Chapter 32
Chapter thirty-two
Kate
Tristan didn’t spend the day with us.
He spent three.
Three amazing days that would be etched in my memory for the rest of time.
I’d laughed. I’d swooned. Then I’d laughed some more.
Especially when Millie and I insisted on watching an episode of our favorite BTS show.
It was an older one and pure chaos. The kind Millie and I couldn’t stop laughing at.
Not Tristan though. The man stared at the TV as if it would come to life and invade the world at any second.
It was hilarious and without a doubt one of my favorite moments.
Ranking high up there with the night Millie had asked Tristan to tuck her in. He’d read her favorite book she’d brought with and even dropped a goodnight kiss on Mochi’s head.
My heart had squeezed violently at the sight of them together. Even now, days later, on our way back to work, I still felt that tug in my chest, that band squeezing so tight it stole my breath.
“Everything okay?” Tristan’s voice drew me from my thoughts.
While I’d been reliving the past few days, he’d parked the car, cut the engine, and rounded the vehicle to my side. My door was open and his outstretched hand was in front of my face.
“I’m good.” I smiled at him. “Really good.”
His lips twitched, once, twice, before curving into the most wonderful smile. I forgot how to breathe. In all the time I’d known this man, I’d never seen him smile like that.
I liked it. I liked it a lot.
I told him so when I touched my palm to his and allowed him to help me out.
“It’s all you, baby.” Wrapping his arms around me, he held me to his chest and kissed my forehead. “You put it there. You and our little girl.”
Gosh, my head spun. He said all the right things, but he was running while I was still learning to walk. It scared me. He scared me. Or maybe it was my own feelings that scared me.
In my head, I understood things were moving fast. In my heart, though, it all felt so freaking right.
“Hey.” He smoothed his thumb over the crease between my brows. “Sure you’re okay?”
He didn’t need to know about the craziness going on inside my brain. So I pushed onto my toes and brought my lips to his. I’d intended for it to be a quick peck, but nothing was ever quick with Tristan.
His tongue swept into my mouth; teasing, tasting while those long fingers dug into my waist with unyielding pressure. A small whimper escaped my throat. He used the opportunity to deepen the kiss.
Delicious sensations rolled through my body, one after the other. Warmth spread through my veins like a damn wildfire. And he was just kissing me. To be fair, there was nothing just about the way this man devoured me so completely.
Not just physically.
His touch crept into every corner, bled through every pore. It tangled with my soul and sank into my bones.
“Hmm,” he breathed after I didn’t even know how long. “How does it keep getting better?” Not waiting for me to answer, he swiped his thumb over my swollen mouth. “I ruined your lipstick.”
My underwear too.
I started to tell him that when I realized we’d made out in the firm’s parking garage. Even though a quick glance around assured me we were the only ones there; we weren’t exactly out of sight.
There were cameras everywhere.
And a highly paid security team who kept a close eye on them.
Mortification flooded my veins faster than I could blink.
“We, uh, should probably head inside,” I said, hooking a thumb over my shoulder. I moved out of Tristan’s reach. One look at the heat still burning in his gaze, I knew it was the right thing to do.
I liked kissing him. A lot. But I was no exhibitionist. Was I?
He wasn’t stupid. I’d barely taken another step when his arm slipped around my waist.
Pressing into me from behind, he whispered low next to my ear, “Tell me something, baby.” Hot breath skittered across my skin.
Like it always did when this man touched me, my pulse sped up.
“Are you running away because the cameras freak you out? Or…” He tightened his hold, his rock-hard erection digging into my ass.
“You’re freaked out because the idea of someone watching us turns you on. ”
My gaze flicked to the cameras. I thought of someone sitting in the control room, eyes glued to the screen while Tristan slowly pulled my dress over my hips.
“I…” I licked my lips and pushed back against him. “I don’t know. Maybe the second one.”
A deep throaty groan rumbled from his chest. “Shit, baby.” His fingers dug deeper into my skin, so deep a sting of pain rippled through my body.
“When you know, when you’re absolutely sure, we’ll give them a show they’ll never forget.
In the meantime.” He jerked his head in the direction of the building.
“Let’s get to my office where we can be alone. ”
Four long, long hours later, we still hadn’t been alone. Turned out being away from work for three days led to a ton of piled up work. By lunch time, I was spent.
And in serious need of food.
Since Tristan wasn’t back from his meeting yet, and because I really didn’t want to eat alone in his office, I pushed away from my desk and headed to the break room. Unfortunately, it wasn’t empty.
“Kate.” Wendy looked me up and down. “Haven’t seen you in a while. How have you been?”
I didn’t care for her scrutinizing gaze tracking my every move as I made my way to the coffee machine.
Her eyes were still on me when I plopped a vanilla latte pod into its slot and slipped a mug under the spout.
I was about to ask her what the heck she was staring at when my phone buzzed to life.
One look at the screen and my heart went into overdrive.
“This is Kate,” I said, answering the call in a somewhat shaky voice.
“Miss Rivera. Maggie here from Serenity Medical Center.” Her tone was so serious, I was afraid to speak. Thankfully, I didn’t have to. “I’m calling about your test results.”
She went on to inform me of what they’d found in my blood. My stomach dropped.
Surely, I couldn’t have heard her right. “I’m sorry…what was that?”
