“I’m gonna get you an offer of sixty-eight million. More than anybody in your position. I’ll take my three percent and we’ll part ways and players will be lining up to sign with me.” He chuckled. “And you’ll never dare say anything.”
Xavier swallowed hard.
“Man up, X. A couple of innocent pictures with Alexandria or the sleazy shots with Malia and me making Izzy look like she tried to buy your love?”
Xavier’s stomach was pitching and he couldn’t stand the thought of Izzy’s face if she saw the doctored pictures he knew Neil was capable of, not to mention Neil making her look like she’d tried to buy him for completely different purposes than she had. Well, Xavier still hoped it was all for the hospital not for her father’s football team.
“And you’ll say nothing to anybody. I think Izzy will forgive you going for drinks with a friend, not so sure she’ll want anything to do with you after she’s been lambasted by the press and the pics with Malia come out. I know she doesn’t enjoy the limelight.”
Xavier clenched the gear shift in his hand, wishing it was Neil’s head. Why had he ever signed with this slime ball? But he had to protect Izzy. He wished he could say no one would believe Neil, but all of this coming from his agent would be pretty strong evidence against him and Izzy.
“Stop,” Xavier commanded in a low growl. “I’ll do the pics with Alexandria, but as soon as we sign a contract I want you out of my life.”
“Sure thing, as long as you promise not to breathe a word of this to Izzy. She’s in her father’s back pocket and they could ruin everything for us with Denver.”
“Whatever,” Xavier grunted.
“You shouldn’t be too far away from Taylor’s Lounge, and you only have to stay long enough to get a few pictures. Happy dance, baby.” Neil hung up.
Xavier sighed and dug at the ache between his eyes. He wanted to get home and eat Mama’s food and go to bed. He really wanted to go pick up Izzy, go eat Mama’s food, cuddle, and watch Izzy’s Dirty Dancing movie. He groaned. The innocence of this past week with Izzy was gone. He’d do what Neil said to protect Izzy. With any luck, he’d have some inspiration from above because even without the scuzzball move from Neil, he was more than confused about Izzy, about Knight, and about what he himself really wanted. Mama wanted him to be happy, but he felt like there was a noose tightening around his neck. If only he knew if someone besides Neil was waiting to kick the platform out from underneath his feet.
16
Izzy spent a miserable evening curled up with her laptop, looking at picture after picture of her and Xavier online. There were a lot. She traced his face on the screen, her finger stopping on the dimple. He looked really good to her. Why had he gotten so cryptic and weird on the plane? He obviously hadn’t wanted her with him and Mama tonight. Being left out hurt. Dolly and Hailey had always tried to include her, but she’d removed herself and was always on the outside fringe of her family. Seeing pictures of Dolly, Hailey, and her father together always tugged at her heart and made her feel like the child left home alone. That’s why she usually stayed far away from social media, but tonight she binged on it.
With Mama and Xavier, she’d felt like the center of their hearts. He’d gained her trust and made her happy like no one ever had. Yet now, Xavier was acting weird with her. He was going to meet with her father, or maybe already had, and that made her sick. When would she finally be rid of her father’s influence? It was her fondest dream to be sure. No, that was wrong. Xavier had quickly become her fondest dream, and for some reason he had ditched her.
She put the computer down and went to scavenge the fridge and freezer for food, knowing there wouldn’t be anything appealing. Finally, she pulled out a too-soft apple and a block of Colby cheese. A rap on her door had her shoving the food back in, slamming the fridge door, and grabbing her cinna-mint lip gloss out of her purse. She quickly put some on, rubbing her lips together and fluffing her ponytail before she pulled the door wide.
“X … Oh.” The let down was swift and painful. “Hi, Hailey.”
Hailey’s perfect face was full of sympathy. “Hello, my beautiful sister. Ice cream?” She held aloft a carton of Extreme Moose Tracks.
“Oh, yes, that looks like the ideal dinner.” She ushered her inside and shut the door. “What are you doing alone on a Friday night?”
They walked together into the attached kitchen, and Hailey set the container on the table while Izzy turned to pull out some spoons.
