Sealed with a Kiss

CHAPTER TEN

HUNTER AND MOLLY followed Sonya into the family room. He’d brought along a yellow legal pad to take notes and figured he and Molly could compare what they learned later. He wasn’t surprised he was coming to rely on her thoughts and opinions, because she was so closely tied to the outcome of the case. The fact that they worked well together, bouncing ideas off one another, was a bonus. It reminded him of the few times in law school when they’d met up at the library and studied together; he smiled at the recollection. Of course, after last night he had other memories of Molly now.

He’d jolted awake this morning, her scent all over his pillows, the memories of making love to her vivid. Warm and painful all at the same time. Not painful because she’d left him in the middle of the night-that much he’d expected in order to avoid discovery by her family-but because he knew where things stood between them.

They’d had sex. He wanted to believe he’d scratched an itch he’d had for a long time and she was out of his system now, but things with Molly had always been complicated. Though she made him feel more than any woman he’d ever known, he wouldn’t repeat past mistakes. He knew better than to read more into their physical relationship than just sex. They were in close proximity because of her father’s case and they’d both needed a release of sexual tension. That’s all it had been. All it could be.

Even if a part of him wished otherwise.

They seated themselves on the couch. Molly edged her body right beside Hunter’s, her thigh in direct contact with his. Since he’d chosen the spot right beside the armrest, he had nowhere to escape to. She was so close, he broke into a heated sweat, reminders of last night and being buried inside her body overwhelming him.

“How are you holding up?” Molly asked the older woman.

Sonya shrugged. “I don’t sleep much, but I suppose I’m okay.” She adjusted her headband, which would have given her an uptight preppy look if not for the casual sweat clothes she wore.

“I’ll try to make this as brief and painless as possible,” Hunter promised.

She folded her hands in her lap. “I’ll tell you whatever I can.”

“First, walk me through the day and night of the murder, okay?”

“It was a normal day. I had a hair appointment in the morning.” She brushed her fingers through the short strands. “I color my gray,” she said, blushing. “I ran some errands afterward and was home when Seth returned from school. Jessie came with him. They spend a lot of time together as I’m sure Molly told you.” Sonya smiled warmly in Molly’s direction.

Hunter realized the two women shared a genuine affection. Then again, most people Molly met seemed to be drawn to her. “Yes, Molly told me how close Seth and Jessie are,” he said, keeping up with the conversation. “I’m looking forward to meeting him.”

“He’s a good boy. He’s had a hard time. Even before…his father wasn’t the easiest man to live with, but Seth is my pride and joy.” She twisted her hands in her lap, her nerves showing.

Hunter nodded. “I understand,” he said, speaking gently. “Now, back to that day…”

“Right. Seth and Jessie spent the afternoon here. They were doing homework and listening to music. I remember yelling for them to turn it down. I’d volunteered to help do the school directory for the PTA, so that day I was typing lists into the computer.” She gestured toward another room, which Hunter assumed held the family computer. “It was a normal day. Jessie left around five-thirty and Seth and I had dinner alone because Paul was working.”

“And then?”

Her expression turned dark, her eyes dimmed. “Paul came home. He closed himself in his office and I knew better than to bother him. He’d been moody lately.”

Beside him, Molly remained silent but she reached for Hunter’s hand and held on tight. Sensing her nerves, he covered her hand with his free one and waited for Sonya to continue.

“But I started hearing noises from inside the office, like Paul was trashing the place. So I opened the door.” Her eyes glazed over at the memory.

Molly’s hand clenched tighter inside his. “What happened next?” she asked.

“I asked Paul what was wrong and he told me he’d lost everything. I barely understood what he was trying to tell me until he started talking about embezzling money from the business and Frank finding out. Paul just kept yelling that everything was gone.”

Her shoulders shook, but Hunter admired the fact that she remained strong and composed.

Sonya shook her head, her disbelief still obvious. “I lost it. I started yelling back. I told him he’d destroyed our family and our reputation and Seth’s future. I said I’d never forgive him.” Her voice cracked.

“Then what?” Molly leaned forward in her seat, riveted by the story.

But Hunter was focused not so much on Sonya’s words but on her. Had the general told her to reveal her husband’s abuse or counseled her to remain silent?

Her expression had been filled with grief and pain, but suddenly she shifted her gaze as if unable to face Hunter or Molly. “Then Paul hit me,” she whispered. Her hand came up to her cheek, as if the blow were fresh.

Hunter winced.

Molly sucked in a startled breath, which answered one question in Hunter’s mind. She hadn’t known about Paul’s temper.

