Page 126 of Into the Woods

He looked pissed but gave me a tight nod.

I squared my shoulders and prepared to win my Oscar nomination. “I’m so sorry for the delay getting you inside,” I whined, letting my expression crumple. “It’s all my fault. I got so caught up trying to help Mémé…”

Seemingly pleased that I was upset, he kissed my forehead. “All is forgiven, pet.”

Pet.

Why did that particular term of endearment rankle so damn much?

Looking past him, I caught Cami giving Alex a bright smile… that he resolutely ignored. He snagged a glass of champagne from the tray of a nearby waiter and downed it like a shot.

I shot Cami a quizzical look, but she shrugged it off, her blue eyes sad. “Cam—”

Eric grabbed my hand. “I see the chief justice. We should say hello.” His gray eyes glinted with enthusiasm as he pointed out a tall, slender man, who had to be pushing eighty, leaning heavily on a cane.

I let Eric lead me toward the chief justice, who gave Eric a knowing smile and dismissed the two men in suits he’d been talking to.

“Eric, my boy, look at you,” he said with a grin, his gaze moving past Eric and raking down my body in a way that sent goose bumps skittering across my flesh. “And who is this lovely creature?”

“Rebecca Whittier,” Eric responded, his hand resting against my hip like I was a prize poodle he was showing off. “She’s Mrs. Moreau’s granddaughter.”

“Ah. The one from the States.”

“Bex, this is Chief Justice DuChamps. He’s a… close friend,” Eric finished with a conspiratorial smirk.

Chief Justice DuChamps returned the look. “Quite right.” His shrewd gaze landed on me once more. “Whittier.”

Eric’s grin increased. “Yes, she’s Malcolm’s daughter.”

The chief justice chuckled. “I had lunch with your father earlier today.”

“Did you?” I tried to keep the surprise from making my voice squeak. “I’ve been so busy with my grandmother's event that I haven’t had time to see him yet.”

Eric squeezed my hip. “I think you’ll see him sooner than you think.”

DuChamps straightened. “It’s confirmed then?”

Eric nodded. “Seems like an ideal time, doesn’t it? Half the police are either here or controlling traffic in the vicinity. Having so many heads of state in one place was just what we needed. Many are sending buyers on their behalf.”

As they spoke to each other like I’d ceased to exist, warning bells went off in the back of my mind.

DuChamps clapped Eric on the shoulder. “I won’t be one of them. I prefer to inspect my merchandise myself to make sure it’s exactly as ordered.” He lifted a bushy dark brow.

Eric straightened. “I can assure you that it is, and I’ve already arranged transport back to your island in the Pacific for it.”

DuChamps looked at me. “This one’s going places, young lady. You picked a fine horse to ride.” The insinuation felt oily and wrong as he grinned and wandered away.

My brain whirled as I tried to fit the pieces together. “Eric—”

He turned to me, his gray eyes sparkling. “I should’ve told you, pet, but things just came together today. There was a complication I didn’t want the chief justice to know about, but you handled yourself brilliantly.” His lips crashed down on mine, his kiss bruising.

“C-complication?” I stammered as he pulled back.

His face twisted into a scowl. “Apparently there’s been a task force assembled to stop our event. Something the bloody Americans cooked up. Stupid wankers don’t even know that one of their own team is one of us.” He let out a caustic laugh.

Trick. Someone on his team was working with the bad guys, even though he said they’d been hand-selected to avoid corruption.

Holy shit, how deep did this go?

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