“Don’t you dare laugh, Rand Dunbarton.”
“I’m not laughing.”
“You always laugh about everything,” she grumbled.
“How do you know?”
“Because I’ve watched you through the binoculars when you didn’t think I was looking,” she confessed before she realized what she’d just said.
There was a quiet pause. “Well, if you had them trained on me now, you would discover I’m in a very different frame of mind.”
That makes two of us. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to go back to sleep.”
“If that’s the case, why not come home and I’ll have a nice cold drink waiting for you. We’ll talk about the case.”
She bit her lip. “It’s not going very well.”
“It’s only day one. These things take time. We’ll talk about it and review our strategy. I’ve got that list of names we can review. If nothing happens after a few days, we’ll put Plan B into action.”
“Plan B?”
“The one you already have in mind. I can’t wait to hear it. That marvelous brain of yours never sleeps.”
“Unfortunately my marvelous brain isn’t worth two cents at the moment.”
“That’s because you’re tired. You’ll sleep better in your own bed.”
“Not during the day.”
“That’s right. The alarm. You never know when some poor unsuspecting fool will approach your door and set it off. If you want, I’ll deactivate it while you catch up on your rest. Naturally I’ll stand guard.”
That was the best idea she’d heard yet. “You wouldn’t mind?”
“As I told you earlier, hotel rooms are lonely places. I avoid them as much as possible.”
Looking around Rand’s hotel room, she could only agree with him. “I’ll be home in ten minutes.”
CHAPTER FIVE
“I’M SORRY I slept so long. It’s almost time for me to go to work!”
Annabelle’s eyes were hooded and she moved rather tentatively, as if she might stumble given the slightest nudge. One cheek seemed more flushed than the other. Rand loved the way she looked when she first got up. Warm, disheveled and desirable. It was all he could do to keep his hands in his pockets.
Things couldn’t be working out better. Though he would never have hurt Caroline intentionally, the scene at the hotel this morning had sent the definitive message; whatever the two of them had shared in the past, it was finally over.
As for Annabelle, she would never be rid of him, but he realized he had to proceed carefully. One false move at this point...
“The food’s in the oven. Come in the dining room and we’ll eat.”
“I feel like a fraud,” she said a couple minutes later, having devoured one skewer of vegetables and chicken. “You’re paying me to help solve a huge problem for your company and now you’re waiting on me hand and foot when I haven’t done anything to earn my keep yet.”
“Wrong. You’ve let me play house with your things. There’s nothing I enjoy more. My greatest fear is that you’ll never get it all put back together again.”
“Well, if your hotel room is any indication—”
The smile he flashed made her breath catch. “You noticed.”
“Umm... One of your many sins I’m still learning about, no doubt.”
“When you’ve got time, I’ll confess a few more. Here, have another shish kebab.”
“This is the best food I’ve ever tasted. Here I was thinking you would make a great CIA agent when it’s obvious you’ve missed your calling as a gourmet chef at some divine spot on the Mediterranean.”
Rand poured them the wine he’d purchased. “You mean like France or Italy.”
“Or Minorca.”
“One of the islands off the coast of Spain. Minorca it is.”
She darted him a quizzical look. “What do you mean?”
“My bonus to you.”
“I was only kidding about that,” she murmured, averting her eyes.
“What? The bonus, or Minorca?”
“Both.”
“I wasn’t.’ He drank his wine in one go. ”What were you saying about the CIA?”
She shook her head. “Nothing. I think I’d better get dressed. Thank you for the delicious dinner, a-and the wine.”
The slight stammer proved another endearing trait. “You’re welcome.” He followed her as far as the living room. “I’ve been looking over the names of the employees who were let go. There aren’t very many. From the comments, most were unreliable or had too many sick days. There’s nothing in their histories to suggest suspicious or unlawful behavior.”
He heard her deep sigh. “Which puts us back at square one. We’re just going to have to hope that one of these nights Bryan Ludlow breaks down and starts causing trouble again so we can catch him in the act.”
“I’ll be working on it from my end and we’ll keep in touch throughout the night.”
She nodded. “When do you sleep?”
“I manage. By the way, your mail came. I put it on your desk downstairs. You also received two faxes. I left the printouts there, too.”
“What did they say?”
“I have no idea, but both were from your bankruptcy friend. Do you want me to bring them upstairs for you while you’re getting ready?”
“No. I’ll look at them later. Thank you anyway.”
“Annabelle?”
“Yes?” She sounded breathless.
“Do you have any idea how much I want to kiss you?”
She backed away from him. “That’s because you had a fight with Ms. Graham.”
“Caroline and I did not have a fight. We said goodbye forever.”
“Then all the more reason why you’re needing comfort.”
“Your psychoanalysis is wasted on me. I’ve kissed you before and know what I’m missing. Let’s at least be honest about that.”
“I admit the physical side of our relationship was pretty overwhelming. It blinded us to the realities. That happens once in a while to the most unlikely couples. Luckily we found out soon enough to save ourselves a lifetime of grief. Now I’ve really got to hurry or I’ll be late for work.”
