by Love, L. J.
“How do you feel?”
“That was amazing. I really can’t say when last I took the time out to just do me. Thank you.”
“It was my pleasure. I know you take good care of yourself, but sometimes it’s nice to have someone plan those types of things for you.”
Aurora smiled and hugged him as they settled into the back seat of the car. She noticed there was a Georgio Armani garment bag and a Bulgari shopping bag on the seat opposite them.
“You really do like to shop when you come to New York,” she remarked, nodding toward his purchases.
“Oh, yes,” he said, blushing a little. “I picked up a suit for tonight. I felt it would be necessary if I’m going to be standing beside you for most of the night.”
“What do you mean? I just brought a black cocktail dress with me for the function.”
“You’ll see. I know you will be both surprised and excited by our next stop.”
Adrian smiled mischievously at her as she looked quizzically at him. She knew he was up to something, but she also knew how much he was enjoying spoiling her and playing at being a couple.
“The Bulgari is yours. Go ahead and open it.”
***
When Adrian and Aurora walked into the ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria at eight o’clock that night, every head in the room turned. He looked flawless in a perfectly cut, dark Armani suit. It had the faintest threadwork creating vertical pinstripes of ivory which were so delicate they were hardly detectable. Aurora had been enthralled by the rows of dress choices at Tom and Linda Platt’s studio, but having had a glimpse at Adrian’s suit, she chose a bias cut, floor length evening gown of navy blue satin. It had an asymmetrical neckline and a deep plunge that revealed the smooth skin of most of her back. An ivory ribbon accentuated her waist.
“You look gorgeous in that dress, Aurora. I can’t wait to take it off you,” Adrian whispered into her ear as they posed jauntily for the photographers.
“I know, it’s showing,” she mocked with a little glimpse down the front of his pants.
As Adrian was escorting Aurora to their seats, Aaron and Andrew Guyton approached them.
“How lovely you both look tonight. Don’t they, Dad?” Aaron offered with a sweet smile on his face.
“They sure do,” Andrew picked up. “Son, you two are stealing the show.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Adrian replied, uneasily.
For the next fifteen minutes solid, Andrew and Aaron engaged both Adrian and Aurora in a constant stream of conversation. To Adrian, it seemed that his father was making an honest effort to be pleasant to them to make up for Aaron’s poor behavior and that his brother was trying to make amends for his behavior in Atlanta. But Aurora was a bit more wary of Aaron Guyton than Adrian was and all the while, she kept wondering what he was playing at.
The conversation was interrupted when Adrian pointed out Tom Madison and Richard White talking over near the bar. She excused herself and went over to try to engage the men while Adrian made his excuses and ditched his family. They separated the two men easily and began to try to find out their connection to Chan Lue-Sang and the blackmailer. Believing that the evidence against them must surely have died with their blackmailer, both men eventually gave up the facts. Tom admitted that the blackmailer had been seeking out unconventional ways to use him to ruin people’s reputations at Guyton, but he wouldn’t go into details with Aurora. Richard told Adrian that he gained silence from the blackmailer with cold, hard cash. They questioned Jackson Thornbrook together. He broke down and confessed everything within a few minutes, telling them that he knew he had been set up, but thought that he had been the only person the blackmailer had been out to get. Satisfied, they took their seats at their assigned table and compared notes.
The award giving was in full swing by the time Aurora spotted two men standing in a corner. There was no reason at all why either of them should have been at the Guyton’s party. But as the ceremony went on, she lost sight of them and they blended in with the seated crowd. When dinner was about to be served, Aurora excused herself and went to find them. As she came around the corner from the ladies room, she tumbled into Joseph Richmond.
“Joseph, what are you doing here?” she hissed.
“Well, that’s a really nice way to greet an old friend, Aurora. I mean really.”
“Spill it, Joseph, I know that there is absolutely no good that can come out of both you and Axel Arlington being here, uninvited and unexpected.”
“If it wasn’t for the fact that I only came here to warn you, I would waste the next half an hour scolding you and trying to convince you that we were here legitimately, but I really don’t have the time or the stomach for all of this.”
“Joseph, what’s the matter? You look a little green.”
“Aurora, you’re in a lot of trouble here. What did you do to piss off Aaron Guyton so much that he would send a private investigator to dig me up, asking questions about our relationship in and out of the office?”
“I’m in love with his brother.”
“Dammit, Aurora. You always did have a knack for reaching for the high fruits.”
“What did you tell this detective?”
“The truth. That you came to us highly recommended by a colleague from the university and that based on that we felt you were merited to be treated as an off counsel intern immediately and that would be enough for you to prove yourself at the firm. As you know, it’s not uncommon practise when the recommendation is that stellar.”
“He stirred this up because of the rumors at the office before I left and graduated.”
“I know that much, Aurora. Remember, I am a lawyer myself.” Joseph laughed. “Nothing out of the ordinary happened, its just marred by the long-winded, ill sayings of a few jealous, unproductive minds.”
“Sometimes I feel that no matter how far I go or how hard I work in the profession, those rumors will haunt me forever.”
