Fugitive Millionaire (Fugitive Millionaire Book One) by Jaclyn Brooks

guilt. Nothing short of showing him real proof of his innocence is going to change his mind. What little remains of their strained father and son relationship is in tatters.
    “You need to get a lawyer, Fabian. The company will pay for it,” Nathan says emptily. “Claire. I want you to do the research and make a list of the top three criminal defense attorneys in the city. Email the info to me and I’ll pass it along to Fabian.”
    “I’ll get on it first thing tomorrow, Nathan,” Claire promises. “Should I go into the office?”
    “No. Use your laptop at home and we’ll communicate by email and phone.”
    “Okay.”
    This is too much for Fabian to bear. He’s totally overwhelmed by a tangled mixture of fear, sadness and anger. He needs to get out of this room fast before he breaks down sobbing in front of Claire. And, since he can’t go to her for comfort, he’ll find plenty of solace in a bottle of whisky. That’s one trait he and Gray share—a love of good booze. Fabian grabs a full bottle of Jack Daniels from the liquor stash.
    “I’m going to my part of the house to get good and drunk,” he says resentfully. “Don’t worry. I won’t be a threat to any of you fine, upstanding people.”
     

P1.Chapter 4
     
     
    A little over an hour later, Claire exits the sitting room, leaving Nathan alone with a totally sloshed Gray. A female house staff member with a pleasant demeanor cordially escorts her to the front door. During her first visit to Cooper manor she had been in awe of the magnificent décor, now all she is focused on is the idea that the man she is falling in love with may be a murderer.
    It’s a grim thought. Claire wonders how Nathan, his best friend, and Fabian’s own father can so quickly assume the worst about him. Maybe there’s something in his past that she doesn’t know about—something dark. To her Fabian is this charming, easy-going guy who is in desperate need of love and acceptance. Perhaps he’s latched onto her so quickly because he’s always searching for a deeper connection. So far, she has seen nothing in his character or actions to indicate he’s capable of doing away with Sloane Cooper. But, then again, her judgment could be clouded by her feelings for him.
    She’s reminded of the fact that history is filled with tales of charming rogues living double lives. She’s already suspicious that he’s been using her just for sex. Maybe he was using Sloane too, in spite of his claiming not to like her. What if Fabian’s a sexual deviant?
    Maybe he simply can’t help himself. If that’s the case, he’s definitely not marriage material. There’s no way she could ever trust him—unless, he were to get psychiatric help for his problem. But, even if this is true, it still doesn’t explain why Sloane disappeared from that hotel room.
    Was Fabian there?
    She quickly pushes this thought out of her mind. Sloane Cooper may actually be the one with a sexual issue. She knows for a fact that the woman is already messing around with Nathan. Sloane could have another secret lover that does the things neither Nathan or Gray will do. Except, why would she write about Fabian in her diary?
    No matter how much Claire tries to rearrange the pieces to this confusing puzzle, Sloane’s diary entries continue to tug at her mind and heart. Fabian could be telling the truth. It’s certainly possible that what Sloane wrote is nothing more than her kinky fantasies about him. Or, he really did do those things with her and something went terribly wrong during their last encounter. Sloane could have made him mad. They argued and he killed her in a blind rage. Or maybe they got carried away having sex and her death was an accident. Fabian panicked and covered it up.
    Not knowing whose story to believe is tearing at her insides. She wants to believe Fabian, but the logical part of her mind says to wait until the police come up with more facts.
    “Claire, can I talk with you a moment?”
    Claire