Page 85 of Lead Me On
“Why don’t we go out for drinks tonight and toast your good luck?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“You should wear that red lingerie I like so much.”
“Greg, we’re not dating anymore, so I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
He winked. “I’m talking about you making sure the heat stays off your brother.”
Jane stepped back in an effort to avoid shoving him away. “Get out of here, Greg.”
Greg stepped closer. “You don’t get to brush me off, Jane. You don’t get to look outraged. Your whole life is a goddamn lie.” He was close to shouting now and Jane looked frantically over her shoulder.
“Get out of here,” she whispered furiously.
“What, you don’t want your precious Mr. Jennings to know about your past?”
His face was pure ugliness now. She should have expected it. On the rare occasions he’d lost a case, his fury would show itself like that. Fury. Disbelief. Petulance at having been bested in public.
He could be petty, and she didn’t want his pettiness anywhere near Jessie.
Jane took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Greg. Thank you for helping. I mean it. But I can’t meet you for drinks.”
“Can’tis a strong word, and one you’d better reconsider. I’ll let you think about it for a few days…Dynasty.”
It didn’t quite register for a moment. She’d heard that name too many times over the past week.
Dynasty.
No. Oh, no. He knew. That little ratknew.He’d snooped around her past, and oh, my God…
“Yes,” she rasped. “I changed my name. It wasn’t dignified. I hated it. So I’d appreciate it if you’d—”
“Have you ever looked up old classmates online?” he purred.
“What?” Again there was a sweet, welcome moment of blankness over his implication. And then the blast of it hit her.
“The social networking sites make it so easy. Type in the name of a high school. Type in a year. Pages and pages of names pop up. And boy, do people love old gossip.”
The air inside her lungs was rushing to get out. Fighting. Struggling. No matter how hard she gasped, she couldn’t seem to move enough air.
He was going to tell. He would tell his friends, her friends. He would tell Quinn Jennings.Your precious Mr. Jennings,he’d threatened.
Greg would tell Mr. Jennings that Jane Morgan was a lie. He’d reveal that she was really Dynasty Alexis MacKenzie. That she’d taken a new name with the sole purpose of covering up her past. That her father and her stepfather were both convicted felons. That her brother was a thief. He’d probably even bring up Jane’s two citations for underage drinking. And he’d definitely tell him what kind of woman she really was.
Quinn Jennings would feel betrayed. He’d feel lied to. He wouldn’t trust her. She’d no longer be Jane, the perfectionist office manager and partner. She’d be that girl from a family of criminals who was probably embezzling money from the business. That girl who drank and slept around. And what if the police report from Denver turned up?
Lori wouldn’t want Jane in the office, wouldn’t want her so close to Mr. Jennings every day.
Jane finally managed to draw a deep breath into her lungs. Some oxygen leaked into her tumbling brain and calmed her down a little.
Okay, maybe she was overreacting.
She took another deep breath.
Probablyshe was overreacting. Even if Greg found out the very worst things she’d done…would Quinn Jennings hate her? Or was it just fear telling her that?
“You don’t get to end it with me, Jane. I’ll pick you up tomorrow after work,” Greg said. His mouth smirked, but his eyes were cool and grim. “Wear something I’ll like.”
