Chapter 51
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
I stood in the doorway long after the SUVs disappeared down the gravel road that snaked through the trees. Eventually, they were gone, but I still couldn’t seem to convince my feet to move.
If I moved, this became real… if I walked back inside, Titus was really gone.
The morning breeze shifted around me, carrying the scent of roses and citrus through the gardens. A smell that once made me feel so peacefully happy and content.
Now? I felt nothing.
Three hours ago, I had been wrapped in his arms, and now he was sitting in the back of a federal vehicle, wearing handcuffs.
My throat tightened. What the fuck just happened?
I hated this. I hated every bit of it. Eventually, my legs gave out before my stubbornness did, and I walked back into the cottage. As I expected, the silence hit me the moment I stepped inside.
It was everywhere. The blankets remained tangled on the bed, the bathroom door stood open, and worse than all of that, his scent still lingered throughout the room.
Everywhere I looked, there was a feeling of emptiness I didn’t think this room could hold. Only a few short hours ago, this place was filled with love, laughter, and us making plans about what to eat for breakfast.
I sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the pillow where he’d slept. This was fucking insane, and I was really struggling to process it.
What the hell did this man do? Why the fuck were federal agents at our front door, arresting him first thing in the goddamn morning?
“Damn it, Titus.”
I had no idea how long I’d sat there before a sharp knock at the door made me jump.
I walked toward the door, opened it, and saw three men standing outside. The man in the center was impossible to miss. He was tall, with broad shoulders, dark hair, and gray eyes.
He wore a sharp black suit and looked more like an elite special forces officer than someone working as personal security.
His expression softened slightly when he saw me. “Ms. Veléz.”
I nodded.
“I’m Mr. Hawk’s head of security, Marcus Bosch.”
He extended his hand, and I shook it.
“We’re here on orders from Mr. Hawk.”
“Thank you,” was all I could manage.
Marcus motioned toward the two men beside him. “This is Luca Moretti.” The dark-haired man nodded respectfully. “And this is Ethan Cross.” The blond man did the same.
“We’ll be staying with you until Mr. Hawk returns.”
The words landed like a punch… until Mr. Hawk returns.
“I appreciate it,” I finally answered.
Marcus studied me and looked around the room behind me carefully, noticing that I hadn’t done anything to prepare to leave since Titus was hauled out of here like a newly captured fugitive.
“Allow us to help you retrieve your and Mr. Hawk’s belongings before we leave,” Marcus said, then the men walked into the cottage while I stepped aside for them.
I turned to follow but was stopped when another vehicle came around the curve of the road.
Marcus glanced toward it. “Are you expecting anyone?” Luca questioned.
“No.”
“It appears Mr. Mitchell and Mr. Monroe informed their wives about this,” Marcus said, instantly knowing who the Range Rover belonged to.
Thank God, I thought, needing to see a friendly, familiar face… something other than military-grade security and federal agents.
“Thank you,” I said, acknowledging Marcus before the men moved into the house.
“Jesus Christ, babe,” Avery said while she and Nat walked toward me.
I sniffed, removing the last traces of my earlier crying.
“Don’t you dare try to act tough with us,” Nat said, the first to reach me and embrace me. “My God, what a fucking situation.”
“Are you okay? After I heard what happened, I told Jim we were coming up here no matter what,” she said. “His security detail woke him up this morning with the news. I knew we needed to come once we found out the FBI was on their way.”
I returned the hug Avery offered. “I’m so glad you guys made the drive,” I said. “You didn’t have to, but it means so much to me.”
“You’re insane to think we wouldn’t, honey,” Nat said, her eyes roaming the inside and toward where Marcus had just approached.
“Ms. Veléz—”
“Holy shit,” Nat said, her eyes falling on the man. “Aren’t you a cold, sweet slice of watermelon on a hot Sunday afternoon?” she teased, then looked at me. “Lord knows, if Titus gets locked away, at least—”
“Nat!” Avery elbowed her friend in the arm. “I know this is out of the norm for you, but can you at least act like we’re in the middle of a shit show?”
“Right,” Nat eyed me. “Let’s get your shit packed up and get the hell out of here.”
The girls rushed past me as I turned to Marcus. “Sorry about her,” I cringed.
“It’s nice to see a smile on your face, ma’am,” Marcus said. “We have everything packed. If you prefer to drive with the ladies, we will bring the Jaguar back to its garage.”
“Yes, thank you.” I couldn’t imagine having to drive anywhere feeling the way I did now.
