I guessed my thoughts were written on my face because Marisol looked at me and raised an eyebrow.
“Does Raphe know about any of this?” she asked. Correctly taking my silence as a “no,” she shrugged.
“Not sure why you’re hiding this stuff from your boyfriend. It seems like the kind of thing you want your partner’s support for, ” she continued.
I ignored her and let Raphe in, shutting my bedroom door behind us, closing off Marisol’s unnecessary comments.
“Is something going on?” Raphe asked.
“Don’t worry about it,” I told him.
“Something is obviously bothering you. Why don’t you want to tell me what it is?”
“Because there’s nothing wrong, and even if there was, what could you possibly do to help me?” I scoffed.
Oops. I looked at Raphe’s face and realized I’d gone too far. He stared at the ground stonily, then silently walked out of my room and left the apartment.
I struggled with myself over following him before deciding against it. I was sorry I had hurt Raphe’s feelings, but I was not going to do the dramatic chase scene where I run after him and convince him to stay.
If Raphe wants to act like a child, let him, I thought.
I had more important things to do.
Chapter Six
I looked over at Sally as she slept next to me. When I was sure she had fallen into a deep sleep, I began to edge away from her and out of the bed. I swung my legs down to the floor and Sally let out a soft snore.
I froze and prayed she wouldn’t wake up.
She rolled over and settled back to sleep. I got up and tip-toed out of the bedroom and down the hallway into my study.
Sally had been acting incredibly oddly the last few days. First, she had avoided me so much I thought she was going to leave me, and then she wouldn’t leave me alone. I hadn’t been able to do one hour’s worth of work in over two days.
That’s why I was creeping out of bed so late at night. I knew Sally didn’t want me working all the time, but I still had to work at some point. My new clients were starting to get worried. If Sally wasn’t going to let me work during the day, then I was going to have to find the time to get it done at night.
It was just after one in the morning and I was contemplating going down to the kitchen for a snack when my phone began to ring. I quickly snatched it off the hook, hoping it hadn’t woken Sally up.
“Who the hell is this and why are you calling so late?” I furiously whispered into the phone. We had caller ID but I hadn’t bothered to check it in my haste to answer the phone.
There was only silence on the other end.
“Well?” I demanded.
“Adrian?”
I felt the blood rush to my face at the sound of Danisha’s voice. The last time I had heard from her, she had professed her love for me. Was she calling me to do it again? Would I have to let her down once more? It broke my heart to do that to her; I wasn’t sure if I could do it again.
“Danisha? What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Adrian…something happened… I can’t… The EyeRead… I was going to…and then…I didn’t want to believe it, I mean, I don’t want to believe it, but…I checked it twice myself…”
Danisha wasn’t making any sense. I was beginning to get seriously concerned about her.
“Slow down, my dear. Take a deep breath and try again,” I told her.
I could hear her doing as I said on the other end. .
Finally, she calmed down enough to begin again.
“I went to get a patent on the EyeRead today, only to find out that there’s already a claim on it,” she explained.
“Perhaps someone came up with a similar design? It’s upsetting, but it’s not the end of the world. You just need to make a few tweaks to your own work to make it unique,” I tried comforting her.
“It’s not a similar design, Adrian. It’s the same. I’m not stupid, okay? I know what my work looks like, and it looked just like what I saw, right down to the blueprints,” she said angrily.
“Well let’s just calm down for a minute and think: who would have access to your work?”
Danisha was getting too emotional. If her work really was stolen, it would be tricky, but I could help her file a contesting claim over the EyeRead’s design.
“See that’s the thing, Adrian. I already thought about that, and do you know what I realized?” Danisha was almost yelling into the phone at this point. “I realized that I left all of the hard copies of my files of the EyeRead in the attic of a man who just had his business empire ripped out from under him.”
I was astounded.
“You think I filed a patent for the EyeRead? I don’t need that to rebuild my business, Danisha. Even if I did, I wouldn’t do it. It’s not my style. I like to build using my work, not someone else’s. You insult me, Danisha. I could never steal from you, of all people.”
“You might not have been the one who filed it, but I know you sent her the files to do your dirty work for you!” She shouted into the phone.
“Who!?” I shouted back.
Sally sleeping down the hallway was completely forgotten about at this point. Danisha still held a very important piece of my heart, but I wasn’t going to let anyone accuse me of stealing and get away with it.
“The lawyer! Iraja whatever-her-last-name-is! Don’t lie to me again, Adrian. I checked her computer. I know the files were sent to her from your house. I’m going to do whatever it takes to get my invention back.”
“Danisha…I swear to you, I didn’t send anyone any of your work.”
I was completely baffled. Danisha wouldn’t make something like this up, which meant either what she said was true and the files had somehow been sent from my home, or…things had been set up to look that way.
“Someone did!” she yelled.
Victor. He’d finally found out about the new solar panel deals with Ozolinsh Once again, he’d decided to attack me through Danisha.
“It has to be Victor,” I told her.
“Why would it be Victor? I’m sure he’s plenty busy with that huge client of yours he has now. How would he have even gotten access to my work?” Danisha said warily.
