Scandal Never Sleeps

  the press knows her name now, so I don’t recommend that you send her home by herself. Bring her up with you in ten.”

  He strode toward the stairs.

  So she’d made another conquest. That wasn’t surprising. Apparently, it was what Everly Parker did best.

  “I’m sorry you had to witness that mess.” He was going to be polite if it was the last thing he did because attacking her wouldn’t induce her to talk. He refused to give in to the need to fight with her. Or to fuck her.

  Her expression was bland, professional even. Damn it, he wanted to see her smile again. “I had to be here. I’m able to do my job better if I understand what’s going on. So what are you not telling the police?”

  “What do you mean?”

  She dropped her voice to a whisper. “It’s obvious you’re hiding something. You avoided certain questions when you were more than willing to answer others in painstaking detail. You tap your left hand when you get nervous. You did it several times. On the desk. Against your leg. And you were definitely nervous about any questions concerning your whereabouts after your lunch with Maddox on the day in question. So where were you?”

  She’d seen way more than he’d expected. Hell, she’d seen more than the detective. “I explained that several times.”

  “No. You didn’t explain the stretch of time between your stroll in the park and dinner at all. That detective is an idiot.”

  “Could we not do this here? And I should probably remind you that you’re my employee. It’s your job to protect me, not question me.”

  “How can I protect you if I don’t know the truth? That’s the problem with clients. They tend to give you half the information, then expect a hundred and fifty percent effort. Besides, from what you said earlier, you might very well fire me.”

  Maybe he wouldn’t avoid a fight after all. She seemed to be itching for one. “Why did you come here?”

  She brushed back her hair. “Because until you fire me, I have a job to do.”

  “Exactly what job is that, Everly? Did you come here to keep the press off my back? If that’s the case, from what I’ve heard, you failed.”

  “I came to make sure you got out of here in one piece, especially since they wouldn’t let you take your car. How else did you plan on getting home?”

  “That’s why I had you call Dax. He’ll take us back to the office. Let’s go.”

  “If you don’t need me, I can find my own way back to work.” She turned to go.

  He grabbed her elbow, staying her. “No. You’ll come with me. I’m still your boss.”

  Her eyes flared. “You don’t have to be.”

  “Don’t even try to quit. I can make sure you don’t work in this city again.”

  “Maybe I don’t want to work in this city.” Her voice had gone low and stubborn.

  “I’ve got long arms, baby. You’ll find it hard to work anywhere.”

  Her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed. She jerked free from his grip. Her body tensed, ready for flight.

  Things were quickly heating up. It didn’t serve his purpose to fight with her. It would serve him even less for her to walk away.

  “Damn it. Let me try this again, Everly. I’m sincerely sorry about the meeting this morning. You threw me for a loop, and I handled it poorly. My only excuse is that I’ve had a rough couple of days.”

  She hesitated, obviously mulling over his words. Then she softened just a bit. Oh, fight still lurked somewhere in there, but Gabe saw clearly that anger wasn’t the way to deal with her. He needed to be sneakier.

  Everly nodded at him, a silent acceptance of his apology. But she still looked wary. “Why don’t you head home, and I’ll handle things at the office? I promise not to quit while you still need me.”

  Gabe planned to use that impromptu vow to his advantage. He had to blast past the guard she’d put up against him and hope she would respond to being needed. If he made her think they were partners, maybe he could slip under her defenses. If he could find out what she knew and purge her from his system at the same time, so much the better.

  He shook his head. “I need you with me, Everly. I need to talk to you. You spent time with Mad. I have to figure out what was going through his head during his last few weeks.”

  He took her hand in his because he’d always found it was easier to take charge than wait to be followed. And he liked the feel of her skin against his.

  Thankfully, she didn’t pull away, merely allowed him to lead her up the stairs toward the top of the building. “I realize you don’t believe me, but Maddox and I weren’t lovers, so I don’t know anything. He asked me questions about myself. Sometimes, he’d talk about work, his friends, his day . . . but nothing deep.”

  “You may not realize what you know that might be important to this case.”

  She sighed as they rounded the next flight of stairs. “This morning has been such a whirlwind, I probably wouldn’t know what was important if it hit me in the face.”

  “But I might.” He liked how small her hand was, how her fingers tangled with his almost of their own accord, as if they knew they belonged there.

  She kept up with him, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was in shape. She jogged up the stairs without sounding winded at all. “Why are we going up? I thought we were leaving.”

  He finally made it to the top of the building. He stopped in front of the door and could hear the whooshing sound of chopper blades as Dax turned the engine over. “We are leaving. I’d like to see the paparazzi follow us now.”

