Free Rogue Diamond by Mary Tate Engels Page B

Nick's desk. "Oh, I didn't know you were busy, Nick."
    He motioned nonchalantly to the attractive woman on his right. "We were just discus si ng a tour. Alex Julian, meet Lia. ..."
    Alex nodded curtly. “Hola.”
    Lia slid off her perch and stood enticingly close to Nick, who was still seated at the desk. His eyes, Alex noticed, were focused on Lia's curvaceous bosom. "I'm so excited because Nick's taking me to the Mayan temple of Palenque!"
    "The one where virgins were sacrificed?" Alex asked sarcastically.
    "Oh! I hadn't heard about that." She crossed her hands at her ample cleavage.
    "Well, you won't have to worry," Alex said. "That happened hundreds of years ago, and I'm sure Nick is a very capable pilot. Well, nice to meet you Lia. I have to go."
    Alex pivoted and left the office. Nick lunged into the hallway after her. "Wait. I thought you came by for a reason."
    "It's nothing. I can see you're busy."
    "You were saying you're on the verge of lo si ng your job."
    "I was saying that time's running out for me to find Jenni. Do you have any information on her?"
    He shook his head.
    "Then what the hell are you doing here?" She caugh t her tongue, knowing full well that Lia was keeping him occupied.
    "Do you hav e any brilliant ideas?" he coun tered, relea si ng the frustration he felt at the lack of leads on the case.
    "Yes, as a matte r of fact, I do. I'm going some where I hope I don't find her. But I have to go."
    "Where?" He touched her arm.
    "The hospital."
    "The hospital?" His voice gentled. "She's not there, Alex."
    "How do you know? Have you been there?"
    "No, but—"
    "What if Jenni was injured that day and carried off to the hospital by someone else and has never been identif ied? Or is lying up there uncon scious! I asked about her the day of the accident and they hadn't seen her, but maybe she's been brought in si nce then—" Alex stopped with an emotional hitch in her voice.
    "Well, it's pos si ble, of course," Nick replied. "But not probable. The police would have been notified. And they would have called you."
    "Don't tell me what the police would do. They've given up on it. They don't care if I find her. Not really." She gave him an accu si ng look.
    "I have more im portant things to do this after noon than to go off on wild goose chases looking for this kid," he said.
    "Nobody asked you to go."
    "But that's why you stopped by here."
    "I came by to see if you had any leads." She motioned impatiently. "Please go back in si de and plan your Mayan temple tour. Just let me know if you discover anything important while you're si tting around on your ass. Or pos si bly you'll get a brilliant idea while flying over Palenque." Alex wheeled about and strode down the hall, not realizing until that very moment how absurdly jealous she was of Lia. And dammit, she had no right to be!
    "Wait a minute!" Nick called out to her. "I want to go. You might just find her. Then I'd be out of a job . "
    Alex halted. "Don't feel obliged to follow me around."
    "I don't feel obliged to do anything . I want to go with you. "
    The door to his office had opened during this exchange, and now a tremulous voice broke into the verbal jabbing: "But Nicky, what about our trip?"
    "Another time, Lia," Nick said.
    Alex turned large indigo eyes on him, then let her gaze flutter over a pouting Lia. "Don't let me interfere with your bu si ness . . . Nicky."
    His eyes flickered angrily. "I will decide what is and is not interference. Now, let's go." It was a command, and hi s expres si on told her she'd bet ter not push him further. "You don't mind, do you, Lia? This is very important bu si ness."
    "I'll bet!" She sashayed past them, her three- inch heels clicking on the tile floor.
    "I'll be in touch, Lia."
    "Don't bother!" she flung back.
    "This is probably just a waste of time," Nick fumed.
    "Well, we certainly don't want you to waste your precious time. So why are you going with me?"
    "Damned if I k now," he said, but he was think ing more of