Page 10 of Seductive Secrets

“Thanks,” Angela replied, impressed with the man’s efficiency.

Mike looked between them. “And thiswillremain between the three of us.”

James nodded. “If we need to bring the authorities in, we can do that later.”

Mike pocketed the vial and walked them to the door. “Let me know what you find out about Mark too. I’d heard through the grapevine that he was engaged. I don’t know her name, but from what people were saying, she’s lovely and intelligent.” He grinned and the expression transformed his face from handsome to devastating as he said, “She’s probably too good for the likes of Mark.”

“Everyone is too good for Mark,” James replied in typical male-bashing fashion.

Angela rolled her eyes, shaking her head as they walked out. Mike led them back down the hallway towards the reception area, waving to them again before disappearing through another doorway.

James and Angela walked out of the building in silence. Neither spoke until they were back on the highway.

Finally, she said what they were both thinking. “We need to find his fiancée and find out if she’s okay.”

“Agreed,” he replied, his jaw clenching. “Mike is a brilliant chemist. His company has developed several innovative medicines that have helped a lot of people.”

“Please tell me he’s not part of those big pharma conglomerates!” She liked the guy. She didn’t want to thinkof him being part of that world where big pharmaceutical companies made massive profits off sick people.

“Nope. Mike is completely separate from the big pharma companies. They’ve tried hard to recruit him. And when he wouldn’t get on board with them or sell his patents, they tried to steal them. Mike was quick to call out their violations though, and won massive punitive damages. The pharma companies still try to steal his recipes occasionally, but Mike has ways of stopping them which,” he laughed slightly and shook his head, “well, they don’t mess with him often. But when they do, they regret it.”

“That’s good. He seemed like a good guy.”

James shot her a sharp glance. “He’s a player,” he warned. “Please, don’t tell me you’re interested in the likes of him!”

Angela laughed, shaking her head. “Nope. Just commenting on his rather obvious good looks.” She glanced at him slightly, wondering…? “Are you jealous?”

James snorted, keeping his eyes on the traffic. “Not a chance.”

She didn’t believe him and, for some reason, she felt a little burst of happiness knowing that James cared.

Because that was such a foreign concept, she shifted uncomfortably in the leather seat, still not sure what to make of the situation or her attraction to James. It was so foreign for her to feel attraction for anyone!

She decided it was time for a change of subject. “So…his fiancée. Any ideas on where to start looking for her?”

James grunted. “Send her picture to Dash. He’s got amazing facial recognition software. I’ll bet he’ll not only beable to identify her, but also give us her address and contact information, as well as her height, weight, and favorite dessert.” He pulled out his cell phone and handed it to her. “Open up the photos and send Dash her image.”

Angela agreed, taking his cell phone. “I didn’t know that you took a picture of her,” she commented. “You need to put in your password.”

Instead doing it himself, he told her the password. Angela was startled by his trust in her, but she didn’t say anything as she typed in the information. It was a simple matter to pull up the image and send it to herself. She then texted the image to Dash, asking him to find out who she was and where she lived.

Her phone rang seconds later. She knew it would be Dash. He had to know she was up to something.

“Hey!” she greeted, answering with a smile.

“What’s this for?” he asked, his deep voice concerned, just as she’d expected.

She filled him in on what they’d discovered so far. She could hear him typing in the background. He asked several questions. Some of them she could answer, others she couldn’t.

“I’m sending you her address. Her name is Melissa Abernathy. She’s a pediatrician that works at a family clinic in Arlington, Virginia. She goes by Melissa. She’s thirty years old. She has–”

“Enough!” Angela laughed. “How do you do that so fast?”

Dash’s answer was a snort. “Pu-leeze. Give me something difficult for a change, huh?”

“Thanks, Dash.”

“I’m on my way. See you soon.”

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