“Who do you think you are?” Kent Devlin secured the tie on the spa monogrammed robe, slick dark hair falling over frantic, uncertain gray eyes.
“Your girlfriend’s brother-in-law. Gemma!” His sister-in-law all but glided from the bedroom. Barefoot, with thick blond hair flowing tousled around her shoulders, Gemma poised her fingers just below the plunging V of her matching robe, her shining, cornflower blue eyes both guarded and hostile.
Gemma smirked overfilled lips. “What brings you by, Max? Joe have you doing his dirty work now?”
“Not even a pretense of shame.” Max kept an image of Hope in his mind as he set his anger aside. “You really are a piece of work.”
“I don’t do pretense.” Gemma padded across the polished wood floor and poured herself a glass of champagne. “It was just a matter of time before he figured it out. Probably would have sooner if he’d taken his head out of that computer of his.”
“Gemma, what’s going on?” Kent swiveled as if he were a spectator at a fast-paced tennis match. “What’s this all about?”
“The end of my marriage apparently.” Gemma let out a dramatic sigh before she walked right past Max and cast a suspicious glance in Allie’s direction. “Didn’t expect you to bring mental health backup. Is she here for me or you?” She flounced onto one of the two plush sofas and crossed her legs. “I’d bet on you, given your difficult year.”
“Where’s Hope, Gemma?” Max couldn’t stand her casual attitude any longer.
“Why are you asking me?” Gemma let out that laugh of hers that made his stomach revolt. “Aren’t you her babysitter now? Besides, Joe’s the one dictating her schedule these days. I don’t have a say, remember?”
“You’re saying Hope isn’t with you.” Allie touched Max’s arm again, this time in a reassuring gesture that made him grateful he’d brought her along. She did have a way of setting him at ease. Even as she unsettled him. “You didn’t come back to Sacramento last night and pick her up at the Vandermonts’?”
“What?” Gemma rolled her eyes in Devlin’s direction even as her boyfriend inclined his head, eyes going dim. “Of course not. We’ve been far too busy here to even think about—”
“Your marriage and child?” Allie cut her off and had Max arching an impressed brow. “Yes, we can see that. I’m going to take a look around.”
“You most certainly will not!” Gemma bolted off the sofa, sloshing her drink over the edge of her glass as Allie darted around her. “This isn’t any of your business, you—”
“Shut up, Gemma,” Kent snapped. “What’s this about Hope?”
Max blinked at the intensity in Devlin’s voice. “She’s missing.” Whatever strength Max might have felt coming into this place drained in one big whoosh. He’d been wrong. Hope wasn’t here. She wasn’t anywhere. “She was at a sleepover with friends. When they got up this morning, she was gone.”
“Oh, please.” Gemma trailed after Allie, who disappeared into the bedroom. “She’s probably just taken off again for attention. You know how she gets.”
“This isn’t that,” Max said. “The police have been brought in. They’ve issued an Amber Alert...” He trailed off as Devlin retrieved his phone from the kitchenette counter. He clicked open the screen, scrolled down. Lifted wide eyes to Max.
“It’s true.” Devlin carried the phone over to Gemma, who, finally, seemed to be getting the message. “Why would you think Hope was with us?” Devlin asked as Allie returned.
She stood in the doorway of the bedroom, looked Max straight in the eye and shook her head. “She’s not here.”
“Of course she’s not. She’s supposed to be with you!” Gemma snatched Devlin’s phone out of his hand. “So what have you screwed up now?”
Max ignored the verbal assault. Assign blame and deflect. Classic Gemma.
“Hope wrote about the two of you in her journal,” Allie said as Max struggled to find the words. “She also wrote about how you threatened her, Gemma.”
“Threatened her? Gemma, what did you do?” Devlin asked.
All this time, from the moment he’d read Hope’s journal, and during the drive, Max had thrown himself completely into the belief that Hope was with her mother. That this was all some huge custody play on Gemma’s part made to appear as if...
