The Unintended Fiancé (Captured by Love Book 4) Page 9

  “It is. And extremely worrying. If this allegation doesn’t get fixed immediately, we’re in big trouble.”

  “Well, he can’t defame us just like that, can he?”

  “I don’t know what proof he’s got. If you say you’ve never given Brad anything, then nothing should turn up in the investigations regarding you or JMR. The problem is that our reputation in the marketplace could take a serious beating while this is being resolved.”

  “What do we do now?”

  Roger let out a long, heavy sigh. “I’ve spoken to the board of directors and the HR manager. While this is being investigated, we’re asking that you take some annual leave, Erin. In case news of this gets out, it’s important that we show our clients that they can trust us. Unfortunately, that means you not being around to work on any accounts until we clear your name. I promise we’ll do our very best to get to the bottom of this as quickly as we can.”

  “Roger, that’s...” She didn’t know what to say. She was being asked not to turn up to work because of an alleged wrongdoing. Wouldn’t that make people think she was guilty?

  “I’m sorry, Erin. You are, of course, welcome to speak to legal counsel regarding management’s decision. But under the circumstances, we feel that it’s the best course of action to ensure our other clients don’t get nervous if they get wind of this. Rest assured, though, that we’re behind you in this.”

  She took a deep breath. If she were JMR’s management, she’d make the same decision. “How long do you think the investigations will take?”

  “There’s no way to tell. I have no idea where Delsant got his information from, or what he has to back up his allegations. We have to play it by ear.”

  She stared at Roger, a man who had always supported her in all her years in the company. And she did believe that the whole management team at JMR had got her back, so why not work with them to minimise the potential damage to the firm? “Okay, I’ll take some annual leave.”

  Roger smiled, his relief evident. “Good. Only those who have to know will be told about this. The rest of the staff will be informed that you’ve decided to take some leave, since you’ve accumulated so much. I suggest that’s what you tell everyone.”

  She nodded. Great. Another lie she had to act out. “I’m assuming Brad will be involved in the investigations?” she said.

  “Yes. But, Erin, JMR will be focusing on clearing our name, which includes proving your innocence in this. We might need Brad’s help with that, or we might have to go against Brad, depending on what turns up in the process. This will be a tricky time for you, and I don’t envy you. But you do know that our lawyers would be ruthless towards Brad if it means protecting JMR, don’t you? You understand how it all works, right?”

  “Yes. I can assure you Brad doesn’t have anything to worry about either. He’s as innocent as I am,” she stated confidently.

  “Good. So, today will be your last day before your official leave. I’d rather you work through today. Otherwise there will be more questions. From tomorrow, you don’t turn up until we tell you to, okay?”

  “What if I change my mind and demand to come to work?”

  “That’s up to you. I don’t know at this stage what our legal team would advise us to do if you take that option.”

  “I understand. I’ll let you know if I decide to come back before you want me to.”

  “Okay. Thanks, Erin.”

  She smiled at her kind boss, not missing the sympathy in his eyes. She trusted Roger, so she’d take his suggestion for now. Next thing she had to do was to tell Brad about this.

  Tears sprung to her eyes as she walked out of her boss’s office. Why was someone so intent on destroying Brad’s reputation? It wasn’t fair. Brad was as honourable as they came.

  No question about it, she’d do anything to help him with this. She could only wish she was with him when he heard of this news. He’d be livid.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Brad rubbed his face, unable to believe what Harry had just said over the phone.

  “I’m sorry, Brad,” Harry said. “I tried to tell Delsant that you’re too much of a professional to get involved in underhanded tactics.”

  “Why is he bringing Erin into this? I didn’t even know that Delsant was a client of JMR’s, and I sure as hell haven’t mentioned anything to Erin about our company working on a Delsant project.” This was ridiculous, and his chest was tight from worry about what this new issue might mean for Erin.

