Silk

by Heidi McLaughlin

  Claire and I both snorted. “You know the answer to that, Mase,” I muttered.

  “I was being sarcastic,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Anyway, once we get the will on file and find out who Daniel’s lawyer is that helped him then we should be ready to arrest his sorry ass for fraud, forgery, and embezzlement.”

  “What kind of sentence will he serve?” I asked.

  Mason shrugged and sighed, sounding defeated. “With who Daniel is in the community he would probably serve hardly any time. Maybe a year at most, if that. The main thing with this would be his credibility. No one will ever trust him again with their money so therefore leaving him jobless and broke basically once he paid off all he stole.”

  “Well, he shouldn’t have been so stupid, especially when it came time to build on my land. It would be kind of hard not to notice that if he was trying to keep it a secret from me,” Claire explained.

  “It would’ve been your word against his,” I informed her regretfully. “If he’s buying people off then whose side do you think they would take? Definitely not yours, babe.”

  She groaned. “Shit, you’re right. I wouldn’t stand a chance against him.”

  We exited the plane, with Mason and Claire walking side by side while Brett had his arm around my waist. When we got to baggage claim I turned into him and put my head on his chest, breathing him in. “When do you think you’ll talk to Daniel again? I’m sure he’s going to call soon and ask how it went in California.”

  He kissed the top of my head. “I’m not sure, but …” He stopped and grabbed his vibrating phone from his pocket. When he saw who it was he huffed and gritted his teeth. “Well, what do you know? I’ll be right back, firecracker.”

  Brett marched over to a quiet corner and answered the phone. His stance was tense, but I could tell he was working the conversation over like he didn’t have a care in the world. As soon as he got back, my phone rang and I knew who it was going to be.

  “What did he say?” I asked, sending my phone straight to voicemail. I had to know what he talked about to Brett first before I spoke to him myself.

  Mason and Claire had joined us with our bags and came to stand beside us. I mouthed a silent ‘thank you’ to Mason for grabbing mine and Brett’s luggage. Brett took a deep breath and began, “Well, it looks like Daniel and his investor are throwing a party together tomorrow night and they both want me to be there. His client wants to officially meet me.”

  “Are you going to go?” I asked.

  “Are you?” he countered. “I know he was the one who just called you. I’m sure he’s going to ask you to go, too.”

  I shrugged. “If I go then Mason will be my date.”

  Mason smiled and cracked his knuckles. “If we get all of our information together by tomorrow night it’ll be the perfect time to take Daniel out. Just imagine his face when we handcuff him in the middle of his party.” Frowning, Claire turned her head and sighed. Mason put his arm around her and apologized, “Look, I’m sorry I shouldn’t have said that, but the guy deserves everything he has coming to him.”

  “I know,” she breathed, smiling sadly at him. “Unfortunately, he’s the only family I have left.” Mason frowned, but I knew it was because he knew exactly how that felt. I was basically his only family left.

  As we walked out of the airport and through the parking lot to my car, my phone rang about three different times. “Is that him calling you again?” Brett asked incredulously.

  I threw my phone back in my purse. “Yep. He did the same thing in college until I caved and gave in to him.”

  “Are you going to call him back?”

  I sighed. “Yeah, when we get to my house. I didn’t want to talk to him in the loud airport where you just got through talking to him at. He might’ve recognized the background noises.”

  Brett winked. “Smart thinking, firecracker.”

  We loaded up the trunk of my car, and Mason and Claire squeezed into the backseat. I looked in the rearview mirror at her. “If I go to the party tomorrow night what will you be doing? Are you going to let Daniel know that you’re here?”

  She shook her head. “No, not yet. If Mason thinks we can bust him tomorrow then I might sneak into the party so I can be there and surprise him.” She winked and grinned mischievously. “I’m good at blending in. And besides, when you saunter off with Brett I’ll be there to take Mason off your hands.”

  She elbowed him in the side and a small smile splayed across his face. If she didn’t live across the country I was pretty sure they would hit it off great. Maybe there was still hope. Once we dropped off Mason and made it to my house, I was surprised to see what waited for me at my front door. Bundles and bundles of flowers were set in different arrangements all around the front entrance.

  What the hell?

  Claire’s eyes went wide. “Oh wow, yeah this is definitely Daniel’s doing. He must be working hard to get back in your pants, girl.”

  I groaned. “Yeah, and it’ll only get worse until I give in to him.”

  Fuming, Brett shook his head and slammed the car door. “Fuck, I wish I could beat the shit out of him. He must not care too much about me finding out about you and him. If he invites you tomorrow what do you think he’ll say to me after he pretended he didn’t know you?”

  “I don’t know, but I’m going to find out now,” I answered, pulling out my phone. When we got inside, I showed Claire to one of the guest bedrooms before going up to my room with Brett.

  I dialed his number and hit send, placing it on speaker so Brett could hear. “Here I go.”

  The phone rang a couple of times before Daniel picked up, sounding happy and excited. “Hey baby. Did you have a good time in the mountains?”

  I rolled my eyes and brightened my voice. “Yeah, I did. It felt good to get away. How have you been?”

