by Nic Saint
“Trouble, son?” Dad asked from the kitchen.
He returned indoors. No need to drag his father into this mess. “Nothing I can’t handle,” he said with a reassuring smile.
Dad nodded, not convinced. He took his coat from a peg near the door. “I’m gonna put in some work. Wanna join me?”
Reece mentally shook himself. “Sure. What did you have in mind?”
“I need to check on the animals, then put in some hours at the range.”
“Sure, Dad.” He could use some of that good old-fashioned hard work. “Just tell me what you want me to do.”
He slipped his feet into the rubber boots his father kept by the door, shrugged into the thick parka, and followed his dad. Even though the old man owned the gun range, he still liked to follow his own father’s tradition and kept some livestock around. Some pigs, chickens, a cow, and a horse he rented to a couple of city slickers who came up for the weekend. He didn’t need the money. Reece had made sure his dad was well provided for. Still the old man insisted on running a small farm. It was part of his mental make-up. He’d never once voiced the thought but he knew that even though Reece was raking in the big bucks now it could all be over with any day, and then what?
So he kept the gun range, and the animals, and refused to budge from the house he’d lived in since he’d inherited it from his own old man, even though Reece had offered to buy him any house he wanted.
Dad had thanked him, told him to buy him an apartment, and then proceeded to stay put and rent out the new property. For later, he said, when he wouldn’t be able to keep up the house, and needed to sell.
They arrived at the stables and fell into an easy routine. Dad disappeared into the chicken coop while Reece worked the hogs. And as he was filling the troughs he found that he actually enjoyed the work. And when Lady suddenly trotted up from her usual perch in a corner of the stable and shoved her wet nose against his palm, he felt a sudden warmth spread through him. As he cuddled the dog he knew just what this was. The warmth of being home. With his family.
As he stared around him at the plank walls, the hogs snuffling and grunting as they dug into their food, and tried to picture Dorothy here, he had to laugh. What was he thinking? Of course she would never come here. This was so out of character she would just as soon have a makeup-free picture taken than set foot in a place like this.
With a feeling of finality he knew he had to put an end to this charade. He was just glad the spell had been broken before and not after the wedding.
“Excuse me.” The sound of a voice where no voice should have been startled him.
He looked up and found himself gazing into a pair of sparkling green eyes. A young woman with blond hair styled in a bob stood smiling at him from the doorway. He wiped his brow with his sleeve. “Yes?”
“I was wondering when the gun range would be open.”
He remembered that Dad kept odd hours and only opened the range when he felt like it. “Um, I think it’s about to open any minute now.” He gestured in the direction of the chicken coop. “When my old man is done feeding the birds, that is.”
The woman’s smile deepened and he found himself entranced. “Oh. It’s just that my friend wants to learn how to shoot—it’s her first time—and…” Suddenly a frown appeared on her brow and her smile faltered. “Aren’t you…” Those bewitchingly green eyes widened, and she let out a soft shriek. Then, before he could stop her, she simply vanished without a word.
He stared at the empty doorway, wondering what had just happened, and moved to catch up with her. When he arrived at the door he saw his face in the mirror over the makeshift sink. Mud was stuck to his brow and cheeks, and now he really looked like a country bumpkin.
Oh, crap. He’d scared her off, of course. He reached the door and stared out into the night. Nothing. She was gone. He slammed the doorpost with the palm of his hand, then laughed. What was that thing about the universe closing doors and opening others? Just when he’d decided to break off his engagement with Dorothy this lovely young woman had appeared.
It couldn’t be a coincidence.
Chapter 28
Alice hurried away from the barn and back to the van Felicity had parked on the road. She’d finally managed to convince her friend to join her for a visit to the gun range. Not just to practice shooting that new gun of hers, but to see if they couldn’t extract some information from Jack Hudson about Alistair Long.
And then there was her ‘Seduce Reece’ project, of course, though she was starting to doubt whether she hadn’t been too sanguine when suggesting that bet.
