by Nelson, Cara
She knew she’d grown up a little too rigid—too many years in a military household. Sure her father had spoiled her and her sister—but they’d also had rules to follow. And, she thought, I was the big older sister—the good girl who had to set a good example. There’d been times she’d wanted to have as much fun as Jillian always seemed to have. Jillian had been the party girl. Looking back, Victoria realized Trent had been the only one who could shake her out of walking the path of duty so she could stop and enjoy some of the scenery along the way.
She thought back to how he’d snuck her out of the off-base house her family had in Kuwait to take her for her first camel ride. That had been smelly and fun. He’d always dared her to step out of the mold of the colonel’s oldest daughter and just be herself. Back in the states, when they’d met up at the same college, she’d been the one who wanted to compete with him—to be better than anyone. But he’d been the one who could get her to laugh with some stunt—like the time he filled her dorm room with helium balloons.
Victoria shook her head. Don’t go there! She reminded herself. Trent really had to make his unborn baby his first priority—and if there wasn’t a kid on the way, if Cynthia had lied, then he needed to figure that out and sort that out. She could only be there for whatever he needed once he had his head on straight. Of course, it was nice to see that despite this upheaval in his life, he was still willing to concentrate on her problem.
Someone was out to get her—and Trent was the only help she had.
At least she felt better with a job she could tackle. Getting into Sue’s house would be easy, but doing that with the idea that she was there to snoop wasn’t going to be fun. The guilt already twisted inside her, and she knew she’d want to spill everything the second she saw Sue. Would she be able to go through with this? She shook her head.
She really had no other choice. She’d just have to buy Sue lunch later at her favorite restaurant and confess everything once she cleared Sue of any involvement. Sue would probably give her what for—but she also knew that Sue would forgive her.
At home, Victoria spent a few hours with Trent’s tablet, comparing login times to the list she’d made of what she’d been doing over the past few weeks. She kept a calendar, so she had a list of when she’d met friends after work, and she’d only gone out that once for lunch with Sue. It was actually a shock to see how much time she’d spent at her desk and logged into the company network. Victoria rummaged through her memory and made notes. At last she spotted a couple of discrepancies in the records.
“Ah ha—got you!” she muttered.
This confirmed someone had been logging on using her name and password. She jotted down the times—both of them were late night or early morning, on days she’d knew she’d gone to bed early. She generally came home and crashed with wine, a hot bath, and a chick flick on Fridays—and both of these logins had happened after midnight on a Friday. Both also showed that her account had been active for hours—just what Trent had said they should expect. Someone really did have to go looking for the files they’d wanted. But this wasn’t enough evidence to convict someone else.
Staring at the tablet screen, she chewed on a thumbnail. It really didn’t seem likely that Sue would be up so late on any Friday night—not with a husband and baby to wear her out during the day. However, it was time to be methodical about this—the first step was still to eliminate Sue as a suspect. Victoria didn’t like this uncertainty that a friend might have betrayed her—if she started getting her friends in the clear that would go a long way to making the world start to seem normal again, too.
Heading off to bed, Victoria tried to put all of her worries away. They came back in dreams with Cynthia riding a merry-go-round. Trent was on it, too, jumping from carousel horse to carousel horse. Victoria stood beside the spinning mechanism, watching the horses pass, trying to reach out and grab Trent’s hand, but never connecting. She woke heavy eyed and tired. A shower helped. So did some eggs, toast and coffee. Then she went back to the logs.
At noon, she took a break and called Sue to make the offer of babysitting that evening. Sue jumped on the offer, and that only increased the guilt that clamped down inside Victoria.
Sue’s concern came over the phone, loud and clear. “Is something wrong?”
“No. Nothing.” Victoria winced. She sounded too chipper. “Look, I’ll tell you more later—this night is all about you having a night off.” And me doing some snooping.
“You’re the best!” Sue said.
Victoria flinched again. It was going to have to be two lunches, and maybe a girl’s day at the spa, too.