“Oh, God.” Max’s legs went weak. Devlin reached him first, helped guide him to one of the matching chairs before heading over to pour him a drink. “I thought you’d taken her. I thought—”
“You thought wrong!” Gemma threw the phone on the sofa. “And I don’t know what she wrote in that stupid book of hers—”
“Enough, Gemma.” Allie appeared at Max’s side, standing next to him, a hand on his shoulder. She squeezed, the small kindness giving him all the comfort and reassurance he needed. And reminding him the pretty doctor had been right from the start.
His head buzzed. This wasn’t about the custody battle at all.
His niece had been taken by a stranger.
He accepted the drink Devlin pushed into his hand, swallowed the finger of Scotch fast so he could embrace the burn.
“If you think you’ll be able to use this against me in court—” Gemma said.
“Gemma!” Devlin yelled and made Gemma jump. “Don’t you hear what they’re telling you? Your daughter is missing and you haven’t even asked about her!”
“Don’t you criticize my parenting skills.” Gemma curled her arms around herself, her face going tight as her lower lip protruded. Max stared at her, unable to decide whether the reality of the situation was truly sinking in or if she was trying to figure out a way to make the situation pay off for her.
“Then allow me.” Allie stepped forward when it was clear Gemma was planning to play the victim. “You told Hope if she said anything about your affair that you’d take her away from Joe, that you’d make certain she’d never see him or Max again. You’ve had her living in fear, driving her deeper into depression because of your secret. Mr. Devlin, I assume you can confirm Gemma’s claim that she hasn’t left here long enough to be responsible for Hope’s disappearance?”
“I can.” Given his sallow skin, he clearly wished otherwise. “We, um, checked in about ten days ago. My wife is away with our kids.” His face drained of color. “My kids.” He scrubbed a hand across his forehead and swore. “What have I been doing?”
“No offense,” Max said as his determination returned, “but I’d rather not be witness to your moral epiphany. If Hope isn’t with you, I need to get back. To her father. To help with the search. Gemma? Do you want to ride back with us—”
“Come with you?” Gemma blinked. “Why would I do that?”
“And with that I think I can declare the custody battle is officially over.” Allie planted a hand on Max’s chest. “For the record, Gemma, Joe has known about your affair for the better part of a year. He chose not to share that information with the court to spare Hope the truth, but you didn’t extend her the same courtesy, did you? Joe went out of his way to protect your daughter while you seeded her with fear and distrust. This was never about keeping custody. It was all about money.”
“Money I earned! And I don’t need some nosy doctor telling me anything about my life,” Gemma spat. “I’ll get there on my own. Tell Joe I’ll be there—”
“I’m not your messenger boy.” Max got to his feet. “But I am his. He emailed me before we got here to say he’s had new settlement papers drawn up. They’ll be waiting for you when you get home. You’re going to sign them, Gemma. Without question or negotiation. You will relinquish all custody rights of Hope effective today. If you choose to fight, and honestly, I really hope you do, he will send copies of the investigator’s report to the court and to the media.” To Devlin, he added, “You need to get ahead of this with your family. She’s not known for her altruism.” The man gave hi
m a shell-shocked nod.
“You’re lying,” Gemma protested. “Joe wouldn’t do this to me. He loves me.”
“He loved the idea of you. And if he doesn’t release the report, I will. That’s a promise you can bank on. We’ll see you at the house.” Max took hold of Allie’s arm and they headed to the door together. “Unless we don’t. In which case everyone will know exactly what kind of woman and mother you are.”
* * *
“Max, you need to pull over.” Allie gripped the edges of her seat as Max played bob and weave with his oversize truck. Any second his tense muscles were going to snap. The Napa scenery flew by at an alarming speed, fast enough she’d triple-checked her seat belt since climbing inside. “Max?”
It took every ounce of control she had to keep her voice calm. Horns blared around them. Brakes screeched, muted shouts of anger and frustration echoed against the confines of the cab, but his foot didn’t ease up. His knuckles remained stark-white around the wheel.
