The Billionaire’s Secret
Page 3
"Are we going to talk about it?"
I groaned and turned my face. "Do we have to? I just—I don't know how this happened. I don't know who he is."
"How long have you known?" She folded her arms and watched me with a level gaze.
I shook my head. "No. I didn't know. I found out on that beach. I swear to God."
Ariel nodded. "Did you suspect that something was wrong?"
I winced. "I knew he was hiding something, but as you said, the job was to protect him, not to find out his secrets. If, in the course of protecting him, I could find out who was trying to hurt him, great. But the rest of it was none of my business."
Behind Ariel, Penny waddled through the dining room and joined us. "Jesus, this place is amazing. I live in a palace and this place is still gorgeous. Do you think there’s anything to eat in the fridge? I'm starving. But I imagine Derrick and Theo don't cook."
Ariel just rolled her eyes. "Penny, still thinking with your stomach I see.”
I nodded toward the fridge. “The housekeeper keeps it stocked. Help yourself." Then I added to Ariel, "Look, I know I disappointed you. I messed up. I didn't follow my gut. I should never have slept with him. I know that now. And—"
Penny popped her head back out of the fridge and lifted a brow as she stared at me. Ariel's arms fell open as did her mouth. "You what?"
"You mean, that part where I said I should have known?"
Ariel shook her head. "Nope, the part where you said you slept with him."
Well that cat was out of the bag, had built a house, and was having babies. "Um, well, that was not entirely the plan. I thought maybe you would have already guessed when I told you I was with him when he took off for the beach."
Ariel shook her head. "How am I to ascertain that your vagina took the billionaire for a spin?"
I swallowed. "I don't know. I just… God, is this as bad as it sounds?"
Penny pulled out a jar of pickles. "Nah. We have both fucked people we weren't supposed to on the job, so she really can't be that guy." She then crunched a pickle and moaned. Then she went to the pantry looking for something else. "Is there any chocolate?"
Ariel made a gagging noise. "I swear to God, that baby is a demon. What kind of human wants pickles and chocolate?"
"You leave my demon baby alone, okay? I just need salty and sweet at the same time, okay? And I need a crunch."
Ariel shuddered. "Ugh, I'm not even sure how I’m this baby’s aunt." Then she turned her attention back to me. “How long has this been going on?”
“A couple of weeks. I didn't mean to sleep with him. I just—I don't know."
Ariel lifted a brow. "You don’t know? You don’t bloody know?” Her voice rose.
“I’m sorry. I know you're disappointed in me. I should never have slept with him. I—"
Ariel threw up her hands. "I'm not upset with you because you slept with him."
I blinked several times. "What?"
She shook her head. "Like Penny said, it seems none of us can keep our panties on around the stupidly rich and gorgeous. It's not that. But you should have told me. Every check-in, you were so focused on the case that you missed the forest for the trees. You let feelings cloud your judgment."
"I swear I didn’t. I knew my job."
She chuckled. "Zia, you're a great agent. You're quick on your feet. You're smart. You're almost as good with computers as I am. But you ran into an unknown situation with no back up."
Penny found chocolate. "Aha. Success."
She promptly shoved a piece in her mouth with a pickle and moaned like the king was giving her a hell of an orgasm. It was my turn to shudder. The combination was disgusting.
She spoke around a mouthful of pickle and chocolate. "Ariel has a point. The number one rule in this business is cover each other’s backs. And you didn’t clue your team in."
“There wasn’t time. We got to the beach, and I know I should have waited, but I just…” my voice trailed. They were echoing what Tamsin had said. “I just couldn’t leave him exposed like that.”
“Because you love him.” Ariel’s voice was soft but definitive.
“I—” I wanted to scream that I didn’t love him. I wanted to tell them that he didn’t matter to me, not anymore. But I couldn’t really pull that lie off. Least of all to myself.
