Cynthia Hamilton - Madeline Dawkins 01 - Spouse Trap by Cynthia Hamilton

probably doesn’t know his cover’s been blown.” Burt swung away from the window.
    “Did he follow you to this building?”
    “No, I valet parked behind Saks. He didn’t follow me into the store, so I slipped out the front entrance unseen and ducked into this building.”
    “Both times?” Burt grilled her. The question made Madeline blanch. She had been in such a rush, she hadn’t thought to scan the street when leaving Saks the second time.
    “What did you do from the time you left the note until the time you returned?
    “I went back into Saks, the way I left.”
    “You were there the whole time?”
    “Yes. I indulged in some revenge shopping,” Madeline admitted. Burt grunted his approval as he retook his seat.
    “Steven’s having you trailed while he’s gone so that he can figure out what your plan is.”
    “ My plan?”
    “He told you he wanted a divorce and said you had to be out of the house when he gets back on Saturday. In the three days that he’s away, his stooge will report back to him every move you make so Steven will know if you plan to hire some hotshot attorney to break the prenup. That’s probably his biggest worry right now.” Burt stared off into space while he pieced the probable scenario together.
    “He’s most likely banking on you being too humiliated to show the photos to anyone. And, as far as your memory is concerned, you don’t know if you willingly engaged in sex with that man or not.” Madeline’s hand flew to her mouth as another cold truth about her husband’s scheme hit home. “So, after you followed Barnett, what did you do?”
    “I went back home.”
    “Did you speak to anyone?”
    “Only our housekeeper, and only when she came to tell me Steven wouldn’t be home for dinner last night.”
    “Did you see him before he left for the airport?”
    “Yes, I was still up when he came home last night. He’d had our butler pack his bag and put his things in one of the guestrooms. My first reaction was to turn out my lights and pretend I was asleep. But then…I don’t know… I started thinking defensively after witnessing the payoff, so I decided the most convincing thing for me to do was to act remorseful and try to make him think I’d do anything to save our marriage.”
    “What was his reaction?”
    “He was very cold. He’s playing the wounded spouse to the hilt.” Burt sat back as he considered the situation.
    “What do you want me to do for you, Mrs. Ridley?”
    “I’d like you to find out who took those photos of me—who paid for them, who set me up to be humiliated…and…” Madeline dropped her gaze. “I want to know for sure if Steven is behind all this. I guess from your point of view it seems pretty cut and dried. He’s probably trying to divorce me without having to pay me a nickel. But I’d like to know that for sure. Until I have solid proof, I’ll find it difficult to believe he’s really capable of something like this.” Burt nodded slowly as he followed her logic.
    “I did a little research while I was waiting for you to return,” he said, picking up his phone. “You and your husband are quite the power couple.” He handed his cell phone to Madeline so she could see the picture of her and Steven as they entered The Edgecliff Saturday night. The sight of them together, arm and arm, her in the red Valentino gown, made her feel physically ill. She thrust the phone back at Burt.
    “From what I was able to glean from a few minutes of searching is that your husband is the founder and CEO of RAM L.P., which as far as I can tell is some private equity management company. Is that correct?
    “Yes, that’s right. Ridley Asset Management.”
    “What does his company do exactly?” Madeline gazed at him wryly. It struck her that being semi-oblivious to Steven’s business put her at a disadvantage in their new adversarial roles.
    “He finds private investors to fund a variety of ventures. He has a stable of wealthy clients looking