“I told him we were through. To get the hell out, and he left. He stormed out and that was the last time I saw him again until-” She shook her head and finally buried her face in her hands at the memory of her husband’s murder.

Hunter glanced up to see Molly had left the room, only to return with a glass of water for Sonya. She handed it to her, then took her seat beside Hunter.

“I have a few more questions if you’re up to it,” Hunter said.

She sipped her water. “I’m fine. Go on.”

“The general said you called him to come over.”

Sonya nodded. “I’m embarrassed to admit it, but after Paul left, I fell apart. I’d just discovered we’d lost our money, our savings, my husband had-He’d torn apart his office. I was hysterical.”

Hunter glanced down at his notes, but what he was thinking wasn’t on paper. He debated the wisdom of asking, then decided he wasn’t being paid to be nice or correct in his questioning. Hell, he wasn’t being paid at all, but he was expected to get the general acquitted of all charges.

He had no choice but to delve and pry until he found something that would help his case. “So your husband loses it and the first person you call is Frank? Not a female best friend or neighbor?”

“Hunter!” Beside him, Molly stiffened. “That’s an awful question.”

“Actually, it’s a pretty common-sense question. One a jury might think about. It’s my job to cover all those potential bases.”

“It’s okay,” Sonya said. “As awkward as this sounds, Frank is my best friend.”

“Was Paul also your best friend?”

Molly threw her hands in the air, then rose from her seat. “This is a ridiculous line of questioning.”

“Why? Why is asking if her husband was also her best friend a ridiculous question?” Hunter asked, narrowing his gaze at her over-the-top reaction.

“Because she just admitted he abused her,” Molly hissed.

“Relationships don’t always make sense to the outside world.” Hunter was referring more to Sonya and Frank than to Paul and Sonya. He had no doubt Sonya’s marriage had been in trouble for a long time. He’d only asked her about Paul being her best friend to contrast her relationship with Frank to that of her husband. He turned to Sonya. “It strikes me as odd that you’d turn to Frank and not one of your women friends at a time like this.”

Molly groaned, her frustration with him obvious.

Between Molly’s frustration and Sonya’s silence, Hunter had the sense he was hitting a little too close to home for both families. At first, Hunter had just been asking questions that might or might not come up in the course of a trial. Now he realized he was on to something serious.

“You’re being completely insulting to a woman who just lost her husband.” Molly now stood behind Sonya, defending her.

“And you’re too close to this situation to see things clearly, Counselor.” His goal was to remind Molly she was not just a family member but also a professional who knew the score. Who’d hired him to do his best and that meant leveling anyone who got in the way of him defending his client.

“God, stop arguing over me, please.” Sonya rose to her feet. “There’s a simple explanation. Really there is. I called Frank that night because he’s the only one who knew Paul had hit me before.” Sonya began pacing the floor in front of her chair.

Molly remained silent behind her, not meeting Hunter’s gaze.

Sonya shook her head. “So you see, he was the only one I could call when it happened again.”

But she’d also said he was her best friend, Hunter thought, the words sticking in his head. Very few married men or women would use that term to describe their relationship with a member of the opposite sex that wasn’t their spouse. And until her husband’s murder Sonya had been married. Which begged the question Were Sonya and the general more than friends?

In his first meeting with the general, Hunter had noted that he was protective of Paul’s widow. Could Frank have killed his partner because he’d laid a hand on Sonya again? And what exactly was going on between the two?

“How did Frank react when he found out Paul hit you?” Hunter asked, starting slowly. He didn’t want to risk antagonizing Sonya to the point where she called off the interview.

Hunter wasn’t pleased with Molly’s defensiveness, either. He wondered what exactly she knew about Frank and Sonya’s relationship that he didn’t.

Sonya shrugged. “Frank was upset when he saw the red mark on my face. Just like he was upset that Paul had stolen from him and lost everything they had! But he wasn’t angry enough to kill. Frank doesn’t have it in him to…” Her voice trailed off.

Hunter knew she couldn’t say the general didn’t have it in him to kill, because General Frank Addams was a military man through and through.

He’d served in war.

He’d killed before.

“The army was different,” Sonya said quickly.

Molly chimed in, “I agree.”

Hunter was not about to argue with either woman at the moment. His head was swimming with information and notions he had to sort through.

Just then, Sonya’s phone rang. “Excuse me.” She lifted the receiver. “Hello?” she asked, then listened to the voice on the other end. “Well, hi, yourself.” She smiled, a full-blown, feminine smile before turning away from Hunter and Molly so she could talk more privately. “Yes, yes, I’m still tied up,” Sonya said.