  “Anthony said that when he received your proposal for the North Coast project, he couldn’t believe how accurately you were able to conceptualise what he wanted for the innovative team-building area he wanted built. It was clear you knew information that no one else should have known apart from his team and certain people at JMR, including Erin. Apparently, those details were only meant for his chosen designer, not all interested parties. He wanted to keep them under wraps until the unveiling of the finished building for maximum impact against his competitors. And since Erin’s your fiancée, he thinks she’s the obvious candidate for this serious breach of contract and privacy—his words.”

  “But he freaking sent me those details in the mail!” Brad said, his voice raised. “Remember I mentioned them to you when they hit my desk? I said Anthony Delsant just sent me more info on what he wants for the North Coast project and that I had to urgently revise my designs to incorporate them before I submitted my proposal.”

  Harry sighed loudly. “I told him that. He insisted he did no such thing.”

  “Well, someone from this team must have done it. I’ll talk to him. His allegations are baseless.”

  “Good luck.”

  “Thanks, Harry. I’ll see you when I get back.”

  Brad hung up and immediately dialled Anthony Delsant’s office. Unfortunately, the man wasn’t available, and all he could do was leave an urgent message for his client to ring him back.

  How the hell could Anthony claim that he hadn’t sent those extra details to him?

  He cast his mind back to the document, which contained photocopies of rough drawings that Anthony had wanted him to build up on, and wondered if this was another one of Warren’s doings? Surely, the man wouldn’t dare go this far? But if Warren was the mastermind, how had he gotten his hands on those confidential documents?

  He had to get to the bottom of this. Now that Erin was being dragged into the mix, it had become downright insane.

  His phone rang, and a smile involuntarily tugged his lips. Erin. What timing.

  “Hi, gorgeous,” he greeted, a funny kind of feeling hitting him. Damn. Was he already missing her after less than a day?

  “Hi. How was your flight?”

  “Not bad, actually. I got a lot of work done while on the plane. Are you on your lunch break?”

  “Yeah.”

  Something about Erin’s tone put him on alert. “Is something wrong?”

  “How can you tell there’s something wrong?” she asked with a nervous laugh.

  “Your voice says it all, Erin. What is it?” Of course, he already had an idea of what was bothering her.

  “Is Anthony Delsant your client?”

  He shut his eyes. “Yes. And I heard he has complaints about you and me.”

  “Oh, you know already. Well, my boss asked me to go on leave while this is being sorted out.”

  “What? Tell me what they told you.”

  Brad buried his face in his hand as Erin relayed her conversation with her manager that morning. This was more serious than he’d thought. Erin’s reputation and job were now on the line. Fuck Warren Oliver—or whoever was responsible for this damaging allegation. “I’m so sorry, babe,” he said when Erin finished talking.

  “It’s not your fault.”

  “Yes, it is. I bet this is all about damaging my business and reputation. You wouldn’t have been dragged into this if it weren’t for me.”

  “I’m sure everything will be fine once the investigations are over. They couldn�
�t possibly find a thing that would hang the both of us.”

  “True. But in the meantime, your work is being affected. I don’t like that.”

  “Hey, at least I get to go on a break,” Erin said cheerfully. “How about I take you up on your offer to join you there? I haven’t been to Perth in over fifteen years.”

  He brightened up. “Great idea! As I’ve said, I’ll have a bit of downtime in between meetings, so I’ll be able to spend some time with you.”

  “Ooh, Bradley Mead doing touristy things. I’m so glad you won’t be working all hours.”

  “Who said anything about touristy things? I was more thinking about enjoying our hotel room.” Which reminded him, he should get a nicer suite if Erin would be joining him.

  Erin let out a theatrical sigh. “Of course, you want me there just for the sex.”

  Shame hit him square on the face. “No! I was just kidding. We’ll do some touristy stuff too, if that’s what you want.” How could he let Erin think he only saw her as a sex mate? She was more than that. She was... a very good friend.

  “Hey, I wasn’t offended,” she said, laughing. “Why do you think I wanna join you?” she added in a sultry tone.

