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The fault lines here are just not that extensive. Now until you’ve got some hard, solid figures that you can give me, I’m going to have to proceed with what I know. And what I know is that reporting at this site has been sloppy and inconsistent. If I hear you’ve been outside the permit zone, you will be off this job and most likely you’ll never work in the industry again. Got it?”
    She could tell that he wasn’t the least bit intimidated by her, but he did have the good sense not to laugh in her face. He merely sat back in his chair, folded his arms, and smiled.
    “I understand completely, Ms. McGowan.”
    “Do you?”
    “Yes. Clearly you are going to need some convincing.”
    “And just what, exactly, do you need to convince me of, Mr. Vladik?”
    For half a heartbeat she thought she knew exactly what he was going to say. It was written all over his face, blatant in his smirk and the smoldering stare. However, he surprised her when he spoke.
    “I will convince you that your concerns about this jobsite are every bit as valid as you believe, deep down, that they are. That’s why you came here, after all. You could have sent anyone else; your father has lots of henchmen who could have come, twisted a few arms, and gotten these guys off their asses. But you didn’t send them. You came yourself.”
    He was appraising her openly now, and she had to admit she liked that she saw approval in his eyes. The smart thing to do would have been to shut him up and tell him to get the hell back to work, but instead she cocked an eyebrow at him and let him continue.
    “You had reasons for traveling halfway around the world, didn’t you?” he asked. “You know there’s something different about this site, that unlocking the secrets here is more than just business as usual. This job is special to you, isn’t it?”
    “All you need to know about me or my job here is that I’m highly motivated to get to the truth.”
    “Are you? Even if the truth isn’t what your father wants you to find?”
    “My father won’t proceed with a project if it’s dangerous. But he won’t be bullied into backing away from a safe, lucrative opportunity, either.”
    “And what about you? What opportunity are you really after?”
    “I’m doing my job, Mr. Vladik. Which is what you ought to be doing, too.”
    “I am, as a matter of fact. But how can I convince you, I wonder?”
    “Straight answers and numbers that make sense would be a great start.”
    “Very well, then. You will have them. Despite what your father expects of you, Ms. McGowan, I believe you are eager to think for yourself.”
    “Are you suggesting my father sent me here as his little puppet?” she asked sharply. “You believe you know me pretty well, don’t you?”
    “Not yet. But I will.”
    Presumption and arrogance. Total asshole. Damn his smoldering eyes and sexy tattoo.
    “I’m not so easy to figure out as you seem to presume,” she assured him.
    “Women who use their brains rarely are,” he replied, not even slightly derailed. “But I think for myself, too, Ms. McGowan, and you will find my way of thinking can be very, very persuasive.”
    “Your way of thinking might just get you kicked off this job.”
    He merely shrugged at her words and laid his fork down next to his half-finished lunch. “Perhaps. But it also just might save your life. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have work to be doing.”
    With that he stood, bowed ever so slightly like he was some kind of diplomat, then took his tray and left. No one else in the modular building that housed the kitchen and dining area seemed to notice anything unusual, but Lianne could have sworn the air around Nic shimmered the way a hot tar road did in the middle of August. She was glad she’d been sitting down, because her insides felt weak—and hot. Damn, but she was hot.
    Unfortunately, so was he. This was going to be a problem. Lianne had spent the whole ten-hour flight into Reykjavik psyching herself