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“It’s kind of you to offer, but we are destined for different locations.”
He scrutinized her clothes and her bag. “Where are you going?”
“South Africa.”
* * *
Ashton didn’t know what to make of her answer. Two nights earlier they’d enjoyed a playful evening of food and wine. Last night they’d made love. She’d never once made mention of an upcoming trip much less one to Africa. Maybe he wasn’t the only one keeping secrets.
The elevator doors opened, and Harper stepped forward with purpose and energy. Ashton followed. Since they were both heading to the airport, he’d have a good twenty minutes to get to the core of what was going on.
He eyed her suitcase. It was the size he’d expect a woman to take for a long weekend. “How long are you planning to be gone?”
“I don’t know. A week. Maybe two. It depends.” She trailed off.
Not normally one to pick up on the nuances of other people’s emotional states, Ashton found that when it came to Harper, he’d become hyperaware of her moods. Something was up and he wasn’t going to let her go until he knew what it was.
“I didn’t realize Fontaine had expanded into Africa.”
“It hasn’t.”
“Then you’re scouting locations?”
“No.”
Her short answers were creating more confusion than understanding. Harper was many things. Goal oriented, resourceful, outspoken. Never evasive.
Ashton used his height and weight advantage to herd her away from the line of taxis. She was not escaping from him until he was satisfied he knew the whole story. “I have a car waiting.”
“I can take a cab.”
“You can also accept a ride.”
“Thank you.” But there was very little gratitude in her tone. She wanted to go her own way. It made him all that much more determined to not let her.
After giving instructions to the driver where to drop Harper off, he waited until their luggage was stowed in the trunk and the town car was navigating East Flamingo Road before he continued his interrogation. “Is this trip business or pleasure?”
“Why are you so curious?”
“Because I would think with Batouri set to open in less than two weeks you might have mentioned an impending trip out of the country.”
“It came up rather fast.”
“How fast?”
“This afternoon.”
The traffic was flowing more smoothly than usual down Paradise Road. The short ride to the airport, which usually took twenty minutes, was going to take closer to ten. Ashton was running out of time to get the answers he wanted.
“What the hell is going on with you, Harper? This isn’t like you at all.”
Her brown eyes were fierce as she met his gaze. “I’m not sure that’s true.”
“You’ve lost me.”
“Since I was eleven I’ve had a plan for how my life was going to go. I set goals and achieved them, all with one target in mind.”
“Running Fontaine Hotels and Resorts.”
