CHAPTER EIGHT
“Men are dogs.”
Zoe gave a weary laugh as she sat down next to Jessica on her living room couch. Lifting her cup of steaming coffee, she clicked it to her friend’s mug, wholeheartedly agreeing with her sentiment. “I’ll drink to that, girlfriend.”
They each took a sip of their morning cup of coffee, both of them needing the jolt of caffeine after a night spent tossing and turning more than sleeping—all because of men.
“Life is so much simpler without them,” Jessica grumbled.
“Isn’t that the truth,” Zoe concurred, and sighed.
Last night, after Zoe and Sean had parted ways, she’d found Jessica back in the private skybox at Taboo, looking just as upset as Zoe felt after her troubling conversation with Sean. Neither one of the women had been in the mood to stay at the nightclub any longer, and instead of waiting for a private car to arrive to pick them up, they’d taken a cab back to their apartment building.
With each of them needing an understanding friend to vent her evening’s frustrations to, Zoe suggested that Jessica hang at her place for the night, which she had. After changing into pajamas and scrubbing the makeup from their faces, they’d gorged on Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream while ranting about the men who’d done them wrong.
Zoe curled her legs beneath her and made herself more comfortable at the opposite end of the sofa. “I swear, my luck with men sucks,” she said, and took another long drink of her coffee. “I really thought I had a good feel for Sean, that he was sincere and genuine in his interest in me.” Her stomach swirled with self-disgust at just how mistaken she’d been. “God, I feel like such a fool for falling for him and for believing everything he said to me.”
“You couldn’t have known he was playing you,” Jessica offered softly.
“I should have known,” Zoe argued. “Did I learn nothing with Ian and his charming ways and all the excuses and explanations he had for everything? I must have the word gullible stamped on my forehead.”
“No, you don’t. I promise,” Jessica assured her with a smile. “You just have a big heart and you like to see the best in people.”
With a groan, Zoe dropped her head back against the couch and thought about the other man she’d trusted who’d ended up completely shattering her romantic illusions.
Zoe had met Ian Croft at a cocktail party when she’d been living in Los Angeles and had been instantly attracted to him and his charismatic personality. Gossip had it that he was a player, but he’d swept her off her feet, romanced her, and single-mindedly pursued her until she couldn’t resist him any longer. For two years they’d dated, and she’d honestly believed that he was the one when he’d asked her to marry him and put an engagement ring on her finger.
Stupid her.
As a hotshot corporate attorney he’d traveled often to New York, and she’d never questioned his trips, believing they were all business-related…until one day she’d come across a very intimate text on his cell phone from another woman. A woman, Zoe later learned, he’d been seeing on a regular basis during his trips to Manhattan. The only consolation to that discovery, if any, was learning that his New York mistress had no clue about Zoe, either.
Looking back, Zoe knew there had been other signs of his infidelity—some she’d overlooked or passed off as inconsequential, and others she’d questioned. But Ian had been a master at manipulating the truth and giving her answers that were believable and made sense…and also made her feel bad for thinking he would ever have an affair behind her back.
Sean might not have cheated on her with another woman, but he’d deceived her about his intentions and used her for his own purpose. And for her, the betrayal was just as painful.
As was the fact that she’d let him kiss her, touch her, and do intimate things she never would have allowed if she’d known.
Stupid, stupid her.
“What are you going to do about the boutique?” Jessica asked.
Zoe turned her head so she was looking back at her friend. It was a good question, and one Zoe had thought about while staring at the ceiling in the middle of the night, unable to sleep. “I’m keeping it. I’ll need to check with my lawyer to make sure everything is still legitimate, but I want the store.” She already had a conference call set up with her merchandiser on Monday, displays were on order, and everything was falling into place for her to open the boutique within the next month.
Jessica finished her coffee and stood with a sigh. “As fun as man-bashing has been, I need to get back to my place. I’m supposed to have lunch with my manager today to discuss the radio interview I have scheduled for Monday at K-one-oh-three.”
Joining Jessica in the kitchen, Zoe rinsed out their coffee cups and put them into the dishwasher. “What are you going to do about Noah?” she asked as she dried her hands on a terry towel.
Jessica shrugged. “Absolutely nothing. By this time next month I’ll be back on tour and he’ll forget all about me.”
