by Lexi Blake
Party B will stay with Party A in his home when possible and give the appearance of a normal, healthy sexual relationship. Party B will not be required to have sexual intercourse with Party A to meet the terms of this contract.
In exchange for maintaining the illusion of a relationship, Party A will aid in all research and not impede in any way Party B’s pursuit of knowledge concerning the deaths of Benedict and Iris Lawless. Party A will fund all research and aid in the production of an accounting of the truth behind the crimes perpetrated on the night of June 6, 1996.
She looked up at him. He’d been silent as she read the contract. Well, the salient parts. She was not to reveal to his family members what she was working on. She was not to reveal to anyone that the relationship with Drew Lawless was a contractual one. She was to keep Drew Lawless informed at all times of her progress on the case and was to allow him to accompany her when at all possible.
In exchange she would receive monetary compensation and a publisher for her book when it was complete.
“Why?” She had a million and one questions, but it was the first one she could think to ask.
“Why you? Or why the girlfriend clause?” he asked, as though they were talking about some academic subject and not a totally fake relationship where they would have fake sex.
“I suppose both.” She tried to make herself sound as blasé as he did. Like she received this kind of offer three times a week. No big deal. Just turned down the Google guy last week, buddy.
“You’re smart and you’re already closer to the truth after a few months’ research than I was after years.” He leaned back, his eyes steady on her. “And you’re good at undercover work.”
“Why not hire that security firm to research? From what Carly tells me, they’re very good.” And the Lawless clan was in tight with McKay-Taggart since Mia was married to one of them.
He nodded. “Yes, and they have years of experience and technical know-how behind them. They’re the best in the country and you matched them. You, all by yourself.”
She hoped he couldn’t see how she flushed. “Sometimes a focused individual can do more than a company. They have to look at big-picture things. I get to think about the small stuff.”
“Like what?”
“Like the fact that your father made a dentist appointment the day before he supposedly murdered your mother and killed himself.” She had made a study of Benedict Lawless’s habits. He’d had an assistant, but tended to make his own appointments when they were personal. The dentist’s appointment had been written on his calendar, the bulk of which survived the fire. It had been left in his car and booked into evidence.
“Perhaps he was simply enraged,” Lawless offered logically. “He lost control of his temper and impulsively killed her.”
It was obvious she was going to have to lay out her case for him. “First, Benedict Lawless had no prior record of domestic abuse. There’s typically an escalation that begins with small violence and leads to the final explosion. Do you recall your father ever hitting your mother?”
He took a long breath. “Never. My father was quite gentle, but then we all have our secrets. I was a kid. I saw my parents through the eyes of a worshipful child.”
“The evidence can’t be denied. There were no reports of violence in your household. So if we establish that your father was neither impulsive nor violent, we have to look at the crime itself. It took planning. The gun had to be purchased. There were no records of Benedict owning a gun until a week before the murder. He purchased that gun for the sole purpose of murdering your mother and taking his own life. So why make a dentist appointment the day before, and why schedule car maintenance on the Wednesday prior to the killing? Why waste time on a vehicle he wouldn’t drive again?”
“Perhaps he intended to set this up as a burglary gone wrong.”
Did Drew honestly think she hadn’t examined and excluded that scenario? “Then why would he have blocked all the exits and set the house on fire? You want to tell me why you’re trying to poke holes in my theories? I thought we were on the same page.”
“I’m merely playing devil’s advocate.” His voice was low, his body relaxing a bit. “And showing you precisely why I wrote that contract. I couldn’t have this discussion with a McKay-Taggart employee. I would receive a report and be left out of the intellectual process.”
“Somehow I think you could pay them enough to get the working relationship you want.”
He chuckled, a deep, sexy sound. “You would be surprised. The big guy makes me look like a fluffy kitten. He’s also my sister’s brother-in-law. If I hire him to continue, he would have to put up a business wall between himself and his brother. Ian Taggart’s family is everything to him. I’d rather not put him in a situation where he’s forced to choose between his brother and a client. I rather think I would lose, and I don’t want my siblings to know I’m continuing the search, for reasons I’ll explain to you if you sign the contract.”
If he was serious, maybe she should be sure he understood what she would want from him. “Okay, I kind of get that, but there are other investigators out there who wouldn’t want to write a story about their findings. You seemed extremely certain you didn’t want a reporter investigating. You need to understand, Mr. Lawless, that I will want that story.”
“Which is precisely why I’ll pay you to write it. And please call me Drew. It’s going to be awkward if you continue to call me Mr. Lawless.”
Because she was supposed to be his girlfriend. “Now for the other why. Why the secondary clause? Why do I need to play out the illusion that I’m your honey?”
He got a wistful smile on his face. “Because it might be fun?”
“Drew.” She wasn’t going to listen to his sarcasm.
