by Calista Fox
“I’m fantastically okay,” Scarlet assured her. “As you know, stellar orgasms will do that to a girl.”
Jewel’s eyes widened. “Oooh, do tell.”
“The stepbrother is just as irresistible as the real estate tycoon.” Scarlet beamed. “And by irresistible I mean holy Mary mother of God. They are both so amazingly gorgeous, but it’s more than that.… I can’t even explain the attraction—it’s not just physical. There are so many facets to Michael and I’m dying to find out who that man really is. And with Sam … Good Lord. He’s the complete package, but so very, very damaged.”
Jewel’s brow knitted. “That could prove dangerous, emotionally. For a girl like you…”
“Yes, I know,” she admitted. “Believe me, I had time to give this its due consideration as I passed state border after state border. But the chemistry was much too overwhelming not to cave to it. Oh, and from what I’ve learned of Sam’s alibi, these men are quite familiar with pleasing one woman at the same time.” She mockingly gawked. “How enticing is that?”
Jewel’s jaw dropped. “You’ve been here for five minutes and didn’t lead with that juicy tidbit? You really are rusty at titillating your friends with sexy tales.”
“As if I’ve had any sexy tales for titillation. Please. Even the last guy I hooked up was so unmemorable, I can’t pinpoint when we’d gotten together, where, or even what the hell his name was. I mean, that’s just sad. Ridiculously so.”
“Amen, sister.”
“So as much as I’ve been lamenting the lack of action on my part when you and Bay have been having all your fun, it’s been a blessing in disguise. Who wants to settle for mediocre when there’s earth-shattering sex out there? Honest to God rock you to the core of your being sex?”
“That’s what I’m talking about,” Jewel said with a smirk. “So yours has been fully worth the wait?”
“And then some. But … It’s more than that.” She sighed. “I’ve totally hit a dead end with the investigation, and I’m suffering some serious guilt from sleeping with both of my persons of interest. Very unprofessional. Yet … To have missed out on either one of these men. What a travesty that would have been.”
“Agreed. I can tell that just from the sparkle in your eyes.” Jewel drummed the end of her fountain pen on the leather blotter in front of her. “If you’re not able to make ends meet with Michael and Sam as suspects, well, then, hell, there’s no longer a conflict of interest in my mind.”
Scarlet gave her a dubious look.
“Okay, total gray area, sure. But if there’s nothing conclusive and you’re just barking up an empty tree when it comes to these two, then you’ve done your due diligence, right? Move on to the next possibility on your list.”
She cringed. “That would be Michael’s father and Sam’s mother. Like that won’t rub all parties concerned raw.”
Jewel made a face. “I guess this is why they always say don’t shit where you eat.”
“Gee, Jewel, thanks a mil for your support. Why don’t you just come right out and tell me I’m fucked?”
“Well, there’s an obvious retort for that comment, but I’ll spare you.” Her friend grinned mischievously.
“Ha-ha.”
“Sorry.” Jewel looked contrite. “So now what are you going to do?”
Scarlet pushed out of the plush white chair and started to pace. “Good question. I really have no clue. I want to see Michael and Sam again. But I’m still poking around in their private business.”
“And what if you actually do unearth something that reflects poorly on either one of them, even if it’s indirectly?”
Scarlet tapped the tip of her nose. “Bingo. I’m digging a huge hole for myself here. I know this. The sensible side of me really and truly comprehends that getting involved with Michael Vandenberg and Sam Reed is such a bad idea in the grand scheme of things. But on the flip side … Imagine having sex with Rogen once, or Vin once, and then never having it again.”
“I’d wither away and die.”
“Yeah.” Scarlet slumped into her chair and heaved a breath. “I feel the same way. Worse, I’m so intrigued by them and so desperate to know them better that I can’t just let this go. On the flip side … What am I really going to discover?”
“Well,” Jewel said in a tentative tone. “There’s the possibility that you won’t discover anything incriminating.”
