Reasons
His phone rang while he and Riley lay on her bed, his arm around her and both of them fully clothed down to their shoes. Riley held Miss Bailey in her arms, absently stroking her fur. That was as far as they’d got when they’d returned to her apartment; he had shut out the world to be with her until Tessa arrived to keep Riley company. ‘Girl power,’ she had said when she’d called to ask if Riley needed someone to talk to. ‘That and chakras.’
“Answer it,” whispered Riley, her nose stuffed up from all the crying. Miss Bailey jumped down and disappeared under the bed.
“They can leave a message.”
She reached behind him and grabbed his ringing phone. “Answer it, anyway. It’s driving me crazy.”
Ashe frowned when he saw the number on the display. “It’s Catriona.”
“All the more reason to answer it. No more secrets, remember?” she said, swiping the display to answer the call and handing the phone to him.
“What do you want, Catriona?”
“I just saw you on TV,” she said. “If that’s what you were referring to in your text message earlier, then you’ve got the wrong person.”
In the background, Ashe heard voices and the squawking of hand radios. Miss Marks, you’re needed on the set in ten minutes.
“Where are you?”
“I’m in L.A.,” she replied. “I’ve been here for the last three weeks and nowhere near you to cause any more damage. You made it clear to me that you wanted nothing to do with me and I finally heard you that night. I know I’ve done some bad things since this whole business started. I knew you hated me, but I didn’t realize how much and when I did, I couldn’t help myself. I still wanted you.”
“Catriona—”
“I thought I did, but I was wrong. I wanted your fame and your success, Ashe,” she continued. “I’ve been watching you since you left me and what you’ve done has been impressive. You did it on your own, without me, and I suppose I wanted some validation after everything I’d done for you.” Ashe shook his head as he listened but said nothing.
“I was jealous of Riley. When I saw you at that restaurant, I wanted what she had: her youth, beauty, and you. I lost my perspective; but I would never dig into her past. The things I said about her were from reports I read, that’s all.”
“What about the collar?”
“I would never send a collar to a submissive who isn’t mine,” she said. “That’s one of the first things you learn when you start your journey, Ashe; you know that. If someone sent her a collar, it wasn’t me.”
“Where is Collette?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I fired her yesterday.”
“You did? Why?”
“Because I don’t believe in hurting other people to get ahead. I heard about the money she stole from a client, and she also went behind my back to try to make a deal for a piece about my life as a Dominatrix, without telling me. If you’ve heard about that, I assure you that I’ve had no part in it.”
His phone beeped, signaling another call. “Thank you for telling me, Catriona.”
“Good luck, Ashe. I’m very sorry for what happened between us, with Hazel. I really am.”
Ashe sighed. It was only business, after all. “I’m sorry, too. Goodbye.” As he hung up he saw Riley sitting up on the bed, staring at him. “What’s wrong, petal?”
“I can’t believe I didn’t see it until now,” she whispered, her eyes wide.
“See what?”
“This business between you and Catriona, the paparazzi digging up my old arrest charge and even taking pictures of me with the boys: it’s not Catriona, it’s Collette. She’s trying to get back at me.”
“Why you?” he asked, sitting next to her.
“Because I’m the reason you fired her, or so she thinks, and the reason Gareth fired her too. She blames me not only for that but for her losing her other clients, including Catriona.”
“But you’re not to blame, petal. You’re not the only reason she’s losing her career,” said Ashe.
“I know, but it’s as if I’m the catalyst that set everything off.”
Ashe stared at her, remembering what Betty had said the previous day. Taking eighty thousand dollars as a ‘Fast Track to Fame’ fee apparently doesn’t sit very well with some people. Of course.
Ashe let go of Riley and pulled out his phone.
“Who are you calling?” she asked, perplexed.
“Gareth. If you’re the reason why she’s doing this even after Catriona’s stepped out of the picture, then she’s going to target Gareth too, if she hasn’t already.” Ashe pressed the button for Gareth’s number. “I think that maybe you should warn your sister and Clint that she may be going after them, too.”
“Why Clint?”
“Because you’re not the only reason Collette lost everything,” replied Ashe as Gareth’s number started to ring. “I suspect that it’s Clint she’s really after, only she hasn’t found anything to bring him down. If Clint hadn’t given her a hundred grand to start Gareth’s career, eighty grand of which she stole, none of this would have happened.”
Riley’s face paled. “Do you think she knows about the triplets?”
“We’d better pray she doesn’t, because if she does, it’s those boys who are going to end up really hurt. They’re entitled to know the truth about their parentage at some stage, but they’re too young right now, and I don’t imagine Collette would reveal it in any tactful way,” replied Ashe. Gareth’s voice came on the line.
