by Julie Cannon
Chapter Ten
The annual fund-raiser for Children’s Hospital was one of Elliott’s favorite events, and she often bid on several of the items in the silent auction, then gave them back to the hospital for the kids to enjoy. She had spent most of the evening catching up with old friends and business acquaintances and was finally alone sipping her drink when Lauren walked into the room.
Her head began to spin and her stomach dropped. Immediately the taste and feel and softness of Lauren’s body came flooding back. If it were possible, she was even more beautiful than Elliott remembered, and she wasn’t the only one who noticed. As Lauren strode confidently over to a group of people, the eyes of one specific woman casually roamed her body and lingered on her breasts. Even from this distance Elliott recognized the hunger; this woman was on the prowl. Her stomach knotted and she felt oddly flushed.
Elliott was stunned by the feelings tracking through her body. It was a combination she could not recall ever experiencing. She was hot with desire, but hotter with what? Jealousy? Am I jealous that someone else is interested in Lauren? She wasn’t even sure what jealousy felt like. She did know that the thought of someone else touching Lauren made her crazy. What was worse, she didn’t have the first clue what to do about it.
She should have responded to Lauren’s phone call. She’d saved the message, and when she had finally been able to listen to the words and tone without anger, the logic of Lauren’s argument began to make sense. Hadn’t they all been virgins at one time? Wasn’t it actually a compliment that Lauren had wanted to share herself with Elliott instead of some other woman? There could be no shortage of offers. Perhaps she had already satisfied her desires, or curiosity, with someone else.
Pushing the thought from her mind, Elliott followed every small movement of Lauren’s hands, imagining them moving over her body and answering her desire. She focused on Lauren’s mouth and yearned once again for the teasing brush of those lips against her own. Weeks had passed and there had been no contact between them. Elliott wondered if it was too late; she had a feeling charm didn’t cut much ice when you blew it with a certain type of woman. Lauren had left the ball in her court and apparently wasn’t kidding. Elliott had half expected to get a follow-up call. She had imagined Lauren trying to persuade her into another date. Instead she had walked away. If nothing else, that said something about her agenda; for once Elliott’s wealth was not the drawing card.
After several minutes of benign conversation, Lauren knew she was being watched. Not wanting to appear rude, she casually moved her gaze from the woman she was speaking with and immediately connected with a familiar pair of warm brown eyes. Elliott! She had suspected she might see her at the benefit, given Elliott’s commitment to children’s charities, and she had prepared for this moment. A rush of turmoil swirled in her stomach anyway.
Elliott looked composed, holding a drink and leaning against a decorated pillar. With something approaching despair, Lauren realized just how much she still wanted her. God give me the strength to keep it together. She was determined to not approach Elliott; whatever pride she had was damn well going to stay intact. She nodded a polite but distant acknowledgment, and Elliott’s eyes darkened even though her expression did not change. Lauren held her gaze for a few aching moments, then returned her attention to the people around her. One of the women in the party had been trying to catch her attention ever since she’d arrived. She was mature and in good shape. Lauren gave her a warm smile.
She didn’t see Elliott again until much later that evening, when a blonde who looked like a stripper cut through the room and stopped about a foot away from the enigmatic CEO. As Elliott turned, the woman said something Lauren could not hear, then slapped Elliott’s face hard. Amidst a chorus of gasps and a cloudburst of flashes as the few social page reporters swarmed, the blonde spun on her heel and walked away.
For a couple of seconds, Elliott stood where she was, apparently stunned, then her eyes flashed at Lauren and her one pale cheek turned as red as the other. She shifted her gaze immediately and it seemed as if every muscle in her body contracted; her face was drawn and her stance stiff. Then she was herself again. Ignoring the buzz of speculation, she stalked off after her busty assailant.
Lauren wasn’t the only one staring open-mouthed.
Alan, her ever-dependable escort, remarked, “Well, it had to happen sometime.”
“Who is she?” Lauren asked. If that was Elliott’s “type,” no wonder she hadn’t called.
“I have no idea.” Alan offered a philosophical shrug. “But if Elliott Foster ever thought she had a private life, it’s history now.”
*
“Elliott, what a lovely surprise.” Rebecca’s voice dripped with sarcasm.
“Don’t play games with me.” Elliott dropped her car keys into her pocket. “May I come in?” She couldn’t bring herself to say Rebecca’s name.
“You’re always welcome in my house, and in my bed.” Rebecca swept a lust-filled glance over her and stepped back to allow her by.
The practiced discipline of her emotions prevented Elliott from shuddering. She knew her way around Rebecca’s house, so she headed to the living room.
“Scotch?” Rebecca asked with saccharine sweetness.
Elliott declined. “Let’s get to the point. What in the hell was that all about?”
“You send the FBI here and you need to ask?” Rebecca’s nearly bare breasts rose and fell sharply.
The FBI? Elliott schooled her features. Had Ryan taken some drastic measure without consulting her? Cautiously, she said, “I’m sure they explained the situation.”
“Oh, yeah. They explained it, all right. I’m being set up. They’ve got the telephone recordings and tapes from your house. You think you’re smart, don’t you?”
