Jack winks at her. “She’s in tip-top shape.”

  I nod while I sigh, glad to hear it.

  “So here’s the deal, Mags,” Jack says. “You’re coming with me. That way, it looks as if the three of us—you, Vince, and I—are engaged in A&Rt business.”

  “Yes. That’s smart. Thank you,” I say, relieved.

  There’s another knock on the door. I look from Jack to Daisy with wide eyes.

  I grab my heart in hopes that what I feel is real. “Vince.” I run to the door and open it. My heart sinks. “Robert?”

  The corners of his eyes turn down sympathetically. “Sorry, Maggie. I told the front desk you were expecting me.”

  I let Robert in, and we gather in the sitting area but no one sits. The first thing he tells us is that he remembers the type of car he saw before Vince disappeared.

  “A Cadillac?” Jack repeats.

  “Yeah. The kind that’s used for shuttling.”

  Jack nods while wrinkling his eyebrows. “That’s a good start. It’s likely that whoever was in that car wasn’t local.”

  “The car was a rental?” Robert says.

  “Perhaps,” Jacks says then frowns dubiously. He sighs. “We should get started. I don’t want this to get too far ahead of us—timing is everything.”

  We decide that’s a good idea. Robert drives Daisy back to Anne’s house for breakfast. She’ll be staying at Jack’s parents’ house, which Jack has renovated to the max since Aunt Carlotta and Uncle Charles died so many years ago. He doesn’t want her there alone, which is typical Jack, so Robert agrees to stay with her. There was a time I would have cringed at the thought of Daisy alone in a house with a scoundrel like Robert Tango, but I’ve noticed a marked difference in him.

  I sit on the sofa alone while Jack, Daisy, and Robert go downstairs to transfer Daisy’s things to Robert’s car. Every second that Vince is gone feels like an eternity. I rack my brain, trying to figure out who would just snatch Vince out of thin air. Normally, I’m really good at figuring out mysteries. The fact that I can’t come up with one viable suspect drives me crazy.

  Wait. Could it have been Emily? She and Vince’s sisters have gone through great lengths to sabotage our wedding. Maybe the sister’s kidnapped him just to keep us apart.

  The key-code makes a sound, and the door opens. I turn to see Jack taking deliberate steps in my direction. I shoot to my feet and my suspicions about Emily and Vince’s sisters pour out of my mouth like a tsunami of blame.

  Jack waves a hand dismissively. “No. They’re clear.”

  “How do you know?”

  He stops in front of me. “I spoke to Vince while he was in New York this past weekend. He told me the women were giving you a hard time so he wanted to hurry and get back. So I had them all checked out during our flight to Denver. None of them exhibit suspicious or incriminating behavior.”

  My shoulders as I hug myself while staring at him with solemn eyes.

  He squeezes my shoulder. “Have a seat, Maggie.”

  I sit back down and look up at him with solemn eyes. My hopes have been thwarted.

  Jack sits next to me. “Have no doubt that we will find Vince, but I need you to follow my gut and not your own—got it?”

  I nod as if he’s merely stating the obvious. But his dire tone has me more alarmed than I was at first. “What do you think happened to him?”

  He studies my face and then takes the intensity out of his own expression. “I don’t know, but people don’t just vanish into thin air. Something happened to them. But you and I are in a unique position to find Vince because of all the tools I have at my disposal.”

  “What tools?”

  “That’s one of the questions I need for you not to ask. Whatever happened to Vince—if he ran off with someone else—”

  “He didn’t.”

  Jack presses his lips together in a patronizing smile. “I know.”

  I don’t believe him. I think he does think it’s possible. But he wasn’t with us in Hawaii. Vince and I are just as in love and needing of each other as he and Daisy are.

  I shake my head resolutely. “Vince would never do that to me and that’s a fact.”

  He pats my leg. “I believe you. Now let’s get the show on the road.” He leaps to his feet.

  I let his energy pervade me as I get up and grab my purse off the dresser.

  “You won’t be needing that,” Jack says. He’s already standing at the door.

  “But I need my ID and my…”

  “Leave it.”

  I frown while studying his expression. He’s serious. “Okay.” I gently push my purse against the wall.

