“I’ve got to stop the bleeding. This will hurt,” he said, then applied pressure.
She winced. With her other hand, she squeezed his arm. Of course it would hurt. Her past had been exposed, along with a five-and-a-half-year-old sin. When she’d sought vengeance, she’d not given thought to future consequences. A man lay dead, but not before exposing her true identity.
And the man she’d once despised now appeared to despise her. Colton had morphed into a block of stone. Though he attended to her wound, the warmth in his eyes had faded. His energy mirrored rolling thunder during a blinding rainstorm.
The wailing sirens cut off as whirling lights of two ambulances, two police cruisers, and a fire engine loomed into view. The caravan filed up the driveway and parked.
While the first responding police officer spoke with Vonn, two paramedics assessed Vinny Ray. Then, Ray was covered with a sheet and hoisted onto a stretcher. Though she blamed him for the deaths of her parents, she’d never wanted him to pay for his crime with his life.
“It’s only a flesh wound, but you’ll need sutures,” said the paramedic, kneeling next to her. Accepting her fate, Brigit was placed on the stretcher.
When Colton finally looked at her, his flat stare reminded her of his warning.Don’t ever deceive me.“I have to leave you.” The weight of his harsh words stung.
“I’ll stay with her,” Chad said. “Brigit, I’ll meet you at the hospital.”
“We’re going to need statements from everyone,” said the police officer.
Colton checked his watch. “I have a flight to catch.”
“Then we’ll take yours first,” said the officer.
In the ambulance, tears pricked Brigit’s eyes. She’d never make it to the airport in time. But crying wouldn’t make anything better. Crying never solved a damn thing. Somehow, someway, she’d get to that meeting. Stopping Montgomery hinged on her being there.
As the siren wailed, and the vehicle moved down the driveway, she closed her eyes.Will you walk into my parlour? said the Spider to the Fly.’Tis the prettiest little parlour that ever you did spy.
She was the fly snagged in the very web she’d weaved.
* * *
Colton checkedin andboarded with first class. Once seated, he stared out the window. Now, he could think.
After the gunshots, his first priority had been determining whether Brigit’s wound was life-threatening. Then everything about his enigmatic Brigit Farnay fell into place.
Brigit Farnay,hisBrigit, was Eve Francesco. The realization stunned him. Initially he’d dismissed it. But the blatant truth was impossible to ignore.
Brigit had deceived him by keeping her identity a secret from him. They’d grown close, or so he’d thought. Hell, he’d confided things he’d never toldanyone. Yet she’d said nothing. Had she been playing him this entire time? And if so, why? What did she stand to gain by not telling him the truth? They were on the same side, fighting against a hostile takeover threat. The Francesco Company meanteverythingto them both.
He was perplexed as to why she’d not contacted him after her parents had died. In light of her father’s dying wish, he would have found a place for her at Francesco. There was always room for someone as smart, hardworking and dedicated as Brigit Farnay.
No, dammit, that’s not who she is. She’s Eve Francesco.
He had questions. Fortunately, he was about to spend the rest of the day with someone who probably had answers.
The flight attendant took his beverage order and that of the elderly woman sitting next to him then promptly returned with their drinks. Colton drained his sparkling water.
“You got a love note,” said the elderly woman.
“Excuse me?”
“Turn your napkin over,” the woman whispered.
Sure enough, there was a phone number on the other side. Colton flipped the napkin, number down, back onto the tray.
“Not interested?”
“No, ma’am. Would you like her number?”
The woman laughed. “Oh no, honey. I wasn’t sure if you saw it.”
