by Box Set
Rider closed his eyes, knowing he’d never stop seeing Samantha’s final moments as long as he lived. “Everything changed in an instant. She pushed me away and clutched at her throat. I remember telling her to stop playing around, but then I noticed how pale her skin looked, even considering the moonlight.”
“She was choking?” Trish sounded properly horrified.
“I didn’t know what was happening. I tried hitting her across the back, thinking maybe something was actually in her throat. Nothing helped. She dropped to the floor and started convulsing, and I didn’t know what to do.”
“Didn’t you call 9-1-1?”
If only it had been that easy. “You have to remember this was nearly twenty years ago. We didn’t all carry around cell phones. The cabin was likely condemned, so I knew there wasn’t any hope of finding a working phone there. My only chance was to get her back to my car and rush her to the hospital myself.”
Holding her jerking body as her mouth began foaming while Rider ran through the dark woods was the most terror he’d ever experienced to that point in his life.
“She was dead before I reached the hospital,” he said softly, blinking away the tears he always felt threaten at the memory of seeing her dead body. “The hospital staff called the cops. As I explained to them what happened, I remembered putting those pills in my pocket. They took them as evidence. After the autopsy was completed, cops showed up at my house the next day to arrest me.”
“How was any of that your fault?” At least it sounded like Trish was on his side.
Rider shrugged. “The pills were what killed her. I’m not real clear on the details, but she had an allergic reaction to something in them and basically suffocated. Since I was the one with the pills in my pocket, the cops assumed I gave them to her. No one believed that Samantha was the one getting drugs. She was a good girl, top of her class and had never been in any sort of trouble.”
“Lots of so-called good girls do bad things, especially to impress a boy,” Trish pointed out.
“It didn’t matter.” Rider tried to block out the scare tactics the prosecutor had used on him. His public defense attorney hadn’t stood a chance, especially not if it went to court. “I was given a choice if you could call it that. The DA said I could plead guilty and take a manslaughter plea, being convicted as a child and sent to juvie to pay my debt to society. My record would be sealed when I got out, and I could live a normal life afterward.”
“As though any kid could have a normal life after watching someone overdose,” Trish said.
He nodded. “True. It was better than the alternative, however. No one cared that I wasn’t the one who gave her the drugs. The town wanted a scapegoat and didn’t want that to be the dead girl. If I didn’t plead guilty, he was going to try me as an adult and the charge would be murder. I could have spent the rest of my life in prison for a stupid accident.”
He glanced up, daring to see what Trish might be thinking.
She was chewing on her bottom lip, staring at him intently. Judging by her face, at least she seemed to believe him. That was more than he’d hoped for. The last time he became this close to a woman and told her the truth, she’d screamed at him, called him a murderer, and told him to get out of her life.
Maybe Trish, with her lawyer background, was more open and accepting of the way the world worked. Just because he’d plead guilty, that didn’t actually mean he’d done anything wrong that night. In fact, he’d tried his best to save Samantha from her own folly. Trish looked as though she understood that.
“I’m guessing your family didn’t have a lot of money for a lawyer,” Trish said.
Rider nodded. “All I had was a public defender.”
“And since they wanted someone to pay for that crime, the city probably assigned you the newest, most inexperienced person they could. Did he tell you to take the plea?”
“Yep. Said I should either take the plea or find a lawyer who could take the DA on. He said the fact that I was in possession of the drugs would be hard to fight. It was his opinion that four years for manslaughter was a better bet than taking a chance on an unpredictable jury.”
“Shit, Rider.” She sighed and ran her hand through her hair. “Your story is exactly why I wanted to be a defense attorney. Someone would have probably taken you on pro bono. I know I would take a case like that to help out a kid.”
“Too bad you weren’t around then.” He stood, pacing the floor between them. “Not that it matters. I served my time and earned my GED while I was inside. When I got out, I didn’t know what to do with my life. That’s when Dad drove me up to the mountains and dropped me off. After that, the rest is history.”
“I don’t understand, though. Why do you care if Stacy tells people about that?” Trish asked. “You were a kid caught in a bad situation. You didn’t kill anyone. It was a horrible accident and the girl died, but that’s not really on you.”
“Not everyone is as understanding as you are, Trish. I’ve lost people before when I told them about my past.” He stopped walking and turned to face her. “Can you imagine clients trusting me with their most intimate secrets, having me rummage through the lives of their loved ones to see if they are doing anything wrong if they consider me a criminal myself?”
“Why would anyone believe you were a criminal?” she asked.
Rider heaved a sigh, knowing eventually Trish would figure it out on her own if he didn’t tell her. “The newspaper reports aren’t sealed like court records. I was crucified there. So much so, that I stopped going by my first name and began using my middle name after I got out to keep people from connecting the dots.”
A suspicious look passed behind her eyes, and Rider knew her next question.
“Paul,” he said before she could ask. “Paul Rider Stone is my full name.”
“Maybe I should read the reports myself.” Trish stood from the end of the bed, walking to the nightstand and pulling her phone from it. “I don’t know whether I should believe anything you say, Rider. You’ve been lying to me since the second we met on the street.”
