by Hadley Quinn
“Okay, I will,” she nodded.
She made the call while Cole was still in her apartment. He listened to the entire one-sided conversation while finishing his warm beer. Ten seconds later his own phone vibrated in his pocket and he knew it was Jack. But he played it off like it was his sister and let it go to voicemail.
“I’d better go call her back,” Cole said, standing up from the couch. “She gets annoying if I don’t.”
Dani smiled. “That’s what family is for.” She also stood up and he knew what was coming next. “Thank you so much, Cole.” She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight. This time he lightly patted her back, just to seem like he had a soul. “I’m glad I came to you, even though you probably wish I hadn’t.”
He pulled away and shook his head. “No, no… I’m glad you told me. In fact, you should probably talk to me before you carry out any crazy ideas you have.”
“I know. I probably should.”
He headed for the door and said, “Goodnight, Dani.”
Chapter Thirty
“A what? Dismissal? There’s not gonna be a trial?”
Dani shrieked with joy into the phone and Van had to pull it away from his ear. Jack heard it too and smiled as he drove.
“I’m on my way home right now,” Van told her. “I can’t wait to hold you.”
Dani was bawling as she hung up. It had been two days since she told Jack about Quincy, and even though it didn’t produce any evidence to suggest who really killed Brian Thompson, Jack was able to prove that it wasn’t Van.
Dani cursed herself for not asking when he was going to be home. Most likely fifteen minutes if he was coming straight from the jail. She rushed around the house to tidy up, even though it was already pretty clean. She lit some candles just for the hell of it. It was still daylight but she didn’t care. She looked down at herself and frowned. Yoga pants and a tank top. Van wouldn’t mind, but she was about to race to the bedroom to change when she heard a key in the lock.
She froze where she was, just anticipating the moment. The door slowly opened and his head peeked inside. He saw her standing in the middle of the room with her hands to her mouth so he entered the apartment, shutting and locking the door behind him. He had a beautiful bouquet of flowers in his hand for her, but she was in his arms within a second, hugging and kissing him, crying with joy, and the flowers were dropped to the floor.
“I love you so much,” she told him frantically. “I love you, I love you, I love you…”
“I love you too, Dani.”
His words got devoured instantly with more kisses. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his hips. Just knowing what kind of reunion they were about to have hardened him instantly. He carried her to the bedroom and laid her across the bed. He’d never seen such a beautiful sight, with her dark hair spilled all over the beige comforter and her sapphire eyes staring deeply into his, begging him to make love to her.
He kissed her some more, an act he knew he would never tire of. She removed his shirt, or at least tried to. Dani was so eager for his loving that she’d lost her finesse. But it made Van smile and he did it for her, more than happy to be the clothing remover for the next thirty seconds as he efficiently stripped her naked piece by piece.
Sinking inside of her was like the icing on his welcome home cake. He’d only been able to dream of this moment for the past ten days, and there was no point wasting time on foreplay.
“Oh God, Van,” she moaned into his ear. “You feel so good.”
He kissed her deeply as he let himself meld into her body. He was never going to take these moments for granted. She pressed her hips upward to receive his movements, agreeing with the way he was sliding into her. Digging her nails into his back, she groaned some more, already close to the edge.
“Don’t hold back,” Van teased. “I wanna hear how much you missed me.”
She smiled against his mouth. “You know how thin these walls are,” she exhaled.
“Who gives a fuck? I think the neighbors would understand.”
“Well you’re giving a fuck right now.”
She laughed at her own joke and so did Van. But there was something about that word coming out of her beautiful mouth that turned him on even more. And as if she could read his mind, she began talking dirty to him, in both French and English. He was beginning to understand those dirty French phrases quite easily anymore, and he decided that he was now bilingual in the bedroom.
Sensing that she was close to release, Van slid his hands under her ass and adjusted the way he massaged her with his cock.
“Oh God,” she moaned. “Van!”
“There’s my girl. Come for me, baby.”
He reached between them and smoothed a thumb over her clit. She reacted instantly as he continued to drive into her. He loved how she screamed into his mouth and gripped him tightly.
When the sounds naturally lessened and she was breathing heavily, he kissed her for another minute until he turned her over. He loved being in this position as he held her breasts and his cock slid into her again. She clenched him tightly and he groaned from the ecstasy of her wetness welcoming him another time. She arched back and kissed him, tongue delving deep, teeth nipping his lip.
He was a goner by then and let it go.
***
Cole paced to the wall and back, recycling the information in his head. For an uneducated little shit, Quincy sure knew how to cover his own ass. There was no evidence that could charge him with any crime, and he claimed to have never seen any stolen jewelry.
Cole returned to where Sam was sitting on the couch. “So you think we should make him piss his pants a little?” he smiled.
Sam lightly chuckled. “I think you know the answer to that. I’m tactic number one, you’re tactic number two…”
Cole barely nodded. “I gotta figure this shit out first. I mean do you think he killed Brian?”
With a sigh Sam replied, “My instinct is to say no. His history shows that he can be bribed and bought, but to kill someone?”
