Page 59 of Evidence of Deceit

He had asked for Claire and Hillary told him she was on the third-floor cataloging pieces and to take the elevator up. He left. But hunk number two stood at her desk and winked at her. Oh, yeah. A player. She was in the mood for a player. Ever since Keith died, well, since she killed him, and the new partner at the firm rejected her advances, she had been alone and not getting any sex or love of any kind—something she needed desperately.

“I’m Hank Peterman,” he said, putting out a meaty hand and giving her a half smile. His brown eyes were twinkling.

“Hillary Marshall.” She shook hands with him, feeling unrestrained power in the handshake. “So, Hank, what brings you here?”

He gave a head nod upstairs. “My friend Joe is dating Claire, and we stopped by for a minute.”

Interesting. Hillary filed that tidbit away. No telling when it would come in handy. They talked for a couple of minutes. Hank was leaning over her desk, breathing hard. His breath was sending shivers down her spine.

“So how long have you worked here?” he asked.Interested? Oh yeah.She could play back.

“Oh, a couple of months.”

They chatted for a few minutes. He asked where she had moved from and other innocent questions.

“I know this is fast, but how about going out for a drink sometime?”

Hillary looked into lustful eyes. He was a good-looking guy. Big. Probably big all over. “Wow, you don’t waste any time, do you?” she said.

“No, ma’am. When I meet a beautiful woman, I don’t waste time. Now, if you tell me that you’re dating someone, I’m going to be mighty disappointed.”

“Well, you’re not going to be disappointed.” Hillary was loving the flirting and the give and take. It had been a while. “I would love to go out with you. How about after work?”

He stepped back, clutched his heart. “That’s what I like. A woman who doesn’t play games.” He gave her a big grin. “Give me your address, and I’ll pick you up.” He stopped, looked troubled. “Or maybe since we just met, you would be more comfortable meeting me somewhere?”

Hillary gave him a once-over. Hank just stood there grinning while he followed her eyes going up and down, stopping midway at his crotch, then up and down again. Oh, he was sexy, and he knew it. She guesstimated he was six feet two. Had to weigh about two hundred twenty pounds. The blue shirt with the sleeves rolled up did not detract from the muscular arms decorated with an interesting tattoo pattern. She was curious where else he had tattoos. Keith had been so vanilla. He never wanted to mess his body up with something like a tattoo or a piercing. Hillary also loved Hank’s short brown crew cut and strong chin. Maybe this was the beginning of her new life.

She scribbled her address on a piece of paper and handedit to him just as the elevator dinged, and Joe and Claire got out and walked over.

“Oh, I see you met Hank,” said Claire as she gave Hank a peck on the cheek and looked over at Hillary. She turned toward Joe. “And this is Joe Harkin.”

Joe stepped up to shake hands with Hillary.

“This sweet thing just agreed to get a drink with me,” said Hank, giving Hillary a big smile.

Claire clapped her hands. “That’s terrific.”

Oh, it was, Claire. It was.

They chatted for a few minutes until Joe looked at his watch.

“We’ve got to run,” said Joe as he kissed Claire goodbye.

Watching the two men walk out the door, Hillary smiled. “Now there’s a sight for sore eyes.”

“Mmhmm,” said Claire. “So where are you two going?”

“Don’t know yet, but he’s picking me up after work.”

“Hank’s a great guy. You should enjoy getting to know him.”

Oh, I will.Getting close to Hank, who appeared close to Claire, was going to be a treat. This might be the “in” she needed to get rid of Claire.

Joe droveHank to the office. The whole time he couldn’t stop thinking about Claire and Roman. Roman might be a horndog, but he was precisely the type of man Claire should have. A successful businessman and a lover of art. He talked to the right people and could help Claire with her career.

Tough. Not happening on his watch. He would talk to Claire tonight and ask her if Roman was bothering her. If he was, that was something he knew how to fix.

“Man, that Hillary is a looker,” said Hank, interrupting his thoughts.

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