"Both good questions," he pointed out. "Ones I am already working to find out. People have tried to blackmail me before, and I assume this will turn out to be the same. Please trust me on this. Denying we are in a relationship is only going to add fuel to the fire. Promise me you won't do anything rash?"
Bailey sat staring at her lap for several minutes. Everett waited. He wasn't going to push her. He knew she'd been hurt-before, from those she loved, and now by these pictures. Getting past the hurt and finding the best way forward took time and couldn't be rushed. Finally, she leaned back against the couch and spoke. "All right. I won't say anything. For now."
A flood of relief surprised Everett. He hadn't realized how much he'd been waiting to hear her answer. Maybe he could still salvage this. Maybe he did still have a chance with her. He would have to tread carefully.
*
A knock sounded at Bay's door as she and Everett sat discussing how to handle the situation. They'd moved to the kitchen bar that divided the open space of the living area. Bailey sat her coffee cup down and moved the few steps to the door. She opened it to the expansive figure of Mark who filled the doorway. His usually smiling face was replaced by a serious expression.
"Bay, I just wanted to check on you." He stepped into her personal space and leaned down to kiss her before Bailey could utter a word.
For once, Bay felt nothing as his lips touched hers. Luckily, he didn't attempt to take it deeper. As he pulled back, his eyes lifted over her head. His face hardened, and he dropped his hands from her arms. "I'm sorry. I didn't know I was interrupting." He said the words, but he didn't make a move to leave.
Bailey cleared her throat and stepped back. Mark followed her inside without being invited. She rolled her eyes and closed the door behind him.
"Everything all right, Bay?" Mark asked without taking his eyes off Everett.
Bailey pulled her hair up off her neck and let it drop in frustration. She didn't have the patience to deal with a pissing contest right now. She had enough on her plate. "Everything's fine, Mark." She sat on the edge of her chair and took a sip of coffee. "What are you doing here?"
Mark leaned against the bar and crossed his ankles in a supposed casual manner. "Heard the news and knew it wasn't true. I thought you'd be upset. I came here to give you some emotional support."
Everett swiveled in his chair then to face Mark head on. Bailey felt like a deer in the headlights, caught between the two strong men. "That was presumptuous of you," Everett said.
Mark shrugged and ran a finger over Bailey's ear. She cringed inwardly. "I care about her. I don't want her hurt." He glared at Everett.
Everett stood. "So you assume I would be the one to hurt her?" he accused.
Mark held his hands out. "You don't know her like I do."
Before Everett could move, Bailey put a hand on his chest. She'd had enough. This was her home, and she wasn't going to listen to a lot of hot air.
"Down, boys," she told them. They both stared at her, which finally made her laugh. As she looked back and forth at both of their expressions, the laughter built up and bubbled out of her until her sides hurt and tears streamed down her face.
"What's gotten into her?" Mark asked Everett.
A small smile touched Everett's face as he watched her. "I have no idea, but I like it. I'm glad you're taking this so well," he told her.
As Bay calmed her giggles to the occasional hiccup, she shook her head. "Hysteria," she joked. After a few more chuckles, she stood and pushed Mark toward the door. He let her, reluctantly, looking back over his shoulder to shoot another glare at Everett. "Thanks for checking on me, Mark. I do appreciate it." She opened the door for him to leave.
He gave her one more prying look. "Call me if you need anything at all," he said quietly.
Bailey nodded and closed the door behind him. She leaned against the door, both glad to finally be rid of him and nervous about being alone with Everett again.
"I'm going to ask you again. Is there something going on between you two?"
"No," she told him honestly. "At least not on my part. We've had sex, many times, but it was all just in fun. Why do you care anyway?"
Everett sighed. She wasn't going to take this well, and he dreaded telling her. "Look, until we can get a handle on this, I think it's best to let everyone go on thinking we're together."
"Uh uh." She shook a finger at him. "No way. I'm not going to pretend to be your girlfriend in front of the world. We had a deal, remember?"
"You don't have to," he assured her. "Everyone will forget about those pictures soon enough. In a few days, most people won't even remember your name. Let's just not mention our relationship-or lack thereof-to anyone for now. I'll find out who released those pictures and deal with it. After that, we can go our separate ways." He wanted to add "if that's what you really want" onto the end, but he knew what her answer would be right now. He wasn't ready to give up on her, and if a few days or weeks were what he needed to convince her, he'd take it.
Bailey considered his offer. She didn't have to see him again, only had to wait for him to figure out what was up with those photos. She wouldn't be in the spotlight, wouldn't be on the red carpet, there wouldn't be any more photos of her.
"All right." She pushed away from the door and walked to him, holding out her hand for a handshake. "It's a deal."
Everett let a genuine smile slide across his face as he grasped her strong fingers in his own. As much as he wanted to get this problem taken care of, he was looking forward to seeing more of Bay. "Great!" Using her hand, he pulled her against his chest before lifting her chin up to his face. "It seems more appropriate to seal our deal with a kiss." Before she could protest, he lowered his mouth to hers.
Everett's kiss was gentle, his lips soft and warm against hers. Memories spiraled through Bailey's head. Memories of more heated kisses, kisses that had spanned from her head to her feet. She pushed into him, begging him to take more from her. Instead, he gentled his kiss even more, until his lips were mere air against hers.
Pulling away, he said, "There, that's better." He picked up his jacket before heading to the door. "I'll call you as soon as I find anything."
Bailey nodded, unable to speak through the need clinging to her body. She didn't move as Everett walked out of her apartment. As his presence faded, she began to breathe again and sunk against the bar. Right when she thought the man was out of her life, he pushed himself back in. And dammit if she didn't let him.
Chapter 15
‡
Bailey had barely made it through the front doors of Halvard the next morning when she heard her name.
"Lennox! My office." Flannigan strode from the coffee station to his office without even looking at her, expecting her to follow.
Groaning to herself, she squared her shoulders and began to follow. In the short distance she covered, she felt the stares of her fellow teammates on her. Her neck prickled, and anger began to rise into her cheeks. Lifting her chin higher, she ignored everyone and lengthened her strides. Let them stare. She'd done nothing wrong. Well, other than sleep with a client. However, no one knew about that, and no one ever would if she could help it.
Flannigan stood by the window, a coffee cup in his hand, and Bailey had a momentary flash back to just a few short days ago when she'd once before walked into this office and come face to face with Everett Parker.
Flannigan turned to her when she closed his office door, then stepped to his desk, and sat the cup down. Bailey waited for him to speak. She didn't know why he wanted to see her, and she wasn't going to give up her meager knowledge by being the one to speak first.
"Lennox, I'm going to have to place you on leave for the time being."
Bailey froze, every muscle clenched in dread and fear. Her mind twisted with a million thoughts, trying to figure out what was wrong and how she could get out of whatever situation she was in now. But the overwhelming chorus of the voices in her head was screaming a repeated no, no, no. She couldn't lose this job. Even with the pay she would get from taking Everett's case, she wouldn't have enough to survive. She had too much pride to ask her family for help, and she was sure no one else would hire her with the scandal of Everett currently hanging over her head.