The morning had been mostly uneventful. She’d taken four calls from Nick giving her updates, none of which were particularly earthshaking. Otherwise, she was removed from the Spencer Building and all the troubles associated with the investigation that the media had reduced to a simple headline: Murder or Suicide?
On the evening and morning news, one of the television channels had run the video showing her and Nick rushing from the Spencer Building. She looked like a frightened rabbit, but she hadn’t been identified as the ex-wife of Ted Maxwell, which meant this wasn’t the most embarrassing thing that had ever happened to her.
Using her GPS map, she found the secluded mountain cabin of a client who had given birth two months ago. The woman was ecstatic to have company. Her health and that of her infant son were good, but she was concerned about the possibility of postpartum depression. Kelly listened carefully to her symptoms and referred her to a therapist that Serena had on a list of recommended professionals. At the same time, she strongly suggested that the new mother and baby spend more time outside, getting involved with other people. With the winter weather giving way to spring, it would be a lot easier to escape the isolated cabin.
From there, she drove into Valiant and popped into Roxanne’s beauty shop. The bustling atmosphere in the salon was the opposite of the quiet surrounding the mountain cabin. She managed to get Roxanne away from her well-meaning stylists for a few private words, and learned that she’d been more exhausted than usual, too tired to cook dinner for her husband. Kelly didn’t even have to say her advice out loud. Roxanne knew that she was driving herself too hard to get everything done before the baby came.
As she stepped out onto the main street that ran through the middle of Valiant, Kelly paused to enjoy the weather. With the temperature in the mid-sixties with very little wind, it was just warm enough to be comfortable with a light jacket or sweater. On the opposite side of the street, she noticed a man leaning against a building and holding a newspaper that he wasn’t really reading. The “Murder or Suicide?” heading wasn’t what caught her attention. He seemed to be looking directly at her, as though he’d been waiting for her to appear. He folded his paper and got into a white sedan that was parked on the street.
Had he been watching for her? She took out her cell phone, thinking that she should call Nick and tell him, but he had enough to worry about without her getting all paranoid.
After she made another two stops and got back into her van, she looked into the rearview mirror and saw the white sedan following her. Was it a coincidence? There were a lot of white cars on the road. She drove into the parking lot for the supermarket and angled around until she had a clear view of the driver. It was the same man. His sedan turned right and headed in another direction.
Cruising past the parking lot was a stretch limo with tinted windows. There was no mistaking that vehicle. Barry Radcliff was in town. The driver didn’t stop. Had Radcliff been looking for her? That made no sense at all.
Checking her wristwatch, she saw that the afternoon was almost over. After one more stop, she’d head over to the Spencer Building for her class at six. Last on her list was Daisy, the fresh-faced woman who kept everything organic. Her home on the outskirts of Valiant looked like a model for organic living with a new baby. She happily showed Kelly the guest bedroom that she’d converted into a birthing room with soothing colors and a sophisticated sound system, created by her husband, the engineer.
Daisy’s enthusiasm rubbed off on Kelly and lifted her spirits. By the time she left the house, she’d decided that there was a plausible explanation for Radcliff’s limo to be in Valiant. Clearly, he had other business.
As she drove away from Daisy’s house, the white sedan pulled around the corner. The man who had been watching her had picked up a passenger. She caught a glimpse of his white hair. It was Trask.
She couldn’t dismiss her fears. She was being stalked.
Her fingers clenched on the steering wheel. What did these people want with her? Until two days ago, she’d never even met the Spencers. She’d never known Uncle Samuel.
Windows up and doors locked, she drove to the Spencer Building. Every car she passed seemed like a threat. When someone honked, she nearly jumped out of her skin. To avoid the media who were still gathered near the front entrance, she went to the underground parking garage. A mistake? Anybody who watched thrillers knew that bad things happened in enclosed parking lots.
She grabbed her satchel from the back of her van, made a mad dash to the exit and raced up the staircase. Within seconds, she’d rushed into the building. It was almost five o’clock, and the people who worked here were leaving. Having lots of witnesses was a good thing.
After ordering her coffee, she called Nick on her cell phone and told him she was downstairs on the ground floor.
He picked up on the tension in her voice. “Are you okay?”
“I don’t want you to worry,” she said, “but I think I might have picked up a stalker.”
“I’ll be right there.”
She took a seat at a round table in the central atrium. When she lifted the cardboard coffee cup to her lips, her hand was shaking. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled, and she looked over her shoulder. Was he here?
Nick strode toward her from the elevator, and she’d never been more relieved to see someone. As soon as he sat at her table, she started talking, telling him about the man on the street and Radcliff’s limo and the sighting of Trask.
“Did you get a license plate number?”
“I should have,” she said. “I didn’t think of it. This is kind of new to me. I’ve never been stalked before.”
“Is there anything else you can tell me about the guy?”
“He was average height and weight. Nothing remarkable about him at all, other than he was lurking around and following me.” She leaned back in her chair. Being with Nick was already curing her panic. “I really only saw the guy three times, but then I saw the limo. It felt like they were swarming around me like a bunch of sharks and I was a helpless minnow.”