I quickly explained to her how I had outmaneuvered Victor. A client of mine, Andris Ozolinsh, had developed a solar panel called the X3000, and used me as his sole importer. When Victor had kidnapped Danisha, I had traded Victor the client in exchange for her safety.
However, before making the deal, I managed to speak with Andris and he informed me that he was already working on a new prototype, the X4000. By the time Victor was ready to do business, the X4000 would be ready to be released to the public, making it next to worthless.
“I didn’t think he would find out this quickly,” I admitted to Danisha. “I’m certain it’s him though. I should have suspected him immediately. He would delight in pitting us against each other. I’m going to help you, Danisha. I won’t let Victor get away with this.”
It took some convincing, but Danisha finally agreed to allow me to fly to Massachusetts and help her sort out this mess. I felt responsible. It was only because of me that Victor had targeted Danisha.
I had just hung up the phone with Danisha, when the door to my office creaked open.
“Who is calling so late?” Sally asked me. She blinked sleepily.
“There was an emergency with a client,” I said. I was a little shocked at how easily the lie slipped out of my mouth.
“It’s too late for you to be working,” She said, frowning.
“I know, my dear. I was just telling them that I would call them tomorrow. Let’s get back to bed.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulders as we walked to the bedroom.
Sally wasn’t exactly thrilled the next morning when I told her that I needed to leave on a business trip. I told her the same client that called last night was the one I was visiting, which wasn’t technically a lie.
Danisha was my client in a way, but I w
as doing the work pro bono.
Sally was much less controlling and jealous than she had been in previous years, but I doubted she would be so even-tempered about me visiting a former lover. Sally wouldn’t understand that this was something I had to do. I didn’t have any leftover feelings for Danisha; I was helping her out of a sense of duty.
Nothing more.
Chapter Seven
I anxiously drummed my fingers against the dashboard of Marisol’s car.
“Stop that. You’ll dull the leather,” she said absentmindedly.
We had been waiting in the airport pick-up lane for almost twenty minutes. Adrian and Jackson were late.
“Remind me again why Raphe couldn’t help you with this?” Marisol asked.
I rolled my eyes. “You know very well how that would go.”
“Yeah, but it’d be funny,” She sighed and shifted in her seat. “You could have asked to borrow his car, though.”
I didn’t reply.
“I mean, he’s cool with Adrian visiting, right?” Marisol asked, looking over at me.
I determinedly looked away.
“Right?” Marisol repeated.
“Raphe…might not know,” I sheepishly confessed.
Marisol’s jaw dropped in shock.
“You mean he doesn’t know Adrian is visiting?” She asked.
“I mean he doesn’t know about any of it.”
“Raphe doesn’t know you’re filing an appeal for the patent?”
“He doesn’t even know that I applied,” I told her.
“Why didn’t you tell him? That seems like the kind of thing you should want to share with your boyfriend.” Marisol said.
“We don’t talk a whole lot when we’re together,” I admitted.
“So first you shut him out and now you’re lying to him. Sounds like a healthy relationship. Tell me again where you get off saying I have issues?” Marisol asked sarcastically.
Luckily, I was saved from her scathing tongue when I saw Adrian approaching with Jackson in tow.
“There they are,” I pointed.
The ride back to school was uncomfortably quiet, but mercifully short.
“So, uh, this is where I live. My room is over there, that’s where all my work is set up right now. I can show you everything I’ve found,” I told Adrian.
“Jackson, if you wouldn’t mind bringing our things to the hotel?” Adrian asked. He immediately turned to follow me, clearly wanting to get to work straight away. I appreciated his urgency.
Behind me, I heard Marisol say to Jackson, “So, you’re a pilot, huh? Why don’t you tell me more about that over a drink at the bar of whatever hotel you’re staying at?”
Jackson muttered some sort of agreement and I heard the two of them leave the apartment.
Adrian and I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room alone together. There weren’t many places to sit. I pulled my desk chair out for him and I sat on my bed across from him. I pointed to a stack of papers on the desk.
“That’s everything I’ve found so far. All of the EyeRead blueprints and schematics Ms. Iraja Puri had patented for her very anonymous client are there, and all of the evidence tracing it back to your IP. So far, nothing that leads to Victor. Why should I believe you again?” I asked.
“Well it would be strange of me to help you retrieve your invention if I was the one who stole it, now wouldn’t it?” Adrian said as he began to sift through the files.
Two hours later and there was still no contradicting evidence. All signs pointed to Adrian having sent the files to Iraja Puri, but I believed Adrian when he said he didn’t steal the EyeRead from me. If nothing else, he was right to say a thief wouldn’t help return a victim’s belongings.
One thought began to worm its way through my mind. Only after several more hours of research with no new leads did I finally find the courage to voice it. I knew Adrian would not appreciate what I was about to say, but the EyeRead was my life. I wasn’t about to dance around a sticky subject when my life was on the line.
“Adrian…” I began. “Is it possible that the files actually were sent from your house?” I suggested lightly.
“How? Are you thinking Victor managed to break into my home to steal them?” Adrian frowned. “I don’t think that’s very plausible. Coming back to the States would be too risky a move for him right now.”