“What about the deal he made with the devil? It pretty much fucked up his life. His friends want nothing to do with him. He was enticed with ten thousand dollars to ruin an innocent girl’s life.”
“He didn’t know what was going down, though. He was convinced the guy was just gonna talk to her that night.”
Cole didn’t want to respond. His anger had to do with his unwelcome feelings for Dani and he didn’t want Sam to catch on to that.
“And he really did seem…very upset over the whole thing,” Sam continued. “He wouldn’t go into details—just told me to leave him the fuck alone—but I could tell he regretted it. Brian Thompson gave him a deal he couldn’t resist. Pay off some gambling debts. Quincy honestly didn’t know what he was going to do to Dani. I believe him.”
Cole shook his head. He didn’t care about Quincy’s conscience. “Keep tailing him. I’m going to follow this money trail with the parents and then figure out what the fuck that Andy character is up to.”
“You want me to keep on the pawn shops?”
“Yes. Let me know if any of those pieces turn up. Try Atlanta too, just in case Thompson really did make a trip there. And search through the email correspondence, as well. See if you find something that I missed.”
Cole left Sam’s motel room and climbed into his car. He needed to talk to Dani about one more thing but he was going to put it off. Jack had taken Van straight home and Cole had to force certain images out of his head, knowing full well how they must be spending their reunion together.
He took a deep breath and focused on the paper in his hands. It was an address that he was hesitant to visit but he had no choice. He punched it into his GPS and headed north.
***
Dominic Martin sat down in his plush leather chair and exhaled a breath of air. With a glass of wine in his hand, he opened a portfolio of photos to look over. It was only a minute later when a knock was at his door. He had no
idea who it could be. He wasn’t expecting anyone and the doorman hadn’t given him any forewarning.
He set his wine on the end table and made his way to the door. Looking through the peephole didn’t award him an answer; he had no idea who the man was.
It was better not to answer, and instead, he picked up the phone to call security just in case.
There was another knock at the door but this time it was followed by a voice. “Mr. Martin, I suggest you answer the door. I know you’re home and this has to do with your daughter.”
Dominic’s heart froze. Danielle? Or was it something to do with Jaime or Fontaine. No, it had to be Danielle. She was the only one wrapped up in shady business right now.
“Who are you?” he asked at the door.
“My name is Cole and I’m a private investigator. I have some information that I’d like to go over with you before I take it to the authorities. I figured you’d like to talk about it first.”
“What information?”
Cole paused. “The money you’ve been paying out for the past year. I know all about it.”
Dominic swallowed. How could he know? Clarence promised him that it was impossible to track.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he finally answered. “Go away or I’ll call security.”
“Fine with me, but I’ll be seeing Dani tonight and she’s waiting for some answers. I guess I’ll let you answer her questions instead.”
He turned around and left, leaving Dominic with panic in his chest. The door flew open as Cole was about to get on the elevator.
“Wait,” Dominic called.
The elevator doors opened but Cole didn’t get on. “I’m not here to mess around, Mr. Martin. This shit has gone on long enough.”
Dominic sighed and felt he had no choice but to motion him inside. “I presume you have a weapon on you?” he asked as Cole entered the penthouse.
“Yes, but I’m not removing it. If you don’t feel safe with me then I’d say you’re pretty much fucked. After the people you’ve been dealing with, hopefully you trust someone that’s willing to help dig you out of the mess you’re in.”
With a nod of acknowledgement, Dominic didn’t answer. He only motioned him to a spot on the couch, so Cole sat.
“I’m just going to start talking and you can correct a few things if you need to,” Cole told him. “Based on everything I’ve done to help Van and Dani, I’ve come across some things that took a little time to figure out. For one, I know that you paid Brian Thompson a sum of money last year with the intent of…lemme guess here…reuniting her with her parents? Convince her to get back into modeling? I don’t really know, but I know for a fact that you paid him to do something.”
Dominic looked at him hard. How in the hell would this investigator know that?
Cole continued. “Didn’t really work out like planned, I guess, since Dani dumped his sorry abusive ass and moved on. I’m sure you were okay with that when you found out he hit her, but once you realized he was still trying to get her back, you had to change the game plan. You paid him to leave her alone?”
There wasn’t an answer at first but Cole could tell he was right. However, he waited until it came out of the man’s mouth.
Dominic took a breath of air and slowly released it. “You don’t understand how talented my daughter is. If she hadn’t ruined her career by—”
“I’m not interested in your opinions, sir. I want facts only.”
“Very well. Yes, someone recommended Brian. I did meet with him and I liked him. I thought Danielle would like him and I felt hopeful that he could help me out. In fact, he guaranteed he could. Without her knowing, I made it possible for him to meet her. I had no idea he was such a bastard, though. If I’d known he was going to hurt my daughter I wouldn’t have encouraged it.”
“So you ran a plan by him… One that consisted of getting close to Dani, somehow get her talking to you again, get back into modeling… Yes?”
