Page 21 of No Way Forward

Ever since the maid confided her observations, Novette couldn’t get the two off her mind. Maybe the woman was wrong. Then again, the maid hadn’t said what she assumed must be going on. Novette shut down the gossip and sent the woman away after she was sure there was nothing else to learn about the situation.

“You know, if you keep frowning like that, your face will get stuck.”

Novette blinked up into the handsome face of a man she had met years earlier. “Felix Davenport.”

He grinned. “You remembered. It’s been a while, Novette.”

“Yes. Wait, did you just say my face will get stuck? Didn’t we used to say that in elementary?”

“I was teasing you.”

“Obviously.” She wasn’t in the mood for this self-absorbed rich kid. Technically, Felix was older than her, being twenty-eight, but he had seemed so immature before she left. Nothing had changed.

“Sorry.” He shrugged. “I was remembering the past and how we played together. We were good friends.”

Her eyebrows rose. “That’s how you remember us?”

“Don’t break my heart, Novette.”

She relented a little, and for the moment her dad and Azalie slipped from her thoughts. “Okay, we were friends a really long time ago, when we were in school. You have to admit everything changed in high school.”

He nodded. “For one, I was sent to a private boarding school. We didn’t see each other for four years. You still look the same, so young and beautiful.”

She ignored the compliment. “What are you doing now? I remember you were interested in becoming an architect. Did that work out?”

A sense of coldness entered his features. “Not quite.”

While he talked about his father’s company, she scanned the room. Enough diamonds to blind a person, not to mention all the pearls to go along with fancy dresses and heels, the ballroom was a who’s who of the well to do. Even still, there was a higher than usual number of young male guests in tuxes.

Her gaze fell on Zaid. He stood against the far wall, next to French doors that led out to their extensive gardens. As a child, she ran around the gardens, which were laid out in a maze pattern, playing hide and seek with Felix, Azalie, and a few others.

Zaid leaned as if completely relaxed. He even held a full glass of champagne in his hand, yet his gaze locked on her. She knew him well enough to know he was aware of everything and everyone around him and not relaxed at all.

Zaid looked good in his black tux with a striking blue shirt to complement it. Among a room full of men with the most expensive and tailor made clothing, Zaid outshined them all. His broad shoulders fit snug in his jacket, and the material smoothed down over what she knew to be sensational abs. Charged with energy and power that didn’t come from a big bank account, he gave off an unmistakable presence.

“What are you looking at?” Felix asked with just a hint of irritation in his tone.

He started to turn around to see, but she touched his arm. “So why don’t you just quit your dad’s firm and go back to school? You have a trust fund that he doesn’t control, don’t you? At least that’s what I heard.”

Felix rubbed his chin. “Maybe I will at some point, but I have other ambitions.”

“Which are?”

“To close a deal or two on my own at the company. I was given a vice president’s position because I’m my dad’s son, but I want them all to see that I can do the job.”

“I understand that.” She admired the fact that Felix wanted to prove his worth and not just ride on his dad’s laurels. “Good for you, Felix. I’m proud of you.”

He stepped a little closer to her. “Perhaps you can help me.”

“Help you? I don’t know anything about your business.”

“I have it on good authority that a certain merger is about to happen and your dad is in the middle of it.”

“No idea what you’re talking about. Daddy handles criminal law not corporate.”

“He’s making a shift, or he might be doing someone a favor.”

She wondered if that was true. Had her dad changed since she was gone so that he would handle legal issues for corporations rather than individuals? Not that some corporations weren’t on the wrong side of the law, but it might be a good move if he grew a conscience.

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