“I believe this could end up being a dangerous assignment. I want to be with you most of the time. We’ll have to go to Dallas. That’s not a big deal since right now my sister and Bran are both living there. I want you to be able to have the full power of 4L behind your investigation. You’re a freelance writer. It makes sense for you to work from the 4L offices if we’re seeing each other. You would be quite comfortable with an office in my building, but everyone will have questions if I simply offer up valuable real estate to a reporter I’m not involved with. Not only will my employees try to figure out what’s going on, but my family will hear about it and they’ll want the truth as well.”
“You think they’ll buy that we’re suddenly in love and living together?”
“My brothers will. They suspect I’ve been attracted to you for a very long time,” he admitted. “And I am, but you have to know I won’t force you into anything.”
She wasn’t worried about that. She was a little worried she was the one who would be tempted. Of course the idea of having 4L’s resources behind her was beyond tempting. “I would need a few people who could know what I’m actually doing.”
He nodded. “I’ve already selected a small group to help you. Quietly, of course, but they’re excellent at their jobs. If anyone asks, having some of the finest tech specialists at your disposal is one of the perks of dating a billionaire. Some women like diamonds, you prefer hackers.”
She did actually, and she had to admit something to him. “Carly thinks I have a thing for you so you might be right about them buying into our cover.”
“If you decide to take this offer, I’ll have someone pick up your luggage from the hotel and you’ll stay with me starting tonight. In a different room, of course, but we should stay close. Tomorrow we’ll introduce you around work and give you all the clearance you need. Our relationship will also enable me to protect you.”
“Protect me from what? They’re all dead, Drew.”
His eyes went pointedly to the nondisclosure agreement.
Damn it. He was going to drive her mad. She picked up the pen and signed the NDA. “There. Now you can sue my ass
for even talking about this discussion.”
“I don’t want to,” he admitted. “I would rather we be friends.”
She was so confused. She’d expected this meeting to be with the coolly logical businessman, not this slightly lonely, entirely gorgeous guy. “I thought you hated me.”
“I’ve never hated you, Shelby.”
“You do a good impression of it.”
He frowned, but somehow even that managed to be sexy. “As I pointed out before, I’m not necessarily good in social situations. Can’t you see this is my way of making you an ally? Then we don’t have to be on opposite sides.”
Why did she have to find him so fascinating? From the moment she’d learned his history, she’d been the tiniest bit obsessed with this man. In the beginning it had everything to do with his rags-to-riches story, the tale of tragedy turning into triumph. Then it was because he’d proven himself to be such an ass.
Now she was seeing a different side to the man. Was he telling her the truth? On a psychological level, she certainly believed him. Having his whole world ripped out from under him could have an effect on even the kindest soul. Who would Drew Lawless be if his parents had lived?
“All right, I’ll choose to believe you’re telling the truth. I still don’t understand why you think it could be dangerous.”
“Because I know things you don’t know. Do you find it interesting that Stratton, Castalano, and Cain all died within two years of one another?”
She did, but there were certainly explanations for that. She’d read some of the medical reports. “Stratton had end-stage cancer. Castalano had a heart attack, and Patricia Cain was an overdose.”
“Stratton died two nights after he sent me an e-mail requesting that I visit him in New York. I’ve never told anyone that. Not even my family. Only Ian Taggart knows that.”
A chill went through her system. “Castalano had a heart attack the night before he was scheduled to be interviewed by the police.”
“And Cain, who according to Carly had never done drugs in her life, suddenly enjoyed black tar heroin. Yes, it’s all suspicious and yet no one questioned the first two. Do you recognize the name Francine Wells?”
Her heart started to race a little. Were they going there? “I believe she was your father’s mistress.”
Drew’s face tightened. “You’re good. I wasn’t aware that my father had cheated until recently. Did Carly tell you?”
“Absolutely not. I would never ask her. I don’t use my friends like that.” She’d met Carly while researching Patricia Cain, but they’d become close friends. Carly was one of the only friends she had left. After Johnny died, she’d pulled into herself. She wasn’t close to her father. He’d walked out when she was twelve and she’d seen him rarely since. Her mother had passed away five years before from cancer. She’d pulled into her shell and focused on work. She’d pointedly not asked Carly any questions about what she knew once she realized Carly intended to marry Brandon Lawless.
Drew waved a hand, dismissing her words. “She’s allowed to discuss what happened with her friends. Do you think I’m that controlling?”
She wasn’t sure what she thought of him anymore. “It’s your reputation.”
“I guess that’s true. But I’ve rapidly learned that there are some things I can’t control. My in-laws are definitely in that category. I don’t even try.”
“So why hide it from them? I know you’ve said there’s some sort of danger out there, but that didn’t stop you from sending your brothers in. Riley ran lead on the Castalano investigation and Bran took it on Cain.”
He pointed her direction. “Yes. Exactly. And they both have the bullet wounds to prove it. I’m not allowing them to get shot again. They have spouses and they’ll have children soon. I can’t allow them to risk themselves.”
“So you’ll risk me?”
