A Vengeful Affair (10 page)

“When did you tell him?”

“I mentioned it at the fund-raiser party and explained it further yesterday.”

“At the dinner party. How convenient.” He shot her a glance of pure repugnance. “Why didn’t he say anything to me?”

“He told me he’d look into it. Maybe he found something. Maybe that’s why he delayed the merger signing.”

“I thought you weren’t like the others, Vivian. I was mistaken.” He looked her up and down. The sheer disappointment in his expression made her temples throb more than when he’d insulted her a few minutes ago. “You are far worse.”

“I was about to tell you, before your telephone call,” Vivian said. She kept her voice gentle, hoping to avoid an argument.

His sarcastic laughter washed over her. “You expect me to believe that?”

“I didn’t tell you when you asked me in the restaurant because I didn’t trust you, but then I started to have doubts. I started to believe you even before I could admit it to myself. I wouldn’t have given myself if I didn’t believe you.”

“Given yourself? Just because we had sex? That’s rich,” he snarled. “All along, all you’ve wanted to do was to take.”

“That’s not true… I haven’t taken anything yet.” Her voice gained strength at the end, though she hadn’t meant to challenge him.

“Well, get ready,
princesa
. I will sort this out and still get what I want.” Javier snorted, staring at her. His silent message that she was playing with fire and out of her depth had come too late. “Although I’ll admit, you’ve scored your points. If your goal was to humiliate me, I’m sure what I’ve just said to you was the highlight of your weekend.”

She shook her head. “No, that was never part of the plan.”
Never.

I want you in my life, Vivian.
His words to her echoed in her mind.

Just minutes ago, he had wanted her to stay with him. The intimacy in his tone, the earnestness had suggested he wanted more than a few days after the celebration of a big contract.

Don’t fool yourself.

If he’d wanted her in his life for the longer term—or until he tired of her in the bedroom—would he really have changed so drastically from hot to cold without considering her motives?

It didn’t matter. It
shouldn’t
matter anymore what he had implied.

But a small, quiet part of her insisted that it did.

“Let’s go,” he said, grabbing his briefcase. “Let’s sort this out.”

Subject closed.

Continuous phone calls and text messages held his attention and gave her momentary relief during the drive from the hotel. He switched from English to French and back, assuring his lawyers and merger team that he was about to take care of the merger and never once mentioning her or any sort of plan.

“It’s a minor setback,” he said. “I’m dealing with it right now.” He shot her a warning stare that told her she’d better not try to cross him again. She looked out the window as the limousine entered La Défense, the financial district just outside Paris.

“What else did you tell Edouard?” he asked after he’d hung up.

“I shared my concern with him.”

“For him to delay the deal, you must have shared a lot more.” Disbelief and disapproval flickered in his eyes. “There has to be another reason you would do this. Not just your friendship with Molly.” He narrowed his eyes, as if by focusing his vision on her face he could force the truth out of her. “You cannot be so loyal to her, yet so treacherous to me.”

“To a cynical man like you, maybe friendship isn’t enough.” She clenched her hands. “It wasn’t easy. Whatever you think of me, I don’t like lying and deceiving.”

“Vivian, I don’t care what you like. As long as you know this: you aren’t going to steal this from me. I’ve worked too hard and too long to let it slip through my fingers.”

“Is that a threat?”

“That was a statement. I can sue you for industrial espionage and make sure you don’t find a job anywhere in London.”

“And you still don’t see why I couldn’t trust you at first?” She managed a short laugh to conceal her uneasiness.

This man can ruin my life. No, wait—he
will
ruin it
.

“Given what you have done, threatening you with fair legal action does not make me untrustworthy,” he said coldly.

She was walking on a tightrope. She only hoped she could make it to the other end without falling. There would be no safety net below her.

The limousine pulled to a stop before the imposing Broussard corporate office building.

They emerged from the car, and a bodyguard appeared behind them. He must have arrived in a different vehicle. “Is this really necessary?” Vivian asked as all three of them walked inside the building.

