by Sherri Hayes
Matthew was still worried about the pictures taken in Africa but was certain that if they could discover the mole, everything else would fall into place. Cali believed him.
That led back to their discussion Friday night about Matthew carrying a gun. Even though they’d never talked about it, Cali knew he must own one, given his previous occupation. She’d just never seen him actually wear one, and that was a bit unnerving.
Although he had complete confidence they would figure this out, he wasn’t taking any chances. Arresting Mariana was going to put whoever it was on edge, and according to Matthew, that was a good thing. He wasn’t going to take chances with Cali’s safety, though. So to him, that meant wearing his gun.
Cali thought the gun was excessive when he’d first told her his reasons. Then he reminded her that someone had tried to run her over with a car, and she reconsidered, letting it go. If Matthew felt it was needed, she’d learn to live with it.
The gun still made her uncomfortable though, and Matthew knew it. They’d come to an unspoken compromise. With plenty of security inside the estate, the threat there was minimal. So as soon as they entered the house every night and the alarms were set, he would remove the gun and put it in a drawer. It was the first thing he took off when they got home and the last thing he put on before they left in the morning. His thoughtfulness made Cali love him even more.
All too soon, reality barged back into her thoughts as Lisa reminded her of her lunch appointment with two of the board members. There was a new product coming down through one of the research divisions, and they wanted to discuss how to proceed before presenting it at the next board of directors meeting. The fact that one of these people could be the mole was not lost on her. It wasn’t lost on Matthew either, so they set it up so Lisa would go with her. Cali wore her GPS device just in case.
Devlin and Tad were two of the older members of the board, but that didn’t mean they were to be taken lightly. The four met at an upscale restaurant in the heart of downtown. As soon as Cali gave her name at the door, the hostess led her and her assistant to a table in the back where the gentlemen were already waiting.
The two men were polite but all business. They argued over the benefits of the new equipment, the implementation, and even the cost of production. Most of the conversation was beyond Cali’s knowledge, so for the most part, she just sat and listened.
Two hours later, they finally seemed to be winding down and gushing as to how she’d been of great assistance in helping them organized their thoughts. Cali just smiled and nodded. She felt inadequate even though she knew she wasn’t. If there was one thing she’d learned over the last two months, it was that there was no way someone could run a company the size of Stanton Enterprises on their own. One had to have a good team behind them, and for the most part, that was exactly what she had with only one exception, the mole.
Whoever the mole was, they didn’t have the company’s best interests at heart, which didn’t fit with what she knew of the men who worked for her father. Her dad had hand selected all of the executives himself, which meant he’d also put the mole in the position he or she was in, given them access to the critical information. It was frightening to know someone you trusted would do this to you.
These thoughts were what filled Cali’s mind as she and Lisa returned to the office.
It was already two in the afternoon, and her meeting with Peter was in one hour.
She was having nightmares about columns of numbers.
The meeting with her CFO hadn’t gone too bad. He’d tried to simplify things for her with some graphs, and it helped. A few things still weren’t making sense to her, like how the money flowed from research to production to distribution. Logic told her it should be straight forward, but even the graphs he’d provided were not simple; they were all over the place.
When she’d asked him about it, he explained the diversification process he and her father had come up with to make the company more stable. He said they didn’t want to put all their eggs in one basket. It made sense and yet, it didn’t.
An hour after he’d left, she was still trying to wrap her head around it. When she heard two light knocks on her door, Cali looked up. Her smile widened as she saw her man standing in the doorway.
Matthew stepped inside, and she quickly rounded the desk to his side. Her arms encircled his waist, and her lips sought his for a kiss.
It was soft, sweet, and comforting after spending hours going over numbers that didn’t make sense. “Are you ready to go?” he asked.
She nodded. “More than ready.” Picking up her purse and briefcase, she joined him at the door, and they left.
***
Matthew’s day had been one headache after another. He’d contacted a temp agency for a replacement assistant. Jackie, the woman the agency had sent was okay but didn’t have experience in security or anything past the basic skills needed to answer the phone and type. Neither he nor his brother had time to search for a more permanent replacement, so Jackie would have to do.
The brothers spent most of their day going through reports, tapes, anything they could get their hands on, trying to narrow down who Mariana’s contact was.
There were two years of information to sort through, and that would take time.
Just before leaving the office, they’d received some good news from Martinez; Mariana had a new lawyer. This new player was not someone a person living on her salary could afford, and from their research on her parents, he was not one they could afford either. This meant whoever this boyfriend was, he was footing the bill. Martinez was trying to trace the funds now. Matthew could feel they were closing in; it was just a matter of time.
That brought him to Cali. He watched her as they drove home. Home. It was her home, her dad’s home, but over the last month and a half, he’d begun to think of it as his, too. The house itself wasn’t the source behind his feelings; it was Cali.
She was the one. The one that made everything in his life better.
As they drove down the street, her head rested against the seat, her eyes closed.
