Leo cupped her face in his hands. “Emma…” he whispered into her mouth. The soft grain of his shadowed cheeks greedily rubbed against her skin, rousing uncontrollable longing.
They kissed. At times soft and exploring, then intensifying with eager demand for each other. He laid her back against the pillow, moved his hands along the curve of her waist, slipping them beneath her blouse and skating over the flesh of her back, making her entire body heat. He paused his thumbs near her ribcage, caressing the area just beneath her breasts.
The shock of something cold and wet near her arm made her jolt. She pulled back. Leo’s hands fell away. The dog wedged her large head close and licked Leo’s cheek.
Leo shook his head and sat up. “Bella, you could use some mouthwash.”
Rose sat upright, smoothing her blouse back to a normal position. What was she doing? Being at this house and with Leo was a temporary stop in her game to outwit her lying ex-husband. Not a place a place for…for this.
“I’m sorry,” she said quickly and stood. “I drank too much wine tonight.”
His brow rose. “Nothing to be sorry about.”
He was right, but Rose’s tangled emotions took over. How had she let things with Leo get so out of control? “Anyway, Veronica drove me home. She’s the director at the library. She asked if you might want to speak at the library someday.”
He nodded and stood. “Sure. I’d be happy to.”
“I’ll let her know. Thanks for watching Bella tonight. Come on,” she called to the dog.
Bella jumped off and followed Rose to the door. As she left, the burn of Leo’s eyes on her back followed every step.
“Emma?”
She turned around. “Yes?”
“Thank you for the help with my work. This is a solitary job. I appreciate your insights.”
“Any time.”
She hurried down the hall with her fingertips pressed to her lips, swollen from the kiss. Leo’s gently raw edges, so obvious from the first time they met, weren’t really about a man who was nasty or uncaring. Rather he was a man who tried to work his way through life’s problems.
Exactly why she needed to guard her emotions more closely. At this point in her life, she had no business involving herself with any man.
Chapter 16
Leo pressed the “on” button to his computer, taking advantage of the few free minutes he had before getting to work. Harry had joined him on last night’s visit to the Dairy Inn, and he’d forgotten all about researching the investigator on the card he’d found outside Emma’s apartment.
During bouts of restless sleep, he rehashed the image of Emma standing in his doorway late last night. Through the foggy haze, he’d caught her watching him, her gaze tender and sweet. Normally he’d get upset at someone reading his material before it reached the final rounds, only he began to think he’d left it there on purpose. A subconscious need to pull her further into his world.
As they’d talked about his book, her vulnerabilities became more apparent. Although she’d cracked open a door, he sensed she held back and chose her words carefully. The small reveal made him crave her all the more, pushing him to remove her glasses and touch her sweet-scented skin. When she had trembled slightly from his touch, it surprised him that a woman who’d given him unfettered access to her most personal undergarments would react in such a way. If Bella hadn’t interrupted, how far would they have gone?
Every ounce of last night’s encounter would be used in revisions later today, but his interest in understanding her went beyond work into personal. Their intimacy drove him and made him want to fully understand what brought her to his house.
Leo typed “Dan Montgomery, 8-0-4 area code” into the search engine, the PI’s information a good placed to start. Listings showed a Facebook account and a faculty listing at a university. None an exact match. He adjusted the search to include the full phone number.
Hewitt Investigations, specialists in high-tech crimes appeared on the screen. Members of the Private Investigator Association of Virginia, they’d been in business for the past fifteen years and belonged to the American College of Forensic Examiners.
Leo followed the link and found a list of investigators. Sure enough, Dan Montgomery’s name appeared amongst them as a director for the company. His credentials seemed good: military training in computer crimes, certified by the state, and he’d even worked on some big cases for the government.
So why would Emma need this guy’s phone number or help?
* * * *
Rose spread mayonnaise on her turkey sandwich then cut it in half. She tore off a small corner of the meat and dropped it to Bella, who snatched it up from her station at Rose’s side.
“I’ll give you credit, Bella. Your hope for never-ending handouts inspires me.”
Rose glanced up to the clock over the sink. An hour until her afternoon tea with Harry Gallagher, something she’d looked forward to since this morning’s invite when she ran into him while walking Bella. The guy was honest and easy to talk to. If he were about thirty years younger, she could find herself swayed by his crystal grayish-blue eyes.
As she stuck the knife in the dishwasher, footsteps skipped lightly on the staircase. Leo. She’d only come out this morning for breakfast after she’d heard the scrape of his chair and creak of his steps returning upstairs. A silly move, almost junior high. But the tender moment between them last night had left her shamefully craving more of his kisses, more of his touch.
Caution seemed smart. Rose had never depended on anybody and didn’t plan on starting now.
He hit the bottom step and Bella took off. Rose struggled to appear poised and aloof to convey a message the kiss hadn’t left her uneasy or wanting more. Liar. It had railroaded her dreams and every waking move.
Leo’s voice dripped sweet with baby talk from outside the kitchen entrance. “Hello there, Bella. You’re such a g’girl.”
