“No. How the hell could I? I didn’t even know. Kate,” he took hold of my arm, “you have to be careful.”
“I will. Never underestimate the charm of a beautiful woman.” I smirked. “I have to go. I’m spending the day with Marcel and I have to stop at the store first.”
“I hope this works.” He shook his head.
“It will. Please don’t say a word about this to Gabriel.”
I stopped at the store and picked up everything I needed to make a nice dinner for the two of us. When I reached his penthouse, he immediately took the bags from my arms.
“I wish you would have called me from the lobby. I would have brought these up for you,” he spoke as he kissed my lips.
“You’re sweet, but I managed just fine.”
He took the groceries into the kitchen. Just as the weatherman predicted, it rained all day long. The sky was overcast and the slight chill in the air made it a perfect day to sit in the comfort of a home by the fire, keeping warm while watching TV. We snuggled on the couch, under a blanket, watched a movie, and talked. I was ready to talk about Gabriel and get this fucking night over with, so I reached in the pocket of the oversized hoodie I was wearing and pressed the play button on the recorder I had hidden in my pocket.
“That man from last night. Gabriel Quinn,” I spoke.
“What about him?”
“Is he a major competition for you?”
“You’ve never heard of him or his hotel chain?” he asked with a bewildered look on his face.
“Vaguely,” I replied. “To be honest, I don’t really keep up with the hotel scene.” I smiled.
“Ah. I see. Well, to answer your question, yes, he is major competition. Quinn Hotels always has been. But that is all going to change very soon.”
“Really? How?”
“It’s a secret, Camille, and one I can’t discuss.”
I sat up with a distraught look on my face as I stared at him.
“I thought me and you were a thing? I mean, you did introduce me as your girlfriend.”
“We are. But business is something I cannot discuss.”
“You can’t or you won’t?” I spoke with an upset tone to my voice.
“Darling, why are you getting so upset?” His hand stroked my cheek.
“I’m not.” I turned away from him. “It’s just—”
“Just what?” His hand gripped my shoulder.
The words I had to speak made me nauseated.
“It’s just that I love you, but I can’t be involved with someone who keeps secrets from me. Business or personal.”
“What? You love me?” he spoke in a soft voice.
Here we go. Time to up my acting skills. I turned and faced him as I placed my hand on his cheek.
“Yes. I know it sounds crazy, Marcel, because we haven’t known each other but for a very short time. I can’t explain it. All I know is that I’m in love with you. This past week has been the best week of my life.”
“Oh, darling.” He smiled. “I love you too. I was smitten from the day my eyes laid sight on you.”
“If you loved me, you wouldn’t keep secrets from me.” I pouted.
“I don’t want to keep secrets from you.”
“Marcel, I want a relationship with you, but I need total honesty. I love hearing about your business. The excitement your eyes show every time you talk about it turns me on.”
“How much does it turn you on?” he whispered as his tongue traveled across my neck.
I shuddered and not in the good way.
“So much. Now tell me how you are knocking the competition right out.”
“I stole the digital hotel idea from him. Actually, it was given to me by a friend and co-worker of his. You met him last night. Thaddeus Wilson.”
“Oh. Scandalous. Tell me more.” I began to unbutton his shirt.
“I made him an offer he couldn’t refuse and he handed the plans right over to me. I gave them to my people and now, we’re building it.”
“You’re such a badass.” I smiled. “This calls for a celebration. You sit right here while I go pour us a glass of the wine I brought.”
“I can do it, darling.”
“No. No.” I placed my hand on his hard cock. “You stay right here and let me, your girlfriend, serve you,” I spoke in a seductive French accent.
“If you insist.” He grinned.
I went into the kitchen, placed the recorder in my purse, and took out the bottle of sleeping pills I brought with me. After opening the wine, I poured some in a glass, took out three sleeping pills, opened the capsules, and poured the powder in his wine. I then poured my glass, walked to the living room, and handed him his.
“To your new hotel.” I smiled as I held up my glass to him.
“Thank you, darling.” He tapped his glass against mine and took a sip.
“The first person to finish their wine gets a special prize.” I grinned.
“And what would that prize be?”
“If you finish your wine first, I’ll give you a blow job. If I finish my wine first, you have to cook dinner.”
“You aren’t serious,” he spoke.
“Oh, I’m very serious.” I smiled as I licked my lips.
“Bottoms up!” He threw back his wine as if it was water.
Now I needed those pills to work their magic as quickly as possible.
“Look at that. It seems I finished my wine first. Bring that beautiful mouth of yours down here.”
A sick feeling washed over me. I needed to stall as long as I could. Getting down on my knees in front of him, I brushed my lips against his, softly and in a teasing way. A growl erupted from his throat. I slid my fingers down his shirt until they reached his belt. Taking in a deep breath, I slowly unbuckled it. The bulge in his pants grew bigger as I undid his pants. Looking up at him, I saw his head was tilted back and his eyes were closed. As I stroked his hard cock through the fabric of his red silk underwear, he began to snore. Thank God! I quickly stood up, laid him down on the couch, and covered him with a blanket.
