Chapter 1

The clock on the microwave in Brent’s condo read 10:55 am. Amelia’s resolve was disappearing faster than foam at high tide. He’d promised to take her to Guaymas for breakfast.

Amelia drummed her fingernails on her bare skin. If Brent wasn’t back in five more minutes, she was going to breakfast without him.

The aromas from El Mar de Cortez, the condominium’s onsite restaurant, wafted through his open window, and her stomach protested in hunger. That did it. No more waiting! Amelia stormed back to her own condo to grab her wallet. If it hadn’t been for the merger of their tech companies and the fact she was engaged to Brent, she’d have taken the first flight back to the States. Mexico, of all places to work out business detail.

She crossed the courtyard and jammed her key into the lock. Her door swung inward a few inches before she turned the knob. She could have sworn she’d locked it before traipsing over to Brent’s condo. Pushing the door open a bit more, she peered into the front room, half expecting to see her fiancé. She flung the door all the way open. “Brent?”

There was no answer, but who else would have unlocked her door? He better have let himself in with apology roses for being late. She drew her lips together and clenched her teeth, remembering the way he had practically jumped for joy after convincing her to vacation in San Carlos, Mexico. Why this was his favorite place she couldn’t even begin to guess. No room service, no concierge, and few amenities. The poor excuse of a weight room with a measly treadmill and a couple of dumbbells could hardly be called a “fitness center” at all.

Brent must have been out of his mind when he suggested they come back later for their honeymoon. At least then they wouldn’t have to book separate condos because of all the legal issues with his ex-wife. But even if they couldn’t share a room, San Diego would have been better—no money exchange, same white sandy beaches, and scrumptious Mexican food, not to mention luxury rooms where everything worked. Amelia couldn’t imagine why Brent was so enamored with this despicable excuse for lodging. She blamed being here at all in a momentary state of weakness, one she had no intention of repeating.

She scanned the room but saw no flowers and no other sign Brent had been there. Yet nothing looked out of place either. It was obvious that no one had robbed the place. Amelia’s Gucci bag sat on the end table next to the couch. She rummaged through the contents: wallet, Visa Gold, MasterCard Platinum, Discover, company gas card, cash, Giorgio Armani sunglasses. If Brent hadn’t been in her condo, who had? Had the maids come to clean? Perhaps one of them hadn’t locked up properly. Management would hear about this, and someone was going to get fired, that was for certain.

A tapping penetrated the still air. Stupid faucets. The maid must have forgotten that, too. Couldn’t anyone do anything right in this place? Amelia investigated the sound, but neither of the faucets was dripping. She tracked the sound to her bedroom and gasped at the sight. The contents of her dresser were in disarray on the bed and floor. Someone had dumped her makeup case on the table, with some items spilling onto the floor.

Instead of the leaky faucet, as Amelia had suspected, the noise came from the tapping of the curtain cord against the wall as the breeze blew through the broken window. Shattered glass lay on the carpet, and someone had cut through the window screen.

What if the intruder was hiding in the closet or under the bed? A taste like metal rose in Amelia’s throat, threatening to choke her as she clutched at her neck. Unable to catch her breath, she backed out of the room. Her legs went weak, and she barely made it to the bedroom door. She backed into a muscular chest. A sharp scream escaped her lips as her knees gave out.

“Whoa.” Brent grasped her shoulders and spun her around. Amelia trembled as she collapsed into his arms. He stroked the back of her hair. “What’s the matter?”

“Where have you been?” Before she let him answer, she shoved him with the force of her adrenaline rush, sending him into the doorjamb. “You promised . . . what if . . . you left me . . . I could have been—”

“Sweetheart—”

“Don’t sweetheart me!”

“You’re shaking like a leaf.” His arms wrapped around her and he held her against his chest. “What happened?”

She buried her head against the fabric of his orange and black wetsuit. “Someone broke in.”

Brent led Amelia to the front porch. “You stay right here while I check it out.

Amelia plastered herself against the outside wall. He was probably only gone for a few minutes, but to Amelia, it seemed far too long. What if the burglar got to him?

 Amelia jumped when Brent came back out and asked, “Where’s the necklace I gave you?” She pulled it from underneath her blouse. “I wish you had left it in Marc’s safe.”

Shaking her head, she stared into his eyes. “You can’t think it would be safe there either.”

