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“It’s not much better. Back to the will. Who inherits if you die?”
“I’m not in the will. She inherits if the eldest son dies. That’s Isaac.”
Thirty-five minutes later, we know nothing else. “It just feels off,” I murmur. “Like we’re missing something. And why does it say eldest son, and not Isaac by name?”
“I have no idea but the birth certificate the first message alerted us to has been found. He’s dead. We just don’t know how he connects to the family. But the interesting part is how he died.”
“Car accident,” she supplies, her tone grim.
“Yes, and what I didn’t tell you was the guy who worked for my father and helped ink the deal for my guardianship, also died. And you want to guess how?”
She gapes. “Oh my God. A car accident?’
“Yes. On the money.”
“This is all starting to add up. I bet you had a sibling and Isaac got rid of him. Gigi would have likely known. It really makes sense that she had those notes delivered to us.”
He picks up the cube, and stares down at it. “We’re close, but I can almost feel the sands of time, slipping through the glass. If we don’t figure this out, and end it, this whole situation is going to blow. And it’s going to blow big.”
A chill runs down my spine.
He’s right. I feel it, too. Something is coming.
Chapter one hundred nineteen
Harper
Eric sets me up in an office at Bennett and we eat lunch in my new, quite luxurious work spot that comes complete with a city view. We spend some time going over the NFL contract and Eric leaves me a while to study it while he catches up on a few work projects. And it feels good to have a purpose, and some idea where this drastic career change is leading me. When Eric finishes up his work, we head to the hospital. Isaac and the detective never show up nor does trouble of any sort. Another one of those bittersweet victories.
For the rest of the afternoon, we hang out at the hospital, and while some might say it’s for show, I know it’s more. Eric’s father is just that—his father—and no one can wipe away the invisible bond of parent and child. It defies hate. It is simply nature.
Later that evening, we eat pizza in bed, and laugh overFriendsreruns, and it’s good, really good, but as we lay down to sleep, with Eric’s mind calm enough for him to actually do so in the bed, unease roughs up my belly, a sense of foreboding, a vise on my chest. Somehow though, with Eric’s arms wrapped around me, the shadow of slumber overtakes me.
I wake with a jolt to sunlight and sit straight up to find Eric standing at the window, fully dressed, staring out at the new day, a cup of coffee in his hand. “What time is it?”
He rotates to face me, sunshine lighting his blue eyes with a hint of gold, the stretch of his black T-shirt over his perfect chest, awakening all the parts of me that hadn’t yet caught up until now.
“Early.”
“Oh God. Why? What happened? Did Isaac do something? And your father? Is he okay?”
He laughs low and rough. “That was a lot of panic in thirty seconds,” he says, crossing to sit down next to me. “Everything is fine. I just woke up so I got up.”
I reach up and stroke my fingers down the damp tendrils of hair curling at his temples. “I wish you would have woken me up.”
“I kissed you and told you I was getting up, but you never even moved. Obviously, you needed rest.” He presses his cup into my hand. “Now you need caffeine.”
I accept the cup, the intimacy of sharing his cup, a dash of sweetness I clearly need this morning. I’ve barely had a sip when my mind jolts again. “My mother—”
“Chartered a late flight into New York. Blake texted me right after you fell asleep. She’s in a hotel room sleeping. She didn’t get in until a few hours ago. Her flight was delayed.”
I scowl with this news. “That can’t be good.”
“We have everyone in one place now,” he says. “I don’t think that’s a bad thing. When people play in the same pond they start fighting and we’ll be here to see.”
“Okay. I guess. What about other news?”
“None.” He covers my hand where it rests on the cup and sips, his eyes holding mine. “Just you, sharing my bed, and my coffee, the way it should be. So relax, baby, and enjoy the ride while we can.”
