As if he sensed the direction her thoughts had taken, he turned to her, and the heat in his eyes had her breath stopping in her throat. Suddenly, they might have been alone in the room. Workmen stepped around them, voices chattered, saws buzzed, but to Jordan, the sounds came from a distance. All she could think, all she knew was that she wanted Cash to kiss her. All she felt was a pull that came not just from him, but from something edgy and needy inside of her.
All she had to do was move just a little closer and his mouth would cover hers. She would feel again that sharp, dazzling pleasure she’d felt when he’d kissed her on the side of the road. She took the step.
“If I kiss you, I might not be able to stop.” His voice was low and rough. “Do you want me to see if I can get us a room?”
For a moment, Jordan was outrageously tempted. To spend the rest of the afternoon in a hotel room with Cash. To think only about the pleasure that they could bring one another. It would be wild and wonderful.
And completely impossible. Her sister was depending on her. “I can’t.”
Cash squeezed her hand and then released it. “Later, then. That’s a promise, Jordan.”
Her hand trembled as she took a catalog from a box. But scanning through it helped her gather her thoughts. “I want to see where they’ve put Maddie.”
The catalog listed the names and photos of exhibitors, along with a booth number. And in another moment or so, she’d be able to focus on them. The pictures would help tomorrow, she thought. She was banking on the fact that buyers would introduce themselves to her or hand her a card. But over the years, Maddie had become acquainted with other designers, and the last thing Jordan wanted to do was snub them. Of course, Maddie had named and described them, but having a picture—well, it truly was worth a thousand words. Noting Maddie’s booth number, she located it on the floor map of the exhibition hall and led the way.
“It’s a good spot,” she said when they reached it, pleased that her legs were working and her thoughts almost refocused. “Most people will take at least one complete tour of the room, but sometimes they skip the rows that run in the center.”
She watched as the workmen—one white-haired with a grizzled beard and a muscular build, the other just barely out of his teens, unloaded a stainless-steel-and-glass case. She could see from a glance at adjacent spaces that each exhibitor was getting one. When the display case was centered in the space, she approached the older man and extended her hand.
“Hi, I’m Maddie Farrell. This will be my booth tomorrow. I’m supposed to be getting two display cases.”
The white-haired man immediately frowned. “Not according to what I got here.” He pulled a clipboard off his cart, flipped over a few pages, then angled it so she could see. “Booth one-twelve—one case.”
As Jordan sighed and turned to Cash, she met his eyes and hoped that he would follow her lead. “It’s Aunt Amy again. She assured me she’d arranged for the extra case. I asked her several times. I’m afraid she’s getting more and more forgetful…”
Cash placed his hand on her shoulder. “You’re going to have to think about letting her go.”
“I’m not sure that I can. I’m the only family she has left, and she’s worked all her life. I can’t imagine her sitting home and taking up knitting.” Then with an apologetic smile, she turned back to the man with the clipboard. “My aunt—who is my secretary—said she’d talked to the man in charge of the exhibits and arranged for me to have a second case. Is there any chance that you could hunt me up one? I know you’re busy.”
“Busy doesn’t even begin to describe it, lady.” But his frown was fading. “How old is your aunt?”
“Nearly eighty.”
He studied her for a moment, then nodded. “You keep her on. My grandson and I will hunt you up a second case if we can.”
Jordan beamed a smile at him. “Thank you so much.”
“Nice job,” Cash said in an undertone as the two men wheeled their cart away.
“Thanks for picking up on what I was trying to do.”
“My pleasure.”
She was about to turn back to the case when she spotted a pretty young woman in tribal Navajo dress hurrying toward her. Even as her mind raced, her stomach knotted.
“It’s Lea Dashee,” Cash murmured in a low tone.
Right. Lea Dashee had gone to college with Maddie. She was slender, with long black hair, and the white dress she wore, with its silver beading, looked stunning on her. Silver jewelry design had been a tradition with the women in Lea’s family for hundreds of years.
“She’s Pete Blackthorn’s granddaughter. He’s the turquoise prospector I told you about. She may know how we can contact him.”