“Sure, not toward Michael and Sam, but once again, indirectly there’s the chance that something could crop up related to someone else in the family. I mean, we’re talking about eighteen million dollars’ worth of artwork that just vanished!”
“Yes. And anything you might unearth that’s attached to the Vandenberg name would look bad for everyone involved.”
“Precisely. So here’s my big dilemma. I can’t give up on this investigation regardless of how prickly it could get,” Scarlet said. “I need to continue my questioning. Someone has to have seen something. Someone has to know something. Where the hell are all those goddamn paintings?”
She threw her hands in the air in exasperation.
With a nod, Jewel said, “I’m following you.”
“I just have to work this all out in my mind. I’ve been fairly boggled. I had no idea how I’d respond to Michael. I had less of a clue with Sam. But that all has to take a backseat to this assignment. I’m fully dedicated to it.”
“There’s only a couple weeks left to the statute of limitations,” Jewel reminded her. “So finish with your investigation and then see what’s what. Right?”
Scarlet wanted to believe it was all that easy to compartmentalize. But it wasn’t. Yet what other choice did she have than to push her romantic encounters to the dark shadows of her mind? At least until she was done with her job.
Because she really did need to uphold her professional commitment and reputation. As far as the big picture went, that was currently most important.
So she left Jewel’s office and returned home, a three-bedroom Tudor-style house with two dens. She shared the space with her gran, who typically would be pounding the keys of her laptop at this time of day, working on her latest novel. Except that she’d apparently run out to get the mail.
As Scarlet entered from the garage, L.C. came through the front door. They met in the middle.
Scarlet’s grandmother was a petite woman with pale-green eyes and silvery hair styled in a chic bob. She wore four-inch heels and wispy scarves and was quite fashionable and sophisticated.
Thrusting a few envelopes at Scarlet, L.C. said, “The usual nonsense. Credit card solicitations and AARP still wants to sign you up.”
Scarlet gave a half snort. “I’m only twenty-eight years old.”
“So they start campaigning when you’re at an early age?”
“They’re killing a lot of trees with this crap.”
“Indeed. So how did your interview in Montana go?”
Thank God Scarlet wasn’t sipping anything at the moment or she would have spewed all over her gran.
Interview … Wasn’t that an interesting word?
She said, “Another suspect whose name I’m pretty sure I can draw a line through. Airtight alibi and nothing to gain from the larceny. In fact, less of something to gain than suspect number one. Though he’s a lost cause as well. I’m not finding any solid ground here.”
“What’s next?” L.C. asked as they walked toward the back of the house, where their respective offices were located, utilizing the dual den space.
“I’m not sure,” Scarlet told her. “I’d really like to question the father. But he’s a beast of a man. Bared teeth, menacing growl, and all. And getting close to the wife? Oh, for the love of God … I’m going to need a crossbow and a spear to get within a ten-foot radius of that woman while Mitcham Vandenberg is still breathing.”
“Why is he so defensive if he has nothing to hide?”
“First, he has yet to proclaim he has nothing to hide—just abruptly told me to go to hell. Second
… it might not exactly qualify as defensiveness but rather his inherent desire to keep nosy people like me at bay. I’ve been warned that the Vandenbergs don’t want anyone looking too closely into their affairs.”
“Those are the best people to interrogate.” There was a wicked glint in L.C.’s eyes. “Push enough buttons and Lord only knows what will pop out of their mouths. Mostly that’s when you get the real answers to your questions.”
“Very true. But gaining access to these people is point A. And there are plenty of barriers.”
L.C. gave her a quick squeeze around the shoulders and said, “You’ll come up with something. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.” She veered off in the direction of her workspace and Scarlet continued on to hers.
Her first order of business was to record her interactions with Michael and Sam as they pertained to her case. After that, she took the opportunity to read through the FBI report, since this was the first time she was seeing it. A tiny kernel that had lodged itself in the back of her brain kept trying to make its way to the forefront, so she called Bayli.
