the profound sense of disappointment she suddenly felt. Needing to put some distance between herself and Kane, she turned away and walked back to her father’s desk.
“I’m just going to say this one more time,” she said quietly, but with resolution. “I have no intention of hiding out while some jerk is on the loose. Those children need me, and even more I need them. We’re practicing for a play right now, and I can’t afford to be away. I’ll stay at my father’s house for as long as it’s necessary, but that’s as far as I compromise. I’ll be going to the center every day except Tuesday, whether you like it or not.”
He didn’t like it, but short of tying the woman up—and he admitted to himself the idea held interesting possibilities—there wasn’t a hell of a lot he could do about it. It amazed him how quickly she’d shifted gears from fear to anger, and even though he decided he liked the way her green eyes lighted with determination, her insistence at keeping her regular schedule was going to make his life difficult. He sighed inwardly. It hardly would be the first time a woman had made his life difficult.
“Well, then, Miss Westcott—” he moved toward her, almost admiring the stubborn tilt of her chin as she held his gaze “—I guess we’ll just have to manage, won’t we?”
He felt her tense when he reached around her and picked up the photographs from the desk. He shuffled slowly through them, pausing at the picture of her in her underwear. Her bra was black and lacy, her matching panties a thin slip of fabric that one quick tug would easily remove. “But in the meantime, you might at least consider closing the blinds.”
Allison understood that Kane was trying to intimidate her. And it was working, dammit. Heat rushed up her neck as she watched him stare at her picture. She pulled the photo from his fingers. “I’ll do that.”
The door opened and Oliver walked back into the office. A frown knotted his forehead. “I’m afraid I’ve got to leave now, Allison. I have a dinner meeting in Los Angeles tonight with one of our main buyers and I have a plane to catch.” He picked up his briefcase under his desk, then gave Allison a kiss on the cheek.
She held onto his arm. “How can you leave right now? What if this guy is waiting for you?”
“I can’t stop my life anymore than you can, sweetheart.” Oliver took Allison’s chin in his hand and met her concerned gaze. “I’ve got two men coming with me. I’ll be home in a few days and we’ll talk then. In the meantime, you’ll be in good hands with Kane here.”
Good hands with Kane? “But, Dad—”
“Sorry, hon’.” He was already on his way out of the office. “Oh, and Allie—” he turned back around “—will you prepare the guest room for Kane? He’ll be staying at the house with us.”
Two
It was incredible how much one’s life could change in a matter of a few minutes.
Allison stared at Kane’s broad back, amazed at how smoothly he’d managed to maneuver her into the back corner of the crowded elevator and place himself between her and the rest of the people. The two men outside her father’s office had also squeezed into the elevator, and they stood by the doors like guards at a palace gate.
She knew she should feel comforted by all the brawn surrounding her, but what she felt was smothered. She’d been on her own since she was eighteen—the year her mother had died—and she was used to coming and going as she liked, without an escort and certainly without asking permission. Having all these watchdogs around was going to take some getting used to. And in the case of Thomas Kane, she thought irritably, the adjustment was going to be a big one.
She stared at the wide stretch of shoulders blocking her view and cursed the warmth curling downward from her stomach. It was bad enough, this feeling of being on a leash, but the edge that Kane put her on was what disturbed her most of all. What was it about him, anyway? She’d certainly never been attracted to this type of man before. But then, she’d never met a man like Kane before. And the few men she had dated had been…what? Ordinary, was the word that came to mind. She frowned at the thought. What was wrong with ordinary? Absolutely nothing. They’d been nice, interesting men.
And they’d left her feeling tepid as tap water.
What made Kane so different? She casually lifted her chin and slid a glance at him, determined to find fault. He was too tall, she decided. Good Lord, he towered over her. She hated having to crane her neck to meet someone’s eye. And he wasn’t exactly handsome, at least, not in the classical sense, though there were certainly women who were attracted to his kind of rugged masculinity. The men she’d always been drawn to had been good-looking, the type of face you’d see in a men’s fashion magazine. She stared at Kane’s profile, thinking he looked more like an advertisement for a military-commando movie. It was easy to picture this man slashing his way through a steamy jungle, sweat dripping from his half-naked body….
Stop that. She jerked away her gaze and stared at the empty space over the head of the man standing beside Kane. What in the world was she doing, dreaming up silly fantasies about a man she’d met only minutes before? Didn’t she have more important and certainly more serious things to think about? Things like some crazy following her, watching her, taking pictures…
The elevator stopped at the next floor, letting one person off and two more on. The bustling forced Kane’s body flush with hers. Embarrassment burned up her neck and over her cheeks as her breasts pressed into the solid muscle of his back. Her breath caught in her throat, her heart beat low and hard. Instinct had her raising her hands to force some distance between them, but logic had her drop them away again. Something very basic told her that to touch this man was a dangerous thing to do. And most annoying of all, she observed, was that Kane appeared completely oblivious to the intimate contact of their bodies. He seemed much more interested in the control panel over the elevator doors.
By the time the elevator finally reached the lobby, Allison wasn’t sure her legs were sturdy enough to carry her out. She was almost thankful when Kane turned to her and took her by the arm.
“I’ll need your keys.”
“My keys?”
“Keys,” he repeated, leading her across the lobby. “You know, what you use to open doors and start cars.”
Frowning, she dug through her purse and pulled them out. “What do you—”
“Thanks.” He took them from her as they walked outside. It had stopped raining and slivers of blue sky rimmed the once ominous clouds. When they reached her minivan, Kane opened the passenger door and held it for her. Fuming, she got into the car, noticing the almost imperceptible nod that Kane gave the two security men who were getting into a white sedan three parking spaces away.
“I am capable of driving my own car,” she stated when he slid into the seat beside her and started the engine.
“Under normal circumstances, I’m sure that’s true.” He checked the side and rearview mirrors, then eased the van into traffic. “But what would you do if someone pulled up beside you, pointed a gun at you and told you to pull over?”
The idea of anyone pointing a gun at her made her stomach tighten. “I—I don’t know. How can anyone know what they’d do in a crisis?”
“You damn well better know.” He made a sudden U-turn in the middle of the street and headed west toward her
