Gedeon recognized her immediately. Laverne Sandershad been a singer and theater actress before she met Hawkins. A gorgeous woman, and they appeared happy together everywhere they went. She often starred in theater performances and was reputed to be quite good. Gedeon had never seen her, but when he’d been briefed on Hawkins, Rene had included the reviews of Laverne’s work.
His leopard slammed against his ribs, battering at him to get free. Slayer raged, rending and tearing in an effort to break free and get at Hawkins. Clearly he despised the man with a passion. Gedeon found he felt the same way. So far he had no sympathy for their client. He stared at his mouth and perfect white teeth, wondering how much it had cost him to get those teeth. Why did it feel to him as if the office was staged? As if the desk had been arranged the way it might in a theater to appear a certain way—everything on it a prop for Hawkins to use.
As if she could sense that Gedeon and Slayer were struggling to believe Hawkins and not leap up and kill him, Meiling once again took control. She glided to her feet, a delicate flowing motion of pure femininity, drawing the attention of every male in the room—including the leopard.
She went up to the desk, inserting herself between Hawkins and Gedeon. “May I?” she asked in her soft, lilting voice. She held out her hand for the photograph.
Calm poured into the room. Peace filled Gedeon. Filled Slayer. Instantly the leopard was still, watching Hawkins but waiting to see what would happen, rather than trying to tear Gedeon apart to get his way.
Guy Hawkins handed Meiling the picture. Meiling smiled at it and then up at him. “She’s really quite lovely, Mr. Hawkins. I can see you’re very worried about her. Has she gone missing?”
Gedeon had the insane desire to catch Meiling by her shoulders and drag her away from Hawkins. If that man was stupid enough to lay his hands on her, Meiling could wipe up the floor with him. He wouldn’t know that. Shelooked so delicate with her slim little figure. If Hawkins was so in love with his wife and so damned worried about her, why was he suddenly looking at Meiling with speculative interest? If there was one thing Gedeon could see—and smell—on other men, it was sexual interest in Meiling.
Meiling stepped back, holding the photograph in one hand, her sweet smile in place, but as she took that one step back, she kicked Gedeon in the shins, hard.Pull it together, Leopard Boy. He’s a client. Hear him out. We need to know what’s going on. If Slayer is acting up, get across the room.
The woman, for being so small, knew how to kick. He should have been angry, but Gedeon was elated. It was the first time Meiling had spoken telepathically to him since the “incident.” More important, she called him Leopard Boy. Like it or not, that was a term of endearment between them.
He stood up, towering over Meiling, crowding her a little so that his body, for the first time in far too long, felt her soft form molded against his. Slayer retreated even more, content to be near the woman who always calmed him. Meiling, the consummate professional, didn’t so much as stiffen. She stared down at the photograph and then showed it to Gedeon simply by holding it up.
“Isn’t she beautiful? I saw her in New York two years ago. She opened on Broadway in the production ofBaby’s Got the Blues. She was absolutely brilliant.”
“She was nominated for a Tony Award,” Hawkins informed them.
“She should have won,” Meiling said sincerely. She handed the photograph back to Hawkins. “She was wonderful in that role.”
Gedeon moved away from Meiling, circling the room, taking in every aspect of it. No matter how much he wanted to view it differently, he still felt he was in the middle of a theater set. Why did he feel like Guy Hawkins had staged his office to appear as if he were grieving? The room wasactually quite stark. Although spacious, there was very little furniture, which only called attention to the curved desk.
The walls were either sheets of glass or wooden panels. There were no pictures on the walls. Again, that placed Hawkins’s desk as the center of attention and cast the spotlight directly onto the only framed photograph on the desk’s surface. He studied the office setup from every angle while Meiling engaged Hawkins in conversation about Laverne’s career on Broadway. As a musical theater actress, her reputation had grown fast.
The farther away Gedeon moved from Meiling, the more agitated he felt. That triggered Slayer into escalating his aggressive behavior. Or was it the other way around? Gedeon didn’t know or care, only that he had a strong urge to separate Meiling from Hawkins immediately. The impression of danger was so strong that he crossed the room again to stand within striking distance of the man, deliberately allowing their client to see the killer in him.
What is wrong with you?
I don’t know. I’m getting the impression that you’re in danger. Slayer feels it as well.
He knew he should ask her if she felt in danger when she was near Hawkins. The closer he was to Hawkins, the more powerful the feeling became. He was convinced he wasn’t being emotional because he’d had a fight earlier with Meiling. It was because their client was looking at her in an inappropriate way as he tried to convince them he adored his wife.
Meiling? What are you feeling? What are your impressions of him?
Meiling didn’t answer him at once, but she did move away from the desk, sitting once more, very gracefully, in the chair. “Please tell us more, Mr. Hawkins. Why did you send for us?”
Hawkins’s gaze ran over Meiling’s slight figure in a hungry, greedy way Slayer just couldn’t tolerate. He threwhimself at Gedeon fast, the attack unexpected and strong, nearly tearing through his insides. Gedeon’s skin lifted as the huge cat shoved against him in an attempt to escape to get at their enemy. It took all of Gedeon’s strength to hold him back.
“My wife is bipolar. Her medical condition is not known and I don’t want it to get out. That is for her to disclose when she deems it appropriate. I have a top publicity team in place, and when they think it is best to go public with that information, she will. That time, certainly, is not now.”
Hawkins spread his hands in front of him and looked down in despair, shaking his head. Gedeon wanted to remind him that he wasn’t an actor, he was a musician. He was too busy fighting back his leopard. He was furious with the cat. They had a truce when it came to his work. The leopard was a part of what he did. He was supposed to listen, to pay attention to every word said, take in every detail.
He makes me uneasy. He’s telling half-truths, but it’s difficult to catch everything with you and Slayer so reactive. Maybe you should leave the room and let me handle this alone.
The moment she made the suggestion, Gedeon’s entire being rejected the idea of leaving her alone with Hawkins. What he thought Hawkins would do, he had no idea.
I’m staying. Calm Slayer down for me and I’ll keep it together.
You sound and feel like the Grim Reaper.
He wanted to be the Grim Reaper. One swipe of his paw and that would put an end to Guy Hawkins and whatever his game was. On the other hand, he had many clients he didn’t like and he’d worked for them. Done recovery for them. He didn’t have to like them, he reminded himself and Slayer. He just had to do his job and collect his enormous fee. He nodded and kept breathing, turning his energy inward, determined to get his emotions under control. If he could do that, he could get his savage leopard under control.
“Is your wife under a doctor’s care, Mr. Hawkins?”Meiling inquired. She filled the silence smoothly, keeping the attention on her so that Hawkins didn’t notice Gedeon and his smoldering, threatening silence.
