Lacy Knighton was in a foul mood. Her father had told her that Aaron was calling his absentee fiancée multiple times a day. Alistair Hale had mentioned it casually during a business meeting in his office.

What was so special about that woman? She wasn't any prettier than Lacy! Lacy was sorely tempted to travel to Boston and assault her.

Unfortunately, Max, her usual source of information, had been sulky lately and unwilling to help. After the humiliation she'd endured at her birthday party, he foolishly believed she would marry him to avoid ending up alone. Ha!

She had no shortage of marriage proposals; she certainly didn't need one from the man she considered a brother.

Even Graydon, the notorious playboy, wouldn't stop flirting with her. That was likely his nature, though. He was still trying to help her get close to Aaron.

Progress was slow. In their last few meetings, he had primarily questioned her about Aaron's habits and personality.

"Why does this matter?" Lacy asked irritably.

She didn't want to admit her ignorance. Aaron barely spoke to her, and when he did, it was always condescending. All her information came from others, and even that was scarce. Aaron had almost completely disappeared from their social circle.

What was he up to? He would have to return to New York once his fiancée arrived, to show her the ropes.

Not that Lacy would give him the chance. She was the queen bee—she controlled those vapid socialites. A word from her, and they would tear Bethany Carlisle to shreds—secretly, subtly, of course. That's how things worked. No one would openly oppose a Hale, but there were ways to make a woman feel unwelcome in high society.

Aaron wasn't perceptive when it came to feelings; he wouldn't be any the wiser. Any society girl knew better than to complain, even one from Boston. Bethany wouldn't be able to rely on her fiancé's support, no matter how powerful he was.

Graydon swirled his drink and looked at her condescendingly. "It matters because unless we know what he's like and what he's doing, we can't formulate a plan to trap him."

She pouted. "It doesn't require that much foresight—I'm gorgeous. All I have to do is slip something in his drink at the next event and get him alone."

He sniffed. "Is drugging people all you know how to do? I heard about that little incident in high school. It sounds like your style."

How on earth did he know about that? Keeley Hall was such a minor figure that Lacy would have forgotten her if she hadn't run into her at a bridal shop earlier that year.

"What do you know about that?" she demanded haughtily, tossing her hair.

"I know you hate anyone close to Aaron. That poor girl didn't even like him, if I heard correctly."

"Who have you been talking to?" she demanded. "Who's your source?"

"Someone who wishes to remain anonymous," Graydon said with a sinister smile.

Humph. Lacy desperately wanted to know his source. He knew too much about both her and Aaron. It had to be someone from their social circle who attended their school and had ties to Hale Investments, unless he had multiple sources…

It would be nice if he trusted her more. They were accomplices, after all. He'd said more than once that he didn't want to put all his eggs in one basket. The paranoid loser!

"Your source is certain Aaron is working to destroy Alistairbut why would he do that?" she asked.

She still didn't understand. She wasn't particularly close to her father, but she wouldn't deliberately harm him. Alistair Hale was a cold, terrifying man, and it was no secret he was a sore point for Aaron, but why?

"You're the one madly in love with him. Shouldn't you know that?"

Lacy gnashed her teeth. This man was infuriating. He kept highlighting Aaron's lack of interest in her. Whose side was he on, anyway?

How was she supposed to know? Aaron's mind was an unfathomable mystery. His true thoughts were locked away behind at least five steel safes. No one ever knew what he was really thinking.

She'd always considered him the ideal high-society man, but his recent actions suggested otherwise. What was going on in that gorgeous head of his?

"Tell me what your source knows," she said reluctantly. "I've got nothing."

Graydon flashed a captivating grin and gave a roundabout answer. "Don't you find it a little strange that nearly half the board of Hale Investments seems to have a direct connection to Aaron?"

Lacy frowned. She knew the board members; she might need to curry favor with them someday. She hadn't considered it before, but he was right.

Alice Kelly had been their classmate and Aaron's prom date, and was part of their social circle. Roger Clark, Kyle Griffith, and Cameron Singleton had all attended Harvard around the same time as Aaron. If he knew them from college, it was highly suspicious.

"I have a theory. I think those shareholders are dummies planted by Aaron to control shares he acquired without his father's knowledge."

"How on earth did you come to that conclusion?" Lacy asked in awe. It made sense, but she never would have thought of it.

"Simple," Graydon said with a scoff. "I've investigated those shareholders."

The final two lines, being advertising for a website, have been removed as they were not part of the original text needing grammatical correction.