By five, she knew she needed to get ready to head over to Sue’s. She knew she was dragging her heels. She wanted to be sure, but she didn’t want to find out her friend had framed her. Her empty stomach churned, but she couldn’t eat anything. She settled for half a glass of wine, cheeks and crackers. Dressed in jeans, a flowered blouse, and a pair of flats, she headed out.
By the time she pushed the bell on Sue’s apartment, her throat had tightened to the point that she felt like someone was strangling her. She kept fussing with her purse strap and she had the urge to blurt out everything as soon as the door opened. Warmth suddenly flooded over her back and arms. She turned and saw Trent.
She frowned. “I thought you were going to wait for my call?”
Leaning close, he smiled. “Take it easy. And breathe.”
The tremors inside her had a new reason to keep going. Trent brushed a fingertip down her arm. She shivered.
And Sue opened the door. She glanced from Victoria to Trent and then hugged Victoria. “Hey! How are you doing?”
“Oh, I lost my job and now I’m here to—”
Trent punched the small of her back and she gave a squeak.
“To give you a night off,” Trent said, stressing every word. “Hi, Sue—sorry about barging in on your babysitter, but I told her I’d keep her company.”
Sue glanced from Trent to Victoria. “Lost your job?”
“Long story. Can we come in?”
Sue opened the door wide. Victoria saw Liam, sitting on his highchair and eating dinner. “Hey, big guy. How are you doing?”
His face split into a grin. He threw a carrot on the floor and burst into laughter.
Hurrying over to him, Sue grabbed him out of his highchair. “Okay, you are done with that meal. He’s on strike bout carrots. Now what’s this about no job?”
“Allow me.” Trent swept Liam from Sue’s arms. “Bet you want an airplane ride, right buddy?” Holding Liam out he zoomed the baby though the air. Liam kicked, giggled and let out a shriek. Trent zoomed Liam into the living room, and Sue turned on Victoria.
“What’s this about not calling me about your job? So that’s why you sounded so weird today.”
Victoria caught Sue’s hand. “I really can’t talk about it right now—it’s…complicated.”
Sue glanced at Trent. “Just like you and him? Okay—I get it. You need time.” She glanced at her watch. “And I’m supposed to meet Shane downstairs in fifteen minutes.”
“Go—change.” Victoria turned and shoved Sue toward her bedroom. “Have fun tonight—and I swear I’ll tell you everything tomorrow.”
“You better.” Sue glanced once more at Trent, who was now sitting on the floor with Liam and discussing the merits of different toy trucks. “Wow, sure didn’t expect Trent to be so handy with anyone’s child.”
Victoria glanced at Trent. He reached out and poked a finger into Liam pudgy tummy, making Liam giggle. Her heart turned over. This is how he’d with his son—and it wouldn’t be their son. Her throat tightened. She looked away, her eyes and nose stinging.
Sue grabbed her hand and squeezed. “I think you need to have a chat with Trent.”
“His ex-girlfriend is pregnant.”
Sue’s mouth fell open. “Okay—a couple of days out of touch and I’m out of the loop on everything.”
Giving Sue another shove, Victor
ia shook her head. “It’s been busy, what can I say. Go—get ready. Go out. Have fun. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
“We better.” Sue headed for the bedroom, calling out, “He needs his bath and bed in a half hour. If I don’t stick to a routine, he drives us crazy.”
Victoria nodded. “Sure. We’ll handle it.”
“Make yourself at home,” Sue yelled.
After she’d left, Trent glanced at Victoria. “Now?”
“Wait until she’s gone.” Victoria glanced at the stack of mail kept in an untidy heap on the kitchen counter.
He followed her stare and made a face. “I feel like we’re stuck in a bad TV show.”
Coming out in a dark blue dress, heels, and clipping on her earrings, Sue held out her arms. “Okay—sexy or still too mom?”
Standing, and scooping up Liam, Trent gave her a whistle. He bounced Liam on his hip. “You’ve got my vote for mom of the year. What do you say, kid? She look like hot stuff to you?” Liam grabbed Trent’s tie and stuck the tip of it in his mouth. Trent nodded. “I think that means his vote, too.”