They’d arrived a little after eight and Felicity had taken one look at the place and decided to turn back. It was obvious they were closed for business. “Nobody home,” she concluded. “Let’s come back tomorrow.”
“I’m sure they’ll open soon,” Alice countered.
Felicity wasn’t convinced. “I just don’t think the universe wants me here.” The prospect of practicing her shooting skills didn’t appeal to her.
“And I think the universe wants us to make an effort,” Alice argued and hopped from the car to see if she couldn’t track down Jack Hudson. Instead, she found one of his farmhands working the pigsty. The young man seemed nice enough, and cute enough too, with chocolate eyes, disheveled dark hair and an impressive jawline. Though it was hard to know for sure, as his face was besmirched with dirt. Then, suddenly, she realized this wasn’t a farmhand but Reece Hudson himself!
So the holy trinity was right. And so were the tabloids. The movie star was in Happy Bays to introduce his fiancée to his father. And then she panicked and bolted.
Even though she told Felicity she’d seduce the man, she now knew she couldn’t and wouldn’t. Because when she found herself face to face with her idol, she fled.
She’d almost reached the car in her mad dash when a dark figure appeared out of nowhere and grabbed her arm.
She yelped in fright, Rick’s admonitions coming back to her.
The killer! He was here and he was going to murder her in cold blood!
She readied herself to fight for her life when the killer spoke.
“Alice, honey. Are you all right?”
It wasn’t the killer, it was… “Mr. Hudson!”
He studied her closely, his brows drawn together. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
She nodded quickly. In a way she had. The ghost of her childhood dreams. But she could hardly explain to Jack Hudson that the ghost was his son. “It’s all right. I just came by to see—to ask—to know—” Her eyes widened when another figure loomed up behind them.
“Oh, there you are. I thought I’d scared you or something.”
She stared at Reece Hudson, tongue-tied for the very first time in her life and blinking like a deer in the headlights.
She didn’t even notice when Jack’s lips creased into a tiny smile.
“This young lady wants to know when you’re opening up the range, Dad,” Reece said. “Isn’t that right, Miss?”
She merely nodded, still incapable of speech. She was feeling exceedingly silly. All these years she’d mocked the kind of teenage girls who flock to premieres only to scream their heads off at the sight of Reece Hudson, some of them even swooning. And now she was doing the exact same thing herself!
“I was just about to open her up, honey,” said Jack. “Just give me a sec to change into something that doesn’t smell like chicken manure, all right?”
Once again she nodded, feeling like one of those bobblehead dolls.
“Maybe you should come in,” Reece suggested, eyeing her with worry. He turned to his dad. “I think she’s not feeling well. Maybe we should call a doctor?”
Jack smiled. “No doctor can cure what ails Alice, son. But you’re right about getting her inside.” He took her arm and led her to the back door of the house.
She knew the place, of course. Each time her mother had sent her out to get some eggs and milk, she’d waited at this exact
same door while Mr. Hudson fetched her the stuff, then handed it to her free of charge. He and her mother had been high school sweethearts, she’d once explained, and even though she didn’t want to abuse their friendship she still enjoyed the occasional fresh eggs and milk.
Alice’d had her own personal motive to drop by, and it wasn’t dairy products. But even then Reece had rarely been in, and she’d only caught a glimpse of him now and then. She was pretty sure he didn’t remember her.
As she allowed herself to be led inside, her stomach turned somersaults and she wondered if this was what people felt when they knew their number was up. She stared at Reece as he stepped in behind her, seemingly filling the small kitchen with the aura that always surrounded him. He was a God, she thought. A God amongst men. Gorgeous, charismatic, and certainly larger than life.
Jack offered her a chair and she plunked down before her legs buckled.
“I’ll go freshen up if you don’t mind,” Reece told his father, then, after a last worried glance at Alice, disappeared through the kitchen door.
The moment he stepped from the room, the strange ban that had afflicted her vocal cords mysteriously lifted and she could finally speak again. She panted slightly, clutching a hand to her heart. “I’m so sorry about that, Mr. Hudson,” she gasped. “I don’t know what came over me just now.”
