Читать книгу Postcards From…Verses Brides Babies And Billionaires - Rebecca Winters - Страница 106

WREN’S HANDS TREMBLED as she approached the gallery’s front door. For all the bravado she’d mustered up when she’d decided to volunteer, not much of it had stuck around for the grand finale. She forced herself to think of Kylie and Aimee, how scared they must have been when they realized they were being played. That the man they’d fallen for was nothing more than a thief and an abuser.

She had to be brave for them.

Part of her had hoped that Rhys would be here to support her. The other part of her had been terrified that he’d show up and all her resolve would melt away. Last night she’d lain awake, tossing and turning with nerves, her stomach tied up in knots. The reality that soon she’d be leaving New York had washed over her, and instead of making her feel relieved, it made her want to cry.

She shoved the thoughts aside as she reached for the gallery door. Slowly, she drew in a steadying breath, and pushed.

The little bell above the door tinkled as she stepped inside, her head held high. This was it. All she had to do was get Sean to confess his crimes. It shouldn’t be hard; he loved talking about himself. And now she had the leverage she needed to get him to confess the truth.

“Wren.” Lola blinked from behind the reception desk. “What are you doing here? I thought you’d gone home to your family?”

A family emergency, that’s what she’d told Lola to keep her in the dark. They couldn’t risk any hint of the operation leaking to Sean. Not after the head of Cobalt & Dane had been forced to go to Sean Ainslie personally to make sure they were still employed by the gallery. Without the contract, they couldn’t access the cameras.

“I need to speak with Sean,” Wren said, hoping to hell her tone didn’t reveal her nerves.

“He’s just about to meet with a buyer.” Lola nodded toward an attractive dark-haired man in a fitted black suit who was wandering around the gallery, looking at the paintings.

Wren recognized him as Jin, one of Owen and Quinn’s colleagues. He was her safety net. The guy who was going to make sure she got out in one piece if Ainslie lost his shit.

“It’s urgent,” Wren replied.

“Gee, you guys don’t make it easy for me,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t believe you and Aimee both quit at the same damn time.”

Aimee had quit? That news sounded too good to be true.

Lola picked up the phone and dialed the extension for Sean’s office. Wren could hear his peevish tone even standing a foot away.

He won’t get to treat anyone else like shit for much longer…

When he strode into the gallery, he ignored Wren and walked straight over to Jin, hand outstretched. Then he motioned for Wren to follow him down the hall. Her heart leaped into her throat. Of course he wouldn’t want to have the conversation out in the open—but how would Jin keep an eye on her if he took her out back?

“What the fuck do you want?” he asked. “If you’ve come here for your shitty canvas, I’ve thrown it out. Probably for the best. I’m not sure you have any talent.”

“Then why did you hire me?” she asked, folding her arms across her chest carefully, so as not to obstruct the mic taped just inside of her blouse.

The tiny thing barely looked powerful enough to capture the voice of the person wearing it, but Owen had assured her that so long as she stood within a few feet of Sean it would record his voice, too.

“Because I liked looking at your ass,” Sean replied with a cocky grin. “Too bad you haven’t got anything of value from the waist up.”

“Oh, so it wasn’t to steal my paintings and pass them off as your own like you did with all the other girls who’ve worked here?”

Surprise streaked across his face but it was gone almost as quickly as it appeared. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Yes, actually, I do. I know everything, Sean. I know that you hire young girls from small towns because they’re vulnerable and eager to please. I know that you steal their paintings and beat them up if they try to stop you. I know that you’re a thief and a liar and you deserve to be put in jail.”

His eyes darted around behind her. They were still in the hallway, but right at the back of the gallery. Jin wouldn’t be able to hear what they were saying, but Owen would be communicating with him via an earpiece. She just had to trust that they were good at their jobs.

“And how are you so sure of all of this, Wren? Sounds like a great story to me. Maybe you should have been a writer instead of a painter.”

“I’ve been in touch with your former employees. I spoke with Kylie and Marguerite. I’ve been speaking with Aimee.”

At the mention of Aimee’s name, a fire lit in his eyes and his mouth flattened into a thin line. “Bullshit.”

“They told me that you keep the paintings in your storage room and you cover up their signatures and replace them with your own.” Neither of them had said that directly, but it was an educated guess…one that was on the money if his thunderous expression was anything to go on. “Why do you do it? Is it because you have no talent of your own?”

His hand reached out so quickly she didn’t have the chance to back away, and he caught her arm between his fingers. As he squeezed, pain shot through her.

“You’re playing with fire, Wren. I know you’re not smart, but let me spell it out for you.” He leaned in so close that his breath heated her skin. Her stomach pitched violently but she managed to hold herself together. “You have nothing on me, you will never have anything on me and even if you did, I’m untouchable.”

Wren felt a flutter of panic in her chest. Sean still hadn’t given her anything incriminating. She needed to push him harder, get him to confess.

