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Very casually, he mention
ed his plan to call in the art-partnershipTriad and their purchasing any valuable paintings Also, if they’d ever dealt with Daniel Zhang—or even heard his name
Sloane accepted Rich’s announce was standard operating procedure
Once again, Derek felt like a bastard But he just couldn’t let this one go—even if ithis promise to Sloane He didn’t want to keep his suspicions from her But as of now, they had no concrete basis, and he knew that the very idea he believed otherwise—and was acting on that belief—would tear her apart There was plenty of time to do that later—if necessary And if it wasn’t, he’d tell her anyway, fully aware that it could put a permanent chink in their relationship
Love was a wonderful thing Except when it wasn’t
Cindy took great pains getting dressed and ready for tonight’s dinner with Wallace As Peggy had suggested, she wore her turquoise silk blouse, which clung ever so subtly to her delicate curves She also donned a pair of Ralph Lauren black silk slacks and classic high-heeled pumps Wallace was tall It was iether—physically as well as intellectually
She brushed her dark hair until it glistened, put on a ie Noire perfume behind her ears and on her wrists She hesitated, then traced a tiny line of the captivating scent between her breasts Magie Noire—French for “black ic”
What a fitting na she had in mind
Derek left the office early that night Sloane and Jeff were putting the final touches on their plans for tomorrow’s visit to the battered women’s shelter After that, Sloane had an occupational therapy appointment at HSS It was just as well Derek needed tihts, and to deal with his guilt
Traffic was lighter than usual, and he got hoe driveway, he noticed there was a car parked at the foot of the driveway, near the garage It took hinize the red Lexus convertible and to reiven Leo a key, since he’d be dropping by in the late afternoon to take some measurements and compare some color swatches
Great Talk about rubbing Derek’s nose in guilt It was the first night in weeks that he didn’t feel like probing one of Matthew’s partners for inforo over the material he’d collected on the case—and, yes, on Matthew’s partners—and figure out if it was the Fong Triad that Xiao Long had his connections to, and if so, if it was Henry Fong hi-time art-theft crimes
Detere Leo out the door ASAP, Derek let hie door
Three things happened at once
The hounds ca around the corner, and barking joyously at Derek’s ho A loud thud and aroom just as Derek appeared in its entranceway And Leo Fox stuies as he collected papers off the carpet and shoved them back into the open file
Derek recognized the contents They were Sloane’s copies of the police reports detailing the artwork stolen during the Upper East Side burglaries