The curse of Walter Farrell still hung over the entire family, it seemed. “Well, I’ll let you go. I just wanted to say thanks for everything you did for me tonight.”
A few seconds passed without Robert saying anything. “I’m sorry, it’s late. What did I do for you?”
Jean sat up straighter. “The money. Colin—he said that you and Nathan gave the okay?”
“I didn’t give the okay for anything. Did you need more money? I can probably get something over in the morning, but—”
“No. I, um, don’t worry about it. I think there was just a misunderstanding about something. Go to bed. I’m going to try to get back to the city soon and I want us to try lunch again. A real lunch this time, not that crap you pulled earlier.”
“Okay. A real lunch. I’ll make it happen. Promise.”
Jean smiled as she said her good-byes and hung up. She stared at the white office wall for a few moments in silence. If Colin didn’t get the money from her brothers, where the hell did it come from?
It took a day to track down Colin. By the time Jean finally found him, she realized she should’ve started there in the first place. Ron’s Bar.
He sat at the same barstool where he’d been that first night. Where she’d left the safety of her friends to go talk to him.
Jean took a steadying breath as she passed the day drinkers and took the barstool next to Colin. “Hey there, stranger.”
He didn’t look up at her, but instead kept his gaze firmly on the drink in front of him. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“It’s my town,” she reminded him. “You’re the one who doesn’t belong.”
He let out a bitter laugh. “So you’re here to kick me out?”
“No. I’m here to get some answers from you. For once, I want you to tell me the truth.”
Colin turned to face her and she realized his eyes weren’t the droopy bloodshot of someone who’d been drinking all day. They were awake and aware. “Ask me anything. I’ll never lie to you again.”
Jean took a nervous swallow and wished she had her own drink in front of her. “The money from last night. I called Robert to thank him and he had no idea what I was talking about.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to me!” A few heads turned, and she forced herself to lower her voice. “Tell me you didn’t take it out of your own funds.”
“I would, but that would make the whole honesty thing hard.”
“Damn it, Colin. Why would you do that?”
“Because I needed some sort of leverage to save you. The funds that the Farrells have aren’t always liquid. Especially not in the middle of the night. And you can’t argue with results.”
“I’ll pay you back,” she promised. “As soon as I can, every penny is going back to you, okay?”
Colin shook his head. “Don’t worry about it.”
“No, I’m going to—”
“I said don’t worry about it! Damn it, Jean, stop trying to save me. You’re such a goddamn bleeding heart. You can’t save everyone you meet, okay? Maybe it’s just time to let me know I’m a lost cause.”
Jean stood, halfway to walking out the door, but never actually moved away from the stool before she sat down again. “What makes you think I’m doing this for you?”
He frowned. “What?”
“Maybe it just makes me happy to be fair and nice to the man I love. Did you ever think of that?”
He focused all his attention on her. “What did you just say?”
She squared her shoulders, no longer afraid to admit what her mind had barely let her consider these past few days. “I said I love you. It’s only fair after the casual love bomb you dropped yesterday right before you bailed on me—which is totally not fair, by the way.”
He scooted his stool closer to hers. “Wait, say it one more time.”
The corner of her mouth tilted up. “I said I. Love. You.” Each of the words got quieter as she leaned in closer.
Colin tentatively set his hands on her knees, as though he couldn’t believe he was really touching her. “So where do we go from here?”
The dark bar was filled with a burst of light as someone new walked in. Jean glanced over to see Mark looking around the bar. “Great. He’s probably here to yell at me for bringing trouble to his town last night.” Sure enough, Mark’s eyes fixed on her as he started to intently cross the bar.
Colin moved his hands farther up her thighs. “Well, I liked the technique we used to get rid of him last time.”
Jean raised an eyebrow. “The fake kiss.”
Colin inched closer until his lips almost touched hers. “You and I know there was nothing fake about it.”
“You’ll have to refresh my memory then,” said Jean before she closed the distance between them. She never opened her eyes to see Mark’s reaction. She had better things to focus on.
Sometime In The Near Future
“Jean!” called Colin from the kitchen. “We’re going to be late!”
“I know. I know,” she muttered as she did a quick scan for everything she needed. Phone, lipstick, the gift, and the diaper bag. “Can you grab Maeve so we can—” She broke off as she turned the corner from Colin’s their bed and saw him already holding their daughter in his arms. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Three steps ahead. It would be much more endearing if he weren’t such a show-off.
Maeve smiled when she saw her and reached her arms out.
Colin bounced her in his arms as he crossed over to Jean. “I think she wants her mommy.” He handed her over.
Jean knew she needed to be getting ready, but it was impossible to ignore those big brown eyes, so much like Colin’s. “Awww, come here baby.” She took Maeve from Colin’s arms and nestled her in the curve of her waist. She leaned in, inhaling the scent of her daughter mixed with the kiddie shampoo. “Maybe we can say we’re sick...”
“Bridesmaids can’t call in sick. Besides, Maeve will be a good girl. I’ll make sure if it. Just imagine how happy she’s going to be to see you up there.”
