not. Courtney was murdered.”
He swallowed a sigh. “That’s ridiculous—”
“Really? Are you going to try to convince me that all the things that have happened to me since I’ve gotten here didn’t happen, either?”
“You mean falling down the stairs?” he said, unable to hold back his disbelief at the story she’d told him, her accusations toward Meredith.
“I was pushed,” she said through gritted teeth.
“By Meredith?”
“No,” she said. “I talked to her. She told me about...her marriage. Why this business means so much to her. I don’t believe she’d jeopardize that. It wasn’t her.”
Any relief he might have felt at her withdrawal of that ridiculous accusation was overruled by fresh anger that she’d forced Meredith to talk about that bastard. “Then who?”
“The same person who tried to suffocate me in my sleep two nights ago. I fought them off, but they managed to get in and out of my room unnoticed. That’s what made me decide to start looking for hidden passageways around here.”
Adam frowned, doubt tempering the instinctive outrage that someone would do that to her. “Are you sure you weren’t just dreaming?”
“I know I wasn’t,” she said firmly, her voice ringing with conviction.
“Why didn’t you say something before?”
“I figured if I said someone attacked me in my room, you’d expect me to want to leave, and I didn’t know how to explain that I wasn’t going anywhere.”
“Why not explain the truth about who you are and what you were doing here? If you’re right, how long were you willing to put your life at risk before saying something?”
“As long as I had to. I didn’t know if I could trust you, and I couldn’t afford to have you make me leave, not before I knew the truth.”
“Then why are you telling me now?”
“Because of what Meredith told me. I finally understand why you’re here, why you decided to open Sutton Hall for weddings with Meredith. I don’t believe you would do anything to jeopardize her dream. Which means you can’t be responsible for any of this.”
She’d thought he could be a killer? The idea stung, maybe more than it should considering he’d thought she was a liar.
“I could still make you leave.” Was still going to.
“No, you won’t.”
With anyone else, he would have been amazed at the certainty in her voice in challenging him. With this woman, all he felt was a reluctant admiration at her audacity. He arched a brow. “Oh, really? And why not?”
“Because you have just as much reason to want to get to the truth as I do. You’re right, there’s someone here who can hurt Meredith, but it’s not me. As long as there’s someone on the loose at Sutton Hall who’s this dangerous, Meredith’s dream won’t come true. And people have already been hurt. Someone murdered Courtney, and they’ve been targeting me since I’ve gotten here. There won’t be any weddings at Sutton Hall, not as long as someone is attacking any bride who comes here.”
“But why would somebody do that?”
“They obviously don’t want anyone getting married here.”
“For what reason? Everyone who works here needs this business to succeed to keep this place up and running or we’ll probably have to sell.”
“I don’t know. That’s what I’m trying to find out. It’s what you should be trying to figure out. So help me. Let’s work together.”
“Assuming that you’re right, I can try to solve this myself. I don’t need you here, especially if you are right and someone has been attacking you.”
“How will you explain to Meredith why I’m leaving? That she can’t have any more weddings here? Or will you even bother? Would you let some other couple come here and put their lives at risk? Or are you hoping no one else will come?”
“What are you suggesting?” he challenged, even though he knew perfectly well. That didn’t mean he liked it, or believed it for a second.
Didn’t he? some small part of him asked.
“Let’s set a trap. This person is already coming after me. Let’s catch them in the act. Let’s catch them.”
He could only stare at her in astonishment, unable to believe what she was proposing. Then again, this was her. He could believe it all too well, and he knew without a doubt she meant every word. “You’re out of your mind.”
“No, I’m not.”
“If you think I’m going to let you put yourself in danger like this, you are.”
“I’m already in danger. I only want to use that to my advantage and catch this bastard.”
“If you’re right, then we’re dealing