Sue smiled. Turning on Victoria, she lost the smile. “We’ll chat after dinner. Wine’s in the fridge. Feel free to catch a movie.” A horn blared from outside and Sue ran for the door. “Or text me to catch me up on all the news—I can still multitask, you know.”
She slammed out the front door. Victoria let out a long breath and shook her head. “My bet is she’ll be back early. We don’t have long.”
Pulling his tie out of Liam’s mouth, Trent looked at her. “We also have a kid to wash up and put to bed.”
Holding out her arms, Victoria took Liam from him. “You start with the computer. I’ll get Liam tucked away and come back to hit the paper trail.”
It took longer than she expected to get Liam undressed, into a bath, and dry again. He splashed out most of the water she put in the tub, leaving her damp on all edges. With him dry and changed into fresh diapers and his nightclothes, she got him in his crib. He kept wanting to climb out again.
Trent’s low voice reached her from the doorway. “Let me. Come on, guy, Time for a lullaby.” Instead of singing something traditional, Trent started into a Hip-Hop rap about going to sleep. Victoria watched his moves, shaking her head. But Liam’s eyelids fell to half-mast. Trent got him on his back and kept the rap going, switching into quiet nonsense sounds. Two minutes later Liam was out.
Turning to her, Trent spread his arms. “The master at work.”
She slapped his arm. “Well, master—our work’s just starting.”
Heading back to the living room, Victoria glanced at the clock. An hour had already slipped past. Unless the restaurant was really busy, or unless Shane decided to linger over coffee and dessert, they were running out of time.
“Aren’t you supposed to text Sue?”
Victoria shook her head. “She can ask, but she’s going to have to wait.”
After riffling through the papers on the counter, she moved to the drawers and cabinets. She found nothing of interest in the kitchen. “No bank statements. No credit card bills,” she muttered. “Okay, maybe this was a stupid idea. Please tell me you found something on the computer?”
“More like a lack of anything that could be held against her—and she’s smart enough not to keep her financials on a computer.”
She glanced around. Sue had gone out with a small evening clutch and had left her handbag lying on the floor. Taking a chance, Victoria pawed through it. She found a bank envelope and pulled it out.
Pulling back the curtain, Trent looked out the window. “I thought I heard a car pull up. Looks like they’re back already.”
“Oh great.” Victoria glanced around. The envelope was already open, so she pulled out the bank statement.
“You don’t have time,” Trent muttered. “Come on, we need to look relaxed and like we’ve just been hanging out, looking after Liam in there.”
Thrusting the envelope into her purse, Victoria glanced around. “Does everything look normal?”
“Other than you—yeah. Come here.”
Heading over to the couch, she sat down next to Trent. He put a hand on her thigh. She glanced at his fingers. “What are you doing?”
“What do babysitters do with a guy over? Shouldn’t we pretend we were making out? I guarantee that’ll distract Sue from anything looking out of place.”
She opened her mouth to complain. “I—”
Trent’s mouth covered hers, stealing her breath. She couldn’t think with him kissing her. Couldn’t move. Her muscles and her will vanished into his warmth—and she could only think he tasted better than chocolate.
She heard the door open and jerked back, her hand going to her mouth. Looking over her shoulder she saw Sue and Shane in the doorway of the apartment. Sue had a knowing glint in her eyes, and Shane looked ready to thump Trent if he needed to.
Glancing back at her husband, Sue called out in a too-cheerful tone, “We brought dessert home for everyone. Coffee anyone?”
Standing and smoothing her jeans, Victoria forced an unsteady smile. “Yes, sure.”
Sue headed past with a wink at her and got busy with the coffee maker. Victoria followed her into the kitchen to help with the mugs. Leaning close, Sue whispered, “So you took my advice.”
“No—I. It’s—”
“Complicated. Sweetie, what isn’t with you? Come on, I don’t think we can leave the guys alone too long. Shane had that ‘I must protect the lady fair’ look going, which means he’s going to be worse than your dad at grilling Trent for his intentions.”
