St Helens 02 Zinnia Page 20

  "We can't be sure yet that it wasn't related to the journal."

  She glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

  "Have you been having trouble with your car lately?"

  "No."

  "It just quit on you tonight with no warning?"

  "That's right." She crossed her arms. "A few sputters and then it stopped cold. Right in the middle of a deserted neighborhood."

  "Not like a good jelly-ice engine to up and die without warning. I'll have a mechanic check it out tomorrow."

  "Are you saying you think someone sabotaged it?"

  "I'm saying it needs to be looked at. Once we have a mechanic's verdict, we'll take it from there."

  "Even if someone did fool with it," she said, "that doesn't mean the someone in question wasn't good old Cedric trying to stage another photo op."

  "I know. In which case, in addition to losing his job, he'll pay for the repairs."

  "Nick, the best thing you can do is forget Dexter and Synsation. Trust me on this. I've been through scandals before. The only way to survive them is to ignore them. Eventually they go away. You can't buy respectability with a lawsuit against a tabloid photographer."

  "I'll deal with Dexter later. Zinnia, we have to talk."

  "Yes." She gazed straight ahead through the windshield. "I suppose we do. What did you discover today when you went to the forger's house?"

  He frowned. "That wasn't what I wanted to discuss."

  "Do you want our partnership to continue?" she asked much too sweetly.

  "Damn it, yes, I want the partnership to continue." He realized he was struggling to hold on to his temper. "But we're also lovers now and that's what I want to talk about tonight."

  "I'd rather not," she said primly.

  A strange kind of panic seized him. "You were disappointed, weren't you? You waited a long time to have sex and the experience didn't live up to your expectations. Look, I'm sorry. I rushed things. Next time—"

  "For heaven's sake, will you stop talking about sex?" She half turned in her seat. Her eyes blazed in the shadows. "Sex has nothing to do with this."

  He tried to assimilate that. "It doesn't?"

  "Can't you get it through that thick matrix-talent head of yours that I'm not mad because the sex was a disappointment? It was what happened afterward that upset me."

  "Afterward?" Nick relaxed slightly. This he could handle. "Right. The photo in this morning's paper. I'm very sorry about that. I thought I had got the film out of Dexter's camera. Obviously it was a decoy roll. I promise I'll take care of him tomorrow."

  "For a supposedly brilliant matrix, you're as dumb as a bowl of jelly-ice when it comes to some things. Listen to me, Nick Chastain, it wasn't the photo that annoyed me."

  He sighed. "You're angry because I went to see the forger with Leo and didn't take you along."

  "Congratulations on the stunning flash of insight."

  "I explained that. I had to move quickly. There wasn't time to call you and arrange an appointment with Wilkes."

  She drummed her fingers on her jean-clad leg. "Did you find anything of significance?"

  "Maybe." He eyed her warily, uncertain of her mood.

  "Talk, Chastain."

  "I told you that Wilkes had skipped out before we arrived."

  "And someone had searched his workshop?"

  "Yes. Looking for financial records related to the forgery of the Chastain journal."

  She turned her head to study him. "How can you be sure of that?"

  He hesitated and then reached into the pocket of his jacket. "Leo and I didn't find any useful financial data, but I did discover this."

  He put the cuff link in her palm. It gleamed in the lights of the dash.

  "I don't understand." Zinnia examined the small gold link. "Do you think it belongs to Wilkes or to the man who searched his workshop?"

  "It belongs to my uncle, Orrin Chastain."

  Zinnia sucked in a deep breath. "The head of Chastain, Inc.?"

  "Yes."

  "What was it doing in the forger's workshop?"

  "Good question," Nick said. "I haven't had a chance to ask him. I intend to do so tomorrow. This isn't the first time his name has come up in connection with this mess."

  She closed her hand around the cuff link. "You didn't mention that little fact."

  He felt a sudden need to explain his silence on the subject. "I didn't say anything because—hell, I don't know why I didn't tell you. But it wasn't because I'm a paranoid matrix. I just wanted to think about the situation for a while, that's all."

