Page 44 of Sutton and the CEO Forever

“Let me go,” she said in a low voice.

“Not until I finish telling you about Mandy,” Julio insisted. “She was finishing up a twelve-step program, recovering from drugs and alcohol. She spent a year in prison and did some pretty terrible things.”

“She sounds lovely,” Natalie said flippantly, and Julio pressed her harder against the bricks.

“She is lovely,” he stared into Natale’s eyes, insisting she hear the words he was saying. “Mandy did some terrible things in the past. But she pulled herself out of that world. She paid her time, and she overcame great obstacles. And through it all, she couldn’t forgive herself. She thought she was beyond redemption. I saw how much she loved my cousin and how he felt for her.”

“Sometimes, people change Natalie. Sometimes, people become so much more than they once were. That is why I wanted to tell you about her. Yes, she is the reason I came looking for you. But not for some misguided love affair. I have changed. And I hope that you can someday forgive me. It’s time to let it go.”

He moved away so suddenly that Natalie stumbled forward. Julio steadied her, but as soon as she had her bearings, he moved away and started climbing the ladder again.

“Reena is waiting for you,” he said gruffly, then began to paint the trim as if he hadn’t just had his body smashed against hers.

Natalie nodded, although he wasn’t looking, and she moved toward the front door. She heard the bell as she opened it and noticed that the place smelled of new carpet. She looked around and saw several new improvements.

Julio had to have worked fast to get some of these things in. Natalie had been told that Sutton was footing the bill. It didn’t make any sense. Nothing made sense anymore.

“Do you want to tell me what that was all about?”

Natalie turned to see Reena coming toward her with a steaming cup of coffee.

“What?” Natalie asked defensively.

“Child, the windows are open, and it wasn’t like you two were very quiet. How did the man risk your life? Did he hold a gun to your head?”

Natalie shook her head. “Of course not!”

“Well?” Reena handed her the cup and motioned for Natalie to join her at the lounge's new tables.

She noticed they were sturdy and much harder to tip over. The last ones had been rather flimsy and really did need replacing.

“There was a job that went wrong. Someone broke into our home and held me hostage.”

As the words tumbled out of her, Natalie felt oddly detached from them. It wasn’t a story that she shared often. And after that terrible moment, she vowed that she would never feel vulnerable like that again. Hours upon hours at the gun range and years of self-defense lessons had brought her to where she was today. A damn fine private investigator, and one badass chick.

A badass chick with a huge chip on her shoulder.

23

Brian swallowed hard and tried to get the image of Katie butchering her hydrangeas out of his mind. She was wearing a cut-off shirt that showed her pale stomach and fell off one dainty shoulder. Her shorts barely covered the curve of her ass, and when he looked closer, he realized she was in flip-flops.

Shit.

Brian dropped the curtain and went to slip into some shoes. He was out the door and walking across the yard before he could stop himself. She had the radio blaring something from Taylor Swift, and she was shaking that adorable backside in rhythm with the beat.

She was also doing permanent damage to the plant.

“Katie!”

She didn’t turn.

“Katie!”

Mid-ass wiggle, she whipped around and nearly stabbed him with her pruners.

“Brian!” Her cheeks were flushed, and she had a smear of dirt on her top across her breast.

He stepped forward and took the pruners out of her hands.

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