Marissa shrunk down in her chair slightly, feeling defeated. She hated this aspect of her family’s reputation and tried very hard to pretend to outsiders that they might be normal and that her father just worked a great many hours. But when faced with all these issues at once, there really was no way to avoid the facts. “Yes.”
Zeke watched her carefully, wishing some of the color would come back into her beautiful cheeks. He wanted the sparkle in her eyes again too. “And if you hadn’t married me, what would have happened?”
Marissa was relieved when their food arrived. She leaned back so the waiter could place her salad in front of her. She wasn’t hungry, actually feeling slightly sick to her stomach. But she’d do what she always did when faced with these kinds of issues. She’d pretend that everything was perfectly fine.
“Nothing will happen,” she stated firmly, feigning a casualness that she didn’t feel. “My father will continue with whatever it is that he does and I’ll continue with what I do. Our lives rarely intersect unless he needs me and my sister at some social function.”
Zeke didn’t say anything for a long moment, considering how to help her without demolishing her sense of self-worth and confidence. “Marissa, I know more than you think. Why do you suppose I rushed you through that ceremony in Matt’s office? He’s a good man and even he understood the issue. So why not be honest with me and let me help you?”
Marissa looked at his strong, broad shoulders, wishing desperately that she could rely on him to help her out of this mess her father had created with her as the prime player. But she just couldn’t do it.
Although, now that they were married, what did that mean about his future? How could she protect him? The panic increased and she desperately wished she could escape, or maybe throw her arms around his neck and spill out the whole, disgusting story.
When his phone rang, Marissa startled slightly, but continued to nibble on her salad while he answered his phone. “What did you learn?”
Marissa stared at him, her whole body tense and wary as she waited for him to say something, to acknowledge the information the caller was conveying. But he just continued to nod his head. “Thanks,” he finally said and ended the call.
Picking up his fork, he glared at her. “So if you hadn’t married me, you would have been forced to marry Jimmy Treveri so that your father can get a son. When were you going to tell me that? After your first anniversary?”
She shivered at the idea of Jimmy as a husband, hoping he didn’t notice. “It’s none of your business,” she said, her fork sifting through her salad as if she were trying to find something interesting to stab but in reality, she was simply trying to fight the tears of humiliation that threatened to fall over her lashes.
“Your sister is safe. She’s been helping your brother at the hospital. Apparently, he was beaten up rather badly in a bar fight and is now in intensive care.”
Marissa blinked and looked back at him curiously. “We don’t have a brother.” That just increased her sense of foreboding. Or was it actually good news? If the hospital thought that Sierra was the man’s sister, wouldn’t she be protected if someone might come to finish the job?
Zeke shrugged. “Okay, the man isn’t your brother and is just some guy she feels strongly about. His name is Drake Harrison. I’ve met him a couple of times but I don’t know him personally. Dave says he was beaten up pretty badly. He’s in intensive care but the information Dave received was that he was going to survive.”
Marissa tried to process all of that information, including the fact that Zeke had found that out in less than twenty-four hours all of the secrets she’d been trying to hide from him, and had located her sister in less than ten minutes. Even her father couldn’t gather information that quickly. “How did you find out all of that information so quickly?” she asked, amazed at his resources.
“My investigators are better than your father’s,” he stated succinctly. “Now would you please eat something? I know you didn’t eat any dinner last night and I doubt you’ve had anything since I last saw you. Then we’ll head over to the hospital and find out what’s going on with your sister.”
Marissa looked down at her salad and shook her head. “I can make my way to the hospital for Sierra. I’ll be okay.” She fluffed up her beautiful dress awkwardly. “I just need a change of clothes. Do you still have the other outfit I was wearing earlier today?”
“Those clothes are in the car I believe. Although I think you look stunning in that dress,” he said, his eyes flaring with heat and she couldn’t deny that she liked it when he looked at her like that. He then shook his head at her other issue. “About you going to the hospital alone, not a chance. I’m coming with you,” he stated firmly.
Marissa didn’t want to slow him down, so she picked through her salad, eating as much of the protein as she could swallow under the circumstances. “I’m ready,” she said when she’d finished all of the salmon from her salad and most of the vegetables, leaving only the lettuce behind.
He looked at her plate and nodded, apparently accepting that she’d eaten enough. “Fine.” He signaled to the waiter and handed him a credit card, indicating that the waiter should hurry with their check. The waiter practically ran, obviously understanding their urgency somehow, coming back only moments later with the check to be signed.
“Let’s go,” he said and took Marissa’s hand in his large one.
She knew she should probably pull her hand away, but it felt too wonderful to be held by his. He was strong and secure, warm and gentle but firm all the same. One of his bodyguards was standing at the lobby to the restaurant with her clothes. She was truly grateful for the change, feeling very awkward and conspicuous in the wedding dress. No matter how lovely it was, people stopped to stare, some of them smiling with a knowing grin and others, mostly women, glaring at her with jealousy. Marissa preferred to be a bit more circumspect, not liking to be the center of attention.
It took his driver less than fifteen minutes to make it across town to the hospital where the mysterious Dave had mentioned Sierra was visiting her stranger.
When they found her in one of the waiting rooms, Sierra took one look at her sister and burst into tears. “Mari! I’m so glad you’re here!” she cried, throwing herself into her sister’s arms as if she were a lifeline.