  She raised one shoulder in a small shrug. "You didn't tell me because it was a family thing. Your first instinct was to protect your uncle until you knew what was going on. Perfectly understandable. I'd have done the same in your place."

  He was startled. Then he tightened his hands on the bar. "Don't make me into a saint over this. Orrin and I can barely stand the sight of each other. There's no love lost between us."

  "But you are family."

  "Not in his view."

  "Never mind. You did what you had to do. I can respect that."

  "You can?"

  She smiled for the first time since he had collected her from the temple office. "I know it must have been difficult for you to share this information with me. But because you did, I'm willing to let bygones be bygones. You can consider our partnership to be reinstated."

  He took a deep breath. "What about our affair?"

  "I'm going to have to think about that. To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure if it's a good idea for me to have an affair with you."

  He felt as if he had just been run over by a fast-moving glacier. He struggled to breathe. The air was so cold it froze in his lungs.

  "I see," he managed after an eternity had passed. "Let me know when you've made up your mind."

  "I'll do that." She gave him an unreadable look. "But for the record, I wasn't disappointed last night."

  Chapter 17

  The first thing Zinnia saw when she opened the door of her loft apartment the following morning was the photograph of Nick and herself on the steps of the Children of Earth Temple. It was on the front page of the new copy of Synsation.

  "Great shot." Leo stood directly behind the paper, holding it up so that she could not miss the picture or the caption.

  Has Casino Owner Nick Chastain seen the blue light? Or is this his idea of how to show the Scarlet Lady a good time?

  "Cedric Dexter strikes again," Zinnia said with a groan of resignation.

  "Synsation sales will go through the roof today."

  "Oh, lord." Zinnia snatched the paper out of his hand. "Nick is going to be very upset about this."

  "Very upset?" Leo chuckled as he walked through the door. "I wouldn't be surprised if he put Synsation out of business before the day is over."

  "He couldn't possibly do something that drastic."

  "Wanna bet? Something tells me Nick could do just about anything he decides to do."

  Zinnia's brows rose at the note of masculine admiration in her brother's voice. She closed the door and turned around. "What's this? Since when did you become a fan of Nick Chastain?"

  "He's okay." Leo ambled into the kitchen, opened the icerator, and began to rummage around inside. "We had a long talk yesterday."

  "Before or after the two of you went merrily off to search Alfred Wilkes's house?"

  "Before." Leo removed a carton of fruit juice from the refrigerator. "You know, I've been thinking."

  "About what?"

  "That's quite an operation Nick has there at Chastain's Palace. Very impressive, when you consider it. A lot of money goes through that place. Too bad for Chastain, Inc. that Nick didn't inherit the family business."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Uncle Stanley mentioned the other day that there are rumors that Chastain, Inc. is going through a rough patch. The firm apparently needs a major infusion of cash but can't seem to interest any big investors."

  "What's
Nick got to do with it?"

  "Nothing, really." Leo poured the juice into a glass. "It's just that I doubt that Chastain, Inc. would be in trouble if Nick were running the firm. The man has a talent for making money."

  "The money is only a means to an end for him." Zinnia tossed the tabloid into the trash. "He's applied himself to making a lot of it because he thinks it will help him achieve his real goal."

  Leo finished the last of the juice in a single gulp. "What's that?"

  "Respectability."

  Leo grimaced. "Tell him respectability is not all its cracked up to be."

  "I tried." She reached for the coff-tea pot. "But he wants it for his future offspring. He knows what it's like to live without it and he's determined that his children won't have to go through what he went through as a bastard."

  Leo whistled softly. "Hard to argue that one."

  She wrinkled her nose. "Besides, he's a matrix. Once they make up their minds, it's almost impossible to change them. They can be incredibly stubborn."

  Leo grinned.

  "What so funny?"

  "I told him pretty much the same thing about you yesterday."

  "Thanks a lot."

  Leo laughed. "You know, the two of you make quite a pair."

  Zinnia stilled. Then she concentrated very hard on her coif-tea.

