I rubbed the aching spot between my eyes. “It’s about what you told me last night. About Xavier.”
I held my breath after the last word. It was very possible Seth would tell me no. Our exchange on the sidewalk wasn’t exactly a nice one. At this point, he might dislike me just as much as I did him.
“What about tomorrow morning?” he asked, taking me by surprise.
“Um, yeah. Yeah, that sounds good.”
“I’m going sailing. You can come with me. We can talk about this whole thing in private.”
The idea of being isolated with him caused my stomach to churn, but no way would I back down from getting my questions answered. I would do whatever it took to help those women on the list. In a strange sort of way, we were sisters now. Before I could allow myself to consider the consequences, I responded, “When and where?”
“I’ll text the details. Look, Riley… I’m sorry if I came off a little strong last night. That’s kind of the way I tend to be. Everyone tells me I can be intense. I’m working on it.”
“Oh. Well, thank you. That’s nice of you. I was probably pretty intense myself.”
“Let’s start over tomorrow. Meet me at the pier at nine? I’ll text you the address.”
“Sounds good. Thanks.”
We hung up, and I stared at my phone. I didn’t know if Seth’s apology was genuine or not, but I hoped it was. If he was softening toward me, that hopefully meant our next day’s conversation would go well.
I set my alarm for seven-thirty and climbed under the sheets. Sleep didn’t come easy. I drifted in and out, always feeling like I was simultaneously falling asleep and waking up. When my alarm went off, I groggily climb out of bed and into a cold shower.
Today is the day, I reminded myself. The day I start being truly proactive. The day I get something out of this whole crazy mess.
Ann-Marie was up, sitting on the couch and watching some stand-up. The second I came home the other day, I told her everything that happened with Seth, including what Seth told me about Xavier. She also knew about what happened in Xavier’s office the day before. She was still of the opinion that I should save myself and get as far away as I could from this debacle before it was too late.
“Hey,” she said around a mouthful of cereal. “You’re awake early.”
I squared my shoulders. Here went nothing. “I’m going sailing.”
She looked at me like I’d lost my mind. “Excuse me?”
“Yeah, I’m going with Seth.”
She groaned. “Riley, no.”
“He has information I need.”
“You’re not an undercover cop.”
“And I’m not trying to be. I called him up last night and was really clear with him. I told him that I want to talk about the things he told me.”
Ann-Marie set her cereal down on the coffee table. “Okay, this time I actually do need to come with you.”
“Nu-uh. You can’t. If you’re there, he won’t talk. There will be zero chance of him opening up.”
“You’re going sailing with this guy. Do you understand what that means? You’ll be out on the water with him. Alone.”
“He’s not going to murder me.”
Ann-Marie slowly raised an eyebrow. “Please don’t do this just in an attempt to get back at Xavier. It’s not worth it. He’s not worth it.”
“It’s not about getting back at Xavier.”
“So, it’s about finding out every little detail of what he’s been up to?”
“No.”
She didn’t look convinced. “I hope not, because if that’s the case, you’re only going to drive yourself insane.”
“It’s not about Xavier or me. It’s about exposing this list.”
“If you want to expose it, go give the story to a reporter!”
I chewed my bottom lip, considering the possibility. “No. I don’t want to hurt Xavier. I just want to help the women on the list.”
“Oh my God.” She slumped back against the couch. “It is about Xavier.”
I groaned in frustration. “Are you not listening?”
“You just said that you don’t want to hurt him.” She solemnly looked at me. “You still have a thing for him.”
“After everything that’s happened, that would be impossible.”
“And yet, you kissed him yesterday.”
“I have to go,” I snapped. “Seth is waiting for me. I need to do this, let the other women know so they don’t become victims.”
“Please keep your phone on.”
“I am. I mean, I will.” I pulled the front door closed behind me, accidentally shutting it harder than I meant to.
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
Xavier
I stared out the window below me and watched the tiny people moving around on the sidewalk. From up in my office, they were nothing more than dots.
Riley could be one of them, for all I knew. She could be that blue one, or that red one crossing the street. It was unlikely. She’d stormed into my office yesterday and took me by surprise, but I’d bet my life that kind of thing wouldn’t be happening ever again. Now she knew the truth about me. Or at least she knew the truth about what really mattered. She understood that I was no good for her and that we were better off apart.
The fact that it was fucking killing me didn’t matter. The fact that I was actually thinking—for the very first time in my life—that working on a relationship with a woman might be possible didn’t matter. I was still a lost cause, and Riley was still too good to deal with this insanity.
Which meant my attention needed to be on the current problem — damage control. Seth had literally gone off the rails. Since seeing him yesterday, I’d had countless daydreams of disposing of him. They were all fantastical, and not going to happen, but they did make me feel slightly better. The thought of driving him out to the middle of the desert and leaving him there at least made me chuckle.
A dull knock sounded on the door. I turned eagerly and went to open it. Davis stood there, a strained look on his face. I offered my hand for a shake, and he firmly gripped it.
“Come in,” I gestured. “How are you doing?”
“Not so good, but only because of your phone call.”
“It’s not one I wanted to make, believe me. Have a seat. Can I get you something to drink? My assistant was just about to bring in some coffee.”
“That sounds great.”
We settled down on the couches in the far corner of my massive office, and small talked about Davis’ recent trips and my work while Kenneth served coffee. The second we were alone again, he got right to business.
“I regretted inviting Seth to be a part of this whole thing the day after it started,” he said, setting his coffee cup down on the table. He fixed his gaze on mine. “I’m sorry. This is my fault.”
“What’s done is done,” I sighed. “I’m more interested now in dealing with it all. He says he’s going to blackmail me if I try to put him in his place.”