by Jo McNally
A foam basketball went whizzing past her head, bouncing off the window and up into the air. She jumped and squeaked in surprise, then turned her chair to see Nick leaning against the door frame to his office, looking very pleased with himself.
She rolled her eyes. “Are you bored?”
“Hey, you’re the one who said nothing should change at work. So this is me, not changing.” He picked the ball up from the floor and flipped it into the air, catching it behind his back with a flourish. “I thought maybe we’d take the kayak out after dinner tonight, and watch the sunset from the water.”
“You really think it’s a good idea to put me back in a kayak?”
He bounced the foam ball off her desk, snatching it from midair in front of her face. She did her best not to flinch. He grinned, impressed.
“I don’t know. You in a kayak worked out pretty well once before.”
She tried to hold back her laughter, but failed. “Fair enough. I’ll give it another try, and I’ll try to stay inside the boat this time.”
And she succeeded. Nick rowed them out toward the center of the lake that night, where they drifted on the calm water and watched the sun slide behind the mountains. Nick had come prepared, with cookies and wine. She teased him about drinking and rowing. But when she insisted on trying to row herself, they ended up going in circles, so she finally conceded and let him take them home. Neither of them got wet, but they still ended up in bed later, wrapping themselves up in each other after making love.
Aunt Cathy arrived for a cookout on Saturday wearing a healthy dose of skepticism. Nick laid on all of his charm, but Cathy was tough. She’d been through a lot of men back in her day, and most of them had been bad apples. But as the afternoon went on, and Nick presented flawless grilled steaks and veggies, sharing stories and treating Cassie like a queen the whole day, Cathy seemed to relax. Cassie thought maybe they’d won her over, so she was blindsided when her aunt leveled a look at Nick across the picnic table.
“So what are you going to do when Cassie has to pack up and leave Gallant Lake?”
There was a beat of silence. Nick looked at Cassie, then back to Cathy. His voice strong and sure.
“That won’t happen.”
“Really? Don found her once. What’s to say he won’t find her here?”
“Aunt Cathy...” Cassie didn’t want to talk about this today. Especially after getting two hang-up calls this week from a Milwaukee number she didn’t recognize. But that could have been anyone. She hadn’t mentioned the calls, because talking about them gave them more weight than they probably deserved.
“No, it’s okay, Cass.” Nick looked her aunt right in the eyes. “I didn’t say Don wouldn’t find her. But that’s not what you asked. You asked about Cassie leaving, and that’s not going to happen. Because I’m here, and I’ll keep her safe.”
It wasn’t the first time he’d said that this week, and it was beginning to grate on Cassie. She didn’t want him thinking he had to protect her all the time. After all, that’s why he’d taught her self-defense.
“I’ll keep myself safe,” she said. Nick and Cathy both turned to look at her in surprise. “One way or the other, I’ll keep myself safe.”
Cathy frowned. “Your go-bag is still packed and ready.”
“And it’ll stay that way.” She cut off Nick’s objection. “Until Don’s in jail, I need to be ready to go. It’s not just me he’ll be looking to hurt. He’ll go after anyone near me. I’m not saying he will find me. I’ve been careful. But he has connections. He’s smart. And I’ve got to be ready, just in case.”
Nick’s jaw worked back and forth.
“Don’t you leave me, Cassie. You call me, no matter what, and we’ll face it together. Promise me you’ll call me before you do anything.” He reached out and took her hand. “Promise me, babe.”
She hesitated, then nodded. “I promise.” He stroked her hand with his fingers, the way he often did when they were sitting together, and they gave each other a warm smile.
Cathy looked back and forth between them.
“Well, I’ll be dipped. There really is something going on between you two.”
Cassie scrunched her brow. “Uh, yeah. That’s why you’re here, remember?”
Cathy waved her hand in dismissal. “I don’t mean the shacking-up part. I wasn’t crazy about you two playing with fire when you were in such a precarious position, honey. But you’re not playing with the fire. You’re already dancing in the flames, aren’t you?”