He could see the stress of her day in the slump of her shoulders. Suddenly feeling the need to touch her, he reached out, took her hand in his, and rested it on the center console. She turned her face toward his, her soft smile warming him.
They pulled into the drive a few minutes later.
It was a short walk into the house, and they moved quietly in a rhythm they’d perfected over the last month. As she warmed up the dinner Jessie had left them, he stood behind her, brushing her hair out of the way to gain access to her neck.
She leaned into him as his lips brushed soft kisses up to the base of her ear and back down to her shoulder.
They ate with their knees touching under the table, and Matthew’s hand lay softly on her lower back as they took their dirty dishes back to the kitchen.
Once everything was put away, Cali turned in his arms, holding him close. “I was thinking a bath sounded good,” she hummed. “It’s been a long day.” She was slowly moving against him as her soft fingers rubbed small circles on his back. He groaned when he felt his body reacting to her touch.
Going up on her toes, she leaned in close to his ear. “Want to join me?” she whispered.
He grabbed her hand and led her to the stairs. He wanted everything she was willing to give while she was here with him. As far as he was concerned, a nice long bath was a perfect way to spend their evening together. The small space would mean constant excuses for touching, and that suited him fine. He needed to figure out a way to tell her how he felt, but until then, he needed her close to reassure himself that this was real, that she was there with him, wanting him, at least for now.
As they removed their clothing and stepped into the tub, Matthew wrapped his arms around her waist, and she leaned against him. The water lapped softly around them as they lazily caressed each other. They talked about their day apart, her dad, Jason, and Lisa. They spoke about everything exce
pt the one thing that was constantly on their minds; things were about to change for them one way or another. Once the mole was apprehended, there would be no need for Matthew to stay in the house with her anymore, no need for protection. But even if things took longer, there was still the looming deadline of her father’s return. Instead of speaking their fears and declaring their feelings, they each expressed their love in the only way they could.
Their lovemaking that night was slow with each touch lingering longer than the last. It was hours before their bodies actually joined to become one. And after, they stayed locked together for as long as possible. Even when necessity made them separate, it wasn’t for long. Sleep didn’t come quickly for either of them that night as they both thought about the future.
Chapter 41
The next morning started the same as most. Cali found herself alone in Matthew’s bed and wrapped herself around his pillow to surround herself with his scent before starting her day. Her shower reminded her of last night and the feel of his hands on her skin under the water. A part of her wished he would surprise her and join her in the shower. He didn’t, and she soon dressed and on her way downstairs to have breakfast under Jessie’s watchful eye.
On the ride to work, they spoke of trivial things, such as what they wanted today for lunch, all the while enjoying the final opportunities to touch. Matthew rode up with her to her office as he always did and said goodbye to both Cali and Lisa before going to his office.
It was still early when he arrived on his floor. Neither his brother nor their temporary assistant Jackie had arrived yet. This was his favorite time of day; no one demanded his attention. He didn’t feel that peace today for some reason.
Instead, he felt each tick on the clock, an uneasy feeling sweeping his mind.
Matthew pushed the feeling aside, knowing it had to be the night he’d spent with Cali bringing everything on him like this. They had a connection he couldn’t explain, and it had been at its highest last night. But the fact that he had yet tell her how he felt bothered him more with each passing day.
He just had to focus and hope that things would work out for the best. His first priority was to keep her safe. Everything else came second. And only if that was what she wanted. There was nothing he could do about it now, so he punched in his password and got to work.
Two hours later, Matthew’s direct line rang. “Hello?”
“Morning,” Martinez said on the other end.
Both dread and hope permeated his body at hearing his friend’s voice. “Morning.”
“You free this afternoon?”
Matthew quickly pulled up his schedule. He was supposed to do a walk through with Jason, but if Martinez had something, that would take priority. “Nothing I can’t rearrange. Do you have something?”
“I’m supposed to get a report back around two that will hopefully tell us who paid for Miss. Lugo’s hot shot lawyer. I thought you might want to be here.”
“You thought right,” Matthew said, and he could feel his friend smiling through the phone. “I’ll see you at two.”
With that done, Matthew picked up the phone to fix things with his brother. Jason agreed and had no problem taking care of this afternoon alone.
It was hard to concentrate on the rest of the morning. All he could think about was looking at those reports, well that, and seeing Cali again. They’d agreed on Greek for lunch, and when Matthew arrived just before noon, Lisa had already set their food out on the table.
Cali put her pen down as soon as she noticed him. She waited until he closed the door before launching herself across the room and into his arms. He couldn’t help but laugh. Although he loved that she was obviously happy to see him, she wasn’t normally this jubilant.
Kissing her solidly on the lips, he stepped away just enough to take her hand and lead her over to the conference table. “Miss me?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said, exasperated. She began aimlessly picking through the food.
“Today has been a total nightmare.”
Matthew frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing,” Cali said, taking the first bite of her salad. “Well I hope it’s nothing anyway.” Matthew looked at her and waited for her explanation, knowing she’d eventually go on.
