Angelica, a woman who had seen much during her years with the Devereux family, handled the shock with remarkable poise, though her eyes were wide. She quickly glanced from Alexander's hard, unreadable face to Adrian's flushed, exposed one.
"Mr. Devereux," she said quietly, her voice full of concern for the secretary she had grown fond of. "I... I see."
"Good," Alexander continued, his grip tightening imperceptibly on Adrian. "From now on, Adrian will be working in-house, exclusively. He is still my secretary. But he is also my wife, and he is a compulsive liar."
He paused, letting the raw, brutal truth hang in the silence. He pushed the red wig into Adrian's hand.
"Go to the guest room, Mr. Cole," Alexander commanded, his voice switching back to the cold executive tone that left no room for defiance. "Shower. Remove that makeup. Put on something of your own, simple, and come to the dining room in fifteen minutes."
