Worth banged his fist on his desk and blew out a frustrated breath. He stared at the spreadsheet blinking on his computer screen but the numbers just seemed to meld together. Normally, going over the month’s finances would take him an hour or two to complete, tops. But today wasn’t a normal day. He’d received the finances in the morning and was still going through them eight hours later.
What the hell is wrong with me? He cussed under his breath as he rubbed his eyes. Oh, why was he even asking? His inability to focus on his work was nothing new. The same thing had been happening for over a month. Ever since she’d left.
Stop thinking about her, he gave himself a mental slap. He scooted forward in his seat and forced himself to look at the long stream of numbers on screen. It worked for a minute, until he spotted a mistake with the next month’s budget. If Sin was here, she would’ve caught it before it got to me.
Damn it! He was thinking about her again. What was wrong with him? Get yourself together, Wentworth!
A sudden knock on the door interrupted his self-flagellation.
“Come in,” Worth called out. A second later, his new assistant walked in.
Max Winchester was everything Sin wasn’t. One; he was a man. Two; he was quite reserved and business-like. Three and most importantly; he wasn’t Sin.
“Mr. Ransom.” Max stopped about a foot in front of Worth’s desk. “It’s already five p.m. Can I leave?”
Worth’s eyebrows shot up. Sin would’ve waited until at least seven p.m., and even then, she would’ve first asked him if he’d eaten or if there was something he needed her to do. Max was different. Still, that was what Worth wanted, wasn’t it?
Worth nodded. “Sure, you can leave.”
As soon as the door closed behind Max, Worth’s mind wandered. What was Sin doing right now? She was back in New York, right? Or was she conning someone again? What if she got caught again? His heart jerked in alarm. He should’ve taken Joel’s offer to get someone to keep an eye on her so they would know what she was up to after she left. What if she ended up in prison again? Jesus!
Oh, hell! Why did he even care? She wasn’t his business anymore. He’d kicked her out and the sooner he accepted that she was gone for good, the sooner he could forget her.
Now, let’s try to focus on work.
Since the spreadsheets were giving him so much trouble, he clicked to his inbox. There he found an email from Promotions. Attached was their agenda for the Family Fun Day that was scheduled to take place a month from now. As soon as Worth opened the attachment, he spotted a mistake. They’d scheduled speeches to happen after the fun activities.
What kind of idiot thought that was a good idea? Why would anyone stay for some boring monologues when they were tired from working out? Everyone would walk away and leave them on the field on their own. Worth kissed his teeth and shook his head. This wouldn’t have gotten past Sin.
It was funny, wasn’t it? That a woman who’d never had any formal training or previous experience working in a corporate environment was the best assistant he’d ever had. Worth smiled. Yeah, she’d been great. In and out of the office. Even now he could still remember how it’d felt to have her in his home, in his bed, in his arms.
Damn! He missed her. Ever since she’d left, he’d been unable to look at other women the same. They just didn’t measure up. Their eyes weren’t as pretty, they weren’t the right color, they didn’t smile the same way, they weren’t as friendly. They didn’t even wear their hair the same way. When he looked at them all he saw was how unique Sin was, how much he loved that uniqueness, how much he loved her.
No. Nope! He shook his head. He didn’t love her.
For Pete’s sake, she was a con-artist. How could he love her? It just wasn’t possible.
“Still here?” A deep voice cut into his thoughts.
Startled, Worth looked up only to meet his friend’s eyes. “Joel? When did you get here? I didn’t even hear you get in.”
“I know.” Joel strolled deeper into the room to take the seat across from Worth. “I knocked several times on your door and you didn’t hear me.”
“Really? You knocked?”
“Really! I knocked,” Joel mimicked with a teasing grin. “What’s got you so deep in your thoughts?”
“Nothing. Nothing.” Worth couldn’t reveal who he was really thinking about, could he? It was too embarrassing. So he hedged, “Just got lost in work.”
But his friend was more perceptive than he gave him credit for. Joel raised his eyebrows. “Really? You sure you weren’t thinking about Tamsin Jacob?”
