His Ex's Well-Kept Secret

Linc cleared his throat, and Piper looked up. Jaeger took a seat as far away from her as possible. Piper sighed at his nonverbal slap.

Yeah, I get it, Ballantyne. You want nothing to do with me.

Linc tapped his pen on the table, and Piper told herself to concentrate. What was about to be discussed would impact her future for a very long time, and she needed to be on her game.

“Thank you for sending us copies of the relevant pages of the diary, Piper,” Linc said, his deep voice rumbling through the room. “I’m fully satisfied you are the legitimate owner of the stones. We’ve matched the description of the sapphires with some of the stones mentioned in the book, but we seem to be missing five stones from the original fifteen.”

“I know where they are.” Piper pulled in a deep breath. “May I have your assurance that whatever we discuss here will not leave the confines of this room?”

“You have it,” Linc replied.

Piper nodded her thanks. “Jaeger knows this already, but Michael Shuttle was my father. My mother sold two stones thirty years ago to give him the capital to start his business.”

Linc exchanged a long look with Jaeger, and Piper turned her head to look at Beckett and Sage. Beckett looked surprised and Sage sympathetic.

“Oh, honey. Nobody knows?” Sage asked.

Piper lifted one shoulder in a tiny shrug. “Mick never acknowledged me as his daughter.”

Sage frowned. “In a way, I can sort of understand why he wouldn’t want that to be public. You would’ve grown up with a million cameras on you and your life.”

Ah, Sage, you are so far off base.

Piper didn’t give any further explanations; she didn’t need empty platitudes and false sympathy. Beckett’s measured voice pulled her attention back to the business at hand. “Okay, so that’s twelve stones. Where are the missing three?”

“My cousin Maeve has them,” Piper told him and instantly saw the excitement flash in their eyes. Even the rock at the end of the table reacted to her statement. The air crackled with anticipation as long looks were exchanged between the siblings.

Piper made herself concentrate on Jaeger. This was his wheelhouse, after all. “She offered to give them to me, but I refused.” Mick would’ve taken the stones in a flash, but Piper didn’t feel she had any right to them. Cousin or not, she’d only spent a morning with Maeve, and that didn’t entitle her to a couple of million in gems. “I told her about you, Jaeger, and she’ll probably sell you the stones. If I were you, I’d ask to see what else she has. She was sporting a stunning ten-carat-plus diamond when I met her. She doesn’t have any heirs, and she’s going to leave her wealth to various foundations.”

“She won’t leave it to you?” Beckett asked when Jaeger didn’t acknowledge her suggestion.

Piper shook her head. “I met her for the first time yesterday. I don’t feel like I can take the money. I didn’t earn it.”

In this regard, she was not her father’s daughter.

“Piper, that money could pay for Ty’s education, could make your life a lot easier,” Sage said, leaning forward.

“I just need enough to pay for my house. The rest I will earn,” Piper said, hearing the stubborn in her voice. “I will be fine. Speaking of your offer...” Piper hinted. She couldn’t sit here for much longer with Jaeger tossing accusing looks her way.

Linc nodded. “We’re prepared to offer you seven million.”

Seven million? More than she needed and much more than she’d hoped for. Piper felt tears prick her eyes, and she stared down at the table. “Thank you.”

“If our offer is acceptable, I’ll arrange for payment to be made,” Linc said.

“Very acceptable. Thank you very much,” Piper replied, her voice low. Seven million would secure her house, would pay for Ty’s schooling and would give her a lot of financial security.

It was done. All that remained between her and Jaeger was their son.

Sage walked around the table to Piper’s chair. She turned Piper’s chair, bent down and brushed her lips across her cheek. “Let’s get together sometime soon, okay?”