Chapter 35 Kate
KATE
“Holy shit, this place is swanky.”
Mel came over to stay with me since I’m basically on house arrest until the FBI questions me. Luke said I’m safe, but he wants me to stay put while under Jackson’s protection until he gets back.
“Thank you so much for bringing Speckles.” I pick him up out of the glass aquarium while Mel wanders through Luke’s penthouse. “I’ve missed you so much, my little green squish.”
“Why do you call him that? He’s the opposite of squishy.”
“How have you been? I’m sorry I’ve been MIA.”
She gapes at me as we both find a seat on a plush white leather sofa.
“Umm, yeah, you’re like a Bond girl. How did such a bizarre sequence of events happen to someone who likes to draw cartoons, has exactly zero adventure bones in her body, and had to be talked into the one hookup of her life?
” She smirks at me, shaking her newly colored hair.
Deep violet roots fading into pale blonde might be my favorite look on her so far.
I shrug, petting Speckles’s head. “It’s been . . . a whirlwind. I could use a few mundane, boring days.”
Mel flashes a pretty smile, nodding. “My friend Lacey is opening a spa called La Bella Vita. We should go for a whole day and get pampered. Your new boy toy can foot the bill.”
Jackson enters the living area with one AirPod in his ear. He studies my purple-headed guest before turning to me. “FBI wants to schedule an interview. You good with tomorrow?”
“Yeah, I guess. Have you talked to Luke?”
He called me this morning, but he told me he wouldn’t be keeping his phone on him while talking to Fallon in case there were digital ears listening in.
Jackson shakes his head. “He’ll let us know when he’s headed back.”
He seems to be at ease with Luke’s absence, which helps me relax. After our brush with death, I hate for him to be gone. The fact that I’m so concerned for the safety of an ex-Navy SEAL, who’s clearly capable of taking care of himself, is . . . unnerving.
“So . . . this is the guy who broke into my apartment,” Mel says, curiously eyeing Jackson.
“What?” I ask.
Jackson is staring at her as he speaks to me. “I was there, looking for evidence left behind by the guy who attacked you. She came after me with a stiletto.”
“I thought you were stealing from me! My place was a wreck!”
“I’m sorry, Mel. With everything going on, I completely forgot to tell you . . . the second impromptu trip I went on with Luke was actually after the first attack. It was terrifying. Someone was waiting in your apartment for me and—”
“I was there to find out who it was until you came home unexpectedly. I figured he had planted listening devices, so I couldn’t tell you the truth.” Jackson explains.
She huffs, and I rush to explain, “I’m so sorry! Jackson watched over you the next few days to make sure he didn’t come back. They were after me because of Luke, so you weren’t in danger.”
Mel’s eyes drop to my wrists, where the zip ties did a number on me.
Her face is unreadable for a moment before she blinks, looking away.
“I’m just . . . reeling from this new you.
You were always the responsible one, telling me to drink water and take my vitamins.
Now, you’re . . . living life on the edge with mysterious injuries and a boyfriend who’s—”
“He is not my boyfriend.”
“Then, what is he? And don’t say your boss because no one I know sleeps over at their boss’s penthouse!”
I cross my arms, looking away before responding, “He set me up in the guest room. I’m here for . . . safety reasons.” I swallow over the lump in my throat. I guess it’s time to tell her Nikolai isn’t coming back from visiting his sick uncle. “I have to tell you something, Mel.”
Jackson seems to take my statement as his cue to leave, pivoting to walk toward the kitchen.
She turns her face up, eyes lighting up in anticipation. She doesn’t even realize this is bad news.
Rip the Band-Aid off.
“Nikolai is . . . he was one of the bad guys. He’d been spying on Luke at the bar . . . used you and me to get to him, and . . . I’m so, so sorry you were a part of his plans. He’s . . . dead now.”
Her eyes are wide, her mouth dropping open. She stares at me without blinking for a few seconds before slowly recovering. Her gaze dips down to study the plush rug at her feet. “What are you . . . I don’t understand . . .”
I scoot closer, reaching for her hands. “I guess he was bartending at Divine Taste to study Luke. He met us and decided to use our connection to him to get me the job at Bradshaw Enterprises, so he could spy on him. He hacked my laptop, among other things. I can’t tell you more than that . . . I’m really sorry.”
She struggles to respond, opening and closing her mouth as tears begin to drip from her eyes. I pull her into a tight hug.
“I . . . really liked him.”
“I know you did, babe. I can’t tell you how sorry I am. He was a jerk, a liar, and a total prick. I’m sorry you had to go through that. I’m—”
“You’re sorry? He tried to kill you. I’m freaking sorry I—” Her voice cracks. “I knew it was weird that I hadn’t heard from him. I was sad, thinking maybe he ghosted me.”
I hug her tighter, both of our eyes watering. We stay in that position, sniffling and crying for a few minutes before finally pulling away. Mascara is running down our cheeks, and our eyes are red.
“Where’s that hot bald guy?” She’s still sniffling, wiping her eyes.
“Uh, he’s probably in the gym. What can I get for you?”
I’m devastated for my friend. She didn’t deserve to be used this way for the ulterior motives of a killer.
