Unraveled

Book 2: Cantwell Quartet Series

by Elizabeth Castle

Genres: Contemporary Romance; Romantic Suspense; secret identity; steamy romance; protector romance; wealthy hero; rich hero; romance set in america

Synopsis

Brothers, though not by blood, must face the dangers of the past to win the women of their dreams.

Trenton Armstrong has it all: friends, family, and money. He has buried the dark secrets of his past and doesn't look back. So when biographer Ginny Page shows up, he never imagines she would bring his past with her. He was intrigued by her before they met. Meeting her in person has brought an immediate attraction. But he knows something isn't right and knows he needs to keep her close to learn her secrets.

Ginny Page has finally hunted down her quarry. But Trenton is not at all what she expected, and it's clear he is not the man who is stalking her. However, he could unknowingly hold the answers. Unable to stop their fierce attraction, she finds herself getting too close to him. Not wanting to reveal her secrets, or that she knows who he really is, she knows she should run.

But the man stalking her has other plans. As danger surrounds them and those they love, they have no choice but to trust each other. But as truths are revealed, can they get beyond the secrets of their entwined pasts to find a future together?

Note from author: “This is the second book in the Cantwell Quartet four-book series, approximately 55,000 words. Please note this is an open-door romance. I hope you enjoy.” – Lizzy Castle

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Release date: February 17, 2024

Publisher: In The Air Publishing

Print pages: 217

Content advisory: Open door romance.

Sample

Chapter One

Trenton Armstrong whistled while he worked.  Today was a good day. Last night, two of his best friends had gotten married.  And to each other.  Gideon Eginhard was as steady as they came.  Penny Camhion, now Eginhard, was soft and sweet, yet strong.  The perfect foil for Gideon.

He could still picture the look on Penny’s face when he showed up at her parents’ house for the wedding with a pair of antique tables for their bedroom.  For some reason, a reason that made Penny blush, the pair had moved Gideon’s bed from his apartment to her house and then decided to redecorate the master bedroom.  Since it was still mostly empty, he figured the tables were the perfect gift.  Gideon had eyed the tables as if he thought something might pop out of them.  Trenton had laughed.  It had been years since any gift he’d given exploded.  Though there had been some memorable ones over the years.  But this was a wedding.  Serious business.  So no games, no jokes.  He wished the pair the best and was glad Penny loved the tables.

Penny’s love of antiques was one of the passions they shared.  He and Penny had been friends and companions for a lot of years.  But the two of them had never been attracted to each other.  Trenton had known, even when Gideon was denying it, that his friend was in love with Penny.  That made her off-limits, even if the attraction had been there.

Trenton watched the stock numbers scroll by.  Numbers had always been his specialty.  Nash Camhion, who was almost as good with numbers as he was, was the better poker player and gambler.  Trenton knew never to gamble with anything important, and for Trenton, money was one of the most important things.  When one had none, making more once you did could become an obsession.

Trenton rose and stretched.  His eye caught the shine from a photo frame, and he walked to the bookcase where it sat.  The quartet.  He loved these men with every fiber of his being.  Two blonds, two brunettes.  Four men, four brothers, though not by blood.  But they shared a bond unlike anything he had known in his early years.  He’d do anything for his brothers.  He’d die for them.

Nash Camhion was the leader.  The Prince, as Gideon, the second member of the quartet, liked to call him.  All teeth and charm.  Women were drawn to him like flies to honey.  His smoky black hair, athletic build, and endless charm attracted women of all ages.  There had been a memorable occasion when an eighty-year-old woman had pinched his butt and tucked her number down the front of his pants.  Nash had smiled at her, told her she was a doll, and somehow managed to get himself out of the situation without offending the woman.  By the time he’d walked away, she’d been blushing like a teenager.