Penny took another bite of pickle. "Zia, look. We’ve all fallen in love and made poor decisions. Before I got assigned to Sebastian, I was a complete disaster. I got things wrong a lot. But once I met him, I don't know, I settled into my job. I became better at it. Much better. But it made me blind in other areas. The threats on him, I couldn’t see them at first..."
“But you saved him. Everyone knows that.”
“The point is I had Ariel. I wasn’t on my own. If I hadn’t relied on her, if she hadn’t had my back, we never would have caught Ashton. But even before that, there were so many scenarios when she literally saved my butt in New York. Without her, Sebastian might be dead. I might be dead."
Ariel’s voice was soft. "Honey, you're so concerned about being the next me or as good as me or trying to impress me, that you didn't get all the help you needed. You ran in and had to do it all yourself. You have a team. You aren’t alone in the field."
I sighed. "I know. It’s just… it was Theo, and I didn't think I had time."
"What did Tamsin say?”
I flushed. “You mean when I ran out to the beach? Or when she chewed me out?”
"Both."
"Basically, she was your parrot."
"I knew I liked that girl." Ariel said.
I shook my head. "I get it. My feelings clouded my judgement." I licked my lips. “All I want to do is focus on my job. It won’t happen again.”
Ariel nodded. "Look, I get it. You're used to doing everything. Penny and I were the same way, but we've always had each other. I'm glad you have Tamsin. But next time, you should wait for the rest of us."
I nodded. "Yeah, I can do that.” It was hard to not feel like I failed. I lifted my chin and asked the hard question. “So, what happens now?"
"Well, what happens now is we find out where Derrick has been all this time. And then we’ll unravel the history of the twins because… mind blown. Then we figure out who benefits the most from the bombshell staying hidden."
I chewed my lower lip. "That points to someone at Arlington Tech."
Ariel nodded. "Exactly. Timothy Arlington is a very clear suspect. But anyone could be, anyone with extensive profit from the discovery or anyone who has found out what Derrick was up to. Either way, we need to research more. Which means you're still in play undercover."
I blinked rapidly. "Wait, you're keeping me on Derrick?"
Ariel shook her head. "No, I'm keeping you on Theo. That's his name, right?"
I blinked. "Well, yeah. I guess that's his name. Hell, I don't even know. He’s been lying for weeks. He could be anybody. But I was hired to protect Derrick." I couldn’t spend day after day with Theo. Not now. "After what I just found out and my actions on the beach, some separation might be a good idea."
Ariel shook her head. "You're not going to get it. This is time sensitive, and we don't have time for you to sort out your feelings. You're a professional. Handle it."
Penny smiled. “He was undercover too. You just didn't know it."
The truth of that statement unfurled in my belly. I bit the inside of my cheek. “Understood.”
Ariel’s smile was soft as she patted me on the shoulder. "Trust your instincts. What does he show you? If you can’t trust the words, you can trust the actions."
As she turned to head back to where the men were, Penny stayed behind and offered me a pickle. "Go on, try it. It's not bad."
I took a pickle, stared at it, and bit into it. I did like pickles. And then she offered me a bite of chocolate. "Just go on. You can’t like it until you try it."
"I am pretty sure I will not like this."
The queen gave me a bright smile. "You
won't know unless you try."
Would I be sent to the dungeons if I didn't?
I took a tiny bite of chocolate. The sweetness exploded on my tongue just as the salty tang washed down. I blinked. "Oh, that's actually not terrible."
"See? Now, while you're undercover, let me know how I can help. I am dying to get out. If Sebastian had his way, he'd sequester me in some tower and never let me out."
"But Your Majesty, you're eight months pregnant."
"Penny, for the love of Christ. And yes, but look, lots of women stay very active until they have a baby. Put me in, coach."
I laughed. "I have a feeling the king might kill me if I let you help."
"I might kill you if you don't." And in that moment, I was more afraid of the queen than I was of King Sebastian. "Okay. Well, as soon as I get the lay of the land, I'll call you."