  "Zinnia?" Leo's laughter faded. A speculative look dawned in his eyes. "There's no chance that the two of you might get together on a permanent basis, is there?"

  She slammed her coff-tea cup down on the counter. "He's arrogant, inflexible, overcontrolling, secretive, and obsessive about his goals, of which he currently has only two. He wants to get his hands on his father's journal and he wants respectability. What do you think?"

  "I just wondered," Leo said dryly.

  "And besides, I was officially declared unmatchable, if you will recall."

  "You've been hiding behind that long enough. But it's not doing you any good. If anything, it just makes it easier for Aunt Willy and the others to pressure you into an unmatched marriage."

  "I know, I know."

  "Things change." Leo's expression grew oddly intent. "New people register every day at the agencies. Who knows who's out there now? Mr. Right might be filling out his agency questionnaire even as we speak."

  "Not bloody likely."

  "Tell your boss that Nick Chastain wants to talk to him. Now." Nick cradled the phone against his shoulder and turned the page of the lengthy Synergistic Connections questionnaire. "If he doesn't want to talk to me, I can make arrangements to see him in person."

  The receptionist on the other end of the line swallowed audibly. "Yes, sir. One moment, please."

  Nick glanced at the next row of questions while he waited for the editor of Synsation to come on the line.

  Please list your hobbies.

  That was an easy one. He had no hobbies. If something was not sufficiently important to warrant his full attention, he ignored it. He filled in the blank with the word none.

  "Nick Chastain? Bill Ramsey here." Ramsey's voice was unrelentingly cheerful. "I'm the front-page editor of Synsation. What can I do for you?"

  "You can fire Cedric Dexter. I want him gone by the end of the day."

  "Sorry, no can do." Ramsey chuckled. "Dexter's only been working for me for a month, but he's already proven himself to be the best photographer on the staff."

  Nick put down his pen. "Listen to me, Ramsey, I've had it with Dexter's cute tricks. Last night he went top far. He stalked Miss Spring through the fog to get his shot. It was a terrifying experience for her. I want him gone or your trashy little newspaper will be out of business by the end of the month."

  "Take it easy, Chastain. We're both businessmen. I don't tell you how to run your casino. You don't tell me how to run my newspaper."

  "You're wrong," Nick said very softly. "I am telling you how to run your newspaper. One more photo of Miss Spring in your rag and Synsation is yesterday's news. I can do it, Ramsey. Believe me."

  "Look, what say we talk about this man to man? We can make a deal. Give me a solid story. Confirm the rumors about your plans for marriage and the sale of Chastain's Palace and I'll call off my photographer."

  "I do not discuss my personal affairs with the tabloids. If you want to stay in business, Ramsey, you will get rid of Dexter sometime in the next ten minutes."

  "Be reasonable. I've got a paper to get out here."

  Nick hung up the phone before Ramsey finished whining. He went back to the questionnaire and was relieved to see that he was almost through. Who could have guessed that there would be so many idiotic questions? And this was only the first step in the matchmaking process.

  How much of your time is devoted to the above listed hobbies?

  Nick picked up his pen again and dutifully wrote none.

  A single knock sounded on the door of the reception chamber.

  "What is it, Feather?"

  Feather opened the door. "Mr. Batt to see you, boss."

  "He's early. I told him I'd have this damned questionnaire filled out by noon."

  Before Feather could respond, Hobart Batt, looking particularly stylish in an off-white suit and matching bow tie, bounced through the doorway. He bristled with outrage as he waved the day's edition of Synsation.

  "This is simply too much, Mr. Chastain. I am a professional. I cannot be expected to work under these conditions."

  "Calm down, I've taken care of the situation."

  "Taken care of it?" Hobart's voice rose. "You can't take care of something like this. It's too late to take care of it. This issue of Synsation is all over town. Mr. Chastain, you are making my job a thousand times more impossible than it was at the beginning of our association. And that was bad enough."

  "There won't be any more photos in Synsation."