Hunter couldn’t help but overhear and he had no intention of walking away.

“I’m doing the best I can. No, no need to worry, although I appreciate it. Yes, I’ll call you when I’m through.”

Her voice held a warmth people reserved for a person they cared about, Hunter thought.

Her eyes held a glow he’d seen before, during their earlier conversation.

Sonya hung up. “Sorry about that,” she said.

“Was that the general?” Hunter blurted out the thought he hadn’t even realized had been running through his mind.

Sonya blinked. “Well, yes, it was. How did you know?”

Hunter gathered his pen and paper. “Simple, really. You light up when you talk about him. Or to him.”

“I’m so tired,” she said, lowering herself into the nearest chair. “And I can’t lie on a good day, so forget about it now. Yes, Frank and I have a special relationship. We care deeply about each other, but I never-and I mean never-cheated on my husband.”

Hunter’s glance immediately focused on Molly, who hadn’t reacted at all during this part of the interview. Molly, who’d questioned his tactics in order to keep Sonya and her father’s relationship from him. He knew that for certain now, he thought, disappointed in her and in her basic lack of faith in him.

“I’d like your permission to look through Paul’s office,” Hunter said to Sonya. “Maybe I’ll turn up something helpful.”

She nodded. “Of course. I just want to help Frank.”

“I know you do and the best way to do that is to level with me. Always,” he stressed. “Anything I don’t know can come back to bite me. If I know the facts, even if they seem bad, I can work with them. Okay?”

Sonya nodded. “Then there’s one more thing you ought to know. I didn’t bring home pizza for Seth last night, I brought it home for Frank and I.”

“I thought Frank had a meeting.”

Sonya forced herself to meet Hunter’s gaze. “He made it up. We spent the evening together. We just wanted to unwind and have some peace without the family wondering what was going on, so once everyone was out, he dropped me off in the back parking lot of Joe’s, then he picked me up again. We spent the evening at a friend’s house who’s out of town.”

“And his mother picked up the kids from the party?” Hunter asked.

Sonya nodded. “I lied when I saw you and Molly earlier.”

Molly let out a slow exhale.

Hunter ignored her. “I appreciate you telling me,” he said to Sonya. “Now, let’s call it a day as far as questioning goes, okay?”

She nodded again. “Thank you,” she whispered. “You, too, Molly.”

Molly inclined her head. She certainly didn’t look shocked by Sonya’s confession. She’d obviously known or suspected something was going on between them all along. And she’d chosen to keep it to herself.

Damn her.

Time to wrap this up, he thought. He and Molly needed to have a few words alone. “I’m sure I’ll have more questions.”

“Just call me,” Sonya said.

“We will,” Molly replied.

Hunter glanced at the small room off the family room. “I’d like to go to Paul’s office now.”

Sonya wrapped her arms around herself, then nodded. “The police already went through it looking for the gun.”

“Which they didn’t find. When was the last time you saw your husband’s gun?”

She shrugged. “I wouldn’t know. He didn’t take it out much. He just always kept it in a locked drawer in the office. He promised to keep the bullets in a separate place for safety’s sake and I believed he’d put them someplace safe.”

“Okay, then. Thanks.” Hunter inclined his head toward Molly. “Ready?”

“Sure.”

“I’m going out for a while. Would you mind locking the door behind you?” Sonya picked up her purse.

“Of course,” Hunter said.

Sonya left the house, while Molly led Hunter into the office.

She swept her arm around the room. “So where do we start?”

Hunter made certain Sonya had shut the front door behind her before he answered Molly. “How about we start with the goddamn truth?” he bit out. “Sonya and Frank. You knew they had a relationship.”

She shook her head. “Not exactly. I didn’t suspect anything until last night.”

“What exactly happened last night?” He met her gaze, taking in her flushed cheeks and guilty expression.

“Other than the obvious?” She stepped closer, placing a hand against his cheek.

He stepped back, deliberately pushing her away. “Don’t try to change the subject. Which by the way is getting more and more interesting. You suspected something between your father and Sonya last night and instead of telling me, you had sex with me instead?”

“That is not what I did.” Molly’s eyes filled with tears and she angrily brushed them away. “I made love to you.” She met his stare without backing down.

Which, he had to admit, was a pretty amazing sight. Her damp eyes flashed with determined fire, and despite it all, that aroused him. But he wasn’t about to let her off the hook so easily.

“You claim to have made love to me? With a lie between us?” He shook his head, disgusted she’d even try to say something so outrageous.