  His cock jerked. Damn it. She wasn’t here yet. “Better catch that next plane, then, sweetheart,” he said in a low voice.

  Erin giggled. “Tomorrow. I still have to work the whole day today. Anyway, I better get back upstairs. I’ll see you soon.”

  “See ya.”

  He grinned like a loon as he hung up. Seriously, Erin sometimes made him feel like an eager teenager. But he wasn’t complaining.

  *****

  Brad kissed Erin’s hair, then carefully extricated himself from her embrace. She’d fallen asleep while they were watching an action movie he’d been meaning to see for a long time. Not surprising that she was tired. She’d been out and about all day, shopping and visiting museums.

  He picked up the long-stemmed red rose that she’d given him when he’d come back to the hotel. She’d said it was to thank him for the wonderful time she’d been having on this trip. It was so sweet, and he’d been touched. No one had ever given him a flower as a token of gratitude before.

  This past week had been great. He’d managed two to three hours of extended lunchtime break per day to spend with her, and he’d let her take him to wherever she’d wanted to go. That was a first for him. For all intents and purposes, this was a normal working week, and he’d never before spent so much time away from his business. But he supposed he’d never been on a work trip with a... very good friend with whom he loved spending leisure time.

  It was a shame they were going home tomorrow. He would have liked to do more touristy stuff with Erin. He hadn’t done anything like this in ages, and he’d found himself immensely enjoying the change of pace.

  But, at the same time, he was itching to get back to Sydney. Anthony Delsant was refusing to discuss their situation over the phone, insisting on a face-to-face meeting when he was back.

  More worryingly, JMR still didn’t want Erin to turn up to work next week. Apparently, progress had been slow from Anthony holding things up—because Brad wasn’t in Sydney to personally deal with the allegations. Ah, sometimes, he just couldn’t win.

  His phone rang and Erin stirred, but went back to dozing. He smiled, the sight of her being relaxed releasing some of his tension.

  “Hey, bro,” he greeted Rick.

  “Hey. How are things?”

  “Good, thanks. Everything here has gone as expected. What’s up?”

  “I had lunch with my cousins Zach, Jeff and Greg today,” Rick said.

  “Uh-huh,” he responded. Zach, Jeff and Greg Carmichael owned and operated one of the most successful property development companies in Australia. He’d always dreamt of working with the Carmichael Corporation, but the three brothers were loyal to their current business partners. It was hard getting a foot in their door unless they were ready to switch service providers.

  “They mentioned you,” Rick said.

  “Really?” A dash of excitement hit him. One of his main goals was for Mead Commercial and Corporate Designs to be the Carmichael Corporation’s go-to interior design firm, but he wanted to do that on his own merit. So even though Rick—his old schoolmate and future brother-in-law—was a cousin of the famous Carmichaels, he’d never sought Rick’s help in this regard. Still, he couldn’t help this sudden feeling of anticipation.

  “They heard something,” Rick said with a sigh.

  His bubble quickly burst at Rick’s tone. “Let me guess. It’s something to do with me being less than professional in my dealings.”

  “First, I want you to know that I defended you unconditionally,” Rick said. “But what the hell is going on, bro? This isn’t the first time someone’s tried to smear your sterling reputation.”

  “Not quite so sterling now, by the looks of it,” he grumbled. “What did they hear?”

  “That you somehow used your connections to get top-secret details to help you win a contract. Apparently, some people are now questioning your trustworthiness, especially when big companies rely on keeping certain information under wraps to keep their competitive advantage.”

  “Fuck,” he muttered under his breath.

  “I assured my cousins you couldn’t have done such a thing.”

  “What about Erin?” he asked, glancing at her sleeping form.

  “They did hear you got engaged, but I didn’t tell them it’s fake. By the way, you better make sure everyone believes your relationship with Erin is real. Imagine what would happen if news breaks out that you concocted a sham engagement to win the Coyte contract. Your enemies would have a field day twisting that fact against you, and you’ll end up in a worse situation.”