“I know, but don’t worry about it; you’re stronger than all of that. What I want to warn you about is that the detective offered me a substantial bribe to make it seem as if we were involved and tell your boyfriend a story along those lines. I know he made the same offer to Arlington; the difference is, I’m certain he accepted. He’s not doing very well financially these days.”
“What are you saying, Joseph?”
“He’s going to tell Adrian that you slept with partners at Plymouth to get your degree credit and graduate from college.”
Aurora was so shocked she couldn’t speak. Frantically, she looked around, searching the room for Adrian. It was too late; he was deep in a conversation with Axel Arlington and he looked furious. Axel seemed to be enjoying Adrian’s reaction to what he was saying and even though Adrian’s expression quickly changed to outrage, he kept going.
Aurora walked briskly across the room, trying her best not to draw attention to herself, but determined to get to Adrian before he heard anything else that venomous snake had to say. When she came up behind Axel Arlington, she put one arm around him and grabbed him by the waist of his pants. Under the cover of his jacket, Aurora placed two fingers into the pressure point near his right kidney.
“Why are you here telling him lies about me, Axel?”
“I’m not lying. Adrian, everything I said is the truth. You had better be careful...”
Aurora applied more pressure with her fingers.
“If you don’t want to bleed out in a nearby Emergency Room later on tonight, I’d suggest you tell him everything right now.”
The pain was excruciating. Axel Arlington could barely stand on his two feet any longer.
“Your brother paid me to do this,” he finally blurted out to Adrian.
At that, Aurora let him go and he ran out of the room toward the restroom doubled over in pain. The anger she saw in Adrian’s eyes was unmistakable. It was obvious that he believed everything that Axel had told him, despite the confession. Suddenly, he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her from
the ballroom. She didn’t resist him, but followed, trying to keep pace with his step so no one would see the grip he kept on her. When they reached the door, Aurora scanned the room and for an instant, her eyes met Aaron’s. He had clearly seen everything and knew that Adrian was furious with Aurora. A cruel, triumphant smile spread across his lips, announcing to his prey that he knew he had won the game.
Outside the ballroom, Adrian took Aurora down the hall to a secluded corner. She prepared herself mentally for the onslaught of questions and accusations that would most certainly follow, but just as suddenly as he had pulled her from the room, Adrian pushed her up against the wall in the corner and kissed her deeply. The fear she had felt subsided into surprise which quickly melted into the passion of his kiss. She threw her leg around his and he boosted her up onto his hips. They kissed until they were both out of breath and then he let his kisses trail off down her neck.
“Adrian, I can explain...”
“Aurora, don’t ever short change me again. Did you really think that Axel Arlington could ever convince me into believing a word about you or anyone else for that matter? The man is a pariah. Everyone knows about his dreadful gambling problem and how much debt he’s racked up. He’ll practically do anything for a dime right now.”
“Adrian, I don’t know what to say.”
“Aurora, I want you to believe me when I tell you I love you and that I have for a long time. I may have had other lovers through the years, but my heart stayed with you in Alpharetta almost from our first conference call. I’ve kept a tab on your career at Guyton and checked up on you with Mrs. Hardee to make sure you were doing well. Whenever I visited my Dad in Atlanta and I always asked about how you were doing, even though those visits didn’t happen often. Didn’t he ever tell you?”
“As a matter of fact, he didn’t. Perhaps he thought you were just being polite, knowing how fond of me he is.”
“Axel tried to tell me just now about how you had a sugar daddy and that’s how you paid for your nice apartment and never seemed in need. He implied that sugar daddy was my father. I had to laugh at him just to stop myself from punching him in the face.”
“I received a living grant the first year I was at Guyton from the school administration.”
“I know,” he said, stroking her hair. “But what you don’t know is that I set up that grant when I saw the place you were living in. Please don’t be angry.”
Aurora looked up at him in awe.
“I’m not, Adrian. I’m shocked. I can’t believe that you were looking out for me all that time.”
“I wanted you to have what you deserved, Precious. I’m just glad that I finally think that I’m a part of that as well, because I know for sure that I don’t deserve you.”
They walked back into the ballroom hand in hand and glued to each other’s side. They danced and talked and mingled. Most of all, they fawned over each other, kissing easily and embracing each other constantly. Every time their eyes fell on Aaron Guyton’s face, there was a look that could kill anyone in the room squarely centered on them.
At about eleven o’clock, Adrian was engrossed in conversation with his family about the evening’s success. Aurora had remained at the bar to give him the opportunity to bond with them since Aaron was, as usual, trying to dominating the group. When Aaron excused himself and left the room, Aurora decided to make her move. She walked slowly over and slid in beside Adrian, pressing her svelte body sensually against his and holding on to his arm with both her hands. Instinctively, he bent to give her his ear.
“If you want to ever stand a chance of peeling this dress from my body, you had better say your good nights now.”
“Dad, I’ll say good night now. There seems to be a matter of extreme urgency that requires my attention.”