“Only about my job. Nothing between us has been a lie.”
She shook her head sharply. “I don’t know how you expect me to accept that. You admitted Stacy Baker wants you to make me love you. This is a job. I shouldn’t have let myself believe in the fairy tale ending that my sister got last year. I’m analytical and driven by logic, not feelings.”
The look on Trish’s face said she was completely disgusted with both herself and him. Rider knew she wasn’t in the mood to hear how sincere his feelings were.
“I’m going to give you some time to think,” he said. “If you listen to your heart, you’ll know what the truth is. Whatever is starting between us isn’t simply because of a job. Maybe that’s why I met you, but it isn’t what made me admire you from afar or want to rip apart that man who dared touch you on the street.” He stood and crossed toward her, stroking her shoulder lightly despite the fact that she refolded her arms to ward him off. “It isn’t what caused me to make love to you and feel more complete than I have in a very long time. We have a future, Trish. As long as you don’t block me out of it.”
Without waiting for her to respond or push him away, Rider turned and rushed toward the door. He’d leave her on her own, but he wouldn’t go far. There was still a killer on this ship, and no matter what Trish felt about him right now, he knew his own heart.
Trish could be the one he was meant to spend his life with. He wouldn’t give up on her.
Chapter 23
The door slammed shut behind Rider, and Trish didn’t know if she should scream or cry. She’d tricked herself into believing he was somehow the perfect man, the guy she’d been waiting her whole life for.
Turned out, he was just a regular man. However, her heart still thought he was something special. If only she could explain to her heart that the special part was all a lie.
How could he expect her to believe in him after finding out he
was paid to make her fall for him?
Then again, he had told her the truth. While it was true he’d been forced into it by Thomas outing him, Rider could have told some more smooth lies and convinced her that Thomas was the liar in the situation. She was so ready to fall for him that she would have believed. Even if her mind tried to warn her not to, she would have ignored it.
There was one way to see how honest he was—or wasn’t.
Not caring about the cost, Trish hooked up to the ship’s wireless internet service, pressing the button to accept the extra charges.
Taking a deep breath, she hovered her finger over the virtual keyboard on the internet program. What would she find?
Before she could change her mind, she typed in ‘Paul Rider Stone Murder Case.’
Finding archives from Seattle newspapers, Trish quickly scanned the information there. It backed Rider’s claims, with everything twisted to show how the evil football quarterback had lured the promising young girl into the forest, plied her with drugs, and then didn’t administer CPR when things went horribly wrong.
There was no mention of the fact that Rider took her to the hospital and tried to get her help. It did state the girl succumbed before reaching the hospital. The onslaught of Rider’s supposed faults went on and on, although Trish noticed there weren’t many facts to back up the things they said about him.
Closing down her phone, she set it on the nightstand. There wasn’t anything in the news stories to tell her what to believe for sure, although she suspected Rider told her the true story. He’d been considerate of her this entire trip, doing his best to keep her safe from not only creepy men on the ship and Thomas, but also from whoever had made Carl and Sara disappear. Could she fault him for not wanting her to know about his past? For not wanting his clients to know?
She wished she had someone to talk to. However, if she called back home, Lucy could do nothing but worry. Besides, Trish definitely didn’t want her sister hearing about the killer on the ship.
Maybe just a video call to see the kids and find out what they’d done so far for Christmas preparations. After all, Lucy wouldn’t find it odd that Trish wanted to check in. For the last year, they’d hardly gone a day without talking to each other.
No sooner had she thought of that, the phone was in her hand.
Lucy’s face filled the screen. “Trish? Are you in the United States? I thought you weren’t paying for phone service on the ship. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Trish lied. “I just miss you all. It’s been fun, but I sort of wish I was home putting up a Christmas tree with your family.”
Lucy smiled. “Good news for you, sis. Aaron refused to do the tree without Aunt Trish. We’ll have a tree-trimming party when you get home.”
“That sounds wonderful.” All Trish wanted was off this horror cruise. She and Rider could work things out, or not, once they returned to Sayle. “I’ve had a great time, but in two days we’ll be back in Florida before heading to Mexico. I think I’m going to get a flight and head home then.”
“So you haven’t met any interesting men?” Lucy asked, her lips pouting slightly. “I thought for sure the cruise would be so romantic.”
Minus the missing people, it had been.
“Everyone’s here for a hookup. I thought I found something that could turn real, but...”
“Did he turn out to be a jerk?”
Trish shrugged. “Not a jerk, just a liar. He says he has a good reason, even explained it to me. I just don’t know if I should believe him.”
“You seem upset.” Lucy’s eyes narrowed. “You never get upset over emotional issues. This guy must be something special.”
Trish nodded. “I thought he was until I found out about how many lies he had told me. He came clean and told me everything tonight, or at least, he says he did. How can I trust him?”
