He waited for her to respond. When she remained silent, he continued. “We have three contracts pending for future acts. There’s a woman who does a great Patsy Cline cover and a couple of others. Burke took them home for a final read-through a couple of nights ago. I need them by tomorrow in case we have to renegotiate. Can you find them and get them to me by then?”

“You’re sure Burke didn’t bring the papers back? Have you checked his briefcase? His car?”

Garrett nodded. “I’m certain they’re still at your house. If it isn’t too much of an imposition—”

“No, it’s fine. The papers should be somewhere in his study, most likely his desk. I’ll look for them when I go home to shower and change.”

“It might save time if we asked him where he put them.”

“No. Leave him be. He needs his rest.”

When Garrett shot her an odd glance, Allison realized she’d spoken too quickly. He was probably wondering what was going on. Well, let him wonder. She was going to need some time before she faced Burke again.

“Once you’ve found the contracts I can send somebody to pick them up,” Garrett said. “That way you won’t need to hurry back.”

“Don’t bother. In any case, I don’t plan to be at the house long. I can bring them here or to your office.”

“The office, then, if you don’t mind. The sooner I get back to work, the better. For now, I’ll be doing two jobs. I’m depending on you to keep me informed about Burke.”

You can’t just pick up the phone and call him? Allison bit back the words as she slid her chair out and rose to her feet. “What do the contracts look like?” she asked.

“About five pages each, together in a plain manila envelope. The margins should have Burke’s notes on them in red. You’ll know them when you see them.”

“Fine. I’ll drop the envelope off on my way back here.” Allison rose wearily to her feet. “If you have any questions, you can ask Burke. He’s still the man with the answers. Thanks for the coffee.” She turned to go.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” he asked. “I’d be happy to drive you back to the house.”

“You have a business to run, remember?” She strode away, willing her unsteady legs not to betray her. Right now, Garrett Miles was the only person who could save Burke’s business. But he was an ambitious man, and he was clearly looking out for his own interests. She would have no choice except to cooperate with him. But she could not afford to lean on him.