Nick looked as confused as Cassie felt.
“Aunt Cathy, what are you saying?”
Her aunt sat back, pushing her pewter-colored braid over her shoulder. She looked at the two of them, then started to chuckle lowly.
“You don’t even know it yet, do you? Okay.” She stood, and Nick scrambled to his feet, reaching out to help Cassie extricate herself from the picnic table. Cathy shook her head. “I had my doubts about this, and it could still all go down like the Titanic, but one thing I know after today. Whatever’s happening here is real. And real lo... I mean, real...well...you deserve a chance to make it. If you want my blessing, you have it. But remember one thing.” She fixed one last glare on Nick. “I know where you live now. And if you hurt this girl, I will be paying you a visit. Got that?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
After her aunt left, Cassie looked at Nick. “What on earth was she talking about?”
“Damned if I know. She’s your aunt.”
“Ugh. I need a cup of tea. You want anything?” These days, Nick’s kitchen was fully stocked with tea, sugar and wine for Cassie, along with her favorite cereal and cookies. He’d teased her about her sweet tooth, but she shut him down fast when he suggested she try baked kale instead of a cookie. She didn’t mind getting herself in better shape. She didn’t mind the new curves and muscles she was developing, or the stamina she hoped would get her up Gallant Mountain tomorrow with less huffing and puffing than the last time. She didn’t even mind cutting her carb intake a little. But trade cookies for kale? Nope.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out, and a shadow fell on her happy afternoon. It was the Milwaukee area code again, but a different number this time. She quickly tucked it back into her shorts. If it was someone she knew, or someone from the DA’s office there, they’d leave a message. If it was the random hang-up caller, there wouldn’t be any message. Was it Don? One of his pals? But how would they have her number? Maybe it was just a fluke.
“Cass? Who was it?” Nick was frowning at her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Just one of those telemarketing places that got my number somehow.”
His forehead creased. “How would they get that number? I thought you said only a few people had it.”
She shrugged, heading to the house. “Who knows? Probably on some random list out there. If I don’t answer, they’ll give up.” She hoped. Especially since she knew, deep in her heart, that it was not a random call. It wasn’t fair that, at a moment when happiness was finally staking a claim in her life, her past was trying to kick down the door.
The calls didn’t stop. She received three more the next week. She answered one of them to see if the caller would speak, but they hung up immediately. The fourth call came the following Sunday, while she and Nick were coming home from the crazy-high cliffs he’d climbed with his buddies, called the Something-Gunks. She’d stayed at the base with a handful of nonclimbers, male and female, who agreed their respective significant others were insane for clambering up the sheer rock face. But when Nick came back down laughing with his pal Terrance a few hours later, he looked energized and happy. As long as he never expected her to do anything like that, she was cool with being an observer.
The call came just as Nick was driving down the hill into Gallant Lake. She looked at it, bit back a sigh and moved to put her phone away. But
Nick grabbed it from her, glaring at the screen.
“Why didn’t you answer? Who is it? Why do they keep calling?”
She bristled at his tone. “Don’t use your cop voice with me. You know I don’t like it.”
His voice softened, but she could see from the set of his chin he was agitated. “Cass, you’ve been getting these calls for over a week now that I know of.” She started to speak, but he cut her off. “And don’t give me that telemarketer BS. What area code is that? Milwaukee? Is it Milwaukee? Is it Don?”
She didn’t answer. She couldn’t, not with him pressuring her like that. Firing off questions that sounded more like accusations. She shrank back in the seat, hating herself for feeling vulnerable right now. With the guy who was supposed to make her feel safe. Nick muttered something under his breath as he pulled into the parking lot behind the apartment. Even in his anger, he’d remembered she wanted to pick up some more clothes. He put the Jeep in Park and sat back against the seat with a sigh.
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to give you the third degree. But I’m worried. I see the expression on your face when those calls come in. The way your whole body goes tense. Something’s going on, and you’re keeping it a secret for some reason.”
