Trust (17 page)

Agent Marco had done a complete one-eighty when it came to me. He was no longer in my face, trying to weasel a confession out of me. With this immunity agreement, I was suddenly his new best friend. He’d even let it slip at our last meeting that he’d seen Brianna the day before. I’d come to find out after grilling Oscar that Brianna had been required to officially acknowledge that Ian Pierce had held her against her will in the agreement she’d signed, but that they were slowly working with her to rehash the details of her captivity.

Knowing that she was suffering and I couldn’t do anything to stop it—to help her—was killing me. Not to mention the note Ross had given me the day after the indictment had been announced. I’d wanted to respond, but how? I wouldn’t lie to her. I was upset, and part of that was directed at her. Everything I’d done to protect her had been in vain.

“Knock, knock.”

I looked over my left shoulder. Sarah stood, framed by the open doorway. She’d chosen a dark blue gown with short, sheer sleeves and a high waist to disguise her growing baby bump. The dress had a slit up the front, showing off her long legs, and she’d pinned up her hair off her neck. She looked beautiful. Once upon a time, the sight of her like this would have caused a physical reaction in me. The only thought running through my head at that moment, however, was how Brianna would look in the dress. Brianna had taken my breath away in the purple gown she’d worn to the hospital ball, and I’d hoped to get to see her all dressed up again as she accompanied me to tonight’s event. Fate had dealt us different cards.

Knowing how protective I’d been recently of my personal space, namely my bedroom, Sarah remained at the door while I slipped my wallet, keys, and phone into my pocket. “You look handsome.”

I shrugged. “You’ve seen me in a tux before.”

She stepped back into the main room as I came closer. “True, but that doesn’t make you any less handsome.”

Ignoring her attempt to bait me into casual conversation, I checked to make sure I wasn’t forgetting anything before heading for the closet to get our coats. “Ready?”

Sarah sighed. I helped her with her coat and held the door open for her before locking up.

“You know, it wouldn’t hurt for you to try to have a good time tonight. People are going to notice your sour mood if you don’t at least make an effort.”

I waited until we were in the elevator on our way down to the parking garage before answering her. “Once we get there I’ll do what I have to and play the gracious host.” I looked her square in the eye. “I didn’t think I had to pretend with you, Sarah.”

She frowned. “That’s not what I meant, Stephan. I know you miss her. I see the effect being away from her has on you every day.”

“Then what exactly do you want from me?”

“I don’t know. I guess I was just hoping that my being here would somehow cheer you up, make it better—easier—somehow.”

The elevator doors opened, and I motioned for her to exit first. I followed her to my car and held the door open while she got in.

It didn’t take long to reach the hotel. Sarah hadn’t attempted to restart the conversation. Instead, she kept glancing over at me with a worried look on her face.

Finally, as we pulled up to the front of the hotel, I addressed the elephant in the car. “There are no words to describe how much I miss her. It’s not something I can explain to you or anyone else. I know you’re trying to help, and I’m grateful, but please let me do this my way.”

Before she could respond, the valet was there. I handed over my keys and hurried around the car to join Sarah. As we walked inside, I noticed a few photographers off to the side snapping pictures, but nothing outside the norm. I knew that wouldn’t last, though. We were early. I wanted to check in with Lily before people started to arrive to make sure everything was as it should be. Given who would be attending tonight, there would be plenty of press both inside and outside the main ballroom. My only hope was that they would pay more attention to the local celebrities than to me. With recent events, I knew it was a longshot, but I was holding out hope.

Once inside the grand ballroom, I found Lily near the caterer’s entrance talking to one of the servers. She took me through the basic setup for the night, including a mock run-through of the PowerPoint presentation on the marketing strategy I was introducing. This wasn’t our first time at this, but it never hurt to double check everything before doing it in front of over five hundred people.

The main feature of the evening was along the back wall where several hundred items, all donated, were awaiting tonight’s silent auction. Assured everything was in place, I went to check on Sarah. While I had been conversing with Lily over details, she’d retreated to the silent auction table.

“See anything you’d like to bid on?”

She laughed. “Sure. Tons. I seriously doubt I’d bid high enough to win any of them, though. I mean, a week at a luxury spa? Season tickets in a Twins box? These are some serious donations.”

“Lily and her team are relentless. Before she came on board, we’d have one or two big ticket items—the rest were things like dinner for two at a fancy restaurant.”

“Wow. I’m impressed.”

“Lily is pretty impressive.”

Sarah leaned in to whisper in my ear, her voice laced with amusement. To the outside observer, I was sure it looked a lot more intimate than what it was. “I was talking about you. I think that’s the most I’ve heard you say about something that wasn’t Brianna since I’ve been here.”

Before I could say anything in return, Sarah grabbed my arm and began pulling me toward the bar. “You still don’t drink, right?”

“Right,” I mumbled, allowing myself to be manhandled.

“Well, right now neither do I, but I need something, so I guess I’ll have to see what the bartender can come up with that doesn’t have any alcohol. Hopefully I can survive the night without the added help.”

“You didn’t have to come, you know.”

She stopped and turned to face me. “Yes I did. I may not always know the right thing to say or do, but I wasn’t about to let you come alone tonight. You know as well as I do there will be reporters all over the place. You need someone to watch your back. That’s what I’m here for.”

Sarah smiled, triumphant.

“You’re here to watch my back?”

“That’s right.” She slipped her arm around mine and resumed moving toward the bar. “Now, let’s find the bartender.”

Sarah hadn’t been wrong. We always invited the press to this event because . . . well, it was good press. Most of the reporters present weren’t looking for gossip, thankfully. They were here to cover one of the biggest charity events in Minneapolis and to support a good cause.

