“So you weren’t cheating on his mother.”
“Never did. Never would. That’s not the sort of guy I am.”
She chewed on her bottom lip. Shot him one of those knowing glances again.
Then she relaxed and nodded. “In that case, I’m sorry. I misjudged you. When I found out Rory was your son, I jumped to a conclusion that I didn’t like. It must be easier now though, now he’s growing up?”
“As if.” He laughed, but there wasn’t much humor in the sound. “You saw for yourself last night the problems involved with parenting a teenager. Although that’s the first time he’s done anything like that.” He frowned. “I think that girl is leading him astray.”
“She seemed responsible. Sophia cared enough to stay with him.”
“It was pretty apparent when I spoke to Rory this morning that whatever her name is, it isn’t Sophia. She gave you a false name.”
“What does Rory say?”
“He clammed up.” Frustration made him spear his hands through his hair. “I’ve just put him on a bus for a camping trip that had been arranged weeks ago. He’ll be gone for a week, during which time I intend to find out all I can about this girl so I can make my own mind up about whether she’s right for my son or not. I need a more than a name, I need every single bit of information you can give me about this mystery girl.”
“Ally.” Jace touched her hand, forcing her to look at him. “What does she look like?”
Everything had changed since last night. Last night, Ally planned on spending time with Sophia, making sure she was okay and urging her to find a way out of a home situation that was frankly unsafe. She’d been ready to keep her secret. But that option had disappeared along with the girl in the darkness of night, and now, with Rory gone, the only choice was to confide in Jace. Perhaps together they could help this girl in danger.
She wished he’d stop touching her, because the feel of his hand on hers and the intense focus of his stare in the close confines of the car wiped everything from her mind but the thought of leaning close, and kissing him.
She shifted her hand away, wishing she could remove the burn of attraction as quickly. This morning, she’d been filled with anger and disappointment that her fantasy night had been tainted by betrayal. Now that Jace revealed the truth, her traitorous body acted as though all barriers to a rerun had been stripped away, and was raring for action. Responding to his proximity, primed by the pheromones he exuded as easily as breathing.
“Rory is protecting her.”
Crystal. Remember Crystal.
She stared out the windshield. “I lied to you last night—Sophia was hiding in the back of my car when we dropped Rory at your house.”
“What?”
“Sophia asked me to keep her presence a secret.”
“And you agreed?” The anger in his voice forced her to look at him. “What possible reason could you have for covering for a teenager? Her family must’ve been worried sick.”
“I don’t think they would have reacted the same way you did.” She damned well knew Sophia’s father wouldn’t. Those scars on the girl’s back told an eloquent story. “The girl was terrified; every instinct must have been screaming at her to run. But her focus was on making sure Rory got home safely.”
“So you facilitated her deception.”
“I planned on leaving you and talking to her. Finding out more. Taking her somewhere safe.”
“And?”
Ally ran a hand through her hair. “She was gone when I got back to the car.”
“I can’t believe this.” Jace’s jaw gritted. “You let a drunk teenager wander off, when you should have…”
“Don’t tell me what I should have done. I made a judgment call. I believed her when she said her father would be furious to learn she’d snuck out to meet your son—I wanted to protect her from his anger.”
“Fathers have a right to be angry when their kids act like idiots.”
“Fathers don’t have the right to beat them for it, though, do they?”
Jace grabbed her arm, turned her to him. “She told you her father would hit her? And you didn’t think that was important enough to share with me? With someone who could actually do something about it?” His eyes blazed; he seemed to be holding onto his temper by a thread.
She could give him a description. The bright colors dyed into Sophia’s hair would be surely enough to identify her. But still the promise she made to Sophia—the need to deal with this matter carefully, and not make life worse for the teen kept her from sharing what she knew.
Jace’s cell rang. With a curse, he checked the screen. “It’s Rory. I have to take this.”
“I’ll go.”
