An Eye For Illusion: A Private Investigator Romantic Suspense: (Dunn Security Group Book 2)

Chapter 19

Ipush my sunglasses higher on my nose and pull the scarf I have over my hair tighter. It isn’t lost on me that I most likely look like a crazy person and doing a terrible job of staying hidden.

Elliott just turned the corner of the sidewalk, going down an alleyway on the main strip. I hurry my steps to keep up with him, but not enough to risk him noticing me.

I blow out a frustrated breath. This is a lot harder than it looks in the movies. It’s way more stressful than I thought it would be, and I’ve only been trailing him for about an hour. How the hell does Colin do this for a living?

Despite my inability to understand his career choices, I’ve grown tired of waiting for Colin to come up with something to get me out of this dreadful arrangement. The day I spent picking out napkins, silverware, place settings, and all the other shit I couldn’t care less about reinforced that I need to hurry this along.

I realized back at our engagement party that Elliott will have just as much stake in my company as I do. That can’t happen. I needed to find a way to discredit him even then, but after he threatened me, all bets were off.

You don’t mess with my family and get away with it.

Every time I’m in Elliott’s presence, a gnawing sensation grows in my gut. It’s only grown stronger with every day that passes. I need to get to the bottom of what Elliott is up to. Not only for my own sanity but for my father’s. He’ll demand to know why the man he trusted to marry his daughter would betray us like he has.

It propels me forward, pushing me to seek the answers to the questions burning in my mind. I finally round the corner that Elliott just did, but I don’t immediately spot him.

I panic a little at the thought of having lost him. What a freaking PI I am!

“Whatcha doing there, Jade?”

I jump, narrowly avoiding a yelp. My head whips around, and I come face to face with the other bane of my existence.

Colin fucking Brooks. Ugh.

“What the hell are you doing?” I say without really thinking.

He raises an eyebrow in amusement. “What do you think I’m doing, Jade?”

I huff. “You know what I mean. Why are you sneaking up on me?”

A playful grin spreads across his face, and I nearly lose my footing with how distracting it is.

He shrugs one shoulder. “Thought it would be fun to see why the woman who hired me to spy on her fiancé is tailing said fiancé herself.”

“I’m not.”

“You are.”

I start to protest again but stop myself because I am, indeed, tailing my fiancé when I hired Colin to do it for me.

“I’m out here doing your job because you haven’t found anything useful for me.”

“Ha! I was right! Wait. Did you just tell me I suck at my job?” he replies with disbelief in his voice before laughing.

“What if I did?” I say with as much sass as I can infuse into my tone.

“I might be a little hurt and a lot offended.” Colin slaps his hand over his heart and cringes in feigned pain. “You wound me, my lady.”

I bark out a chuckle at his antics. “Who says my lady anymore?”

“Only true gentlemen,” he replies as he finally straightens to his full height.

I snicker. “Gentleman, my ass. Also, that’s payback for telling me I’m a terrible boss,” I gripe under my breath.

His face goes from playful to serious in a nanosecond. “About that... I want to apologize. I never meant to offend or hurt you, Jade. I meant it as a joke. I like ribbing you and giving you a hard time, and it came out so poorly I didn’t know how to recover. I’m truly sorry if my words hurt you.”

His apology feels sincere, but I don’t know how I feel about it. Part of me is still pretty pissed at him, and part of me has come to accept that maybe he’s right.

That doesn’t mean I have to like him, and it certainly doesn’t mean I have to forgive him.

He turns and grasps my arm gently, halting our progress. I can’t see Elliott, but when Colin’s eyes connect with mine, the worry that we’ll lose my bastard fiancé vanishes.

Colin’s eyes are warm, open, and sincere when he asks, “Do you forgive me?”

“I… Why does it matter?” I stop myself from saying no because I want to understand why he cares. What does it matter if I’m mad at him? He’s here to do a job. How I feel about him doesn’t matter one bit to the case.

“It matters because… Well, because I don’t want you mad at me.” He seems just as confused as I am about his answer.

“What I need from you is to find a way out of this marriage before it’s too late. Me being mad at you or not has no bearing on the outcome of this case. Only your capabilities do.”

He releases my arm and looks off into the distance for a moment. When his eyes come back to me, they’re no longer as warm or open. “You’re right. I’m sorry I overstepped. It won’t happen again, Ms. Foster.”

Now we are back to Ms. Foster, all pleasantries from before gone. It should make me happy that he firmly placed whatever the hell this is between us back into a strictly professional box, but it doesn’t make me happy at all.

It makes me sad.

“Moore went into that building three doors down. We need to hurry to catch up.” The reminder from Colin snaps me back into reality.

I came out here with a purpose, and I’m letting my attraction to a man who probably can’t stand me get in the way of finding answers. I never let myself get distracted like that, and there’s more at stake here than some stupid crush.

I don’t wait for him to take the lead as I march toward the door. Right before I pull the handle, I’m yanked back against a strong chest.

Colin leans down, his lips grazing my ear. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

I bristle at his tone. “I’m going in there to see what he’s up to!”

