Charade (Swept Away, #1.5)(6)

“Bianca, you okay?” Rosie’s voice sounded concerned as I looked up at her.

“Sorry, I was just thinking.”

“It’s okay. After my father died, all I could think about was our time together as well. His memory will never fade, but it will get easier.”

“Thanks.” I reached over and squeezed her hand, trying to stop the red flush of guilt from spreading across my face. I didn’t want to tell Rosie that I hadn’t been thinking about my dad. I’d been thinking about how to meet a guy that might hold the secrets to my mother’s death and my father’s past.

*

I stared at the article I’d read in the Wall Street Journal two weeks ago and smiled to myself. The perfect opportunity had presented itself to me. There was going to be a shareholders’ meeting at Bradley, Inc.’s headquarters in the financial district in a couple of days. This would be the perfect time to meet David Bradley and to lay eyes on Mattias Bradley. The two Bradley brothers were my key to more information. They were the reason I’d called Larry and asked him how many shares of Bradley Inc. stock I’d need to get into the upcoming shareholders meeting. He’d been surprised by my question and even more confused when I’d asked him to buy me some. He’d told me that it was too late for me to buy the stocks and gain access, but he could get me a proxy to go to the meeting with his shares. I’d been surprised to find out that he had shares in Bradley, Inc., but I was happy that I hadn’t had to spend my last dollars just to gain access. I placed the newspaper down on the table next to the sheet of paper that had arrived by courier earlier in the afternoon. It was the official proxy statement that would allow me to attend the shareholders’ meeting in a few days.

I walked into my bedroom and opened my closet. What was I going to wear? I perused the contents of my closet and stifled a groan.

“This sucks.” I pulled out a slinky black dress. It was definitely sexy, but not appropriate for a board meeting. There was no way I’d even get through the front doors in that outfit—they’d think I was a hooker. I threw the dress on my bed and looked for something else. I needed to look elegant and sexy and like I belonged. None of my outfits fit the bill. I could call Rosie and borrow something, but I knew she’d have too many questions. I bit my lower lip as I realized I’d have to go shopping. Shopping equaled money, and that was something I didn’t have much of. I had my emergency credit card, though I really didn’t want to use it.

“This is an emergency, though, Bianca,” I muttered to myself. “No outfit means you won’t meet David. If you don’t meet David, you might never gain access to Bradley, Inc. and the family secrets.” I fell back onto the bed and yelped as a hanger bored into my back. I jumped back up and grabbed my handbag. I wasn’t going to worry about money right now. I needed David, so I needed an outfit. That was that.

*

Bright red lipstick glistened on the rim of my glass as I took another gulp of wine to steady my nerves. I’d made it into the building easily. My new navy blue suit had been expensive but worth it. My long dark hair hung straight down my back, with not a wisp of frizz to be found. I knew from the admiring glances of the men around me that I looked good. I’d nearly died at the cost of the makeup at Saks Fifth Avenue. Who knew that concealer and foundation cost so much? Good thing one of the salesgirls had done me up for free. She’d been disappointed when I hadn’t purchased any of the products afterward, but there was no way I was parting with that sort of money for makeup. I’d already gone over budget buying the perfect outfit. However, the fact that I’d been able to waltz into this shareholders’ meeting and had been served a glass of wine before I could even blink told me it was all worth it.

“So, do you have common stock or preferred stock?” A middle-aged man approached me with a leer and I froze.

“I have stock, yes.” I took a sip of wine and nodded at him. I had no idea what the difference between common and preferred stock was. I also didn’t know if there was a difference. Maybe he was testing me?

“Were you pleased with the dividend we received last year?” he continued and moved closer to me, his eyes dropping to my breasts. “I think Mattias is doing a good job, don’t you? I heard he’s going to announce that we’re going to start bidding for government contracts. The self-painter gives us a leg up on a lot of projects. We’ll be able to put in a lot of low bids.”

“The self-painter?” I looked up at him and my heart stopped. My father had invented the self-painter: it was a machine that primed and painted a room at the push of a button and the input of some room dimensions. In fact, I had the patent in one of my boxes at home. along with the first blueprints my father had ever created for the product when he’d first invented it.

“Yeah, it’s what really set Jeremiah apart from everyone else. His products are what really launched Bradley, Inc., though I suppose I don’t need to tell you that.”

“Why do you say that?” I asked suspiciously.

“Well, I assume you know about the company as a shareholder. Not many of us come to these meetings, so I figure you’re involved in your investments, aren’t you?”

“Oh yes, of course.” I offered him a weak smile. “I love to learn about all of my investments.” I took another sip of wine.

“We’re all lucky that Jeremiah Bradley was so innovative,” he said.