Then he kissed her gently on the lips. “Give me a few minutes and we’ll see if we can improve on this.”

“You’re crazy,” she said breathlessly.

“Yes, crazy about you.”

21

“He said you’d know who he is,” Frances said over the intercom, sounding annoyed. “He’s very rude. I wouldn’t even put him through, but that’s the third time he’s called in five minutes and I’m afraid I won’t get any work done if—”

Daniel sighed. “Put him through, Frances, I’ll deal with whoever this is.” He ran a hand through his hair.

There was a click in the line. “Daniel Sincl—”

“You dirty, rotten son of a bitch!” an angry male voice interrupted him.

Daniel shot up from his desk, his hand balling into a fist instantly. “Hannigan!”

“So you think you can play me like that? You think you can hide behind a woman? You coward!”

He had no idea what Hannigan was talking about. “What the fuck do you want?”

It sounded as if Hannigan growled. “That fucking whore of yours sent those bitches on my tail. As if you didn’t know it! You devious asshole!”

Fuming, Daniel clenched his jaw. “You call her whore one more time, I’m going to fly to San Francisco and finish the job I started.” And this time, Hannigan would need an ambulance.

A ragged breath came through the line. “You tell that little tramp that one day I’m gonna get her for that.”

“Keep Sabrina out of this. She’s got nothing to do with this!”

Hannigan snorted. “Right. That’s why she’s riled up those bitches at the office and is threatening to sue me if I don’t drop the suit.”

Stunned, Daniel was speechless for a moment.

“Yeah, that fucking bitch got all the secretaries at the firm to make statements against me. Unfounded statements!” he yelled through the phone so loudly that Daniel had to move the phone farther away from his ear. “I’m dropping the fucking lawsuit! Happy now?”

Before Daniel could say anything in response, a click in the line indicated that Hannigan had hung up.

Shocked, he let himself fall back into his chair. When the door opened, he whirled his head in its direction.

“Everything all right?” Frances asked, a worried look on her face.

Numbly, he nodded. “That was Hannigan.”

“From the lawsuit?”

“He’s dropping it.”

“Well, congratulations. That new lawyer in San Francisco must be brilliant.”

“Yes, that lawyer is a genius.” Though he wasn’t talking about the lawyer Tim had referred him to, but an altogether more enticing one: Sabrina.

Sabrina had done this for him. She’d talked to the female staff at Brand, Freeman, and Merriweather behind his back and gotten them to come forward with their accusations against Hannigan. She’d put this all together, knowing that Hannigan would have no choice but to back off if he didn’t want to land in deep shit.

Daniel realized that he’d totally underestimated Sabrina.

“Frances, I’ll be gone for the rest of the day.”

He got up and snatched his jacket, then rushed out of the office. He couldn’t wait to see Sabrina and thank her for what she’d done.

***

Holly was due to arrive in about two hours. Sabrina had spent the early afternoon in the kitchen, preparing dinner in advance, knowing that Holly wouldn’t want to go out after spending six hours on a plane. She couldn’t wait to see Holly again, spend time with her, and catch up on all the gossip.

Sabrina covered the casserole and placed it in the refrigerator when the door bell chimed. She closed the refrigerator door and wondered if Maurice, the driver who would take her to the airport, was early.

“Coming,” she called out and rushed to the door. “I’m not quite ready, Maurice.”

She opened the door wide, then stopped in her movements. “Oh, you’re not Maurice.”

The Fedex delivery guy gave her a puzzled look, then handed her a large envelope. “Delivery for Sabrina Palmer.”

“That’s me.” She took the envelope.

“Sign here!”

Sabrina took the plastic stylus and scribbled her name on the display area.

“Have a nice day,” he said and disappeared.

Sabrina closed the door and looked at the thin envelope. The return address was a company located in New York, but she didn’t recognize it. Shrugging, she ripped the envelope open and peered inside.