Going back over the reports and accounting software, I find that Krystal never put in an address for Castle Clean, and the number listed was out of service, likely bogus from the start.
Why would she … how could she do this to him, to his family? To Ev, this business is about so much more than money, and she had to know that.
This is a legacy to be passed on. It preserves the Casteel name and is a sacred tie to his late father. How could she take any of that from him?
Kyle has been sharing an office with Holly, while she’s in training, so when she takes her lunch, I pad over. “Do you have a sec?”
“Yep. Did you figure something out?”
I shut his door, so no one can eavesdrop.
“Do you know where the W-9’s are kept? You know, the forms the businesses send in, giving their taxpayer identification number?”
“I have them in my file cabinet.” Kyle rolls over to it in his chair and opens a drawer. After flipping through a file, he hands it to me. “Here they are. Do you finally have a lead?”
I move closer to his desk. “You said that Krystal was nervous about you helping her. Did she exhibit any other paranoid behavior such as getting angry if she thought anyone had been in her office or keeping everything locked up?”
“Oh, yeah. If one thing was moved in her office, she was pitching a fit. If Krystal wasn’t giving me something to do, then I steered clear of her.”
I rub my forehead as the impending doom lurks closer. “Um, do you know the name of the cleaning service Casteel uses?”
“Oh, Sarge’s wife, Sheryl, her sister and mom clean here on the weekends, but through the week, the duties like taking out the trash and sweeping are divided up between the store employees.”
My interest is peeked from this news.
“Does Sheryl’s sister and mom have a business name?”
“Yeah, they clean a lot of places. It’s called Tucker’s Cleaning Service. That’s Sheryl’s maiden name.” Kyle nods toward the folder I’m holding. “There should be a W-9 in there for them.”
My heart sinks. “Have you ever heard of a place called Castle Clean Supplies and Services?”
Kyle scrunches his forehead in thought.
“No, I’ve never heard of them.”
“You’ve been a tremendous help, Kyle, and I think it’s awesome that you stuck it out after Krystal’s death and have put in so many hours since.”
He yanks the pen he’s often chewing on from his mouth. “Thank you. I feel like the outsider around here, not being a Casteel, so I appreciate the praise.”
Back in my office, I look through the W-9’s, finding nothing for a Castle Clean. Slumping down into my seat, I lean my head back and stare up at the ceiling.
Concentrating hard, I try to come up with any possible explanation other than the extremely illegal one pounding in my brain.
I have to tell someone, so I can get copies of the checks cashed by Castle Clean. Everett was too trusting. All of the Casteel brothers, for that matter. Krystal had a damn stamp with his signature on it to sign checks, and no one was checking her work.
I have no doubt she cashed them, but I need images to show her signature on the back. I also need to find out what happen to that bank account she opened.
I’m becoming ill as I toss around ideas of how to gather more information and ultimately tell someone what I suspect.
Tears sting my eyes, and my heart drums hastily in my chest. If Krystal betrayed Everett, I don’t know what it would do to him. He could become untrusting of me and revert back to not wanting another woman in his life.
He’s happy, so I should be positive and focus on what we’re building together, but I can’t shake this feeling of doom.
I need him right now, his arms wrapped around me, holding me tight, reaffirming what I feel we have between us. Through his touch, his love invades me, and I have to feel it.
I tap on his door, and he tells me to come in.
“Since when do you keep your door shut?” I ask. He’s drawing on a sketch pad, and I love seeing him lost in his creativity.
“It’s less distracting when I’m focusing on a design.”
“Oh, then I’ll leave,” I say, not wanting to at all.
“No, please don’t go.” Dropping his pencil to his desk, he gazes at me, his eyes appearing troubled. I shut and lock the door before I approach him.
As soon as I’m around his desk, he pulls me to him, lifting my feet off the ground and cradling me. My arms circle his neck before I bury my face against it and breathe in his manly scent that reminds me of his peaceful property.
“What’s going on with you today?” he asks.
“I was going to ask you the same thing? You seem sort of down.”
Everett kisses my hair and tightens his grip.
“Our time together has been perfect. It’s extremely hard each day to return to work and have you so physically close but somewhere else mentally. I’m trying to give you space. If my door is shut, I hear you less, so it’s a little easier to accept.”
“You’re sweet, and when you’re pouting over me, it’s even sweeter,” I murmur against his skin.
Fingers comb through my hair, his touch relaxing and comforting … bringing me back to the present. Today it’s the future that’s threatening.
“I thought you hated it.”
“Never. I just didn’t know what to do about it in the beginning, but everyone knows we’re together and I’m glad. Now, I can do this.”
My lips stalk up his neck and across his jawbone, feathering his cheek before I crash my mouth to his with abandonment.
Fingers move from my hair to the nape of my neck. He presses them deep in my skin as he brings me to him, strengthening our kiss. My possessive Everett is returning to me, and I relish in it.
The part of me longing for security is desperate to be claimed by the strong and in control man who pushes me against walls and takes what he wants.
Coming up for air, he stares into my eyes as his fingers pinch harder against my neck.
