Silver Lining, page 21
“You were staying in the big house.”
“Adam said Ricks and his men would be staying out here. I figured they didn’t need feminine hygiene supplies or my trusted insulated bottle.”
I shook my head. “I was coming out to see if there were any clothes that CJ could borrow.”
Kelsey shut the door. “No, it’s all cleaned out for Sherman’s men.”
“All three of them?” I asked, thinking the pool house wasn’t that large. It had one bedroom, a living room, and a kitchenette.
“I think they’re going to be taking turns.” She shrugged. “Adam’s in charge. Or at least he thinks he is.”
“Tomorrow, I want to be briefed on everything.”
Kelsey lifted her car keys. “I’ll go on that errand now. The gates are being monitored.”
“Okay.” I turned to go back inside as Kelsey took the sidewalk around the outside of the main house. The room where Kelsey had slept was in this lower level. Going to that bedroom, I searched the dresser drawers and closet. All her things were gone.
I couldn’t explain what felt wrong, but something did.
Going back outside, I looked from side to side before trying the pool house door. The knob didn’t budge. “Locked,” I muttered.
Though I rarely went out to it, I was most certain I had a key upstairs. Once back inside, I heard my name. Going up the stairs to the main level, I found CJ in the kitchen with a white towel around his hips. Stopping at the top step, I couldn’t hide my grin.
CJ’s wide chest was still tanned from Cancún with just the right amount of dark hair that trailed down his tight stomach, disappearing under the towel. His chin-length hair was damp and combed back.
“I should tell Kelsey to forget the shopping trip.”
“Are we alone?” he asked with a grin.
“If I say yes…”
“I can lose the towel.”
In two long strides he met me at the top of the stairs. Craning my neck upward, I took in the clean scent of my eucalyptus bodywash as I reached up, running my fingers through his wavy dark mane.
“I wanted to tell you something in person,” I confessed, “but now I’m scared.”
His hands came to my hips. “You’re not scared. You’re Lena Montgomery.”
With my hands on his shoulders, I shook my head. “I can be scared with you, CJ. I don’t want to be, but I can. It’s a gift.”
“I know it’s too soon and there’s a whole lot of shit happening, but I meant what I said. I love you.”
I nodded. “It’s way too soon, but since this could be my last day on this earth, I want you to know, I think I love you, too.”
Tipping his forehead to mine, CJ’s sexy smile grew, complete with the dimple I was loving. “Convenient. And no more talking about your last day.”
Our lips came together as I palmed his scratchy cheeks. He tasted like toothpaste. When our kiss ended, I grinned. “Did you use my toothbrush?”
“I think we had this discussion.”
Warmth filled my cheeks. “Your lips, my pussy. My lips, your cock.”
“That was the one.”
I turned toward the large kitchen. “I have more than turkey sandwiches.”
His smile quirked. “I was thinking about eating, just not food.”
Chapter Forty
Lena
Waking, I reached across the bed. The space was empty. My pulse kicked up as I sat and looked around the room, my eyes adjusting to the scant moonlight coming from beyond the windows.
“CJ?” I called.
My muscles tightened and my circulation thumped in my ears. Once out of bed, I checked the bathroom. Even without turning on the lights, I knew it was empty. Inside my closet, I found my long satin robe. Securing it around me, I went on a search. My first thought was that he was in the kitchen. Our dinner had been hours ago and admittedly, we’d burned more than a few calories since then.
The house was quiet and dark as I traversed the catwalk toward the back stairs. The two-story windows looked out on the back of the house. A bluish-green fog flashed through the black sky. There was no way to know when the aurora borealis will make its appearance. For a moment I stopped and waited for another wave. The color reminded me of the blue flames in CJ’s stare when he’s in the height of passion. The blue flame my mother had always said was a good omen. That was what CJ was, my blue flame, my silver lining.
