Operation: Endurance

by Christi Snow

  * * *

  The next morning, Julie panicked when she discovered Cassie’s wedding binder was missing. She looked frantically around her kitchen before her gaze caught on Chris’s front door. Wait, Chris had been here last night. Her head cold had been so bad when she’d gotten home, she’d completely forgotten. That entire scene with him seemed like it had occurred through a fog.

  Exhaustion and weakness pulled at her. Closing her eyes, she steeled herself against the argument she knew was coming. No, she didn’t feel any better, but she had too much to do to give into the illness now. She’d give in to the pull of her bed next week, after the wedding was over. In the meantime, she just needed to keep Chris in the dark as much as possible about how truly dreadful she felt.

  She checked the hall mirror to make sure that her concealer was still working and then stepped across their breezeway to knock on his front door.

  Chris opened the door and smiled. “You look better this morning. Are you feeling better?”

  “I am. Thanks. I told you, I just needed more medicine and for once, I slept well so that helped too.” She glanced around him, into his house, looking for her binder and today’s lists. “Um, I think you may have something of mine.”

  He smirked at her. “Are you missing your binders?”

  “Yes. Please may I have them back now?”

  “Sure, let me grab them. Come on in.” He went and picked up her stack of binders from the coffee table, but when he handed them to her, she frowned.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “Something’s missing.”

  His mouth dropped open. “You honestly can tell that just from holding those?”

  She nodded absentmindedly as she peered down at the books in her arms. “Why is there paper missing out of Cassie’s wedding binder?” She shot him an accusing glare.

  “Because you’re going to let me help you with some of the stuff you still have to do.”

  “You went through my binder?” she asked through clenched teeth. “What gives you the right to go through my things? These are mine. Mine alone. No one touches them. Do you understand that? There’s an organization to it and you are not allowed to mess with that.” She deepened her glare, but he didn’t seem to care. “Go. Get. The. Missing. Pages. Now.”

  She was so furious with him that she could barely stand to look at him. Unfortunately, her point was lost as another coughing fit overtook her. Damn.

  When she finished coughing, she looked at him expectantly, but instead of going to get the rest of her belongings, he just smiled at her. “You’re sick.” The condescension in his voice grated on her nerves, which were already strung way too tight. “So I’m going to keep those other pages and help you. We’re not debating this. I already talked to Cassie and she agrees with me.”

  “Honestly? You went running to your sister about this? What are you? Five?” She continued to glare at him, as she clutched her books tighter to her chest, like he might snatch them out of her hands.

  He scowled right back at her. “You can try to bully me all you want, but you aren’t going to win so save your strength for getting better.” He began to nudge her out the door. “Now go to work. I have your number if I have any questions.”

  As the door clicked shut behind her, Julie stood there with her mouth hanging open. What the hell just happened here, and when had she lost control of the situation? This was not acceptable. She stormed home and yanked her front door open, seething the whole time. How dare he try to take control of her life from her?

  * * *

  Chris met Cassie for a late dinner in a trendy Italian restaurant after running a few of the wedding errands on Julie’s list. A new restaurant in town, it was crowded and the bar in the center of it all was hopping with a mix of college students and executives relaxing with an after-work drink. The vibe of the place was definitely up. It seemed to match his sister’s beaming smile as he sat down to join her.

  “Hey, you. You look happy.” He smiled at her, loving that her life was this good.

  “What’s not to be happy about? I’m getting married to the man of my dreams in three days.”

  “Speaking of which, I have the candles for the reception in my truck. Julie is a powerhouse of organization. Do you know that when she ordered the candles, she also ordered lighters and matches to make sure that little detail isn’t missed? She’s amazing.” He shook his head as he considered how detail-oriented she was.

  “She is, but I’m worried about her. How’s she feeling today?”

  “I haven’t seen her since this morning, but she didn’t seem too bad then.” Although it was hard to tell for sure since she was barely speaking to him. She was still in a tiff about her binder, but he could deal with her bad mood if it meant that she was able to take it a little bit easier and get healthy again. “Maybe she’s finally on the mend. This cold has really nailed her.”

  “I know, and when she already has so much awful stuff going on. I think Julie has earned some better times.”

  “She has.” He watched his twin, curious about the mischievous glint in her eye. “Do you have something in mind?”

  “We were out last weekend and she had too much to drink so she was a little more loose-lipped than normal. I think it might actually do her some good to go out on a date. I think we should try to set her up with someone.”

  “O…kay.” That wasn’t what he expected, but immediately he thought of Carter and his interest in her. “You think she’s ready for that? I don’t know, Cassie. I’m not seeing signs of that.”

  “That’s because you don’t know the whole story. I don’t think anyone does. She really doesn’t let anyone in, but I don’t think Aaron and Julie were as serious as we all thought they were.”

  “Why do you th—” A blaring fire alarm shrieked out over the restaurant keeping Chris from finishing his question. For a moment, their eyes met in alarm, but as Chris surveyed the restaurant, he couldn’t see signs of a fire or other danger. No reason to panic. So he rose, pulling Cassie up with him and they joined the crowd shuffling shoulder to shoulder toward the exits.

