The Billionaire's Secrets (30 page)

Chloe blushed slightly, recalling her mother's reaction to their very brief acquaintance. "
About t
wo months," she said.

"
R
ather quick, don't you think? Are you sure you know him well enough?"

Any feeling of friendship toward the woman quickly evaporated.

"
Gaelan
and I have the rest of our lives to get to know each other," she said a little haughtily.

The woman arched her well-shaped eyebrows. "Spoken like a true woman in love," she said with a sigh and a sad nod of her head.
“Or maybe lust.”

Suddenly Chloe felt
very angry
. What gave this woman the right t
o cross-examine her like this, b
usiness associate of
Gaelan's
or not
?
Chloe was very close to asking her to leave.

Cassandra continued. "I was hoping to speak to
Gaelan
before the wedding, but I was informed
by that French woman
he is en
route from
the airport
with your parents
."

"Yes. He
was returning from
a business trip to
San Francisco
at the same time
and kindly offered to
drive them
."

Cassandra nodded
dismissively
. She walked to the loveseat in front of the fireplace where a small fire burned on the hearth and sat down. She unbuttoned her coat, revealing a short black dress. Then, taking out a compact from her bag, she checked her flawless makeup.

"It doesn't matter," she said, putting her compact away. She looked at Chloe and shook her head slowly at her. "It's probably better that I talk to you anyway."

Chloe felt suddenly uneasy. She had felt nauseous that morning but put it down to the excitement of the wedding or even a touch of morning sickness. Now she felt it again. She knew that whatever this woman was about to say to her wasn't going to be good. She wished she had the nerve to tell her to leave.

"I'm assuming that since you don't know your own maid of honour, you don't know a whole lot about
Gaelan
?"

"I know enough,"
Chloe
said staunchly.

"Has he ever mentioned that he was married before?"

"Yes."

"What did he tell you about her?"

Suddenly Chloe didn't care if she offended one of
Gaelan's
friends or business acquaintances. This woman had no right to interrogate her
,
and she was sure
Gaelan
would not tolerate this if he were here. "I don't know if it's any of your business," she said firmly.

"Maybe not," Cassandra said with a slight shrug, "
But I do think you have a right
to know the truth."

"I do know the truth," she said confidently.

"You mean
Gaelan's
version of the truth."

"Of course," she said.
"Who else's?
Bowen's?"

Cassandra looked surprised. "So you know Bowen? I can't imagine
Gaelan
telling you Bowen's side of the story."

"Yes, I've met him," Chloe said warily.

"And did he tell you about himself and Colleen?"

Chloe didn't answer. She felt trapped in her own room. The clock on the dressing table ticked away the seconds as it counted down to her wedding. She was approaching what was to be the happiest moment of her life
. So w
hy did she feel this impending sense of doom? She glanced at the door and wondered if maybe she should just walk out herself.

Cassandra clearly took Chloe's discomfort for a yes. "I suppose
Gaelan
disputed everything Bowen told you."

"Of course," she said. She remembered the day she had met Bowen and how she had at first thought he was a nicer version of
Gaelan
. He had told her about Colleen and how
Gaelan
had stolen her away from him. She
recalled
how he insinuated that
Gaelan
had played a role in Colleen's death.

"Did it ever occur to you there might have been a grain of truth in Bowen's version?"

"No," Chloe said sharply.

"I think the lady doth protest too much."

"Look," said Chloe, genuinely angry
now
. "Did Bowen send you here?
Because if he did, I want you to leave right now.
I don't want
to hear any more of his lies."

Cassandra laughed. "Bowen didn't send me here. I haven't seen Bowen in years. And to tell you the truth, I'm not sure what Bowen made of Colleen's death. Although I'm sure he didn't agree with the off
icial verdict of an accident."

Chloe went over to the window and looked out over the ocean unseeingly. It was clear Cassandra had come to tell her something about
Gaelan
, and she had the impression she was not doing it out of kindness. She would hear her out only because she didn't know how to make her leave, and when
Gaelan
arrived she would tell him what had happened. She couldn't believe that he would invite this woman to their wedding.

Still standing at the window, Chloe spoke. "Why don't y
ou just tell me why you're here?
Because in case you hadn't noticed, I'm getting married
,
and I have to get ready." No matter what this woman said, she was not going to let her ruin her wedding. She turned
to face
her.

"Okay, okay." Cassandra lounged back against the arm of the love seat, a fur-
clad
arm draped along the back of the seat. She crossed her long elegant legs and patted the seat beside her. "Why don't you come over here and sit by the fire?"

Chloe shook her head. "No thanks," she said coldly. "I'm fine here." The last place she wanted to be was sitting next to this horrible woman.

"I don't suppose you'll believe me if I tell you that this is for your own good. I think you have a right to know what kind of man you're marrying."

"I do know," Chloe said angrily.

Cassandra gave her that patronising look again. "I know, I know. Now hear me out.
Gaelan
told you Colleen died when she fell from the cliff. Is that right?"

"It was an accident. There was an investigation into her death."

"You know there are other theories. Her body was never recovered - you do know that, right?"

"I hope you're not going to sit here and tell me that
Gaelan
played a part in her death.
Because if you are, you can get out.
I've heard it all before from Bowen."

"Does Bowen think
Gaelan
pushed her off the cliff?" Cassandra sounded genuinely taken aback for a moment. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Bowen always liked to thin
k the worst of
Gaelan
. Still, I a
m surprised he didn't suggest suicide. That was another theory going around."

"It doesn't matter what Bowen or anyone else thinks," Chloe insisted. Bowen had definitely suggested suicide as a possibility. "It was an accident."

"How would you react if I told you it was none of those things?
Murder, suicide
,
or accident?"

The room seemed suddenly quiet. There were no other possibilities, were there?
Murder, suicide, accident.
What else could there be?

Cassandra uncrossed her legs, stood up, and went over to the fire. She held out her hands towar
d the flames for a moment. "I’
d forgotten how cold this bloody island can be in May," she said as she turned toward the window. "Look out there. It's the first of June tomorrow
,
and it's snowing."

Chloe
glanced
out the window, barely registering the lar
ge white flakes. "What happened
then?"