“Please call me Lucas,” he says, smiling. Lucas looks around in wonder, and I belatedly realize that the Kennedy residence isn’t a place people usually get to see from the inside. I wonder if I should have met him elsewhere, instead.
He pulls a manila folder out of his bag and places it in front of me. “You were right to be suspicious,” he tells me, his expression serious. “We found evidence that there was foul play in your mother’s car accident.”
My heart twists painfully, and I rub my chest as though that’ll alleviate the pain. Lucas lays out some photos for me and my heart sinks. “These… these are parts of my mother’s car?”
He nods, his expression grim. “It looks like nothing was wrong with it, and honestly, it took me weeks just to find some of the scraps. Someone went through great lengths to make this car disappear.”
I nod, a shudder running down my spine. “So, what happened?”
Lucas points at one of the photos. “This console, it’s connected to the car. Somehow, someone managed to manipulate it, to make your mother lose control of her car. I’ve brought the part here for you. All my technical team could tell me is that it was tampered with, but I was unable to find out more.”
He opens his bag and takes out an almost unrecognizable piece of technology. I take the plastic wrapped object with trembling hands and examine it before turning to Lucian.
“Luce,” I murmur. “Could you call Elliot for me?”
Lucian blinks, a blush creeping up his cheeks, and the edges of my lips tip up slightly. The only positive words to have come out of his mouth since Marcus have all been about Elliot.
“I… yeah, I guess,” he says, fiddling with his phone.
I sit up in surprise when the doors open and Alexander walks in, a worried expression on his face. His eyes find mine and he storms into the living room, his eyes blazing.
“You’re ignoring my calls and texts,” he tells me, his voice rough.
I frown at him, annoyed, and cross my arms over my chest. His eyes roam over the room, settling on Lucas.
“Who the fuck are you?”
Lucas rises to his feet, his eyes bouncing between Alexander and me.
“Lucas,” I say. “Meet Alexander Kennedy.”
Lucas nods but struggles to hide his surprise. I turn to Alexander and sigh. “Lucas Starling is the PI Aiden hired. He’s found some evidence that there was foul play in my mother’s accident.”
Alexander nods and walks up to me, taking a seat next to me as Lucas runs him through the case. He places his hand on my knee, his thumb stroking my skin. I’m tempted to push his hand off, but I don’t want to be childish or petty.
“Elliot can figure this out,” Alexander says, nodding at me. “I’ll call him.”
I shake my head. “No need. Lucian is on it. We have this under control.”
Alexander looks into my eyes, his gaze searching, and then he sighs. “You’re mad at me.”
I turn away from him and rise to my feet as Lucas packs his belongings. “I’m sorry that this is all I was able to find, ma’am,” he says. “I’ll keep looking into this case.”
I shake his hand and smile. “I’m grateful for the work you’ve done,” I tell him honestly. “This is more than I dared hoped for. Without you, I’d still be living with fear and suspicion. Now I have something to go on.”
He nods, his smile as sad as mine must be. “I’ll get to the bottom of this,” he promises, and I smile at him gratefully as the housekeeper walks up to him to lead him out.
Alexander leans back in his seat, his eyes on Aiden. The second the doors close behind Lucas, Alexander glares at him. “Where did you find that guy?” he asks, his tone sharp. “He looks younger than I am. There’s no way he’s an experienced PI.”
Aiden smirks and shakes his head. “I assure you, he’s one of the best. He comes from a long line of law enforcement and private investigators.”
“Thank you,” I tell both Aiden and Lucian, and then I rise to my feet and walk away, making my way to the bedroom.
As expected, Alexander follows me.
Chapter 40
A lexander
Our bedroom door closes behind me and Elena turns to look at me, her arms crossed in a defensive position.
“Are you okay?” I ask, concerned about everything the PI just told us. “I promise, Buttercup, we’ll get to the bottom of this.”