Taking my eyes off the sky, I looked all the way down to the pool. My breath caught, spotting CJ outside. Wearing a pair of nylon shorts, he wasn’t alone. Squinting my eyes, it appeared he was speaking to Kelsey.
This was crazy. It was three in the morning.
Hurrying, I made my way down to the lower level. Opening the glass door, I called out, “What is happening?”
CJ shot me a look, one like I hadn’t seen before. He lifted his hand, and his tone was gruff. “Go back inside, Lena.”
I didn’t listen. “Kelsey?” I asked as I walked barefoot across the pool deck. It wasn’t until I was closer that I saw the gun in her hand. “What the hell?”
“Ms. Montgomery, go inside. Mr. Ricks is on his way.”
“Put the gun down,” I said, stepping in front of CJ. My progress was quickly stalled as CJ pushed me aside, stepping closer to Kelsey.
“There is no one coming, is there?” CJ asked.
“We have the evidence,” she said. “Once the police…”
My mind was a blur. I couldn’t make sense of what was happening. The northern lights swirled. CJ leaped. Kelsey screamed as the flash and explosive bang of the gun turned the night from fright to terror.
My ears echoed with the loud shot as I knelt down to where CJ and Kelsey were on the concrete.
“Oh my God. CJ?”
Pushing the gun away, CJ held Kelsey pinned to the concrete deck.
“Call Adam or Ricks,” he said.
My mind wasn’t computing. Looking up at the pool house, I said, “I thought they were supposed to be here.”
“He’s lying,” Kelsey screamed. “He was going to hurt you.”
In the darkness, CJ’s turquoise stare looked up at me, and I knew without a doubt, CJ wasn’t the guilty party. “Can you hold her?”
“Yes. Call Adam now.”
I pulled the sash from my robe and handed it to CJ. “Use this. I’ll go get my phone.”
“Ms. Montgomery…”
I didn’t listen to Kelsey as I walked in a daze back to my room. Finding my phone on the bedside stand, I entered my code. There were three missed calls from Adam and two from Jeremy.
Hitting the icon, I called Adam.
“Lena, stay in the house.”
“It’s Kelsey. I don’t know how it’s her, but it’s her.”
“I’m almost there.”
“CJ has her. She tried to shoot him or me…”
“Are you okay? CJ?”
I nodded. “Hurry.”
Rushing back to the catwalk, I could see CJ had Kelsey’s hands tied behind her. As I walked, I called Jeremy.
“I’m sorry,” I began, ready to apologize for the time.
“Honey,” he interrupted. “I’m at the gate. My pass isn’t working. Adam just got here too.” There was commotion in the background before Jeremy said, “Adam got the gate open. The police are right behind us. We’re all coming.”
“Why?” I asked, swallowing my emotions. “Why are you all coming?”
“Kelsey…”
“How did you know?”
“Chandler,” Jeremy said.
“He called you?”
“We’re passing the second gate.”
“Tell Adam to go around to the pool.”
Dropping the robe, I slipped on a pair of shorts and a top. As I came down the staircase, blue sirens filled my front windows. By the time I made it back to the pool deck, Kelsey was standing, surrounded by three uniformed police officers.
When CJ saw me, he came my way, wrapping his arm around me.
“How did you know?” I asked.
Jeremy and Adam came over to where we were standing. Jeremy looked at CJ. “I called the airport and asked about their security. The cameras reboot every seven days. They still had the footage from last Tuesday when Adam and Lena came back from New York. If we wouldn’t have asked for it soon, it would have been lost.”
My body trembled in CJ’s grasp.
“What was seen?” CJ asked.
“Kelsey went to the hangar Wednesday morning. We can see her entering.”
“The fish?” I asked.
“She drove into the hangar. The footage is fuzzy, but yes, she’s seen taking a large container from the trunk of the car and putting it in the luggage hold.”
I looked at Adam. “You didn’t know?”
He shook his head. “I trusted her. She was the one who reviewed our footage, telling me there was nothing.”
