Page 71 of Blackmail of a Billionaire

“Is there anything you think you can say to get him to drop the charges?” Mitchell asked.

“No,” Grant said, pacing behind the desk. “Absolutely out of the question. I don’t want her anywhere near him. Especially after he threatened me yesterday.”

Julia snapped her gaze to Grant. “What?”

“We had a little conversation in the interrogation room. According to him, he would like to dismantle my life piece by piece, starting with you.”

Julia’s lower lip dropped open.

“Julia, have you had any contact with Dr. Carter prior to your accident?” Mitchell asked.

“No,” she said with a shake of her head.

“This sounds like a bit of infatuation on his part,” Mitchell said.

“He mentioned seeing her on the news during the press conference. Maybe it is,” Grant said with a shrug.

Julia studied the floor under her feet. Infatuated after one meeting? “That seems…far-fetched.”

“Hardly,” Grant answered. “But this is why I want her nowhere near him. I don’t care if he’s willing to drop the charges if she makes some sort of plea. That’s not happening. I’ll go to court first.”

Mitchell held up a hand. “Fine. I’ll get started on a defense, assuming we can’t get these dropped before then. Julia, I assume you’d be willing to take the stand about Dr. Carter’s misguided assumptions regarding your relationship?”

“Of course,” she said with a nod.

“Good.” Mitchell rose and slid his pen into his pocket before he extended his hand to Grant. “I’ll be in touch.”

Julia sank her chin into her palm for a second before she stood. “Well, I guess this won’t be as easy as we hoped.”

“Doesn’t look like it.”

“I’m–“

“Don’t say you’re sorry. It’s hardly your fault.”

Julia pressed her lips together as guilt washed over her anyway. “Well, I think I’ll try to get a little work done before I meet with Sierra.”

“Okay,” he answered. “And, Julia, thanks.”

She smiled and nodded before she left the office behind, climbing the stairs to her own workspace and settling into her chair. She stared at her manuscript for ten minutes, unable to type a word as her mind continued to return to the odd situation with Kyle Carter. Why would a seemingly upstanding doctor become suddenly so infatuated with a woman, that he’d risk his career for her after meeting her once? It made no sense.

A knock on the door interrupted her rumination. She twisted to find Worthington holding a cordless phone in his hands. “Excuse the interruption, Mrs. Harrington, but your brother-in-law is calling for you.”

“Ethan?” Julia’s stomach flip-flopped as she scurried from her seat to take the call. How had he found her here? Had he seen the news?

Worthington passed her the phone, and she pressed it to her ear, hoping she could hear over the hard beating of her heart. “Hello.”

“Julia?”

“Ethan?” she questioned, his voice sounding strained.

“Are you alone and able to talk?”

She sank into her desk chair. He must have seen the news report and recognized her face in that grainy video of the fight. She rubbed her palm against her forehead as she tried to think of an explanation for what we may already know. “Yes.”

A sigh of relief sounded on the other end of the line. “Thank goodness you’re safe. Look, I’m sorry for the deception, Julia, but this is Kyle Carter.”

Her muscles stiffened, and she gripped the phone tighter. “Kyle?”

---