* * *
She'd vanished. And very slowly he was going mad.
"Dammit, Katherine, tell me where she is."
"I can't. She asked me not to."
Alex ran his fingers though his hair as he paced before her desk. "I can't believe she'd cut me out like this."
He looked awful, dark rings under his eyes and she'd swear he'd slept in his clothes. If he slept at all. "She needs to be alone."
"I need her."
Katherine's heart clenched at the softly uttered words, hurt and lonely and in love. But he would be the last man to admit it aloud. She leaned forward, her elbows braced on the desk. "You could find her if you wanted."
"I do want! Good Lord, I've called and looked everywhere and," he stopped long enough to glare at her, "why didn't you tell me she was a partner with you in Wife Incorporated?"
"She's a silent partner. Ten percent. The dividends pay her bills, but don't keep her head that far above water."
What bills did she need to pay except her own? And it wasn't like Madison to run. But then, no one hurt her like he had.
Katherine rose from her chair and skirted the edge of her Queen Anne desk. "You wounded my friend deeply and to rail at you now would be rude, but Alexander, you apparently said some awful things."
He rubbed his face and sank miserably into the plush chair. "I practically accused her of trapping me."
"Oh, Alex."
Shame mapped his features. "I've ruined the best thing that's ever happened to me."
"Want some cheese with that whine?"
He lifted his gaze. "I don't need jokes. I need you to tell me where she is."
"I can't. I swore a Kappa Delta oath."
Alex had had enough. His future was at stake and he'd be damned if he'd let their sorority pact keep him from the woman he loved. He rose, looming over her petite form. "You either tell me, Katherine Beaucamp Davenport, or I will tell Cookie Ledbetter that Savannah's leading lady has a tattoo on her hip."
Her eyes flew wide. "You wouldn't dare!"
He arched a dark brow, the sharp snap of a raven's wing.
"You're that desperate you'd sully my reputation?"
"You got it."
* * *
Chapter 12
The deadline was up. Angus O'Malley was in town and prepared to sell. Timing couldn't be worse, Alex thought as he headed to his office, his steps hesitant. He didn't want to be here, not now.
"You look awful."
Alex jerked a look to the far end of his office, to the grouping of furniture artfully surrounded by palms. Angus rose from the sofa with his lawyers.
"I know. I apologize for the delay."
Angus inclined his head to his lawyers. The men departed quickly as Angus crossed to him.
Alex slung his briefcase onto the desk and sighed, raking his fingers through his neatly combed hair.
"What's the problem, son?"
Son. God, he could use his own father right now. He never felt so alone in his life. "There's something I need to tell you."
"That you're not married to Madison?"
His gaze flew to the old man's.
Angus smiled. "You don't think I'd sell my company to anyone without a thorough background check. I've known for some time."
"I apologize for lying, Angus. Madison—" he swallowed … it hurt just to say her name "—she didn't have anything to do with the lie. She helped me in a bad situation. I wanted this company badly and assumed if you thought I was married, you'd sell faster."
"I wouldn't give up my life's work to anyone else, son. Sean asked me not to."
Alex's eyes widened. "You knew my father?"
Angus nodded, recognizing the longing in the man's voice. "You're his image. It nearly killed me to be the one to take the company. And I've been watching you for years."
Alex's features tightened. "Why?"
"Your father and I … we started out the same, nothing but ideas and our tools. But we each had a little capital. If we'd been wise, we'd have pooled our resources and merged." He sent him a wry glance. "But we Irish tend to be too stubborn for our own good."
Alex smirked to himself.
"When Sean passed away, I felt obligated to watch over you, but knew you wouldn't accept help. And it was me who sent the lawyer to the jail when you were a kid."
"I always wondered how he'd found me." Alex rubbed his face, impatient to leave, to find Madison.
"I'm proud of you son, if that means anything."
Alex's throat clenched. "Yes, it does. I appreciate your saying so, Angus."
"So, what did you do to Madison?"
He looked at Angus, yet only saw the destroyed look on Madison's face when she'd slapped him. His chest constricted and he fell into the nearest chair, clutching his head. What a jerk he'd been. He'd no right to ask her forgiveness. But he had to. He felt barren and useless without her. He couldn't live like this. Not when he loved her more than his own life.