Zoe didn’t believe that for a second, but instead of disagreeing, she merely nodded and walked Jessica to the door, where they gave each other a big, warm hug that encompassed friendship and deep affection. Once Jessica was gone, Zoe headed into her bedroom, stripped off her pajamas, piled her hair on top of her head, and stepped under the spray of a steamy, hot shower.
Between hearing about Jessica’s crazy confrontation with Noah and thinking her own upsetting thoughts over Sean and the accusations that had been made toward her father, Zoe was wiped out and exhausted. Mentally and physically drained. Closing her eyes, she dropped her head forward and let the water massage her tense shoulders and the steam gathering in the shower clear her head so she could sort out what to do next.
She needed to try to call her father again, and if she got his voice mail this time she had to stress to him that it was an emergency and he needed to call her back immediately. Her father had never not returned her calls, even while he was away on a business trip, and not being able to get in touch with him concerned her more with each day that passed without talking to him. She needed to hear his voice. Needed to be reassured that whatever was going on with the man who’d confronted Sean about her in the casino last night was a huge misunderstanding.
She lathered up with her peaches-and-cream body wash, rinsed off, and got out of the shower praying that this call to her father would yield some kind of answer and prove Sean wrong. It was a Saturday; therefore her father wouldn’t be stuck in a meeting and, she hoped, would take her call.
With a fresh application of makeup and her hair pulled back into a chic ponytail, Zoe dressed for the day in jeans, a tangerine-colored blouse, and white strappy sandals, then headed into the living room to retrieve her cell phone. With a deep breath, she hit her father’s number and pressed the phone to her ear. The call connected once again to voice mail, but instead of Grant Russo’s deep tone instructing her to leave a message, an automated voice informed Zoe that her father’s voicemail box was full—which put a whole different, and worrisome, spin on the situation.
Biting her lower lip, she severed the call, her mind whirling with doubts and a wealth of concern. It was one thing for her father not to return her calls because he was busy with work and another for him not to pick up his voicemail messages at all.
And that meant one of three things. Either he’d accidentally left his cell phone behind and the voicemail messages had piled up; something bad had happened to him; or he was deliberately avoiding contact with anyone.
Zoe didn’t care for the niggling bit of apprehension settling over her. Something wasn’t right, and the overwhelming unease she was starting to feel was something she couldn’t ignore.
As she paced her living room, she thought about the things that man in the casino had said about her father, and also the insinuations Sean made about her father’s business dealings. There were certain things she could no longer completely discount—foremost in her mind was her inability to reach her father and how he’d seemingly cut himself off from everyone. And how could she forget the man who’d accosted her in Michael Kors while she’d been shopping with Jessica and the comment he’d made about him and someone named Bunny having a lot of money wrapped up in the Meridian project and how that money had gone missing, along with her father?
Oh, God. Zoe pressed a hand to her churning stomach. She honestly didn’t know what to think anymore. Zoe only knew that she desperately needed answers. And somehow, someway, she had to find her father to get them and, she hoped, prove his innocence.
Obviously, she couldn’t do it on her own. Despite the way things had ended between her and Sean, Zoe needed him. Sean and the company he worked for were most likely going to continue their search for her father, and she’d be better off being a part of the case rather than an uninformed bystander.
Besides, Sean had just spent the past week using her for information, so she had no qualms about turning the tables and doing the same with him.
Decision made, there was only one thing left for her to do. She lifted her phone and dialed Sean’s number.
*
Sean stood by the large black onyx lion statue that separated the lobby of the Onyx Hotel from the casino, where he’d told Zoe he’d meet her that afternoon.
Her phone call that morning had been an unexpected surprise, as was her request to see him again. And while he’d like to believe she’d forgiven him for his deception, her curt “we need to talk” told him this appointment was all about business.
He’d spent all last night telling himself it was for the best that things were over between them—better now than when they were even more emotionally involved. Anything beyond a brief fling wouldn’t have worked out, and she didn’t do no-strings-attached affairs like he did. Besides those obvious reasons, there was his own past as a con man that would undoubtedly be a deal-breaker for her, not to mention how her father’s past was directly linked to Sean’s father’s stint in prison.
All that ugliness would have eventually been brought to light, and the end result between her and Sean would have been the same. Keeping everything business-related going forward from here would save her a ton of heartache in the future.
