She put up a hand. “Excuse me a minute, guys,” she said, giving her team an apologetic smile. “I have to take this call.” They all nodded and Melanie slipped out of the conference room and went to stand at the end of the hall where she had a little more privacy.
“Hi, Sloane,” she said, keeping her voice low. “Is everything all right?” It was unusual for him to call her in the middle of the day and the fact that he had, caused her a twinge of worry.
“All’s good,” he said, his voice strangely wary, “but what about you? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said, feeling slightly confused. “Why?” And then she knew. Her face broke into a smile. “Oh, you. Naughty, naughty. Come on, it’s only eleven o’clock in the morning. Couldn’t you at least wait until the afternoon?”
There was a pause then Sloane let his breath out in a whoosh. “Thank God you’re all right.”
Melanie frowned. “Of course I’m all right. Why wouldn’t I be? Sloane, what’s going on?”
“I’m not sure. I’ll talk to you when you get home tonight. Just be careful today, okay?"
“Okay,” she said, stretching out the word. Sloane was acting really weird. She would have loved to question him further but she had a room full of executives waiting for her. “Uh, Sloane, I’ve got to go. Talk to you later, okay?”
“Okay,” he said, sounding like he wanted to say something more but then he didn’t.
“Bye,” she said, and hung up. And then she was heading back to her meeting, forgetting all about her conversation with Sloane, caught up once again in the drama that was unfolding in the conference room. On the advice of her chief operating officer she’d made a hasty decision in her effort inject new life into the film division. Instead of shoring up the business, everything had hit the fan. Now she would have to face the consequences.
It was a huge blow to her ego, knowing she had fumbled, but she was the captain of this ship. She would just have to pick up the pieces and sail on. But the thought of having to tell her father made her cringe.
That night when Melanie got home Sloane was waiting for her. As soon as she walked in the door he came over and took her briefcase from her grasp and, brows furrowed, looked into her eyes. “Are you okay?”
Melanie shrugged. “Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be?” Then she frowned. “You’ve been acting really strange today. What gives?” And then it dawned on her. Somehow, Sloane must have known about her disastrous business deal with Rapid Films. How he’d heard, she had no idea, but obviously he was aware, or else why would he keep questioning her, asking how she was?
And then she tightened her lips. If Sloane had found out then that meant she had a leak in the company and that was not good. She couldn’t have corporate secrets getting out like that. If Sloane knew about it then who else out there did, too?
She gave him a pointed look. “Sloane, answer me. Why do you keep asking how I’m doing? What do you know that you’re not telling me?”
His answer was to take her arm and lead her into the living room where he pressed her down onto the sofa. “We need to talk.”
Melanie’s heart sank. No conversation that began with ‘we need to talk’ ever ended well. Her heart thumping, she stared up into his face. So he’d found out that Parker Broadcasting had a division that was in a serious financial crisis. She was sure he was going to blast her about it but else was he going to do? Then a thought struck her, a really frightening idea. Oh God, what if he thought she’d demanded a baby and then married him because one of her companies was in trouble and she wanted him to bail her out? What if he’d called her in here to tell her he wanted a divorce?
She opened her mouth to speak, anxious to explain herself before he started his reprimand, but she never got the chance.
“There’s something you should know,” Sloane said, his face serious, “something that could affect your safety.”
Her safety? Melanie tilted her head, confused. That was the last thing she’d expected Sloane to say. “What do you mean?” she asked, watching his expression change from concern to something like anger then back to worry. Something was definitely not right. “Sloane, what is it?”
He put his fist to his lips, his eyes thoughtful, then he sat down beside her. “Remember that woman we talked about? Zena. My ex.”
“Of course I remember her. What about her?” If Sloane was now going to tell her he suddenly realized he had feelings for his ex, she would kill him.
“She’s up to something. I don’t know what it is, but she said something that made me fear for your safety.”
“My safety?” Melanie gave him a puzzled look. “She doesn’t even know me...well, outside of the time she saw me at Patrick’s, but she acted like I didn’t even exist.”
“I know,” he said, “but she’s very much aware of your existence.” His look grew more serious. “And that you’re my wife.” He drew in a breath then expelled it. “She hates me and is bent on revenge but she wants to hurt me through you. I don’t know what she’s planning but I want you to be careful. Do you understand?”
Melanie’s eyes widened but she nodded. “Yes. Do you…think we should go to the police?”
Slowly, he shook his head. “I wish we could but right now it’s just my word against hers. She can deny everything I tell them. And the worst part is, I have no idea what angle she plans to come from.” He reached out and took her hand in his. “I’m assigning a bodyguard to you from here on.”
“But I don’t do bodyguards-”
He put a finger to her lips, cutting her off. “It’s non-negotiable. You are not leaving this house without one.”
“Okay, if you say so…”
“I say so. Now come on,” he said, standing up and pulling her with him, “let’s get you some dinner. You must be starving.”