“I do,” he said, seating himself on the other chair and studying her thoughtfully. “Never seen you so bowled over, Alice Whitehouse. In fact you’re just about the last person in the world I expected to be starstruck by my son.”
She nodded quickly. “I know. I’m surprised myself!”
They both laughed and the tension that had been building dissipated.
“It’s all right, honey,” he said. “I won’t tell a soul.”
“Phew!” she cried. “I made quite a spectacle of myself, didn’t I?”
“You sure did. For a moment there I thought you would throw yourself at his feet and worship on the altar of Reece!”
She gave him a grimace. “Fat chance. I would never do a silly thing like that.”
“Wanna bet?”
Before she could reply an old dog had waddled up to her from the doorway and pressed its snout in her hand. She petted it affectionately. “Lady, you lovely old darling!” she cried and hugged her close. Then a soft yelp sounded from under the table and a second, smaller dog appeared. She squealed with delight. “A puppy!”
“Yep,” said Jack. “Just got her for Reece.” He hesitated. “And his fiancée.”
The exuberance of Alice’s joy diminished at the recollection that Dorothy Valour was probably around somewhere. “Is she here?” she asked tentatively.
“Nope. Didn’t want to be seen with the likes of me, I guess.”
Alice relaxed. Good riddance, she thought. She petted the puppy. “What’s her name?”
“Benji II.”
“I think it’s the perfect name,” spoke a deep voice from the doorway. Reece was back and he was toweling his hair, his bare torso chiseled and muscular.
Alice gaped for a moment, then caught Jack’s eye and decided not to make a fool of herself twice. She rose to her feet so quickly she had a dizzy spell and approached Reece with outstretched hand. “Hi, I’m Alice Whitehouse. I used to come round here all the time to buy milk and—” At that exact moment Lady waddled up in front of her and she tripped and fell…into Reece Hudson’s arms. “—eggs,” she finished, drowning in the man’s eyes.
“I thought you looked familiar,” he murmured as he pressed her firmly in his arms. Once again she was caught in the spell, and she merely goggled.
The scraping sound of a chair broke the trance. “Son, when you’re done fascinating Alice, can you give me a hand opening up the range? I think it’s time we shot some buck.”
Chapter 29
Felicity put down her novel and squinted through the delivery van windshield. She was starting to get a little worried. Alice had hopped out to see when Jack Hudson was opening the gun range and still hadn’t returned. Though Felicity had assured her this was absolutely unnecessary, Alice had insisted. And when Alice decided something, it was quite fruitless to argue. So Felicity simply sat back and decided to read the final chapters of the latest Jennifer Boiler bestseller.
Star Rush told the story of Jack Rush, a famous movie star who comes down from Mount Olympus—or rather Mount Hollywood—to mate with a mere mortal—a bakery girl to be precise. Love at first sight ensues and the ending, she hoped, would be a happily-ever-after affair. But first a great many hurdles were thrown in true love’s path, like the woman’s stalker ex-husband and the Hollywood hunk’s evil manager who wanted him to marry a conniving socialite.
The moment the stalker ex showed up at the heroine’s doorstep, Felicity suddenly remembered the gun Alice had dumped in her lap. Perhaps her friend had been right after all. There was a killer on the loose in Happy Bays, and it wasn’t such a bad idea to have some protection at hand.
She reached for her purse and unearthed the gun from its deep pockets.
She stared at the thing for a moment. It was huge, and the steel felt cold to the touch. Gingerly, she closed her fingers around the handle and lifted it. It felt quite snug in her hand, as if it was made for her. She sighted down the barrel at an indistinct point in the darkness, then gently put pressure on the trigger, the way one does.
Kaboom! The deafening roar of the blast rocketed through the small space and took out the passenger window.
Felicity jerked up and away and knocked her head against the rim of the door before letting the gun fall from her hand. Aghast, she stared at the big hole in the van window, freely cursing Alice for putting bullets in the gun!
