Dial A for Addison

by Piper Davenport

  “Sure. I have to dance with Daddy first, but I’ll add you to my dance card.”

  “’Preciate that, Addison.”

  “Anything for you, handsome.” I grinned. “Come on. I’ll introduce you to my parents.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes. They’ll hate you. I can’t wait.”

  “What?”

  I giggled. “Don’t take it personally. They hate everyone with a net worth under a hundred million. You’re in good company.”

  “That makes me feel so much better,” he grumbled.

  * * *

  Dylan

  As soon as we entered the ballroom, Addison scurried off to work. Her old college friend, Brittany cornered her, and Jake followed for a few steps before he was stopped by someone he apparently knew. Since this wasn’t exactly my crowd, I was content to stay on Asher’s arm while he wondered around the room introducing me to people.

  About twenty minutes into the event, he pulled me closer and asked, “You okay?”

  “Yep. I’m good. I think I’m even getting the hang of these shoes.”

  “Damn.” He frowned.

  “That’s a good thing, Ash.”

  “Nope. I like the death grip you have on my arm. It makes me feel needed and useful. You should wear heels more often.”

  Rolling my eyes would take too much concentration away from trying to keep from breaking my neck, so I just squeezed his arm tighter. “You like me clingy, huh?”

  “Let’s just say I like you touching me. Feel free to do more of that.”

  My cheeks heated and I didn’t know what to say to that, so I snapped my mouth shut.

  His eyes sparkled with laughter. “Can I get you a drink?”

  The idea of trying to navigate heels while under the influence did not appeal to me at all. “No thanks. I’m good.”

  He leaned closer, his attention on something over my shoulder. “My parents are on their way over here. We should both probably have a drink before they get here.”

  I followed his gaze to find Victoria, with a dead baby seal wrapped around her shoulders and a mine-full of diamonds around her neck, fake-laughing at something another woman said. Bruce Allen stood nearby, talking to another man.

  “Whatever you’re getting, make mine a double,” I said.

  Asher chuckled, released my arm, and headed for the bar.

  I continued to watch the spectacle that the power couple’s presence guaranteed. People flocked around Victoria, waiting for a chance to kiss her liposuctioned ass.

  “Dylan, right?” someone asked.

  I tore my gaze away from the Allens to nod at the gorgeous blonde addressing me. Her makeup was flawless, her hair was perfect, her blue eyes were almost as intense as Asher’s, and the red gown she wore rivaled Addison’s... almost.

  “Yes.” I had no clue who she was. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”

  “No, no. You wouldn’t. I work with Ash. I’m Tori.”

  She paused, as if waiting for me to recognize the name and fall at her feet worshipping her, but I didn’t. I did, however, catch the familiar way she talked about Asher.

  “Great. It’s good to meet you,” I said, hoping my smile looked authentic while I died a little inside. Asher worked with this bombshell? Ugh. I looked over my shoulder for him, beyond ready for that drink he’d promised me. He stood beside the bar with a glass in each hand, talking to another suit I didn’t recognize.

  “Tori, how great to see you, darling,” Victoria gushed, joining us. “You look absolutely stunning.”

  The two embraced.

  Tori pulled away. “Thank you so much for the designer recommendation, Victoria. You really do know your gowns.”

  “And jewelry, and cars, and anything else that drains my bank accounts,” Bruce said, swooping in to kiss Tori’s hand. “You do look lovely, my dear.”

  I was beginning to think I’d disappeared when Tori decided to draw attention to me. “And Dylan’s here. With Asher. Did you know that?”

  Anger flashed in Victoria’s eyes before she turned her fake-surprised smile on me. “Dylan? Oh, honey, I barely recognized you. They cleaned you up so well.”

  My cheeks burned. I felt like a pet freshly back from the groomers. “Thank you.” I managed to bite back the many retorts piling up on my tongue and force a smile. “You look lovely as always, Mrs. Allen. Hello Mr. Allen. Tori, if you’ll excuse me, I need…” I needed a drink and a good cry, but since Asher was still being detained by the bar, I had to settle for an escape route. “To powder my nose.”

