He was almost certain she had no idea how sexy her long, confident stride was. Some men—insecure morons—might be put off by her take-no-prisoners competency and capability, but he liked it. A lot.
Enough. Get your head back in the game.
He made an exasperated noise, then leaned into the back seat to grab his briefcase and suit jacket.
“No strong winds, as promised,” Sierra said as he approached the helicopter. “Should be a nice boring flight home.”
“Having experienced the other kind, I am up for that,” he said.
“I’ll do my best.”
His phone rang as he climbed into the passenger cabin. He pulled it from his pocket and checked the screen, ready to send it to voice mail if it wasn’t important.
He frowned when he saw it was Mae. She’d indicated he shouldn’t expect to hear from him until sometime next week, and he braced himself for more bad news as he took the call.
“Garret. Are you in Helena or Marietta today?” she asked, not bothering with any of the usual polite niceties.
“Just about to take off for Marietta from Helena airport. Why?”
“Can you delay your departure?”
He glanced to the cockpit where Sierra was going through her preflight routine. He knew they only had a half-hour window before nightfall made it impossible for them to fly back to Marietta, but Mae was clearly keen to talk to him.
“I take it this isn’t something we can handle over the phone?”
“I’ve got a lot of detail I need to talk you through. I’d prefer to do it in person,” Mae said.
There was something about the careful away she worded her response that pushed his spider senses into the red zone.
“All right. I can head back into the city or come to you.”
“How about I come to your place?”
“Okay, sure.” He rattled off the lake house address. “It’ll take me twenty minutes to get there.”
“I need to finish up a few things here in the office so I might be half an hour or so. See you soon.”
She ended the call, and he registered for the first time that Sierra had twisted in her seat so she could see him instead of simply using the mirror.
“Everything okay?”
“We’re going to have to stay overnight,” he said. “Something urgent has come up.”
“Not a problem.”
“How long will it take you to put the helicopter away from the night?”
“Ten minutes, maybe fifteen. You go ahead if you need to, I’ll catch a cab.”
He checked his watch. “I can wait. Anything I can do to help?”
“Stay out of the way,” she said with a quick, cheeky smile.
He did as instructed, watching from the sidelines as she positioned the tow cart beneath the helicopter and maneuvered it smoothly into the hangar. Even as he was admiring her quiet skill, a part of his brain was fretting over Mae’s phone call, playing the what-if game.
He could feel his shoulders creeping higher and higher as he shuffled through potential scenarios, each more catastrophic than the last. One thing was absolutely certain—Mae was not rushing out to the lake house to tell him good news, which meant she must have found something damning.
It was what he was paying her for, but that didn’t make it any easier to face.
He rubbed the back of his neck, then made his way to the car. Tossing his suitcase into the back seat, he shed his suit jacket. Then he pulled his tie off as well. By the time he was closing the door Sierra was walking toward him, a small duffel bag over her shoulder.
“All tucked away for the night.”
“Sorry about the change of plans.”
“No biggie. It was my turn to cook dinner, so you actually did me a favor because I didn’t have a clue what I was going to make,” she said.
“What’s your specialty?” he asked as she settled into the passenger seat.
Her arm brushed his as she secured her seat belt, and it occurred to him that it was the first time he’d shared the close quarters of a car with her.
“I make a mean meatloaf, mostly because it’s my mom’s recipe and she was a genius in the kitchen. If I’m being honest, I’d have to class myself as a passable cook. Nothing fancy, but mostly it tastes like it’s meant to.”
“Now, there’s a marketing campaign just waiting to happen,” he said as he put the car into gear.
“Right? People would be unable to resist the siren’s call of that faint praise,” she said, her tone bone dry.
They both fell silent, the only sound the motor and the whir of the tires on the road.
“Would you mind if I make a quick call?” she asked.
“Go for it.”
He tried not to listen as she called home, letting whoever was on the other end know she’d be staying overnight in Helena again. She laughed a couple of times in response to whatever the other person was saying, and each time he glanced across at her, drawn to the sound.
Drawn to her.
So much for his grand plan to avoid overnight stays as much as possible. But it wasn’t as though there was much he could do about it this time.
A shiny red Mercedes coupe was waiting in the driveway when he arrived at the house. He parked in the garage, and by the time he and Sierra were heading for the front door Mae was waiting for them beneath the portico.
Sierra’s step faltered when she saw the other woman.
“Mae?” she asked, her voice high with surprise.
Belatedly he remembered the old connection between Mae and the Carmodys. Mae was looking surprised, too, a smile curving her mouth. “Sierra. How are you?”
“I’m good. I can’t believe this.” Sierra made a jerky motion with her arms, almost as though she wanted to hug Mae but wasn’t sure if the gesture would be welcome.
Mae solved the problem by stepping forward and kissing Sierra’s cheek.
“I always knew you’d wind up as tall as your brothers,” Mae said.
“They’re all still taller than me, but I got close,” Sierra said. “You look so good.”
She was openly appraising the other woman, and he remembered his own surprise when he’d first met with Mae during the week.
