"Yes, lots of whatnot." He chuckled. Then looked sheepish. "Hey. Wasn't making fun of you. Just haven't heard the word 'whatnot' in a while. Sorry. You were saying?"
She steadied Nutmeg's back legs on her lap while he propped his front paws on her windowsill. "It's just that I'm sure digging into people's backgrounds is something your team does every day."
He slid on his sunglasses. Looking all Top Gun and everything. "Well, not every day. What is it you're not saying?"
"It's just that my family . . . their business . . . they . . ." She wasn't sure she wanted to have this conversation after all.
"They're in the real estate business, correct?"
"Yes."
He flicked his eyes between her and the road every few seconds, clearly reading her discomfort.
"Lena, I don't know much more than that." His voice was low, steady, and full of compassion. "We've mainly been concentrating on Emil. If there's something you'd rather us not know, I can tell them to respect your privacy when looking into all this."
"You don't have to do that. It's okay." Why did she want to tell him everything? Maybe it was because she wanted to douse the dangerous sparks dancing between her and Nash Stone before she got burned. And nothing pours cold water on a budding attraction like 'FBI investigation.'
"I just wanted you to know, before your team comes across it, that my family's business has been under investigation by the FBI for over a year. And I don't think they know about it."
"But you know about it?" he asked.
She nodded. "The FBI approached me a year ago. They hoped I could get them some information, but I haven't been able to help them. It's not that I think my family's innocent. Quite the contrary. But I haven't had the courage to do the digging to find the evidence. I've stayed late at the office more than a dozen times over the past year, tellingmyself that after everyone goes home, I'll get on my uncle's computer. Or look through my father's files. I know what to look for. I've had my suspicions for a long time. But not once have I had the courage to follow through. I end up just going home."
There. She said it. Now he knew what a coward she was. Sparks extinguished.
"I'm not like you," she said.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"When your boss, your mentor, asked you to do the wrong thing, you stood up to him. You did the right thing. Even though you lost that relationship. I haven't had that courage. If I dig for this evidence and find it, and hand it over to the FBI, that'll be it. I won't have any family. Only Cassidy. She's the only one who could be innocent."
"That's why you followed her out here, isn't it? I know you're concerned about her safety. But also, she's the only one in your family you feel you can trust."
"Ironic, isn't it? The one person I don't suspect of any foul play is vacationing in the Caribbean with a criminal? She's ignorant to what Emil's doing. I know that. She can be flighty sometimes. And takes crazy risks. Probably leading to some bad decisions. But she's not the kind of personwho would knowingly break the law, steal something, or hurt someone else."
She fidgeted with Nutmeg's leash, thankful Nash was mostly keeping his focus on the road. She didn't want to see any disappointment or judgment in his eyes. She couldn't stand that.
"I may not be able to do the right thing about my family's business. But I can protect Cassidy. Or at least try to."
"It was brave of you to come out here."
"No," she snapped. "Are you listening? I'm a complete coward. I don't even have the courage to go into my father's office and look through his files. I don't want to face what's in there."
He pursed his lips. "Is it possible your family's innocent?"
She petted Nutmeg. Because she needed to concentrate on something. Because she needed to feel grounded. The tears pricking her eyes wanted to fall, but she refused. "No," she whispered.
She rubbed Nutmeg's chest and behind his ears, avoiding any possible eye contact with Nash. "Look, I only wanted to tell you because I figured your team would come across some of that information, if they haven't already.And I didn't want you to assume I'm one of the bad guys. I'm not." She shrugged. "Though I guess I can't prove that."
The car slowed, and Nash shifted into park. Palm trees and some bushes she couldn't name filled her view when she looked up. No oil-change place. No buildings at all.
She whipped her head toward Nash. "What are we doing? Why did you stop?"
He took off his Top Gun sunglasses and pivoted in his seat to face her. "I don't think you're one of the bad guys, Lena. You don't have to worry about that. You don't need to prove anything. Okay?"
Oh. "Okay."
"I thought we'd built some trust. Do you trust me?"
