Courage (Billionaire Secrets Series, #3)

by Lexy Timms

  “The board is always upset about something,” Linda responded with a roll of her eyes. “But I know this is what Simon would want.”

  “I don’t want Simon’s help,” Heather said sharply.

  “I’m not offering you Simon’s help. I’m offering you my help,” Linda said. “If you’re going to be too stubborn to accept my offer—”

  “Wait, no.” Heather bit her lip, realizing how ungrateful she was being. Linda hadn’t been the one to accuse her and humiliate her. Not to mention, she didn’t have to welcome Heather into the media department. She could have easily refused to accept Heather’s transfer.

  Guilt gnawed at her. Even though the transfer out of Simon’s office had been her idea, it suddenly felt like she had created a burden that didn’t need to exist. Not only did Simon have to now find a new assistant, but Linda was going to have to make room for her.

  But asking the board for a transfer had been her only chance of staying on at Dover. There was no way she could keep working for Simon. Keep seeing him every single day while her heart broke over and over. Each time she saw him her heart broke a little more. And then, when she could no longer stand the pain, it was replaced by anger. Anger at how he’d treated her and accused her.

  If she stayed on, he would insist on helping her clear her name. Worse, she could see herself falling for him all over again. With the real possibility of being arrested and losing her son, she was not going to give in to her feelings for him ever again. She needed to be strong for her son, and if that meant she had to turn her back on Simon for good then that was the price she was ready to pay. It was the steepest price she would ever pay for anything, but her son was all that mattered.

  “I’m sorry for questioning you,” Heather continued. “I just don’t want to bring you down with me. If I don’t clear my name and it gets out that you tried to help me, that might affect your job. I can’t let you risk your job for me.”

  “You let me worry about my own job.” Linda waved her hand dismissively. “Anyway, I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing this for Simon and Dover. If you’re not the spy, we have to catch the real culprit. Then we can clear your name and put all of this behind us.”

  Linda made it all sound so easy. But, deep down, Heather knew that catching the real spy was easier said than done.

  Chapter 4

  It wasn’t healthy to be this fixated on another person. Heather knew that getting over Simon wasn’t going to be easy, but the past week had been a torture she could barely describe. As much as she liked working with Linda, every day at work was painful. So painful that the aching of being away from Simon didn’t fade. In Simon’s absence, her yearning for him only intensified.

  Her hands were hovering over her laptop keyboard, her eyes staring off into space.

  “Earth to Heather,” Linda teased. “Hello?”

  Linda’s voice made her snap back to reality. “Yes?”

  “I’ve been trying to get your attention for the last minute.” Linda chuckled. “Tough day?”

  “No, I just got a bit sidetracked.” Heather bit her lip before she could explain what had been sidetracking her all morning. Thoughts of Simon. She had been daydreaming about him. Wondering what he was doing at this exact moment. At this hour, he was probably in a meeting, but without an assistant she wondered how he would manage.

  Which had led to her thinking about going to his office to help him. Then, locking the door while she helped him out of his clothes...

  She swallowed hard, trying to calm down as her cheeks heated. Her fantasies were getting racier and racier. Heather silently prayed that Linda didn’t figure out that she was thinking the most inappropriate thoughts.

  “This past week must have been hard on you,” Linda said. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to be playing catch-up in this department.”

  Linda was right about that. The past week had been as exhausting as it had been rewarding. The media relations department was about to launch a new magazine to go along with all the other content they generated. Usually Dover went to various media houses to get the company message out, but with a company magazine they controlled the message.

  “Part of the catch-up is my fault.” It was probably not a good idea to be so candid with Linda, but Heather admired her and welcomed her advice. Linda was tough, but she seemed to genuinely care about the staff around her. The way Simon did.

  Shoving away thoughts of Simon, Heather shut her laptop.

  Linda frowned. “How is this your fault?”

  “Well, it’s obvious Dover is getting more aggressive when it comes to the media, and that has to be because of the scandal involving me and Simon. If I hadn’t been so reckless in pursuing him, the press wouldn’t have gotten wind of the scandal and Dover wouldn’t be in the mess it’s in now.”

  “We were always going to take on more work when it came to dealing with the media,” Linda said. “The scandal might have sped that plan along, but it was always in the works.”

  Reassured somewhat, Heather let out a shaky breath. Linda wouldn’t tell her something that wasn’t true. It was part of why she liked working with her. Linda didn’t pull any punches, didn’t mince words, and was extremely honest. That honesty made Heather feel like she was in good hands, despite the fact that she missed Simon like crazy.

  “While I’ve got you here, could you head down to the printer’s office and pick up some of those magazine mockups we need?” Linda asked. “I’d love to have something to send out to advertisers while we’re courting them for the first issue.”

  Heather nodded. “No problem.”

  It would be good to stretch her legs and get a change of scenery.

  She grabbed her handbag and headed out of her tiny office. As usual, the personnel in the department stared at her as she stepped out, and they spoke to each other in hushed tones. With the cloud of scandal hanging over her, she wasn’t exactly the most popular person at Dover. But at least Linda’s support meant that nobody had been outwardly hostile to her. They probably gossiped behind her back, but at least they weren’t cruel to her face.

