“Okay, okay, I get it. You can convince Sabrina to do things no one else can. But that still doesn’t explain how you’re going to find her in a city you know nothing about.”

“I don’t have to find her. All I have to do is call her.”

Daniel shook his head. “She’s not answering her phone.”

“Maybe not for you, but she’ll answer my call. Because she needs a shoulder to cry on. I’m that shoulder,” Holly said, pointing at herself.

Daniel sighed in defeat. “Okay. And what do I do?”

“You, my dear friend, will do a couple of things. Go to Audrey’s apartment and confront her.”

“What’s that going to do?”

“Leave that up to me.” Holly smiled mischievously. “And secondly—” She pulled out a pen from her handbag and handed it to him. “I need some information.”

“Information?”

“Yep.” She pointed to the back of the picture. “Start writing.”

23

Upon arriving at Audrey’s co-op, Daniel had no problem taking the elevator up to her floor: the doorman let him pass without questioning him. It appeared that Audrey hadn’t revoked his guest privileges, clearly in the hope that he’d come back to her.

When he stood in front of her door, he took a deep breath, before ringing the doorbell. He waited rather impatiently, his finger poised over the doorbell to ring a second time, when the door suddenly opened.

Audrey’s housekeeper, Betty, greeted him. “Oh, Mr. Sinclair, you’re back!” She clapped her hands, and then smiled. “It’s so nice to see you again. It’s not the same around here without your handsome face.” She ushered him inside. “Miss Audrey will be so happy to see you.”

He doubted that, but didn’t make a comment to Betty. “Thanks, Betty. Would you tell her I’m here to see her, please?”

“Of course.”

She sauntered in the direction of Audrey’s bedroom. Had he still been with Audrey, he would have followed her, but there was no way he would ever get caught in her bedroom again.

While he waited, he perused Audrey’s lavishly decorated living room. He’d never liked her over-the-top taste and the heavy smell of perfume that always permeated her apartment.

Sabrina never wore heavy perfume like that. Instead, she enticed him with the natural scent of her body, a scent he couldn’t get enough of.

“Well, you’re finally back,” Audrey purred.

He turned and saw her walk into the open plan living area, moving as if she were walking on a catwalk. She was dressed just as skimpily as if she were a Victoria’s Secret model displaying their latest wares. The silk robe she’d thrown over her bra and panties revealed more than it concealed. Clearly, she’d been expecting him and had dressed for seduction.

He narrowed his eyes. “Yes, I’m back. I’m back to deal with you once and for all. Because this time, you’ve gone too far.”

“On the contrary. I haven’t gone far enough yet.” She loosened the belt to her robe.

“It’s not going to work,” he warned her. “So you might as well not waste your energy.”

She let out a laugh that in the past he’d found seductive. Now it had the opposite effect on him.

“Don’t be so sure. I know what you like. And I’m willing to give you what you need.” She slid the robe off her shoulders and allowed it to pool at her feet. Then she lifted one leg and placed her high heel on a footstool.

“I’m willing to do almost anything for us.”

“There is no us!” he corrected her, his voice remaining icy.

“There will be, just as soon as you’ve sent that little tramp home.”

“That’s never going to happen!”

She laughed. “Well, maybe you won’t have to send her home. Maybe she’s already retreating. I’m sure my little gift helped things along.”

Inside him something snapped. “You devious, rotten bitch!” He felt his face getting red and an abundance of adrenaline shoot through his veins. “We both know that you set all this up and staged that picture so that it would look like we were intimate.”

“Well of course I did. You weren’t exactly very forthcoming with your affections that day. I’m just trying to get you to see what a mistake you made by hooking up with that woman. I’m just making it easier for you to extricate yourself from this unfortunate relationship.”

Audrey took a few steps toward him. “We belong together, Daniel. And you should know by now that I always get what I want.”