The Silver Fox and the Red-Hot Dove by Deborah Smith Read Free Book Online Page A

then?”
    His smile became mysterious, teasing, sexual. “I’m still trying to decide.”
    The pilot glanced over his shoulder. “Home, sweet home.”
    Elena turned back to the window, her heart beating rapidly. An exclamation of surprise burst from her. They were only a short span above the treetops and closing in on an oasis of luxury in the middle of Audubon’s wilderness. In front of them stretched beautiful lawns, gardens, ponds, white-fenced pastures dotted with horses, stables, and other outbuildingsconstructed in a style she’d seen in books about the English countryside.
    And at the center of the estate rose a mansion built of stone and timber, its walls whitewashed so that the dark woods crisscrossed them in ornamental patterns with dramatic contrast. There were several stone chimneys, and a stone turret nestled into one of the mansion’s nooks. It was a very welcoming and yet awe-inspiring place, surrounded by an apron of stone courtyard and patios. Everywhere were flower beds, manicured shrubs, and enormous trees.
    She’d never seen anything as lovely and as … as
comforting
, she decided. How could anyone harm her in this country manor with its Edenlike setting? It seemed peaceful and safe. Except that Audubon would be with her. Or perhaps
because
he would be with her. Her head throbbed with confusion.
    “You won’t be unhappy here,” Audubon said. “And you won’t regret accepting my help.”
    Elena sank back on the seat, brooding about doubts—and temptations. “Whatever acceptance you get from me will cost you dearly.” She raised proud eyes to his somber ones. “And money will be the least of it.”
    After he and she shared a tense, silent dinner—five courses, unfortunately—in the house’s grand dining room, Audubon escorted her to her suite upstairs. They walked along a hall done in dark English antiques and colorful tapestries. There were no sounds, even their footfalls were silenced by the heavy carpet. “There are so many people in this house,” she muttered. “How can it feel so empty?”
    Her question disturbed him because he’d asked it himself in the past few years, but for a different reason. “There are only five people in the house full-time. And they’re either at their jobs tonight or in their apartments in the downstairs wing. They don’t come up here.”
    “But what do they all do? I understand the chef,of course, and his assistant, and the housekeeper, but …”
    “There’s a security coordinator, and my personal secretary. You’ll meet them tomorrow.”
    “Don’t any of them have families? Wives? Husbands?”
    “No. It’s a condition of working for me. If they do marry, they can’t bring their spouses here to live.”
    “But why?”
    “It’s my home, not an apartment building. And I can’t have all sorts of strangers running around. This is my business headquarters.”
    “You lead a very odd life. You have no family, no wife—only people who work for you.”
    “My parents died some years ago. As for the wife part—I’m not a fan of marriage. And the nature of my business keeps me traveling a great deal. Marriage wouldn’t work.”
    “What exactly do you import and export?”
    He shrugged lightly. “Whatever pleases me.” He wished he didn’t have to lie to her. But even if she were an ordinary guest, he couldn’t have told her the truth. There was simply too much at stake to allow information to spread beyond his highly trusted employees. The need for secrecy made for a lonely personal life, no matter how many women shared the perimeters of it, but Audubon had learned to accept loneliness as a child.
    At the darkly paneled double doors to her suite, he stopped, looking down at her in the soft light from the frosted bulb in a silver wall sconce. Her unyielding pride had been knocked askew by the day’s traumatic events; she returned his attention with sad eyes.
    “This place does not suit me,” she told him in her solemn, husky accent,