  It was a small mercy she was grateful for.

  Reaching into her bag, she grabbed her Dover ID in case she needed it—even just a few floors up, staff was required to use their ID. She walked down the hall towards the elevator.

  Getting out of her tiny cubicle was exactly what she needed to get her mind off Simon. She hadn’t heard from him all week. Hadn’t even so much as glimpsed him. Which was fine with her. Sort of. At least, she kept telling herself it was fine. After her humiliating meeting with the board, she didn’t want him around to see her struggle to keep her head above water. He had made it abundantly clear how pathetic he thought she was. Even with his attempt at an apology, his harsh opinion of her still stung. Having him around now would just give him more ammo.

  She pressed the button for the elevator and a few moments later the doors slid open. From inside the elevator, Simon spotted her and frowned.

  Oh shit.

  She stood, unsure what to do. Why did he have to be the one in the elevator? There was nobody else inside, so she couldn’t very well pretend like the elevator was too crowded to get inside.

  “You going up?” A single eyebrow arched on his handsome face.

  With her heart hammering so hard she was sure she could hear it Heather ducked into the elevator, keeping her eyes on the floor. “Hello,” she said, so softly she doubted he could hear her.

  The elevator doors closed with a loud ding, making her almost leap ten feet into the air in panic. Desperate to get out of this claustrophobic space, she reached down to press the button for her floor.

  Simon’s huge hand reached down at the exact same moment and his fingers brushed lightly over hers. The slight touch was like a jolt straight to her fragile heart. It awakened something she had been trying to put to sleep for days.

  Her breath caught in her chest and she quickly pulled her hand back as if she had been burned.
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  If he had also felt a jolt, Simon didn’t show it. He lowered his head, his piercing gaze searching hers. “What floor are you headed to?”

  “Tenth,” she forced out, barely able to breathe.

  “Okay, your floor first then.” His deep, seductive voice poured over her. Warmed her. Brought her back to life.

  “That’s okay.” She blushed, absently tapping her foot in apprehension to her unsettling reaction to him. “You got in here before me. I’ll wait for you to get out on your floor.” Had she really just said that? She just offered to ride the elevator to his floor and then go to her own? How stupid! How Simon hadn’t burst out laughing was beyond her.

  “Never mind that,” he said with a shake of his head, his dark hair falling over his eyes. He looked so breathtakingly sexy she had to force herself to look away.

  He pressed the button for the 10th floor and she swallowed her protest.

  They stood side by side in awkward silence, his frame towering over her. His masculine cologne turned her insides to jelly, the familiar scent reminding her of all the time they had spent together. After all these years as friends, then as lovers, they were now down to a few awkwardly exchanged words.

  Where had it all gone so wrong? Was Linda right? Should she have been more upfront about her previous employers’ attempt to use her? Maybe that level of honesty would have made him trust her even when the worst had come.

  The elevator came to a halt and the doors opened. Her floor. She rushed out of there, desperate to get away from him before the tension became unbearable.

  The moment she was out, something made her turn around to glance back at him. Heather didn’t know why she did it, but it was as if her body wouldn’t let her walk away from him.

  Their eyes met and he opened that harsh, sensuous mouth of his, but no words came out. Instead he just looked at her, shook his head, and the elevator doors slid closed.

  AFTER SHE RETRIEVED the mockups from the printer she headed back to her office, her body rigid with anxiety the entire way back. She doubted she’d be unlucky enough to bump into Simon again, but that didn’t stop her heart from pounding like she expected to see him just around the corner.

  She got back into her office and grabbed the remote for the air conditioning. Sweat was forming on her brow, as if the temperature in her office had climbed five degrees in her absence.

  As Heather lowered the temperature with the remote, Linda poked her head inside.

  “You’re back.” Linda stepped inside, her brow suddenly furrowed in concern. “Are you feeling okay? You look flushed.”

  “I’m fine,” she said quickly. There was no use in telling her that she had started sweating the moment she spotted Simon. Her heart was still racing from their brief encounter. If this was how she was going to react to him after a handful of exchanged words, she couldn’t imagine the strain she would be under if she still worked for him. How had she managed to get any work done while she had worked for him?

  “I see you got the mockups,” Linda said.

  Heather reached for the small stack of magazine mockups and handed them over to Linda. “I got a chance to look through some of it. It looks great.”

  “Wonderful. You hang on to this copy for yourself. Let me know if you notice any errors.” Linda glanced at one of the covers and handed back one of the magazines. “By the way, while I’m here, I’ve got something that might help with your investigation.”

  Hope gripped her. Linda had promised to help, but after this past week had gone by without much of anything Heather had chalked it up to Linda just being nice. In the meantime, she had met with her lawyer to sort through her legal woes. Not only did she have to deal with the custody battle with her ex-husband, but she also had to protect herself from the professional accusations as well.

  The last week had been so emotionally taxing she had no idea how she had managed to get through it without falling apart. She suspected Finn had something to do with it. Her son always gave her hope, even in the worst of times. “Really?” she asked, trying to keep her voice even.

