I stopped and turned around. ‘What?’
‘It’s saved on a hard drive.’
‘Why the hell did you pretend you had?’
He shrugged. ‘To make you stay. You would have needed to get more. I wanted to buy myself more time to convince you. It was dumb. I’m sorry.’
‘Dumb. Understatement, because if you think pretending to delete my footage would in any way entice me to work with you, then I have no idea how your brain works.’
I turned and started walking again. I could hear his footsteps behind me.
‘Stop, Lizzy. Just hear me out.’
‘I’ve heard enough.’
‘But think about it. As a happily engaged couple, we could get close to them. We could have cocktails by the pool, you and Amber could have a spa day and—’
I stopped and swung around. Cam came to a grinding halt, kicking up sand as he did. ‘Mebefriend Amber? A woman who probably spends more on facials than I do on rent? We have nothing in common.’
‘Come on, Lizzy. Put everything else aside – our history, your anger at me – and tell me you don’t want to stay. That you don’t want to bring Victor to his knees, or better yet, see him behind bars and stop an illegal diamond deal while you’re at it.’
I folded my arms across my chest as Cam continued approaching.
‘I know you. You’re all about justice, the law, you always have been. This is your chance to take down a criminal.’
I tightened my arms. I could feel something rising in me, and I didn’t like it.
‘You and me going undercover together, that would be the best way to get Victor. Tell me you don’t enjoy the chase as much as I do. Catching the bad guy. You love it!’
Shit! I hated that Cam knew me like this. That he knew I always chased justice. If it was in my power to stop someone from doing something wrong, Ihadto do it. I was compelled to.
‘Come on, let’s catch the bad guy together.’ And then in case that wasn’t going to work, he changed tack. ‘If not for me, then for Sharaz. Think about it. Not only are you coming home with footage of her husband cheating, but you could also send the cheat to jail. That’s two for the price of one.’
I shook my head again, because unfortunately Cam was right. If Victor was involved in something illegal and I had the chance to stop him, how could I walk away? The only problem? It meant working with Cam. And right now, he was the last person on the planet I wanted to work with.
‘Amber will never buy me as someone she could be friends with.’
‘Then we’ll make her buy it,’ he countered. ‘You’ll be charming. You’ll be bubbly and outgoing—’
I burst out laughing. ‘Now you’re acting like you don’t know me at all.’
‘Youcanbe charming, Lizzy, when you want to be.’
I scoffed at him.
‘A pedicure couldn’t hurt either. Maybe a hairbrush?’
‘What’s wrong with my feet?’ I looked down at them defensively, until I saw that all my toenails were different lengths, depending on which one I’d stubbed doing something physical, which one was damaged from being in a rugby boot, and which one I’d actually bothered to cut. Then there was my unruly hair. I reached up and touched it.
‘Come on, Lizzy, do this with me. Let’s put a bad man behind bars.’
‘I don’t know . . .’ I rubbed my temples. The thought of Victor behind bars was really very tempting. Forgoing hors d’oeuvres forslop served on a plastic plate. Exchanging the country club steam room for a communal shower with low pressure and a small bar of soap used by fifty inmates. But then another realisation hit me.
‘His assets would be frozen if he’s arrested for fraud and money laundering. My client wouldn’t get a dime.’
‘We’ll make sure she gets what she’s owed,’ Cam said confidently.
‘How exactly do you plan on doing that, a GoFundMe?’