  Jack holds the door for me as I leave the room. My hands are sweaty and my heart is jumpy. I have no idea what’s supposed to happen next.

  “Can I ask you where we’re going?” I say as we walk down the hallway.

  We stop at the elevator, and Jack pushes the down button. “To the airport.”

  “We’re leaving town?” I ask, shocked.

  The elevator doors slide open, and we step inside.

  Jack presses L for lobby. “I’m positive Vince isn’t still in Colorado.”

  I furrow my brows. “How do you know?”

  “I’ll show you once we get to where we’re going.”

  I’m about to demand he tell me where that is, then I remember his directives. I still wonder why he insists on all the secrecy. Come to think of it, Jack is always secretive. I think he’s more comfortable operating that way.

  I scratch my ear as anxiety brews throughout my body. I don’t have to be in control, but I still want to at least be on equal footing with Jack in this situation. “And that’s to the airport?”

  “Yes,” Jack says.

  “And I can’t ask you where we’re going?”

  He folds his hands together in front of him. “You already have.”

  “But you haven’t answered.”

  “No I have not.”

  I roll my eyes while groaning.

  Jack puts his hands on my shoulders and looks me straight in the eyes. “Maggie. I’m letting you in because I trust you can handle it. Don’t make me regret my decision. You’re going to have to trust me more than you have ever had. Okay?”

  I take a long sigh and hang my head. The truth is Jack has never let me down—ever. I’m pretty sure he’s not going to start now.

  “Okay,” I say. “Your way, not mine.”

  Chapter Six

  ROBERT TANGO

  My hands are steady as I clutch the steering wheel. I try to appear cool, calm and collected but inside, I’m as nervous as hell. I’m alone with Jack Lord’s wife? No man in the world would leave a woman as beautiful as she is in my care, let alone trust me to stay in his house alone with her. But just by her demeanor, I can tell that Daisy is not the kind of woman who would cross those lines, or at least I don’t get that vibe from her.

  Daisy remains quiet as I drive down the highway. She has one hand on her pregnant stomach as she stares out the window. I shift nervously in my seat.

  “So is this your first time in Colorado?” I ask.

  I glance at her just in time to see her face me. She’s a rare beauty.

  “No,” she says with a delicate smile.

  That was a stupid question. Of course it isn’t her first time here. I’m suddenly hot so I pull at my collar.

  “I heard your bakery is pretty happening,” I say, trying to recover from my previous thoughtless question.

  Her smile turns broader. “Yeah, we’re doing pretty well.”

  I wait for her to say more. Damn if she isn’t a woman of few words. “It’s a French bakery, right?”

  “Right.”

  “And your specialty is beignets?”

  “They’ll melt in your mouth,” she sings proudly.

  I toss my head back to laugh. I hadn’t expected her to say that. “And why is that?”

  She goes on to enlighten me on what’s so good about her beignets then divulges her “secret” recipe step by step, adding that she learned how to make them from a French woman who lives at her father’s chateau in Bordeaux.

  I find Mrs. Lord very interesting. She and Jack brought the French woman who taught her how to make perfect pastries to the States and set her up in the cottage of Jack’s vineyard in Montecito. The place looks just like her cottage in France, but within three days she was ready for them to put her on an airplane and fly her back to France.

  “This is not too much,” Daisy says with a French accent. “But what she really meant was that it was too much.” Daisy chuckles and throws her hands up. “There was nothing around but grapevines, olive groves, and a horse stable. She didn’t even have to go to the restaurant to cook!”

  I glance at Daisy long enough to watch her look off thoughtfully.

  She smiles slightly. “I guess she missed her family and friends. So Belmont and I ended up spending two months in Bordeaux while Ines taught me everything she knows about baking mouthwatering pastries.” After a brief pause, she chuckles. “She was like a pint-sized drill sergeant. She would slap my hand when I put a pinch too much flour in the batter. But she would reward me with a wet kiss on the cheek when I did something right. It was the most strange, rewarding and intense training I had ever undergone.”

  “Seems as though her method worked.”

  “It certainly did!”

  I smile. “Says your cash register.”

