by Avery Gale
Lara’s physical appearance had made her an outsider in every village her family had lived in and her lack of knowledge of the social mores of U.S. schools had kept her from ever being accepted once she’d started high school. And for someone with a submissive personality—whose soul craved acceptance, it was like living in the seventh level of hell. The friends she’d made at Dark Desires were the closest thing she had to family now—and isn’t that about as pathetic as it gets. What kind of person centers their life around a kink club? One that needs to get themselves together, that’s who. Well fuckity fuck, now she was not only talking to herself, but she was answering too—great.
Until they parked behind another large black car matching the one she was riding in, Lara had forgotten that Jax and Kent had come up early to talk with her grandparents while Micah and Kyle stayed downtown with Gracie and Tobi. John and Elizabeth Hunt had been friends with both Jax’s and Kent’s families for many years and when they offered to lay some of the groundwork for her, Lara had jumped at the opportunity. Jax stepped out of the massive wooden doors to stand on the mansion’s large front porch just as the car came to a stop. But Lara barely noticed him, her eyes locked on the elderly couple standing to his side and it felt as if all the air had suddenly been sucked out of the car.
Somewhere in the distance Lara heard Peter’s concerned voice asking her if she was all right but she couldn’t focus on anything except the faces of the grandparents she’d loved so much as a child. How had she let so many years slip away without coming to see them? The realization of what she’d lost slammed into her and it wasn’t until Peter put his hands on either side of her face and physically turned her face to his did she realize she wasn’t even breathing. “Damn it, Lara—take a breath. Come on, sweetheart, breathe with me.” She felt herself take a gasping breath, but he shook his head, “No, princess. Slow and easy. Come on, three counts in and then three out. Follow me. Focus now, let’s get you settled before we join the others.”
Peter’s hands still bracketed her face when she finally felt her breathing level out and the pounding of blood quieted in her ears, it was only then that she realized they were alone in the car. When she finally looked back out the window, Lara saw that Fischer was shaking hands with her grandparents and warm smiles had replaced the tense expressions that she’d seen earlier. Nodding when Peter asked her if she was ready, Lara took a deep breath and placed her hand in Peter’s as she stepped from the car.
Fischer introduced himself to Lara’s grandparents and was overjoyed to discover they seemed to be as honest and open as Jax and Kent had remembered. Even though he didn’t ask them any specific questions about their daughter or son-in-law, it was obvious their granddaughter was the center of their focus. He wasn’t trying to pick up specific thoughts because the energy around them was so open he didn’t feel it was necessary—as long as they didn’t appear to be a threat to Lara, he and his brother had agreed to respect their privacy.
“Is she okay? We were positively thrilled when Jax called. To be honest we’d almost given up hope we’d get a chance to see her again. Heaven only knows what sort of nonsense her parents have told her.” Fischer wasn’t sure if Elizabeth Hunt was speaking to him, her husband, or herself because her gaze hadn’t moved from her granddaughter as they all watched Peter calm her.
“She’ll be fine, she was just a bit overcome by memories as we came up the driveway.” When John stiffened, Fischer added, “I’m not sure she’d expected all the fond memories that came over her, she’d just been a little overwhelmed, she’ll be fine. Let’s just give Peter a chance to settle her a bit.” Both of them nodded quickly, Fischer was grateful he wasn’t forced to elaborate because at this point he wasn’t sure exactly who he’d been trying to convince.
‘What’s going on? How long is this going to take? Do you need me to come back to the car?’
‘Christ, put a lid on it, Fischer. We’ll be there in just a minute. I want her to get some color back in her face, because right now she’d so pale her skin is almost translucent.’ Fischer continued to listen as Peter coaxed Lara to synchronize her breathing with his own. As the middle brother, Peter had often been the mediator and Fischer fought his smile as he thought back on how those skills were still evident today. Keeping everyone around him calm was one of the things Peter did best and he was doing a damned fine job of it with Lara. Pointing out her grandparents’ worried expressions and assuring her that Fischer, Jax, nor Kent would never let her walk into an unsafe situation, Peter was finally able to get her to exit the car.