  “I know,” he said, walking to the window and staring at the Perth cityscape. “But what did your cousins think about Erin’s supposed connection with this latest saga?”

  “Erin’s connection? They didn’t mention Erin at all.”

  Relief filled him. At least Erin’s reputation wasn’t being battered out on the streets, like his was.

  “So what’s this connection to Erin?” Rick pressed.

  He told Rick.

  “What? That’s ridiculous, Brad,” Rick said angrily.

  “What’s ridiculous, honey?” Brad heard Lexie say in the background.

  He groaned silently. He and Erin were meaning to tell their family and friends about this when they got back to Sydney. Now his sister would insist on knowing everything right this minute. He waited while Rick updated Lexie on the situation.

  Then Lexie was on the line. “Brad, you have got to do something about this. This can’t keep happening, and this one is particularly serious.”

  “I know, Lex,” he said, running his hand on his face in frustration. “I already have someone investigating this and the other occurrences. But no concrete evidence has yet been uncovered, and I just can’t go around making unproven accusations. That would make me look like a bigger dick.”

  “Hire someone else,” Lexie said. “What about Gavin Redford? Cassie said he’s a really good private detective.”

  “Good idea,” he concurred. “I’ll contact him when we get back home tomorrow.”

  “Great. Can I talk to Erin?”

  “She’s asleep. She was tired from walking around all day, shopping and playing tourist.”

  “I’m awake,” Erin said.

  He turned around and found her sitting on the bed, watching him.

  “I heard that,” Lexie said. “Give her the phone.”

  Rolling his eyes at Lexie’s commanding tone, he went to Erin. He gave her a lingering kiss before handing her the device. He couldn’t help himself. He loved kissing her.

  “I heard that too!” Lexie said with a laugh. “Quit making out for a second, will you?”

  “Tell your bossy friend to leave us alone,” he said to Erin.

  “Okay. But can you make me coffee, please?” Erin as
ked coyly, batting her eyelashes at him.

  “Sure,” he said, giving her another loud smooch before going to do what she’d asked. Erin really was so cute when she tried to flirt with him.

  Damn it, he’d do everything in his power to keep her safe from his enemies. Everything and anything.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  “You have him wrapped around your finger.”

  Erin laughed at the awe in Lexie’s voice. “I do not.”

  “You do! He’s never been like that before.”

  “Like what?” she asked in a low voice, surreptitiously glancing at Brad, who was making his way to the coffee machine in the suite’s dining area. Fortunately, it was far enough away that he couldn’t hear her if she spoke softly. She didn’t particularly want him listening in on this conversation.

  “For starters, he’s never invited a girl on a work trip,” Lexie said. “And you do realise that this is the longest he’s been with one woman, don’t you?”

  “Have you forgotten that the commitment part is fake? You know we have to stick with being a couple for a few more weeks or it will be worse for his reputation.”

  “Is it still fake?” Lexie asked with quiet hope in her voice.

  Her heart fluttered. For her, it had become real. But she didn’t want to admit that to anyone. What was the point, when she didn’t want to worry her friends, or make Brad feel guilty? She’d already been foolish and got him a rose—she shouldn’t do any more stupid things, like confessing her feelings. “Even though we’re currently sleeping together exclusively, it’s still very much a non-committed, no-future kind of relationship,” she answered.

  “And are you still okay that that’s all it is?”

  “Brad constantly reminds me he’s not the settling-down kind,” she said in a light tone. “You know that’s an emotional turn-off for me.”

  “Okay,” Lexie said, sounding dubious. “I’ll have to keep reminding myself that too. Anyway, I can’t believe you’ve gotten entangled with Brad’s problems.”

  “I know,” she said, relieved at the change in topic. As she discussed the situation with Lexie, Brad came back with her coffee. Once again, he placed a peck on her lips before walking out the bedroom.