Chapter 2

 

February
Wednesday

 

Lena frowned curiously at her phone as she left her Wednesday evening class with Seth Wyatt shadowing her footsteps. She had a missed call and a voicemail from her father, but since she would be driving momentarily, she decided to simply return his call rather than listen to the message he’d left. She smiled involuntarily when he answered in his usual manner.

“Hey, honey!”

“Hey, Dad. Sorry I missed your call earlier. I was in class,” she explained, waving Wyatt off to his own vehicle as she settled into the driver’s seat of her car. Once she had connected the Bluetooth setting, Nate’s voice came through the car’s audio system, and she dropped her cell into the cupholder.

“Oh, that’s right. I guess my brain is still stuck on last semester’s schedule, and I didn’t even think to double check. Sorry about that.”

“No big deal. Is everything okay? I didn’t listen to your message yet since I’m driving home.”

“Uh, yeah… everything’s fine,” he replied cautiously. “I was just checking in. Everything still going alright with Wyatt and Cook?”

“Don’t you know the answer to that from their daily reports?” Lena couldn’t quite keep the petulance out of her tone, and Nate didn’t miss it.

“Yes, but I’m asking you. And there’s no need to be sassy about it. This is the compromise you agreed to, remember? When there’s a known threat, you have security.”

“I know,” she sighed wearily.

As much as Lena might understand the need for her protective detail, she couldn’t help but feel that her privacy was being sacrificed. Wyatt and Cook both did everything in their power to respect her boundaries, but the daily reports were a part of their job requirements. Lena did her best not to take out her frustration on them, however. They were simply doing their jobs, and she couldn’t fault them for it.

“Have you had any concerns with either of them?” Nate asked, reclaiming her attention as she waited at a red light just outside campus.

“No, they’re doing fine. Has there been any news from the cops this week?”

“Nothing good, unfortunately. They think they’ve now tracked down every possible eyewitness, but no one saw the shooter as clearly as Logan did.”

“And even he couldn’t see the asshole’s face,” she muttered in chagrin.

“Exactly.”

“So, that’s it? They’re just giving up?”

“You know I won’t let them do that. Try to be patient, sweetheart. We’ll figure it out. How’s Owen?”

“He’s great,” Lena replied, thankful for the change in subject. “He’s been really busy with the Everett project, but it sounds like it’s going really well.”

“Yes, it is,” her father agreed. She could hear his smile in his voice. “Everyone’s been very impressed with his work so far. You should be proud of him.”

“You should be too. You’re one of his role models.”

“High praise, indeed,” Nate chuckled. He paused as though trying to decide how to phrase his next words. “So, the other reason I called was about this coming weekend.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. I thought maybe you and Owen might like to join me and Jeff for dinner somewhere on Saturday. We could go to Trace,” he offered, with the air of one dangling a coveted treat overhead.

Lena was stunned into silence for a moment and shook her head incredulously at her father’s audacity. She’d been consciously avoiding Jeffrey Phelps for months, especially after Nate had chosen to ignore her warnings that Phelps might be embezzling from GC. She thought she and her father had come to the same unspoken agreement not to talk about Phelps, but apparently, she’d been wrong.

He wants me to go to dinner with the guy? Seriously?

“Um… Thanks, but I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Lena answered a bit coldly.

“Honey, I think it’s time to just let this whole mess go. You got the wrong idea about the data you were looking at last fall, which can happen to anyone. It was an honest mistake, and I didn’t even tell him about it. He’ll be your direct supervisor eventually, and you should get to know him better.”

“I’m really not interested in knowing him any better.”

“Lena,” her father said reproachfully.

“Besides, it’s Valentine’s Day next week, and Owen and I are celebrating this weekend,” she added quickly.

“Oh… Right, well, I guess that makes sense since you’re both so busy during the week. We can find another time to have dinner.”

“We’ll see,” she hedged.

At the first opportunity, Lena fabricated an excuse to end the call, pursing her lips as she drove the rest of the way to her apartment in irritated silence. She scarcely glanced at Wyatt when he pulled into the parking spot next to hers and followed her up to her front door. He took up the usual post in the hallway and, to his credit, didn’t so much as blink when she slammed the door behind her.

