He collapsed into the chair, dragging her with him so she sprawled across his lap, her legs hanging over the armrest, her head against his shoulder, arms wrapped once more around hisneck.
“I love you,” he murmured against herhair.
A sigh whispered against his neck, then he felt her lips in the same spot. “I love you, too,” she answered, a catch in her voice. They stayed in that position for several minutes, and he thought he’d never felt so content, socomplete.
“I acted like an ass the other night. I’msorry.”
She stirred and her hair tickled his chin. “I wanted to explain, but you wouldn’t let me. I’mnotwild. I’ve just been pretending. Neville stuffed his tongue down my throat before I could get out of the limo.” Jake felt her shudder of revulsion and hoped it was a long time before the groaning Neville got a whiff of anesthetic. “And my dinner date last night was with Walter. He’s found someone new and she told him he has to right all the wrongs of hispast.”
“What?”
Cynthia chuckled. “I think she’s a kind of New Age person. So anyway, that’s thestory.”
“You’re lying,” he said with greatconviction.
“What?” Usually she said “pardon” or “excuse me.” He must have ruffled her feathers but good. Her lips were parted in indignation, an expression of puzzled anger on herface.
“You just said you’re not wild. That, lady, is a lie. You’re the wildest woman I’ve everknown.”
Anger turned to smiling pleasure as a pink blush colored her cheeks. “Really?” She sounded distinctlycomplimented.
He couldn’t resist kissing heragain.
She sighed, and put her head back on his shoulder. For a while they just sat, slumped together in her office chair,content.
After a few minutes, she stirred. “Did you talk to GeorgePercivald?”
Jake sighed heavily. He didn’t want to talk about this, but he respected her right to know. “Yeah. He was pretty upset, but I got the feeling maybe it was a relief. I think he’d known something wasn’t right, but couldn’t bring himself to mistrust his ownstepson.”
“Is he going to be allright?”
“Agnes was withhim.”
Cynthia nodded, understanding everything that meant, so he didn’t have to explain how Agnes had held the elder Percivald’s hand throughout, then quietly gone to make tea. When she came back, Jake could see she’d shed a few tears in the kitchen, but she’d remain strong for her man’s sake, he wascertain.
“He wants to do everything he can to help the investigation. Not that there’s much he can do unless he can convince his stepson, or Ormond, to start talking.” Jake yawned, leaning back and closing his eyes, acknowledging the bone-deep exhaustion. “We should go tobed.”
“I have an idea,” Cynthia informed him in a clear voice that didn’t sound sleepy atall.
“I think I’m too tired.” He opened one eye and gazed down at her exposed breast. “Unless you’re planning to be on top. Then,maybe.”
She chuckled. “It’s not about sex. I didn’t get a chance to tell you, but I found the real set of books. Harrison had hidden a copy. Very incriminating stuff. Neville and his pals will get put away for sure.” She sounded just like a cop, which made himsmile.
Then her words sank in and he sat up straight, so fast he almost ejected her right off his lap onto the floor. “You foundevidence?”
“And a list of names,” she said, smug as anything. “I’m also pretty sure the pension’s being used somehow to launder money. That’s what I was working on when you came in and distracted me. I’m going to check the personnel files more carefullytomorrow.”
“You brought themhome?”
She gave him a look he was getting accustomed to, and he dreaded it. It meant he wasn’t going to like what was coming next. “At the office,tomorrow.”
“Absolutelynot!”
She leaped off his lap and glared. “I’ve thought about this, Jake. I say we keep the company open, send the shipments out, just like nothing’s wrong. Agnes and George and I can keep things going, and if anyone asks, we’ll say Eddie’s off sick and Neville and Ormond had to go away on business. Of course, we’ll replace the packaging sheets with dummies, but I say we follow those shipments and see whathappens.”
Her eyes shone with eagerness. “In the meantime, we start investigating some of the pensioners and track down the other names Harrisonlisted.”
“Butyou—”
