Free Silver Fire (Guardians) by Victoria Paige Page B

better?”
    Sophie grinned up at him. “I am. Thanks.”
    Derek knifed off her and gave her a hand up. Helping her straighten her clothes, he murmured, “This is promising.”
    “It is,” Sophie replied, smiling shyly.
    “I’ll call you tonight on the SAT phone,” Derek said. “What time do you think you’ll be home?”
    “Ten or eleven,” Sophie replied.
    Brushing his lips against hers, he lightly ran the back of his hand down the side of her cheek before he turned away and left her office, quietly closing the door behind him. Sophie walked bemusedly to her chair and sat down, lightly touching her lips as she remembered Derek’s drugging kisses. For the first time since Adam, a man had cracked her wall.  

    ***
    Braden Connelly had pulled through with flying colors. Sophie was impressed with his ability to carry her demand at such a short notice. Thalia fetched her at 6:00 p.m. sharp from her office and told her if she wanted to make her 8:00 p.m. dinner appointment with Christopher Blackstone, they had to leave soon.  
    They had gone back to the bungalow first so she could shower and change. She arranged her platinum blonde hair in a loose sexy up-do and wore her new black cocktail dress. Beth and Stephen were meeting her at the restaurant. Braden pulled up the SUV behind the restaurant. They were going in through the kitchen, and that was all she was going to see of the restaurant because the table reserved was a Chef’s table.
    There were three Chef’s tables; each built into an enclave for some privacy. Christopher was already waiting, and he stood up when she arrived. Braden motioned for Thalia to remain behind while he went to the main dining room to check for Beth and Stephen.
    “My dear girl.” Christopher Blackstone was a tall, distinguished gentleman in his early 50’s. He had thick salt and pepper hair combed back slickly in a polished look. His patrician features hinted strongly of his English ancestry. His parents were British, but they had moved to the United States and had taken up residency in the 1950’s. Blackstone International was started by his father, and with his expansive transcontinental connections, he was able to grow the company into a successful conglomerate of mining and technology industries. Christopher had also been trying to acquire Silver Fire Research for the past year.
    Sophie offered her cheek for the obligatory kiss. “Christopher.”
    He helped her to her seat and sat down beside her, but they had to stand up again when Beth and Stephen showed up. Greetings were exchanged while Thalia and Braden vanished into the background.
    When everyone had finally settled in, their server came by to inquire about cocktails. The Chef’s table had a six-course tasting menu already handpicked and paired with wine, so with the burden of ordering eliminated, the conversation quickly began.
    “So my dear, do the police have any suspects?” Christopher asked with genuine concern.
    “No, not at all,” Sophie replied. “They’re trying to analyze fingerprints from the shell casings but with the fire and the water damage, it doesn’t look very promising. I was hoping you might have an idea?”
    Christopher’s eyebrows furrowed as his whole body stiffened.
    “I mean given your network, you might have heard something,” Sophie added quickly.
    Blackstone relaxed. “There is a rumor about the Abu-Haxa Brotherhood causing trouble in one of our zefinium mines.”
    “I don’t understand why they would go after me? I mean all the way here. That seems to be excessive.”
    “That’s the only link I could see. Have you looked into your business dealings with McCord? It might be one of their competitors in the defense industry?”
    “Do you pay protection money to some mercenary groups to keep the peace?” Beth interjected, obviously wanting to keep the speculations on point. Sophie also hated that Christopher appeared to be deflecting.
    “There is no choice in that matter,