Time for Love Read Free Page A

location.”
    “Location?”
    “Yes. They discovered the body very near the entrance to the portal.” Wrinkles furrowed his brow, and deep frown lines settled into what she assumed were their habitual place along his jaw. “Now, we’ve been able to keep it quiet so far, but word is bound to leak out sooner or later. If we’re going to save our program, we can’t let this happen.”
    “Save your program!” She stared at him in disbelief. “So the only reason you want to save my sister is so you don’t risk losing your precious program?”
    He at least had the grace to flinch. “Of course not. Miss Evans is a lovely woman. I don’t wish to see her hurt, but our clients know the risks involved in time travel. While I sympathize with her plight, my position as president of the Griffin International time travel division makes my first and foremost responsibility to our bottom line. We are in the midst of a government evaluation. Were they to discover this problem, the government could shut us down.”
    “I don’t even know how to respond to that,” she said.
    “Say you’ll help us.”
    “First of all, I don’t believe this insane story you’ve been feeding me. Second, even if I did, what the hell could I do?”
    “You can find your sister before anything happens to her.”
    “Why me? Why not send in a rescue team the minute you clear the portal?”
    “We can’t do that. While the government is aware of the cave-in, they’re not aware anyone was using the portal at the time. And they are observing our cleanup efforts.” He ran a hand through his hair, the first gesture of genuine emotion Alex had seen since she’d arrived. “They’re more hindrance than help. The safety measures they insist upon are causing the process to go much slower than it should. They have no notion of the urgency of the situation.”
    “Then tell them about Charlotte.”
    “I can’t.”
    “You won’t.”
    He nodded. “Yes, I won’t allow this situation to destroy my company.”
    “Bastard.”
    “There’s no need for profanity,” he said with a sneer. “I understand my decision is difficult for you to accept, but it’s final.”
    The sneer faded, and he attempted what she guessed was supposed to be a smile, but it certainly didn’t reach his eyes, and she knew he couldn’t care less about her or Charlotte.
    “So what are you going to do? And why am I here? You said yourself you can’t just leave her there to be murdered. It wouldn’t look good. So what’s your plan?”
    “The fewer people who know about this the better. It decreases the chance of this news leaking. As I told you, the London portal is useless. However, we do have a portal right here in Philadelphia that travels to the same time period. We can mount a rescue attempt from here.”
    “So the portal here comes out where Charlotte is?”
    “Not where. When. The portal locations are fixed. If you go through in Philadelphia, you come out in Philadelphia. If you go now and catch the first ship traveling to London, you should have enough time to find Miss Evans before the events of this article take place. Our guess is that your sister sought the help of your ancestors.” He flipped open another folder and ran a finger down the page. “The Creswells—Lord and Lady Downing. She may have even claimed to be one of their lost girls since she didn’t have the resources for an extended trip. I suggest you begin by observing the Creswells’ home. Maybe you’ll catch sight of Miss Evans.” A thoughtful look replaced his frown, and he steepled his fingers under his chin, nodding. “You could simply approach the family and claim to be their missing daughter, reunite with Miss Evans and warn her. You can’t, of course, mention what you know to the family. No one can know about us.”
    Alex blinked and was surprised to find herself halfway to the door before she even realized she’d decided to leave. “This is insane. There’s no such thing as time