“No one is untouchable,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if your father is a judge. He can’t save you from everything. How would he feel if he knew his son was an abusive bastard who preyed on young women? Don’t you think he’d be disappointed in you?”

His fingers bore down on her, making her skin burn.

“You think he doesn’t know?” Sean laughed. “I went to him after I messed Marguerite’s face up just in case that mouthy bitch decided to go to the cops. Dear old Dad had a word with her and she didn’t make a peep.”

“So your father threatened some poor girl just to help you cover up what a piece of shit you are? I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” She tried to pull her arm away but he held tight. So tight that the blood supply to her hand was being cut off. “What did you do with her paintings? Because it’s not like you’ve made it big yet. Guess your plans aren’t working out too well.”

“I sold them,” he said with a sneer. “Made fuck all, too. Guess she wasn’t as talented as she thought.”

“Or maybe you just haven’t got a good eye. If you did, you would have been able to paint something decent yourself by now.”

“Hardly,” he snarled. “I’m scraping the bottom of the barrel with you worthless country girls. But I’ve found my golden ticket with Aimee.”

Wren tried to shove him, her fear and anger bubbling over. But she was half his size. “You leave her alone.”

“Maybe I’ll work her over extra good tonight, just for you.”

Tears pricked her eyes. “Please leave her alone.”

“She’s got what it takes, and I’m going to sell those paintings for all I can get.”

“She’ll leave you,” Wren said, blinking through her blurry vision. “She’ll realize she doesn’t have to take this shit from you and she’ll leave.”

“No, she won’t. I’ve got her locked up now and I’m throwing away the key.” The grin on his face was bordering on manic. “I made sure to do that after you got into her ear last time. So you can blame yourself for that one.”

A sob wrenched out of her. “You’re a monster.”

“It’s just business. Her paintings are going to make me rich.”

At that moment footsteps sounded beside them and Sean released Wren so quickly her knees buckled and she dropped to the ground. Her arm throbbed as the blood started moving through it again.

“What the fu—”

“Keep your hands to yourself.”

Wren looked up to see Jin pointing a gun straight at Ainslie. He stood over her, giving her a chance to stand up and scoot behind him.

“You okay, Wren?” Jin asked.

She nodded and Sean fumed at the both of them. “Get the fuck off my property. Now.”

“You realize you’ve just admitted to holding someone against their will?” Jin said. “I thought you were despicable, but that takes the cake.”

“We have to find her,” Wren said, wrapping her arms around herself.

“We will. But first we’re going to wait here until the NYPD arrives.”

RHYS PACED THE length of his apartment, waiting for the Cobalt & Dane team to wrap up with Wren across the hall. Tonight they’d be putting her up in a hotel to make sure that she was safe—just in case Sean’s father managed to get him out of holding.

Watching her go toe-to-toe with Sean had been one of the toughest things he’d ever done in his life. All he’d wanted to do was go to her, to step in front of her and protect her from that asshole. He’d wanted to dry the tears that had rolled down her cheeks once she’d finally gotten out of the gallery. Anything to make her feel better. Anything to make up for acting like a jerk when she’d volunteered to help take that bastard down.

All he could do now was hope that she’d hear him out when he told her how he felt.

After Ainslie had admitted to kidnapping Aimee, things had moved swiftly. Owen had called the police. Jin had an old buddy from his days with the NYPD who worked in the special victim’s unit. They’d jumped on the case and had thankfully found Aimee within hours.

She’d seemed unharmed, but they’d admitted her to the hospital, anyway. She was in good hands now. As for Sean, he’d been taken into custody and would likely be charged with a slew of things, including kidnapping and assault.

Voices floated in from the hallway and Rhys recognized the calming tones of one of the counselors Cobalt & Dane regularly contracted. When the sounds faded to silence, he made his way to the front door. Owen had promised Rhys he could escort Wren to the hotel so long as he called the office as soon as Wren was checked in. He wasn’t used to being micromanaged, but nothing could upset him now.

Sean was in custody. Wren was safe.

He walked over to Wren’s apartment and knocked. This was it, confession time. When she swung the door open, he was greeted with a sight that almost tore his heart in two. Wren’s face was swollen and puffy, and her cheeks were mottled with patches of pink and red.

“Don’t stare at me like that,” she said, dropping her eyes to the floor. “I know I look hideous. I’m an ugly crier.”

“You couldn’t be ugly if you tried, Wren.” He reached out and brushed his thumb along her cheek. “On the inside or the outside.”

She held the door open for him, her eyes avoiding his. The second he stepped into her apartment he saw the small collection of boxes in the spot where her couch used to be. They were haphazardly stacked and didn’t appear to be labeled.

“Heading home so soon?” he asked, fighting back the hurt that trickled through him like a toxin.

“Kylie is coming to get me tomorrow. Owen said they’d need me to come back at some point to testify against Sean, but I could go and be with my family for now.” She drew her bottom lip between her teeth.

