Freedom (Billionaire Secrets 2)

“Do you know how many Dover employees are former VLA employees? You’re going to have to accuse half the company if being a former VLA employee is a criterion for corporate espionage.”

“She fits the criteria,” Everett said icily. “Heather Hall fits all the criteria that the financial investigator laid out for a likely suspect. She’s a former VLA employee. She’s a new employee here at Dover, so the timing of her arrival coincides with VLA’s changed timeline. She went to high school with you, which would make her the perfect candidate for something like this. Based on your past, Heather wouldn’t have to build any kind of trust with you. VLA hit the jackpot with her.”

“No.” His stomach knotted up the moment he uttered the word. Because deep down he no longer believed that Heather was incapable of something this shady and underhanded. After all, she’d started their working relationship on a complete lie. A lie he had been so quick to forgive because of their history together.

“Think very long and hard about this, Simon. You cannot afford to make a mistake this big. You can’t afford to trust anybody now,” Everett said. “You’ve always prided yourself on being a solitary man who didn’t let people in. You’re like me. You know that it’s best to keep people at a distance, so that they don’t have a hold over you. That way you’ll never be vulnerable. Yet, the one person in the world you’re vulnerable to just happens to start working here when everything is thrown upside down? Come on.”

Everett was right. He was vulnerable to Heather. She was the only person he’d ever really trusted. Because she was the one person who had never wanted anything from him.

But what if that had all been an act? Could she have been playing him? What if he’d been wrong about her all these years?

Chapter 14

“Do you have solid evidence?” Simon asked, his heart stuttering in its rhythm.

Everett balked. “Everything is circumstantial right now, but you have to admit it’s pretty damning.”

He hated to admit that Everett was making a compelling case, but they had to be careful with something like this. They would have only one shot to get this right, and if they jumped the gun too early they’d make a mistake they could never take back. If they wrongly accused Heather, she was likely to take it personally enough to do something drastic. If she was guilty and they accused her too early, she’d be able to cover her tracks.

Damn it! This can’t be happening.

But it was.

There was a chance that his assistant was more cunning than either of them realized. She would cover her tracks ruthlessly if she’d been sent by their rival. Corporate espionage wasn’t something for faint-hearted people.

“Circumstantial isn’t enough,” Simon said finally. “I managed to push Xander out because I had solid proof. Evidence he couldn’t refute.”

“Well, the financial investigator is still building a case,” Everett said.

“That’s fine,” Simon said. “But Josh Bradley can’t get close to Heather like I can. If I’m vulnerable to her, that means she’s vulnerable to me. She doesn’t know about our suspicions, and that could be useful for us.”

Everett raised an eyebrow and scratched his chin. “You want to beat her at her own game?”

No. He didn’t want to beat Heather. Simon hated double dealings and backstabbing. All he wanted was to get answers out of her. Figure out what she was up to. See if everything she had told him had been a lie.

His guts churned at the thought of her feelings for him being fake. Had every passionate kiss been a lie? Had every time he’d held her his arms been a game to her?

Fury and bitter disappointment started to eat away at him. The thought of her betraying him so completely seemed impossible. Heather was a kind, sweet, wonderful person. If she had played him, he would never trust another living soul for as long as he lived.

“I only want to get to the truth,” Simon responded. “She’s far more likely to let her guard down around me. If I can get closer to her, I’ll be able to get proof.”

Everett frowned. “You raise good points, Simon, but you have to admit you’ve been badly compromised by this woman. She’s managed to torpedo your reputation in a matter of months. Even if she’s innocent, she’s caused more damage to Dover than we’ve had to deal with in years.”