Deadly Games

by Mary Stone

  Holy shit. It was Faith Carter.

  “Hi, stranger,” Faith said shyly, giving him a half-wave.

  Linc just stared, speechless. They hadn’t always been strangers. In fact, once upon a time, before he’d gone into the military, they’d been quite cozy. He’d met her his first year at Duke Law, and they’d dated into his second. Not only was she beautiful, she was damn smart, always showing the rest of them up with her grades and her arguments.

  At one time, about a million years ago, he’d thought she was the one. Until he went on his first deployment, and she sent him a warm, apologetic, but no less stinging Dear John letter. He’d been gone less than a month before she’d given him that little send-off, with an I just don’t think I’m cut out for the long-distance thing.

  And now she was here. In front of him.

  He hadn’t seen her since before he left.

  She was prettier than he remembered too. She’d filled out. She was wearing a long-sleeved denim dress that bared her pale legs, even in the cool October air. Her hair was longer, and her face had matured.

  But why in the total hell was she here? Why had she shown up, out of the blue, after all this time?

  “Faith,” he started, intending to ask her all of those questions.

  Before he could say more, she came around the side of the car, and without a word, wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close and pressing her breasts against his chest.

  Just as another car came crunching up the driveway.

  Well, this was turning into a regular traffic jam, he thought as Faith whispered in his ear, “I’ve missed you.”

  “Faith,” he said again as the other car approached. He blinked in the bright headlights. It was another one he didn’t recognize. “Why are you…”

  Then the car stopped, and the back door opened.

  And Kylie stepped out.

  11

  Kylie had been thinking of Linc, expecting she’d find him in the midst of one of two things when she arrived at the house: Either playing with the dogs, or on the couch with a beer. He was steady and dependable that way; not one to do anything outside the norm.

  So, when the Uber she’d ordered so as not to disturb him and make him come all the way to the airport for her sorry ass pulled up into the driveway of the farmhouse, she was more than surprised to see he wasn’t doing either of those things.

  No, instead, he had his arms around a tall, willowy blonde in a little denim dress.

  Welcome home, sucker, Kylie thought, breathing out all the air in her lungs. It was dark now, so she nearly pressed her nose against the glass, trying to get a better look. Maybe her eyes were deceiving her.

  But no. It was him. And a beautiful girl. Embracing. In front of the house that she’d been thinking of all the ways she wanted to redecorate on the plane ride home.

  “Woooooooo!” The Uber guy, a total hick in a cowboy hat, said, adding a long whistle for emphasis. “Can I stay around for the fireworks?”

  She scowled at him. Really? So it was that obvious what was going on here? “That’s his…cousin,” she muttered.

  At least, she hoped it was his cousin, although he’d never mentioned having a beautiful cousin before. And did cousins even hug like that? The woman had her arms all around him, her big, bountiful breasts pressed into his chest.

  Worse, they looked like they’d held each other like that before. They looked…comfortable. Was that why he hadn’t answered his phone? Had he been in bed with her?

  Kylie’s stomach roiled at the thought of Linc sharing his bed with anyone but her. She knew he’d had other lovers before—after all, he was thirty— but he’d never mentioned them, so she’d thought they were old news. Seeing this woman with her arms around him was enough to make her want to tell the Uber driver to turn around and drive away.

  Steeling herself, she reached for the door handle and willed herself to be calm and collected and not make a scene, which she always managed to do when her blood started to boil like this.

  When she stepped from the car, they quickly disentangled, or at least Linc did, like someone who’d gotten his hand caught in the cookie jar. He was rubbing the back of his neck, like he usually did when he felt bad or guilty about something. He didn’t make eye contact.

  Pain and utter humiliation sliced through Kylie, and her blood reached the point of explosion.

  The blonde wasn’t touching him anymore, but she was still glued to his side like she belonged there. They made a striking couple. Kylie wanted to rip her head off, so she knew she needed to get away before she did something that would land her in prison.

  He opened his mouth as she approached and said, “Kylie, this is—”

  “A mistake,” Kylie muttered, rushing past him, up the stairs, and into the house. She grabbed her car keys and Vader’s leash, then ran outside and clipped it on the dog’s collar. He licked her knees. At least he was happy to see her. But when she tried to pull him toward her car, he planted his feet, refusing to budge.

  “Fine, traitor,” she said, dropping the leash. “Stay here with your new best friend. I’m out.”

  “Kylie,” Linc’s voice was far too even and calm for her liking. Why did he always have to sound like the voice of reason? It made her feel even more insane. And she’d done nothing wrong. All she’d wanted to do was come home and climb into bed with him, feeling his arms around her.

  She was such a sucker.

  She ignored him, grabbing her bag from the cowboy, who was enjoying the whole display, a big stupid smirk on his face. She stomped off toward her car and made one last, desperate attempt to wave Vader inside. It was a no-go.

  “Wait, where do you think you’re going?” Linc asked as the blonde bimbo watched.

  Kylie turned abruptly, and he plowed right into her, causing her to drop her bag.

  His hands came down on her shoulders, steadying her, and she almost sank into his warmth. Which pissed her off even more.

