Page 66 of Storm Warning
When they passed out of sight, Kate flopped back down on the swing, mind racing with everything Zach had said. The chains creaked overhead.
First Zach had talked! He’d strung multiple sentences together at once! Not that she didn’t think he could—he was obviously highly intelligent—he just never did.
And she was avoiding.
Kate dragged her attention back to what he’d said, forcing herself to focus. Zach and David both respected Nick. It came through in everything they said and did, the way they followed him, by their own choice. The way they spoke his name with an underlying note of loyalty. They were both alpha males in their own way, yet they followed another.
Would they hold that kind of respect for a cheater? For someone who played with other people’s emotions, as she’d feared? No. Honor was stamped in every cell of Zach’s body—in the set of his shoulders, the directness of his gaze—and David’sintellect was way too high to respect someone like that. Marguerite certainly wouldn’t.
She hadn’t been wrong originally. He was the person she first thought he was: honorable. The thought settled in her mind like a gentle breeze on a hot day, cooling her anxieties, feeling altogether right. Just like that, her butterflies disappeared, replaced by a quiet certainty that warmed her from the inside out.
Chapter 35
Adrift
Pharrell Williams singing “Happy”blasted from her phone. Kate jumped, heart pounding. Dammit, Zach must have hit the volume button when he put his numbers in. She reached over and snagged it, the first real smile in days on her face—Callie!
“Callie! I’m glad you called. I so need to talk to you.” Kate was thrilled her personal sounding board was available.
“I’m sorry, Kate, but I’ve got terrible news for you.” Callie’s voice shook.
Kate sat up straight, her heart resumed hammering a violent rhythm against her ribs, each beat reverberating through her chest. “What’s happened? What’s wrong? Did you meet with Deanna this morning?”
“Yes. Oh god, I don’t know how to tell you this. The publisher has frozen all your book sales, and they told Deanna they’ll be sending over the paperwork to cancel your contract. They’re dumping you, Kate!”
Callie’s voice echoed through Kate’s mind, distorting and stretching as she numbly shook her head back and forth, her thoughts fracturing into white noise. The room tilted.
“Kate, are you there?”
“Yeah, I’m here.” The words scraped against her throat like gravel. “Are you sure? Why? What the hell happened? A week ago, they were thrilled with the book tour.” Her voice barely rose above a whisper, strangled and thin, as she forced each syllable past the tightness crushing her windpipe. It can’t be true! Her legs gave out beneath her, and she sagged into the chair, her spine curving forward.
“Someone filed complaints with the publisher, stating that you stole your current series from them. They freaked out, and shut everything down—frozen all sales. They say they’re investigating, but Deanna already provided your copyright paperwork, and they aren’t relenting. Deanna knows you didn’t steal anything, of course, so she’s fighting them, but it doesn’t look good. They aren't listening at all.”
“Why the hell not? I’ve been with them for fourteen years! How could they think this? I mean, sure they have to investigate a complaint, but... um, shouldn’t they give me the benefit of the doubt after all this time?” Kate slumped over the table, the world spinning sickeningly around her. The rough wood bit into her forehead as she took a shaky breath, her lungs refusing to fill completely. How could this be happening?
“That’s what Deanna said. She doesn’t understand it either. She said she’s never seen an overreaction like this, and she’s pushing them for an explanation. Um, maybe she’ll figure it out.”
The doubt in Callie’s voice rang clear as a bell. “I’m still here in Chicago with Deanna, and I’m going to stay another night. She’s working the publisher, but she suggested I contact all our industry peeps to see if anyone has heard any rumors. If we have no luck by morning, I’ll head back home and continue working it from there.”
“Thanks, Callie. There's someone at the door, so I’ll let you go. Keep me updated. I’m sure Deanna will straighten it out.”
“Kate, wait...”
Kate disconnected the call, her fingers going numb, the phone slipping from her grasp into her lap.
She’d lost her career. How did this happen?
Tears welled hot and stinging, blurring her vision until the room dissolved into watercolor smears. She pressed her fist against her mouth, her teeth grazing her knuckles. A strange hollowness opened in her chest, vast and cavernous, as if someone had scooped out her insides and left only empty air behind. The reality hovered beyond reach, refusing to fully land, refusing to become real. Moments ago, she’d been finding her footing again, looking forward to talking with Nick. Now, she drifted untethered in open water with no shore in sight.
Chapter 36
Dissolution
Kate mechanically dressed for dinner.She pushed away any thought about her publisher, shoving them to the back of her mind as soon as they surfaced. It wasn’t true. It couldn’t be true.
She pulled out a black and white print dress and threw it on before frowning down at her chest—the V was deep. She shrugged. Who cares? It didn’t matter. She just needed fuel and wasn’t up for cooking. She slid her feet into black wedges, grabbed her phone and key card, and trudged out the door to her golf cart.
When she pulled up to the grand entrance, Mario was at the door. “Hello again, Ms. Danvers! Are you here for dinner?”