“I don’t want you to run away,” he said, guiding her into the elevator.

“I won’t run away.” She lifted her chin. “I will cooperate to the very end to make sure justice is done.”

Maybe now that Edouard had an interest in Molly’s death, she could get access to the resources she needed to find the killer.

“You lied to me all the time, seduced me as part of your scheme, and suddenly you are Lady Justice,” Javier said as they reached the top floor.

“I did not
try
to seduce you.” Vivian raised her eyes to meet his. “It was rather the other way around.”

“You won’t have to worry about that anymore.” His eyes pinned her down, the mistrust sending a tremor through her body. “From now on, I will not lay one finger on you, Vivian Foster.” With a curse under his breath, he leaned closer. “I can’t wait to have you out of my sight.”

Chapter Eight

They held each other’s gaze for a long moment before Vivian let her eyes drift away. The tightrope came to mind again, and she closed her fists. She felt her sweaty toes curling around the rope, her body shifting weight to avoid a fall.

Vivian shrugged the awareness off. “I can’t wait either.”

He continued to stare without speaking, the disdain in his black eyes more disturbing than his size as he towered over her. When she had first met him in her office, she’d thought him ruthless and driven. But as he broke their stare and strode into Edouard’s office, Javier became some kind of CEO warrior, unwilling to let go of his merger no matter what. Vivian followed, matching his pace.

They passed by Edouard’s secretary, who asked them to wait in his office since Edouard was busy in the conference room. Shaking his head angrily, Javier proceeded to the conference room.

“The door is closed,” Vivian said when they got there.

She could hear voices through the closed door. Javier must have heard them, too, because he frowned as he listened.

One of the speakers was Edouard Broussard, she was sure, but the other voice—although it had a familiar timbre—wasn’t loud enough for her to recognize.

“Wait here. Don’t move.” Javier’s voice sounded as though it was made of steel. He opened one of the doors without knocking and walked into the conference room.

She glanced at the bodyguard, then exhaled and tried to peek through the open door. When she moved closer, the bodyguard blocked her view with a swift move to the left.

“I’ll go in eventually, anyway.” Vivian cleared her throat, turning to the glass wall that displayed the Eiffel Tower in the background and the street below. What she wouldn’t give to be just someone strolling down the streets of Paris, carefree.

But this is what I wanted…to serve as an instrument in Molly’s revenge.

She ran her fingers through her hair. The minutes dragged.

Vivian stared at the door. Although she couldn’t understand what was being said, there were at least three distinct voices, then silence.

Finally, a tall man emerged from the conference room.
Roger.

“I will wait for your decision, Edouard,” he said.

Vivian pointed at him. “You.” How had Roger gathered that Edouard was going to delay the merger signing so quickly? She hadn’t talked to him after dinner last night—hadn’t given him any thought at all since she’d last spoken to him.

“Vivian Foster.” He bowed his head and offered her a cynical smile.

“How did you—” Vivian started.

“How did he what?” Javier emerged from the conference room and cut her off angrily. She opened her mouth, then paused.

“Nicely done, Vivian.” The man winked at her, then turned to Javier and gave him a look she couldn’t read.

“How do you know him?” Javier asked under his breath.

“She was a great help to me,” Roger answered for her, with a smirk.

Vivian felt her brows furrowing as she tried to understand what had just happened. Why would Roger make it clear to Javier that they knew each other? And what was he doing walking out of Edouard’s conference room, looking as though he’d won some kind of prize?

Roger didn’t stick around to provide any answers. He turned his back and walked out of the room, and Javier stared down at her, a puzzled look on his face.

“It is him, isn’t it? The man you called from that restaurant is Easton Finn,” he said.

Easton Finn?

“If that’s his real name, then yes. He told me to call him Roger,” she said at last, still stunned that Roger had purposely exposed her to Javier and then disappeared.

Judging by Javier’s hateful expression, he knew all there was to know about Easton Finn, and none of it was good.

