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“What do you mean? She merely asked to use the loo,” the doctor sputtered as he darted back down the hall.
Roman followed. Sure enough, as the phone started to ring in his ear, he heard a faint corresponding ring down the hall. The closer he hustled to the doctor’s office, the louder the noise sounded.
“Roman, I can’t talk right now,” Gus said over the line, her voice hushed.
He bet she couldn’t. Thankfully, the carpet beneath his loafers muffled the sounds of his footsteps. He kept his voice intentionally low. “Why, baby? Are you in an important meeting?”
“Very. I’ll have to call you back.”
“Is Liz with you?”
“Um, yeah, but she’s busy, too. You know how it is on these trips. I have to go. See you tonight.” The line went dead.
Gus was probably panicking now. She had to know the doctor would be back at any moment. She must be hurrying to find anything of value in his filing cabinets.
Roman gnashed his teeth together. How the hell had she escaped the manor without his knowledge? He intended to have someone’s head for this lapse.
The doctor stopped just short of his door with a frown. “I left that open.”
“And she closed it.”
“Oh, dear. Should I ring 999?”
He grasped the doorknob, hoping she hadn’t locked herself in. He wouldn’t put it past her to buy herself a little extra time, then plot to wiggle her gorgeous body out some tiny window to escape. “I’ll handle her. No need for the police.”
Damn Gus. Roman was one hundred percent certain he could feel his hair starting to gray, and it was all her fault. But even though she’d defied him, he felt oddly eager to clap eyes on her. He frowned. It made no sense.
The doorknob turned easily and he barged into the office.
Gus was stepping out of a door to his left and turned, wearing a bright smile. “Thank you so much, Doct… Roman?”
Her smile fled. A startled expression accompanied the whoosh of her breath. Anxiety lit her eyes next, proving to him that she did have a lick of sense. She should be afraid.
“Hello, dear. Is Liz in the bathroom, too? I had no idea you had a meeting so far from London.”
At least she had the decency to blush, her cheeks turning a hot pink. “I was just… Wait.” That sensible fear fled, and she narrowed her eyes at him. “What are you doing here? I thought you were going to be glued to Zack’s side all day. In London. Meetings with the prime minister, I believe. Did you forget those? Or get lost?”
He pointed a finger her direction. “You are not turning this back on me.”
“Excuse me, but I’m confused,” the doctor said. “You clearly know each other, but you didn’t come here together?” He glared at Roman. “Was your appointment a ruse so she could search my office?”
“Of course not. I don’t need to resort to such drastic measures. As you know, I have a release from the family.” He reached into his suit pocket, ready to pull out a copy of the paperwork.
“So you were snooping of your own accord, young lady?”
Gus sent him a look that could have frozen an active volcano. “Of course not. He was kidding. He’s quite a practical jokester.” She sidled up to Roman, sliding her arm through his. He felt her claws digging into his forearm through his suit coat. “He has such an odd sense of humor. I have no idea why I date him. Maybe you should think about keeping him for observation.”
The doctor looked between the two of them. “You have a romantic relationship?”
Gus leaned against him. “We do, and the truth is, we must have gotten our schedules mixed up today. I thought he was far too busy to come here, so I tried to save him the trip and surprise him. And because I’d like to spend a day shopping and sightseeing before we fly back across the pond. But as Roman pointed out, I don’t have the proper paperwork. That detail completely slipped my mind.” She touched a hand to her forehead with a trilling laugh. “Zack gave it to this guy here. I’m sorry, I mean the president. We’re both lawyers in his employ and we’ve known him since we were kids, so it’s weird to call him anything other than his name. Or Scooter, of course.” Gus smiled brilliantly before she slanted a glance his way. “Come on, babe. We’ve taken up enough of the doctor’s time.”
Roman thought his head might explode. He was so going to… He wasn’t even sure what he intended to do to her, but in that moment he wished like hell he could toss her over his knee and spank the sass out of her. Still, she was right. They needed to leave before the doctor got any more suspicious.
He forced a smile. “Sorry, Doctor. I didn’t mean to imply that she’s a criminal. Though what she’d like to do with our spare time would be a crime against my credit card.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder with an airy laugh. “One little trip to Harrods.”
