Read Online Through the Night by Janelle Denison - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Janelle Denison
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curator’s hands.
Steven’s assistant arrived within a few minutes—a short Italian man with an olive complexion and dark, wavy, neatly combed hair whom Chase guessed to be in his mid-forties. Despite the other man’s paunch, he looked well put together in a tan suit and polished shoes. As soon as Chase handed over the small leather satchel he used to carry the cane top around, he introduced Tony Angeletti to Valerie.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” she said, and extended her hand for him to shake.
Tony didn’t return the gesture. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t shake people’s hands. I suffer from mysophobia.”
The look of confusion on Valerie’s face was comical. Since Chase had already been through this with Tony, he gave Valerie the easiest explanation for her to comprehend. “He’s a germaphobe.”
Her eyes widened in understanding as her hand gradually fell back to her side. “Oh.”
“I know my disorder makes things awkward, and I apologize,” Tony was quick to say. “I’m in therapy to get past my OCD tendencies, but I’m not quite there yet.”
Tony was such a funny, curious little man, Chase thought. From his strange issue of not touching people to his overly enthusiastic interest in his boss acquiring the rest of the Capone cane for his collection, he struck Chase as quirky and peculiar. The curator had been with Steven for only a few months now, and seemed to know a good amount of history about the ivory carving that Capone had commissioned for his cane, which made Chase wonder what else the man might know about the cane’s origin and purpose.
He gave his head a slight shake, knowing he was being overly suspicious when it wasn’t really warranted. Tony’s experience as a curator came with a background knowledge of mobster history, which was why Steven had hired him to catalog his personal collection before it went on display at the Onyx.
“A town car is waiting at Valet to take the two of you to the airport,” Tony said as he reached into the breast pocket of his coat, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to Chase. “Here are the hotel arrangements for San Francisco, just as you’d requested, along with a corporate credit card for any expenses you might incur. Also, Steven asked that you keep me updated on your discoveries on a daily basis by e-mail, so we have a record of your findings.”
Chase didn’t normally operate that way, and was all about producing end results, which was all his clients cared about. In his opinion, a daily report was a bit extreme, and a pain in the ass to boot, but Steven was paying him a small fortune, and if that’s what the man wanted, then Chase would make sure he had a nightly summary of the day’s events and what, if anything, they found along the way.
“And of course, if you need anything else at all, I’m just a phone call away,” Tony added helpfully.
The other man was certainly efficient. With their meeting concluded, Chase and Valerie headed down to Valet, where their overnight bags were loaded into the vehicle and the two of them slid into the backseat of the town car. As soon as the vehicle pulled onto the main strip and headed toward the airport, Valerie glanced at him, cleared her throat, and spoke.
“After what happened last night, I think we need to establish some rules about working together,” she said, her tone much too formal for his liking.
He wasn’t all that surprised by her request. There was no doubt in his mind that last night’s kiss had completely rattled her cool composure. Hell, even he was still reeling from the intensity of their passion, but unlike her, he was up for exploring that desire, not extinguishing it before it had a chance to reach its full potential.
But despite how much he wanted Valerie in his bed, he’d respect her wishes and give her the space she seemed to need. Because more than the physical awareness between them, there was so much more about Valerie that piqued his
Steven’s assistant arrived within a few minutes—a short Italian man with an olive complexion and dark, wavy, neatly combed hair whom Chase guessed to be in his mid-forties. Despite the other man’s paunch, he looked well put together in a tan suit and polished shoes. As soon as Chase handed over the small leather satchel he used to carry the cane top around, he introduced Tony Angeletti to Valerie.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” she said, and extended her hand for him to shake.
Tony didn’t return the gesture. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t shake people’s hands. I suffer from mysophobia.”
The look of confusion on Valerie’s face was comical. Since Chase had already been through this with Tony, he gave Valerie the easiest explanation for her to comprehend. “He’s a germaphobe.”
Her eyes widened in understanding as her hand gradually fell back to her side. “Oh.”
“I know my disorder makes things awkward, and I apologize,” Tony was quick to say. “I’m in therapy to get past my OCD tendencies, but I’m not quite there yet.”
Tony was such a funny, curious little man, Chase thought. From his strange issue of not touching people to his overly enthusiastic interest in his boss acquiring the rest of the Capone cane for his collection, he struck Chase as quirky and peculiar. The curator had been with Steven for only a few months now, and seemed to know a good amount of history about the ivory carving that Capone had commissioned for his cane, which made Chase wonder what else the man might know about the cane’s origin and purpose.
He gave his head a slight shake, knowing he was being overly suspicious when it wasn’t really warranted. Tony’s experience as a curator came with a background knowledge of mobster history, which was why Steven had hired him to catalog his personal collection before it went on display at the Onyx.
“A town car is waiting at Valet to take the two of you to the airport,” Tony said as he reached into the breast pocket of his coat, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to Chase. “Here are the hotel arrangements for San Francisco, just as you’d requested, along with a corporate credit card for any expenses you might incur. Also, Steven asked that you keep me updated on your discoveries on a daily basis by e-mail, so we have a record of your findings.”
Chase didn’t normally operate that way, and was all about producing end results, which was all his clients cared about. In his opinion, a daily report was a bit extreme, and a pain in the ass to boot, but Steven was paying him a small fortune, and if that’s what the man wanted, then Chase would make sure he had a nightly summary of the day’s events and what, if anything, they found along the way.
“And of course, if you need anything else at all, I’m just a phone call away,” Tony added helpfully.
The other man was certainly efficient. With their meeting concluded, Chase and Valerie headed down to Valet, where their overnight bags were loaded into the vehicle and the two of them slid into the backseat of the town car. As soon as the vehicle pulled onto the main strip and headed toward the airport, Valerie glanced at him, cleared her throat, and spoke.
“After what happened last night, I think we need to establish some rules about working together,” she said, her tone much too formal for his liking.
He wasn’t all that surprised by her request. There was no doubt in his mind that last night’s kiss had completely rattled her cool composure. Hell, even he was still reeling from the intensity of their passion, but unlike her, he was up for exploring that desire, not extinguishing it before it had a chance to reach its full potential.
But despite how much he wanted Valerie in his bed, he’d respect her wishes and give her the space she seemed to need. Because more than the physical awareness between them, there was so much more about Valerie that piqued his
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