Lawful Wife (Eternal Bachelors Club) (8 page)

As he guided her toward the exit, Sabrina felt her control crumble and sensed tears running down her cheeks. When she was finally outside and Paul led her away from the store, her next breath left her chest as a sob.

Moments later, she felt Paul’s arms around her, comforting her as she sobbed against his polo shirt.

“I only put the negligee against my cheek,” she pressed out between sobs. “Just to see if the lace was scratchy.”

“It’s okay now.” He patted her back as if she were a child.

“I’m not even wearing makeup. I didn’t make it dirty.” She pulled free of him and caught his confused look. “I mean no makeup could have rubbed onto the negligee,” she explained.

Understanding shone from his eyes. “Forget about it. How about I buy you a nice cup of coffee?”

She sniffed and accepted the handkerchief he handed her. “Thank you.” She lifted her head. “I’m not normally so emotional.”

“That’s quite all right. You have every right to be emotional. It’s a lot to deal with.”

She nodded. Weddings were stressful.

“Come, I know a great coffee shop.”

Sabrina turned in the direction Paul indicated and froze. A few yards away, Linda Boyd stood watching them, her lips twisted into a sneer. That was all Sabrina needed now! Linda had seen her emotional outburst, and for all she knew she’d also watched the embarrassing scene in the shop. Knowing Linda, she’d probably stared through the shop’s window.

Sabrina averted her gaze and forced a smile onto her face. “Yes, some coffee would be nice now.”

9

“Well . . . ” Father Vincent clapped his hands. “I think you two are ready for the big day.” He smiled. “It will be a beautiful ceremony.”

“Yes, it will be,” Daniel agreed with a smile as he put his arm around Sabrina’s waist and pulled her to him. “And we have you to thank for that.”

“Oh, most definitely.” Sabrina nodded. “Your introduction is lovely, Father.”

“I’m glad you think so.” He turned to Holly and Tim, shaking Holly’s hand. “Well, it was nice meeting you both, too.” He shook Tim’s hand then looked back at Daniel and Sabrina. “If you two don’t have any more questions or concerns, I’ll be heading for my counseling session.”

Daniel glanced at Sabrina, his heart swelling with love, and shook his head. “No, I think we’re all set. Thank you again, Father, and we’ll see you soon.”

“Bless you.” Father Vincent bowed slightly then left them standing in the aisle of the small church.

“Who’s up for some lunch?” Daniel asked.

Holly wiped at her eyes and nodded. “Yeah, lunch sounds good.”

“Are you crying?” Sabrina asked with a laugh. “Oh, Holly.” She hugged her friend. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ll probably be crying during the actual ceremony, too.”

“I just can’t believe that Tim and I actually managed to pull it off to get you two together,” Holly said. “Maybe I should open a matchmaking business!”

Sabrina chuckled. “Maybe you should!”

Daniel laughed and started walking toward the exit. They really did have Tim and Holly to thank for all of this. If it hadn’t been for them, he would have never met Sabrina and would have never experienced what true love was. “All right, let’s go. There’s a great little shack near the beach. It looks like a dive, but Frank makes the best clam chowder and crab sandwiches within fifty miles.”

“Oh, you’ve taken me there before. Great place!” Tim agreed.

Daniel pushed open the heavy wooden door and squinted against the bright light of the midday sun. Behind him, the others exited, but before he could turn back to them and lead them in the direction of Frank’s Crab Shack, an auburn mane across the street caught his eye.

He whirled his head to take a closer look and froze.

Audrey!

Audrey was just now entering the general store across the street, the door closing behind her. She was here in the Hamptons! Hiding from him in plain sight! So he’d guessed right: Audrey was staying close so she could watch with glee as chaos, caused by her vicious lies, ensued. She was most likely staying with the Boyds. No wonder Linda Boyd had known about the newspaper article so quickly and alerted his mother, when he doubted that Linda even read the
New York Times
.

His heart thundered in his ears, and his hands turned to fists. He would wring Audrey’s pretty neck for the untruths she’d spread about Sabrina.

Daniel turned back to Sabrina and their friends. None of them seemed to have noticed Audrey enter the store. This was his chance, but he had to make it quick, before Audrey escaped him.

