CHAPTER 33
Kenzie
The long, grueling climb to the top floor left me panting, sweating, sore from head to toe—and no closer to feeling better about the nightmare my life had quickly become.
The whole way, thoughts of Aaron’s evasiveness crowded my mind. I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was so much more to the story than what he’d shared with me up to this point.
Why was it happening? He told me he was innocent, but with so much evidence against him, how could I believe him?
What did any of it have to do with me? Why had he taken me to the Azores just so he could meet with his lawyers? Was I really just his plaything? Or had I inadvertently got myself caught up in his crimes? I couldn’t remember what I’d signed or what papers I’d pushed since coming on board.
I was well past the point of believing a business meeting was the reason for the sudden departure. I would ask him about it. I would ask him about everything.
I couldn’t run fast enough to get away from the swirling tangle of conflicting thoughts. Why wouldn’t he come clean if he was innocent? Why did every grain of truth require so much digging? When would he learn to trust me?
And when would it all blow over?
If it ever would at all, of course.
Media scrutiny was only part of the nightmare. There could be a trial, audits, so much more ugliness than what I’d already experienced. He could go to prison for a long time.
“Did you seriously take the stairs?” Jeanine asked when I staggered through the door to the stairwell. I was surprised to see her on a Sunday.
But then, with everything going on, of course she would be here to put out fires. Her loyalty spoke of Aaron’s character. Unless she was in on the scheme.
“It seemed like a good idea at the time. I needed to get away for a minute. Work out my . . . frustration.”
She nodded, her eyes wide. “It’s been a nightmare.”
I smiled. “You’re here, though.”
“Where else could I be?” She shrugged, and the expression on her face told me much more than her words did. I wondered how deeply she cared for her boss, what their relationship was like before I came along. I thought she might have a crush on him, if not worse. She dressed very well—had he bought her a new wardrobe, too?
I pushed the thought aside, walking to my office. I couldn’t wait to shut the door and shut out the world. I could suddenly see why Aaron preferred his doors shut.
My office wasn’t empty, much to my sweaty, breathless dismay. Aaron turned from his spot at the window, hands behind his back. He looked crisp, cool, collected. As always. In direct contrast to me.
“I took the stairs,” I said, fighting for control of my breath.
“So I see. I wondered where you went when I lost you downstairs. It seemed like you ran away from me.”
I heard the meaning behind his words just as I had when I spoke to Jeanine. Didn’t anyone in this company say what they meant?
“I ran away, but not from you. Never from you. Everything around you, though? Yes.”
He nodded like he understood, even if he didn’t like it. Meanwhile, I walked around the desk and settled myself behind it. I had to regain some measure of control, especially since I felt like a sweaty, unkempt mess. Hardly the image I wanted to present.
He watched me, wordless. I hated not knowing what went on behind his eyes. What was he thinking? What did he feel? What was his reaction to everything we’d just been through?
I appreciated his strength, his need to stay in control. Somehow, it would have been easier if he’d broken down a bit. Shown some shred of humanity.
I sighed, wishing I knew where to go.
He didn’t say a word.
Not even an apology.
It pissed me off.
What right did he have to turn my life upside down?
“I think it’s time you told me the truth. The entire truth. I can’t go the rest of my life not knowing what’s really happening around me—especially as it pertains to you.” I spoke with all the dignity I could muster, in spite of my outward appearance. I felt sweat running in slow, nauseating trails down the back of my neck. I wanted to wipe it away but forced myself to stay still and look Aaron in the eye.
He nodded, blank-faced. “I see what you mean.”
“You do? Finally. What woke you up? That little debacle downstairs, maybe?”
“Maybe. What is it you want to know?” He sat down, adjusting the perfect creases on his suit pants as he did. He always looked impeccable, no matter the time of day or activity.
I wondered how he would look in jail. I couldn’t imagine him in an orange jumpsuit—it wouldn’t go well with his complexion.
I sat down, finally having caught my breath. I pulled together all the self-control I could muster. “Why did you hire me? What led you to make that decision? It was awfully impulsive.”
“I told you the day I hired you that I did so because of your skills. You’re an asset wherever you go, Kenzie. That hasn’t changed. I wanted you to get the credit you deserved.”
Bullshit? I couldn’t tell, not with the blank face he continued to wear.
