"Dominic invited me," he replied smoothly, his hand finding Kara's waist. "Caroline Rowe, this is Kara Reid. Caroline is Dominic's Vice President of Business Development."
"It's nice to meet you," she said.
"You too," Caroline replied, although she didn't seem interested at all as her gaze turned to Max. "Is there any positive…news?"
"No," he said.
"That's unfortunate." She paused as her gaze moved to a new couple entering the room. "Excuse me."
Kara thought Caroline might go to greet the new arrivals, but she went over to Dominic and whispered in his ear, then pulled him away from his group. Her hand lingered on his arm in a way that felt possessive, territorial.
"Caroline is in love with Dominic," she murmured.
Max gave her a surprised look. "I don't think so."
"I do. When she asked for news, I assumed she was speaking about Samantha."
"Yes, and she's also aware that Dominic asked me to look into the bombing."
"Have you ever seen her interact with Samantha? I wonder what the vibe is between them?"
"I couldn't tell you," he said. "Dominic has never mentioned any romantic involvement with Caroline, but she seems to be very close to him, very loyal. She's always concerned about his security, but I'm sure many people are after what happened six months ago."
"What happened then?" she asked.
"It was overseas in Dushanbe. Dominic's security team was ambushed. He wasn't hurt, but two of his bodyguards were killed. That's why he hired me. He was afraid that someone might have leaked his security plans or his itinerary."
"That's interesting," she mused. "But how private was that itinerary? I found one for his next trip in Samantha's apartment."
"He gave her the itinerary. I was there when he did," Max replied.
A loud voice interrupted their conversation.
"Dominic," a man repeated as he moved through the crowd, his face red with what appeared to be anger. He appeared to be in his forties with pepper-gray hair and a stocky build. Two men in suits were following him, as well as an older man, who appeared to be in his seventies or eighties.
"Richard," Dominic said, his tone neutral, as he moved forward. He turned to the older man. "Joseph. I didn't realize your son was coming."
Regret ran across Joseph's face. "I couldn't stop him."
"I've been trying to get you on the phone for three weeks, Dominic," Richard said, his voice carrying across the room. "Why are you dodging my calls? Why did you hand our contract to someone else?"
"Richard Greco," Max whispered in Kara's ear. "And his father, Joseph Greco. They run Greco Electrical. They've acted as subcontractors on many jobs."
"I haven't handed anything to anyone," Dominic said, his pleasant tone edged with steel. "We're still finalizing contracts for Tajikistan."
"Finalizing?" Richard's laugh was harsh. "Bullshit. You're going with Ridley Aames. Twenty years of loyalty, and this is how you repay it?"
"Richard, please." Joseph Greco's voice was calm and diplomatic. Clearly, he was used to smoothing his son's rough edges. "Dominic, I apologize. I wanted to bring this up with you at a different time."
"But you don't make time for us," Richard interrupted. "Your assistant said you're completely booked for weeks."
"Let's talk tomorrow," Dominic said. "I'll have my assistant call you in the morning."
"Or we could do it now," Richard said. "Why wait?"
"Tomorrow will be fine," Joseph interrupted. "We're leaving now."
Richard spluttered protests, but his father and the security detail escorted them out of the room.