Brent took her hand and kissed her fingers. “You’re probably right. I’ll go to the front desk and call the police. Maybe they can secure your door.”

With a shaky hand, Amelia pushed her hair behind her ear. “I’m not staying there.” Separate condos—that was the stupidest thing about this whole ridiculous getaway.

He tenderly took her hand and led her off the porch. “You can stay in mine. I’ll stay here.”

“Oh, no.” Amelia’s stomach tightened at the thought of someone entering while she was still inside. “I’m not staying alone in either room. We stay together, or I’m checking out.”

“Alright, if that would make you feel better.” Once inside Brent’s condo, he led her to the couch. “At least you didn’t bring the schematics with you.”

Amelia played with the locket. “You don’t think I’d leave them in Houston, do you?” She met his brown eyes. “You can’t possibly think they’d be safe there.”

“What? Where are they?” He ran his hand through his dark brown hair.

“The security of the entire project has already been breached. I just couldn’t trust it being left anywhere. When I went to get them from the safe, only half of them were there.”

“What do you mean by only half?”

“I was just running a check on the chip to make sure they hadn’t been tampered with, and what came up was half of the blueprints. I don’t understand why Marc would do that.” Amelia pulled her hair behind her with a quick sweep of her hand.

Brent touched the silver heart-shaped locket dangling from the chain around her neck. “We’ve been over this so many times. You can trust your father.”

“Stepfather,” Amelia corrected, falling back against the cushions.

“Fine—stepfather. What did you do with the chip?” Brent sat down next to Amelia and stroked her arm.

She pulled away from his touch. After slipping the necklace over her head, she laid it on the coffee table and worked off the silver links and filigree, like a Chinese puzzle. The outer casing twisted free from the locket. Once they separated the pieces, she pressed the tiny clasp and opened the heart, revealing the amplification crystal and a picture of her and Brent taken two years before, just after her mother’s death, and before his fiasco of a marriage to Jasmine.

“Here’s the crystal, but where’s the chip?” He touched the pear-shaped gem.

She lifted the picture with her fingernail and exposed the microchip taped to the backside of the photograph. “If someone tampered with the blueprints, I couldn’t very well leave this behind.”

 “But Marc wouldn’t do that. Does anyone else know?” Brent brushed a lock of her hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” She flipped the strand of hair back across her cheek.

No one outside of the firm’s research department knew about the project. Would a confidentiality clause be enough to keep developers from leaking information? Because of their loyalty to the company, Brent had handpicked each of the team members. The only other person who knew, besides Brent, was Marc Baylor, the man Amelia’s mother had married. But Tiffany was dead, leaving Amelia and Marc joint heirs of Cell Technologies, Inc.

“Perhaps someone from the lab—”

Amelia shook her head and mentally ticked off each of the developers’ qualifications. They knew that to divulge information outside of the company meant not only termination, but a lawsuit as well. Each one had too much invested in the company, both monetarily and personally. They knew Amelia’s grandfather when cell-phone technology was in its infancy, and all of them respected him.

Brent let out a heavy breath. “I spoke with Marc the day before we left—”

 Amelia cut him off. “It has to be Marc. He’s the only other person who knows.”

Brent bit his lower lip and pulled at the sleeve of his wetsuit. “Your stepfather wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize the company. I’m going to go report this to the police. You wait here, and I’ll be right back.”

Amelia grabbed his hand. “If you stand me up one more time—”

“I didn’t stand you up. I got detained.” Brent moved closer and put his arm around her shoulders.

“Detained? That’s your answer to everything. I’m sick of it, Brent.” Amelia slid away from him, snapping the locket closed before twisting the rest of the puzzle in place.

“I’ll be back.” He took her hands in his again. “Do you have your cell phone?”

Amelia shook her head. “No, I left it on the nightstand, but I didn’t see it in the mess. It may have been stolen. It’s a good thing we haven’t tested the crystal on my phone.”

“Here then, take mine.” He freed his hand, reached into the top drawer of the end table, and grabbed his phone. “This is probably nothing more than a simple burglary. I’m sure you’re safe here.”

“But what if it’s not a burglary? What if someone knows? And they come looking here? What if they think it’s in my phone?”

Brent leaned in close and ran his thumb across her chin. “No one outside of the lab knows, except Marc and me. Besides, who would follow us all the way to Mexico just to get the chip? Certainly, they could have waited a few more days until we returned home. Besides, it’s broad daylight.”

