The video queued up. It was grainy, but I saw us pull up in Sawyer’s car. My hair was up in a French twist. I rarely put my hair up like that as it showcased my birthmark, but I’d been up late the night before and took the easy way out. We’d left the car with the valet and met Cameron on the sidewalk. Soon, their parents had joined us. We greeted each other and headed inside. It was exactly as I remembered the night.
I shook my head. “Nothing unusual happened at dinner.”
“Okay, here’s the footage where you guys were leaving.”
More video played.
We walked out of the restaurant and handed the car ticket to the valet. The conversation continued as I remembered. We were talking about Cameron’s getaway with his girlfriend. Sawyer handed him some sticky notes with reminders of things he needed to check out. She wasn’t a fan of the girlfriend, but she supported her brother. The cars pulled up, and one by one, we left.
“Anything?” Joe asked.
“No, we were talking about Cameron taking his girlfriend away. Toward the end, Christopher and Tonya said Thanksgiving was at their place and invited me to come. That was it.”
Joe zoomed in on the video. A man with a mustache and full beard stood at the window, holding a phone up. It was pointed at our group.
Involuntarily, a shiver ran through me. “Navarro?”
“Yes. Keep watching.”
The video looped and played again. Cameron’s car came first. He left. Next their parents. Last were Sawyer and me. We got in the car, and Navarro came out of the restaurant. Sawyer and I stood talking across the hood of the car. I remembered the conversation. “We were talking about what ice cream place to go to. On the way home, we changed our minds and didn’t stop.”
Navarro came out of the restaurant to talk with one of the valets but angled himself so I was in his direct line of sight. Seeing him hadn’t registered with me at all. We left, and Navarro soon ended the conversation. Before he went inside, he looked directly at the camera as if he were looking straight at me. I scooted closer to Garrick’s side, feeling that sense of discomfort. Navarro had known he was being watched by someone.
I glanced up at Garrick, who was staring back at the screen with anger in his eyes. Finally, he spoke. “So, Navarro was already interested in Knoah prior to me or Kurt coming into the picture. What about Hastings?”
So Kurt had been wrong. Garrick had nothing to do with the mob taking an interest in me. Why is this happening? If I hadn’t found Garrick… would they have gotten me by now?
Joe switched to another laptop. “The next morning, Hastings was in the lobby when Knoah got to work.” The video played. Hastings sat at the table with his newspaper. I walked through the door, and he lowered the paper slightly. “He was there also at lunch, sitting at the table next to Knoah and Sawyer.”
The video played, showing what Joe had just described. He continued, “Before that, I have found nothing showing Hastings and Navarro interacting. Since the night of Le Chef, they have met at least four times I can find, which I assume means there’s more. But that’s not all I found.”
How in the world can there be more? Each time a new screen popped up, my life altered a little more.
“What else did you find?” Garrick’s voice had lost all warmth.
The smell of coffee from Joe’s cup made me wish I had some caffeine to tackle such an ugly subject.
“The day after you went to Dylan Reynold’s grave to find Knoah, Navarro reached out to Vivian Reynolds. They met at a coffee shop. I only have still shots from there. The place had closed-circuit security. The power light had burned out, so I assume Navarro thought he was off the grid.”
Pictures flashed across the screen. Navarro and Vivian at a table. A package being handed to her. And him leaving. “How long did they talk?” I asked.
“About three minutes.”
I closed my eyes and felt the final stab of betrayal. It hadn’t mattered that her son had loved me—that I’d been his wife or we’d created a child together. None of it mattered. All she cared about was money and getting revenge against me.
Beside me, Garrick hadn’t said a word, but fury emanated from him. “Do you have anything else?” The words were controlled steel. “What about videos of Kurt and Knoah popping up?”
Joe took a deep breath. “Since last night, one other attempt to upload a video was made. It was taken down within minutes. Someone doesn’t want Knoah in the spotlight is what I assume.”
