by Jill Sanders
“I called their parents.” She shrugged her shoulders as she entered the sale on the tablet. She glanced up at him quickly and leaned forward. “Trust me, they got off way worse than if I’d called Robert on them.”
“I’d better get this into my car and get back to work.”
She handed him his receipt. “Did you come over to buy the chandelier or to see me?”
“To see you. The light was a bonus.” He leaned across the counter and was a breath away from kissing her again when the front doors opened, and a group of teenagers strolled in. “I’ll let you get back to work,” he said softly.
“What are you doing for dinner?” she said before he left.
“I work until close.”
“I’ll come over there then.” She waved as he stepped out of the door.
His car was parked in the alleyway between their buildings, so he strolled down the narrow passage and stuffed the light in the trunk of his car.
He’d been so preoccupied thinking about Riley that he didn’t hear someone approaching him from behind. When he felt the knife at this throat, he froze.
The voice that spoke was husky and low, as if he was trying to change it so it wouldn’t be recognizable.
“I’m here to warn you.”
Carter felt his heart beat triple its normal speed. Thoughts of how to break free flashed in his mind, but even though he worked out regularly and had confidence in his abilities, he knew he was a lot leaner than the man who pressed the sharp knife to his throat. Besides, all it would take was one quick move, and he’d be in deep trouble.
“About?” he finally found his voice.
“Stay away from my sister.”
Carter blinked as his heart sank into his gut. He knew both Conner and Jacob. The man holding a knife to his throat was neither of them. “Riley?”
“Who?” The man jerked slightly, causing the edge of the blade to nick his throat. “No, Reece. She’s told me about you and your brother. How you’ve lied and stolen everything from her. How one of you tried to rape her.”
Carter would have balked at the man’s words, but he was frozen in place since the knife was digging further into his skin. Realization dawned on him.
“Nick? Listen, whatever Reece has told you…” The knife moved closer and he hissed as once more his skin gave way. “We want nothing to do with your sister. She attacked us. Pulled a gun on—”
“Bullshit!” he interrupted, his voice bouncing off the alley’s brick walls. “She told me everything. How you and your brother befriended her, then abused her and stole all of the money your grandfather had left for her.”
He would have laughed if there hadn’t been a knife pressed against his neck.
“I’ve only met your sister once, and that was at my grandfather’s lawyer’s office. Then she showed up here”—he motioned with his hand towards the back of Classy and Sassy—“and pulled a gun on my girlfriend, my soon-to-be sister-in-law, and their friend.”
The man’s arm jerked once more, causing more warm blood to trickle down his neck. “Lies,” he hissed.
“It’s the truth. Your sister believes she’s due our inheritance. All of it,” he added. For a split second the man let up on his hold as if questioning things. “Why would my grandfather leave her everything?”
“They were in love,” he answered.
“Did you know your sister, a woman in her mid-twenties, was dating a man in his seventies?”
“No, but she was really broken up when he died.”
“What was her excuse for holding my friends at gunpoint?” he asked, trying to reason with the man.
“You’re lying about that,” he said softly. “She told me you would.”
“She spent almost six months in jail. You had to know about that.”
Again, the man’s hold loosened. “I… I’ve been out of the country.”
“You’re a military man, right? Surely you can find out easily that she was locked up.”
He was silent for a moment. Then his grip tightened again. “She’s warned me about you two, how you lied to get your grandfather’s fortune, how you attacked her and made it look like she was to blame. She even told me all about your father.” At this Carter tensed even further.
“What about my father?” he almost growled it out.
“How even your parents believe that she was in your grandfather’s original will. That you two had somehow changed it or convinced him to change it before his death. Then, when she confronted your brother, he attacked her and you came after her and started harassing her.”
“We haven’t done anything to your sister. She’s the one stalking us. Was she the one who ambushed Riley during the party?”
He was silent. “She was looking for your grandfather’s original will. She told me how you have all of his things from his house.”
Carter thought of the boxes in his attic that the lawyer had sent him from his grandfather’s house and offices.
“Even if I do,” he started, “that’s breaking and entering along with assault. Your sister needs help. Was she the one who shot at me?”
The man’s arms jerked as if he’d been punched. Instead of answering he leaned closer.
“Consider this a warning. If you ever contact her again or come within five feet of her…” At this point the man’s mouth was directly over Carter’s ear and he growled out, “You won’t even see me coming.”
“Hey!” someone shouted, causing the knife to dig in again as they both jerked at the interruption. “Step away from him asshole.” It was Lilly. Carter’s heart jumped at the thought of her getting hurt. What would that do to his brother? Or her family? It would kill Riley if something happened to her cousin because of him.
“Lilly,” Carter started to say, but the man jerked around until they could both see her standing in the back doorway of Classy and Sassy, holding a bright pink gun aimed directly at the other man’s head.
“I said, let him go.” She spoke calmly with enough power that even Carter believed she’d shoot the man if he didn’t comply.
The knife disappeared from his neck, and Carter reached up to rub the bloody spot as he moved away from the man quickly to stand near Lilly.
