Page 56 of Reunion With Benefits

“But not forever.” Spence pointed at the photos. “You wore that suit to work not too long ago. That restaurant is new. This is a recent meeting.”

The accusation hung right there. There was nothing subtle about what Spence was saying. But he wasn’t wrong, either. Denying the reality would only make things worse. Plus, she wanted to be honest.

She never intended to hide and sneak around with Jeff. He made that happen and she got pulled in. She’d take responsibility for not going to Derrick about the contacts, but the rest of this was a battle that wasn’t even about her.

“He recently sent me a note demanding that we meet again. It had been months, so the contact didn’t make sense. I ignored him again, but he was persistent. A bit threatening.”

Carter slipped off the desk to stand again. “What?”

She rushed to explain. “Not physically. I never felt that.”

“He cornered you at the engagement party.” Spence exhaled. “You two were on the balcony.”

She wasn’t sure what the extra fact added. Spence’s voice, his expression...he didn’t give anything away. Doubts and concerns had to be spinning around inside him but he kept them all bottled up. Like the old Spence, he projected an outward calm while the storm raged.

That terrified her. Repressing could only mean bad things for them, for their future.

“He made it clear that our meeting would happen. Rather than fight it, I gave in.” Her gaze traveled over them as she rubbed her hands together. Her skin was deathly cold. “Because I knew whatever he said wouldn’t matter. I was never going to give him those secrets or work for him.”

“What exactly did he want?” Derrick asked as he picked up his pen then put it down again.

“He didn’t give specifics. He had an envelope for me but I refused to take it. I didn’t even touch it because the whole meeting, the setup and nasty words, clearly were about wanting to get at Derrick and the company, and have an advantage in bidding. About winning contracts away from us.” She added the emphasis to telegraph that they were in this together. Her loyalty stayed firmly with this company. Always. Even if she left, she’d never endanger what they’d built here.

“He’s got a thing about Derrick.” Carter shot his older brother an odd look. “You are going to have to confront him eventually.”

Derrick nodded but didn’t say anything.

“These photos.” Spence fingered each one. “They look—”

“Staged.” That was the right answer. She filled in the blank because if he suggested any other option she would lose it.

Her control hovered right on the edge. She wanted to open her mouth and yell at them. Surely they could see she’d been set up.

Spence nodded but his focus stayed on the photos. He paged through them one by one. Got to the last one then went back again. With every swipe of his hand, her fury built. It raced through her, fueling her.

“Clearly he had a photographer waiting.” Anger vibrated in her voice.

Both Carter and Derrick watched her. Whatever they heard or saw had them both staring. Neither looked upset. It was more like they were analyzing her, testing her mood. Well, they didn’t need to guess because she had every intention of unloading right now.

She slapped her hand over the photos, forcing Spence to look at her. “I have zero interest in Jeff and his bargains.”

Spence nodded. “Okay.”

Okay?“I said no because of you.” She looked around at Carter and Derrick, too. “Because of all of you. Because I love this job, and I’m starting to love this family. And because being disloyal is not who I am. I can’t believe I have to explain that to you.”

Carter shook his head. “You don’t.”

For some reason that sent her temper flaring. “You believed the photos. When I walked in here, you thought I cheated on Spence or screwed over the company. Something.”

“I read a note and saw some photos.”

“And blamed me.”

“Okay, hold it.” Derrick held up both hands. “No one thinks you did anything. We wanted an explanation. It’s clear this is Jeff being Jeff. I’m just sorry you got dragged into the middle of my garbage.”

Her heartbeat still drummed in her ears. She wanted to believe that they saw the truth immediately. The rational part of her brain recognized that they had to go into this conversation wary and ask questions. But she was so tired of fighting. “I would never betray you.”

Spence looked at her then. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

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