“Can’t stop.” He shook his head, his shaggy hair brushing against his collar. “Have to get back.”
Allie pursed her lips. Everyone had their limits. Clearly Max Kellan had slammed face-first into his. Getting both of them killed, however, wasn’t going to do anyone, especially Hope, any good. Sometimes Allie really hated being right.
“Max, stop the car.” She placed her hand on his arm. He tensed, felt his muscles quiver as she shifted closer. “Please, Max. You’re scaring me.”
She might not have been able to read everything about him, but she’d seen enough to know that at his core, Max was the kind of man who prided himself on protecting others. If his career as a fireman hadn’t indicated that, watching him with his brother, seeing how he was with Gemma would have proven it. Her plea for him to stop the car wasn’t part of any plan. Not entirely.
She had to find some way to break through the panic surging through his shocked system.
The truck slowed, not much at first but enough to prove to Allie that Max had heard the concern in her voice. She didn’t push harder, didn’t say another word. Nor did she remove her hand as he swerved to the side of the road. The gravel popped under the tires as he ground the vehicle to a halt.
Allie released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. She sagged in the seat.
“I’m sorry.” He stared out the windshield, barely blinking, barely breathing. His hands continued to clutch the wheel. “I didn’t mean to scare you. Again.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “The entire drive down here, I thought, I really believed...” He couldn’t seem to catch his breath. “Now I can’t stop wondering where she is. Who she’s with. What he might be doing to her.”
“I know.” She did know, because her heart was breaking, too. “It’s okay. It’s natural. And I’m fine.” But she wasn’t. She recognized the signs of reality crashing in, of losing hope—in his case literally. “Let’s take a walk.” Before he could argue, she hopped out of the car and made her way around to his side. The rocks and gravel dug through the thin insoles of her shoes, bruising her feet. She pulled open his door, reached in and pried his hands off the steering wheel. She stood there, holding his hands in hers while he looked at her as if he’d never seen her before. “Come outside, Max.”
When he dropped out of the car, she caught him and wedged herself under his arm as she nearly fell over. “I’m beginning to think they call you Bull,” she panted as she led him around to the front of the truck and dropped him onto the bumper. “You are not a small man, you know that?” She stepped away and righted herself from head to toe.
“Not Bull.” The ghost of a smile, exactly what she’d been waiting for, appeared. “I get another question.”
“Save it for later, fire boy. Take a few deep breaths.” She stepped to the side as traffic continued to speed past them. “You do manage to keep surprising me, you know,” Allie told him. “That was one of the more unique panic attacks I’ve ever been witness to.”
“That wasn’t panic.” Max shook his head. “That was rage.”
Tempered with more than a touch of fear. “That was you coming to terms with the fact you can’t fix what’s happening just by force of will alone.” Allie dropped down in front of him, balanced herself by holding on to his knees so she could angle her eyes to catch his gaze. “You convinced yourself this would all be over by now. That we’d be driving Hope home.”
“But you knew better.”
She shrugged.
“Leave it to a shrink not to utter the words I told you so. Sorry.” He leaned back and closed his eyes. “I won’t call you that again. I was so sure she had her.”
“If there’s anything good that comes out of today, it’s that Gemma will be out of Hope’s life for good.”
“You think?”
“I know. Devlin was right. She never once asked about her daughter. She was focused on how the situation affected her and her payout. And as I was there in a professional capacity and as I’m still listed as the consulting medical professional when it comes to your brother’s custody case, I can assure you, Gemma won’t be coming anywhere near Hope again if I have anything to say about it.”
His lips quirked. “Remind me not to tick you off, Doc.”
“Keep calling me Doc and you’ll see how ticked I can get.” Seeing that he was coming out the other end of despair, she returned to the truck to retrieve one of the bottles of water she’d bought with their coffee. “Here. Drink. Hydrate.” She twisted off the top and handed him the bottle.
