Secrets and Lies

by Capri Montgomery

  She missed her father. Truth be told if he were still alive she wouldn’t be working in this business. She would still be focusing on her architectural firm. She had always said she would open it in partnership with her father’s company. She could design it and he could make sure it got built. His death changed everything. Now she was doing it all alone, trying to keep his company alive while keeping her dreams from fading away in the process.

  “Do you mind if I join you?”

  “No,” she stammered. Looking at his mostly naked body had her burning up with heat. The steam wasn’t needed because Thomas McGregor was his own heat source—scorching hot. The way his eyes roved her body made her tremble with desire. Was he feeling what she felt, or was the arousal one sided? One sided, she figured since he had already told her just what he thought about having a relationship with her.

  “Good.” He slipped his fingers into the knot in his towel, loosened it and let it fall to the floor. “It’s too hot in here for the towel,” he looked her over hard and unwavering in his gaze, as if he expected her to strip of her towel as well. Her breath caught at the sight of him. Her heart felt as if it would pound its way out of her chest if it could. Good Lord, the man was gorgeous everywhere.

  “Thomas…” she cleared her throat wondering why her voice sounded two octaves lower. “I don’t…that is…I…” Great she was babbling like an idiot. She couldn’t find the words. Telling him to put his towel back on would send her body into complete mourning at the loss of looking at him naked. Not telling him to put his towel back on was causing serious problems she wasn’t soon to rectify.

  She let her eyes slide lower, settling on his manhood and wondering just what it would feel like if he were to put it inside of her. She wasn’t a virgin, but it had been awhile and even back then she had never seen a man so well endowed. She had four boyfriends in her lifetime, two of which she had seen naked. The first, Brendon Daniels, had assured her if she saw it she would want it in her and so he stripped off his pants like a Neanderthal and expected her to fall on her back. She fell on her back—laughing hysterically at the insanity of his arrogance. He hadn’t gotten what he hoped for and they broke up not even a week later.

  The second man was Kyle. She had seen him naked, touched him naked, slept with him naked. While he was definitely not in the “need a magnifying glass” category, he was not as big as the man in front of her. She wasn’t sure she would be able to take him in even if he did want her.

  Thomas crossed the distance between them, wrapped his big hands around her arms and pulled her up. She was breathless, speechless, thoughtless—other than the thoughts of how much she wanted to explore the hard body in front of her. When he untied the knot in her own towel and removed it from her body she couldn’t think. It happened so fast she was unaware that it was even happening until it was done.

  She instinctively covered herself with her hands. She was small…very small…in that department. She was fitting A-cups and some B-cups, but as a friend had once told her, her breasts were like little mosquito bites that a man couldn’t enjoy. She had told her that right before giving her a gift certificate for a consultation with a plastic surgeon who could give her a perfect set of “D-cup boobs.” She had respectfully declined the offer. Now, standing here naked in front of Thomas she wondered if her friend had been right. She had seen the woman who had come into Thomas’ office the last time she was there to meet with him. She was tall, blonde, blue eyes, gorgeous and thin—oh and perfectly porn star sized breasts at a generous DD. She couldn’t compete with that—there was no way she could compete with that.

  He caught her hands and pushed them aside. A low groan escaped from deep within his chest. “I’ve been trying not to want you,” he growled. “I’ve been trying so hard because I’m not in a position to give you what you deserve, Thena. But I’m done trying. I want you. And if you don’t want me then I’d suggest you stop me before I get started.” He slid his index finger over her breast, circling her nipple making it pucker tightly.

  She felt the tremble that rushed through her body from head to toe. “I…” she tried to breathe, tried to steady the thudding of her heart beating wildly with desire, passion and anticipation. “I want you,” she whispered.

  As if all he were waiting for was that admission he pulled her flush against his body, dipped his head low and captured her mouth with his lips.

  The exchange was passion, heat, fire, as he hungrily explored her mouth as if making up for lost time. Feasting on her as if he needed to stamp his claim all over her mouth. She didn’t think the position of their bodies could be comfortable for him. He was over a foot taller than she, the tallest man she’d ever dated, and she couldn’t imagine being bent at such an angle could be comfortable.

  She stood on the tips of her toes trying to assist him. He lifted her from the floor and placed her on the bench, brining her at a more adequate level for their interlude. She stood there, shaking, trembling from need and rising desire. A low moan escaped and his hungry kisses swallowed it up.

  One firm hand sunk into her hair, pushing her closer as if being closer were possible, as if they weren’t connected enough. She moaned again, clutching his shoulders, edging him to take more of her, all of her.

  He pulled back abruptly, looked in her eyes, and with measured control said, “are you on something?”

  The realization hit her. She was nearly so far gone that she hadn’t even thought about protection. Score one for everybody who ever said when you’re caught up in the moment it’s easy to get lost.

  “No,” she shook her head. “I tried to go on the pill once, but it made me so sick that the doctor took me off.” He had said the reaction was so adverse that he thought it might kill her. He had said he didn’t want to chance another pill, but if she wanted to try it he could prescribe something else. She was so scared from her trip to the emergency room that she didn’t bother. Kyle always brought condoms with him and she relied on that to be enough.