Smart? Elliott felt incredibly obtuse, but she couldn’t let Rebecca see that none of this made any sense to her. “What are you going to do?” she asked blandly.
“Duh! I’m supposed to drop my lawsuit, hand over my evidence, and have no further contact with you or they’re going to arrest me. They’ve got me for blackmail, and then there’s that bullshit about national security. Puh-leeze.”
National security? Elliott couldn’t even imagine what Ryan must have said to the authorities. She pointed out the obvious. “You are blackmailing me.”
“I could go to prison.”
“Those jumpsuits are hideous.” Elliott was baffled, but she could definitely see a funny side to this bizarre conversation.
Rebecca’s outrage gave way to a pouting whine. “Come on, Elliott. I know you don’t want me locked up or they’d have arrested me already. Things could still work out between us. I’m willing.”
Elliott ignored the seduction attempt; however, she was intrigued. Why hadn’t the FBI arrested Rebecca? The answer presented itself before she could draw a breath. Rebecca’s behavior must have rocked the boat somehow, but if they made an arrest, their operation—whatever it was—would be out in the open. They would have to justify how they came by the evidence of blackmail. They’re investigating me and they don’t want me to know. She almost laughed. They had imagined Rebecca would keep her mouth shut. Wrong.
“Rebecca, it’s time to quit,” Elliott said. “We’re done. I suggest you cut your losses and walk away while you can.”
“I don’t get it.” Rebecca sounded genuinely bewildered. “A few hundred thousand is nothing to you. Why didn’t you just pay?”
“It was a matter of principle.”
“You spend millions of dollars on kids who are worthless, but you can’t even give me a gift for our time together?”
I slept with this woman. Disgusted, Elliott said, “If you were sick with some terrible illness, I would help you. But you’re not…unless an overdeveloped sense of entitlement is a sickness.”
Rebecca produced some crocodile tears. “You took advantage of me.”
“How so?”
“You seduced me. You got me in bed befor
e I had a chance to say no. When it was over and I realized what you really are, I was in shock.” Rebecca sat stiffly in her chair.
“And exactly what am I?”
“A predator,” Rebecca spat.
Elliott laughed, and from the angry expression on Rebecca’s face, that was maybe not the most prudent thing to do. “And at what point when you were naked and on top of me did I become a predator? Before or after you shoved your fingers so far up my cunt the back of my throat tickled? Was it when you joined me in the shower and begged me to make you come? Or how about when you fucked me in the ladies’ room at the Ritz? Tell me, Rebecca, which one of those times was it? Because those were the only times we were together, and I seem to recall you were a very willing participant. As a matter of fact, every time I tried to leave, you fucked me again.” By the time she was finished, her anger had the best of her and she was almost shouting.
“That’s not the way it happened.”
“That’s exactly the way it happened. You know it and I know it. You were bored with your life and wanted a walk on the wild side. We went for that walk, Rebecca, and you were leading the way.” For a second time she watched Rebecca transform.
“Does your new girlfriend fuck you like that?”
Elliott was unable to hide her shock at Rebecca’s question. She had no idea what Rebecca knew, or thought she knew, about Lauren. The knot in her stomach tightened.
“That’s right, your new squeeze. The pretty redhead. She’s a lawyer, right? I wonder what she’d say if we had a little chat? Maybe I’ll sack my attorney and hire her.”
Whatever control Elliott had snapped at the mention of Lauren in the context of this disgusting conversation. “Don’t you dare bring her into this.”
“Or what? Hmm? You’re gonna do what? Tell my husband? Big deal, he doesn’t care. Tell my mama? Who do you think I learned it from? Hey, I know, maybe you’ll get your FBI friends to make me disappear. Poof.” Rebecca used her hands to accentuate the disappearing act.
Elliott leapt out of the chair and in an instant was in Rebecca’s face. “Listen to me, you conniving little bitch. I told you I’d eat you for lunch, and if you say one word to her…one word…any word, I guarantee you I will.”
*
Lauren stared up at her bedroom ceiling, unable to sleep after the strange turn of events at the benefit. Obviously an angry ex wanted to embarrass Elliott publicly, and she’d succeeded. The media would be all over this story until the next scandal came along. Lauren was thankful she hadn’t gotten involved with Elliott; her face would be everywhere too, and how would she explain that to Thomas Merison and Charles Comstock?
She thought about calling Elliott with a few words of support. Whatever happened, or did not happen, between them, this was going to be a tough time for her and the decent thing to do would be to reach out. For several minutes, she rested her hand uncertainly on the telephone next to her bed. Her alarm clock said one a.m. Friends did not phone each other in the middle of the night. That was something only lovers would do.
This was not an emergency, and if she were completely honest with herself, she had an ulterior motive. Certainly she wanted to make sure Elliott was okay, but she also wanted to
feel Elliott’s lips on hers, and the touch of her hands. She needed
to hear Elliott say that there was no point in hoping. She rolled
onto her side and felt very alone in her bed, but despite her yearnings she reaffirmed her position: she was not going to approach Elliott again. If she wants me, then she’s going to have to come get me.