  They had been sitting on the backside of the restaurant, so they headed toward the restroom exits. Considering the crowd, it was an orderly evacuation. Sure, there were a few people who were panicked, but those were mainly kids. And on the other side of the coin were the college coeds who seemed to be making a party out of it.

  At the doorway, they slowed to fit through the narrower opening. Chris continued to keep Cassie in front of him, trying not to lose her in the momentum of the crowd. As they slid through the door, a sharp, hot pain took his breath as it slammed into his left side. He immediately gasped and reached down to the wounded area.

  His first assumption was he’d been elbowed—hard—but that was before he felt the moisture. Glancing down at his hand still holding his side, he realized he was bleeding. He glanced back, but couldn’t see any reason for the gash. There were no visible sharp edges on the doorway, but it was hard to really examine the doorframe as people still poured out.

  He examined the faces of the crowd, but no one else seemed to be having a similar issue. What the hell had just happened? As he considered, the ache became sharper and more painful. He looked at it again, but in the darkened night and with the amount of blood on his shirt, he couldn’t tell how bad the cut was. At a minimum, he figured he needed a few stitches.

  Mass confusion ruled the parking lot as the crowd mingled around not knowing for sure where to go. Cassie hadn’t realized yet what had happened to him and she was chatting with the lady who’d been sitting at the table next to them about what could have set off the alarm. He could see the flashing lights of incoming police cars. His side hurt more and more and he needed to find a place to sit soon, or else he was going to be on the ground.

  His truck was parked in front of the restaurant and there were people all around it. He would never be able to get it out of his parking space until things calmed down here. He lo
oked around, but didn’t spot Cassie’s FJ, so he turned to ask her. “Cass, where’d you park?”

  Her eyebrows furrowed as her twin sense kicked in and she realized something was wrong with him. “Why do you feel weird?”

  “Because I think I need a few stitches. Think you can get your jeep out of here to take me to the ER?”

  “Seriously?” Her eyes immediately focused on his bloody hand holding his side. “Oh my God, what happened?”

  “I don’t know. There must have been a nail sticking out of the doorframe, but I’m bleeding like a stuck pig, so how about we go to the hospital to get it taken care of before I pass out here?”

  Even in the dark parking lot, he could see her face blanch as she took him by the arm on the other side to lead him toward her car.

  * * *

  Three hours and seventeen stitches later, Chris found himself chatting once again with Detective Brian Barnes about why someone appeared to be out to get him. Cassie was outside talking to Jake on her cell phone.

  “Honestly, Brian, I just thought I caught my side somehow on the door jamb as we left the building. I never would have guessed someone knifed me. I looked around after it happened, but didn’t see anything odder than what was already going on with the fire evacuation. By the way, what was that? Did they have a kitchen fire?”

  Brian shook his head. “No, and that’s what has me so concerned. There was absolutely no reason for that alarm to go off and you were the only one to get hurt. The medical personnel assure me that what you have on your side is a knife wound, not a tear, so someone set out on purpose to hurt you. I might think that it was random except someone shot at you on your doorstep the other night, too.”

  “Shh, don’t say that so loud. With the wedding this weekend, I don’t want anyone to know about it.” Luckily Cassie hadn’t heard any of this conversation and still thought he’d somehow hurt himself exiting the building.

  “What is it with you and your group of friends? Honestly, you seem like you’re really nice, but for some reason, other people keep trying to kill you all.”

  Chris gaped at Brian. Was that what this was? Seriously? Someone was trying to kill him or were they just giving him a warning of some sort? The note had said to stay away from her. Who were they referring to? He honestly had no idea.

  He’d just come back from Julie’s when he’d been shot at, but he’d only been over there for five minutes. It had to be something else.

  Tonight he’d been with Cassie. She’d been the focus of a stalker before because of her fame from the video game she consulted on, but if she was the focus then wouldn’t they go after Jake? As her twin, no one should see him as a threat.

  Feeling more than a little stunned, Chris regarded Brian. “I honestly have no idea. As far as I know, I haven’t pissed anyone off lately. Even Colton likes me right now.”

  Brian gave a hollow chuckle. He’d spent enough time with them all to know about Chris and Colton’s off and on contention. “Well, I don’t know. We don’t have much to go on. I’m still waiting on the ballistic results from the bullet we pulled out of your wall, but the odds of that leading us to a suspect are slim. Someone seems to have you in their sites. Stay vigilant, let me know if you see anything suspicious, and I know you don’t want to hear this, but you really should let your group of friends know what’s going on. This could affect their safety too.”

  “I’ll consider it. Thanks, Brian.” Three more days until the wedding. He didn’t want to freak anyone out that there might be danger lurking around them again. Especially since he didn’t know how serious this was. Didn’t Jake and Cassie deserve a little bit of worry free happiness here?

  Chapter 15Things were tense for Chris the rest of the week. He kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, but nothing else happened. Then there was Julie. She was not happy with him. The girl really didn’t like for someone to mess with her process, but between the two of them, they’d gotten everything done. He was pretty sure he hadn’t even messed any of it up. She appeared to be feeling a little bit better, although her hacking cough persisted, so he could handle a little anger on her part.

