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far as to intrude on their privacy by entering the bedroom while they were in the bathroom together.
    What else was she doing in the bedroom? Nicole thought, her heart starting to race. Her gut told her that the woman was angry, offended at having been kicked out—
    god only knew what she’d do next.
    The truth was, Erica Jameson was mentally unhinged.
    Climbing the stairs to the master bedroom, Nicole was surprised but also vindicated to find that her suspicions were correct. She bumped into Erica as Erica was exiting the master bedroom, her eyes downcast, as she seemed to be rummaging through her purse.
    “Can I help you with something?” Nicole said loudly.
    Erica glanced up, her expression betraying her guilt as she fumbled with closing her purse.
    She’s got something in there, Nicole thought. She stole something from the bedroom.
    “You know what?” Erica said. “I wanted to apologize to Red for this misunderstanding, and I thought he’d gone up to his room. I was wrong, he wasn’t there.” She smiled briefly and continued walking past Nicole and down the stairs.
    “What were you doing in our bedroom?” Nicole said, turning and looking after her.
    Erica looked up and made a face. “What do you think I’d be doing in your bedroom, for god’s sake? What on earth do you take me for? For your information young lady, some people still have a sense of class and dignity in this world.”
    Yes, and you’re not one of those people, Nicole wanted to shout after her. But she bit her tongue and watched as the older woman made her way back to her guest room, presumably to gather her things and leave.
    Good riddance, Nicole thought. But she couldn’t shake the terrible suspicion that Red’s mother had found whatever she’d been looking for in the master bedroom.

    ***
    After Red’s mother left, Red finally took a business call, and when he was done, his mood had gone south. His eyes were set, grim, and his mouth downturned.
    They took a walk around the estate, because Red told her he wanted some fresh air and a different perspective. As they walked along the beautiful property, she saw some of the caretakers mowing the lawn and clipping hedges.
    Red waved and tried to appear happy, but it was probably only convincing from a few dozen yards away.
    He wasn’t speaking much to Nicole, so she tried to stay quiet and just be with him. Occasionally he pointed out one of the more subtle qualities of the land, or explained why the bridge over the pond was designed the way it was.
    Other than that, there was little real conversation about everything that was happening. Nicole desperately wanted to tell him her suspicions about his mother taking something from their bedroom, but she didn’t think it was a good time to further burden him. Especially since there was no proof, just a hunch she had.
    Finally, as they made their way back over the bridge and toward the house, Red stopped and turned to her. “I’ve been thinking about the wedding,” he said, his face still deadly serious.
    Her stomach did a double backflip. Was he going to break off their engagement for some reason?
    “Okay,” she said, trying to steady her nerves.
    “I’m thinking we should get married immediately upon our return from Germany.”
    “Our return?” she said, doubly confused.
    “Yes,” he said, turning to look out at the water. The duck family was paddling around just a few feet from shore. “I want you to come with me to Germany. I want you by my side, Nicole.”
    “What would I be doing in Germany?” she asked. Of course she’d go if he needed her, but she couldn’t imagine what purpose there would be for her overseas dealing with this new, complicated business acquisition.
    “You’d assist me,” Red told her, glancing at her briefly. “I need someone I can trust over there.”
    “I’m still not sure what you mean.”
    His head drooped forward a little bit. “I just got a very, very bad call from my overseas liaison. Word