The Fixer
Page 21
That snapped Wren out of his stillness. He shifted his weight and jumped back into the conversation. “She’s staying with me.”
Caroline smiled. “Well, that’s interesting.”
Wren smiled back. “I agree.”
“That’s enough of that.” She’d barely adjusted to the dating thing and the fact he agreed. The last thing Emery needed was to add matchmaking into the mix. “He was just dropping me off.”
He looked at her. “You promise that you will either call me or Keith if you leave this building? He and Stan are right outside.”
“I’m confused.” Caroline leaned against the first of a long row of file cabinets lined up behind her desk. “Who are all these people you’re talking about?”
Emery waved the question away, hoping to put off the ones that would follow as well. “Never mind.”
“Bodyguards,” Wren said at the same time.
Caroline stood up straight again as the corners of her mouth fell. “Emery?”
“He thinks . . .” He cleared his throat and Emery immediately changed course before he could take over. “Fine. We both think the break-ins are tied to me digging around in Tiffany’s case in a more public way than usual.”
Caroline’s gaze flashed to Wren. “You think she’s in danger beyond a simple break-in?”
“Yes.”
That wasn’t going to make her life easier. Emery could just feel it. “He’s being cautious.”
She could almost imagine the safety lectures Caroline would hand down after this. She’d survived violence as a kid and was ruthless in protecting the people who worked for her—the staff and the band of volunteers. Caroline was especially protective of her and she never took that for granted.
Caroline watched Wren for a few more seconds then nodded. “Then we’ll all be cautious.”
“Thank you,” he said. “I can station some of my people here, if you like.”
“Do you do that sort of thing often?” Caroline asked.
He didn’t hesitate. “I do whatever needs to be done.”
She understood him, but that didn’t mean other people did, so Emery offered a translation. “He thinks that sort of statement is comforting.”
“If you have someone outside, I would like to talk to them, though I’m not sure how it will help. It’s an office building with many offices. A lot of people go in and out.” Caroline shook her head. “I’m not sure how anyone would track them all.”
“Keith is in the hall. His job is to stay by Emery’s side whenever I’m not around.”
That was news to her. Emery wasn’t sure she liked it or the thing where the two of them talked about her even though she was standing right there. “When did I agree to that?”
“You can argue about that later.” Caroline searched through a stack of messages on her desk then handed one to Emery. “Senator Dayton’s office called. She wants to talk to you.”
Normally Emery would think that was a good thing and meant something positive for one of her cases. This time, no. “About what?”
“Maybe she can help, or it’s possible she knows something,” Caroline said.
Emery looked at the number and showed it to Wren.
He nodded. “We can go over now.”
That sounded good in theory, but working around the senator’s schedule and time in the district could be tough. “She’s a busy woman. I doubt we can just pop in and expect to be seen.”
“I bet we can.” He took the note and tucked it in his jacket pocket. “You don’t need to roll your eyes at me.”
She couldn’t help it. He brought it out in her. “I’ll stop once you tone down the bossiness.”
Caroline laughed. “Well, it looks to me like you’re in good hands.”
More matchmaking. Great. “Don’t encourage him.”
“Too late.” He slipped his hand under her elbow. “I’m encouraged.”
Great.
CHAPTER 23
Wren read Garrett’s smartass text asking if he’d retired and then turned the sound off on the cell. But his second-in-command had a point. Work had taken a backseat to Emery. Not his usual priorities, but he didn’t regret being with her instead of in his desk chair.
He just didn’t expect to be in Senator Dayton’s office for the second time in less than two weeks. As a general rule he avoided politicians, even the very few he respected. Waiting in the senator’s quiet office while she finished with a phone call in the other room he could feel Emery’s anxiety. It bounced off her.
They sat only a few feet apart in the chairs set up in front of Sheila’s desk. Not on top of each other but close enough for him to pick up on her nervous energy. The fidgeting. The heavy sighing.
“You okay?” he asked.
Emery glared at him. “Promise me you’ll behave.”
He wasn’t sure when he became the issue. It’s not as if this was his first time in public. “I am a well-respected businessman, you know.”
“About that.” She shifted in her chair and the wood creaked beneath her. “How can that be when no one actually is supposed to know who you are?”
He chalked up the combative mood to her frustration of not knowing why she was there, but she was shooting the wrong messenger. “Your premise is wrong.”
She treated him to an eye roll. “Of course it is.”
He bit back a long exhale because the last thing this moment needed was more drama. “People know my name, or the name I want them to know.”
“That sentence is a mess.”
He was pretty sure he’d stepped right into one of those no-win scenarios. Not exactly a new sensation when dealing with Emery. “What’s the point of being considered reclusive and mysterious if you can’t limit the number of people who really know who you are?”
She leaned over the side of the chair, closing the gap between them. “And that question is ridiculous.”
“I see you two are still getting along.” The senator’s voice boomed through the quiet room as she walked in and circled around to her desk to face them.