“I had to turn down three dates to go to some dinner with Daddy. As soon as I got done I headed to the store then here. I knew my favorite sister was back in town and needed some chocolate.”
Izzy froze with two spoons in her hand. “Why would I need some chocolate?”
Hailey bit at her lip. “Well, the, um thing with Xavier.”
“What do you know?” Izzy dropped the spoons and grabbed Hailey’s arm. “Why was dad meeting with him? What is he doing meddling in my life again?”
“I don’t know anything about Daddy and Xavier. I’m talking about the pictures of him having drinks with that supermodel, the Italian one with a chest bigger than my mama’s.”
“No, you’re wrong.” Panic fluttered in her chest, but she shoved it away. Xavier wasn’t a player. He cared about her. Hadn’t he proved how wonderful he was in Mexico? “X was meeting with Dad tonight, and then he was going to his house to eat dinner with his mama.”
Hailey studied her for a few seconds, twisted her beautiful mouth, then finally pulled her phone out and tapped on it. Slowly, she turned the phone around. Splayed on the screen was Xavier with Alexandria Fortunata draped all over him. Her arm wrapped tight around his perfect abdomen, her long, bare leg lounging over his. Xavier was leaning toward the supermodel, and it looked like she was whispering to him, and he was clearly smiling, his dimples on display for all.
Her stomach pitched, and Izzy was certain she’d be sick. The caption read, “Xavier Newton moves on from the daughter of Texas Titans’ owner to every man’s dream woman.”
“Are you sure this is tonight?” Her voice squeaked, and she hated herself for it. She’d just been online and hadn’t seen it. But then, she’d been focused on the pictures of her and Xavier and hadn’t refreshed her feed for a while.
“I’m so sorry, sis.”
Cold sweat broke out on her forehead. Xavier. No! She’d trusted him. She’d been falling for him. No, no, no!
Her hands trembled as she pushed the phone back into Hailey’s hand. Izzy shook her head and swallowed hard. “It’s um … Not your fault.” She couldn’t look at her sister. “I’m glad I found out from someone who loves me”—she gestured to the table—“and brings chocolate.”
Hailey wrapped her up in a tight hug. Izzy blinked back the tears. She would not cry over him. He’d seemed absolutely perfect, but she’d known from the moment she met him exactly what she was getting into. She’d convinced herself that being around him on their marathon date and in Mexico with the children was his true character. She’d been deluded. His true character had been last Thursday night at the bachelor auction—the hungry wolf who could never be satiated with just one woman. Exactly like her father. Why should she even be surprised? Why did it have to hurt like this?
She kept blinking and miraculously held the moisture in. Hailey pulled back and gave her a brave smile. “‘Buck up, little camper. We’ll beat this mountain together.’”
Izzy actually laughed at the Better off Dead quote.
“What do you say we eat ice cream and watch Dirty Dancing?”
Izzy was thrown back to Mexico and dancing with Xavier. The way he’d looked at her, their banter, the way he’d touched her and kissed her. No, no, no. She couldn’t go there. Now, he’d not only ruined her trust, but also the memories with her mom of watching what used to be her favorite movie. “Not Dirty Dancing.”
“How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days?”
“How about Harry Potter?” A distraction might help, but she couldn
’t handle any happily ever afters right now.
“I got ya. Romance is out. At least let’s do the new Thor and have something hot to look at. I’m pretty sure it’s on pay-per-view.”
“Okay, I can handle that.” Izzy’s heart had been handed to her on a platter. Ice cream and a movie weren’t going to help or change anything, but at least she had Hailey.
17
Izzy woke the next morning feeling like she’d been drugged. Hailey hadn’t stayed too long after the movie ended, and when Izzy was alone, the tears had come, and they had come hard. Xavier had seemed so good, so true. How could he do this to her? She wanted to storm over to his house and cuss him up one side and down the other, but her pride wouldn’t let her. He’d have to come to her. Sadly, there weren’t any messages or missed calls on her phone, voice mail, Instagram, or Snapchat. She’d checked every few minutes throughout the night. Even if he did come to her, could she let him back in? Probably not.