She grinned. "Yes, back in action."
I eyed her belly dubiously. "Uh, if you say so."
"I do. Besides, I'm desperate and bored."
"You're pregnant."
"I figure if I can see my feet I’m good."
I glanced down at her feet and noticed her adorable little pointy-toed flats in two different colors. "Ah, is now a good time to mention that you're wearing two different colors of shoes?"
She frowned. "What?"
I chuckled. "You know what? I thought you were starting a new fashion trend. And I’ll bet you cash money we'll start seeing that trend on the island in the next couple of weeks."
She lifted a brow. "Now you're just flattering me."
"A little. Let's go back. I suppose I have to face the music."
"Or the billionaire as it were."
"What am I supposed to do?"
"Well, the only thing you can do. Talk to him. Work it out."
"I just didn't want to feel like this again."
"Look, love is complicated. We all lie, sometimes to protect the other person, and sometimes to protect ourselves. But you're not going to figure it out until you talk to him."
"Yeah, I was afraid you were going to say that."
5
Zia…
The next morning, I wasn’t looking forward to seeing anyone. Since I’d been on duty overnight, I’d been up for four hours, and on call for the other four. It had been late when the palace gang left and even later when Ariel and Tamsin left after a mini team debriefing, leaving Trace and I behind to watch double and trouble.
Could I do this? Walk out there and do my job? All I had to do was take Theo to the office and Tams would relieve me.
Do you have a choice?
No. Not really. I could walk out there, do my job, be professional, even. I could do this.
No, you can't.
No, I couldn't. God, there was no way Ariel would let me quit.
You're not a quitter.
No. I wasn't a quitter. I was the one with a plan B, and C, and D.
Yeah, plan D got you that dick, didn't it?
Ugh. God, what was wrong with me?
Why couldn't I make the right choices when it came to men?
Because deep down at the root of it, you're not even a feminist at all. You just want someone to take care of you.
I could still be a feminist and like that someone cared enough to look after me. But there was a kernel of truth in there. Searching for someone to look after me had gotten me in a lot of trouble. Although, to be fair, I wasn't even searching when Theo showed up. He just landed in my lap. But it was okay. I had a plan.
I was going to go out there, portray confidence, get the job done, and just stay the hell out of the way. That should be easy. I wouldn't even have to talk to him. After all, Derrick was back, and Theo would be leaving soon. Yes, people were trying to kill him, Derrick, whatever. But once we got to the bottom of this, he'd be out of my hair and I wouldn't have to deal with him anymore. I could go back to my life. Get a new assignment. Maybe not screw that one up.
It would be fine. Totally fine.
With renewed confidence, I yanked the door open. I was just going to go out there and be strong. I stopped short once I rounded the corner to the massive living room. Sunlight flowed in from the floor to ceiling windows, illuminating Theo in his casual attire, jeans and a long-sleeved white shirt that pulled nicely over his broad shoulders. He was reading something when I strode in and started salivating.
"Good morning."
God, why was his voice like kryptonite? I forced my knees to lock so I wouldn't ooze down into a puddle.
"Good morning, Theo, I assume?"
He lifted a brow. "You can't tell us apart?"
"I can, actually. But given that I clearly can’t trust my instincts, I’d still like verbal verification. Probably safer that way.”
His lips flattened for a brief moment. He didn’t like what I had to say? Well, tough.
“How can you tell us apart?”
“His eyes are closer together, your nose has been broken, and there's something about the expression on your face. It’s not set in Resting Douchebag Face. I can tell the difference pretty easily, actually."
His brows lifted. "That's funny. Trace couldn't tell the difference. Derrick cut his hair and shaved, so it’s bound to be a lot more difficult."
"Well, I can. Are you ready?"
His gaze narrowed at me. "Don't you want to eat something?"
"No, I'd rather just get to the palace. I'll have something there."