  "Don't you understand?" Hobart almost hopped up and down in his agitation. "You and Miss Spring have been featured in this rag three times in recent days. Every photo of the two of you together makes you less desirable as a prospective spouse."

  "I'm sure you'll be able to overcome these slight setbacks."

  "These aren't slight setbacks." Hobart slapped the paper down on Nick's desk. "These are disasters."

  Nick glanced at the photo of Zinnia and himself on the temple steps. Dexter had done a nice job of framing the shot. He had captured the imposing doorway and the glowing blue dome. There was no doubt about the location.

  "Don't worry about it, Batt."

  Hobart simmered with righteous indignation. "Mr. Chastain, you were very specific in your requirements for a wife. To be quite crass about it, you wish to marry up in the world. You stated that you wanted a spouse from one of New Seattle's most elite families."

  "Listen, Batt—"

  "You also told me that you wished to be properly matched. It is going to be difficult enough as it is, given your professional, psychic, and personal attributes. None of which, I might add, do you any credit."

  "I never said it would be easy. That's why I have you, Batt."

  "I'm doing my best under exceptionally difficult circumstances." Hobart stabbed a finger at the photo. "But how do you expect me to find you a respectable wife if you keep showing up on the front page of Synsation in these compromising photos with Miss Spring?"

  "There was nothing compromising about that photograph."

  "Not compromising?" Hobart gave him an incredulous look. "The two of you on the very steps of one of the most disreputable Return cults in town? Don't be ridiculous. You have no notion of the damage you have done. Bad enough that most people think that you are only one step above the level of a gangster. Now they'll think that you've either got financial dealings with a cult or that you've joined one. And Miss Spring's presence doesn't add what one could call a positive note."

  "Leave Miss Spring out of it." Nick planted his hands flat on the desk and shoved himself to his feet. "She has nothing to do with this."

  "On the contrary." Hobart drew himself u
p. "I must tell you that these recent photos in Synsation have very likely revived old gossip concerning a scandal in which she was deeply involved a year and a half ago."

  "I don't give a damn about that scandal."

  "Well, you certainly should. It was linked to the Eatons, a very distinguished family. It is precisely their social circle that you wish to marry into, Mr. Chastain. Everyone in that very exclusive crowd knows about Miss Spring's shameful affair with Rexford Eaton. Mr. Eaton is a married man, you know."

  "Miss Spring did not have an affair with Rexford Eaton," Nick said evenly. "I can personally testify to that fact. Anyone who says otherwise is a liar."

  Hobart was unfazed. "The facts do not matter, sir. Only the perception. And as far as everyone in that particular social strata is concerned, she did have an affair with Eaton."

  "Say one more word about Miss Spring and I will personally separate your head from your shoulders."

  "Am I interrupting anything?" Zinnia asked politely from the doorway.

  Nick swung around and saw her. The sense of awareness he always experienced in her presence swept through him. She was wearing a rakish little wrap dress with a long sweep of a skirt. The color was lipstick red. Her eyes gleamed with comprehension and something else, something he could not name. But he knew that she had overheard far more than he would have liked.

  "Miss Spring." He dampened the outward evidence of his anger with the ease of long practice. "I didn't hear the door open. This is Hobart Batt of Synergistic Connections."

  "How do you do, Mr. Batt?" She smiled coolly at Hobart.

  Hobart flushed. "Miss Spring." He adjusted the crisp knot of his off-white tie. "A pleasure to meet you."

  "Thank you." Zinnia walked forward. "Is Mrs. Lane still with Synergistic Connections? She was the syn-psych counselor who declared me unmatchable when I registered four years ago."

  The color deepened in Hobart's face. It did not go well with his suit. "Yes, Mrs. Lane is still with the agency. You cannot imagine how difficult your case was for her. She has never forgotten the experience."

  Zinnia propped herself on the corner of Nick's desk. "Neither have I."

  "Yes, yes, I'm sure you haven't." Hobart looked deeply embarrassed. "Synergistic Connections prides itself on its extremely high success rate with difficult clients. Your case has become something of a legend in the agency."