Page 25 of Colton's Last Resort

“Thanks for the tip.” Greg gave the men a salute before strolling off.

Joshua waited until he was out of earshot. “He’s loved Tallulah as long as we’ve known either of them.”

“Yes,” Laura said with a soft smile.

“I don’t know if I could wait that long,” Joshua confessed, “for someone to decide whether she wanted me.”

“Yeah, you’re much more of the now-or-never type,” Adam drawled. “Or nowandnever. Never being next week when you decide you’ve had enough.”

Joshua pursed his lips. “Is that any worse than the kind of man who’s married to his desk?”

“Enough,” Laura said. “Both of you.”

“What was all that business about Quentin Randolph?” Joshua asked. “Clive was the one who set you two up?”

“No,” she said automatically. She didn’t want it to be true. The idea made her feel ill.

Adam’s phone rang. He took it from his pocket. “I have to leave for Flagstaff shortly.” He glanced up at Laura. “You can cancel lunch. Dad can dine alone.”

“I’m not afraid of him,” she claimed.

“I never said you were, Lou,” he told her.

“You don’t owe him anything,” Joshua chimed in.

“I’ll be fine,” she explained. “Maybe I can get some more information about Colton Textiles out of him.”

Joshua sighed. He patted her on the back. “Good luck with that, ace.”

Chapter 6

The following afternoon, Noah flashed his badge at the man in the Mariposa security booth. The uniformed guard waved him in. He steered his car into the same lot he’d parked in two nights prior. Then he followed the path to L Building and ventured into the open-air lobby.

The clerk at the front desk’s name tag read Sasha. She smiled, waving him forward. “How can I help you?”

“Laura Colton.” Noah didn’t know why her name was the first thing out of his mouth, but there it was.

Sasha picked up the phone on the desk. “Do you have an appointment?”

“She’s expecting me,” he said, sidestepping the real question.

“Name?”

“Steele.”

“Just a moment.”

After placing a call, she revealed, “Ms. Colton is at L Bar. Go through the doors here and take a left.”

Moving briskly, Noah heeded her instructions. He found himself inside an impressive room. On one side, liquor-stocked shelves sprawled from floor to ceiling. The bartender moved tirelessly from one patron to the next. Music played at just the right volume, not too soft, not too loud. Here, the atmosphere felt easy, not stodgy, like he’d expected.

He saw her at the same time she saw him. Laura’s dress flowed around her, long and red with turquoise necklaces stacked above the V-necked bodice. Her boots were black leather to match her wide belt. Large earrings dangled from her ears. She’d swept the strands of hair that framed her face back in a subtle half-do.

She looked perfect. Noah felt his joints lock up in response.

What was it about this woman?

She walked to him slowly, offering a nod to a patron who acknowledged her in passing. “Detective Steele,” she greeted him. “Back so soon?”

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