  “Busy,” he chuckled. “Do you like the flowers?”

  “Yes, I do. Thank you. They’re all very lovely.”

  “I thought you might like them. Anyway, the reason why I’m calling is because there’s a party tomorrow night that I’m hosting and I want you to be there.”

  Brett paced my bedroom floor and scowled, fisting his hands by his side. To Daniel, I asked, “Who else is going to be there? Did you invite Brett, too?”

  “I did and I wanted to talk to you about that. My investor really wants Brett to be there, and he was adamant about it. I had no choice but to invite him.”

  “What about your friends? If they’re going to be there too they know that I’m your ex-wife. There’s no way you can keep that away from Brett. He’s going to find out,” I added, confused. “I thought you didn’t want him knowing.”

  Daniel sighed. “I don’t, but I still want you there. We can sneak away and spend time together. That’s why I want this project finished so I won’t have to see Brett ever again. The sooner I don’t have to deal with him, the sooner we can fully be together.”

  There was another reason why he wanted the building done earlier and it sure as hell didn’t have anything to do with me. “So what time should I pick you up tomorrow?” he inquired.

  “I didn’t say I was going, Daniel,” I chided. “I actually have plans tomorrow night.”

  “With who,” he grumbled.

  “With Mason if you must know.”

  Daniel huffed and groaned into the phone. “Well, bring him with you then. I really want you there, but if he starts anything with me he has to leave. If you recall, we don’t exactly get along, except I’m willing to negotiate for …”

  “For what, Daniel? Do you always have to get something in return?” I teased. If he says he’ll negotiate for sex I’m going to rip out my hair.

  He chuckled. “I was just going to say for a dance with you. Save me a dance and I’ll keep my mouth shut about him being there with you. Do we have a deal?”

  I sighed. “Yes, we have a deal. I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

  The party was going to be at his house at seven o�
��clock and there was going to be a ton of alcohol, which wasn’t a good thing with Daniel since he was a sloppy drunk. I just hope he’d keep his hands to himself, especially with Brett being there, watching every move we make.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Mason came over a little early and hung out with Claire while Brett and I got ready for the party, making sure to take our time. When I got in the shower, I wasn’t surprised when Brett joined me only seconds later. He lathered up the soap and massaged it into my skin, spending extra amounts of time on my breasts and in between my legs.

  “If you keep this up we’ll be late,” I breathed huskily.

  He chuckled deep in his chest, but then turned serious. “Look, I know you’re pissed at what Daniel did to you, but you obviously married him for a reason. Do you still have any feelings for him?”

  Taking Brett’s face in my hands, I leaned up and kissed his water drenched lips, sucking down the liquid. “The Daniel I loved a long time ago is not the Daniel who you see now. We all change, and he changed for the worse. If I would’ve known that before we got married I would have made some different choices, but I didn’t. And to answer your question … no, I don’t have any feelings for him. Those died a long time ago. The only person in my heart right now is you and you only.”

  He nodded and pushed me gently up against the shower wall, growling in my ear, “I don’t know how I’m going to handle it if he touches you tonight.” He lowered his forehead to mine. “The thought of him being anywhere near you fucking kills me.”

  “Hey,” I whispered against his lips. “I’m yours, Brett. All yours.” Taking his hand I glided it over my breasts and said, “Yours.” Then I took his hand and made him cup me between my legs. “This is definitely yours, too. I ache to feel your touch every day and I will continue to feel that way for as long as you’ll have me.” Lastly, I held his hand and placed it over my heart. “And this right here will always and completely be yours, and no one else’s. It beats for you and it has my entire life, I just didn’t know it.”

  Brett groaned and lifted me up under my ass so that my legs wrapped around his waist. “When you pretend tonight to be with him I want you to remember it was me that made love to you tonight, me that puts that ache between your legs, and me that will love you no matter what happens in our lives. If I’m going to have any semblance of control tonight I have to know that you’re body and soul is mine.”

  Before lowering me onto his throbbing cock, I looked him straight into his stormy gray eyes and whispered with all my heart, “Always …”

  Brett entered me slowly and I rocked my hips along with his while my back glided up against the slick shower walls. He was so deep and quivering between my legs that I shuddered under his gaze and under the spell he cast upon me. I was so in love with him that I couldn’t think straight. He stayed by me even when I’d lied to him and didn’t deserve his forgiveness.

  “I love you, Melissa,” he uttered gruffly, holding me tight and thrusting harder. I could tell he was closing in on the edge and I knew I was about to as well.

  “I love you, too.”

  He lowered his mouth to my breasts and licked the water off my nipples before biting down firmly. Immediately, I was bucking against his body as the orgasm slammed into me from the inside out. As it heightened to its peak that was when Brett pounded harder and lost himself inside me. He held me to him for a moment before lifting me off of him and setting my feet on the floor. My legs felt wobbly, but he held me up and kissed me deeply, mingling the soft taste of his tongue with mine.

  “I wish we could stay in here all night,” I pleaded.

  Brett chuckled. “Me too, but I have a feeling this mess will all be over soon.”

  I sure hope so.

