Unbound: The Pentagon Group, Book 2 (34 page)

“I thought it worked, and all of them agreed to my working at Pentagon, but just a few weeks ago, I was in a car crash. I believe I was kidnapped, and I’m under the impression my blackmail and keeping of the shares caused Brady to order me to be kidnapped.” Matt didn’t say a word. He stood up from the bed, bent down and retrieved his jeans. My heart sunk, thinking he didn’t believe me. He couldn’t believe his longtime friend would do such a thing. I watched as Matt dialed his phone. I wondered if he was calling Brady to accuse him of what I’d just revealed. My heart skipped a beat, and my belly fluttered nervously.

“Marty. It was Brady. He blackmailed her with the videotape. I want you to question everyone again with the information about Brady stealing the security footage. I want you to question if he paid them off to keep quiet about taking the tape. If they don’t respond truthfully, I want them fired immediately. You talk to Zipper about their separation from Carve. If they admit it, I want it in writing, and I want Zipper involved with it too.” Matt paused to listen to the other end. I was confused. I never heard him mention ‘Marty’. I was relieved he believed me.

“Yeah, she thinks he had something to do with the kidnapping.” Another pause. “No. I don’t want him to be questioned about her yet. I need proof from the managerial staff first. All should be questioned on the same day and kept separate so as not to taint the investigation.” The pause was longer. “Marty, Brady is from Roxbury. He may have had something to do with her kidnapping.” There were a series of ‘Yes’ thereafter. I was confused by his conversation of the kidnapping. It sounded like Matt knew everything. I got out of the bed and walked naked to the bathroom. I could feel his eyes following me as he continued to talk to ‘Marty’ on the phone.

I felt sick to my stomach. My thoughts of what had just transpired between us and the phone call, hit me like a lead pipe to the head. Matt used me to get information on Brady. He slept with me to get the information. I was used again. A knock on the door snapped me from the torrent of thoughts and emotions I was feeling. I felt nauseas as I paced around the tiny room.

“Perla, are you okay, baby?” Matt asked. When I didn’t answer right away, Matt entered the bathroom. I turned around, so I couldn’t face him. “Babe?”

“What was the phone call about?” I asked.

Matt paused to think through his response. “I knew about the kidnapping.” My heart stopped. I clutched my throat, covering my breasts in the process, and stepped away from him. He walked forward. “Listen.” He said gruffly, knowing I was pulling away from him. “The night you blackmailed us with the videotape, I assigned our private investigator to determine how you got the video. He couldn’t get anyone at Carve to confess it was Brady. He must’ve paid them off or promised them something. You gave me the missing link; that it was Brady who blackmailed you first and gave you the tape.” I softened slightly.

“You said something about the kidnapping, as if you knew I’d been kidnapped. How? How did you know?” He nodded in response.

“I’ve had a security detail on you since the day you rejected me. I wanted to make sure you were safe.” He admitted. I shook my head.

“No, you didn’t. You wanted to see if I was working with someone else to steal your shares. You questioned me about it the night at Quario’s . . . about being a corporate spy. You thought I was working against the company the whole time we were together. I wasn’t working with anyone. I was completely in the dark about everything.”

“I know. Well, I know that now. I wanted to keep you safe because I didn’t know how my friends would react to your keeping my shares. You don’t know my friends like I do. I’ve had the benefit of almost twenty years with them. I know exactly what they’ve done in the past, which could be done against you.” I was shocked and frightened at his revelation. I walked past him, back to my bedroom. I found my shirt.

“Perla.” He called. “Please, listen.” I ignored him, angry, and I wasn’t sure what I was angry about. He pulled at my arm. I pulled away. “Stop.” His voice commanded, and I instantly stopped. He turned me around to face him. “We are going to lay it all out today. We are going to start being truthful today and from now on.”

“I have been truthful. I just don’t know what you’ve been doing.”

“I’ve been trying to keep you safe. My people have been trying to find out who took you that night. Ken, your bodyguard, saved your life.” My eyes widened in surprise. A mix of anger, relief, and confusion swirled in my head.