*
“Ryan, who do we know at the FBI?”
“It’s one in the morning,” Ryan mumbled.
“I know what time it is, Ryan.” Elliott could make out noises in the background. He was saying something to his wife, then it sounded like he carried the phone to the kitchen and opened the fridge. “For God’s sake, wake up. The FBI. They talked to Rebecca.”
“What? Why would the FBI talk to her?”
“I was hoping you could tell me. You didn’t call them in, did you?”
Ryan yawned. “No, but this is extremely interesting. What exactly did she say?”
“Something about a national security issue. They told her they have recordings of her blackmail threats and she could go to jail. She thinks I orchestrated the whole thing so I could beat her at her own game.”
“Rebecca is all about getting what she wants,” Ryan noted. “Are you sure this is not just another game?”
“Why would she lie about this stuff?” It would be nice, at this point, to believe that Rebecca had figured out another way to manipulate her, but Elliott knew what she’d seen. “She was frightened, Ryan. She’s dropping the lawsuit and she slapped my face in front of everyone.”
“Well, we probably should have involved them,” Ryan said. “I guess you’re not the only person Rebecca’s tried to scam. They must have been watching her.”
“No,” Elliott said grimly. “They’d have arrested her if she was their target, but they just told her to back off.”
“The plot thickens.” Sounding lost in thought, he asked, “Are you saying it’s you they’re interested in?”
“Well, if she’s telling the truth, they’ve been listening to my phone calls.”
“And if your phone has been wiretapped, your house is probably bugged too,” Ryan concluded. “So, we should take this discussion somewhere else.”
Elliott felt ill. Was this her life? How could things have spun so far out of control, so fast? “I don’t believe this.”
Ryan launched into rapid speculation. “You know, this may not be about you specifically. You could be caught up in a wider probe. Let’s not assume anything in that regard. We need to get to the bottom of this.”
A probe? She was hearing things.
“By the way, I saw the fund-raiser incident on the late news.” Ryan sounded unflustered. “I’ve already started—”
“It was on television?” She should have guessed someone would have a cell phone recording.
“I’m afraid so. As I said, I’ve already started damage control. Your brother-in-law called me right after it ran. You’ll need to keep an eye on him.”
“Oh, Mark’s going to love this.” He would use it against her if he could, no question about that. Elliott hoped he wouldn’t track Rebecca down; she’d have to find some way to tie his hands before he did.
“I told him she’s a stalker,” Ryan said. “But we really shouldn’t have this discussion now. We need to meet as soon as you get into work. I’ll swing by. No, better yet, let’s meet at the diner on Sandstone Drive. At least we know that’s not bugged.”
“Okay,” Elliott agreed with grim resolution. She spoke her next thought out loud. “I let this go on too long.” She’d allowed herself to get distracted, and she’d been stubborn. Her refusal to pay Rebecca off had been a matter of principle, but sometimes principles were a luxury.
Ryan read her mind, as he did more frequently than she liked. “It’s a good thing you didn’t pay her.”
“Somehow, I’m not getting that.”
Elliott’s dry humor drew a small chuckle from her old friend. “Think about it. Guilty people are usually the first to pay up, and you’re innocent, so why would you?”
His cautious tone and careful wording made her suddenly intensely aware of her situation. Right now, FBI agents were listening in. Whatever she and Ryan said could be misconstrued or used again her.
“None of this makes any sense,” she said. “Why the fuck would the FBI be interested in me?”
“That’s something we’ll have to find out. How’s eight a.m.?”
“I’ll be there.”
“Meantime,” he warned, “don’t talk to anyone.”
As Elliott agreed, the line went dead and she was certain she could hear weird clicking noises. Disturbed, she dropped the receiver in its cradle and began a methodical search of her study. She wasn’t sure how big a hidden list
ening device was, but if they’d been planted around her home she needed to find them. It would take all night, and even then she might miss one.
Elliott stopped looking under cushions and sank down on her sofa. This was a nightmare. Her life had been flowing along perfectly, and now, out of the blue, it had turned to shit. Really scary shit. Blackmail by a greedy ex was one thing, but the FBI? National security? It was so far-fetched, she felt like she’d just been zapped into another reality. Her mind lurched to Lauren. She had called her from this house, using her tapped phone line. Unwittingly she may have involved Lauren in something.
Elliott felt sick to her stomach. She had to tell her. Ryan wanted her to keep her mouth shut until they could meet and agree on how to manage the situation, but she owed Lauren more than that. Lauren had a big career to think about, and she could not risk being caught up in something like this, whatever “this” actually was. No matter what Lauren must think of her after tonight, Elliott would have to risk falling even lower in her opinion by telling her everything she knew.
She rose and located her car keys, trying to remember where she’d put her cell phone. What would Lauren make of a bizarre phone call from her at this time of night? She would sound like a crazy woman, talking about the FBI and wiretapping. I have to see her, face-to-face, and this can’t wait.
Chapter Eleven
You’re where?” Lauren elbowed herself up and groped for the switch on her lamp, switching her phone from one ear to the other.