“Okay, okay. I’ve had a few calls from a Milwaukee area code. I don’t recognize the numbers, and they’re not always the same. They always hang up. Maybe it’s just somebody with a wrong number.”
“Somebody in Milwaukee with a wrong New York number? That’s quite a coincidence, don’t you think?”
Cassie shrugged. She didn’t want to tell him that’s how it started in Cleveland, too. Random hang-ups until one night it was Don’s voice on the line. Nick thought she was a fighter. He’d given her the tools to take care of herself. She didn’t want him thinking she was just another helpless victim.
He didn’t ask about the calls again, but he started hovering more than usual over the next few weeks. He was hanging around if she worked late, even after she told him she’d meet him back at the lake house. He jumped to attention every time she looked at her phone, even if she was just checking the time. Maybe she should be more appreciative of his desire to protect her, but instead, she found it annoying. She didn’t tell him about either of the two new calls that came in, for fear he’d overreact and start insisting on driving her everywhere like some damn bodyguard.
A few months ago, she’d have given anything to have a big, strong bodyguard. But that was before she learned to protect herself. Before Nick pushed her to be stronger, smarter, tougher. And now that she was finally seeing herself that way, he suddenly wasn’t.
Chapter Sixteen
The final straw came when she and Julie went to lunch the following Wednesday at the Chalet to celebrate Julie’s birthday. The place was crowded with noisy tourists and locals.
“You’re different now,” Julie said as she finished up her cheeseburger.
Cassie picked up her taco. “Different in what way?”
“I don’t know.” Julie studied her for a moment. “You’re calmer these days, almost mellow, and it’s not just because you’re shagging Nick West.”
Cassie coughed and sputtered, trying not to scatter taco crumbs everywhere. “What are you talking about? I’m not...”
“Oh, please, everyone in town knows you two are together.” Julie waved her hand. “I know you’re trying to be discreet at work, but no one can miss those sizzling looks going on between you two. But that’s not why you’re different. No...” Julie reached over and pinched Cassie’s bicep, then nodded. “You’re leaner. Stronger. You’re not as jumpy and timid. You make eye contact with people. You even walk different, with that don’t-mess-with-me vibe. It’s a good look on you, girl. You came out of your shell.”
They moved on to talk about the new proposal Blake was working on, trying to build vacation condos on the water. But Cassie kept rolling Julie’s words around in her head. If other people were noticing how much she’d changed, why couldn’t Nick?
When they walked out to Julie’s car, Cassie couldn’t believe her eyes. Nick’s red Jeep was pulling out of the parking lot. She recognized the climbing sticker on the back door. Had he followed her? Her eyes narrowed. This wasn’t a coincidence any more than the Milwaukee calls were a coincidence. He was following her, just like Don used to. Not for the same reason, of course. But it still ticked her off. She didn’t say anything to Julie, but she was fired up when she got back to the resort.
Nick’s head snapped up in surprise when she stomped into his office and closed the door sharply behind her. He quickly smiled and came to greet her.
“Hey, babe, what’s up? Did you miss me...? Oof! What was that for?” He rubbed his upper arm, where she’d punched him. Hard.
“Did I miss you? How can I ever miss you when you never let me out of your sight?”
“What...?”
She held her hand up flat in front of his face. “Stop! Don’t tell me you weren’t at the Chalet just now. You probably know what I ordered, what I drank and what time I went to the ladies’ room. I didn’t get rid of one stalker just to pick up another!”
“Whoa. I am not stalking you, for Christ’s sake. I know you’re worried about those calls you refuse to talk about, and I want you to feel safe!”
“But isn’t that what all the self-defense classes were for?”
“Well, yeah, in case you’re alone and in trouble. But you don’t have to be alone anymore. You’ve got me to protect you.”
She dropped her head in frustration. He cared about her. In fact, there were times when she saw the spark of something in his eyes that looked a lot like how she felt for him. A lot like love. But she couldn’t let this obsession keep going. She met his gaze. His expression was somewhere between amusement and worry. Damn the man for making her feel this way.
