Page 101 of Marked By Moonlight

“Where I spend the night and with whom is my business,” I shot back.

Gordon shook his head. “Not when you’re on business.”

“I don’t work with Marius. In fact, I’m not working at all,” I said icily. “I’m here to do you a favor, at your request.”

Gordon’s face clouded, like a man who’d been nipped by a docile lapdog.

“But thisisbusiness, my dear. And in business, there is no place for intimate relations. Especially when it comes to people in unequal positions of power.”

Ah. Back to the patronizing,you’re so weak and ignorantargument.

Oh, poor Marius,I nearly quipped. He was bigger, stronger, and more knowledgeable about Gordon’s dirty businesses. But I was the big boss’s favored goddaughter, which put me in a privileged position far, far above Marius and the others.

A sour taste registered in my mouth. How many other little privileges had I profited from that I’d never been aware of?

Not that that would interest Gordon. So I stuck to what would.

“A woman has been murdered. I have no idea what’s behind that, but it’s terrifying.” I stuck up a hand before he decided to reassure poor, stupid me that he would keep me safe. “It could also frighten the other buyers away. Not to mention that a high-profile murder case puts Anastasia’s artwork at risk of falling into the public eye.Thoseare the fires we need to focus on extinguishing.”

Not me shagging Marius, in other words.

You have a point there,Gordon’s pursed lips admitted.

I slid the file back across the table and stood, enumerating an actionable list that would get Gordon off my case.

“Right now, we have to reassure the other interested parties. We have to talk to Anastasia before the police do to make sure she doesn’t say too much.” I shivered, listening to myself. This felt all tooAl Capone.But I powered on. “And we should consider putting the deal on ice until things settle down.”

Gordon shook his head curtly. “Anastasia has a deadline. We must respect that.”

I would rather Gordon respect the law and basic human decency. But sadly, I’d learned to lower my expectations.

He called Celeste back in and repeated most of my points as orders, making them sound like his own brilliant thinking. But the last point he made, I gave him full credit for.

“And keep tabs on the police,” he ordered Celeste. “Anything they learn, we need to know too.”

My jaw hung open. Did Gordon actually have the means to do that?

I slumped. Of course he did.

Celeste finished taking completely unnecessary notes, then gave the file on the table a pointed look.

Gordon frowned, then shooed her off. “Go. I’ll take care of the rest.”

My knees wobbled as I wondered what that meant.

Luckily, my phone rang then. Unluckily, it was our client.

“Good morning, Anastasia. How are you?” I said, looking at Gordon.

He listened to the beginning of our exchange, then strode into the office and closed the door, presumably to make his own calls.

I made soothing noises into the phone. “Yes, it really is terrible… Yes, the police were here… Of course, I’m available to come by any time you need me…”

A moment later, I practically squawked. “What?”

“Bogdan called to say he was no longer interested in the painting,” Anastasia lamented. “You must do something. Immediately!”

I suspected she was more alarmed at losing a gentleman caller than a buyer, but I agreed to call.