Unspoken 3 (6 page)

I walked back into the meeting room to look for Cain. It was mostly empty, with the exception of Reese and a few straggling board members. I felt a tap on my shoulder and spun to see Cain grinning behind me. “Ms. Dunning, can I speak with you a moment, privately?”

“Sure, Mr. Parker.” I played along as he led me down an empty hallway on the other side of the office.

Cain grabbed my hand once we were out of sight and paused, looking into my eyes. “In love with me, huh?”

My face turned red. “I can’t believe Dad told you that. You have so much to think about right now… I don’t want to add to it, but yes.”

His arms went around me and he kissed me passionately. “The feeling is mutual.”

“Cain, someone will see us!” I pulled away only after feeling the warmth of his lips on mine. I wanted more.

“Come!” Cain pulled me into a dark, unused conference room, the door partially closed. Once inside, he wrapped his arms around me and held me close. We stood for a minute, in the dark silence, just holding one another.

The silence was broken by a quiet whisper in the far corner of the room.

“That didn’t really happen did it? I can’t believe you would….promise me that you are telling the truth…Dylan if you’re lying to me…Ok, I’ll call you when I know more.” Ashley hung up her phone and Cain and I broke away from our embrace to meet her head on, Cain still holding my hand.

Ashley turned to see us standing there. “Oh…I was just talking to Mom. Someone had to tell her about Rachel. I figured it might as well be me.” In a flash, Cain jerked her phone from her hand as Ashley tried to pull it way.

Cain hit redial.

“Hey, Ash…” Dylan’s voice carried from the other end of the line.

Cain stood and stared at Ashley, not saying a word. I could tell Cain wanted to say something, but didn’t. He hung up the phone and handed it back to Ashley.

“Why don’t you explain this to me, Ashley? What the hell is going on here?” Cain was livid; I had never seen him angry before, not like this.

“Alright! It was Dylan. I wanted to know…I had to ask him if what he said to her was true, you know, about Rachel.”

“I don’t believe you. From the way he answered, it sounds like you two are pretty cozy.”

“No, Cain! I swear to you. It’s the truth. I called him. I didn’t think he’d answer but he did and so I just asked him. He swears that he didn’t do anything to harm Rachel. He said everyone is just blaming him for everything.” Ashley was slow to make eye contact, and when she did, she played with her hair, blocking her eyes and occasionally covering her mouth.

“Ashley, I—”

I cut Cain off. “Cain…it’s alright. I’m sure Ashley just wanted to hear the truth for herself.” Cain stared at me like I was crazy. “Ashley, given everything that’s going on with Dylan, I think it’s best you not have contact with him.”

“Jennifer, it’s not your place to tell me what to do or who to talk to.” Ashley transformed from her meek, liar’s stance to a pitbull in seconds. “The last person I need to hear anything from is some floozy.” Ashley turned her attention to Cain. “I can’t believe, after everything that’s happened in the last two days, you wouldn’t turn to family—to me—but
her
instead.” Ashley pushed past Cain and left us in the quiet of the dark room.

Cain and I looked at each other. “You believe her, Jennifer? Even after that show?”

“Not a chance. But if you confront her now, or if she feels like she’s being cornered, you won’t find Dylan.” 

“So are you suggesting that we should play along?”

“That’s exactly what I’m suggesting. You’ll have to trust me on this one.”

“Ok. But you’ll let Reese and everyone else know what’s going on? That Ashley is talking with Dylan?”

“Of course.” I quickly kissed Cain, assuring him of my answer.

Cain put his arm around my shoulder and together we walked to the elevator. “I trust you.”

That was all I needed to hear.

I followed Cain back to his house after we stopped to pick up some Mediterranean food. It had been some time since we had really been alone together. Too much time; I had missed being with him. Now that we had professed our love for each other, things felt a little different. Definitely more real, and we needed some time to celebrate the small victory.

“One step ahead.” I said and smiled. I knew the board keeping Cain on was a big deal for him and Vawter, but there was still so much hanging out there.

