Page 51 of Defiled Innocence

“I do, but there’s only so much everyone can do.” She takes a sip of her coffee and her eyes widen. “That reminds me, I have a meeting tomorrow with the accountant I’ve been putting off.”

“The meeting rooms in the basement will be ready by morning,” I contribute. “The last of the drywall was installed and painted this afternoon. All the carpets have been replaced.”

Her shoulders relax as though I’ve just pulled a boulder off of them. A small, but genuine smile touches her lips.

“Oh, good. Thank you.”

I feel five sets of eyes turn on me and my jaw clenches at the attention. If I would allow it, I think my cheeks would heat.

“What does the accountant want?” I ask, skipping right over the moment.

She lifts a shoulder. “I have no idea. He’s been trying to meet for a while, but I’ve been busy and then Lucas—” She cuts off at the mention of her brother.

There’s silence for a beat; she looks shaken in that moment, but she clears her throat and continues. “When Lucas died,things were too chaotic to deal with him. But it’s been long enough. I need to start settling things.”

“Yes, we heard about your brother. He was a good man,” Uncle Igor pipes in.

She brings her eyes to him and for a moment they harden. The reason he knows her brother is probably running through her mind.

“Now that the marriage is settled, we can start working our way through whatever else needs to be done for his estate.” I get up, bringing my half-empty cup to the table and placing it on the tray, standing behind her.

“The paperwork after something like this can be so overwhelming. When my father passed, it was like an avalanche fell on me.” Charlotte gives a sympathetic smile.

“Thankfully most of that is taken care of, but I need to sort out his apartment. I might just let Christian handle it like he offered. He’s Lucas’ closest friend,” she says to the girls.

“Christian?” I step closer to her. “When did he offer this?”

The muscles in her neck tense.

“Yesterday. He stopped by the apartment when I was there. He’s been good enough to check on the place since it’s empty. I hadn’t even thought to do it.” She takes a sip of her coffee.

“You saw him yesterday.” My palm itches at the idea of her being in the same room with that asshole.

There’s a reason Lucas never brought Christian into the fold when it came to his business. They had been close friends, but Lucas didn’t trust him. Not when it came to money or business.

“I did.” She puts her cup down on the table. “Does anyone need a refill?”

All five of our guests decline the offer, turning their eyes to me. My cousins have knowing grins tugging on their lips. Her continued disobedience amuses them. From the stories I’veheard, they had their own troubles with their women at the beginning.

“Even after I said I didn’t want you alone with him again?”

She puts the coffee carafe back down. “I didn’t know he was going to show up. He just did.”

“To check that the apartment in a highly secured building in the city was still there?” I scoff. “What else did he want?”

“Can we talk about it later? We have guests.” She turns a heated stare on me.

“Are you talking about Christian Sendell?” Arman brings his empty plate to the table.

“Yes. Do you know him?” Amelia asks curiously.

“Not personally, no, but I’ve heard him mentioned here and there. I only made the connection now because I recall one of the few times I met your brother, Christian was with him.” He slides his hands into the front pockets of his slacks and eyes me. “I never got a good feeling about him.”

“Oh, he’s harmless,” Amelia defends him. “He was friends with Lucas since college. He’s got a great head for marketing, but he sucks with investments. That’s why Lucas never brought him into the firm, but he’s the third person on our board of trustees for the Moreau Foundation.”

“What sort of access does he have to the foundation’s investments and accounts?” I question.

She frowns at me. “I guess he has the same access as I do. We put all three of our names on the bank accounts in case there was ever a situation where it was needed.” She’s quick to add, “But he’s never so much as even looked at a bank statement. He and Lucas left the foundation and the center completely up to me.”

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