Page 54 of Masquerade

“Thank you for rescuing me from Selina tonight.” He dropped a light kiss on the back of her hand. “She’s not one hundred percent convinced I’m Niall, but you made her doubt.”

“You’re welcome.” She recovered her hand, resisting the urge to place a finger where his mouth had been. His readiness to share his past invited honesty in return. “I have my own war stories.”

“Will you tell me sometime?”

She nodded because he wasn’t pushing. Letting her choose how much of herself she’d share stirred a more deep-seated need to lower her barriers. Scooping Kate into his arms, he returned to lay full length on the lounge with her on top.

“I don’t think this is a good idea.” She rested her cheek on his chest to soften her objection.

“Why not?” His hand glided down her spine, coaxing confidences.

Kate was being as truthful as she dared. She wasn’t an idiot. She knew where this was heading, where they were heading. A short-term affair. Not just lust; they shared mutual respect and liking. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be here. It would be foolhardy to surrender the caution of a lifetime and tell him all her secrets on the basis of a brief affair, but she was tempted.

“Am I right about Selina?” Questions came more easily tucked snugly against his chest.

His hand stilled. “You’re right. And, although I didn’t think it at the time, I was astonishingly lucky.”

“Not sure I’m keeping up.” She pressed her nose against his throat, his familiar scent quietening her outrage on his behalf.

His hand resumed its slow slide up and down her spine, affectionate rather than sexual.

“Dad died suddenly as we were preparing for our court appearance on that case. I fielded lots of calls. From Dad’s friends. From my friends who weren’t able to get back for the funeral. An old friend was in Canada. We didn’t talk much, but he sent a message. When I called back, I asked him about Selina.” The bleakness of the memory echoed in his voice. “You can probably see where this is going.”

Liam would have been reeling from his father’s death. With Selina’s betrayal, he’d lost his footing a second time.

“Research only tells part of the story.” Few onlookers guessed the impact of Andrew’s first online attack. Like a punch to her gut, the vitriol had dropped Kate to her knees. Andrew’s vindictiveness had added a new sting to her father’s attack. Not only was her writing worthless, she was a failure as a lover, companion, woman. How dare she walk away before Andrew was ready? “I’d like to hear your side.”

“You need to know how she works to protect yourself.” His fingers drew patterns on her back in a steady exploration. “Selina claimed he was a friend of hers. That they’d worked together. She got close to me by telling stories about my friend and I as teenagers. Small details that could only have come from him. Or so I thought. I mentioned her, and he denied all knowledge.”

“I’m sorry.” She pushed herself up to see his face. She had her answer to the hypothetical he’d outlined in George’s living room. Selina—as coldly calculating as Andrew—was the lover who’d betrayed him.

“Not your fault, but thank you.” He rested the back of his hand on her cheek, the connection more than physical. “I’d accepted her as a friend of his. Let her into our inner sanctum. I searched our flat. Can you believe that?” He grimaced in disgust.

“It’s not wrong to take steps to protect yourself.” She’d been taking preventive action since her teens.

“I didn’t find anything. She’s too slick. I waited until she got home, locked her in the bedroom and hacked her computer. A skill Billy taught me.” He huffed out his distaste for his actions. “She’d compiled a dossier. Some of it general knowledge. Some of it detailed legal strategies she’d copied from my notes.”

“She stole your work.” Kate’s father had stolen her work and weaponised it to bring her to heel. “Stealing your ideas leaves a bruise most people never see.”

“She told me she’d never given a damn. About me.” He pressed Kate’s head back against his chest and resumed stroking her spine, the rhythm soothing them both. “About the campaign. She’d been offered big money for infiltrating our team. Apparently, I was the easiest mark because of my media appearances. Unlike Rory, I’m not a natural in front of the cameras. When she popped up beside me, it was the signal she had information for them.”

“What did you do?” She already had a fair idea.

“I fronted the committee the next day, said I’d been compromised and would step aside from the court case.” He’d offered to step aside from this job too, repeatedly, to protect George.

“They were fools if they accepted your offer.” Her hand fisted in his shirt.

“They didn’t demand it. When I insisted, they asked me to stay.”

“The Mighty Quinn, is that where it comes from?” She tilted her head to meet his gaze.

“A dad joke.” His smile was askew. “I was four at the time.”

“You took a principled, noble stand.”

“I didn’t feel noble. I was humiliated and angrier than I ever remember being,” he admitted. His hand tangled in her hair, shifting from comfort to intimacy.

“You’re not angry now.” Placing her hand over his heart, Kate absorbed its steady beat. “You weren’t angry when you called her a liar and a cheat.”

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