She shrugs, attempting to dry her eyes with the hem of her shirt.
I get up to grab a box of tissues, walking back over to her with them. “I have wine?”
“Ugh, yes, please.”
It’s barely ten a.m. in Texas, but it’s five o’clock somewhere.
I’m belting out the last verse of a Blink-182 song when my phone starts to ring. Mel is dancing on the coffee table, using the remote as a microphone. The sunset is shining through the wall of windows in the spacious living area of Luke’s penthouse.
His name flashes across my caller ID, and a burst of giddiness courses through me.
“Oh my gosh, it’s him. He’s calling.” My words are a little slurred, but Mel turns to me with a megawatt smile.
“Answer it! Speakerphone!”
“Turn the music down.”
She has the remote and takes forever to find the Mute button. I swipe the green circle over on my touch screen.
“Hey, sexy boss man.” I clamp my hand over my mouth as soon as the words are out.
Mel isn’t as good at controlling her laughter, letting a snort out that almost sounds like a fart. I stand up to get farther away from her, swaying on my feet for a split second.
“Hey, gorgeous assistant . . . what are you doing?” His voice is deep and attractive, as usual.
“Missing my hot boss and drinking wine with my bestie and Speckles at his penthouse.”
“Is Speckles drinking wine?”
“Of course he is.”
“It’s too bad your boss can’t be there to pour it for you.”
“I know, right? He might take advantage of my state of intoxication if he were.”
“Hmm . . . that’s certainly a possibility.”
I giggle as I close the door to his bedroom, flopping myself on the enormous bed. “When will you be back?”
He sighs on the other line, and my stomach drops. I know he’s going to tell me something I don’t want to hear.
“I’ve got to make another trip . . . I don’t know if this line is secure, so I can’t tell you where. I’ll try to be back as soon as I can.”
I try not to let the disappointment get to me, but the sinking feeling in my chest is hard to ignore. He’s flirting with me over the phone, but is this going somewhere?
Am I the assistant he’s going to toss to the side when the wife material comes along?
“What is this?” I blurt out, clamping my hand over my mouth once again.
Where’s the aloof-Kate mask you’re supposed to be wearing?
“This . . . as in . . .”
“You know, this . . . us.”
I’m met with deafening silence on the other line.
My breathing halts as I realize what a fool I am for thinking “this” was anything to him other than a quick fling. My eyes take in the elaborate bedroom I’m in, my fingers grazing over the silk comforter.
He’s beyond out of your league.
“Kate—”
I interrupt, “You know, I should go check on Mel. She’s upset about Nikolai, and we’ve been drinking so—”
“Kate, I want to talk about this when I know we have privacy, okay?”
I nod even though he can’t see me, a tear slipping down my cheek. “Sure, yeah, of course. Let’s talk when you get back. I gotta go now. Bye.”
I hang up the phone, unable to keep the line active and risk him hearing me cry. I’ve had too much wine, or I wouldn’t be feeling so emotional about his lack of willingness to commit to me and define our relationship.
“If you could’ve just played it cool,” I mumble to myself.
The door creaks open, and Mel stumbles in.
“Kate,” she whispers loudly.
“What?”
She jumps up on the bed, rolling over to me. “What did your saucy sugar daddy have to say?”
I stifle a laugh, still half-crying. “He’s not my sugar daddy.”
“If you so say so. What did he say?”
“He has another trip to make somewhere, but I think as soon as they let me out of here, I’m quitting.”
She leans up on her elbow. “Why on earth would you do that?”
“Why should I stay as his assistant? Once they get rid of the big, bad Russian guys, he won’t feel obligated to protect me anymore. I have no reason to keep being his personal assistant.”
Her mouth gapes open. “Okay, what about the great pay and your dad’s care facility? Or the fact that you’re clearly in love with him?”
I sit up, crossing my legs, choosing to ignore her last question. “I’m not even qualified for the job. I’m supposed to know, like, three languages. I think if he could fire me without fear of a sexual harassment case or a dead body on his hands, he would.”
Mel’s eyes narrow at me in concern and disbelief. “But—”
“This is ridiculous. I’m not the billionaire-marrying type. I don’t need all that money, and I certainly don’t need to be with someone who doesn’t want to be with me. After catching Stephen with Maddie, I realized that. I want to be an illustrator. I’m going to look for another job in design.”
She brushes a stray swatch of violet hair out of her eyes and grips my shoulders to make me face her.
“Listen to me, you’re a little tipsy. You’re missing him, and I think you should at least wait to quit and end it all until he gets back and you can talk in person.
He’s out there, trying to keep you safe from those bad guys, and at the very least, you should give him a chance to ask you out or tell you he doesn’t want to move forward .
. . whatever it is. Don’t make any rash decisions when you’ve had more than three glasses of wine. ”
She pulls me into a hug, patting my shoulder. I release the breath I didn’t know I had been holding. Maybe Mel is right.
“Maybe I’ll feel better in the morning.”
She pushes back from me, a smile on her face. “Yes, definitely. I really think he’s a good one. My judgment means nothing at this point, but I do think so. Movie? This guy had better have a popcorn machine in that fancy kitchen.”