going to do that to me again! And you’re not going to get away with this, you—”
“Shhh! Someone’s in the building.”
“I don’t hear anything. And if someone is here”—Abigail raised her voice—“I’m sure you know exactly who they are, because you’re the one they’re here to meet!”
“Dammit, Abigail! For once in your life, just listen to me. Someone’s coming, and they’re not here for me. Now, get in here.” Ryan dragged her into the room next to the one she’d opened and closed the door behind them.
“Get back,” he said sharply. Angling his eye beside the hole in the wood, he attempted to figure out whether anyone was coming by. But all he could see was the ugly white wallpapering.
A moment passed, followed by another. Footsteps shook the upstairs as someone, possibly more than one person, made their way down the hall. A figure crossed Ryan’s eyeline. His features weren’t easy to distinguish but he could tell from the person’s build that he was a man and that he was wearing black. A second man followed him. His face was cut off, but he was wearing a navy polo shirt. Ryan’s eyes widened. There were no two ways about that one. The person was an employee of the hotel.
Voices sounded as the men entered the next room. Straining his ears to hear what was being said, Ryan put his ear to the wall. He listened, but heard very little that wasn’t significantly muffled.
A short while passed. Ryan heard the footsteps again and some minutes after he began to assume the men had left the building. An engine revved outside and he went to the window. The sun reflected against the windshield of a black Mercedes as it sped from the parking lot.
Wasting no time, Ryan charged to the door. Thinking that maybe he could catch a glimpse of the license plate before the car left the property, he pried it open and darted into the hall.
“Where are you going?” Abigail said, running up behind him.
Not entirely sure he wasn’t still hearing noises, Ryan urged her back inside the room. “Be quiet for God’s sake!”
“I have a right to know,” she insisted.
“Abigail, for the last time. I have nothing to do with whatever’s going on at this hotel. I know you know that’s the truth.”
“How do you figure?”
“How? Because if you thought I was a murderer, you wouldn’t be here with me. You’d be downtown talking to the police, telling them whatever it is you think you know.”
She bit her lip. “Maybe I just want to see that you get the punishment you deserve.”
Blood boiled in Ryan’s veins. Thrusting his cell phone into Abigail’s hand, he said, “All right. If you believe I’m a criminal, go ahead. Call the cops.”
“I’m not going to call the cops!”
“You’re not?” He raised an eyebrow.
“Of course not! I don’t even know what it is you’re doing yet. But mark my words I’m going to find out.”
“Dammit, Abigail! I’m not doing anything. Just what is it going to take for me to prove that to you?”
She glanced thoughtfully at the ceiling. “You and I both know that you don’t give a damn about me folding any bedsheets. If you really believed I was the only one here, why did you come to this wing of the hotel?”
The woman wasn’t letting up. And he might not be there to protect her next time. The things she kept doing, showing up in the places she did, she could easily get into trouble she couldn’t get herself out of.
Moving toward her, Ryan lowered his voice. Looking into her eyes, he said, “Don’t you know, Abigail?”
She blinked furiously, and he caught her by the waist. Leaning in, he brushed his lips against her cheek. Her soft hair touched his face and he felt his arousal pressing against the inseam of his pants.
God help him. This wasn’t a ruse. It was something he’d wanted since the moment he first saw Abigail MacKenzie, when he saw her standing behind the ice cream parlor counter, her dark-blonde hair tied back and looking so unbelievably pretty. He’d been surrounded by a hundred different flavors of homemade sweetness. The only thing he’d wanted to devour was her.
It wasn’t fair of him to keep doing this to her. He was leading her on when there was nowhere for things to go. But how could he level with her when the risk would be putting her in even more danger? Stop himself when the desire to feel her naked skin was driving him past the point of sanity?
Urging Abigail back, Ryan took her by the shoulders and pressed his open mouth against hers.
* * * *
A wave of exhilaration swept through Abigail’s body as Ryan’s warm lips caressed her mouth. That tingling she’d felt in her toes when he kissed her before rushed through her body like a torrent. It ended with an aching between her legs.
Wrapping her arms around the back of his neck, she found herself drawing him closer. Ryan deepened the kiss, slipping his tongue inside of her mouth.
At the feel of it, Abigail released a soft moan. As Ryan’s silken tongue brushed gently against hers, a hot feeling of need pulsed through her breasts and core. Her breathing deepened and her limbs became weak. His skilled movements sent shivers through her body.
