Unforgettable. Rhonda Nelson

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      3

      “IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE?” Lex asked. He couldn’t imagine that being possible—Trudy Weaver had thought of absolutely everything and he couldn’t imagine that a single detail had escaped the woman’s attention—but he felt obliged to ask the question, anyway.

      She smiled, efficiently powered off her PDA and slipped it into her bag. “No, I think that’s got it. We’re really looking forward to this weekend. To my knowledge, none of the popular romantic adventure fiction writers have ever planned a weekend quite like this one. We really want it to be a success. If it is, this could turn into a yearly thing for us.”

      That would be nice, Lex thought, particularly if they continued to use his lodge. This had simply been a bad year. Several high-dollar repairs had been necessary. His central heat and A/C unit—a relatively new one, at that—had unexpectedly gone out, his computer system had fritzed, and for reasons he and his exterminator had never been able to discern, he’d been suddenly overrun with cockroaches back in the spring. Huge ones, some not even native to this area, and it had cost a small fortune in fees to get rid of the nasty creatures.

      But things were looking up, Lex decided. His flat-lined spirits experienced a promising arc. “I’m sure everything will run smoothly. You can rest assured that my staff and I will do our part to see that it does.”

      Smiling, she stood. “I’m counting on it.”

      Lex moved to his feet as well and felt compelled to clear the air one more time about the Beano incident. He shoved a hand through his hair. “I wanted to apologize again about the dog. I’ve put him up. Is, er…Mrs. Bonner all right?” he asked, unintentionally putting a subtle emphasis on the Mrs. part.

      Now what in the hell had made him fish for that tidbit? Lex wondered, thoroughly annoyed. He presently had too many things to concern himself with to be wondering whether or not a certain gorgeous author was married or not. More things to worry about than that sexy mouth, or those soft fawn curls, or those warm brown eyes. Another snake of heat coiled in his belly at the thought, forcing him to expel a slow breath.

      Trudy paused, gave him a lingering, enigmatic look that made the tops of his ears burn. Her lips slid into a small smile. “It’s Ms. Bonner, and yes, she’s fine.”

      Feeling ridiculous, he nodded awkwardly. “Good.”

      She gave him another curiously probing look, traced his features with her gaze, then mumbled under her breath, “Nope, I just don’t see it.”

      Lex blinked. “I’m sorry?”

      “Nothing,” she said smoothly. “Do you read the Zoe Wilder novels, Mr. Ellenburg?”

      “I haven’t yet,” Lex admitted, embarrassed. It had been on his to-do list, but for various reasons, that particular item kept getting shuffled to the bottom of the page. There was always something that needed to be done—some task left unfinished—and reading was simply a luxury he hadn’t had time for of late.

      “Oh, you should,” she admonished, clearly scandalized. “Faith is phenomenally talented. Her characters—Zoe Wilder and Nash Austin—are larger than life, very vivid.” She heaved a small sigh. “No one writes action adventure quite like her. She’s the best. And this newest book…it’s the best one yet.”

      He crossed his arms over his chest. “Oh, really?”

      “Yes.” She shifted a bit closer, as though sharing an important secret. “The cliff-hanger at the end of book three—Death By Design—is revealed on the very first page of the prologue and it just gets better and better from there. It’s my new favorite.” She chuckled, rocked back on her heels. “Actually, every new book is my new favorite,” she confided.

      Lex laughed as well. She was clearly very passionate about her boss’s work. “I’ll be sure and check them out. I just haven’t had the time.”

      “Oh, make the time,” Trudy insisted. “You won’t regret it.”

      Lex scratched his temple. “So are you playing a part this weekend, or are you just supervising behind the scenes?” Though it didn’t sound like anything he would particularly enjoy, Lex couldn’t help but be a little curious about the idea.

      She sighed wistfully. “I’m supervising behind the scenes. Faith wanted to me to play the part of Zoe.” She lowered her voice. “She’s very anxious about it, but the fans expect her to do it, and she mustn’t let them down. After all, that’s СКАЧАТЬ