His jaw tightened and he stood. “I was hoping you wouldn’t see it like that. It’s why I’ll stay close to you. I know you won’t believe this, but I’m quite good with a gun and I was trained by the best. It’s one of the reasons for our cover. I can stay close to you and no one will ask questions.”
She shook her head. “I was teasing you. Risk is part of my job. I’m comfortable with it, though I would like to understand where you think this risk is coming from.”
His body moved with grace as he paced. “Why did you request the autopsy report on my parents?”
This was something that had to be handled with delicacy. “It’s routine. I wanted to read the reports to ensure nothing odd came up. When I’m investigating any crime, I always begin with the reports.”
“What were you looking for?”
She hesitated. If she made false accusations, there was every chance she would hurt this man, and he’d been through enough. Even though he’d been an asshole, she didn’t want to cause him further pain if she could spare it. “There were certain inconsistencies between one of the documents filed initially and the official report.”
“There was an initial document? I’m sorry. This is the first I’m hearing about that. When I hired McKay-Taggart, I asked them to focus on the suspects, not the victims.”
It was a mistake a lot of people made. She wanted to see the whole crime, to comb through every bit of evidence. How could she find what had been missed if she didn’t look through everything? “I found a single copy of it while I was looking through a file box. They hadn’t gotten around to scanning it. At the time of your parents’ murders, the medical examiner had an intern working under him. She did an initial report. Because the bodies were so badly burned, most of her measurements were of the bones that were left behind. It was how they calculated height. They actually used dental records to identify the bodies, but the intern made a thorough study of what she had.”
“All right. Did she find something that the medical examiner didn’t?”
“Not exactly. Her measurements of the female victim’s femur bones were off by nearly three centimeters from the official report.” She wasn’t sure why it had hit her. She’d only glanced at the numbers and measurements that made up the end of Iris Lawless at first. She’d had to study the reports closely before she found the inconsistency.
“I would very much like to see that report.” His voice had gone deep.
“I had to leave the original behind, but I took a picture with my phone. I can certainly get you a copy. The official report is easy to get.”
“I would like to see the original,” he insisted. “We can go to Dallas and visit with Bran and Carly. While we’re there you can take me to the file room and show me what you found. Can you be ready to leave next week?”
“Whoa. I’ll be more than happy to take you into the file room and show you what I found, but do you understand what it could mean? It could be nothing but a mistake, or it could mean something more.”
“My mother was taller than Francine Wells. Would the femur bone match Francine’s?”
Her stomach twisted. “Maybe. I don’t know. I hadn’t checked.”
“You should, because the truth of the matter is my mother is alive and Francine is the woman who died that night. I want you to help me prove that my mother is a murderer.”
And just like that, nothing else mattered. This was the story of a lifetime and she couldn’t let it pass. As for her attraction to the man in front of her, it didn’t matter either. She could ignore that.
“I’ll help you.” She leaned over and signed her name to the contract. She knew she should have a lawyer take a look at it, but it didn’t matter. She would tell this story.
And she would help the Lawless family finally find justice.
• • •
Drew closed the door to the guest suite with an emotion he could only describe as satisfaction.
She was here. She was in his home and she’d signed the contract. She hadn’t
even read the whole thing. Shelby Gates needed a keeper, and he was beginning to wonder why that shouldn’t be him.
Yes, she would be angry with him at the end of this particular adventure, but if he showed her how good he could make her life, she might stay with him anyway.
Of course, he would need to make sure she didn’t continue to shut the door between them, no matter how sweetly she’d done it.
“Good night, Drew,” she’d said with a tired smile on her face. “I’m looking forward to working with you.”
He’d nodded and agreed and absolutely not said what had gone through his head. I’m looking forward to getting in your bed, to spreading your legs and finding out exactly how hot you can be. Nope. He hadn’t said that. He’d used his filter. His brothers would be proud. He’d agreed and then let her shut the door because none of his siblings were home. It was only him and Hatch, who already knew they weren’t sleeping together.
Yet.
Drew walked down the stairs, certain it would be hours before he slept. He was a night owl by nature, but lately he avoided sleep. Lately when he fell asleep he dreamed about it. He’d thought the dreams would go away once he’d dealt with Stratton, Castalano, and Cain. He’d never imagined that he would find a much worse nightmare waiting for him.
He would get some work done. His team was beta testing his new firewall. It would be fun to see if he could figure out a way to break his own system. That was how he worked. He built something, made it beautiful and strong, and then tore it apart brick by brick until he’d dragged it down to the foundation and then built it again. Stronger this time, faster and harder to defeat.
Another one of the lessons from his childhood.
“She settled?” a lazy voice asked.
He stopped in the middle of the formal living room. It was the last room before his office. He’d almost made it, but apparently Hatch hadn’t confined himself to his room this evening. Drew turned and found his mentor sitting on the ridiculously expensive sofa his designer had declared to be the most elegant seating ever.