Sweet Recovery (Ex Ops Series Book 4) (17 page)

Reading that shit was like pouring acid down my throat. What was even worse was the photo of Ginny and what I assumed was her intended walking down the street. It wasn’t a professional photo, more of a paparazzi type shot, which made my confusion that much more substantial.

She was marrying a goddamn multi-billionaire? My stomach sank, and suddenly, I was so fucking mad I wanted to drive my car off a cliff. None of it mattered, though. Gin wasn’t marrying that ass-wipe, and at least now I had a name to start investigating, which I apparently needed to do a lot of, because if it weren’t for the picture, I would have doubted it was the right Virginia.

Since when had she been a Wellington? And who the fuck was Richard? Because Gin’s dad was dead… well, supposedly as dead as her mother. If this article was accurate, then Gin had a whole bunch of shit to explain, like why she had lied about her mother’s death and who she was.

Pulling back onto the road, I put the pedal to the metal and hauled ass down the highway. The sooner I got to Chicago, the sooner I could figure out what the hell was going on.

~~~

Three days later, I was simmering somewhere between frustrated beyond belief and feeling more determined than ever. My personal phone had rung at least four times a day. If it wasn’t my sister trying to get information out of me, then it was Jaxon or one of my teammates asking if I was okay or needed help. While the gesture was appreciated, if I wanted help, I would have fucking asked for it in the first place. I was fine on my own.

Reaching out to the same contacts I had used in both law enforcement and private investigations to search for Ginny DuBois before, I had managed to dig up some information. For instance, I now knew that Ginny’s dad owned a few pharmaceutical companies in the area, which made me question why she and her mother had lived with such poor finances in New York. Had he cast them out, only to take them back years later?

No information could be found on Gin, her mother, or Richard Wellington’s personal life, which was odd. The newspaper article had mentioned long-time ties to the community and the Wellingtons being part of the upper crust. That meant I should have been able to find
something
about her family when, in fact, I found nothing. Not even Richard Wellington’s driver’s license or tax statements. How the hell did someone bury that much of their life and stay off the grid?

What was more frustrating was the lack of information on the Kahn family. I found vague specifics on their company owning many other companies, but not much else.

In my experience, no one had that clean of a trail unless they paid someone to make it that way. Too clean meant dirty. So what kind of dirt were they involved in? Did the fact that both families owned pharmaceutical companies have a significance? How did Ginny factor into all of it?

Since my information trail had seemed to dry up, now was the time for a stakeout. At least I had come up with a small list of addresses that Richard Wellington owned. Now I just had to figure out if Ginny lived in any of them.

~~~

Another three days and six locations later, I finally found her. I only saw her for a few seconds as she was escorted from a black SUV into a high-rise building, but at least I had finally found her.

It didn’t take me long to scope out the exterior security of the building. There was no way I was getting in there if I wasn’t supposed to. Security personnel stood at every entrance, and they seemed to know every person who entered or exited. Surveillance cameras were mounted on every corner for full coverage, and I would bet my left nut that they had nighttime vision, too.

So, if I couldn’t go in and get my girl, I was going to have to sit out here and wait for her to come out.

Game on.

Chapter

13

Ginny

Jay to the rescue again.

An hour ago, he had sent me a message to let me know his driver would pick me up for an early dinner date. I had a hangover that probably could drop an elephant, but I would do anything to get out of this damn building, including take a shower, get dressed, and bear with the outside world.

Walking out of the building with a small bit of pep in my step, I found Jay’s vehicle waiting for me. The doorman was already holding my door open, and all I had to do was climb in and buckle up. Jay had a small army of cars and automobiles, so I didn’t bother to see who was at the wheel.

Scenery passed by, and I took every speck of life in with greedy eyes. Watching the people as they rushed to their destinations like scurrying ants and the many different characters on the streets was an entertainment all in itself in a city this large.

Sooner than I would have liked, the vehicle rounded several blocks then stopped at one of my fiancé’s favorite restaurants. I let myself out and walked in, giving the hostess Jay’s name. Then she led me to a private booth in the back of restaurant, and I couldn’t help sighing in relief at my soon-to-be husband’s thoughtful gesture.

