She opened the door to the van. “Let’s go.”
* * *
FOR THE THIRD TIMEin the last three minutes, Kyle stopped pacing his office and glanced at his wristwatch. Ten-fifteen in the morning. And no sign of Mel.
He ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated. They’d spent the evening apart because he’d had dinner with clients, but the time away from her only accentuated how much he wanted to be with her.
He wanted her. Permanently. Forever. And as soon as they figured out this Driskell problem, Kyle intended to let Mel know in no uncertain terms that the time for playing games was over. She might not want a relationship, but he intended to fight her on that. He’d win, too.
His first priority, though, was Ethan Driskell and the damn insurance company. His gaze darted to the calendar. Time was almost up; the lawyers would serve him with a lawsuit the next day. He needed Mel in his life, yes, but he also needed her help.
So where the hell was she?
He was dialing her cell phone number for the third time when the chime sounded. He steppedinto the reception area, expecting to see her. Instead, he saw Brent.
“Where the hell have you been?”
“Sorry,” Brent said. “I had things to do.”
“Things to do?” Kyle repeated. “I’ve been working my ass off.”
“You said you were going to hire an office assistant.”
“I ended up hiring a consultant instead.”
“A consultant?” Brent asked. “What the hell for?”
“To do your job. Figure out how the breach occurred.”
“Who’d you hire?”
“You met her. Melissa Tanner.”
At that, Brent actually laughed. “Give me a break.”
“She knows what she’s doing. She used to be a thief.”
“Really?” Brent frowned. “Well, I guess I wrote her off too quickly. More than just eye candy. The woman definitely has a more interesting side.”
“You’re on thin ice, buddy. Especially since she’s the one who’s been helping out while my partner—the man who actuallyownsan interest in this company—skipped out to Vegas.”
Brent scowled. “I didn’t leave town. I told you I wouldn’t, and I stayed.”
“I tried to reach you,” Kyle said.
“I’ve been having a rough time of it, okay? I just needed—”
Kyle never found out what he needed because right then, the door opened and Mel walked in. Brent took the opportunity to step back into his office, and she watched him go, her face hard.
“Mel? Where have you been?”
She pulled her gaze away from Brent’s office door to look at him, her mouth drawn into a tight line.
“What’s happened?” Fear rose in his chest. “Are Emily and Gregory okay?”
“They’re fine,” Mel rushed to say. She drew a breath. “But you need to see this. Now.” She passed him a file folder, her face completely unreadable.
Something in his gut twisted and he knew this was it. She was going to leave him. He wanted to call her on it, to beg her to stay, but the folder burned in his hand. He drew a breath and opened it, knowing it wasn’t going to be good.