He drank the entire thing, arching his neck as he swallowed. Allie wondered if she’d ever seen anything quite so enticing before. The way he focused on the simple task, the gleam in his eye when he looked at her. Feeling suddenly exposed, she hugged her arms around her torso and glanced away.
“Do I get my question now?” he asked.
“Fire away.”
“What are you going to do once we’re back in Sac?” He toasted her with the empty bottle. “And don’t tell me you’re going to take root in my brother’s living room until this resolves itself.”
The truth couldn’t hurt in this case. At least she hoped not. “I’m going to go home and go over my files regarding Hope’s sessions. Then I’ll consult with two friends of mine, probably over vast amounts of wine. Eden and Simone and I, we have some experience working cases together. Not kidnappings, per se, but...” She paused and backed away from the fine line of the truth. “They think outside the box, especially where police investigations are concerned. Eden, especially.”
“Like the police are going to share what they’re doing with the three of you.”
“Well, one of them won’t have much of a choice. Jack’s partner is married to Eden.” She shuffled her feet into the rocks to ease the pressure pain. “If we don’t pull it out of him, Simone’s fiancé will. He’s a P.I. and probably loathes the system more than you do.”
“I don’t loathe the system,” Max said. “I just don’t particularly enjoy the restrictions it puts on me.”
“Yeah, I’m not letting you anywhere near Vince or Eden.” She could feel them bonding from here. “None of you need another bad influence. You feeling better?”
“I’m feeling functional.” He pushed to his feet, reminding Allie just how much space he took up when he was around her. “In case I didn’t say it before, thank you for standing in the way of my truck. I don’t know that I could have dealt with Gemma without you. And because I’ve been wondering about something.”
Before Allie realized what was happening, he reached out, caught the back of her neck in his hand and hauled her to him. He bent his head and covered her mouth with his in one fluid move, so fast, so effectively, her mind spun.
She gasped, her mouth opening under his as she reached up, hands poised to push him away as warnings of unprofessionalism and conflicts of interest rea
red up only to be vanquished by the urgent insistence of his lips on hers. He tasted of Scotch, warm and welcoming and, for this moment, she couldn’t get enough.
She moaned. Or was that him? She couldn’t be sure, but she rose up on her toes, falling into him as she matched his kiss. Every synapse fired to life as the emotions of the day—terror, panic, uncertainty—melted under his igniting touch.
When he lifted his mouth, it wasn’t by much. When she blinked open her eyes, it took a few seconds to focus, and when she looked at him, it wasn’t humor she saw on his whisker-roughened face, in his curious brown eyes. It was her own confusion and uncertainty reflected back at her.
“That only raised more questions than it answered.” He barely moved and the heat of his fingers brushing her neck may as well have branded her. “Suffice it to say this is something we might need to pursue once we work our way through this nightmare.”
She swallowed hard, tasting him on her lips. “I’ve been known to be a fan of experimentation,” she managed. “In theory,” she added, “just so you know, you’re totally not my type.”
“Back at ya, Doc. But you know what they say. Opposites attract.”
Attract? Allie stumbled as soon as he let go of her. She lifted trembling fingers to her lips, her half smile faded as she realized how far they had to go before Hope’s kidnapping resolved itself.
One thing was certain as far as Max Kellan was concerned. Opposites didn’t just attract.
They combusted.
Chapter 6
Would his kiss-declared truce hold up?
Only time would tell.
Max pulled his truck into one of the few empty spaces at the end of the block, unwilling to maneuver through the mess of cars and vans that had piled into the neighborhood in the hours since their excursion to Napa.
The expression of disapproval on Allie’s face as she stared out the windshield at the TV news vans plunged Max into that ocean of uncertainty he’d been trying to break free of. “Do you think Joe’s appeal to the public is going to work or will it do more harm?” He killed the engine and followed her gaze. He wasn’t a fan of the media himself, and while he had to admit they had their purpose, being on the other side of a news story—for the second time in as many years—he had to consider that Allie was, yet again, on the right track.
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