Pulling herself out of bed, she hoped she had the energy to run because that was the only way she was going to feel even marginally better. Somehow, she needed to get into the hospital today and evaluate what she’d missed and be ready to start fresh Monday. She quickly dressed, drank a large glass of water, and forced herself out into the sunshine. It was already warm. Maybe she’d walk for a while and hope her body found the energy to pick up the pace at some point.
She left her gated complex and forced herself to lift her legs into a semi-believable jog along the busy street. She made it half a mile then turned into a nice neighborhood she enjoyed running through. It was quiet and very pretty with large trees and established homes. Izzy slowed to a walk again and just appreciated the shady street, being outside, and that she could move at all after the pity fest she’d consumed last night.
Flashes of Xavier rotated through her mind. How could he have been such a master of deviousness that she hadn’t recognized it in him? What had she done that made him ditch her like yesterday’s greasy barbecue spare ribs? No, she couldn’t think like that. It wasn’t her fault any more than it was her mom’s fault that her father had deceived her so thoroughly. Her mom’s last years had probably been miserable because she trusted the wrong man. At least, Xavier had shown his true colors much quicker than her father had.
Izzy tried to clear her head and admire the huge begonias and clematis lining the walkway of a sprawling rock and stucco home when she heard a car pull up next to her. A door slid open, and she glanced over, instinctively picking up her pace. A gray minivan was idling beside her, and a tall man wearing a ski mask leapt out of the open door. Izzy darted away from him, but he grabbed her arm and yanked her back as a scream ripped from her throat.
“Help!” She hollered at the top of her lungs, hitting at his hand.
He lifted her off her feet and shoved her inside. The rear seats were folded down, and she tumbled against the opposite door. The open door slammed shut, and the man reached for her. Izzy pulled on the handle to open the other door, but it didn’t budge.
The man wrapped his hands around her arm and yanked her hands from the door. Izzy whirled and hit him. He grabbed both of her wrists and held them tight. Pain laced through her arms as she felt like her bones were going to snap.
“Just relax, Princess, and you and I will get along just fine.”
Tears of frustration and anger rushed to her eyes as she thought of Xavier calling her princess in a smart aleck way, and then it turned tender. Xavier. Would she ever see him again? She steeled her spine. It didn’t matter. Xavier was gone, and she had to be the one to rescue herself.
“What do you want?” she asked.
The man’s lips and eyes were revealed in the black ski mask. He smiled and inclined his head toward the driver. “We’ll get exactly what we want, Princess. Don’t worry about us.” Pushing her down against the van door, he held onto one of her wrists and settled down next to her. Izzy couldn’t catch a breath and could hardly formulate a prayer. Her father had always worried she might get kidnapped, and she’d mocked him about it. How she wished she’d never had to experience the terror that brought icy sweat all over her body.
18
Xavier was in his gym pulling through a set of cable rows when his phone rang. He didn’t recognize the number, so he ignored it. He finished the tenth rep, and the phone rang again. He should just block the call, but he was grumpy and wanted to tell somebody off. His agent was a pathetic slime ball and Xavier had given in to him to protect Izzy. The mock date with Alexandria last night had been miserable. She wouldn’t stop touching him, and he had to look like he enjoyed it for the stupid pictures. Firing his agent after the contract was signed wasn’t soon enough, but he couldn’t allow him to make Izzy look like a tramp.
He’d arrived home last night to Mama informing him she’d invited Brody and his brothers over because Ace and Kade were both out on dates. Those boys had plowed through every dish she’d set in front of them. So his best friends were happily dating their dream women. His dream woman probably hated him, and he’d had to eat cheese sticks and baby carrots for dinner because his mama was obviously ticked at him.
“What?” he barked into the phone.
“If you want to see Isabella Knight alive again, you will remain on the line and follow my instructions exactly.”
His abdomen tightened, and he almost lost his grip on the phone. “How did you get this number?”
“Is that really your top concern right now, or do you want to not find your girl cut into tiny pieces because you didn’t listen to me?”
