by Taylor Lee
Blake was visibly shaking when he reached across the table and grasped Skylar’s hand in his clammy grip. He squeezed her hand so tightly that Sky had to quell a pained squeal. “Skylar, I need your help. I…I had to talk to you. I’m in trouble. Please, please help me.”
Before she could answer, a cold voice sent her stomach into a double flip. “There you are, Blake. I understand that you weren’t feeling well.”
Skylar looked up to see a stony-faced Marion stomping toward their table. Another waiter in a white Philippe’s jacket was at her heels. Manzo and the new dark-haired, burly waiter moved in next to the table. Ignoring Skylar who had risen to her feet, the two waiters helped Blake to stand at Marion’s unspoken command.
At that moment a welcome voice intervened. “Good afternoon. I hope I’m not too late to join the party.”
Skylar gave a sigh of relief seeing Jude striding toward the table.
Seeing the tall, muscular man advancing on them, Marion’s expression hardened further. She tossed her head and sneered at him, “What are you doing here, Jude? Need to check up on your little charge, ensure that she isn’t in over her head?”
Jude pinned a narrow gaze on the clearly angry woman. He reached for Sky’s arm, then focused coolly on Marion. “One thing you should know about my partner, Marion, is that she is never in over her head.”
While Sky appreciated his terse comment and his supportive hand on her elbow, she was close to feeling out of control, particularly when she saw Blake staring at her, tears hovering in his eyes.
“Blake isn’t feeling well, Jude. I think it would be good for us to take him home.”
Marion’s voice was crisp, cold. “That won’t be necessary, Ms. Hughes. With Manzo and George, I am more than capable of seeing that Blake is cared for.”
When Jude’s frown darkened and he stepped next to Blake, his gaze narrowing further, Marion visibly backed down. She said in a conciliatory voice, “I appreciate your offer of help, Jude and Ms. Hughes, but we can take care of Blake.” Turning to the pale man next to her, she said in a solicitous voice, “Can’t we, dear?”
When Blake nodded and ducked his head, Marion met Sky’s concerned gaze. “Blake has been on a new medication, and it seems to have had an untoward effect. When we get him back to the Boutique, we will insist that Dr. Samuels examine him.”
Squeezing Blake’s hand, Marion said solicitously, “Come, dear. Let’s go over to the shop. You can rest there while we wait for the doctor.”
Focusing a steely-eyed gaze on Blake, Jude’s voice telegraphed his authority. “Blake, when you’re feeling better, Ms. Hughes and I have a number of questions for you. Please call when you’re ready to talk to us. We can stop by the Boutique or I can send a car to bring you to the precinct.”
Leaving that clear warning hovering between himself and the shaken man, Jude stepped back, allowing the two waiters, each holding one of Blake’s arms, to lead the man to the door.
Without a backward glance, the stiff set of her shoulders conveying her anger, Marion followed the trio out of the restaurant.
“What the hell was that about, Sky?”
Skylar leaned against him, surprised that her legs felt shaky. She hadn’t realized how tense she had been until she saw Jude loping toward them and was able to catch a deep breath. Remembering Blake’s frightened appeal, she didn’t hide her concern. “Something is wrong, Jude. Blake is sick, but it’s more than that. He is on some kind of medication, but unlikely that it’s prescription drugs like Marion claimed. Shortly after he arrived for lunch, he went to the men’s room claiming he didn’t feel well. When he didn’t return, I had to send one of the waiters to check on him. He couldn’t make it back to the table without Manzo’s help. Obviously, the waiter or the manager called Marion. She was here within minutes of him returning to the table.”
Sky sucked in a deep breath and appealed to Jude. “Blake is afraid. He told me so. He said he needed to talk to me, that he’s in trouble. I also don’t like the way that Marion miraculously appeared out of nowhere and hauled him off.”
“Hmm. Damn, Sky, we can’t arrest him. Obviously the guy was hopped up on something. Are you sure Marion wasn’t just concerned? It’s common knowledge that those three sisters hover over Blake like Horton the Elephant on his fucking egg. They always have.”
