Page 49 of Intoxicating Pursuit

“You’ve done enough, and I already owe you for coming in on a weekend. I’ll be fine. Thanks, Debbie.”

I left her office and went out to my car, fuming.

***

T he antique door knocker of Ian and Marco’s Society Hill townhome offered a good way to vent some frustration, and I pounded it impatiently.

In that moment, I couldn’t bring myself to be delicate with their precious Colonial relics.

If they hadn’t overextended themselves so often, if they had any sense of moderation at all, we might not be in this mess.

Ian swung the door open indignantly, but his expression brightened when he saw me. “Oh! Sammy! Great timing.” He shooed me inside. “We’re sampling appetizers for the reception.”

An extravagant great room encompassed their home’s first floor, and Ian hustled to the kitchen area for an extra place setting and a glass of water. “You have to try this stuff. The ahi tacos will change your life!”

I’m not sure what I expected—disarray perhaps, or maybe drug paraphernalia left in the open.

But their early nineteenth-century townhouse was impeccable.

Ornate brass mirrors gleamed against the muted sage walls, and plump pillows neatly bookended their Chesterfield sofa.

Their antique dining table overflowed with steaming delicacies plated on fine china.

I seemed to be stuck in place, but Ian forged ahead. He plated a few samples and walked them to me. “Earth to Sammy. Come on, girl.” He guided me forward with a hand on my back. “Sit. . . Eat. . . You can help us choose.”

I followed him, but when I arrived at the table, I just set the plate down.

“Hey, Sammy.” Marco garbled his casual greeting around a mouthful of food as Ian took a seat next to him, forking artfully garnished scallops and caviar-laden crostini onto his plate.

Watching them luxuriate over a lavish spread financed with stolen funds—with money they planned to keep pumping into their lives through my pain— was just too much. I welled up. I couldn’t believe their recklessness, their callous disregard for everything we shared.

“You followed me to North Carolina,” I finally croaked. “How could you?”

They froze. It grew so quiet I could hear their grandfather clock ticking away the seconds.

Marco clinked his fork down on his plate. “Sammy, you do remember what happened the last time you tried to travel on your own, don’t you?”

I couldn’t believe he was throwing this in my face.

Marco shifted in his chair. “The Columbus E.R. called me at one a.m.—said you were so panicked you might actually give yourself a heart attack. I had to drive all night to get you. So, I just can’t have you that far away without anyone to help. Okay? It’s too much stress.”

What total bullshit .

Marco wasn’t done dishing it out, though. “Ian’s been low on work lately, so he had time, and we just did it. We were worried about your safety.”

“Sure, you guys were worried about me,” I spat. “Right up until you took those horrible photos and cooked up your little blackmail scheme.”

Marco looked at me like I’d sprouted a second head. “ What did you just say? ”

Ian cut in. “Sammy, I swear I didn’t take those pictures. I did follow you to Creekside, then up to La Fermata that morning, but that was it. I just needed to know where you were going. I didn’t linger.”

“You went by more than once, Ian. I know you were there.”

“Look, I drove by maybe one more time but only because you hadn’t come back to the hotel. Your car was nowhere to be seen, though, and I left. . . Anyway,” Ian scoffed, “like I told you, those are smartphone pictures at best. I promise you; I’m a better photographer than that when I want to be.”

“Right. You told me that. So, we told the police. Convenient, huh?”

Marco’s gaze volleyed back and forth between us. “ Seriously , what the hell are you guys talking about? What photos? And who is talking to the police about anything ?”

Ian turned to him. “It’s nothing, Marco. Sammy asked for my help with something. It’s private.”

I smacked my hand down on the tabletop. “It’s not nothing! It’s actually a crime, Ian. And Marco, don’t act so innocent. You’ve been stealing from us again, right? From the company we worked so hard to build? I saw all those HopNBrew invoices. I know what you’ve been doing.”

“Alright, that’s enough.” Marco’s face changed. He stood up. “I’ve got no clue what you’re ranting about, and you’re trashing a perfectly nice day.”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about. You’ve been using that stupid HopNBrew website to buy goods on the cheap then sell them back to the company at a handsome profit. I bet that buys a lotta drugs.”

“The HopNBrew crap? That’s what triggered this little tirade?

God, I don’t like it either, but it’s the only way Charlotte can get supplies.

Bobby called in a tizzy. They need product faster than our vendors can deliver it, and I didn’t have time to screw around finding other options.

I just pushed the transactions through. I was trying to help. ”

“It was a lot of transactions, Marco.”

“Well, in case you haven’t noticed , Sammy, I’m a little stressed out lately. I’m sorry if I don’t keep everything as perfectly organized as you do.”

“Now wait a second.” Ian tossed his napkin on the table and stood up beside Marco.

His face, normally kind and gentle, grew stern.

“Let me get this right. I drive all the way to North Carolina—a long, uncomfortable trip, by the way—to help you. Then, I run to your house at your beck and call—again, to help you . I cash in favors, reach out across the community—all to try and hunt down some rogue paparazzo. For free. For you . And poor Marco, who’s running around trying to manage a business and plan a wedding, he takes time out of his day to approve some invoices—which last I checked was your job.

And this is what we get for it? Accusations?

Insults? Who the hell do you think you are, Sammy?

” His eyes were cold, blue steel. “More importantly, who do you think we are? Blackmailers? Seriously?”

His face reflected the same outrage I’d felt when Gabe had accused me, but that had been wild speculation. This was different. It came directly from the police. Way too many facts aligned.

“I do know who you are, Ian. I know who both of you are, and I love you both a lot, quite frankly.” A traitorous tear snuck down my cheek, and I swatted it away, bristling with anger. “But I also know what addiction does to people. I’ve seen it before, and I’m seeing it again. Right now .”

Marco walked to the foyer and grabbed his keys.

“Where are you going?” I demanded.

“Well, Sammy, I’m gonna blow off my fiancé, waste this lovely catered food, and go take a drug test. Happy?”

“ Really? A bunch of fancy appetizers is what you’re worried about?

Not criminal charges? Not the destruction of your career?

” I clomped to the door and yanked it open.

“If you want any chance of salvaging your life, take the test today, Marco. I don’t care if your food gets cold.

If the results don’t come back clean, I’ve told Debbie to reinstate the paperwork from a few years ago.

This will all be over—the whole damn thing—and I’ll be left without a business partner. Thanks a lot! ”

I stormed out, barely resisting the urge to slam the door behind me.