But Nash had a dark side.  The demons in his past were many.  He’d been kidnapped when he’d been thirteen.  His grandfather, Cormac Camhion, had died trying to protect his grandson.  He’d died lying in the street while Nash had been taken.  Nash never told his family the whole truth of what had happened.  The sanitized version of events had been bad enough.  The truth was worse.  Nash had been sixteen when he’d finally broken.  He’d told the quartet all of the horrific things he’d suffered at the hands of his captor.  The rest of the quartet held him as he shed painful tears, each of them shedding their own in camaraderie and in pain at what their friend had gone through.

Gideon Eginhard, he was the protector.  The Sword, as Trenton liked to call him.  He was the one who had saved Nash from the kidnapper.  He bore two large scars in a cross pattern over his right eye.  One gash ran from above his eyebrow down to his cheek.  The other ran across his forehead.  Gideon had snuck out late that night, intending to commit his first act of robbery.  Instead, he’d saved a boy his own age from being killed and turned his life to the path of right.  He was now a cop and a newly promoted detective.  And now he was married to Nash’s little sister, Penny.

Isaac Brandt was the third member of the quartet.  He was the brains.  He was the one you could trust to bring peace and logic to any situation.  Some people thought he was boring.  Some said stodgy.  Trenton might have thought the same if he didn’t know him so well.  Isaac was the son of a prominent diplomat.  His father spoke a dozen languages and held two peace prizes, though not the Nobel he coveted.  But the fact that the man bullied his own son never came to light.  In retaliation, Isaac surpassed his father.  He spoke fifteen languages, could read twenty, and had more doctorate degrees than Trenton could count.  Isaac rarely spoke to his father and had no plans to change it.  When they did happen to cross paths, usually through university functions, Isaac extricated himself as soon as possible.

Isaac was probably the only one who didn’t have a dark past.  One would say he was least like the others.  But his level-headedness brought balance to the group.  Trenton liked to think he was the glue that held them all together.  And best of all, the man could cook.

Trenton, well, he was the goofball.  The funny guy.  At least that was how he was perceived by outsiders.  And how he wanted to be perceived.  He had been the last to join the quartet.  He was two years younger than the rest of them, who were all in the same grade.  Isaac had been tasked with tutoring him.  Isaac saw something in him, and he had taken a young Trenton under his wing.  After Trenton met Nash and Gideon, Trenton had a pretty good idea of what Isaac saw.  There was something dark lurking under the surface of the other two boys.  The guys had befriended him, and before he knew it, he’d become part of the group.

Trenton’s phone buzzed, and he turned from the photograph.  He saw Isaac’s name on the screen.  Of the four, Trenton was still closest to Isaac.  “Hey, what’s up?  Didn’t get enough of me at the wedding?”

Isaac ignored the comment.  “I got an odd message from a journalist.  She has written a few biographies and has interviewed some important people.  She’s asking for an interview with me.”

Isaac was not only a professor at Georgetown, but he was also a successful author.  Between his historical books on peace treaties and foreign wars and his growing works in science fiction and fantasy, it wasn’t surprising.  “So, what, you need me to dazzle her for you?”

Isaac scoffed.  “I don’t think I’m interested in dazzling her.  Impress her, perhaps.  But she read the article Nash published and saw the interviews he’s been giving about Cantwell.  I was surprised she would know anything about the gaming industry, given she’s a biographer, but she said she’d love to not only talk to me about my body of work but also to interview all of us as a side story.”

Trenton thought about it.  “What’s her name?”

“Ginny Page.”

Trenton whistled.  “Didn’t she interview a president?”

Isaac couldn’t hide his surprise that he knew the name.  “You never cease to amaze me.  But yeah.  Not ours.  She has interviewed a few prominent political figures in Washington. D.C, I believe.  I was surprised because she’s so young, but she became an instant bestseller when she wrote her first book.  So what do you think?”

Trenton was not playing dumb.  “Think about what?”

Isaac sighed.  “Letting her interview me.  I can’t imagine why me of all people.  I thought she could come to Cantwell’s office and see what we’re up to.  It would be great publicity if nothing else.  But everyone would need to be on board.”

Trenton couldn’t help it.  “My ever-practical friend.  I think that if Ginny Page wants to interview you, you say ‘yes, please.’  She’s brilliant.  Not as brilliant as you are, but maybe a close second.”

