Samantha Whitemore.” He said. “They live in New York. We could go there together...”
“No! I’m not going there. Please Derek, promise me that you’ll let me sort this out. I at least need a few days to let this absorb. It’s too much! I’m not going to make any rash decisions based on speculation and coincidence. I don’t operate that way. I need you to promise me that you won’t say anything to them.”
Derek looked reluctant, to say the least. But at last he said, “I promise you Chloe. I won’t tell them...for now. But I’m going to try and figure this out too, on my end. These people mean a great deal to me. If their daughter is still alive, they deserve to know. I also hope that you’ll let me help you. Please, don’t shut me out.”
Chloe didn’t say anything to that. Instead she said, “Will you take me home?”
Chapter 3
––––––––
D erek pulled up in front of Chloe’s condo. She hadn’t said a word the entire ride. She stared out the window and kept her body as far away from his as possible. Even if he hadn’t seen her scars last night, he would have known that she was wounded. Now that he had seen them, he wanted to track down whoever or whatever had done that to her and kill them with his bare hands. As soon as they drove up, she grabbed for the door handle with a look of relief on her face. He hated that she was so wary of him. Last night he seemed to make strides, breaking down the walls she had so carefully constructed. This morning they were back up and they were thicker than ever.
“Will you call me?” he asked her.
She was already out of the car. “Probably not,” she said before closing the door. He sat there and watched her go inside, fighting the urge to go after her. She was so skittish right now though and he knew that would only further alienate her. He finally put the little sports car in gear and headed for the Interstate. He needed to talk to his in-laws. He briefly considered taking the helicopter but he quickly realized that he needed some time himself to get his thoughts in order. He promised Chloe he wouldn’t say anything about her and he intended to keep that promise. So, he needed to find a way to ask questions without including her in the reason why.
As Derek drove he replayed what he knew about Sarah’s parents and her twin through his head. His thoughts went back to his first meeting with them. Trevor owned a real estate firm in Manhattan. He dealt in high end real estate and Derek had a client he’d sold business property to who was looking to re-locate from Rhode Island to Manhattan. The client had very detailed ideas about what he was looking for and very specific tastes. He’d had a falling out with more than one agent in New York and couldn’t seem to find one that was willing to go the extra mile for him the way that Derek was with his business investments. He was Derek’s most lucrative client at the time and in order to foster a closer business relationship, Derek had taken on the task himself of finding the best real estate agent in New York to work with him. The client had very detailed ideas about what he was looking for and very specific tastes.
Derek had hired people to gather detailed data on every real estate firm in the city. Once he had that information, he had them gather specific data on every executive with the firms that had come in first. What he was left with in the end was the name of someone who for whatever reason didn’t ring any bells on the social end of the spectrum...but on the real estate end, Derek couldn’t find a single dissatisfied client or a single hint of a shady deal anywhere in the man’s thirty year history of being licensed in the state. The man’s name was Trevor Whitemore and Derek arranged a dinner meeting with him and his wife who was his business partner.
They’d met him at a posh upscale restaurant in Manhattan and almost as soon as they said hello, Derek had a good feeling about
“No! I’m not going there. Please Derek, promise me that you’ll let me sort this out. I at least need a few days to let this absorb. It’s too much! I’m not going to make any rash decisions based on speculation and coincidence. I don’t operate that way. I need you to promise me that you won’t say anything to them.”
Derek looked reluctant, to say the least. But at last he said, “I promise you Chloe. I won’t tell them...for now. But I’m going to try and figure this out too, on my end. These people mean a great deal to me. If their daughter is still alive, they deserve to know. I also hope that you’ll let me help you. Please, don’t shut me out.”
Chloe didn’t say anything to that. Instead she said, “Will you take me home?”
Chapter 3
––––––––
D erek pulled up in front of Chloe’s condo. She hadn’t said a word the entire ride. She stared out the window and kept her body as far away from his as possible. Even if he hadn’t seen her scars last night, he would have known that she was wounded. Now that he had seen them, he wanted to track down whoever or whatever had done that to her and kill them with his bare hands. As soon as they drove up, she grabbed for the door handle with a look of relief on her face. He hated that she was so wary of him. Last night he seemed to make strides, breaking down the walls she had so carefully constructed. This morning they were back up and they were thicker than ever.
“Will you call me?” he asked her.
She was already out of the car. “Probably not,” she said before closing the door. He sat there and watched her go inside, fighting the urge to go after her. She was so skittish right now though and he knew that would only further alienate her. He finally put the little sports car in gear and headed for the Interstate. He needed to talk to his in-laws. He briefly considered taking the helicopter but he quickly realized that he needed some time himself to get his thoughts in order. He promised Chloe he wouldn’t say anything about her and he intended to keep that promise. So, he needed to find a way to ask questions without including her in the reason why.
As Derek drove he replayed what he knew about Sarah’s parents and her twin through his head. His thoughts went back to his first meeting with them. Trevor owned a real estate firm in Manhattan. He dealt in high end real estate and Derek had a client he’d sold business property to who was looking to re-locate from Rhode Island to Manhattan. The client had very detailed ideas about what he was looking for and very specific tastes. He’d had a falling out with more than one agent in New York and couldn’t seem to find one that was willing to go the extra mile for him the way that Derek was with his business investments. He was Derek’s most lucrative client at the time and in order to foster a closer business relationship, Derek had taken on the task himself of finding the best real estate agent in New York to work with him. The client had very detailed ideas about what he was looking for and very specific tastes.
Derek had hired people to gather detailed data on every real estate firm in the city. Once he had that information, he had them gather specific data on every executive with the firms that had come in first. What he was left with in the end was the name of someone who for whatever reason didn’t ring any bells on the social end of the spectrum...but on the real estate end, Derek couldn’t find a single dissatisfied client or a single hint of a shady deal anywhere in the man’s thirty year history of being licensed in the state. The man’s name was Trevor Whitemore and Derek arranged a dinner meeting with him and his wife who was his business partner.
They’d met him at a posh upscale restaurant in Manhattan and almost as soon as they said hello, Derek had a good feeling about
Similar Books
All the Tea in China
Jane Orcutt
Into the Blue (A Wild Aces Romance)
Chanel Cleeton
Lula Does the Hula
Samantha Mackintosh
Still Water
Stuart Harrison
Mating in Captivity
Esther Perel
Gabriel
Naima Simone
In the Way
Grace Livingston Hill
Finally My Forever
Brooke St. James
Blind Faith
Christiane Heggan
Violet (Suitors of Seattle Book 7)
Kirsten Osbourne