Her Backup Boyfriend (Entangled Bliss) (Sorensen Family) (18 page)

“There you are, Kate.” Dominic’s mom tapped the spoon she’d using to stir and rested it on the large roasting pan. Wiping her hands on a towel, she came and took the casserole from Kate and set it down, then pulled her in for a long, full hug.

“So glad you could make it,” she said softly and stood back, a beaming smile on her face as she looked Kate over and nodded. Patting Kate’s shoulder, Elena returned to the stove.

“Hey, Kate,” Benny said and continued to drop rolls into a basket. Daisy looked up and waved before returning her attention to the steaming pot in front of her. She was holding tongs and pulling out steaming corn husks.

Kate raised her brows. “Homemade tamales?”

“Of course, is there any other kind?” Daisy asked and smiled.

“Just wait until you bite into one of Daisy’s pumpkin empanadas,” Benny added. “Heavenly.”

“I can’t wait.” Kate turned and looked into the main room, where Dominic’s dad sat on the couch, Cruz on the other end, both fixated on the television in front of them. They managed to look up and called hello when they saw her before returning their gaze to the screen.

Kate spotted Glenda seated in the corner of the room at a card table and went over to greet her. Just like everyone else, she stood and wrapped her arms around Kate. “Hi, neighbor, glad to see you here.”

Jenna, the oldest of Dominic’s nieces, grabbed her hand. “We’re playing Candyland. But we can start over if you want to play. I was winning, anyhow.”

“I don’t want to play that anymore. How about Apples to Apples,” Natalie asked. “Kate can be on my team.”

“Let’s give Kate a minute to catch her breath.”

She stilled, recognizing the voice behind her. Before she could turn to meet his gaze, Dominic reached his hand out and wrapped it around her waist. She caught her breath at the familiar touch and tried to slow the yammering of her heart as he pulled her up against his side.

His body was like fifty degrees warmer than hers, as she remembered, and his musky scent with a hint of spice surrounded her. His breath was warm on her neck as he leaned down and pressed a kiss that nearly brought her legs out from under her.

“We were getting worried something happened,” he said, loud enough for everyone to hear. “You should have let me pick you up.” Then, softer, he whispered for her hearing only, “Or were you afraid to be alone with me?”

She looked up and met his gaze. Eyes brilliant and blue stared back into hers. Had it only been three days since she’d seen him? His hair was ruffled and sexy with that familiar piece teasing down over his left brow and that lazy smile that crooked his lips just so. She remembered the touch of those lips on hers—and on a few other more intimate parts that immediately brought warmth to her face.

Now she remembered why she had avoided being alone with him for the past few days. Even now, her resistance to him was melting away.

“Hey,” she finally managed to return, but her voice seemed clogged with emotion. She noticed the glass of red wine he held out for her, and she took it, careful to avoid his fingertips.

“Dinner will be on the table in about ten more minutes,” his mother called. “Kate, if you’re hungry, there are snacks on the table. Please help yourself.”

She became aware of Dominic’s hand resting lower on her hip, and it took all of her concentration to reply as if she were unaffected by his touch. “Thanks. Everything smells wonderful.”

“We’ll be back in a few minutes, actually,” Dominic said. “There were a few things I wanted to talk to Kate about before we ate. About her…kitchen cabinets.”

“Yeah, right. Nice try, bud,” Benny said. “There’ll be plenty of time for you to discuss her ‘cabinets’ later,” she said, in a voice that told them she had other ideas of what Dominic meant, “but this turkey is ready to be carved and there’s no way I’m letting Cruz do it again after the fiasco last year. Kate can keep me company while I set the table.”

Cruz came out of his television coma long enough to call out, “Hey, my turkey carving kicked ass last year. We can’t all be surgeons like you.”

“Really? It looked like rabid dogs chewed on it first. Just to be safe, I hid the electric knife.” She smiled and held out a long, gleaming carving knife and fork to Dominic, who looked uneasily at them and sighed.

“You could save us all the pain of your critique, Ben, if you’d just carve it every year.”

“And miss the fun of showing you two up next year? Not on your life. Besides, you’re always bragging about how good you are with your hands, let’s see what you can do.”

Dominic stared at his sister. “You realize you just made a pass at me.”

The room was quiet for a moment. Then Daisy giggled, followed by Elena, and everyone joined in. And for once in the short time since she’d met her, Kate had the privilege of seeing Benny shut her eyes in mortification, completely speechless.

