Page 58 of Masquerade

“The very-married Daniel Elliott.” He lifted her bodily out of range of the window. “Although Selina ambushed him. She was waiting to pounce when he got out of his car. He tried to hurry her inside, but she just couldn’t wait.”

“That’s crazy.” Kate reordered the facts they had. “No one’s seen either of them do anything vaguely dodgy. Except for his land purchases on the edge of Greentree Passage.”

“Part of a complicated series of interconnected shelf companies with his wife, son and daughter as ultimate owners. He’s too smart to be caught like this. Unless”—as the couple disappeared indoors, he pressed his face against the window to get a wider angle—“well, well, well. A sting.”

“You think that guy wasfilming?” Kate plastered herself to Liam’s side in time to see a man climb out of the boot of a parked car and slink around the side of the adjacent building. “Would Selina blackmail him?”

“Every chance.” He snorted his disgust. “Daniel Elliott promotes himself as a man of strong family values.”

“It’s not family he’s appreciating right now.” Kate stared at Liam. “We need that geological report to tell us exactly what’s under the land.”

“I’m with you there.” He glanced in the direction of the disappearing couple. “Futureproof Mining wants whatever it is, and they’re relying on Selina to deliver it.”

“Is this enough to implicate Elliott in profiteering?” Her stomach rebelled at the notion of using paparazzo-like photos as the killer evidence.

“He was standing beside the Minister for Health when she announced the new site for the hospital. It defies belief to think he didn’t know which site had been chosen before then. We’ve got no hard evidence. Yet. The land purchases were made after the tender closed and before the successful site was named.”

“The stench of corruption is pretty strong.” Kate’s gaze strayed to his phone. For her it was akin to an explosive device primed to blow up in his hand. “Are you planning to use the photos? Is that even legal?”

“They can be part of the brief of evidence we present to the State Anti-Corruption Commission.” Holding the phone in front of her, he scrolled through the compromising images. “I’ve got clear shots of both their faces, plus the building with his banner out the front.”

“I can’t believe they’d be so careless.” Kate dropped onto the end of the bed, her hands worrying at the bottom of his T-shirt.

“I think the presence of the photographer with his big shiny camera in the car boot supports the case for entrapment rather than carelessness.” He sat beside her and took one of her hands between his, resting it on his bare thigh. The physical connection settled her. “I’d been standing there for about ten minutes, looking at day breaking over the distant hills and telling myself I should let you get some sleep so you’d look your best for today’s photo shoot.” He lifted her hand to his mouth and brushed a kiss across her knuckles. “Didn’t see a car or another person until Selina. It’s a sleepy little place. What’s worrying you?”

“How do you know I’m worried?” She met his gaze, his perception forming another link between them.

A smile curved his mouth, and the fascinating laugh lines at the corners of his eyes formed tiny creases.

“You’re frowning.” With his free hand he smoothed her brow. “And you were getting ready to crash tackle me before you saw who it was outside.”

“We’ve got evidence of his land purchases.” She tried to frame an argument.

“Speculative. An affair with the Futureproof Mining representative provides an additional motive. Proving their affair helps solidify our case.”

“I don’t want to use photos obtained like this.” She placed her free hand on his chest. Smooth, warm—she’d learned every inch of his torso in their overnight games. Learned another lesson in trust.

“Why?” His nipple puckered under her hand. He was naked and physically vulnerable to her, and confession was suddenly easy.

“I hate photos taken without consent. Goes back to my childhood.” It hurt to expand her constricted chest, so she puffed out the breath of trapped memory. “A kind of knee-jerk reaction. Although we were always fair game, paparazzi hounded Anna and me at one time. Another one of Dad’s plays dealing with a controversial topic. The main character was transgender. This guy thought photos of pre-pubescent daughters would add to the controversy.”

“We’re dealing with corrupt practices. People who break the law to get what they want, who use sex or money or influence to buy an outcome.” He rubbed their joined hands along his muscled thigh in a gesture simultaneously companionable and erotic. “What evidence do you think it’s reasonable to use?” He was taking her concerns seriously, and breathing became easier. “Guide me here.” His smoky murmur was hypnotic.

“It taints what we’re doing.” She sought for words to explain her dilemma. “The man’s kids don’t deserve the notoriety. And”—she’d saved her big gun for last—“it puts us on the same level as Selina.”

“Touché. Then we use the knowledge they’re having an affair to get more tangible evidence of a link between them.” He threaded his free hand through her hair. Lifting it away from her neck, he blew warm air on her exposed skin. “But the law’s not always pretty, Kate. What we have is evidence. But we’ll look for other evidence. And if we find it, we delete this.”

“Thank you.” She swallowed a moan, keeping a shaky toehold on her sanity. She’d make it her business to get other evidence. “I’ll do some checks now we know they’re having an affair.”

“It’s too early to do anything now.” He pressed a string of kisses along her collarbone.

Each tiny, ardent kiss rippled through her, but playing the role of convenient distraction didn’t appeal. “Are you upset?”

He pulled back far enough to meet her gaze, his eyes an unreadable grey. “About Selina screwing someone else?”

“You cared for her once.” Her hand crept up to cover his heart.

“I cared for a person who didn’t exist. My inclination last night was to turn my back on her. Now, she’s a useful piece in the legal puzzle you and I are here to solve. I don’t think of her when I’m with you.”

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