  “Yep. You sit tight while I go get some of the paperwork.”

  Linda returned minutes later with a folder in her hand. “I found something that might be useful,” she said as she handed it over to Heather.

  Heather opened the folder and skimmed over the document inside. “It’s a client list for the work electricians did last year. Maybe they did work at VLA’s offices?”

  “Yep. They’re the same electricians who did work in Simon’s apartment building,” Linda confirmed. “I remembered the name when Simon explained the situation to me. Maybe someone from VLA sent them to spy on Simon and take photos of the servers.”

  “Well, that doesn’t sound too unusual,” Heather said. “It makes sense for them to have that kind of client list if they’re good at working with tech companies.”

  “It might not be unusual, but it helps make a stronger case against them. If they have access to a rival company and Simon’s apartment, it means that they might not have spied on Simon on their own. Maybe they’ve been planning this since before you got hired.”

  Heather’s eyes widened. “You think this shows that someone from VLA got them to take the photos of his servers?”

  “It’s worth a look,” Linda said. “Before I found this, you were the one connection to VLA and Simon’s apartment building. Now we know there’s another connection. It’s not proof, but it’s a start.”

  “Thank you, Linda,” she said, touched by the older woman’s generosity. “Can I photocopy or scan this to give to my lawyer?”

  Linda nodded. “Sure you can. I’m only sorry that I haven’t found anything more. I won’t stop trying to find some proof, though. We’ve already got someone going through the web forum where the photos first went up.”

  “Thank you. This is already so helpful.”

  “You know, you might get more information if you ask Simon for help,” Linda pointed out.

  Heather chewed her lower lip. “I don’t think that’s such a great idea.”

  “Why not? Simon will be able to explain how he hired those electricians in the first place,” Linda said. “I know you two have your differences, but he really could shed some light on things.”

  “I already told Simon that I was going to clear my name without his help,” Heather said. “We didn’t really end things on the best terms. Asking might just make things even more tense between us.”

  She didn’t bother revealing the details about her awkward encounter with Simon in the elevator. Linda seemed trustworthy, but there was enough office gossip about her relationship with Simon and Heather didn’t want to fan those flames.

  “I know asking for Simon’s help might be difficult, but the alternative is worse,” Linda said gently. “You might have to deal with the police. Plus, you explained the situation about your ex-husband trying to get custody of your son. If the police decided to question you, or worse, police involvement wouldn’t be helpful for your court case.”

  Heather sighed. She had made her feelings very clear when she rejected Simon’s help. Even if she approached him now and asked him questions, there was no way to know that he’d help her.

  Her heart clenched because she knew that wasn’t true. Simon might have broken her heart, but he’d never refuse to help her. Which was why she was so reluctant to ask for his help in the first place. He would agree to help and get inside her head again. Weaken her defenses and sweep her off her feet one more time. It wasn’t Simon’s fault that she found him so irresistible she had to put five floors between them to get on with her life. But opening that door again was such a risky move that she was almost willing to refuse to ask for his help. Almost. She’d do anything to protect her son. Even risk her heart getting broken again.

  “Fine,” Heather said. “I’ll ask Simon for his help.”

  Chapter 5

  She was standing right in front of him in the lunch line. Try as he might to tear his gaze from t
he arch of her delicate neck, he couldn’t. It was probably best to get the hell out of line and wait for her to be done, but he was starving. He’d been so busy he hadn’t made time to eat breakfast, and last night’s dinner had consisted of a block of cheese and not much else. Except for maybe that bottle of wine.

  And on top of not eating well he’d been up late last night, trying to upgrade his cyber security system. Now more than ever, he needed to protect his work from potential hackers. His late-night work had led to restless thoughts of Heather, because he was still worried about her getting fired or arrested for hacking into his home system.

  He was standing right behind her and she probably had no idea he was right there.

  When she got to the counter to pick up her lunch, the purse she was holding slipped out of her hand onto the floor. Acting purely on his protective instinct, he reached for her it just as she did.

  Her eyes widened when she saw him, the gold flecks in her eyes mesmerizing him.

  He picked up the purse, but she took it out of his hand.

  “Thank you. I’ve got it,” she said firmly. From her tone, they might as well have been complete strangers to each other. She obviously wanted nothing to do with him.

  Simon merely nodded and stood up again before he got the chance to stare at her like a crazy person. The tension in his shoulders hadn’t subsided in the week since she had switched departments. He couldn’t stop thinking about her, and worse, he kept bumping into her. Most of the time he’d spot her and duck into a nearby office before she saw him. But yesterday, she had gotten into the elevator with him and he couldn’t avoid it.

  Standing in the elevator had made his insides knot up at their proximity. She had been close enough to touch. To kiss. But then she had flown out of the elevator like she couldn’t wait to get the hell away from him.

  Her hasty exit had been like a dull blade between his ribs. A childhood friendship had been yanked out from under him because of his own anger and fear. Fear that he had let someone get close enough to potentially make a fool of him. And he couldn’t be made a fool of.