Upstairs in Adrian’s sprawling apartment suites, Aurora pushed the sleeves of the dress over her shoulders, teasing him as he sat on the bed watching her. She turned around and let the fabric fall lifelessly to the floor. By the time she could turn to face him again, Adrian was seated at the end of the bed. He caught her hips in his hands and pulled her to him. He kissed the skin of her belly and then pulled her down to the bed with him.
“You are the most intoxicating thing I have ever encountered. I could drink you in and never get drunk enough to stop.”
Chapter Fourteen
Adrian sat in a black sport utility vehicle at the end of the street, watching the collection of trash cans on the corner. It was where he had placed the bag containing the $150,000 payoff, exactly as the blackmailer had instructed Derrick to do. He had been waiting for over an hour now and still nothing.
It sure does take all sorts for the world to go around doesn’t it? he thought as he watched the people on the street in front of him.
There was a couple arguing at the corner across from the trash cans; several homeless men sat with their backs against the wall on the shady side of an abandoned office building which took up most of the block; and of course, at the mouth of every alley along the street, there were one or two prostitutes out on the daylight strut. He looked at his watch. It was already three thirty; if no one picked it up in the next half an hour, he was going to retrieve the bag and leave. Just then, a prostitute strolled down the street directly toward the trash cans. She paused for a second at the corner, lit a cigarette and looked around in all directions before she quickly dipped her hand in the bin and retrieved the bag. Once she had it, she made a quick walk toward a car parked halfway down the street and got in.
Adrian picked up the phone and pressed the SEND button. Almost instantly, Maxwell James answered the phone.
“One of the prostitutes took the bag and is pulling out in a gold Toyota. She’s heading in your direction.”
“I see her; I’ve got it under control. Head down the adjacent street in case she notices me and tries to give me the slip.”
“Okay.”
Maxwell followed the car at a distance until they were back on familiar surface streets near downtown Alpharetta. Suddenly the car turned off the main street and was headed for the freeway. He grabbed his cell phone and dialed Adrian.
“She’s headed onto the freeway. Get over here quickly; it’s gonna take both of us to tail her at that speed without being seen.”
Maxwell took the turn and saw Adrian’s SUV at the corner ahead of him. They both sped onto the freeway, trying to catch up with the gold car. They carefully followed her as she went three exits over and doubled back into Alpharetta. Soon, the car pulled over in front of what looked like a costume store. Nothing happened for about ten minutes and then the driver’s door opened. The woman who got out of the car was no longer dressed as a prostitute and she was carrying a large brown paper bag. Quickly, Maxwell pressed the gas and drove right past the car and as she turned to lock the door, he discretely took her picture with his phone. Around the corner, Adrian pulled up beside him and got out of the car.
“I got the photo; we know who our blackmailer is now,” Maxwell said jubilantly, as he shoved the phone toward Adrian.
Adrian took the phone and looked at the photograph. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
Trying to hide his emotions, he collected himself and said, “Email this to me immediately, would you, Maxwell?”
“Sure thing. So what now?”
“I want you to stay on her tail and see where else she goes, who else she talks to or meets. Take notes and take pictures. Meet me at the coffee shop around the corner from the office tomorrow at 10.”
“Okay, boss. See you in the morning.”
As soon as Adrian was back inside the car, he took out his phone to check for Maxwell’s email. He could not believe what he was seeing. He started the car and turned straight for home. If he got onto the freeway quickly enough, he just might beat the five thirty traffic. That stupid woman had kept them driving around in circles for almost two hours.
He parked the car in his street parking spot and ran up the front steps.
“Aurora,” he called as he stepped through it.
“I’m in the kitchen, babe. How did the drop go? Did you and Maxwell get anything we can use?”
“You will not believe this when I tell you.”
Aurora took one look at Adrian’s face and she knew that all hell was about to break loose.
“What is it Adrian?”
“Its was Cheryl... Cheryl Smith, my secretary.”
“What?”
“Cheryl picked up the money. She was waiting on the street dressed up as a prostitute. It’s such a good thing that I thought to get Maxwell’s help or she would surely have seen me. I have no idea how long she was on the street before she made the move.”
“Oh, God! Suddenly, what Colton Reader said to me today all makes sense.”
“You spoke to Colton, the private investigator that Aaron hired?”
“Yeah. He said that I didn’t want to be an Alice in Wonderland. That I wouldn’t like it when I found out how deep the rabbit hole went. He insinuated that there were several people very close to the both of us that were trying to take your father’s company down. He said that Aaron felt that if he couldn’t have what he deserved, then no one would have it for very long either.”
“Aurora, I think we are in over our heads. It’s time we turned this over to the police.”
Chapter Fifteen
Aaron made sure that the pre-dinner cocktails flowed freely for an hour before dinner would be served. To distract Aurora from her anxiety, Adrian engaged her in deep conversation with Rebecca and the two of them tried their best to act normally. The two women talked continuously until dinner was announced and walked into the dining room on each other’s arms, the Guyton men close behind them. Adrian took the opportunity to seat Aurora on his left since he knew he would be sitting beside his brother. Any eye contact they couldn’t have would be for the best. When Aaron and Andrew walked in, everyone had already been seated.
Andrew stood at the head of the table and raised his glass in a toast.