Heading into the living room with a tray of coffee, sugar and cream, Sue smiled. “So, Trent, I’m surprised you came along with Victoria tonight.”
“He’s been keeping me company.” Victoria winced. That hadn’t come out right—it sounded like they were dating. “Helping me, I mean. Uh…with...things.” She let the words trail away. The weight had come down on her shoulders again.
Trent came over and put an arm over her shoulder. “Losing her job’s been hard on Tori.”
Sitting up, Shane glanced at them. He was a tall man, beefy, but Victoria knew he was all marshmallow inside. But his short brown hair and serious eyes spoke of military background and a no-nonsense attitude. He was the sort of guy she’d always thought she’d end up with—but while she thought Shane was great for Sue, she’d never felt any chemistry with him. He was more like a big brother. “What’s this about the job?”
Knowing she had to explain, Victoria held up the mugs. “Isn’t there cake?”
Sue pointed to the couch. “Sit. Explain. I’ll get the cake.”
Taking the mugs from Victoria, Sue left her to stumble through the story of how she’d lost her job. By the end of it, Shane’s eyes had darkened and he shook his head.
Leaving the coffee and cake, Sue came over to hug her. “Don’t worry, darling. They’ll discover that they got the wrong person soon enough. I’ll bet no one really believes you did it.”
“Peter believes it.” She sniffed and rubbed her nose. “And of course, I’ll bet everyone in the office thinks I’m guilty.”
Trent looked up from his chocolate cake. “Hey, I don’t.”
Sue shot him a look and rubbed Victoria’s arm. “It’s all going to work out. It must be some kind of a terrible mistake. I just know it. Hang in there!”
She knew Sue couldn’t be that good an actress. She couldn’t sympathize that much if she’d stolen the files and had framed her. With a nod, Victoria waved at the bathroom. “Excuse me just a minute.”
Picking up her purse, Victoria headed into the bathroom while Shane and Sue grilled Trent for more details. Thankfully, Sue didn’t ask about Trent’s pregnant ex-girlfriend. Flipping on the light, Victoria locked the door and glanced at her reflection in the mirror. Tears shimmered in her eyes—they were genuine enough. But the real reason she needed to be alone was to check that bank statement. Washing her face, she dried her hands and took out the envelop
e. Her stomach tightened and she bit her lower lip.
Sue held a joint account with her husband, and the statement showed no huge payments over the past month. What’s more, Sue didn’t need money. They had a solid savings account and the deposit of her husband’s paycheck showed he was earning a really good salary. A sigh of relief spilled from her. Tension bled from her shoulders. Eager as she was to find the person who had left her jobless, she hadn’t wanted it to be Sue. Of course, Sue could have another account, or she could be taking cash for the files. But given that the thefts had all been via a computer, and that Sue had reacted with real surprise, Victoria was certain Sue couldn’t possibly be responsible.
Victoria slipped the bank statement back into the envelope. Holding it pressed tight against her thigh, she peeked out. She could hear Shane, Sue, and Trent talking, and it sounded like they’d moved from the living room, into the kitchen. Now was her chance. Slipping out, she walked past Sue’s purse. She dropped her own purse and bent down, slipping the bank statement back into Sue’s purse. She headed into the kitchen and took her chair.
Trent glanced at her. She shook her head and gave a very small thumbs up. Shane had taken off his coat and now he looked at her. “I was just telling Trent I could talk to your boss. My firm doesn’t have much influence with TerraDyn, but my boss knows yours. He might listen to me and give you another chance to prove your innocence.”
Leaning on the kitchen counter, Victoria shook her head. “Thanks—and it may come to that. But I don’t want to bring in a lawyer—no offense—unless I have to. So far, they said they wouldn’t prosecute—I don’t want to bring that idea up again.”
Sue came over and handed Victoria a slice of cake. “You poor thing! I know how you loved your work. This is just awful. Are you sure you don’t want Shane involved?”
“Only if TerraDyn insists on filing charges—then I’ll definitely need a lawyer.” Victoria picked up her coffee cup and took a sip. “I don’t want to be rude, but can we please talk about something else? How was dinner?”
