Mysterious by Fayrene Preston

wanted to wring her neck for not trusting him enough to tell him all this in the first place. He wanted to do everything in his power to keep her safe. He wanted to make love to her …
    She rubbed her forehead with two fingers. "Lately I’d been concerned about Richard. He’d been acting strangely, preoccupied and worried. Anyway, I talked him into letting me come along on this case. He agreed to take me, under the cover of being his wife, because he thought this assignment was relatively simple."
    He turned back around. "Obviously, though, it wasn’t. Do you have any idea or clues as to what happened?"
    "All I know is that Richard was assigned to work at MallTech, a corporation on the outskirts of St. Paul. MallTech has designed an advanced weapons system for the government, and the NDO had discovered leaks within the company. It was Richard’s job to offer plans of the weapons system around to see who went for it. We went to Switzerland, pretending to be on our honeymoon. While we were there he had a meeting with a man named Gardner Benjamin, but I don’t know if Richard sold him the plans or not."
    "I see. Have you contacted the National Defense Organization for help?"
    "Once, this morning while you were at work. But the man I was told to call . . . well"—she made a vague gesture with one hand—"I decided I couldn’t trust him."
    "Why not? Who is he?"
    "His name is Wainright and he was Richard’s superior."
    "What made you decide you couldn’t trust him?"
    "Several things I guess. First, under the circumstances, he was more upset with me than he should have been for not calling sooner. He didn’t even mention Richard’s death. And then he told me that it was he who sent those two men after me. I think he thought the knowledge would reassure me, but it did just the opposite. It scared me. Why would he send two men like that after me? I had them pegged as killers long before you found guns on them." She raised liquid brown eyes to his. "I’m still afraid, especially for you. You’re in as much danger as I am now."
    "I can handle it." He touched her cheek, wishing the dimple would appear. "The first thing we’ll do is turn this over to the police." Gently he brushed her hair back from her face. "It’s late. Do you think you can sleep?"
    "No," she admitted wryly. "I’m pretty wound up. You’ll never know the courage it took to tell you."
    "It seems to me that it took more courage for you to carry the burden of this alone for so long." He smiled at her. "You know, you and I have been living pretty much at a fever pitch since we met. We haven’t had a minute of quiet time together, but I have an idea. Let’s make some hot chocolate and relax awhile." He smiled ruefully. "It’s worth a try, at any rate."
    "Fine." Jennifer watched as he disappeared into the kitchen. That was the first genuine smile he had ever given her. Her heart swelled with hope. Could it possibly be that something good might come out of this nightmare?
    Minutes later, using the couch as a backrest, they sat on the floor, watching crackling flames in the fireplace.
    "Jerome," she said solemnly, "somehow I’m going to make it up to you that your rocking horse was smashed."
    He rolled his shoulders in a negligent shrug. "Forget it."
    "No, I won’t forget it," she insisted, and took a sip of her chocolate. "Actually I had a rocking horse when I was a little girl."
    He looked at her with interest, grateful for whatever she could tell him that would give his mind a chance to rest and absorb everything she had told him. "You did?"
    She nodded. "It wasn’t as big or as splendid as yours, of course, but I rode many a mile on that horse."
    He fingered a swirling curl of her hair. "I wish I’d known you when you were a little girl. You must have been a heartbreaker, because you sure are now."
    Her pulse became erratic and she answered breathlessly, "To my knowledge, I’ve broken no hearts."
    "Let’s hope your record holds." he murmured.
    All