The Billionaire's Best Friend (The Sherbrookes of Newport) (12 page)

“
Good luck, then.” Clinton came to his feet. “Let me know how it goes.”

Once again, Lauren glanced over Olivia’s shoulder toward the doorway. Since Kevin’s sister continued speaking without so much as a pause, Lauren assumed she had not noticed. Although she found Olivia’s description of the fashions she’d seen at a recent Hollywood party interesting, Lauren wanted Kevin to walk through the doorway now. Being in a room full of strangers had never bothered her, yet tonight she wished she owned an invisibility cloak.

“
And to say the designs by Marcella Horton were beautiful is an understatement. Photos just don’t do them justice,” Olivia said, referring to the newest designer to hit it big with the A-list celebrities in Hollywood.

Lauren nodded because it seemed like the thing to do.
“I saw a picture of the gown she designed for Mia Troy. It was amazing.”

At the mention of the popular film actress, Olivia launched into details of the conversation she
’d had with the woman during her last trip to California. Lauren once again fell silent, allowing Olivia to dominate the conversation, which in this instance she was okay with. Shifting in her chair, Lauren readjusted the hem of her dress once again, thankful Callie had given her such a present. While a layer of guilt remained because she could never give Callie a gift even half as expensive, she loved the way it looked on her, and it was perfect for this evening’s dinner party. Both Kevin’s mom and sister had complimented her on it. It also helped her fit in much better tonight. All the women at the dinner party wore gowns by some of the top designers. Granted, when she saw Callie or any of Callie’s family she never thought about the labels on her clothes, yet around Kevin’s family they stayed in the forefront of her mind, even though the Walshes didn’t possess the power and wealth the Sherbrookes and Talbots did.

“
Kevin mentioned that you and Callie Talbot are close friends.” Olivia’s new topic grabbed Lauren’s full attention.

“
We’ve known each other a long time. We even taught together before she married.” How she missed those days. Michelle, the teacher in Callie’s old classroom, was nice, but this was her first year with her own classroom. Often, rather than working as a team like they were supposed to, Lauren acted as more of a mentor, which she didn’t mind except that wasn’t her job. Tonya, the teacher across the hall who planned to teach for only another year, was supposed to be Michelle’s mentor.

“
Have you met her brother Jake?” Olivia looked over toward her husband and then leaned a little closer. “Is he as hot in person as he is in pictures? I don’t care if I am married, if he ever asked me to sleep with him, I would in a heartbeat.”

Lauren cleared her throat in an attempt to cover her surprise.
“I’ve met him several times.” Okay, so several was putting it mildly. She’d seen him at many Sherbrooke events Callie had invited her to, as well as at Callie and Dylan’s place in New York countless times when she’d gone to visit.

“
I keep waiting to read he’s getting a divorce. It’s got to be just a matter of time. A man like him can’t be faithful forever. At some point he’ll be on the prowl for someone else, if he isn’t already.” Olivia spoke as if she was an authority on the matter.

Even though Jake
Sherbrooke, Callie’s half-brother, was happily married, it appeared his reputation still followed him. Too bad Olivia, like most people, had it all wrong about him. “I don’t see that happening.”

“
Don’t see what happening?” Kevin asked from behind her.

At the sound of his voice, Lauren turned around. Warmth crept up her cheeks. She didn
’t want Kevin to know they had been discussing another man. “I didn’t see you come in,” Lauren said, ignoring his question.

“
I came in the other door.” Kevin sat down next to her. “What don’t you see happening?” he asked again.

Across from them Olivia waved a hand toward her brother.
“Just talking about how successful a celebrity marriage will be. Nothing that would interest you.”

Lauren gave Olivia what she hoped was a smile, and for the first time all night, she thought maybe she could somehow become friends with this woman. Like Kevin
’s parents and the other guests there, Olivia had been polite but not friendly. At least not until now.

“You and my sister seemed to get along well.” Kevin gave her hand a squeeze as he drove. “She doesn’t usually take to new people the way she did to you.”

“
Really? Maybe it was because we found something in common, the ballet.”

“
Olivia does love the ballet. She trained at The School of American Ballet in New York for years. Before my mother convinced her otherwise, she hoped to join the New York City Ballet.”

Why would any parent convince their child not to strive for what she wanted?
Especially if she had the talent to achieve that goal. If she ever had children, she would never stop them from pursuing what they truly wanted. “She must have been very good if that school admitted her. Why didn’t your mom want her to continue?”

Kevin put both hands on the steering wheel, his eyes focused on the road.
“Let’s just say a ballerina would do little for Walsh and Miles.”

His tone made Lauren wonder if he
’d had other ambitions besides a career in business. She could not picture him as anything but a successful CEO, yet that meant nothing. Pressure from parents to pursue certain avenues in life was not unheard of. Her own parents had supported all the decisions she and her siblings made, but many of her classmates in high school had faced such pressure. If Kevin had bowed to his parents’ pressure, would he expect the same from his own children? While way too soon in the relationship to be thinking about children, the answer to such a question would tell her a lot about him. Depending on how far this thing between them went, she’d have to approach the subject. But not tonight. Who knew how he might interpret such a question?

“
What did she do instead?”

“
She got a degree in finance. Olivia worked for the company until she married Greg last year.”

She couldn
’t imagine the woman she’d spoken with at dinner being happy pouring over financial numbers and spreadsheets. “What about you? Did you ever think about doing something other than business?”

