Nothing was remarkable about the way she dressed, as she wore just a pair of capris and a loose blouse. My eyes dipped down to the shadowed valley between her breasts, taking in the amber hue of her skin. My body tightened in response as I approached her, and I distantly marveled at this.
“Nash Reynolds,” I said when I reached her, holding my hand out reflexively.
“Mari Channing. Thank you for seeing me,” she replied, her palm cool in mine.
I felt a subtle tremor running through her, and concern pricked at me. Releasing her hand, I gestured to a pair of chairs by the windows that looked out over the Mississippi River.
I was unaccountably concerned about Mari. I hadn’t gotten to where I had in life without being able to read people well, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was distressed. When I glanced toward Lydia at the motion of the door, she mouthed, “Be nice,” right before closing it.
I rolled my eyes. Obviously, I was going to be nice to Mari. I might’ve thought her boyfriend was an idiot, but she’d done nothing to imply she was. Plus, I knew her brother through our business endeavors and considered him nothing other than entirely upstanding.
“Have a seat,” I said when she hesitated.
Mari sat in one of the chairs, smoothing her hands over her thighs. She then clasped them together on her knees as she crossed her legs. Her fingers laced together, tightly enough that I knew she was barely holding it together.
My curiosity was growing by leaps and bounds, but so was my concern. “Can I get you anything? I have coffee right here in the office if you’d like some.”
Her laugh was sharp. “No, thank you.”
“Well then, what can I do for you?”
“I understand you met my boyfriend, Brett Henson, this morning. I was wondering if you happened to know where he was.”
Interesting. Apparently, she didn’t know where he was. I elected to go for a direct approach. I found that it often saved a lot of time.
“I certainly don’t. But considering you’re aware he met with me this morning, I would imagine you could figure out where he was.”
Mari’s nostrils flared as she considered me. Pink bloomed on her cheeks. “Mr. Reynolds—”
“Please call me Nash,” I drawled.
Her lips tightened in a line before she nodded. “Nash, then. Brett brought me here for a weekend, and now he’s gone. Gone, gone if you understand my meaning. His phone is shut off, and I can’t reach him. I also learned the last day on the lease at his condominium was yesterday. As far as I can tell, he’s left me. I can deal with that, but I have a few loose ends to tie up, and I’d like to reach him.”
Brett was more of an idiot than I’d assumed. To be fool enough to leave Mari Channing at all, much less in this manner, was beyond stupid.
“I’m sorry to tell you, but I don’t know where he is. How in the world did you find out he had a meeting with me today? It wasn’t a scheduled meeting. He barged in and demanded to talk with me. Considering that my assistant wasn’t even here yet, I gave him a few minutes of my time before tossing him out.”
Mari leaned back in her chair, releasing her death grip on her knees. “Are you serious?” she asked sharply.
“Quite. If I understand you correctly, it sounds as though he’s left you high and dry?”
Those stunning blue eyes met mine, flashing with anger as she stood. “Yes. That asshole.”
I mulled over the situation for a moment, surprising myself when I spoke. I usually planned things through, but then Mari seemed to tap into a vein I didn’t even know I had. I wasn’t about to let her walk out of my office. Not right now.
“If you’d like me to find him, I can certainly do that.”
Mari spun back, her brows arching in question. “You can?”
“Of course. Tracking people down is something I do as part of security for my business, and I have a friend who’s a private investigator. He can usually sniff out someone who’s trying not to be found. Your Brett—”
She cut me off, slicing her hand through the air sharply. “He is not my Brett.” Her gorgeous eyes flashed again, a restrained passion simmering in their depths.
“Okay, then. Not your Brett. Nonetheless, I can still help you find him.”
She stared at me, catching her bottom lip in her teeth and utterly distracting me for a moment. I gave myself a mental shake, a hard one. I wasn’t prone to offering help, nor was I susceptible to being drawn to any woman this easily.
Her shoulders rose and fell as she took a deep breath, letting it out with a soft sigh. “I don’t really know if I want to find him.”
Leaning forward, I rested my elbows on my knees. “No? Then what are you doing at my office looking for him?”
Mari’s eyes narrowed, her gaze coasting over my face. “I don’t know. He’s just gone, and I guess I thought perhaps I could find him. I’m not so sure it’s worth it.”
She turned away to look out the windows, and I stood. With the way the chairs were situated, angled toward each other, we were perhaps a foot apart. Her scent drifted to me, musky with a hint of vanilla.
Everything in me tightened, and it felt as if the air around us was sparking with electricity. I didn’t know what was going to happen, but I knew I didn’t want Mari to walk out of this office. If that happened, I might never see her again.
None of this was the least bit rational. I prided myself on being a completely rational person, even in personal matters. So much for that when it came to Mari.
“I suppose I’ll go then. Thank you for your time,” she said with a slight hitch in her voice.
“Let me at least get you lunch,” I heard myself saying.
Those blue eyes widened in surprise, her mouth opening slightly. “Oh, that’s not necessary. I—” Her stomach growled, quite audibly. Her cheeks flushed again, and she rolled her eyes. “I promise, my stomach isn’t actually trying to answer the question for me.”
My lips quirked in a smile. “I wouldn’t presume that. But I insist. Let me take you to lunch.”
I elected not to let her think too hard about this by turning and sliding my hand down her back, then nudging her forward slightly. Conveniently, there was a light knock on my office door right then, and Lydia opened it. I considered it convenient because it interrupted Mari’s chance to brush me off too quickly.
“I was just checking to see what your plan was for lunch. You have a call on line one from Danny Kent,” Lydia said.
Danny happened to be one of the men I was supposed to be joining for lunch. I nodded to Lydia as I began walking across the office with Mari following at my side. “You can let Danny know I’ll give him a call this afternoon, and that I need to cancel for today. Mari and I are having lunch.”
Chapter 3
Mari
I looked across the table at Nash Reynolds and willed my pulse to slow. I told myself my reaction to him was simply because I was so out of whack this morning. I mean, I had woken up to my boyfriend’s abrupt disappearance. It was fair to say I was discombobulated.
I’d scouted out Nash when I pulled up the online calendar I only had access to on my phone because Brett had once logged in on my phone to update it. If I was wondering whether he was trying to cut me out, that was promptly confirmed. A few minutes after I opened it, the app unceremoniously logged me out with a warning that the password had been updated. I was pissed, but those few minutes had given me enough time to find a few trails to follow, starting with the one that led to Nash’s office.