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“No, no, no, no.” My heart is racing and feeling shaky, I collapse back down into my seat.
"I'll go see Special Agent Lucas," Aiden announces which only serves to ramp up my anxiety even more.
“No!” I snap, glaring at him. “You almost punched him the last time. I’d rather not have you arrested for assault, thank you very much.” I close my eyes and try to get my breathing and pulse back under control. After this meeting, I’m gonna suggest Aiden takes me to the nearest bar to do shots—alotof them. A snort from my left has me opening my eyes and meeting Aiden’s half-smirk. “What?”
"You're cute when you're being all protective and badass," he says before leaning over and giving me a hard and fast closed-mouth kiss.
"Alright, you two. So I take it you want me to keep digging then?" Harrison asks.
"Absolutely," I reply without any hesitation. Whatever the cost, it doesn't matter. As long as I can keep Mom safe, it will be worth it.
“Yes, keep looking. Anything else you can find out, let me know,” Aiden adds.
Harrison turns to me, his expression turning serious. “Alyssa, there’s one more thing I need you to know.” I still, a feeling of foreboding chilling me to the bone and making me shiver. Aiden wraps an arm around my shoulders and pulls me into his side as I wait for Harrison to continue. “I cannot find any record of your mother signing a prenuptial agreement with Gavin Barnes.”
“You investigated my mother?” I ask incredulously, my blood starting to boil. “What gives you the right to do that?”
"I asked him to, Aly," Aiden explains. I try to pull away, but he just tightens his arm to keep me in place. "You said it yourself, they got married very quickly and without telling you. It made me suspicious, so I asked Harrison to look into your mother's holdings and ascertain the financial risk and whether there was any risk to you stemming from this marriage. We don't know much about Gavin but the fact that he's the target of an FBI investigation rings alarm bells that I just couldn't ignore. So whether there's a prenup in place between your mother and Gavin is important information. Not just for her, but you as well."
Having heard his explanation, I'm relieved that he thought of it.
Then my breath hitches and my body turns to stone as the Mack truck of realizations doesn’t just hit, it barrels through at full speed and obliterates me.
I meet Aiden's eyes and manage to utter a rough, "my company," before my vision goes black, my body sags, and I pass the fuck out.
ChapterTen
Icome to on a couch outside Harrison’s office, with a very worried Aiden hovering over me.
“Hey,” he says softly, stroking my head.
“Hey.” My mind is fuzzy, but I don’t miss how tense I still am.
I slowly sit up. “What happened?”
“You fainted. Thankfully I caught you before you could hurt yourself but you scared the shit out of me, Aly.”
“Um… sorry?” I say with a shrug. “Probably should’ve eaten today instead of spending the morning being devoured by this sexy cop friend I know.”
Aiden’s eyes narrow but I don’t miss the twitch of his lips. “Hmm. Guess I should feed you then.”
“So where’s Harrison?”
“He had another appointment but he promised he’d keep looking into Gavin’s business dealings without raising alarm with the FBI, and now that we know Jacobs Publishing could be his end game, he’s going to work that angle too.”
Tears gather in my eyes. “I can’t lose the business, Aiden. It’s all I have left of my dad.”
He pulls me into his arms and holds me tight, rubbing my back. “I know, beautiful. We won’t let that happen.” He presses a kiss to my temple and I lean into the touch, needing Aiden as my anchor now more than ever.
Knowing more about Gavin hasn’t helped put my mind at ease, but at least it means that I havesomewarning that my new stepfather has his sights set on my company and might make moves against me.
Aiden announces he’s taking me out for dinner before we head to the airport. And thirty minutes later, we walk hand-in-hand to a table in a great hole-in-the-wall Thai restaurant near my apartment.
Once we’ve been seated, we order drinks and choose a selection of entrées to share. I’ve been quiet ever since we left Harrison’s office, but I don’t miss Aiden’s concerned glances and tense body language. When the server delivers our drinks, Aiden wastes no time in getting me to talk.
“Are you sure you’re okay? I could call the captain, take a few more days if you need me to stay. . .”
I reach across the table and put my hand over his. “I’m okay, I promise.”
