Bedding the Billionaire (Book 3) (Legacy Collection) (29 page)

Lil had done plenty in her life that she considered rash, but she’d never hidden.
When you are doing something that you believe in, you don’t have to hide – at least, that was what she’d always believed.

Deceiving Jake ranked highest on her list of what she regretted doing.
Looking back over her time with him, it was clear to Lil t
hat he’d tried to protect her
–
even from their attraction.
Not telling him was a blackness growing in her heart.
“I don’t feel right about lying,
Al
.”

All sympathy left her friend’s voice.
“
How right will you feel when we’re sharing a cell at the local penitentiary? It won’t be only me going down. You’re just as culpable.
”

I know.
             

Lil said slowly,
“
Maybe Jake would understand why we had to know what was going on.”

“
Or maybe not.
”
Lil blew out an exasperated breath. “
We’re not kids anymore, Lil. No one is going to lock us up for one night and try to scare us straight.
We all have too much to lose.
Do you want Abby to raise Colby for you?
Because that’s what will happen if you
forget how serious this is and end up in the slammer with me.
”

Lil shuddered at the thought
and
confused tears made it difficult to locate the wipes as she changed her daughter’s soiled diaper.
When she’d
agreed to
the hack, she hadn’t thought this far ahead.
She’d risked much more than she’d understood at the time.
Colby was her number one priority.
How could she have done something that put her in jeopardy?

She secured the new diaper, arranged her daughter’s clothing and hugged her daughter to her as she walked back to the living room.

“
I have to
go see
Jeremy and warn him,
”
Alethea
said.

“
See if he can cover his tracks better?
”
Lil asked, settling Colby on the floor with some toys.

“
That, and to warn him that th
ey know someone was there.
He
planned
to go
back in one more time.
”

“
Back in? Why?
”

“
He said he found something he hadn’t expected to and it made him curious.
”

“Oh, no.
Alethea
, he’ll get caught for sure if he tries to access their system again.
”

“
That’s why
I’ve got to go to his house
.
He doesn’t an
swer his phone most of the time
–
not even texts.”

Lying on one side on the floor, Lil forced a smile
for her daughter’s sake. Colby wasn’t
fooled,
she let out a loud wail.
I totally know how you feel, Colby.
In a shaky voice, Lil asked,
“Al
,
this is going to work out
, isn’t it?
”

Alethea
answered with more bravado than she likely felt.
“
It all depends how smart your boyfriend is.
”

Shit
.

Lil
remembered reading a magazine that estimated Jake’s
IQ to be around the 19
0 range. He
might be
irritatingly
sexy,
frustratingly
stubborn,
and
emotionally
thrifty,
but there was no doubt that
Jake
was brilliant.

Oh, this
is
going to go really badly.

Maybe it was time to start being extra nice to her future brother-in-law.
He
might
be
the only
one
able to
keep her and her friends out of jail.

Although, Lil had arrived mid-day, she and Abby hadn’t said more than a few sentences to each other.
Lil had claimed fatigue from
the short flight
and had retreated with Colby to the suite Dominic’s staff had prepared for them.

A set of five rooms, two bedrooms, dressing room, lounging room and bathroom were all perfectly stocked with everything Lil could imagine she or her baby
could possibly
need.
Abby
showed her an intercom on the wall and instructed her to use it if
she needed
anything.
A
cleaning woman, a nanny, and a stylist
were
all on location and on call
for
Lil
if she wanted to use any of them that weekend.

“I’ll be fine,” Lil had said.

Abby had
searched
her face, noted the strain around her eyes and asked, “Are you sure everything is ok, Lil? You know you can tell me anything.”

“I’m just tired.”

Abby had hesitated.
“If you’re still worried about the interview, don’t be.
No one blamed you for that and you handled it perfectly. Dominic said he was impressed.”

The interview?
Wow, that
felt like a lifetime ago.
If only that were
still
my
greatest concern.

“I said I was tired.”
She hadn’t meant to sound as harsh as she had.

Abby looked a bit sad suddenly, which did nothing to improve Lil’s mood.
“Of course.
Get some rest. Dinner is at six.
The
Andrades
are joining us. I hope you’re feeling better by then.”

Lil turned away from her sister and said angrily, “I won’t embarrass you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Abby sighed, a clear sign that she wa
nted to say more but wouldn’t.
“
I’m glad you’re here, Lil.”
She closed the door softl
y behind her as she left.

I don’t know how you could be.

I’m
ruining everything
–
just like I always do.

Colby looked sadly up at her mother.

“Don’t say it, Colby,” Lil said.

With
her daughter
down for a perfectly timed nap, Lil was able to shower
and
slip into
an oversized white terrycloth robe.
She’d scheduled the nanny for six o’clock, but for now Lil felt better having
Colby
with her.

A clothing rack had arrived
after Abby had left
; each hanger
on it
held a more beautiful dress than the last. Gift boxes
full of
designer shoes, hair accessories
and jewelry
had accompanied the delivery.
Under different circumstances, Lil might have actually enjoyed trying the dresses on, but guilt
hung heavy on her mind.
There had to be a way she could fix this
.

A loud knock on the suite’s outer door made her jump.

Was it Jake?

I’m not ready to see him yet.

She braced herself and opened the door.

Impressively dressed in what Lil guessed was
an
Armani suit
–
Abby said it was his favorite designer,
Dom
inic
Corisi
filled
her
doorway. He was Jake’s height, and perfectly groomed, but reminded Lil a bit of a restless tiger at a zoo.
If it weren’t for his blatant devotion to her sister, Lil would have
closed the door instead of pretending to be happy to see him
. He had a reputation
for
being ruthless
and the entire world had
recently
witnessed how he considered himself a bit above the law’s reproach when it came to what he wanted.

He was definitely a man
that even Lil wanted to stay on the good side of.
This was no high school bully; this man wielded more power than many dynasties could boast.

Why did I think we could ever get away with hacking into the emails of men like this?

“May I come in?” Dominic asked.

Lil looked down at her robe.
It covered more than any dress on that rack would, so she nodded and stepped back from the door.

He studied her face for a moment and said, “
Abby said you weren’t feeling well.
”

Understatement of the year.

Is th
is
where he
threatens
me
because
my poor attitude
is
a dark cloud on
a supposedly
otherwise happy weekend?
Lil moved to stand behind a chair, using it to support her suddenly
unsteady
legs. “
It’s nothing serious.
”