“So it had nothing to do with us?”
“Not a thing. It didn’t hurt, of course—if I never met you, if we never spent the night together, you wouldn’t have told me what was going on at work. I wouldn’t have dug deeper and learned how great you are at your job. Otherwise? It was all you.”
I wished I could believe him wholeheartedly. I just wasn’t sure.
“What about the article? All the articles? Where did it start?”
“How should I know?” he asked, shrugging. “Honestly, I’m on the right side of the law. I didn’t do anything illegal, and the legal team is backing me up on this.”
Right—because lawyers had such a sterling reputation for telling the truth at all times. I didn’t know how much of that explanation I could swallow. He wasn’t selling me on his innocence.
“Accusations like this don’t just happen, you know. I’m not naïve. If there’s proof out there, it had to come from somewhere.”
“I have ideas as to where it originated,” he said, holding up a hand. “Don’t worry about that. I’ve got it under control.”
“I wish I could believe that,” I said, shaking my head. “I do. What I saw out there, just now, was not the picture of a man who has it under control.”
He nodded, shrugging a little. “I know how it looked. Maybe that’s how I want it to look. I want the person who set me up for this to think it buried me.”
“Jesus!” I slammed my hands on the desk. “Would you just be straight with me for once? Drop the macho act for just a minute and communicate with me. Tell me the truth. I know you’re hiding something. You know who did this and why they did it?”
“Yes.” His voice was strong, certain.
“And you know how to get through it?”
“Yes. It won’t happen at the snap of my fingers, as much as I wish it would. It’s a process. Believe me, when I sue the shit out of this person for defaming me, it will all go away, and I’ll come out the winner. I mean that. That’s the way it’s going to be.”
I took a few deep breaths, calming myself. I hadn’t intended to lose my temper, but he was so damned infuriating. The cool, calm demeanor he wore like one of his suits didn’t wear well in every situation.
When I could speak again without my voice shaking, I asked, “And the trip. That was all a ruse, huh?”
“Yes. I’m sorry.” It hurt, but it was the truth, at least.
“And there was no meeting? You were just trying to get me out of the country?”
“That’s right. I didn’t want this to come down on you the way it has. The plan was for the story to break, for the lawyers to get the ball in motion regarding the defamation suit, and to be on the other side of the mountain by the time we flew home. I wanted this to be winding down before we hit the city.”
I believed that. I believed him, on the whole. Once I thought straight, weighing his words, I couldn’t imagine why he would lie.
“All right, then. We understand each other. I don’t want any more hidden truths, and I want to know what’s happening with the case. I think I deserve that much after what we’ve . . . been to each other.”
My heart ached, needing me to pour out my feelings but being thwarted again. I couldn’t break down and tell him what I felt. I just couldn’t. Not when he didn’t feel the same—and he didn’t give me any indication that he did.
“All right. That’s fair enough. I’m sorry I kept information from you in the first place.”
I shrugged, leaning back in my chair. “So what now, Aaron?”
“Now we go back to my place.”
My body leaped at the invitation, responding to just his words. The memory of our last few times together was strong, so strong that I couldn’t imagine denying myself another night with him.
My brain, on the other hand, had second thoughts.
“Is that wise? Do you need to add fuel to the fire when someone spots your new employee sneaking off with you on the heels of this scandal?”
“We can be smart about it. We don’t have to go together. But I do think you should go. I want to be with you tonight. I need you.”
I saw that need in his eyes, plain and true. For once, I felt the connection between us that I’d craved. It wasn’t just his body calling to mine, but his soul needed respite.
It was all I could give him, so I would give it gladly.
“Yes,” I said. It was all that needed to be said.
“I’ll leave now,” Aaron said. “You should wait a bit, until the crowd dies down outside. Once I’m out of here, they won’t be as interested in anybody else coming or going.”
“All right.” I stood when he did, walking him to my office door. Before opening it, he turned to me.
“Don’t make me wait too long,” he murmured, pulling me close by the waist.
His mouth was hot on mine, as it always was. He’d turned me on with his words alone, so the sensation of his tongue sweeping along the inside of my mouth was enough to spread wetness between my legs.
By the time we parted, I was just as breathless as I’d been when I reached the office.
“I’ll hurry,” I promised. Wild horses couldn’t have kept me away.