Dangerous (The Complete Erotic Romance Novel) (44 page)

He tipped the boy who brought his car from the parking garage even as he admitted that Miss Jones had surprised him again.

Now she was undoubtedly burning with desire, wet and hungry, as well as in need of a spanking. He was more than ready to tie her down tight and show her who was her master, but he had other responsibilities this morning.

And a feeling he was being watched. He watched another car pull out of the driveway of the hotel behind him, merging into traffic at a discreet distance. He took three turns and so did the other car, remaining the same distance behind him. It was nondescript, a common make and model a few years old, a dark color, its windows tinted so the driver couldn’t be easily seen. He was sure he wasn’t supposed to have noticed it.

But he had and he knew what it meant.

Miss Jones would have to be serviced in another way.

By another person.

Reid knew the perfect candidate for the job. He took advantage of a red light to make a call on his cell phone.

* * *

Chapter Seventeen

It was eleven by the time Kendra acknowledged that her plan showed a serious weakness: Reid hadn’t shown up and he hadn’t called.

Marianne had been on the phone all morning, her voice hushed. She hung up the phone hard, practically tossing the receiver back into the cradle. She sighed then stood up, her expression grim. “Well, it looks like this is it,” she announced to no one in particular.

“What do you mean?” Kendra asked.

“Half payroll today,” Marianne replied. “The ladies get paid weekly, remember?”

Kendra nodded.

“Plus the phone bill and the internet service, and the electricity bill.” Marianne shook her head. “Not a nickel to be found and our good friends at the bank refuse to extend our line of credit again.” She fixed Kendra with a hard look. “Even with our superstar new owner. It did us zero favors here that he’s not in the office today, never mind that he completely missed a call with the bank yesterday afternoon.”

That didn’t sound like Reid. Had he abandoned her and Esperanza? Kendra refused to panic. “Did you call him?”

“Yes, but the call got forwarded to some assistant in New York.” Marianne sighed and frowned. “She said she’d pass the message along, but that was first thing. The man is always connected; I’ve seen that much already. Either she lied...”

“Or he’s ducking us,” Ginger concluded. “I vote for option B. I don’t think anyone could work for him and ever screw up. Have you seen any more about that news story? You know that woman whose body they found?”

“Don’t change the subject,” Marianne snapped. “I’d be interested in seeing more of our new boss.”

Ginger grinned. “Wouldn’t we all? He must work out a lot to be in such great shape. What do you think, Kendra? Does he win your vote as best choice to see naked?”

Kendra felt her face heat and knew she was blushing furiously.

Ginger laughed. “I knew it! You work so hard for him because he’s your fantasy man. Don’t kid yourself, Kendra, he’s way out of your league.” She turned to Marianne as Kendra tried to hide her dismay. “Maybe you should try the gym at his hotel.”

“Very funny,” Marianne replied, then eyed Kendra. “Do you know where to find him? You’re his assistant here, after all.”

Kendra shook her head. “He’s not answering his phone.”

“Or maybe he’s just not answering
you
,” Ginger retorted. “Maybe he’s got better things to do than worry about poor old doomed Esperanza Enterprises and Kendra hanging on his every word.”

That clearly wasn’t what Marianne wanted to hear. She came to Kendra’s desk. “What happened with that event you held earlier this week?” she asked. “Any new business from that?”

“Not yet, but it’s early. There’s been lots of positive feedback.”

“But we can’t take positive feedback to the bank. If only I had something to negotiate with. One deal?”

Kendra shook her head. She remembered Reid saying that Rex had committed, but there was no sign of a contract. Had that been true? Or just part of their game? “Not yet. Not signed.”

Marianne sighed and eyed the clock. “I’m going to have to tell the ladies that they’re not getting paid today.”

“Good luck with that,” Ginger said with some sympathy.

“Can you wait a little longer?” Kendra asked.

“What’s the point of delaying the inevitable? They won’t be that surprised, given how things have been around here.” Marianne eyed Kendra. “What if they decide to leave? Can we stop them?”

“Is it right to even try?” Ginger asked. “I doubt the checking account is going to magically fill itself.”

“Mr. Stirling will make it right,” Kendra said firmly. “I know he will.”

“You
hope
he will,” Marianne corrected. “It’s not quite the same thing. He’s not Leon, Kendra. Esperanza was an acquisition. It’s not his lifeblood.”

“Even Leon got over that,” Ginger muttered.

“He’s sick!” Marianne protested.

Kendra tried Reid’s number again, but he didn’t pick up.

But in the meantime, choices had to be made. She looked at his empty office, then made her choice. He was following her business plan, wasn’t he? Well, she’d just have to take the initiative in his place. Really, if he had an issue with that, he should have answered one of her phone calls. He should have given instructions. He couldn’t take issue—and if he did, Kendra would accept the consequences of her choice.

She stood up and faced Marianne, letting her voice be authoritative. “Tell the ladies now,” she said to Marianne. “Apologize, and then give them the afternoon off. When Mr. Stirling comes back, we’ll pay them for the extra half day.”

Marianne’s eyes widened. “You’re joking.”

“No, I’m not.”

“But the whole point is that we have no cash!”

“If they want to walk, we should let them,” Ginger said. “I’m seriously thinking about it.”

“But we can’t sacrifice the future,” Kendra argued. “If even one of these potential deals comes to fruition, we’ll need the skills of the ladies to deliver on the deals. We can’t afford to have them quit or leave or be disgruntled. A half day’s pay is a small investment in the future, to build goodwill.”

“Only if they ever get paid,” Ginger noted. Kendra saw that the other woman had gone online and was searching the local news website, probably for an update on that woman.