Maggie, as patient as she was, slowly repeated herself. I shook my head. It made no freaking sense.
“A-are you sure?” I asked. There was no hiding the tremor in my voice. “There’s no chance the bloodwork got mixed up in the lab or something?”
“I’m sure,” she said. More words filtered through the line, but I couldn’t hear a thing. My head spun. Round and around it went as I desperately tried to make sense of this bomb she’d so casually dropped on me.
The phone I clutched to my ear clattered to the ground. I felt dizzy. Shooting my arm out, I grabbed hold of the counter to steady myself.
“Kate?” Wendy called. I heard her. I just couldn’t get my damn mouth to move to answer her. “Are you okay?”
“Kate?” This time it wasn’t Wendy’s voice saying my name filled with concern. It was Tristan.
An instant rush of relief soaked into my bones. Somehow this man always seemed to show up exactly when I needed him most. I released the counter to go to him, but he was already there. Arms banding around me, he pulled me into his embrace.
“Baby?” His fingers smoothed over my hair. “What’s going on?”
If I said it out loud, it would make it true. Pressing my lips into a thin line, I burrowed deeper into his chest instead.
He wasn’t having it. Stepping back, he cupped my chin, and with a firm grip, guided my gaze to his. “Words baby. I need your words.”
“The hospital called.” My voice sounded like I’d swallowed a handful of glass. Felt like it too. “They found poison in my blood. Poison.”
Tristan’s “What the fuck?” sounded at the same time as Wendy’s gasp. She was still there, which meant the entire office would know about the poisoning before the day was over.
“Who would do this?” I sobbed. “And why? Or how? Was it even someone? Maybe I ingested it by accident? Did I eat it? Drink it? Inhale it? Is it something in the apartment? Is Millie sick too?” I was spiraling again, one word rolling off my tongue faster than the other.
“Or was it takeout? Should I warn my sisters and parents. Or maybe it’s—”
“Kate.” Tristan cradled my cheeks between his hands. The warmth of his palms bled into my skin, bringing with it the calm I’d needed. Those dark eyes bored into mine. “Breathe, baby,” he said soft and low. “Just breathe. We’ll figure this out together.”
Following his guidance, I took a long drag of air to my lungs, held it there for three seconds before slowly releasing it through my nose. It took five of those slow, measured breaths for the jitteriness to leave my veins and my heart to find a steady rhythm.
“Let’s go back to when you first got sick,” Tristan said. “Does anything from that day stand out to you?”
How had it only been a handful of days ago? “Nothing,” I muttered. “I was here all morning and besides water, the bagel, and coffee you left on my desk, I didn’t drink or eat anything.”
The expression on his face sent a violent shiver down my spine. “I didn’t leave anything on your desk.”
A big ball of panic lodged in my throat. I swallowed it. “There’s been a bagel and coffee on my desk every day since the first time you brought me breakfast.” I shook my head. “It’s the same order too.”
He raked his fingers through his hair. The action mussed up the dark strands, leaving a few to flop over his forehead. He shook his head. Then again when he paced to the right.
“Everyday?”
“Yes.”
More pacing. “And it just appeared on your desk, or did someone hand it to you and claim it came from me.”
“It was on my desk. Tristan.” I grabbed his arm to stop him. “You’re freaking me out.”
His eyes softened. “I’m sorry, baby, but I think…” His Adam’s apple bobbed on a hard swallow. “Someone’s been watching you.”
“What?”
“And they had access to you every fucking day.” With a frustrated sigh, he parked his hands on his hips. “So, either they work here, or they have someone inside this building helping them.”
I was still processing his words when Wendy cleared her throat. Ugh, of course she didn’t leave. “I might be able to help.” Peeking around Tristan’s shoulder, she looked at me then turned her attention to him. “Julia’s the one who left the food on Kate’s desk.”
Julia? Why on earth would Lewis’s assistant want to poison me. It made zero sense.
This had to be a misunderstanding; it had to.
“She’s been seeing this guy,” she started. “The poor girl has been so starved for attention; she fell fast and hard.” Wendy rolled her eyes. “So hard. Which was why she didn’t even hesitate to take the food to Kate when he asked.”
An angry growl tore from Tristan’s lungs. His lips parted, but she held up her hand before he could spit out even one word.
“The guy’s just the middleman. He told Julia his friend has a crush on Kate and wanted to spoil her.”
My head hurt. Touching my fingers to my temples, I rubbed in slow circles.
“Where is she?” Tristan bellowed.
Wendy’s gaze darted to me before shifting to Tristan yet again. “She called in sick today. Instead of telling her boyfriend that Kate hadn’t come in the last few days, Julia kept the food.”
And essentially poisoned herself.
“We need to check on her.”
“Who’s Julia’s boyfriend?”
Tristan and I spoke at the same time.
The agitation in his tone mirrored the feeling in my limbs.
“I don’t know his name,” Wendy said, the apology in her voice clear as day. “But if he doesn’t know Julia’s sick, he might still be in the level one parking area.”
The words barely left her mouth when Tristan grabbed me by the wrist and bounded out of the room. We didn’t wait for the elevator, simply hurried down the fire escape instead.
“What are you going to do if he’s there?” I asked.
He gave me a quick glance over his shoulder. “Kill the motherfucker.”