It was just enough space to be private, but it also allowed me to take in the world around me. Jay Kahn was an extremely astute man, and it had not taken him long to realize that, while I loved to observe life, I did not necessarily like to be a part of it. It was more about being surrounded by the vitality of other people to remind me that I was still alive.

The waitress appeared, and I ordered a cosmopolitan. She politely asked if I would like to order an appetizer or something to eat, but I declined. I would order something when Jay got there.

This was a bit more of an old fashioned restaurant, so they didn’t believe in having televisions in their establishment to entertain their customers. Jay had once told me it was one of the reasons he liked it so much. It was still disconnected from society.

No television meant I got to people watch, which was A-OK with me. There was an adorable older couple in the corner who had caught my attention. They looked to be around their sixties and were dressed to the nines. She was wearing a lovely red dress, and he was wearing a dashing suit. He picked up her hand to give it a kiss, and I felt myself melt.

There was love shining in their eyes, obvious for the world to see. It made me wonder how long they had been together, if they had children, and how they had met. It also made me wonder if I could ever look at Jay with something like love in my eyes.

I wasn’t so sure I would ever get over Lucas, and to be honest, I didn’t want to. Did that mean I could never love Jay in any capacity? Who knew?

The waitress dropped off my drink, and I took a sip, enjoying the crisp taste. Settling back, I patiently waited for my fiancé while enjoying my solitude. Little did I know my entire night was about to blow up in my face.

Lucas

It had taken over a week of surveillance, but my patience had finally paid off.

Nine days after arriving in Chicago, I sat in my rental car in front of the café across the street from her building and watched as she walked out and climbed into a black SUV. Covertly following them through the busy city traffic, I managed to stay with them until the SUV stopped at a high-end restaurant several blocks over. The vehicle parked in front of the entrance, and a few minutes later, Gin departed the SUV and walked inside.

I waited until the SUV pulled away before I pulled up in front of the restaurant and got out to let the valet park my rental.

Once I walked into the restaurant, the hostess gave me the stink eye, probably because I was wearing jeans and a black T-shirt. I ignored her as I made my way into the building.

It didn’t take me long to spot Gin sitting by herself at a table in the back, away from the rest of the patrons.

Perfect.

We were in public, so she more than likely wouldn’t make a scene, but she was also isolated enough that we had privacy to hash things out. I stuck to the shadows so she wouldn’t see me coming.

Before she even knew what was about to hit her, I slid into the booth across from her.

She gave a long, suffering sigh then slowly lifted her eyes under her lashes to look at me before promptly choking on her drink. Her eyes bugged out as she pulled her glass away and started coughing.

“What are you doing here, Lucas?” she sputtered out between coughs.

“Did your drink go down the wrong pipe, angel? Need a pat on the back?” I taunted.

She shook her head yet kept coughing, trying to catch her breath. I sort of felt bad now about popping up on her like this.

“Maybe you should take another drink to help clear your throat.”

She took another sip of her cosmo then looked around the restaurant again, as if she expected someone to show up and carry her off at any given second. Little did Ginny realize, I was going to be the one to carry her off as soon as I figured out why the fuck she was here and drunk as hell at only five in the afternoon.

When she looked back at me, she sighed roughly, took a huge gulp of her drink that had me cringing at the amount of alcohol she was consuming, and then she placed her glass on the table. Her face looked tired and thinner, as if she hadn’t been taking care of herself properly.

My gut churned, and I wondered what had happened to make her this way. Never in a million years would the girl I used to know drink like that. Were the secrets that I was slowly uncovering about her life driving her to become this person I barely recognized? Someone who lied, left me in the dust, and then drowned her problems away? Was there any way I could make this high-class, overly polished, and clearly miserable Ginny disappear? I would buy her all the ripped, holey jeans; converse sneakers; and art markers her heart desired if she would just let me in and tell me why she had turned into this woman I didn’t know anymore. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if Ginny didn’t recognize herself.

It was time to get down to business, figure out what the fuck was going on with her, and start getting her shit sorted out.