As Lea reached them, Jordan smiled. “Hello.”
The young woman threw her arms around Jordan and gave her a hard hug. “So good to see you. It’s a shame that we only get to see each other a couple of times a year at one of these things.”
“Don’t we say that all the time?”
“We do.” Lea laughed. “But then we go back and bury ourselves in our studios.” She drew back and gave Jordan a swift study. “Beautiful as always.”
“Ditto.”
Lea laughed again. “We always say that, too. And tomorrow we’ll oooh and aaah over each other’s designs.” She took one of Jordan’s hands and squeezed it. “You bring your appointment calendar with you. We’re going to make a definite date. Have lunch and hit some galleries. I’m going to watch you write it in.”
“It’s a deal.” Jordan made a mental note to hunt up an appointment calendar. It wouldn’t do for her to use her BlackBerry.
Lea turned her attention to Cash. “Don’t tell me you’ve suddenly developed an interest in jewelry?”
Cash tilted his head in Maddie’s direction. “She dragged me here in case she needed some hauling and lifting.”
“Good idea! I may ask a favor if you’re coming back tomorrow?”
Cash nodded. “Sure thing. But I need a favor right now. Maddie’s trying to get in touch with your grandfather. Do you know where we might find him?”
Lea thought for a minute. “He hasn’t been back to his trailer for a few days. Usually when he camps out, it’s in the hills to the southeast of Maddie’s ranch.” She glanced back at Jordan. “I’ll bet if you take a ride out, you’ll run into him there.”
“Thanks,” Jordan said.
Lea waved a hand as she hurried away. “Tomorrow.”
Jordan turned to Cash. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“My pleasure.” And it was, Cash thought. His pleasure deepened as he watched her move closer to examine the beveled glass case in great detail. She was totally focused now, just as she had been at the small café when she’d been poring over Maddie’s notes.
“If they get me that second case, we’ll angle them into a V.” Then she circled to the back of the booth and studied the wall. It had been painted a sunny yellow.
“Not bad. The color should work with the turquoise. And I packed some swatches of silk in nearly the same color.”
As she turned back to the display case, the wall behind her suddenly began to tilt forward. Moving on instinct, Cash shoved Jordan aside and braced both his palms against it.
For several seconds he struggled unsuccessfully against the downward momentum of the wall. He heard an ominous creak as the base slid an inch backward and the pressure against his arms built.
“Cash?”
“Stay away.” Sweat beaded on his forehead. Fear arrowed through him. He wasn’t going to win this battle.
8
TWO SETS OF HANDS suddenly joined Cash’s on the wall of the booth. Working as a team, he and the two men who’d come to his aid managed to get it back into position. The moment it was upright and balanced, Cash turned to one of the workmen. “Thanks. What the hell happened?”
One of the men had already moved behind the wall and dropped to his knees. Cash joined him.“Looks like someone didn’t fasten the braces tight enough. Pretty careless. These things can do quite a bit of damage if they fall.”
“Thanks.” Cash noted that there was plenty of room for someone to fit behind the booth. Plus there was an exit doorway right behind the wall. He shoved through it, but the hallway was empty.
“There. That should hold it,” said the man.
“Thanks.” Cash stepped around the now secured wall and moved to Jordan’s side. Pitching his voice low, he said, “Someone may have purposely unloosened the braces and then slipped out of the room.”
Or perhaps they’d edged their way behind several of the other booths and joined the throng of people in the exhibition hall. He scanned the room. Everyone was busy. Carts were moving, workmen were hoisting walls. Hammers pounded, saws whirred. No one seemed out of place. Not one person glanced guiltily in their direction. And no one was making a beeline for the door. Frustration raged inside of him. He wanted badly to get his hands on someone.
“You think someone wanted that wall to fall on purpose?” Jordan asked.
She had turned to study it. He followed the direction of her gaze, and in his mind he pictured just how the wall might have fallen, trapping her against the display case on the floor. The glass would have shattered, and she could have been badly hurt. “I’m not willing to completely trust coincidence.”