Irrefutable (The Apprehensive Duet Book 2) (31 page)

“In the kitchen,” she replies, her tone even and normal. Doesn’t sound like any kind of meltdown going on.

“I ran into your mom downstairs,” I explain, placing the bag containing breakfast on the counter. “Looked like she was crying. Everything okay?”

Quinn’s body turns to mine and I take in her face. Nothing alarming. No tears. No redness. No sadness or anger. Interesting.

“Yup,” she answers with a shrug. “She wanted to come over here to tell me she’s sorry and leaving my dad. I don’t buy it for a second, but we’ll see.”

“Well, we never got a chance to talk about how you felt about all of this yesterday….”

“I know you’re dying to get inside my head,” she lets out a little chuckle. “I want to move past all this shit. So you have today to ask me all your questions, and by New Year’s, I don’t want to hear about any of this again, except with the team of lawyers who will be cleaning up this mess.”

This is the most unconventional way of dealing with an issue I’ve seen, but then again it’s not every day you see a mess such as this one.

“I don’t want to interrogate you, angel,” I laugh lightly. “I just want to make sure that you’re okay.”

Quinn sets her coffee down and tears open the bag I came in with. “I thought you were heading home then coming back?”

Stepping behind her, I cage her against the coolness of the granite and take the containers from the bag. “I wanted you to have something to eat and I didn’t want to make you wait. Turns out my plan worked just fine.”

I turn away from Quinn and grab some plates from the cabinet at the other end while I hear Quinn rustling through the silverware.

“So why don’t you buy what your mom said?”

“The timing of it all seems too perfect,” she answers quickly. Her voice is calm and steady. “My mom had to know that Hailey was on her way in. I’m guessing as soon as Hailey heard what they needed, they moved. Mom would’ve seen them coming. There’s no way she just decided to stand up to my dad without knowing she has some security. She wouldn’t go against him for anyone, not even for herself, let alone for me.”

Her logic makes sense. I can understand what she sees and how she sees it. Her mother’s timing was convenient. I was listening. There was only about a two-minute window from when Mrs. Taylor went into the office and when Hailey did.

“What are you going to do?”

“I told her if she really means what she says then she needs to prove it,” Quinn says handing me a fork in exchange for a plate. “After that, she told me she was divorcing him and would be getting everything so he won’t have the means to come after me. She also said the company is mine.”

I’m ecstatic to hear she’s finally getting everything she’s worked for. There’s not much I’d put past Quinn’s dad, but I doubt he’d be able to pull something like this off again with no money. “Your dad is going to prison for a long time. How do you feel about that?”

Her beautiful blue eyes never waver from mine as she speaks. “It was me or him, Alex. He was not going to take my life away from me. It’s not my fault he’s insane. It’s not my fault I was born a girl. It’s not my fault my father feels nothing for me. So I’m happy he’s going to jail. I hope some huge lumberjack makes him his bitch in there. I’m not losing a wink of sleep about him. Because he would’ve done the same to me.”

The strength and conviction in her voice make me so fucking proud of her. She’s not having any second thoughts about sending him away. I know it’s still early and this could catch up with her eventually, but for now I’m taking this as a win.

“I’m so happy to hear you say that,” I praise, wrapping my arms around her, trapping her plate between our chests.

“Don’t get me wrong,” she says when I finally release her. “It was scary as fuck…”

“Tell me about it…” I mutter the words low but Quinn still hears them and throws me a pointed look.

“I’d do it again though,” she adds. “There was a point there where I didn’t think it was going to work. My heart felt like it was going to explode inside my chest and I was sweating like a farm animal heading toward the slaughterhouse. But it was all worth it to see the look on his face when he figured out what was happening. He thought he was tough and indestructible sitting there, telling me all about how much smarter he was than me. Joke’s on him now.”

I’m extremely curious to hear the answer to my next question. “What are you going to do now?”

“I’m going to live my life without waiting for the other shoe to drop,” she smiles. “I’m going to build a kick-ass company with an awesome business partner. I’m going to work on me and start my new life with you.”

A large part of me doesn’t see things going as smoothly as that, but Quinn’s positivity is refreshing. It’s been so long since she’s had an ounce of light in her eyes and I see it today. How long it stays there is yet to be determined. We still have to wait to hear from Agent Carter and wrap this whole thing up. But who am I to tell her things probably won’t be that easy? Hopefully I’ll be wrong.

“That’s sounds perfect, angel.”

I STARE AT Hailey in disbelief, afraid if I take my eyes off of her for even a second, she’ll disappear and this will all wind up being a dream.

I could’ve just sworn I heard her say my father took the deal—twenty-five years—offered to him by the District Attorney. A deal which means no trial.