Jean wanted to believe that the one-year-old would behave herself while sitting through an hour-long ceremony, but she had more than a few doubts.
Colin read her face like a book. “Don’t worry,” he insisted. “Worst case, I’ll sit in the back and take her out if she gets too fussy. You need to be there for your brother.”
Jean closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Okay,” she said carefully. “I trust you.” She opened her eyes again to find Colin, dressed in an immaculate black suit, standing close and smiling down at her as if there was no hurry. As if they could just stay in and relax all day. Damn, she loved that look.
“I love you,” he said, as though reading her mind.
Jean leaned in close and pressed a kiss to the top of Maeve’s head as she wrapped an arm around Colin’s back. “I love you too.” After allowing herself a minute to enjoy the comfort of her family, she stepped back. “Now let’s go make an honest man out of my brother.”
RECKLESS
Coming in May 2016
Robert Farrell has never met a problem he couldn't solve and, considering his family history, he's faced plenty of problems. But when someone starts interfering with business deals and threatening everyone in his life, he knows he needs to get things under control. Except one of the variables he needs to control is the sexy, mysterious tour guide he met in Hawaii who has drawn the focus of his new stalker. Except the mystery woman can barely stand to be around him, let alone accept his protection.
Malia Martin refuses to be controlled by anyone, especially a Farrell. After his family destroyed her childhood, all she wants is distance from the sexy billionaire. But when one not so innocent encounter with Robert on the beach catches the attention of his stalker, Robert makes protecting her his number one priority.
Now the independent woman and the alpha billionaire have to go head to head before their mutual enemy closes in.
To hear when Reckless is released
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See an excerpt on the next page.
Reckless
(A sneak peek at book 2 in the Fractured Farrells Series)
Copyright 2016 Mallory Crowe
Hatred was a strong word, but as Malia looked up at the towering resort casting shade over the relaxing ocean, hatred was exactly what welled up inside her. Even on an island thousands of miles from where she'd grown up, she couldn't escape the shadow of her past.
She knelt into the water, the ocean waves lapping up her legs and getting the bottom of her cutoff jean shorts damp as she filled the small vial with the soft sand beneath her feet. As she brought the vial out of the water, she screwed on the cap and shook off any excess water droplets before placing the vial in her pocket. Once she was back on shore, she'd put it in her bag, but Malia had dropped one too many valuables into the damaging salt water to trust herself to bring a purse, cell phone or keys this far from the safety of the beach.
Malia made her way back to the shore, staring intently into the clear water below. It was mostly sandy, but bits of rock and coral came loose often enough in this area of the beach to be dangerous to the unsuspecting foot. Nothing worse than having to walk home three miles with an open sore on her foot. She knew that from experience.
Once she made it to the sandy beach, she set the sample in her bag and picked up her sandals. The water was acting like a glue on her feet and there would be no use trying to get any sand off until her feet had a chance to dry.
As she pulled the strap of her bag over her shoulder, her cell phone, which she'd half assed moved from her pocket to her purse before she'd gone in the water, popped out and fell into the sand. More evidence that she should keep any and all electronics as far away from water as physically possible.
"Need help down there?" asked a deep voice from above.
She jerked at the intrusion and looked up to see the tourist who'd managed to sneak up on her. Usually they traveled in packs and made more noise than she'd imagine possible. Judging from his light skin and the fact that he had nothing with him but the glass beer bottle he was drinking out of, he was a tourist who'd wandered over from the nearby resorts along Waikiki.
"I got it, thanks." She scooped up the phone and got herself situated before she continued onto the path that led from the resorts all the way to Diamond Head Crater. But instead of moving on, the tourist was still standing there, staring at her. "Aren't you a bit far from the resorts?"
He took a deep drink of his beer. "That was kind of the point of the walk."
Well if he wanted to avoid people, Oahu was probably the worst island of Hawaii for him. Especially the side with Honolulu. "So what are you doing out here?" She winced once the words were out. She really should've just left, but it wasn't the first time her curiosity got the best of her.
And she was curious about the guy. It wasn't just some random person walking along the beach drinking. It was some random beautiful person. He wore slacks and a lightweight robin's egg blue button up shirt. The slacks were much too warm for the spring air, but his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and the shirt was unbuttoned down to mid chest. That combined with his dark hair and clear blue eyes all added up to one damn pretty package.
"I came out to appreciate the view," he said, reminding Malia that she'd asked him a question.
She stood up straighter and stared him down. "I'm not interested in hanging out with any tourists."
The corner of his mouth hooked up as he cocked his head studying her. "I wasn't hitting on you." He motioned behind her with his beer. "I came to see that view."
Malia turned around to see the lowering sun. She wouldn't call it sunset yet, but once it started to go down, it went down fast. Wouldn't be long before the entire island was in shadow.
"Oh... Sorry," she muttered. People here just didn't snap at others or assume the worst, even of the tourists. It was one of her favorite things about the islands. Everyone was so nice and laid back, something she never got on the mainland. Apparently she could take the girl out of the city but couldn't take the city out of the girl.
"The fact that I found a beautiful woman here is just a perk," said the tourist as he brought the beer to his lips.