  Victoria’s smile turned even more condescending, Tori stepped back, and I didn’t stick around for Bruce’s reaction. I hightailed it out of there (only slightly wobbling on my heels) and headed for the exit. My eyes and cheeks were on fire, and I desperately needed fresh air. I’d almost made it out when a man called my name.

  I looked around, not wanting to be rude, but hoping I’d misheard so I could flee. No such luck. I recognized the man beckoning me to him… Randal White, the boss I’d gone over Kirk’s head and spoken to about the inconsistency in the spreadsheet. I’d always liked Randal. He was a big man with a kind face, a warm smile, and an infectious laugh, but I didn’t know what role he’d played in my firing or whether or not he believed I killed Kirk. His smile told me he wasn’t angry, though. Curious about whether or not he knew anything about the security guard who attacked me, I approached him.

  “Hello, Mr. White. How are you?” I asked.

  “Me? How are you? So much has changed since the last time we chatted. I had no idea Kirk fired you. We are supposed to have an open-door policy, and the fact that he fired you for coming to me… well that was unacceptable. Walk with me a second?”

  I glanced around, unable to see Asher. He was probably still at the bar, talking. Intending to find him as soon as Mr. White and I were done, I took the arm he offered and we headed down the hall away from the crowd.

  “I didn’t find out about the firing until it was too late, Dylan. I never would have stood for that.”

  “Thank you,” I said, feeling strangely vindicated. Did Mr. White know what a sleazeball Kirk had been?

  “And I heard about that incident in Safeway. You’re lucky to be alive. That must have been terrifying for you.”

  So terrifying I still didn’t like to talk about it. “But I survived.”

  “Brave girl.” He patted my hand. “Detective Parker said you ID’d Nicolai Barinov as the attacker. I can’t help but feel responsible, but please believe me, Mr. Barinov had no prior record of violence or we never would have hired him. You know, firsthand, how stringent our screening process is.”

  I nodded. “Have you heard from him?”

  “No. We’re cooperating with the police to find him, but he hasn’t shown up to work since the incident. I’m sure he’ll turn up soon, though.”

  We were almost to the end of the hall, and since Mr. White clearly didn’t have any information for me, I needed to get back to Asher and his fiendish parents. “Thank you for the talk, Mr. White, but I really have to get back to my date.”

  I turned to make my escape, but he grabbed my arm. “I don’t think so, my dear.”

  He put the other hand over my mouth and tucked me under his arm. I kicked and writhed, but his strong arms held fast. He backed me into a room and shut the door. When he turned me around, Nicolai Barinov and one of the other building guards leveled their guns at me.

  I couldn’t believe it. I felt so tricked… so lied to. “You... you... how did you even know I’d be here?”

  “You listed Ms. Allen as your emergency contact on your resume, and the boys found your car in her garage when you left the jail and didn’t go home. They’ve been keeping an eye on you ever since, waiting for another opportunity to have that discussion you so deftly dodged in the grocery store. That was genius, by the way. After Kirk’s stroke, Nicolai didn’t want to chance that you’d die on him too.” Mr. White chuckled, shaking his head. “Ah well, it all wor
ked out in the end. I was so delighted when they saw you dressed up and heading for the limo with Mr. and Ms. Allen.”

  Tears stung my eyes. I couldn’t believe I’d been stupid enough to walk away from the crowd. Had anyone seen us together? Would they report which direction we’d gone? Addison and Asher were in the same building, yet I’d never felt more alone in my life.

  “The boys are going to take you to collect the property of mine that Kirk left with you, and then we can all get on with our lives and pretend this whole ugly ordeal never happened.”

  Right. I knew who he was and could incriminate him; there was no way he’d let me go. I nodded anyway, wanting desperately to believe his lie.

  “All right. It sounds like we’re all on the same page. I’m going to release you, and you’re going to be quiet and go with Nick and Brian. If you make a peep, they’ll shoot you. Do you hear me?”

  I nodded again.

  “Good. Just give them the money Kirk was stealing from my company and nobody will get hurt.”