“No fair! That’s traveling,” Dominic yelled while Daisy cut him off. Their bellies full from dinner, Benny had wrangled everyone outside for a little activity to work off some calories. And to everyone’s surprise and relief, Daisy had not only agreed to participate, but she also had the familiar gleam of competitiveness back in her eyes.

The siblings held nothing back as they scrimmaged around the cement padding in the Sorensens’ backyard. Since Kate had no talent for basketball and a limited understanding of the rules, she’d begged to sit out to watch them and was joined by Dominic’s nieces, Jenna and Natalie.

From what she could tell, Dominic, Benny, and Paul were kicking Cruz and Daisy’s butts. But despite their loss, Daisy was laughing and throwing back the barbs they slung. Kate had never seen Daisy so lighthearted and happy in the short time she’d known her and had a sneaking suspicion it was due in large part to the check that had arrived Wednesday evening, as well as the fact it had actually cleared the bank.

According to Daisy, who’d stolen Kate away after dinner to share the news, Leo had dropped it off personally and even took the kids to McDonald’s for ice cream. It was something. And despite the crap that Tim had given her about taking the case, the smile on Daisy’s face made it all worth it. Kate would never wish otherwise.

She watched Dominic and Cruz face each other, Cruz almost taunting as he pulled the ball back every time Dominic tried to steal it. But Dominic psyched him out on the next one and stole the ball and passed it to Benny, who threw it high. And scored.

“Point and tied,” Benny shouted and pumped her arm.

For a moment, Dominic looked back at Kate, and she received a rush as he smiled. She was completely under his spell.

“On that high note,” Daisy announced, “I think we should call it a game.”

Paul immediately objected but stopped when Daisy mentioned the fact the empanadas were ready, then raced his sisters for the door.

Dominic was out of breath when he reached Kate and extended his hand to give her a boost up. Unable to resist, she put her hand in his warm callused one, expecting him to lift her, but instead he ran his thumb across her skin, sending a shiver of pleasure shuddering through her. Then he pulled her up so she fell against his chest.

He was really playing up all the little public displays of affection tonight. Not that she was complaining as he stared down into her eyes, his own twinkling with mischief. Before she could blink, he pressed his mouth to hers and another bolt ran through her. Instinctively, her hand shot out to his chest, whether to push him away or bring him closer she couldn’t say, since as soon as the kiss started it was over and he was grabbing her hand and pulling her inside.

An hour later, the kids were in another heated game of Candyland while the adults sprawled out on chairs and couches. Dominic grabbed a blanket from the closet and after tucking a bottle of wine under his arm and grabbing two glasses, motioned her to follow.

The cold air that greeted them was even chillier than during the game and she shivered as she sat on the cold cement step until Dominic wrapped the blanket around them. His body was like a heat lamp, and she leaned toward him despite herself.

The biting air helped to cool the sudden flush of her cheeks at this new intimacy and she floundered for something to say. “They say it’s supposed to snow tomorrow.” Lame, but it filled the silence as he poured the wine. “At least I won’t have to worry about a heavy commute, since everyone will either be chilling at home or heading to the malls.”

“You’re working tomorrow?” He actually sounded disappointed.

She nodded. “I want to get a jump start on drafting the summary judgment motion on the McKenna case.”

Almost tentatively, he asked, “How’d it go, then? Did you get what you needed?”

“Enough to make a pretty good argument why this case should be dismissed.”

“Then we should celebrate.” He handed her a glass and held his up to hers. “Here’s to getting everything you want, Kate.”

Whether he was talking about her case, her promotion, or something more, she didn’t care. She raised her glass. Who wouldn’t want all the luck they could get? “Cheers.”

They each took a drink and stared up at the sky. The moon was hidden behind clouds and the night was impossibly dark, making it difficult to see Dominic’s face.

“So it’s next week?” he asked. “When they decide about your partnership?”

“Friday. I’ll be a bundle of nerves until then.”

“Then we’ll have something else to toast to at Payton’s engagement party that Saturday night, besides the completion of your kitchen.”

“My kitchen?”

“Yep. Got the call. Your cabinets should arrive Wednesday and with a couple of guys I use for my freelancing, we should have them up within a day.”

Which should make her excited and thrilled. Only…all she could think about was that Dominic’s work would be done and there’d be no more reason to see him.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to smile. “And what about you? Now that the surgery is done and your dad looks to be on the road to good health, are you ready to make a decision?”