“No. Wait.” He answered the call. “Hold on a second,” he barked into the phone.
“I have to go. Give me your number, I’ll call you later.”
He rattled off his number, and she tapped it into her cell.
Then she climbed out before he could object further, and dashed for her car.
SIX
There was no putting off the inevitable. Ally strapped in, and drove back to the house. Once there, she opened Abe’s present, poured herself a giant glass of merlot, and called Crystal.
“News?” Crystal sounded businesslike. Detached. A state she couldn’t possibly be feeling.
“There’s a problem.” Nerves twisted in her stomach. This couldn’t end well. “I know him.”
“What the hell do you mean, you know him? I told you his name, you have the file…” Crystal’s voice trailed off. “I don’t understand. Make me understand what you’re talking about.”
“I didn’t know I knew Jace until I saw him.” She swallowed a mouthful of wine, and wished Abe had put a bottle of tequila in that basket instead. “I knew him a long time ago.”
“And you forgot his name?” Crystal’s voice was angry, disbelieving.
“I never knew his name, and he didn’t know mine. We met at a party ages ago.”
“Okay, so did he remember you?”
The memory of his face the moment he’d seen her flashed before her eyes. “He remembered me. We were”—she swallowed—“we were intimate back then.”
“Intimate?” Crystal’s voice rose. “You mean you fucked him?”
Crystal sounded angry, but she had no right to be, this was before they even met. “We spent the night together. I haven’t seen him since.” Ally resented having to tell her boss something she’d never shared with anyone. The memory of their night together was precious, not tawdry and sordid.
“So he was a one-night stand, and he left without giving you his name.” She sounded calmer. “It doesn’t sound like him—I would have thought him more of a gentleman, but I guess it was years ago. He must have matured since then.”
Crystal’s casual assumption that he had been the one to leave burned, and before she could consider the consequences, Ally spoke. “I left while he was sleeping.”
“You left?”
“Yes. And there’s no way I can continue this assignment now. I can’t be the person testing his fidelity when we have a history, it’s against protocol. You’ll have to send Ashley. I’ll pack up, and head back tomorrow.”
“No.” Crystal’s tone was flat. “You won’t. I’ve been expecting a proposal, but he’s yet to even introduce me to his son. I have to know if he’s serious. You have a history, and he likes redheads.” She paused, as if putting together the clues as to why exactly he might like redheads—could it be because of the one who got away? “I need to know if, given the chance, he’d want to rekindle your relationship. You have to stay.”
Everything in Ally rioted at the thought of continuing this charade. “I can’t. It isn’t right. Company policy states—”
“Irrelevant.” Crystal brushed away Ally’s concerns like dandruff from a shoulder. “You took on a private assignment for me. I’m making the rules.”
“It feels wrong.”
“Has he told you about me?�
�
Ally’s silence told Crystal everything she wanted to know.
“To be honest, we only spoke for a few minutes,” Ally said.
“Do you have feelings for him?”
That’s none of your damned business. Ally clenched her mouth shut and gripped her glass so tightly her knuckles whitened. “I haven’t thought about him since that night. And I walked away without even knowing his name. That should tell you all you need to know.”
“So what’s the problem? I need you to do this, Ally. And if you bail, I don’t think you can continue working for my company.”
“You can’t possibly be serious.” Ally’s heart raced. She had rent to pay. Finding another job before it was due would be impossible, and repairs to her useless car had eaten away at her savings.
“I won’t give you a reference.” The civilized veneer had been stripped away, revealing just why Crystal was such an effective businesswoman. She was a barracuda.
“So what, you want me to lure him into bed?”
“I don’t want you to sleep with him—just to find out if you could. The moment he propositions you, the gig is up. I’ve made a decision. I’m moving to Portland with or without Jace by my side. If you do what you are paid to do, you’ll take over here with no repercussions. I need your answer. I need it now.”
