thought struck him so hard he almost missed a step.
Lacey. Had Charlie seen Lacey and was now chasing her? Had Charlie lost her mind? What would she do if she caught her? The idea sent him barreling downward until, two floors below theirs, a stairwell door swung open, catching him by surprise.
* * *
CHARLIE HEARD A door open and close one floor below her. She was so close now she knew she would catch Lacey. She raced down the last set of steps, grabbing the ground floor door and bursting out of it into the lobby.
Her heart was hammering, pulse a thunder in her ears, her breath coming out in hard gasps. She slid to a stop and hurriedly scanned the lobby, knowing the woman couldn’t have gotten away. Not this time. Charlie had been right behind her.
The lobby was full of people moving about through furniture and plants and plastered columns. Charlie couldn’t have lost her. She couldn’t have.
The blonde came into view as she passed a group of people gathered talking in the middle of the lobby. She wasn’t moving fast, just walking, as if not the least bit worried about Charlie.
A stab of anger sent Charlie’s blood pressure skyrocketing. Lacey thought there was nothing Charlie could do about her. No way she could stop her.
Charlie darted between the tall pots of plants and the large furniture and cut her off before she could reach the door. She came shooting out from the side, grabbed Lacey’s arm and spun her around to face her. In all honesty, she didn’t know what she was going to do with her other than demand answers.
The woman let out a startled cry and tried to pull free.
Charlie looked into the blonde’s face—a face she’d expected to be so familiar. It all took only a few seconds for her to realize that the woman she’d just chased down numerous flights of stairs wasn’t Lacey at all.
“What?” the woman demanded, pulling her arm free.
Charlie was so shaken for a moment that she couldn’t speak. “I’m sorry. I thought you were someone else.”
Looking indignant, the blonde continued out the door. Charlie realized that other people in the lobby were staring at her. She started to stumble back when a pair of hands grabbed her and steadied her.
“This way.”
She recognized Greg’s voice. He was the last person she wanted leading her out of the lobby. He quickly drew her into what appeared to be a small atrium. But she was still so shocked, horrified actually, that she didn’t want to add to the scene by shaking his hold from her arm. It was a wonder she hadn’t tackled the woman to the floor.
“Are you all right?” Greg asked as he let go of her.
Charlie blinked. Her horror began to fade as she realized this was the last place she wanted to be with the last person on earth.
She took a step back.
“Charlie?”
She took another step back, then realized that all she was doing was moving deeper into the shadowy atrium. “Please let me leave.”
He looked surprised. “Why are you acting like this?”
The shock of earlier was wearing off quickly as anger and fear took over. “Why are you determined to get me alone? You’re getting married tomorrow. I don’t want to hear about your old loves or your new ones and I certainly don’t want to hear how you feel about me. I don’t want to hear about any of it. Don’t you realize that you’re making it impossible for me to work for you?”
Greg took a step back, holding up both hands, a shocked look on his face. “Oh no, that wasn’t my intent at all. I’m so sorry. I... Yes, I had been wanting to tell you something—not apparently what you were thinking though. I’m in love with Amanda. But I can see now what you must have thought. I certainly didn’t mean to scare you.”
He took another step back. “I...I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m so sorry. I don’t want to lose you at the company. I’m such a fool. Please forgive me. I promise nothing like this will ever happen again. You have my word.”
* * *
ALL SHEP CAUGHT was the last part of Greg’s speech. He’d found them in the atrium after asking in the lobby if anyone had seen the woman he’d described. Apparently a lot of people had. Another guest pointed toward the atrium, saying, “A man took her in there after...” The woman had smiled rather