Isaac’s hum came over the line.  “All right.  I’ll answer her call.  Just seems odd.”

Trenton didn’t like the shiver that went up his back.  “What could possibly be odd?  You’re smart, you have a new book coming out, you have two cool jobs, and you’re not a bad-looking guy.”

Isaac hummed again.  “I have three jobs.”

Trenton was so glad he took the bait.  “Yeah, but you’re the most boring teacher I’ve ever heard.”

Isaac gave a third hum.  “Delilah would agree with you.”

Trenton felt bad.  Delilah, or Lilah as she preferred, had become a sore spot for Isaac.  “I’m just kidding.  She doesn’t know you the way we do.  Though we all know you’re sweet on her.  You should show her your fun side.”

Isaac was quiet for a moment.  “I don’t have a fun side.  But I’ll take that under advisement.  I’ve got to go.  I’m guest lecturing at the university today for a colleague.”

Trenton hung up.  Sometimes Isaac made him feel like he’d kicked a puppy.  Isaac’s problem was that he spent too much time with his head in a book.  Lilah was gorgeous under her baggy clothes and wavy red hair.  Trenton thought her freckles were adorable.  Like Gideon with Penny, Trenton could tell Isaac was attracted to her.  So he and Lilah had a platonic relationship, one where they simply discussed work, photography, and money.

Speaking of, Trenton went back to his computer.  Lilah was his first client now that he was freelancing.  He’d worked for an investment firm for years.  He grew his own portfolio twenty-fold over the years.  And he’d made the firm a ton, too.  But he’d learned to hate sitting at his desk in the overly decorated office day after day.  Only his frequent travels kept him sane.  When that was no longer enough to stop his restlessness, he knew he had to get out before it drove him mad.  He was finding that helping others was more fulfilling than making his rich clients richer.

Lilah’s mom was sick, and Trenton had offered to help.  He’d found Lilah crying in the bathroom.  He hadn’t meant to pry, but the gut-wrenching tears she had been trying to stifle were more than his heart could handle.  After much coaxing, Lilah admitted her mother was sick and that she was struggling to pay the bills.  The doctor had prescribed a very expensive medication that was beyond Lilah’s ability to pay.  Trenton had helped her wash her face and asked her how much money she had.  Lilah had been about to brush him off, but he’d promised to double her investment.  An easy promise, given she only had a couple hundred dollars left to her name, and that was after getting paid.  Two weeks later he’d come back with a check.  Shyly she’d asked him if he could do it again.  And he had.  In return, Lilah had poured herself into the Cantwell project and had been working more hours than any of them.  He did keep it to himself that he’d padded the account.  All of the quartet had.  Lilah had become an instrumental part of the team.

Cantwell.  Trenton picked up the book that lay on his desk.  Isaac really was a genius.  Cantwell was Isaac’s first foray into fantasy and romance.  Nash had read the book and immediately came up with a game concept.  Within a very short time, Cantwell had been formed.  They’d all kicked in equal amounts of money.  Gideon, being a cop, didn’t have as much money as the rest of them.  But Trenton had been building his portfolio, and Gideon had put the whole sum in.  Each of them then matched it.

Trenton went to his bookcase and pulled out a book on the actress Sonny Madison.  The biography had been Ginny Page’s first book.  It probably hadn’t hurt that Sonny had just starred in a movie that had grossed triple-digit millions. The book Ginny had written on the actress had made the bestseller list in less than two weeks after it hit stores.  Trenton wasn’t particularly interested in Sonny Madison, though he did enjoy her movies.  It was the author who intrigued him.

Trenton flipped the book over.  A subtly pretty brunette stared back at him.  Like Lilah, she had a sprinkling of freckles on her face that made her appear young, though he figured she was probably older than she looked.  There was a maturity in her writing that lent itself to an older, more experienced person.  There was not much information about the author on the book jacket.  In fact, there was very little about her on the internet.  He’d looked.

