Devious Intentions (Carson Cove Scandals 3)

“Okay...” Damien gave her a confused stare, but then he walked towards his grandfather’s room.

“Are you okay?” Jenny turned towards me and tilted her head inquisitively. “You look like you’ve been crying.”

“I’m fine.” I nodded. “It’s been a long day. When we saw your text message, we both assumed the worst.”

Damien was alone with his grandfather for nearly thirty minutes before he opened the door and motioned for me. I had to assume that the oldest member of the Sinn family was not knocking on death’s door if he was able to hold a conversation for that long, but I was still a little concerned. I certainly wasn’t expecting to walk into the room and meet a man who was agitated over the fact that he was in the hospital and trying to unhook his IV. He didn’t look like he was anywhere close to dying—he appeared to be quite lucid.

“Grandpa.” Damien took my hand, and we walked closer. “This is Leigh. She’s the one who did all of this.”

“I had a lot of help.” I looked down for a moment. “It’s—very nice to meet you, Mr. Sinn.”

“I’ll hug you when I’m not connected to a bunch of damn wires.” He narrowed his eyes at the machines.

“Uh…” I looked at Damien. “Can you explain what is going on here—please?”

“Right after my father was arrested, the nurse that was staying with my grandfather mysteriously disappeared.” Damien squeezed my hand. “She was drugging him…”

“One day, I was the CEO of Sinn Technology, and the next day, I could barely remember my own damn name.” Damien’s grandfather shook his head angrily. “I should have known that little snake was responsible—god damn it.”

“I tried to tell you that you were making an enormous mistake when you named him as your successor.” Damien sighed. “You wouldn’t listen to me…”

“Yeah, I didn’t listen—I know.” Damien’s grandfather nodded quickly. “You were just dealing with so much, and Edgar was finally ready to step up and lead after never showing any interest in doing anything except figuring out which one of the interns he wanted to see after work. I should have known he had an ulterior motive.”

“I’ll bring you up to speed when they let you out of here.” Damien walked over and put his hand on his grandfather’s shoulder. “Try to get some rest—seriously.”

“I’ve had enough rest.” Damien’s grandfather scoffed. “I’m ready to get back to work! Somebody has to clean up the damn mess your father made at Sinn Technology.”

“You’re the man for the job.” Damien nodded.

“I could use your help.” The older man looked up at him. “If you’re not too busy trying to run Alcott Inc.”

“I don’t know if I’m ready for that.” Damien shook his head. “Maybe one day we can sit down and have a conversation about it.”

“For what it’s worth.” Damien’s grandfather sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“He was your son.” Damien shrugged. “You were supposed to believe in him.”

“That’s what I get for marrying a damn Devereaux. Edgar’s mother was crazy—and apparently he is too.” Damien’s grandfather leaned his head back against his pillow. “Tell the doctor I want to go home on your way out—maybe he’ll listen to you.”

“I’ll see what I can do.” Damien took my hand and waved goodbye to his grandfather.

We walked back to the waiting area and talked with Jenny for a few minutes before we took the elevator back down to the hospital lobby. It had been an emotional day for both of us—we needed a bottle of wine, possibly two, and some time to decompress. The future wasn’t completely sorted out, and there were a few challenges in front of us that we would have to work through, but I felt confident that we could handle them. The important thing was that we were together. We were forging our own destiny, and the past wasn’t going to decide the rest of our lives. That was up to us—the way it should have been for everyone. Maybe we were just lucky enough to realize it while they struggled with the concept.

“Are we not going to spend the night at the villa?” I looked over at Damien when he drove past the turn that would take us to Carson Bay.

“No.” He reached over and took my hand. “We’re going home.”

I really liked the sound of that…

Epilogue

Leigh

One year later

“Are you ready?” Damien walked up and put his arms around my waist. “You’re not getting cold feet, are you?”

“No. I’m not going to leave you standing at altar.” I smiled and leaned back against him. “I love you too much.”