  I started to object, but he cut me off.

  “I know you have it. Kirk told me he gave it to you. He and Nick were on their way to your apartment when Kirk… well, we all know what happened to Kirk. I’d hate to see something like that happen to you. You understand?”

  Tears slid down my cheeks. I finally knew who killed Kirk and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it.

  “Good.” Mr. White took my purse and released me, pushing me into Nicolai.

  Nicolai grabbed my shoulder and pressed his gun in my side. “Don’t think you’re gonna get away from me again,” he said. His hot breath against my cheek.

  Randal rummaged through the bag Addison had given me, pulling out my keyring. He studied the fob Jake had given me, chuckling. “Nick, you ever seen this before?” he asked, holding it up.

  Nicolai shrugged. “Looks like a key fob for a car.”

  “That’s what it’s supposed to look like, but there’s no logo on it. This is a prototype. One of my detective buddies was bragging about it when we went golfing a few weeks ago. I bet this is how the cops found you last time.” He slid it off my keyring. Then he tossed the rest of my keys to Brian. He powered off my phone, wiped his prints off of it and my purse with his handkerchief, and threw them aside.

  “Don’t come back without my money,” Mr. White said before leaving me with Nicolai and Brian.

  Addison

  I LED JAKE back into the ballroom and saw my mother speaking with one of Asher’s paralegals. My father was nowhere to be seen, but that didn’t surprise me. He often used these events to schmoose and find new business. My mother laughed (less fakey than normal) at something Tori said, and I sighed. Tori Smithers was actually a lovely woman, but she liked my parents, so she’d never be one of us. I didn’t see Dylan, so I made a beeline for my brother, bypassing my parents altogether.

  “Where’s Dylan?” he asked.

  I shrugged. “I was just going to ask you the same thing.”

  “I saw her headed to the restroom,” Tori provided, having joined us. “Hi Addie.”

  I smiled. “Hi, Tori. Sorry, I’m a little distracted tonight.”

  She hugged me. “No worries.”

  “Will you check on Dylan, please?” Asher asked.

  “Yes, of course.”

  “She was pretty upset,” Tori said.

  “Why?” Asher demanded.

  “Well, hello, children,” my mother said as she approached us.

  “Hi, Mom,” I said. “Where’s Dad?”

  “Speaking with one of his cronies, I’d imagine.”

  I dragged Jake forward and used him as a shield. “This is Jake Parker.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Allen,” Jake said.

  She gave him a limp handshake and smiled her signature smile before clasping her hands in front of her. “You too.”

  “Mom, we’ll be right back,” Asher said, setting down his drinks and guiding me away. “We just need to do something really quick. Tori, come with us, please.” As we headed to the restroom, Asher turned on her. “Why was Dylan upset?”

  “Try not to scare Tori with your caveman tone, Ashey,” I warned.

  “It’s okay, Addie. He doesn’t scare me.” Tori smiled. “Your mother was a little harsh.”

  She filled us in on my mother’s abhorrent words, and I watched my brother’s expression harden.

  “I’ll be right back,” I said, and walked into the bathroom. A few women milled around, but no one I knew. “Dylan?”

  Nothing. I turned to one of the women at the sink. “Have you seen a redhead in a green gown?”

  She shook her head.

  “I did.”

  I turned to see Gwen Wolcott walking into the stall area. “About five minutes ago, speaking with an older gentleman near the front door.”

  “An older gentleman?” I asked. “Can you describe him?”

  “Around six feet tall, big man, brown hair, in his fifties. I’m sure you know him, though. He owns Bridge City Property Management. I can’t remember his name, but he was on the news the other night when one of his employees was found dead.”

  “Randal White?” I asked.

  “Yes, that’s the man,” Gwen confirmed.

  Randal White was among the Portland’s rich and powerful and, despite a small PR cameo on the six o’clock news, he’d managed to stay out of the spotlight. Wondering what the heck Randal White wanted with Dylan, I rushed back out to the hallway and right into Jake.

  “Whoa, you okay?” he asked, as he steadied me.

