Hot Asset (21 Wall Street #1)(67)

“I was glad to hear from you,” he says after he’s ordered a bottle of white wine for the two of us. “I was just telling Whitney last night that I was sorry to hear you were no longer with the SEC. She so enjoyed getting to know you at Steve’s wedding. We both did. And Steve always spoke so highly of your work.”

I fiddle with my napkin and look down at my plate, noting out of the corner of my eye as Sabrina sits at the table directly behind Jacob, along with a tall woman with a sharp nose and even sharper gaze. I’m careful not to let my attention linger on them, instead waiting quietly as Jacob does the whole taste-and-swirl routine with the wine.

After the waiter moves away, Jacob lifts his glass. “To new beginnings.”

“I’ll drink to that,” I say, careful to infuse just a bit of desperation into the statement. I take a tiny sip of the wine. Jacob takes a drink as well—and not a small one. Excellent. Liquid lubrication is exactly what this conversation needs in order for the plan to work.

“So, Lara,” he says, starting to set down the glass but taking another sip of the wine instead. “I’ll admit, I was surprised to get your call. I’ve always enjoyed your company, but you’ve been so careful to keep a slight buffer—understandably so, considering what I do and what you do.”

“Did,” I correct. “What I did.”

“Right.” He gives a sympathetic smile.

I take a deep breath as though gathering my courage. “It’s actually . . . Well, it’s your relationship with Steve that made me think of contacting you.”

He nods encouragingly. “My brother-in-law was your boss a long time. I don’t think he’ll mind my telling you he was sad to lose you, Lara.”

“I’m hoping that’s the case,” I say with a small smile. “In fact, I was hoping you might be able to intervene on my behalf.”

He sits back and studies me. “You want your job back.”

Hell no. But what’s one tiny lie on the quest for justice . . .

“I made a mistake,” I say in a rush. “I acted rashly, and I’m worried he won’t listen to me. But I thought maybe if you talked to him . . .”

Jacob gives me a friendly smile. “Why don’t you tell me what happened—your side of it.”

I set my elbows on the table, burying my face in my hands. “I was such an idiot. I can’t even talk about it.”

He reaches across the table to touch my arm. “Lara. Talk to me. Let’s not forget you helped my wife safety-pin her dress after a few too many Pinot Grigios at Steve’s wedding. Whatever is said here stays between us.”

You wish, asshole.

I drop my hands back into my lap and take another deep breath. “Okay, it has to do with the case I’ve been working on.”

“Ian Bradley’s case.”

I see Sabrina straighten just slightly behind Jacob at hearing Ian’s name.

I nod. “It was . . . Well, I really shouldn’t say, but . . .”

“I know it was high-level,” he says dismissively, taking another sip of wine. The waiter swings by to refill it. “That’s what made you quit?”

I bite my lip. “Okay, here comes the embarrassing part . . . While I was working on the case, I sort of . . . Well, Ian—I mean, Mr. Bradley . . . He’s got this way about him, and even though I was investigating him . . .”

“You fell for him,” Jacob says, his voice just a bit more careful than before.

I give a small smile, letting my shoulders rise and fall. “I thought I did. I couldn’t find any dirt on him, and I told Steve as much. That’s why I didn’t recommend we move forward with a formal investigation. I didn’t know Steve was going to take over and move forward with the case anyway.”

Jacob sips more wine but says nothing, so I keep rambling.

“The thing is, I really thought I was doing the right thing. I wanted so badly to believe Ian was innocent. But now . . .” I close my eyes. “Now I wonder if I didn’t find anything because I let myself get distracted. Let him distract me.”

The irony is, most of what I’ve just said is true, even if it’s part of a bigger lie. I really did worry Ian was trying to distract me. I really did worry that I was letting him get under my skin in the way a better SEC investigator wouldn’t.

But I’ve also learned that’s not the part that matters. What matters is that Ian is one of the good guys. He didn’t break the law, and he didn’t betray me.

He wouldn’t. He’s better than that.

Jacob leans forward, eating up my line as we knew he would. “What happened?”

Showtime.

I take a shaky breath as I summon forth watery eyes. “I just learned that Ian’s cheating on me. I quit my job for him, and the bastard’s a liar.”

“Oh, Lara,” he says with a sigh. “Guys like that are amoral trash. Let me talk to Steve. He’ll understand when I tell him that Ian seduced you to trip up your case.”

I give an embarrassed wince. “But I don’t really want Steve to know that I slept with the guy I was investigating. Then he’ll never hire me back.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure.” He gives a small smile. “Let’s just say he might be more aware of Ian Bradley’s shortcomings than you think. How are things with you and Ian now? Have you broken things off?”