  “I don’t have anything in here with me.” He took one breast in his big hand. She looked down, watching him squeeze, shape, mold her small breast in his firm, but gentle, grip. The contrast was intoxicating. “I can give you pleasure another way,” he leaned in, sliding his tongue up the curvature of her neck.

  “What about you?”

  He slid his hand low, covering her feminine cave with one hand. “When I come it’s going to be inside you here,” he slid a finger against her swollen flesh. She threw her head back and moaned. Never before had she responded this quickly to a man.

  “I want you to enjoy this.” He lifted her in his arms long enough to change her position and get her flat on her back. He spread her legs, letting her right foot drop to the floor while keeping her left leg bent and on the stone bench. He came to rest between her legs. His mouth so close to her that she knew what would be next.

  Instead of sliding his tongue into her he surprised her with his fingers delving into her wet channel.

  “Thomas!” She could come just from the one movement. His big, calloused hands worked their magic on her body. “Oh…” she panted. Her breath catching with each moan.

  He eased his finger out and thrust two in eliciting a sharp scream of pleasure from her that ripped the quiet solitude of their enclosure to shreds.

  “Brilliant,” he moaned. “You’re like a fourth of July fire cracker. Hot and explosive.” His voice was low, seductive, enticing her and building her arousal once again. “I can’t wait until I can get inside you.” He rotated his fingers inside her, gently stroking her as he let his thumb slip over her sensitive flesh.

  She wished, boy did she wish, that she kept a box of condoms in the house. But she hadn’t needed any in so long. There hadn’t been anybody else since she and Kyle had gone back to being just friends. There hadn’t been a need for a fresh supply of condoms. She didn’t even have one condom. Had she known she was going to meet Thomas McGregor, and he would be the man to make her feel like this, sh
e would have bought a lifetime supply.

  “Hmmm…” She moaned as he continued to touch her intimately, stroke her, caress her. “Thomas!” One hard press of his thumb against her and she came so hard her climax left her breathless.

  Before she could process his movement he pulled her up into his arms, being careful not to position her on his growing erection. She couldn’t move. If she could she would have returned the favor for him. “Give me a minute,” she whispered. “I’ll help you with your problem,” she looked pointedly at his aroused state.

  “My problem is going to have to wait until I can get it inside you,” he growled. “Because when I come it’s going to be with those tight muscles of yours milking every drop from me.” He rubbed his hand over her sex before standing, lifting her into his arms and exiting the steam room.

  “You were in there too long,” he sat her down on the couch and handed her the thin knitted throw for cover. She was sure he wouldn’t mind watching her sit there naked, but he must have known how uncomfortable she was starting to feel, otherwise he wouldn’t have been so generous.

  “I’ll get you some water.” He disappeared for a few minutes and when he emerged, with glass of water in hand, he was also wearing his pants.

  “Thank you,” she said as she took the glass from his hand.

  “What time do you have to be at work in the morning?”

  “I have to meet with a client at eight,” she mumbled. “Then I’ll need to check up on my construction site, so I think I’ll just see if Kyle can give me a ride.”

  “I’ll give you a ride,” he folded his arms across his chest.

  “You’re going to be working on something much more important. I can find my own way there.” She would be thankful when the cops decided to release her car. She had been told it would probably be another two days minimum. “Maybe I should just take the Moped,” she yawned. She was planning to wear a nice jean suit anyway. It was something she could meet with a client in and still go to a construction site and check up on her guys. Of course she would change her shoes first, grab her hard hat, and probably her tool belt in case she arrived on site and saw something that needed her attention.

  “I’ll drive you,” he reiterated. Was he just trying to make sure she stayed out of “trouble,” as he had called it? She had no plans to take another trip down to the station. Clearly there was something wrong with those people and she wasn’t going to risk jail time again. She learned her lesson. She would let Thomas handle things.

  “Fine,” she shrugged. “I’m too tired to argue with you.” She was too tired to move too, but she knew she needed to. She needed to put on her night clothes and tackle her hair…although she was still trying to decide if she wanted to save that last task for the morning. She usually woke up early so she should have time to do her hair in the morning, and if not, well then she could always put on a wig or something—then again, she would have to go treasure hunting in her closet to find one. She hadn’t worn any of her wigs in almost three years.

  She stood up and almost fell back down. She had never before felt this exhausted when leaving her steam room. Thomas wrapped one arm around her waist in a steal like grip. “Hold on to me.” He lifted her into his arms and carried her to her bedroom. He pulled back the comforter, placed her between the sheets and then pulled the covers back over her.

  She was barely awake, but she felt the soft kiss he placed on her forehead and heard the sounds of his footsteps as he made his way out of the room.

  Chapter Seven

  “What part of handle the problem didn’t you understand?” He paced the room furiously. This problem should have been gone years ago, and now, he was dealing with it again.

  “We’re keeping her in the dark about the investigation.”

  “Brilliant,” he quipped. “And now you’ve added more fuel for her fire. I heard she was at the precinct today.”

  “I took care of it.”

