at the time, but my having worked at Morningstar is why they chose me. Since I’d already had an established cover, that’s where the whole Agent Phillips part comes in. At the agency, no one knows me as Rafe Matthews. They know me as Tony Phillips. But I am Rafe. The man you met, the man I’ve always been with you, is who I really am. The only thing I kept from you was my reason for being there. Everything else was genuine. I promise you. The man you knew—the one you know—is the real me. I just happen to have a side job that I had to keep secret to protect you, and to protect the integrity of the case. If I could have told you the truth, I would have. I swear it, Brie.”
I’m not proud of my pleading tone, but if that’s what it takes to get my point across, I don’t care. I’ll do anything to make her believe me.
“Wow,” she whispers, not looking at me. “So let me get this straight. You’re an undercover agent for some government agency that I’ve noticed you haven’t disclosed.” She pauses and I nod, but remain silent. She apparently gets it and continues. “Your cover is that you’re a respectable construction company owner, but it’s not just your cover. You actually do own and work at Matthews Construction?”
“Yes, exactly.” I let out a relieved breath, thrilled that she gets it without my having to go too much into detail.
Her brows knit together. “Why were you special because you worked at Morningstar? They’re under investigation? Ever since you graduated college?” I watch as she does the math in her head. “For that long? And why Adrian? Why now?”
I tilt my head back and look up at the ceiling. I should’ve known she’d be curious about the actual investigation. When I look back at her, she’s watching me intently, as if she’s waiting to hear the most scandalous story. “Look, Brie, I want to tell you everything, but the actual case? Part of it’s classified. The less you know, the better. And it’s not because I’m trying to keep anything from you.”
She releases a sigh of disappointment, but gives me a swift nod. “I understand, Rafe. It’s just... I knew there were things about Adrian’s life that were…unsettling, but I never expected this.”
“It’s not just Adrian, Brie. Hell, it’s not really about Adrian. The investigation is more focused on Theo.” She frowns, and I scramble to figure out how to explain this without saying too much. “Think… An Insidious Martha Stewart meets Al Capone and they go into business together.”
“Holy shit,” she whispers. “So… is that why you got close to me? To find out what I knew?” Her eyes glisten with unshed tears.
“Absolutely not. From the moment I met you, Brie, I knew you were a game changer for me. Whether you knew anything about the Morningstars or now, I wanted you.” I hold my breath until she gives me a shaky smile.
“Well, I guess that’s a good thing, given that I didn’t know a damn thing about Theo.” She snorts. “I guess I didn’t know a damn thing about Adrian either.”
I brace myself, waiting for her to say the same of me, but she doesn’t.
“There’s one more thing you need to know, Brie,” I tell her.
Her eyes meet mine, narrowing slightly. “What more could there possibly be?”
“I don’t know how to say this…so I guess I’ll just come out with it. Your dad… He was working for the agency as well.”
“What?” she exclaims as her hands race to the spot over her heart. “He couldn’t have been. There’s no way my dad was leading a double life.”
I shake my head and hold up a hand to stop her. “No, it wasn’t like that. He wasn’t an agent.” I blow out a breath, hoping like hell that this isn’t too much for her to handle. “He was more of a whistleblower. He had insider information on Theo Morningstar’s shady business deals and was working with the agency to help bring him down.”
Utter shock appears on Brie’s face as her mouth falls open, her eyes turning round as dinner saucers. I quickly do my best to give her what little details I can.
“I don’t know how he did it, but like I said, he had insider information, but he was having a difficult time getting hard evidence. He thought someone was on to him and that’s why he’d been denied access