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T he idea to take her out of the office where she was uncomfortable had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, made when she took in the view from the window with longing in her eyes. Grayson likened handling Harlow Pressley to that of gentling an abused animal.

He still wasn’t sure he was willing to put The Phoenix Three in the middle of a custody dispute, but he was coming around to the idea that hers wasn’t a typical he said/she said case. From her wary eyes and the way she’d flinched a few times, she’d been the victim of her husband’s abuse. That was his impression at this point, but he could be jumping to conclusions and she was just a good actress. If he was right, he was going to love teaching her ex a thing or two.

“So,” he said after they’d walked along the shore for a few minutes. “Tell me your story.” Her steps faltered, and she lowered her gaze to the water. If he was reading her right, she was debating what and how much to tell him. “You need to not only be honest with me but to tell me everything. I can’t help you if you don’t.”

“I know. It’s just that I’m embarrassed by what I let him turn me into. It’s hard to admit that I didn’t leave when I should have. The me you see here now isn’t the me I once was.”

“Would it be easier if I just asked you questions I need answers to?”

“Yes, I think it would be.”

“How long were you married?”

“Six and a half years. Six years longer than I wanted to be.” She kicked at the water as if she were angry at it.

“I assume you stayed because of your son?”

“Yes. I found out I was pregnant when we’d been married for six months. I was going to leave him and file for divorce, but that changed everything.” She sighed. “The thing I want you to understand is that I loved my husband. Well, I loved the man he pretended to be when we were dating and for the first month of our marriage. He was all that a woman wanted in a man. Kind, thoughtful, loving. Then a few weeks after our wedding, the real Anthony began to make an appearance. Suddenly, I couldn’t do anything right. I dressed to entice other men’s attention. I said stupid things that embarrassed him. I wasn’t attentive enough to him. It started as mild criticisms disguised as loving suggestions on how I could be a better wife. He had a way of making me believe I was in the wrong and I’d apologize. Over and over.”

“And you tried to be that better wife, I’m guessing.”

“I tried so hard, but in doing so, I lost me.”

One of his cousins had been involved with a man who’d been controlling and mentally abusive. He’d watched the light fade in Leah Ann’s eyes during the year she’d been with the asshole. Fortunately, she wised up before marrying the man. He’d never understood why she stayed as long as she had, and he’d asked her that very question after she left him.

“You have to understand,” she’d said. “With a master manipulator like that, it starts with little things. And you think, I love him, and I want to please him, so you try to be what he wants. As the digs and criticisms grow harsher, you begin to believe that he’s right, that you’re the problem, so you try even harder. Somewhere in there, you lose yourself, which was his goal all along. You can’t leave him because he has you believing that you’re not strong enough to make it on your own.”

“But you did, and I thank God for it. Did you just wake up one day and realize you couldn’t go on like that anymore?” he asked.

“Pretty much. One morning, I looked in the mirror and wondered who that sad, beaten-down woman looking back at me was. That was the moment I knew I had to leave. Honestly, it would have been easier, and I would have left sooner if he’d physically abused me. I never would have put up with that. But his mental abuse was subtle, and men like that have the ability to make you believe it’s you, not them.”

Grayson thought about that conversation with his cousin before asking Harlow his next question. “What finally motivated you to leave him?”

“The day I walked in on him kissing Tyler’s nanny. Tyler was sitting on the floor at their feet, playing with his toys while they were sucking face. I fired her on the spot, and they looked at each other and laughed. He said, ‘This is what happens when my wife is a cold fish.’ He was right about the cold fish part. By that time in our marriage, I couldn’t stand for him to touch me.”

“Good God.” The man wasn’t just a manipulator, he was downright cruel. “Whether you were or weren’t, there is no excuse for him to carry on an affair in your home, and especially no excuse for kissing another woman in front of his son. Or kissing another woman anywhere while he’s married. Tell me that’s when you left.”

“Not that minute. I waited until he left that night to go see his mistress.” She chuckled, but it sounded off, like a sarcastic chuckle. “Yeah, he’s had several mistresses over the years. After he left to go see her, I packed up some things for myself and Tyler. I checked us into a hotel. The next day, I saw a lawyer to file for divorce.”

“How did your ex-husband come to have full custody?”

“Because his family owns the town.”

“Explain.”

“The judge, the police chief, literally anyone Anthony can use to his benefit is in his back pocket.”

If that was true, things were going to get interesting. “I have to ask. Is it so bad that your ex has custody? You get visitation, right?” Just because Pressley was a bad husband didn’t mean he was a bad father.

“Anthony couldn’t care less about Tyler at the age he is now. He never spends time with him. The only reason he hired a nanny was because he didn’t like me giving attention to Tyler and not him. He sees Tyler as a nuisance until he’s old enough to begin his training as the heir. He’ll teach our son to be just like him, and I can’t allow that.” She lifted pleading eyes to his. “I just can’t. Please help me.”

As much as he wanted to promise he would, he couldn’t. Not yet. “That’s all the questions I have for now. Before I can agree to take this further, I have to do some background research.” She was emotionally exhausted. He had more questions, but they could wait.

“But you’ll help me?”

“If everything you’ve told me checks out, yes. You should know that I’ll not only investigate your ex and the Pressley family, I’ll look into you, too.”

“Okay. I have nothing to hide.”

He hoped not. “If you can without being obvious, record your conversations with him.”

“That’s a good idea.”

“I have them occasionally.” He smiled, and as he’d intended, she smiled back.

* * *

Later that evening, he was still in the office when Cooper came in. “Thought you’d be out surfing.”

Grayson rolled his eyes. “Dude, it’s dark out there. Can’t see the sharks.”