  “Right,” he snapped. “And just what information did you get from digging through her purse and keeping her in a cell for two hours?” He figured they had nothing, which is probably why they were reluctant to call him with a progress report.

  “She hired a detective, we know that.”

  “He came to see you; you didn’t need her purse to figure that piece of information out. I swear you’re all incompetent. What am I paying you for?” He stomped to the window of his office and stared out at the city beneath him, watching the lights flickering from the passing cars. His rage was building again and they all knew what happened when he got angry. He didn’t like being angry. He didn’t like screw ups. He didn’t like losing control and he wouldn’t lose it now. Twenty years; it had been almost that long since he had to deal with Doctor Davis’ sudden disappearance. He had paid off the right people, and he was still paying them. He thought he had things cleaned up then, but then this happened, the unearthing of his perfect body. While he was happy his handy work had been preserved, that he had been right about the process, he wasn’t ever expecting anybody to unearth the body. He wasn’t expecting to have to cover things up again. He could feel the stress and anger of the past few days washing over him. He would not let everything he had worked for be taken down because of a pint sized architect who fancied herself a contractor.

  “Get this straight. I don’t care who you are to me. You fix this, or I’ll fix you.” He slammed the phone down on the base. No way in hell was he going to prison after all this time.

  Chapter Eight

  “You worked with Mrs. Davis,” Thomas looked over the gangly doctor. His hair was cut short; his wire frame reading glasses sat low on his nose. “Are you still going to tell me you don’t know her?” He pointed to the picture of Neenah he had taken with him for Doctor Evans to look at. At the time Doctor Evans wasn’t a doctor, he was a medical student, pre-med actually, and his father had pulled some strings to get him a job at the hospital.

  “Seriously, I don’t remember. I’ve met a lot of doctors over the years.”

  Thomas refrained from losing his temper. He hated when people lied to him and this guy was definitely lying to him. “How many of those doctors have gone missing?”

  Doctor Evans looked over the photograph again. “Missing? Wait,” he put the photo on the desk. “Yeah, yeah…now I remember that case. Oh yeah,” he said once more. Thomas rolled his eyes. Did the man have any other words in that med school educated brain of his—something other than “yeah”?

  “I didn’t know her that well actually. I remember I had a chance to do the intake on a couple of her patients…other than that; she’s kind of a blur. But if I think of anything else I can call you. I have your card.” He tapped Thomas’ business card.

  “I’d appreciate that.” There was no need in pushing the issue. The guy wasn’t going to give him the truth; he knew that. If he wanted the truth he’d just have to do some covert surveillance of the good doctor and see where the trail would lead him. If he let Doctor Evans think he believed him then it would make following him easier.

  He had met with Josh Greene on Saturday, before he got that call alerting him to a possible break in his own case. He should have known it would be another dead end. Sabian wasn’t there—as always—and he had wasted valuable time flying down to check it out. At least he’d had a chance to see Josh before he left for D.C. He had found out enough information to know what suspects the former detective had wanted to pursue before his superior yanked him off the case and threw him to IA.

  Three of the suspects were still in Boston. The only one he had been able to get in to see was Doctor Evans. He hadn’t bothered to call for an appointment, not after having the other two give him the runaround all morning. He just showed up, hoping the doctor was in; hoping he’d have a chance to talk with him. Fortunately for him, Doctor Evans decided he could spare five minutes of his time. Five minutes was all Thomas needed. It was enough time to realize the doctor knew more than what he was letting on. He just wondered who else was inv
olved. Doctor Evans hadn’t been a doctor when Thena’s mother was working at the hospital, but he had worked with her on occasion—from what Josh had told him that “occasion” was more frequent than what Evans had tried to lead Josh to believe when he questioned him the first time. And since it was after that round of questions that Josh found himself on the wrong side of the law, Thomas figured Evans was as good a place as any to start digging for more answers.

  He wondered if Thena knew the doctor at all. He was tempted to ask her, but asking her could lead to her running off and doing something crazy that would jeopardize his investigation. He shook his head just thinking about Thena. She was the only woman he had met that could give him a run for his money. He was in trouble; he knew it the first day he laid eyes on her. He knew it the first night at her house when all he could think about was going down the hall to her bedroom and taking her all night long. He knew it Friday night when he stepped into the steam room, knowing full well that he planned to have her. He knew it Saturday morning when he stopped by his place and picked up the only condom he had in the house. He knew it now, knowing that tonight he wouldn’t wait any longer. He had to make a stop before he headed back to his office. One condom wouldn’t be enough; he was going to need the whole box of Trojans for what he had planned.

  “Oh hello Mr. McGregor. I was hoping you were still here. Doctor Hancock says he has a few minutes to talk with you.”

  Well if this weren’t his lucky day. An hour ago the doctor didn’t want to even schedule an appointment, and now he had time to speak with him? “Lead on.” Thomas smiled at the elderly nurse, dressed in puke green scrubs.

  When he entered the office he could tell it was designed specifically for a doctor who had acquired prestige in the field. The leather and wood furniture, along with the abstract art on the wall, told Thomas that this guy wanted to show off his status to anybody he invited into his lair.