"Yes, it was him. He's here. At The Mandeville. He's waiting with Jason in our conference room."
"He's here? Why? I don't understand."
"I know. He's flying back to Houston tonight, but he wanted to talk to you first. Okay?"
Her brows creased. "Okay, but I don't get it. What is he doing here? He hates Emil. Or hated. Or . . . whatever. I just don't understand."
"I told him he could explain. You want to talk to him?"
She nodded. "Yes, yes, of course."
On the way to the conference room, Nash worried he hadn't prepared Lena enough for her father's news. But he'd promised he would let Charles give his side of the story first. Not because he thought much of Charles. But . . . if he hoped for a relationship with Lena—and he absolutely did—he needed to offer her father some morsel of respect. Whether or not he deserved it.
When they reached the conference room, Lena walked in, and Jason and Knox joined Nash in the hallway to give Charles and Lena a few minutes of privacy.
The minutes crawled by. Jason and Knox leaned against the wall. Nash paced.
Finally, Charles stepped into the hallway. "One of you driving me to the airport? Or should I take a cab?"
The condescending tone irked Nash, but he kept his mouth shut.
"Knox and I will take you," Jason said. "Let's go."
Jason and Knox led Charles to the elevators.
Nash was glad he wouldn't have to deal with Charles anymore that night. The future was another story. But tonight, he could just focus on Lena.
He entered the conference room and found her standing on the balcony. Arms wrapped around her waist.
He eased open the sliding glass door and joined her in the salty breeze, overlooking swaying palms and lapping waves glistening in the moonlight.
He wished their reality held as much serenity as their ocean view.
Lena's expression was unreadable. Her eyes acknowledged his presence, but she didn't speak. Didn't move.
The silence between them grew heavy. He wanted Lena to speak first, but as the seconds dragged on, he feared she would never talk. Or that she would ask him to leave.
When she finally broke the silence, her voice was stronger than he expected. "He threw Emil under the bus. And he didn't have anything nice to say about you. He blamed everyone else for the rumors he said I will hear when I get back to Houston. And that he's innocent, of course."
She turned to face Nash, her gaze blazing. "And he was one hundred percent lying."
Chapter 25
"Maybe you should wait." Nash prayed his voice didn't sound overprotective or commanding. He was just worried. And across town. In Houston traffic, that meant he was over an hour away from her office. If anything went wrong . . .
"This is the best chance I'll have this week. Dad is out, meeting with his lawyers, and my uncle is leaving early to play golf."
He gripped his cell phone, thankful she couldn't see his face. While he was glad, proud, and relieved that she'd decided to look for the evidence the FBI needed, he worried about her safety. He didn't want to point it out, but she'd already underestimated her father once. Nash feared what Charles Ashworth might do—to his own daughter—in order to cover hiscrimes.
"Lena, you've made the right decision. I support that completely. I just wish you'd wait until I can be there, in case—"
"I would. I'm not trying to push you out of this. But Dad called me this morning. He set up meetings around town to keep me out of the office for the next few days. That's not a coincidence. I think he suspects I'll start looking into the business. I think he realizes I'm not buying his innocent act anymore. I have to look through his files while I have the chance. The FBI still doesn't have enough for a warrant. If I don't find anything today, any evidence of crimes my dad and uncle have committed will likely disappear."
She was right. But he wasn't ready to say it.
"You still there?" she asked.
"Yeah, sorry." He drew a deep breath. "It's dangerous, Lena. If anything happens—"