“Uh.” Daniel cleared his throat. “Why don’t you guys go on ahead and I’ll meet you there?”

Sabrina gave him a confused look. “Why? I thought it was your idea to go to Frank’s.”

He pasted a charming smile onto his face, while inside he was seething. “If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you.” He winked playfully. Then he quickly added, “It won’t take long. I promise.”

Tim whistled, jabbing him in the side. “Sounds like Daniel wants to buy something special for you, Sabrina.”

Daniel instantly noticed the smile that pulled at Sabrina’s mouth. “Why didn’t you say so immediately?” Her eyes sparkled.

He pressed a brief kiss on her mouth. “Looks like I can’t keep any secrets from you.”

“Looks like it.” Sabrina winked and left with Tim and Holly.

Daniel waited and watched until Sabrina, Tim, and Holly were out of sight before he made his way across the street and entered the general store.

He surveyed the interior. A fair number of customers were shopping in the large store that carried everything from milk to greeting cards to glassware.

He spotted Audrey in the far corner looking at a display of fancy bottles of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Quietly and swiftly, he approached her.

“Audrey,” he said, coming up behind her.

She gasped and spun around to face him. “Daniel,” she greeted him coolly, her eyes already darting past him as if looking for an escape route.

“We need to talk.”

Daniel glanced around. Too many customers were close by and would be able to overhear their conversation, and what he had to say to Audrey wasn’t meant for anybody else’s ears.

“In private,” he gritted out between clenched teeth, while his eyes searched for a place that would afford some modicum of privacy. A sign caught his attention.

Before she could protest, he grabbed Audrey’s wrist and dragged her to a door.
Restrooms
was printed on it. He pushed the door open, pulling a reluctant Audrey with him, then opened the door to the men’s room and pushed her inside.

“Get your fucking hands off of me!” she said, jerking her hand from his grasp.

Daniel locked the door. “I know it was you, Audrey.”

“What are you talking about?” Audrey braced her hands at her hips and glared at him defiantly.

“Damn it, Audrey! Don’t play stupid with me. It was you who went to the newspaper with that ridiculous story about Sabrina being a call girl. I know you were the reporter’s source.”

“Prove it!”

“I don’t need to prove it. We both know it was you, so cut the crap!”

“So what? People have a right to know when somebody in their community brings a two-bit hooker into their midst and makes her out to be a respectable woman.”

“Sabrina is not a hooker!” Daniel shouted and raised his fist. He’d never hit a woman, but by God, he was close to it now. “This afternoon, you’ll be contacting the reporter, telling her that you made a mistake, that it was a case of mistaken identity and ask her to withdraw the story and issue an apology.”

She smiled in the smug way that he’d always hated. “No.”

“Don’t push me, Audrey. You have no idea what I’m capable of.”

“You’re not the only one who can issue threats.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “You can’t order me around anymore! You dumped me for that lowly piece of—”

Daniel pushed her against the wall, pointing his finger in her face. “Don’t finish that sentence!”

“Even if I don’t say the word, it’s still true. I have proof, Daniel! Hard evidence that can’t be disputed. The paper won’t issue a correction, let alone an apology. I have documentation.”

“What fucking documentation? There is no proof, because Sabrina isn’t a call girl! Whatever you have is faked!”

“It’s not!” Audrey insisted. “I have it in black and white!”

“Tell me now, or—”

“Or what? I’m not your girlfriend anymore!”

“Thank God for that!” he muttered. He’d dodged a bullet when he’d found Audrey in bed with his attorney.

Audrey glared at him, her mouth now spewing venom. “I’m glad of it! Luckily I never married you! Imagine the horror of finding a charge for an escort service on your credit card statement! As your wife I would have sunk into the ground out of shame! Luckily I was spared that humiliation!”

“Credit card statement?” That’s how she’d found out? He gripped her arms, leaning in so his face was only inches from hers. “How did you get my statements?” The only people who handled his credit card statements were his assistant Frances and himself. “Frances would have never—”

Audrey interrupted him with a laugh. “Wouldn’t she? I think you forget who recommended Frances to you when you were looking for a new assistant.”

