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A comfortable silence fell between them as Erik continued to massage first one foot, then the next. He took his time, as if genuinely concerned about her pain levels, and when he finished, he picked up the water basin and carefully walked it to the downstairs bathroom so he could dump the water.
“I can’t move,” Wendy declared dramatically as she stayed rooted to the couch. “I’m too relaxed.”
“Then don’t,” Erik replied, humor lacing his voice. “I’ll lock the door behind me.”
“Do you think this is all going to work?” Wendy asked, turning her neck so she could look at him. Erik’s smile faded a little, and he leaned against the wall.
“We can only hope so,” he replied honestly. “We’ll keep surveilling your place, see if anyone interesting shows up. In the meantime, you’ll keep doing your thing with Anita and pull what information we can from there.”
Wendy nodded, appreciating that that was probably the most honest answer she could get.
“Thanks for the foot massage,” she said, grinning at him. “It was greatly appreciated.”
Erik’s smile returned and he nodded.
“Any time,” he promised her, pulling away from the wall. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“I’ll text you as soon as I’m home from the party,” she promised.
ChapterSeven
“Wendy!” Anita called, her gold bangle-laden arm shooting up in the air to motion Wendy to join her through the crowd of finely dressed people. “Oh, I’m so glad you made it!”
Throughout her career as a nurse, Wendy had spent most of her time at the hospital, but that didn’t mean she didn’t get to enjoy Leavenworth every now and then. She’d been inside all of the Holstead-owned hotels and had enjoyed their lavish design, but even they didn’t prepare her for the swank-draped home that Anita and Frank lived in just outside town. In fact, when she pulled up to it, the wordmansionflashed brightly in her mind.
Rustic and nouveau-riche, the home sprawled at least 7,000 square feet and had at least three stories. She had been greeted in the driveway by a valet, who happily took her car to park while she walked through the massive, solid red oak front door and into the Holstead’s home. She’d barely had a chance to get her bearings among the almost garish finery when Anita had spotted her.
“Anita, hi!” Wendy greeted as Anita approached. “What a lovely home!”
Anita laughed in a way that sounded condescending and shook her head.
“Don’t let the opulence fool you,” Anita teased, giving her an air kiss beside each cheek. “It’s not as grand as it looks. But we’ll talk about the house later. Come on! I want to introduce you to my friend Jansen. He’s the investment banker I told you about while we were at the spa today.”
As planned, Wendy had met Anita for their hair and nails appointment, and she had let Anita know about the extra five mil she had coming her way. As Wendy predicted, Anita was greedy for details on where it came from. She had taken Erik’s advice and gave her a vague explanation, which Anita gobbled up and immediately began pushing once more for her to meet her banker.
“Jansen Marks, this is the friend I was telling you about,” Anita stated, introducing the two. “Wendy, Jensen. Jensen, Wendy.”
“Ah, yes,” Jensen greeted, shaking Wendy’s hand. “Anita’s told me a lot about you. Terrible news about your father, but the best way to commemorate a man’s honor is to do something worthwhile with his inheritance.”
This struck Wendy kind of sideways, but she swallowed her feelings and smiled as she accepted Jensen’s hand.
“How poignant,” she replied. “And I am to assume that you are the person to tell me what the something worthwhile is?”
“Yes, that’s right.” Jensen chuckled.
“Wendy,” a man called, interrupting the conversation. Immediately Wendy saw Anita’s smiling face turn into a scowl.
“Frank, darling, you’re interrupting,” Anita stated, her tone sweet but cold. “Can’t you say hello later?”
Frank Holstead looked at his wife patiently and gave her a small smile. “Oh, I’ll just be a minute,” he promised, guiding Wendy away from the group. “Besides, our guest doesn’t have a drink yet, and I cannot let her believe that I’m a terrible host.”
He turned to Wendy with a kind smile, the lines on his face relaying how tired he felt. “Walk with me, would you?” he asked politely.
“Of course,” Wendy agreed, taking his arm. As they began to walk toward the bar, Wendy added, “Thank you for inviting me to your party. I’ve never been to anything like this before. It’s like stepping into a whole other world.”
Frank’s smile seemed suddenly sad, and he looked down at her.
“Don’t let it fool you. It’s not as polished and tidy as Anita makes it look,” he warned.
