by Desiree Holt
She nodded. “But with some caveats.”
He frowned. “What does that mean?”
“A number of things, which Taylor and I have discussed.” She glanced at her tablet. “We’re convinced that the feeling you’ve had of someone following you, and of the accident, are all related to this. And we don’t like how exposed you are in your townhouse.”
“So, what does that mean?”
“It means we’re going to put you up for the moment in one of the apartments my firm keeps to sequester clients. It has every type of wireless connection you could need. It’s swept daily for listening devices, just in case. And it’s a totally secure building.”
She went down her list. He’d need to give her a list of everything he’d need from his townhouse and someone would fetch it for him. One of Arroyo’s experts would check his laptop thoroughly to make sure it hadn’t been compromised and bring it to him. Same with his cell phone, but he’d have a separate one to communicate with Sydney.
“Just in case,” she told him.
He’d have an armed driver taking him back and forth to his offices, something he objected to vehemently until she pointed out it was better to be irritated than injured or dead.
“I’ll bet you still have bruises from that accident. Am I right?”
He nodded, irritated about the whole thing. Some asshole was turning his entire life upside down. When he got out of this and learned who this was, they’d wish they’d never been born.
“What else? I’m out of my home, can hardly run my business, someone is trying to ruin me and I’m being booked for murder. How much worse can it get?”
Sydney put everything away and pushed her briefcase aside.
“I have one more thing, and I’m going to ask you not to show any reaction to this at all.”
Dread slithered through him. What in hell could be worse than all this?
“Lay it on me. I’ll do my best not to kill someone. Oh, wait. That’s a bad joke.”
“Yes, and not funny. Okay, here it is. From this moment forward, no one except Taylor can know there has been anything personal between us. Period. We are just two people who know each other, and Arroyo has hired me to represent you. The times we are alone together we will be discussing this case. I’ll be taking your statement. Prepping you for trial, if there is one.”
For a moment Liam felt like laughing. This could just not be true.
“You’re kidding, right?”
She shook her head. “Not even a little. If the prosecutor or the media or even the person who delivers your mail knows about our personal relationship, everything I do will be colored by that. The prosecuting attorney will give interviews that I’m blind to your guilt because of our personal relationship and he’ll go after both of us in court. The media will flay us alive. And worse, if it goes to trial, no jury will be able to render an impartial verdict.”
“Well, shit.” He sat back in his chair, trying to swallow the bitter taste in his mouth. “When I get my hands on whoever this is—”
Sydney held up a hand. “We can discuss that when we’re out of here. Right now, I have things to take care of, first among them being to get you booked at once so we can get you in first appearance court tomorrow.”
“Will you be there?”
“Of course. Tonight I’m reaching out to Noah, who has access to better experts than I do. We need a team to dig into this, the way I don’t think those two detectives will. And I’ll confirm bail arrangements with Taylor.”
“Jesus, Syd.” He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them. “I feel like I fell down the rabbit hole.”
“I get that.”
“And I still don’t know who screwed with the Hoffman software.” He sat up straight. “Shit! I have to finish running that trace.”
He explained to her what was going on at SBD.
“The room is locked where the laptop is?”
“Yes. Only Rosalie and I have key cards for it. Eric had one, but the cops probably have it with his stuff.”
“When I get you out of here, we’ll send someone to fetch it. For now, just concentrate on staying calm.”
“I’ll do my best.”
While I’m locked up in jail for the night.
At that moment, there was a knock on the door and Callahan walked into the room.
“Time’s up, Miss Alfiore. We need to take your client to Orient Road booking.”
Liam’s stomach cramped at the words, but Sydney looked unruffled.
“Good.” She rose from her chair. “The sooner the better. I’m going to see about getting him on the head of the list for tomorrow morning’s first appearance calendar.”
“The prosecutor’s planning to ask for high bail,” he warned her.
“No problem.” She smiled at them. “We’ve got it covered.” Then she held out her hand for him to shake. “See you this time tomorrow, Liam. Don’t worry. I’ve got it under control.”
By the time they were through with the routine, Liam felt as if he’d been run over twice. He managed to blank his mind while they put him through the booking process and keep it that way while they took his personal possessions and his belt. Then they led him to a cell. Thank god Sydney had managed to get him one alone or he really would have lost his mind.
Somehow, he managed to choke down a little of the terrible dinner they brought him and nap on and off during the night, despite the noises from the other prisoners and a growing feeling of claustrophobia. Not to mention the fact he wanted a long, hot shower. By the time the morning rolled around, his personal discipline was seriously shattering.
When they brought him into court for his appearance, he breathed his first sigh of relief when he saw Sydney waiting for him. Everything about her shouted ‘professional high-priced attorney’, from the well-tailored suit to the carefully upswept French braid to her makeup still impeccable this late in the day. She whispered a few words of encouragement, told him not to say anything except ‘Not guilty’ and handled everything from there on with a minimum of fuss. The prosecutor looked ready to do battle, sure that when he asked for one million dollars bail, Liam would end up back in his cell. At least Liam got a little bit of pleasure at the shocked look on the prosecutor’s face when Sydney told them she was prepared to guarantee that amount.