Rand was getting used to her salvos. The more she fought him, the more he knew his plan was working. “Don’t worry about it. I own Dunbarton Electronics.”
“Exactly.” Her voice shook. “Since you hired me to do a job, I’d like to impress you with my performance. Thanks again for dinner.”
As soon as she withdrew, Rand did the dishes and went downstairs. He decided to hide out before she found an opportunity to tell him their arrangement wasn’t working. If she asked him to leave, then he would have to go. Since that would ruin his carefully laid plans, the smart thing to do was disappear from sight.
The tiny staircase reminded him of the narrow, steep steps he’d been forced to negotiate in Holland during one of his trips to Europe. On the wall at the bottom of the stairs she’d hung her PI license, her credentials in law enforcement and her educational diplomas.
University of Utah, College of Engineering, Honorary Bachelor of Arts Degree in Computer Engineering awarded to Annabelle Lathrop Forrester.
Every time he passed them, his self-loathing increased for the cavalier way he had demanded that she give up her career for him. How blind he’d been not to see that her background, her education and experiences in the workplace contributed to the whole woman. It was all part of what made her so fascinating and irresistible to him.
In light of how ruthlessly he’d let go with the ultimatum that she give up everything to become his wife, it was nothing short of a miracle that she’d been willing to take his case now, that she was allowing him to live in her home, albeit temporarily.
Some men never got a second chance. He realized he was one of the lucky ones. Vowing not to make another fatal mistake, he entered the basement room which had come as a complete surprise the first time he’d seen it.
She’d made her downsta
irs into one big study furnished in creams and yellows with a couple of attractive couches, a coffee table and recessed lighting. It had been remodeled by knocking out partitions that didn’t hold up the house.
The south wall contained some sophisticated electronic equipment including a phone, several computers—one of which had a camera and voice capabilities, a printer, a fax machine and a color copier. It resembled the equipment in his own study at the condo.
Another wall contained floor-to-ceiling shelves of books and historical artifacts he had enjoyed examining. On the far right was an eight-inch replica of an Olmec head found in Mexico. A row of impressive books devoted to South American archaeology lined the shelves.
Next came an Egyptian scarab placed next to a set of books on ancient hieroglyphs, the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Lakish Letters. All of it her hobby after she’d taken several student tours to Mexico and Egypt.
What he loved most were a series of framed, small colored photographs of Annabelle in desert headdress, perched on a camel, the pyramids behind her. She reminded him of a young Bedouin princess.
He’d stolen one of them because he couldn’t resist, hoping she’d never notice. Maybe she already had noticed and just hadn’t said anything. If that were the case, then it was the best of signs.
Obviously she spent most of her time down here. The whole atmosphere was cozy and inviting. He loved it on sight. He’d loved her on sight. She’d crawled right into his heart and made herself at home.
He probably shouldn’t have mentioned kissing her on the heels of Caroline’s departure. But something had come over him. She was in his blood. He couldn’t lose her. He refused to lose her.
“Good night, Rand,” he heard her call from the top of the stairs a few minutes later.
“Good night, Annabelle. Call me when you get a break and tell me what’s happening.”
“You do the same.”
“I will. Drive carefully.”
Everything about their relationship felt so natural. Hell. He felt like her husband. Territorial and protective. Like they were married.
He wanted Annabelle Forrester for his wife. He wanted her to be the mother of their children. He wanted an adorable little daughter who looked like her mother, who had her mother’s dancing curls, golden eyes and heart-shaped mouth. He knew in his gut life couldn’t get better than that.
The more distance Annabelle put between her and the house, the more homesick she became. Something terrible was happening to her.
Don’t kid yourself, Annabelle. Something terrible has already happened You’re so in love with Rand Dunbarton, you practically threw yourself in his arms a little while ago. Don’t you have any sense? Any pride?
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
Rand’s just playing around. Nothing’s changed. You’re still the same person you were a year ago, but he didn’t want that person for his wife then, and he doesn’t want you for a wife now.
When the case is over, he’ll be gone, out of your life. If you succumb now, you’ll be ruined forever.
Tomorrow you’re going to have to make major changes, starting with Rand going back to his hotel room to live until the case is solved. No more cozy togetherness, no more sharing. No more opportunities to give in to temptation...
With everything sorted out, she pulled into Dunbarton’s employee parking lot wearing a determined look on her face. What she needed to do was concentrate on getting the job done so she could move on to another case and forget that there was ever a man named Rand who made her desire the impossible.
The night started out slow and never picked up. By four in the morning, Annabelle was beginning to wonder if Bryan Ludlow’s sabotage spree was over when she got a call on her cellular from Rand.
“Yes?”
“We hit the jackpot.”
Her adrenaline started to flow. She sat straight up in the chair. “What happened?”
“I’ve been calling in on the support line for hours. Twenty minutes ago, the same voice you taped answered my call. I started the trace and kept him going long enough to get a phone number.
