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“What the hell is she doing here?” Kingsley said. “I thought I was clear that for what I was paying, you were to be Conner’s nanny.”
Gabi turned to face him. “Watch your tone, Kingsley. Melissa had to deliver some papers for my signature and since I have a meeting tomorrow that I can’t miss and you weren’t supposed to be back, she was getting to know Conner so that when she watched him at my office tomorrow he’d feel more comfortable.”
He looked chagrined for a second, pushing his hand through his thick hair. He shook his head. “Sit down, Gabi. Let’s be civilized.”
“Why wouldn’t we be?” she asked. “It’s not like one of us is here for revenge.”
“What did you say?” He stood up and walked around his desk toward her but she stood her ground.
“Just playing a hunch. Looks like I hit pay dirt,” she said. “I thought that woman in the photo with you on the society blog looked familiar. She went to school with us. She was in my humanities class.”
“What’s that got to do with revenge?” he asked. His voice was low and controlled.
“Nothing on the surface. But she contacted me about four years ago and asked me what I remembered of the party that night. Had I felt drugged or anything.”
Kingsley turned away from her and paced over to the window. “I didn’t see your name in the file she gave me.”
“Probably because I wasn’t drugged and I didn’t drink anything. I was focused on you. I didn’t want to have any hazy memories or anything like that. I knew our night together was one I wanted to remember,” she said. Saying it out loud reminded her that it was true. She’d thought she and Kingsley were special. She’d believed in happily-ever-after.
“I’m sorry. I wish I could have given you everything you dreamed of instead of having you wake up to that nightmare. I’m trying to make things right. Hunter and I heard some stories over the last few years of incidents that were similar to what happened to Stacia. We know we didn’t do anything like that, so we’re investigating. It isn’t revenge.”
Gabi closed the gap between them and put her hand right in the middle of his chest. His heartbeat was solid under her palm and he smelled good. That expensive cologne of his always made her want to curl up in his arms.
“I know you, Kingsley. You aren’t someone who’s going to be content to say, ‘We found the guy who did this.’ You and I both know that. Be honest with me.”
He looked down at her, his eyes so cold and icy that she dropped her hand from his chest. Oh, yes, he was here for revenge. He was here to ruin whoever had crossed him all those years ago and set him up to take the fall for something he hadn’t done.
* * *
Revenge. When she said it he didn’t like the way it sounded. But he wasn’t going to be swayed from his path, not now.
“You’re right. I do want to find out what happened and make sure the one responsible pays,” he said. “But that has nothing to do with you.”
He took her hand and put it back on his chest. He liked it when she touched him. He was tired. Frustrated from all the dead ends he’d chased. Talking to women who thought he was guilty and had bought his freedom had left him with a sour taste in his mouth.
He’d gone to Chicago to speak with two of the women mentioned in Daria’s files, but they hadn’t wanted to speak to him. He couldn’t blame them.
He had no idea how he was going to make any inroads with his investigation. He’d reviewed the videos Daria had supplied, but most of them were shaky and he hadn’t seen anything new. The pictures were also a dead end. He’d sent everything to Hunter to review, as well. But in terms of interviewing the women who’d been drugged, he doubted Hunter was going to get a warmer reception than he had, so they were stuck.
And vengeance and justice seemed even further away today than it had last week.
His body said the only thing that would relieve the stress and pain was Gabi. But he also didn’t feel right kissing her. He felt tainted by the past and though nothing—absolutely freakin’ nothing—had changed, it felt as if it had.
He lowered his head slowly, giving her time to pull away, but she went on her tiptoes, her hand pushing against his chest as their lips met.
This kiss wasn’t the carnal dare the last one had been. This was all Gabi. She was the gentle breeze that circled his home on a spring day, thawing those frozen, broken parts of his soul that he’d always pretended didn’t exist.
