“I’ll set it up with their representative and let you know.” The thought of talking to Aleks again had a surprising and soothing effect on her ragged emotions.
Had Dizzie noticed? There was a gleam in her eye. “Thank you. My calendar is current and my assistant can answer any questions.”
Portia’s lips quirked into a smile. Dizzie sounded so corporate, although Portia knew it was mostly for show. Dizzie could fit into this world now—being with Killian had given her confidence and practice—but Portia was sure she’d rather be anywhere else.
“Perfect. Was there anything else?” Portia hoped there wasn’t. She needed time to rebuild her walls.
“No. Thank you for the coffee and for seeing me without an appointment.”
Portia inclined her head. “You’re welcome.” She wouldn’t—couldn’t—say it was a pleasure. But it also wasn’t the worst interaction they’d had.
Taking her cue from Dizzie’s body language, Portia stood at the same time her sister did. It was a move she used to disconcert people and she needed Dizzie a little off-balance. She needed that little win.
Neither woman said another word as Portia escorted her to the office door. It wasn’t until she was back at her desk and had asked her assistant to hold her calls that Portia allowed herself to slump into her chair.
Chapter16
Aleks hungup the phone and sat back in the desk chair in his suite. He’d done it. He’d set up a meeting for the Solveigs with their long-lost granddaughter. Yet, instead of the elation of a job well done, he felt... unmoored.
Portia’s call had sent a rush of adrenaline through his system, revving up his body while at the same time focusing his usually overactive brain. He wouldn’t say that she calmed him, but she definitely challenged him.
That right there was the problem.
He didn’t know what to do about his burgeoning relationship with Portia. To feel anything beyond satisfaction for doing his job was a clear conflict of interest. He should report it to his employers, but they’d surely reassign him. Probably somewhere far, far away.
So he couldn’t. Wouldn’t. He would be here through the bitter end. If that meant he offered comfort to Portia when the Consortium brought the Tremaine Corporation to its knees...
His brain took that moment to unhelpfully remind him that the Solveigs wanted Portia to be part of that downfall. He surged up from the chair and began to pace. He’d considered the Solveigs’ plan from all angles last night. He couldn’t see a way this all ended without the Tremaine Corporation gone, even if he managed to protect Portia.
When they destroyed the company, the last person she would turn to for solace would be the man responsible for its destruction. She wouldn’t forget—and probably wouldn’t forgive—his role. “You’re a fucking idiot, Aleks.”
Clenching and unclenching his hands, he focused on his breath, calming his brain, stopping the spiral into a future he could never have. He had a job to do and it wasn’t to moon over Portia Tremaine. His employers harbored very clear—and valid—ill feelings toward the Tremaine Corporation.
When the first news reports about Dizzie’s identity had aired, Mrs. Solveig had burst into tears. Mr. Solveig, who was much less emotional than his wife, had dispatched an operative to Seattle to verify the reports.
Anna Solveig had died more than twenty years ago. Her story was whispered in the halls of the Solveig Consortium. Barely twenty-one, she’d left her family home and had followed Phillip Tremaine back to Seattle. The Solveigs had begged and pleaded with their daughter to return, but she’d claimed it was “true love” and had stopped taking their calls.
After months and months of silence, they’d received her ashes accompanied by a sterile note from a morgue technician, citing the DNA match and expressing rote condolences.
They’d blamed Phillip Tremaine for her death but had been unable to gather proof. Over the next two decades, their desire for revenge had grown. They’d tried, unsuccessfully, to bring the company down several times over the years.
The news that Anna had borne a child before her death had been welcome news. Terrible, wondrous, welcome news.
And in the eyes of Mr. and Mrs. Solveig, it had sealed Phillip Tremaine’s fate. In the face of his disappearance, their focus had shifted to Portia. If Phillip Tremaine wasn’t available, they would gladly take their revenge on his daughter.
That was why they’d sent him to Seattle. To start the timer on the last days of the Tremaine Corporation.
Aleks hissed out a long breath. He had his own reason to hold a grudge against the company, and it had seemed like an easy assignment at the start. But nothing was going according to plan.
He hadn’t expected Dizzie to drag her feet about meeting her grandparents. What orphan would turn down the appearance of rich grandparents?
Nothing about this job made sense. Especially not his sudden and intense reaction to Portia. His employers would be horrified if they knew the pull she had on him. They’d chalk it up to the failed experiment that left his brain a mess and he’d need to prove—again—that his new thought patterns didn’t affect his job.
So... he’d keep them from finding out. Aleks held that thought in the forefront of his mind and focused on it. It was a solvable problem—most easily by not mentioning it—but it gave his unruly neurons something to do while he made the phone call that could change a lot of lives.
Glancing at the clock, he saw it was late in Sweden, likely past the bedtime of his elderly employees, but they wouldn’t thank him if he delayed this call.
“Hello?” The voice that picked up the call was female, sleepy, and annoyed.
