FullDisclosure (25 page)

At any rate, the girl had been used hard, and he figured he’d used her to her limits. And here she was calling
him
? Fascinating.

“Hi, Cyril.”

“Why are you calling me? I’m at home. I told you I was taking a day with my family.” He knew he should be angry with her for disturbing him at home, but there was something in her voice, a tone he’d never heard before. Something diminutive—almost timid. He couldn’t quite work up the outrage.

And then she proceeded to surprise him even further.

Sadie stared out the car window watching the buildings and pedestrians flash by. There were a lot of pedestrians today. More than usual, she thought. It was a beautiful, sunny Sunday afternoon and she supposed the gorgeous weather had lured the city-dwellers out of their holes. There was a family of four sitting on a bench chowing down on street-vendor hot dogs. An acne-ridden roller-blader sped by with ear phones in and his ball cap tugged on backward. A tiny woman who couldn’t have been more than five-foot-two in her three-inch heels was being pulled along by an enormous Great Dane that Sadie thought she might have had better luck riding. Or perhaps hitching it to a cart. And of course there were dozens of young couples strolling hand in hand or arm in arm, heads tilted toward each other as they shared intimate secrets and whispers of love.

“Are you okay?” asked Jake.

A little startled by the question, Sadie shifted in her seat to face him. “I’m fine. Why?”

“You’ve just been so quiet ever since we left Evan’s. And you’ve barely touched that vanilla latté you seemed so eager for.”

“Oh!” She looked down at the cup she had cradled in her hands. She laughed. “I completely forgot about it.” She took a sip, pleased to find it was still quite warm. The insulated cup had done its job. “It’s good,” she sighed. “Thanks for reminding me.”

Jake’s smile was as warm as the latté. His eyes were so clear and—

“Sadie!”

“Huh?”

He shook his head. “Where do you keep disappearing to? Your body is here, but the rest of you keeps drifting away.”

“Oh.” It was her turn to laugh. “I’m sorry. I’m just so… I don’t know. Happy just doesn’t seem to cover it.” She turned her gaze outside once again. “The whole world just seems…brighter today. The sky is more blue. The trees more green. The air is fresher and the people…”

“The people?”

“Everybody is smiling out there. Did you notice that? I’ve never seen so many happy people.”

Jake’s hand covered hers and squeezed. “No. I don’t think I have.”

She was smiling until the moment they pulled up in front of her apartment building. Her smile evaporated.

Jake’s voice was in her ear. “If you don’t clean out your closets you’ll never have room for anything new.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m getting new closets.” But she found herself smiling. “You’re right. I need to do this so I can move on.”

“Do you want to come with me to get the wine, and then we can go up there together?”

“No, no. Don’t be silly. It’s not like there are actual ghosts up there. Just a lot of frumpy clothes and stale food.”

“And some family photographs and cherished books. Right?”

She nodded. “And a couple of pieces of jewelry that my mother gave me before she died.” She sighed. “Plus, I can’t just leave all that junk up there for the landlord. I’m going to have to get rid of it somehow.”

“You had some beautiful clothes and things from your life with Philip. I can’t believe they didn’t keep any of it for you.”

“I was convicted of killing him. Innocent or not, you think Cyril would do anything
nice
for me?”

“Or for anyone.”

“Exactly.” She sighed. “Okay, we’re holding up traffic. I better go.”

Jake pulled her in for a quick kiss. “I’ll be less than an hour.” He glanced at the street and cringed. “Assuming I can find parking.”

“There’s a lot two blocks east that usually has spots.” Her hand was on the handle.

“Okay. I’ll manage.”

With a smile and a little wave she was out the door and on the sidewalk. She stood there for a moment watching Jake drive away, allowing the sun to beat down on her and seep into her soul. It felt good. The air smelled fresh. And she felt as if the whole world had opened up for her. Jake had promised to help her look into some wine appreciation and hospitality courses at some of the nearby colleges. In the meantime, he said she could help him with his business.

When she expressed concerns that she didn’t want his charity and that he didn’t need to create a position for her, he assured her that he’d been meaning to hire an assistant for a number of months and that he had no intention of extending her charity. She would have to work hard and learn a lot to earn her keep.

That had made her smile, and she found herself smiling again when she slipped the key into the lock of her apartment and stepped inside. She knew immediately that something was wrong. It was the odors of cooking and Old Spice that gave it away. She knew only one person who bathed in the stuff regularly.

Her heart was already in her throat when his arms clamped around her and she smelled his stale breath as he whispered in her ear.

“Well, it’s about fucking time. I’ve been waiting for you since yesterday.” His arms held her arms immobile while his hand groped her breast.

She swallowed the bile that crept up the back of her throat and kept her voice even. “Let me go.”

But he merely tightened his grip and tweaked a nipple hard enough to make her wince. “Oh, ho ho! Listen to you. Little princess-bitch found some rich friends, I see. Think you’re too good for the likes of me now, eh?”

Through gritting teeth she said, “I was always too good for the likes of you.” At the same moment she slammed her boot heel into his knee and raked it down his shin to land soundly on his foot.

Yelping in pain, he released his grip and she made a dash for the kitchen. There was a cast iron pan on the stove. It was full of bacon grease, but it didn’t have to be clean to clock Rufus on the head. He had an affinity for grease.

She raised it high and turned to face him. “Get out, you asshole. You’re no threat to me anymore.” Rufus’ ace in the hole had always been the threat of running her in for prostitution. She’d never solicited him, but her initial refusal of his advances had infuriated him and led him to make the threat. If she didn’t give him blowjobs on command, he’d haul her downtown and, considering her history, she’d be up shit creek without a paddle. In recent days she’d realized how stupid she’d been. She’d been acquitted of all charges. Karey would’ve had this guy for lunch. But she’d been so paranoid and so scared—so used to being the victim, she’d allowed him to have power over her.

