“I’m fine.”
I look into his green eyes, and I know he’s lying. “No, you’re not.”
He sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. “I’ll need surgery. I’m out for the season.”
“Rhys.” I wish I could hug him. Baseball has been his life since he was five years old. It’s been the one constant in his life, even after his parents died.
It’s his life.
“I’m going home to Denver,” he continues. “I’ll see the doctors there, do some therapy. I’ll be fine.”
“Rhys.”
He sighs again, and finally he says, “Careers end because of this, Kate. I can’t lose baseball. I’m only twenty-eight, for Godsake.”
“I’ll be home in a couple weeks, tops, and I’ll take care of you.”
He smirks. “I don’t need a mommy.”
“Maybe I just need to be there to be helpful.”
He clears his throat and talks to someone else in the room. “I have to go. I wanted to fill you in.”
“Have you called Ma and Da?” I ask.
“They’re next. Love you. See you soon.”
“Love you too.”
“He’ll be okay,” Eli says from the doorway, fastening the cuff-links on his shirt. I nod and set the phone aside, quickly brush on some mascara and lip gloss, resigned that this is as good as it gets today, and walk out of the bathroom.
“I know. Let me get some clothes on, and let’s go.”
***
“Hi Kate, this is Adam, the private investigator you spoke with last week?”
“Yes! Please tell me you’ve found something.” I shift in my chair, gathering papers and a pen to make notes with.
“I have; I just hope it’s something you can use. You mentioned that there is no employee named H. Peters at Bayou Industries, in any department.”
“That’s right.”
“I had to do some digging into each of the employees and their families, and let me tell you, there are a lot of people who work there.”
“Tell me about it.”
“You have an employee there named Gerald Rudolph. Didn’t get to him until I hit the ‘R’s.” All of the hair on my body stands on end.
“We do.”
“His wife’s maiden name is Hannah Peters.”
Bingo. I shimmy in my seat, doing the happy dance.
“Thanks, Adam. Can you email that information to me?”
“Sure thing. There is other info in the reports too, including a description of the woman who picks up the checks.”
“Great job, Adam. Thanks again.” I immediately call Eli’s office and sigh in relief when he answers. “I need a meeting with you, Beau, and Van ASAP.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. We’re about to wrap this case up.”
There’s a long pause, and then, “Be in my office in thirty minutes.”
“But Van is at the inn.”
“She’s at the doctor for a check up. She’ll be here.”
He hangs up, and I sit for a second and frown at the phone. Why did he sound so…cold? Solving this case is what I was hired to do. He should be happy that it’s almost over.
I use the next twenty minutes to print out all of the information I’ve gathered, along with the email from Adam when it comes through.
The elevator seems to take forever. This is the part of my job that I love so much. The part when I get to sit before those who hired me and tell them who and how. The satisfaction of knowing that the job was done well. My whole body is humming with excitement when I walk into Eli’s office and see that Beau and Van are already there.
“Thanks for meeting with me.”
The door closes behind me, and I sit in a seat between Beau and Van, facing Eli.
“Who is it?” Beau asks immediately.
“Gerald Rudolph.”
“Impossible,” Eli says calmly.
“No, it’s not impossible.” I explain the suspicions I brought to Van’s attention over the weekend, and then show them the evidence that Adam sent over. “His wife’s maiden name is Peters. Hannah Peters. Every transfer went to Western Union to an H. Peters.”
Savannah is shaking her head. “This doesn’t make sense. He has no reason to steal, Kate. He makes a very good salary. He’s been with us for a very long time.”
“That’s how it usually is,” I reply gently. “The person responsible is typically someone that is trusted. Loyal, even.”
“I guess that people make poor decisions when they have a lot of stress in their lives,” Savannah says slowly.
“Thank you, Kate,” Eli says and stands, showing me the door. He’s suddenly a stranger, and I don’t like it. “We will go over this evidence, and discuss, and let you know if we need anything further.”
“Are you okay?” I ask, frowning at him.
“Of course.”
I stop in the middle of the office and stare at him. Finally, he simply leans in and whispers in my ear. “We will talk later. Have a good afternoon.”
And with that, I’m shown through the door.
I return to my office and decide to make additional copies of all of the reports I just gave to Eli.
Why was he so cold just now? Not four hours ago he was holding me tight, being so sweet, so tender. Treating me like I’m special and sexy and someone he enjoys being with.
And, in his office, he was distant, as if he’s never seen me naked or been inside me.
How can men do that? Go from hot to cold in a matter of hours?
Is he mad that I solved the case and the person responsible is someone he likes?
Or maybe…
I sit back and stare at the wall as it occurs to me that me solving this case means that I’m leaving. My time here is almost over.
And that just makes me sad.
I’ve loved spending time with Savannah and Declan again. I didn’t realize how much I missed them until I had them available to me all the time.
But, most of all, I’ve enjoyed Eli. He’s amazing sexually, and has given me a new confidence physically that I’ll always be indebted to him for. He showed me how a woman is supposed to feel when she’s with a man, in and out of bed. He makes me laugh. He turns my body inside out and makes it sing.
And I suspect that I wasn’t as careful as I thought I was, and I’ve already done the irresponsible thing and fallen in love with him.
I don’t do love.
He has been honest with me from the beginning. He’s attracted to me, enjoys me, but he doesn’t love me.
And I am leaving. I have a life in Denver. A job that sends me all over the country. I need to make sure that Rhys is going to be okay.
I have responsibilities.
“Are you okay?” Hilary asks, as she walks into my office, pulling me out of my daydream.
“Hi,” I reply with a grin. “I’m okay. Just a lot on my mind.”
“Wanna talk about it?”
I shake my head no with a sigh.
“I’m your friend, you know. You can always talk to me about stuff.”
“I appreciate that. How was your weekend with Louis?”
“Even better than the last time,” she says with a wink, and sits in the chair in front of my desk. She sets a to-go container on my desk. “I brought you lunch.”
“You didn’t have to do that. Is it lunch time already?”
“It is,” she confirms. “I tried a new soup recipe and had a ton left over. This is why I rarely cook for myself. Cooking for one is just a waste of food.”
“I hear you. Thanks.” I take the lid off and sniff it. She even warmed it up for me. “Smells great. So, what else did you do this weekend?”
“I took Louis shopping. I needed some new shoes.” She lifts her leg and shows me a gorgeous pair of sling-back Choos. “And I might have needed a new bag too,” she says with a laugh, and shows off a gorgeous black Gucci handbag.
Wow.
“Those are gorgeous,” I agree.
“Your friends are fun,” she says with a smile, changing the subject.
“I know.” I swallow, but keep my face impassive. This is the job. Lying. I’m excellent at it when I need to be.
“I didn’t realize you were so close to the Boudreaux family.”
“I wouldn’t say we’re super close,” I reply easily. “I did go to college with Savannah, and when I decided to move down here, she offered me a job.”
“Convenient.”
So, Hilary has a bitchy side.