“I don’t know, if one of you is practically an agoraphobic, having a little sex trophy hidden away where the press can’t see her might be perfect. And one that speaks English. I could pay for a whore too, but that’s not what I mean. Do you have a contact with someone who provides modern-day courtesans?”
Ares leaned back in his seat. “Dorian, I don’t know what you think we are, but you sound ridiculous,” he said.
After a moment, Dorian relaxed and came into a smile. “It was a rumour. Nothing more. Now I’ve got to go, I don’t need dinner after all. You gentlemen have a good night.”
With an effort, Xander moved. Taking out his phone, he sent a message to two of his people from different teams to get to the office right the hell now.
“Xander I’m sure—”
Xander glared at his brother. He hadn’t set up this meeting, and he didn’t know if they paid the staff that were nearby to spy on them. Maybe that was a paranoid thought, but that’s how his mind worked.
“I’m sure there’ll be another opportunity to meet Dorian. I have a full day tomorrow. Let’s call it a night.” Ares stood.
Xander took a deep breath and followed his brother. His heart was going double time, and he could barely breathe.
Fuck. He knew Dorian was somehow connected to the attack on Team Stealth and his insinuation had just confirmed it.
But jumping to conclusions wasn’t Xander’s style; seeing patterns were.
“He can’t know, it’s just talking,” Ares said as soon as Carli closed the limo door.
“Pretty specific talk,” Xander said, punching in two numbers on his cell. “Only Ian and Charlotte and that excuse of a man Talbot know about Harper.”
“The Tech Team needs more time with the new toy,” Ares said.
“We hire the best minds in the country. They are going to work all night if they have to, but we are going to find out who was behind that attack on Team Stealth.”
“Why did you call Erik?” Ares asked.
“I need him to check Ian’s ex-wife. It’s the only person who knows about Harper that I haven’t spoken with in the last couple of years,” Xander said. He forced himself to take deep breaths. He knew Harper was safe at this moment and there were no threats to her. Dorian might have just been making shit up but it was too close to the truth and he had to check it out.
Ares pressed his lips together, and Xander knew his brother held back his opinion on how he would have treated the matter.
In the elevator, Ares reached out, hitting the button for the lower floor.
“Going to get a workout in, and I’ll be up in an hour,” Ares said.
“Fine,” Xander said.
As he walked out of the elevator, he took his suit jacket off. He couldn’t wait to change into his usual T-shirt and jeans.
“Harper?” Xander called.
The doors to the executive suite were open, soft light spilling onto Harper’s desk. Looking up from tapping at her keyboard, the ends of her long hair brushing her arm, she smiled.
“What were you looking for? I came back and my desk was hit by a tornado.”
“The latest report on Mulberry. I need the hard copy.”
Shaking her head, Harper reached into her drawer and passed Xander a red file folder. “Here you are.”
Damn, she was so poised.
“What are you doing here so late?”
“Claudia’s sister went into labour, this time for real. I’m going over her schedule to make sure I cover what she had this week,” Harper said, her eyes on the screen.
“Harper.” Xander threw his suit jacket down on a chair, watching her brow furrow. He waited until she looked away from the screen.