  Daisy’s grin grows wider as she shrugs her eyebrows in agreement.

  I toss my head back and laugh harder.

  Regardless of the heaviness that had broken out surrounding Vince’s disappearance, I’m smiling from ear to ear. I want to ask if this is how she landed Jack Lord, by being charming as hell, but instead, I laugh some more at another story she tells me about pet-sitting a naughty little “purse dog” for one of her friends. The dog pissed on all her walls, gnawed on her furniture and jumped into the swimming pool.

  “Belmont had to dive in and save him! Poor thing was so spoiled that he didn’t know how to dogpaddle.”

  I’m still laughing when I stop in front of Vince’s mother’s house. Four cars are parked in the drive.

  Daisy’s slight smile fades. “There are a lot of people here.”

  “Anne prefers a full house, and she damn well makes sure she always has one,” I say.

  Daisy turns to look at me inquisitively. “Interesting.”

  I shift in my seat. It’s as though she can read deep into the comment I made.

  “Just so we’re clear: Vince is with Maggie and Belmont. He and Maggie apologize for having to leave so suddenly, but the show will go on Saturday afternoon at five o’clock as planned.”

  I nod. “Got it.”

  Daisy looks back at the house with a frown. “Good.”

  When we walk inside, everyone has already gathered for breakfast. At least thirteen people are sitting around the long table. I recognize just about everyone at first sight. There’s one face that I’ve seen before but can’t quite place. She gives me a strange smirk then stares at Daisy. Carter is watching me as I watch the familiar woman. But then she looks away as soon as I look at her.

  Daisy smiles pleasantly as all eyes fall on her. She has the biggest presence in the room. I’m sure she’s used to being gawked at, which is why it’s no surprise that she’s not rattled.

  I clear my throat. “This is Daisy Lord, Jack Lord’s wife.”

  “Good morning,” Daisy says, in complete control. She places a hand over her heart. “Maggie will be gone for a few days, along with Vince and my husband. A serious emergency came up.”

  “What—” Anne begins.

  Daisy takes her hand off her chest and gently raises it to put her at ease. “It’s nothing dire, only work. The company is going through a difficult time right now, and they really need Maggie’s expertise to dig them out of this hole.”

  Lexie snorts bitterly. “I’m sorry, but what’s her expertise?”

  The green light switches on. Daisy will be facing Vince’s sisters’ bitchery starting right now.

  Daisy looks Lexie straight in the eyes without flinching. “Maggie is a superior marketing expert, one of the best in the world.”

  Lexie sneers for a moment, but then she straightens her face and sits back in her seat without a rebuttal. I’m shocked by how quickly Lexie backed down from an opportunity to belittle Maggie. She’s been spreading rumors about Maggie being a gold digger, even though not only is Maggie is successful in her own right but she’s got the Lord billions at her disposal. Both Jack and Charlie will stop whatever they’re doing to run and help her whenever she needs them.

  Anne shoots to her feet. “Well, we’re glad to have you as our guest, Mrs. Lord. I’m afraid we’re out of rooms but—”

  “That’s fine. I’m staying at our home here in town. It’s not far,” Daisy says.

  Anne touches her chest. “Oh, Carlotta and Charles’ manor.”

  “Yes.”

  “I heard Jack did a lot of work to it.”

  Daisy maintains her gracious smile. “Yes, he did.”

  “Well, I guess that’s that.” By the look on Anne’s face, she really doesn’t like the fact that she wouldn’t have the opportunity to make space for another guest, especially Jack Lord’s wife. Anne points to an empty chair. “Well, why don’t you have a seat over there?”

  “Thank you,” Daisy says, maintaining her pleasant demeanor.

  “Robert, why don’t you sit between Carter and Allie?”

  I really want to trade seats with Daisy. She’s sitting next to Maggie’s copper-haired friend. She hasn’t stopped smirking since Daisy and I arrived, and her name still eludes me. We met once at one of Maggie’s birthday parties. I remember admiring her long legs and beautiful eyes. I thought she was hot, but I didn’t want to hit on her or anything. Something about her screamed, “Stay away” and still does. So I can resist Maggie’s friend, but smelling the sweet floral scent of Carter’s perfume or shampoo and feeling her energy would make it harder to resist Carter.

