Cassandra sucked in a deep breath when she realized what he’d just said. She shifted her gaze to meet his, wondering if he was throwing her to the wolves in an attempt to save himself. No matter what his motive, she had no option but to go along with him. Tears filled her eyes and ran down her cheeks. Her chin trembled when she spoke. “Yes, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m so ashamed.” She slipped the ring off her finger and handed it to Ally; then she undid the chain around her neck and handed her the locket as well.
It dangled in Ally’s long, thin fingers, but she never took her gaze off Cassandra’s face. Her gray eyes bore into her like a knife. “I don’t know what to say. I thought you were my friends, but you stole from me—from my aunt. How do I know that you haven’t taken more from her? There’s a statue. A statue of Venus that’s missing. Somehow you must have gotten into the house and taken that too.”
Cassandra looked at Daryn, expecting him to answer, yet he remained silent. “I swear to you, Ally, I haven’t stolen anything else. Please believe me.” She twisted her hands in her lap and pleaded with her eyes for Daryn to help her out.
His face was expressionless, and when he opened his mouth, Cassandra couldn’t believe what she heard. “What are you going to do?”
Cassandra’s cheeks burned. That’s it. That’s all he has to say. He didn’t plead her case to Ally. What the hell did he think she was going to do? Of course she’d call the police. She rubbed her sweaty palms together and was once again overcome with dizziness. “Please forgive me. I know I need help. Why, just this morning, I was telling Da—Ross that after I returned the jewelry to you, I was going to find someone to talk to…”
Ally held up her hand, silencing her. “Do you really expect me to believe a word you say?”
“I was hop—”
“You’re a thief, and no doubt a liar,” Ally said, cutting off her words.
Cassandra set the teacup down and gripped the arms of the chair. That was it. Her life as she knew it was over. She closed her eyes and waited for her world to come crashing down.
“I should call the police,” Ally went on, “but you returned the jewelry, and for that, I’m grateful.”
Cassandra’s lids flew open, and she sucked in a giant gulp of air. From the corner of her eye, she saw Daryn’s stiff posture relax a bit.
“So this is what you’re going to do,” Ally said. “You’re going to promise me that you’ll never take another thing from anyone again, that you’ll get the help you spoke of, and you’ll leave town immediately. If I see or hear that you two are still in Silvercreek, I won’t hesitate to contact the police. Do you understand?”
Cassandra couldn’t believe her good luck. “Yes, yes. I promise.”
Jack entered the parlor, balancing two plates of food, and when he saw them, he stopped dead in his tracks. “Why, hello.” He raised his brows in surprise.
Ally dropped the jewelry into the pocket of her pants. “Ross and Taryn just stopped by to say good-bye. They’re leaving Silvercreek.”
Daryn gripped Cassandra’s elbow and helped her out of the chair. “Yes. Business calls. It was so nice meeting you both.”
“You’re leaving now?” Jack didn’t hide his pleasure.
“Yes.” Daryn kept a tight hold on Cassandra’s arm and led her toward the front door. He must be thinking the same thing as she. They had to get out of there while they still could. Ally might change her mind at any moment or tell Jack and he might convince her to call the police, and then they could have the entire force after them. “Good-bye.”
They left the house and raced along the sidewalk toward the BMW. It wasn’t until they were safely seated in the car and speeding down the road that Cassandra said, “Well, thanks for nothing. I can’t believe you offered me up for sacrifice.”
Daryn didn’t take his eyes from the road, but she could tell he was seething. “You should be thanking me that you’re sitting here and not in a jail cell.”
Had he lost his mind? “Really?” she groused. “Thank you?”
“Yeah. Do you think it was just your good fortune that Ally didn’t turn you in?”
She shrugged, not quite sure where he was heading with this conversation.
“Do you really think I’d set you up to take the fall?”
“If you’d asked me that yesterday, I would have said no. But after that little episode, I don’t know what else to think.”
He reached over and squeezed her knee. “I’d never set you up, babe. I was setting up Ally. I knew if I spoke in your defense, it wouldn’t be anywhere near as convincing than if you were fighting for your life. Like you’d done the other day when I found the jewelry in your pockets.”
She stared at him. “You were that sure Ally would let us go?”
“Yeah, I was betting on it. But if she hadn’t, I would have had to resort to Plan B.”
“And that was?” Cassandra asked.
“Let’s just say I would have had to take a more drastic approach.”
She arched her brows at him in shock. “Like what? We’ve never hurt anyone before. You know how much I hate violence.”
He chuckled. “I didn’t mean I’d hurt Ally, but I would have restrained her if needed, to give you time to get away.”
“Well, I’m glad things turned out the way they did.”
He ran his hand up her leg. “Me too.” He pressed his foot on the accelerator, and the car shot forward with a jolt. A few minutes later, she saw the sign for I-91 up ahead. Cassandra leaned back in the seat and closed her eyes. Soon they’d leave this small town behind for the bright lights of Atlantic City and a whole new life. An honest life.