His jaw clenched. “That man wants to destroy all I have worked for, and you’ve helped him.”

“He wanted you out of the merger, yes. That’s all I know.”

“Now I understand why Easton was here. You warned him the deal would be delayed, and he was eager to put his claws in my merger.”

Vivian crossed her arms, taking a deep breath and a step back. Before she could say anything, Edouard appeared, frowning. “I need to talk to both of you.” His tone was much firmer than it had been on the other occasions he had spoken to her. “Now.”

Vivian followed the two men into the conference room in silence. It was a spacious room, with a big oval-shaped oak table and several beige leather chairs around it.

She shook with anxiety. What if the Frenchman was about to tell her that he not only didn’t believe her, but he would take some sort of legal action against her for delaying a billion-pound merger? Could he even do such a thing?

Javier could. He could talk to his solicitors, and they would use her snooping in his office, trying to mess up his deal, as evidence to get in her in serious trouble with the law.

“Please sit down.” They sat. “Vivian, you have asked me to look into Molly Richardson’s death. Javier, I have a couple of questions for you. Did you sleep with Molly?”

Javier gave an impatient sigh, obviously not pleased to have his private life on display. “Once.”

Edouard shook his head. “And then you fired her.”

“No. I made a mistake. Once, after a happy hour, I…got involved with her. It was an error in judgment. The next day, I apologized and explained it would be best if we forgot what had happened. Although she agreed, I could tell she was upset. A couple of weeks later, someone from the merger team came to see me and told me they suspected Molly was taking confidential information home. We looked into it, and once we knew for sure she intended to sell company information to someone, I fired her.”

Edouard shifted his head in her direction. “Does this seem right to you?”

Did it? Vivian blinked, still taken aback by Javier’s version of the facts. “I spoke to Molly. She told me they had an affair. And also that she sought out his opponent, Roger—I mean Easton Finn—after Javier fired her because he didn’t want to sleep with her anymore.”

“This is absurd. I would never do something like that.” He turned to Vivian, glaring at her for the first time during the conversation. “Did I take advantage of you during the time we were together?”

Edouard scratched his chin. “You two got involved.” It sounded more like an accusation than a question.

Vivian felt the heat spreading across her face. She glanced at Javier. “You didn’t take advantage of me. I don’t have any complaints.”

“Firing Molly was the nice thing to do. I could have sued her, but I let her go,” Javier told Edouard.

“I know that Javier didn’t kill her,” Vivian told Edouard. “He’s convinced me of that. But I’m sure someone did.”

“How about the investigator? Do we have anything on him?”

“I doubt it.” Javier reached for his phone and retrieved the contact information on the touch screen. “But I can give you his contact information.” He picked up a notepad, scribbled some words on it, and handed it to Edouard. “His name is Matt Smith. He has been a loyal employee whenever we needed anyone investigated.”

“Could Finn have hired the two men to stalk her?” Vivian asked.

“Why would he scare Molly when she was on his side?” Javier asked.

It made sense. Molly had been nothing but helpful to Easton Finn, and at no cost to him.

“I don’t know what happened,” Javier said. “Molly was unstable. Who knows what kind of people she got mixed up with? All I know is I had nothing to do with her death.”

“Well,” Edouard intervened, his expression focused and alert. “I need to make a decision.”

“What decision? She just admitted she was wrong.”

“Javier, I can’t sign a merger with you if there is any possibility you’d be linked to the death or suicide of this girl. It would be wrong on a personal level, and professionally I can’t compromise my business interests or my foundation. I need more information. My investigator tells me Molly’s only living relative is her mother, who lives in Switzerland. Perhaps she can help us to understand what happened, if there’s a chance Molly suffered from any illness Vivian didn’t know about.”

“That’s a terrible idea,” Vivian said, remembering how aloof Molly’s mother had been after the funeral. She’d flown out of England as quickly as she could, barely saying a word to Vivian.

“I say, question her mother,” Javier said.