“Since when is a big, bad SEAL afraid of a fishy?” Cooper dropped into the chair across from Grayson’s desk.

“Since that fishy has big, bad teeth. You never saw Jaws , did you?”

“That one scared the shi—”

“Did I miss the memo that we had a meeting tonight?” Liam said, walking in, then lowering himself onto the chair next to Cooper’s.

Grayson leaned back and grinned at his not-by-blood brothers. “Nah, Cooper’s just trying to give me a hard time.”

“About what?” Liam elbowed Cooper. “Tell me so I can join in.”

“Grayson’s afraid of sharks.”

“Didn’t you see Jaws , man?” Liam said. “Sharks are about as badass as it gets. I’m with Gray on this one.”

“Yes, but we aren’t scary SEALs. Aren’t you dudes supposed to be afraid of nothing?”

“I’m afraid of being a midnight shark snack,” Grayson said. “There, I said it.”

His brothers laughed. “Good to know you’re human,” Liam said. “You had an appointment today, right? How’d it go?”

“Not like I expected.” He told them about Harlow. “I’ve been looking into the family. No one is that perfect. It’s almost like no one dares to say a bad word about the Pressleys.”

“Maybe they are perfect,” Cooper said.

“I don’t think so. I found an archived newspaper article from several years back, an interview with a woman, Etta Jankowski, claiming the Pressleys stole her house.”

Liam frowned. “How do you steal a house?”

“She swore to the reporter that she paid her property taxes, but according to the tax records, she didn’t. Jankowski also claims the same thing was done to one of her neighbors. The reporter didn’t name the individual because he’s been unable to contact the person to verify Jankowski’s claim. The article did say that two liens were sold in a private sale to Pressley LLC, so we can do a search for the name. Here’s the thing, though. That the tax collector held a private sale is questionable.” He air quoted the word private .

“There should have been a public announcement that there would be a sale but there wasn’t. Also, the homeowner should have been notified and given a chance to pay the tax. Apparently, that didn’t happen. And guess what?”

“I’m on the edge of my seat here.” Liam glanced at Cooper. “Right?”

“Just missing the popcorn to go with this story.”

“Both of you are clowns. Here’s the interesting part. The next day, there was a retraction in the paper.”

Liam shrugged. “So? They made a mistake.”

“My gut tells me they didn’t. The two plots of land were the last pieces the Pressleys needed to build a shopping center on, so a dirty tax collector? I need to find Miss Jankowski and the other homeowner.”

“I’m settled into my apartment, and I’ve got nothing going on,” Cooper said. “Why don’t you let me do that?”

“That’d be great.”

Liam raised his hand. “What about me? I found the kid and he’s back with his family, so I’m available. Anything I can do to help?”

“Not that I can think of.” Unless… “Actually, there is something right up your alley. How would you feel about nosing around Faberville for a few days? See what intel you can pick up on the Pressley family.” Liam had a talent for blending in or impersonating anyone from a bum to a billionaire.

Liam grinned. “I do love sneaking around. I’ll head over there tomorrow.” He gazed up at the ceiling for a few seconds. “Is there a golf course in Faberville, do you know?”

“Yep. It’s a resort owned by the Pressleys.”

“Perfect. I’ll check in, horn in on some golf games. You’d be surprised at what you can learn playing a few rounds with the locals.”

Grayson didn’t doubt it.

“Now that we have our assignments, let’s grab some dinner,” Cooper said. “Know of a beach bar that has good beer and burgers?”

“I sure do.”

Later that night, after a shower, Grayson got in bed with his laptop. It didn’t take long to find the engagement announcement of Harlow Grainger to Anthony Pressley. He’d assumed that she hadn’t dressed like someone’s great-grandmother back then, but he was stunned at seeing her photo.

“Wow,” he murmured. Her honey-blond hair was shoulder length, the soft curls framing her face. And what a face. Smoky eye shadow highlighted her distinctive turquoise- blue eyes, drawing attention to them. Creamy skin, high cheekbones and full pink lips made for a beautiful woman. In the photo, she wore an off-the-shoulder pale blue dress that fit her perfectly and showed off her figure.

He studied Anthony Pressley. He was what women called tall, dark and handsome. He wore an expensive suit, and a pale blue handkerchief that matched Harlow’s dress was tucked into the pocket. It was the man’s eyes that Grayson was most interested in. Where love was shining from Harlow’s eyes as she looked up at her fiancé with a soft smile on her face, Grayson didn’t see the same from Pressley.

“You got yourself a trophy wife, didn’t you?” he said to the photo. There was something cold and calculated about the man, and Grayson doubted that Pressley had the capability to love any woman.

The next photo he found was of their wedding, and again, Harlow was stunning. Her gown was simple and classy, a strapless, maybe satin body-hugging dress. There were no beads or crystals on it, no fancy ribbons or other adornments. It took a back seat to the woman wearing it, and Grayson smiled, knowing that was exactly what she’d intended.

As in her engagement photo, she was all soft smiles and hearts in her eyes for her new husband. Grayson wished he could tell that girl to run away as fast as she could. He’d downloaded the security footage from their building’s inside camera, and he found the feed of her riding up in the elevator. Seeing the difference in her from then and now was heartbreaking.

He saved the engagement and wedding photos to the file he’d created, then continued his search. There were pictures of the couple at numerous galas and charity events. The most noticeable thing as he progressed through the years of their life together was the change taking place in Harlow. The light in her eyes dimmed and the smiles faded. He was able to follow the change in her appearance from that of a stunning, well-dressed woman to that of a woman who was using clothes and no makeup to hide from the world. It was one of the saddest things he’d ever seen.

As he sent her an email, he crushed the thought that he was looking forward to seeing her again, granny dress and all.