“Are you this charming to all the ladies?” Bri asked with a teasing grin. Her cheeks flushed a tantalizing shade of pink. “Or only the ones Piers brings in?”
“Please,” Manuel said. “You’re the only woman he’s ever brought in here. Robert and I were starting to think maybe he played for our side, after all. Just last weekend, we were thinking about how we needed to sit down and come up with some single guys we knew who we could set him up with.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m glad I saved you the trouble by coming in today.”
“Me too,” Manuel agreed. “Just wait until I tell Robert.”
“Betsy already told me,” another voice said, coming from behind me. “Piers,” Robert said, walking to stand beside Manuel and shaking my hand. “Good to see you. Glad you stopped by.”
Manuel and Robert were one of my success stories, but I of course kept that information confidential. Partners in both life and in business, they were the epitome of the American dream.
“Did Manuel tell you our news?” Robert asked.
“Of course not,” Manuel said with a mock sigh. “I would never think about dropping it without you being present.”
“You have news?” I asked, noticing how intently Bri watched our interaction.
“Yes,” Manuel said. “I’ll let Robert tell you since he’s the one who brought it up.”
Robert reached for his partner’s hand. To see them separately, you’d never put the two of them together. Manuel was tall and thin and had never met a stranger whereas Robert had played football in both high school and college and still looked like the linebacker he used to be. He was also the complete opposite of Manuel personalitywise. While Manuel could talk the ears off a fence post, Robert was perfectly content to spend his days in the kitchen.
“Only if it’s good news,” I said. “I’m not doing bad news today.”
“It’s good,” Robert said, wearing the biggest smile I’d ever seen on his face. “We got word yesterday from the Department of Children and Families that they have approved us to adopt. They said since we would prefer an older child or sibling group, we might not have to wait very long.”
“That’s fantastic news.” I stood up to hug them. “I’m so happy for you.”
“We wouldn’t be at this point if you hadn’t stepped in and fought for us and this business,” Manuel said. “There’s no way we can ever repay you.”
“Send me a family picture for Christmas, and we’ll call it even,” I said.
We chatted for a few more minutes until Betsy came up to Robert and told him a party of eight had just arrived. Both men took their leave but not before once again telling Bri how nice it was to meet her and reminding me not to be a stranger.
I sat back down at the table. Bri’s eyes were a bit watery, and she grinned. “I’m so happy for them. I bet they’ll make great parents.”
Much better than either of ours, I wanted to say but didn’t. Why spoil the happy moment by bringing up something so depressing to both of us? “I’m sure they will. It’s been a dream of theirs to adopt for as long as I’ve known them.”
“Some kids get all the luck,” she whispered.
Chapter 9
Bri
To say I was confused would be putting it mildly. Even after Piers dropped me off at my apartment, I couldn’t concentrate on anything other than what I’d witnessed at dinner. Piers hadn’t mentioned the almost kiss or even looked as if the thought of it crossed his mind.
I couldn’t figure out why. In that moment before we were interrupted, I knew he wanted to kiss me. But if that had been the case, then why he didn’t try again afterward? When we made it to my apartment after dinner, I mentioned he was welcome to join me inside, a subtle hint I would not turn down a second attempt at a kiss, and instead he politely declined and left after seeing me to my door.
I thought back to those few seconds in the restaurant, trying to recall what I was thinking. Was it possible my expression threw him off? I wasn’t sure.
It’s a good thing he didn’t kiss you, I repeated inside my head in a vain attempt to make myself believe the absurd statement. Kissing Piers would have only added to my problems and done nothing to solve any of them.
I didn’t care.
And how was it possible that nothing about him matched what I’d expected or, for that matter, what I’d been told? The only sensible answer was that Piers was an excellent actor and was simply playing a role for me. The role of a highly successful lawyer with a generous heart of gold.
If that was the case, however, it still didn’t explain how he knew to take on that role around me. More importantly, it didn’t explain Manuel and Robert yesterday. No one was that good of an actor.
The best thing I could do would be to ignore whatever act Piers threw my way and to get busy doing what I was supposed to do.
And that’s what I would have done if that small voice hadn’t kept asking in my head, What if it’s not an act?
It was that incessant repetition that drove me to do what I’d otherwise never once have contemplated. I picked up my phone and dialed.
“Brigitta,” the voice on the other end said in what was in no way a question at all. In fact, I was positive I heard a warning in the way he said my name, and I faltered for a second.
Before I allowed myself to be intimidated, I spit out, “Did you know Piers dedicates fifty percent of his time to pro bono work for small businesses?”
Too much time passed before I heard a deep exhale followed by, “Why are you asking me?”
He already knew.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked instead of answering his question.
“It doesn’t change anything,” he responded. “He’s still who he is, and your job is still your job.”
“But,” I started because it made little sense. As it stood, it was barely plausible Piers operated in the black, even less. It would seem if he was somehow also laundering money on the side. Or did that actually make it more plausible? Hell, I wasn’t sure which way was up anymore. All I knew was that it seemed less and less likely every time I thought about it that Piers was the evil genius I’d been led to believe.
Unless he actually managed to do all the pro bono work and laundered money. Because, okay, that would have made him the evil genius to beat all evil geniuses. Which was exactly what the Organization wanted me to believe.
I ended up not being able to sleep that night. Instead, I tossed and turned until dawn in a worthless attempt to make heads or tails out of the mess I’d found myself in.
Two days later, I was no closer to an answer. Not about who Piers was, nor what I was going to do about him. To confuse things even more, I hadn’t heard from him in those two days, which only made me question both him and his motives. It wasn’t fair of me to think that way. After all, I hadn’t reached out to him either.
Several times over the past two days I thought about casually dropping his name in conversation while I was talking with Mia. Yet it never seemed to be the right time.
I was sitting in my office, trying to think of a subtle way to mention him, when Mia appeared in my doorway.