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But if she still didn’t talk, he’d have to scare her—badly.
“Steph, one way or another, you’ll tell me everything before the end of the night, or we’ll both find ourselves six feet under.”
Clearheaded and determined, he marched back to the house and went directly to the security room.
“Hi, boss,” Benny exclaimed, lifting his eyes as Marco entered. “She did more research on the Zeppelins than I first thought, but all she found were newspaper articles full of allegations, and that photograph is the only one.”
“Which is nothing except a fucking handshake. It’s hard to believe she knows anything except what she’s seen and read in those articles, but I found a piece of paper with their names and license plate numbers in her wallet.”
“Shit. She’s been following them too?”
“Sure looks like it, and with those two psychos I can’t take any chances. Go to her apartment and stake it out. I want to make sure it’s not being watched before I get there.”
“Do you want Joe to go with me, or stay here and drive you into town?”
“Four eyes are better than two, and I don’t like you being without each other. You need to stick together right now.”
“No shit,” Benny muttered, turning his eyes back to his computer. “I sure wish this was over.”
“You and me both, but it will be soon. Tell Joe to whip up a light lunch, then take off. I’ll be heading into the city late afternoon. By the time I get there it should be getting dark. I’ll text you as I’m entering midtown, but check in with me at the top of every hour. If I don’t get back to you, don’t worry. I might be busy.”
“Okay, boss,” Benny grunted with a nod, then lowering his voice, he added, “I can’t believe this shit has happened. What the hell was she thinking? Digging into you is one thing, but trying to get crap on the Zeppelins? Does she have some kind of death wish?”
“It is what it is, but trust me, I’ll find out before we leave here today.”
* * *
Though Steph had tried to spend the afternoon deleting old files and organizing new ones, she found it impossible to concentrate. After a frustrating hour she closed her computer and walked out to the terrace.
From the front, the lodge appeared to be one level, but the back of the house was elevated, and the terrace was a significant height above the ground. Moving from one side to the other, she peered around the railing. The expansive master bedroom jutted out from the rest of the house and shared no common walls. It offered complete privacy. She couldn’t help but wonder how many other women he’d brought there.
The thought bothered her.
Taking a deep breath and trying to calm herself down, she rested her hands against the rail, closed her eyes and listened to the sounds of the forest.
“It’s a special place.”
Startled, she spun around.
Marco stared at her, his arms crossed as he leaned against the frame of the open sliding glass door. Straightening up and thrusting his hands in his pockets, he moved slowly forward.
His dark, scrutinizing eyes seemed to look right through her.
A chill pricked her skin.
He was menacing.
But enticing.
More captivating than ever.
“Yes, it is,” she managed. “Like another world.”
“It is another world.”
His voice had been unusually soft, almost tender, and stepping directly in front of her, he slid his hand into her hair.
Her heart skipped.
