Page 58 of Dangerous Secret

“Always. Now for that good-luck kiss.” He cradled her face with his hands and pressed his lips gently against hers. When he stepped back, he said, “I’ll be looking forward to doing that again soon. You stay safe, too. Don’t let either of the Pressley men catch you alone.”

“I’ll be careful.”

Einstein rubbed against his legs, demanding attention.

“What’s that?” Grayson said, bending over to scratch Einstein’s ears. “She won’t give you any tuna?”

Einstein gave a lengthy answer.

“Well, I wouldn’t put up with that if I were you.” He chuckled as he glanced up at her and winked. “You need to be nicer to my buddy here.”

“Don’t believe a word he says. He’s a little liar. He gets plenty of tuna.” She loved that Grayson had a great sense of fun. Anthony would have never talked to her cat. Actually, he would have never allowed her to have a cat.

Einstein raced down the hall, and before Grayson could leave, her cat returned with his ball and dropped it at Grayson’s feet.

“He wants to play fetch with you.”

“Does he think he’s a dog?” He picked up the ball and threw it, then laughed when Einstein returned with it, dropping it at his feet. “I guess he does.” He threw the ball a few more times before giving her one last kiss. With one last lingering look, he walked out the door, closing it behind him.

She leaned her forehead against the door as a sense of unease crept over her. No, she had to have faith in him. He was trained to deal with men more dangerous than Anthony could ever hope to be, and he had Liam and Cooper watching out for him.

“Maughp,” Einstein said as he stared at the door.

“I didn’t want him to go, either,” she said. “He promised that he’s going to be okay. We’re going to believe that.”

Chapter 27

“Just be yourself and remember that you’re telling the truth,” Grayson told Benny Kaplan. He’d suggested last night when they’d talked that Benny get an appointment at the Mayo Clinic for his wife. Benny had called them this morning and was given a consultation appointment in five weeks. It wouldn’t be a lie that he was taking his wife to the clinic, it just wasn’t this week.

“I got this, boss.”

Benny had started calling him boss as soon as Cooper had introduced them. The man wasn’t anything like what Grayson had expected. He’d visualized someone who was a lesser version of Anthony Pressley, a little arrogant and sleazy, but he was nothing like that. Probably in his forties, he was thin and on the short side with dark brown hair cut short and a craggy face. The feature that Grayson found the most interesting was his kind brown eyes. There was sadness in them, though, and Grayson attributed that to his worry over his wife. Grayson hadn’t expected to like the man, but he did.

“Do you like working for Pressley?” he asked as Benny pulled to a stop in the circular driveway of a house in a gated neighborhood of million-dollar homes. Houses that exuded a sense of opulence and grandeur.

“I’ll be honest, boss. I thought I’d won the lottery when I first landed this job. Mr. Pressley pays me good money. It wasn’t until I’d worked for him a while that I realized he was really paying me to keep my mouth shut. Lately though, I feel like I’m dancing on the edge of a knife. Like if I make one wrong move, I won’t like the consequences. Things are getting weird with these people. I’d quit, but I need the money more than ever now.”

He couldn’t tell Benny that there wasn’t going to be a job waiting for him to return to. He’d have to help the man find something else. When this was over, he’d tell the FBI that they needed to talk to Benny. He was probably a font of information on the family.

As much as Grayson would love to interrogate him now, he didn’t want Benny to start asking questions. The offer of a hundred thousand to let Grayson take his place for a week came with a don’t-ask-why rule. If Benny’s wife hadn’t been sick, he wasn’t sure the man would have jumped on the offer. Benny seemed to have integrity, another reason Grayson liked him.

“I called Mr. Pressley’s secretary this morning and told her I needed a few minutes of his time, so he’s expecting me.” Benny pushed the doorbell.

“Come in, Benny,” a voice said through the Ring camera.

Grayson followed Benny down a hallway, their shoes clicking on the brilliantly white marble floor. He cataloged the layout and the rooms they passed. Heavy furniture filled the living room. Gold and royal blue brocade upholstery, floor-to-ceiling thick gold drapes and a baby grand piano all shouted “Look at me, I’m somebody important.”

He’d have to ask Harlow who played. When he tried to imagine her living in this house… Well, he just couldn’t.Nothing about it was her. They came to a closed mahogany door, and Benny knocked once.

“Enter.”

Grayson braced himself for his first meeting with the man he was going to destroy. He had to get this right and not give Pressley any reason to be suspicious. The walls of the study were rich mahogany like the door, and shelves lined two of the walls with leather-bound books. Most likely just for show and never read. A massive desk sat at the center, meticulously organized, as if every item had its designated place, and behind it sat Pressley.

From the photos he’d studied of the man, Grayson already knew what he’d look like. In person, though, he was…Slickwas the word that came to mind. His black hair was combed straight back with product to keep it perfectly styled. He was clean-shaven and his almost black eyes held no trace of warmth or emotion. He exuded an air of confidence and arrogance. From Harlow, he knew this was a man used to getting what he wanted, no matter the cost.

Pressley’s gaze shot past Benny to Grayson, and his eyes narrowed. “Who’s this, Benny?”

Benny came to a stop in front of the desk. “My cousin, Richie Kaplan. Richie, this is Mr. Pressley.”

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