Wilder Than the Rest: MacLarens of Fire Mountain by Shirleen Davies

had already scheduled luncheons with two other women Torie MacLaren knew from her time in the city. Her social calendar was filling up much faster than expected.
    ******
    “We’ve been invited to supper at the Benstead home on Saturday.” Pierce had returned home early after his lunch meeting with Carlton Benstead. He and Mollie sat in the library trying to figure out where various connections lay between people they’d already met. “There will be two other couples, prominent businessmen and their wives.”
    “Mrs. Benstead visited today. She and I are to have lunch next week with two of her friends. Perhaps they’re the same women who will be joining us at supper.” Mollie disliked the social functions she and Pierce were being forced to endure, yet she knew they were part of the job. She preferred to work alone, at a safe distance from society as well as Pierce MacLaren. The sooner they finished their job, the faster she’d be able to collect her money and leave.
    A soft knock on the door interrupted them.
    “Yes?” Pierce called out.
    Penelope opened the door. “Miss Gagnon is here to see you.”
    “Please show her in,” Mollie said and stood to greet the woman she had slighted on her last visit.
    Eva Gagnon was one of those women incapable of entering a room in a subtle fashion. She didn’t have to say a word, yet she commanded space—attention really—from those who stopped in mid-conversation to follow her path.
    “Eva, it is good to see you again.” Mollie took Eva’s parasol and set it aside as Penelope disappeared behind the closed door. Mollie looked up to ensure they were alone. “What news do you have for us?” She hadn’t failed to notice the way Pierce’s gaze followed Eva into the room, a look of appreciation on his face. She felt herself stiffen at his obvious interest in the other agent.
    Eva walked to the large window which overlooked the extensive gardens outside. Although she believed no one had followed her, she couldn’t shake the prickling sensation that had accompanied her the past few days.
    She reached into her reticule for the newest message then took a seat in a large, upholstered chair, arranging her skirt as she settled back. “I sent a message to Lee Hatcher, requesting that a trained agent be selected to join us. Someone of impeccable background from within the East Coast social set who would be accepted without thought into the social circles of San Francisco. Between the four of us, we are bound to find the information we seek more quickly and connect all the various messages stemming from odd transactions.”
    “What about Chaz Yarbrough?” Mollie held her glass, but had yet take a drink.
    “Chaz is an exceptional agent, and one who will be used extensively for this assignment. Although he has excellent contacts in the southern states, he is not well known in New York or Boston. The agent I’m requesting must be from that area, wealthy, with an impeccable pedigree.”
    Mollie nodded in understanding and took a seat next to Eva.
    “Has Lee found someone?” Pierce watched the two women, both competent and committed to this assignment, yet so different in appearance and approach. Where Eva was all cool finesse, patiently working every detail of their assignment, Mollie was like a finger itching to pull the trigger. Eva’s exotic features and poise set her off as a woman few would forget, while Mollie captured you with her down-to-earth approach and street sense. He was captivated by one, yet drawn to the other.
    Eva opened the message. “I received his response this morning. He and Alex McCann identified an agent who has already been dispatched to San Francisco. He’ll arrive in time for the Mayor’s Ball.”
    “Any idea who it is?” Pierce now stood facing the women, leaning against the edge of the desk with his arms folded, his shirt pulled taut across his muscled chest.
    “My guess is an agent I’ve worked with in the past, Owen Kendall.” She rolled