Fischer watched Lara walk hand in hand with Peter up the wide marble staircase lost in appreciation for the fact she belonged to them when it suddenly hit him that neither he nor Peter had ever told her exactly how they hoped the future would play out. And that brief moment of insight made him realize how lax they’d become—it was something every Dom knew to avoid and they’d done it with the only woman who’d ever really mattered. They failed to give the most important woman in the world—the one they wanted to keep forever—the security of knowing how committed they were to her long-term. Nothing could have held him back at that moment, descending the last few steps to meet her, Fischer stood directly in front of Lara taking her free hand in his and using his other hand to gently lift her chin so he could hold her gaze.
“Baby, I want you to know that nothing is going to happen today that will change the way Peter and I feel about you. Nothing short of your out-right rejection will keep us from keeping you in our lives forever.” When her pretty blue eyes went wide he knew he’d been right. “That’s right, cupcake, you belong to us. I’m sorry we hadn’t laid that out before—but that’s on us, not you.” The relief in her expression was so clear Fischer wasn’t sure whether to kick his own ass for causing her to worry or to praise whatever angel had just whispered in his ear alerting him to a problem that was so easily resolved. Pressing a quick kiss to her lips, he turned and the three of them ascended the final steps together.
Chapter Fourteen
Four hours later Lara felt as if she’d never been gone. The easy rapport she’d once had with both her grandmother and grandfather had been so easy to reestablish she wondered why her parents had been so eager to deny her the joy of spending time with them, but she also wondered why she’d allowed it. Her parents had managed to convince her the grandparents she’d loved so dearly had suddenly decided they didn’t want anything to do with her and she’d bought the story, lock, stock, and barrel. But the burning question remained, why had they wanted her kept from a couple who had so obviously adored her? Lara’s best guess was her grandparents had started asking all the same questions she was now asking.
She hadn’t even realized she was staring vacantly out the large leaded glass windows of the dining room until her grandfather stepped up beside her and took her hand in his. When she turned to look at him, Lara was surprised to see understanding in his dark eyes. “You’re thinking awfully hard over here, princess. Come on, let’s you and I go for a walk.” Lara followed him out the door enjoying the feeling of his strong hand holding hers. His hand might have been more wrinkled than hers, but she knew each of those wrinkles proved the self-made millionaire was no stranger to hard work. Having started out as a wildcatter in the oil fields, John Hunt had built a virtual empire by the time he’d turned forty. By his fiftieth birthday he’s expanded the business in so many directions it was hard to find a pie he hadn’t had his fingers in.
Smiling up at him as they stepped out onto the cobblestone walkway that would lead them through her grandmother’s beautiful floral gardens, Lara asked, “Why? I mean, do you know what they were thinking?” When he didn’t immediately respond, she continued, “I keep wondering why they didn’t want me to come here when we moved back to the U.S. I feel cheated and I’m guessing you do too.”
“Oh, you have no idea how much. And we wanted to contact you so many times, but your mother…well, let’s just say she was adamant that we not. Her threats wer
e credible because unfortunately she’d made a lot of very unsavory contacts over the years.” Leading her to a small bench, they sat down and looked out over a beautiful pool with a two-story tall waterfall watching the cool mist drift away as water tumbled over the natural stone structure. The landscaping was breathtaking and Lara couldn’t help but feel calmed by the soft sounds of falling water. She remembered reading once that falling water altered the ions in the air causing people to feel more settled and happier—it was easy to believe that as she let the peacefulness of her surroundings move over her in slow comforting waves.
