Dead By Dusk Read Online Free

couldn’t tell him why she was leaving—he would have claimed that she had been mistaken, or worse, that the name didn’t mean anything to him. Their last argument had been volatile.
    But she had still worked for him.
    To say it was a strained relationship was sadly understating the current of hostility that seemed to evolve around them. Worse. Anger could be volatile, and far too quickly turn into something else.
    Still, not being independently wealthy, she had needed work. So, in a burst of spontaneity, Stephanie had jumped at Reggie’s offer without really thinking it through. Ironically, immediately after her resignation, she heard from a mutual friend that Grant would be gone for some months as well, doing some kind of work somewhere else. If she’d stayed on, she could have managed the company in his absence.
    Too late. She’d agreed to come here, and here she was.
    Arturo, the club’s general manager and ever the optimist, didn’t even sigh as he began to explain the whereabouts of Stephanie’s missing troop members once again. “You must understand where you are, and what is going on here, of course. The ladies, they meant to cause no trouble—they simply wanted to see the ruins. Everyone wants to see the ruins! The archeologists bring new things to light on an almost hourly basis! Ah, but then there was the rock slide, so the ladies were stuck. The gentlemen—the two of them, anyway—have had car trouble. Mr. Barton is lost in transit somewhere, which you must surely understand yourself. And so, the lovely Miss Gema thought that she would spend the evening at leisure, so she could come to you fresh and ready to work hard tomorrow!” His smile faded and he frowned suddenly. “My English is well spoken, isn’t it?”
    Stephanie waved a hand in the air, smiling, and ruing her own impatience. “I’m so sorry, Arturo. Your English is excellent. Better than mine, maybe! I just tried so hard to get here on time myself. I’m tired. Please forgive me.”
    He nodded brightly again. He was a small, balding man, compact, with a reserve of energy that seemed apparent in his every movement. Reggie had assured her that his English was far more than fluent, and that he would like her right off the bat. She might be taller than he, but he would fall all over himself to please her. He had a thing for women with dark hair and blue eyes, so Reggie said. He wasn’t a lecher in the least, just a lover of women in general, especially those who were young, light-eyed, and dark-haired.
    He was wonderful. Polite, concerned, and sweet. And he did speak English excellently. Stephanie was so glad, because she was so tired that trying to remember even the simple courtesies in Italian seemed absolutely daunting at the moment.
    â€œYou’ll be happy to know that you’ll have a full audience next Friday night. Reggie has arranged for a tour group of over fifty American military men and women and their spouses, if they choose, to come for a three-day vacation,” Arturo informed her.
    â€œNext Friday night!” The news snapped her back into full wakefulness. It was Sunday afternoon. “And will this place hold that many people? What about the fire laws?”
    â€œ Sì. ” Arturo was beaming with pleasure to give such information. “This is—”
    â€œYes, yes, this is Italy.”
    â€œWe’ll easily get enough tables in here.”
    â€œLet’s hope we’re easily ready,” she murmured. Stephanie felt ill. A week. One week to get together a cast of performers she had yet to meet.
    â€œWe’ll have to start first thing in the morning,” she said.
    Arturo shook his head. “First thing in the afternoon!” he told her.
    â€œBut—”
    â€œThe campers will not be back until at least eleven—they have no choice but to wait for the road to be cleared. And the car over in