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“Three people were here this afternoon asking questions,” an Aussie voice said in his ear without even an introduction. A voice he had no trouble recognizing. “A local woman—a PI—she showed me some ID. A humongous black guy. And...” The voice paused for effect. “Dirk DeWinter. He was wearing sunglasses, but it was him. You’re going to need to do something about that.”
* * *
Dirk opted for room service, especially since the others were probably waiting for them to return before having dinner. He pulled his phone out to call the hotel and place an order, then stopped and asked Mei-li and Rafe, “Any preferences?”
“Whatever,” Rafe said. “I’m not picky. Hungry, but not picky.”
“Same for me,” Mei-li told him. While Dirk placed his order, she scribbled something on the back of a business card, then leaned forward and spoke to the driver in Cantonese. She passed the business card and a folded banknote to him over his left shoulder, which he accepted. After he looked at the denomination, the driver nodded and said, “Hai.”
Mei-li leaned back against the seat. “Slight change of plans. I’m going to have the driver drop me off at my apartment. Then he’ll take you and Rafe to the hotel.”
Dirk hadn’t missed the money and the business card she’d handed to the cabdriver, and a tiny frown formed. He didn’t think she was telling him everything, but he wasn’t going to push her for answers. For some reason she didn’t want him to know. Or she didn’t want Rafe to know. Either way, he was going to let it pass...for now.
But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to question her at all. “Did you need to pick up something from your apartment?” he asked. “We could wait for you.”
She shook her head. “I want a shower and a change of clothes, then I’ll head for your hotel.” She hesitated, then asked diffidently, “Do you have enough cash for the cab?” She was already reaching into her purse. “If not I—”
He stopped her, capturing her hand in his. He didn’t know why her question made him smile, but it did. Mei-li’s protectiveness poignantly reminded him of Bree, but for the first time, the memory of Bree didn’t make him unutterably sad.
“I’m good,” he told her, but he didn’t let her hand go. Instead he intertwined her fingers with his. “That reminds me,” he said. “I want you to keep track of everything you’ve spent so far—the doorman, the cabbie, the clerk at the Business Aviation Centre—and everything you spend in the future. I don’t need an itemized accounting, but I want the total included on your bill. Speaking of which,” he added, “we never discussed your fee.”
She made as if to withdraw her hand, but he refused to let go. He waited until her eyes met his to say softly, “This is what you do for a living, Mei-li. You’ve been a lifeline for me, and I can never repay you for that. But I’m paying you for your time—and whatever you charge won’t even begin to cover what you’re worth.”
A tiny smile crept into her eyes. “Never tell someone that before they present you with the bill. They might take advantage of you.”
“You won’t.” He was as sure of that as he was of anything.
Her smile faded, and something else replaced it. Tenderness? A kind of yearning? He wasn’t sure, but suddenly neither of them could look away. “No,” she said. “I won’t take advantage of you, Dirk. I would never do that.” And he knew she wasn’t just talking about money.
Chapter 10
“He’s a client,” Mei-li muttered to herself as she stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around her long, dark hair, which she’d just washed. Then she wrapped another towel around her body. “Don’t lose sight of that.” A client she’d known all of one day, no less.
But it didn’t feel that way. It felt as if she’d known him for years, the way she’d known Sean. It hadn’t been love at first sight with Sean—far from it. Mei-li laughed softly to herself as she toweled her hair dry, remembering how she’d taken an instant dislike to Sean the first time she’d met him, the same way she’d felt about D—
She clamped down on that thought before she could finish it. She didn’t want to draw parallels between Dirk and Sean, not in any way. Because what she was feeling for Dirk went so much deeper than her love for Sean all those years ago. What she was feeling for Dirk was what her love for Sean could have grown into...if Sean hadn’t been murdered.