Finally, he was processed out and Sydney led him out of the building to the garage where her car was parked. His eyes opened wider when he saw a Diamond Silver Mercedes Maybach. It comforted him to have an attorney representing him who could afford a six-figure car. People didn’t fork over that kind of money in legal fees to someone who didn’t produce for them.
He did his best to relax in the ultra-comfortable seat as they followed the exit signs down to the cashier and the exit. Sydney just waved a key card at the exit bar.
“I’m driving you to the condo,” she told him as they pulled out onto the street. “Jim Vega, your driver and bodyguard, is waiting for us there.”
Liam heard the word ‘bodyguard’ and flinched, hating that he was in a situation that required one. But Sydney said it so naturally Liam realized this was probably routine for her.
“Bodyguard? Really?”
“For your safety. I’m not taking any chances with my favorite client.”
“Favorite? Does that mean the no consorting rule is off the table?”
She sighed. “Sadly, no. We’ll just have to make up for lost time when this is over.”
“Which I sure hope is pretty damn soon. What happens next?”
“Now the prosecuting attorney will go to the grand journey, convince them he has enough evidence to charge you and you’ll be formally arraigned.”
Liam thought he might throw up.
“Arraigned? Evidence? What in hell could he possibly have?”
“I think they’re banking a whole lot on that dagger you keep on your desk. They tested the blood and it is Eric Braun’s. Plus, it fits the wounds in his body and yours are the only fingerprints on
it.”
“Fuck.” He rubbed his temples. “I keep hoping this is a bad dream and any minute I’ll wake up.”
“Would be nice, but that probably isn’t going to happen. That means we all have a lot of work to do.”
He frowned. “All who? Who else is working on this?”
She chuckled. “You mean besides my associate and others in my office?”
He blew out a breath. “Yeah. Sorry, Syd. I’m just…” He held up his hands in a helpless gesture. “So, then what? Jail again?” He scrubbed his hands over his face, as if he could wash away the whole situation. “Have you ever been inside that jail, Sydney?”
“Too many times. But there won’t be any cell,” she assured him. “They’ll continue your bail and we’ll get to come back here and begin plotting your defense.”
“My defense.” He snorted. “All I have is I didn’t do it.”
“I believe you.” She rested her hand on his arm. “That means we have to find out who did.”
“Oh, right. Just that easy, right? The cops are convinced it was me so they aren’t going to be looking elsewhere.”
“No, not that easy. But we have a plan of action.” She maneuvered the car through the snarl of downtown Tampa traffic. “Reinforcements have arrived.”
“Such as?”
“Noah Cantrell arrives this morning. As soon as he gets here, he’ll be on his way to Graham and Associates, the top security and investigative firm he and Taylor put together. He plans to rip apart the lives of every person who works for you.”
“Jesus, Syd.” He sat up straighter. “Is that necessary?”
She slid a quick glance at him. “You’re kidding, right? Think about it this way—everything revolves around Software By Design. Eric obviously found something and the wrong person learned about it. That’s why he’s dead. So, if it isn’t you, it has to be one of them.”
He swallowed the sudden taste of bile. “I think that’s what upsets me the most. That and the fact whoever this is doesn’t mind seeing me go to prison.”
“Right. Whenever you start to feel sorry for them, keep that thought in mind.”
Sydney turned at a traffic light and drove over the bridge to Harbor Island.
“I’m going to do my damnedest to make sure that happens.”
“Pretty fancy digs here,” Liam commented. They had stopped to go through the security that blocked off part of Harbor Island not open to the general public.
“Triple security,” she told him. “The partners chose to buy the condo here because you need codes for the gate, the parking and the building itself. We don’t want anyone getting access to you that isn’t on the approved list.”
And that’s when it hit home that it wasn’t just his business that was in danger, but his life. Who in the hell was doing this way and why?
He hadn’t paid lot of attention as they drove through this part of Harbor Island but now he realized they were at an underground garage. Sydney slipped her coded card into the reader and the electronic arm swung up to admit them.
“Couldn’t someone just slide in under the arm?”
“Not hardly. It’s rigged to set off a siren if that happens. Okay, here we are.”
They had pulled into a slot against the wall in the garage. He rubbed his face, trying to wake up his brain and his body.
A man in a dark T-shirt and jeans, wearing a shoulder harness with a handgun, was leaning against the wall by what Liam assumed was the elevator. When Sydney pulled into her parking space he pushed away from the wall and came forward.
“Liam Benedict,” she said, “meet Jim Vega. He’ll be glued to you until this is over. Jim, were you able to get what we needed?”
The man nodded and turned to Liam. “All the things from your townhouse are upstairs in the room you’ll be sleeping in. I also picked up your laptop along with some other things. Rosalie gave me some software at your office that Eric Braun was doing his best to parse, and I’ve got the laptop he was using. Your more-than-able assistant made me swear in blood I wouldn’t turn either of the computers on or take them anyplace but here.” He grinned at Liam. “I’ll bet that woman’s the one who really runs the business.”
“Sometimes I think so,” he admitted.