“What good is it going to do if you get caught following him, Jade?”

“Who says I’m going to get caught?”

Colin pulls me into the shadows along the side of the building. I can just see into the entranceway of the main lobby. A surprised grunt leaves my lips when I realize Elliott is standing just beyond the doors.

It took us so long to follow that I just assumed Elliott would be further into the building by now, but that assumption would have got me caught if Colin hadn’t pulled me back from opening the door.

Damn, that was close.

“You need to trust me. I’ll find your answers, and I’ll find them in time.”

I sigh when he releases me and puts a respectable amount of space between us. I instantly miss the warmth of his chest pressed against my back and the gentle but firm grip on my arm.

“I don’t trust easily, Mr. Brooks, and you’ve done little to earn it.” My verbal slap is as harsh as I meant it to be. Here this man is, asking for trust when he’s done nothing to earn it. Nothing to prove to me that he is worthy of it.

He looks hurt for a moment before he clears the expression. “That’s fair.”

That’s all he fucking says. He doesn’t promise to prove me wrong or do better. The man promises me nothing.

He turns and watches Elliott go further into the building before looking at me and asking, “You ready?”

Colin

Icaught Jade following Moore almost instantly but decided to watch and see what happened. For over an hour I watched her dart around corners or speed past cars trying to keep up with him.

She’s beautiful, smart, and a badass at her job, but a PI, she is not. The only reason she hasn’t been caught is because Moore seems to be preoccupied with something else. I found it funny as hell to watch, and I would’ve happily sat back and followed them both, but I was forced to intervene when Moore deviated from the schedule.

Something is different about today. He usually isn’t this singularly focused. In my line of work, that usually means the case is about to have a breakthrough. I’m pumped at the thought of finding something more concrete on this guy.

The thought of Jade actually marrying him has a red-hot burning sensation sizzling in my gut. I want to punch the sleazebag straight in the face.

We aren’t on the best side of town, and Jade sticks out like a sore thumb in her designer suit, jacket, and expensive—though sexy as hell—heels. I realized I needed to step in before she either got herself caught by Moore or worse, noticed by one of Vinny’s guys who I’m positive are still trailing Moore as well.

I look up at the sign on the building to figure out where the hell we are. St. James Place. That’s all it says, giving us no clue as to what awaits inside. This pit stop isn’t on the itinerary Jade gives me daily. Speaking of, I still haven’t figured out how she does it.

“How do you know his schedule down to the T every day?” I ask.

Her eyebrows scrunch together as she follows me to the front door of the building. We weren’t able to see much, or even which direction Moore went off to, so we’re going in blind here. This isn’t ideal. I would much rather not have to worry about Jade when going into the unknown.

I fucking know Moore is up to no good because he’s running with Vinny. I just need the proof. I have a few theories on what Moore is doing for Vinny.

With Moore’s position as a broker dealer, he rubs the shoulders of some very powerful people in the city and knows all the interworkings of their business deals and financials. It makes perfect sense why Jade thought the two of them would be a powerhouse in her business. That kind of reach is also a very useful tool for a man like Vinny.

For all I know, I’m walking into an ambush with Jade in tow. I don’t think Moore has any clue who I really am but letting my guard down in any capacity right now could get us both killed.

“I bribe his assistant with sweet treats and paid vacations. She loves me and will do just about anything for me. I knew I needed an ‘in’ right after my father…”

“Your father what?” I ask when she trails off. I’m more curious than I should be to understand why she’s so hell bent on getting out of this marriage.

It’s understandable she doesn’t want to marry him, but why not just tell her father how she feels? I’ve tossed that question around more than I’d like to admit. I’m here to do a job, not untangle whatever the hell is going on here.

“It’s complicated, Colin,” she says with an exasperated sigh. She crosses her arms over her chest and turns slightly away from me. That’s a clear indicator she won’t tell me a damn thing.

We won’t get anywhere if she isn’t willing to tell me any more than she has. I can’t say I blame her. I’m not exactly telling her everything I know yet, either. Mainly because what I know doesn’t connect enough dots to mean much…yet.

“We need to get out of here. Lurking outside the door runs the risk of us getting caught,” I say in a hushed tone.

“I’m his fiancé. He’ll hardly think anything of us bumping into each other. I’ll tell him you’re a client. He won’t think anything of it.”

I cut my eyes away from her. This is a piece of the puzzle she doesn’t know about yet. Neither of us know what could be on the other side of that door. St James Place is dimly lit outside, and from what I can see through the small pane of glass on the door, it’s dimly lit inside as well.

“What’s that look for? Has he caught you following him? Dammit, Colin, you didn’t tell me.”

She doesn’t trust me yet, or she wouldn’t be following the man she’s paying me to follow. The shitty part is that I can’t trust her either, obviously, because she’s following the man she hired me to follow without evening talking to me first.

“Pfft, hell no, he didn’t catch me. And I don’t want him to tonight either. Let’s move.” I gently grasp her elbow and lead her away from the building toward my car.