“I can’t behave any longer. You’re going to ride me right here.”
“Yes, sir.”
Everett
I groan before slamming my lips to hers, giving a short but demanding kiss.
“Fuck, you have no idea what those two words do to me.”
She’s off of my lap swiftly and kicking off her shoes but slows as she strips off her jeans. I’m anchored to her fearless stare that divulges her desires. She’s longing to give herself to me in this office. Reese stands before me, still and in the moment as if we’re completely alone.
“What do you want me to do, sir?”
I clench my eyes shut and fight the animal wanting to escape. That word will be my undoing. Opening them, I admire her in a thin, white button up shirt, which is exposing her stiff nipples. She’s wearing silky green panties that stand out against her eyes.
“Turn around,” I order. My jaw clenches and dick throbs as I look at her bare ass in a thong. “Remove your panties.”
“Yes, sir.” I suck in a breath as she pulls them down her toned legs. Leaning over to slip them off, she gifts me an unobstructed shot of her swollen pussy.
I unbutton my jeans and jerk them down to my knees, along with my boxers.
“Come to me.”
Reese turns and pads over, her eyes looking below my waist. It takes all my restraint not to grab her when she reaches me.
“Straddle my legs and stroke me.” The notable excitement swirls in her eyes as she does what I command. Her hand wraps around my dick firmly, yet her palm slides up and down with ease. I stop her after a few strokes.
“Reach down and spread yourself open. Then, sink onto my cock.”
Her face flushes as her fingers reach down. Seeing her touch herself has my dick twitching flush against my abs, ready to feel her around it. I help her as she moves up my legs and sinks onto me deeply.
Taking her hand she’d touched herself with,
I suck on her fingers, her flavor making me want to burst inside her. She leans over and traces my lips with her tongue before she’s probing my mouth.
I share her taste as my hips thrust, burying as far as possible into the tight, wet space that is squeezing me closer to the edge. I move her hand between us.
“Rub your clit,” I say against her lips. Straightening her body, she does it, and I watch the most magnificent sight as her eyes half close and tits bounce as air whips from her lungs.
When she comes apart before me, I cover her mouth with my hand to stifle her moans, her release bringing me to mine.
I’m bucking beneath her, trying to thrust in farther as the pleasure rockets through me. Grabbing both of her hips, I clutch them and bite down on her shoulder, trying to stop the loud groan fighting to escape.
Reese falls to my chest, allowing me to wrap her up in my embrace. “I’m so in love with you.” I plant kisses all over her hair and breathe in her alluring scent. “And it’s not only because of the soul-shattering sex we create, fancy face. It’s due to much more.”
Reese wedges her arms around my back and clings to me. Her body is trembling, so I hold her snugly. She stays like this for a while, still seeming unaffected by the fact that we’re in the middle of a work day, and she’s half-naked on my semi-hard dick.
She’s different today, letting go in a brave, daring way, yet she’s latched onto me tighter than ever. She’s working too fucking hard on this audit, and I believe it’s getting to her.
“Reese, baby, someone’s bound to knock on that door soon, and I’m worried you will panic then.”
She sits up. “You’re probably right. I have to get to the bathroom fast. You said in the beginning that I’d come to your office begging. If you hadn’t have ordered me when you did, I would’ve been pleading.” She’s intense … serious.
“Reese, what’s wrong?” I ask as I smooth out her hair I’ve enjoyed messing up.
“I’m so in love with you, too, and I’m scared I could lose you.”
“Not happening. I can barely stay fifty feet away from you here.” I grin at her, and finally get a smile back. “I won’t let you backpedal, so don’t even think about it. Keep being my brave and daring, devilish, naughty girl. Oh, and I can handle more of the sweetness, too.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Reese
My foot is tapping, along with my pen. I watch the clock, waiting for Sarge to come back from lunch. Since completely losing my shit in Everett’s office yesterday, I’ve been battling to regain my strength and wits.
I’m not ashamed for fucking in his office. We’re a couple now, and it was tantalizing. I’m angry that I feel this petrified of losing him.
Sarge starts past my door.
“Sarge,” I shout. He backs up and peers in.
“Whatcha need?”
“I need to speak to you in private, preferably in your office.”
“OK, come on down.”
Sitting in front of him with all the evidence I have so far, I take a drawn out breath, closing my eyes in the process. I have less than an hour before Ev is due back.
“Reese, relax. How bad can it be?”
“I found the error, and it’s bad.” The tears fill my eyes in an instant, so I swallow hard and blink them away. Get it together, Reese.
“Damn, Reese, tell me.”
“I stumbled upon something hidden in my office … Krystal’s office. I believe she did something terribly wrong and illegal.”
He’s taking a drawn out breath now.
“Tell me everything.”
“I found this checkbook and key.” I slide them across his desk. “I believe the key is to a post office box, which I’m sure would’ve been closed out. The checkbook is what threw up the red flag. It had a company name on it called Castle Clean Supplies and Services.
“The register was filled out with deposits that went back fourteen months before Krystal’s death. I checked the system, and that name is set up as a vendor, yet there isn’t a valid address or phone number, and there was no W-9 submitted.”