“Sorry, sis. I can’t answer that for you.” Lucy chewed on her lip, seeming to think. “Are you sure this isn’t some sort of misunderstanding? Blake and I nearly didn’t get together because of something stupid I said and what he thought that meant. Maybe you should give this guy a chance to prove whether he’s the man you thought he was.”
Her sister advocating on Rider’s behalf was nice, but Lucy didn’t know Rider was the one who took the blackmail picture of her and Blake. Trish wondered whether Lucy would be so understanding and calm if she learned about that. Would she want Rider to become part of the family, knowing what he did?
Part of the family... that was what Trish had wanted—what she thought Rider was going to become. How did she let herself think something could develop so quickly? She had wanted to fall in love. That was the problem.
So if she understood logically why she had wanted Rider so badly and that it wasn’t a real feeling of love, why did her heart still ache at the thought of never seeing him again?
“Oh, no,” Lucy said on the other end of the line. “I see that look. I’m afraid you got it bad.”
“Got what bad?” Trish shook her head. “I don’t have anything, good or bad. Well, except a magnet on my back that attracts liars, freaks, and weirdoes.”
Lucy giggled. “You can say that all you want, sis, but I think you’d better give this guy another chance. You never looked so out of sorts and lovesick around David.”
Exactly the same things Trish had been thinking, but having her sister point it out made it all that much more real. “He lives in Sayle. It’s not like we can’t work things out later if there’s anything to work out. For now, I’ll be home in three days, Monday night. Can we have that party? I really need to be with people I know I can count on and trust.”
“I’m sorry the cruise didn’t work out like Blake and I hoped it would,” Lucy said. “We’ll have dinner when you get here. Let’s save the tree for the following weekend. Aaron still has school next week.”
“Having two different nights with the family sounds good to me. It’s a date.”
“Love you, sis,” Lucy said. “Don’t lock yourself in your room and hide, okay? Maybe you should talk to that guy again and see what happens. Or at least go out with other people.”
It seemed her sister knew her too well. “I promise to only keep myself locked up for tonight. I’m scheduling a crying session.”
Lucy quirked an eyebrow. “Scheduled crying? As a mom, I can cry anywhere at any time, especially when both kids are throwing a fit at the same time.”
Trish giggled. “Maybe it’s a good thing that I’ve realized I don’t really want to be a mom. I’m so happy being an aunt, but I’m not the type of person who can cry wherever, whenever.”
Lucy’s mouth dropped open. “You don’t want to be a mom? But I thought you and David...”
“You know something, sis? I’ve been living my life for Mom and Dad, wanting to make them happy. Thanks to you, I’m figuring out what I should really be doing. I want to find someone I’m deliriously in love with and focus all my time on them and my career. All the dreams and plans I had with David, those were Mom and Dad’s dreams, not mine.”
“Then this trip wasn’t a waste,” Lucy said, “even if you don’t find the right man. I’m glad you’re figuring life out.”
Trish nodded. “Me too. Love you, Lucy. Give the family squeezes.”
Blinking back the tears she had hoped to schedule for a little later, Trish touched the screen to disconnect the call.
Why did Rider have to be a fraud? He was so perfect in so many ways. He claimed it was all real, the only lies were how they met, but how could she trust that?
And how could she ever trust her own heart again when all it wanted was him?
Chapter 24
Rider sat in the dining room the following night, watching Trish. She sat at a table with people they had never talked to, and Rider worried whether one of them was the killer.
At least she’d come out of her room.
Although he’d kept a strict vigil on her doorway, room service had come and gone last ni
ght and all day today. He’d half worried she’d keep herself locked up until the end of the trip, and then how would he ever get her to talk to him?
He knew he’d screwed up by not telling her the truth before Thomas Baker forced it out of him. Not that Rider still didn’t want to kick the lawyer’s ass for ruining things. He and his wife needed to move to Siberia and never bother him and Trish again.
“Rider, you have to stop staring,” Carrie said from across the table.
“Yeah, man,” Patrick agreed. “She’s not going to forgive you for whatever you did just because you stalk her all night.”
Rider ran a hand through his hair and forced himself to focus on his dinner companions. “What else can I do? I’m afraid I screwed up big time and might have lost the one woman who I could actually fall for.”
“Oh.” Carrie lifted her hands to her heart and jutted out her lower lip. “You two are sweet together. We have to figure out how to get her to talk to you. True love can’t be allowed to die just because you did something boneheaded.” She arched her eyebrows. “I don’t suppose you’re ready to tell us what you did? Maybe we can find a solution.”
“Even if I told you what I did, there’s no solution. I lied to her about everything. I didn’t think this relationship would be something real but it is. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to make things up to her and prove how I feel, but there’s a good chance she won’t ever talk to me again.” Rider shook his head. “I don’t blame her. I screwed everything up by being too afraid to tell her the truth in the first place. Now, she’ll never believe me again.”
“Ah, yeah. Lies are hard to overcome,” Carrie agreed.
“You aren’t making me feel better,” Rider said.
Movement near Trish’s table caught his attention and he looked up, watching as Thomas Baker approached Trish.
“That bastard!”