“And if I don’t want to work for Honeytrap Inc. any longer?”
“I’ll kiss you off with a golden handshake and a glittering reference that will get you any job you want.”
Instant unemployment with no way to pay the rent and no prospects. She’d worked too long and too hard to accept that as her future. Crystal was admired in the industry, and had the power to blacklist Ally if she so chose. Ally was under no illusion that she would do what she threatened. ‘I won’t give you a reference,' delivered the way she’d delivered it, hinted that she’d tell everyone she knew not to work with Ally under any circumstances.
Best case scenario? Crystal would move on, and Ally would take over her job. Worst? She’d bail on this assignment and find herself out of work, with no reference to complement the eighteen months she’d poured her heart and soul into her job. The middle road: that she would return to her job, and someone else would be promoted into the position as her boss, didn’t appeal. She’d put in her time on the frontline of this toxic business. Being away from it, even for a couple of days, clarified how much she’d come to hate being constantly proved right, constantly disillusioned at the impermanence of love. Even if she won, and were awarded the position of head of Honeytrap Inc., she’d doubtless have to deal with Crystal in the future, and couldn’t see a way to work with a blackmailer. She needed that reference. Needed a chance of a new future, a new start.
“I’ll do it.” The words left a bitter taste in her mouth. “But I’m only staying for a week. If he hasn’t shown any interest in revisiting our past by then, this assignment is over.”
“Good. That makes sense. If he doesn’t make a move in a week, he isn’t going to.” Crystal sounded satisfied. “Keep me informed; I want to know every move he makes.”
Sunday. A day to kick back and do absolutely nothing. Before this thing with Rory, he’d planned to spend the first weekend without having to worry about his son by traveling to Seattle for another hot hookup with Crystal. But Ally’s arrival had knocked that plan on the head. Her appearance was so unsettling he canceled his plans with a lame excuse and stayed home instead. Which turned out to be a good decision. Because last night he’d been plagued with dreams of Ally again—for the first time in months.
Unfortunately, she was still in his bloodstream. And in all conscience, he couldn’t fuck Crystal while thinking of another woman. That was just skeevy.
He padded down to the kitchen, fixed breakfast and took it out onto the deck. The sky was clear, and the heat was pleasant rather than stifling. The whole day stretched out before him, a day where he could do exactly what he chose. What he chose was to see Ally again. To find out more about her. To try and break this hold she had over him. She was no longer the mysterious redhead; she was a woman. With a name. A job. A life. If he knew her better, maybe he could purge her from his system, stop dreaming of her as some fantasy woman. Get his love life back on track.
She was new in town. On holiday. It was only polite to offer to show her around. Not that there was ever anything to do in Shepherd’s Crook on a sleepy Sunday.
But there was always the water. Maybe he could borrow Adam’s boat and take her out for a sail on Crook Lake. That could be fun.
He called Adam. “Hey, man. How’s it going today?”
“I was sleeping, you bastard.”
Adam smiled. There was no anger at being woken in his friend’s voice. “I’m calling to see if I can take Bang Bang out on the lake today.” The yacht was named after one of Cher’s more memorable hits back in the day. It had been a joke name he and his wife, also Cher, had christened the sailboat when they bought it.
“You going fishing?” Adam’s tone perked. Hopeful. As though he’d be on for heading out onto the water too. Shit.
“I was thinking of taking Ally out for a sail.”
“Hot redhead?” Adam made a sucking-air-through-his-teeth noise. “Bad idea. Bad idea, man. Take it from one who knows. You have a girlfriend...”
“It’s just a sail. There’s nothing illicit about the idea.”
“You think that now. But when you’re alone in the middle of the lake in Bang Bang, and she’s got her curves wrapped in a tiny black bikini, and the heat is blazing down, your thoughts are going to shift to banging in Bang Bang. That’s just life.”
“I want to see her.”
