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Besides, the way traffic continued to increase over the last couple of weeks, the store was in a much better situation. She might be able to bring on even more help. The irony wasn’t lost on Zoe. None of this would be possible without Ryan and Susannah’s support. Zoe had wormed her way into the candidate’s orbit so she could dig up dirt. Instead she’d been helped by Susannah working her connections to bring Second Chance Treasures to the attention of other well-meaning socialites. The word-of-mouth advertising had brought women in, but it was the quality of the inventory that encouraged them to pull out their wallets.
It seemed as if ever since she’d set foot in Susannah’s campaign headquarters, her financial and emotional situations had taken a positive turn thanks to the Dailey siblings. And how was she responding to their kindness? With betrayal and lies.
Hundreds of times a day she sought a way out of her pledge to harm Susannah, knowing that Everly wouldn’t listen to any of Zoe’s pleas to escape their revenge bargain. Everly was determined to have her pound of flesh and expected Zoe to serve it up on a silver platter.
Plagued by gut-churning anxiety, Zoe made quick work of sorting the mail. Most of it was advertising and catalogs. She set the phone bill on the pile of invoices she needed to write checks for and reached for the final envelope. It was large and plain with only her name and the store’s address neatly printed on the front. Expecting it was one of those tricks companies used to pique someone’s curiosity so they’ll open the envelope instead of sending it straight to the trash, Zoe slit it open and pulled out the contents.
At first she had trouble registering what she held. Quickly, however, uneasiness spread through her as she realized it was pages and pages of legal documents and bank statements belonging to a series of limited liability companies. There were five companies in all, each owned by a different LLC entity. The exact meaning of what she was staring at escaped her, until she scanned the paperwork for the last company and noted her ex-husband’s name.
An electric shock blasted through her. She matched up the legal documents with the bank statements. Here was the money Tristan had hidden from her. He’d created a series of foreign shell companies to conceal his funds, but the banks he’d used were all located in the United States. How could he do something like that and get away with it?
That was a question for someone knowledgeable in such matters. Zoe considered if she should take this to her divorce lawyer. The idea of going up against Tristan in court a second time with Sherman Sutter at her side gave her pause. He’d been badly outmatched by Tristan’s team of sharks. It almost wasn’t fair to put him through what would likely be an even more contentious fight.
The bell on the store’s front door tinkled merrily, reminding Zoe that Eva was alone out front. She tucked the papers back in their envelope and slid them into the desk drawer. Then, feeling as if she’d just been handed a ticking time bomb, Zoe headed into the store.
Not even a steady stream of customers could keep Zoe’s thoughts off the implications of the documents in her possession. Once the shock had worn off, it had occurred to her that they’d probably come from London. How she’d managed such a daring feat, Zoe had no idea, but it drove home a painful truth.
Everly and London had completed their part of the bargain. Now it was up to Zoe to either find or fabricate something that would damage Susannah’s campaign. The thought of hurting Ryan or his sister made her ill, but she couldn’t back
out of the plan. Everly was too invested in avenging her sister to ever let Zoe walk away.
* * *
Ryan flopped onto his back, chest heaving. On the living room rug beside him, Zoe was equally winded. As they panted in unison, he found that he was grinning. Once again they’d been unable to make it upstairs to his bedroom. They hadn’t even managed to get fully undressed before lust had overpowered them.
Since finding out Zoe was on birth control and they’d agreed condoms weren’t necessary, every room on the first floor had seen some sort of action. Ryan couldn’t seem to keep his hands off her and Zoe had proved an eager and willing partner.
“Damn,” he murmured in appreciation. “We did it again.”
“Third time this week,” Zoe agreed, sounding somewhat bemused. “I’ve never been like this before.”
Ryan turned his head and gazed at her profile. “Like what?”
“Horny all the time.” She heaved a long-suffering sigh. “It’s really distracting. And annoying. I’m half as productive as I used to be.”
“I like this new side of you.” In fact, he liked all sides of her.
Without moving her head, she shifted her gaze from the ceiling to him. “What new side of me?”
“The one where you’re a lot more open.”
“How do you figure I’m more open?”
“When we first met you were a closed book. Now you speak your mind.”
“It’s not always polite to do so.”
“Maybe not,” Ryan said, “but it’s real.” He ran his lips across her shoulder, sending a shiver down her arms. “I can work with real.”
“What does that mean?”
Zoe sat up and started to pull her clothes back into place, signaling the end of their intimacy. She was often skittish after they made love, as if she regretted letting go. Her defensive behavior left Ryan wondering what had gone on during her marriage. So far he hadn’t pried, but his curiosity was getting the best of him.
He’d already concluded that she was a survivor. Not that she’d confided any such thing, but her passionate stand against domestic violence hinted that she’d been a victim herself.
“I hope you realize that this has grown past a casual fling for me,” Ryan said, deciding to put his cards on the table in a show of good faith. “I want you to be able to trust me.”
“I do.”