Daniel released her as if he’d burned himself on a hot stove and stepped back. “Frances?” Fuck! How had he not seen that? How could he have missed it? It all made sense now: Frances had constantly kept Audrey apprised of his whereabouts, his comings and goings, even his purchases. And there had indeed been a charge from an escort service on his credit card statement.

And had Claire Heart told him the truth after all, that she’d contacted his office for comment, and had Frances claimed he didn’t want to speak to her? Frances certainly hadn’t passed Claire Heart’s message along to him.

Audrey chuckled. “Yes, Frances helped me figure it out. I knew something was fishy when I surprised you and her that night in the hotel. I just couldn’t put my finger on it. But when I heard about Sabrina’s friend Holly, I remembered something: you’d called Sabrina ‘Holly’ that night. You didn’t know her real name.” Audrey straightened her blouse and smiled. “I put two and two together. And when I saw the charge on your credit card, I dug a little deeper. Honestly, in the end it was almost too easy. Sabrina is a prostitute, but she didn’t even have the guts to use her own name. She used her friend’s name, as if that would hide what she was!”

His blood ran cold. “You’ll pay for this! Mark my words!” He unlocked the door and rushed outside, Audrey’s mocking laughter chasing him.

When he reached the sidewalk, he took a few deep breaths. But they did nothing to tamp down his rage. He dug his cell phone from his pocket and dialed.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Sinclair,” Frances answered the phone, clearly having recognized his cell phone number on her phone’s display.

“You’re fired, Frances! Clean out your desk and leave! I’m alerting security, and they will escort you out of the building.”

A gasp came through the line. “Fired? But I don’t—”

“Don’t count on a reference from me! Maybe your friend Audrey can find you another position, but
I
don’t employ people who are disloyal to me.”

He hung up, for the first time in the last half hour feeling a flicker of satisfaction. Anybody who crossed him would meet the same fate as Frances. The newspaper would be next. And then Audrey would feel his wrath. But for that he needed to enlist help.

10

Daniel closed the door to the boat house and turned to face Tim and Holly.

“What’s all this sneaking around about?” Tim asked.

“I don’t want Sabrina to know what’s going on.” He looked at Holly. “Are you sure she’s busy for the next hour?”

Holly nodded. “I’ve talked her into taking a long bubble bath. She needs it. She looks really exhausted. I think all that stress about the wedding preparations is getting to her. And yesterday when she got back from shopping for a present for me, she looked all agitated.”

Daniel ran his hand through his hair. “Just another reason to make sure that she doesn’t find out what’s happening.”

Tim raised an eyebrow. “Is this about the article in the
New York Times
?”

“You know about that?” Daniel asked, not even really surprised. He’d planned on telling Tim about it now, but was glad he didn’t have to. He was aware that Holly already knew, because she’d been shopping with his mother when Linda had alerted them to the article—or rather when Linda had rubbed in the bad news with glee.

Tim motioned to Holly. “Holly told me.”

Holly merely shrugged. “Hey, I just saved you the trouble. Besides, he knows the whole story anyway. So, no harm done.”

“Just as well.” Daniel sighed. “I know who’s behind it.”

“Who?” Holly looked at him expectantly.

“Who do you think? Audrey of course.”

“Is that confirmed?” Tim asked.

“She admitted it. I went to the columnist who wrote the article and she claimed she had solid proof that Sabrina is a call girl, but she wouldn’t give me her source or tell me what that proof was. I found out nevertheless and confronted Audrey.”

“And? Is she going to get the paper to retract the story? It’s clearly false. We all know that,” Holly said.

Daniel huffed. “Of course not. We’re talking about Audrey here. That’s why we have to discredit the proof she has.”

Tim braced his hands at his hips. “And what kind of proof does she have?”

“My credit card statement with the charge of the escort service. Though there’s nothing in the name that suggests it’s an escort service, somehow she figured it out.”

“Fuck! How?” Tim asked.

“Most charges have a phone number next to them so you can dispute the charge if needed. I guess she called and figured it out somehow.”

Holly glared at Tim. “See, I told you we should have never let it run through the agency!”

“He would have smelled a rat early on if we hadn’t,” Tim defended his action.

“Hey! Guys!” Daniel interrupted. “What’s done is done.”