“Amazing what a good hairdresser and decent credit card limit can get you.” Mae shot a glance at him, her gaze curious. “How long have you two been together?”
“What? Oh, no,” Sierra said, and he could hear the embarrassment in her sharp laugh.
“Sierra’s a helicopter pilot. She shuttles me between Marietta and Helena,” he explained.
“Sorry. I just assumed, because you were here together . . .” Mae shook her head, embarrassed by her mistaken assumption.
Garret punched in the security code and unlocked the front door. “Come in,” he said.
He led the way inside, conscious of Mae taking in the grand scale of the foyer as she followed him. The sooner he could convince his parents to sell this place, the better.
“You guys obviously have business to discuss, so I’ll leave you to it,” Sierra said. “But before I do, I hear you’re getting married soon, Mae. Congratulations.”
Mae blinked. “Wow. I see the old Marietta whisper network is still alive and well.”
“I think you can blame Facebook for that one,” Sierra responded.
“Ah, right. Mom does like to post her whole life on there,” Mae said, her expression rueful. “Don’t know how many times I’ve tried to get her to adjust her privacy settings.”
Maybe it was Garret’s imagination, but it seemed to him that there was an undercurrent beneath their words, as though there was a whole world of unasked questions lurking beneath the surface of their conversation.
This time Sierra was the one who initiated a cheek kiss. “It was great to see you.”
“You too.”
Sierra slipped away then, shoulders very straight as she strode toward the kitchen.
“Study is this way,” Garret said, gesturing to his left.
&nbs
p; Mae gave him a distracted nod, following him up the hall. He didn’t know her very well, but his gut told him she’d been thrown by the encounter with Sierra.
“All good?” he asked as he waved her into one of the leather chairs in front of the fireplace.
“Yes. Sorry. It’s just I haven’t seen Sierra for years. She was just a kid back then.” She smoothed her hands down her skirt. It was the first time in any of his interactions with her that she’d seemed anything less than coolly professional.
“Can I get you a drink?”
“No, I’m okay. Thank you. I’m really sorry for springing this on you at the last minute, but I figured this was something you’d want to know.”
Garret braced himself. “I take it you’ve found some anomalies.”
Mae surprised him by shaking her head. “I’m still working my way through the records. This isn’t about the slush fund. I didn’t want to get into it on the phone, just in case there’s an issue.”
He frowned. “What kind of an issue?”
Her gaze held his, steady and serious. “This may or may not be something we need to worry about, but I had coffee with an old friend from college this afternoon. He works for the DA, and he mentioned he’s been working on a big commercial bribery case in the transport industry.”
Chapter Twelve
He was glad he was sitting down, because his legs suddenly felt as heavy as lead.
“Commercial bribery?”
“Look, this may not be about Tate Transport. There are three major transport companies in the state. It could be any one of them. Or even smaller players.”
“But we already know my father and Ron were up to something,” Garret said. “What are the odds?”
Mae didn’t say anything, her expression grave.
Fuck.
He shot to his feet and went to the sideboard, yanking open the cupboard that held his father’s liquor supply. He sloshed whiskey into two glasses with a visibly shaking hand and took one of them back to Mae. Then he knocked his back in one big swallow, welcoming the sharp, almost painful burn at the back of his throat.
Mae watched him, her mouth an unhappy straight line. “Are you okay?”
“Yep.” He resumed his seat, trying to triage his panicky thoughts. “What do I do? How do I get ahead of this?”
Because surely that was the most important question. For now.
“You’re already doing it. We follow the money, find out the scope of what we’re up against. We create a paper trail that shows you are doing everything in your power to come to grips with a situation that was not of your making. And we cross our fingers and hope that my friend was talking about another transport company.”
“What if it’s us? What if it’s us, and you find evidence that Tate Transport has been involved in commercial bribery? What are the likely charges?”
“Montana didn’t even have legislation covering commercial bribery until last year. And I’m no lawyer.”
“But?”
Mae licked her lips, clearly not enjoying being the bearer of bad news. “If the bribe value is higher than a thousand dollars, jail time is on the cards. Up to five years. And there are fines, up to fifty thousand dollars per offense. Also, there’s precedent for anyone harmed by the bribery to file a civil suit. Your competitors, that sort of thing. Given you weren’t an officer of the company at the time these offenses occurred, it’s unlikely they’d come after you for any of this, but Ron and your father will definitely be in the line of fire. My best advice is that you retain a lawyer to make some discreet inquiries on your behalf. Someone outside of the business, given our current suspicions. In the same way that you brought me in, it’s good to start with a clean slate.”
Garret thought of the string of email exchanges he’d flagged over the weekend. Ten companies had been referenced. If he was right on every count . . . Tate Transport was in big trouble and his father and Ron were in worse trouble. The kind that ended with wearing a bright orange jumpsuit. “Can you recommend a good law firm? Someone you’ve worked with and trust?”
“I’ll forward you some names. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Mae said. “Like I said, this may be a completely false alarm.”
“I can’t afford to operate on that principle,” Garret said, his mind suddenly crystal-sharp and clear. “I need you to move faster. I need to know what I’m dealing with, how exposed we are. What’s it going to take to get you working on our issues full-time?”