  Finally, I take a seat. “Morning, ladies.”

  “Up early, I see,” Allie says. Her tone always insinuates that I’ve been out doing something wrong. However, I have decades of experience in handling Allie.

  I wink at her. “Then that means I caught the worm.”

  She looks off and mumbles, “Apparently, you went out and caught Mrs. Lord.”

  I don’t let her get away with that one. Daisy doesn’t deserve her scandalous insinuation. “What are you trying to say, Allie?”

  She sniffs and turns away to whisper something to the poor schlub she’s supposed to be marrying.

  I shake my head and turn to Carter.

  Carter rolls her eyes and mouths, “Ignore her.”

  I smile, thankful for the obvious advice. “How did you sleep last night?”

  Carter massages her neck. “On a pullout sofa in the den.”

  Suddenly, Anne claps her hands to get everyone’s attention. Carter and I are forced to rip our gazes away from each other.

  “Well”—Anne looks around the table—“the bride isn’t here. That’s what happens when your son marries a busy woman.” She smiles at Daisy.

  Daisy maintains an indifferent expression.

  Anne ruffles her eyebrows a little but continues. “But I promised Maggie that from this point on, we will thank Emily for her services, but we will no longer be using them.”

  Maggie’s friend snorts cynically. “Emily? Emily Calhoun or Callahan or something? Isn’t that the bitch who tried to steal Vince from her?”

  Everyone at the table looks at her in awe. Now I remember her name—it’s Monroe. She’s notorious for being irreverent.

  “Well, I’m here to help move the wedding plans along,” Daisy says on cue.

  “We’re glad to have you,” Anne says, seemingly thankful to Daisy for taking the sting out of Monroe’s comment. “This afternoon, we’re finalizing the cake and the venue’s decorations.”

  “Perfect,” Daisy says.

  Anne smiles at her. I’ve seen that smile many times before. Daisy has won her over—Anne will be putty in Mrs. Lord’s hands.

  “I still don’t understand why we have to let Emily go,” Maddie says.

  “You wouldn’t,” Monroe says.

  My eyes expand in disbelief. Monroe just will not let up.

  “Excuse me?” Maddie snarls, part insulted and part incensed.

  Monroe shakes her finger at her. “You and your sisters have been making this shit hard for Maggie from the beginning. Now”—she points at me—“you’re Robert Tango, aren’t you?”

  I’m tongue-tied for a moment. “Um, sure…”

  Daisy puts her hand on Monroe’s shoulder and looks her dead in the eyes. “Could we not do this now, please?”

  Monroe’s face goes through various expressions before she settles on an eyebrow shrug and a conciliatory, “Whatever.”

  As breakfast ensues, everyone who isn’t involved in the wedding planning is forced to sit and listen to the sisters duke it out with Monroe over decorating the ranch for the wedding ceremony and reception. It’s sort of entertaining to watch Monroe not back down from Lexie and Maddie’s intimidating tactics, which are composed of whining, raising their voices, and asking questions in a snippy and sarcastic tone.

  “Vince likes silver. He wants it draped over the top of the benches,” Lexie says.

  Monroe whips her face around to glare at Daisy. Her expression asks, “Can you believe this?”

  She turns her grimace back on Lexie. “Well, Maggie sometimes likes the rustic look, which I gather is the reason why she let you put her wedding in a fucking barn in the first place. But she doesn’t like tacky, and silver covers over wooden benches are tacky.”

  Lexie rears back and expands her eyes as though she’s been slapped in the face.

  “Hey, let’s watch our language,” Kevin, Lexie’s husband, chimes in.

  Monroe scowls at him as if he just dropped in from outer space and is speaking a language she doesn’t care to learn. She guides her finger between Vince’s sisters and mom. “And about the catering and cake and shit like that—you know very well that Vince couldn’t give a flying fuck about it. What you have been doing is using his name to give my friend a hard time. Well, that’s over. I want to see every fucking thing from the cake to the rice you’re going to throw when Maggie and Vince run the fuck away from this cluster-fuck.”