Page 51 of Dangerous Temptation
‘If you have a loaner one I can use …’
‘I have a brand spanking new one you can have.’
‘I’ll pay you for it,’ she promised.
He began walking again. ‘Don’t be ridiculous.’
A damp chill was in the air, and Elena had a feeling the dog days of summer were gone. Fall had settled in, and it looked like it was going to be a dreary one. The colour of the season was fading fast, and everything was blending into a bleak grey.
It wasn’t an atmosphere conducive to hope.
She hurried through the door to the manor when Alex opened it for her. Tonight, the kitchen was quiet. She frowned when she didn’t see Marta hovering over the stove. The cook seemed to delight in feeding them.
And watching them with curiosity.
‘Leonard?’ Alex called.
The butler appeared in the doorway, his polished shoes somehow not making any sound on the hardwood floor. ‘Yes, sir?’
‘How long until James returns?’
‘Not long. He called and is almost to Bedford.’
Alex nodded and lifted the laptop. ‘We’ll be in the tech room.’
Leonard’s forehead furrowed. ‘Nothing serious, I hope.’
Elena hung up the hoodie and sent a woeful look the butler’s way. ‘Cross your fingers for me.’
A compassionate look came over his face. ‘You’ve got the right man working on the problem, dear.’
The right man.
She stuffed her fingertips into the pockets of her jeans. Was he?
‘This way,’ Alex said. ‘Marta had a doctor’s appointment, so we’re having takeout tonight. Is that OK?’
‘It’s fine.’ She hooked her hair behind her ear. ‘Your staff doesn’t need to wait on me.’
‘They like you.’
He led her down the hallway to the left, a direction she’d never gone before. Her eyebrows lifted when he pushed a button on the wall. It was an elevator.
He stepped inside when the carriage door opened, and she frowned. ‘Your claustrophobia doesn’t bother you in there?’
He punched a button. ‘The controls are on the inside.’
‘Ah.’ She joined him and watched the buttons as they lit up one-by-one. It wasn’t necessarily the small space, but the loss of control. For a man who controlled everything, that made sense.
Prison must have been hell on earth for him.
Her heart ached for him, but the sympathy came with a healthy dose of shame. Most people would say that the punishment fit the crime.
She might have, too, until a few days ago. Now, she wasn’t so sure.
The ride to the third floor was short. When the doors opened, Elena found herself in a long hallway very similar to the one on the second floor. Like there, the doors were open. She followed Alex into a room. The moment she stepped inside, her jaw dropped.
The tech room, he’d so nonchalantly called it.