Xavier swallowed hard and talked fast. “I’ll do whatever you want. Please don’t hurt her.”
“I thought that might be your response. Walk straight to your garage and climb in your Land Rover. If you talk to anyone on the way or try to call the police, I will know.”
Xavier leapt to his feet and started for the stairs. Mama was still in bed. Could he write her a note? What would he tell her? There’s no way they could know if he stopped to write a note, but Mama didn’t know how to track his phone and send help. Hopefully the police or one of his friends could. He reached his kitchen and pulled a paper pad and pen out of a kitchen drawer.
“I heard that. Drop the pen and paper and get in your Land Rover.”
“How do you know I drive a Land Rover?” But Xavier dropped the pen and paper.
“I know everything, X.”
He hurried out of his kitchen entry and into the garage. Jumping into the Land Rover, he pressed on the brake and pushed the start button. His breath was coming hard and fast like he’d run the forty-yard dash twenty times. Punching the garage button, he hated how slowly it clanked out of the way.
“Relax, X. I haven’t hurt her, yet.”
“What do you want?”
“I’ll tell you when you get here. As you exit your neighborhood, drive south.”
Xavier followed the man’s instructions, turning down one road then back up another for over forty minutes. His palms were sweating, and he couldn’t form logical thoughts. Why would somebody kidnap Izzy and call him? But then, who else did she have? If she was being honest with him and wasn’t in league with her father, the kidnapper would be pretty smart to go after Xavier instead of her father. Hopefully, it was just about money and they wouldn’t hurt Izzy. The comment about cutting her was just to scare him. Please let it just be about scaring him.
He finally pulled into an old strip mall. A few of the stores were still in business but not open for the day. The majority of the spaces were vacant.
“Park in front of the third store from the left and walk in. Don’t even think about calling 911. I can see you from here. Just come in.”
Xavier’s heart picked up speed again. He dropped his phone into the pocket of his shorts, climbed out of the vehicle, and cautiously approached the door. Was Izzy even in there? This could be a setup simply to attack him, yet he had to go in. It was Izzy.
He pushed the door hard, and it banged open. He walked insid
e. The interior was open and swept clean. All he could see was Izzy against the bare wall, bound and gagged.
“Izzy!” He yelled, running toward her.
She was shaking her head desperately, her voice too muffled to understand, and her eyes focused on something behind him. Xavier turned in time to see a tall man wearing a ski mask rushing at him. He threw a punch at Xavier’s head. Xavier ducked out of the way, and the man went flying past him. Xavier dove on top of him and slammed his elbow between the guy’s shoulder blades. The guy flattened to the concrete floor. Xavier grabbed his shoulders and rolled him over, driving his fist into his face. The guy groaned and cowered.
He heard a shuffle from the corner and glanced up. Was there more than one kidnapper? He would think so, but who knew? Izzy was trying to slide toward him. He wanted to go to her, but he had to make sure this guy, and whoever else was around, wouldn’t hurt her first.
The guy slugged him in the abdomen as someone from behind him slammed something hard into his back. He groaned and released his grip. The guy scrambled out from under him, and both men sprinted for the back door. Xavier felt like he should go after them, but he wanted to get to Izzy more. If there were more kidnappers or those two came back, he didn’t want to be in a situation similar to the waterfall with the guy holding a knife to Izzy’s throat.
Standing, he rushed to her side and dropped onto his knees. His eyes quickly scanned her face and body for injuries, but she looked okay besides the gag and binding, dressed in a tank top and shorts like she’d been out running. He glanced around, wondering if someone else was watching them, waiting to come out and attack. Loosening the gag, he pulled it off. “Is there another guy?”
“Just those two,” she said.
Xavier’s eyes darted around as he yanked his phone from his pocket. He barely managed to hold his thumb on the button long enough to enable the touch screen and then shakily dialed 911. He quickly explained the situation and gave their location then dropped his phone into his pocket and helped Izzy stand up. “Let’s get out of here.”
The Fearless Groom (Texas Titan Romances) Page 13