Damn, he hadn’t even heard her open the door. He also hadn’t realized he was leaning in to meet Emery in the space between their two chairs until right that moment.
He stood up. “And good afternoon to you.”
“Hello.” Emery nodded as she stood up.
“Well, now.” The senator’s eyes narrowed as she looked back and forth from Emery to Wren. “Now that I see your faces I think you’re getting along just fine. Very fine.”
He didn’t know if women’s intuition was a real thing or not, but come on. “There’s no way you can tell that by looking at us.”
Emery cleared her throat and plastered on what looked like a fake smile. “You called and asked to see me?”
“Have a seat.” Sheila nodded to the chairs they just left. “Now.”
Emery’s smile fell. “That sounds bad.”
“It’s never good when she starts a conversation in that maternal tone.” Wren knew that from experience, like from the last time he stepped into this office.
“Don’t try to gang up on me.” The senator sat back in her big chair. “I can have you both arrested.”
As a tactic, intimidation didn’t really work on Wren. It took a lot to scare him—strangely, his feelings for Emery qualified—but this move didn’t. “Actually, you can’t.”
“Yes, Wren. You know people, but so do I.”
“I meant that I’m not aware of a senator’s ability to have people arrested.”
After a quick scowl at Wren, the senator turned her attention to Emery. “Your father called me.”
Emery’s head whipped back. “What?”
“He demanded to know who I hired to look into Tiffany’s case for you.”
“You’re the one paying Wren and his company?” Emery’s stunned expression didn’t ease. She looked pale and confused. The way she gripped the armrests of her chair suggested she was only a few seconds away from ripping the fragile furniture
apart.
Sheila shook her head. “Of course not.”
At least on this one point, he could offer some insight. “No one is paying me, which is not exactly information I want leaked to the public.”
Emery slowly turned until she faced him. “You afraid people might think you’re a good guy?”
Some of her color rushed back into her cheeks. Wren took that as a good sign. “I’m more concerned with other clients refusing to pay their bills. You should see what I charge.”
“Anyway.” Sheila tapped the end of her pen against her desk until she had everyone’s attention. “Your father called several times then came in and insisted on seeing me.”
That move sounded all too familiar to Wren. “Apparently that trait runs in the family.”
The senator talked right over him. “Normally, I would have had him escorted out, but I admit I was intrigued.”
“What did he say?” Emery asked.
“He’s convinced you’ve either been taken in by a con man or that an investigator will get your hopes up about Tiffany. Whichever one, he wanted the investigation stopped.” The senator scoffed. “I can only assume he thought I’d handle that with an act of Congress.”
Tracking down the senator, throwing his weight around. That all struck Wren as a lot of work and energy for Emery’s father to expend. He hadn’t gotten the impression that the man was particularly warm or loving, but then Wren didn’t know a hell of a lot about decent fathers.
“He said he would handle it.” The senator moved her chair closer to her desk. “He also mentioned a break-in and safety concerns. That’s why I wanted to see you. To make sure you were okay.”
Emery blinked a few times too many, as if she couldn’t deal with what she was hearing. “That’s impressive constituent service.”
“I doubt she makes this offer to every former Maryland resident.” Wren sensed Sheila appreciated how Emery had helped her in the past. He also got the impression that the senator just plain liked Emery. That he could understand, so he tried to ease her worries on this subject. “I’ve had my people take over Emery’s security.”
Emery made a strangled sound. “That sentence.”
He didn’t see the problem. “Was accurate.”
“You make me sound as if I’m in witness protection.”
He refused to argue about his word choice again. He looked at Sheila instead. “I’m assuming you didn’t give her father my name.”
“I know your rules, Wren.”
The comment didn’t exactly inspire confidence. “I’ll refrain from pointing out that you arranged a meeting between me and Emery without my prior consent and despite those very rules.”
Sheila’s eyebrow lifted. “That seems to have worked out fine for you.”
That’s what he liked about the senator. She was smart. In this case, too damn smart. He didn’t like that she could read him. Between her and Emery he’d soon have to hand in his misunderstood loner badge. “I’ve been looking into the case.”
“Your message said you figured out why your name was in her uncle’s file.” The senator tapped her fingertips together as she eyed him. “So, you can imagine I’m surprised to hear you’re still working on this.”
Emery snorted. “No, you weren’t.” When he stared at her, she shrugged. “What? She wasn’t. She knows you, which means she knew you would see this through. That’s who you are even though you seem desperate to hide that side of you.”
Yeah, he definitely needed to hand in that badge.
Sheila smiled. “She’s a good match for you.”
“Okay.” They’d gotten way off track. Wren rushed to shove them back on course. “What about her father?”
The senator’s mood sobered. “You’re going to need to talk with him, Emery. I can’t have him coming in here, acting as if I work solely for him and am here to do his bidding.”
Emery nodded. “I understand.”
