flirted briefly with turning down the invitation, but discarded the idea. They didn’t have much time before leaving for Paris and there was still much to go over. Besides, her adrenaline was still so sky-high she knew she was unlikely to fall asleep anytime soon. “Where would you like to go?”
“The Four Winds is on the way to your home. It’s dark, it’s private and it’s a classic with those big wide windows overlooking Central Park. Let’s head there.” After a quick set of instructions to their driver, Campbell dragged the tie from his throat, wrapping it up and dropping it into his suit pocket. A small patch of skin was visible at the open neck of his shirt and Abby felt her temperature spike another few degrees.
Their destination decided, Abby tried to mentally regroup. She had to get a grip on these ridiculous feelings. She and Campbell were going to be spending a lot of time together in close proximity and ogling her newly acquired business associate wasn’t going to help her keep her mind on the game. Already tonight, she’d been more than surprised when he’d pointed out the steady gaze of the tuxedo-clad stranger.
She hadn’t even noticed the man.
“What was your take on this evening?” She saw the bright lights of the Time Warner Center as their driver took the turn at Columbus Circle and she knew they weren’t far from their destination.
“Aside from our criminal du jour, it was a relatively harmless evening. Lots of well-dressed people having stuffy, boring conversations.”
“That’s what you thought about tonight?”
“Sure. Didn’t you?”
A laugh welled up at his frank assessment. “Well, yeah, but aren’t we supposed to pretend we had a good time, drinking in the atmosphere and reveling in the talk of important matters?”
“What for? It was a bunch of privileged people standing around talking about privileged things.”
She couldn’t hold back her curiosity at the entirely unexpected shift in the conversation. “Unless I’m mistaken, that townhome we picked you up at smacks of privilege and wealth.”
He shrugged, the lines of his shoulders stiff and uncomfortable as his gaze drifted toward the window. “It just seems like there’s more to life.”
“Is that why you do this?”
He turned back from the window. “Do what? The business?” When she nodded, he added, “Sure, to a point. It keeps me active and productive and it seems to be working if the profits we’re turning are any indication.”
“Did you ever expect your services would be in such high demand?”
A quick light sparked in Campbell’s eyes and Abby didn’t miss the clear notes of excitement there. “Nothing prepared us for the reaction we’ve had. We knew our parents’ friends had the need for quiet inquiries into certain matters or help managing an enemy bent on destroying them, but we were unprepared for the response we’ve received.”
“So you help the very lifestyle you disdain?”
“It’s not disdain—”
Intrigued, Abby sat quietly, waiting for him to say more. She sensed something underneath his words she couldn’t quite identify and for some reason it was suddenly very important to her to understand what drove him.
His words were quiet when he finally spoke again. “I want more out of my life than watching my stock portfolio all day.”
“Your parents raised you and your siblings with a work ethic. There’s nothing wrong with that. There’s also nothing wrong with enjoying the fruits of your labor, however you choose.”
“This from a woman regularly known to work ninety-hour weeks. Tell me, Abby—” he leaned toward her across the expanse of the limo, his voice husky “—how often are you enjoying the fruits of your labors?”
She could hardly argue with the assessment, even if it suddenly struck her as a rather cold view of her life. “I enjoy a full life.”
“Outside the boardroom?”
She laughed, the sound surprising her with its hollow echo. “I lead a privileged life. I’m hardly in a position to complain.”
Their driver pulled to a stop and Abby sensed their conversation was at an end. “Speaking of privilege, what you do does have a few perks.”
“Perks?”
“You weren’t exactly fending off the advances of a world-renowned diva, now were you?”
She purposely looked away from Campbell’s widened eyes as the driver held her door open. Abby took the man’s proffered hand and stepped from the car, satisfied that—for the moment—she’d had the last word.
* * *
Campbell walked behind Abby through the ornate entryway to one of his favorite bars, his gaze returning again and again to the long cascade of her hair falling rich and lush over her back. The woman was a sight and he couldn’t quite shake off the small kernel of enjoyment that Carlotta had gotten to her.
He also thanked his lucky stars the diva hadn’t ruined his cover.
Carlotta had a rather sizeable chip on her shoulder at her ill-fated seduction attempts and this evening could have gone sideways faster than a computer virus in a mainframe if she hadn’t recognized the financial value in sucking up to Abby.
He could only offer praise to the few brain cells he possessed that he’d never taken the diva up on her more than generous offer—one given while stark-naked—the previous fall. She was an assignment—the victim of a high-end ring of identity thieves—and he didn’t mix business with pleasure.
So why was he struggling to keep that in the forefront of his thoughts as he spent time with Abby?
And what the hell was he thinking coming on to her in the limo? He had no idea how she chose to live her life and insinuating otherwise was seriously out of line. Despite the knowledge he needed to stop this ridiculous curiosity about his newest client, he couldn’t deny how the woman intrigued him.
Nor could he deny the overwhelming urge to wipe away the sadness he saw in the depths of her lush brown gaze.
He was neither a fanciful man, nor a poetic one, so the fact that thought even crossed his mind was proof positive he was far more gone than he’d realized.
The hostess led them through the bar to a prime seat in front of the oversize windows. The south entrance of the park sat open before them and he could see several horses with their riders waiting to ply their trade.
With deliberate movements, he slung an arm around Abby’s shoulders once they were settled on a small high-backed settee before the window.
“There’s no one here,” she hissed as she looked up at him.
“What’s the matter? Not enjoying my company?”
“That’s not what I meant. The event is over and we’re not on display any longer. You said the evening didn’t seem out of the ordinary.”
His
