She swallowed hard and grasped his arm. The fear in her eyes was unmistakable. He held her hand for comfort. “What did you see by your car?”
The color left her face. “Mick, I saw that black truck with the tinted windows... the one that forced me off the road. I wasn’t sure if it was the same truck, so I looked at the front bumper. It’s dented and has the paint from my car still on the bumper.”
Shock rattled through his body, and anger brought him to his feet as he released her hand. “Do you think the truck...”
“Yes, Mick.” She stood in front of him. “I suspected that truck belonged to your father or the woman, so I climbed in my car and waited until they came out of the restaurant. Your ex-girlfriend got inside the truck while your father went to his limo.”
Swearing, Mick raked his fingers through his hair. “They planned this?” He shook his head. “My father actually risked taking a person’s life just so he could have your grandfather’s company?” He paced the small space in the hotel room. “This has gotten out of control and needs to be stopped before someone loses their life.”
“I agree, but what are we going to do?” Her voice broke as tears filled her eyes.
In three large steps, he was in front of her, taking her in his arms. Thankfully, she didn’t fight him. “I don’t know what we’re going to do, but we’ll do it together. In fact, if we have to get your clever friends to help us, we will.”
She laughed, followed by a sob as she pressed the side of her face against his chest. “Oh, Mick. I’ve never gone through anything like this before. I’m so scared.”
“Shhh...” He stroked her back, tightening his hold on her. “I’ll protect you. I’m not going to let my father lay one finger on the woman I love.”
She tilted her head back and looked at him with red, watery eyes. He hated to see women cry, but because he’d fallen in love with this amazing woman, the pain in his heart was stronger.
“You still love me?” Her voice shook. “Even though I’ve been so moody and completely... rotten?”
Smiling, he caressed her cheek. “Sweetheart, I understand why you’re moody. You’ve had a lot going on in your life lately. I’ve just been hoping you’ll forgive me and love me again.”
Tears filled her eyes. “You are such a wonderful man, Mick Remington. Thank you for being patient with me. And thank you for still loving me.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He paused and then frowned. “Well, except the part about my father. I would really like to change that.”
“I agree.” She snuggled back against his chest as her arms tightened around his waist. “Wouldn’t it be great if we could get your father put in jail for attempted murder?”
Mick’s mind stopped on that thought, and his creativity started churning in a different direction. During those years he’d worked with his father, Mick had heard rumors that the old man had been responsible for someone’s death. At the time, Mick hadn’t thought too much about it, thinking those people were just jealous of his father. Now Mick seriously had doubts. Was Carl Remington really capable of murder?
“Sweetheart,” he kissed the top of her head, “I think I have a plan.”
She sucked in a quick breath as she pulled away. “Seriously? Already?”
“And I need to hire the best private detective I can find.”
Her eyes widened. “You are serious.”
He nodded. “I’ve always known my father to be a ruthless man, and it’s now time to see just how brutal he’s been in his life. And yes, enough to kill someone. If it’s the last thing I do, I’ll see him locked away in prison for the rest of his life.”
NINETEEN
Mick wouldn’t let Nicole out of his sight, although she insisted that he not come in her bedroom last night. He grinned. Cuddling with her was a great temptation, which was why he’d slept on the couch. The next morning once they were both up and dressed, he drove her to work.
As he sat in her grandfather’s office, Mick’s mind spun with ideas. He hadn’t slept well, mostly because of memories resurfacing of when he’d worked with his father. Mick had always known his father was deceitful, but he’d never known the extent of it. But two deals they’d worked on together several years ago had popped into Mick’s mind and he couldn’t let it go.
Mick had kept his notes from when he’d worked on the Steele Construction case. What bothered him about this takeover was that he couldn’t find any reason why Steele Construction had fallen on hard times in the first place. They were a thriving company in Montana, and yet, his father had scoped the company out for a few months before swooping in and pouncing on them like an eagle capturing its prey.
A knock on the door pulled Mick out of his thoughts. “Come in.”
Nicole entered the gloomy room, and immediately, everything brightened. Mick’s heart melted as his gaze swept over her. Today she wore a light gray dress trimmed with black lace. The dress gave him a peek at her cute knees.
“Hey.” She closed the door and leaned against it as she stared at him. “I thought you’d want to take a break.”
“As much as that sounds refreshing right now,” he relaxed in his chair, “I think I’m onto something.”
She walked around the desk and stopped beside him, bending over slightly as she rested her palms on the desk so that she could look at his computer.
“What have you found?” she asked.
Mick couldn’t stop his gaze from roaming over her fine – and tempting – curves. “I’m remembering a case I worked on with my father a few years ago. I’d never felt right about it, and now I know exactly how corrupt he is, I’m eager to dig deeper into this case to see what I can find.”
She stared at the computer screen for a few more seconds. “Steele Construction?” She glanced at him. “Your father took over this company?”
“Yes.”