Skylar shoved aside the feeling of fire ants crawling up the back of her neck and reluctantly agreed. “You’re probably right Jude. Their weird solicitousness regarding him has been clear from the beginning. But I do want to talk with his physician to find out what medication he is on.”
Forcing herself to return to the issue that had been bedeviling her before she left to meet Blake, she met Jude’s concerned frown with one of her own. “I’ve been thinking about what the Larson, McClellan accountants told me this morning, Jude. I think we should drop in on Lars Larson.”
After hearing her out, Jude agreed. “God, yes, Squirt. Lars better don a protective cup. If your assessment is on target, and the last thing I’d ever do is question your instincts, that supercilious asshole is in trouble.”
***
At Lars Larson’s dismissive snort in response to Skylar’s probing question, Jude leaned back in his chair and shot the contemptuous man a steely glare. “I recommend you answer Ms. Hughes’s questions, Lars, unless you’d like to do so at the precinct. You may not know it, buddy, but if we prove that her suspicions are on target, you are in serious shit. In fact, you may want to consult a lawyer before you respond to her concerns.”
Fifteen minutes later, his condescending attitude long gone, the pale man shook his head and said in a plaintive voice, “As God is my witness, I never had access to what the Parker children called their personal accounts.”
“What were in those accounts, Lars?”
He shrugged. “Whatever the siblings decided.”
Skylar persisted. “Did their parents have access to the siblings’ personal accounts?”
Lars shook his head. “No, Hank agreed that their accounts were their own. The only person who had access to all of the siblings’ accounts was the current member on the Board.”
Jude asked the question both he and Sky already knew the answer to. “And that’s currently Marion?”
Lars nodded. “Yes, Marion currently represents all four siblings on the Parker Board of Directors.”
Chapter 24
“Jesus, Skylar. You weren’t kidding, were you? Damn, woman, I didn’t think I could get hard just looking at a car. Although I’m sure the fact that you’re standing next to this amazing piece of machinery is what has my dick banging at my zipper.”
His eyes sparkling with excitement, Jude ran his hand over the fender of the gleaming silver Ferrari Spider and winked at Skylar.
She returned his smile and held up the keys. “Would you like to drive it?”
Jude’s grin widened, then he frowned, pretending to consider. “Hmm, let me think about that. Let me put it this way. Assume I have the choice to drive the most extraordinary car I’ve ever seen, or confirm my place in heaven for eternity?” He shrugged dismissively. “Hell, it’s not even close! I’ve always been an immediate gratification kind of guy. Plus, with you in the passenger seat, I’d have heaven beat hands down!”
Rounding the car, Jude reached for her and murmured in her ear, “But darlin’, the most important consideration in my dilemma is our destination. Given what I plan to do with you and to you tonight, heaven comes in last in a three-prize contest. Second place is driving this souped-up jolt of testosterone. The winner, however, is most definitely the night I’m planning to have with you.”
Delighting in the flush that flamed her cheeks, he held out his hand. “Before you renege on your offer, I’ll take those keys.”
Skylar tossed her head and pressed her lips together. A mischievous twinkle lit her expressive eyes. “Hmm. Let me think about that. Are you saying that if I hand over these keys, I’m obligated to spend the night with you?”
At her startled jolt, Jude grinned and pinched her cheek. “One other obligation, Skylar. You are going to have a minimum of five orgasms tonight, and that’s not counting the ones you’ll have tomorrow morning. Oh, and as long as you behave yourself and do all of the nasty things I insist that you do, I will only have to spank you once…better make that twice. You do have a naughty streak.”
At her wide-eyed gasp, Jude added with a grin, “Now that we’re finished with the negotiations and have agreed to the itinerary for the night, your keys please, ma’am.”
Skylar wasn’t surprised at Jude’s effusive, almost childlike pleasure as he expertly guided the nimble Ferrari Spider over the winding back roads to their destination. She couldn’t help smiling at the pure joy in his eyes. Good God, if anyone should know how he felt, it was her.
She saw him looking at her and knew that she must have betrayed her feelings when he appealed to her.
“C’mon, Sky. I know I must look like a five-year-old kid who got his first Spiderman two-wheeler for Christmas. Can you imagine what it feels like to drive a car that I’ve lusted over for years but couldn’t imagine buying?”
