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these, she wanted to shake Jonas. The mere thought of even touching the stone man produced an involuntary smile. He’d hate being touched.
    The middle-aged man Stephanie had met that first morning, Adam Holmes, had accompanied them. He’d been properly introduced, but the role he was to perform in the transaction was left to conjecture. Stephanie guessed that Adam was an attorney.
    “It’s looks like we’re in for pleasant weather,” Adam stated conversationally. His dark eyes narrowed fractionally as he gazed out the small window. For most of the trip, Adam had carried the conversation. He was both friendly and outgoing, a blatant contrast to the solemn, serious Jonas.
    A little surprised, Stephanie glanced up, not knowing if Adam was addressing his comment to her. Jonas didn’t respond. Stephanie would have been shocked to learn that any type of weather interested her employer.
    “I would guess early summer is the perfect time to visit Paris.” In reality, Stephanie wondered how much of the city she’d have a chance to see. Her one hope was that she would visit the Champs de Mars and view the 934 1 / 4 -foot Eiffel Tower built for the 1889 World’s Fair. High on her list were the twelfth-century cathedral of Notre Dame, and the Arc de Triomphe. She’d spent a year in France as an exchange student in high school, but apart from a quick trip through the airport, Stephanie hadn’t seen anything of Paris.
    The plane began its descent, and she clicked her seat belt into place. Casually, Jonas put away his papers and closed his briefcase. As soon as they landed they’d be going through customs, and Stephanie would be expected to step into her role as translator. Although she spoke fluent French, it’d been a while since she’d had the opportunity to use it.
    To her surprise, everything went without a hitch at the customs station, and her confidence grew. The three moved from that area to the waiting limo with only the minimum of delay.
    Adam Holmes held the door open for Stephanie, and she climbed inside the luxurious automobile. Jonas followed her, and they were soon on their way.
    At the hotel, they were escorted to their rooms and their luggage was delivered promptly. While Stephanie unpacked her clothes, she heard Jonas and Adam discussing the project. Apparently they would be meeting a powerful financier in the hope of obtaining financial backing for a current project. Lockwood Industries was the world’s largest manufacturer of small-airplane parts. There also seemed to be the possibility of establishing a branch of the Minneapolis firm in France, and Jonas had decided on Paris as the first foreign site of Lockwood Industries.
    “Miss Coulter.”
    “Yes.” Responding instantly to the command in Jonas’s voice, Stephanie appeared in the doorway of her room.
    “Lunch will be served in ten minutes.”
    “I’ll be ready. I just need a few minutes to freshen up.”
    “Of course.”
    Stephanie doubted that he’d even heard her speak. He’d often given her that impression. Returning to her assigned room, she glanced in the mirror. Several tendrils of soft blond hair had escaped from the coil at the base of her neck. Rather than tuck them back, Stephanie pulled out the pins and reached for her brush. The blond length curled under naturally at her shoulders. When working in the office, she preferred to keep her hair up. It gave her a businesslike look and feel, and that was important around Jonas.
    “Miss Coulter.”
    Taking her brush with her, Stephanie moved into the large central room where Jonas and Adam were waiting.
    “Yes?”
    For a moment, the room went still as Jonas caught her gaze. Their eyes met and locked. His deep blue eyes narrowed, and an expression of surprise and bewilderment flickered across his lean face. Something showed in his eyes that she couldn’t define—certainly not admiration, perhaps astonishment, even shock. His mouth parted slightly as if he wanted to speak, then