The Best-Kept Secret

by Adrianne Lee

  Mac and Tia selected seats at the table with the department heads and their spouses and/or dates. Baby red roses circling chunky white candles served as centerpieces, their delicate hues elegant against the soft white tablecloth.

  Tia settled her purse on her chair and glanced around. A trio of musicians, situated near a brick fireplace, played Christmas favorites, a quiet backdrop to the chattering crowd. The room was long and narrow. Someone, likely Bijou, had turned it into a winter wonderland. A pine Christmas tree, twinkling with lights and garlands, stood near the sliding glass door. Its rich aroma mingled with the delicious scents of food wafting from the buffet tables.

  Tia hadn’t realized she was hungry until this moment. Mac leaned close. “Something to drink?”

  “I think we’d better keep our heads.” She nodded toward the lineup at the bar. “Even as those around us are losing theirs.”

  “Good idea. Two club sodas coming up.”

  “I’m going to cruise by the buffet. I’m ravenous.”

  He clasped her hand, leaned close again and grinned sexily. “Me, too. But I guess I could use some food first.”

  A tingle skittered from her head to her toes. She squelched it. Mac might be anticipating a romantic rematch, but she dared not allow it. As it was, she’d be lucky to walk away from him with her sanity intact. It was already too late for her heart.

  He squeezed her hand and strolled toward the corner bar.

  Tia turned and bumped into Gwen. At first she didn’t recognize Grant’s girlfriend. Her glasses had been replaced by contacts, her lab clothes by a skimpy red dress that hid neither her deep cleavage nor her shapely thighs. The only thing spoiling the effect she’d apparently meant to create was the angry glare in her intense eyes. “If I can’t have him…you’ll both be sorry.”

  She seemed drunk, but Tia wondered if Gwen was a woman scorned or something worse. What exactly was she threatening? “I don’t think this is the place—”

  “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Gwen brushed past Tia and headed straight for the bar and “Grant.” Tia’s hunger lessened. Playing detective might have stimulated her appetite if the stakes weren’t so high. But not knowing their adversary was as effective as a diet pill.

  At the buffet Will was filling a plate with roast beef, turkey and ham. He glanced at her, then stepped back and smiled. “Aren’t we all aglow tonight? Love in the afternoon? Come on, confirm or deny.”

  Tia’s cheeks heated. If making love with Mac showed on her face to the rest of the room, she could be certain that Gwen would make good on her ominous threat. And if she allowed herself to react to everything that was said to her, instead of making her dialogue with their suspects count for something, she might as well go home right now. The idea was to rattle them.

  “You’re looking pretty dapper yourself.” She swept her gaze appraisingly over Will. The ring in his right ear was as golden as his hair, his jacket as dark green as the tree, but she’d never seen anything like his tie. Hand-painted, unless she missed her guess. “Interesting tie.”

  Will stopped adding cheeses to his plate. His eyes lit up. “Do you really think so?”

  “It’s incredible. I’ve never seen one like it.”

  “Of course not. Which clothiers are offering original Will Holdens?”

  “It’s your own design?” Tia supposed that shouldn’t surprise her. He was, after all, an artist. “Are you selling them?”

  “To individuals? Heavens, no.”

  “To stores?”

  “I wish. I can’t scrape enough seed money together to get the project off the ground.” His mouth twitched slyly. “But that’s about to change.”

  He walked away, leaving Tia staring after him, wondering exactly where Will’s money ship was sailing in from. Taiwan or the U.S.? How could she find out without seeming too curious? Without risking her life or Mac’s?

  Puzzling this, she glanced at the array of foods and once again her hunger called. Deciding to try a bit of everything, she started with the fresh veggies arranged on a silver star-shaped platter. It reminded her of the silver star responsible for the stitches in her forehead. She reached for her bangs to make sure they still covered the bandage.

  Suzanne approached with her companion of the evening, a graceful, middle-aged woman. Her mother? Suzanne spoke to the woman in an Asian tongue, the words impossible for Tia to understand, but she didn’t need an interpreter to know it had been a warning of some sort. The older woman tensed, lowered her gaze and skirted past Tia as though she reeked of garbage. She headed to the opposite end of the table.