Stepping away from the three of them, I walked to where the police had Kelsey detained. “Why?”
“You were never in real danger.”
“I trusted you, Kelsey. I thought of you as a friend.”
“No. You didn’t. You think of yourself as better when you’re not. You don’t care about anyone but yourself. Not until him.” She lifted her chin toward CJ. “He was the perfect scapegoat.”
“Ms. Nicholson,” the policeman said, beginning to lead her away.
I’d heard Kelsey’s name a thousand times. I’d read it on her resume. I’d used it when I introduced her, but for the first time, I wondered. “Wait? Are you related to Avery Nicholson?”
She stood tall. “He was my father.”
“Is this about…”
“My father committed suicide when I was just a child. My mother found out about his infidelity and left him. He swore it wasn’t true. He was repaying a debt. The last time I saw him, he was begging my mom to forgive him. It took a lot of digging when I was older, but I found out about that company.”
“You think I’m responsible?”
“Ms. Nicholson, I’d advise you to not say any more.”
As they took her away, CJ reached for my hand.
“Why were you outside with her?” I asked.
“I heard a noise and saw her coming and going from the pool house.”
I looked at Adam. He went to the pool house and opened the door. We all peered in around him. The pool house looked the same as it had. It even smelled piney clean.
Adam stopped. “I think we should have this place thoroughly searched. I wondered why she was concerned about Mr. Sherman’s men staying here. She said it was just in need of cleaning and said she’d stay here tonight.”
“What do you think she had in there?” CJ asked.
“She left with a pink bag full of things earlier in the evening, before she bought CJ’s clothes.” I looked over at him, his bare chest and low-hanging shorts.
“The police will check her car and apartment.” Adam looked at me. “Ms. Montgomery, she passed all the background checks. Who was her father?”
That was my dirtiest secret.
I shook my head. “It sounds like he was someone that got mixed up in a mess.”
“She blames you?”
CJ didn’t speak. He held tight to my hand. When I looked up, I could feel and sense his compassion and understanding. This man I had only recently met knew a secret that even Adam and Jeremy didn’t know.
I leaned against CJ. “I guess this means it’s finally over.”
He kissed the top of my head. “No, Lena. This is only the beginning.”
Epilogue
CJ
Eight months later
“Hey, handsome.”
Sitting in my office at Architech, a Venus subsidiary, I looked up from my desk, struck by the gorgeous woman in my doorway. “Hey, beautiful.”
Lena came inside, closing the door behind her. She was in her the Lena mode, the air filling with the scent of Creed Royal Service, and her bright red lips curled into a sexy grin.
Leaning back against the leather chair, I smiled. “Is this visit business or pleasure?”
She trailed the tips of her finger over the expanse of my desk until she was wedged against the desk and between my knees. “I was on my way home when I decided I didn’t want to wait for you to come home.”
I lifted my eyebrows. “Do you have any ideas?”
“Adam dropped me off. I’m in your hands now. And your assistant has left for the day.”
Tipping my head toward the large screens on my desk, I sighed. “I’m kind of working on a thing.”
Her luscious chocolate stare swirled as she licked her lips and eased her arms out of the matching jacket over her dress.
“I approve of a striptease.”
“I left my panties in my purse.”
My cock twitched as I stood and after a quick kiss, spun her around. Pressing between her slender shoulders, I pushed her breasts to the desktop as I reached under the hem of her dress, finding her slick pussy. “You’re soaked.”
She craned her neck, her soft brown eyes on me. “I’ve been thinking about this.”
Bunching her dress around her waist, I swatted one ass cheek and then the other, leaving bright red handprints. Her yelp filled the air.
“That was for blurring your own lines.”
“You’re fired,” she said with a grin.
“I don’t work for you. In here, I’m the boss.”
After freeing myself from my jeans, I leaned down, purposely teasing her sensitive skin of her neck with my warm breath. “Hold on tight, Ms. Montgomery. Once I’m done, I want those red lips to leave a ring around my cock.”
