Page 29 of Forbidden Forward

“This went on for a while; meanwhile, a few new vendors popped up. Royal now had our boss’s ear exclusively, so when more approval requests hit my desk and I questioned them, he smoothed it over. ‘I’ve already talked to him, and he’s good with it.’ One number was especially jarring, but Royal claimed the transaction was confidential before adding that Legal was on it and gave a green light to process it.

“Deep down in my gut, it didn’t feel right, but he always had a plausible explanation, and I wanted to believe him, so against my better judgment, I ignored the warning signs. I gave him the benefit of the doubt instead of digging deeper like I should have.

“The number of transactions shot up, and when I couldn’t ignore my suspicions any longer, I started pushing him for answers.” A painful memory surfaces—one where I demanded he stop glossing over my concerns and tell me what was really going on. It was the first time I’d seen his dark side. Before that, I hadn’t even known he had one. That wasn’t the first secret I discovered Royal Montgomery was keeping from me—including his real name. How on earth could I have missed so many red flags at the same time?

God, I was clueless.

“That’s when he dropped a bombshell on me. He asked me to marry him.” The shift from Darth Vader to Prince Charming had been head-spinning, and for the millionth time, I question how I could miss such a massive warning signal. “We even picked a date and a venue. Later, I realized he’d used the proposal as a distraction, and to his credit, it worked beautifully.” I shake my head at the fool I was. “He never intended to marry me, but it stopped my sniffing around just long enough.” Tears rise in my throat, making it hard to get the words out. “My entire world imploded.”

Chapter 15

Going Up

Colby

Jackie’s voice grows smaller as the story pours from her. She practically curls in on herself, and two reactions collide inside me. First, I want to kill the motherfucker who did this to her. I haven’t heard the end yet, but it’s painfully obvious to see where this leads. Why else would she be living with her brother and driving a Jeep held together with duct tape? This Royal douchebag used her, lied to her, played her for his own selfish gains. Then he let her take a long, hard fall.

Who the fuck does that?

The second emotion I grapple with is the urge to pull her into my lap, lay her head on my shoulder, and band my arms around her. Protect her. Keep her safe. Tell her everything is going to be all right. Which is ridiculous because the damage has been done. But all of me aches to stop the bleeding and make sure hurt never touches her again.

A low growl rumbles inside my chest. “What happened to him?”

A bitter laugh punches from her. “Absolutely nothing. He was a clever conniver, and he left for a different job he never bothered telling me he’d interviewed for—outside the country—before the bomb he planted went off. He broke it off the day after he left—via email—insisting long-distance could never work. Just like that, he disappeared.” She snaps her fingers. “No ‘Good-bye, Jackie.’ No ‘Oh by the way, an auditor is taking a hard look at all those transactions you approved—you know, the ones that went to shell companies owned by yours truly—so you might want to start burying the evidence.’ Not that I would have, but …”

As her voice trails off, her eyes are cast down, and it kills me to see the warm, vibrant woman who interacted with my kids only days ago wilt from shame before my eyes. Though I want to tear things apart, I gentle my voice. “Hey.” She looks up, and her beautiful green eyes glisten with unshed tears.

“You trusted someone you loved. You believed the lies he told you. You also wanted to do a good job for your company, so you stepped outside some boundaries, believing you were doing the right thing. You had no criminal intent.” My body leans forward of its own accord. “You didn’t steal. You didn’t do anything bad except fall for the wrong guy.”

“I did more than fall for the wrong guy, Colby,” she grits out. “I did step outside the boundaries. Those boundaries were very clear, and I did it anyway.”

“What about what he did?” Some of my outrage leaks out.

“Nothing led back to him,” she snaps. “He orchestrated everything like a brilliantly talented conductor. Only my signature was on the documents, and neither my boss nor anyone else could recall giving green lights on any of the transfers. Of course, those were all verbal, so there was nothing in writing I could point to.” She lets out an undignified snort. “In fact, my boss reminded me that we have systems in place for this very reason—systems I helped set up. Oh, and there’s another lie I didn’t uncover until Royal left. My boss never planned to groom Royal for his job. And those supposed lunches? Didn’t happen. Royal made it all up. Our boss didn’t even like him.”

How can I make her see she made a mistake, but it’s not on her? Her ex was the villain, and she was his pawn.

“This Royal guy is a con man,” I say. “There’s a reason con men are good at what they do. They figure out what you want most and play to that. They get you to trust them by becoming that person you imagine.” Her choice of the word “chameleon” hits me then, and ignoring the clutch in my chest, I press ahead. “You nailed it when you described him as a chameleon.”

Do you honestly think I’m like that bastard? is on the tip of my tongue, but I hold it back. This is neither the time nor the place.

She cocks her head. “Roscoe Biotech didn’t care that I was played for a fool. The loss added up to over $175,000! When they found out, they fired my ass. To keep said ass out of jail, I agreed to repay everything he’d stolen. And because the paperwork had my signature on it and Roscoe and I settled quietly, no police report was ever filed.

“As far as the law was concerned, Royal didn’t even exist. The settlement wiped out my savings and investments to the last penny. I couldn’t even make rent. If it hadn’t been for Donny lending me the rest of what I needed to pay the settlement … God, I owe him so much, and I hate that. I’m supposed to be the responsible one.” The dam breaks, and tears spill down her cheeks. “I haven’t even been able to find a job so I can pay him back either. Roscoe Biotech was the only job I ever held, the only reference I can give. I love finance, and I’m good at it—fraudulent transactions aside.” A mocking quality colors her voice before it turns earnest again. “But if I apply for another position in that arena and they contact my previous employer … well, you can imagine how that would go.” She flops back against the armrest.

Holy shit!

My teeth are grinding so hard a jaw muscle locks up. As I scour my brain for words that might make her feel better, she stands up. “I gather by your silence that you agree with my company.” Now her tone is downright icy.

Alarmed that that’s the vibe I give off, I rise too. “I never said that. My being quiet was more about processing what you said.” She already thinks I’m chaos with a capital C, someone unable to control his temper, so I don’t want her seeing me seethe over what this guy did to her. I have no business acting like a pissed-off boyfriend because, while I’m thoroughly pissed-off, I’m no boyfriend.

“You don’t have to make things up. I can see in your face that you’re just as disappointed as Donny in my complete failure in judgment.” Her arms cross over her chest, and her chin inches up defiantly.

She’s making assumptions about me that I don’t like. My anger shifts, and I glare down at her. Her fragrance wreaths my head, knocking me off balance. Hell of an inconvenient time to be distracted by a scent I want to pull deep into my lungs.

“You know me so well you can read my mind?” I scoff instead. “Even I can’t read my mind half the time. Maybe you can tell me what I’m thinking right now.” Damn, she’s short without the heels, and why is it we can have a nice, civil conversation one minute and the next we’re ramming our heads together? Even money says mine’s harder than hers, but I’m not here to prove that point.

Her arms fall to her sides. “It’s been a long day, and I’m tired.”