Summer Reads Box Set: Volume 1

by Freethy, Barbara

  Love. The word took her breath away. They hadn't used the word, but she didn't have to say it to know she felt it. She'd been falling in love with him since that first awkward tea party at the store. And she'd tumbled further and further each day. When would it end? When would she stop falling? When would it feel like every other relationship?

  The cynical man in her bed would probably predict that possibility happening today or tomorrow or the next day. But she knew deep down it wasn't going to happen. She hadn't gone into this with blinders on. She knew what kind of man Riley was. He was terrified of commitment. He could risk his life on a battlefield but not his heart on a woman. But she also knew that he could love with loyalty and devotion; she'd seen that with his grandparents.

  She wouldn't try to change him; she would just wait him out. Eventually he would realize what she already knew, that feelings like this didn't come around more than once in a lifetime. For the first time in her life that she'd made love to a man without all the trappings of romance, dinner, dancing, music, candlelight, flowers, candy. They hadn't needed any of those things, only each other. She put her hand on his arm and smiled to herself. Even if she didn't have tomorrow, she would not regret tonight.

  A wave of light flashed through the window and she heard the sound of a car pulling into the garage. "Oh, my God, my mother is home," she said, shooting up in alarm.

  "Paige?" Riley muttered in a sleepy voice.

  "They're home. My mother and grandfather are home."

  "Huh?"

  "Jeez, you don't wake up very fast, do you?" She put her hands on his face. "Focus. My mother and grandfather are home. We have to get out of here without anyone seeing us."

  His gaze sharpened. "Got it. You don't want Mom to see me."

  "See us," she corrected. "Especially not naked here in my old bedroom."

  "Right."

  Paige scrambled out of bed, tossing clothes at Riley as she tried to find her own. "What time is it?”

  Riley looked at his watch. "Ten forty-five."

  "I can't believe we slept so long."

  "Well, you wore me out.” He smiled. "You're not going to turn into a pumpkin, are you?"

  "Ha-ha." She walked over to the door and turned off the light, not wanting her mother to see the light when she came down the hall. "She must still be downstairs. What do you think we should do?"

  "We could have sex again until she goes to sleep."

  She rolled her eyes. "We already used up my stash."

  "Are you sure you didn't hide anything in another book, maybe The Little Princess or how about The Scarlet Letter?"

  "You're quite the funny man tonight, aren't you?"

  He offered her an unrepentant grin. "I like you flustered."

  "You just like me."

  "Maybe a little."

  "More than a little." She saw him stiffen and added, "Don't worry, this isn't the tell me you love me and want to be with me forever moment."

  "It's not?" he asked, unable to hide the note of relief in his voice.

  She laughed. "You scare so easily." She stopped abruptly at the sound of footsteps on the stairs. They slowed down by her door, and Paige had the sudden thought that maybe her door was usually left open, not closed. Holding her breath, she hoped her mother wouldn't take this moment to notice the anomaly, although her mother was certainly one to notice just such things. The footsteps moved on, and she let out her breath.

  She wondered if her mother would check on her father or go straight to bed. Thinking about her father made her feel a little guilty that she hadn't bothered to check on him herself. Not hearing anything more, she opened her door a crack and peeked out. The hallway was empty. "I think it's safe," she whispered. "But be quiet. My mother has excellent hearing."

  She took Riley's hand as they crept down the stairs. They managed to make it down the stairs without any doors opening behind them or voices calling out. They were almost to the front door when she realized someone was in the living room. She grabbed Riley and pulled him across the hall into the dining room. There was no way they could open and close the front door without whoever was in the living room hearing them.

  "Is that my mother?" she whispered.

  Riley peered around the corner then looked back at her. "It's your grandfather. He's opening a safe."

  "There's no safe in the living room."

  Riley took another look. "Behind the portrait by the window."