She snorted as she reached the concrete path and shook whatever sand she could off her feet. "Well I'm flattered, but I have to be going. Enjoy your sunset."
Just as she turned to walk away, he called out, "Does it really turn green?"
She stopped as she looked over her shoulder. "Excuse me?"
"I've always heard that if you watch the sun carefully here, it flashes green right as it goes down. That true?"
Malia sighed as she looked between the direction she needed to go and the man behind her. Damn it, she was intrigued by someone who appreciated small wonders. "If you want to talk, walk with me."
He smiled, a little indication that his goal had been to be close to her, and approached.
Malia tried to figure out if she was being paranoid. It wasn't like she had men banging down her doors and asking for dates. In fact, she pretty much never got hit on. During the ten different moves her she'd done with her mother between the ages of twelve and seventeen, she'd perfected her resting bitch face.
It took one hell of a guy to get past those walls, and if this one wanted to take a shot, she'd at least think about it. "The green flash is a real thing and it's not just Hawaii. Most places where you can see the sun set over the pacific has it, but it's hard to see."
She took short steps, keeping an eye out for any debris or stones on the walk way and the man walked alongside her. His long legs could probably take him a lot faster if he wanted and, from the steady strides, she was betting he hadn't had a lot of those beers.
"Have you seen it?"
"Yep. I had no idea what it was that first time though. I thought I might be drunk at first. It was so random, I thought I'd imagined it. It wasn't until a year later that I heard some friends mention the flash that I put two and two together." She looked over at him, trying to figure out anything about the stranger. He didn't smell of overpowering cologne, which was a definite plus. His hair was short and his facial hair wasn't what she'd consider a beard, but it had grown out enough to cover his strong cheekbones and jaw line. Not the worst sight to see on her way home. "So, what? Did someone mention the flash at the bar and you decided to come check it out?"
"Nah. I heard about it years ago. I'm normally too busy to get out."
And judging from the beer in his hand tonight, she would guess he was still busy, just past the point of caring. "So you work here a lot? Most mainlanders would love that."
"They like getting a free trip to paradise, they don't like the work. The problem is that I work too much while I'm here."
"So what makes tonight different? What made you finally decide to search out the natural wonders of the island sun tonight?"
"It's been a shitty week. Shitty year I guess."
Do not ask him about his shitty year. Do not ask him about his shitty year. Do not- "What was so shitty about it?"
"My father died last year. That was just the first domino that sent a whole mess of chips falling down. Now I have to make time to do the things I've been putting off."
See... this was why she didn't ask questions. Now the same guy she had wanted to leave her alone a few minutes ago was suddenly a real, live person that she felt bad for. "I'm sorry about that."
"Don't be. The guy was a bastard. But I've been cleaning up his mess and it seems like the more I do, the worse it gets."
Eesh. Note to self: Dude has daddy issues. "Hopefully you get some good relaxation in this week then."
"Doubtful. Still have to work and my sister is flying in tomorrow with her boyfriend. Any time I do have free will probably be with them. So tonight will have to tide me over for a while."
Oh no. He was angling for the whole I'm only in town for a few days and want a fling angle. She'd heard enough st
ories about one night stands with tourists gone wrong to last her a lifetime. It would be better to distance herself now instead of leading him on. "Then I suggest you find some better company than me. As soon as this green flash happens, I'm abandoning you."
"Don't worry. I'm the opposite of clingy. I think the word my last girlfriend used was "commitmaphobe". Which is really a stupid word."
"Stupid?"
"It sounds like some disorder or disease that needs to be cured. I want to have fun with as many different people as possible while I can. That should be celebrated."
Malia had to look away so he wouldn't see her grin. "It could also lead to disorders and diseases though."
"And that is why I travel with an embarrassingly large stash of condoms."
Malia couldn't help it. She snorted with laughter. She knew he was flirting with her and normally she had such a high guard for charming guys like this, but somehow he'd caught her off her game. Didn't matter. She'd already made it clear that after sunset, she was leaving him alone. "I'll file that tidbit into my mental folder called 'Things I Didn't Want To Know', Mr..."
"Right. Names. I forgot you don't know me." He stopped and held out a hand. "I'm Robert."
She eyed his outstretched palm for a second. She really didn't like touching people. Enough so that she'd had to move to an island thousands of miles from the coast to get to the isolation she craved. Even so, shaking hands was one of those things "normal" people did and she braced herself for the discomfort.
"I'm Malia." She met his handshake, but surprisingly didn't feel any skeevey goosebumps. His grip was warm, strong, and every bit as confident as the man in front of her.
And the fact that she wasn't freaked out was more disconcerting than she wanted to admit.
Malia pulled her hand away and pointed to a bench ahead. "We can sit there and watch for the flash. It shouldn't be too much longer now." As she sat, she brushed the sand off her feet which was now dry enough that a good portion of the stuff came off. Not all of it. As hard as she tried, she constantly would find more bits of the stuff stuck to her skin when she crawled into bed.
Ruthless (Fractured Farrells: A Damaged Billionaire Series Book 1) Page 17