Nothing To Lose: A Grey Justice Novel (25 page)

She was about to thank him and hang up, but he surprised her by saying softly, “Great job tonight. And you looked just as beautiful on camera.”

Glowing at the compliment, she dropped the phone back into her purse. It wasn’t until Eli spoke that she realized she’d been staring into space, smiling like a lovesick teenager.

“You have a close relationship with Gallagher.”

“He’s been a good friend, and he was my husband’s best friend. They went to school together.”

“He seems to care a lot about you.”

Since she was only discovering that the feelings she and Nick had were moving into a realm beyond friendship, Kennedy didn’t respond. How could she talk about something that she could barely comprehend herself?

They remained silent the rest of the trip to Eli’s house. A giant gate opened just as the car approached, and they traveled several hundred yards along a winding drive before stopping. Kennedy didn’t know what she had expected but certainly not this fairytale, castle-like mansion, including turrets and a door that looked large enough to admit a giant.

“A bit pretentious, isn’t it?” The wry tone of Eli’s statement cut into what she was sure looked like wide-eyed amazement.
 

“I think it’s beautiful…perfect. Every fairy princess’s dream.”

“That’s what my daughters think, too. My wife had it built after falling in love with a similar one in England.”

“You had no say in the matter?”

She had meant to tease him, but the bleak look returned to his eyes. “I was otherwise occupied.”

She didn’t ask what had kept him from being involved in building their home. Whatever the reason, it pained him to remember.

They were halfway up the steps when an older, heavyset woman opened the enormous door. “The girls were just about to get into bed. I assured them you would be home to tuck them in.”

“Thank you, Teresa.” He glanced down at Kennedy. “Rachel, this is the children’s nanny and our housekeeper, the completely indispensable Teresa Longview.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Teresa.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” Teresa beamed at them, her expression easy to read. She thought Eli had brought a date home for a romantic evening. Her words confirmed this. “I’m so happy to make the acquaintance of such a lovely young woman. Can I get you something while you wait for Mr. Eli to return?”

“Thank you. But I can’t stay.”

“Nonsense. Mr. Eli won’t be long. I’ll just light the fireplace in the family room.”

“No, really… You see, I’m not—”

Eli interrupted. “Teresa, would you mind making some of your famous apple pancakes for breakfast in the morning?”

The woman’s face went even brighter. “That would be my pleasure, Mr. Eli. Let me double-check and make sure I have the right apples.” She scurried away as if on an important mission.

“Sorry,” Eli said when she was out of sight. “Thought it would be easier not to explain and disappoint her. Teresa’s been after me to find my children a mother.”

“So I take it you don’t date often?”

His mouth took on a bitter twist. “You know what they say, once burned and all that.” His eyes darted to the stairway. “Hope you don’t mind, but I want to catch the girls before they fall asleep. And if I know Gallagher, he’ll be here before I get back.”

“You go on up. I’ll see you in the morning.”

She watched him run up the grand staircase with an energy and eagerness she hadn’t seen in him before. Whatever problems Eli had, one thing was certain: He adored his children.
 

“Would you care for tea while you wait?”

Kennedy turned back to see Teresa’s disappointed face. She’d obviously realized that Kennedy wasn’t here on a date with Eli. “Thank you, no. My friend should be here soon to pick me up.”

“You’re not Mr. Eli’s girlfriend?”

“No. I’m his executive assistant.”

“I see.”

And because she was curious about Eli and his deceased wife, she couldn’t help but ask, “Did you know Shelley, Eli’s wife?”

“Yes. Poor dear girl. So troubled. Mr. Eli did everything he could for her. You would think those sweet, precious babies would have been enough to keep her happy. She seemed to be getting better, and then one day Mr. Eli found her on the floor in her bedroom. She’d been gone a couple of hours by then. Nothing could save her.”

“How sad.” She had read the newspaper reports. Shelley had died from an overdose of sedatives and alcohol after struggling with addiction for years.

Headlights from a car flooded the room. Though she would have liked to know more about Eli and his family, she breathed out a happy, relieved breath.
Nick
.
 

Chapter Twenty-two

Nick barely paid attention to the mansion as he waited for the door to open. Ever since Kennedy had called him, he’d been focused on one thing only—assuring himself that she was okay. He’d watched her on camera, and though he hadn’t been able to hear her, her facial expressions had been priceless. And so had Adam Slater’s. The man couldn’t have been more obvious that he was enamored of the beautiful and standoffish Rachel Walker.

He was surprised when Kennedy opened the door. Her smile was bright, but her eyes revealed the stress she’d been under.

“Thanks for coming to get me. I hated for Gunter to have to bring me home.”

Nick led her to the car, wanting with all his might to gather her into his arms and tell her how damn glad he was to see her. Instead, he allowed her to make small talk until they were both in the car and back on the road.

“Want to talk about it?”

“You saw everything that happened. How do you think it went?”

“I think you’ll have Adam Slater begging you to work for him within a matter of days.”

“Eli agrees, though he said it might be weeks.”

“Were you nervous?”

“Yes and no. Having already met him helped. Even though that first meeting was a big flop, at least I had gotten over the initial shock. Seeing Mathias was a little more daunting.”

“Didn’t look like you two spoke to one another.”

“We didn’t. Eli said that was a good thing. Getting Adam’s attention is our focus, not Mathias.”

“You did a damn good job of that. Hard to believe this was your first outing.”