  "That's not possible." She pushed him aside to take a look herself, and what she saw was shocking. She'd thought she'd known where all the family safes were. There was one in the study, one in her mother's bedroom, another in the linen closet, although why there was one there she'd never been able to explain. But no one had told her about the one in the living room. She was so annoyed by the oversight that she stepped into the hall.

  "What are you doing, Paige?" Riley asked. "Do you want him to see you?"

  "I think I do," she said decisively.

  "You're going to take a step you may not be able to take back," he warned her.

  "It seems to be the night for that. Are you coming with me?"

  "After you, princess."

  She drew in a deep breath, walked across the hall, and entered the living room just as her grandfather turned away from the safe with a very familiar object in his hands.

  Her body stiffened in amazement. "Oh, my God! That's the other dragon.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Her grandfather drew himself up to his full height, his eyes blazing with anger. Paige couldn't help but take a step back. Actually, she was tempted to run out of the room, but Riley's solid body blocked her exit.

  "What the hell are you doing here, Paige?" her grandfather demanded.

  She couldn't speak. The dragon in his hands was the last thing she had expected to see. "I—I came to...." She couldn't think. Her grandfather had the other dragon. How? When? Why? The questions raced around her mind, but she couldn't get any of them out.

  "Who are you?" her grandfather asked, his gaze now fixed on Riley.

  "Riley McAllister. Ned Delaney's grandson."

  Wallace was not surprised. That small fact registered with Paige before anything else. He knew who Riley was. In fact, it was obvious now he knew a lot more than he was telling.

  "Where did you get that dragon?" she asked, finally putting a voice to her thoughts. "You told me you'd never seen a dragon like the one that was stolen last week, but this is an exact duplicate. You lied to me. Why?"

  "It's none of your business. This is my property. I don't owe you any explanations."

  "But you owe me." The voice came from the doorway. David Hathaway entered the room wearing a silk robe over his pajamas. He looked tired and pale, but his eyes were filled with excitement. "Where did you get that dragon?"

  "You should be in bed. You look like death," Wallace replied, ignoring the question.

  "I got up to get some water. I heard voices." David stared at the dragon in Wallace's hands. "I remember now. I saw the dragon on the television show, and you—" His gaze swung to Riley. "You and your grandmother brought it in to the store."

  "That's right," Riley said tersely. "And you took it without telling anyone. The next thing we knew, the dragon was gone, and you were in the hospital."

  "I took it to show Jasmine. Then I went to show it to someone, a man who can spot a fake bronze from a mile away. I had to be sure my excitement wasn't misleading me."

  "Why didn't that man tell the police he had seen you that day? You were on the news every other hour," Paige said.

  David hesitated. "He's very private."

  "He works the black market," Riley interjected.

  "Let him talk," Paige said. "What happened next, Dad?"

  "I remember thinking that I needed to get home. I cut through the alley. And then—"

  He stopped. "There were footsteps behind me. Someone was running. I was struck by a terrible force. I felt myself falling." He shook his head. "That's all I re
member."

  "You hit your head on the pavement," Paige said.

  David drew in a breath, then let it out as he nodded.

  "Why did you think you needed to get home and not back to the store where my grandmother and I were waiting?" Riley asked.

  David glanced at Riley, then back at his father. "I wanted to speak to you," he said to Wallace. "A long time ago I saw a box that you had, and I thought it could be the one that goes with the dragons. I didn't realize you also had the other dragon—"

  "What? He has the box?" Riley interrupted.

  David didn't answer. Neither did her grandfather. The two men were staring at each other, a look passing between them that spoke of unfinished business. Paige couldn't help wondering just what her father knew and what else her grandfather was hiding.

  "The box you saw was from the Ming dynasty," Wallace replied. "It has no connection to the dragon."

  "I find that difficult to believe. It looked exactly the same."

  "I don't care what you believe."

  "Where did you get the dragon, then?" David asked.

