“Here it is,” the technician said. “Do you want audio, sir?”
“You can listen to conversations in the lobby?” Cordie didn’t know if she should be appalled or impressed. “You shouldn’t listen to other people’s private conversations.”
“No, we shouldn’t,” Aiden agreed. Then to the technician he said, “Isolate the audio and play it.”
“Aiden, that can’t be legal,” Cordie complained.
He didn’t agree or disagree. His hands shoved into his pockets, he stood behind the technician and watched the monitor. Neither he nor Cordie said another word while they listened to a replay of the horrible conversation she’d had with Simone. She was amazed that the technician could remove background noise just by adjusting some knobs. She kept glancing up at Aiden to gauge his reaction, but there wasn’t any, until Simone whispered that she didn’t want to be seen with Cordie, followed by Cordelia’s scream. He smiled then. Cordie had to admit the look on Simone’s face was priceless. She looked as though she’d just noticed she wasn’t wearing any clothes.
“Freeze the frames and get two good photos of those men, and send them to this number,” Aiden ordered as he handed a card to the tech. “Send them to me as well.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Thanks,” he said, taking Cordie’s hand. “Good work, Harold.” He opened the door for her. “Maybe we should cancel lunch. We can eat here in the hotel.”
“Why? Did we miss our reservation?”
He shook his head. “I thought you might want to stay in after your encounter.”
“Not at all,” she answered decisively. “Let’s go. I’ve got until three thirty.”
Cavanaugh was waiting in the car. It wasn’t until they were on their way that Aiden asked her what she was doing at three thirty.
“Are you going to the spa?” he wondered.
“No,” she replied. She looked out the window and sighed. It was a clear, sunny day. The harbor was stunning, with shards of light piercing the sparkling water.
“This is a beautiful city,” she remarked.
“Yes, it is,” he agreed. “What are you doing at three thirty?”
“I have an appointment at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research.”
“I should have guessed that’s where you’d want to go.”
“My academic advisor back home has arranged for me to meet a couple of the researchers working on genome sequencing. It’s exciting work,” she said enthusiastically, adding, “and I’m dying to see the DNA-inspired staircase. It’s a spiral. I’ve seen photos, of course, but I want to see it up close.”
“I had hoped you would stay inside the hotel until we fly home tomorrow.”
“I can’t miss Garvan.” She was appalled by the possibility. “What has you worried?”
“What has me worried?” His tone was curt. “I just watched your meeting with Simone. Did you look at those two men with her? They’re dangerous.”
“Yes, but Simone had her say, and I made it clear I wouldn’t make trouble.”
Aiden was annoyed by her naive interpretation of the conversation. “They were going to drag you out of the hotel. What makes you think they won’t try again? And don’t tell me you trust that woman to leave you alone.”
She hadn’t realized how upset he was until she noticed his clenched jaw.
“I don’t want you to go anywhere without me,” he commanded.
“I’m betting you’ll love the Garvan.”
“In other words, I’m going with you?”
She nodded, then changed the subject. “Who did you send those photos to? You handed the tech a business card . . .”
“Liam,” he answered. “I figure we might need his help. Besides, he might know those men. He’ll check them out.”
“I thought you didn’t like him.”
“I don’t like him around you,” Aiden admitted. “But I trust Alec’s judgment, and he says Liam’s good at what he does.”
“Have you figured out what that is?”
Aiden laughed. “Not really. I just know we want him on our side.”
The conversation ended when Cavanaugh pulled up in front of the Empire building. The restaurant was on the top floor, and all the windows overlooked the water. They were shown into a large private room. As it turned out, it was a working lunch for Aiden. There was a group of sixteen men and women waiting for him, and the talk centered on permits and expansion. Cordie was impressed with Aiden’s negotiating skills. He was fair yet got everything he wanted and then some. The women ogled him, but she couldn’t be angry. The man was gorgeous. There had been a time she had ogled him, too.
The food at the Empire was delicious. She ate every bit of her fish. How could she not? It was so fresh it wiggled on her plate. At the end of the lunch most of the guests lingered, and she was able to meet and talk to some of them. They were an eclectic group of politicians, community leaders, contractors, and business owners, and she was impressed by how cordial and welcoming they were toward her. After a couple of conversations, though, she realized several of the men thought she worked for Aiden. One asked her if she would like to go to dinner; another asked if he could show her some of the city that tourists didn’t know about; and yet another just wanted to “hang out” with her. She graciously declined all the invitations.
Once they were back in the car, Aiden asked, “How bored were you?”
“Oh no, I wasn’t bored. They’re interesting people.”
“How many men hit on you?”
“They were just being friendly.”
“How many?” He was frowning now.
“Three.”
He didn’t like hearing that. “They knew you were with me.”
“They thought I worked for you.”
“I’d never get anything done if you worked for me.”
“Is that a complaint or flattery?”
“A complaint, of course. You distract me.” He didn’t seem at all bothered by it.
“And you’re rude,” she said sweetly. Before he could comment, she leaned forward in her seat and said, “Cavanaugh, is the Garvan far from here? I don’t want to be late.”
“We’ll be there in ten minutes,” the driver promised. “You’ll be a little early.”
Aiden glanced up from answering a text on his phone. “You’re looking forward to the Garvan, aren’t you?”
“Oh yes,” she said. She could barely contain her enthusiasm. “I can’t wait to see their new genome-sequencing machine and talk to some of the researchers. They’re doing such wonderful work. I think you’ll be impressed with the facility, too.”
As it turned out, he was impressed, so much so he promised to make a donation. He didn’t seem to be in any hurry, and they stayed longer than they probably should have, taking up valuable work time, but everyone was so gracious, and Cordie had at least fifty questions. When they were leaving, one of the directors suggested she send him her résumé.
On the way back to the hotel Aiden asked her if she would ever consider working at the Garvan.
“I think Sydney would be a wonderful place to live, and the people here—most people—are very friendly and kindhearted, but as long as the Rayburns are living here, no. I want to be as far away from them as possible.”