“I know, but so many steps ahead of us. So many unanswered questions. I’m not off the hook, Jennifer. The police are still investigating me. Even with the evidence we turned over to them.” Cain’s voice wavered. There was still a lot at risk—for him and the company.

“We can only focus on what we know, Cain. Right now, that’s that Dylan has his hands on this, and there’s no doubt he’s behind everything else. He has his sights set on taking you down. Period.”

“Well, let’s just hope the police find him before it’s too late. Before he can do any more damage. Before I somehow end up back in jail.”

The look of distaste on his face indicated how disgusting it had been, but I didn’t question him. I picked through my Greek salad, feeling worthless and helpless. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you when you were downtown. It wasn’t my decision.”

“I know that.” He picked at his food too. “I didn’t want you to see me there. I told Reese and your dad to keep you away.”

Surprised, I threw an olive at him, playfully. “Afraid I wouldn’t like you in stripes?”

He frowned at me and I instantly felt bad. “I’m sorry. I was only kidding. You know I like you no matter what you’re wearing.”

“I guess I’m being sensitive. It wasn’t a fun experience, that’s for sure.”

“I have an idea that might help.” I had been tossing the idea around my head since we encountered Ashley in the conference room. I wasn’t sure how to approach it with Cain, but now was as good a time as any.

“Okay, shoot.”

“I think I can lure Dylan out into the open. For some reason, he’s fixated on me. Why not use me as bait and nab him?”

“Are you kidding me? Do you hear yourself? You’re talking about being bait—that’s not going to happen.” Cain put his container down. We were sitting on the floor of his living room, eating our dinner from the coffee table.

“I can handle it, Cain. He hasn’t hurt me so far, just made a few threatening moves. Listen, this could be the only way to clear your name. We have to catch Dylan, and the sooner the better.”

Cain took a swig of water from his bottle. “Absolutely not, Jennifer. I don’t want anything to happen to you. I care about you. I love you. That’s the bottom line. I’m not putting you at risk.”

I reached for him and kissed him. “I love you too, but as long as he’s free, people will think you did it.”

“Let them think what they want. No way am I going to agree to that. Besides, that’s a job for the police. We just need to keep feeding them the information we receive and count on them to do their job.”

“But at what speed? They can’t find him, they aren’t turning up any leads and they haven’t connected him to Alice or the break-in, but you and I both know the truth. I get Dylan in the open and I get him to talk, like he did before.” The more I talked about it, the better my plan sounded. I knew Cain wouldn’t go for it, but I had to try.

“Jen, leave it to the professionals, please. Stay out of it, for now.” He kissed me back and rose to his feet, taking me with him. He led me down the hall and up the stairs to his room. “Let’s just enjoy tonight and the fact that we’re together.”

We stood next to the bed, slowly unbuttoning one another’s clothing. There was nothing clumsy or awkward about this encounter. I wanted him and he wanted me, but we moved without all the fervency of our first time together. His hands stroked my bare arms. “Your skin always feels so good. I love your long, dark hair. I love your sweet lips…” He stopped to kiss me. “And I love you, Jennifer.”

I put my arms around his neck casually, lacing my fingers behind his head. “I love you too, Cain. I want you every day.”

His hands were under my hair, unhooking my bra deftly with just one try. I shimmied out of my panties and helped him out of his trousers and underwear. Cain was all man, with a firm, flat stomach and strong legs. I ran my hands across his abdomen, surprising him with my intimate touch. He gasped a little and kissed me deeper, showing his approval. I backed slowly onto the bed and pulled him to me. Tonight, he wasn’t rushed; I wasn’t either. I wanted to enjoy him—every inch of him.