Her nearness distracted him more than he realized, especially when all he could think about was holding her. An idea popped into his head and he grinned. He slid his palm along her back, hooking it over her hip as he guided her down to his lap.
She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Ah... this brings back memories.”
“Yes, it does.” He nuzzled his face in the crook of her neck. “And I still remember that kiss on the elevator.”
Her body shivered and she sighed heavily. He kissed the gentle curve of her throat.
“Mick, have you decided yet if your feelings from that kiss came from the sleeping pill I’d given you, or if your feelings were real?”
Chuckling, he pulled back and looked into her beautiful green eyes. “It was the kiss.”
One side of her mouth lifted higher than the other. “Are you sure?”
“Oh, yes, because every time I’ve kissed you since, I feel dizzy and like I’m floating on clouds.”
She stroked his goatee softly. The color of her eyes darkened with desire. “Good, because I feel the same way every time we kiss.”
He wagged his eyebrows. “And if I recall, we never did have that make-out session we talked about.”
She laughed. “No, but I’m game now if you are.”
The beat of his heart strummed with excitement. “Oh, my sweetheart.” He leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes, breathing in her enchanting flowery scent that he loved so much. “I don’t want to turn you down, but...” He sighed and looked into her eyes. “Now is not a good time. I need to concentrate on the notes I took during this case.”
“Yes, I know.”
She leaned forward and kissed his lips. He answered back, but the kiss was very short. She shifted on his lap, making herself more comfortable as she looked at his computer screen again. “Tell me about Steele Construction.”
Love grew in his heart. She’d been the first woman who acted interested in his business. He liked that. He cupped her face, turning it back toward him, and he smiled.
“I love you, Nicole.”
Her expression sof
tened. “And I love you so much that I can’t think of anything else.”
This time when he captured her mouth, the kiss was more meaningful and tender. They kissed slowly, and emotionally. A passionate moan rattled through her throat as her arms tightened around his neck. He held her closer, deepening the kiss. Immediately, she responded with urgency.
It would be so easy to carry her to the leather sofa on the other side of the room and continue this passionate moment, but then he remembered the need to keep his father from hurting Nicole was greater than making out. Mick would protect the woman he loved, and in doing so, he’d have to postpone taking her to the couch and expressing his love to her.
He broke the kiss and smiled. Her eyes twinkled when she met his stare.
He stroked her cheek. “You are just too tempting, and I love kissing you, but—”
“But we have work to do.” She grinned.
Sighing, she turned back to the computer screen. “You were telling me about Steele Construction.”
“Yes, I was.” He exhaled, trying to clear his mind and concentrate on the company. “When I was helping my father with this takeover, I remember wondering why this very productive company was going under. There were no signs of why the company was in trouble. My father went undercover as an accountant from the government’s auditing department.” Mick shook his head in remembrance. “Carl had even faked an ID just to gain their trust. He worked inside their main office and had access to everything.”
“That’s illegal.” She scowled.
“True, but before the company could worry about that, my father had one of his friends present themselves to the company as a representative for the Remington empire, who then tossed them the threat of a takeover.”
“What were you doing?” she asked.
“My job was to hang out with the employees after work at the local pub without telling them who I was. It was my job to collect information that would help my father take over the company.”
“Did you find out anything of importance?”
“Yes... I found out that they were at an all-time high point in their revenue, which was one of the reasons I wondered how my father was able to take over. The company had a lot of assets, and of course, they made good money.”
Mick paused, recalling those early days of building his career and reputation. He never wanted to work with his father. He only did it to learn the ways of the trade. At that point, his father wasn’t even a billionaire. Steele Construction and one other company were the ones that tipped the pay scale in Carl’s favor.
From out of nowhere, a memory returned of his father telling him how important it was to keep a secret bank account. Carl’s was the Swiss Bank in Geneva. In fact, Mick had been given access to it during that time, even though he’d never needed to use it.
Still, with Nicole on his lap, he leaned forward rested his fingers on the keyboard, searching for the bank’s website, and then clicking it. He used the username and password his father had shared with him years ago. When the website opened to Carl’s account, Mick gasped. It still worked! Why hadn’t the old man changed his password?
“Wow,” Nicole whispered, watching the screen. “That’s a lot of money.”
“It is, and to think this is his secret account.”
Mick searched for the dates he remembered when he worked on the Steele Construction case. His fingers flew over the keyboard as he scrolled through the screens and jumped back and forth between that website and the notes he’d taken and kept on a flash-drive.
Finally, he found the notes that he’d taken about Steele Construction and their missing money. The employees had been shocked to learn that the money had just suddenly disappeared.
Mick held his breath as he jumped back to Carl’s bank account, searching for that month and year. When his gaze fell on the same amount of money that had been missing from the company, his heart sank, and he expelled his breath.
“My father... had embezzled the money,” he whispered in shock.
“Oh, Mick.” Nicole cuddled her cheek against his. “I’m so sorry.”
