LITMIR.BIZ

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turned into a movie. Her boss might believe the Kingsleys were innocent but her gut wouldn’t let her join that bandwagon just yet and Kathleen always followed her gut.

      “Good news?” Hannah asked.

      Curiosity was written all over her sister’s face. “The best. I just got my new assignment.”

      “Oh. Here.” Hannah handed Kathleen the red dress, brushing off her news. “Put this one on with the sexy red-and-gold Versace heels I pulled out.”

      “What are you wearing?”

      “Versace, of course, only my dress is a deeper red.” Hannah gave her sister a Cheshire cat smile.

      “If I didn’t know that your IQ was as high as mine or that you were a beast when it came to cooking, I’d swear you were a spoiled, rich woman enamored by the trappings of your lifestyle,” Kathleen stated.

      Hannah shrugged. “There’s nothing wrong with me enjoying the fruits of Dad’s and my own labor. Anyway, most of my wardrobe comes to me free.”

      “Yes, I keep forgetting. People actually want to see you in their clothes.”

      Kathleen walked into her sister’s oversize dressing room, dropped her robe and stepped into the gown her sister had selected. It fit her perfectly, accentuating all of her physical assets. Kathleen stared in the full-length mirror and smiled. Her light eyes sparkled, the makeup highlighted her golden-bronze skin beautifully, her black hair full of curls. Kathleen was thankful her hair was pulled up and out of her face.

      She hadn’t seen the woman staring back at her in quite some time. Not only did she look like a younger, slightly darker version of her mother, which made her both happy and sad, she rarely wore makeup or such fancy clothes anymore. Kathleen only cared about stopping companies from hurting their employees and making the bad guy pay, and she didn’t care how she looked doing it. Her heartbeat increased, and she had to fight back her tears. She knew her sister would kill her if she messed up her makeup.

      “Ready or not, I’m coming in,” Hannah called out before walking into the room. “Oh wow, sis. You look divine...and just like Mom.”

      Kathleen swallowed hard. The fact that her job didn’t require her to dress up was only one reason she didn’t like to do it. The other was because it reminded her of just how much she missed her mother. Hannah was right. Irene Winston had blessed her daughters with her beauty.

      “So do you,” Kathleen replied, smiling at Hannah through the mirror. She turned to face her sister. “I’d say we could pass for twins, except your dress leaves little to the imagination with such a low cut in the front.”

      Hannah turned around. “And the back,” she added, smiling.

      Both women laughed. “You are a mess, Hannah.”

      “I know. Here you go.” Hannah handed her sister a black velvet box.

      “What’s this?” Kathleen’s eyebrows snapped together.

      “Just a few accessories,” she explained.

      Kathleen opened the box and her breath caught in her throat. “Oh no, I’m not wearing these.” She quickly closed the box and tried to hand it back to her sister. It was like the box held a deadly secret or something. It was one more thing bringing up emotions she was trying to keep buried. The loss of her mother might have fueled her career, but personally it was something she’d never completely dealt with.

      “Will you stop being silly? We don’t have time to go by your house and get yours so you’ll just have to borrow my set tonight.”

      “That would be a waste of trip since my set isn’t at my house,” she murmured.

      Kathleen heaved a sigh and slowly opened the box as if she’d expected the million-dollar diamond-and-ruby choker and matching stud earrings had disappeared. They had each gotten a set when they’d turned twenty-one. Their father had showered them with jewelry their whole lives. He told them it brought him joy especially since their mother was no longer around to buy things for and spoil.

      That was another example as to why Kathleen didn’t waste her time dating. There were too many ideals a man would have to live up to, and spoiling her had nothing to do with it. It was the unconditional love that made them want to do such nice and extravagant things for one another. Kathleen just knew that type of love would be hard to find.

      “Don’t tell me something happened to yours.” Fear crossed Hannah’s face. “Dad’s going to be heartbroken.”

      Kathleen frowned at Hannah as she reached for the earrings. “Don’t be silly. Most of my jewelry is in my safety deposit box. I only keep a few pieces in my home safe.” She removed the necklace from the box and placed it around her neck.

      “Why not keep all your stuff in your home safe?”

      “Because it’s not like I wear so much jewelry every day.”

      “Good point.” Hannah adjusted her diamond necklace. “How’s work going anyway? I know you can’t tell me who you’re going after but whoever it is had better watch out.”

      Kathleen smiled. She had gone up against some powerful people in her career and while ambition had never been a motivating factor for Kathleen, she knew bringing down the Kingsleys would be a big feather in her career cap. “Let’s just say it’s a really big fish that I can’t wait to catch and fry.”

      “You go, girl. Ready? I just got a text. Dad’s here, and you know how he feels about being late.” Kathleen heard her phone beep. She knew she’d just received the same message. “You ready to spend your Friday night with Dad?”

      “I might as well be.” Kathleen gave herself one final look in the mirror and smiled. She knew how much her mother had loved to dress up and that she’d be really happy right now. “Let’s go celebrate Mom and raise a lot of money for cancer research.” Tomorrow I’ll start the process of bringing down another company that won’t make the safety of their employees a priority.

       Chapter 3

      After an eventful weekend, Morgan walked into the plant’s operations director’s office, drinking from his travel mug, to find his mother standing in the middle of the room looking out the window. She was wearing a blue pantsuit that showed off how physically fit she was, emphasizing the fact that age was nothing but a number. Her bag sat on the desk next to her personalized hard hat.

      “Mother, what are you doing here?” Morgan asked, checking his watch. His mother wasn’t exactly a morning person these days, so he was trying not to let her unexpected visit concern him, but the last couple of times she’d surprised him it had been to share bad news.

      Morgan was actually looking forward to getting back to work and focusing on expanding into new territories—all the things he’d been working on before Perez entered into their lives. Still reeling from the excitement of the weekend, the birth of another Kingsley and seeing how happy his brothers were, Morgan was actually considering taking Ms. Monica up on her offer to introduce him to her friend’s daughter. Although he knew that particular thought would soon pass.

      Victoria turned and faced Morgan. “Good morning, son. I realize we’ve had an exciting weekend and that you might be a little out of sorts on this bright Monday morning, but I’m sure you haven’t forgotten the appropriate way to greet your mother.”

      Morgan sighed and placed his cup on the desk next to his mother’s hat. He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. “My apologies. Good morning, and to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit? Is everything good with Baby A?” His heart skipped several beats at the thought that something could be wrong with his new nephew. Morgan never imagined that something so small could knock him off balance and make him feel so much.

      Victoria’s face lit up with pride. “Alexander the third is wonderful,” she

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