“You okay?” Owen asked, peering at her in concern over the back of the armchair. Lena was surprised to find that he wasn’t alone in the room, and she wondered idly what kind of conversation she’d just interrupted.

“I’m fine,” she replied in a voice that clearly indicated otherwise. Her eyes shifted to Logan as she shed her coat and bookbag. “What are you doing here? Besides eating our food, of course.”

“Nice to see you too, Pipsqueak. And whatever, you guys still owe me for helping Owen move. I was promised pizza and beer. I brought the beer since you young’uns can’t buy it. I’m just here to collect on the rest.”

“I don’t seem to recall much heavy lifting on your part.”

“Yes, and why was that again? Oh, right, because I took a bullet for you. Besides, I thought you liked when I just stop by unannounced,” Logan grinned, toasting her with his slice of sausage and mushroom. Lena rolled her eyes but smiled nonetheless.

“I do, but you really should call. He lives here now. We could have Naked Wednesdays for all you know.”

“Don’t need to set a day for that, baby,” Owen eyed her suggestively.

“Or a time,” she smirked.

“Or a place, really.”

“Okay!” Logan interrupted. “It’s getting gross in here. Knock it off. Why were you all pissy when you came in? I’m assuming you slammed the door in poor Wyatt’s face out there. Should we see if he needs an ice pack or something?”

“He’s fine,” Lena sighed, feeling her stress level creep upward again.

She rubbed her temples, and Owen held his arms open invitingly. Once she was settled on his lap in the chair, he kissed her softly and massaged the back of her neck. It felt amazing, and for a moment, she closed her eyes and forgot the third person in the room. The sound of a throat clearing brought her back to awareness, and she turned her head to find Logan looking at them with one brow raised.

“So?”

“Nothing, just my dad. He called while I was in class and left a voicemail.”

“That’s horrible! I can’t believe the nerve of that guy, leaving his daughter a voicemail? What’s next? Texting?!” His sarcasm earned him a chuckle from Owen and a middle finger from Lena.

“It’s what the voicemail said, asshole,” she replied. “Not that I’ve listened to it yet. I just called him back on the way home. He wanted me and Owen to go to dinner with him and Phelps this weekend.”

“Seriously?” Owen looked incredulous, and Logan frowned in confusion.

“The creepy guy who was at the hospital with Nate?” They both nodded at him. “You never did tell me the story on that guy.”

“I thought you’d met him before, but I guess you’d already been deployed when he started as CFO…”

Lena explained how the merger with Phelps Manufacturing had kept GC out of bankruptcy as well as the oddities she’d discovered in the accounting database when researching for her school project the previous semester. Owen helped to fill in the blanks here and there, and Logan’s expression grew steadily darker as the story unfolded.

“And when you told Nate about all of this, he wasn’t the least bit concerned?” Logan asked in disbelief.

“Oh, he was concerned… up until the part where I named the person I thought was responsible. Then I was just being silly and forgetting how much ‘Jeff’ had helped the company,” Lena snorted.

“And that was the end of it?”

“Pretty much,” she shrugged. “If he’s not going to listen, then there’s nothing more I can do from my end.”

“He clearly trusts this guy,” Logan mused. “Would he have trusted him enough to tell him about your suspicions?”

“He says he didn’t, but they seem to talk about everything. Dad would probably be afraid of insulting him or something, but if Phelps ever came right out and asked what I think of him, I doubt Dad would lie to his face. Why?”

“Because, if Phelps is guilty of the embezzlement and knows you suspect him…”

“It would be a damn good motive for murder,” Owen finished, wanting to smack himself for not having considered it before. He hadn't imagined Nate would actually discuss Lena's suspicions with Phelps, but that didn’t necessarily mean Phelps couldn’t have found out some other way.

Silence fell over the room as they all contemplated the possibility. Owen and Logan were happy to entertain the idea of a new suspect, particularly since the investigation had gone cold almost immediately, but Lena was frowning skeptically.

“I don’t know… Embezzlement is one thing, but murder? That’s a big leap.”

“It is,” Logan nodded, “but money is one of the most common motives for a crime like that. It’s right up there with revenge.”

“My dad is a wealthy man with more than a few enemies who’d like to see him suffer,” Lena reminded them. “Isn’t it probably more likely that the shooting is connected to one of those people?”