She doesn’t resist but mutters something under her breath about a “demanding asshole,” who I have to assume is me.

I parked in the building’s shadow, so I won’t be seen easily. Jade pulled up and parked like she owns the place. I roll my eyes. She has a lot to learn if she plans to take over my job.

I open the passenger door of my car and wait for her to climb inside. I don’t look her in the eyes before closing the door. I’m sure if looks could kill, I’d be a dead man by now. I walk around the front of the car, turning back toward the building entrance to make sure no one followed us. I slide into the driver’s seat and close the door gently.

“I want to know what’s going on,” she says curtly.

“Me too, Jade. That’s why we’re here.” I know that isn’t what she’s referring to.

She crosses her arms and stares at the spot ahead where we just left. Her pursed lips are plump and distracting. She’s trying to cause tension with the silent treatment, and it’s working. However, not in the way she wants.

Jade is a beautiful woman, captivating even. Her attitude is so damn frustrating. My feelings war inside me whenever she’s near. She’s incredibly challenging to deal with, but there’s always a fire burning below the surface to know her better.

“Whats the plan here?” she asks, finally breaking the silence in the small front of the car. I’ve been watching the building entrance closely, waiting for any sign of Moore.

“Now, we wait.”

“Wait, that’s it?” She squirms in the seat, blowing out a frustrated breath. “I’m not very good at waiting, in case you haven’t noticed.”

I chuckle. “Oh, I’ve noticed. Trust me. If it wasn’t you incessantly calling for an update that gave it away, it would’ve been you calling my boss behind my back to get me in trouble that clued me in. You, Jade Foster, are not a very patient person.”

Her eyes narrow. “Figures he’d rat me out.”

I shrug. “He may be my boss, but he’s also a close friend.”

I take my eyes off the doors to look over at Jade. To my surprise, she isn’t looking at the building but at me instead. Her eyes linger, not straying when mine find hers.

“Do you enjoy your job?” she asks suddenly, breaking a different kind of tension that was bubbling to the surface.

My hands itch to reach over and touch her soft skin again, to run my fingertips over the plump swell of her breasts that I can see past the silk camisole she has on.

My fist clinches and my jaw flexes. Jade takes note of the movements but says nothing as she waits for my answer.

“Yes, I love what I do.”

“Why?”

Her curiosity has warmth spreading in my chest. It seems like she truly cares about my answer.

I finally break eye contact, my gaze returning to the building’s entrance. Still no sign of Moore. I don’t normally tell people why I’ve always wanted to do this—what drove me to become a PI—but for some reason, I want to tell her.

“When I was a child, my father went on a business trip out of the country and never came home.”

I pause, my eyes darting over to hers quickly. Most of the time, people are surprised, then shocked, and finally, the pity sets in. I find surprise and then a deep sadness taking root in her eyes but no pity. For that, I’m thankful. I don’t think I could stand for her to look at me with pity.

“It’s okay. It was a long time ago. Because he was in another country, there was little the local police could do to help, and by the time we could get the FBI involved, it had been too long to come up with fresh leads. Eventually, my mother and paternal grandparents were able to raise enough money to hire their own private investigator to figure out what happened to him.”

“Did you ever find him?” she whispers, like she’s scared to hear the answer.

“Yes, but it wasn’t a happy ending.”

I don’t elaborate because there’s no need to. I may have been young when it happened, but it still cuts to this day. The pain and emptiness my mother felt only amplified the loss of my father. I wouldn’t wish that kind of loss on my worst enemy.

“Is the PI the one who found him?” she asks, sparing me from having to rehash the more gruesome details.

My father fought until his last breath. If it wasn’t for the PI, we wouldn’t have known Dad did everything in his power to survive, to try to come home to us.

“Yes, the PI gave us the answers we needed for closure. We wouldn’t have been able to lay Dad to rest. I’m eternally grateful to that man. Since then, all I ever wanted was to do that for other families, to give them the answers they seek.”

“Oh, Colin.”

“Don’t feel sorry for me. I may have gotten a shit deal where my father is concerned, but I won the lottery with my mom. I was loved and well cared for even though her world fell apart.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t be pissed, sad, or a little fucked up because of it. I should know.” Her eyes finally leave me as they stare out at the street. Her shoulders stiffen like she’s trying to hold herself together.

I know her mother died when she was young, and her father struggled with that loss. I assume it’s why she struggles to tell her father she doesn’t want to marry Moore.

“You don’t think he would understand?” I want her to open up to me.

She shrugs. “Even if he did, it would still ruin our reputation within our circle and sever one of the few ties he’s managed to make since Mom died. He only has Elliott and me. I can’t stand to break his heart without a damn good reason.”

“You said something earlier about a deal. What deal?” If she’s talking, I sure as hell want to get answers to the questions I’ve been dying to ask.

As soon as I ask the question though, Jade’s whole demeanor changes. “It doesn’t matter. What I need from you doesn’t change.”

So much for getting those answers. I thought opening up to her might help her reciprocate, but I was wrong.

We’re right back to business.