We touched one another with long strokes and gentle rubs. His fingers intertwined with mine as our bodies came together. I caught my breath when he entered me. “Cain…”

Cain moved slowly and steadily, but after a few minutes, I wanted more. My breath came faster and faster as my body rose to meet his movements. My hands reached for his hips and I urged him on. “I want all of you…” I whispered brazenly. He responded to my urging and soon we lay limp on the bed, lying spent next to one another. I absently stroked his arm and he toyed with my hair. For a long time, we didn’t talk, just listened to the silence.

He kissed me gently. “Stay with me tonight.”

I rolled to face him and smiled. “I planned on it.”

Cain slowly drifted off into a deep sleep, the stress, excitement and exhaustion of the last few days finally catching up with him. I stared at the ceiling, my mind racing with a million thoughts. Thoughts of everything I should do, and everything I shouldn’t do.

Finally, and without hesitation, I slipped out of bed and got dressed, leaving Cain to enjoy his peaceful slumber. I climbed into my car and tapped the number into my phone. “Hi, Dylan. This is Jennifer. We need to talk…”

It was eight o’clock and I had been receiving calls and texts from Cain since seven. He was upset when he woke to find me gone. I knew if I spoke to him on the phone he would see through my lie; I texted back that I had an early meeting I had forgotten about, and would catch up with him later.

The knock at my apartment door caught me off guard, even though I was expecting it. My nerves had gotten the better of me and adrenalin was coursing through my veins, pumping my heart faster.

I looked through the peephole, surprised that Dylan had actually showed up. “Here we go…” I whispered. I swung the door open and stood staring at Dylan, unsure of my next move, or his.

“I’m really surprised you called me, Jennifer.” Dylan looked tidy, much tidier than the last time I had seen him. He had shaved and was wearing clean clothing. He looked much more like the confident, swaggering man I had first met.

“Dylan, come in.” I didn’t bother giving him a fake smile; it would never have been believable. He walked in and grabbed me around the waist. I was surprised and caught my breath, I lifted my arms and let him pat me down. He reached for my breast and I smacked his hand. “You’re going too far.” I warned him. He gave me a glint of a smile but didn’t say anything. Instead, he walked around my apartment, first in my bathroom, then my office and then my bedroom.

“
It’s just us.” I closed the door.

Dylan walked back to the living room. I sat down and invited him to do the same. He didn’t. Instead, he stood by the window, peeping out from between the blinds.

“What is it we need to talk about? I’m not sure why I’m trusting you, Jennifer. You certainly haven’t been very welcoming until now.” I could see the doubt and edginess on Dylan’s face.

I sat on the couch, leaning forward. My body was open and hair pulled back so Dylan could clearly see my face. “The other night, when you were here, you warned me about Cain. What exactly should I be afraid of?”

“What’s wrong? Are you starting to see the real Cain? The greedy, hungry, Cain? I heard the two of you pledged your undying love to one another the other night. Did he change his mind after he conquered you?”

I could only assume that he had spoken to Ashley since last night. “I don’t know what you’ve heard, but that’s just not true. I think you’re being played, Dylan.”

“That’s possible. My source isn’t very trustworthy at times.”

“Your source or your partner?”

“I certainly don’t need a partner. I’m more than capable of getting things done myself. Although I have found it useful to have people that have their own agendas unknowingly take care of things for me, from time to time.” Dylan gave a grim, sly smile and sat next to me on the couch.

“I’m sure you can. Is that how you figured out how to break through that Pegasus software? Have someone else do it for you?”

Dylan’s smile faded and an angry seriousness took over. “I’m a master locksmith, there’s no website or firewall that can keep me out – not if I want in.” Dylan’s stroked his fingers over my cheek and I tried not to pull away. “It didn’t take me long to break through that software and get the information I needed. I altered it and made it my own. Better.”

“But Pegasus knew, they even called you out on it. They saw you were going around their software and causing problems.”

“That bitch Alice? All she wanted was for us to spend more money with her company. When they found out what I was doing, she wanted a piece of the action. She threatened to go to Cain.”

