10- Don't stop

Mr. Lee had expected to be back in New York by Monday.
Unfortunately, Hazel showed every sign of sticking to her guns and staying in
Winding River for a fulltwo weeks. He’d hoped that his pestering would
eventually wear her down, butshe was clearly stubborn. Maybe that trait was
also the reason she hadn’t givenin to the inevitable and shuttered Café Tuscany
already.
He had been true to his word on Sunday. He’d steered clear of her, though he
hadn’t been able to resist taking a stroll through the park where the reunion
attendees were gathered for their picnic. Hazel had been playing baseball at the
time, looking more carefree than she had since arriving in Wyoming. He
regretted being the one responsible for putting a perpetual frown on her face, the
worry lines between her eyes, but he had a job to do, whether he liked it or not.
Since it looked like he was stuck here, he had no choice but to call his office
and have his appointments shifted to other partners or postponed until hisreturn.
Even as he dialed, he was dreading the third degree he waslikely to get from
his meddlesome secretary.
“Have you made contact yet?” Lydia asked in an undertone, asif he were on
some sort of secret mission.
“Yes, I have ‘made contact,”’ Mr. Lee said impatiently. “How are things on
thatend? Any word from the investigator on Rinaldi’s whereabouts?”
“Nothing. Charlie Flynn says the man has vanished. He’s probably basking
in the sun on a beach in the Cayman Islands by now.”
“Entirely possible,” Mr. Lee agreed. “What’s the deal on the restaurant?
Haveyou been by there?”
“It was operating at full capacity last night. I checked it myself. Hazel’s
assistant has everything running smoothly. The veal piccata was as superb as
ever.”
“Did I pay for your dinner?”
“No, but now that you mention it, that’s a very good idea. After all, it seems
I was spying for you.”
“If that’s what you were doing, you must not be very good at it. You’re not
giving me anything I can use, Lydia.”
Mr. Lee had expected to be back in New York by Monday.
Unfortunately, Hazel showed every sign of sticking to her guns and staying in
Winding River for a fulltwo weeks. He’d hoped that his pestering would
eventually wear her down, butshe was clearly stubborn. Maybe that trait was
also the reason she hadn’t givenin to the inevitable and shuttered Café Tuscany
already.
He had been true to his word on Sunday. He’d steered clear of her, though he
hadn’t been able to resist taking a stroll through the park where the reunion
attendees were gathered for their picnic. Hazel had been playing baseball at the
time, looking more carefree than she had since arriving in Wyoming. He
regretted being the one responsible for putting a perpetual frown on her face, the
worry lines between her eyes, but he had a job to do, whether he liked it or not.
Since it looked like he was stuck here, he had no choice but to call his office
and have his appointments shifted to other partners or postponed until hisreturn.
Even as he dialed, he was dreading the third degree he waslikely to get from
his meddlesome secretary.
“Have you made contact yet?” Lydia asked in an undertone, asif he were on
some sort of secret mission.
“Yes, I have ‘made contact,”’ Mr. Lee said impatiently. “How are things on
thatend? Any word from the investigator on Rinaldi’s whereabouts?”
“Nothing. Charlie Flynn says the man has vanished. He’s probably basking
in the sun on a beach in the Cayman Islands by now.”
“Entirely possible,” Mr. Lee agreed. “What’s the deal on the restaurant?
Haveyou been by there?”
“It was operating at full capacity last night. I checked it myself. Hazel’s
assistant has everything running smoothly. The veal piccata was as superb as
ever.”
“Did I pay for your dinner?”
“No, but now that you mention it, that’s a very good idea. After all, it seems
I was spying for you.”
“If that’s what you were doing, you must not be very good at it. You’re not
giving me anything I can use, Lydia.” “Because there’s nothing to pass along. All I can say isthat it’s a shame that
jerk’s actions might bankrupt the place.”
“Isthe word out about Bobby skipping town?”
“It wasn’t in any of the society columns, and Deidre, that’s Hazel’s
assistant,acted as if everything were perfectly normal. If there was any buzz
about theirproblems, I certainly didn’t hear it.” She hesitated, then said, “You
know, if youjust stopped bugging her, I think Hazel could keep the place open
and pay back all the money Bobby stole. Not that she should have to, if you
ask me, but I suppose somebody is obligated to make good on the investors’
losses. Why not at least give her a chance?”
“If she’s guilty of conspiring with her partner—”
“She’s not,” Lydia retorted, cutting him off. “I wish you’d just use that
supposedly stellar gut instinct of yours where she’s concerned. Have you spent a
single minute with her? If you had, you’d know she’s no thief.”
Maybe not, Mr. Lee thought, but he refused to give his know-it-all secretary
thesatisfaction of admitting that just yet. Then there was the very intriguing
question of how Hazel was keeping the place afloat on her own. Assuming she
wasn’t involved in the scam—which he still considered to be a sizable leap—she
had to be hurting financially.
Then again, Lauren Winters probably had very deep pockets. Even though
Hazel had insisted she wasn’t going to burden her friends with her problems,
maybe she had lied. Maybe Lauren was quietly bailing her friend out of her
financial difficulties. Mr. Lee wondered if he owed the actress a warning about
whata risky venture she’d be getting into. Unfortunately, based on past
experience, hehad a hunch she wouldn’t take the news well and that she’d
manage to turn him into the bad guy.
“Lydia, cancel my appointments for the next two weeks. If that changes, I’ll
let you know.”
“You’re staying?” she asked, sounding more pleased than shocked. “Why?”
“Because Hazel is staying.”
“How are you and Hazel getting along?”
“Let’sjust say nobody’slikely to nominate usfor couple of the year.” He
tried to keep the regret out of his voice when he said it.