He took a drink and set his glass down. “I already did.” He pulled his cell phone from his back pocket and held it in front of him. “You all were right, of course. About him just wanting what was best for me. And it helped that Cruz was already talking to my dad when I arrived, showing him a new business plan he’d drawn up for what he envisions for Sorensen Construction. My own plan for going out on my own seemed to be something Dad already had accepted. In fact, he actually asked me why I took so long.”

He laughed, and he sounded so happy, as if the weight of the world was off his shoulders, she joined him.

“Here.” He held his cell phone out to her. “I want you to see something.”

She took the phone in her hands and stared down. On the screen was a gray backdrop and a black-and-white photo with the facade on an old house. The words “Sorensen Restoration” in bold letters crossed the top.

“You did it? You actually created a webpage?” It was beautiful, too, as she touched the screen and was brought to a portfolio of some older homes and the work he’d already done.

“Not only created it, but registered the LLC yesterday. And here’s the kicker. I’ve already had someone give me a call and received two more email inquiries.”

Her smile was wide and genuine as she looked at him, beyond impressed. “Wow. I can’t believe how much you’ve done in such a short time.”
Without me
, she wanted to add. But that would be silly. She’d shut him out, not the other way around. “I’m not surprised, though. I’m so happy for you, Dominic. You’re going to do it. You’re ready to start working on making your dream come true.”

He looked at her, and she felt as if he was going to say something, and her heart thumped loudly, almost deafening in her ears.

But he only smiled a little wryly and winked again. “I’m trying.”

Chapter Seventeen

Kate made it to the office in record time, considering traffic was sparse and the parking garage was practically empty. The office was quiet, too, without the usual bustle from the staff. Even the phones were strangely quiet. One of the reasons she usually loved coming in on holidays. Although now…she was starting to understand the allure of being at home.

If there was a certain someone to spend time with.

By eleven, she was busy typing her draft and barely noticed when one of the legal assistants dropped the mail off at Trish’s desk. After another half hour, she finally stood to stretch her legs and took a look at the mail that arrived. It was hard to miss the padded white FedEx envelope on top of the pile. Taking it to her desk, she dumped it out, already confident in what it contained before she even saw it.

The video surveillance from the Radisson.

She slid the disc into her computer and waited the long minute it took for the computer to recognize the software. Then it was starting. A long narrow hall, the picture a little grainy. A date was time-stamped in the corner. Same date as the day Ms. Herrera claimed Mark McKenna assaulted her in his room.

It took a good fifteen minutes of her forwarding through scenes of an empty hall before she finally spotted Mark arriving at his room. Alone. She exhaled a small sigh. She skipped forward again until she saw a woman with dark hair approach the door and go in. It was Ms. Herrera.

It was another six minutes on the video before the door was suddenly wrenched open and Ms. Herrera rushed out. Even in the short time she was in the frame, it was hard to miss the way her shirt hung open, the look of terror on her face before she raced down the hall.

A wave of nausea swept through Kate. She’d had her suspicions and doubts before, but now there was no denying what she knew was true. He’d done it, the bastard. And if his assault hadn’t been bad enough, he’d made sure to take not only the woman’s dignity but her income and then her job. She stopped the video.

Now she had to face another realization. Because now that she had seen what was on the video, there was no doubt in her mind that the first copy hadn’t mysteriously gone missing. Someone had deliberately hidden it.

It would be easy to lay the blame on Nicole, a woman who Kate had little doubt would stoop low enough to hide evidence if it meant getting ahead. But there were two things wrong with that theory. Nicole had nothing to gain by hiding it, as it was Kate’s neck—or promotion, rather—on the line and, in fact, hiding this might actually benefit Kate. The other problem was that Nicole didn’t have access to her mail.

She knew only one person, other than Trish, who was screening any mail coming in on the McKenna matter.

Tim.

It wasn’t difficult to see why he would try and suppress it. One look at the footage and their defense would be blown out of the water. Mark had lied about what happened, and it wouldn’t be a stretch for anyone to believe everything else that Ava Herrera claimed had happened also.

She pressed her fingers to her head again as the pounding pain increased. If she brought this footage to light, she’d not only sink this case, but she’d sink her chances at partnership.

But what choice did she really have? Could she sit on the evidence, as Tim seemed content to do? Wrestle with her conscience and code of ethics later?

“Hey, Kate. Thought you might be in today.”

Oh, crap. Not now.
What is he doing here?

She didn’t even lift her head. “Hey, Michael. Now’s not really a good time…”

But he didn’t leave, and instead took a few steps inside until he reached the other side of her desk and perched on the corner next to her. She hazarded a peek from behind her fingers to find him half smiling at her.