“So, Ken crashing the car was because he was tailing me the whole time?” I asked. Matt nodded. “And he stayed the whole night because it was his job?” Again, Matt nodded. “Is there anyone else?” He didn’t answer. “Are there other people guarding me?”

“Yes.” He said.

“Who are they?” I asked, folding my arms around myself. He took too long to respond. “Please, Matt. I need to know. If we are ever going to make this work, I need to know. Otherwise, you can leave and I will never see you again.”

“At first it was just Ken and Josh . . .”

“I know Ken, who’s Josh?” I interrupted.

“You weren’t supposed to know Ken or Josh. You were never supposed to know about any of them. Ken is night shift, and Josh is day. Josh is a guard at Pentagon. The one you always fought with, refusing a driver.” I was stunned, and slapped my thigh. I laughed. Matt laughed too.

“That pushy bastard is my bodyguard.” Matt smirked.

“Yeah!” He said. “I pay him well to be pushy and protect you.”

“Anyone else?” I asked. Matt nodded.

“Manny, who drove you a few times.” I threw my hands in the air.

“Of course, he would be a guard . . .”

“He actually is a driver, but also security. Manny has been with Pentagon in his capacity for a while. He’s a former student athlete whose knee I repaired. He went into law enforcement, but felt uncomfortable in the role. I got him a job at Pentagon and he has worked in our security team ever since.” He revealed.

“Okay. Well, then I can live with that. They’ll just be in the background until we resolve who took me, right?”

“Yes . . . but . . .” He stalled.

“What?”

“There is one more.”

“One more?”

“Yeah . . .” I looked at him and shrugged, awaiting an answer. “Faith.”

“Faith?” He nodded. “Get out!”

“What?”

“Out! I want you out!”

“What the hell is wrong now?”

“You hired her to be security? I confided in her. Just last night I went to her apartment to talk about us . . . Did she tell you everything?” I asked, feeling humiliated. Matt paused.

“I was in the apartment last night when you visited.”

“You were in her apartment?”

“It’s my apartment. I set it up for her to stay there. Ken too. He was there when you came by.”

I slapped my hands onto my face, embarrassed about what she might have told him. “You’re only here because she told you I had a secret to share with you. You rightfully assumed it was about the tape. This thing we just had wasn’t about how you treated me last night. It was to get one step closer to figuring out a way to get your shares back. Not me.” I paused. He shook his head. “And I’m such a needy idiot I fell for your charms once again and spread my legs to give you the information.” I walked away from him toward the window.

“Perla, I didn’t ask you to volunteer the information. You gave it to me willingly. I apologized for my behavior because I was a selfish prick, which you didn’t deserve. It had nothing to do with Faith telling me anything about you wanting me back. I already knew you did. And you always will.” He walked over to me. Reaching to grasp my waist, Matt pulled me to him.

“She didn’t betray your confidence. She told me we needed to talk. I already knew I fucked up when you went down to her apartment to talk to her. The fact is, we’re meant to be together and I am done with us being apart.” He lowered down and kissed me deeply. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he lifted me up. Walking me to the bed, we kissed until my legs hit the edge of the bed.

The doorbell rang, interrupting the eventual next round of love making. I was weak when it came to Matt. He looked at me questioning. I looked at the clock as the buzzer rang again.

“It should be the catering company for their things.” I said.

“I’ll go check it out. You stay here.” I nodded. Matt grabbed his jeans and started putting them on as he walked toward the front door.

Within a few minutes I heard his gruff call. “Perla!” I grabbed my robe, putting it on before I walked to the hallway. When I didn’t see him standing in the hall, I walked to the living room. Gill was there. “I’ll be in your room.” He stated. “It’s nice to see you again, Gill.” Matt directed.

“Nice to see you too, Dr. Keene.” I assumed Matt had turned away when Gill mouthed, “Oh my God!” I shook my head with my eyes closed, pinching the bridge of my nose.

“What are you doing here? I gave you the day off.” I barked.

“Hey, I didn’t know you would be getting it on with your ex.”