He pushed up from the couch. "Fine. Trace is in the car."
"I'm the last one to get ready?"
"Still waiting on Derrick. He was up early this morning but wanted to make a call in his study.”
I checked my watch. It was seven o’clock. If Trace wanted to drop Theo and I at the palace before taking Derrick to the office, we’d have to get a move on. “Any idea how long he’ll be?"
"None."
I could feel Theo watching me. I could feel the tension around him as if he was poised on the precipice of saying something. “Zia—”
“Don’t.” I gave him a swift shake of my head. “Please, just don’t.”
“Right.” He frowned as he passed the fruit bowl and grabbed a banana. As we marched out the door, he handed it to me. "You should eat something at least."
"Don't do that either. Try and take care of me. It's annoying."
His smile was soft, even though his breathing was an exasperated puff of air. "Twenty-four hours ago, you liked it… a lot. Matter of fact, I can recount for you all the ways you liked me to take care of you."
Heat flushed my whole body as I remembered how enthusiastically Theo looked after my orgasm count. "Well, twenty-four hours ago, I didn't know who you were. And twenty-four hours ago, I didn't know you were lying."
"I couldn’t tell you."
“Yeah, you said that already.” He was too close. The smell of him wrapped around me. He smelled fresh and clean, with a hint of musk, and I wanted to sink into the scent. I deliberately took a step back instead. “I’m going to go get Derrick.”
With an about-face, I ran from the man I cared way too much about. My shoes made a soft clipping sound on the hardwood as I marched to the study. When I reached the heavy door, I knocked twice before opening. I knew from experience it was hard to hear when you were in there.
When I pushed the door open though, there was no sign of Derrick. With a frown I checked the small attached bathroom. But nothing. My stomach clenching, I jogged back out then checked the two closest rooms before heading back through the living room toward the bedrooms in the other wing.
Theo frowned at me. “What’s wrong?”
“Derrick’s not in the study,” I called out.
It didn’t matter how much I searched though. He wasn’t in the penthouse. I grabbed my phone and called down to Trace, but he hadn't seen him either.
“Christ, did someone take him right out from under us?” Theo’s voice was flat, unemotional.
“Think, Theo. You saw him this morning. Then what?”
“So you didn’t see him actually go into the study?”
“No, but I assumed that was where he was going when he said he had a call to make.”
I ran my hands through my hair. A minute later Trace was back in the penthouse. “What the fuck do you mean, he’s gone?”
I shook my head. “I’ve looked everywhere.”
Trace pulled his gun. “Watch him, guard the door.”
I followed instructions. It was part of protocol for a secondary search. When he returned, he shook his head.
Immediately, I turned my attention to Theo. “Where did he go?”
Theo’s eyes went wide. “How the fuck would I know? It’s because of him that I’m stranded here, remember?”
I tried not to let it sting that I wasn't something keeping him in the islands. That’s not what you want, right?
Trace made the call to Ariel. “He’s gone. We’ve looked everywhere.”
As he muttered into the phone, I headed back to the study. Theo was hot on my heels. “What, you think he up and Houdini’d himself out? Last I checked he couldn’t fly.”
“Shut up.” Something wasn’t right. It would be one thing if he’d disappeared and been gone when we woke up, but to vanish from the penthouse in under two minutes would take some aerial assistance. I strolled over to the security panel and then looked at Theo expectantly. “Make yourself useful.”
“I see where I’m needed.” He looked into the security panel and it flared to life.
I typed quickly. “I could have hacked it, but it would have taken a minute.” I tapped again. “There you are, you little bastard.”
Theo leaned around me. “What do you have?”
“He did come in here, but then the camera went out.”
“Then where the fuck did he go?” he asked.
I stepped back. He’d gone somewhere. So where? I noticed a blinking light under the desk. Sinking to my knees, I examined it.
Trace came into the library. “Ariel is pissed. What are you doing?”