Who does that?!
And she was still reeling from the shock of the unexpected discharge when the car door was wrenched open and hands grabbed her from behind.
Now, your ordinary young woman may perhaps be undone when suddenly hands reach out of nowhere and start dragging her from cars, but not Felicity Bell. Felicity had grit, and when attacked hit her attacker right back. And that’s what she did right now. With an annoyed grunt she slammed her elbow into her assailant’s gut, making sure she put some serious swing in her effort. The effect was that the grip of the culprit slackened, freeing up her arms to whirl around and put in a good swift jab to the bastard’s nose. Ka-pow!
“Fe! No!”
It was Alice’s voice, and this gave her pause. She stared at her attacker. The man had given up the struggle and stood doubled over, grabbing a hand to his nose, uttering strange oaths under his breath.
“Get behind me, Alice,” Felicity ordered. “I’ve got this guy’s number.”
But instead of getting behind her, Alice rushed to the attacker’s side and put a soothing arm around the man’s shoulder. This puzzled Felicity a great deal. Why would her friend join the enemy camp?
“What do you think you’re doing?” Alice demanded.
“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m trying to take down this maniac!”
“He’s not a maniac. He’s Reece Hudson!” Alice cried, and Felicity frowned.
When you admire a movie star from afar it’s hard to accept the fact that he may be flesh and blood and not merely pixels on a movie screen. She blinked. As the man was still clutching his nose, and they were some distance away from the nearest streetlamp, it was hard to detect in her attacker the godlike features of Reece Hudson, every woman’s dreamboat.
At first she thought Alice was kidding, but then she remembered her friend mentioning something about Reece visiting his dad Jack Hudson.
The man looked up, pique in his eyes, and Felicity heaved a gasp of shock. He now looked exactly like he had on the poster for Crunch Time 2. The glare, the blood, the cowlick… He even looked as if on the verge of uttering that immortal phrase ‘Hot potato!’
Alice was right. It was Reece Hudson! And she’d just irrevocably damaged his hallowed features.
“Oh, I’m so sorr
y!” she cried, reaching out a hand in comfort. The gesture, though well-meant, didn’t go over well, for Reece Hudson, at the sight of her incoming fist, reeled back as if struck.
“I thought you were the killer,” she said by way of explanation. Alice was still clutching the man’s arm, and she frowned. How had this happened? She remembered the bet. Had Alice been secretly seeing something of this hunk of all hunks? It hardly seemed feasible. When would she have found the time?
“I heard the gunshot,” said Reece, speaking like a man whose nose is busted, which, coincidentally, it was. “So I figured you were in grave danger.”
At the recollection of the gun, Felicity’s annoyance returned. She planted her hands on her hips. “What did you have to load that gun for?” she demanded. “I could have shot someone!”
Reece’s eyes went wide. The thought of Felicity handling a gun seemed to affect him powerfully. “You fired that gun?”
“Yes, but only because I didn’t know it was loaded.”
“Sorry about that,” said Alice with quiet exasperation, “but that still doesn’t explain why you attacked Reece.”
“I told you—I thought he was the killer.”
“Killer?” asked Reece, who had a hard time keeping track of the conversation. “What killer?”
“There’s a killer on the loose in Happy Bays,” explained Alice, “and Fe and I—this is Fe by the way, Felicity Bell, my best friend and roomy—”
“Hi, Fe,” said Reece nasally.
“—are trying to catch him, which is the reason I got her the gun.”
“I don’t need a gun,” said Felicity, not wavering on that point.
“Yes, you do.”
“No, I don’t.”
“Yes, you do.”
Reece, who’d been following the altercation with a puzzled frown, held up the hand that was clutching his nose and Felicity now saw that he really was Reece Hudson, cinema’s golden boy, now slightly dented. “Ladies, please. Whether Fe needs a gun or not is not the issue right now. Is it true that there’s a killer in Happy Bays?”