  Chapter Thirty

  Brett and I didn’t mean to take so long in the shower, so once we were out I rushed to dry my wavy auburn hair and apply my make-up. Since it was a chilly November night I opted for a sleeveless, navy lacy dress paired with a long length cream colored cardigan to keep me warm.

  “You look amazing,” Brett acknowledged with a sparkle in his eye.

  He looked amazing as well with his hair all tousled and gelled, dressed in expensive dark denim jeans and a gray sweater to match his eyes. He was definitely going to get noticed tonight by all of the ladies, and the good thing about it was … he was all mine and coming home with me.

  When Brett and I made our appearance into the living room, Mason stood up and threw his hands in the air. “It’s about damn time,” he snapped. “If it wasn’t for Claire keeping me occupied I would’ve stormed into your room to tell you what I found out.”

  “What’s going on?” I asked, looking back and forth between the two.

  Claire glanced warily up at Mason and back to me before he explained, “I just got the call. We have all the evidence we need to issue a warrant on Daniel. I have the go ahead to bring him in tonight.”

  My mouth dropped open and I shrieked, “That’s great news. We can finally be done with him.” When Mason and Claire didn’t smile, my stomach clenched as the knots twisted and grew in my gut. “What’s wrong with you two? Why are you looking at me like that?”

  Mason sighed and closed his eyes. “We found out the information we needed on that hidden account,” he revealed.

  “Okay …” I drawled out slowly. “You knew he had the other account so what’s the problem?”

  “Yes, I know, Mel. But it’s not the money in the account that I’m worried about. It’s the name on it.”

  I froze, and my legs almost buckled beneath me. Shaking my head back and forth, I backed away and collapsed onto the couch. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” I choked out, eyes wide.

  Reluctantly, Mason nodded and blew out an angry breath. “It’s under your name, Melissa. It doesn’t show any withdrawals made by you or anything, but you’re going to need to answer some questions as well.”

  “Dammit,” I shouted. “No wonder he’s trying to lure me back in. I bet he can’t get the money out without me. Please tell me you’re going to bust his ass as soon as we get there. He needs to go down. I don’t know if I can pretend through this mess without wanting to kill him myself.”

  “You’re going to have to, Mel. I don’t think arresting him as soon as we get there is the way to do it,” Mason added. “I think we need to make him squirm just a little, don’t you think? He definitely needs to face his sister before I take him anywhere. She deserves an explanation as to why he would fuck her over and he’s going to do it in front of everyone.”

  Brett put his arm around my shoulders, and rubbed my back. “I agree with your cousin, firecracker. Even though I hate the fact that he’ll be pursuing you the whole damn night I think we need to do this tactfully.”

  “Okay,” I agreed, standing up and ready to go. I hooked an arm through Claire’s and gave her hand a squeeze. “Are you sure you’re all right with all of this.”

  Nodding, she smiled and took a deep breath. “Yeah, I’ll be perfectly fine. Right now I feel saddened by it, but I know once I see him and he lies to my face I’m going to be very pissed.”

  “Trust me, I know how you feel.” Sighing, I grabbed my purse off the counter and turned back to them. “Well, all right you guys. Let’s get this over with.”

  The distance to Daniel’s house was only about a ten minute drive from mine. Cars were lined up all down the street so we made sure to park at the very end, this way the chances of being seen were much smaller. Brett held my face in his hands and tilted my head up. “I told you it would all be over tonight. Should we celebrate by making up in front of him when Mason takes him away?”

  I smacked him on the arm. “What is it with you guys feeling the need to claim your territory? Do you want to piss on me as well?”

  Brett threw his head back and chuckled. “I wouldn’t go that far with the pissing, but I do want him to know that he was never going to have you again. So yeah, I want to claim my territory. You�
��re mine … not his.”

  “About that,” Claire interrupted. “Do you think he honestly wants you back, or do you think he’s just using you to get money out of you?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. What are you thinking?” I inquired curiously.

  “I’m not sure, but we already established that he’s using you for embezzling purposes. Maybe he wants you on his good side so you’ll vouch for him if he ever got caught.”

  “He would have to be really stupid to think I’d ever back him up on his scandals,” I muttered incredulously. “If he does think that then he’s seriously underestimated me. I’m actually kind of offended if he thinks I’d be that naïve.”

  Claire scoffed. “He’s my brother, Melissa. I wouldn’t put it past him.”

  Glancing around the street, there were people filing out of their cars and walking up to the house. “Okay, you guys, we need to split up before someone I know sees us together. The last thing we want is for Daniel to know that we all came together.”

  Brett kissed me on the lips before turning around and strolling up the sidewalk to Daniel’s house. To Claire, I said, “What are you going to do right now? Are you going to go inside the house?”

  She pursed her lips and looked around. “I’m not sure yet. Do me a favor and text me his location when you find him.”

  Giving her a hug, I handed her my car keys just in case, and pulled back, smiling warmly at her. “Will do. If you need to drive around for a while you can take my car. Just don’t speed.” Rolling her eyes, she nodded at me and gazed longingly up at Mason before we turned around and sauntered away from her. Mason glanced back at her once before taking my arm and continuing down the sidewalk.