Dominic slowly nodded. “I love my daughter. When she quit the industry… I couldn’t understand it. I just thought she needed some time to re-evaluate her life. I thought she would miss what she had.”
“But she didn’t.”
He slowly shook his head. “Apparently not.”
“And this asshole that you matched your daughter with turned into an obsessed control freak and look what’s happened.”
“You don’t think I’m upset over that? Of course I am! I only wanted a good life for her!”
“She has a good life. She’s happy with Van, but now there is a whole shitload of questions that need to be answered. This case needs to be wrapped up so Dani can move on. She’s experienced some horrific things because of your choices, Mr. Martin. I don’t even think you know what she’s been through.”
The way he spoke startled Dominic, and he studied Cole carefully. “What do you mean by that? He was stalking her. She got a restraining order. Is there more?”
“It’s not my place to tell, but I’ll tell you this. You’ll never come close to making it up to her. With that said, I suggest you start spilling your guts so I can close this up and get the hell out of town. If you want to give Dani whatever it is you can, then this is where you start.”
After a very long pause, Dominic relented. He shook his head, unsure of what his honesty was going to do in the long run. But this had gone on for far too long and it was time to be over.
“Brian ended up blackmailing me,” he began. “He was going to tell Danielle what I did. I offered to pay him to leave her alone and he accepted the cash. But when I found out he was still harassing her, I didn’t know what to do. I paid him one more time—to leave town—and I thought he did. Then he ended up dead. I’m not going to lie and say it’s sad since the bastard deserved it. And before you say it, no, I didn’t have anything to do with his murder.”
“Not even a feeler for someone else that could help you out?”
“You mean pay a hit man? God, no,” he scoffed. “But I got the feeling that Brian was working more than just me.”
“He was blackmailing others?”
“I’m sure of it. He had someone at that fight club on his payroll, too.”
“Are you talking about Quincy?”
“I don’t know any names. But I know this because… Well, because I’m being blackmailed again.”
Cole raised an eyebrow. “By who?”
“His brother.”
“Whose brother?”
“Brian’s.”
Cole scoffed with disbelief. “Andy? Are you serious?”
“Am I serious? Yes, I’m serious. He said he had some video of Danielle—some kind of sex video,” he added quietly, ashamed that he’d be threatened with such a thing. “He wanted money to keep it quiet.”
“He threatened to publicize it?”
“On the Internet. He told me he’d dump the file for twenty grand.”
“Twenty? How much have you paid Brian?”
“Ten the first time. Another ten when I wanted him to leave her alone. I offered him twenty to leave town but he wanted fifty. I gave him half up front and told him he’d get the other half when I had proof that he’d left town. He moved to Atlanta, I thought.”
“He moved two blocks from Dani.”
Dominic looked down at his hands. “I didn’t know when it was going to stop. When he ended up dead… I was relieved. Someone did the world a great favor.”
“And you were willing to let that someone be Van, whether he did it or not.”
His eyes flashed with anger. “For all I knew he did do it! My daughter marries some prizefighter that I barely know? How am I supposed feel comfortable with the type of man he is?”
“Try getting to know him first,” Cole said impatiently. Jesus, if these people would get a damn clue… “Anyways, tell me about Andy. Brian was murdered; Andy took over his sinister position in life?”
“Pretty much,” he scoffed. “He did all kinds of things for his brother
before—he was even the one that collected the money from me—but now there’s someone else Andy works with, someone else from the gym.”
“You’re talking about Quincy again?”
“I have no idea. I just know that Brian had someone from there doing dirty work for him. I know this because Andy mentioned it, too. He said something like, ‘When I hear back from my source…’ And from a couple of other things he said it sounded like another fighter from the gym.”
“Andy is blackmailing this person too?”
“I don’t know if he’s blackmailing him or if they’re in it together.”
Cole thought in silence. He’d had reason to believe someone from the gym broke into Van’s locker and stole a pair of his running shoes. It made sense that it could have been Quincy the day he came to get his stuff. Quincy swore up and down that it wasn’t him, and he also swore that he didn’t have anything to do with Van’s arrest or the evidence against Van.
Cole was starting to accept it as the truth for some reason. It had to be someone else from the Divehouse, and he now believed he knew who it was…
“So how does Andy contact you?”
“Phone. It’s a blocked call.”
“And you paid him to destroy the video of Dani?”
“I paid him, but…”
“You can’t be sure he kept his word,” Cole said knowingly.
Dominic shrugged. “How can I be? And is he going to keep threatening me with the video and asking for more money?”
“Possibly. But it’s not going to get that far. Don’t worry about the video; it’s been taken care of. If he contacts you about it, you’re going to contact me, understand?”
After a pause, Dominic nodded his agreement.
“Dani seems to think he’d be a decent guy if it wasn’t for Brian,” Cole added. “Maybe he’s just testing his freedom for once, but trying to keep it in check.”
“He is more…what’s the word…? Polite, I guess. He’s more polite than Brian. I know that sounds odd since he’s blackmailing people, but Brian turned rude and vulgar. Andy isn’t like that.”