She had no intention of being a victim anymore.

“Oh really,” he sneered. “Are you sure about that?”

The sight of the huge gun pointed at her chest froze her from head to toe.

“Not so feisty now, are ya?”

He advanced on her as she slowly lowered the cast iron pan to the counter top. He moved in close—close enough that the gun nudged the underside of her chin. “What are you doing?” she whispered. Rufus had always been a mean shit, but he’d never done more than slap her around before. He’d certainly never threatened her with a gun. “Do you want sex? One last blowjob for old time’s sake? Is that what this is about?”

“No.” His smile was slow and chilling. “Well…maybe. But later. Right now we have other business to attend to.” Gun still nudging her throat, he pulled out his cell phone. She wondered who he was calling, frantically considered her options and whether she could hold out until Jake came back…while the phone rang.

It rang a very long time.

“Your father lives in this building?” asked Rachel as they stepped onto the elevator.

“Yeah. Didn’t I tell you that?”

She shrugged. “I knew he lived close to the coffee shop, but I forgot your mentioning he lived right here.” She smiled timidly. “I was kind of distracted, I guess.”

“Yeah. I guess.” He smiled back, but she could tell it was forced. It didn’t reach his eyes.

She squeezed his hand, turning her attention to the array of numbers on the punch pad. He had punched the number for her father’s floor, but that made sense. They would drop off her bag first and then go meet his father. “It’ll be fine. I wish I could understand what you’re so worried about.”

He shrugged.

As the doors were opening, however, something hit her. “Hey. How did you know which floor my father lives on? I don’t remember ever mentioning it.”

She followed him off the elevator, but he didn’t head toward her father’s apartment. Instead he headed to the door on the left. “You didn’t.”

Blinking, she tried to sift through her memories. There was something about this other apartment. She’d met these people before, hadn’t she?

Just as the door opened, it hit her. But by then it was too late.

“Noah!” The little man with the perfectly pressed golf shirt and khakis with the knife-edge pleat drew Noah into a fierce hug. “You’re home early.” He released him and his gaze fell on Rachel. She suddenly felt very small—and trapped. “And you’ve brought a guest.” He extended a hand to Rachel. “Rachel,” he said quietly, “it’s good to see you again.”

“Yes,” she said, unable to get over how small and soft his hand was, although the grip was surprisingly strong. “Good to see you too.”

“So, you’ve met then,” said Noah.

“Well, not officially,” replied the little man. Rachel scolded herself for thinking of him that way, and in the same mental breath tried to come up with some excuse to get the heck out of there.

“This is your father, Noah?” Her voice sounded thin, even to her.

“No. This is Andrew, my father’s partner and my stepfather.”

Andrew winked. “I’m really more of a mother. Michael takes great glee in reminding me of that fact.”

“Oh.” Rachel had no idea how to respond to that.

Andrew clapped his hands together. “Well, no use standing out here in the hall.” At that moment the larger, more masculine member of the duo appeared in the doorway. “What’s going on? Why’s everybody standing out here?” He peered over his
partner’s
shoulder and caught sight of Rachel.

“Rachel. I’m so glad Noah’s found such a lovely girl.”

The voice was so warm and inviting. And yet all Rachel could think about was what these two men did together—behind closed doors. At least, God, she hoped it was behind closed doors. What if they kissed in front of her? She felt vaguely ill.

“Won’t you come in? Andrew just made a fresh pitcher of mojitos.” He draped an arm around Andrew’s shoulder and squeezed. “He’s such a prize. A real wiz with a mortar and pestle.”

Andrew rolled his eyes and Rachel wondered what in God’s name a mojito was. “Actually, would you mind terribly if I dropped off my bag and said hello to my father quickly first?” She glanced at Noah, saw how downcast he was and knew that he knew. But she felt powerless to do anything about it. “I’ll be over in a few minutes. I promise.”

He nodded. “Sure. Do you want me to come in and meet your dad?”

She shook her head a little too quickly. “No, no. Not now. You go have your mojito, or whatever it is. I’ll be right over.”

“Okay. I’ll see you soon.”

She turned and fled to her father’s door, knowing full well that they were watching her. As she slipped out of the hall, she heard Michael say, “It’ll be okay, baby. I’m sure Evan will set her straight.”

She was still wondering what on earth that meant when she flung her bag to the floor and rushed to her father who was washing dishes in the kitchen.

“Rachel, honey!” he said in surprise when her hug turned fierce. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, Daddy.” Tears stung the backs of her eyes. “I’ve made a terrible mistake. I’m going to hell. I know it. Oh my God. Oh my God.”

“Whoa, whoa!” He eased her away, gazing fervently into her eyes. “What kind of mistake? What are you talking about?” He glanced at the door. “And I thought you were bringing Noah up to meet me.”

“It’s Noah. That’s the mistake.” She burst into tears.

“How could such a wonderful young man be a mistake?” He led her to the couch and urged her to sit down. He got her a tissue and waited patiently until she got her emotions under control.

“I-I slept with him. God help me but we had sex.” She looked at him, waiting for the judgment she knew would come.

Evan’s jaw was set, but his response was not what she expected. “There’s nothing wrong with that, Rachel. Especially if you love him. You’re not going to hell for loving someone.”

“And I do.” She sniffled. “Or I thought I did. See, I thought we had a future together. In my mind I was making all these plans, and I thought that if we were going to be together forever it would be all right.”

“Well, I don’t believe that’s necessarily a condition for being with someone, but why do I get the feeling something has changed?”

“It’s…it’s his family. If we get married I’d be part of his family.”

“And what’s wrong with that?”

“His father…his father is Michael.” She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “From next door.”