Page 86 of Seduced By You

Laughing, I squeezed her knee. “We can’t wait to visit. I’m presuming that’s not why you called.”

“No.” He paused. “Do you know someone called Barry Sanderson?”

I screwed up my nose. “I don’t think so. Name doesn’t ring a bell. Why?”

“He said he knows you. Or rather, he met you once. At Oberon’s wedding.”

“Oh!” Lee nodded furiously. “I remember him. He was that jerk reporter who needled me about Benedict breaking off our engagement.”

“Oh, yeah. The guy in the blue tux.”

“That’s him.”

“Who wears a blue tux?” Dad queried.

“That’s what I thought. What’s he got to do with this anyway?”

“He’s the one who told Oberon about Switzerland.”

My jaw dropped. “How the fuck does he know?”

“Turns out he worked for a European newspaper when… when it happened. My lawyers slapped a gag order on several media outlets at the time, preventing them from publishing a single detail.”

“Yet Sanderson told Oberon.” I gripped the steering wheel.

“Yes.”

“Why would he risk breaking the NDA? I know they’re pretty toothless, as suing would mean taking the issue to court and then the whole reason for the NDA becomes moot, but still. Most people abide by them.”

“Sanderson is a gambler. He ran up a raft of debts with the wrong people. He needed to get his hands on fast cash, and Oberon was only too happy to pay for the intel Sanderson had.”

“Great.” I breathed out through my nose. “What can we do to quash this? To stop Sanderson from telling anyone else the next time he runs up a gambling debt he can’t pay, and Oberon from dangling it in front of my face like a fucking noose.”

“Already done.”

I loved my dad. He was my hero. “How?”

“Sanderson was no problem. He’s freelance, so he relies on his reputation for work, and to keep feeding his gambling habit. I told him that if he broke the NDA a second time, I’d make sure he never worked again. Man’s a coward. He capitulated easily.”

“And Oberon.”

“Ah. Mr. Oberon. You won’t have any more trouble with him.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Darren Grange and I have a mutual friend in the British Government. He put us in touch, and Mr. Grange and I had a very fruitful conversation. If Oberon wants to both stay married to Grange’s daughter and have any chance of a political career, he’ll do well to keep his opinions to himself. If that fails, I’ve got a little insurance policy as backup.”

“What insurance policy?”

“Nothing for you to be concerned about.”

I’d grown up hearing that tone from Dad. It meant you could ask as much as you liked, but you wouldn’t get anywhere. I’d long since given up pushing him whenever he used it.

“His marriage might be over anyway, given what I told his wife yesterday.”

“True. Either way, he won’t give you any more trouble.”

“I hope not. Thanks, Dad. I owe you.”

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