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He had not called her directly, but had asked Mrs. Mason how she was doing. He was slightly ashamed to realize that it was his way of checking up on her. He did not trust her to keep her promise to stay indoors. March had come in with not only bitter cold, but snow and sleet as well. He did not want her heading out and having a fall.
"You look good." There was a wistful note in the woman's voice as she took her seat.
"So, do you." He fudged the truth a little as he took his seat and nodded to the eagerly awaiting maître D. "What are you having?"
"Just some of your delicious tea and cucumber sandwich, please."
"I will have the same," Wade remarked and waited until the man had departed. "You sounded anxious over the phone."
"I should not have called you. We are no longer involved-"
"We never really were," he reminded her gently. Her thick black hair was pulled back from her face, highlighting the gauntness there. And her dark brown eyes looked haunted.
"Not for lack of trying on my part." She smiled slightly and reached for her water. "You seemed happy at the opening. You are in love with her."
A smile ghosted his lips as he reached for his own water. "I am crazy about her. Love seems such an inadequate word for what I feel about her. She is my life," he added simply. He eyed her over the rim of the glass.
"I suppose you will be marrying her."
"In time." He put aside his glass and decided to wait until the meal was swerved. The Tea Room was busy at this time of day, it was a place where deals and contacts were made. A place to be seen by the appropriate people.
He nodded to several acquaintances and was annoyed that he felt a touch of guilt that he was having lunch with a woman of his past. Some nosy reporters could run with this and their photos could end up in some society rags. Then there would be hell to pay where Remi was concerned.
"Thanks," he told the man briskly as their meals were placed in front of them. "I am a little pressed for time-"
"I should get on with the matter at hand. I had no one else to turn to and I know what we shared was nothing significant where you are concerned, but I -I more than liked you Wade." She picked at her sandwich listlessly. "I had hoped it would have turned into something permanent."
"I made it clear-"
"You did," she intervened swiftly, with a tremulous smile.
"And you are prevaricating. I have a meeting-"
"I am in trouble," she blurted out.
He stared at her with a frown. "In what way?"
"You know I have been working at the law firm for the past fifteen years."
"And you made partner there." He nodded.
"We - the partners started to take on some shady characters, known criminals with deep pockets, money laundering and such-" She spread a hand. "I really should not be discussing this with you."
She gulped water. "I foolishly got involved with one of them. I am not going to say his name, for obvious reasons. I thought we had something - I knew of his reputation of course, and accepted gifts, expensive gifts from him because I foolishly thought we were a couple."
"And you are not?"
She shook her head and bit her lip. "He was just using me. Now I am in too deep. I stand to lose my license, my job, everything because I have been inadvertently leaking him privileged information. And I am in fear for my life."
"You should go to the police."
She laughed shakily. "You know better than that. He has threatened my family, my sister is married with children and he knows where they live." She clasped her hands on the table top, expression haunted. "I don't know what to do, Wade. I am in over my head."
"I don't understand what you expect me to do."
"You have resources. I know I am overstepping, but I am fighting for my life. I have to keep passing him information, or he is going to make good on his threat. He has people in the police force, he told me so himself.
And I believe him. He is a very powerful man and I should never have gotten involved with him. But he started to show me attention and I was foolish enough to fall for his charms."