“I’m not talking about Victor,” I said.
“Yes, I see. I suppose Victor could have hired someone to break in on his behalf. What I can’t get past is how Victor even knew the files were there,” Adrian mused.
He wasn’t picking up on my hints at all. I was going to have to come right out and say it.
“Adrian, is it possible that…Sally knew the files were there?” I asked hesitantly.
Adrian went still for a moment, then laughed. “No, Sally wouldn’t do something like this. Why would she?”
I raised my eyebrow at him. “Do you not recall my little encounter with her on my afternoon walk?” I asked, reminding him of the time Sally had verbally accosted me.
I had been exploring the neighborhood when a complete stranger stepped into my path and called me a hussy for living with Adrian. It turned out to be Sally, Adrian’s ex-wife.
“Well, yes, she doesn’t particularly like you. There is that.” Adrian shifted nervously in his seat. “But Sally isn’t knowledgeable enough to do something like this. She has plenty of qualities, but business-savvy just isn’t one of them. She wouldn’t even know how to begin to steal a person’s invention, much less find a shark like Iraja to put it through for her.”
I mulled it over for a few minutes before deciding Adrian was probably right. After all, he most likely would have noticed if Sally had been sneaking around copying hundreds of pages of files.
Adrian was convinced Victor had stolen the EyeRead, and since I had no leads of my own, I guessed it was best to start by trying to link Victor to Iraja. Adrian told me to find out everything I could about the lawyer who had filed the PPA, Ms. Iraja Puri, from her case record to her browsing history.
“While you spend the next few days doing that, I’m going to use every contact and favor at my disposal to find a connection to Victor. I’m going to make this right, Danisha,” he said as Jackson readied the plane for takeoff the next morning.
“Thank you for everything, Adrian. You’re truly an honorable man,” I told him.
Adrian gave me a sad smile and kissed me on the cheek. He got on the plane and even though I know he couldn’t see me, I waved to him as it took off.
I hurried back to the car where Marisol was waiting.
It was time to get back what was mine.
Chapter Eight
I decided to sit next to Jack in the co-pilot’s seat on the way back to Colorado.
We had been in the air for a while, enjoying the view in silence, when I opened my mouth and began to speak. Before I could utter a word, Jack cut me off.
“I’m not going to say anything to Sally,” he said.
I cleared my throat uncomfortably.
“That’s, uh, not what I was going to say,” I told him. “I was going to ask if you had any contact in Sri Lanka, but thank you for keeping Sally out of the loop on this one.”
“I thought you felt guilty about lying to Sally,” Jack said evenly.
“I do.”
“You must feel guilty a lot.”
“…I do…”
“Excuse me if it’s none of my business, but why do you like feeling guilty so much?” Jack asked me.
“Believe me,” I scoffed. “I do not like to feel guilty. I’ve never felt so guilty in my life. I hate it.”
“Then why do you keep doing things that you feel guilty about?”
I didn’t have an answer for Jack. I was finding myself without an answer more and more often these days.
We flew the rest of the way in silence, and when I got home, I asked Sally if I could speak with her for a moment. Jack was right. I needed to see if
I could trust Sally not to be overwhelmingly jealous about me helping Danisha. Either way, I couldn’t be with someone I constantly had to lie to.
“What’s going on, Adrian? Did something happen on your business trip?” she asked.
“No, nothing happened. That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about.” I took a deep breath. “I lied to you, Sally. I did go on that business trip to help a client, but the client was Danisha.”
Sally took a step back from me. I could tell she was deeply wounded. She looked hurt and confused. I felt terrible.
“I’m so sorry I lied, Sally. Danisha needed my help. Victor stole her invention and he was somehow able to make it seem as though he accessed the files from here… He targeted her because of me, so I feel obligated to help her regain her invention. I don’t want to hide this from you, but I don’t want you to be angry with me either,” I said, watching her face closely.
After what seemed like an eternity, Sally slowly nodded. I let out a huge sigh of relief.
I was so lucky to have such an understanding woman in my life.
***
That evening, I sprinted the entire way to my usual bench. Panting, I pulled out my satellite phone and took a minute to compose myself.
I was furious with Adrian for lying to me, but I knew this was all Victor’s fault. If Victor hadn’t blackmailed me into giving him Danisha’s files, Danisha never would have needed Adrian’s help.
The phone rang for several minutes before Victor finally answered, which only made me angrier with him.
“Finally!” I snapped when he picked up. “How many more important things do you have going on besides stealing a multi-billion dollar invention?”
“My dear Sally, what is the matter?” Victor asked.
“It didn’t work.” I told him.
“What didn’t work?”
“Adrian knows you’re the one who stole Danisha’s invention. I don’t know how he knows, but he does. He told me. You said that it was okay for me to send that lawyer the files from here because even if they traced it back home, it would drive a wedge between Danisha and Adrian for good. That’s why I decided to help you. Now helping you has begun to drive a wedge between me and Adrian! He’s working more than ever and now he’s spending time with her to build a case for her rights to the EyeRead!”
Hang Em' Up: A Bad Boy Sports Pregnancy Romance Page 76