Why? None of it made any sense. I was glad I hadn’t left my bubble last night, choosing to face it today, instead.
Garrick prompted. “What else?”
Another image flashed on the screen. A picture of a van on a street. Wait… was that my parents’ neighborhood? Joe confirmed it. “Hastings’ men are watching Knoah’s parents. Navarro’s have been spotted in the vicinity, as well. The day Knoah went home, it was Hastings’ men who followed her there.”
“What?” It came out as a near-screech. My heart beat faster. Mom. Dad. “Are they okay?” I grabbed Garrick’s arm. “I can’t lose them. I can’t.”
Another picture came on the screen, and I saw my parents’ house. My parents. Why are they watching my parents? I stared in horror at the screen, aware that Garrick was speaking, but I wasn’t processing the words. He gripped my shoulder and spun me around. “Knoah, listen to me. You’re not going to lose your parents. We have men watching their every move.”
This was insane. Men watching men who watched my parents. Why weren’t they able to tell me what they wanted? My stomach turned. “I want them out of this mess. Why does Navarro want me? Hastings? What could I have possibly done to have sparked all this?”
I saw utter frustration on Garrick’s face. More than anything, he wanted to figure this out. Keep me safe and all these dangers away. “I have no clue. It seems a little extreme to do all this if he wanted to ask you out. Somehow, you fit into something bigger he’s trying to accomplish.”
“Kurt?”
“You were never in any of the pictures with Kurt. And he spotted you at Le Chef.” That was right. I racked my brain to understand how all of this fit together. “Any pictures of Dylan that were shared never included you. You never changed your name. The hospital records never mentioned your marriage. The only thing on record was a license request that had been all but buried.”
“What?”
Joe leaned back. “Someone paid a hell of a lot of money to hide the fact that you and Dylan were married at one time. It took me a while to find your marriage license. Kurt doesn’t mention you when doing interviews.”
“I requested that. Even before I took off, we never associated the two of us together. It was easier.” Sometimes I felt like a coward for not facing the loss sooner. “Wait. It was Vivian, wasn’t it? She had the license hidden.”
Joe nodded. “Yes, she paid to have it done.”
Vivian. I couldn’t stand how much she hated me. It had bothered Dylan, too. So many times, I’d wished to be part of a family that wanted me because of me. It was tough dealing with a vindictive mother-in-law at every turn.
“What’s next?” I asked.
“I’m going to force Hastings to come to me.” Garrick’s menacing tone and thinned lips were a vow.
Chapter Forty-One
The pilot came over the intercom. “We’ll be touching down in about twenty minutes. Prepare the cabin for landing.”
Garrick sat at the table furiously signing papers to sell the company Hastings had been involved with to his father. It was a way to force him to come to Garrick. Apparently, they had been planning to wait until next week to finalize the sale. After a call to his father, they were finishing it this evening.
I thought back to the conversation the day before while we roasted marshmallows after dancing in the snow.
The fire had been crackling in the outdoor fireplace. Space heaters had kept the temperature comfortable as we’d sat on the couch with our sticks in the fire. Earlier that mor
ning, Garrick had talked to his father for about an hour.
“Does your dad know about all this?”
Garrick had seemed to pull himself out of deep thought. Since the call, he’d been more contemplative. “I gave him the highlights—that Hastings is causing me grief and it seems he wants you, somehow.”
“Did something else happen? You seem a little out of sorts.”
He’d set down the skewer. “I was thinking about something Dad said.” I’d waited for him to continue. “He mentioned that Hastings may be playing this game to get me to do something. But I can’t, for the life of me, figure it out. Navarro and Hastings were watching you before I knew you existed.”
“What if you’re a coincidence? An inconvenient coincidence.” A sip of my hot chocolate had distracted me from that uncomfortable thought.
After a minute or so, Garrick had taken my skewer from my hand and brought me into his lap. “I think it was Christopher and Tonya who got you noticed. But I want to make sure I haven’t missed something.”
