Page 55 of Beautiful Life
“I appreciate it. Looks like I owe you big with all this on top of you taking the lead on my embezzlement case with Jude gone. Now you’re calling in favors to other agencies in Florida. Name your poison.”
I’m talking to Mac as I stand in my kitchen looking out toward my backyard into the black of night. Mac is Jude’s cohort at the FBI who’s helping with my case while he and Gabby are on their honeymoon. Who knew I’d need yet another favor from him.
“Not to worry,” Mac chuckles. “Just make it a large bottle of Makers instead of a small one.”
“Done. I’ll wait to hear from you tomorrow. And thanks again.”
“No worries. Later.” We disconnect and I set my phone down on the island and immediately turn to move toward my bedroom.
Once we got home from Leigh’s apartment we ate dinner. Or should I say, I ate dinner. Leigh picked at hers while staring off into space not saying a thing. Her face was void of expression, she was deep in thought and, as much as it killed me, I left her to it. We were just finishing cleaning up from dinner when, like lightening through our strangled silence, my phone dinged with a text.
Leigh jumped. She was wound so fucking tight, it wouldn’t surprise me if she exploded. I pulled in a calming breath so I wouldn’t throw my fucking phone across the fucking room like I wanted to. Then I walked straight to her, grabbed her hand without interrupting our strangled silence, pulled her straight through the family room, bedroom and into my bathroom. I flipped on the taps to the tub, let go of her, and went to my closet to grab my robe.
When I walked out of the closet, she starts, “Tony—”
“Shh.” I cup her jaw with my hand and quiet her with my thumb over her lips. “Take a bath. Relax. I don’t have any bubbles or bath shit, but just lay there and unwind. Gem, you look like you could combust and I don’t like it. I’ll bring you a glass of wine and leave you be. But you have to promise me to try not to think about your sister or your fucking mother until I can look into it.”
“Tony, you can’t—”
I press my thumb over her lips again and pull her closer. “I can and I’m going to. Let me find out what we’re dealing with then you can decide what to do. If there’s anything to do at all. Gem,” I pull her lips up close to mine, “we’ll figure it out and I’ll support whatever you want to do. But let me find out what we’re dealing with first.”
She sighs. Nodding her head in my hand, she whispers, “All right.”
“Okay.” I pull her in for a quick kiss. “I’ll be right back with your wine.”
That was forty-five minutes ago. Since then, I’ve called the police and made reports that Preston has been keeping tabs on Leigh, which directly or indirectly, is a violation of his restraining order. Then I called Paige to give her the day off at the firm tomorrow in exchange for hanging out with Leigh since Leigh doesn’t work tomorrow and I don’t want her anywhere around her mother by herself. Then I called Mac, Jude’s friend and partner at the FBI about Leigh’s sister, Tina, in Florida. Then I put a stop at the liquor store on my mental list of things to do for the largest bottle of Makers Mark I can find. I just might have to buy one for myself as well.
This brings me to now.
I walk into my bedroom and hear the water draining from the tub. I turn the corner to my bathroom where Leigh is standing. She has her back to me with her hair up in a messy knot and wet tendrils of hair falling down her back. She’s pulling my robe around her, slipping it up her arms. I barely catch a glance of her bare ass and milky skin before she pulls it up over her shoulders.
And now I have to fight against getting hard.
I clear my throat and she turns quickly to me while wrapping my robe around the front of her body. She immediately tips her head and glares, giving me her vexed look. I feel the side of my mouth tip in spite of myself because I’ve never seen anything more beautiful than Leigh, naked under my robe after climbing out of my tub.
“You could have knocked,” she spits.
I lean deep against the door jamb to my bathroom and cross my arms. I can’t help it, my grin turns into a large smile. “You slept in my arms naked last night. I’ve had my mouth between your legs, not to mention having you three times. We showered together this morning. Why would I knock now?”
Her back goes ramrod straight as she pulls my robe tight around her and ties the belt with ferocity. “Because it’s polite. And I thought you were an attorney, not an accountant. You sure are keeping track.”
“Yeah, I’m keeping track. And while I’m keeping track, I’ll just say, you’re the first person to use the tub. Did you like it?”
Her vexed look turns surprised, tipping her head to the side. “Really?”
“Yeah,” I answer.
“How long have you lived here?”
“Just shy of a year-and-a-half.”
“And you’ve never used the bathtub?”
“Don’t have a lot of time to take baths, sweetheart.”
“Huh,” she mutters. I can almost see her snapping back to reality. “What did you find out about Tina?”
I sigh. “Leigh, come here.”