Elena smiles, but her smile is forced. “Yes, I hope so. Thank you for providing me with the resources I need. If not for you, if not for this marriage, I’d still be living in ignorance.”
She’s overly polite, her tone clipped. The way she looks at me unsettles me.
“You saw the photos.”
She grits her teeth and nods. “Explain yourself, Alexander,” she snaps, her voice raised.
She looks furious, but goddamn it, she looks beautiful. She’d murder me if I told her just how stunning I find her right now. I can just imagine the fire in her eyes if I dared tell her how hot she looks. I suppress a smile, but I clearly don’t do a well enough job, because Elena’s anger rises.
“Do you think this is funny? Did you have fun making a fool of me? You keep talking about portraying the perfect relationship for the press and your grandfather, yet here you are, embarrassing me for everyone to see. After everything you put me through with Lucian, this is how you behave?”
“Baby,” I say, “it’s not like that at all. I just ran into her, that’s all.”
Her eyes flash with anger as she points her index finger at me. “Don’t you call me baby. I’m not your baby,” she yells, and she’s got me enthralled. Why the fuck does she need to be so beautiful when she’s mad?
“Okay, Buttercup.”
She groans and puts her hands in her hair. “Don’t you dare call me Buttercup, either. Don’t call me anything!”
She glares at me and then tries to storm past me, but I grab her and pull her against me. Elena pushes against me, but there’s no way I’m letting her walk out in anger.
I push her up against the wall, trapping her in with my arms. I smirk at her, which only makes her angrier.
“I swear, Elena. I ran into her when I went to pick something up at Francesco’s. I congratulated her on her engagement and then I came home. To you.”
She looks at me through narrowed eyes, and though she’s radiating anger, I see the insecurity underneath it. “Elena,” I murmur. “You’re my wife. You. No one else. You will always be the only one for me.”
Her anger drains away, leaving only sadness in its wake. “But will I?” she asks, her voice barely above a whisper. “You say that, but it’ll never be me that owns your heart. It’s still her. It’s always been her. If I hadn’t dropped the photo you kept on your nightstand, she’d still be in our bedroom. I saw the way you looked at her in that photo, Alec. And you know what? You’ve never once looked at me that way.”
I see the pain in her eyes, and it kills me. I drop my forehead to hers and inhale deeply. “Elena,” I whisper. “When I proposed, I told you I wasn’t after a love marriage.”
She inhales shakily and tightens her grip on me. “I know,” she murmurs. “I know.”
I pull away a little to look at her. “I’m not going to lie to you, Elena. I never want to do that. I don’t know if I’ll ever love you. I don’t know if that’s even what I want. I certainly don’t want you to expect it, or to wait for it. Love… even if you and I find it together, it won’t last. My marriage with you is forever, Elena. And love? Love doesn’t last forever. I much prefer what we have right now. A partnership. Mutual trust. Amazing sex.”
Elena looks so sad, so hurt, that all I want to do is promise her the world. But I can’t. I can’t give her false promises.
“What I can promise you, Elena, is this. I don’t love Jennifer. There are no lingering feelings there—whatever I thought was there is gone. I didn’t feel a thing when I saw her. All I could think about was you and wanting to come home to you.”
She looks into my eyes as though she wants to believe me, but can’t. Elena cups my cheek, looking lost. “It’s okay,” she says. “I knew what I was getting into when I married you. You’ve been very clear on what not to expect, and I’m fine with that, I am. It’s just that when I saw those photos… Alec, it hurts. It hurts to know you gave her everything that you don’t even want with me.”
I hold her closer and drop my forehead to her shoulder. If anyone deserves to be loved, it’s Elena. I hate that I can’t give her what she needs, and part of me worries that one day she’ll go looking elsewhere for it.
“I’m giving you all I can, Elena. All I am. All that’s left of me.”
I carry her to our bed and lay her down gently before joining her in bed. She looks up at me, looking so damn vulnerable, and I hate that I put that look in her eyes.