“Hmm. You might be surprised at what I can imagine, Jude. I will never forget my father’s face when I drove this gorgeous automobile into the faculty parking lot at MIT to pick him up. Aghast is the only way to describe it when he realized it was me coming to a squealing stop in front of him. His expression was priceless. I thought he was going to refuse to get in the car. He was so horrified he only rode in it that one time.”
Jude chuckled. “Knowing how much this baby costs, I have to ask. Did he foot the bill for it?”
“Absolutely not! I entered a math contest—unbeknownst to my father—and I won. I used a fictitious name so the judges wouldn’t be swayed by the association of the great Morton Hughes. The sponsors were a bunch of dot-com yuppies looking for the next shiny new thing and person. One of the sponsors of the conference sweetened the deal and offered this car to the winner. It was the only reason I entered. As for my father’s reaction, he was more confounded by what he called my plebian taste then he was that I won a contest. He ordered me to never to drive my offensive status symbol to the faculty parking lot again. Of course, I did. As often as I could.”
Jude shot her an amused glance out of the corner of his eye. “You were quite a rebel weren’t you, Squirt?”
She shrugged dismissively. “To a point. On the unimportant things.”
“You call this three hundred thousand-dollar automobile an unimportant thing?”
“No, I love this car more than any material thing I’ve ever had. But except for my Ferrari and that Ana Sui dress I bought, I rebelled against my father with minor things. Like chopping off my old lady, faculty-approved pageboy hair for what my father calls my goth look, and eating doughnuts every day. Other than that, I pretty much stayed under the radar.”
Not wanting to break off her surprisingly personal revelations, Jude asked carefully, “And except when you moved here?”
Skylar smiled and said with a satisfied sigh, “Yes, except when I moved here.”
Jude steered the car down a steep road to a sprawling marina on the shore of Lake Superior. Panoplies of impressive boats were docked in the slips that stretched along the beach a good five hundred yards. Sky was taken aback. She hadn’t known they were heading for the lake. Jared and Hailey had invited her numerous times to join them on a boating excursion on the impressive Great Lake. Knowing the gorgeous people who likely would attend, and not wanting to join a troupe of swimsuit clad Sports Illustrated cover model wannabes, Sky had always begged off.
To underscore that her concerns had been on target, Jude asked as he carefully guided her car into a remote parking spot, “Tell me Squirt, did you happen to pack a swimsuit in your overnight bag?”
Nonplussed, Skylar stammered, “No…I didn’t. I didn’t know I would need one.”
“Oh yeah, sweetheart. I wanted to take you out on the most rebellious thing I’ve ever bought. My Sea Ray motor yacht. But don’t worry, baby. I’m sure I’ve got some extra suits stored on the boat.”
Knowing how many women had no doubt preceded her onto his boat and horrified at the idea of wearing one of their swim suits, Sky replied curtly, “That’s not necessary, Jude. Besides, I’m sure I don’t measure up to your other women passengers.”
He chuckled. “Hey, don’t sell yourself short, Squirt. We’ve had some teenagers aboard.” Seeing her shocked expression, Jude grabbed her and pulled her up close to him. “I’m kidding, Sky. Jesus, honey, the last thing I’d ever do is to expect you to wear someone else’s suit. I asked Hailey to throw a suit for you in your overnight bag.”
Making it clear that the damage was done, Skylar shoved his hand off her arm and refused to let him off the hook. Instead she said stiffly, “If you don’t mind, I’ll wear what I have on.”
“And if I do mind?”
She shrugged and took another step back. “I guess you should know now, Jude. You don’t always get what you want.”
His chuckle was forced. “Don’t be too sure of that, sweetheart.”
Glancing at her t-shirt and cargo pants, he added, “But since it’s going to be a little chilly when we’re going fifty miles an hour across the open water, I guess your protective armor is okay.”