“No, I wasn’t thinking about Tamsin Jacob,” Worth protested vehemently.
“Teee!” Joel made a buzzing sound with his mouth.
“What’s that?”
“That’s my lie-detector going off.” Joel snorted. “The man doth protest too much.”
Worth wanted to insist that he wasn’t thinking about Sin, but the knowing glint in his friend’s eyes said he wasn’t fooled. So Worth simply sighed.
The other man watched him for a long silent moment before saying, “You really fell for her, didn’t you?”
Worth didn’t answer.
“How?” Joel frowned. “You knew she was a con from day one. How could you fall for her?”
“You think I’m not asking myself the same question.” Worth’s tone was tinged with frustration, but it wasn’t directed at his friend. It was frustration with himself. “She’s a criminal. It doesn’t make sense that I’m pining over her. It just doesn’t make sense.”
Joel sighed. “Love doesn’t make sense, huh?”
“Nobody said anything about love,” Worth growled. “I don’t love her.”
“What?” Joel’s lips turned up on one side in a crooked smile. “Then what do you call what’s happening to you?”
“Madness.”
“Isn’t that a synonym for love?” Joel informed him, “You’re in love with her, man. That’s why you can’t get her out of your head.”
Worth wanted to deny his friend’s words. After all, he’d spent the whole month after she’d left, lying to himself that he wasn’t in love with her. But the more he thought about it the more it seemed like Joel had a point.
Frowning, Worth rubbed his forehead. Was he in love with Sin? No, right? Or was he? He didn’t want to be, but the evidence was winking like a bright neon sign. And it was screaming that he was in love with her. Man, he was so screwed!
“So what are you going to do about it?” Joel asked.
“What do you mean what am I going to do about it?” Still frowning, Worth met his friend’s gaze. “Isn’t it obvious? I’ll get over it.”
“If only it were that easy!” Joel snorted. “Take it from a man who’s been in love with one woman since he was fifteen. It ain’t that easy.”
“I’m not you!”
“Okay. All right! Psh!” Joel laughed. A moment later, his expression turned serious. “Have you considered just going after her?”
“What? Are you crazy?”
“I know it sounds crazy but think about it. Tamsin isn’t your usual kind of criminal. She’s not all bad; some would even call her mostly good. She’s a vigilante who goes after people who deserve it. Maybe that’s what attracted you to her,” Joel posited. “Also, she stopped going after you when she realized that you were not who she thought you were. Doesn’t that count for something?”
“No, it doesn’t,” Worth spat out even though he’d spent many nights wondering the same thing. “She’s still a criminal and she tried to con me.”
“Sheesh! Don’t bite my head off!” Joel raised his hands as if in surrender. “I was just trying to make a suggestion about something that’s easier to do than ‘get over it’.”
“Suggestion disapproved!” Worth closed the subject curtly.
“Okay, I’ll let it go.” His friend yielded with a sigh. He changed the topic. “So what are you going to do about Claire?”
“Nothing.” Worth sighed and sat back in his seat. “It’s not like her plan succeeded.”
He’d considered going to his brother after this whole fiasco but he’d changed his mind. Because of Sin. Contrary to what he’d told her, he had no loyalty to Claire. He didn’t give a flying pig whether she was family or not.
The real reason he didn’t want to pursue this whole matter was because it would tie Sin and Claire together. And if it did, the reality was that Claire had many backers, from his family to hers. Sin would be the one to pay the price. She’d be the one to go to jail. He couldn’t let that happen. No way.
“You’ll let Claire walk?” Joel’s expression was disapproving. When Worth only shrugged, he warned, “Someday that woman will do something that you can’t just sit back and watch.”
“And when it comes to that day, I’ll deal with it.”
Those words came back to haunt Worth barely a week later.
As was his habit ever since Sin had left, he got to his apartment well after eleven p.m. He’d just closed the front door behind him when he felt a sudden chill run down his spine. The hairs at the back of his neck stood in alarm. There was just something strange about his house. It was almost as if he wasn’t alone.
His heart pounding hard, he looked around the room. There was no one there and nothing seemed misplaced. Yet….