“Sorry, Marcel. Sweet dreams.”
I took the wine glasses into the kitchen, washed and dried them, and then went into his office and sat down behind his desk. I opened his laptop, and the lock screen appeared.
“Shit. What would his password be?”
I opened his desk drawer, looking for something to indicate his password. Nothing. Damn it. I needed to do this quickly. I shut his laptop and walked back out to the living room, where I took his phone from the table and placed his finger on the button to unlock it. Pulling up his email, I searched it and found a folder labeled “Digital Hotel.” I opened it and found a shitload of email exchanges between him and Thaddeus. After sending the folder to my email address, I deleted it in the sent file, set his phone back on the coffee table, grabbed my purse, and headed out the door. After hailing a cab back to my apartment, I called a messenger service to deliver the recorder to Gabriel. Pulling out his business card that I had taken from his desk drawer a while back, I opened my laptop, created a new email address, and sent the folder from that one to his. I took the two suitcases I had packed from the closet, my guitar case, and climbed into the cab that was waiting for me at the curb.
“Where to, miss?” the cab driver asked.
“Train station.”
Before I launched my plan on Marcel, I visited my father and told him everything that had happened. He understood why I had to leave, but I promised that I would visit him as much as I could. Before we said our goodbyes, he slipped me a piece of paper with the number to a safe deposit box, which was in my name, at the Atlantic Bank.
“The box is in your name, baby girl. Take what’s in there and go,” he whispered with tears in his eyes. Light up, sweet girl.” He smiled.
I sat on the train for the four-hour ride to Mystic, Connecticut, which is classified as a village with a population of 4,025 people. Small. The perfect place to start new, at least until I figured out e
xactly where I wanted to be in life. I walked from the train station to the Mermaid Inn of Mystic, a cute bed and breakfast that I found fitting.
“Hello, dear. How may I help you?” the older gray-haired woman behind the desk asked.
“Hi, I have a reservation.”
“You must be Kate Harper.” She smiled.
“How did you know?”
“You are our only guest, my dear. Everyone else already checked out. It’s our slow time of the season. My name is Rose.” She held out her slender hand.
“It’s nice to meet you, Rose.” A smile crossed my lips.
“When you called to book the reservation, you said you didn’t know how long you’d need the room for. Have you decided yet?”
“Maybe a week or two.”
“Delightful. I’ll put you down for at least two weeks. Now follow me and I’ll show you to your room on the second floor. You can leave your suitcases down here and my grandson, Thomas, will bring them up.”
I followed her up the stairs to the second floor. She inserted the key in the lock and opened the door to the room.
“This is our Rose room. Named after me.” She smiled. “I personally decorated it myself. I hope it meets your needs.”
Walking into the room, I set my guitar case down and looked around. It was beautiful. The walls were painted a rose color and then stenciled with floral designs. A queen-size bed that housed a quaint floral print comforter sat on the far wall. There was a small dresser with a TV that was mounted on the wall above it. It was very charming.
“There’s a mini fridge over in that corner that is fully stocked with water and soft drinks, compliments of the inn.”
“Thank you.”
“There are towels in the cabinet over there outside the bathroom. If you need more, just let me know. Also, breakfast is served at nine a.m., so make sure you bring your appetite because we serve a full American breakfast.”
“I definitely will.” I smiled.
“I’ll let you get settled, dear. If you have any questions about Mystic, just ask.”
As soon as Rose left the room, I walked over to the window and took in the view of the garden. I felt a sense of peace here. It was quiet and exactly what I needed. I grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator and took it out to the gazebo, which was surrounded by beautiful flowers.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Gabriel
I was sitting in my office at home catching up on some work when the doorbell rang. A few moments later, Grace walked in and handed me a small package.
“This just came for you from a messenger service,” she spoke.
I took the package from her and opened it. Pulling out what looked like a recording device, I studied it.
“What the hell is this?”
“Maybe it’s something you need to listen to.”
I pressed the play button and froze when I heard Kate’s and Marcel’s voices.
“Damn, she’s good,” Grace spoke.
A fire erupted inside me and the air I breathed became restricted.
“Gabriel, calm down.”
“Calm down?” I shouted. “You heard what was on that tape.”
I got up from my chair and threw the paperweight that was on my desk against the wall.
“Thaddeus.” I shook my head in disbelief. “I’m going to kill him and, when I’m done, I’m going after Marcel.”
Suddenly, the fact that Kate had nothing to do with it invaded my head.
“Oh my god, what have I done,” I slowly spoke as I gripped the arms of the chair and sat back down.
“She was telling the truth, Gabriel, and she went to great lengths to prove it to you,” Grace spoke.
A sick feeling arose in the pit of my stomach. A sickness I’d never felt before. What I did was unforgivable. Suddenly, an email popped up on my computer. I opened it and found a file that contained emails between Marcel and Thaddeus. Emails that had copies of my blueprints, data information, and every plan that was made for the hotel. I studied the email address:
[email protected] “I need to go see her,” I spoke as I rose from my chair.
