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Spencer placed a finger under her chin and tilted her face until she was looking at him. “You are not to go near Latimer, or any other member of the AAG, again without my permission. Is that understood?”
“I like it when you’re strict.” Her smile was full of mischief and promise.
He laughed. “I’ll bear that in mind. Right now, I need you to agree that you’ll do as I ask.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t be going anywhere near Latimer again.” She shuddered. “The way he turned nasty so fast was frightening. Even though he denied knowing her, I think he had something to do with Eliza’s disappearance.”
“If he did, we’ll bring him to justice. But we’ll do it by the book. The MVPD book.” He took her hand. “Trust me.”
Something flickered in the depths of her eyes. For an instant, he saw years of unhappy memories, tears that never fell and cries for help that had never been uttered.
“I do trust you.” Although she smiled, her lip trembled. “You’re the first person I’ve ever said that to. Or even about.”
It would have been easy in that instant to feel the weight of his responsibility toward her. But he wasn’t concerned about letting her down. That wouldn’t happen. She had become too important to him. With everything that was going on, it probably wasn’t the right time to tell her that, but it was the truth. And it was a powerful feeling.
Breakfast was interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone. He checked the display.
“It’s Rafe Colton.”
He answered the call, and Rafe launched into an account of how he, Ainsley and Marlowe had met with Sebastian Clark, the guy born the same night—and in the same hospital—as Ace.
“He was clearly his parents’ child, that much was obvious from his resemblance to them, but we asked him to have a DNA test to be sure,” Rafe said. “We paid to have it done and it was expedited. The results, which were available within twenty-four hours, were as expected. He’s not Ace Colton.”
“So we keep trying,” Spencer said.
“Of course.” Rafe sounded dispirited. “But it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. The real Ace Colton could be anywhere in the world, for all we know. He could even be deceased. He was born a bit frail, remember?”
“That could be true, but something tells me he’s out there somewhere. Waiting for the chance to bring himself into your lives.”
“Yeah, as long as we can avoid any more Jace Smith style impostors,” Rafe sighed.
Spencer ended the call and turned to Katrina. “You heard that?”
“I got most of it.” She crumbled the remains of her croissant. “What you said about the real Ace Colton waiting for his chance. Does that mean you believe in fate?”
He gave it some thought. “I suppose I do. Life seems to have a way of unfolding over time in unexpected ways. And, with hindsight, a belief in destiny helps us make sense of things that have happened in our past. I’m not sure I can apply that to all of the things that have come my way, but it’s useful to straighten some of them out.”
She nodded, seeming satisfied with his answer. He didn’t ask her what she was thinking or why it mattered. They hadn’t had any deep conversations about their beliefs. Maybe this would be the first of many.
“What are the plans for today?” Katrina asked.
“I want to call in at the station and find out where Kerry is with her background checks into the AAG members. When I know what she has for us, I’ll decide where to go from there.” He got to his feet. “And
I need you to follow my rules.”
“What are they?”
“You stay with me at all times. No leaving my sight.”
Her smile was brilliant. “Suzie and Laurence are covering my classes, so I can follow those rules.”
* * *
So Spencer believed in fate. Katrina had always felt that destiny played a part in the way life panned out. In a world where there were so many people, she thought how unlikely it was to randomly meet that one person who would make a difference in your story. In a certain place, and at a certain time, making a connection to someone you were intended to meet... No, there had to be an external force at work.
If Spencer felt the same way, did that mean he thought they were meant to be together? She pulled herself back from that idea. Why was she even thinking that way? It was way too soon to even picture them together in any long-term sense. The connection between them might be beyond anything she had ever known, but it was too much, too sudden, too scary.
Still, it didn’t hurt to know they were on the same wavelength...
