Page 51 of Moonlit Colorado

Tobin glanced between me and Dane, his gaze lingering on where we touched. The manager had questions.Well, so do I, Tobes.So do I.

At least Dane wasn’t completely perfect. That was the only way I knew for sure that he wasn’t a robot designed to be the ultimate lure for straight women. Also, there was the part where he was Ashford’s best friend. Another complication, and I didn’t know what to do with that either.

“Mr. Knightly, could you step into my office for a moment?” Tobin asked. “I finished that task you gave me.”

Right. The security footage Dane had asked him to pull. The reminder of Ms. Scarlet and the break-in at my house yesterday sobered me.

Dane held my hand tighter. “Ms. O’Neal will come with me. We’re eager to hear what you found.” Tobin dipped his head in a nod, and we followed him to a discreet door just off the reception area. Once we got inside, he went behind his desk and switched on the computer. He turned the monitor so we could see.

“That’s him,” I said. “The man in the blue mask.”

Tobin’s screen showed a still image from a security camera. It was full color, but even if it hadn’t been, I would’ve been able to pick the man out of a lineup. Short gray hair and a frame that was heavy around the middle of his tux.

Dane nodded. “Yep, that’s the guy. What do you know about him?”

Tobin clasped his hands behind his back. “This is Dirk Lancaster, sir. One of the VIP guests who arrived for the grand opening.”

“Is Lancaster still here at the resort?”

“No, he left the morning after the party. I checked him out myself.”

“Was he alone?” I asked, thinking of Ms. Scarlet again.

“He was. Lancaster’s reservation was for his name only, and I didn’t see him leave with anyone else. From the hotel’s perspective, his stay was uneventful. He stayed two nights, ordered room service breakfast for one each morning. Nothing else of note. After you asked about him, Mr. Knightly, I ran a quick google search on the man. If I may?” Dane nodded, and Tobin tapped at his keyboard. Another window came up with the search results.

“High net-worth real estate investor,” Dane read. “No wonder his name sounded familiar. I assume my brother knows Lancaster, so I’ll have to ask Kip about him. What about the other two? The redhead and the bald man who stopped Grace in the lobby later that night?”

Tobin’s expression turned sheepish. “There, I have more disappointing news. I wasn’t able to find footage of anyone meeting the descriptions you gave me.”

What? That didn’t make sense. “But they were both here in the lobby.”

“Yes, Ms. O’Neal. But it seems there was a glitch with the lobby camera.”

“A glitch?” Dane snapped. “How the hell did that happen?”

“I don’t know, sir. The staff is looking into it. We regularly delete the security footage on our server to clear up memory. It’s possible those files were replaced sooner than expected.”

“You’re telling me someone deleted them?” Dane asked.

Tobin opened his mouth, hesitating before he spoke. “I can’t imagine it was on purpose. I have no idea who would’ve done that, or why.”

None of it made sense to me either. But I also didn’t know who would have broken into my house yesterday and taken the red mask. It was bizarre.

“And the woman?” I asked. “She would’ve stood out. Bright red hair, a low-cut black dress, diamond earrings. Another camera must’ve caught her at some point when she was coming or going.”

“I completely understand your frustration. But I didn’t see her on any of the camera footage that we have. Nor do I remember her myself. She didn’t match the description of any of our other guests, and given the importance of the grand-opening party, I was paying close attention.”

“Not close enough,” Dane growled. “I want access to all of the hotel’s remaining footage from the night of the party and the morning after. And a full briefing on the resort’s security protocols.”

Tobin’s throat moved as he swallowed. “Of course. I’ll have that for you right away.”

We went out to the lobby. In a quiet corner beside a deserted sitting area, Dane put his hand on my lower back and pulled me aside. “I’m so sorry about that.”

“You didn’t know the camera recordings would be important. I certainly didn’t think my house was going to get broken into.”

“No, but this is my hotel, and that means it’s my responsibility. Even the screw-ups.”

Dane’s fingers moved around to the side of my waist. His touch felt possessive as much as it was comforting, and I probably shouldn’t have liked it so much. But I leaned into him. I wanted to put my face against his chest and let him wrap his arms around me. Only the fact that we were in public held me back.

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