Trenton’s phone rang.  This time it was Nash.  “Hey.  How are you holding up?”

Nash’s tapping on the case of his phone came over the line.  “You know I’m ecstatic.  About time, I swear.  I’m just glad they didn’t push it out and just did the deed.  But I just got off the phone with Isaac.  That’s amazing news.  Gideon is a fan of Ginny Page’s books, too.  Isaac didn’t call him, but he’ll be pumped when he finds out.  What do you think?”

Trenton gazed down at the book jacket.  “I think Isaac deserves some recognition for his books.  And when Cantwell hits the bookstores after the game is released, he’s going to be more famous than he realizes.  Poor guy won’t know what to do with that kind of attention.”

“No kidding.  At least he’s not as shy as he used to be.”

Trenton dropped back into his desk chair.  “So hard to remember how we all were years ago.  I think we all turned out all right.”

Nash made a humming sound, not unlike Isaac.  “I’ve been thinking about it a lot.  Hard not to after what happened.  I won’t mind getting back to work now that all the wedding hoopla is over.  I could use a distraction.  And Ginny Page looks like a nice distraction, if you ask me.”

Trenton wanted to tell him no one asked him, but he realized how absurd that would sound.  And Nash’s tone hadn’t gotten past him.  “If you want to hang out, I’m free.  Or if you want to talk about anything.”

The line was silent for a moment.  Then Nash finally spoke.  “I am still having a hard time about Clara.  It’s been easy with the wedding for all of us to pretend it didn’t happen.  But Dad has been talking to Hayden, and I don’t like it.  I want to put all of this behind us.”

Trenton agreed.  The past two months since Clara was killed had been hard for the Camhion family.  Someone had tried to kidnap Penny.  Thankfully Penny had gotten away.  At least the first time.  It had brought up painful memories for the entire Camhion clan.  It then came to light that Clara, Penny and Nash’s cousin, was the one behind the kidnapping.  She had tried to kill both of them.  She’d torched Cantwell’s headquarters with Nash inside in an attempt to burn Nash alive.  Instead of leaving Penny in the building to die in the blaze, Clara had taken her with the intent to kill her in Penny’s home.  But Gideon had put the pieces together and found Penny in time.  In the end, Clara was dead; shot by Gideon.

Trenton didn’t push.  He rubbed a spot on his chest.  Sometimes a man just needed to be alone.  “I’m around if you want to pop over.  I’ve got lots of frozen pizza and beer.  And I’m just working on my business plan.  Though I can’t seem to find any enthusiasm for it right now.”

“I’m going to take a raincheck.  Penny and Gideon should be on an airplane right now.  Mom and Dad are ready to call it a day.  Mom’s exhausted.  I’m going to crash at my parents’ house tonight.  I stuck around and helped with the cleanup.  We can meet up in the morning at Cantwell.  Isaac will probably need us to convince him to call Ginny Page back.  No doubt he’ll change his mind a dozen times tonight while he tries to figure out all possible outcomes of whether he agrees or not.”

Trenton couldn’t help but smile at that.  “We all know him so well.  But we can talk him into it, and then have him work on the storyboards with me.  If we don’t nail down the rest of the story, Lilah might go rogue again.”

Nash made a hissing noise.  “That woman.  She’s lucky she’s so good at her job.  We’ve argued for the past four days over your last boards.”

Trenton felt no sympathy.  “And yet she has won almost every one of those arguments, even though you’re the boss.  Women.  Go figure.”

Nash relented.  “Okay, yes, she’s usually right once I see it.  How is her portfolio going, by the way?”

Trenton pulled up the numbers and told him.  “Not bad for starters.  Her mom is going to need a lot of care.  I figure her portfolio will keep me busy while I continue to work on my client list.  Some of my previous clients from the firm have already reached out to me.”

“It’s because you’re too good at what you do.  That ridiculously large house you live in is proof of that.  It’s bigger than mine.”