“He tried to do the same thing to me that he tried on you. If I hadn’t been on to him, he would have wiped out your hard drive. It makes you wonder how many hard drives he has ruined.”
“He’s a menace all right. How did you keep your cool when you knew you were talking to the teenager responsible for all your grief?”
“Believe it or not, I kind of enjoyed it. He’s a bright boy. Of course I would enjoy it a lot more if I knew he was working on his own.”
“I know. That part troubles me, too. What’s the phone number?”
When he had given it to her she said, “I’m calling this in to the office. Someone’s on duty and they’ll give us a name and address. Excellent work, Rand. At the rate you’re going, you’ll probably have your own case solved by lunchtime and Roman will end up having to pay you!”
She thought he would laugh, or at least chuckle. When he did neither, she didn’t understand. “Rand? Are you still there?”
“Of course I am, sweetheart.”
Sweetheart? Her body shook. It had been a long time since she’d heard him use that endearment with her. He sounded strange, upset, or maybe she was just tired and it was her imagination.
“I’ll call you with any information as soon as I hear back from the office.”
“You do that.”
“I will.”
Bewildered by the sudden tension, she clicked off, then called the office. Phil was on duty. She gave him the phone number and told him she would hold while he found out what he could.
While she waited, her puzzlement grew over Rand’s strange behavior a few minutes ago. She would have thought he would be overjoyed they were getting closer to solving the case.
“Annie?”
“I’m here.”
“The phone registration is under the name Mark J. Owens at 3990 Sundance Lane in Sandy.”
“Thanks, Phil. You always do good work.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“Over and out.”
The name didn’t ring any bells, but she knew the address. The homes in that area ranged in the $850,000 to the $1,000,000 category, set up at the base of the mountains south of Salt Lake proper.
Bryan Ludlow’s home was worth a great deal more than that located in the Salt Lake Country Club area. But whoever Bryan was hanging out with, they obviously had money, too. A professional hacker who’d once worked for Rand’s company?
Without wasting any more time, she phoned Rand and told him the news. “Does the name Owens appear on that list?”
“No.”
“Okay. We’ll call Trina and see if she’s ever heard of Mark Owens. Depending on what she says, we’ll take it from there. I’ll be off in an hour and drive straight home. By then Trina ought to be up and getting ready for school.”
“You think she might know something?”
“Did you ever have a close girlfriend in high school?”
“No.”
“That’s right. You were too busy working on becoming Computer Man of the Decade.”
“You make it sound like a sin.”
She blinked. “I didn’t mean to. I was paying you a compliment.”
“Really.”
“Yes, really.” She was getting that hot and bothered feeling again.
“Did you have a close boyfriend in high school?” he fired back without missing a beat.
His question made her realize how little she and Rand had known about each other when they’d decided to get married. They’d been too caught up by excitement and desire to do much thinking at all. Now, when it was too late, they were really starting to get know what made the other person tick. The whole situation was driving her over the edge...
“No, but Janet did,” Annabelle finally responded. “They told each other everything. That’s probably why they broke up in college. They knew too much about each other for their own good. Her roots for becoming a go
od bankruptcy attorney were probably formed then.”
Rand’s laugh sounded cruel. “So what you’re saying is, Trina probably knows Bryan inside out.”
“Yes.”
“For that I owe Trina and you a debt of gratitude.”
“I was only doing my job.”
“No. Most adults don’t have time for teenagers. You didn’t blow her off. You’re unique, Annabelle.”
I can’t take much more of this
“There’s a call coming in. I have to answer it.”
“Understood. Hurry home.”
Stop saying that as if you mean it, Rand.
Nothing amused Rand more than to witness the way Annabelle could lie with impunity on the job when he knew her to be a guileless soul.
It was seven-thirty in the morning and she’d just gotten off the phone with Trina.
“Well, Mrs. Smith of the Reflections committee for the school district? What have we found out from Bryan’s girlfriend?”
“Quite a lot.”
“Let’s have breakfast and you can tell me about it.” He started for the dining room where he’d prepared eggs Benedict and homemade coffee cake.
“Rand?” She wasn’t far behind him. “I—I’m afraid this has got to stop.”
He knew exactly what she was talking about. She’d only slept in his hotel room one night. Now she was back home and they were living together right now. Except for the sleeping arrangements, they might as well be man and wife.
“Have I made too big a mess of your kitchen?”
An exasperated sound came out of her. “Of course not.”
“If you don’t like my cooking, it won’t hurt my feelings.”
“It’s not that. I love your cooking.”
Those words helped to calm the savage beast “Then let’s enjoy the food while it’s hot.”
“I should be waiting on you in my own home. Not the other way around.”
He served her a portion of everything, then himself. “Let’s get something straight, Annabelle. I’ve learned a lot about equality after being around you. You’re out there trying to solve a big problem for me. The least I can do is make myself useful around here while you’re gone. We both have to eat.”
“Yes, but there’s food, and then there’s food for the gods!”
Undercover Fiancee Page 7