  Tia cast a questioning frown at Suzanne. In her shiny black suit, she resembled a miniature panther and was just as skittish. At least around Tia. Was she afraid Tia would see the guilt she couldn’t quite hide? Or that she’d ask her again about the factory in Mexico? Suzanne nodded, a curt dip of her sleek head, and followed the other woman to the far end of the table.

  Tia went back to filling her plate.

  Why had the older woman dashed away from her? Did she know something? The thought excited Tia. She stole a surreptitious glance in the direction of the two women. Could she get the older woman alone? And then what? Did the woman even speak English? And if she did, would a mother tell secrets on her daughter?

  The sharp tang of cheap perfume—used with an overly generous hand—stole the thought. Bijou, looking like Mrs. Claus in a red velvet outfit with fake white fur trim, bounded up to her.

  “How’s the food?” Instead of pencils, mistletoe poked from her French roll. Her cheeks were the bright pink of someone who’d had too much to drink.

  “I haven’t tasted it yet.” Tia leaped back to avoid a splash from the glass of red wine Bijou waved at her. “But the spread is one of the nicest I’ve seen. And it smells delicious. You’ve done a great job with the party.”

  “You think?” Bijou didn’t look convinced. “Juggling…well, it isn’t easy, you know?”

  “Juggling?”

  “A career, motherhood…”

  “Doesn’t your husband help?”

  Bijou went as pale as the fur trim on her dress. “Do you know my husband?”

  Tia retreated a step in surprise and to avoid the wine again. “Why would I know him?”

  “You fly to Taiwan, someone said. Is that right?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “Don’t mind me.” She broke off, a glint of something close to fear in her eyes, and gulped her wine. “I shouldn’t drink. Loose lips…”

  She swallowed the last of her drink and headed to the bar for another. Tia’s stomach clenched. What was Bijou’s husband doing in Taiwan? Who was he? How could she find out?

  Tia carried her plate back to the table. Frustration settled over her. She had one question after another. But no answers. She was beginning to think this was a waste of time. How could Mac and she unearth a killer at a party? They weren’t detectives. They didn’t even know what they were looking for.

  “Hi, girlfriend.”

  Tia halted at the sound of the familiar voice. She spun around to greet the first person she was truly glad to see this night. “Ginny, what are you doing here?”

  Her best friend beamed at her. “Buddy needed a date and I wasn’t doing anything. Besides, I wanted to meet Grant.”

  For the second time in half an hour, Tia’s cheeks burned. She hadn’t told Ginny the truth about Grant She hated lying to her one true confidante, even a he of omission. But there was no way she could expose Mac to her best friend when Ginny’s brother might be the one who’d tried to destroy him.

  She wished it could be otherwise. But until they unmasked Grant’s killer or Holly Beary was safely launched, she had to keep the sham alive.

  “Yo, dudette, great news about the big guy, huh?” Stewy held a beer bottle by the neck. The only difference between his work duds and his evening clothes was his footwear. He’d traded the logger boots for black Nikes.

  Tia introduced Ginny. As Stewy explained to he
r who the “big guy” was, Tia glanced around the room and found Mac staring at her. Her heart leaped and her throat constricted. He was heading for the table, carrying their drinks. She tightened her grip on her plate and started toward him as though pulled by some force she couldn’t see but only feel.

  They reached the table at the same time. Mac set the glasses down. Tia slid the plate onto the table and froze. Someone had left Mac a present. Another tiny box. From Santa. For Grant.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Mac’s anger—lulled to sleep in the afternoon of delicious discovery with Tia—awoke like a disturbed dragon. He grabbed the package and ripped the paper off. Several people at the table glanced in his direction. He didn’t care. Let them see. Let the one who’d left it reveal himself through his guilt or consternation.

  Another Lei Industries box. He tipped the lid off. Inside, resting on a square cotton pad, he found a heart-shaped computer chip. His throat closed. Was this his chip? Or an inferior ripoff?

  “Ma—”

  He gazed sharply at Tia. She’d almost spoken his name in her distress. Her cheeks reddened as she strove to recover. “Wh-what is it?”