“Don’t be scared, little minnow. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”
He pulled his cell phone from the inner pocket of his gray tweed sports jacket. The slim phone looked tiny in his calloused hand, but he used it like a lethal weapon. His confidence made her believe that he was capable of dealing with any threat. She sighed and said, “Thank you.”
“For what? Getting you into this mess?”
It had been a very long time since anyone offered to take care of her and meant it. Sure, she had friends like Serena, and her family in Chicago, but she didn’t have a partner who was on her side no matter what, even when she was wrong.
Picking up her coffee and her satchel, she stood and said, “I should get upstairs to the gym before the couples arrive for class. Coming with me?”
“After I make a couple of calls.”
“Please don’t be late,” she said. “I don’t think Lauren could stand any more disruption of her schedule.”
“She’s doing a lot better today. Having Julia come over to help made all the difference. She’s got everything on track—obituaries, arrangements for a memorial service, plans for cremation, notifications, everything.”
Glancing toward the hall that led to the bank of elevators, she said, “Too bad I have to go all the way to the front to go up one floor. With this high ceiling atrium, it almost seems like there should be a staircase to the second floor.”
“At one time, there was. We took it out to provide better security for the upper floors. The same is true for the underground parking. There’s no elevator from the parking levels.”
“Because of the gold?”
“A little.” When he stood, he towered over her in a most pleasant way. “Mostly, we upped our level of security because that’s standard procedure for office buildings, even if all we’re protecting is software and sportswear.”
“Sports?”
“There’s an
office for a national distributor of sports equipment on the sixth and seventh floors. We should stop by and visit them. What’s your favorite outdoor activity? Skiing?”
“I do a little cross-country,” she said, “but I really love rock climbing.”
He grinned. “You’re not afraid of heights.”
“I like tall places.” And tall men, she thought. “But I tend to get kind of freaked out when weird cars and limos start tailing my van.”
He rested his hand on her shoulder and gently stroked her arm. “No freak-outs necessary. I’ve got it covered.”
“Don’t be late for class.”
As she strolled toward the elevators, her attitude was completely transformed from earlier when she’d been looking over her shoulder and expecting something terrible to sneak up on her. No longer alone, she had Nick watching her back. It felt good to trust him.
In the gym classroom that was separate from the rest of the gymnasium and the exercise equipment, she moved the chairs out of the way, set out mats and waited for her class. They were all punctual, even Nick, who stepped through the door at exactly one minute until six o’clock. He gave her a wink and took his place beside his sister-in-law.
After a brief question-and-answer session, she concentrated on the breathing techniques. As Kelly inhaled and exhaled in the distinctive Lamaze patterns, alternating quick panting and deep gulps of oxygen, her tension abated. Always remember to breathe. It was a good lesson for her to keep in mind.
Having Nick so close was another deterrent to stress. When she caught a glimpse of his bemused grin or his blue eyes, warmth spread through her body. Not exactly a soothing sensation, the heat he generated inside her was too exciting—exciting in a good way. This man might be the best antidote to all her self-doubt and frustration.
The class was over before she knew it. The couples left, and Kelly was left in the gym classroom with Nick and Lauren. As they rearranged the classroom to look the way it had when Kelly entered, Lauren thanked her for the suggestion of calling Julia.
“She’s so organized,” Lauren said, “and she knows everything about Samuel and what he would have wanted.”
“I’m glad it’s working out,” Kelly said.
To her surprise, tears appeared in Lauren’s eyes. “Oh, honey, I’m so sorry. If you need to talk, call me. I can’t imagine how embarrassed you must be. What that bastard did to you is awful, just plain awful.”
Which bastard was that? She struggled free from the restricting embrace. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“You don’t know?” Lauren’s face squinched. “I don’t want to be the one to tell you.”
“Don’t worry. I promise not to shoot the messenger.”
“It’s that reporter who recognized you last night,” Lauren said. “He has a blog.”
Kelly’s warm, relaxed attitude turned ice cold. “He said something about me and Ted.”
“Your ex is running for office. He’s in the news a lot.” Lauren winced. “You should read it for yourself.”
“You’re right.” She pivoted and faced Nick. “Take me to the nearest computer with internet.”
She should have anticipated trouble, should have known that she couldn’t sit back and relax. Her past would always catch up with her. She and Nick left Lauren and took the elevator to his tenth-floor office.
Calmly, he said, “Are you sure you want to do this?”
“It’s better to know.”
Lauren might be exaggerating. How bad could the blog be? She and Ted had gotten divorced, which was no big deal. Marriages ended every day. Their lawyers had argued over possessions but it hadn’t been a bloody fight. She’d given up almost everything but walked away with a healthy cash settlement. There hadn’t been a custody battle....
She swallowed hard, fearing that her darkest secret was about to become public knowledge, revealed on a blog. The real reason she’d ended her marriage to Ted was that she’d had a miscarriage. The memory still hurt. Kelly had been in her first trimester. They hadn’t told anyone that she was pregnant.