True to her word, Sarah stayed by my side as I mingled through the crowd while the hors d’oeuvres and cocktails were served. Anytime she thought someone—a reporter or otherwise—was being too nosy about my personal life, she’d do something to distract them. One time she even went as far as spilling some of her drink. It missed everything important except the carpet beneath our feet, but it was enough to deflect and give us an excuse to get away. I had to admit, she was good at this. Sarah would have made a good wife in that regard. Too bad neither of us felt that way toward each other.

Halfway through cocktails, my aunt and uncle made their way through the crowd to say hi. “It’s a great turnout tonight.” My aunt leaned in to kiss my cheek.

“It is.” I made sure to keep the smile I’d been wearing all evening plastered on my face. The last thing I needed was the press to get a shot of me scowling at my aunt and turn it into some sort of family feud regarding Sarah.

“It’s good to see you again, Sarah.”

“Likewise, Diane. I’m glad I was able to come with Stephan tonight. The event has grown since the last time I attended.”

“That’s right. You did come with him that one year. How did I forget that?” A slight blush covered Diane’s cheeks.

Sarah chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. That was five years ago. A lot has changed since then.”

My aunt glanced down at Sarah’s growing stomach. “Yes, it has. How have you been feeling?”

Richard wrapped his arm around Diane’s waist and pulled her against his side. “Sweetheart, I’m sure Sarah doesn’t want to talk about that here.”

Diane glanced around and noticed all the potential eavesdroppers. “Oh. I guess you’re right. Maybe I can stop by sometime and we can have lunch?”

Sarah smiled. “Sure. I’d like that.”

A few minutes later, I saw Lily heading in my direction. It was time. “You ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

I said a quick good-bye to my aunt and uncle and turned to Sarah. She was smiling.

“Just do your thing,” she said. “You’ve got this.”

Sarah took her time walking across the room to our table while I turned toward the stage. I wished I had Sarah’s confidence. Lately I was feeling as if I were missing an appendage. It left me unbalanced and lacking the surefire decisiveness I always had.

Squaring my shoulders, I ascended the stairs to the small platform that had been erected, and strolled over to the podium. “Good evening, everyone. I’d like to thank you for coming to The Coleman Foundation’s Fall Gala. If you’d please take your seats, we’ll get through the business part of the evening, and then you can relax and enjoy dinner.”

The rest of my speech was given with as much animation as I could muster. I felt like an actor on a huge stage hoping that no one started throwing rotten tomatoes at me.

When I finished spouting all the figures and statistics I’d memorized, I stepped off to the side of the stage and hit the remote I’d been given earlier by Lily. As if by magic, the lights dimmed and the screen behind the stage illuminated.

Our marketing department had done a wonderful job putting together this year’s presentation. There were pictures of some of the people we’d help over the last year, along with snippets of their story. Everything was set to music. It was very moving.

As the slideshow began winding down, I glanced over at my table where Sarah was sitting. She knew what the foundation did, but I was curious as to her reaction to the video. Before my gaze could zero in on Sarah, however, it was drawn to the opposite side of the stage and to the left. Lily was talking with someone, and she looked rather excited about whatever it was.

At first, I was going to dismiss it, but then I realized the other woman looked familiar. I took a closer look. My eyes widened as I realized it was Jade.

I searched for Cal somewhere nearby, but he was nowhere to be found. During the cocktail hour, I’d scanned the room for them to no avail. Eventually I’d given up, thinking that they’d decided to forego the gala. I had been mistaken.

The two glanced over at me. With the lights off, I couldn’t see their expressions very well, but I could tell they were both smiling. I had no idea what was going on.

When the presentation ended, I briefly took the stage once more. “Thank you all again for coming. Your support and generosity helps to make thousands of lives better. Please enjoy your dinners and the silent auction. Ms. Adams will announce the winners just before midnight.”

Jogging down the steps with purpose, I made a beeline for Lily. Jade had conveniently disappeared.

“Was that Jade?”

“Well hello to you, too.”

“Don’t toy with me, Lily. I’m not in the mood.”

Lily released an exasperated sigh, but the joyous expression never left her face. “She wanted to deliver a message.”

“What message? Why didn’t she just give it to me herself?”

She looked over my shoulder, then back at me. “Not here. Follow me.”

Without a second thought, I followed her.

I figured once we exited the ballroom, away from the noise and interested ears, she would relay the message. To my surprise, she didn’t stop once we were in the foyer. She was also moving fast. So fast that I had to work in order to keep up. “Lily, where are you—”

“You’ll find out in a minute.”

Although I wasn’t in the mood for games, I decided to play along. At least for the moment. The only thing I could think of was that Cal, since I hadn’t seen him in the ballroom, needed to speak to me in private. It was the only thing that made sense.

The elevator doors reopened, and the first thing I saw was Cal and Jade standing at the far end of the hall. “What—”

“Patience.”

It was my turn to sigh. I was trying very hard not to lose my temper.

“It’s about time, Coleman.”

Jade elbowed Cal. “Stop it.”

“What’s going on?”

Cal didn’t move, but Jade did. She slipped a key card into the door and opened it.

Not knowing what was going on, but figuring the sooner I got inside the sooner I would get my answers, I stepped over the threshold and into the room. Three seconds later, I stopped breathing.

Chapter 16

Brianna

“You’re not going to stand there all night, are you?” Lily pushed her way
around Stephan and enveloped me in a hug.

It took me less than a second to react and return her show of affection. I’d missed Lily, too. She’d been my only friend, my only lifeline besides Stephan. We’d talked almost every day before I moved in with Cal. It had been difficult not to pick up the phone and call her these past few months, but I’d had no idea what she thought of me after I left.