“Interested in more research?” Scarlet asked.
“Always!”
Scarlet smiled at her friend’s enthusiasm even as she said, “This one falls into the Mission Impossible category. I want to know who Sam Reed’s father is.”
“Hmm … Did you ask him?”
“Funny,” Scarlet deadpanned. “He doesn’t know. Mom and Dad were never married, and Dad split before Sam was born.”
“Sounds familiar,” Bayli lamented.
“Sadly, yes. And like you, Sam hasn’t been inclined to learn the man’s identity or track him down.”
“Then why would you do it?”
Scarlet switched on the speaker feature so that she could pace behind her chair. She said, “I’m not entirely sure. I just like to know all the players in the game.”
“But this guy clearly isn’t in the game.”
“Correct. Yet he was previously. A real winner, too, from what Sam says. He thinks the asshole even went so far as to change his name to make it more difficult to associate him with Sam and his mother and keep him from having any sort of legal or financial responsibility to a newborn.”
“Which means chances are good he’s not included on Sam’s birth certificate.”
“That would be my guess.”
“Wow.” Bayli whistled under her breath. “This one’s a doozie. I’ve researched many a missing item for you, but never a person whose name I don’t even know.”
“Well, I wouldn’t want you to get bored with me or anything.”
Bayli laughed. “Not a chance. So I’ll start with Sam’s birthplace and I’ll also see if I can pick up any leads under his mother’s name. I read in the FBI report that they were originally from Colorado, then the Bronx before movin’ on up. Or rather out—to the Hamptons.”
“Total needle in the haystack, but let me know what you find. In the meantime, I’ve got to figure out how to engage the senior Vandenberg without him biting my head off.”
“Gads, good luck with that.”
“Yeah, thanks,” she said in a dry tone. Not so thrilled with the prospect.
“Before I go,” Bayli added, “tell me how it went in Montana.”
Scarlet sank into her chair and told her friend, “Professionally? A complete bust. Personally? Holy. Moses.”
Bayli let out a playful squeal. “Oh, my God! Spill!”
“Michael Vandenberg is devilishly handsome. Sam Reed is devastatingly handsome. And I couldn’t keep my hands off either one of them.”
“You naughty girl.”
“You’re one to talk. But yes. Yes, I am.”
“So delicious—stepbrothers!”
Scarlet squirmed in her seat. “And they are as different as night and day. Though both equally addictive.”
“Are you planning to see one of them again? Or maybe … both … of them?” There was a teasing lilt in Bayli’s voice. Scarlet could practically see the other woman’s dark brows wagging suggestively.
“I’m not sure exactly how this will all pan out,” Scarlet admitted. “I haven’t spoken with Michael since ‘the morning after.’ He alerted Sam that I was investigating, so I figure Michael assumed I’d make the trek to Reed Ranch. I’m hoping that’s the reason he hasn’t called me yet—giving me time to question Sam. As for that man…”
She crossed her legs as the thrumming started up between them.
Scarlet said, “Definitely the sort you want to stay snuggled in bed with on a snowy day.”
“Sooo,” Bayli ventured, “if he doesn’t want to know anything about dear old Dad, should you really be trying to locate the sperm donor?”
Scarlet contemplated this a moment. She hadn’t really thought of it being such a murky subject but could now see that discerning this information when Sam had never gone looking for the guy himself might muddy the waters.
Still … She liked to connect as many dots as possible during an investigation. Wasn’t above interviewing Misty Ferrera and Pembroke Peterson to clear them of any involvement—for all Scarlet knew, they could have been decoys to keep Michael and Sam out of the mansion. The fewer people roaming the hallways, the less chance of someone observing the theft.
The only problem with this approach was that Scarlet would have to curb her raging desire to ask the women an entirely different set of questions. All centered on what it was like to be the cream filling between two hot and hunky bodies.
Her eyes squeezed shut and she drew in a staccato breath.