She’d been at work, felt a cramp and then...it had happened so quickly. Her ob-gyn saw her as an outpatient, didn’t even admit her. Physically, she wasn’t in bad shape at all. Emotionally, she was destroyed.
Having a baby was her most cherished dream. As soon as she’d gotten the positive sign on an early pregnancy test, she’d started making plans, thinking of names, imagining the wonderful ways her life would change. She was going to be a mother.
Ted hadn’t been enthusiastic when she told him. He kept saying that they should wait, there was plenty of time for children, but she knew that as soon as he saw the baby he’d change his mind. He’d love their child. Their marriage would take on new life.
When she’d told him about the miscarriage, he hadn’t been able to hide his relief. He’d told her it just wasn’t meant to be, and they’d be more careful in the future to avoid unwanted pregnancies. Unwanted? Having a baby was everything to her.
Her tears offended him. Her grief made him angry.
She took off two days and went into the mountains where she found a peaceful glen near a rushing stream. In a rosewood box, she buried the baby blanket her grandmother had given her to be used for her firstborn. As she wept beside the grave, she knew her marriage was over. She and Ted were too different.
Her feet felt like lead as she trudged through the tenth floor of Spencer Enterprises toward Nick’s office. She didn’t want to relive the pain of her miscarriage. What kind of horrible spin could a blogger put on her personal tragedy? And how would he know? The miscarriage wasn’t something she talked about, not with anyone. And she was fairly sure that Ted hadn’t mentioned their child.
Nick unlocked the door to his office and held it for her. She shuffled inside and took a seat in a chair beside his desk. Her gaze rested on the double photo of his two daughters, laughing girls with black hair and eyes as blue as their father’s.
It took Nick only a moment to fire up his laptop and locate the blog. After only a glance, he turned the screen toward her.
The photograph showed her with Nick leaving the Spencer Building. The header said Better Luck This Time?
The first paragraph read, “Kelly Evans, the former Mrs. Ted Maxwell, has hooked up with well-known bachelor Nick Spencer, whose uncle’s death remains a mystery. Let’s hope Kelly has better luck this time. Her marriage to Maxwell ended when it was revealed that he had a mistress and had been sleeping with his paralegal.”
She hadn’t known.
Chapter Nine
Tuesday, 7:11 p.m.
For a moment, Kelly thought she was going to pass out. Her spine turned to jelly. Spots danced behind her eyelids. Her throat pinched closed. Remember to keep breathing. She gasped loudly. “Water.”
Nick dashed from the office. As soon as he was gone, she wondered if she should take this unsupervised opportunity to leap from the chair, barricade the door and stay here for, say, the next twelve years or so. Could her life possibly be more humiliating? Her ex had been having an affair. Worse, he had a mistress. Even worse, she hadn’t known. Sure, she’d suspected there might be something going on with the cute little paralegal in his office. What was her name? Cheryl, her name was Cheryl, and she seemed like such a nice person. Kelly groaned. She’d sent flowers—supposedly from Ted, of course—on cute little Cheryl’s birthday.
Nick returned with a coffee mug, half-filled with water. “Here.”
She took a couple of sips and looked up at him. “I wish this was poisonous hemlock.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Maybe a sleeping potion that would knock me out until this blows over. How long will that be? Is there a time limit for feeling like an idiot?”
“There’s nothing wrong with you.” He leaned down to her eye level. “Your ex is the jerk.”
“Why do men cheat?”
“Not all men do.”
“Did you? Is that why your marriage broke
up?” As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them. “Forget I said that. It’s none of my business.”
“You’ve got a mouth on you when you’re angry.”
The last thing she wanted was to insult him, the first man she’d trusted in years. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I’m glad to see that you’re not all sunshine and sweetness.” His stunning blue eyes regarded her with a steady, nonjudgmental calm. “To answer your question, I was faithful to my wedding vows, always faithful. And I tried as hard as I could to make the marriage work. But I couldn’t be the man my ex-wife wanted.”
She couldn’t imagine Nick falling short in any category. Though she didn’t want to pry, she already had her foot in her mouth. Might as well take another bite. “What did she expect from you?”
“Basically, she wanted me to be like my brother.” He stood up straight and checked his wristwatch. “She wanted to be the wife of the CEO, the queen of all things Spencer. And that’s not my style. I hate corporate red tape. Being in the office five days a week gives me hives.”
“You’d rather be an architect—the creative guy who draws up the plans.”
“Not the man in a suit who cuts the ribbon at the launch of a new project,” he said. “Our split was as friendly as a divorce can be, and we both love the kids.”
“She’s a good mom?”
“I’ve got no complaints. Hell, I even like her new husband. He runs an investment firm, and he’s one rung away from the top job.” He glanced at his watch again. “I don’t want to rush you, but we have a logistics problem to work out.”
“Logistics?” The shock of reading the blog was beginning to wear off, but she was still feeling the aftershocks. Her brain wasn’t fully functional.
“You need protection,” he said. “Until we know who’s following you and why, you’re not safe. That means you can’t go back to Serena’s tonight.”
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