“Where’s the psycho reporter now?” Dave asked. “Did you call the police?”
“She took off. Griff said she’s harmless.”
Dave stiffened. “Like hell she’s harmless. She pulled a gun on you. And now she’s just running free? What if she comes after you again?”
She let out a shaky breath. “I don’t know. I didn’t get a good look at her either. Just the side of her face in the limo briefly before the gun appeared.”
He crushed her to him again. “Dear God.”
She hugged him back. “Griff wouldn’t let me call the cops, but I will now. I don’t even know her last name, but I know where she works.”
“Good,” he muttered. “That’s good.”
They stayed like that for a few minutes just holding each other. Finally, she sat up again. “I know those pictures looked bad, but they were completely innocent. I was freaked out about the gun, and Griff held me to calm me down. Then he gave me a ride back to the hotel. That’s all that happened. I tried to get in touch with you, but your cell went to voicemail, and the hotel phone just kept ringing. I left you a message at the hotel.”
“My cell broke,” he said. “I got in a fight with a security guard.”
“You got in a fight?” she exclaimed.
“He wanted me to get in this car, and I know better than to get in a strange—”
“Griff said he arranged for the car.”
“Oh. Well, he might have let me know about that. Geez. I thought I was being knocked up.”
She looked like she was trying not to laugh. “You mean knocked off?”
“Yes,” he said fervently. “What’s so funny?”
She clamped her lips together. “Nothing.”
He gave her another suspicious look, and she kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her with all the love in his heart. Still, some of the pieces weren’t falling into place in his head.
He pulled away. “I was at the hotel, but they didn’t give me a message.”
“I swear I left one.” She looked him in the eye. “The truth is, I think Griff wanted pictures of us to get out. He might have even been in on the whole gun thing. He acted strangely casual about it.”
“He used you. Bastard. I’ll kill him.”
“So you believe me?”
“Of course I believe you. I should’ve known it was all him. Right from the start, he’s been a total sleazeball.”
She kissed him again. He buried his hands in her hair and kissed her breathless. Then he kept kissing her as he slowly pushed her back on the sofa until he was on top of her, between her legs, wishing there were no clothes between them. He pulled back just enough to look into her eyes. There was just one more thing he had to know. “Did you get the signed papers?”
Her eyes shifted to the side, and she turned her face away from him. “Not exactly.”
He held her chin and turned her back to him. “Tell me exactly what happened. Did he weasel out of it again?”
She met his eyes. “Things are complicated financially for Griff. He said in a year a divorce would be easier.”
He released her chin. “Fuck,” he muttered. Fucking Griff, still fucking with them. He got off her. “A year. A whole fucking year. That’s what he got out of you.”
She stroked his arm. “Could you wait that long for me?”
He sat on the sofa, leaned forward and rested his elbows on his legs. “I don’t understand. If you don’t want his money, what’s the difference? How the hell did he get another year out of you?”
She slid her arm around him, but he didn’t want it there. That whole year thing was like a bucket of ice water splashed in his face. He straightened and slid away from her. She dropped her arm.
“He wants to settle out of court once he’s stabilized his finances.” She looked up at him with pleading eyes. “I know it’s hard to understand, but I went along with it because Griff promised to take care of Joey. He’s setting up a trust for him. He’ll be taken care of for life. Griff thinks of him as family.”
Dave shook his head. He was done playing by Griffin’s rules. The man used her and used her brother as a bargaining tool. Bastard. “We’re getting you a lawyer. You can settle all of this out of court right now.”