Edouard snapped his fingers. “This is a delicate matter. It should be dealt with personally, but I don’t want to get involved more than necessary. You must handle it.” He looked at Javier. “Fly to Switzerland and talk to Molly’s mother. See if she knows anything that will help us assess what happened. Get it recorded and come back to me tomorrow with it.”

“I will.”

“How can you be sure the woman he’ll talk to is Molly’s mom? It could be anyone. He doesn’t even need to leave the country,” Vivian said.

“You’ll go with him,” Edouard said with calm confidence. “You both have strong reasons to discover what happened, and I trust you more than an investigator. Javier, if you didn’t torment this woman to death, you will get your deal signed as soon as you come back. But if I have doubts about how you handled yourself, I will have to cancel our merger agreement, and perhaps even consider Easton Finn’s proposal, since he’s so interested.” Edouard stood up.

“How are we supposed to find her mother?” Vivian asked.

“This is the address my investigator located.” Edouard handed a piece of paper to Javier. “Now I have to deal with the press speculating about the merger. Off you go. I expect to hear from you tomorrow.” Edouard clicked one of the many flashing lights on the phone on the conference table.

No wonder he had a coveted empire. When it was time to do business, the man worked swiftly.

…

“How long will the flight be?” Vivian asked when they boarded Javier’s private jet.

“Not long.” He sat down across from her. He could have picked any other seat. If he wanted to, he could have chosen not to even look at her.

But not looking at her was impossible.

He had to look at her to remind himself of how stupid he had been to nearly fall for the woman whose sole purpose was to ruin his life. Vivian Foster, who had lied to him and used him to please another man.

Just like my mother.

“What was Easton doing at Edouard’s office when we got there?”

“He was trying to persuade Edouard to consider his offer for the merger instead of mine. When did you speak with him last?”

Vivian sighed. “Yesterday.”

“How?”

“I bought a prepaid mobile at the souvenir shop. You may as well know it. I’m done with lying.”

“I paid for a mobile for you to call Easton.” He couldn’t keep the bitterness from his voice.

“I’m sorry, but it was the only way. I didn’t have my wallet or any money.”

Out of all his rivals, Vivian had teamed up with Easton.

Not only that, he had touched her. He had
had
her.

Javier clenched his fists so tightly, his nails broke the skin.

Easton Finn…his lifelong opponent and enemy, who was supposed to have been dormant, had awakened again. They hadn’t crossed paths in more than five years, when Easton outbid him at the last minute for a piece of prime real estate in New York. Javier hadn’t given Easton’s business antics much thought lately, since his investigator had found no signs of sabotage. Even when Molly had been caught taking confidential information home, there had been no sign of Finn’s involvement. They had investigated with no success, assuming that perhaps she’d intended to sell to the highest bidder. And hell, he knew he had quite a few opponents out there who’d love to sink their claws into the merger.

The old man was slick.

How could I let Vivian occupy a place in my mind that should have focused only on the merger?

The woman he thought worth his time and his bed, the strong woman with a vulnerability that had inspired him to dig deep and expose his own hidden weaknesses, his past… That woman had been a lie.

“No bodyguard?” Vivian asked.

“It’s just you and me,” he said. Javier wanted as few people around them as possible. Although he trusted his bodyguard, he didn’t want anyone to tell Easton of their whereabouts. “I intend to find this woman. If you have any tricks up your sleeve, forget them.”

“Why would I have tricks up my sleeve?”

He didn’t know. He worried when he couldn’t read her thoughts. The blend of her lavender and orchid scent surrounded him, her perfume lingering in the aircraft.

“To buy Easton time. To get me out of the race.”

“Javier, I know now that you didn’t kill Molly. I’ll have nothing further to do with Easton. But there are some unanswered questions, and although I doubt her mother will be a big help, I’m on board.” A pang of sadness laced her voice.

Just an act.

“Do you have any idea what you have done? Because of your unfounded suspicions, a major business deal has been delayed. I have lots of people who depend on me whose jobs are on the line.”