Page 88 of The Perfect Deception
“No, they never were. I didn’t have friends in high school. I was too smart to fit in. They used me back then to try to pass their classes and they’re using me now to get revenge.”
“Then why are you helping them?”
She met his gaze and refused to cower. “Because in this instance, the truth is more important than anything else. I’m not a part of them, I never was. And I’m not participating in their payback. I’m simply passing along information that you need to hear.”
“What about what I need to hear?”
The voice made her drop her teacup, which shattered in the saucer and spilled tea on the table before dripping onto the Aubusson rug. Mr. Mandel yelled for the maid, but Dina froze, staring at Adam.
He never visited his dad. That was the only benefit she’d seen to meeting at his house. He wasn’t supposed to be here. Her body temperature plummeted before ratcheting up and making her sweat. She opened her mouth, remained silent, and closed it again.
The woman entered with a rag and cleaned up the mess. Adam remained in the doorway, leaning against the jamb, feet and arms crossed. Only the tic of his jaw told Dina he wasn’t as relaxed as he pretended to be.
When all traces of the spilled tea were gone, Mr. Mandel settled back in his chair and focused his gaze on Dina, seeming to ignore Adam. If only it were that easy for her.
“Why?” Mr. Mandel asked.
Dina frowned, trying to keep her focus on him. “Why, what?”
“Why are you giving me this information?”
“Because it’s the truth. Adam didn’t shirk his duties or lie. It wasn’t his fault on either of the accounts. She made it up. And with the proof, you can get him his job back.”
“What’s in it for you?”
The question came from Adam and she had to control her breathing before she answered. “Nothing.”
Mr. Mandel was staring at her like she was a brand new species of insect. She refused to squirm.
“Thank you for bringing this to me,” Mr. Mandel said. “Can I get a copy of these texts?”
“You can have them. I don’t ever want to see them again.” She sent him the screenshots and when he confirmed receipt, she deleted them from her phone. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to go. Thank you for the tea and I’m sorry about the mess.”
As she passed through the doorway, Adam grabbed her arm, but she yanked it away.
“Don’t touch me.”
“Dina.”
Hearing her name on his lips was like a knife through her chest. Without waiting for him to say anything else, she rushed out the door and drove away.
“What the hell did you do?” Adam shouted to his father as he watched Dina leave him—again. Dammit. He’d set this whole thing up so he’d been the one to leave. And now his father had interfered. The familiar hollow feeling filled his chest and bands of pressure squeezed, making him picture an empty bag with a tie around it, slowly squeezing all the air out of it.
“What didIdo?” his father asked. “There you go again, blaming all your problems on everyone but yourself. Why don’t you ask yourself that question?”
His father strode out of his mother’s parlor, into his office and grabbed a bottle of scotch off the sideboard. Adam hated this room almost as much as his mother’s parlor, except he’d enter this one. He followed his father and watched him pour a fingerful into a Glencairn tumbler and toss it back. He could almost feel the burn in his own throat, but he shook his head. He wasn’t drinking. Not until he got answers from his father.
“What was Dina doing here?”
“I believe you overheard at least part of what she said. She told me she had something to tell me.”
“And you just happened to invite her over right before the time you’d told me to arrive?”
“Two birds, one stone.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Adam paced the room, too agitated to sit still.
“It means you need to fix things with Dina and she was going to be here.”