“Ever the lawyer’s answer.”
He arches a brow and leans forward. “I can’t locate the mystery woman that is your alibi. But, I had a thought.”
“God forbid.”
His lips twitch. Will wonders never cease? Larry has a sense of humor. “If we can’t prove who you were with, let’s prove who you weren’t with.”
I narrow my eyes. “Why haven’t we done that before?”
“Because to do that means picking around in her life, which you said you didn’t want to do. Something about your moral code.”
“It’s difficult to alter my perspective when I’m employed to protect.”
“She ditched the moral code when she leveled this accusationagainst you, Fox. It’s time to play dirty to get to the truth. They won’t hesitate to use everything they have if we end up in court, and I know you want to avoid that at all costs. So let me dig where you aren’t willing to go.”
I swipe a hand down my face. “Fine.”
He grins, reminding me why he’s one of the best defense lawyers in the country. I am all for paying for your crimes, but this one I didn’t commit. I’m not willing to be a sacrificial lamb for a woman who ultimately got caught cheating and used me as a scapegoat. A small part of my heart still hopes she will come to her senses and see reason. Destroying someone’s life to cover up her own transgressions is a sure-fire ticket to Hell.
“I’ll call next week and let you know what we find,” Larry says. “And Fox, remember?—”
“Keep my nose clean and away from women. I know, Larry. I’m not stupid.”
He makes it out like I’m a guy who struggles to keep it in my pants. I’m not. I enjoy sex and women, but my encounters are casual, engineered for a release, not a relationship. It has suited my lifestyle to date. Cleo is the first woman in a very long time who has caught my attention. I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing, but I’m rolling with it.
The bedroom door opens, and I exit the call with Larry, forgoing the usual goodbyes. He’s used to me by now. I spin around as Cleo appears in a pair of ass-hugging jeans and a plain baggy black T-Shirt that hides her body. No makeup, as usual, and she’s twisted her wet hair into a bun on the top of her head. The freckles across her nose have expanded onto her cheeks from her brief sunbathing yesterday. She is fucking stunning without even trying.
“Breakfast?” she asks as she avoids my eyes. Duke lumbers out behind her. I think I have lost my dog to this woman, and I’m not exactly mad about it.
I follow her to the main house. “That would be great, thank you.”
She moves around the kitchen with practiced ease, and my grandmother makes her entrance at exactly seven. She arches a brow at me and swings her gaze to Cleo.
“Good morning. How was your day?” she asks both of us.
“Great,” Cleo says in a slightly higher pitch than normal.
“And your night?” my grandmother asks.
Cleo whisks the eggs a little too hard, making some mixture splatter on the worktop. “Peaceful.”
Ha. If she calls having a sexy dream and kissing me peaceful, then I’m going to have to step up my game. Keeping her off balance is part of the plan.
“What are your plans today?” my gran asks us both.
“Catch up on yesterday’s tasks, check in with Samuel about the renovations, and head into town to pick up some bits from the market.”
“I already did the tasks,” I inform her.
She tosses me a glance over her shoulder. “When?”
“Does it matter? I cleaned the windows and vacuumed underneath the sofa cushions, so you are all set for today.”
She turns and pours us all a cup of tea. Her gaze drops to my gran’s hands, who moves them into her lap away from our eyes. Cleo adds the right amount of milk and sugar, but I notice my gran’s cup is only half full. My hand reaches out to grab the teapot to top it up. “What are you doing?” Cleo snaps as she starts assembling the breakfast on the plates.
“Making sure my grandmother has a full cup for breakfast.” I think it’s obvious.
“I’m limiting my caffeine intake,” my grandmother says. “Cleo is just following my instructions.”