He almost jumped out of his skin when something moved behind the sectional. A moment later, a petite, dark-skinned woman with short, dyed hair and dressed in all black rose from behind the seat.
“What the fuck!” The expletive burst from Worth’s lips and he took a startled step back. “Who the hell are you?”
“Relax!” The woman lifted both hands as if to show that she didn’t have any weapons on her. “I won’t hurt you.”
Her assurance should’ve been laughable. She was just over five-feet tall and quite petite. No one would be afraid of her under normal circumstances. Yet something about the intensity of her gaze said she wasn’t the type of woman one messed with without risking a limb or even their life.
“Who are you?”
She circled the seat and settled on it. “Sin’s friend.”
Worth’s whole body stilled. “Sin’s friend?”
“Yes. We need to talk.” The woman gestured to the seat adjacent to hers. “Have a seat?”
Worth wanted to tell her that this was his house and she was the intruder. Common sense told him that he should call the police or at least find out how she’d broken into his house when his building was one of the most secure ones on this street. But curiosity won, and the mention of Sin was enough to make him take the offered seat.
The lady watched him with raised eyebrows. “Aren’t you going to ask me how she’s doing?”
He wanted to ask, he really did. But he couldn’t. Not without revealing his weakness.
Thankfully, the petite woman answered him anyway. “She’s not okay.”
Something that felt like a fist squeezed his heart, but he still didn’t say anything.
Anger flashed in the petite woman’s eyes as she repeated, “She’s not okay and you’re still here.”
Worth finally spoke. “Was I supposed to be somewhere else?”
“You’re a dick you know,” the woman spat out. “After everything Sin went through just so Claire wouldn’t hurt you, and you can’t even send a thank-you text?”
“Thank-you text?” Worth frowned in confusion. Why would he need to thank Sin? All she’d done was mislead him. As far as he could see, he had nothing to be grateful about.
“Yes, thank you!” The woman’s eyes narrowed. “If it wasn’t for her, you’d be screwed.”
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“Of course you’d say that.” The woman cut her eyes at him before dipping her hand into the pocket of her jacket. Out came a navy flash-drive. “This should explain it.”
She tossed the device in his general direction. Fortunately, Worth was good at playing catch. He caught the flash-drive and twirled round his fingers trying to figure out its contents.
He looked up to meet the intruder’s eyes. “What’s this?”
“Proof that you owe Sin an apology,” the woman said curtly, “and that you should be protecting her. Not Claire.”
“Did she tell you to bring this to me?”
“Of course not!” The intruder bit out, “She’s too scared of Claire.”
“Why would she be scared of Claire?” Worth’s frown deepened. Weren’t the two partners?
“Because your sister-in-law is even more of a dick than you are.” The woman’s eyes blazed with fiery anger as she added, “Claire made Sin choose between you and me.”
“You and me?” Worth was seriously confused. What did this woman have to do with him, Sin and Claire?
“Yes, like I said. I’m Sin’s friend.” The woman explained, “I was helping her with the job-”
Worth cut her off. “By job I assume you mean the job to con me.”
“Yeah, that job!” The woman’s tone was utterly unrepentant. “Claire told us you were trying to force her to sleep with you so her husband could keep his job. But we found out that she was lying… so Sin was going to come clean to you.”
Worth sat up straighter as surprise shot through him. “Sin was going to come clean?”
“Yeah! But Claire tried to make her choose between you and me,” the woman explained. “She threatened to send me to jail if Sin told you. Hah!” She laughed as if the very thought of going to jail was funny to her. “But somehow, Sin saved both of us. She even got beat up because of you.”
“Beat up?” Worth stiffened. “What the hell are you talking about? Who beat her?”
“Like you care!” The petite woman snorted before nodding towards the flash-drive in Worth’s hands. “Anyway, in there you’ll find the proof about everything your sister-in-law has been up to.”
“If Sin didn’t send you here, then why are you giving me this?”