Finally, she sighed and continued. “It’s just these numbers. They don’t make sense. I mean, how am I supposed to sign off on the financials when I can’t figure them out?”
She meant it as a rhetorical question, but Matthew answered her honestly. “You can’t. As CEO, or acting CEO, it’s your responsibility to ensure the company is as financially sound as it says it is,” he said, taking another stab at his own food.
“Don’t remind me,” she said miserably.
She felt his hand on her arm and looked up. “Hey. You’ll figure it out. And if you can’t do it on your own, then have Peter explain it to you. It is part of his job.”
She cringed. Yes, it was part of Peter’s job, and that’s just what she’d asked him to do. He had explained it, or at least, she thought he had until she’d gone back over it.
Cali looked up again to find Matthew studying her. The last thing she wanted to do was spoil their hour together with tales of her horrible morning, so she smiled and asked him about his day instead. He told her about the meeting with Martinez and assured her he’d be back to pick her up at five.
Their lunch ended on that high note, and Matthew took his leave, making sure to stop by Lisa’s desk to let her know of his afternoon plans. She assured him she would not leave until he got back. Satisfied, he returned to his office to get some work done before leaving for the police station.
***
For her part, Cali went back to her desk and the nightmare numbers. But after two more hours, they were making less sense than they were before.
She understood how the money went into a main account and then filtered through several different ones. Some of these she recognized, some she didn’t.
But that wasn’t the problem. The end numbers didn’t add up. She had to be missing something.
Finally at four o’clock she gave up and dialed the one she’d been avoiding all day.
Peter Carson picked up on the third ring. There was a long pause when she told him why she was calling, but then he told her he’d be more than happy to come up and go over everything with her again.
And so, she waited.
At four-thirty, almost half an hour after she’d called him, he walked into her office, closing the door. Cali smiled at him. “Please leave the door open, Peter.”
“I don’t think so, Cali.”
Cali’s smile froze. His voice was smooth, but there was something in his eyes as he looked at her. Then it struck her. Peter Carson, the one her father trusted and the one her father was grooming to take over, was the mole. She didn’t know exactly how she knew, but she did.
Cali didn’t answer right away as her mind raced, going over her options. As far as she knew, Matthew wasn’t back yet. There was the camera, but if he was at the police station going over reports, he may not be looking at his phone. Or worse still, he may have it off. No, her best hope was Lisa. Her assistant must have stepped away or something. When she came back, would she notice the door was shut?
And if she did, then what? What could Lisa do that she couldn’t? There would be an element of surprise, yes, but how much time would that buy her?
Peter began to walk toward her. Well, walk wasn’t exactly right; stalk was more accurate. Cali knew she needed to stall, get him talking. “Why, Peter? I mean after everything my father did for you, why?” She slowly stood up, trying to put herself in a better position in case she needed to react.
He snorted. It was a menacing sound. “Yes, sticking me behind a desk with a measly salary for the last ten years. He really did so much for me, Cali.”
“But he took you under his wing, showed you the ropes. How could you do this? How could you steal from him?”
He laughed.
“Stealing was the easy part.“
Cali shook her head. “What are you talking about?”
He closed the distance between them and stood behind her. “Sit down, Cali.” She did.
He remained behind her but leaned in so his voice was no more than a whisper. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to grant your last request.” She swallowed hard and felt him smile against her cheek.
“You see, I had everything planned out. After a little persuading on my part, the former CFO stepped down, and I graciously offered to take his place. It was perfect. I set up a rather complex plan to redirect a small amount of the profits to an offshore account. With all the business Stanton Enterprises did in the course of a year, that small amount added up to a nice little bonus to supplement my income.”
Peter stepped back and twirled her chair around so she was now facing him.
“Things were going well, but then they passed those stupid laws saying that CEOs had to take personal responsibility for the financials, and your dad decided to take an interest in what I was doing. I had to do something. It wasn’t hard to find a group willing to step into the role of mercenaries in exchange for goods to sell on the black market.”
“You’re the one stealing the shipments?” she asked, stunned, but then mentally kicked herself for opening her mouth.
He sneered at her, “Something like that.”
Peter walked over to the bank of windows and put his leg on the windowsill. She knew she had to keep him talking. He’d mentioned things had changed. Cali assumed he was talking about Matthew and Jason. “But something changed,” she stated.
Smiling over at her, he spat, “Yes, something changed. Your father hired the best security team he could find to come in and find out what exactly was going on.” He paused before gloating. “Too bad all their hard work was for nothing. I still have the money and soon the company. Problem solved.”
Then he seemed to get hold of himself again. “I still had to sweeten the pot a little for the hired guns. They wanted more than just the hijacked goods, and then of course, someone had to take the fall when Mr. Tall-dark-and-nosey found out the money was missing. It wasn’t hard to transfer several large sums of cash into a dummy bank account.”