  Her eyes widened as if she’d identified the sound, too. “We’re going in a helicopter? I’ve never been in one.”

  “This isn’t simply any helicopter. This is my baby. I designed it myself. I could go into all the brilliant engine innovations and give you specs on how far and fast it can go, but you’ll probably be more interested in the fact that I convinced the House of Versace to design the interior. This is a flying luxury suite.” And the interior was definitely tricked out so they could get busy. Not that he was going to seduce her now. But it crossed his mind.

  She stared at him with wide eyes. “Gabriel, whatever you’re thinking . . . that’s a mistake.”

  “No, it’s not. I need you, Everly. Help me figure out who killed my best friend because I didn’t do it.” It was time to play on those heartstrings of hers and seal the deal. To do that, he would have to open up and give her a little honesty. It might even make her feel guilty enough to give him what he needed. If she’d been sleeping with Mad, she might be shocked at what he was about to say. “I owe it to my future nephew or niece to figure out who killed him.”

  She paused, obviously putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Then she gasped. “Your sister. She’s pregnant. She dated Maddox. He mentioned it once. That’s what you two were fighting about.”

  “I’ll tell you everything if you’ll come with me. I’ll put all my cards on the table, and you can show me yours. Then we’ll see what kind of hand we’re left with.”

  She nodded slowly, but withdrew her hand from his. “All right, but this is a professional relationship from here out. Our weekend was a mistake, an aberration. I’ll help you, but you have to promise to forget about what happened between us.”

  Not in a million years. But she was right that it had been an aberration. Usually when he slept with a woman, he moved on right away. Usually, he didn’t feel a thing beyond physical satisfaction. Everly made him feel more. She made him feel too damn much.

  “Of course.” It seemed to be his day for telling lies.

  She nodded and started for the door.

  Damn it. How was he going to keep his hands off her? He followed her, completely unable to pry his stare away from that curvy backside. He tried to tell himself that Mad had her first, and she was the reason they were in this mess. He tried to tell himself that if Mad had been murdered, she might even be a suspect. He had a million and one reasons to not trust her, to stay as far from her as he cou
ld.

  But a certain ruthless part of him found every reason possible to keep her close. She’d belonged to Mad, who had given him everything. His business. His homes. His money.

  Why not his mistress?

  As Everly opened the door, the bright light of day flooded the stairs. She stopped at the top and stared at the chopper. It was a gorgeous black and white body with a matching elegant cabin. Dax had thoughtfully left the cabin door open, but she made no move toward it.

  “Are you scared?” Gabe asked.

  “I’ve never loved heights, to tell you the truth.” She retreated as though ready to scamper back down the stairs to safety.

  He wasn’t about to let her do that. He had no idea why Mad hadn’t taken her up, but flight had been a big portion of Gabe’s life for a very long time. His family business was all about getting up in the sky. Besides, if she was afraid, she might cling to him. She might be grateful to him for keeping her safe.

  “I won’t let you fall.” He held out his arm.

  “Gabriel . . .” she began.

  “I am very professionally offering to escort you to your vehicle, Ms. Parker. And trust me, you haven’t seen Manhattan until you’ve seen it from my vantage point. Let me show you.” He could muster up some charm. It had all gone down the toilet when he’d let his anger rule. Charisma worked better. He would know her secrets and figure her out. And once he had, he would be ready to let her go.

  She squared her shoulders and slipped her arm through his. “All right. I guess it is the best way to avoid the press. Are we going back to the office?”

  Right before he answered, a thought struck him. He should gauge how she reacted to being surrounded by Maddox Crawford, see if she pined like a lover or clammed up guiltily like someone keeping secrets. “Let’s go to Mad’s and see if he left anything that might help us figure out what he was up to before he was killed. We might be able to piece together some clues. Would you help me do that?”

  The light came back into her eyes, and he felt her inch closer. Yes, he would definitely catch more Everlys with honey than vinegar.

  She hesitated, as if she knew better, but then nodded.

  “Keep your head down.” The rotors were really moving now. He had to yell over the sound.

  When he started walking to the chopper, she did as he asked and stayed by his side. He settled her in and grabbed the headphones that linked him to Dax, passing another set to her.

  “Are you two ready?” Dax asked, his voice coming in strong over the headphones.

  “Everly’s never been in a helicopter before, Dax,” he replied. “Why don’t we give her a tour? You know the drill.”

  There was a slight pause, followed by a little chuckle. “Well, now, brother, you know I never like to disappoint a lady.”

  The helicopter lifted off the pad, and Dax turned it up just enough to send her right into his arms. Yes, Dax remembered the drill.

  He eased Everly back into her seat and helped her secure her seatbelt. He was satisfied to let her be. For now. Once they were alone . . .