“If you’re right about the embezzling, then Phelps is an enemy of your father’s,” Owen reminded her. “And Nate’s security staff has checked out every known or potential threat from the past nine years, Lena. Nothing came up in connection to the shooting. I think we have to consider the possibility that Phelps has figured out you’re onto him. We need him investigated properly.”

“If your dad trusts him as much as you say, then going to the cops is too risky,” Logan interjected. “They’ll discuss it with Nate, who might bring it up with Phelps, and then what’s to stop the guy from trying again?”

“If it was Phelps, he could’ve already made arrangements to come after her again. It’s been a month since the shooting.” Owen’s pronouncement sent a chill down Lena’s spine, and she didn’t argue with him when he added, “No ditching your security. Ever. Not even for a second.”

“I won’t. But what are we supposed to do now if we can’t go to the police?” Lena asked, attempting to shake off the anxiety building in her gut. She glanced back and forth between them, but it was Owen who answered.

“Someone needs to tail him for a while and see if he does anything suspicious. If he hired someone to shoot you, he might try again since it failed. And if he has an accomplice or something, then maybe we can catch them together.”

“He’s right. We need intel. I’ll do it,” Logan volunteered.

“Are you sure? I know the shooting was a month ago, but you’ve only been out of the sling for a few days. Are you sure you’re up to it?” she asked, hating the idea of her friend putting himself in danger for her.

“I’ll be fine. I need something to keep me occupied anyway. My plan to go into private security has been stalled a bit. No one is going to hire a bodyguard with a bum arm.”

“Your arm will heal,” she assured him, “but I’ll pay you. And when you’re ready to do that kind of job, I’m sure Dad will hire you for his security staff.”

“We’ll see. I’m not sure I want a job that’s given to me primarily out of nepotism. Not that I wouldn’t appreciate the opportunity…”

Owen and Lena nodded, easily understanding Logan’s perspective. They discussed the specifics of the plan to tail Phelps in more detail over the course of the next half hour or so, all agreeing that Logan was actually the perfect choice for such an undertaking. His sniper training would come in handy, since shooting hadn’t been the only skill he’d relied upon. He’d also had to learn how to watch and wait, sometimes for days at a time. He knew how to track without being detected, even by those with similar training. Phelps’ personal security was ex-military as well, but the man in question was older and wasn’t on duty all of the time. Phelps seemed to limit the use of a protective detail to large events and traveling.

After Logan left, Owen and Lena got ready for bed, knowing they would have to be up early for classes the next morning. They lay silently in the darkness for a long while before Owen spoke, brushing her red hair gently away from her face.

“Can’t sleep?”

“I don’t like it.”

“Don’t like what?”

“Any of it. The thought that my dad’s best friend might’ve tried to have me killed… That my dad would probably still believe him over me if I even suggested such a thing… That my best friend might’ve just agreed to put himself in real danger for my sake…” Her voice broke slightly, and Owen tightened his arms around her.

“Logan knows what he’s doing, baby. He’ll be careful.”

“I know, I just… I hate that he has to. He went through a lot over there, and he was messed up when he came back. He still is, to some extent. Probably always will be.”

“He’s still going to therapy, right?” Owen asked, having heard bits and pieces about Logan’s time overseas.

“Yeah… And I’m sure Valerie is helping him now too. He definitely looks better than he did before they met.”

“I agree. I’m just glad he’s stopped staring at you like a lovesick puppy,” he teased, nudging her playfully in the hope of raising her spirits.

“Me too,” Lena admitted, smiling a little. “It was awkward as hell. I think if he really examined whatever feelings he thought he had for me, he’d probably say now that it wasn’t really love. At least not that kind of love. I think he built it up in his mind because that was what he needed at the time. Having something like that to hold onto probably helped him through a lot.”

“You’re right. Ironically enough, we were talking about that before you got home earlier.”

“Really?”

“Not in great detail, but… Let’s just say we cleared the air a bit,” Owen explained. “Believe me, if he’d really been in love with you, he wouldn’t have given up so easily. I know I’d never be able to,” he added in a quieter voice.

“I know,” she grinned, pressing her lips to his jaw. “I wouldn’t give up on you either. I love you, Owen.”

“I love you too, baby.”

And he proceeded to show her just how much.