“Yo, babycakes! I’m seeing you tonight so you’d better have bells on, all right?”
“You’re in New York?” asked Ashe.
“Of course I’m in New York! I’m finally checking you out tonight, man. Finally found some room in my damn schedule to see the play, so try not to get too excited, all right?” said Gareth. In the background, Ashe could hear the sounds of water splashing and a woman laughing. “I’m at Soho House right now, so maybe we could grab a drink later or something. We could talk about your latest public outburst that’s cluttering up my media feed, if Riley’s okay with that.”
“We’ll have to play it by ear,” replied Ashe. Riley tapped in Paige’s number and walked toward the couch.
“What’s up?” asked Gareth, muffling the phone. “Hey, babe, I’m gonna take this in the room, okay?”
“Collette,” Ashe replied when there was background silence on Gareth’s line.
“What about that bitch?” asked Gareth, his voice hardening. “I heard she sent paps to trail my dad around, and Riley’s dad too. She offered to pay money for information about me and my mom and even about Riley. That’s really why I’m in town, apart from checking out your play; I had to talk to Dad myself, and to my mom. She’s lives in Queen’s now with her new husband, but the paps tracked her down and tried to get her angry so she’d talk; said that I’d told the press about her turning tricks in alleys when I was little. Can you believe that?”
“Did they tell them anything, like Sid did about Riley?”
Gareth laughed out loud. “Shit, are you kidding me? They may have been crappy parents back then, but the last thing they want to do is to air our dirty laundry for the world to see. I’m the best thing to come out of Jackson Heights, man! I’m sure that didn’t stop everyone else from telling them about how my mom did tricks, but hell, they can suck my dick.”
“So you’re saying that it was Collette who paid Sid for information about Riley’s drug history, not Catriona?” Ashe knew the answer, but it didn’t hurt to get confirmation.
“Unless your ex has connections with the local paps, then yes,” replied Gareth. “I doubt if she does; she’s based more in L.A., you know. Besides, that pap you shoved today is one of Collette’s regulars. He was the one who took pics of me and Riley kissing last year. Remember that?”
“Are you absolutely sure about that?”
“Of course I’m sure. I don’t forget a pap, man, not when he’s on Collette’s payroll and boosting my media exposure,” replied Gareth, clearing his throat. “Now this photo of you pulling poor Sid out of the car, on the other hand—I’m not sure that was a smart move.”
“It wasn’t, but thanks to Collette and Sid, they were stalking one of Riley’s customers at the Library,” said Ashe. “And he’s probably her real father.”
There was silence on Gareth’s end of the line for a few moments. “Are you fucking sure about that?”
“No one can be positive without a test, but it seems very likely. They made their acquaintance formally an hour or so ago. His firm represented her during her drug possession charge three years ago,” Ashe told him. “I would have assumed you knew, since Paige did.”
“Just because Paige knows something doesn’t mean I do,” said Gareth, and this time his tone was serious. “How is Ri? Is she all right?”
“Not too bad.”
“I’m so sorry, man,” said Gareth. “Really I am. But why ask me about the paps? How did you know, anyway?”
“Because I don’t think Riley is the real target.” Ashe said. “Now that you’ve told me that your parents didn’t tell the paps anything that could be used against you, I can see that Riley became the easiest one to set her sights on because of Sid. Collette made it seem to be Catriona’s doing all along.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m not following you,” replied Gareth. Ashe heard Isobel’s voice in the background, asking who Gareth was talking to. “If Riley’s not the target, then who is Collette gunning for? Her career as a manager is shot to hell, and it’s not like she can get it back. Even Abe won’t touch her.”
“Clint,” replied Ashe. “Clint is the man who really ruined her reputation. Clint knows enough people in the business; one word from him and no one wants to be associated with her.”
“But why go after Riley and you?”
“As a distraction, maybe,” said Ashe, hoping he was right. “Catriona was a bonus. She came at just the right time and I think it was Collette who approached her, not the other way around.”
“Do you think that all this could lead to the boys?”
“We don’t know,” replied Ashe. “Think about it, Gareth. Without Clint she would still have had us, her other big-name clients and her reputation. That didn’t happen; she did something wrong and Clint made sure she paid for it. Sure, it’s only $80,000 we’re discussing here but it’s not just that, it’s her integrity. What do you think will happen if she digs deep enough? The same paparazzi have been following Riley while she was with the boys. That may not be a coincidence.”
Gareth cursed under his breath. “Then you’d better have a plan, because as sure as hell I’m not going to sit around and wait for the crap to hit the fan.”