“I’m not so sure she’s going to want to see you after what you said to her.”
“I’ll make her see me. I have to apologize.”
“It’ll be a miracle if that girl ever forgives you for what you’ve said and done.”
I shot her a look.
“I’m sorry, Gabriel, but it’s the truth.”
“Well, I have to try.”
I flew out of the house and hailed a cab to her apartment. I didn’t have time to wait for Carl. When I went to press the button for her apartment, I noticed the space where her name had sat was blank. Blank, as in she no longer resided in that apartment. Someone was walking out of the building and as soon as the door opened, I held it open for her and slipped inside. Taking the elevator up to her apartment, I stood in front of it and knocked on the door. She didn’t answer, so I knocked harder.
“Kate, it’s me. Open up. We need to talk.” I continued to pound on the door.
A woman was walking down the hall and stopped at the apartment next to Kate’s.
“If you’re looking for the woman who lived there, she’s gone,” she spoke.
“Gone? What do you mean she’s gone?”
“I think she moved out. Took her guitar and a couple of suitcases and left. I asked her if she was going on vacation and she said no, she was leaving New York City for good.”
“Did she say where she was going?”
“No. I didn’t feel it was appropriate to ask, since I’d never spoken to her before.”
“Thank you.” I walked past her and stepped onto the elevator.
Once I got inside the cab, I pulled my phone out and called Caleb.
“Hey, Gabriel, what’s up?”
“I need you to come over as soon as possible. I need to talk to you. I was wrong about Kate and now she’s gone.”
“What? Where is she?”
“I don’t know. I’ll explain everything when you get to the house.”
“I’m on my way, bro.”
Caleb pulled up behind me as I stepped out of the cab.
“What do you mean you were wrong about her?” he asked.
“She wasn’t the one who told Marcel about the plans for the hotel.”
“Oh, now you believe her?” he spoke with a snide tone.
As soon as we stepped inside the house, I grabbed the recorder and played it for Caleb.
“I can’t believe she actually did it,” he spoke as he slowly shook his head.
“What did you say?” I looked at him. “Did you know about this?”
“After breakfast, I went to her apartment and she was just leaving to go to Marcel’s place. She said she had a plan and I told her not to do it. That it was too risky.”
“Why didn’t you tell me!” I shouted at him.
“Because you already made up your mind that she was guilty and you told her she was a vile human being. I honestly didn’t think she would get Marcel to confess.”
“She’s Kate Harper. Have you forgotten? Damn it, Caleb! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
“She told me not to, and if I had, you would have gone after her and blown her cover. Just forget about Kate for a minute. What are you going to do about Thaddeus and Marcel?”
“I’m calling my lawyer right now.” I pulled my phone from my pocket as I shook my head at him.
****
I tossed and turned all night, thinking about Kate. I no longer cared about the hotel. None of that mattered to me anymore. I fucked up so badly that I was afraid Grace was right. Kate would never be able to forgive me for the things I said to her. But I had to try and I needed to find her. I would bet the one person who would know where she went would be her father.
I had Carl drive me to Rikers Island, where I cleared security and waited in the visiting room for Henry.
“May I help you?” he asked as
he walked into the room.
“Henry, I’m Gabriel Quinn.”
A look of dismay and disapproval filled his eyes.
“I’m not a fan of yours, Mr. Quinn,” he spoke.
“I’m sure Kate told you everything.”
“She did.” He nodded as he took a seat at the rectangular table.
“I need to know where she is. It’s important.”
“You hurt my baby girl in the worst way possible. Even if I knew where she was, I wouldn’t tell you.”
“Are you saying you don’t know where she is?”
“That’s right. She wouldn’t tell me where she was going. She’s trying to put the pieces of her life back together, Mr. Quinn, and you’re not a part of that. In fact, you’re the reason my little girl left in the first place. Had you just trusted her, you wouldn’t be sitting across from me right now.”
I wanted to shout obscenities at him and tell him what a lousy father he was, but I remained calm and let him say what he had to.
“I was wrong and I need to make things right with her.”
“I’m afraid it’s too late for that.”
“People deserve a second chance, Henry.”
“You’re right, they do. You should have thought about that yourself before doing and saying what you did to Kate. She’s a very strong woman and she knows how to take care of herself. Look at the risk she took to prove her innocence to you. Move on with your life, Mr. Quinn, ” he got up from his seat, “and forget about Kate.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that. I love her. I’m in love with her.”
“If that’s true and you really do love her, then you have to let her go. Let her find her way and get back on track with her life. I have. I’m not perfect and I may not have been the best father, but I did what I had to do to support her.”
“By moving her around her whole life and exposing her to your cons?” I spoke.
“I regret that, but I couldn’t let them take her away from me. She was all I had left in this world after her mother died.”
“You couldn’t let who take her away from you?”
“Her grandparents. They always hated me and threatened to take her away because they thought I couldn’t support her. They told me that I’d be better off giving her up to them because a loser and a con like me could never love or take care of her the way they could. I did what I had to do to keep her.”