Oh, the sexy images and sensations that notion conjured!
“You still on the line?” Bayli asked.
Scarlet’s lids fluttered open. She sighed. “Just having a moment,” she mumbled. Then added, “I can see where me hunting down Sam’s father could be an issue, but I’d like to go through with it, anyway. I’m lacking everything here. Witnesses. Suspects. Motive.”
“Maybe it’s exactly as you said from the beginning. Mitcham Vandenberg reported the collection as missing, but it’s actually safe and secure somewhere in his possession until the statute of limitations runs out on filing a criminal indictment or a civil suit.”
Scarlet got to her feet and walked her office again. “I wouldn’t discount my own theory so hastily, except that Sam was adamant about how broken up his mother was over the theft. Those pieces were a gift and they meant a lot to her. I can’t fathom Mitcham giving them to her only to take them away. And that’s one of the reasons I don’t believe Sam was involved.”
“Not to add to your troubles or anything, but did the orgasms cloud your judgement? You’re letting this one off the hook pretty easily.”
“Trust me, if you met this man yourself you’d also be convinced that he’d never do anything to purposely hurt someone he cared so deeply about. There’s enough he believes he should atone for; stabbing his mother in the back simply doesn’t jive with his personality.”
“Well, you did minor in psychology, so I’ll take your word for it.”
“Unfortunately, that leaves me empty-handed.”
“Scarlet,” Bayli said in a sterner tone. “The FBI didn’t crack the case. The insurance company paid the claim. It isn’t your fault if this mystery is never solved.”
“Gran would say the same. But not before she jumped on the bandwagon and tried to tie it all together. I can tell she’s already chomping at the bit to get involved.”
“Might be best if she sits this one out. At least until you decide what you’re going to do with your two men.”
“That’s actually left up to Michael and Sam,” Scarlet said. “Because I know where I stand. No sane woman would walk away from these guys.”
“I hear what you’re saying. Believe me when I reiterate that double the pleasure is the way to go.”
“I have no doubt. But what am I supposed to do? Just come right out and tell them I want my very own threesome?”
“That’s probably not even ne
cessary. These types of men just know. It’s in their blood or something. It’s second nature. And if they’re each aware that you’ve been with the other…” Bayli let out a lusty sigh. “They’ll be on the same wavelength regarding a mash-up.”
“So it’s not something that just accidentally happens.”
“Well, it could, of course. Too many cocktails, both of them get frisky without anyone discussing how the scenario might play out, whatever. But seriously, Scarlet. If Sam knows you’ve been with Michael and Michael knows you’ve been with Sam…? Then they’re likely already plotting a three-way collision in their heads.”
Scarlet gnawed her lower lip a moment, holding in check a Cheshire cat grin. She really shouldn’t be traveling the path of wishful thinking. Not until she wrapped up her investigation, at any rate. But neither Michael nor Sam was under her microscope anymore. So Jewel’s “gray area” wasn’t so shady, right?
Oh, hell. I could be getting all worked up over absolutely nothing.
Michael hadn’t even contacted her yet, after all.
And she had yet to call Sam.
The two men were just recent hookups and who was to say they’d become anything more?
And it was hardly something for her to dwell on; the sand in her hourglass was rapidly running out.
So Scarlet booted up her laptop to look at her case notes while she told Bayli, “I should get back to work. Thanks for your help. And for lending an ear.”
“Keep me posted on your progress—with the investigation and with your new lovers.”
“Here’s hoping they weren’t just one-night stands.”
“Something tells me you’re going to have plenty more hot and heavy encounters with these two.”
Scarlet mentally crossed her fingers. “From your lips to God’s ears, girlfriend.”
“Talk to you later.”
They disconnected the call and Scarlet went back to her business, with forbidden thoughts simmering in the back of her brain, keeping her sexually charged. And brimming with anticipation of what might come next where Michael Vandenberg and Sam Reed were concerned.