“We talked about this. You need to stay away from her if you want to stay faithful.” Adam’s laugh was tinged with bitterness. “Unless you don’t want to stay faithful, in which case, I’m not going to be a partner in your crime.” He was silent for a moment, as if considering. “The other option is to take a buddy along. Keep things clean. I’m prepared to be that buddy.”
“You just want to see what she’s like.”
“Damn right I do. She had you tied up in knots for months. I’d like to meet the woman with those skills.” There was the sound of bedsprings creaking. “I’m getting up. Call her, then call me back. I’ll get the fishing rods out.”
Ben was right. At present, he was in danger of doing something stupid. Of going somewhere he shouldn’t. He’d confronted Ally about the lie that she was in a relationship, but something inside him stopped him telling her that he was. That he had been dating a woman in Seattle for the past three months. That it wasn’t just sex, that she was perfect for him. On paper anyway. He didn’t like to examine his motives for not telling her, but whatever they were, they weren’t honorable. Since they met again, he’d been acting as though he was available. And inviting Ally to spend time with him alone would just back up that impression.
He wasn’t a cheater. He wasn’t the type of guy who took advantage of any opportunity to bed a willing woman. Even if he’d given her that impression the first time they met.
He searched his phone for her number. “Ally.”
“Jace.” There was surprise in her voice.
“I hope I didn’t wake you?”
“I’ve been awake for hours. I’m topping up my tan in the back garden.”
Instantly his mind went there. Imagining the tiny bikini Adam talked about. Bad idea. His body was responding already, just at the thought and the sound of her husky voice. “It’s a beautiful day.”
“Yes.”
“I thought maybe you’d like to go out on the lake. My friend Adam has a sailboat.”
“Uh...yes. I guess.” She didn’t sound that delighted.
“He is coming with us. We’re bringing a couple of rods, and maybe we’ll do some fishing too.”
“Oh great! That sounds fun. Shall I make us a picnic?”
“No, there’s an excellent restaurant on the lakeshore where we can go for lunch. I’ll p
ick you up in an hour.”
Thank god for cock-blocking good friends.
Jace’s call stirred up a cauldron of different emotions. She had her orders: to impassively watch and wait to see if he would try to reignite something between them. Not going through with it meant the possible loss of her job, or a barrier being placed firmly in the path to future career success. They’d only had one night. She should be able to look at this whole thing dispassionately. But she couldn’t. She spent her life pretending to be someone else. Hiding her ulterior motives. But with strangers. Not someone with whom she had a past relationship. If you could call hot, anonymous sex a past relationship. She’d been attracted enough to go to bed with Jace at New Years—and that was when she knew nothing about the guy. Now, she knew he was a caring father. A single dad working hard to provide not only financial but emotional support for his son. She liked him. There was no denying that. Or the attraction snaking through her veins like wildfire every time they were together.
So she wouldn’t lead him on. She wouldn’t be the instrument of Crystal’s betrayal. Not because she gave a fuck about Crystal’s feelings; the woman had revealed herself as a stone cold bitch, but because she couldn’t bear to mislead him. Wouldn’t play Crystal’s game. No. She’d stay in Shepherd’s Creek for a week—keep her cool—and let Jace and Crystal’s relationship flounder of its own accord, not because she had been added into the mix.
I hope it fails.
The thought sneaked in, like a thief in the night. She’d never wished that for someone else’s relationship before, and the thought felt small, mean. But everything Jace thought he knew about Crystal was wrong. She ran a honeytrapping agency, and hadn’t told him. She’d sent someone to test his fidelity and never intended to reveal that fact. Shit, she even planned to keep her colleagues away from her wedding, if she eventually had one. The whole thing made Ally nauseous.
Where was honesty, in all this? Where was love? Sure, she and Jace had hooked up without revealing anything about each other, but their motives were honest. Pure. They hadn’t hidden anything except their identities.
The Fiancé Trap: A Honeytrap Inc. Romance Page 6