Ryan drew her closer, and her breasts became pressed against his chest. He growled like a tiger and Abigail felt herself giving way to the urgency. The kiss deepened as Ryan lifted her off her feet.
As he laid her down on the bed, she looked up into his eyes. He was so handsome and strong. She’d be lying if she said she hadn’t been fantasizing about this for months. But were they really about to do this—make love to each other? The other times she’d been in a situation like this, she’d stopped things before they started. Frightening as the thought of actually going through with it was, she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to stop this time.
Ryan’s smile melted her hesitation as he brought his lips against her cheek. His kisses trailed upward, caressing her ear and throat. His tongue brushed the groove of her neck, and Abigail’s breathing became erratic.
Her eyes fell closed as Ryan’s hands had slipped beneath her shirt. His palms inched upward, closing over her bra. He cupped his hand over it, caressing her breasts with only this thin fabric separating them from their touch. Then, moving it from his way, he slowly inched his hands upward. He brushed his palms gently over her bare skin.
“Ohhh,” she gasped as a jolt of liquid fire shot through her center.
He whispered, “God, you feel so good…”
He cupped her breasts, brushing her nipples gently with his thumbs. Abigail felt herself becoming breathless. Compelled to touch Ryan as intimately as he was touching her, she slid her shaking palms down his chest. As they reached the edge of his waistband, something loud rumbled outside. She opened her eyes wide as the unmistakable sound of a construction vehicle got closer. She’d almost forgotten that they were planning to begin expanding the size of the east wing building today. Jolting sharply, Ryan inched back.
He sat up, slapping a hand over his mouth. He raked his fingers through his hair and breathed in loudly as he leaned back against the headboard. Unable to watch him act that way, like he’d just made some sort of horrible mistake, Abigail sprang from the mattress.
“Abigail, wait.” Ryan got to his feet. Grunting as though he was extremely uncomfortable, he said, “I didn’t mean to—”
“Neither did I.” Ignoring the way her body was shaking, Abigail adjusted her clothing. She was about to open the door, but Ryan jumped in front of her, clasping her by the shoulders.
“Just wait a minute. I know you’re shaken up. But I really think we should talk about what…almost just happened here.”
“Nothing happened.” She avoided his eyes. “I mean, we’ll pretend it didn’t.”
�
�What? I mean, yes. Of course we’ll pretend it didn’t, but Abigail—”
“Please, Ryan. Let’s just forget this ever happened, all right?” She pushed past him, opening the door.
“Abigail.” He clasped her arm. Tugging her toward him, he said, “I know that you don’t trust me. I haven’t given you any reason to trust me and yet—” He caught his breath.
“Yet…”
“I don’t know. I don’t know, Abigail, but I do know that this”—Ryan waved his hand over the wrinkled bed cover—“won’t happen again.”
Never again? Her face became hot. How dare he try to take it all back when he was the one who’d pulled away, when he’d all but taken off her khaki skirt? Hardly able to believe what she was about to do, Abigail took a deep breath. “And what if I don’t want your word?”
“Excuse me?”
“What if I don’t want your word that this won’t ever happen again?” she demanded. “What if I said I thought that this wasn’t a mistake, and that I wanted what almost happened in that bed just now to happen for real?”
Ryan’s eyes came wide open. He turned to her with a condescending expression that drove a knife through her gut. “First of all, Ms. Mackenzie—”
“Oh it’s Ms. Mackenzie now, is it? Because dammit it, Ryan, if you try to turn this around on me—”
“Nothing almost happened in that bed, Abigail, I repeat, nothing. It couldn’t have, nor would it ever, because we work together and—”
“And you’re my supervisor, and it’s against the rules. Look, what else have you got, hotshot, because I’m not buying for a minute that some line in the employee handbook is the reason you’re pushing me away.”
“Oh you aren’t, are you? Well I sincerely hope that you’ll rethink that and take what I’m saying to heart because it’s the truth. The very hard truth and what’s more, Abigail, you’re blowing something way out of proportion that meant nothing at all.”
“Nothing at all?” Her heart sank. “You don’t mean that. No, Ryan, take it back right now, because I know you don’t mean that! You’re pushing me away because you think I’ll get hurt, because you don’t want to see me—”
Dangerous Secret [The Pinnacles of Power Prequel] (BookStrand Publishing Romance) Page 12
