Page 10 of The Sound of Secrets

Her expression turned stubborn as she stared at me across the table. She was growing up so fast. I felt like every time I blinked, more of the timid little girl disappeared.

I finished my coffee and got to my feet. “Even if I didn’t promise your aunt I would let you invite him, I was going to agree. I’m curious to see if he has the nerve to show his face after knowing he put you in danger.” I stopped next to her and waited until she looked up at me. “I understand as you get older, you’re going to be interested in things and people I can’t control. I hope you’re always smart and careful with what you bring into your life, Winnie. Come on, finish getting ready for school. I’ll drop you off.”

Getting what she wanted, she let the conversation die. Grabbing an orange out of a colorful basket in front of us, she bounded out of the kitchen in search of her backpack and laptop. I’d never noticed the fruit basket before. If I wanted an orange, someone brought it to me already peeled and ready to eat. I blinked at the mundane change and wondered why I felt the difference of having the fruit right in front of me so deeply. Having Channing around really altered my perception of what life was supposed to be.

I sent a text to Rocco letting him know I was ready to go. I needed to go into the office and start the lengthy process of transitioning things over to Bellamy and Alistair. Being the largest shareholder by a mile, there was little any sitting board member could do to derail my plans. That didn’t mean the handoff was going smoothly. There were several old-timers grandfathered in from my father’s time at the head of the table who refused to have anyone other than a Halliday at the helm. It didn’t matter that Winnie was likely to take over when she was old enough. The fact she was female made her only slightlymore desirable for the role than my half-brother. I refused to let their antiquated way of operating impede my stepping down.

Once Winnie was safely inside the gates of the school, along with her new security detail, Rocco didn’t wait for me to ask before giving me the rundown of all my lingering questions.

“Channing is with her stylist friend. She stopped by the salon and they went for brunch afterward. She stopped in to see her old boss at the antique shop. No sign of anything untoward. She doesn’t appear to be making a run for it or scouting a new location to live for the time being.”

I scrolled through messages on my phone while flexing the fingers of my free hand. I really needed to go back to physical therapy. If I kept pretending the injury wasn’t there, my hands were going to deteriorate until they were useless. Maybe once Bellamy was around to monitor the bastard, I would have more free time to attend to myself.

“What about the kid? Ky?”

“Kyser Kent. Sixteen. No juvie record. Lives with his mother in a small apartment in a not-so-great part of the city. He’s got good grades. Seems above average at sports. Has a bit of a temper on the field. Likes to pick fights with the opposing teams. I couldn’t find any red flags. I’m not sure how questionable it might be, but he was adopted. Julie and Jordan Kent took him home when he was a newborn. The dad disappeared when he was a toddler. There’s no obvious connection to Winnieor anyone in your circle. From what I can tell, he’s exactly what Channing said, a normal kid.”

I hummed in acknowledgment. “You couldn’t track down the biological parents?”

Rocco shook his head. “No. It was a closed adoption. Those records are sealed. I can get my hands on them, but it’s going to take longer than a couple hours.”

“Get what you can. I have a feeling Winnie isn’t going to let him walk away without a fight.”

The bald man grunted in agreement.

I sent a text to Channing, asking when she thought she’d be back home. I didn’t want to be pushy or overbearing, but it was my nature. Plus, I was irrationally worried she might disappear on me if I didn’t have eyes on her.

She responded right away, saying that she was going to grab a few things for Winnie’s party and finish buying her gifts. She mentioned she might hit up happy hour at her ex-husband’s bar before going back to the brownstone.

Channing didn’t talk much about her previous marriages, but I knew she still had a friendly relationship with one of her exes. A spark of jealousy flared under my skin, but I fought it back down to a dull glow so I didn’t show my ass. There was no reason for me to worry about the man she divorced when I was the man to whom she was currently married. I didn’t know how long I had before I joined the ranks of her other ex-husbands, but for now I wanted to appreciate my title.

I paused when she asked if I already grabbed Winnie something for her birthday.

Most of the work of planning the party fell on Alistair and Channing. I didn’t have the first clue what a fourteen-year-old girl might like. The only thing that came to mind was something like Taylor Swift concert tickets, but I wasn’t even sure if Winnie was a fan. If I bought them, and it turned out she didn’t know a single song, it would prove I was doing a shit job of raising my niece. Her guardian should know her likes and dislikes. I was ashamed to admit that my mother and my assistant had always taken care of the gift giving in the past.

I was too busy.

It took too long to respond, making Channing send me a flood of question marks. I typed back a message telling her not to worry. I had time to figure out an appropriate gift before her party.

I straightened my tie and sarcastically asked Rocco, “Winnie won’t consider it a gift that I’m letting her little boyfriend come to her party, will she?”

My head of security chuckled and gave his head a firm shake. “No way, Boss.”

I sighed. “That’s what I thought. We’re going to have to leave the office early today so I can get her a gift. Have any ideas what she might like?”

There was a heavy silence while Rocco decided if he was going to weigh in or not. Eventually, he told me, “It’s not my place to guess. But if I was Winnie, the thing I would want more than anything is for my father to be there. He’s missed so much of her life. I’m sure she wants to show him that she’s doing well. That he doesn’t have to worry because you’re taking the best care of her.”

I moved to clap a hand on his shoulder in appreciation. “I forget you’re thebrainsand themusclein this relationship.”The man was a brilliant military tactician in another life.“I’ll talk to Archie and see what I can come up with.” Considering how fragile my younger brother was, I better have a plan B to be safe.

The rest of the ride to work was uneventful. I responded to emails and forwarded some contracts to the legal division. I messaged Bellamy to see if she wanted me to line up candidates for her assistant or if she planned to bring her own. One area we negotiated was the requirement to find positions for all of her previous staff if they wanted to transfer when she left the branch. A company like Halliday Inc. wasn’t known for having an abundance of vacancies. We operated in a highly competitive and high-profit field. Highly talented individuals wouldn’t leave unless they were forced out.

Except for me.

I knew people were talking about my sudden decision to step down and the shift in my life from visiting Buckingham Palace to frequenting corner bodegas. Most chalked it up to the turmoil left over from my mother’s death and all the speculation surrounding my family. Some thought I was simply too self-conscious to go on after being burned. Others convinced themselves I wanted to step down to make way for Archie as some type of misguided condolence. None dared to so much as whisper that the real reason was a woman.

My marriage to Channing wasn’t widely known. Those in my social circle who were aware didn’t considermy wife worthy of such a massive sacrifice. None of them knew the lengths I was willing to go to keep her.

I had no problem dying for her. Nearly getting blown up proved it.

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