by Sarah Hegger
A loud knock at the door startled Kelly into tightening her grip on him.
“It’s okay.” Gabe rubbed her back. “Nobody is getting in here, and nobody is getting near you.”
“Gabe?” Ben said from the other side of the door. “Ma called me and told me.”
Kelly relaxed a little.
“Can I let him in?” Brother or no brother, police chief or not, nobody came in who Kelly didn’t feel one hundred percent comfortable with. Dammit! He should have guessed Piers would escalate his search for India.
“Yes.” Kelly nodded and swiped at her tear-stained cheeks. “Let me go and wash my face.”
Gabe opened the door to a grim-faced Ben. “Ma called me.”
“You said.” Gabe stood aside so he could walk in. “I was going to call you, but Kelly was in shock.”
Ben shook his head. “This prick is pissing me off big time.”
“Ben.” Kelly walked back into her lounge. “I’m sorry, I—”
“Hey, sweetheart.” And Ben wrapped Kelly in a hug. “Why don’t we have a cup of tea, and you can tell me what happened?”
Gabe needed to do something. “I’ll make the tea.”
Ben sat beside Kelly on the sofa and listened to her story. None of the anger he had shown to Gabe appeared in his voice or expression. His brother was really good at his job. With his calm and capable manner, he invited people to trust him and instilled in them the confidence he would do what needed doing.
Gabe made tea and put the mugs on a tray with milk and sugar.
“I want you to come down to the station tomorrow and make a statement,” Ben said. “I’d also like you to press charges. For the attack on you.”
“Oh.” Kelly picked up her tea, but her hand shook and she had to cup it between her palms. “I can do that.”
“He’s adding more to the heap of trouble he’s already in.” Ben added sugar to his tea. Lots of sugar to his tea, like he always had. “Even some fancy talking lawyer is going to have trouble explaining this one away, on top of the existing charges.”
Kelly nodded. “Then I’ll do it.”
“Good.” Ben sipped his tea. “Now, have you seen a doctor?”
“I don’t need to doctor.”
“Kelly.” Ben and Gabe spoke at once.
She pulled a face at them. “Honestly, I’m okay. I’m shaken up and bruised, but I’m okay.”
“We should take some pictures,” Ben said.
Kelly nodded.
“I’ll get a few with my phone now.” He stood and retrieved his phone. “And then, in the morning, we can get some more at the station.”
By the time Ben left, Kelly was drooping.
There was no question of Gabe leaving, so he helped her get ready for bed. She didn’t protest when he put her in her cotton pj’s and disinfected the scrapes on her knees she’d gotten when she’d fallen on the asphalt. She sat like an obedient child as he washed her face and handed her toothbrush to her.
After he’d put her to bed, he locked up then showered and found a spare toothbrush beneath her sink. He put his boxers back on and slid into bed beside her.
Kelly lay on her side, her eyes half open. “I’m so tired,” she whispered. “But I’m scared to close my eyes.”
“I’m here.” He kissed her forehead and arranged her with her head on his chest. “You go to sleep. I’m here.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Kelly did sleep, and undisturbed by bad dreams. She woke to Gabe making coffee.
“Poppy put a sign on your store that you’re closed for the day,” he said as he handed her a cup of coffee. “We need to see Ben, and then you can come back here and rest.”
“I need to check on India.” Gabe made good coffee.
“Ben has already been by this morning, and he’s put a man on her. In case Piers shows up, but he still doesn’t know where she is, right?”
“I didn’t tell him anything.” Her throat felt sore and raw, as well as other bumps and bruises. It all seemed surreal in the bright light of day, but the marks on her body were evidence it had happened.
After a light breakfast, they met with Ben at the station, where Kelly had to go through it all again and get photographed by one of Ben’s men.
Gabe stayed by her side throughout, a quiet, dependable presence that kept her grounded and helped her not lose her shit.
By the time they parked outside her condo, all Kelly wanted was to crawl back into bed and watch something mindless on television.
“What the hell?” Gabe scowled through the windshield.
Vince sat on the steps leading up to her condo. He stood as Kelly got out of Gabe’s car.
“I came to see how you were.” Vince could barely look her in the eye.
Gabe growled. “You sure didn’t give a fuck last night.”
“Look, last night—”
“You left her alone.” Gabe grabbed Vince by the sweatshirt and hauled him closer.
“Gabe!” Kelly stepped between them. “I think Vince and I need to talk this out.”
Gabe didn’t look happy about it, but he dropped Vince and stepped back. “You screwed up, man.”
“You’d better come in.” Tired as she was, she and Vince needed to talk. In light of last night, pretense was pointless. “Gabe?”
“I’ll pick up some stuff from Ma’s.” Gabe still looked murderous. “For when I’m back.”
“Okay.” He wasn’t going to hear any argument from her. Being alone was not what she wanted. “I’ll see you shortly.”
Vince followed her into her condo and stood inside the door, shifting from one foot to the other. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “Gabe and I got back from the police station. I’m pressing charges.”
“Good.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked at his feet.