“Funny you should ask that. I’ve already reached out to a colleague and asked if she has the capacity to take over my other clients. Most of them are cases that are winding down now, anyway, and she’s indicated she’d be happy to take over for me. I’ll hand everything off to her next tomorrow and then me and my team are all yours.”
“Good. Thank you. I appreciate you going the extra mile.”
Mae’s professional mask slipped as she eyed him with compassion. “Garret, you have been handed a flaming paper bag full of crap. I just hope I can help you put the fire out without everyone getting shit all over them.”
Garret smiled grimly at her analogy. “You and me both.”
She pushed to her feet. “I’ll call you tomorrow, but I’d like to suggest that maybe it’s time to come out of stealth mode on this and go nuclear. That means giving my team an office and access to anything and everyone, along with letting your staff know that anyone on my team is god as far as they’re concerned for the duration.”
“Done. I’ll get Mandy to sort out a space for you first thing.”
Ron’s office was empty—it seemed appropriate that Mae set up camp in there.
“Also, you’ve mentioned your coffee machine business in Seattle a few times. Can I assume you’re still a partner?” Mae asked.
Garret blinked, surprised by the question. “I am. It’s all on hold until I find my feet, but as of today I’m still an equal partner.”
“Might be time to think about how this might affect that business if things blow up.”
Garret nodded. Jesus, yet another angle to consider. “Good thought, thanks.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow as soon as I’ve finished handing over my clients,” Mae said.
He stood to escort her back to the front door. “I hope this didn’t mess up your plans for the evening.”
“Nope. Sam is in California right now at a conference, so it’s Netflix and pizza for me.”
Garret opened the door for her. “Sounds good.”
Mae hesitated on the threshold. “Would you mind if I had a quick word with Sierra before I go?”
“Of course.” Garret was so preoccupied, it took him a moment to shift gears. “She’s, uh, probably in the kitchen or her room.”
He led the way to the kitchen, but there was no sign of Sierra.
“Her room is this way. He stopped at the foot of the stairs in the modern wing of the house. “She’s in one of the bedrooms off the landing.”
“Thanks. And don’t worry too much, okay? We can get on top of this. Some of these investigations take months. With a bit of luck, we’ll have scoped out your vulnerabilities and come up with a game plan well before the DA makes a move. If she even does.”
Garret really, really wanted to take her assurance at face value, but nothing in his life had felt lucky lately.
“Did your friend say how long he’d been working on the commercial bribery investigation?”
Mae’s expression clouded. “No. Sorry.”
Garret nodded, then took a step backward. “See you tomorrow.”
He headed down the hallway, his chest tight, his gut an acid bath.
What a mess. What a stinking, rancid, colossal mess. No doubt his father had justified his and Ron’s actions over the years, characterizing any kickbacks they’d paid as the cost of doing business, the price of getting ahead and being the best. And for a long time, it had paid off and they’d reaped the benefits—Tate Transport was a multimillion-dollar operation. Both his father and Ron h
ad lived very comfortable lives as a result of its success. A thousand people put food on their families’ tables and paid their mortgages because of what Gideon and Ron had built.
And now there was a good chance it was all going to come tumbling down.
By the time he was entering the study again he was so angry he wanted to smash something. He stood in the middle of the book-lined space, vibrating with a potent mix of rage and shame.
Then, just as quickly as it had swept over him, his anger drained away and he dropped into a chair, gutted and shaken.
Please let Mae be wrong.
Because he had no idea if he was equipped to handle what might happen if she wasn’t.
*
Sierra was doing some yoga in her room, still processing running into Mae after all these years, when a tentative tap sounded on her door.
“It’s open,” she called.
The door swung open, revealing Mae standing there, looking uncertain.
“Hi,” Sierra said, getting up off the floor and dusting off her backside.
“Sorry to interrupt. I just felt like . . . It’s been so long. I wanted to catch up a little. If that’s okay?” Mae asked.
“Of course. I was thinking the same thing. Come in.” She’d changed into leggings and a tank top when she’d come up to her room and she scooped her discarded work clothes off the chair in the corner. “Grab a seat. Or we could go down to the kitchen?”
“This is fine,” Mae said, sitting in the chair.
She looked so polished, so chic with her perfect hair and tailored suit, Sierra couldn’t help but smile and shake her head. “You know, I think I would have walked past you on the street,” she admitted. “You look so different.”
“I would have recognized you. Those Carmody eyes are pretty hard to miss,” Mae said. “And I always knew you’d grow up to be stunning.”
Sierra made a rude noise. “Hardly.”
“You can be modest all you like, it doesn’t change reality,” Mae said. She crossed one smooth leg over the other and Sierra noted the flash of red on the soles of her shoes.
Even living in small-town Montana, Sierra knew that meant they were Louboutins.
“So what do you do now? I know you were studying business at college,” Sierra asked, genuinely interested in the path her brother’s ex had taken.
More Than a Cowboy (The Carmody Brothers Book 3) Page 15