  She pulled away. “I’m going to my place. I’d hate to interrupt.” She ran an eye over the blonde. Hell, she looked even prettier up close. There was no way he wasn’t tapping that.

  Linc reached for her again. “Wait…”

  But Kylie’s eyes were watering. She was about to burst into tears, so she turned on her heels and left before he could say more, leaving her suitcase where it had fallen. She’d have to come back for her things eventually anyway. What was one more thing to add to the load?

  She was close to breaking, and she couldn’t let anyone see her like this. She just wanted to go home and sleep in her own bed. Alone. She couldn’t even get Vader to be with her, that’s how unlovable she was to all males in this world.

  A sob escaped her lips at the thought, and she pressed them together, refusing to give in to the grief and pain swirling inside her.

  She did a quick three-point turn in front of the barn, kicking up dirt and gravel as the Jeep’s tires tried to help her get away. Kylie cursed when she ended up on the ass of the cowboy Uber driver, who was pulling out of the driveway. She wanted to beep at him to hurry the hell up because she just wanted to get as far away from Linc as possible, but he crept down the winding road, which was probably the only thing that saved her from crashing down the ravine again.

  The tears started coming as soon as she hit the road down to Asheville. The headlights of the occasional passing car made it nearly impossible to see on the way home, but she wasn’t thinking of that. She was thinking of the past few months, completely wasted.

  How could he do that to her?

  Had he lied when he said he loved her just this morning?

  Had he changed his mind when the pretty blonde showed up?

  Yeah. That was probably it. Kylie wanted to stab herself in the heart for how stupid she felt. Of course he wouldn’t want to be with you. You’re a Hatfield. Men run in the other direction.

  It was getting close to midnight by the time she trudged into her old apartment building. Her downstairs stoner neigh
bor was throwing another one of his raucous parties. Normally, the noise never bothered her, but this time, everything did.

  Her mailbox across the foyer was filled with mail—bills, probably—but she ignored it. She stalked upstairs, ignoring Baron’s calls to her to come and join the fun, and when she was inside, slammed the door.

  The place looked so empty and unlived-in, considering she’d systematically moved so many of her things to Linc’s house. She’d have to go back and get those things, if this was the end.

  Was this the end?

  Now that she was in her little place, she knew she’d most likely overreacted. Hell, she hadn’t even given the man time to speak. But…

  Wiping her eyes, she sank down on her bed. But she’d just felt the sharp knife of rejection from her own father, the one man who was supposed to love her endlessly.

  Sighing, she looked at her phone. No call. No text. No little heart-eyed emoji.

  Mentally shaking herself, Kylie changed into boxers and a camisole before flopping back onto the mattress. She pulled up the blanket and wrapped herself in its warmth, then stared at the ceiling.

  Was that what men were made for? Destroying women? Wasn’t there a single man on earth who was trustworthy? Or was it just Kylie who had that effect on men?

  No.

  She thought of the files upon files of cheating spouse folders in the file cabinets of Starr Investigations.

  She thought of her high school and college friends who’d gotten married just moments after walking across their respective stages. More than half of them were now divorced. Others were Instagram happy, but she wondered what happened behind closed doors.

  She thought of her father. He was handsome and distinguished, the epitome of success. But he hadn’t wanted her then, and he didn’t want her now.

  Unable to sleep, she reached into the tote she thankfully hadn’t dropped and pulled out her laptop. She turned it on and opened a browser, then typed into the search bar: D & H Construction.

  A number of results came back, including a slew of image results. The blue company logo, photographs of men in hard hats studying blueprints, and several of the powerful man himself. Her father. She stared at him, her fingers shaking on the keyboard. Now, she wasn’t angry. She just felt sad.

  What about her made men think they could treat her like trash?

  No. Not just her.

  Alongside the cheating spouse folders were hundreds of other equally vile people who were happy to tromp over others for their own personal gain.

  The first web page was for her father’s website. She clicked on it and read: Twenty-five years ago, William Hatfield came to Manhattan from Brooklyn with a dream—to fill the NYC skyline with unique, sophisticated commercial properties. William Hatfield is a true self-made man and living the American dream, showing how ingenuity and tenacity can bring success. Now responsible for hundreds of projects in the tri-state area, the D & H Construction name is synonymous with style and substance. Take a look at our most recent projects below and kindly contact us if you would like a consultation about your latest building project. D & H Construction specializes in making your dream a reality.

  Kylie clicked on some of the projects, but she wasn’t interested in the buildings. She wanted to know more about the man. There was a tab that said: About Us. She clicked on it and a list of employees came forth. At the top was her father. His picture stared back at her. In it, he looked warm, friendly, charming.

  What a crock.

  She read: William Hatfield’s ties to the area run deep. He was born and raised in a working class neighborhood in Brooklyn. From these humble roots, early on he discovered a deep interest in construction. With talent and perseverance, he was soon creating some of the most talked about and exciting properties to grace the Big Apple’s skyline. He started D & H Construction twenty-five years ago, which has since grown into one of the most successful developers in Manhattan, with over 3,000 employees and $25 billion in assets. He is one of the city’s most benevolent philanthropists, donating millions of dollars in money and substantial resources toward ending homelessness in the city. He lives in uptown Manhattan with his beautiful wife, Christina, and their three children.