“I’m sure that you’ve figured out by now that your parents are far more than simple missionaries.” When she nodded, he smiled, “I didn’t think that knowledge would elude you forever, and I knew the minute Jax called he was more than a little suspicious. When we found out, we pleaded with your parents to let you come back to the States and stay with us. We even flew to Athens to meet them in hopes they’d let us bring you back home where you’d be safe.”
Lara was shocked. She remembered the holiday they’d spent in Athens when she’d been twelve or thirteen, but she hadn't had any idea her grandparents were in the same city. “How did you find out?” She knew she wouldn’t have to explain the question, her grandfather was obviously an astute businessman so he’d understand exactly what she was asking.
“There had been clues for a long time, and I’d instituted a number of security protocols over the years so any unusual financial activity involving you would immediately send up red-flags. My staff includes some rather gifted computer experts and I assure you they don’t miss anything.” He chuckled before turning a much more serious expression to her, “Sweetheart, when deposits started being made to a trust fund I’d established for you—deposits I hadn’t made—that set off all of our alarms. One of the guys likened it to standing in the middle of a casino when every one-armed bandit in the place hit the jackpot.” Suddenly his expression changed and for the first time Lara got a glimpse of the shrewd businessman who’d single-handedly created an empire.
“Well, I moved the money—all of the money, into a different account out of the country.” His predatory smile told her that he’d been intentionally trying to flush out information he’d likely already had. “Needless to say, it didn’t take long before my son-in-law called demanding to know what I’d done with his wife’s money. Well, the way I saw it, they’d put that money in an account with someone else’s name on it, an account they weren’t even supposed to know existed.” When she looked surprised, he chuckled. “From the very start I wasn’t that impressed with your dad. I knew who he worked for before he and your mother ever left Washington D.C. but she’d managed to convince us he’d given up working for Uncle Sam—as it turns out, he’d simply recruited her.”
Lara knew she should be surprised, but in truth she wasn’t. Her mother was absolutely brilliant and had been utterly devoted to her father, she would have followed him to the ends of the earth—hell, she had. Rita Hunt had given up a promising modeling career to marry and move to the most remote places in the world. And while their time in each place had always been relatively short, most of the locations had been little more than wide places in the road—and calling many of those trails roads was being charitable. She’d once heard her mother say that their frequent vacations had been the only thing that made it all worthwhile, but then she’d laughed and added “and the money of course” which hadn’t made any sense to Lara at the time because she sure didn’t see any of the trappings of wealth. Of course now that she thought back on it, most missionaries probably didn’t have satellite phones and encrypted laptops either.
“Do you have any idea where they might have hidden whatever it is someone is after? I mean, well…someone thinks I know and I really have no clue. The only clue I have led me here.” What she didn’t say was that she’d be forever grateful that she’d been forced to reconnect with her grandparents, and she didn’t have any intention of letting anything come between them again.
“I don’t, not really. To my knowledge, neither your mother nor your father has been to the estate for a long time. But I can tell you the last time they were here, they spent most of their free time in the stables, and that was unusual because neither one particularly liked horses.” He looked up at her and grinned, “But you, princess, you were my golden girl with the ponies. God you loved them and they loved you, too. It almost killed me when your grandmother made you stop riding. She was so sure I was going to let you break your neck.”
“I remember, and I missed riding. Do you still have horses?” She’d tried to keep the hopeful tone from her voice, but knew she’d failed when his eyes lit up like lights in Shepherd Park Plaza at Christmas. He didn’t even answer, he just grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet hurrying toward the stables. She didn’t even try to hold back her laughter, “I’m taking this as a yes.”
“Oh, yes indeed. And I had the fellas working in the stable saddle up a couple of mounts in hopes you might remember how much fun it was to ride.” Lara felt tears burn the back of her eyes at his thoughtfulness. And even though she hadn’t ridden in years, she wasn’t about to disappoint him by turning down the chance to enjoy a few minutes sharing his love of horses. She’d missed far too many special moments with them and she wasn’t about to miss any more now that she was getting a second chance.