I’d snuggled into him. “I don’t know why he noticed me.”
He’d shaken his head. “You’re gorgeous. He’s a man who appreciates beauty, from what we’ve seen. I know it would have been nearly impossible for me to leave you alone if you’d been in a relationship with someone else. The pull was undeniable. It consumed me from the start.”
“But it’s different for us.”
“It might not be for him.”
As I’d watched the flames, the words had hit home—especially after my conversation with my therapist. I’d pushed them from my mind, not ready to digest what they meant.
A tray dropped in the galley of the plane, and Camille appeared. “I apologize for the noise. The handle got stuck. I’ll have maintenance check it out.”
Garrick seemed unfazed and kept signing. I responded, “It’s fine. Please don’t worry about it.”
“Thank you.” The warm smile had me giving her one in return.
I turned my gaze out the window. Clouds filled the sky, obscuring the world below. Almost time to leave my bubble completely. I hated being a pawn in someone else’s game… especially someone else’s mob-related game.
What would have happened if Garrick and I hadn’t found each other?
I forced the thought away. Once we landed, we were headed straight to Garrick’s parents’ house. Being worked up when meeting the rest of Garrick’s family would not be good.
Garrick’s family.
Oh geez, I would meet all of them tonight, which had my nerves a little frayed.
I hoped they liked me and weren’t skeptical of my intentions.
Taking a deep calming breath, I pushed the nerves aside. I heard the landing gear coming down and thought about all I’d experienced this weekend. It was indescribable. Even with the upsetting news, we somehow managed to salvage the weekend and make it something I would forever treasure.
The whole time, we’d focused on getting to know each other more than we already did—quirks, likes, dislikes. In some ways, I felt a little guilty for falling for Garrick so hard and so fast. And it was fast, but at the same time, it felt like I’d known him for a lifetime.
“My soul knew yours from the moment we met.” Garrick’s words as he made love to me still affected me to the core.
I’d always thought Dylan had been my soul mate, but it was different with Garrick. He completed me in a way I never dreamed possible. I was finally ready to admit it. Two halves fitting together perfectly—it was the only way to describe how it felt. When he moved, I moved with him.
From my session with Brooke, I considered a question she posed… What if Dylan wasn’t who I was meant to be with all along? What if I’d been in Dylan’s life to know what love felt like, but my entire heart was being saved for someone else? You have been two people in a sense—the person who loved Dylan and the one who now loves Garrick. Who you were at the time fit perfectly with Dylan, and who you are now fits perfectly with Garrick. I think you’re ready to process the possibilities.
It was heavy. And it wasn’t until now, on the way home, that I’d been able to truly contemplate the meaning of her questions.
I might have been Dylan’s soul mate, but he might not have been mine. Deep down, I wanted to believe people could have more than one soul mate, but didn’t that negate true love? Dylan’s death had changed me. My new identity was half of what was needed to complete a perfect whole with Garrick. Regardless, it didn’t lessen the love I had for Dylan. To the inner depths of my heart, I would always love him. He was my first love. Hopefully, Garrick would be my last.
Tears gathered in my eyes.
“A penny for your thoughts.”
Quickly I swiped at my eyes. “I was thinking about our amazing weekend. And what I talked about with my therapist before we left.” Garrick closed his laptop, put away the papers, and came to sit next to me. I took his hand. I needed to change the subject for a minute while I figured out what I wanted to share. “Why is the house in Utah on the market?”
“The owners are getting a divorce.”
It broke my heart when I heard about people moving on from each other. I wanted fairy-tale endings for everyone… including myself. “That’s sad. I hate that for them.”
“Did you like the place?” Garrick rubbed my thumb with his. The motion helped ground my thoughts.
I thought back to the place. The warmth, the light, the perfection. Sighing, I said, “It was a dream. One of the most beautiful places I imagine on earth. That home deserves to be filled with love and happiness.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” Another minute passed. “Do you want to talk about what else is on your mind?”