  Kylie stared at that last sentence. Their three children. William Hatfield didn’t just have a wife. He had three other children.

  Kylie’s half-siblings.

  She gnawed her cheek raw. She didn’t even know them, but she already hated them. After all, they’d grown up with a mother and a father. In Uptown Manhattan, living the high life, benefiting from his billion-dollar company.

  And what the hell? He was a philanthropist? He gave millions of dollars to the homeless and to those less fortunate that he didn’t even know but hadn’t given a single cent to raising his first daughter after essentially bribing her mother with a house and a check.

  Kylie balled her hands into fists to ward off the urge to throw her computer against the wall. When the urge passed, she typed in Christina Hatfield, and brought up pictures of her father’s second wife. Apparently, her maiden name was DeRoss, so she must have been a relative of her father’s business partner.

  From what Kylie could tell, they’d “married” not long after Kylie was born—a year, tops. They had a daughter named Sophia, who was only two years younger than Kylie. Sophia was beautiful, with long, striking red hair. She’d gone to Columbia and now worked in fashion in the city.

  I hate you, she thought, scowling at the picture of a stylish girl with the life Kylie’d always dreamed of for herself. I hate you. I envy you. I…

  Kylie threw herself back against the headboard of her bed with a bang, shaking, not even feeling the pain that shot down her spine. She couldn’t remember ever feeling this angry and out of control before. It felt like everything in her world was falling apart. She was usually so optimistic and could pull herself out of the worst funk simply by looking at the bright side of things. But this time, she couldn’t see a bright side.

  Everything was shit. Her father, his perfect family, her boyfriend, her life. All shit.

  She reached over to pet Vader, then she remembered that even her best friend was a traitor. Red-hot anger coursed through her veins anew. William Hatfield. Christina Hatfield. Sophia Hatfield. What a happy family.

  She wanted to punch something.

  Closing her computer, she picked up her phone again, hoping for a message from Linc. Of course he’d have texted by now. Yes, he was awful when it came to texting, but the way they’d left things? It definitely called for some form of communication. A call. A text. Something.

  But there was nothing on her screen except a low-battery warning.

  He hadn’t tried to get in touch with her at all.

  If that didn’t scream “we’re over” loud enough, she didn’t know what else would.

  Dropping her phone on the nightstand, she pulled the covers over her head, like she had when she was a child and hoped to keep the monsters at bay.

  There were no monsters, she knew.

  There were worst things lurking in the dark.

  Human beings.

  This was not good.

  Linc was opening drawers and slamming cabinets, looking for his damned phone.

  “I hope I didn’t come at a bad time,” Faith said from the kitchen doorway.

  He slammed another drawer. “You need to go, and I need to call Kylie.”

  Faith leaned against the doorjamb. “Is she your girlfriend?” When he shot her a no shit look, she raised an eyebrow. “Well, she definitely got the wrong idea, and I’m really sorry about that. I just came into town and thought I’d stop by and say hi. The hug was totally innocent. Is your girlfriend that insecure?”

  He opened the refrigerator, thinking he might have left his phone there. It wouldn’t be the first time, he hated to admit. He also hated Faith coming in here and assuming things about Kylie that were all wrong. “No. Not at all. She’s just going through some shit right now.”

  Faith
did that little hair flip thing that always used to turn him on. Now, it just annoyed him. He wanted Kylie back.

  Speaking of…why had she come back so soon? And at absolutely the wrong time? He’d been thinking constantly of her, up until the moment that Faith stepped out of the car. Then…

  Shit.

  He needed to call her.

  He tried to think back. He’d taken his phone out when he was giving the dogs a bath earlier in the day, and he’d set it…where?

  He couldn’t remember.

  Great.

  He headed to the porch. “Faith. I haven’t seen you in years. Why would you just come by here unannounced? Don’t you think I might have my own life now?”

  “I know, it’s been so long,” she said, smiling. “I thought you and I could catch up.”

  As far as Linc was concerned, there was nothing they needed to catch up on. Not now that Kylie was racing away from their house, with the completely wrong idea. And what had Faith done? She’d just stayed silent, letting her continue on with the impression. He scanned around the porch area in the darkness, looking for any shadows that could’ve been his phone.

  “Catch up? Great, let’s catch up,” he said as he stalked to the barn. “What have you been up to?”

  She either didn’t catch or ignored the sarcasm as she trotted beside him. “Oh, not much. Been in D.C. for a little, then in Virginia. Now, I’m working in New York. Such is the life of a lawyer. That’s an…interesting haircut.”

  He scrubbed his hand over his head, remembering the shearing Kylie had given him. He’d gone into town earlier and had gotten another barber to even things out. It’d be thick and full in a couple days, anyway, so it didn’t matter.

  “You get downtown often? Any of the old gang a—eek!”

  He smiled as Dolly the llama spit at Faith. He’d have to remember to give her extra feed tomorrow.

  Where was his damned phone?

  He’d given the dogs a bath. Vader had gone first because he was the one who hated getting bathed most. Then, he’d…