“We’ll be following behind,” he said. “As you may know, we are extremely good at remaining in the shadows and going unnoticed. We’ve accompanied you and Mr. Hawk on most of your outings together.
If you’ve only recently become aware of his security presence, then I’d say we’ve done our jobs well.
Moving forward, you can expect the same level of protection. ”
“No kidding,” I said. “You were following us at the beach?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “Unless Mr. Hawk insists we remain behind, we are with him.”
“You guys are really good, then,” I said.
“It’s what Mr. Hawk expects of his security detail,” Marcus said. “This may be the last you see of us after we return, but I will port my number to your phone for anything you may need.”
“Okay,” I said, nodding.
Jesus. Of course, Titus had his security detail in constant stealth mode. It was strange to know they’d have eyes on me, but relieving as well, since I really had no idea what the fuck was going on or why Titus was even in jail right now.
The moment I stepped off the elevator onto the executive floor of Mitchell and Associates, I realized something. The world might have been losing its mind over Titus, who had been all over the goddamn news since his arrest, but thank God Jim Mitchell wasn’t.
“I’m here to see Mr. Mitchell,” I informed his secretary, Brooke.
“He’s been expecting you,” she said. “Follow me.”
“That’s okay. I know where his office is, thanks,” I said, eager to get to Jim and see what the man knew.
I walked in and saw Jim behind his desk, reviewing a stack of documents, and Spencer sat in one of the leather chairs across from Jim, quietly reviewing a file.
“Good evening, Cat,” he said, standing and pointing to a leather chair next to Spencer. “Have a seat, and I’ll fill you in on what we know.”
“Do you know how he’s doing?” I asked, sitting in the chair.
“He’s okay,” Jim said.
“How are you, Cat?” Spencer asked.
“Um,” I looked at him with the disbelief I felt at the moment. “I think I’m just in shock.”
“Yeah, I believe that.” He smiled sympathetically. “Titus finally got his wish to be with you, and then the feds came for his sorry ass.”
I let out a soft laugh. “Yeah, I don’t think that was his ideal ending of our private getaway.”
Jim smirked. “Let’s hope we can get to the bottom of this quickly.”
“Do you have any idea if or when they’ll release him?”
“Not at the moment.” Jim folded his hands on his desk.
“Where are they holding him?”
“Federal detention in Los Angeles,” Jim answered.
“Have you seen him yet?”
Jim leaned back in his chair and shook his head. “No.”
“No?”
“Federal processing works differently than most people think. His attorneys have access to see him. Unfortunately, the rest of us do not.”
“Jesus,” I said.
“It’ll be at least seventy-two hours before we’re able to know anything directly from him,” Spencer said. “Colton and Wyatt aren’t even able to access him.”
I folded my arms across my chest. “What exactly are they accusing him of?”
Jim and Spencer exchanged a glance. The kind of exchange between men who had already discussed the answer a dozen times.
Jim rubbed his chin. “The government’s position is fairly straightforward. They believe Herbert Hawk created a network of shell companies and hidden ownership structures decades ago.”
I frowned. “Why?”
“Because there were assets he didn’t want connected directly to his name.”
Jim stood and walked toward the windows. “The current theory is that Herbert used those entities to quietly acquire assets linked to the Valdéz family without the family realizing he was behind the purchases.”
“I’m sorry… the Valdéz family?” I said, my stomach dropping. The family my mother had worked for was suddenly connected to Titus’s arrest? How the hell was this possible?
My mind briefly drifted to the conversation Titus and I had about how his family knew the Valdéz family, but I had no idea about the circumstances of their connection.
“Yes,” Jim nodded. “Titus made us aware a while back that your mother worked for them, so you know the family we are talking about, correct?”
“Yes, but Jesus, I’m shocked by this. They don’t seem like the kind of family that would be involved in something like this,” I said, trying to sort the facts in my head.
“So, wait. This was allegedly all done by Titus’s father…
and it happened decades ago, right?” The men nodded in unison.
“So, what made them bring all of this up now?”
“That’s one of our bigger questions, but it seems Christian and Lowell Jameston are responsible,” Jim responded.
“Fuck,” was all I could say. “Titus mentioned something about those men having a dark past.”
“It’s why Jim has had people watching Christian and his company from the inside,” Spencer said.
“Jim’s father, Howard, ran that family out of the West Coast years ago.
He made the Jameston name a laughing stock the first time they tried moving into this territory, so the fact that they’d try coming out here again was… suspicious.”
I rubbed my forehead. “So, I’m trying to follow here,” I said, my brain feeling like it was about to burst.