  He pushed the box closer for her to see when what he wanted was to storm out, drive straight to the lab and test the chip. But Tia’s near giveaway made him think twice. It was one thing to rattle their nemesis, another to invite an attack at the lab. And ducking out of this party early would look suspicious. Would surely draw the wrong person’s attention. Better to sneak to the lab after hours tonight.

  Tia pushed the box back to him, her face pale as ice. He stared at the chip. What the hell did it mean? Why was someone leaving him these “gifts”? He heard a sharply indrawn breath and glanced up to see Bijou gaping in horror at the Lei Industries box. “What’s wrong, Bijou? Did you leave this for me?”

  “No.” She shook her head, stepping back.

  “Did you see who did?”

  She pulled her gaze from the box and scanned the party-goers as though expecting some monster to leap out at her. Tears sprang to her eyes and she ran from the room. Mac exchanged a puzzled look with Tia. She touched his wrist. “Let’s speak to her.”

  But when they reached the hallway, they saw her going into the ladies’ room. Tia said, “I guess I’ll speak to her.”

  Bijou jerked like a startled rabbit when Tia entered and shut the door behind her. She had the shakes. Something was terribly wrong. Tia strode past her and checked the stalls, making sure they were alone.

  Then she joined Bijou near the sink. She wet a paper towel and handed it to the distressed woman. “Why don’t you get it off your chest?”

  Bijou shrugged away from Tia. Her tears abated. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Yes, you do. You’re obviously frightened of something.”

  Bijou sniffled and made a face. “Why should I confide in you?”

  “Because you look like the secret is killing you.”

  Bijou laughed without humor. “It’s a killer all right.”

  Tia’s nerves jumped. “Does it have anything to do with why you lied on your job application?”

  That brought Bijou’s chin up and narrowed her eyes. “You know about that?”

  Tia nodded.

  “Well, you don’t know anything.” Bijou glanced in the mirror, wiped beneath her eyes with the wet paper towel, then straightened a sprig of mistletoe. Her expression collapsed. “My whole life is a lie.”

  Suddenly Tia wasn’t so sure she liked being alone with this woman. She edged toward the door. “A…a lie?”

  Bijou gnawed at her thumbnail. “Martin Lei—fifth son of Hai Lei, CEO of Lei Industries—is my husband.”

  Whatever Tia had expected her to say, it wasn’t this. Her mouth dropped open.

  “That’s right.” Bijou nodded.

  “Does, er, did Mac know?”

  “Oh, God, no.” Bijou turned toward her now, a crazed gleam in her aqua eyes. “No one knows.”

  Tia bumped into the door. With her hands behind her she grappled for the knob.

  Bijou dug into her purse and withdrew a long metal nail file. She shook the sharp pointed end at Tia. Tia’s pulse skipped. But the other woman made no move toward her. Instead, she grew very still. “I have no doubt Martin would kill me if he could find me.”

  Tia’s mouth was as dry as angel hair. “He abused you?”

  “Oh, yes. But as far as he’s concerned, I committed the worse crime—I took our son and fled to the States. He’s been looking for me ever since.”

  For a half second Tia wondered what it would feel like to have both her parents love her so much they would fight over her. Look to the ends of the earth for her. She couldn’t even imagine such a thing. But her heart squeezed for Bijou’s son. No matter that she was trying to protect him from an abusive father, the boy would not escape without emotional scars. “It’s fairly easy to find people these days. How have you managed to elude him for four years?”

  “I changed my name, the color of my hair and the color of my eyes with contacts. I gained thirty pounds on purpose and started dressing like a woman with no sense of style or taste.” Bijou sniffled again and blew her nose hard into the paper towel. “It’s an effective disguise, don’t you agree?”

  “Yes.” Tia released the doorknob and studied Bijou as though seeing her for the first time. Was she lying? If not, Tia supposed becoming a dumpy eccentric with a weird name was a good way to hide in plain sight. But there was one thing she didn’t understand. “Why are you working for a competitive toy company?”

  “In order to keep tabs on Martin. I know what he’s up to, where he goes, who he sees.” She scraped the file over her thumbnail. “It’s the only way I’ll know ahead of time if my cover is blown.”

