Page 50 of Shadowed Agenda
“Tomorrow morning,” Regan said, her void devoid of emotion as she walked toward the door. “Nicholas gave me until nine o’clock tomorrow morning to let him know whether his lawyers should prepare the other documents he’d need in court on Friday or to make an appointment with a city clerk so we could sign the marriage license in private.”
The bastard was pushing her into remarrying him. He’d given her too tight a deadline to think through every aspect of what was happening clearly. Nicholas used the strategy to acquire businesses on the verge of going under that could have thrived with the right business partner.
Cade had sent him the number of Keira’s lawyer friend. Pavlo would text Javier and ask him to contact her and fly her up ASAP. Regan had left the custody agreement on the coffee table. Drake could come into the suite and photograph the pages so the lawyer knew what she was dealing with.
Regan’s phone dinged as she closed the door. She fished it out of her handbag and looked at the screen. Her lips thinned as she read the text message. It could only mean one thing.
“Well,” Pavlo said. Regan didn’t bother arguing. She held out the cell phone so he could read the message.
How about Disneyland for our honeymoon? Emmeline would love it.
The man thought he’d won.
Regan said nothing and dropped the phone back into her purse.
Pavlo pulled out his. He had until nine o’clock tomorrow morning to convince Regan they could fight Wyndham and win.
Pavlo tapped on his cell as he followed Regan to the elevator, setting everything in motion. After the red carpet movie premiere, their last event for the day, Pavlo would visit Wyndham. Shadow Defense had dug up enough dirt on him to halt his political aspirations, and Pavlo was prepared to use that information as a bargaining chip. He never made deals with the devil, but in this case, he’d make an exception if it stopped Regan from marrying Wyndham.
Chapter twenty-three
Theystoodseveralyardsaway, watching the various celebrities arrive and pose for their fans on the red carpet leading into the movie theater. Regan was nervous and smoothed down her two-piece evening dress’s navy silk ballroom skirt.
“You look stunning,” Pavlo whispered in her ear. “You fit right in.”
Regan had resigned herself to another trip to the hotel’s boutique, but Finlay had whooshed into her hotel suite, an evening dress in each hand. Her friend couldn’t decide which to pack, so she’d brought them both.
The neck on the matching polka-dotted lace crop top hid the cut on her neck. The sleeveless top seemed quite demure until Regan had seen herself in the full-length mirror in her suite’s bedroom. A thin strip of her waist showed between the full skirt and the fitted top each time she moved. Regan hadn’t been this dressed up since she’d divorced Nicholas.
Her mood shifted as his name slipped into her thoughts. The decision to remarry Nicholas was based on sheer desperation to stop him from taking Emmeline away from her.
Regan had broken down as she went over the morning’s events with Finlay before they dressed for the red-carpet event. Finlay had tried to talk her out of marrying someone she despised, but Regan knew it was her only option. The text from Nicholas suggesting Disneyland as an appropriate second honeymoon showed he knew it, too.
Her friend was an expert at applying makeup. Finlay had quipped it was a necessary skill she’d had to learn. Often, she went undercover when researching for an article. Her friend swore she’d used her local pharmacy’s complete hair dye line.
“Come on, you two,” Finlay said as she straightened her snug floor-length black sheath. The plunging back was adorned by an enormous bow tied at the back of her neck. She looped her arm around Drake’s. His perpetual scowl deepened.
Regan hid her smile. He looked like a haughty movie celebrity. Finlay and Drake seemed to belong to the glamorous crowd that frequented these events.
Javier had wrangled VIP tickets from someone he knew for the two of them. Regan intended to thank him for his kindness. Having a friend close by was exactly what she needed. Although that probably wasn’t his intent. She was sure Drake carried some concealed weapons as lethal as Pavlo’s and wouldn’t hesitate to back up his friend.
Isla had not been impressed when their friends piled into the limousine taking them to the event. She’d been frosty the entire limo ride and had left them the minute they’d arrived. Regan could count on her returning so the photographer Streaming hired would get a photograph of Isla with her and Pavlo. Isla was making sure this book tour was equally about promoting herself. Regan hoped her new business was a flop.
Pavlo placed his hand on the small of her back, guiding her to the movie theater’s entrance. Heat rolled through Regan at his touch. He stroked the strip of bare skin between the waistband and the crop top with his thumb, and she inhaled sharply.
Regan felt her cheeks blush, and the corner of Pavlo’s mouth turned up wickedly. He knew the effect he was having on her. The caress was deliberate foreplay.
He bent down, his breath warm against her ear as he whispered, “We won’t stay long at the afterparty. I believe you and I have other things to attend to.”
Heat rolled through her, and Regan tilted her head up to respond. A flurry of activity interrupted her as they reached the red carpet along the sidewalk. She plastered on a smile she didn’t feel, and Pavlo nudged her forward. The introverted part of her would never get used to the attention.
They slowly made their way to the entrance, pausing to give fans time to snap pictures. Once inside, camera lights flashed as the first group of photographers behind the waist-high portable steel barriers took pictures of them. Isla swooped in out of nowhere and forced herself between Pavlo and her. Regan had been right. Isla didn’t miss a photo opportunity. She would bet Isla had already arranged for the photos of the three of them to be posted on social media sites and blogs to garner future clients’ attention.
Regan hadn’t noticed Streaming’s photographer had joined them until he asked her to step to the side so he could have a picture without Pavlo by her side. Of course, Isla slipped into two shots. Regan waited while the photographer took several shots of Pavlo, then they continued down the carpet, pausing for more pictures.
Her body relaxed as they posed for the last shot and strolled past the line of interviewers vying for a short one-on-one with the attending celebrities. Each had their own small space along the portable barriers. Cards attached to the top railing identified the reporter and the company they represented.
Someone called out Regan’s name, and Pavlo steered her to the woman waving at them behind the steel barrier. The card identified her as a reporter from one of the bigger news outlets. It surprised Regan the woman would waste time on her when they were surrounded by celebrities.