“Let’s go on upstairs.” Sydney punched the button to open the elevator door. “Liam, I’m pretty sure you’ll be comfortable here.”
As they stepped into the elevator, Liam was thinking the same thing. Except it wasn’t home, there was still someone on his ass and he had a murder charge hanging over his head.
He noticed that Sydney used a key card in a slot in the panel containing the floor number buttons.
“How does an average person get up to an apartment here?” he asked. “Or park their vehicle?”
“Parking for visitors and delivery people is out in front. A guard in the lobby checks their credentials and phones up to the resident to make sure it’s okay.”
“Hmmm,” was all he could think of to say.
Jim Vega kept respectfully quiet as the elevator zipped them up to the fourteenth floor in a silent glide. The doors opened with a soft whoosh! and Liam stepped out into a thickly carpeted hallway. Sydney led the parade down the hall to a heavy door with a discreet number by the knob and knocked twice. Then she opened it with the same coded key card and ushered Liam inside.
He stood in the foyer for a moment and blinked. There was nothing shabby about his townhouse, which had cost him in the high six figures, but as he looked around he understood what people meant by understated luxury. Everything quietly spoke of unlimited resources, including the million-dollar view of the Hillsborough River and beyond it the city of Tampa.
Now that they were safely away from the jail and the hearing, he had a desperate need to pull her into his arms and breathe her in. Two things stopped him. He remembered what she’d told him earlier about their personal relationship plus the presence of Jim Vega. It took every bit of his self-discipline just to stand there next to her and not lose himself in her. But when she turned and smiled at him, well, he knew that was just for him and he absorbed like water to a thirsty man.
She drew him into the living room. “I imagine you’d like to shower and change.”
No shit!
“Yeah, the hotter the better.”
“Let me show you your bedroom with the en suite bath. I took the liberty of putting all your things away for you. Hope that was okay.”
He managed a tired smile. “More than. Show me the way.”
The bedroom here was as large his own at home, tastefully furnished even down to the big wall-mounted television.”
“In case you want to watch in bed,” she teased.
He wanted to tell her there were other things he wanted to do in bed, preferably with her, but he had to respect the situation. Intellectually he knew she was right. But physically? He hoped this damn thing was over sooner rather than later. He closed the door after her when she left the room and headed into the bathroom, stripping off his clothes as he went. The water was hot and he stood under it for a long time, relishing its heat and the steady pounding of the spray. He had no idea how long he stood there, and he wondered if any stretch of time would be enough to wash away the stink and miasma of the Orient Road jail.
Well, if anyone could get him out of this, it would be Sydney. God, if he could just touch her in more than a casual way.
Forget it.
Stripped, he adjusted the water in the shower and stepped beneath the rain shower spray. He thought it probably should be ice cold, as hard as he was just from riding in the car with Sydney and knowing she was just steps away. Of course, he’d discovered just being in the same room with her could make him hard as a railroad spike. And being deprived of anything smacking of a personal relationship was putting a real strain on him. Yeah, he knew it was the smart thing to do, but fuck! It was just killing him.
Soaping up his right hand, he braced himself against the shower wall with his other hand and sl
owly began to stroke his throbbing cock.
Sydney was standing in the shower with him. He had just spent a long time teasing and tormenting her, bringing her to the edge of completion then forcing her to pull back. By the time he pinched her clit, hard, she was panting and her pulse was beating hard at the hollow of her throat. He’d discovered it was one if his favorite things to do, although with Sydney he’d discovered their relationship seemed to knock down any self-imposed boundaries they put up. Each time they were together, they pushed each other harder.
Tonight, he had made her wait a long time, until he knew her control was fraying. The pinch of her clit was his signal to her that he was going to tumble her over the edge. Kneeling between her luscious thighs, he squeezed her clit even harder and thrust two fingers deep inside her cunt.
Jesus!
She was soaked, her juices flowing so hard the scent of her musk surrounded them. She was so slick he was able to add a third finger to the first two, and he began that steady in-and-out rhythm that drove her to the peak. Harder and faster, pinching and tugging at her clit. She moaned, delicious little sounds that drifted from her mouth as he fucked her with his fingers and made his cock swell with need.
He felt the first flutters of her orgasm in the walls of her slick channel, pressing against his fingers, and he increased the speed of his thrusts.
“Come for me,” he urged her. “Come right now. Hard!”
As if his words tripped a hidden switch, the walls of her pussy clamped down on his fingers like a vise and began milking them. Grabbing them, as her walls spasmed again and again. She twisted her body, thrusting into his hands, tiny moans and cries streaming from her lips.
Then, at last, the spasms subsided, her body relaxed and the breathless sounds quieted. He eased his fingers from her and lifting his hand, licked each of his fingers with careful deliberation. Then he bent forward and placed his mouth on hers, slipping his tongue inside to share the traces of her flavor with her.
They stood there, limp, for a long moment, Sydney with a tiny smile curving her lips as her heart rate and breathing returned to normal.
He brushed another kiss over her mouth. “Let’s take a shower. I can’t wait to get my hands all over your slick body.”