“Thanks, but that’s the key word, isn’t it?
First.
Even though you and Eli think it will happen quickly, who really knows how long it will take Adam to decide he has to have me as his assistant? If he ever does.”

“Then we’ll find another way.”

She shot him an amused look. “Optimism? From you?”

“Maybe I still have some left.”

“After what you’ve been through, it would be impossible to not be changed in some way.”

He didn’t bother to tell her that her disappearance had been a lot harder on him than the bullet that had almost killed him. It’d taken awhile and a lot of work, but he had recovered from his injury. He hadn’t been sure he’d ever get over Kennedy’s complete absence from his life.
 

Wanting to forget that hellish time, he moved on to a more pleasant topic. “Hungry?”

“Starving. How did you know?”

“Remember, I watched you at the party. You ate exactly half a cracker with some nasty-looking goop spread over it and a few swigs of water.”

Her eyes danced with laughter. “That goop probably cost more than my first car.”

“Hope it tasted better than it looked.”

“Actually, it didn’t. I’ve always been more of a cheese-and-crackers kind of girl.”

“How about something more substantial than cheese and crackers? Want to have dinner with me?”

Her expression was almost comical. “Dinner? With you? In a restaurant?”

“Yeah. Dinner, with me in a restaurant. Why is that such a shock?”

“I don’t know. Guess I haven’t been to dinner at a restaurant in so long, it surprised me.”
 

“Is that a yes or no?”

“Yes. Definitely, yes.” And then she smiled.

His breath hitched. That was the smile he’d missed, the one he’d fallen in love with years ago and hadn’t seen in too damned long.

Ten minutes later, Kennedy and Nick were sitting in an elegant Italian restaurant discussing wine selection. Nick had asked for a table close to the fireplace, and despite the fact that the restaurant was crowded, they were seated within minutes close to a cozy, romantic fire. The ease with which he had gotten what he asked for reminded her that he had dated numerous women and probably knew every trick imaginable to get a table.

The thought punched a big hole in her bubble of happiness. When he’d asked if she wanted to have dinner with him, she’d been startled but excited, too—almost as if they were going out on a date. But remembering that Nick dated and discarded women as casually as one changed shoes, her excitement quickly ebbed.
 

“What’s wrong?”

“Why do you think something’s wrong?”

“Because I know you.”

Uncomfortable that he’d read her so correctly, she blurted out the words before filtering them. “Going undercover like this has probably put a serious crimp in your social life.”

She hadn’t meant to sound so flippant or ungrateful. Instead of calling her out for her catty remark, his response stunned her. “I haven’t dated anyone since Thomas was killed.”

“No one? But I—”

He leaned forward and spoke with an intensity that sent goose bumps all over her body. “Did you actually think I could date anyone, have any kind of normal life, until I found you?”

Momentarily stunned, Kennedy could think of nothing to say. The pain in his eyes was unlike any emotion she’d seen in him, and her heart ached. She should have found a way to let him know she was okay. She had been thinking only of herself, her needs. She touched his hand. “I’m so very sorry. Forgive me…please?”

With mercurial speed, his intense look disappeared. “I’ve found you and you’re safe. That’s all that matters.” He dropped his gaze to the wine list. “What sounds good to you?”

Disappointed in the shift in conversation—she felt as if she’d been on the edge of a major discovery—Kennedy made a couple of suggestions. Nick knew much more about wines than she did. He made the choice and ordered for them. Once that was done, they talked about ordinary things, like weather forecasts and whether the Cowboys would make the playoffs this year. They were munching on their salads when things turned serious again.

“Do you see Julie very often?”

He shook his head. “Not really. After I woke up in the hospital and they told me you were missing, we saw each other almost every day. I think when she realized you weren’t coming back, we sort of lost touch. Last time I saw Hank, he told me she was getting even more involved with her charity work than she had before. Even got elected to some state boards. Said staying busy helped.”

Tears welled in her eyes. “I can only imagine how much she hates me for leaving like that.”

“I’m sure she doesn’t hate you. When this is over, she’ll be very happy to see you.”

“I hope you’re right…and I hope I get to see her again. I’d love to think I could go back to my old life…my old friends.”

“You’d want to go back?”

“Yes, of course. I—” She stopped herself. For so long it had been her dream to find the people responsible for Thomas’s death, bring them to justice and return to her old life. Resume her old friendships, go back to law school…be Kennedy once more. Now, she realized that might not be possible. That life was the one she had built with Thomas. Her circumstances and appearance weren’t the only things that had changed. She wasn’t the same person she’d once been. Did she even want the same things as before?

“You okay?”

“Yes, I guess I just haven’t given much thought to what happens once this is over. Maybe because I never thought it would be over.”

“It will be one day. I promise you.”

“I hope so.”

They ate in silence for several more minutes, and then Nick asked a question she hadn’t thought about in a long time.

“Were you angry with Thomas, once you learned everything?”

She nodded. Nick would understand her anger better than anyone. “I was furious for a while, but finally forgave him. He never meant for any of this to happen.”

“Yeah, I felt the same way. He didn’t know what that family was capable of. Hell, I doubt anyone knows except for those who’ve tried to go up against them.”
 

“I still talk to him from time to time…though not as much as I did when he first died. I think that’s one of the ways I finally forgave him—by telling him exactly what I thought.” She grimaced at the confession. “Guess you think that’s silly.”

“Not at all. I think that’s all part of recovery. After my mom died, I did the same thing. I don’t think you can go from having a person in your life one day and then not having them the next without doing something like that. Takes time…talking helps.”