at him anymore. She turned and faced the incredible view of Washington, D.C. instead. “I overheard a conversation about an hour ago. It was between David and another man but I don’t know his name.”
“Go on,” he said and stood up to pace about his office.
It was now or never, she thought. She was so worried that he would stop her, she rushed through her explanation. “They were talking about the sale of Jamison’s to ATI,” she started. “I’m not sure about all the details, but they were saying how they were going to back out of the sale at the last minute, buy up all the dumped stocks and make millions on the resale. There was something else about a payment ATI would owe that was also in the millions of dollars range but I don’t really understand that either. I gathered that they were going to collect that as well.”
There was silence when she finished. She wasn’t even sure if Carlo was still in the room or, if he was, if he’d heard her. She had to turn around and find him. He was right behind her.
“Why are you telling me this?” he asked softly.
Kate shrugged. “I’m guessing it is illegal.”
“Is there more?”
She nodded her head. The tears started again and this time she couldn’t control them. “David saw me and asked me to come in and join the party. He wanted to thank me for seducing you and distracting you from the due diligence so they could work their behind the scenes deals.” She hated admitting that. “Please believe me, I didn’t have anything to do with what they were planning. I don’t even really understand it but I didn’t help them. I didn’t seduce you in an effort to distract you. I promise,” she ended on a whisper.
“Did you seduce me?”
“No!” she said emphatically. “I didn’t want this to happen. I didn’t want to lo…I didn’t want to be involved with anyone.”
Carlo grabbed her shoulders. “You were going to say love, weren’t you?”
She wiped away fresh tears. “Carlo there’s no time for this,” she said, pulling herself out of his arms. “You have to do something to stop him. He can’t get away with whatever he’s trying to pull.”
Carlo smiled. “Kate, admit it. You were going to say you loved me.”
“It doesn’t matter. It isn’t going to work out. Things have happened that have made it impossible.” Kate stepped back from his smiling face, the tears streaming down her cheeks now. “Oh, forget it. I have to go. I feel awful and this has just made things worse. I should have just called you,” she said and turned to leave. But the pain in her stomach worsened and she was suddenly doubled over in pain.
“What’s wrong Kate,” Carlo said and lifted her gently into his arms. Kate just crumpled, her face completely white as her eyes pleaded with him to help her since she was in so much pain she couldn’t even speak.
“Betsy, call an ambulance,” he called to the woman in the outer office.
He laid Kate down on the sofa in the corner of his office, kneeling down beside her. Kate couldn’t hide the pain and she bit her lip as she curled into a ball. “Betsy!”
The woman appeared in the doorway, the company nurse trailing behind her. “An ambulance is on the way but they’re asking what the emergency is,” Jessy told him.
“I don’t know. Kate, what’s wrong?”
“Stomach,” she bit out. “Pain,” she finally said.
Betsy disappeared again, ostensibly to tell the paramedics what the issue was and to arrange for security to get the elevator to the ground floor for them.
“Hang on Kate,” she heard Carlo saying but the pain was too intense. She lost consciousness a moment later, staring at the worried expression in Carlo’s eyes.
Chapter 7
Kate woke up several hours later, late afternoon sunshine filtering through the vertical blinds of a strange room. She wanted to move but her body hurt in too many places.
“Don’t move, Kate. I’ll go get a doctor,” Carlo was saying and he disappeared silently out the door to what she assumed was a hospital room although she was still too groggy and feeling awful to focus enough to figure out.
Kate didn’t argue with him. She felt too dreadful to try so she just laid against the pillows and tried to figure out what was going on. She had no idea where she was but she turned her head and noticed the monitors. There was also an IV