He sighs a weight of air and runs his hands down his face. “Did we pay out checks to this business?”
“Yes, we did, several times a month. Everett told me when I started that Krystal signed the checks with a signature stamp. He also said no one checked her work. She couldn’t have had a better set-up to embezzle from Casteel.”
“Son of a bitch. So, you think she stole ninety-thousand dollars?”
“The last balance she wrote in the checkbook was around a hundred and ten thousand dollars.”
“How?” he asks anxiously.
“Remember, I said they went back fourteen months. She was doing it the last quarter of the prior year, but she didn’t take much.
“Since there wasn’t a dramatic increase in profits the year of her death, the ninety thousand was obvious.” I swallow hard, feeling like I’m betraying Everett from the accusation alone.
“I believe she did this, but Sarge, I swear I hope I’m wrong.”
“I’m stunned, Reese. Everett is the only one in our family who ever liked Krystal, but I never thought she was capable of something this dishonest.”
“It’s a big risk, embezzling that much. I mean, the IRS took notice and is suspicious as to why Casteel reported so much less that year. Maybe she projected bigger profits and didn’t think anyone would miss it.”
His face is now red as fire, the veins in his neck bulging. “Everett is loyal and trusting, so he believed her to be, as well. Have you mentioned this to him?”
“No. I’m sorry to dump this on you, but I need help in proving I’m wrong.” I look away from him. “I believe he’ll leave me if she’s innocent, and I accuse her of this, but I also fear I could lose him if I’m right.”
Sarge flips open and looks through the checkbook.
“Good grief, this is big. So, what now? What can I do?”
“Since I’m not on any of the bank accounts, I need you to get us copies of the checks we paid out to this Castle Clean. I’ll give you a list of the check numbers. We have to see who cashed them.”
I point to the checkbook he is staring at. “That account is through a different bank, and I happen to know someone employed there.
“I hate to ask her to break the rules, but this is serious, so I’m going to put pressure on her for some kind of information. Please, I’m begging you not to tell Everett yet.”
“Hell no, I won’t tell him. Ev knows she wasn’t a good person and that their marriage was shit, but without proof, he’d never believe she would betray him to this disagree.
“My family thought Krystal might leave Everett back then. She had a high and mighty attitude, always acting like Everett wasn’t good enough. We could never understand it, and the way she cut him down burned me up.” Sarge is turning redder as this news sinks in.
“Like I said, I hope there is another explanation, but if so, I haven’t the slightest idea what it could be.”
***
“Are you sure you can’t see out of that blindfold?” Everett asks as he walks me through his yard. I’m utterly disoriented and working hard at not tripping over my own feet.
“When I topple you with my body, which is going to happen if you don’t slow down, you will believe that I can’t see out of this thing.
“If this is a ploy for kinkier sex, all you had to do was ask. I don’t mind if you blindfold me, so you don’t have to get me used to the idea first.”
I run right into Everett’s body and almost lose my footing. “Why did you stop?”
His mouth is on mine, devouring it to the point I can hardly get my breath. He finally comes up for air and grabs my hand before he’s shoving it against his erection.
“Feel what you do to me every time that sweet and naughty mouth of yours opens. You need a punishment for putting me through this every fucking day.”
I burst into laughter, unable to control it.
“This is
not funny. It’s painful at times, having a hard-on for you all damn day.” He rubs my hand against his jeans a few times until he’s groaning with frustration.
“I’m sorry.” I zip my mouth closed, trying to rid the grin I’m wearing. “Do I not get my surprise now?”
“You’re getting it, and then I’m taking the one you just offered up, young lady.” Everett begins pulling me behind him again, and my muscles clench, imagining him touching me while I wear this blindfold.
“OK, this is all yours.” He pulls the blindfold over my head, and in front of me is a dirt bike. It’s green, white and black, and there is gear laying over and around it, everything color coordinated.
“You bought all this for me?”
“You said you wanted to keep learning, so you need a bike and gear your size for safety.”
“I love it!” My arms fly around his neck before I’m leaning up and planting a sloppy, wet kiss on his cheek. Everett’s hands wrap around my waist as he gives me a proud grin.
“I’m glad you’re happy with it.”
“I love the colors, too.”
“They match your eyes. When you wear green, they’re even more vivid … luring me in, and I don’t mind. Not–one–damn–bit.”
Lips ever so lightly brush across mine, and my heart flutters from the sexually charged energy that constantly flows between us.
In the beat of a smile, touch … intense look, an unrelenting urge to push the boundaries and explore the taboo, erotic parts of the other is set into motion.
His powerful hand slides over my ass, squeezing tight, while his erection gives away his libidinous thoughts. My breath catches against his hovering lips.
“Dammit, Reese, how do you do this to me in a split-second?” The pressure on my ass increases as his other hand grips my chin and holds it firmly, his hooded eyes boring into my soul.
“I’m giving you a lesson, but then we’re going to experience something new together.” Releasing me, Everett distracts us as much as possible from the scratching desire.
Trust Game Page 19