Page 31 of Loving Her Enemy

“Yeah, I’m sure. I met her once or twice, and she didn’t give off warm fuzzy feelings.”

Sloane chuckled. “No surprise. She’s… complicated, but don’t worry. I don’t visit them often, and that’ll remain the same when you and I are married. So, what else do we need to cover?”

Halayna went back to the business at hand. She turned to the next page of the document. “Here are the rest of my conditions.”

Sloane skimmed over the red markings on the last two pages, just as he’d done with the previous pages. He would read them in depth before signing the final document, but from what he could see, her suggested changes were minor.

“Looks fine to me. What else do you want?” he asked as he sat back in his seat and studied her. By the way she was toying with the napkin she had laid on the table, he had a feeling he might not like whatever else she was going to ask for.

“There’s one more thing I want added to the contract.”

“And that is?”

“I want you to find Owen.”

Shit. That asshole was the last person he wanted to find. Sloane hoped the guy had done the world a favor by falling off the face of the earth. But it would be just Sloane’s luck he hadn’t.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because I want my money back.”

Unease crawled through Sloane, and though he’d been lounging in his seat, he eased forward and placed his forearms on the table.

“What do you mean you want your money back? What money?” His voice was low and controlled, but warning bells banged through his brain.

After Hershel’s report about Halayna’s finances, Sloane knew there was a story behind it. And yes, he had a bad feeling Owen had something to do with her being broke, but he had hoped it didn’t involve the guy.

Halayna swallowed hard, as if picking up on his unease. She looked everywhere but at him, only making Sloane’s restlessness stir more. He reached across the table and held her hand. It was ice cold. Yes, he wanted to know the details about her financial situation. He only hoped he was ready to hear about the role her ex played in her financial troubles.

“I know you never liked Owen,” she started, and Sloane waved off her words.

“That was the past. It doesn’t matter what I think of his punk ass. Tell me what happened. What did he do to you, Halayna?”

“He’s the reason why I have no money.”

She slid her hand from Sloane’s and stood, pacing the open area near the table as she ran her hands up and down her bare arms. Agitation rolled off her like a fifty-five-gallon industrial barrel rolling off the back of a pickup truck. That only made Sloane more concerned.

He watched her struggle, probably trying to decide what to share with him and what not to. Considering how he had responded years ago when he met Owen, it was no wonder she didn’t want to talk about him with Sloane. However, he had no intention of reminding her how he had warned her about Owen, but he was sure that was what she was thinking. When all Sloane wanted to know was what Owen had done to her. That way he could figure out how to fix it.

After she’d paced back and forth a few times next to the table, Sloane reached out and captured her around the waist. In a bold move, he gently pulled her onto his lap, ignoring her wide-eyed surprise.

He cradled her against him. “Relax and just talk to me,” he said, trying to ignore the way a certain part of his anatomy perked up.

He rested a hand on Halayna’s smooth thigh, marveling at the softness of her skin and wishing he had her on his lap for other reasons. It would be so easy to forget his intent was to comfort her, not to feel her up. But he had to keep his head. He offered solace, not trying to take advantage of her vulnerability. Now all he needed was for his body to get that message.

“I can’t help if you don’t tell me what happened,” he said, his other hand settling on her right hip as he held her against him.

At first, her body was stiff, but then she eventually relaxed into him, and Sloane placed a kiss on the side of her forehead.

“What does Owen have to do with you being broke?”

“He stole my money.” She huffed out an irritated breath. “Actually, I don’t know if he outright stole from me or if he lost it when he managed my investments. Either way, everything my father left me is gone.”

“Explain.”

Sloane knew everything about her piece of shit ex-fiancé, even things she didn’t know. Like him being a con artist who’d been cheating on her toward the end of their relationship. But he wanted to determine what she knew about the guy, and what Owen had done with her money.

“Since he was an investment manager, I let him oversee my retirement fund, and I gave him access to the money I got from the sale of my dad’s house.” Sloane heard the tears in her voice and held her tighter. “That also included the money I received after my dad died,” she choked out and swiped at her face.