“You waiting for somebody, angel?”

Gin set her glass down on the table between us and glared at me. “That is none of your business, Lucas Young. Now I suggest you walk out of here just as quickly as you walked in.”

Ah, avoidance and redirection. Good tactics, angel. Too bad I can see, with the way you’re twitching in your seat, you are more nervous than angry.

“I’m not ready to leave just yet, Gin.”

If looks could kill, I would be a smoldering mess of ashes on this bench seat.

“Why not?” she snapped back.

Leaning back into my seat, I sprawled out a little to give the impression that I didn’t have a care in the world. Reality was, everything I cared for was sitting across from me, and I felt like I was playing Russian roulette with our future.

“I’m not leaving here until I get what I came here for.”

Gin rolled her eyes. “And what’s that? An apology? You want me to tell you I’m sorry for screwing you over, figuratively and literally, before leaving you in that motel?”

Oh, but I could get used to this bold, new attitude my angel had.

Cocking one of my eyebrows, I barely held my smile back. “Well, feel free to apologize for using and abusing me, breaking my poor, little heart and all. But I don’t think you should ever apologize for any fucking we do. We both know there’s nothing to regret there.”

Her cheeks turned bright red, and this time, I didn’t bother to hold back my smile at her blush. Damn, she was cute when she looked like that. It reminded me of when she was a teenager, looking at me with those big moon eyes of hers. I seriously fucking hoped she looked at me like that again in the future.

“I can’t believe you just said that to me,” she whispered. “Do you not remember the morning after my birthday party? You didn’t even remember what we had done!”

Shrugging, I leaned forward to brace my elbows on the table and decided to lay it out for her. “Believe it, babe. I said it because it’s true. I might not have remembered that morning, but I’ve had over five years of dreams, over five years of flashbacks, to fill in the blanks. You know what I remember about that night?”

Ginny breathed out shakily. “What?”

“I remember how perfect you felt, how it felt like coming home because you are my home. That’s why I’m standing here right now instead of back in Virginia, trying to move on with my life. The truth of the matter is, I’m done pussy footin’ around with you. I tried to be all smooth and suave in Miami to win you back, and that shit didn’t exactly work. So this time, I’m going to be a blunt motherfucker.”

Ginny barked out a sardonic laugh. “You call throwing me over your shoulder like a caveman being smooth and suave, Lucas?”

“Babe, in my world, if it ain’t broke, you don’t fix it. Since I got you out of that place without hurting you, the cops catching me, or any other sort of fuck up, yeah, it went smooth. Now, back to what I was saying. Five and a half years ago, I fucked up. You gave me something precious, and in return, I said some shit I should never have said.”

Her eyes flashed in outrage as they simultaneously watered up, and she pointed an angry finger in my direction. “You did more than say shit, Lucas. You acted like shit. Giant, hairy, bull-sized shit at that!”

Done ranting, she dropped her face to avoid looking at me, but I wasn’t having it. Gin couldn’t avoid me this time. Reaching over, I used my hand to cradle her chin and make her look at me.

“I hurt you, and I will never be able to express just how sorry I am for doing that, angel.” Her eyes watered up like she might cry, but not a tear spilled over. “You listening to me, Gin?”

She jerkily nodded her head, so I continued.

“Good, because you need to listen and listen good for this next part. Six months ago, you fucked up.”

I felt her chin jerk under my hand. Seeing that I still had her undivided attention, I dropped my hold of her face and grabbed both of her hands in my own.

“You fucked up when you didn’t listen to the words I gave you in Miami. My only guess is that my apology went in one ear and out the other when it should have stayed with you. You also fucked up when you didn’t believe me when I told you I loved you and you were mine, because if you believed me, you would have stayed, told me about whatever mess you’re in, and then trusted me to help get you out of it. Now I’m here because I want to make it right for both of us. My shoulders are strong and wide, sweetheart. All you have to do is lay your problems at my feet, and I’ll carry that load for you. Whatever it is that you’ve been trying to do on your own, you don’t need to. I’m here for you because you mean that much to me, Gin.”