The idea of a trial has had my stomach in knots for the last few days. I didn’t want to have to go through that. Having someone questioning me and my life, looking for ways to show how much of a degenerate my father is. Then having another someone do the same thing but look for things to use against me. And after all that, another group of people would be responsible for deciding whether or not my father is guilty. My future resting on their decision.

Hailey, Jordan, and Alex all reassured me countless times it couldn’t end up that way. The taped confession to multiple crimes was enough and the last thing my father would want was a trial, all the details broadcast to the public. He would cop to some of the crimes in exchange for not being charged with all of them. But I couldn’t let myself believe. Nothing is ever what it seems with my dad. I’m still having trouble digesting what she just told me.

“Twenty-five years?” I ask making sure I heard her right. “And no trial?”

“Yep, twenty-five,” Hailey nods with a huge smile. “And no trial. The deal was too sweet to pass up. With the embezzlement and various kinds of fraud he committed he could’ve been looking at a whole different number…”

Everything around me goes silent. I see Hailey’s lips moving, but I can’t hear anything over the blood whooshing through my ears. My heartbeat is through the roof and I can’t feel any part of my body. My father is going to jail. This whole mess is finally over. We actually did it. I get to have my life back.

We fucking did it.

Feeling starts to return to my limbs and my lips begin to curl up into an elated grin. A calm washes over me, something I haven’t felt in a long time. God, I fucking miss this feeling.

“Holy shit!” Alex gasps.

It seems too good to be true, but I know it isn’t. My eyes dart back and forth between the two of them and say the words out loud. “It’s finally over!”

“It is,” Alex smiles brightly.

“And the company transfers directly to you since you’ve been cleared of all charges,” Hailey adds. I already knew this part. Once they had my father in custody and it became clear I didn’t personally wire the funds to the offshore bank account, charges against me were dropped as soon as I signed the paperwork allowing the money to be returned to the people and places my father took it from.

Everything I’ve ever wanted. I’ve got it. It’s mine. I am the president of Taylor Ventures.

“Holy fuck!”

“You can start the New Year off with the weight completely gone from your life,” Hailey says with a very sincere smile.

She’s right.

This is the best way to ring in the New Year. I look from Hailey to Alex and can’t deny this is going to be the year of good things for me.

“CHEERS,” ALEX SAYS raising his glass to mine. The smile on his face is breathtaking. He’s been so concerned about me through this whole thing and it’s nice to see the old carefree Alex coming back.

After leaving Hailey’s office downtown, Alex insisted we stop for a celebratory shot. We dipped into the first place we saw and sauntered up to the bar.

“Cheers,” I salute my glass back and we down the contents.

With the clink of the glasses, it feels like we are putting this whole fucked up mess behind us. My shoulders feel lighter and my world brighter. I’ve finally reached the elusive light at the end of my tunnel of misery.

There’s no more being under my father’s thumb or his constant scrutiny. It’s time for me to forge my own path with my own visions. I can finally start being the woman I’d always hoped to grow up to be.

This feeling is a rush. Better than any drug I ever tried in college. But just as addictive.

“What has you so dreamy eyed over there?” Alex’s husky voice breaks through my haze.

My eyes can’t help but stare at the male perfection sitting across from me. The journey I’m about to take with him has me excited as well.

His sandy light brown hair is pulled up into a bun, the thin blonde highlights underneath shining through pissing me off because I have to pay to get those same highlights every six weeks and they don’t look nearly as good as his natural ones. It’s just not fair.

The white button-down shirt he’s wearing looks like a second skin. I can see every contour of the muscles in his arms and chest. His sleeves are rolled up midway up his forearms showing the exact right amount of arm porn. There’s just something about a man’s forearms that’s hot.

His mostly green, hazel eyes twinkle with laughter as I drag my attention back to his chiseled face.

“The future,” I finally reply to his question.

Mentioning the future ignites something inside Alex because his eyes hood and his voice drops down, “What does the future look like?”

“Full of success and happiness.”

He switches gears completely when he asks, “What’s the next step for you and Jordan, business wise?”

“Well, now that everything has wrapped up with Dad, we have to start releasing statements telling the public that all the money has been recovered and returned to the proper place. The PR department decided we need to launch a whole new campaign right off the bat letting the finance world know that Taylor Ventures and City Capital will now become New Capital Ventures.”

Neither Jordan nor I wanted to keep the current names of the individual companies for the new one we’re building together, but Jordan didn’t want to let go completely of the name his father built. So we decided on New Capital Ventures. We brought over a piece from each name and made it our own.

“Sounds like the two of you have a lot of work on your hands,” Alex says. “But based off your excitement, I can tell you’re ready to conquer the world.”

“It’s a new dawn.”

Alex signals the bartender then flashes me a sly grin, “Well, then I better get you home and take advantage of your hot little body before you have no energy left for me. You know, with all the kicking ass and taking names you’re about to do.”