“Because unlike Sin, I don’t believe in honor among thieves and I don’t care about what Claire will do to me. Plus, I’m a big fan of revenge.” A sudden grin lit up the woman’s face and Worth realized that she was actually pretty – in a scary way. Her grin dropped and was once again replaced by a scowl. “Claire deserves to go to hell, and you’re the only one I know who can take her there without Sin getting hurt.”
With that, the woman stood.
Worth shot to his feet. “You’re leaving?”
“It didn’t look like you were about to invite me for dinner,” the woman retorted sarcastically.
“What about-” Worth paused. He didn’t want to ask but he couldn’t help himself. “What about Sin? How is she?”
“Like I said, she’s not okay.” The woman gave Worth a lingering, narrow-eyed onceover. The face she made when she brought her gaze back up to meet his let him know that she didn’t approve of what she was seeing. “I thought that if I met you face-to-face I’d finally understand why she loves you so much, but I don’t. I still don’t get it.”
Out of that whole speech, he only heard one phrase, and it sent his heart galloping. “Sin loves me?”
“Why would she try to save you if-” The intruder suddenly stopped speaking, as if she’d just realized that she’d said more than she needed to. She started towards the hallway that led to his bedroom. “Bye.”
“Wait! Wait!” Worth followed in her footsteps. “Hey, lady. Wait.”
She entered his bedroom, and he followed her. The room was dark enough that he had to flick the lights on. That second that it took for him to adjust his eyes to the sudden brightness was enough for her to get to his balcony. He strode after her but just as he got to the sliding-glass doors, he saw her hop onto the balustrade.
“Hey!” he yelled out in fear as he rushed towards the rail. Was she trying to commit suicide?
When he looked down, he expected to see blood spattered on the driveway below, but there was none. He arched further trying to find her; and he did. She was on the balcony of the apartment below him. Another hop and jump and she ended up safely on the balcony of the apartment two floors below him.
Oh! So that’s how she’d gotten into his apartment? Worth watched her in awe as she slowly but determinedly made her way down their building. Why was he even surprised? This woman seemed like just the type of friend Sin might have.
Sin! The conversation with the petite intruder had been so scattered that he’d barely understood any of it. Maybe the flash-drive would explain everything. He swiftly strode away from the balcony, through his room and straight to the living room. The flash-drive was on the couch where he’d dropped it. He grabbed his laptop, turned it on and plugged in the device.
Minutes later, Worth was staring at his screen in absolute shock. What the hell was all this? Joel had been right about Claire one day pulling a stunt that just couldn’t be ignored. Blackmailing Sin was bad enough, but the stuff she was up to at the gallery was the kind of crap that could bring down not just her and her family, but Baron too.
Why hadn’t Sin told him all this before she left? Technically, he and his family were more powerful than Claire’s. With all this information about her misdeeds, they could’ve stopped her without Sin getting hurt. Why hadn’t she told him?
She was scared! Of course she was. She probably didn’t think that he’d protect her. And why would she? He’d never given her reason to think that she could just come to him. He’d never even tried to make her believe that he was different from Claire. All those things he’d said to her in the bathroom must have reinforced her opinion that trusting him would be a mistake.
Damn! What had he done? So this is what real regret felt like? He leaned back into the seat and covered his face. Sin’s friend was right? He owed Sin an apology. But would she even listen to him? After everything he’d done, after everything he’d said?
Damn! He’d messed up. He’d messed up bad.
* * *
WORTH’S FIRST LINE of attack was obvious; confirming that everything Sin’s friend had told him was true. And it was. Painfully true! Masterson had uncovered even more than what Sin and her friend had found out. The scale of Claire and her father’s crimes was eye-popping. Once it was revealed, it would rock the city’s financial and government foundation. Given the fact that Claire was married to a Ransom and Worth’s father often had business dealings with her father, it was obvious that the Ransoms would get affected too.
As soon as Worth had all his information, he went to see his brother.
“This is a surprise!” Baron welcomed him into his office with a wide grin. He led the way to the set of sofas at one end of the room and took a seat. “I thought you said you’d never step into RGC even if Dad sent a firing squad after you.”
“These are special circumstances.” Worth took the seat adjacent to his brother’s.