The careful speech he’d planned—and practiced—seemed to evaporate on the spot. He wanted to be with her more than anything, but facing her rejection was tearing him apart. Suddenly he felt like that desperate kid he’d always been, the one who’d craved his mother’s attention. Who’d tried—and failed—to fit in with his new family. Who’d just wanted to be accepted.

“Are you taking me to the hotel?” She wrapped her arms around herself.

“Yeah.” He nodded. “But, uh…I wanted to talk to you about something first.”

“Sure. I haven’t got anywhere for us to sit, though.” She looked around. “And everything is all packed up so I can’t make us coffee.”

“I don’t need any of that.” He ran a hand over his hair and willed himself not to chicken out. “I wanted to apologize for the other day. I shouldn’t have said the things I did.”

“It’s okay. I know I jump into some things headfirst.” A smile tugged at her lips. “You can add ‘impulsive’ to my list of undesirable traits along with messy and clumsy.”

“Wren, nothing about you is undesirable. The truth is, I was scared shitless about you going in there today. But more than that…” His mouth was suddenly drier than desert air. “I was lashing out because I was hurt. I was hoping you’d want to stay with me, and when you said you were going home I threw it back in your face.”

“The things you said weren’t exactly false. I do hide behind other people’s problems.” Her head bobbed. “I realized that today. I’ve spent so long ‘not being good enough’ that I felt like I needed to do things for people so they would like me.”

“People like you for who you are, Wren. Not what you do for them.”

“I understand that now. Kylie and Debbie will love me no matter what, and my parents still love me even though I might not be the successful child.”

“What about me?” he asked, taking a step forward.

“What about you?” Her face tilted up, eyes wide.

The moment he reached for her hands he remembered all the things he wanted to say. “Do you know that I’ll love you no matter what? Do you know that I’ll do anything to be with you, Wren? I can’t let you go without laying it out.”

“You love me?”

“I do.” He pulled her closer and she curled into him, her head resting against his chest. “You make me feel…real. When you painted me, I was floored. No one has ever looked at me like that before.”

“What do you mean?”

“Like they weren’t trying to figure something out. When I was growing up, a lot of people would compare me to Marc or Mom. They didn’t understand how I belonged, if I was adopted. If I was black or white. And then Mom didn’t really look at me at all.” He paused.

“I just painted what I saw.”

“I like seeing myself through your eyes.”

“Did you just compliment yourself?” She raised a brow and he laughed.

“I guess I did.”

“Good. It’s about time.” Her fingers traced the buttons on his shirt. “You’re so hard on yourself, it must be exhausting.”

“It really is.”

As he cradled her, the silk of her hair was soft under his palm. He was braced for her rejection, but painful as it would be, he knew he’d never forgive himself if he hadn’t told her the truth.

“I can’t figure out why someone like you would love someone like me,” she said quietly. “I don’t bring anything to the table. I barely function as an adult.”

“You are an adult. Look at what you’ve done today—you do a lot of good, Wren. You’re fearless. The world needs more people as strong as you.”

“I don’t care what the world needs, Rhys. I only care what you need.”

“You.” Rhys slid his hands up her neck and tangled them into her hair. “I need to wake up to your beautiful face every morning and see you looking at me like I matter. Like we matter.”

“You’re not going to change your mind?”

“No way. I’ve never needed anything more.” His lips came down to hers, soft at first and then hungry. Desperate.

“I was going to come and see you before I went to the hotel.”

“Really?” He brushed a strand of hair from her forehead. “What was your plan?”

“Silly, I don’t do plans.” She pressed her lips to his chest. “I had no idea what I was going to say. I just knew that I couldn’t leave without asking whether you regretted the way we ended things. Because I did. I regret it so much.”

“You don’t have to regret it.” He lowered his forehead to hers. “Stay.”

“Okay,” she breathed.

“Okay?” He never would have believed that such a benign word would one day cause the best change in his life.

“But first I need to go home and make sure Kylie and my family are okay after everything that’s happened. Then I’ll pack up my things and tell them that I’m moving here to be with the man I love.”

“All right, but I’m coming with you.”

“Deal.” A laugh bubbled up in her throat. “What am I going to do for work when I’m back in New York? What about our living arrangements?”

“Listen to you with all those adult questions,” he teased, bringing his mouth down to hers. “I must be rubbing off on you.”

“Don’t expect me to start a spreadsheet anytime soon.” She screwed up her nose.

“So you love me, huh?”

Wren’s eyes sparkled. “I do. You’re the most kindhearted, sexy, honest man I’ve ever met.”

“Sexy, huh?” He wrapped his lips around her earlobe, heat surging through him when she moaned. “I like the sound of that.”

“Well, we do have a hotel room at our disposal tonight.” She grinned. “I’m assuming they have a bed frame, too.”

“Oh, and here I was getting used to sleeping on the ground.” He chuckled.

“Really?”

“No. It was awful.”

She wrapped her arms around him and laughed. “See, didn’t I say you were honest?”