“How’s India?” She needed to call her sister later.
Vince grimaced. “The news really freaked her out. She also wanted to rush over and see that you were okay.”
Well, that made one of them, as Vince clearly hadn’t felt the same need last night. “Vince?” This needed saying. “Please look at me.”
“I’m so sorry about last night, Kelly.” He looked truly remorseful. “Gabe is right. I should have stayed with you and made sure you were all right before I took off.”
“Yes, you should have. If I meant anything to you, you would have. Instead you checked that India was okay.”
Vince flushed. “India has nothing to do with this.”
“Really?” Kelly knew India had a lot to do with it. “But even before last night, Vince, something has been missing. I think you’ve felt it too.”
“I…kept hoping maybe it would grow.” He rubbed the back of his head. “I kept thinking if we got to know each other again, we could rediscover what we had.”
“Me too.” Kelly stopped in front of him and took his hand. “But I think we’ve had our time, Vince. Whatever there was between us didn’t survive into adulthood.”
Vince shook his head. “There were so many times through my marriage that I thought about you. Wondered what would have happened if things had turned out differently. This doesn’t make sense.”
“I did the same.” Kelly looked into his handsome face, but she didn’t feel what she thought she would. She would always be fond of him, and he would always be her first love, but he wasn’t the one for her. “I clung to this belief that if it hadn’t been for Chelsea, we would have been together.” She took one of his hands. “Who can tell if we would have been happily married now or fizzled out by the time we were twenty-one.”
“For the record, I always thought it was the happily married option.”
She managed a smile for him. “Same.”
“Friends?” He kissed her cheek.
K
elly hugged him. “Always.”
He hugged her back, and then they both stepped away. “I really am sorry about last night.”
“It really is okay.” Kelly couldn’t resist a little meddling. “But have you considered that you might be dating the wrong sister?”
“No.” Vince flushed. “And I’m not going to consider that either. India is in no position to start anything like that.”
She noticed he didn’t comment on himself.
Gabe let himself back into her condo, but the look he threw Vince was anything but friendly. One of them was still holding grudges from last night. On some level, she was pissed with Vince, but his actions had clarified so much for her. At least the confusion had cleared in that area of her life.
“You okay?” Gabe came to her side. His gaze searched her face.
She managed a weak smile. “I am.”
“Something keeping you?” He turned to Vince.
Vince flushed. “Look, you’re pissed with me about leaving Kelly alone, but—”
“I’m gonna stop you right there.” Gabe got into Vince’s face. “You had choices last night, and none of them should have been leaving a woman who had been attacked on her own.” Vince backed up a step, but Gabe crowded him. “You left her in the parking lot and ran off to see if India was okay.” Gabe looked like he was getting madder. “That fucker could have come back. She could have been more seriously hurt than you knew.”
“I was worried he was going to get to India.” Vince looked ashamed of himself.
Clearly, Gabe was not in the mood to be forgiving. “Then use your phone and call me or Ben and tell us what’s going on. What you never do is leave a vulnerable, hurt, frightened woman to fend for herself.”
“Kelly.” Vince looked over Gabe’s shoulder at her.
“It’s fine, Vince.” She stepped closer to them. Angry as he was, Gabe didn’t frighten her at all, and she put her hand in the small of his back. “What’s done is done. Maybe you should go home, Vince.”
Vince tried to sidestep Gabe. “Are we okay?”
“You heard her.” Gabe got in his way again. “If this was up to me, you wouldn’t come near her again. You wouldn’t even get close enough to her to see the color of her eyes.”
“Gabe.” She stroked his back. “This isn’t fixing anything.”
“Maybe not.” He folded his arms. His biceps tried to escape the sleeves of his T-shirt. “But it’s making me feel a helluva lot better. The only person I’d like to take apart more is that fucker from last night.”
“I won’t stop you if you do try.” Trusting her instinct, she pressed her cheek against his shoulder. “I’m tired.”
He turned from Vince and put an arm around her. “Let’s get you comfortable, and I can get us something for dinner.”
Vince lingered a moment, watching them with a small frown, and then he nodded and left. The door clicked behind him.
Gabe helped her to the sofa and came down beside her. He put an arm around her shoulders. “Kelly.” He sounded hesitant. “I don’t want to add to your already crappy twenty-four hours, but…Vince.” He took a deep breath and tucked her under his chin. “A guy doesn’t behave like he did to the girl he cares about.”
“You’re right.” She appreciated Gabe was picking his words carefully and trying not to hurt her, but it wasn’t necessary. “I think I knew that even before last night. The thing between Vince and me was something we had as teens. It didn’t make it into adulthood.”
Gabe kissed her head. “And you’re okay with that?”
“Yeah.” It surprised the hell out of her too. “I am. Actually, it’s a relief, to be honest. I kept having these dates with Vince and wondering what the hell was missing.”
“What was missing?”
“That spark.” The one she had with Gabe that needed only them in the same room to burst into flame. “Also, we didn’t seem to have much in common. And his children really didn’t like me.”