Heat stirred in Rose’s belly with the ridiculous notion she wished he’d give her some sweet talk. Seconds later, he walked into the kitchen.
Rose slid her sandwich onto a plate and turned around, smiling away any embarrassment from last night. “Hello.”
Dark jeans, a fitted heather pullover with a V-dip, and sockless loafers. He looked handsome and dressier than usual for working alone in an attic. Her Hello Kitty plush bottoms and matching T-shirt—emblazed with the aforementioned kitty wearing glasses like Rose’s and the phrase “talk nerdy to me” along the shirt bottom—made her feel frumpy and silly.
“Hello.” He studied her on his way to the sink then he arched a brow and, in a rather husky voice, said, “Or should I say ‘Hello kitty?’”
The part of her she’d just zipped tight unraveled. Heat crept up her neck. She tucked a few stray hairs behind her ear. “Oh right, my pants.” Idiot. Of course it’s the pants. “Oh, thanks for hanging out with Bella last night.”
“It was my pleasure.” He paused near her for a moment then continued to the sink with his mug. “I had a productive writing morning. Our talk helped.” He cleared his throat.
Was he implying more? She lifted her empty glass from the counter.
“Good.” She scooted to the sink and reached for the faucet at the same time he did. Their hands brushed and she jerked back.
He watched her, his gaze penetrating, unwavering. “After you.”
Bella howled and ran to the kitchen door. Leo put down his mug, strolled there, too, and peered out the window. “Stay here, Bella.” He blocked her with his leg and slipped outside.
Rose went over and watched as Leo approached a little red compact car with New York plates. A woman with short dark hair in her mid-twenties got out and smiled at him. They hugged. Leo was a good head taller than her, just like Rose. The woman motioned to the lake. Together they walked toward the dock. Smiling and chatting. She said something and Leo laughed, even put a hand on her shoulder as he answered.
Another
woman in his life? She’d thought he dated Susan, a fact conveniently missing from her thought process while she made out with him last night.
Rose turned away, yet the oddest sensation crowded her chest. Jealousy? The ridiculous notion sunk deeper. She wanted to slap herself across the face. After all, she was here under false pretenses, taking flight from her problems. She had no right.
“Come on, Bells. I’ve got to return a call and get to work.”
She took her lunch and returned to the apartment before Leo entered with his… his what? Once inside, she shut the door tight, like it might keep desires unleashed for him from escaping again.
Putting down her lunch on the coffee table, she lifted the business card found on the floor last night. Before she could dial, voices carried from the kitchen; then an army of footsteps went upstairs. Jeesh, not even offering her lunch before luring her into his den of iniquity?
She dialed Dan, pushing aside her hurt and concentrating on bigger worries. On the fourth ring, he answered.
“Hi, Dan. It’s Rose Richardson.”
“Hey! We finally connect. Boy, have I got some news for you.”
A scratching sound at the door made her glance over. Bella lifted her paw and scratched the door again. “Good news, I hope.” Rose went over and opened it partway. Bella stuck her head out into the hallway but didn’t go further.
“In the long run, yes. We’ve made some decent progress. Have you ever heard the term ‘straw donor’?”
“Sure.” She returned to the sofa. “When someone advances money to another party, who then makes a campaign contribution in their own name. It’s illegal because of the limits a single person can actually give to a campaign.”
“Exactly. It seems your husband has been a very busy man. In short, he’s made it appear as if your inheritance went into his campaign using third parties, but his name isn’t on anything.”
“How did you find the third parties?”
“Every single one was filtered through an email account with the address [email protected]. Sound familiar?”
“No. Not at all. I only have my work email address and a personal account through our internet provider.”
“Well, this Yahoo account is listed as belonging to you. Although, anybody could have used your name and set it up without your knowledge. From this account, we’ve found emails—supposedly sent by you—asking quite a few people to use your money to donate to John’s campaign.”
“Like who? Can I have some names?”
“Bernard Johnson, Francis Arconti, Susan Stern, Sean McAllister.”
“I never heard of any of those people. I wonder if John knows them.”
“My thoughts exactly. We’re going to see if we can connect any of these people to John, but figured we’d run them by you first. I’m going to send you an email with the full list. It’s possible he’s set up this account, pretending to be you. The Department of Justice and FBI don’t take straw donations lightly.”
A pit grew in Rose’s gut. “I know.”
“I have two goals right now. First, find a connection between John and the people who made donations. Second, we have to prove he was behind the transfers made from your Bank of North Carolina account to the donors. I’m hoping, if we can bring to light what he’s done illegally with your money, that’ll give us leverage to get his phone records subpoenaed. Whoever he spoke to the night you overheard him is our only hope to prove to the authorities how John planned you harm.”
She shuddered, reminded of John’s chilling threat. “Will the financial records side of this be hard to prove?”
He hesitated a little too long. “Hard to say. This has been tougher than I’d expected. But give me more time and stay where you are. Oh, one other thing”—Dan paused, making Rose’s stomach dip—“one of my sources caught wind that the Department of Justice is getting antsy about making an arrest for the donation. Try to stay low key.”
“Trust me. I’m not going anywhere.”