Trenton glanced around.  The house was way more than a man like him needed.  No wife, no kids.  No family, outside of the quartet and an aunt and uncle who had taken him in when his mom died.  Thanks to them, he’d gone to the private school that Nash, Gideon, and Isaac attended.  If for nothing else, he owed them for that.  But he owed the quartet much more than he could ever repay.

Nash’s phone beeped.  “Gotta go.  Lilah is texting me pictures again.  That woman needs to get some sleep.  She works more than we do.”

Trenton tapped a couple of keys and put a little more money into her account.  “Sometimes work can help you keep your mind off your troubles, right?  So I figure as long as she doesn’t push herself too hard, I won’t complain.  No worse than either of us on our bad days.”

Nash concurred.  “All right.  I won’t tell her to go to bed.  Though it’s tempting.  I’ll go over these with her tomorrow.  You can come and referee.”

“I’ll be there with a chair and a whip.”

 

*  *  *

 

Across town, Gentiana Lucinda Page-Hamlin, professionally known as Ginny Page, checked her email for the dozenth time.  She had emailed Isaac Brandt last week, and she hadn’t heard back from him.  While he would make for an interesting book, that wasn’t why she wanted to interview him.  If he didn’t respond soon, she was going to go find him.  She had never had a prospective interviewee not respond to her right away.  Her name meant something these days, and having her interview them could be just the boost their careers needed.  Not that Isaac really needed her help, but she was not going to tell him that.

Ginny pushed her pin-straight brunette hair out of her face.  She’d spent the last hour pacing the hotel room she was staying in.  She wasn’t a patient person on a good day.  And today was not one of her better days.  She’d gotten no response to a few discreet inquiries she’d made.  She wanted more information before she went into the lion’s den.  Or in this case, Cantwell’s headquarters.

Ginny went to the window that overlooked the packed parking lot.  She never stayed in fancy hotels.  She didn’t like drawing attention to herself.  And despite most of her books gracing bestseller lists, she still was able to keep a low profile.  It probably helped that she preferred print over television.  She stayed off social media.  And as much as possible, she kept cameras off of her.  Even the photo on her books was an outdated shot that was taken more than five years ago when she’d had short hair and worn glasses all the time.  Today she kept her hair long and her contacts in.

On the desk sat files on all four men who comprised Cantwell.

Nash Camhion.  Now that one was a pretty boy, no doubt.  She thought herself immune to his kind of charm.  He was not a low-profile person.  The man had modeled for a time, was part of an extremely wealthy family, and wasn’t shy in front of cameras.

Gideon Eginhard.  Now he was an intense-looking man.  No doubt he would dwarf her five-foot-three-inch frame.  He was over six feet.  She knew he was a detective with the local police department and that he had a reputation as a good cop.  Ginny couldn’t help but sarcastically wonder where the honest cops were when she needed them?  In her mind, the only good cop was one that hadn’t gotten caught yet.

Dr. Isaac Brant.  His books were brilliant.  She was an admirer of his work.  She was looking forward to interviewing him.  Assuming he emailed her back.  He held multiple doctorates, but his passion was writing.  Ginny could relate to that.  Cantwell was a departure for him, so it intrigued her how he went from non-fiction, academic works to science fiction, fantasy, and romance in under four years.  Ginny had written a couple of fiction book, sweet romance novels meant for teens, but she knew her true talent lay in non-fiction.

Ginny stopped pacing and grabbed her cell phone.  She dialed the only person she wanted to talk to right now.  “Hi.  Can you put Gwenny on the phone?”

A soft, excited voice came over the line.  “Hi, Mommy.”

Ginny’s pinched lips turned into a smile, and the tension of her day faded.  “Hi, sweetie.  How was school today?”

Ginny listened as Gwenny told her all about her day.  But when Gwenny once again mentioned the man in black, Ginny shivered.  “Put Levi back on the phone.  I love you.  And I hope to see you very soon.”

“Yes.”  Levi responded in his usual one-word replies.

“Any luck?”

“No.”

“Did you see him?”

“No.”

Ginny hit “end” on her phone.  She needed to find the man in black.  And soon.