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I kissed the tip of her nose. “I promised both, didn’t I?”
Chapter Forty
Vivian
Present
I couldn’t sleep,even in Daniel’s arms. There was so little I knew about the circumstances surrounding the murder of his father, yet my brain refused to shut down. I mourned the loss of what the shredded autopsy had contained that might have been of use. Something to exonerate Daniel, and maybe in the process, Donato too. Although, from what I gathered, clearing the truly guilty party might prove difficult.
There had to be something else. Some way to end this nightmare so we could get back to our life…together.
I wouldn’t even entertain the notion of Daniel going to prison for any length of time. We didn’t have long to come up with evidence to clear him. He had the best lawyer money could buy. But none of that mattered if his defense implicated Donato.
I inched toward the edge of the mattress, and Daniel scooped me back against him. His breathing was even. Not even in his sleep would he let me go.
Gently, I lifted his hand to my lips and pressed a soft kiss to his skin. It was surreal to be home. I nuzzled his hand, just to be sure he was real. He was warm to the touch. His pulse point throbbed a steady beat in his wrist.
“I love you,” I whispered, kissing two of my fingers and touching his hair.
My second attempt to escape the bed was successful. I felt around on the floor with my foot until my toe caught on his shirt. I picked it up and slipped it on my shoulders once I was in the hallway. On soft steps, I padded to his study, though I wasn’t certain what I was looking for or where to start.
I flipped the switch on the wall just inside the door, and dim light glowed from the tray ceiling. Hands on my hips, I surveyed the room. Daniel’s organizational system was all his own. The extent of my knowledge was that it was ordered. Immaculate was probably a better term.
“You’re in here. I know it,” I mused. The key to getting him out of this was somewhere in this room. All I had to do was figure out what and where the hell it might be.
At a loss, I moved to the closet where I’d found the rogue file in the first place. Maybe I’d luck out again. I snorted. I didn’t need luck. I needed a miracle.
I stood in the center of the space and looked up the shelves to the ceiling. Twenty feet up provided a lot of room for boxes of files. Each one had a series of numbers that might as well have been a foreign language. I couldn’t decipher a date from the sets of digits. So many combinations could have been months or years or hell, combinations to a padlock.
There was one thing I was certain of, though. “This requires music.”
I knew where the tape player was. I stooped down to grab it from the shelf where it was neatly stored.
“What are you doing, Princess?”
I fumbled the tape player, catching it just before it hit the floor. Spinning, I clutched it to my chest. Daniel leaned against the door frame, laughing to himself.
“You could’ve cleared your throat. Or bumped into a table. Flicked the lights,” I huffed, and he grinned. “Don’t give me that look. You scared the shit out of me.”
I pressed my lips together, and Daniel ran his thumb along the seam. I shivered. His eyes darkened.
“You’re not distracting me.” I poked my finger into his bare chest. Damn, he was solid. “Have you been working out more?” I covered his mouth with my hand. “Never mind. Don’t answer that.”
He nipped my palm with his teeth. I dropped my hand to my hip.
“At least put a shirt on.” He didn’t move, but I grabbed his hand. “Forget that too. That was a stupid thing to say. Don’t ever let me repeat that.”
Daniel’s lips twitched. “I could just take mine back.” He looked pointedly at the shirt I was wearing.
“Can’t have it.” I held the tape player out to him. “Mind plugging this in? Please.”
His gaze was heavy-lidded. “That could be arranged.” He pushed his index finger against his lips.
“I said please.” I picked up his free hand and wrapped his fingers around the old device. “I’m looking for something.”
“What?”
I shrugged helplessly. “I don’t know.”
