“As a favor to Jackson, I went to a charity dinner with Nick a few months ago. It was a high-profile event. The publicity was good for both of our careers.”
Raina had dated so many men over the years that Ridley had stopped trying to keep track. She knew some of the guys weren’t real boyfriends but just people her sister spent time with to bolster her public profile. The more she was photographed, the more famous she became and the more money she could command when companies wanted to book her.
Ridley couldn’t imagine dating someone just to get photographed for the tabloids, but Raina had explained that the tabloids were a necessary evil and having a strategy to deal with them was just smart PR.
“So, you dated him for a while then?”
“No, it was just one night. We only spent one night together but that was all it took. I fell for him, Ri. I think I fell in love with him the moment we met.”
Ridley stood, a million questions swirling through her brain. Nick’s fevered kiss had told her that his relationship with Raina was more than just casual but this? She hadn’t expected this.
“If you love him, then why aren’t you with him? I know he feels something for you, too. He may not want to admit it but he does. I can tell.”
“I can’t be with him,” Raina let out a soft sound. A moment later she cleared her throat and when she spoke again, her voice was stronger. “Nick is not the kind of man you settle down with.”
Neither of them spoke for a minute and Ridley was suddenly incredibly depressed. They were both in love and they were both sitting alone and lonely.
“I’m sorry, Ray.”
“It’s fine. I was just being melodramatic. Plenty of women have fancied themselves in love with Nicholas Alexander. I’m not the first and I doubt I’ll be the last. But I’m the smartest because I’m not wasting my time.”
“Ray—”
“I’m going to check with Sam to see where he is on this. But I’m sure he’ll have it figured out by tomorrow. You need to get some sleep, baby sis.”
Raina’s voice was firm and Ridley knew she’d gotten all she was going to get out of her. Raina was hardly the “sharing” type so it was a minor miracle that she’d opened up at all. Plus, she didn’t really want to dissect her own feelings either. What she really wanted was to fall asleep and dream of a simpler time.
A time when she’d never heard the name Jackson Alexander.
“Okay, I’m going to go to bed. Just call me if you find out anything. Night.”
After they hung up, she moved around the room in a fog. Her brain sent directions that her body followed blindly.
Open drawers.
Find nightgown.
Get undressed.
She could have been a robot for all the emotion she invested in what she was doing.
She moved into the bathroom and turned the light on. Her reflection in the mirror was even grimmer than she felt. Her hair was sticking out of her ponytail in various directions so she just pulled the band from her hair and let it go wild. There was no one here she needed to look cute for.
Her toiletry bag was still on the counter where she’d put it earlier. She dug around in the bag until she found her toothbrush. Her toothpaste should have been there, too but the bag was filled with all the other things she’d left on the counter earlier. Ponytail holders, her hairbrush and some of Raina’s makeup that had been sitting out on the counter.
“I’m not this much of a slob.”
She shoved the bag aside wearily. It was a waste of time trying to remember why she’d shoved all that stuff in there. Considering how emotional she’d been after leaving Jackson’s house, she was lucky she hadn’t thrown the thing in the trash without realizing it. Growing up, they’d always kept extra toothpaste and mouthwash below the counter. She bent to look under the cabinet. Nothing.
“Damn.”
When she stood up, a dark shape moved in the corner of her eye. She spun around, her heart beating wildly.
“Hello, Ridley.”
A man stood in the doorway. He held up her toothpaste and waved it back and forth. As she stared at him, all the pieces fell into place. Humiliation, anger and finally fear swirled around before settling in her stomach with the force of a blow to the gut.
"Oh my god, it's you."
* * * * *
“THIS IS A lot of money.”
Nick held up the pages in his hand. “Over a million dollars moved through this one account in just a month.”
They’d been up for hours sorting through all the information on the flash drive. It had taken three of Elliott’s best guys an hour to crack the encryption on the files saved on the drive. Now that they were in, Elliott had printed some of it so they could help him sort through it all.
Jackson had gotten up a few times to bring drinks and nuke some food. He wanted them fueled so they could keep working. It was almost three in the morning but he didn’t want to go to bed. Going to bed felt like admitting defeat.
It was ridiculous but he was strangely hopeful. He tried to squelch the feeling before it could take hold. What they found likely wouldn’t change anything but he couldn’t help hoping there was an explanation.
Maybe Ridley had taken the money because she was being blackmailed? Maybe David had gotten her into something that she couldn’t get out of and she’d panicked.
He knew it probably made him a stupid sap, but if she’d just needed money to get away from whoever was chasing her, he could forgive that. What he really wanted was just to know that she was okay.