He shook his head and pulled away, gazing into her lovely eyes. “Don’t be. This is the very thing we need to get my father put in prison.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I’m going to print these pages right now and contact my lawyer and the police.” He leaned in and kissed her on the mouth, but briefly. “It’s going to be smooth sailing from here.”
“Oh, I pray you’re right.”
“My father will put up a fight, but we’ve got him, Nicole. He’s not going to hurt us any longer.”
TWENTY
Nicole couldn’t stand the wait. It had been almost a week. She’d made her pitch to Peaking Design’s president, who appeared to be very interested, but she’d not heard anything since. And to top off her frustration, Mick still awaited word from his lawyer about the incriminating evidence found that would throw Carl Remington in prison for embezzlement. She doubted his billions would be able to get him out, especially when she filed charges against him and Tara Browning for attempted murder.
Mick had asked Nicole to keep things hushed for now. Carl and Tara didn’t need an excuse to run, especially now. But Nicole wasn’t a patient woman. Things were not happening fast enough, in her opinion.
But, just as her grandfather had once told her, she trusted God to help her. To help both her and Mick.
Nicole had convinced Mick that she would be safe to drive around town during the day where people could see her and be witnesses, just in case. And today, Nicole had to run some personal errands.
She mailed a few letters, dropped off her dry cleaning, and headed to the store. As she pulled into the parking lot, she noticed through her rear-view mirror, a black truck following her.
Nicole tightened her fingers around the steering wheel and pulled into a parking spot. She kept an eye on the black truck with the tinted windows. It parked on the lot a ways up, but the truck faced Nicole.
She was tired of feeling scared, and it took all of her willpower not to ram her leased car into Tara’s truck. But there were other ways to handle Mick’s ex-girlfriend. Nicole just needed to clear her mind and think about them.
She climbed out of her vehicle and headed toward the store’s automatic double-wide doors. Through the glass, she saw Tara following her at a distance. Suddenly, an idea popped into Nicole’s head and she grinned. She knew exactly what she could do to Tara.
Nicole grabbed a cart and turned down the first aisle. She quickly stopped, pulled out her cell phone, and texted Mary. Find your voice recorder. Quickly.
Not more than three seconds passed before Nicole’s phone buzzed.
Why?
Mick’s ex is following me. I have a plan, but I need to record her voice.
Give me a minute.
While giving Mary a minute, Nicole proceeded to do a little grocery shopping. A few times as she turned up another aisle, she noticed Tara following, pushing her own cart. Nicole headed toward the section of the store that wasn’t as busy as the rest. She stopped and peered at the car batteries as though she’s deciding which one to buy.
Her phone buzzed, announcing a text.
I found the voice recorder.
Nicole grinned. Great! Call me now and start recording, and don’t stop until I tell you to.
She only had to wait two seconds before her cell phone buzzed again with an incoming call. She answered it. “Hello?”
“Okay, it’s me,” Mary said with a chuckle in her voice.
Nicole started her acting, hoping Tara was listening. Laying on the dramatics, Nicole gasped. “What? You’ve got to be kidding. Tell me everything.”
During the pause, she nodded or muttered uh-huh. After a few lengthy moments, she huffed. “He did what?” She lifted her voice in anger. “Mr. Remington wants to pay you to do that?” Pause. “Uh-huh. You mean Mick’s father?”
She laid on the dramatics again and stomped her foot, just
in case Tara was somewhere watching. “Oh, no he didn’t! Well, what did you say?”
She didn’t wait very long before gasping. “What? If you do that for him he’ll make you his mistress? That’s unbelievable.”
She paused again, trying to see if Tara was somewhere close. She prayed the other woman was or this would never turn out the way Nicole wanted.
“What about the mistress he has now? I heard she was a model or something.” She paused a few seconds. “Oh, I can’t believe how badly he treats women. But I guess if he’s going to pin my car accident on someone, it may as well be that woman, even though I know he was the one behind it.”
Quick and heavy footsteps came up behind Nicole as her upper arm was grasped by a strong grip. Nicole looked into the angry face of the strawberry-blonde woman who’d been with Carl at the restaurant the other day. But Nicole couldn’t stop her acting, yet. She scowled at the other woman.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“End the phone call now,” the model demanded.
“I will not.” Nicole glared.
Tara huffed and opened her handbag enough for Nicole to see a handgun. A lump of panic formed in her throat. Perhaps she shouldn’t have upset the other woman.
“Uh... Mary? I’ve got to go.”
“Nikki? What’s wrong? Is everything okay?” Mary’s voice was unsure.
“Yeah, it’s all right,” Nicole said into the phone while keeping her focus on the crazy woman by her side.
“Do you want me to keep recording?”
“Yes.” Nicole paused. “Okay, talk to ya later.” Nicole pretended to turn off her phone, but she left it on and set it just inside her suit jacket pocket. “Who are you and what do you want?”
Tara tightened her fingers on Nicole’s upper arm. “I want to know about that phone call.”
The Billionaire's Pursuit: Billionaire's Clean Romance (The Tycoons Book 1) Page 13
