The hair on the back of Eden’s neck stood up as she glanced around. The first person she saw standing with a man was thatsame woman she had seen in the ladies’ room at the rest stop. Damn… She told Sophie what she suspected.
“What are you going to do, Eden? Are there any police officers around who could help you? You are a grown woman. That couple can’t make you go with them.”
She could hear the anxiety in Sophie’s voice and knew one of them needed to keep their cool. “I’d rather not get the police involved. Thanks to you and Mark, I’ve got the money I need, and I’ll calmly walk out of here. I doubt they will make a scene inside, and if they try to grab me on my way out, I’ll make sure I get away. You’re right, they can’t force me to go with them.” She let out a sigh. “Thanks, Sophie. I’ll call you back when I’m in a safe place.”
Eden stuffed the envelope with the money in her backpack. She hoped and prayed that Drew was outside. She had just cleared the door when the woman grabbed her arm and said, “Your father needs to see you.”
She tried pulling her arm away, only for a man to take hold of the other one. She glared at them. “I will scream for the police. This is kidnapping.”
“We have our orders, Miss Tyson. We’re taking you to that car that is parked right there.”
Eden knew now was the time to resist and was about to start using whatever self-defense techniques she could against the two, when suddenly both the man and woman were shoved aside. Suddenly, her hand was grabbed by someone else -Drew.
“My car is blocking traffic, so let’s run for it,” he said.
They did and quickly got into the rental car. The couple, who had obviously been caught off guard, moved quickly to get into their vehicle to follow, but a pickup truck had pulled up and was blocking their way.
“Are you okay, Eden?”
“Yes. Thank you. When I picked up the money, the man at the counter said that Sophie had asked me to call. She told me that I had been seen at one of the rest stops. When I glanced around Western Union, I recognized that lady from this morning.”
“What lady from this morning?” Drew asked. He had been zig-zagging in and out between cars and was now stopped at a traffic light.
“She was in the ladies’ room at that second rest stop. I got a funny feeling when she looked at me. I figure the reason she didn’t try to grab me then was that there were others in there, too.”
“I bet they have been tailing us the entire time,” he said. “I wish you had mentioned your suspicion to me.”
Eden wished she had, too. “What good would it have done? You needed to make it to Dollywood on time, and I didn’t know for certain she was working for Dad. He usually only hires men.” She figured now was not the time to tell him what else Sophie had told her, about her dad arranging for ‘couples’ to find her.
“Your father is worse than a tyrant. He’s a controlling ass.”
She couldn’t disagree. When he hit the interstate, heading away from the city, she asked, “Where are we going, Drew?”
He looked over at her and said, “You’re going with me to the Mountain-Scape Lake Lodge. There’s no way I’ll let you stay in Memphis now.”
CHAPTER 9
“You don’t have any extra rooms?” Drew asked, staring at the man behind the check-in desk.
“Sorry, not a single one. We have your reservation, Mr. Steele, for a suite with a king bed; however, all our other rooms are currently booked. It seems like nobody wanted to stay home for the holidays. But it’s good for us. Our business is booming.”
As a business owner himself, Drew could appreciate that for the man. However, he wished the man hadn’t smiled so wide when he’d said it. “How big is the suite?”
“The one you reserved is the biggest one we have. We refer to it as a mini-lodge.”
He decided not to tell the man that he hadn’t reserved it -his secretary had. And though he’d made it clear to Amanda that he would be spending the time alone, obviously, she hadn’t believed him. Knowing his reputation for dating, as she put it, on a “more than normal” basis, she’d taken precautions. Now, he was glad of it. “Does the suite come with two beds?” he asked, hopefully.
“I’m afraid not. Although it’s very spacious, there is only one bedroom. However, it has a separate sitting area with a pull-out sofa bed and a dining area for two. And you have the best view of the mountains and the lake. Also, it’s isolated.”
Drew lifted a brow. “Isolated?”
“Yes. Because the mini-lodge is typically reserved for celebrities seeking privacy, it’s not connected to this or any other buildings. No one can see who is coming and going, and you have your own parking area, walking park, and hot tub. In otherwords, it’s not near any of the other rooms in this lodge.”
He liked the sound of that. Although he hadn’t asked Amanda to reserve him a room with such amenities, under the circumstances, he was glad that she had. “There is only one bathroom?”
“Yes, but it’s very large with both a tub, shower, and his and her vanities. Additionally, it has a Jack and Jill concept with access to the bathroom from both the sitting area and the bedroom. And because most of the people who reserve that room prefer eating their meals in their suite, we’ve left an expanded room service menu in the room. Additionally, the suite is assigned a private phone number that you can provide to your callers, eliminating the need for them to reach you through this desk.”
Drew liked the sound of all of that, as well. As much as he wished otherwise, this arrangement would have to do. The first chance he had after they left Memphis, he pulled into a mini-market with a phone booth, where he called his office and told Amanda that under no circumstances was she to reveal his whereabouts to anyone. If those two characters in Western Union had followed his rig, they’d have reported it. After that, it wouldn’t be hard for Eden’s father to find out who owned it.