  "From a private collector. I thought I might one day find the other dragon and the box. Until then, I would keep the dragon safe." Wallace turned abruptly, putting the dragon back into the safe before anyone could move. He slammed the door shut and flicked the combination lock. Paige was startled by the movement. Her father, too, seemed taken aback. But Riley... She could feel the angry energy emanating from his body. She glanced over at him and saw a determination in his eyes that told her he wasn't about to let her grandfather end the conversation so quickly.

  "I'd like to see that dragon," Riley said.

  "I would, too," David added.

  Wallace shrugged. "It's no one's business but mine.”

  "My grandfather had one just like it," Riley said. "And he worked for you. You were friends."

  "We were friends until Ned betrayed me," Wallace replied. "I gave him a job. I treated him like a brother. And he paid me back by stealing the dragon and setting fire to the store to cover up his crime."

  "That's a damn lie," Riley said.

  "It's the goddamn truth," Wallace said, his eyes blazing. "And you gave me the proof when you and your grandmother showed up on television with the dragon he'd been hiding in his attic all these years."

  "I don't believe you. My grandfather is an honest man."

  "Then how did he get the dragon?"

  "I don't know. But then, we don't know how you got yours either, do we?"

  "I told you, a private collector—"

  "You also told us only a minute ago that you only had one," Riley reminded him. "Now you're saying you had two, and my grandfather stole one."

  For the first time, Wallace looked confused. "Yes, well, I had both originally."

  "But not the box?" David asked, rejoining the conversation. "Are you sure the box I saw didn't go with the dragons? If you had both dragons, where was the box?"

  "That box wasn't part of the set."

  "Open the safe," David said. "I want to see the dragon again."

  "No."

  "Dad almost died because of that dragon," Paige interjected. "Don't you think he has a right to see the matching one?"

  There was a strange glitter in Wallace's eyes as he looked at David. "I'm sorry you were hurt. That shouldn't have happened."

  "Why are you sorry? You didn't have anything to do with it." David's eyes narrowed, the expression on his face changing several times. "Did you have something to do with the robbery?" he asked in shock.

  "I'm eighty-two years old. You think I go around knocking people off in alleys?"

  "Maybe not just anyone," David said slowly, his mouth set in a grim line. "But I'm not just anyone, am I?"

  Paige had a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Dad, you can't believe—"

  "Can't I?" David interrupted, his gaze still fixed on his father.

  The two men exchanged a long look that Paige couldn't begin to decipher.

  "Your grandfather certainly could have hired someone to do whatever he needed to have done," Riley said to Paige.

  "No!" Paige turned on him in fury. "Don't accuse my grandfather of hurting his own son. Are you crazy? He wouldn't do that."

  "Wouldn't he?" Riley looked her straight in the eye. "Look at the facts, Paige."

  "There aren't any facts, just speculation. We need to calm down, talk this through."

  "Playing the peacemaker again, princess?"

  "Someone has to."

  "You just want to give your grandfather and your father time to cover up. A Hathaway to the bitter end."

  She was stung by the cold fury in his voice and felt her own temper rise. "Maybe you should go."

  "So you can hide the dragon?"

  "I'm not hiding anything. But you're not helping.”

  "She's right. Get out," Wallace said shortly. "Or I'll have you thrown out."

  "And who's going to do that?" Riley challenged. "Are you going to call the police, Wally? Because I think I'd like them to come. I'd like you to tell them why you have a dragon in your safe that looks exactly like the one that was stolen from me."

  "We know there are two," Paige said desperately. "They're identical. This could be the other one."

  "Take off the rose-colored glasses, Paige. This isn't the other one. This is the same one."

  "Please, just go." She had to think. She needed time to sort things out, to make sense of it all.

  He looked as if she'd just stabbed him in the heart. "You really are choosing them, aren't you?" he asked.

  "It's not a choice. It's too much too fast. I can't keep up with it all."

  "Sure you can; you just don't want to. But this isn't over. I'll find out the truth, and when I do, someone will pay."