They stood there, the three of them looking at one another in the alley, for a full thirty seconds. It was midday and even though the sun had yet to come out from behind the clouds, there was enough light to see that Nick Walker was wearing all black.
Carter had been correct; the man was easily twice his size. No doubt thanks to his many years in the military.
Then, to his and Lilly’s horror, Nick raised the hand still holding the blade and tossed the large hunting knife that he’d held against Carter’s throat directly at them.
Lilly screamed and started to duck, but Carter was faster and threw himself at her body, knocking them both to the ground. They landed on the hard pavement, his shoulder taking the blunt of the force as he pushed them away from the sharp missile.
“Oh my god,” Lilly said when she caught her breath, her pink gun still gripped tightly in her hands.
They both looked over and noticed the empty spot where the man had just been standing. Looking up and down the alley, he realized they were alone and relaxed slightly. The knife was lying on the pavement beside them, but when he reached over to pick it up, she stopped him.
“Leave it. Robert will need to dust it for prints.”
“He was wearing gloves,” he told her, but he left it on the ground just the same. He turned to her. “Are you okay?” he asked, sitting next to her on the ground as he scanned her for any injuries. His brother would kill him if he allowed her to get hurt the week before their wedding.
“I’m fine,” she assured him, but her hands were shaking, and her face was paler than normal. “You’re bleeding.” She motioned to his throat.
He reached up and touched the spot again. “It’s just a nick.”
But she wasn’t listening to him and jumped up from the ground. She tuc
ked the gun into her jean pocket and took his hand to pull him up.
“That isn’t a safe spot for that…” he tried to warn her, but she shushed him and pulled him into the back door of the store.
“The safety’s on,” she assured him. When they stepped inside, she called out, “Riley, help, call Robert.”
“What? Why?” Riley came rushing down the hallway. When her eyes landed on his blood-soaked shirt, she cried out and rushed to his side and immediately put her hands over his wound as if to stop the bleeding. “What happened?”
“No time,” Lilly said. “I’ll call.” She pulled out her cell phone from her back pocket and stepped away.
“I was cut,” he said stupidly, as Riley pulled him into the breakroom and pressed a clean towel over his neck.
“I can see that,” Riley said sarcastically.
“Your cousin… saved me,” he said, looking over to Lilly, who was busy talking on her phone. The gun was still tucked in her jeans. She looked like a badass. He smiled.
“When did she get a gun?” he asked as Riley worked on cleaning up his neck.
Riley glanced over at her cousin. “We both have them… after… last year.” She went back to work cleaning up the blood. “Mine’s teal and says, ‘Stay Sassy.’ Lilly’s says, ‘Stay Classy.’” Her eyes remained locked on his neck as she frowned at the spot.
“Of course, it does.” He laughed, then hissed as his skin stung.
“What happened?” she asked.
“Reece’s brother paid me a visit.” He sobered.
“Shit,” she whispered. “Is he…” She glanced towards the back door.
“Like I said, Lilly scared him off.” He glanced up when his brother came running into the room and wrapped Lilly in his arms.
“What the hell happened?” Corey glanced around the room and stilled when he noticed all of the blood on Carter’s shirt.
Looking down, Carter groaned when he realized just how much was there. “Shit.” He sighed, then looked up. “It looks worse than…”
He didn’t get to finish because Corey stepped over and wrapped his arms around him.
“Fuck this. That’s twice in two weeks someone’s gone after you. I’m done with this.”
“Yeah, I’m not having fun either,” he assured him.
“Where’s Robert? I want to catch this son of a…” His brother glanced towards the ladies.
He and his brother had a code they had come up with as kids. Since their parents hadn’t had a moral compass to pass on to their kids, they had created their own. Rule one: brothers first. Rule two: money never rules them, and so on. The fourth rule was no cursing in front of women. They didn’t want to be like their father, who had a sailor’s mouth. Of course, that didn’t mean they were perfect. After all, they were their father’s sons and genetics was the baseline of morals. Or so they believed.
“I’m fine,” he reassured his brother and the room. Just then, Robert and his deputy Simon rushed in.
“Is everyone alright?” he asked. Then he noticed the blood. “Do you need an ambulance?”
“No.” He shook his head.
“I called my father,” Lilly added. “He’s coming over to check on you.”
He leaned back in the chair, knowing that he was probably not going to get back to work soon. “What about Baked?” He glanced at his brother.
“Robin, Emma, and Jay were there. They can handle things for now,” Corey said. “Tell us what happened.”
For the next half hour, he and Lilly ran over what had happened in the alley while her father cleaned his neck and ran a small bead of medical superglue over the cut. He had yet to look at it, and actually dreaded seeing it, since the adrenaline had worn off and he could tell it was deeper and larger than he’d first thought.
His brother retrieved a clean work shirt for him, and he changed out of the bloodied one in the bathroom. When he did look into the mirror to finish cleaning off the blood that Riley had missed, he hissed at the sight of the gash.