“I don’t know.” Amelia followed him to the entryway. “Just please hurry.”

Brent kissed her forehead and closed the door behind him. Amelia locked the deadbolt.

Her fingers ran over the filigree. She replaced the chain around her neck. Maybe it really was nothing more than a burglary, she thought. But why didn’t they touch her purse? Did she scare them off? Her head throbbed, and her mouth went dry.

She entered the kitchen and found a half a bottle of Chardonnay in the refrigerator. That would be a good start.

Chapter 2

Savannah stirred under her covers. Thanks to the loud hum of the air conditioner, she almost didn’t hear the light tap on her door.

“Savannah.” Haley’s voice came from the other side. “Come on, sleepyhead.”

“Okay, okay,” Savannah mumbled. She hated mornings, but today nothing could keep her in bed. Haley was right; coming to Mexico had been a heavenly idea, and Savannah intended to savor every moment. Her last two days here had to be the best. She stretched, trying to work out the kinks in her back from sleeping on the hard mattress.

 Haley knocked on the door again. “Did you die in there? C’mon, let’s go!”

Savannah threw off the covers and shouted, “I’m up!”

After donning her new purple shirt, she slipped a simple necklace over her head. The gold teardrop, with the Chinese symbol for luck etched in black, hung a few inches below the neckline. She reached down, took the pendant, and gave it a quick kiss. “Thanks, Liam. You’re the best brother ever.” The only thing she could think of that would make her life complete and perfect was to find the ideal husband, but those prospects seemed dismal. Maybe when she returned home to Phoenix, she would talk to her pastor about serving as an advisor to the young adult group. Maybe she’d meet the perfect guy that way.

Looking in the mirror, Savannah patted her hair one last time, smiled at her reflection, and decided if she gave the Lord some of her time, He would find her a husband when she got home. Besides, twenty-four was still young.

Savannah entered the kitchen to see Haley rummaging through the refrigerator, her plump backside blocking the view of the contents. She produced the carryout box of enchiladas from the night before. Haley looked up at Savannah. “Wow! Purple is the best color for you. If you dressed like that all the time, it wouldn’t take you long at all to find a man.” She set the Styrofoam box on the counter and dug through the silverware drawer for a clean fork. “When we get home, I am hooking you up with Jordan . . . or wait, isn’t Wayne coming home from college in a few months?”

“Yeah, but Christmas is like four months away. Ever since Haley’s fiancé had dumped her, she’d taken every chance to match Savannah up with the “perfect” man. “But let’s find one for you first.”

Haley wrinkled her face, and Savannah worried that any second her friend would dissolve into tears. Instead, Haley waved a fork. “Ew! Have you seen what’s out there? All the good ones are at college or taken.” Her mouth puckered into a pout. “Or cheating, like—”

“Exactly my point,” Savannah interrupted.

Haley’s face contorted with the painful memory. “And didn’t we come down here to get away from men, remember?”

Savannah pulled the straw off a juice box and jammed it into the top. Liquid squirted out and dribbled down the front of her blouse. “It’s a good thing it’s apple juice. I’m not changing out of this perfect shirt.”

Haley stuffed the last bite of enchilada into her mouth, tossed the box into the trash, and grabbed her overstuffed bag. “Since we’re going into Guaymas today, maybe we’ll run into some guys—you know, give them our addresses, encourage them to write.” Savannah could tell her friend was trying her best not to cry.

“Nope.”

“Why not? It’s a great idea.” Haley put a wide-brimmed hat over her strawberry blond hair.

“Because I pulled myself off the market.” Savannah waited for Haley’s reaction.

“What do you mean?”

After drinking the last of her juice, Savannah crushed the box. “You know, I’ve been doing a lot of praying about what to do with my life.”

“And?”

“I’ve decided I’m going to stop worrying about finding Mr. Right. Instead, I’m going to talk to Pastor Jones and see if he’ll let me lead the young adult ministries.”

Haley dropped her bag, and the hat slid from her head as she raced across the room. “That is awesome!” She wrapped her arms around Savannah.

“It’s like this calm just came over me. I know it’s what I’m supposed to do. The Lord has great things in store for me.” Savannah slid her sunglasses over her eyes when Haley released her grip. “And I’m sure that if I do what He’s called me to do, He’ll provide a husband for me.”