Page 40 of Catch Him
“What?”
There was no point in trying to hide what happened. “It’s gone. The bastard broke into my house and stole it while I was in Shanghai.”
Calm, nonplussed, always in control. His father was always predictable like that. “That is a problem. You understand what’s at stake? I’ve already made the necessary communications.”
Garrett absolutely knew what was at stake. It pissed him off that he was even involved in something this big. All he’d wanted was his damn wife back. His father, as he often did, took it to the next level.
“We have to call it off. All of it.”
“It’s far too late for that,” his father said calmly. “These people are not the type to take disappointment lightly. You need to get it back.”
“How the fuck am I going to do that? You know what I’m up against.”
Another pause. “That, my son, is your problem to solve. But you will solve it. Otherwise you will suffer the consequences. If not from them, then from me. It’s my reputation at stake, after all. Fix this.”
His father ended the call and Garrett stood in his basement, wondering what the hell he was supposed to do now.
* * *
Sinead walkedthrough the gate toward the courtyard at Shady Oaks. She glanced at the empty pool, but she wouldn’t let herself think about it. Think about how she saw it only last night.
Last night was gone. From this moment forward she lived in today’s world.
She’d been suspended. Of course. She’d allowed a personal relationship to compromise her professional judgment. Although technically the personal relationship came after he conned her into believing he belonged in the house.
That was what she struggled with the most. She got the play. Hot guy, sweet accent, flirty funny manner. Certainly not a threat. Not a burglar. Work the naïve female cop and get her to call the security company rather than take him to the police station.
Logically Sinead understood what he had done. What she couldn’t understand was why he’d asked for her number. Why he’d dated her. She would have left that night without looking back. There was no reason to play the long con with her. It gained him nothing, unless he thought there would be a problem with the alarm company again.
Of course it occurred to her only now, that he never had re-engaged it. Anytime they came home after a date they’d usually been desperate to get their clothes off. Sinead had never registered that he hadn’t stopped and taken the time to key the security code. Nope, he would just unlock the door and the only thing on her mind would be how he was going to make her feel.
Stupid. Oblivious. Addicted.
Played.
Each step up to the second floor felt weighted. Like she’d gained a hundred pounds and aged a hundred years. She felt sucked dry even though she hadn’t once shed a tear.
She hadn’t cried a lot when her mom died either. She’d thought it would make her dad less sad if she didn’t. That hadn’t worked.
When she opened the door he was sitting in his usual spot. This time there was a baseball game on the TV.
She’d watched baseball with David. He’d purposefully picked seats away from everyone so he could kiss her.
Why had he done that?
“You look like shit.”
She turned toward him and wondered if there had ever been a time, before her mom died, that her father had hugged her close. Kissed her boo-boos. Made a bad dream go away. Checked under her bed for monsters.
He must have. What father wouldn’t do that for his little girl?
“Did you ever love me?” she asked him.
“What?”
“When I was a little girl, did you love me?”
“What the fuck…”