  Tia didn’t know whether or not to believe this tale. Whether or not she was staring at the fox in the henhouse. She was only certain that Mac was not going to be happy to discover he might have one of Hai Lei’s daughter-in-laws on his payroll. “Did you leave that gift for Grant?”

  “No. And I don’t know who did. But it scared the hell out of me, I can tell you that. What’s going on?”

  Tia shook her head and shrugged. That was what she and Mac wanted to know.

  Two giggling women barged through the door, then stopped as they saw Tia and Bijou. “Oh, is there a lineup?”

  “No,” Tia assured them She turned to leave.

  Bijou grabbed her by the arm.

  Tia flinched.

  Bijou said, “What I told you—our secret, okay?”

  “Of course.” But Tia had no intention of keeping this from Mac. She needed to talk to him now. As she hurried into the hallway, she collided with Nancy Rice. Nancy apologized, but seemed so flustered Tia wondered if she’d been eavesdropping.

  “NICE PARTY, Mr. Coy.” Buddy Gibson eyed the box and wrapping paper. It seemed to make him nervous. He was the seventh of their suspects made uncomfortable by the sight of this present.

  “Do you know who left this for me, Bud?” Mac asked.

  “No, not me.” He lifted his hands in innocence, but his denial came too quickly. He knew something, but what? Bud turned toward the woman standing beside him. “This is my sister, Ginny.”

  Tia’s best friend. Mac switched his attention to the pert redhead. Dressed all in silver, her fiery hair in short spikes atop her head, she resembled a glittery seasonal candle. She was giving him a head-to-toe inspection. He could swear she didn’t quite approve of him. He bit back a smile. As far as he knew, she thought he was Grant and she probably knew Tia was ready to break up with his twin.

  What would she think when she learned the truth, learned Tia would be marrying him, instead of Grant? The thought gave him the first sense of comfort he’d felt since their afternoon of lovemaking.

  In the background the trio played “Jingle Bell Rock.” His gaze fell to the chip. He dropped the lid back on the box. His mood soured. Despite his tender memories of the day and his anticipation of a futur
e with Tia, he couldn’t get caught up in the gay music or laughter or chatter all around him. His love for this season diminished with every hour his brother’s killer walked free to wreak more havoc.

  “Where’s Tia?” Ginny asked.

  “Ladies’ room.” He glanced toward the hallway, wondering what was taking her so long. Had he left her to face the devil alone? Acid burned his stomach.

  “Then I’ll get a cocktail while I’m waiting,” she said. “Buddy, you want another beer?”

  “Yeah, sure. Thanks, sis.” Bud glanced at Mac. “T and Ginny’ve been friends since they were kids.”

  “She told me.” Mac absently tapped the Lei Industries box.

  “I’ll bet.” Bud stared at Mac’s bouncing finger. “She tell you anything about me?”

  “A little.” Mac gave him an ominous scowl. Maybe he should go find out if she was okay.

  “Yeah, I’ll bet.” Bud looked as though his tie was choking him. “But she probably didn’t rat on herself, did she?”

  “What?” Mac gathered the box and dropped it into his coat pocket. It settled there like a stone.

  Bud was scowling. “I’ll bet she didn’t tell you she was arrested for selling company secrets when she worked for Crimble Industries, did she?”

  “What?” Mac gaped at Bud. Was this the secret Tia hadn’t been able to tell Grant but had wanted to tell him? His throat dried. “She went to jail?”

  “Nooo. No, jail for her,” he said bitterly. “The charges were dropped. But that don’t give her the right to shoot off her mouth about me.”

  “Tia didn’t say anything negative about you, Bud. Just mentioned you were the kid brother of her best friend.”

  “Oh, jeez.” Bud stumbled up from the table. Sweat popped out on his face. “I gotta tell you something—”

  “Grant, I think this is our dance,” Gwen interrupted, and Bud clamped his mouth shut as though his life depended on it. Gwen gave him a dirty look that sent him fleeing after his sister. She plunked her full wineglass on the table next to the torn wrapping paper, then leaned over Mac. “Come on, sugar, let’s show the folks how it’s done.”