By the time they’d finished their ride an hour later, Lara already felt the muscles in her thighs burning. Her groan as she swung her leg over the back of the mare she’d been riding turned to a startled squeak when large hands wrapped around her waist and set her gently on the ground. Turning, she looked up into Peter Weston’s turquoise green eyes, “Mi amõre, did you have a good time?” The affection in his eyes and in his voice was unmistakable and she leaned against him, enjoying how right it felt to be in his arms. She loved hearing his heart beating beneath her ear and inhaled deeply, relishing his masculine scent. Lara wasn’t sure what had caused her to suddenly seek comfort in his arms, perhaps it was simply the emotional rollercoaster she’d been riding the past few days.
Leaning back, she smiled, “I did. I’d forgotten how much I loved riding, but I already know I’m going to pay for it tomorrow. I’m embarrassed to admit how much my muscles are already protesting.”
“Well, while you were out, we looked around the stables and there are a couple of things we’d like to show your grandfather.” He saw disappointment in her eyes and he knew exactly where her mind had gone. When she turned to walk into the stables, Peter pulled her back effortlessly. “No, sweetness it probably isn’t anything important, and it certainly isn’t something your grandfather would have noticed. But one of the stable hands pointed out a couple of boards that didn’t seem to match the others and we’d like permission to see if there is a reason for that.”
“Why don’t you think my grandfather would have noticed?” She certainly didn’t want to think he was involved, especially after he’d seemed so sincere earlier when he’d told her how they’d worried about her safety. But the simple fact was, she didn’t know the man anymore and she didn’t have the best track record when it came to judging people.
“These boards are way in the back of the building and up higher than he’d have been able to see without using a ladder. The only reason the men who work here noticed is because they had to repair one of the lights a few weeks ago and that put them close enough to see the difference in the wood. Evidently that part of the loft is generally concealed by the small bales of feed your grandfather buys to feed the horses, so it’s hard to tell exactly when the boards were replaced. It also answers the ‘feed at eleven’ part of the puzzle because if you stand at the door and look up at the eleven o’clock position, you’d find that spot immediately—behind the feed.”
Taking her hand, he began leading her back to the house, “Come on, your grandmother wants to spend some time with you also. She’s been fussing that your granddad was keeping you all to himself—just l
ike he used to do when you were younger, according to her.” His laughter at her grandmother’s complaints made Lara smile because she remembered this being a familiar argument. “She really is a remarkable woman, precious girl. I’m looking forward to getting to know them both.”
They’d made it about halfway back to the house when he stopped her and brushed the hair away from her face. “We can read them, you know—and they are exactly what they seem to be, mi amõre. They are overjoyed you are back in their lives and they’ll move heaven and earth to keep you safe.” He laughed then and leaned down so his words warmed the shell of her ear, “Elizabeth Hunt is a force of nature. She gave both Fischer and I the third degree about our intentions—hell, Kent wants to hire her as an interrogator.”
Fischer stayed on the ground with John Hunt while Jax and Kent climbed up to investigate the boards that had been pointed out to them. Lara’s grandfather hadn’t hesitated to give them permission to pull the boards loose, he’d insisted the men working in the stable were the only ones with keys aside from the one that was in the house and the one on his key ring. When he’d admitted he hadn’t used the spare that was kept in their kitchen for years, a quick phone call to the house confirmed what Fischer had suspected—the key was missing.
Jax was nailing the boards back in place as Kent moved down the ladder he’d climbed to help. Walking over to John Hunt, Fischer noticed a small red envelope in his hand. “John, any idea what this key might fit?” Fischer knew Kent already had an idea, but he was waiting to hear the older man’s opinion.
John took the envelope, let a strange looking key fall into his hand and studied it carefully. “Looks like a safe deposit key to me, but I’m sure it’s not mine. We gave up our bank boxes when we built the vault in our basement about ten years ago, and what isn’t there is in a separate vault at the law office we’ve always used for personal business.”