  Gabe smiled.

  EIGHT

  Everly glanced around the library. It was surprisingly classic, even staid, given the fact that it was in Maddox Crawford’s bachelor pad.

  Earlier, Gabriel had kept his promise to show her Manhattan from above. It had glittered like a jewel in the early evening. From those heights there had been no trash, rude people, or violence, only beauty. She’d felt safe with him. Which probably made her an idiot since he was a suspect in a high-profile murder. But her gut told her that he wouldn’t harm her.

  After the exhilarating ride, they’d landed on the helipad atop Maddox’s building. The four-story brownstone was otherwise luxurious but unassuming. Since entering the place, Everly had been walking around a bit wide-eyed.

  She’d expected everything flashy and modern, with all the latest gadgets and a flat screen as big as the one in Times Square. Instead, the place reeked of old-school elegance. Sure, he had contemporary leather sofas upstairs and Euro-modern cabinets in the kitchen—which should have looked out of place. But he’d also chosen fixtures and fabrics that bridged the gap between the Gilded Age and today, while keeping the character of the building. The plaster ceilings, medallions, moldings, and door casings blew her mind. Everything looked like it belonged in a magazine.

  As they’d stepped down into the library, the sights hadn’t stopped. The cove ceilings towered above them. On either side of the room, built-in shelves painted a pristine white arched across the length and width of the wall. Each was lined with hundreds of leather books, and the smell was divine. At one end, a huge picture window opened up to the “garden level” and provided light to the sturdy antique desk beneath. A massive marble fireplace with ceiling-scraping mirror-and-wood detail dominated the other end. Dark hardwood floors added a cozy richness to the place. A cushy reading chair in a velvet bottle green occupied one corner, along with a globe in a floor stand. A pale beige sofa with softly colored pillows sat right in the middle of the room.

  Everything shouted class. For all of Maddox’s faults, the man had possessed great style.

  “Have you found anything?” Everly asked a couple of hours later as she caught sight of Gabriel at the big desk.

  He looked up from what appeared to be a mountain of paper, a single sheet clutched in his hand. “Mad didn’t like to deal with trivial details. No idea why he’s keeping a receipt for booze he had at a party he threw two years ago. Did he want to be reminded of how much he overpaid the caterers? Seriously, he got scammed and hard. He paid a hundred thousand for champagne that wasn’t worth twenty.”

  She sighed as she peeked at the receipt. “Given the date and quantity, looks like it’s a receipt for the champagne served at the foundation’s annual gala. The event is Tavia’s baby, though Valerie started handling most of the ordering and catering two years ago. I’m not surprised she would spend so much. She likes expensive things.”

  He shook his head. “That’s what I’m saying. This brand isn’t expensive.”

  “Well, this was for charity. Maybe Maddox needed an additional write-off. Or the hotel likes to up charge.”

  “He liked to give money to a good cause, but overpaying for booze wasn’t one of them. Did he fire this Valerie person?”

  “No.” Everly’s world would be a better place if he had.

  Gabriel seemed deeply interested in receipts. She was, too, but not from Crawford Industries. Everly had spent the last two hours hacking into a coffee shop system. She’d traced one of her mystery e-mails to a coffee shop computer in Midtown and now she was going through credit cards. The shop offered free wi-fi and had four computers available for use by patrons.

  With a little luck, one of thirty-seven people who purchased a latte within an hour before or after the e-mail was sent would turn out to be her mystery texter. She had to hope he’d also sent her the photos. Too bad the SD card was locked up in her office.

  She’d been trying like hell to get back to her computer and look at more than the first two images. But the meeting Scott had pulled her into that morning had lasted until quitting time. Then the other VPs had insisted she come with them to a strategy session over dinner to prepare for the new boss’s arrival. When she’d finally left after ten that night, SD cards had been the last thing on her exhausted mind. Tuesday morning, looking at that card had been first on her agenda . . . until Hilary had called her into Gabe’s office and the damn world had blown up. Everly had every intention of getting back to the office and viewing more of the photos.

  “I’m surprised he didn’t let her go.” Gabriel huffed. “Mad could seem like a happy-go-lucky screwup, but he didn’t suffer incompetence at all. Remind me to look at her file when all this blows over.”

  Would she even be with Crawford Industries—or Gabriel—by then? “Let’s just do it now.”

  Darting across the room to the plush chair, she grabbed Maddox’s sleek laptop, hit a few keys, and browsed.<
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  “You have the permissions to view HR files?” he asked from across the room.

  Everly didn’t answer right away, but it didn’t take longer than that to find what she needed. “I know how to get into the confidential HR files Maddox had access to. According to those, there hasn’t been a single firing at Crawford in over two months,