* * *
Ally stuck her fork in the delicious-looking omelet Jack had made for her, and her hand shook. She was still upset with Taryn. Lucky for her, Jack was devouring his meal and hadn’t noticed the tremor. However, he looked at her uneaten food.
“Not hungry?” he asked.
“No, I am.” She took a quick bite.
“Quite a surprise to find Ross and Taryn here, wasn’t it?”
She studied his face. Was he fishing to see whether she knew if there was more to their leaving town than just business or was he simply looking to make polite conversation? Either way, that was one subject she wanted to stay away from. It was bad enough that she couldn’t stop thinking about it and wondering if she should have had Taryn arrested. Who knew how many other people she might have stolen from? But how could Alice have called the police? They would have asked her a million questions. Questions she wasn’t prepared to answer. No, she had done the right thing. The only thing. Besides, Taryn had promised never to steal again. She just hoped they’d left town and that she’d seen the last of them.
“I’m just glad they didn’t stay long,” she said, answering Jack’s question. “So I can spend my time with you.” She smiled at him. “Only you.”
He pulled his chair closer to her and draped his arm across her shoulders. “Me too. There was something about those characters that bothered me. Something was off that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.”
She wished she had Jack’s intuition, but she’d been completely taken in by them. Especially Ross. She wondered if he was really as honest as he’d appeared when he returned her fifty dollars. She hated to think he might have set her up to be a sucker.
“They seemed nice enough to me.” She stuck her fork back in her food and took a bite.
Jack pressed on. “I got the feeling Ross wasn’t being truthful with us about his business. I wouldn’t be surprised if he never sold a thing in his life other than a pack of lies. I sure would have liked to have found out more about them.”
Alice didn’t want to discuss Ross and Taryn any further, and she certainly didn’t want to have to lie to Jack more either. “Don’t be so cynical. I’m sure they’re just as they seemed.”
He looked straight at her. “I know you’re not that naïve. People can do a good job at hiding things.”
There it was again. His suspicion. What was it going to take to get him to trust her? She knew the answer. It would take her telling him the truth about her transformation. She should tell him now. She’d promised the tin angel she would. But she still hadn’t worked up the courage. “I’m sure there are people in the world who are good at being deceptive, but I don’t know any.”
* * *
Jack studied Ally’s face to see if she was lying. She knew more about Ross and Taryn than she was letting on. It had been quite obvious when he’d arrived in the parlor earlier that he’d interrupted something. Ally had been angry and trying hard to hide it. And the other two were nervous wrecks. After saying good-bye, they practically ran to the car. Today had done a lot to confirm his suspicions that they were all up to no good and probably working on some scheme. A scheme to swindle Alice.
Sooner or later, Ally would open up to him. He just had to make her believe she could trust him. Last night, she’d almost been there. Especially after he’d learned she’d never made love before. She had to have strong feelings for him—might even be in love with him. He didn’t want to break her heart, but until Alice was back safe and sound, he couldn’t worry about that. And if he was being honest with himself, he’d admit he cared deeply for her. Maybe even loved her. But he couldn’t let himself go there. Not now.
He could tell Ally no longer wanted to discuss Ross and Taryn, so he changed the subject. “I hope you enjoyed the rummage sale. You fit right in, but then I knew you would.”
Her face brightened at his compliment. “Thank you. And yes, I did have a nice time. The people were so friendly; they made me feel at ease right away.”
“What are the chances I can persuade you to stay here and make this charming little town your home?”
It took her a moment to respond. “I guess that depends on what you had in mind.”
Jack left the table and stood behind her chair. He reached over her shoulders and stroked her arms, letting his hands slide down farther until he reached the swell of her firm, round breasts. “How about this?” he whispered against her hair.
She rested her head against his chest. “Is that all you have to offer?”
He slid his hands down lower, slipping them inside her pants. “What about this?”
She melted against him. “You’re doing better.”
“This should make you commit.” He gently lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom.
* * *
“Hey, babe. I need a bathroom,” Cassie whined.
Daryn glanced at her briefly, then focused his full attention back on the highway. “We’ve only been on the road a half hour.”
She fidgeted in her seat. “Tell that to my bladder, hon.”
He wanted to put as much distance between them and Silvercreek as possible before stopping anywhere. “If you’re that desperate, I can pull over to the side of the road.”
She jabbed her finger into his side. “Very funny. No, I’ll wait for a toilet, thank you.”
A few minutes later, he pulled into a rest area and maneuvered the Beemer into a parking space between two large trucks. In the event Ally had changed her mind and called the police, he wanted to stay as inconspicuous as possible. Cassie could make that difficult, however. She stood out where ever she went. With her fiery red hair and Marilyn Monroe-like face and figure, Cass was one hell of a good-looking woman.
He reached into the backseat and popped open one of her suitcases, rifling through her belongings until he found what he was looking for—a thick, gray wool hat that she’d used for one of their scams. “Here, put this on,” he said, tossing it at her.
She raised her brows in surprise, but then understanding registered in her fabulous green eyes. “Good thinking.” She tucked her hair inside the hat, then reached into her purse and took out a silk scarf, which she draped around her neck and décolletage before buttoning up her coat. “Am I okay now?”
