Nathaniel stopped two steps away.
The scent of rain-damp wool and cedarwood followed him through the ballroom, cutting through the heavy fragrance of tuberose and melted chocolate. His slate-gray eyes ignored the two hundred guests watching behind their crystal glasses. Instead, he looked at Lily’s chocolate-covered fingers, then at the faint red marks Vanessa’s hand had left around my daughter’s wrist.
“Nathaniel, darling,” Vanessa said, adjusting her emerald satin gown. Her voice instantly became warm and elegant—the voice she used with charity trustees and reporters. “There’s no reason to make a scene. The girl was reaching into the dessert tower before the council toast. I was simply reminding Elena that the staff should keep their children in the lower quarters during an executive gala.”
Nathaniel said nothing.
He slowly lowered himself onto one knee, the sharp crease of his tuxedo trousers touching the polished parquet floor.
“Lily,” he said softly.
My daughter pressed herself against my apron, hiding her face. Only her wide brown eyes looked up at him.
“Mr. Cross?”
“Were you waiting for the chocolate strawberries with the white drizzle?”
Lily nodded, her lip trembling.
“I was waiting for Mama… but my tummy made a growl.”
Nathaniel reached for a silver dessert plate, chose three large chocolate-covered strawberries, and placed them gently in her hands.
“Take these upstairs, sweetheart. Mrs. Gable is putting on the cartoon about the polar bears.”
Then he looked at me.
“Elena. Take her upstairs. After that, come back here.”
“Yes, Mr. Cross,” I whispered.
I lifted Lily into my arms and turned toward the service entrance. As I passed the dessert table, my shoe caught the silk skirting beneath the champagne display.
The fabric shifted.
Behind it was a thick crimson leather binder.
Its gold-embossed cover carried the crest of the Cross-Lowell Charitable Foundation. Beneath it, a purple stamp read:
CONFIDENTIAL AUDIT — HARBOR HOUSING ASSETS & OFFSHORE DISPOSITION
My breath caught.
Nathaniel followed my gaze.
He saw the red folder.
His expression changed instantly. His jaw tightened, and the warmth disappeared from his eyes.
“Leave the tray, Elena,” he said quietly.
His voice was so cold that the closest guests stepped back.
“Take Lily upstairs.”
He looked at Vanessa.
“I’ll be right here.”
