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Claire shook her head. “I don’t think that will work. I’ve never experienced the slightest awareness of this guy, even when Dani talked about him. But Dani? That’s an entirely different case. The connections I have to her—and to Gia and Lina—they’re all quite strong.”
“So you think talking to Dani might help trigger something?”
“Hopefully, yes.”
“Good.”
Something about Ryan’s tone made Claire incline her head, gaze intently at him. “You want me to be the one to tell her about Gabe.”
“Yeah, I do.” Ryan’s shoulders lifted in a helpless shrug. “You know I’m no good at this… stuff. Emotions… they’re not my strong suit. But they are yours. You’ll tell her in a way that will minimize the damage.”
Claire exhaled sharply. “I’ll tell her. I’ll catch a train up to Rye tomorrow and talk to her while Gia’s at her client meeting.”
“Do you want me to go with you?” Ryan was clearly choking on the offer, sincere though it was.
A hint of a smile. “No, hotshot. I can handle this. You just stay close to the phone in case I need any backup with your technological… stuff.”
“Sure. That I can provide.”
“I know you can.”
There was a weary silence that hung in the air, until, wordlessly, Claire crossed over and sank down beside Ryan on the couch, letting her head rest on his shoulder.
It was an innocent enough gesture, until Ryan turned his lips into her hair and trailed his knuckles slowly down the side of her neck.
Abruptly, the atmosphere in the room changed, and the heated sexuality that always crackled between them surged to life.
Ryan twisted around and pressed Claire down onto the sofa cushions.
“There’s nothing more we can do tonight,” he said, unbuttoning her blouse. “At least not for Dani. So can we get to my unique set of skills?”
Claire reached up and tugged his T-shirt over his head. “Promise to help me relax?”
“Eventually, yeah.” Ryan unhooked the front clasp of her bra. “But it’ll probably take repeat performances and long hours.”
“I can wait.”
“No, you can’t. And neither can I.”
CHAPTER 26
Rye, New York
Dani handed Claire a cup of herbal tea and gestured for her to have a seat on one of the tub chairs in Gia’s living room.
“You sounded very serious when you called,” Dani said, perching at the edge of the sofa with her own cup of tea. “Does this have to do with my parents and our two-family meeting last night? Because Patrick told me he’d let you all know that we’re hanging in.” A tired sigh. “My mom and dad are amazing. They’re being so strong—or at least trying to, for me. They’re scared and they’re in shock, but they want answers as much as Gia and I do. They hit it off with the Russos, partly because there’s now a bond between them and partly because Gia’s parents are fine and loving people. The emotional part of this we’ll get through. The rest, the scary part… that we can eliminate only with your help.”
“That’s why I’m here.” Claire was frank and to the point. This wasn’t news that could be spun in a positive light. It was news that had to be delivered gently but without hedging. There was no room for Dani to try to explain it away to herself. That would waste time and intensify her pain. She had
to believe what Claire told her. Only after that could Claire truly comfort her and then lay out FI’s plan.
Dani had picked up on Claire’s tone. “So I’m not wrong. This is serious. You’ve found out something.” She visibly steeled herself.
“When Ryan first examined your computers, he determined that the spyware was installed only on your computer, not Gia’s. We didn’t know why. Now we do.”
“Wait.” Dani held up a palm. “Ryan told us—”
“I know what Ryan told you.” Claire put her own cup on the coffee table and moved to sit beside Dani, gently placing her hand over Dani’s. “He didn’t want to frighten you, not until he knew why it was just your computer that was being hacked.”