“Come on, Kate. This is me. What’s going on?”

She rubbed her forehead again to try and relieve the aching pressure. “Honestly? I don’t really know anymore. But for starters, there’s this damn McKenna case.”

He nodded. “Nicole mentioned that you seemed to be…struggling with things of late. But I heard you nailed the deposition.”

“I did.” Yep. Couldn’t fault her there. She’d done an impeccable job of making Mark McKenna come off as a veritable saint. She should win some award or something.

“So what’s the problem?”

“The problem is my client is a liar and a predator and I’m pretty certain he sexually assaulted at least three women from his company. Then, when they tried to complain, he had them dismissed. And here”—she hit the keys and brought the footage back a few seconds to show Ms. Herrera leaving his hotel room again, ripped shirt and tears impossible to miss—“is what happened after he assaulted Ms. Herrera at the Radisson. Interestingly enough, this is the second copy of this footage the firm has received. The first went mysteriously missing.”

“Are you saying you don’t think it was an accident?”

“What I think is that Tim wanted to make sure this footage didn’t get into the hands of the other side, and he buried it.”

“Well, of course not. It’s our job to protect our client. You can’t take these things personally, Kate.”

Looked like Michael also wasn’t above hiding evidence that they were bound by the rules of evidence to provide.

“Sure, I guess it would be easier if I could flip a switch and turn off this inner moral compass that tells me this is wrong,” she added flippantly. “That my life is on the wrong track and I’m working for the wrong side.”

He sighed. “Kate. You can be so adorably naive sometimes.” He leaned over, closing the space between them. “You have a good heart, which is one of the things I love about you.”

Love
about her? Present tense?

“But you’ll get through this. You’re a great trial attorney and you’ll do what you need to do and probably join the ranks of junior partner. I know how much that means to you, and you’re almost there.” In a softer tone, he added, “You just have to hold on, and you can have everything you’ve ever wanted.”

That made him the second person in two days to mention getting everything she’d ever wanted. What the heck did she want?

Michael reached out and tucked a strand of hair back from her face, but instead of breaking the contact, his fingers trailed lightly down in a caress to her jaw, her neck, then stopped at the collar of her shirt.

She sat frozen, trying to figure out what was happening as Michael continued. “Once upon a time you wanted me as much as I wanted you, and for a crazy moment, I thought I could let you go. But—hell. I’ve missed you, Kate. And no matter how hard I’ve tried to move on, I can’t get you out of my head or my heart.”

She swallowed, trying to process. “What are you saying, Michael? Are you saying that your engagement to Nicole is over? And if so…why now?”

His brown eyes crinkled and he smiled. “Let’s just say seeing you with the wrong guy was a good kick in the pants to realize who was the right one. That guy—” He shook his head. “Dominic? He doesn’t know what you need, not like I do. He can’t give you what I can, Kate. You know that.”

It was as if she was in a dream, finally feeling his fingers softly caress her. Hearing the words she had wanted to hear for so long.

Only now that he was saying it, it sounded flat. Her heart wasn’t skipping or racing anywhere near like it had when she was with Dominic. How was that even possible?

She had loved this man. Wanted to marry him, spend forever with him.

Kate pulled back, away from his hand. “It’s kind of convenient, Michael. How on earth could I ever trust you again? Trust that you’re not going to change your mind?”

“Sorry to interrupt.” A low voice cut through the silence of the room, and her gaze flew to the door where Dominic was standing. Like someone had splashed a bucket of cold water on her, she jumped back in her chair.

How long had he been standing there? Dark, anguishing guilt hit her, but when she forced herself to look into his eyes, they didn’t reveal anything.

“I stopped by because I thought Kate might want to grab lunch.” His gaze dropped to settle on the area of her neck where Michael had just caressed her.

Still perched on the edge of the desk, Michael swiveled around to face Dominic, smiling a little too widely. “Dominic. How you doing, bud?”

“Doing fine, Michael.” Dominic didn’t give any indication of his feelings, but he didn’t return Michael’s smile. His gaze returned to Kate. “I realize we didn’t make any arrangements, but I thought you might want to catch some lunch. My mistake. I didn’t realize you would be so…busy. Next time I’ll call.” He turned as if to go.

“Dominic, wait. Michael, would you mind?”

Michael came to his feet, looking too satisfied with this latest turn of events. “Sure, Kate. But if you want to talk about this”—he lowered his voice, as if he was sharing an intimate conversation with Kate, but not low enough that Dominic couldn’t hear it—“another time, I’m here for you. Always.”