The lecture was a solid, logical one—until he saw Zoe walking toward him and his chest tightened with desire and something else no other woman had ever made him feel. Instant awareness, pure pleasure, and a surge of excitement just at the thought of being near her.
He watched her approach him, a proud tilt to her chin and a determined gleam in her eyes. She was dressed casually with her hair in a sleek ponytail and minimal makeup, but there was still an air of sophistication in every step she took.
Despite the lines of fatigue around her eyes—most likely courtesy of a restless, sleepless night spent thinking about everything that had happened with Davenport—she still managed to look so damned beautiful and sexy.
She stopped a few feet away from him. “Thanks for agreeing to meet with me,” she said, her tone and demeanor so cool and detached she could have been talking to a stranger.
“No problem,” he replied, keeping his own voice neutral as well. “Before we discuss anything, I’d like you to meet my boss, Caleb, since he’s directly involved in this case.” Along with a few other Reliance Group members who’d been recruited to help track her father.
“Okay,” she agreed with a nod.
“Then come with me.” Gently Sean grabbed her elbow to lead her away, and was relieved when she allowed him that simple touch and followed without an issue. He guided her through the casino, up to the security offices, and into a conference room where everyone was already seated and waiting for the two of them to arrive.
Upon seeing there were a few extra people in the room, she stiffened and glanced at Sean warily. Not wanting her to feel uncomfortable in any way, he immediately sought to put her at ease and launched into introductions. He started with Caleb, then went on to Valerie, whom Zoe had briefly met last night during the altercation with Davenport.
Then there was Lucas Barnes, The Reliance Group’s security analysis technician, which was a fancy name for computer geek. He was TRG’s go-to guy for anything involving hacking, file manipulation, and computer fraud—both perpetrating and preventing it, depending on the situation. He was the one responsible for hacking into Zoe’s cell phone to trace her calls. Not that any of them were about to share that bit of information with her. For as long as they were searching for her father, the tap on her phone would remain intact.
Zoe sat down across from the trio, who’d all been very warm and polite with their hellos, and Sean took the seat next to hers. She looked them all in the eye, and if she felt intimidated by being outnumbered, she didn’t show it.
“I’ll get right to the point,” she said, and folded her hands together on the table in front of her. “I’m well aware of the unwarranted claims being made against my father, about him being involved in some kind of scam. And now I also know that your company has been hired by some uncouth businessman to find my father because he’s being accused of stealing funds that were invested toward developing the Meridian project.”
Caleb jotted notes on the pad of paper he’d brought with him to the meeting. “Yes, all that’s true,” he confirmed with a nod.
She exhaled a deep breath. “I want to help find my father.”
Beside Caleb, Valerie looked a bit surprised by Zoe’s announcement. “What made you come to that decision?” Val asked the one question the rest of the group was thinking.
“For starters, I know you’re going to continue looking for my father with or without my help, and I’d like to be involved as much as possible.” She cut a quick glance at Sean before looking back at Caleb. “After all, you did assign Sean to find out what I know about my father’s whereabouts, right?”
“Yes,” Caleb replied unflinchingly. He wasn’t a man who couched the truth, no matter how painful his answer might be.
“Well, now I’m openly offering my services. I’ll share whatever I know or find out about my father, as long as you keep me in the loop on your end, as well.”
Caleb thought about her proposition for a moment before agreeing. “Okay.”
Whether or not Caleb intended to keep his end of the bargain remained to be seen. Sean already knew plenty of things they were still keeping from her.
“Bottom line, I want to find my father to clear his name.” She continued laying out her terms, her voice direct and confident. “No matter what he’s being accused of doing, he has the right to defend himself. It’s as simple as that.”
So, she was playing the my father is innocent until proven guilty card, which was understandable. It was Zoe’s way of protecting her father, even if Grant Russo didn’t deserve her blind faith.
It would be so easy to put an end to any hopes she had of her father’s innocence by handing over the investigative reports Caleb had on Russo that outlined the man’s corrupt past in vivid detail. But those in-depth reports would also reveal Sean’s ties to Zoe’s father, and both Sean and Caleb had decided beforehand that opening that can of worms would do more harm than good. They’d also determined that doling out information on her father, or the case, would be done on a need-to-know basis.
And right now, they both agreed that Zoe didn’t need to know.
“I’m also very worried about my father,” she said, her tone much softer now.
