Manhattan Merger

Drew pursed his lips. “You have an aura that goes everywhere with you. Whoever did this painting caught your essence as well as the outer shell. I’ve a hunch this person has met you before, probably at your office.”

Payne agreed, still haunted by the story. “I doubt the artist and the author are the same person, but I suppose it’s possible,” he theorized. “Regardless, something needs to be done right away. My niece and fiancée are terrified.”

“With good reason,” his attorney came back. “I admit I don’t like this either.” His thick brows met in a frown. “Rest assured I’ll look into it first thing in the morning, then get back to you. I’ll take these with me.” He scooped up the books and put them in the sack.

“I promised the woman at the bookstore she’d get the four books back with my picture on them by Thursday at the latest.”

“No problem.”

Payne walked him to the north door which led to the pad where the helicopter was waiting. “Thanks for coming tonight.”

“It was my pleasure. The sooner we find out if we need to call in the FBI, the better.”

As he closed the door, Payne wasn’t sure anything earthly could help. Not when the author knew things about him no one knew but God…

CHAPTER TWO

LORRAINE Bennett, known to most people as Rainey, had just set everything up to paint when her phone rang. It was only eight-twenty a.m.

Since she paid extra on her phone bill to avoid taking telemarketing calls, she figured it was Barbara Landers, one of the secretaries who worked for Mr. Goldberg, Rainey’s boss at Global Greeting Cards.

Barb was the same age as Rainey, and single. They’d hit it off the first day they were introduced. Since then they’d often eaten lunch or dinner together.

Through Barbara, who was a native New Yorker, Rainey had met a lot of her friends at weekend parties. A couple of guys had already asked her to other parties and films.

Ken Granger, another guy who lived in her building and was clerking for a law firm, had taken her to dinner several times. Rainey’s mother didn’t need to worry that her daughter lacked for a social life.

Stepping away from the easel, she walked over to her desk and picked up the receiver.

“Rainey Bennett Fine Art Studio.”

“Rainey? It’s Don Felt again.”

“Oh— Hi, Don!”

He was the head of the art department at Red Rose Romance Publishers. Only yesterday he’d phoned her about a new project, and had already faxed her the artwork sheets she needed to get started.

Between commissions from Global Greeting Cards and Red Rose, she had more work than she could handle at the moment. But of course she would never say no to a new project. This was her life and her livelihood!

“Sorry to bother you this early.”

“This isn’t early for me. I’ve already had my morning run in the park. What can I do for you?”

“Could you give me the name and phone number of the agency in Colorado you used for the male model on that sensational cover of Manhattan Merger?”

Her gaze clicked to the wall where she’d hung her oil paintings. Rainey was flattered that five out of the eight she’d done with him as the hero had already been sold to the authors who’d written the books featuring him on their covers. The ninth was in the beginning stages.

She had to admit those paintings were sensational even if she said so herself. However it was the man on the covers who made them so riveting. Rainey had only been the vessel to put him there.

“I didn’t find him through a modeling agency, Don.”

The artist in Rainey had been drawn to the face and body of a stranger whose rugged male beauty made her want to put him on every cover she did for Red Rose Romance.

It seemed the sales on those books had been phenomenal. The company had sent her red roses several times congratulating her for her excellent work.

Even better, the company had increased her salary to the point that she’d finally been able to move to New York and live on what she made doing artwork for them and the greeting card company.

“So—this masculine heartthrob who is setting hundreds of thousands of female hearts aflutter around the world is a figment of your imagination?”