He chuckled. “Yeah. They really didn’t like you. What did you do to them?”
“Hey!” She poked his stomach and came away with a bent finger. But it was nice to have him teasing her again. It made her feel more normal. “I need to check on India.”
Standing, he handed her phone over. “I’ll get us something to eat.”
“Kelly.” India answered on the first ring. “I’ve been so worried. Dot told me what happened. Are you all right?”
“I am.” She didn’t want India burdened with the details. “But, sweetie, how did you manage to live with that monster as long as you did? You’re so much braver than me.”
India sniffed. “No, Kelly. He didn’t start out that bad. A little controlling here and there, slowly taking over aspects of my life.” She gave a humorless chuckle. “I actually used to think it proved how much he loved me that he wanted to be part of every tiny detail of my life.”
Guilt swelled in Kelly for not seeing it before. “I’m so sorry you went through that. I should have known.”
“No, Kelly.” India sounded sad. “I kept it from you and over time I got very good at hiding it.” She took a deep breath. “Ben came around and said you were pressing charges?”
“Yes.”
“Good,” India said. “When he attacked you, it felt worse than it happening to me. It made me see how sick and twisted Piers is.”
If that was the only good to come of this, Kelly would be thrilled. “The surest way to make sure he doesn’t touch either of us again, or Jacob, is to put Piers behind bars.”
“Yeah.” Weariness replaced the sadness in India’s tone. A sort of marrow-deep weary that had infected every part of her body. “Ben thinks it’s better if I don’t come and see you or you come here. In case Piers is watching you.”
As much as Kelly wanted to see India and make sure with her own eyes that she was all right, Ben made too much sense. Piers of last night would not be deterred easily. He’d been prepared to strangle the truth out of her if he had to. “I think Ben’s right,” she said. “You stay safe and out of sight. I’ll call you tomorrow and check on you.”
“Or I’ll call and check on you.” A wisp of mischief crept into India’s voice. “Although I hear Gabe is taking excellent care of you.”
“Too soon.” But Kelly laughed anyway. “Take care of yourself. I love you.”
“I love you too.” India hung up.
Kelly wandered into the kitchen, where Gabe was doing something with chicken breasts that smelled fantastic. She eased on one of her island stools. “And he cooks as well.”
“There really is no end of my talents.” Gabe flashed a grin. “India okay?”
“Yup. Ben says we should stay clear of each other for a day or two, in case Piers is watching.”
Gabe nodded. “Makes sense. I spoke to him when that dickhead was here. He said Piers hasn’t been spotted anywhere. He might have gone home.”
As much as she hoped so, Kelly would never forget the look in Piers’s eyes. He would do whatever he must to get to India and feel no remorse about it. “That’s highly doubtful.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Gabe stayed the night again. He lay awake a long time listening to Kelly’s soft breathing. He kept her tight to him, like he could physically keep anyone from getting near enough to hurt her again.
His blood still simmered at what Piers had done. He hoped he got to Piers before Ben did, because Ben would never allow him to beat the fuck out of that piece of shit.
Kelly’s bruises had darkened and looked worse as the discoloration came to the surface. Every time he looked at her neck, he wanted to rip Piers apart.
She sighed in her sleep and settled closer to him.
He relaxed into the warmth and softness of her nestled into him.
When he woke in the morning, his cock was well aware of being in bed next
to Kelly. He edged his hips back.
With a murmur she cradled her ass back against him.
Gabe hissed out a breath and counted to ten. Then he counted again. His dick didn’t give a crap about sensitivity or being a good guy. It remembered how good things with Kelly had been that one night and it wanted more.
He disentangled himself and rolled out of bed. His dick would get over it. No way he was going to hit on Kelly in this state. He reached the kitchen and got the coffee going.
Then because he didn’t trust himself to get back into the bedroom with a warm, silky Kelly in bed, he got working on breakfast.
He was putting the eggs and bacon on the plate when Kelly padded out of the bedroom.
She wore a pair of pajama bottoms with penguins all over them and a shapeless T-shirt. Absolutely nothing about the outfit was sexy or revealing, yet his libido woke to the fact that she wasn’t wearing any underwear under her pj’s.
“Hi.” She gave him a sexy, sleepy smile. “Something smells good.”
“Bacon and eggs.” He smiled at her, keeping it platonic. “But first…coffee.” He put a cup in front of her.
As she cupped the mug between her palms, Kelly hummed her appreciation.
The sound ran velvety fingers down his spine and his mind conjured images of what else made her sound like that.
“I thought I would open the shop today.”
That did it. His libido retreated and outrage rushed in. “Say what now?”
“Gabe.” She gave him that smile she used when she was trying to wriggle her way around him. He steeled himself. It wouldn’t work this time. “I run a business; I can’t afford not to open the store.”
“This is Twin Elks, and I’m betting everyone knows what happened to you.” The thought of letting her out of the condo made his blood run cold.
She eased off her stool and walked toward him.
Dammit. That smile snuck around his guard and made him want to give her whatever she wanted.