Caleb stopped writing on his note pad to look back up at Zoe, his interest obviously piqued by her comment. “Why’s that?”
For the first time that afternoon, Sean saw a crack in Zoe’s tough composure, her professional demeanor giving way to a more vulnerable side.
“For the past week, I’ve tried getting in touch with my father,” she said, sharing her own information with the group, as promised. “According to his secretary, Sheila, he’s away on a business trip, which is nothing out of the ordinary. But what isn’t normal is that he never returned any of my calls or the messages I left for him. And this morning, when I called his cell phone again, the voicemail box was full, which tells me he hasn’t picked up any of his messages recently.”
Caleb absently tapped his pen on the tablet of paper. “And why do you think that is?”
“There’s the chance that he forgot his cell phone when he left on his trip, but if that were the case, he would have gotten a new one right away. His cell phone is his lifeline when it comes to his business.”
Her explanation was logical and made perfect sense, yet the frown marring her delicate brows told them just how troubled she was.
“He’d never let his voicemail messages pile up like that,” she went on. “Nor would he ignore my calls for an entire week. Also, last night Sean told me that you were unable to trace my father to Chicago, where he’s supposed to be, and that’s something else that concerns me. I’m afraid that something bad has happened to him.”
Sean met Lucas’s gaze and knew what the computer guru was thinking. People who were on the lam didn’t take traceable electronics and other identifiable items with them. They used disposable cell phones and didn’t send e-mails since the originating IP address was easy to locate. They spent cash instead of swiping credit cards and used an alias.
Most likely, Grant Russo was operating under those basic principles, because Caleb’s top investigators had tried all those other traditional methods of tracking Russo, only to come up empty-handed.
At this moment, Zoe was in a state of denial about her father’s guilt, and they had to do everything possible to ensure her cooperation in this case—and not alienate her, or devastate her, by showing her proof of her father’s history as a con man. What she was proposing in terms of forging an alliance with them was something they didn’t want to compromise in any way.
“Your father hasn’t made it easy for us to find him, so it would be great to have your help,” Caleb said diplomatically. “Would you happen to have a key to your father’s house or his office?”
A look of confusion passed over her features. “I only have a key to his house. Whatever you might need from his office I can try and get from Sheila on Monday.”
“We’ll start with your father’s house.” Caleb made another note on his pad, then met Zoe’s gaze again. “I’d like you and Sean to head over there this afternoon if you’re free, to see if either of you can find anything that might give us an idea of where he might have gone.”
“Sure, we can do that,” Zoe said, obviously unnerved by Caleb’s directness.
Sitting to the left of Caleb, Lucas spoke up. “While you’re there, if you find any kind of computer, I need you to bring me back the hard drive.”
“Lucas is a data-recovery specialist,” Sean explained for Zoe’s benefit. “What’s on your father’s hard drive could be very helpful in terms of providing us with information on where he might be.”
“Okay then, let’s go see what we can find.” Zoe pushed away from the table and stood, her body language resolute.
Sean stood, too, and nodded at Caleb. “I’ll be in touch.” He hoped with some kind of information that would accelerate this case and give them a jump on Russo’s location.
As Sean followed Zoe out of the conference room, he couldn’t help but wonder how she felt about the two of them being paired up again. Obviously, she was still miffed at him and she was trying like hell to be cool and indifferent as far as he was concerned.
Sean was smart enough to realize that if he didn’t do something to diffuse the tension between them, they might end up at cross-purposes on this case, and that was the last thing he wanted. But after deceiving her once, he’d be a fool to expect her to immediately trust him again just because he wanted her to. Her respect was something he had to earn from scratch, and he didn’t doubt it would not be quick or easy.
That her forgiveness made a difference to him caused his chest to constrict with the knowledge of how much he’d come to care for her—and how much her opinion of him mattered. God, he was in way over his head when it came to her, and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about the emotions she stirred in him that would undoubtedly cause her more pain than anything else.
His own personal feelings aside, there was one thing he could do that might help him earn a place back in her good graces. For once, he didn’t want to rely on his boyish charm, a bouquet of flowers accompanied with an endearing smile, or any of those other flirtatious tricks he’d normally use on a woman to soothe her bruised ego.
No, with Zoe, he was going to have to step up to the plate and do something more meaningful.