When she turned away from him, Jude reached for her and pulled her up next to him. He held her chin forcing her to look at him. “Uh-uh, darlin’. You don’t get to let a very bad joke spoil what is going to be a fabulous evening. I’m sorry, Squirt. The last thing I wanted to do was insult you. Let me explain. You know how you feel about your Ferrari 485? Well, baby, that’s how I feel about the gorgeous piece of seagoing majesty that I call the Eliza Jayne—named after my mother. If you’ve never been aboard a forty-foot yacht that could travel the length of the Great Lakes without breathing hard, and has electricity, complete plumbing, and all the comforts of home, welcome to my rebellious extravaganza.”
He added with a grin, “Heck honey, if you’re good—or better yet, if you’re bad, I’ll let you mount the fly bridge and drive my version of your FF 485.”
Sky shut her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to get control of her ricocheting emotions. She knew he’d been teasing and she admitted that she was wound up tight. But dammit, his joke had sent a depth charge to her already frazzled nerves. She expelled a hard sigh and forced herself to meet Jude’s frowning scrutiny. “I’m sorry, Jude. I guess I’m on edge. A little nervous. I—”
He interrupted her. “It’s okay, baby. I’d tell you not to be nervous, but given what I have planned...”
He shot her a teasing smile so charming that Sky couldn’t help but smile back at him. Knowing how excited he must be about his boat, especially since he’d named it after his mother, she said gamely, “Okay, let’s see your seagoing phallic symbol.” She pursed her lips then said with a saucy lift of her chin, “I dunno Jude, given your Turbo Porsche and your forty-foot yacht, if I didn’t know better, I would accuse you of having a serious case of small-man syndrome.”
Jude laughed and pinched her cheek. “Ah, but you do know better, don’t you, Squirt?”
She said with a laugh, “Yes, Detective Justice, I most definitely know better.”
Several hours later, after one of the most exhilarating experiences of her life, Jude pulled into the marina and aimed his forty-foot yacht into its designated slip.
Sky was ecstatic. “Oh my God, Jude, that was so much fun. Do you realize I’ve never been on a yacht before? I’ve been on a cruise ship, but it was huge and filled with MIT faculty. I spent my days in the lounge reading, trying to disappear. But this…this gorgeous boat! It’s like going from zero to one hundred in sixty seconds in my Spider.” She added, “I love speed!”
Jude laughed and looked d
own at her with a grin. “Yeah, honey, I thought you might. It doesn’t take those shining eyes of yours to let me know I’ve got an adrenaline junkie on my hands. And, Skylar, I know what adrenaline does to men. From the look in your eyes, I’m thinking it might do the same thing to women. Make that woman. One very special, unique woman. You.”
***
On the way back to his cabin, Jude pulled into a weathered, ramshackle restaurant alongside the pier. It proudly proclaimed its genealogy with a simple claim, Clem’s Damn Good Fish.
“Don’t let appearances fool you, Sky. Until you’ve had Clem’s corn meal deep-fried walleye, you haven’t had fish. Add his curly fries and spicy slaw and you’ll be as close to heaven as two thousand calories from a deep fat fryer can get you. I hope you don’t mind, but I called ahead for a takeout order. I don’t want to share you with anyone tonight.”
Following Jude’s directions, Skylar made her way out to the deck of the stunning A-frame cabin. The sun was just beginning to sink into the lakeshore, painting the horizon with every shade of yellow, orange, and bright red that a sixty-four-count Crayola box could hold. Skylar knew she would never become accustomed to the extraordinary sunsets the Northern Woods put on nightly display. She didn’t know if it was because she’d spent so much of her life in a library or a vault deep office building buried in a computer screen, but it was as though she had never allowed herself to experience nature.
She sucked in an appreciative breath at the darkening sky that had added purple and magenta to its panoply of color, and acknowledged what lay ahead. Knowing what was most certainly on Jude’s agenda, she was stunned at the firestorm of sensations that flooded her core at the thought of the imposing, domineering man. God, she should be scared, uncertain, and she most definitely was—but she admitted that her overriding emotion was excitement.
After her third piece of deep fried fish and a second helping of curly fries, Sky leaned back in her chair, acknowledging how good she felt. The bottle of wine they’d consumed explained in part the uninhibited emotions flooding her. But she admitted the cause of the fluttering sensations tiptoeing across her belly was the muscular man sitting across from her leaning back in his chair, studying her through narrowed eyes.