Internally, I debated how much I should share as the plane descended through the clouds. Since the night we first made love, I hadn’t brought Dylan up again. I wanted to share everything with Garrick. I knew it was the only way. “I’ve been struggling with how strong my feelings are and how fast they came. I was attracted to Dylan from the beginning, but the relationship built slower. I thought we were inseparable and it was love at first sight, but…” I stopped to gather my thoughts, looking out at the ground. From up here, everything looked peaceful.
“But what?”
I focused back on Garrick. My throat felt a little thicker. This became harder the more I talked. “What if he wasn’t my only soul mate? What if I was never supposed to be with him my entire life? What if you and I were meant to be all along?”
Garrick look stunned for a second. I knew this was a heavy topic. The silence lingered. He must have been at a loss for words, too. So I continued, “I know it’s deep, and I’m not asking for anything in return. It was just on my mind.”
Turning to the window, I watched as we drew closer to the runway. Inside I felt more torn up at Garrick’s silence, and if I was honest, a little hurt. But that was ridiculous. We’d had an amazing weekend, and he loved me. That was what mattered. Mentally, I sounded clingy—and to a man who was suddenly in a committed relationship… who never did relationships. Then I’d gone into a too-deep subject with my implications.
It was okay for us not to be in the same spot. Hell, this was fast, and I understood it.
The wheels touched down, and we taxied to the Shaw International private hangar.
The captain came over the intercom. “We’re taxiing to the hangar. Your car is already there waiting for you.”
Garrick’s hand tightened on mine. I refused to let self-doubt rule me and pushed the ache inside my heart away. We were going to meet his parents then spend the evening with each other. He’d asked, and I’d chosen to share what I was thinking. If I hadn’t been ready to hear that type of revelation, I would have shut down, too. Actually, I had that first day Garrick tried to turn my day around.
I unbuckled as Camille approached. “Your luggage will be moved to the car, which is waiting outside. Is there anything else you need?”
Forcing my face to remain neutral, I responded. “
I don’t think so. Thank you.”
“Can you clear the plane, please?” Garrick spoke the words so low I thought I might have misheard him.
Camille must have thought so, as well. “Excuse me?”
“Clear the plane, please. Everyone can wait in the lounge area of the private hangar.”
This seemed a little drastic for what I’d said. What’s going on? Garrick’s face was unreadable. He was not going to mandate me to the lounge. I cleared my throat. “I’ll be in the car.”
“I want you to wait here in the plane.”
“O-Okay.” This was bad. I shouldn’t have said anything. It was too early. I felt my heart break a little bit as everyone cleared out of the plane.
I watched out the window as the crew disembarked and kept my face averted from Garrick, willing my lip not to tremble. This might be the end of us. Am I wrong about how I feel? Did I misread all the signs? My feelings? My heart? All weekend long, I’d truly believed we’d been dancing around the subject of more in our relationship.
“Is it true?” Garrick asked.
“Which part?” I asked, barely above a whisper as I didn’t trust my voice.
The lengthy pause caused me to turn his way. The unreadable look was gone, and the loving way he looked at me gave me hope. “You believe I’m your soul mate? That you were made to be mine all along.”
The possessive word mine sent a shiver through me. I fiddled with my fingers. I looked at him, beseeching him to understand. “I loved Dylan. I truly did.”
“That’s not what I asked, sweetheart. I don’t doubt your love for him. I never will. What we feel for each other has no bearing on what you had.”
I searched his eyes, trying to figure out where this was going. Fear crept in, and I pulled my hand away. “Garrick, can we drop it? I shouldn’t have gotten so deep.”
He grabbed my hand back, and the contact eased me a little. Warmth and light entered his eyes.
Is that delight? Happiness?
“Please tell me, Knoah.”
The please was my undoing. “Yes, what you thought is what I meant. I’m not rushing you. And you don’t have to return my feel—”
Untouched Perfection Page 25