The doctor smiled indulgently and murmured something about his wife doing the same. No one could turn around a bad situation like Gus. She could get caught with a gun standing over a dead body and residue all over her hands, and still manage to craft a charming story the police would probably believe.
But Roman refused to be charmed. Not this time. His stern lecture would have to wait, however. Now he had to play the indulgent boyfriend.
“Glad you understand. I actually came here today, rather than tomorrow, so I could surprise her. Pray for my credit card, Doc.” He smiled. “Oh, before we go, what can you tell me about Constance Hayes? You said the files we’re looking for are missing?”
The doctor frowned for a moment, as though trying to figure out if he was being had.
Gus nodded and started back into the doctor’s office, tugging Roman along. “I was asking the doctor about any records he might have on Constance, but he told me they’d gone missing some time ago. He tried to pull them recently, probably for you.”
The doctor settled himself behind his impressive desk. “Yes. I looked for the records when Mr. Calder called to inquire about reviewing them. As I told Ms. Spencer, I wasn’t Homewood’s director at the time of Mrs. Hayes’s stay, but I worked here.”
He was still suspicious and somewhat reserved, but Gus seemed to have kept the situation from going incredibly south. Not that it would save her later.
Roman slid into the chair beside her. When she tried to inch away, he caught her hand and wrapped her arm around his. She’d started this game, so no, he didn’t mind taking advantage of the situation. Since their two investigations had crossed over, that meant he could keep an eye on her while he completed his. “Did you work on her case at all?”
“I did, but I’d prefer not to say more. Privacy laws.” The doctor glanced Gus’s way.
“The patient in question is deceased and her husband has dementia. Zack Hayes has his father’s power of attorney and I represent the whole family. I can show you my paperwork again, if you’d like. Or would you prefer for me to get my client on the phone?”
Gus sighed and leaned toward the doctor. “Don’t mind his growl. That’s how he talks. But we really do need some answers. We’re here for Zack…President Hayes. He can’t come himself, obviously. Privacy is a deep concern—his and yours. If the president comes, we have to bring a large security detail and shut down most of your operations for the day. I assure you, it’s a hassle. And then there’s the press. Once they’re on the scene, I fear they could learn about your celebrity patients, perhaps even catch an unauthorized glimpse of them. It’s in everyone’s best interest not to stir up that kind of attention.”
The doctor shuddered. “I see your point, yes. And you did send the proper paperwork. Can we talk in front of Ms. Spencer?”
“Please do.”
“All right. I was a secondary doctor on Mrs. Hayes’s case. Her primary physician died a few years back, and somehow we’ve lost his records.”
“All of them?” Roman asked.
“No, that’s what’s strange. Only Mrs. Hayes’s records are missing.”
Gus squeezed his hand. Clearl
y, she didn’t believe for one moment the records had simply been misplaced. Neither did Roman. Though nothing had really changed, Roman sensed this excursion had become far more serious—and potentially dangerous.
“Do you have any idea when the records went missing?” she asked.
“I honestly can’t tell you,” he began, but then he seemed to have an idea. He stood, pushing his chair back. “But…let me check something. I’ll be right back. I might be able to at least give you a time period, if my theory is right.”
He stepped outside, leaving his door open.
Gus immediately turned on him. “I knew you were lying to me. You never meant to take me along. Your promises and your ‘deal’ were just one big manipulation.”
She wanted to do this here? Now? Fine by him. “I lied? That’s pretty hypocritical, baby, since you’re the one who sneaked in here to illegally search a doctor’s office. You know, you’re lucky he didn’t call the police. How would that have looked?”
“He wasn’t going to catch me. You’re the one who made it a close call.”
Roman gritted his teeth. “Why the hell are you here?”
“No, you go first.”
He clenched his jaw even tighter, lips pressing into a grim line. He couldn’t admit here all the things he’d been keeping from her all along. He couldn’t drag her any deeper into this conspiracy and put her in more danger.
She pointed a finger his way. “See, there you go with the stonewalling. You’re not going to say a word, are you?”
But he didn’t have to admit anything. Gus knew he was investigating. She was a smart woman and no matter what he did, she would put two and two together all too soon. “I’m here because Zack thinks something was…odd about his mother’s death. He’d like answers.”