He strode to the door. “Well, see ya, Dominic.”

Dominic watched him leave and turned back to Kate.

Finally coming to her senses, Kate crossed the room and shut the door. “Dominic. I don’t know what you saw, but it’s not—”

She stopped. Actually, she had no idea what it had looked like, let alone what it was. Was Michael saying he wanted her back?

“It looked like Michael was trying to tell you he wanted you back.”

She closed her eyes. That was the same conclusion she had reached, too, so how could she deny it?

“Looks like you’re finally getting everything you wanted,” he said, his tone distant. Aloof.

Everything she wanted. Did that still include Michael?

For the past year she’d been convinced it did. And then Dominic had showed up and helped her see what life could be like without him. What it could be like with someone else. And it had seemed…pretty darn good.

But what she and Dominic had together—as they’d agreed—was only temporary.

He wasn’t exactly standing there telling her to pick him.

She looked up at his face, so achingly calm. Completely unaffected by the possibility that Michael wanted her back. And that she’d accept him.

Dominic’s gaze fell to the open FedEx envelope. “So what were you two talking about—I mean, before the big profession.”

Crap. That’s right. Michael was just the tip of the iceberg. The bigger crisis was her career…wasn’t it? “The video surveillance arrived, and it showed exactly what I feared, that not only is my client guilty, but it’s likely my boss and mentor is burying evidence.”

“You work for one hell of a boss.” He tightened his jaw, as if he wanted to say something but decided against it. “Guess you have a lot of life-changing decisions to make, then.”

She smiled wryly. “You think?”

With a sigh, she looked around the office. Seeing the diplomas, the certificate showing she’d been on law review, little trinkets she’d once prized. Proof she had worked so hard to get where she was.

And yet the one thing she really cared about right now was the opinion of the man in front of her.

A man who looked cool and detached, nothing at all like the man she’d come to know these past few weeks. And it was like small shards of glass were piercing her heart.

“Well, I can see you have a lot on your mind, so I’ll let you go.” He started to turn away, pausing as if he remembered something. “Just to give you a heads-up, I’m going to be in over my head for the next few days, getting things worked out at Sorensen while also getting my own business off the ground. I probably won’t be around until next Wednesday, when the cabinets arrive. Like I said, with some extra hands, I’ll make short work of it and can be finished and out of your hair by the end of the week.”

“Oh, well, of course. I can’t wait to see those cabinets up, finally.” She faltered. What had just happened? “I’ll see you at Payton’s party next Saturday, right?” Her voice sounded desperate even to her.

He ran his hand through his hair, and she could see regret flash through his eyes. She sensed his withdrawal from her but was helpless to stop it.

“Yeah, well, it seems kind of pointless, don’t you think? I was posing as your boyfriend to help you land this partnership, but as of Friday, you’ll know the decision on that. And keeping the pretense up for Michael seems kind of…counterintuitive. He wants you back. And having me hang around would be—well, like a third wheel. And I’m not really one for wearing those monkey suits, so, if it’s all the same to you, I’ll pass.”

Why was she having such a hard time catching her breath? She was breathing in but it seemed like she wasn’t getting any air in her lungs. She felt light-headed and reached out to steady herself on the desk.

Just like that, he was disappearing right out of her life.

“You’re right, of course. There really isn’t any reason, I suppose, for you to come.”

Except to be with me.

But she couldn’t say that. It was clear that he was already getting that itch to leave. They’d had their fun, but now that Daisy had things going in the right direction and Kate had her partnership nearly in the bag, they didn’t need each other.

And technically, he was right. She didn’t need him to come on Saturday to keep up the pretense. It would all be over by then, whichever way the dice fell.

But she wanted him to come.

“I should get going,” Dominic said finally, and her heart squeezed painfully. “I know you have a lot on your plate. And try and remember what I said. Don’t sell yourself short. To anyone. You have so much to offer.”

He studied her a few more seconds, and then that top lip curved up into that crooked grin she loved before he turned and walked out of her office and out of her life.

Like so many others had before.

…

Dominic’s smile slid off his face as he staggered out Kate’s office feeling like a man who had gone ten rounds with a heavyweight boxer. In the space of five minutes, his emotions had shot from excitement as he had anticipated surprising Kate to white-hot rage at seeing Michael touch Kate so intimately and promise the words he knew she’d been wanting to hear. Then jealousy took root when she hadn’t immediately rebuffed him, changing to sick disappointment and finally…acceptance.