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He grabbed my hand in a tight hold.
“I’ve heard a lot about you from my son,” he said, keeping my hand in his hold. “You’re not disappointing at all.”
I gave a small smile to be polite.
Stepping closer, he leaned in, as if he was sharing a secret with me. “You’re a master manipulator, aren’t you? You’ve got beauty and brains. Good thing you know how to use both.”
I tried snatching my hand out of his grip but he held on.
“We can be good friends if you want,” he whispered in my ear and gave the shell a little lick.
A cold shudder ran through me.
Bill stepped away as I struggled to get over my disgust. I couldn’t believe a man like him would do that without a hint of embarrassment or fear. Just how entitled did he feel to think it was alright to touch me in such an abhorrent manner?
Stay calm, I reminded myself despite the hot rage flaring through me.
Grabbing two flutes of champagne from a passing valet, I handed them to Bill and Luke. “Please, enjoy your evening,” I bit out before turning away from the pair.
My gaze searched for an escape among the strangers crowding the hall. I needed a moment to get over the fury and indignation coursing through me before talking to anyone.
My gaze finally landed on a tapestry on the far side of the room. A vividly-painted mountain scenery was portrayed on it.
An old memory jolted me into recognizing the painting. It was the same one that concealed a nook in the wall where Corey and Caleb hid me during a party back in college.
Picking up my skirt, I hurried toward it.
There was no one in this lone corner of the room, allowing me to slip behind the tapestry without anyone noticing me.
At once, the music and the loud chatter of the crowd dulled. Relief spread through me as my eyes adjusted to the shadowy interiors.
“I’m glad you remember this place,” said a familiar voice.
Glancing toward the couch, I spotted a lone figure.
“How could I ever forget?” I said, sinking onto an ottoman. “You guys got me naked and all of a sudden, we were having sex.”
Caleb chuckled. “Did you enjoy yourself?” he asked after a while.
“Yeah,” I confessed. “But Noah ended up ruining the rest of the evening.”
“We had no idea he’d do that,” he said in a grim tone. “Corey and I fought with him before heading out to grab you from Luke’s house. We didn’t want him taking advantage of you when you were in such a vulnerable state. He’s not someone you can trust.”
“Why are you so wary of him?”
“Do you remember the accident where Corey was almost blown up with his bike?”
I gave a nod. “I met you guys for the first time.”
“Luke was responsible for that.”
“What?”
Caleb gave a grim nod. “It’s not like we had any personal grudges between ourselves. His sole aim was to cause chaos in our family so that Amhurst Co. would take a hit. Killing one of us seemed like a good idea to him.”
“Why didn’t you guys report him?”
“There was no concrete evidence against him.” Caleb fixed me with a grim look. “It was also the condition we agreed to so he’d let us take you away that night.”
