Natalie sat across from him, her eyes curving into crescents as she smiled. Her fair skin was a perfect canvas for her cherry-pink lips, making her look


    breathtakingly lovely. "So, are you disappointed or happy to see me?"


    A roguish charm radiated from Marshall. "Happy, of course. I''m genuinely happy that you came to rescue me." He delivered thest line with surprising sincerity, the yful glint in his eyes softening into something more serious.


    "I warned you to be careful, but you still got caught. People are supposed to learn from their mistakes. What''s your excuse?" Natalie knew he had been cautious; the trouble at the branch office had kept him busy.


    "Even with my guard up, I couldn''t avoid being set up." Marshall''s charming eyes suddenly darkened with a deep, brooding intensity. Then, just as quickly, his brow arched as he admired Natalie''s wless skin. Her lips were beautiful, coated today in a peach-colored gloss. They looked soft, and the delicate curve of her Cupid''s bow seemed made for kissing.


    Marshall''s gaze deepened. "If Joanna finds out you came to rescue me, she won''t let you off the hook either."


    "You think I''m afraid of her? Besides, we don''t have any proof it was her," Natalie retorted with a cool smile just as a police officer approached.


    She handed him a USB drive. "We filed a request to submit new evidence. It''s on this drive."


    Hearing this, Marshall''s eyes, which always seemed to be smiling, fixed on Natalie with a roguish, curious glint. His team had searched the entire bar and found nothing. How on earth had she gotten evidence?


    The police immediately began reviewing the new footage. The video showed Marshall in a private room at the bar, talking with several business partners. Late into the night, a few of the partners, heavily intoxicated began to leave Two men were passed out on the sofa across from him. Marshall was the only one still lucid, leaning back against the cushions as he waited for his assistant to bring the car around.


    Then, a middle-aged man crept into the room. He shot a sinister grin at Marshall before stealthily slipping a small bag into Marshall''s briefcase. Moments after he left, the police burst in. They found five other people in an adjoining room


    engaged in illegal activities. A search of Marshall''s belongings


    immediately turned up the nted drugs.


    Watching the footage, the officers'' faces grew grim. The man who had nted the evidence was a known criminal.


    "We didn''t find your fingerprints on the bag," an officerter exined to Marshall. "Once we verify the video''s authenticity, you''re free to go."


    Ten minutester, Marshall was released due to insufficient evidence, his twenty- four-hour hold having expired.


    Outside the station, he stretched his arms high above his head, a wide grin spreading across his handsome face, adding to his devil-may-care allure. "Finally, the clouds have parted."


    He tilted his head, his voice sincere


    as he looked at Natalie. "Thank you." He was curious about where she''d gotten the evidence, but he knew that some questions were better left unasked Pressing the issue might strain their new bond Natalie had gone out on a limb for him, a rare gesture in his world.


    His tall frame cast a shadow over her. He lowered his gaze, his longshes trembling slightly, a seductive smile ying on his lips. Natalie looked up and met his smiling, mischievous eyes. Her heart gave a sharp jolt. The man was a menace. He was practically daring her to hit him.