All He Really Needs(50)

“Well, it isn’t. Either you’re still hiding something or you’ve gone to a lot of trouble to satisfy your curiosity.”

“Fine,” Sharlene said, staring across the office to look out the window. “When I was with Hollister, Griffin was like a son to me. So was Dalton, for that matter. I genuinely care about both of those boys, but when things ended with Hollister, he cut me out of all their lives. I’ve tried to keep tabs on them, but they’re both very private men.” Sharlene turned her gaze back to Sydney. “Is it so hard to believe that I simply want to know whether or not Griffin is happy?”

For the first time since walking into the office, Sydney felt as though Sharlene was truly being honest. As though she was seeing the real woman beneath the facade.

“No,” she answered honestly, sitting back in her seat. “No, it’s not so hard to believe. So why not just ask him?”

Sharlene laughed bitterly. “It’s been nearly twenty years since I’ve seen Griffin. Do you honestly think he’d just talk to me? That he wouldn’t be as suspicious and guarded as you’ve been? More so, even.”

Sydney didn’t know how to respond to that. Two weeks ago, she would have said that Griffin was an open book. That there were no hidden depths, no deep secrets. The perfect wild-oats guy.

Now she knew differently. She’d never met a book more tightly closed or carefully locked. Now she knew the truth. She’d never known the real Griffin. He’d never once showed her the man he really was.

Well, she could hardly blame him for that. She’d kept her share of secrets herself. The problem was, his secrets concealed the man he truly was.

Four months ago, she’d gotten involved with a jet-setting playboy. A man who delighted in physical and sensual pleasures but seemed to care about little beyond his own amusement.

In the days since becoming his assistant, she’d realized that man was an illusion. The illusion had tempted her body. The real man beneath tempted her heart, her mind. Her very soul. She could fall in love with a man like Griffin Cain.

“I’m sorry.”

Sydney looked up to see that Sharlene had come to sit beside her. Sharlene placed a gentle hand on Sydney’s arm. Her lovely face was creased with lines and revealed a concern that was almost motherly.

“Pardon?” Sydney asked, not sure what exactly Sharlene was apologizing for.

“I didn’t mean to drop this bomb on you. Honestly. I assumed he’d told you about Hope2O. He seemed so protective of you. You seemed so close. I just thought…” Sharlene’s voice trailed off, and for a second she seemed near tears herself. “Well, I know what it’s like to love a man who doesn’t let you in.”

“I—” But Sydney cut herself off. Maybe it was easier to let Sharlene believe she was hurt by Griffin’s inability to trust her with the truth. It was an explanation that Sharlene would understand, whereas the truth—her fear of loving Griffin—was something she barely understood herself. Finally, she said simply, “Yes. It is hard.”

And it wasn’t even an outright lie because nothing about this situation was easy.

Fortunately, she was saved from having to say more because Griffin walked back in. She wanted to curl up inside herself and hide. Instead, she had to sit there and sift through Sharlene’s conversation for clues to the identity of this girl. She so didn’t want to be here anymore.

“Did you find the photos?” Sydney asked to hide how disconcerted she felt.

“No. I didn’t. I searched the entire car. We either lost them or accidently left them with my mother.”

“Oh, look.” Sharlene pulled some papers out from between the cushions of the love seat and held them out toward Griffin. “Is this them?”

He glanced at the photos as he took them from her. “Yes. Surprisingly, this is them,” he said wryly.

“Well, then,” she said as she took them back. “Let me have a look.”

Sharlene held both photos, looking from one to the other. After a few moments, she crossed to her desk and put on a pair of discreet reading glass, then flicked on a desk lamp and studied the pictures under the light. After a moment, she nodded, flicked off the light and returned to the seat, handing the photos back across to Griffin.

“So?” he asked, obviously choosing to ignore her blatant manipulation. “Do you recognize the woman? Or the girl?”

“Of course I do. The woman is Vivian Beck. She was Dalton’s nanny and yours, too, after you were born.”

“Are you sure Beck was her last name?” Sydney asked.

Sharlene’s smile cooled as she returned Sydney’s gaze. “Quite.”