The Ties That Bind

kitchen door. Shannon told herself she was going to have to think of something else.
    Her arm was aching from the fierce pressure Wes had on it. She had taken him by surprise last night, but today he seemed to be waiting for her to try something. Without the element of surprise, she didn't stand much of a chance. McIntyre was a good deal larger and stronger than Shannon was. She stumbled as she was pushed through the back door.
    "This is all a waste of time, you know," she tried to say calmly as she caught herself on the edge of the table.
    "Is it?" Wes asked contemptuously. "I don't think so.
    I think if we look real hard around here we'll come up with another copy of that Carstairs bid. Find it!"
    Shannon tried to free herself once more, twisting angrily in McIntyre's grasp even as he tightened his hold. Desperately she looked around, seeking an object she could use in her own defense. Her eyes lighted on the teakettle sitting on the stove, and she was wondering if she could get hold of it when everything in the kitchen suddenly went still, including Wes McIntyre.
    "Sheridan." Wes sounded dazed. He didn't release Shannon, but his eyes were fixed on the doorway into the living room. "What the hell are you doing here? You're supposed to be halfway back to San Jose. I watched you leave myself."
    Shannon's head came up with a quick movement, her eyes widening in relief. "Garth! Oh, Garth, thank heavens you're here!" He was standing like a rock in the doorway, his eyes colder than Shannon had ever seen them. In one hand he held the copy of the bid he had taken with him earlier.
    "Let her go." The words were far too quiet. Garth looked at Wes.
    "Listen to me, Sheridan, don't be a fool. The woman's been putting you through the hoop for weeks. She's the one responsible for the theft of that bid. She's been working with Bonnie. I just found out myself what was going on. The two of them have been running rings around both of us. I finally realized what was happening when I -"
    "Let her go."
    Abruptly Shannon felt her arm being freed. She didn't hesitate. Running across the kitchen, she hurled herself against Garth. His arm went around her as she buried her face in his chest.
    "Don't listen to him, Garth. He's the one behind this whole thing. He and Bonnie copied the bid that day we went to lunch in San Jose. He screwed up that night at the party and put the bid into my tote instead of Bonnie's . Kenyon was supposed to retrieve it later, but we left early and the bid was already inside my bag. That's why I-"
    "You going to let another woman make a fool out of you, Garth?" Wes asked with soft contempt. "I thought you learned your lesson after Christine left."
    Shannon clung more tightly, a new kind of fear replacing the sort she had been experiencing around Wes. "Garth, no, please. Don't listen to him."
    Garth very gently unwound her arms from around his waist. Without glancing down at her, he set her aside. Shannon stood paralyzed in the doorway as Garth took a few steps into the kitchen to confront Wes McIntyre.
    "What was Kenyon offering, Wes? More money? A better job? Stock in the company?" Garth sounded as if he were only remotely interested.
    "Ask her," Wes snarled, gesturing toward Shannon. "She's the one who tried to sell you out. Ask her what he was offering."
    Garth ignored him. "You must have known that sooner or later I'd figure out who'd sold Kenyon the copy of the bid. And you know me well enough to realize I wouldn't have just written the whole thing off to experience. I would have come after you. So Kenyon must have found a way to convince you he could protect you."
    "You're trying to blame me, Sheridan, because you don't want to admit you let another woman get past your defenses again." Wes was suddenly calm and controlled. He glanced at Shannon. "She's all right, I suppose, but nothing spectacular. Bonnie would have been a better bet. You could have had her, instead, I think. But with Bonnie you were always strictly business."
    "Is that why she turned to you so easily?"
    Wes lifted one shoulder negligently. "You should be grateful. If I hadn't been sleeping with your secretary, Garth, I probably wouldn't have figured out what was going on here. But Bonnie talks a little too much in the sack. She'd given up on getting your attention, but she hadn't given up on getting even for the fact that you managed to ignore her for damn near five years. So she worked out a plan. But she needed an assistant. Someone who