“
When I was ten, I decided to be a rock star like the ones on TV. I already knew how to play the piano, so I took up the drums. Practiced every free minute for about three years. Gave it up when I went to boarding school. I haven’t touched a drum set since.”

When she
’d asked the question, she hadn’t been referring to his childhood dreams. Few people followed through with those. If they did, there would be an over-abundance of astronauts and doctors in the world. “What about later on?” They passed under a streetlight, and she noticed Kevin’s grip on the steering wheel tighten.

“
No, I planned to take over for my father and then venture into politics at some point.”

“
When I was ten I wanted to be an actress in the movies. Then for a while I wanted to be a dolphin trainer. Sometime around my junior year in high school I decided on teaching.”

“
I’m sure your parents were happy when you decided against the dolphins.”

“
I don’t think so. They always supported everything I wanted to try. Dance, singing, art classes. They did the same with Kelly and Matt. One summer they even let Matt go to space camp because he insisted he wanted to be an astronaut. What about you?”

“
My parents made sure I had plenty of extracurricular activities,” Kevin answered stiffly, before lapsing into silence for the remainder of the car ride.

Chapter 6

Nate pulled into a spot in the parking lot of O’Donnell’s Family Restaurant and Pub. After a day of interviewing victims, he wanted nothing more than a cheeseburger and a cold beer. Both of which he could get here.

Passing by the door into the restaurant side, he headed straight into the pub. Despite the crowded parking lot, few patrons were inside. Two guys sat at the bar while two more played a game of pool down at the far end of the pub.

“Do you want a menu?” the bartender, a bodybuilder type with a bald head, asked when Nate sat down.

“
No need. Give me a cheeseburger and a bottle of Sam Adams.”

The bartender slapped a cardboard coaster on the bar and nodded.
“You got it.”

Behind Nate the door opened, sending in a blast of unusually cool April air. Nate didn
’t bother to look over. Instead, he looked up at the large-screen TV hung on the wall where the sportscaster gave his predictions for that weekend’s Bruins game against the Rangers. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone pull out a bar stool and sit.

“
Callahan,” a male voice said.

He immediately recognized the voice and turned to find Matthew McDonald, Lauren
’s older brother, seated next to him. “Hey, Matt. On your way home?”

When the bartender put a bottle of beer in front of each of them before Matt said a word, Nate assumed Matt was a regular at the pub.

“No. I come here every Thursday night. I’m in a pool league. Starts in another thirty minutes.”

Nate took a swallow of his beer. Maybe he
’d look into the league at some point. It’d be a good way to reconnect with the guys in town. Although, his job might make it difficult to commit. Most nights he got home by seven, but it wasn’t a guarantee. A career with the FBI wasn’t exactly a nine to five position.

“
Lauren told me what happened the other night,” Matt said with a hard edge to his voice.

The mention of Lauren
’s name caused Nate’s mind to zero in on that night at her house. Waking up from his nightmares with her leaning over him had sent his body and mind swirling through emotions. Everything from desire to shame assaulted him. That night had also told him something. Lauren still cared, despite her words of denial. She hadn’t hesitated to come in when she thought he needed her, and she’d made his favorite breakfast.

Even with the hints that she cared, Lauren still refused to outright admit it, and so far he hadn
’t come up with a good way to melt the ice barrier she’d erected between them. So, rather than beat his head against it, he’d backed off.

Nate opened his mouth prepared to answer when the bartender placed his food in front of him. The scent of the grilled burger and melted cheese made his stomach rumble. He
’d skipped lunch and right then he figured he could down two of these burgers. “There was no way I could leave her stranded out there. Only an asshole would do that.” Even if it hadn’t been Lauren stuck out there that night, he would have stopped and helped.

“
We all know you’re not that.” Matt’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

Nate
’s hand paused with the cheeseburger halfway to his mouth. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“
You left her to fend for herself once before.”

Using all his self-control, he brought the burger back down to the plate. He wasn
’t used to anyone talking to him with such animosity and disrespect. “What the hell are you talking about?” Nate rested his forearms on the bar, his hands clenched and his knuckles white.

Matt glared at him as he took a swig from his own beer bottle.
“The summer you took off for the Naval Academy and left her to handle things herself.”

Nothing Lauren
’s brother said made any sense. “If you’ve got something to say, then say it. Otherwise get lost.” He didn’t even try to keep his voice low. The guy was pissing him off.

Matt
’s face exploded with fury, and he slammed his beer bottle down on the bar. Around them people turned to look, and the bodybuilder bartender headed their way. “Forget did you? Let me refresh your memory. After you two graduated, you took off and left my sister behind pregnant. Real upstanding of you.”

An IED exploded in Nate
’s chest and he stopped breathing.
Lauren pregnant? Baby?
No, Matt was wrong. She would’ve told him. “Bullshit.” His voice came out strangled. “She never said anything.” She would’ve told him something like that.

Matt shrugged a shoulder as some of the red faded from his face.
“Maybe she thought you knew. Hell, even I suspected before she told me. She was so sick that summer. She couldn’t eat anything, and she slept so much.”

He did remember that, but back then he
’d assumed it was stress and anxiety. Their lives were about to change as they left for college. “I didn’t . . .” His voice trailed off as questions mounted. How could she have kept something like that from him? Where was the child now? Had she given it up for adoption? Had she had an abortion? Nate needed answers and he needed them now. Pulling a twenty out of his wallet, he dropped it next to his plate, which contained his uneaten meal. Without another glance at Matt, he stood.