 

 

The Following Wednesday

 

Owen wiped his slightly sweaty palms against his dark wash jeans as Nate’s housekeeper opened the door to allow him entry. It was the first time he’d ever shown up to Nate’s home without Lena, and he felt somewhat wrong-footed. She was at her evening class again, and Owen had seized the opportunity for a one-on-one discussion with her father. Nate was expecting him, and he stood when Millie ushered Owen into the living room. They exchanged pleasantries and sat opposite one another near the fireplace.

“So, what’s this all about, Owen?” Nate pounced, not one to beat around the bush. “I didn’t mention anything to Lena, and she didn’t bring it up…”

“She doesn’t know I’m here,” he explained, swallowing thickly.

“Is everything okay? Is she—”

“Oh, yeah, she’s fine, Nate. And about that dinner last weekend… We were celebrating Valentine’s Day on Saturday evening.”

“Of course, yes. I hadn’t thought of that when I suggested dinner. Been quite a while since I had a reason to celebrate that holiday!” Nate chuckled. “Did you two have a nice evening? Go out to eat or something?”

“Yeah, we ate out…” Or at least I ate her out. “Went dancing for a little while,” he invented wildly. In reality, he’d made love to her on most of the surfaces in their apartment and then fucked her into oblivion on the ones they’d missed the first time. Best. Valentine’s. Ever.

“That sounds nice. So, why the covert ops then?”

“I’m sorry?” Owen froze, wondering if Nate had any idea where Logan James was at that very second.

“You made a point to come here without my daughter. There must be something on your mind.”

“Oh. Yes, sir.” Nate quirked an eyebrow at the formality but waited for Owen to continue. “I’m planning to propose to Lena, and I wanted to ask for your blessing.”

The words came out slightly faster than he’d intended, but once they were past his lips, he felt a great deal more confident… Or at least he did until he took in the expression on Nate’s face. Nate didn’t look shocked or angry, but he didn’t look happy either. His features were a mask of stoic scrutiny of the young man sitting across from him. The silence that followed Owen’s announcement seemed to last years, and he began to sweat a little at what he belatedly realized were boardroom tactics. He was nearly at his breaking point when Nate’s mouth finally twitched upward.

“Do you love her?” he asked, already knowing the answer.

“With every cell in my body,” Owen vowed.

“Will you be good to her? Patient? Loyal?”

“Always, sir.”

“She can be stubborn. And sometimes her heart’s too big for her own good.”

“I know,” Owen grinned. “I love that about her. She’s also incredibly kind, generous, self-sacrificing…”

“That she is,” Nate nodded thoughtfully, having a harder time controlling his smile. “I figured this conversation would happen eventually, but I’m a little surprised to be having it so soon. You two are very young.”

“We are, but… We were meant to be together. It took us a little while to be on the same page about it, but neither of us has any doubt now. We’re in this for keeps, sir. I’ll gladly spend the rest of my life trying to make her happy.”

Nate regarded him silently for another moment before finally giving him a broad smile. He rose to his feet and held out his hand, and Owen mimicked him.

“I happily give you my blessing.” Nate shook his hand and pulled him in for a one-armed ‘guy hug.’ Owen returned it with only a fraction of his usual discomfort, feeling his anxiety ease considerably. “And I’m glad you asked for my blessing rather than my permission.”

“I think Lena would’ve taken issue with that,” Owen laughed.

“You’re right. Good man.” They reclaimed their seats, and the atmosphere felt significantly lighter as the conversation continued. “You know, I knew there was something going on between you two the first time I saw you together. The more I watched, the more certain I was. I’m glad you two finally made things official, so to speak. Now I suppose they’re about to get a lot more official,” Nate laughed. “But honestly, Owen… I couldn’t imagine a better man for her. You seem to reach her on a level no one else can. Her mother was that way too, you know. Always a bit locked-down emotionally, but…”

He allowed the sentence to trail off almost dismissively, but Owen’s curiosity was piqued.

“Lena doesn’t like to talk about her,” he said quietly. “I don’t want to upset her, so I don’t bring it up, but I wouldn’t mind knowing more about her mother.”

Nate sighed, settling back in his chair and allowing his eyes to stare blindly into the dancing flames of his stone fireplace.

