Liam jerked as heavy footsteps sounded down the hall, and he grabbed the note out of my hands as I whirled towards the door.
A wary figure appeared. “Dad?” I wasn’t actually sure when I’d seen him last.
My father eyed both of us in his office, and the air felt oddly thick as Liam shifted forward towards my father. “What are you two doing in here?”
“What are you doing home?” Liam asked, with an unprovoked bite in his voice.
I glared at Liam over my shoulder as I rushed across the room. “I missed you.” I threw my arms around my father, and he returned the hug with an awkward pat on the back.
“I heard about your exhibition.” My dad pulled back.
I swallowed hard as guilt hit me like a freight train. “Who told you?” The words nearly got stuck in my throat.
“A colleague.” My father said, “They told me it’s going to auction.” I nodded, feeling smaller than small. “That’s good.” His words were filled with something I couldn’t quite decipher. He looked at me for a long minute, his expression unreadable. “I’m disappointed I didn’t get to be there.”
Shit. I’d messed up big time. Carter had been right, I should have told him. I hadn’t meant to hurt his feelings. Hadn’t meant to push him away when I already felt like he was impossible to reach. “I’m sorry.” I started stumbling over my words. “It’s just, I didn’t mean to?—”
“You had a gallery showing?” Liam looked utterly gutted, and my stomach bottomed out with immediate regret. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
It was one of those moments that I suddenly wished I could take back. I’d been overwhelmed and didn’t know how to let them in. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” I said quietly.
“You should have.” Liam said emptily. “I wanted to be there for you.”
“I’m not the only one keeping secrets.” I near whispered under my breath.
“I won’t apologize for protecting you—” He gritted and cut himself off.
A wave of emotion overcame me as I raised my voice. “You don’t have to do all this on your own, you know.”
“Except that I do.” Liam bit out.
“Pretty necklace.” My dad commented tightly, trying to diffuse the building tension, “Opal was your mother’s birthstone.”
My heart thundered. “Since her birthday is coming up, I thought maybe we should all do something…” I trailed off, not knowing where I was going as my father tensed, withdrawing slightly. I opened and closed my mouth with no idea what else to say.
My father ignored my invitation entirely. “If you two could excuse me, I have some work to do.”
I nodded, heart breaking thatthiswas all he could give me. I hadn’t really seen him in months, and he didn’t even seem to care.
My mother had clearly been the glue in our family. Did he even want a relationship with me when my mother wasn’t encouraging him to participate in my life?
Liam waited for me to leave the office first and then followed closely behind me, the note safely tucked into his bag.
I opened my mouth.
“In the car.” Liam said under his breath as we headed for the foyer.
Down the street, we sat in Liam’s Bugatti, and he handed me the note. I forced out a slow, steady breath and read the simple but damning note.
I know what you did. I have evidence, and if you don’t give me what I want, I’ll take it anyway.
It was signed with a thumbprint.
In blood.
I looked at Liam and swallowed hard, my lip trembling. “Liam, what does this mean?” His jaw flexed while the questions poured out of me like water, my mind spinning a million miles a minute. “Who wrote this? Who did they write it to?” It had been in my father’s office. Did he have something to do with this? But why? “Did Dad do something? Does he know?” I caught myself realizing Liam was carefully monitoring my reaction. I had to keep it together, had to make sure he didn’t cut me out of this, thinking I couldn’t handle it.
“I don’t know anything for sure.” Liam grimaced. “But I promise you, I’m going to get to the bottom of this.”