Molly let out a sigh and shoved her hands into her front jeans pockets. “Look, last night at Joe’s, when I went to the ladies’ room, I saw Sonya from the back window. She was in the parking lot with her pizza. My father pulled up in his Jeep, picked her up and sped away.”

She pursed her lips, a sure sign she was thinking what to say next. He decided to let her figure it out on her own, with no help from him, and he waited.

“I told myself there were any number of reasons he wasn’t at the meeting, and I shrugged it off. Or tried to. And then I played the answering machine at the house and there was one from Jessie, reminding Dad to pick her and Seth up from the party. That’s when I knew, combined with what I’d seen earlier, that Sonya had lied to us and there could only be one reason.” Molly expelled a long breath of air.

“They were involved,” Hunter said.

She nodded. “At least, they had something to hide.”

“So why not tell me?” And that, Hunter thought, was the crux of it. She hadn’t trusted him enough to confide in him.

She rubbed her hands over her face and sighed. “Because I was afraid if you knew my father had lied about where he was last night, then you’d come to the conclusion he’d lie about other, more important things.”

“Like guilt or innocence?” Hunter asked.

“And if you decided he was capable of lying, you wouldn’t be willing to represent him anymore and I couldn’t risk it.” She had deliberately ignored his question, he noted. And her eyes grew wider and more imploring with every word she spoke.

“Once again you didn’t trust me enough to believe I was in this for the long haul.” He shook his head in frustration and walked across the room to look out the window to the front lawn beyond.

“No.” Molly came up behind him. “I trust you. That’s why I came to you in the first place. It’s my father I obviously don’t trust and-”

“Don’t kid yourself,” he said, cutting her off. “You still chose to protect him instead of confiding in me. It makes me wonder what else you’re hiding from me.”

“Nothing. I’m not keeping any other secrets.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “And why should I believe you? How many more times will you lead me to believe one thing, then pull the rug out from under me again? Just forget it, okay? We have work to do.” And he didn’t want to waste any more time on a lost cause.

I made love to you, she’d said. Like hell she had, he thought. There was no making love without trust between them and he ought to be thanking her for the wake-up call.

Hunter headed to Paul’s desk, where he began focusing on the contents of the drawers, forcing Molly to find other things to search in the small room without his guidance.

There was nothing more to say and she seemed to understand because she now glanced around the room, which consisted of wall-to-wall shelving, books, knickknacks and family photos.

Clearly, once the police said it was okay, Sonya had cleaned up the office and replaced the broken things Paul had trashed.

“So what are we looking for exactly?” Molly asked.

“I’m not sure.” Hunter shoved one drawer closed and pulled out another. “I’ll know it when I find it.”

“That’s helpful.” She pulled out books, flipped through the pages and replaced each on the shelf. “I’m thinking we need to figure out what Paul did with the money, right? Because the police don’t know and they don’t seem to care.”

He pored over the papers and bills on the desk. She had a point, but it was a rhetorical one and he chose not to answer.

“The money trail might lead to the real killer…” She continued talking despite his silence.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She’d settled into a chair across the room and was digging through a bowl of matchbooks for clues. Though he wasn’t about to tell her so now, Molly had good instincts. The matches might yield clues to places Paul liked to frequent.

“My mother used to collect matchbooks of all the upscale restaurants she’d been to over the years,” she mused aloud.

Hunter gritted his teeth and resigned himself to listening to her ramble. He knew she hoped to engage him in conversation, anything to let her know he’d put their argument behind him. He wasn’t ready to indulge her.

“When I was younger, I’d take the matchbooks out and imagine myself in my mother’s place.” She closed her eyes and leaned back in the chair, lost in memories. “At first I’d pretend my mother would take me along with her to all these elegant restaurants, hotels and spas, and show me off to her friends. Then later, I’d fantasize about some rich, handsome prince taking me instead.”

She ran her tongue over the lips he’d kissed. Lips that could still entice him, arouse him and frustrate him all at one time.

“But when I got old enough to see my mother for who she really was, I decided either I’d be wealthy enough to pay for the luxury places on my own or I wouldn’t go at all. I wasn’t going to be dependent on men the way my mother had been.” A satisfied smile curved her lips before she opened her eyes and immediately blushed, startled to find him staring.

“Sorry. I got carried away.” She glanced down and began rifling through the matchbooks that had caused the trip into the past.

Seconds before, he’d been hurt and angry. Now he was grateful for the sudden insight. He imagined her as a little girl yearning for her mother’s love, wishing with everything inside her she could be enough for the beautiful woman in the fancy clothes, who cared about her lifestyle more than her daughter. He wanted to hug her and promise nobody would hurt her again, but he still had some lingering resentment.