“Celia was… Celia was a good mother. She was a good wife to Tom, Lena’s biological father. He was one of my best friends when I was in the service, and when he died so unexpectedly… Well, taking care of his widow and his daughter seemed like the right thing to do. At first, I thought I’d just help Celia deal with all the red tape the government had thrown at her regarding Tom’s pension. Help them find a decent place to live, and so on. I never expected to fall in love.”

Owen smiled, and so did Nate, but the latter shook his head.

“Not with Celia, son. With Lena.” He smiled a little wider at Owen’s surprised expression and continued. “That little girl had me wrapped around her finger from the first time she looked up at me with those big blue eyes. I was lost. I’d envisioned playing the role of an honorary uncle in her life, but I decided pretty quickly that I wanted more than that. I wanted to be her Daddy. And Celia… Well, she didn’t want to be alone. Not the best reason for two people to get married, but… We were a family for Lena. Celia and I were never more than friends, and that would’ve been enough for me, as long as I had my Ellie. I guess Celia eventually decided it wasn’t enough for her, though.”

“Why don’t you call her that anymore? Ellie.” His ears had pricked up at the sound of her childhood nickname.

“She asked me not to when she was about six. Said it reminded her of her mother and made her sad. She hated ‘Eleanore’ even then, so we agreed on Lena,” Nate smiled sadly. Owen nodded.

“And Celia?”

“She left. Took Lena and disappeared. I was a commercial airline pilot back then, and I’d been gone for a few days. I came home to an empty house and a note on the kitchen table. I had no idea where she’d gone, and none of our friends had heard from her. I filed reports with the police, but since Celia had left a note, they weren’t exactly investigating. They didn’t really consider it a Missing Persons case, regardless of the fact that Lena was legally my daughter as much as Celia’s. Two weeks went by before anyone called to tell me what had happened.”

“The accident.”

“Yes. Celia had been on her way to Toronto to stay with a friend of hers from school. Someone I didn’t know. She and Lena were just passing through the Chicago area when it happened.”

Owen felt rather stunned by the unexpected insight into Nate’s marriage. He’d known that Nate had adopted Lena as an infant, but on the few occasions Lena had spoken of her parents as a collective unit, she’d given the impression that they’d had a typical marriage, at least up to the point that Celia had left.

“Does Lena know?”

“Does she know what?”

“What your marriage was like? That it was… not a romantic relationship.”

“I doubt it,” Nate shrugged. “It never came up. Like you said, Lena doesn’t like to talk about her mother. That’s nothing new. I made sure she saw a therapist after the accident, and we stuck with it until the doctor told me she’d grieved and was moving on. She’s never asked specific questions about the marriage, and I’ve never brought it up. To be honest, I didn’t see the point in tainting her memories of the happy family she’d had before Celia passed away. She’d already been dealt an unfair hand, and it wouldn’t have been right to put that on her too.”

Owen could understand Nate’s logic to some extent, but he found himself wishing Nate hadn’t taken the word of one therapist who had more than likely been something of a quack. Unless Lena was that good at concealing her feelings even at that age, he mused.

They fell into silence as their thoughts wandered. Owen continued to mull over Nate’s words, wondering if Lena would’ve been quite so hard on herself if she’d known the truth of her parents’ relationship. True, it wouldn’t have changed how she felt about her mother’s death, but it might have eased her guilt a little where Nate was concerned. She’d been operating under the assumption that not only had she killed her mother and forced her father to be a single parent, but that she’d also robbed him of the woman he loved. Would knowing the truth have changed the course of her life?

Owen left Nate’s a little while later, still uncertain as to whether or not he should tell Lena what he’d learned. Was Nate right? Were those few happy memories more important at this point? The very last thing Owen wanted was to hurt her, especially when she seemed to be making some progress in several key areas of her life.

Lena had opened her heart to the possibility of love and happiness with him. She’d let go of her reckless rebellions. She’d recently even begun to write for no other reason than her own enjoyment. She wanted to publish a novel someday, but for the time being, she’d opted to start on a smaller scale by reworking the short stories she’d written in high school.

Let it go for now, Owen told himself as he parked his car outside of their building. Besides, how would you even bring it up? She doesn’t even know you went to see Nate tonight. After a final moment of contemplation, he filed it away as a conversation for another day.

Lena didn’t need anything to hold her back now that she’d finally started living a little less for her father and a little more for herself.