  Tonight was the night before the wedding. The wedding was planned to be small and intimate and everyone was comfortable with their part in it. As a result, they weren’t having a rehearsal or traditional dinner. Julie wanted the final details about the venue to be a surprise for Cassie and Jake when the wedding began tomorrow.

  Instead, for tonight, everyone was headed out to their respective bachelor and bachelorette parties. The plan was that the two groups would converge later because both Jake and Colton were whipped and didn’t know how to go a night without seeing their future brides. It was enough to make a single guy sick. At least that would be the case if he wasn’t planning to use the time tonight to make up with Julie. He really didn’t like this wall that had come between them this week. He didn’t like having her mad at him. They had too much history for things to be bad between them.

  They just happened to both exit their houses at the same time. When Chris caught sight of her, his breath hitched. She was stunning. She wore a short, sleeveless dress in black, with white ribbons crisscrossing across her perfect chest. The top portion was molded perfectly to her torso and the skirt flared out around her thighs. Her legs were bare and looked miles long in that outfit. The red high heels were the answer to every man’s fantasy, especially his. She looked ready for a night out to party with the girls. A surge of jealousy pounded through him and he wished he was going with them and not the guys. He’d love to spend the night twirling her on the dance floor.

  He examined her face, but it was hard to see how sick she really felt, because she had her face made up to go out. “You look beautiful. How are you feeling tonight? I’d never guess by looking at you that you’ve been sick all week.”

  “Thanks, Chris. I’m feeling better.” Her cold made her voice husky. An erotic shiver slid down Chris’s spine.

  “That’s good. Can I give you a ride over to Cassie’s?” Everyone planned to meet at Cassie and Jake’s house for a lift-off toast for the evening before going out.

  “Do you mind? We have a limo scheduled for later so I have a ride home and then I wouldn’t have to worry about getting my car in the morning.”

  Relief swamped him. He hated that she’d been unhappy with him this week. At least, it didn’t appear that it was going to cause any long-lasting damage to their friendship.

  “No problem.” He settled his arm around her, just lightly touching her lower back to walk her out to the truck. She gave him a soft smile when he opened her door for her, but it was spoiled with a gut-breaking cough.

  As he settled into the driver’s side of the truck, he gave her a concerned look. “That doesn’t sound like it’s getting any better. In fact, that’s sounding significantly worse.”

  She just shook her head at him. “A cough after a cold always sounds worse than it really is.”

  He studied her for a moment before he shook his head and started the truck. She was so stubborn, but he wasn’t going to start out this night by fighting with her about how bad her cough truly was.

  Everyone was in high spirits when they arrived at Jake and Cassie’s house. Cassie looked radiant as she immediately enveloped them in a hug and pulled them into the house. Jake handed them glasses of champagne and then tugged Cassie back into his side, wrapping his arm protectively around her. The love shared in the look between them sent a pulling sensation through Chris’s gut. He loved seeing them so happy together, but it left him with a hollow feeling and no idea how to fix it.

  He looked away from them, needing something to distract him and instead found himself lost in Julie’s hazel eyes. She gave him a slight smile and squeezed his hand. He hadn’t even realized she’d grabbed it. She knew this was hard for him.

  He squeezed her hand back and mouthed thanks. No matter what their history, within this small group of friends, the two of them were a team.

  Chris too
k a gulp of champagne. This was a celebration for his sister and best friend. There was no way in hell he’d let them see that he was anything but happy and excited for them.

  And dammit, yes, he had some rotten luck this year, but Julie was single now. Why couldn’t he pursue her again? What they had, hadn’t lasted that long, but it had been amazing. Something that good was worth fighting for, she was worth fighting for. He examined her and felt that familiar buzz he always felt when he was around her. She was still grieving, but that wouldn’t last forever. He wasn’t going to sit back and let another man step in like had happened before. He’d give her the time she needed, but he planned to make her his again, as soon as she gave him a signal that she was ready to move on after Aaron’s death.

  Jake interrupted the group by raising his glass. “Before we head out on our last adventure as single people, Cassie and I wanted to thank you all. You four are our best friends. Some of us are family by blood, but all of us are family by choice. We love you guys and we’re so happy and thankful you’re here to share our happiness with us, tonight and tomorrow. So now we want to propose a toast to you, our friends.”

  They all lifted their glasses. Jake first clinked with Cassie’s and then with everyone else’s. This was it. After so many years as his best friend, Jake was finally going to be a member of his family. It was a bit surreal, but in such a good way.

  When everyone finished their drinks, Jake pulled Cassie back into his arms. Everyone had been moving like they were headed toward the two limos that had been hired for the evening, but Jake obviously wasn’t ready to let Cassie go yet.

  “So where are you girls headed tonight?” Jake nuzzled along the back of Cassie’s neck while he waited for her answer.

  Penelope, seeing that Cassie was distracted, answered, “Oh, we have the same kind of game plan that you all do.”

  Jake’s head snapped up. “What do you mean?”

  A frown marred Colton’s forehead.