against the opposite wall and crossed his buccaneer boots.
Another man in costume and boots? Major skull-and-crossbones red flag.
“Can I buy you a drink?”
“At ten thirty in the morning?”
“You look like you need a drink. Or coffee?”
He was right. But she didn’t want to lead the pirate on. “I don’t chug rum out of a bottle before noon, thank you very much for the kind offer. I need to get back to work.”
Her phone vibrated with a call from the doctor’s reception desk. “Hello?”
The pirate snapped his fingers and nodded.
“Yes,” she said into the phone. “Of course I’ll bring in a list of all her current meds. Thank you.” She hung up. How could she break this to her aunt?
“Vanessa Roberts?” he asked. “Ella Morgan’s niece?”
“Yes . . .”
She checked her watch.
“I’m Chase MacClane. We met briefly a few months ago? At a cocktail party? I wasn’t dressed for Hero Con then. I work with your aunt’s boyfriend, Paul.”
She looked up from her phone. “They’re close friends, and it’s very sweet, but Paul’s not her . . .
boyfriend
—”
“Don’t tell him that! Anyway, you were pretty preoccupied at the party with some business crisis or another, so you may not remember me.”
She met so many people in her line of work. No, she didn’t remember him. And she needed to get back to Julian—er, work. “Nice to see you again, but I have to get back.”
“Paul asked me to meet him here. This session should be letting out any minute, right? Give my best to your aunt.” He stopped smiling. “If there’s anything I can do, let me know.”
Had Paul told him, an employee, about her aunt’s diagnosis? “I’ll let Paul know you’re here.”
“Would you like to join us for lunch? Your aunt will be there.”
“I’m afraid not—I’m working through lunch today. But thank you.”
Back inside the main conference room, a speaker was giving closing remarks while Julian sat waiting at the photo setup, his hair mussed, cravat loosened, and waistcoat slightly unbuttoned.
Another image she didn’t need seared into her mind: the slightly disheveled, post-historical-striptease look.
Kai was adjusting his camera on the tripod, searching for the best angle on Julian, so all seemed fine on that front, and she needn’t intervene.
“Welcome, once again, to Chicago,” the speaker said as everyone started to clap. “And enjoy the conference!”
The entire room stood and Vanessa hurried to Sherry, asking her to join Kai if she could, and she seemed thrilled to do so. Vanessa then hustled over to her aunt.
“Aunt Ella!”
“Oh, Vanessa, thank goodness you’ve come to see me. I do wish, sometimes, that I could bring myself to use that cell phone you gave me. But it’s such a bother.”
“We have to talk,” Vanessa said.
“Yes, we do. We have a problem, I’m afraid.”
“Wait. What problem are you talking about?”
Paul came and put his arm around her aunt.
Vanessa noticed a gorgeous bouquet of flowers in her aunt’s arms. “Where did the flowers come from?”
Aunt Ella looked at her quizzically. “Why, Julian, of course.”
“Julian?”
“Vanessa, we have a delicate situation on our hands. Do you remember my friend Anne, the bonnet maker from Nebraska?”
“Yes.”
“It seems that her young daughter Emily . . . remember her?”
“Of course. But I haven’t seen her in a few years.”
“It seems Emily has run off into the city—with a masked twenty-year-old man from Hero Con.”
“What?” How did her aunt get word about this so quickly without so much as a cell phone?
“Surely if a girl’s going to run off, I would hope it would be with a Regency rogue at worst, but this I cannot understand. The girl’s hardly eighteen, and Anne’s beside herself. Emily isn’t responding to any of her calls or texts and Anne can’t leave her vendor stall in the Emporium to look for her and—”
“You understand, Auntie E, that Emily is
Another man in costume and boots? Major skull-and-crossbones red flag.
“Can I buy you a drink?”
“At ten thirty in the morning?”
“You look like you need a drink. Or coffee?”
He was right. But she didn’t want to lead the pirate on. “I don’t chug rum out of a bottle before noon, thank you very much for the kind offer. I need to get back to work.”
Her phone vibrated with a call from the doctor’s reception desk. “Hello?”
The pirate snapped his fingers and nodded.
“Yes,” she said into the phone. “Of course I’ll bring in a list of all her current meds. Thank you.” She hung up. How could she break this to her aunt?
“Vanessa Roberts?” he asked. “Ella Morgan’s niece?”
“Yes . . .”
She checked her watch.
“I’m Chase MacClane. We met briefly a few months ago? At a cocktail party? I wasn’t dressed for Hero Con then. I work with your aunt’s boyfriend, Paul.”
She looked up from her phone. “They’re close friends, and it’s very sweet, but Paul’s not her . . .
boyfriend
—”
“Don’t tell him that! Anyway, you were pretty preoccupied at the party with some business crisis or another, so you may not remember me.”
She met so many people in her line of work. No, she didn’t remember him. And she needed to get back to Julian—er, work. “Nice to see you again, but I have to get back.”
“Paul asked me to meet him here. This session should be letting out any minute, right? Give my best to your aunt.” He stopped smiling. “If there’s anything I can do, let me know.”
Had Paul told him, an employee, about her aunt’s diagnosis? “I’ll let Paul know you’re here.”
“Would you like to join us for lunch? Your aunt will be there.”
“I’m afraid not—I’m working through lunch today. But thank you.”
Back inside the main conference room, a speaker was giving closing remarks while Julian sat waiting at the photo setup, his hair mussed, cravat loosened, and waistcoat slightly unbuttoned.
Another image she didn’t need seared into her mind: the slightly disheveled, post-historical-striptease look.
Kai was adjusting his camera on the tripod, searching for the best angle on Julian, so all seemed fine on that front, and she needn’t intervene.
“Welcome, once again, to Chicago,” the speaker said as everyone started to clap. “And enjoy the conference!”
The entire room stood and Vanessa hurried to Sherry, asking her to join Kai if she could, and she seemed thrilled to do so. Vanessa then hustled over to her aunt.
“Aunt Ella!”
“Oh, Vanessa, thank goodness you’ve come to see me. I do wish, sometimes, that I could bring myself to use that cell phone you gave me. But it’s such a bother.”
“We have to talk,” Vanessa said.
“Yes, we do. We have a problem, I’m afraid.”
“Wait. What problem are you talking about?”
Paul came and put his arm around her aunt.
Vanessa noticed a gorgeous bouquet of flowers in her aunt’s arms. “Where did the flowers come from?”
Aunt Ella looked at her quizzically. “Why, Julian, of course.”
“Julian?”
“Vanessa, we have a delicate situation on our hands. Do you remember my friend Anne, the bonnet maker from Nebraska?”
“Yes.”
“It seems that her young daughter Emily . . . remember her?”
“Of course. But I haven’t seen her in a few years.”
“It seems Emily has run off into the city—with a masked twenty-year-old man from Hero Con.”
“What?” How did her aunt get word about this so quickly without so much as a cell phone?
“Surely if a girl’s going to run off, I would hope it would be with a Regency rogue at worst, but this I cannot understand. The girl’s hardly eighteen, and Anne’s beside herself. Emily isn’t responding to any of her calls or texts and Anne can’t leave her vendor stall in the Emporium to look for her and—”
“You understand, Auntie E, that Emily is
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