“Frankly, he’s nothing like you,” the senator continued. “While I enjoy seeing you, that feeling of goodwill doesn’t extend to your family.”
“I’ll talk to him.”
Wren liked the theory, but he wondered about the execution. “What are you going to say?”
“I have absolutely no idea.” She stood up and smiled at the senator. “We’ll let you get back to work.”
“You’re sure you’re okay?” the senator asked. “The break-in has me concerned.”
“I’m handling it,” he said, because he was.
“What more could a woman want?” Emery gave a final small wave and walked toward the door.
She was out and in the reception area before he could catch her. He got a few steps before he heard footsteps behind him.
Sheila snagged the arm of his suit jacket. “Be careful.”
He glanced into the hall and figured they had about a minute before Emery came rushing in looking for him. He lowered his voice just in case. “I’m not going to let her get hurt.”
“I meant be careful with her or you’ll answer to me.”
Rather than be offended Wren took the comment in stride. He liked that someone was sticking up for Emery because it sounded as if her father had an odd way of doing so. “She’s pretty tough.”
“We all have our breaking point.” The senator tapped her finger against Wren’s chest. “Even you.”
“Wait, are you worried about her or me?”
She frowned. “Just don’t mess this up.”
Yeah, that was the plan.
Emery made it all the way to Wren’s kitchen before asking the question that had been buzzing in her head during the few hours of work she managed to put in today and the car ride back to his house. She dropped her purse on the oversized kitchen counter and turned around to face him. “What was the senator talking about to you in her office right before we left?”
Wren dropped his keys and wallet next to where her hand was braced beside her hip. Next came the tie. He loosened it and opened the top button on his shirt. Looked like he was stripping down after a long workday even though it was barely six. She guessed for him that almost qualified as a half day.
He frowned. “I honestly have no idea.”
From his confused expression she didn’t think he was hedging. Which meant the senator had said something personal. Something about dealing with people, and possibly feelings. Areas where Wren thought he came up short.
At first Emery agreed, but now she wasn’t so sure. A man who dropped his work to help a woman he didn’t know and guarded her, albeit a little too closely, but still because he genuinely worried about her, couldn’t be as cold and detached as he claimed to be. He insisted the Levi Upton side of him died years ago. But that reserve of patience and decency came from somewhere.
The way he presented his life, as a man who fixed things and stayed clear of people, only told part of the story. Then there was his friendship with Garrett, his relationships with both the senator and Detective Cryer. Most of the people who met him seemed to not only respect him but to want to stay in contact with him. She didn’t think that was just about keeping Wren close because he might be of use one day. That’s not how it was for her. Not by a long shot.
Their lives intersected. They knew some of the same people, were fighting for the same things. His soft spot for women in trouble might stem from his mother’s death, but Emery suspected it was really an indication that he was a good man. A brooding, moody, controlling one, but still good.
The only thing that scared her about him was how attached she’d become. How right it felt to walk into his house and dream about being in his bed. She didn’t normally find the commanding type attractive, but on him she had from the start. She could not fall for him . . . but that urge was getting harder to resist.
She watched him now as he moved around his kitchen. Got them both a bottle of water and checked the stove. That last part didn’t make much sense. So much about him was complex and out of reach. So much didn’t fit with the rest.
He snorted. “I’m not arguing with that assessment.”
Before he walked over to her, she saw the light on in the oven. Then she inhaled. Chicken and some spice. While she enjoyed eating it, cooking was well above her skill level. Still, rosemary? Something very familiar. “Why do I smell food?”
He nodded to the area behind her. “It’s in the oven. It’s on warm, so it can stay in awhile.”
It was interesting he thought that explained anything. She was still pretty confused. “Your house magically prepares food while you’re at work. If so, rich people are way luckier than I imagined.”
He smiled. “Mrs. Hayes.”
Apparently they were just saying random names now. Either that or she missed a very big piece of information about who else lived in the house. “Excuse me?”
“I have a woman who comes in and takes care of everything.”
He had a woman . . . “Including you.”
“If you’re asking if she cooks for me then yes.” He did not blink. “Her job requirements are limited to household things.”
She wasn’t sure what to ask next. She’d known he did well and had money. She didn’t know he had paying-people-to-tie-his-shoes money. “Does she live here?”
“No.”
“But she works for you?”
“A lot of people work for me.” His voice took on an edge.
She wasn’t exactly sure which question made his defenses rise, but one of them sure did. “It was a simple question.”
“It felt like a judgment.”
She had to admit that was fair. Living in the DC area she walked around with these stereotypes in her head about men in power. Men with lots of money. Men who lived in this ritzy neighborhood. He actually smashed all of her old theories to dust.
Despite that, she was still a little weirded out by the idea of a woman coming into the house and picking up after her once she was gone. The whole notion kind of made Emery feel like a secret or a trophy or something. She couldn’t really mentally nail down why it made her twitchy, but it did.