“Perfect.” Despite her faults, and she definitely had a few whoppers, he was lucky to have her in his life.
He walked with her to the rest room, then went into a convenience store for a bag of chips. A few minutes later, she was back by his side. “Hungry? Go grab something.”
She glanced over her shoulder at the food aisle. “Okay. Be right back.”
When she walked away, he picked up a bag of barbeque chips and headed over to the cooler to get something to drink. The bell above the store’s door tinkled as a customer entered.
Daryn barely took notice of the tall, stocky man until he heard Cassie say, “What do you think you’re doing? Take your hands off me.”
Instincts took over, and without thinking, he was at her side. A blinding rage consumed him when he saw the man’s hand on her upper arm. “Hey, creep. Don’t touch her.”
The next thing he knew, he curled his fingers into a fist, pulled his arm back, and connected his hand with the man’s chin. What happened after that was a blur. Daryn’s arms were held in a steel grip behind his back, and handcuffs had been slapped around his wrists.
Cassie watched in horror. The blood seemed to have drained from her face, even her lips. She clasped her hands over her mouth, but they couldn’t stifle her cries of dismay.
The man pulled a radio from his pocket and called for backup.
Shit. He’d slugged a cop.
“Hand it over, miss,” said the plainclothes officer.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she protested.
Daryn starred at Cassie in disbelief. “Oh, Cass. What have you done?”
“Nothing,” she sobbed, but she couldn’t lie to him. The awful truth was there in her eyes.
He shook his head sadly. “Give it up, baby. Game’s over.”
She stared at him for a moment, then reached into her handbag and pulled out a package of yogurt-covered pretzels.
Daryn’s shoulders sagged. He was a pro. His mother’s son, after all. Master of deceit. He’d scammed so many people he’d lost count, yet everything had come crashing down around him over something that cost less than five dollars. They’d been so close to living a new life too. By this time tomorrow, they’d have been in Jersey looking for real jobs. But it was too late now. Everything was over. He wondered what was going to happen to them.
Outside, red lights swirled and sirens blared. Seemed like too much activity for such a minor crime. Would he ever see Cass again? No matter what, he’d never forget her. She was the love of his life.
Chapter Ten
With Ally curled against him, Jack found it difficult to focus on the old Bing Crosby movie they were watching. Especially since every now and then she would move her hand up and down the back of his neck, gently stroking his hair.
He’d spent the last four days with her, making love and getting to know her better. He was beginning to think he might have misjudged her. She was sweet and wonderful—far from the monster Pastor Riley believed her to be.
The squeal of tires and the roar of an engine—a sports car engine—shifted his thoughts away from the woman in his arms to another woman—one he hoped would stay in his past. Bethany! Though he couldn’t fathom why she’d come here. He hadn’t returned her calls about spending the holiday together. Would she be so bold as to come anyway…uninvited? His chest tightened as an uncomfortable thought sprang to mind. He hoped she hadn’t come to resurrect their relationship.
When he rose from the sofa, Ally looked up at him, her gorgeous eyes questioning. “I think Bethany’s here.” The words were like poison on his tongue. He hated to think what his ex-fiancée’s arrival would do to his cozy evening with Ally.
“What?” Her shock was apparent in her voice and the chalky color of her skin. “Did you invite her?”
He was stupefied that she’d think that. “Of course not.”
“Then what’s she doing here?”
“I have no idea, but I’m sure we’re about to find out.” The second he uttered those words, a loud rapping sounded
on the door. “I’ll get it. You stay put,” Jack said, heading toward the foyer.
“The heck I will.” Ally sprang off the sofa and was on his heels. “I want to know why she’d drive from Boston, fighting traffic, to see you. I mean, if things are over between you two…”
Jack looked over his shoulder at her. He hated that she doubted him. “I haven’t lied to you. My relationship with Bethany is over.” Relief crossed her beautiful face. He patted her shoulder. “Don’t worry. Everything’s okay. I promise.” He opened the door to a burst of wintry air.
“Surprise and happy New Year, Jack.” Bethany’s smile turned into a frown as she stared past him to Ally.
“I thought your landlady was ninety.” She pushed by him, not bothering to remove the snow packed around the stiletto heels of her black leather boots. Her gaze swept Ally from head to toe. “I might not be the best at guessing someone’s age, but I’m sure this girl can’t be more than twenty-something.” Her usually controlled tone was high-pitched, and her voice quivered slightly when she spoke.
Jack draped an arm across her shoulders, careful not to muss the fox-fur collar on her coat. Bethany hated to have a hair out of place, even if it wasn’t her own. “This is Ally, my landlady’s niece.”
She kept her hands firmly planted on her hips, making no attempt to shake Ally’s outstretched hand. “Under different circumstances I’d say, ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you,’ but seeing as I’ve interrupted your…” She let the words fade, as if finishing the sentence was distasteful.
Ally moved around them to shut the door, but not before a burst of snow blew in. “Bethany, please come inside and have a seat,” she said, shooting Jack a curious gaze. “How about a cup of tea? You must be exhausted from the drive.”
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