“Well, I didn’t know I would either, but it still doesn’t explain why you’re here and not with your beau.”

“I wanted to help you. You have dinner with the Board tonight, so I didn’t want you to tire yourself out.”

“Shit. I forgot it was tonight. I hadn’t checked my calendar today.”

“I wonder why.” Gill retorted.

“What time is dinner?”

“Six at Barge at the Pier. Dinner to be served after your meeting.”

“Why do they go to these crazy ass restaurants?”

“I don’t know, but you have a lot of time to prepare.”

“I still have some things to work through with him.”

“I’m sure you do.” His eyebrow rose. I grimaced.

“I need your help.” I got serious. “Can you make sure the caterers take these things.” I pointed at the crates full of glass, silverware, and dishes. “We’re discussing heavy topics. Seriously. I need more time before he takes off.”

“Of course.” Gill accepted. I gave him a kiss on the cheek, and took off toward my bedroom. When I arrived at the room, I watched Matt on his cell phone in deep discussion with someone. I didn’t know if I should’ve given him privacy, but because he was in my bedroom I entered and closed the door loud enough for him to know I was present. He motioned me over, opening an arm for me to hug him. I walked quickly into his arms. My heart beat fast as I wrapped my arms around him, feeling his warmth. The familiar feel of his heart and the sensation of his chest hair and skin on my face made me want to stay in that position forever.

When he hung up, I stood on my tiptoes and gave him a peck on the lips. “I have a board meeting tonight with your friends. I don’t plan on staying for dinner with them as you all did with each other. However, we need to talk about how we’re going to proceed now that we have this out in the open between us.”

“It’s simple. We’re getting married.” He casually stated. I blanched.

“Why do you take it from zero to sixty in three seconds? We were barely speaking until yesterday. Today, we fuck and you want to marry me?”

“Stop being vulgar, Perla. We didn’t fuck. We made love because we’re in love.” He kissed me with intensity, picking me up off my feet. He stopped kissing me and looked at me with sincere eyes. “We’re going to get married this afternoon.” My heart leapt and I couldn’t catch my breath. I thought of all the things I’d accomplished in the last several weeks: my job as an executive overseeing Pentagram; my new apartment and décor; and my independence. Despite the list of things I felt I would lose by marrying Matt, I couldn’t think of wanting to be with anyone else. I desperately wanted to be his wife and be legally committed to him. I couldn’t forget all we’ve been through, but there was no denying we needed to be together. However, I was afraid.

“Brady told me not to marry you.” I shared.

“What?” He asked. I had to give him the rest of the story.

“When I asked Brady why he didn’t want you to marry me and get the shares. He said, ‘because he took what was mine.’ I don’t know what he meant by that. Do you?” Matt paused, thinking about Brady’s declaration. He shook his head.

“No.” He pulled away and walked a few steps, running his hand through his short hair. “I took what was his?” He shook his head. “We were close early on. I’ll admit we’ve butted heads over the years, but nothing a few drinks and cigars couldn’t fix. I honestly don’t know what he meant by that.” He claimed.

“I think getting married anytime soon would piss him off. And we have no idea why he’s angry.” I wrung my hands. “The reason I rejected the marriage and only took the shares was because I thought he wanted the shares. However, he hasn’t made any moves that I know of to get the shares from me. He’s essentially complied with the threats I’ve made in regards to releasing the tape and the article. I know he’s trying to protect the company too, but I don’t think he cares about taking the shares from me. It seems he just doesn’t want you to have them. I’ve wondered what he’ll do if we get married, and the shares revert back to you.”

“Well, we’ll find out when we get married this afternoon and tell them tonight.”

“Matt, no. We’re not getting married. Not like this.”

“Perla. The only way I can get the shares back and out of his potential takeover, possibly keeping you safe from him, I need them back. The way to get them back is through marriage. You know that. Otherwise, I’ll only get them back if you’re incapacitated and incapable of performing your duties as shareholder, or death. I’m not willing to risk you becoming incapacitated or dead, so we need to get married. If we’re married, he may leave you alone.”