“Sounds like you’re starting down that road.”

“Maybe. It’s too early to tell. I’ll call you in two, three days with an update on Katherine’s decision.”

Dominic had just ended the phone call with Justin and turned on his computer when his brother-in-law called.

“I didn’t forget.” Dominic leaned back in his chair. “I’m on my way.”

“Just checking,” Matt said. “I know your schedule is tight.”

“Never that tight.”

“Melanie worries that’s all. I’ll reassure her you’re alive and well and on your way home.”

“Tell her I’m bringing a guest.”

The cheer in Dominic’s voice was startling. “Anyone she knows?” Matt asked, curious as hell.

“A girl… actually a woman I hired as a consultant a month or so ago. She worked for me for two weeks. I just bumped into her in Singapore. You’ll like her.”

“Good. Looking forward to meeting her.”

“Her name’s Katherine Hart.”

“I’ll tell Melanie.”

“Mother met her in Hong Kong. Tell Melanie that too.”

“I think she might have already heard of her.” When Dominic mentioned Letitia and Hong Kong, Matt suddenly recalled his mother-in-law’s vulgar comments.

“No surprise there, I suppose. But Mother was so fucking rude in Hong Kong it still pisses me off.”

“Just in Hong Kong?” Matt’s voice was amused.

“Yeah, right. What was I thinking? By the way, I have that jade you wanted for Melanie,” Dominic said, dismissing issues of his mother’s impossible behavior.

“I was just going to ask.”

“Sis will love it. Seventeenth century. One of those mountain slash hermit pieces. The craftsmanship is unbelievable.” His sister collected jade objets d’art. And Matt was rich enough to indulge her; his family construction firm was one of the oldest and largest in the Bay Area. “So, eight tomorrow?”

“Come earlier. We’re having a family celebration at six with just us and the kids.”

“Tell the kids I brought some good stuff.”

“You always bring good stuff.”

“That’s why they like me,” Dominic said lightly.

“Not true, Nick. They like you ’cause you actually listen to them.”

“I listen to them because they’re interesting. So we’ll see you at six.”

“Sounds good. I’ll show you my new cruiser.”

“Another one?” Matt restored vintage Chris-Crafts.

“This one’s a beauty. I’ve tons of before and after photos.”

“Looking forward to it. Give Melanie a kiss from me.”

Dominic spent another hour dealing with his most pressing e-mails. He didn’t even want to think about the havoc a week’s vacation would cause. Roscoe was already freaking out because Max was also on leave.

Dominic called Roscoe in an effort to soothe his panic and after patiently listening to his CFO complain about the impossibility of leaving all the decision making to him for an entire week, Dominic politely acknowledged his concerns. “It’s a lot to ask, I know. Delegate more. It’s not as though we don’t have several tiers of qualified management. And you know damned well I’ve never taken a real vacation since we started this company. You could always reach me online or by phone. So I’m not apologizing for taking time off. I’ll still be available for emergencies. But only if they’re real emergencies. Everything else can wait.”

“Everything’s a fucking emergency!” Roscoe roared, as if Dominic hadn’t politely indicated his feelings on the subject. “You gotta answer your phone!”

Since Roscoe spoke at a full volume most of the time, Dominic was inured. And in this case indifferent to Roscoe’s frustration. “Not this week, Roscoe.” Dominic’s voice was brusque. “There’s no such thing as an emergency unless I’m losing every penny I have. That’s my only red line, okay? Nothing else fucking qualifies. Not. One. Goddamn. Thing.”

“Jesus Christ, who the hell ever thought you’d fall in love,” Roscoe grumbled.

Dominic went silent for a moment. “That’s not germane, Roscoe. And it’s none of your business anyway.”

“Sorry, Dominic.” Roscoe’s chastened tone was only marginally lower than a bellow. “You’re handing me a real shitload of work on short notice, that’s all.”

“I apologize. But this is important to me.”

Roscoe sighed. Even after two divorces, he still didn’t totally discount the notion of love. And in Roscoe’s opinion, Dominic had never even come close before. His marriage to Julia had been a friends-with-benefits relationship. Julia shared Dominic’s love of extreme sports, their bond deep and intimate, but in Roscoe’s estimation, curiously platonic. “Okay, kid, I understand. Forget what I said. Everything’s copacetic. Have a nice vacation.”

“Thanks, Roscoe.” The warmth was back in Dominic’s voice. “I owe you.”

“Damn right you do,” Roscoe gruffly replied. “One week though? Can I count on you being up to speed after that? Just asking.”

“Count on it,” Dominic said, smiling at Roscoe’s soft-spoken query. “See you in a week.”

But Roscoe’s comment about love was doing a number on Dominic. He must have heard that from Max. Jesus, was that what Max thought? That this was about love? Fuck no. No! It was just pure, unadulterated lust.