Billion Dollar Bad Boy (Big City Billionaires #1)(20)
Together, we both inhaled sharply.
The dress was like a waterfall of mercury. I lifted it high enough for us both to see the low-cut back, lace flourishing like a rose garden along the edges.
“Do you know what this is?” Laralie asked, fingering the label stuck to the neck of the dress. “It's a Vera Wang dress, from her new limited collection. This has to cost a fortune!”
“Really?” I asked, but... I knew. I'd spent plenty of time as a kid cutting out pictures of these dresses and sticking them to my walls. I didn't want to get into this with her, though. It wasn't important. Not anymore.
Laralie eyeballed me, letting the dress go before sighing. “You have no clue, do you? Alexis, we work on magazines that show these dresses off! Have you never noticed?”
I scrunched my shoulders up. “I do desk work, not articles like you.” I hated playing dumb, but it was better than explaining what I'd given up on. “It's beautiful, who cares who made it?”
Her lips pouted, a hand dragging over her face. “He's sent you something like this, and you don't even understand.” Rubbing her temples, she groaned. “How come guys like this never contact me? I'd appreciate it!”
Fidgeting, I brushed the soft material again. “I do appreciate it.”
“Fine, fine. I guess I'm just a little surprised to see this in person.” She reached out, tracing the hem.
When I moved the dress, something slid my way. The small envelope was deliciously familiar, but I didn't want Laralie to see the note. Tucking it into my lap under the desk, I devised a plan to get her to go away so I could read it. Before I could, a new voice spoke out. “Excuse me, Alexis Willow?”
Together, Laralie and I looked up at the man who had appeared. The broadness of his shoulders showing through his tight, black shirt made it clear he took care of himself. There was a two-day-old scruff around his square jaw, heavy bags looking out of place under his sparkling green eyes. Behind his ear sat a simple red pen.
“Yes?” I asked, “I'm Alexis, and you are...?”
“Detective Roose.” He extended a large, callused hand. On impulse I shook it, but my skin was numb.
The detective. I'd completely forgotten.
Everyone in the room was staring my way, most didn't bother to be subtle. Roose nodded his head to me. “Could we go somewhere a little more private?”
Laralie made a motion behind his back, pushing up her own boobs while wiggling her hips. I read her lips: “Want me to distract him for you?”
Ducking my head, I quickly shook it. I didn't need her to make this worse. “Sure, we can use one of the conference rooms.” I buried the note from Silver in my trouser pocket before I stood.
He ran his thumbs down until they were hooked in his belt. Under one solid arm, a thick folder peeked out. “Lead the way.”
On stiff legs, I turned, marching towards the glass-windowed room down the hall. Everyone was still watching me, and when I peered back at Laralie, she held the box up and mouthed, “I'll guard this for you.”
Guard it? I knew she was probably going to sit and swoon over the dress, imagining she was wearing it to some fancy party. I was extra glad I'd found the note and took it, it would have been a disaster in her hands.
Opening the door, I motioned Roose inside. He tipped his head, settling at the long table as I closed the shutters. I didn't want my coworkers snooping through the windows at us.
“Sorry about all this,” he said as I sat down across from him. His eyes had a wet realness in them that made me think he actually was sorry. He pulled out the folder and a notebook. “I'm really hoping you can help me out.”
Crinkling my forehead, I sat uncomfortably. “You said this was about Old Stone Bank.”
His head bobbed, the red pen twirling in his fingers. I saw how thick they were, as if the young detective had worked on a farm his whole life. “Right. The robbery that happened five years ago. Now, I'm sure you—”
“Is robbery the right word?”
He paused, his pen touching the cover of the notebook. “Excuse me?”
Rocking in place, I shrugged. “I mean, whoever stole all that money... they gave it back to the people it was supposed to go to. Didn't they?”
His smile became very stale, almost patronizing. “Miss Willow, the man who hacked the bank that day, he took what wasn't meant for him. He broke the law. It was a robbery—and a large one. Plain and simple.”
Under the table, I pressed a thumb into the back of one hand. “People were being taken advantage of by that insurance company.” I'd forgotten the name, it had been so long since the news story had broke.
“I guess you listened to that bullshit spin. Bank Robber Hero,” he scoffed. “It's funny. Considering that you were almost killed that day, you're sure happy to defend the criminal we're after.”