Page 55 of Blackmail of a Billionaire

Grant’s jaw tensed as he worked to keep his emotions in check. The last time the man had mentioned Julia’s fear of him, he’d lunged across the table. He couldn’t afford to do that again.

Instead, he bit into his tongue to keep his mouth shut.

“So, tell me what happened? This guy ogle pretty little Julia a minute too long? Maybe she was into him, too?”

The statement burned through him, but he kept his anger in check, though he clenched his fists under the table. “I didn’t throw the first punch.”

“You’re saying the doctor did?”

“Yes, he did. Ask anyone there. Ask Julia.”

The man flicked his gaze up to Grant’s face. “We will. Tell me, though, why would I believe this? Why would an upstanding man like Dr. Kyle Carter punch you?”

Grant lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “You’d have to ask him.”

“He didn’t say anything to you at all? Nothing to prompt this supposed attack?”

Grant recognized the tactic designed to draw information that he may not have and paint him into a corner. “I think I’ve said all I’m going to say until my attorney arrives.”

“Well, we have a witness who says you were quite aggressive with both him and Mrs. Harrington just before the altercation. Can you explain that?”

“I’ll wait for my attorney.”

The man snorted a laugh. “That’s typical. Lawyer up. I’ll tell you, though, with the amount of trouble you seem to be getting yourself in, it’ll be a miracle if this latest marriage of yours lasts the year.”

The man rose, tapping the folder against the table as he stared at Grant for a minute before striding from the room. Alone again, the walls seemed to close in even further around him. Was Julia here? Were they questioning her? Would she admit their tenuous attachment?

The door opened again, though this time Mitchell strode in, his stern expression only slightly lighter than the last time they’d met in the same room.

“We really need to stop meeting like this, Grant,” he answered as he slid his briefcase on the table and snapped it open.

“Tell me about it. And tell me this one will be easier to get me out of.”

Mitchell grabbed a legal pad from his briefcase and slid a pen from his jacket pocket. “Well, it’s not murder, this time. But much of this will depend on what both Julia and this other person…” His eyebrows furrowed as he scanned his notes. “Dr. Kyle Carter say in their statements.”

“You’ll be able to get me out of here well before they make their statements, though, right? I really need to talk to Julia.”

“That may not be wise, Grant.”

Grant knitted his eyebrows. “What does that mean? She’s my wife. I’m going to see her when I go home.”

“The police are going to recommend she not stay at the house tonight. Whether or not she does is entirely up to her, but if she does not return to Harrington House, do not seek her out. No calls, no texts, no contact at all.”

Grant’s heart kicked up from a slow thud to a quick pounding. “What?”

“Grant, where did these accusations come from?”

“I don’t know. I…I can’t fathom how this started.”

“Is there anything Julia may have said that could have been misconstrued? Did you have a fight recently?”

Grant’s mind flicked to the incident this morning. “We…there was an incident this morning. There have been a series of misunderstandings. I was on my way to clear it all up when this happened.”

“An incident?”

Grant stared at the reflective surface of the metal table as Julia’s angry words echoed in his mind again.

“Grant? Look, I don’t believe any of this, but I need to know what I’m dealing with here. I don’t want any surprises.” He tapped his pen on the notepad with a sigh. “And if it helps, Julia called me. She seemed…upset.”

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