“Nick, I love...how much you care.” Whew, that was close. This was no time to blurt out that she loved him. “But you have to trust me to handle myself. You’ve given me the tools. I’ve got the moves. Let me have a chance to use them.”
He rested his hands on her shoulders. “Today was a fluke, I swear. I had to run up to the sports shop in Hunter. I drove by the Chalet, saw your car and remembered you were going to lunch with Julie. I knew there was that mountain biking event in town. I knew you were in there with a bunch of testosterone-loaded adrenaline junkies, so I figured I’d just...make sure...” His words trailed off, and he had the good sense to look embarrassed. “I don’t want you to have to use those skills I taught you, Cass.”
“I’m not saying I want to put myself at risk. But you can’t always follow me around. What about when you’re gone this fall to visit the other resorts? I’ll be alone then, so why can’t you let me be alone now?”
Nick scowled in thought, then gave her a begrudging nod. He cupped the side of her face with his hand and leaned in to kiss her.
“Be patient with me, babe. I’ll try to do better. It’s just...I tend to lose the people I care about... And I don’t want to lose you.”
Her eyes went to the photo of Jada on the bookcase, and her chest tightened. He was fretting because he cared. She had to remember that.
“Okay. You try to do better—and I mean really try. And I’ll try to be patient. But you have to understand that having someone watch my every move brings back bad memories. We both have baggage, remember?”
Nick tugged her into a warm embrace, and she rested her head on his shoulder. He really was her safe place. They just had to figure out how to keep him from also being what she wanted to run away from.
A soft knock on the door forced them apart. Nick opened it, and Blake walked in, stopping short when he saw Cassie there.
“Oh...uh... Am I interrupting...?”
“No, we’re done.” Cassie blushed. “I mean, we’re done talking. Just talking. And now... We’re done.”
Nic
k started to laugh. “Quit while you’re ahead, Cassie.” He pulled her in for a surprising kiss in front of their boss, and whispered into her ear. “I’ll see you at home tonight, and you can show me some of those moves you’ve got.”
She knew her face had to be flaming. She didn’t answer, but she also couldn’t keep a straight face when she passed Blake and went back to her desk, thinking about which self-defense moves would translate best to the bedroom.
Her muscles were still protesting her successful efforts the next day when she joined Nora and Cathy at the Gallant Brew to help them take inventory. The coffee shop was too busy on weekends to do it, so Blake had given her Thursday afternoon off to help her aunt.
“Hey, Cassie, should I start looking for a new tenant upstairs?” Nora winked at her. “You two don’t seem to be spending much time there these past few weeks.”
Cathy barked out a sharp laugh. “They prefer his place, where no one’s watching their comings and goings. You must be moved in there by now, right?”
Cassie waved her clipboard with one of Nora’s infamous checklists attached, and stared at the two women in mock exasperation.
“It’s a little early for me to be permanently taking up residence there, and I still have clothes and a toothbrush upstairs, so don’t evict me yet.” She and Nick hadn’t formally discussed their living arrangements, but it was true they seemed to be unofficially living together. And last night they’d managed to christen the few rooms they hadn’t already made love in, including the shower in the master bath. Yeah, that was fun. She bit back a triumphant grin. “But I did not come here to be quizzed on my love life, ladies. I came here to help with inventory, remember?”
Cathy glanced at the only occupied table in the place and lowered her voice. “Closing time was half an hour ago. They’ve paid, but they don’t seem interested in leaving. Should I say something?”
Cassie looked at the teens sitting near the window. They were involved in an intense discussion, or at least the shaggy-haired boy was. He was leaning forward, his blond hair hiding his face. But his head jerked as he spoke, his shoulders rigid. The girl couldn’t be more than sixteen. She didn’t do much talking, just nodded, her head down and shoulders rounded. She was closing in on herself, in a protective stance that Cassie recognized immediately. That girl was afraid of him.