I sat, dumbfounded at what I was hearing. I had heard exactly what had happened from Alice Bennett and knew Dylan’s spin on it wasn’t true. I needed to feed into his ego to get more; I now had no doubt he was involved in Alice’s murder. “I talked to Alice, that’s not the story she told me.”

“Oh, I’m sure. She was looking out for herself, it’s unfortunate she isn’t here to set the real story straight.” Dylan reflected on the statement for a minute. “Cain… he’s another greedy bastard. I can see how he and Alice got together. Always looking out for themselves.”

“But Dylan… Cain and his family always looked out for you. His dad…” I looked deep into Dylan’s eyes, trying to connect. “His dad loved you like a son…”

“Bullshit! His dad used me to make himself feel better. To pretend he still had two sons, except he seemed to forget me when he was dying. When I needed him. When I wanted to be there. Him and Cain, they both pushed me away. They used me.”

Dylan was becoming more of a loose cannon, and the more unraveled, uncontrollable personality from the other night appeared. I questioned my next move, as I extended my hand to his leg. “Dylan, you’re smart, successful…” I searched for more words that wouldn’t contradict our previous conversations. “…you have so much going for you.”

“It would have been so much better… so much easier… if I had that cushion that Cain had. The money, the power, the recognition of the name.  I didn’t get any of that, and I certainly don’t have that Parker name to fall back on. So I just took what I needed and did what I had to do to tarnish being a Parker.”

“You mean…” I knew I had to be careful putting words in Dylan’s mouth and he easily took me off the hook.

“Let’s just say, I now have more than enough money to be happy and free of Cain. It’s funny how these greedy, rich people want their affairs and secrecy and are willing to pay anything to keep it quiet. A few throw away cell phones, some left in people’s desks…” Dylan smiled. “The Arena was the best idea Cain ever had, and I simply turned it into my money machine while I carefully set him up for the fall. He had it coming.”

My stomach sank and I could feel my hands begin to shake when the words finally registered in my brain. I faked a smile and tried to think of what to do next. “Ingenious, Dylan, you are definitely much smarter than Cain.”

“Jennifer, come with me. Let’s get out of here. I see the way your father looks at you. The tension, the disappointment. We even talked about it, on our date at the coffee shop.” Dylan placed his hand atop of mine, still resting on his leg.

I slowly slid my hand from underneath his and stood next to the couch. “You know, Dylan, you’re right. All of this greed, secrecy, drama. It makes me want to get away.
I would love a day off
.”

“I’m not talking about a day, Jennifer. I’m talking about a lifetime. Us.” Dylan stood and reached for my hands, but I stepped away, putting space between us.

“Let’s start with a day and take it…”

The front door crashed open, catching both Dylan and I off guard. I screamed and ducked into the kitchen as Dylan spun to see the police officers entering the apartment with their guns drawn. “On the ground, now!”

Detective Jackson, Reese and Dad followed the armed officers into the apartment and watched as Dylan was cuffed. I cautiously entered the room and was met with an evil glare from Dylan.

“You bitch! I should have known… just wait!” Dylan twisted and thrashed as the police escorted him out of the apartment.

“
I would love a day off
… wouldn’t we all?” Reese laughed. “I wondered how you were going to work that into the conversation.”

Dad approached and put his arm around me. I could tell the conversation he had heard between Dylan and I was difficult for him. “I’m sorry, Jennifer.”

“Dad, don’t. It’s Ok.” The last thing I wanted to talk about now was our relationship. Detective Jackson thankfully interrupted us and asked for the mic I had been wearing.

“Damn it, Jennifer!” Cain bolted through the door, past the few lingering police officers. He had luckily just missed Dylan’s exit. “I told you not to do this!”

“Cain! How did you…?”

“I called Reese and when he lied and told me you overslept and were coming in late, I knew something was up. I headed over here and found the barrage of police cars.” Cain subdued his anger and resentment and roughly hugged me, pulling me in close. He kissed me hard, in front of the small audience, including my father. “If anything had happened to you…”

“It’s Ok, Cain. We got him. It’s done.”