  "That someone will be your grandfather," Wallace said.

  "We'll see about that." Riley strode from the room without another glance in Paige's direction. His exit was punctuated by the slamming of the front door.

  For a moment there was only silence in the room. Paige was afraid to look at her father or her grandfather, afraid of what she would see in their eyes. She had a terrible feeling that Riley might just be right about everything.

  "I want to see the dragon again," David said. "Open the safe, Father."

  "It's late. I'm going to bed."

  She looked up as David moved in front of Wallace, blocking his way. There they stood face-to-face, shoulder-to-shoulder, father and son. Paige had always believed her grandfather was the stronger of the two, but right now her father was holding his own.

  "The dragon in the safe is the same dragon I held in my hands," David said slowly. "Mr. McAllister was right. That's what you don't want me to see, isn't it? You didn't have two dragons. You had none. Until you stole the one from me in the alley."

  "No," Paige breathed, but neither one of them was paying any attention to her.

  "Did you mean to kill me, too?" David asked in a voice that sounded almost dispassionate. "Was that part of the plan?"

  Wallace didn't say anything for a moment, then said, "I didn't want you to get hurt. They were supposed to take the dragon and bring it back to me. No one was supposed to get hurt."

  Paige sank down on a nearby chair as her legs gave out from under her. Her grandfather had had his own son robbed? And she'd just stood up for her family? Taken their side over Riley's? She'd made a terrible, terrible mistake.

  "Why didn't you tell me you wanted the dragon?" David asked. "Why steal it?"

  "I didn't want to pay for it. It was mine. Ned stole it from me. I wanted it back. It was simpler just to take it"

  "Simpler?" Paige echoed in disbelief, drawing their attention back to her. "Dad was almost killed. You call that simple?"

  Wallace's face tightened at her criticism. "I told you that was an accident."

  "And you expect him to forgive you for it? I don't understand you at all."

  "You don't have to understand. I was settling an old debt. And your
father will be fine." He paused. "No one will ever know. It's done now. Tomorrow this dragon, too, will disappear."

  "It's not done," Paige countered. "Riley won't let it go. He's probably on his way to tell the police right now. He'll get a search warrant. They'll come to get the dragon."

  "It won't be here, and surely you don't think Mr. McAllister is any match for a Hathaway?" Wallace's cool, ruthless smile made Paige shiver. "The police chief is a friend of ours. He will not be obtaining any search warrants. Your Mr. McAllister will run into one brick wall after another until he gives up."

  "He doesn't give up easily."

  "He'll have no other choice, not if he wants to run his business in this city."

  "You're really flexing your muscles, aren't you?"

  "I'm showing you what it means to be a Hathaway. Maybe it's time you decided whether or not you're up to the challenge."

  And with that Wallace left the room, leaving chaos and confusion in his wake.

  David sat down on the couch, resting his head in his hands, looking exhausted, overwhelmed, and defeated. "He always wins, Paige. He always wins."

  She went to him, kneeling down in front of him, putting her hands on his knees, forcing her father to look at her. "Not this time," she said. "We can't let him win this time. This isn't about honor. It's about cheating. That's not what Hathaways are about."

  "Isn't it? I cheated on your mother."

  "That's not the same thing."

  "Your mother cuts corners at the store every chance she gets."

  "That's just good business sense."

  "And your grandfather—well, where do you think he got the dragon in the first place, Paige? You're the only one who still has some goodness left. You should get out of this family while you have the chance."

  "I don't think I can." Paige sat down on the couch next to him, her mind reeling with information. They'd never spoken this frankly in their lives. It was difficult to take it all in.

  "I've made so many mistakes," David said.

  Which reminded her... "You have. You should have told me about Jasmine and Alyssa, especially Alyssa. She's my sister. I should have known about her," Paige said. "Why didn't you support her? See her, even if it was only in secret?"