  “No. She’s not in the bathroom. Apparently, she was seen talking to Randal White by the front door. I have a weird feeling, Jake. Something’s not right.”

  “All right. It’s okay. We’ll go find her together.”

  I took a deep breath and let him guide me toward the entrance. So Dylan was talking to the owner of her old company. No big deal, yet my insides were churning. I hurried, forcing Jake to do the same.

  Asher was hot on our heels. “She’s not answering, Jake,” he said. When I glanced over my shoulder, Asher held up his phone. “It goes straight to voice mail.”

  “She probably turned it off for the event,” Jake reasoned.

  But my stomach twisted in knots. Maybe she was so upset about what my mom had said, she was avoiding Asher’s calls. Just to be sure, I pulled my own phone out and tried. It didn’t even ring before voice mail picked up.

  We scoured the entryway and found Randal White speaking to another businessman by the door. Dylan was not with them. I made a beeline for the tycoon, but Jake grabbed my arm and tugged me back.

  “Let me handle this, Addison,” he said before marching forward.

  I tried to follow him, but Asher put his hands on my shoulders and pulled me into a hug. “Give him a chance,” he whispered.

  We turned to watch Jake ask Randal about Dylan.

  “That poor girl,” Randal said, frowning. “I pulled her aside to tell her I was sorry about the security guard attacking her, but she was pretty upset about something. She said she had to leave and took off. I’m sorry, but she didn’t say where she was going.”

  “Mom,” I seethed. My stupid mother and her stupid mouth.

  Asher squeezed my shoulders again, but his full attention was on Randal. Without looking at me, he said, “I’m sure Dylan’s just upset somewhere, Addie. Why don’t you go find Mom and Dad and recruit them to help us look?”

  I wanted to argue, but when Asher looked at me, his eyes were heavy with worry. “We need to find her, Addie. We need their resources. Please. You can get Dad to help us. I know you can.”

  I forced back tears and nodded. He gave me a quick hug and sent me on my way. I found my mother and father speaking with the Murphys and marched right up to them.

  “Oh, there she is now,” my father crooned, reaching a hand out to me. I took it and let him kiss my cheek.

  Struggling to keep my tone civil, I said, “Mr. and Mrs. Murphy, it’s lovel
y to see you both.”

  “You as well, Addison,” Mrs. Murphy said. “The party is wonderful, and I can’t believe all the items you were able to get for the bidding. The auction promises to be a lively one.”

  I smiled, sick to death of stalling and desperately wanting to drag my parents out by their hair. “Yes, the city’s generosity has been heartwarming. I just need to borrow my mother and father for a moment, if you’ll excuse us?”

  The Murphys waved us away and I linked arms with my parents and hurried them away to a quiet hallway.

  “Addison, what is going on?” my mother snapped. “Is it necessary to manhandle me like this?”

  “Trust me, Mother,” I hissed. “You don’t want me to say what I have to say in front of your friends.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “The way you treated Dylan.” I crossed my arms. “I cannot believe how cruel you were.”

  “I wasn’t cruel. I told her she cleaned up well. It was a compliment. I didn’t know she could look so… so civilized.”

  I gasped. “Nasty, ugly, ungracious words!”

  “Addison,” she warned.

  I looked to my father, but he just stood there, looking uncomfortable.

  “No! You are done treating Dylan like a second-class citizen,” I ground out. “She’s part of our family—”

  “She is not!”

  “She is! And she’s going to be legally sooner than later, because Asher loves her. I love her and he’s going to marry her. So you need to wrap your mind around that, or you will lose us both.”

  She sighed. “Don’t be so dramatic, Addison.”

  “Dramatic?” I asked. “You haven’t begun to see dramatic. Do you know Dylan was shot at this week?”

  My mom looked away.

  My father nodded. “We heard about the incident. But I’m not sure what you think that has to do with us.”

  “The man who shot at her… he wants her for information she doesn’t have. They haven’t caught him yet, so he’s still out roaming the streets, probably looking for the chance to get another shot at her.”

  Mother scoffed. “That man’s got to be halfway to Canada by now.”