Page 22 of Cruel Fate

“There’s a lot of red tape when it comes to this kind of thing,” Banks says, grimacing. “And we’ve run into some snags.”

“What kind of snags?” I ask, confused. “Is he dead or not? And why am I only just now being told about this?”

Banks coughs, and the Homeland Security jerk smirks. The admiral checked out a long time ago, and he’s been eyeing Stella when he thinks I’m not watching. Asshole.

“Mr. Maddox, it’s classified information, and we’re offering it to you now as a courtesy.” Banks’ voice is politely condescending. “It seems the senator was having an affair, and his camp is making our investigation difficult. His mistress was rumored to be with him on the plane, which could lead to motive. She was head of one of the largest gambling rings in LA, catering to some of the biggest celebrities, and yes, they’ve been missing since the crash. We need cooperation, and no one is giving it to us. They’re too busy trying to keep the senator’s reputation clean while his devastated wife prepares to assume his seat in Congress.” He scoffs. The senator’s wife isn’t that devastated her husband is dead.

“My parents were killed because a senator was having an affair?” I squeeze Stella’s fingers harder, and she lays a hand over mine.

“It’s never that simple, but you should be prepared for something that trivial. I’m sorry, Mr. Maddox. We’re doing what we can, but no matter the cause, their deaths are a tragedy.”

My parents were killed for nothing. That’s what I take away from our conversation.

I lean back in my chair and close my eyes.

When I open them, Stella is escorting everyone out of the conference room. In a spurt of anger, I want to snap at her, but she’s right. There’s nothing more to say. The FBI is doing what they can. Homeland Security is doing their part, and the Coast Guard can’t do anything more than keep searching for debris with the cooperation of the NTSB.

Stella shuts the door, and the voices and the clicking of keyboards fade. She should have escorted them to the elevator and told them to have a nice day and to travel safely. They flew to King’s Crossing specially for this meeting to accommodate me. Hopefully Harper intercepted them and said goodbye on my behalf. I’ll need to ask her to teach Stella professional etiquette, and I tuck that into the back of my mind. Stella possesses such grace I forget she’s not one of us.

“Can I get you anything?” she asks, twisting her fingers in front of her.

“No, I’m okay, but thanks. Their lack of progress isn’t a surprise.”

“Then I should get back to my desk.”

“Give me a minute.” It’s comforting to be alone with her. I have a lot of catching up to do if I want to run this company half as competently as my dad did. His vice presidents have done a good job as far as I can tell—and that isn’t saying much because of my inexperience—but my father held the reins. Time and again he told me he wouldn’t give up control and that’s the way I need to run the company, too, but I don’t have the knowledge to take his place. For the next little while, I’ll be putting in long hours. Denton and Cramer said they’d give me whatever I need, and I have no choice but to accept that offer. They’ll regret it by the time I’m done.

She sits in my lap and rests her head on my shoulder, the scent of her hair invading my nose.

Even after the disappointing meeting, I’m hard. There’s no time to indulge, but it doesn’t stop me from stealing a few quiet moments. Promoting her so I could be near her was the right thing to do.

“I’m sorry they didn’t have more to say,” she whispers into my ear.

“It’s what I expected, but they’re still digging and that’s what counts.” I pause. “When I woke up yesterday morning, my boxers were twisted around my hips,” I say, fishing for information and skimming my hand up her leg. I want to know if we fucked and it’s a beautiful dream I don’t remember.

“You were having a nightmare. I wanted to calm you down, and I gave you a blowjob. I was glad you were able to fall back asleep. You looked so tired at Temptations.”

I try not to blush in embarrassment. I thought the nightmares stopped. Maybe I’ve gotten better at sleeping through them, or I’ve quieted down enough I don’t bother Zarah anymore. She used to burst into my room, my thrashing and screaming freaking her out.

“I’m sorry I bothered you, and that I missed something so spectacular.” I wish she would have woken me. Our first intimate act, and I wasn’t conscious. “I would have returned the favor.” I nuzzle her cheek. “Thank you.”

She brushes her lips against mine and slides off my lap. “You sounded like you were in a lot of pain. I wanted to take it away, but I know I can’t.”

“You’re helping. Know that.”

Stella runs her fingers through my hair. Her nails scrape my scalp, and I want to lean in like a cat. “I do. I better get back to work. I need Harper’s help with a few things.”

“Dinner tonight?” I ask before I think things through. She doesn’t have to babysit me, and didn’t I just say I needed to work? Seeing her sitting behind her desk every day is going to have to be enough for the next few weeks.

Her lips part—she’s going to say no.

“Never mind,” I say, standing more forcefully than I intended. “I have a lot of work I need to do.”

“I can’t—”

“You don’t have to explain, Stella. You have your own life, but I hope you let me share a little bit of it.”

She smiles, and for a brief moment, I’m on top of the world. “You can. I’ll see you later. Harper and some of the others invited me to lunch.”

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