Page 51 of Innocent Salvation

Snow stepped away from Seb as they spoke at the same time, not wanting his touch to influence anything she did or said next. “Seb, I know you’re worried, but Bás is right. If anyone can draw her out it’s me.”

“Not true, I could draw her out. She’d talk to me, especially if she thought I was here to make trouble for Patrick.”

Snow threw up her hands. “Are you forgetting the damn hit on your thick head?”

“No, hang on. This could work.”

Snow swung her glare to Bás who just glared back, not the least intimidated by her or anyone else. “What the heck?”

“There’s a benefit ball coming up to do with cleaner water and she’s attending. What if we get you and Sebastian on the guest list? She won’t want to make a scene and the security there will be tight. We can get us in as hotel staff as back up.”

“You think she’ll just talk to me?”

“No, but if you slip her a phone with a number to contact you regarding Patrick and your father, she’ll take the bait. I’m sure of it.”

Snow pursed her lips not hating the idea and knowing it probably was her best shot at getting close and finding the answers she desperately needed because so far, all she was collecting was questions. “That could work.”

“It will work. Dominique is a control freak, and she won’t like knowing you’re here without knowing why.”

“When’s the benefit?”

“Two days from now at the Shangri-La Hotel in Paris.”

Snow glanced to Watchdog who was already pulling up the guest list. “Anyone we know attending?”

“Yes, the British Prime Minister and his wife. James Fitzgerald, the Queen’s private secretary, and James Colchester, seventeenth Duke of Crossley and chief legal counsel to our Monarch. Oh, and Liam Hayes and his wife Princess Taamira.”

Snow smiled despite herself. She adored Princess Taamira.

“Jesus, who the hell are you people?” Seb was frowning as he swept his hands through his hair in agitation. He looked a little shocked by it all and she wasn’t surprised. The people they knew and the things they did, didn’t always correspond.

She went to answer but he held up a hand. “Forget I asked. I don’t want to know. I need a minute. Just get me on that list.”

Snow watched Seb leave with worry tinging her belly.

Reaper gripped her shoulder. “It’s a lot to take in, give him a minute.”

Snow nodded and they got to planning the details of this mission because failure was always in the details, and this needed to be a success.

Keeping busy also stopped her from obsessing over the fact that her father was alive. If she allowed her emotions free rein on that right now, she’d fall apart and that wasn’t an option. She needed to deal with the threat to her niece and Sebastian, then figure out how her father’s return from the grave made her feel.

Seb came back half an hour later as they were ironing out the details. He looked angry, stressed, and she didn’t blame him. This was a damn shit show, and she was partly responsible for bringing it to his door.

“Hey, you okay?”

He nodded but instead of holding her as he usually did or touching her in ways she’d grown used to, he kept his distance. Hurt lanced through her but what could she expect? This was her and something always went wrong. Instead of showing him how much his rejection hurt, she pasted a huge smile on her face and got back to work.

As she lay in bed that night waiting to see if Sebastian would come to bed, she brushed away the tears that wouldn’t do her any good. What was it about her that made leaving so easy, that made people want to walk away from her?

Images of her father’s death kept replaying in her mind, the shots, the blood, the anguish she’d felt at his loss, and the anger toward the woman who’d done it. Yet all of it was a lie. He wasn’t dead. Perhaps the whole thing had been a set-up. That was why the benefit was so important, she needed answers or she’d never rest.

The door to the room she was using clicked open and light from the landing sliced through the room briefly before the door closed, revealing Sebastian’s profile. The rustle of clothes being removed made her hold her breath. Her heart raced in a desperate tattoo as she waited to see what he’d do.

The covers lifted, the bed dipping as he lowered his body into it. Snow held perfectly still, her breathing even and deep as if she was sleeping. Relief was sharp, stealing her breath as Sebastian rolled, taking her in his arms and settling her over his body like a blanket, her leg over his hips, her head on his shoulder.

Nestling deeper, she sighed taking in his scent, and the feel of his body making her feel so safe. This man was everything to her and it was scary because if today had shown her anything, it was that if he walked away, she’d be shattered beyond repair.

“I’m sorry, little one.”