* * * *
“As you can see, this now combines your blog and webpage.” Pam leaned back in her chair and looked at Leo. “Well, what do you think?”
Leo studied the screen of his laptop, impressed with the new author website his assistant had pulled together. “Great work. Exactly what I pictured when we talked.” He glanced at her. “Will you need much content on this blog from me?”
“Maybe a little, but you concentrate on your books. I’ll re-run some interviews on here and do some promo.”
“Are updates easy?”
“Just a matter of telling the web designer to replace the old with the new.”
“Like everything else in life,” he grumbled then grinned.
She laughed. “Seth says you’re an eighty-year-old man in a forty-year-old body.”
“Seth is a sixteen-year-old teenage boy in a forty-year-old body.” He snorted a chuckle. “Nothing wrong with appreciating the simpler things in life.”
She scribbled on her pad and smiled. “Nope, you’re right.”
He stood. “I’m going downstairs to get some water before we go through mail. Want something?”
“No thanks.”
At the bottom of the attic stairs, Leo swung open the door. He stepped out, his foot landing on a bright red pair of bikini panties on the floor. He quickly swiped them up; a quick buzz of irritation over Emma’s games shot through him.
Why would she keep doing this? Especially when she’d apologized for the kiss and acted skittish when their hands bumped at the sink earlier. She sent more mixed messages than the Enigma machine, and her secrets were just as hard to break.
He tucked the panties in the back pocket of his jeans and struggled on how to handle this strangely passive-aggressive communication Emma seemed hell bent on keeping up.
As he neared the kitchen, her voice drifted from the other room. He went toward her door. This time he’d return the damn panties. Later, after Pam left, he’d confront her and demand to know what she really wanted from him.
Leo stood steps away from slipping them over the knob when her voice came closer to the threshold. He scampered back into the kitchen, clutching the panties in his hand and feeling every bit the fool.
No woman had ever left him this baffled. He pulled a bottle of water from the refrigerator. As he passed the hallway, he stopped and reconsidered his plan to get rid of the undergarment. Rose’s voice got louder.
“I’m sure it’s illegal, Joanne,” she said, her tone filled with frustration. “Plenty of people have been convicted by the DOJ for using straw donors. I sure as hell don’t plan to be one of them. John is a sick man.”
Straw donors? Was she involved in politics?
Bella stuck her head outside the apartment, spotted Leo, and scampered toward him.
Two seconds later, Emma stuck her head out. She raised a brow at Leo. “Did you need me?”
“No.” He patted Bella a few times and walked away, the panties tightly balled in his fist. She called the dog and, a second later, closed the door.
Her secrets, now handed to him on a platter. A whole new angle to consider in his relationship with her. Something illegal went on in her world, a possible explanation why she arrived in Northbridge with a changed appearance, a lot of money, and a PI’s phone number.
As he passed his bedroom, he tossed the silky undergarment on his bed, unsure what to do about not only the panties, but also his mounting feelings for a woman caught in the midst of something criminal.
* * * *
“And then my daughter Gretchen stood up in the canoe and the boat tipped, landing them all in the icy cold water.” Harry laughed over the memory. “Kids. They just don’t listen. But they sure had fun together.”
Rose imagined the canoe filled with Leo, his siblings, and Harry’s two kids tipping into the icy April water. Even today, on this sunny May afternoon, a moderate breeze had them wearing sweatshirts as they sat in lawn chairs near Har
ry’s boathouse. Bella lay nearby on her back, basking in the sun’s heat.
Rose sipped her iced tea. “Sounds like this place is filled with memories.”
“Oh yes. A lifetime of them.” He stared out at the shimmering lake, his thoughts his own.
A chubby bird landed on a tree branch not far away. “There’s another one,” Rose whispered. “What kind is that?”
“In the flycatcher family, I think.” He picked up the binoculars off the table and pointed them at the branch. “Ah, a tyrant flycatcher.”
He handed them off to her, and she noticed him jot down the name on a pad he’d brought out with their drinks.
After peeking at the cute bird, she lowered the binoculars. “So you keep track of the birds you spot?”
“It’s been a hobby of mine since retirement. So far this year, I’ve seen at least ten different kinds of warblers. The Northwest hills of the state are home to a number of rarities this time of year.”
“So these birds that come through here, do they stay for a while and leave closer to winter?”
“It varies. Some species will be stay in Connecticut and breed. Others will pass through on their way to more northerly territories.”
“Mind if I see your list?”
He handed it over. “Not at all. Nobody usually asks.”
While she studied it, Harry’s words resonated. She’d migrated here, most definitely just passing through. At least the birds had a purpose. For all Rose’s movement, she definitely lacked purpose.
She put down the list and studied the lake. Surrounded by gently rolling hills, this place was beautiful and lush. People in Northbridge were nice. Why had she always thought New Englanders weren’t friendly? Perhaps a little too much of her life lived in the south. The people she’d met here welcomed her, appreciated her hard work.
Then there was Leo’s kiss. What had it meant? She really didn’t know him at all, yet that kiss…when had she last been kissed like it mattered? Maybe never.
Bella Luna Page 16