“Something to drink?” Baron offered when his assistant swept into the room with a tray of beverages and set them on the coffee-table.
“No, I’m good.” Worth gestured towards the tray. “But you help yourself. I know you don’t take breakfast at home.”
“Still remember that, huh?” Baron laughed as he picked up the pot of tea and poured some into a cup.
The ringing sound of Baron’s laugh sent guilt lancing through Worth. As much as he knew that this was necessary, he hated having to be the one to bring his brother pain. And Baron would be in pain. How could he not? Hearing how far off the rails the wife he loved so much was would surely hurt him.
“What’s with the serious look?” Baron cut into Worth’s thoughts. “You look like you’ve come to give me bad news.”
“I have.” Worth drew in a deep breath. “It’s about Claire…”
By the time he was done with his story, Baron looked like he was about to faint. All the blood had gone from his face and it was now a worrying gray. His hands shook as he set his cup back on the coffee-table.
“Are-“ Baron swallowed hard. “Are you sure about all this?”
“I wouldn’t come to you if I wasn’t.”
Baron wiped his palm over his face. “Shit!”
That alone was enough to let Worth know how shocked his brother was. Baron never cussed.
“I’m sorry.” Worth watched his brother in concern.
“It’s not your fault.” Baron dragged in a deep breath as if to compose himself. When he sat up straighter, his expression was unreadable. However, his face was just as pale. “What are we going to do about this?”
“You know what we have to do,” Worth said softly.
His brother sighed. “I know.”
If Senior was in their place, he would’ve tried to cover it all up. But Worth and Baron were different. Even if their consciences weren’t still intact, they were both smart enough to realize that this was a ticking time-bomb. It was too big to stay under water for much longer. One day it would surely blow up, and when it did it would cause damage. The only reasonable path now was to control that damage.
“I’ll have to talk to Gabriel Salazar,” Baron said, mentioning the current District Attorney. “Do you still have his number?”
“I can do it,” Worth offered quickly. “You don’t have to get involved.”
“You know I do.” Baron smiled tiredly. “She’s my wife. And this way, it will be obvious that neither I nor our family was involved.”
Though Baron’s tone was even, Worth was sure that he wasn’t thrilled at the thought of betraying his own wife. So he suggested, “Why don’t you talk to her first? Maybe you can get her to give herself up to the cops before this whole thing gets out of hand.”
“She’ll never do it. And if I tell her what we know, she’ll just do worse things to bury it deeper.” Baron closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I know my wife.”
“You two won’t survive if you do this,” Worth warned.
“I know.” His brother met his eyes. “But I always knew we wouldn’t last.”
“What?” Worth frowned. “I thought you loved her.”
“I did. I still do. But she doesn’t love me.” Baron smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ve always known that.”
Even though he knew it wasn’t his fault that Claire had settled on Baron only because he refused to give her the time of day, Worth still couldn’t help the instant remorse that swept through him.
“I’m sure she loved you in her own way,” Worth soothed.
Baron’s loud guffaw was answer enough. He didn’t believe that.
The two brothers spent the next hour planning how to deal with the ramifications of this fiasco on their respective companies and families. Unfortunately, there were no words that Worth could say that would make his brother feel better about what he was about to do. Still, it had to be done.
Now that that problem was on its way to getting fixed, Worth still had another problem. Sin.
What was he going to do about her? The more he thought about everything she’d done to protect him from Claire, the more certain he was that her feelings for him were genuine. And it only made him want her back. The only problem was; would she even accept him? Sure, she might’ve had feelings for him, but their last meeting could’ve erased all that. She probably hated him right now, and he couldn’t blame her. He deserved all the hate. He was tempted to head straight to New York, get on his knees, beg for her forgiveness and ask her to come back with him. But he knew he couldn’t. Not yet.
Things were about to get hot around here. If she came back to Portland, she’d get caught in the crossfire. Claire would probably try to drag her into this whole mess. No, he couldn’t let that happen. Though he ached to have her close to him, he knew that she was safer in New York. But once things calmed down….