Lawful Escort by Tina Folsom Page A

and pretend she didn’t know what he was up to.
    “That won’t be necessary.” His disgusting tongue snaked out and licked his lips.
    She felt bile rise. There was only one exit to this room, and Hannigan was blocking it.
    “It’s much cozier here anyway. What do you say, Sabrina?”
    He made a step toward her, and she jerked back.
    “Mr. Hannigan, I’ll bring the papers to your office.” She tried to be as formal as possible to tell him that he wasn’t welcome.
    “Come on, Sabrina, I’m sure under this cool exterior there’s a whole lot of passion buried.” He was only too right, but the passion in her wasn’t meant for him, not even if he were the last men on earth and the future of the world depended on them procreating.
    “Mr. Hannigan, I have to ask you to let me pass. I have work to do.” She tried to keep the shaking of her voice under control. She couldn’t show him how scared she was.
    “I’ll tell you where your work is. It’s right here.” He grabbed his crotch.
    “Mr. Hannigan, I have to ask you to stop this, or I’ll—”
    “Or you’ll what? Tell the partners?” He laughed. “They’re not going to touch me, trust me.”
    He took another step toward her. Sabrina backed up against a stack of paper. To her left was the copier machine, which was too bulky for her to get around, and to her right were several cases of paper, but stacked only one foot high. It would be easy to step over them.
    “Sabrina, I can make your work here easy or hard. You choose.”
    She had the feeling he wasn’t here to give her a choice. He was here to force his choice on her. His position was pretty clear from where she stood. Either she gave into his demands, or he’d force himself on her. No, she couldn’t let this happen. She had to get out of here before he laid as much as a finger on her.
    Sabrina sized up the situation quickly. In order for her to get behind him to unlock the door, she’d have to let him get closer. It was risky and not only that: the thought of having him come any closer was disgusting and made her want to puke.
    But it had to be done. Eying the door behind him, she forced a smile on her lips. Hopefully, she’d learned enough from Holly to know how to trick him into thinking he’d get his way with her. She saw him relax when he noticed her smile. Slowly, Hannigan made another step toward her. Now was the time to act.
     

6
     
    Daniel stared out the window of the conference room at the Law Offices of Brand, Freeman & Merriweather. Behind him, the lawyers discussed the best way to handle the contingency that was holding up the deal. He’d lost interest in the discussions half an hour ago, and his mind had drifted back to Holly. Before he’d met her, he’d never had any trouble keeping his mind squarely focused on business. It was different this time.
    He suddenly didn’t care much about the deal he’d worked on for over a year. The thought that he had to sit through countless other meetings like this one in the next few days made him feel exhausted and weary.
    “Mr. Sinclair, how about we ask them for a one million dollar bond to be released only if the contingency is met by our extended due date?” Mr. Merriweather suggested.
    Daniel turned to consider the proposition and froze. His eyes had drifted toward the reception area. Holly— his Holly! —walked through one of the office doors into the foyer and crossed it hastily. She looked different. She wore a business suit, but her hair was disheveled and the collar of her blouse was out of place. As she disappeared through another door, his gaze was suddenly drawn back to the door she’d exited from. It opened again, and a man in his forties came out. He glanced to each side as if he didn’t want to be noticed while he tucked his tie back into his suit and adjusted his jacket. His face appeared flushed.
    Damn! Oh, God, no! This couldn’t be happening. Holly was here to service another client.
    “Mr. Sinclair?”