AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Everything all right?” he asked her, setting the hand brake and shutting off the engine.
“Just peachy,” she replied with what sounded like false cheerfulness. “You don’t have to get out,” she told him. “I can just get out here.”
“No, I’ll walk you in,” Bowie said firmly. Not giving her a chance to protest, he told her, “I’ll carry your suitcase for you.”
Her shoulders grew rigid. “I already told you, Robertson,” she said, opening the passenger door, “I’m perfectly capable of carrying my own suitcase.”
Bowie began to answer, then closed his mouth. Everything was a fight with her ever since he’d said something to make her angry last night. He was tired of fighting.
“Fine,” he declared. “Have it your way.”
Plucking the suitcase from the back seat, she pulled it out. “I usually do,” she replied, sounding deliberately smug.
He should have his head examined, getting mixed up with this bullheaded, stubborn she-devil, Bowie upbraided himself angrily.
Still, rather than pull away, he continued to sit where he was, watching Marlowe as she walked up to the building entrance and then went inside.
* * *
Marlowe was thinking similar, equally critical thoughts about Bowie as she rode up to her office and swept in. Parking her suitcase off to the side, she sank down behind her desk and let loose with a long, deep sigh of relief.
This was more like it.
She was back in her home territory. She knew what was expected of her here, what she needed to accomplish. Being alone in that cabin with Bowie had jumbled up her brain for a little while, made her entertain thoughts she had absolutely no right to entertain.
She—Marlowe froze as she saw the large package that was placed in the middle of her sofa. She didn’t remember ordering anything.
Maybe someone had sent her a gift, she decided. Rising from her desk, she crossed over to the sofa. Sitting down beside the package, she picked it up. She turned the box around, examining all six sides of it. There was no return address.
An oversight?
That was odd, she thought. But maybe whoever had sent it didn’t want to call attention to him or herself. There was undoubtedly a card inside, probably meant for her eyes only.
Going to her desk to get a letter opener, she used the sharp object to rip through the wrapping paper around the package so she could get to the box underneath. When she did, she still had no clue who had sent it.
Ordinarily, she would have thought the package had been sent by a secret admirer. But the strange events of the last three days, especially her one interaction with the mysterious shooter who had fired at both her and Bowie, well, that had changed the way she viewed things like a package.
She was being silly, Marlowe told herself. This was probably some harmless gift, or maybe even some promotional gimmick meant to get the attent
ion of the president of Colton Oil.
Having calmed herself down to an extent, Marlowe gingerly opened the cardboard box.
She found a profusion of tissue paper covering a sweet-faced stuffed teddy bear that could easily be placed in any baby’s nursery.
Pulling the stuffed bear out, she also managed to pull out a card.
Finally, she thought, wrapping one arm around the bear to hold it in place. Mystery solved, she told herself, opening the envelope and pulling out the card that was inside.
Congratulations on your baby. Wish it was mine.
The scream that escaped her lips came totally unbidden. As was her reaction as she threw the stuffed bear to the floor.
Her assistant came running in immediately, looking as if she didn’t know what to expect when she opened the door. “Is something wrong, Ms. Colton?” Karen asked breathlessly.
Marlowe struggled to get herself under control. The last thing she wanted was to be seen as a hysterical woman, even though everything inside of her was shaking. Who could have sent this?
“Did you see who left this, Karen?” she asked her assistant.