“Damn,” he said softly. It had been close. Too close. The cut was directly below his Adam’s apple. If the knife had gone deeper, he seriously questioned if he’d be standing there now.
Lilly really had saved his life. He couldn’t think of a better woman to have as a sister-in-law.
When he stepped out of the bathroom, Riley was there and stepped into his arms.
“How are you feeling?” she asked into his chest.
Now that the adrenaline rush had passed, he had to admit that he was exhausted.
“Tired,” he confessed.
“Uncle Aaron says you should get some rest. Robert wants you to sign an official report. Since we know who attacked you, it will be handed over to the MPs and his commanding officers. He’s still active duty.”
He nodded and held onto her for another moment. The sweet scent of her hair somehow refreshed him. She was like a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day.
“My brother’s not going to let me get back to work today,” he started, causing her to chuckle.
“He just told me to convince you to take the rest of the day off.”
He glanced down at her. “Oh?”
She nodded up at him. “So, I’m here officially to convince you to go home and rest.”
His hands were running up and down her arms. “I will… if you come with me?”
Her smile doubled. “I was thinking the same thing.”
When they walked into the front of the store, Lilly was closing up.
“What are you doing?” he asked her. “You don’t have to close up shop every time…”
“It’s just until my cousin Suzie and my brother
can get here,” she assured him. “I promised my dad I wouldn’t be here alone.”
He relaxed. “You should be going home too. You’re the one who saved me.”
“I’m fine.” She smiled at him and then walked over and wrapped her arms around them both. “I don’t know what I would have done if I’d had to shoot that man.”
“My hero.” He kissed the top of her head. “I couldn’t ask for a better sister-in-law.”
When he leaned back, she reached up and wiped a tear from her face. “Whether you and your brother like it or not, you’re in our family now, and Jordans always take care of our own.”
Chapter Sixteen
Riley could tell that her cousin’s words had shaken Carter up. Since she’d walked to work that morning, she rode in Carter’s car towards his place. His brother and Lilly promised to stop by later that night to check up on them and deliver her back home.
“You’re quiet,” she said as he pulled into his driveway.
“Just thinking,” he said as he turned off the car.
“Of?” She removed her seatbelt but didn’t move to open the door.
He turned towards her. “Of what could have happened if your cousin hadn’t shown up and about what Nick said.”
“Reece is manipulative,” she assured him.
“Of that, there is no doubt. But why lie to her brother? What does she have to gain?”
She shrugged. “His help in torturing us?” She thought about it. “Do you think it was Nick who shot at you? And that it was him that hit me over the head?”
“Could be.” He thought about it. “One thing was sure, it was him and Reece that day at the cabin. They had followed me to the B and B, but my question is why? They didn’t attack me then or even…” He shrugged. “They didn’t do anything. He just talked to me like one would a stranger you’d bumped into in an elevator.”
“Nothing makes sense as far as Reece is concerned.” She relaxed back.
“Robert said that he’s got all eyes and ears out for both of them.” He closed his eyes for a moment. “That could have been us. A life of crime. Manipulating. Taking what we wanted no matter who we hurt.”
“What?” she asked, unsure of what he was saying.
“Corey and me. If we had followed in my father’s footsteps…”
; “Hey.” She reached over and took his hand. “You two are nothing like them or your father.”
He looked down at their joined hands. “I’m more like him than you know.” He dropped her hand and reached for the door, but she stopped him.
“I wouldn’t be with you if you were.” She felt herself grow impatient. When he stepped out of the car, she rushed after him and stopped him on the base of the stairs to his place. Pushing his shoulder until he turned and looked at her, she glared up at him. “What about me?” she asked. When he didn’t answer, she continued, “Do you think so little of my opinion? Or of Lilly’s?” She crossed her arms over her chest in anger. “What about my family? They like you. Do you think they’re blind and stupid?”
“No.” He swayed backwards as if he’d just taken a blow. “Of course not.” He frowned at her.
“Then why won’t you trust us?”
He sighed and reached up to lay his hands on her arms. “My father can convince anyone that he’s a good guy, a great father… a loving husband. But what lies beneath…” His eyes darkened and grew unfocused. “There’s nothing but pure evil.”
“Reece and her brother might be the same, but that doesn’t mean you and Corey are. I wouldn’t let my cousin marry a man I believed was evil. I haven’t seen one ounce of evil in him or you since the day I met you.”
He leaned in and rested his forehead on hers. “That doesn’t mean that it isn’t there. I took something from you. Something I didn’t deserve.”
She reached up and put her finger over his mouth to stop him. “You didn’t take it. I gave it to you, remember?” Then before he could answer, she leaned up and kissed him, making sure to be careful around the cut on his neck.
When she felt him relax into the kiss, she wrapped her arms around him and held on, knowing how lucky she was that Lilly had been there for him.
“I want a shower,” he said after he held her for a moment. “And I didn’t get lunch.”
“You shower.” She smiled up at him. “I’ll make some lunch.”
He kissed her again. “I keep telling myself to stay away from you. But you’re like a drug.”
“Then you’d better make sure to get your daily dose.”