Kendra glared at her, wishing she would just do her job.

“I believe they will,” she said firmly.

“Well, I’ll tell them to call you if they don’t,” Marianne said.

“Deal,” Kendra said, holding her gaze.

Marianne nodded, then headed into the factory.

“Hey, there’s a press conference with the police at three,” Ginger said. “I’ll bet they’ve made some progress in the case. Maybe they’ve arrested the loser responsible.” She scrolled through the page, seeking more details.

“Are you going to do any work today?” Kendra asked, hearing the irritation in her own voice. Esperanza could only survive if they all tried, and Ginger wasn’t.

“It’s not like I can pay any bills,” the other woman replied without looking away from her computer screen. “And I need a break every once in a while from the receivables calls.” She gave Kendra a hard look. “You’re only his assistant. You’re not my boss, so don’t go acting like you are.”

Kendra was spared the need to make a reply, because the front door of the office swept open. Hardly anyone ever came to the front of Esperanza, so there was no receptionist. The door also faced into the wind. Both Ginger and Kendra looked up at the chilly draft that blew through the door to swirl around their ankles.

Then they stared at the woman who had come in and stood expectantly inside the door. She had to be the most unlikely individual to have ever set foot in Esperanza’s office. She was in her mid-thirties, with black hair and black eyeliner, dressed in biker leathers, a short skirt and black fishnet stockings. Her platform boots were embellished with studs and D-rings. In contrast to her choice of clothing, she was as pretty as a china doll. She smiled at their obvious confusion.

Kendra wondered if the woman was lost.

Then she caught a whiff of French tobacco and a distinctive perfume. By the time the woman spoke, her southern drawl as sweet and heavy as a Georgia peach, Kendra knew exactly who she was.

Alicia, the corset and collar maker.

Why was she looking for Reid?

And why was she smiling with such satisfaction? Alicia looked like the proverbial cat that swallowed the canary.

That didn’t give Kendra a good feeling at all.

* * *

Reid parked his car and checked his watch.

He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel for a few moments, then scrolled through the missed calls on his cell phone. There were at least a dozen missed calls he could identify as being from Miss Jones, the ones from the night before coming from her personal cell phone, the ones from this morning from the office.

As much as he yearned to hear her voice, he didn’t trust his resolve to hold once he heard her voice.

Still, there was one call he had to make.

He’d already spoken to the private investigator and set that man on the trail. He’d already made the arrangements with Alicia.

Now he just had to push Miss Jones into compliance. Reid stared at the phone for another moment, then punched in the number of her extension at Esperanza.

Giving her away should help him to do what he had to do later today.

Especially if she enjoyed it.

It was his responsibility as her master to ensure her pleasure.

Even if it nearly killed him.

* * *

“I’m looking for Reid Stirling,” Alicia said, her gaze locking on Kendra. She continued to smile as if enjoying a private joke as she approached Kendra’s desk. “And you must be his personal assistant.”

Was it Kendra’s imagination that Alicia gave the word personal a slight emphasis? Her smile certainly widened. Kendra felt her skin heat in recollection of the time she’d spent bound at the shop, being measured—then eaten and spanked. She was well aware that Ginger was watching the exchange closely and tried to play it cool.

“Why would you guess that?” Ginger asked.

“Reid and his blondes,” Alicia said, shaking her head. “It seems he just can’t resist a natural blonde. There’s always one in his proximity.” Her gaze flicked over Kendra from head to toe, so bright that Kendra felt naked. “Usually serving his every need,” she added softly. “But who says it’s wrong to mix business with pleasure?”

“Probably not Mr. Stirling,” Ginger said and returned to her internet article.

Alicia chuckled. “But then, who can blame him, given the past?”

“What past?” Ginger demanded, right on cue.

“His wife was blonde. Beautiful.”

“Was?” Ginger asked.

Alicia nodded. “I understood they split up.”

Ginger glanced at Kendra but Kendra kept her expression blank. What did Alicia want?

She leaned on Kendra’s desk, and Kendra saw the end of a tattoo at the open neck of her jacket. “I’m guessing you’ll know right where he is.”

Kendra smiled politely. “Is he expecting you?”

“Of course.”

She reached for her phone. “Perhaps you could give me your name,” she said, stalling for time.

“Alicia McTavish,” she said, snapping a business card down on Kendra’s desk. It looked surprisingly average. “Corset maker and fetish couturier.”

Kendra nodded as if she didn’t understand what that meant, and took a moment to study the card. There was an address on it, presumably where she’d been taken, and a website URL. Should she send Alicia away? Would the woman tell everyone what Kendra had done? Would she even go away?

Kendra’s phone rang in that moment and she excused herself, glad to have the distraction.

“I apologize for not updating you sooner,” Reid said crisply as soon as she answered. “I made a wire transfer to cover today’s payroll and the bank misdirected it. I’ve been on the phone all morning trying to straighten it out.”

Kendra exhaled with relief. “I knew you wouldn’t forget, sir.”

He continued to speak briskly. “Please tell Marianne that the funds will be in the account momentarily and that she should distribute the payroll checks.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I’m sending in a contract by courier with a wet signature from Rex for the new Plume merchandise deal. You’ll need to copy that for the bank. Have Marianne send it over. They’ll be sending us samples and specs, which I expect will arrive by courier today or Monday. We have to get the first delivery out the door by next Friday, but I assume you can manage that, Miss Jones.”

“Yes, sir, provided I can source the materials.”

“I’m emailing you a supplier list, which came from Rex. He wants to ensure that everything is consistent despite the change in supplier.” He carried on, giving her more instructions for the day, and Kendra scribbled notes as quickly as she could. She couldn’t help smiling that they had a new contract.