Hunter cleared his throat and Molly glanced up again. For a brief moment, their gazes met and held. The lies and the lack of trust dissolved in the heat of the attraction and yearning they both still felt. He couldn’t deny how much he wanted her.

He also couldn’t forget how badly she’d just burned him. Again. “You’re nothing like your mother,” he told her.

She treated him to a warm smile.

“But I wouldn’t kid yourself, Molly. You’re not as independent as you’d like to believe.” He gentled his voice but was determined to lay it on the line for her.

Her smile slowly disappeared. “I don’t understand.”

Although it had taken him some time, he’d finally figured her out. Finding her father and being accepted into his family hadn’t changed her as much as she wanted to believe.

Hunter propped his elbow on the desk and leaned forward. “You’re as dependent on your family as your mother is on her men. Every decision you make is dictated by someone else’s reaction. Last year it was your mother’s, now it’s your father’s. You’re so paralyzed by the fear of losing your family’s love and respect that you don’t think about what choices you want to make.” And until she got past her hang-ups, Molly couldn’t have a serious, long-term relationship with any man, whether she realized that fact or not.

Having had his say, he straightened the mess of papers in his hand, then froze as something struck him. “Or maybe it’s me who shouldn’t be kidding myself. Maybe you are making the choices that are most important to you. You kept your father and Sonya’s secret from me because I’m not that prince you spoke about who will come to rescue you. I’m just the two-bit lawyer who is good enough to save your father and your precious family but not good enough for you. ”

“No!” She rose from her seat, toppling the matchbooks onto the floor. Ignoring them, she walked to his side and cupped his face in her hands. “You couldn’t be more wrong,” she said and lowered her lips to his.

And damn, she felt good. But Hunter knew that this kiss was all about proving to him that not only was he good enough for her, but that she wanted and needed him, too. But with her lie, she’d ruined her chance of convincing him of anything.

He pulled her hands away from his face and broke the kiss, ignoring the hurt look in her eyes. “We have work to do,” he said gruffly.

“I’m sorry I lied to you.” She walked away.

He stared at the sway of her hips and the rounded curve of her backside and tried not to groan. She bent down to pick up the matchbooks she’d dropped on the floor. The movement lifted the hem of her short T-shirt, revealing the sweet expanse of skin on her lower back and the thin strap of lace underneath. He bit down on the inside of his cheek and prayed for restraint.

Molly examined each matchbook before tossing it back into the bowl. “I recognize all of these places,” she muttered, obviously frustrated.

He headed back to the desk and started looking through recent credit card bills.

“Wait!”

Her excited voice caught his attention and he glanced up.

“Find something?”

“I think so. All of these were from local places-restaurants and bars around here or at least in Connecticut, but look. This one’s from New Jersey and it’s a motel, not a place to eat.” She tossed the matchbook at him.

He caught it midair and looked it over. The matchbook appeared to be unused and new, no rips, tears or creases in the cover. “It says A.C. Probably Atlantic City.”

She nodded. “That’s what I thought. Could it be the lead we’re looking for?”

He wasn’t about to feed her false hope. “It could be nothing or it could be something. When Sonya gets home, ask her if she’s ever been there, and if she hasn’t, I’ll have Ty run down the lead.” He pocketed the matchbook and scanned the credit card bill for the past few months.

There were no indications Paul Markham had been to Atlantic City or anywhere else in New Jersey for that matter. But the man had been stealing from his partner for a while now. He had to have been an expert at covering his tracks, paying cash and maybe even using an assumed name.

Hunter caught the dejected look on Molly’s face. He understood how badly she wanted to find something that would lead to more information and hopefully free her father.

“I didn’t say it was nothing. I just said we need to look deeper.” He started to reach a hand out to comfort her, then curled his fingertips into a fist and dropped his arm back to his side. Touching her now would be deadly to his self-control.

And he had to be tougher around her now.

She turned away, pretending not to notice his rejection.

But he knew she had and his stomach cramped. “Let’s go back to your father’s and see what we can find out,” he suggested.

“Sounds like a plan.”

He followed her out, wishing like hell she’d confided in him instead of choosing to shut him out by lying to him about Sonya and Frank’s relationship. Not only had she sent him into a witness interview unprepared, she’d shaken the fragile trust they’d begun to develop again.

It was ironic, really. And it would be funny, if he wasn’t so disappointed in her. Molly had lied out of fear that Hunter would no longer trust her father and he’d drop his case as a result.

Her plan had backfired big-time. Because it was now Molly he didn’t trust at all.