Page 10 of Risk Assessment
She busied herself with pouring a cup of coffee, but she could have sworn she heard him chuckle. She kept her back to him when she asked, “Want coffee?”
“No, I’m good.”
She picked up her coffee cup and said, “We should get ready for the dinner. We don’t have to stay long, just long enough for me to see and be seen with the right crowd.”
Dylan grimaced. “Okay. No problem.”
Yeah, right, it wasno problem. She felt for him, she really did, but she needed this to go well. Her future at the PR company really hung in the balance. Her boss would kill her if she screwed up this account. And if she got fired it would be harder to make the switch from PR writer to investigative journalist, her ultimate goal. No one likes to hire someone who was previously fired for sucking at their job.
“Good.” She nodded and left the kitchen. Then poked her head back around the corner. “Wait, Dylan who was that guy you were speaking with on the path here?”
“His name is Gabriel Risk.”
“Gabriel Risk. Why do I know that name?”
“Don’t know. He’s in the security business.”
Raleigh cocked and eyebrow. “How do you know him?”
“My old partner, Paul, knows him. I met him last year at Paul’s retirement party. We catch up now and again. I think Paul asked him to keep an eye on me before he moved to Florida last year.”
“Oh, I see. Okay.” She gave Dylan a quick smile and then went back to the foyer. Now she just had to survive this weekend with diva Lydia Harris and her minions.
Raleigh paused in the foyer to grab one of her bags, and then went down the hallway toward the bedrooms.
There was a large master on the end and a smaller bedroom off to the right. She walked into the master. It was beautiful but slightly over the top, even by her standards, which was saying something. A lifetime as Bree Ross’s daughter had seen to that.
The room was painted a soft gray-blue and had a king-size bed covered with a puffy, white duvet and pillows that matched the wall color. The floor was marble with a gray rug next to the bed. A vase filled with white flowers, calla lilies and hibiscus, stood on the dresser. She went over and touched them. Real, of course, and they smelled wonderful.
The full bath off to the right had a glassed-in shower with white marble tile and a huge tub that was made for two. Wouldn’t that be fun?
Dylan covered in bubbles, or better yet, Dylan not covered at all. She fanned herself.
Mind out of the gutter, woman.
She pushed open a set of French doors that were beside the bed. They led to a beautiful verandah. “Wow, this is amazing,” she muttered. “What a view!”
The sun was almost gone. The sky was a deep purple, and the stars were just beginning to come out. A burning bush on the right, blocking the next cabin from view. Its leaves had already started turning for fall. They seemed to turn much earlier outside the city. The cheery red leaves stood out against the darkening sky.
The golf course that the resort was built around stretched out into the hills, just visible in the warm light from the cabin and the illumination from the half-moon above. There were small cabins scattered on the hillside. They would have an incredible view. She had forgotten how different it was out here. Only about an hour north of New York City, but it was a world away.
“You’re right. It is amazing,” Dylan said.
She jumped when he spoke. She hadn’t realized he’d followed her onto the verandah. When she turned toward him, he was looking up at the sky, his arms resting across his chest, showing off his bulging biceps. Her eyes strayed in the direction of another bulge, but she stopped herself.Girl, get a grip.Maybe she’d been under stress for too long, and that’s why she was getting all hot and bothered by this guy. Maybe it was the first step on the ladder to a total meltdown.
“Living in the city, I forget how bright the stars can be. I miss it.”
She cleared her throat. “You didn’t grow up in the city?”
“No. I grew up all over the state. My mom wasn’t much for settling down.” Something about the way he said it indicated there was a story there, but chances were good he wasn’t going to tell her. She’d just yelled at him and now she was making him attend his ex’s wedding. Not to mention the wholewas she a whack-a-doodle or notquestion. She was shocked he was still here let alone sharing his life’s history with her. Besides, they had to get to dinner.
“Well, I guess we should get ready.”
“Right,” he said and turned on his heel. He was gone before she’d even stepped back into the bedroom. “At least you don’t have to tell him twice,” she mumbled.
He’d brought her other bag to the room—a nice gesture. Time to unpack. After setting her bag on the bed, she started pulling out her stuff, and hanging it up. She was only there for the weekend, so she’d packed light.
She texted Phillip about the photographs they would need for the event book. He responded immediately. They quickly hashed out a game plan and agreed to meet later at the dinner.
