As long as he was here, though, he ought to go through with this.

Ramping up his courage, he pushed through the door.

The receptionist was unfamiliar, as he’d expected. Lee had told him they rotated through the job on a regular basis.

“Good afternoon.” The woman offered him a cheery smile. “Do you have an appointment?”

“Yes. With Lee.” He gave her the name he’d used.

“I see it. I’ll let her know you’re here. Make yourself comfortable.” She motioned toward the seating area and disappeared behind the wall that hid the working part of the salon from the view of passersby.

Dave remained standing. The waiting area was empty midafternoon—no surprise, since the salon catered to a male, working-age clientele. Evenings and weekends were their busiest periods, according to Lee.

The receptionist reappeared.

“She’s ready for you. Fourth station down.”

Same place she’d been on his first visit.

A sense of déjà vu overwhelmed him as he circled behind the wall. Very little had changed. New lighting fixtures, a subtle shift in color scheme—but the discreet glass partitions that muted conversation still stood between the amply spaced stations, allowing clients privacy as they chatted with their stylist.

Thank goodness.

Lee swiveled toward him as he approached.

Froze.

Recoiled.

His heart stumbled, but he kept moving.

She narrowed her eyes as he drew close, animosity oozing from her. “Why are you here?” As she spat out the low-pitched question, she flicked a glance at the stylist two stations down who was chatting with her customer as she snipped and clipped.

“For a cut—and information.”

“I have nothing to say to you.”

“If I leave, your boss will want to know why you turned away a customer.”

“I could say you were hitting on me.” Venom wove through her words.

“I have a witness who’ll confirm that isn’t true.” He motioned to her coworker.

Her eyelid twitched. “Fine. Sit.”

He eased into the chair, and she draped a black cape around him. Scissors appeared in his field of vision, not far from his jugular.

Maybe this was a bigger mistake than he’d thought.

But she wouldn’t do anything to injure him. Not on the job, anyway.

“I have to ask you something.”

Silence.

She wasn’t going to make this easy.

May as well cut to the chase. “I’m being blackmailed. Someone has photos.”

The scissors stopped. Started again.

More silence.

“Lee, I’m sorry about what happened.” He angled his head away from the other duo farther down, keeping his tone subdued. “I’ve told you that. I never meant to hurt you.”

“Right.” A loud snip sounded close to his ear.

Too close.

He tried not to cringe.

“I’m telling you the truth. If you choose not to believe me, I can’t help that. But for years I’ve been paying a steep price for my indiscretion. I have to find out who’s behind this. I thought you might have an idea or two.”

She continued to cut.

He waited.

“How much are they soaking you for?”