She has taken off her gown and is standing in front of the mirror naked, looking at her body. “Admiring yourself?”
“No.” She laughs and twists, moving her hand to her hip. “I was wondering what a Celtic shield like yours would look like right here.”
She wants matching ink? “Stunning—that’s how it would look.”
“You’d approve?”
“Of course.”
She comes into the shower with me, putting her arms around my body from behind. “I know I told you a hundred times last night but I’m going to miss you like crazy,” she says.
“I’ll miss you too, my Bonny Bleu. I mean that.” I can tell her I’ll miss her but why can’t I man up and spit out the words I so desperately want to say?
I still have tonight. That gives me all day to think about the perfect way to broach the subject.
“Will you be seeing your doctor while you’re in the States?” She mentioned making an appointment. I hope she does because I’m very concerned about the way the diabetic medication makes her feel.
“I doubt I’ll be able to get in to see her on such short notice. You usually have to have an appointment months in advance.”
“If you can’t, I’ll make sure you get in with the best doctor here when you come back.” She’s let this go on for months. She should have already been seen by someone.
I turn and wrap my arms around Bleu. There’s nothing better than the feel of her wet body pressed against mine. “I wish I had time to make love to you in the shower but I don’t. I have early court this morning.”
“No worries. We’ll take advantage of the time we have before I have to go to the airport.”
* * *
It’s five o’clock and I’m on my way out the door when Heather stops me. “Mr. Breckenridge. I’m so glad I caught you. I have a message from your uncle. He wants you to come by his office.”
“Now?”
“Yes, sir. He said it was an urgent matter.”
No fucking way! If I rushed home, I might have four hours with Bleu before she has to leave. I don’t want to waste that precious time with Abram instead of being with her in our bed.
I dial Abram’s number. “I got your message but Bleu has a red-eye, so I’ll be in a rush to get her to the airport.” Not the whole truth. “Can we reschedule for the morning?”
“Absolutely not. It’s pertinent you see me before she leaves.” I doubt that. “Trust me, Sinclair. You’re going to want to hear what I have to say.”
“I’ll come for ten minutes.” That’s all the time I’ll allow him to steal from Bleu.
I can walk the distance between our offices in the financial district in about fifteen minutes, but I’m in a hurry so I catch a taxi instead. Abram’s secretary is still there when I arrive. “Mr. Breckenridge will see you.”
“Thank you.”
I stand in the doorway of Abram’s office. He’s combing through a file spread wide across his desk, appearing completely engrossed—or obsessed. I tap on the door to gain his attention. “I’m here.”
“Aah … Sinclair. Come in and take a seat, my boy.”
He hasn’t called me his boy in years. He’s absolutely giddy, so I don’t expect this to be good. “I can’t stay. I’m in a hurry.”
“Yes. I hear our dear Bleu will be leaving the country.”
“Only for a couple of weeks. She’s going home to retrieve her photography equipment and visit her family. She’s not seen them in months.” Why am I explaining this to him?
He gestures for me to come inside. “You make me nervous standing around like that. Come in and sit.”
I do as he asks. “I said ten minutes. You’re down to eight.”
“Then I shall get on with it,” he says. “It has recently come to my attention that someone has been meddling in my business, so to protect my interests, I inventoried my vulnerabilities.”
I already know where this is going—Bleu. “This again? Really? Why are you unable to let it go?”
He tosses several photos across his desk in my direction. “Take a look for yourself and you’ll understand why.”
I pick up the stack of photos—all of Bleu dressed in an iconic uniform I recognize. In one, she’s standing next to a sign: FBI Academy. Quantico, VA. The others clearly display her accepting a diploma and then posing with it while giving a thumbs up. “Where did you get these?”
“The home of Harold MacAllister, her father.” He scatters the photos and scours through them. “This is an interesting story. It becomes more and more intriguing the deeper you dig.” He holds up a picture of Bleu with a man, both dressed in FBI uniforms. “You see, it turns out Bleu followed in her father’s footsteps—being a part of the FBI is a family trait.”
I’m numb. It’s a fucking blow to learn Bleu’s been lying to me all this time, but my brain can’t make the connection. The States shouldn’t have any kind of interest in anything we do. “The FBI can’t touch us.”
Abram gets up and goes to his liquor cabinet. He pours two whiskies. “I don’t give two shits about the FBI. However, I care a lot about Bleu claiming to be a photographer from Memphis, Tennessee, when the evidence tells us otherwise.”
There has to be an explanation, one that explains why Abram is wrong and I’m not in love with a woman who has betrayed me. “I don’t know, but I intend to find out.”
“It’s not your job to find out anything. Leith is the one who originally let her slip in when he hired her. That’s a mistake he’ll pay for, but it was you who brought her into your bed and made her part of this family. It’s your responsibility to take her out.”
He isn’t suggesting I safely send her home. “You want me to kill her.”
“I want you to make good on the promise you made.” I know the exact one he’s referring to. I said I would be the one to do it if she turned out to be something different than she claimed to be.
“I remember but …” I love her.
“After the first betrayal, there is no other.” I know the motto well. Many brothers have died for far less. “You know there’s no other way—absolute and unwavering loyalty to you and The Fellowship. You must demand that from any woman in your life.”
I see the evidence but I refuse to accept it. “There has to be an explanation.”