Her breathing came fast as she nodded.
Lifting her sexy ass and spreading her legs, I buried myself in the same tight pussy I’d been in this morning and nearly every day since making Missoula my new home.
Lena’s fingers blanched as she held tight to the edge of the desk. Holding her hips, I moved in and out as her core contracted. The office filled with the sounds of our bodies coming together, mingled with the curses and moans. Stars danced behind my eyelids as Lena’s body trembled, and she called out my name.
Pulling out, I helped Lena spin. As I was about to kiss her lips, she dropped to her knees.
“Fuck, Lena.”
I held tight to the edge of the desk as Lena took over, sucking and licking. Her red lips parted, taking me to the back of her throat. This woman on her knees was the same woman who recently licensed my hard- and software to a major hotel chain, earning more than what she’d paid for it. Architech was becoming a contender in a world she dominated.
I couldn’t be more fucking proud of her.
With a sexy smile, Lena stood, her lips taking mine, sharing the sweet taste of her and the musky taste of me.
“Come home,” she said as she straightened her dress. She looked at the screens. “You’re a genius, remember. You can do this tomorrow.”
“It will take longer than tomorrow.”
“Then come home. We’re leaving tomorrow night for Wisconsin.”
Wisconsin.
“The judge is ruling on Madison’s sentence. We should be there for her.”
The lawyers had informed Lena that with the crime being taken down to a class F felony, Madison was most likely looking at a fine and monitored institutionalization. Lena had a new and better facility lined up and her checkbook ready for whatever fine the judge issued.
“And I’m finally going to get to meet your knight in shining armor,” I said.
“Van and Julia will be there, but Van’s not my knight.” Lena brushed her lips over my cheek. “You’re my silver lining. I hated what Kelsey did to me, but if that hadn’t happened, we wouldn’t have met.”
After tucking myself away and zipping my jeans, I opened the side drawer on my desk. When I looked up, Lena was picking up her purse. “Before we go to Wisconsin.”
Lena’s eyes grew wide at the blue velvet box in my hand. “CJ?”
It was my turn to fall to my knees. I opened the box, revealing a four-carat emerald-cut diamond on a platinum band. Lena’s painted fingertips were at her lips as she stared down at me.
“I’m better at numbers than I am words.”
Her smile grew as her eyes glistened.
“I love you, Lena Montgomery, every side of you, every inch of you. The Lena the world sees and the one you keep only for me. When I went to Cancún, I thought I’d drink in the sunshine and mourn the loss of my world. I had no way of knowing that instead, my world was about to be blown to smithereens by a seductive lioness. With you, I’ve found what it’s like to love someone unconditionally.” I looked around the office. “You not only restored my world, but made it so much more. I don’t know what the future holds for us, I only know that I want to take it on, every day, with you at my side.” I removed the ring from the box. “Will you marry me?”
With tears on her cheeks, Lena nodded. I eased the ring onto her fourth finger of her left hand. I stood. “I want to be your husband. You don’t have to take my name. You are the Lena Montgomery.”
She looked down at her hand, splaying her fingers and back to me. “I want your name, CJ. Montgomery Holdings will still be Montgomery. I want you to know that I want to be your wife, for you to be my husband. Maybe I’ll hyphenate.”
“As long as I’m at your side, nothing else matters.”
* * *
AND THEY LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER
I hope you enjoyed SILVER LINING – a blurred-lines novel. If you did and you don’t know Lena’s friends Donovan and Julia Sherman, check out the Sin Series. Begin today with book one, RED SIN.
Be sure to start from the beginning with Aleatha’s brand-new series, Royal Reflections, where things are not always as they appear. Download the prequel, “Riled Reign” for free and pre-order RUTHLESS REIGN today.
If you’d like to learn more about the company, Infidelity, check out the INFIDELITY series, ready to binge, beginning with BETRAYAL.
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