by Lori Foster
“Marriage doesn’t appeal to you?”
She didn’t even flinch when asking that. In almost every circumstance, marriage was a touchy subject, one that both people tiptoed around until they knew they were both on the same page. Not Ashley. She blurted it out without a single hesitation.
Grinning, he glanced at her. “I don’t know. Why? Are you planning to propose?”
She countered, saying, “Are you avoiding the topic?”
She probably didn’t want a serious discussion, but what the hell? It wouldn’t hurt for her to know more about him. If she wouldn’t shy away from the M word, neither would he. “I want what my parents had—love, commitment, loyalty—not an arrangement and a scheduled family.”
She went quiet, so he asked, “What about you?”
“I’ve never even thought about marriage.” She traced a finger along the console’s bur walnut veneer. “Dad married my mom because she got pregnant with me. It was a stupid thing to do, because they detested each other as much as they did me. More than once over the years, he said he didn’t.
!
think I was his, and she wouldn’t deny it. She’d just laugh in his face.”
Every time he thought he’d heard the worst, she shocked him with another revelation. He’d never been able to reconcile such insensitivity toward a child. “Do you think your mother just wanted to hurt him?”
She shrugged. “Who knows? Mom must have slept around a lot before they married, because Dad brought it up every time they fought, and they fought a lot. But if I’m not his, it’s no skin off my nose. Most times I wish I weren’t hers either.”
Her choice of words left him edgy. “You mean they argued?”
She puffed out a laugh. “Sure, they argued every day, about everything under the sun. Lots of times they argued about what I wasn’t allowed to do—which was just about everything. But they also duked it out on a regular basis. Dad would slap Mom. She’d throw something at him, or pull his hair. And the battle would begin. I learned to get out of the range of fire.” She made a face. “Luckily neither of them had Jude’s skills as a fighter, or they’d have killed one another.”
She crossed her arms and turned in the seat to face him. “You know, I guess I have thought about marriage a little. At least, I’ve thought of the reasons why I wouldn’t marry.”
“Enlighten me.”
“Well, I’d never use a baby as an excuse. I don’t plan on getting prego, but if I did, I’d be independent and able to take care of the kid on my own—without a man’s interference. I’d never make a baby pay for my mistakes.”
Because she’d been made to pay? Damn her parents. Fury roiled inside him, and he said, “No child should have to live with that.”
“Yeah, I know. That’s why I bailed.”
She was too matter-of-fact when he knew it still had to pain her. How could it not? Had she never been able to reconcile with her parents? Had they not come after her to make amends, to check on her and make sure she was okay?
Apparently not, given her attitude. Ten years, then. With new insight, he understood what her life must have been like.
Pressing a hand to her belly, she said, “Oh, God. We’re here.”
Quinton took in the sight of the impressive stone fence surrounding a generous proportion of acreage and a sizable mansion. “It’s beautiful.”
“Yeah, just wait till you see the inside. Or…” She frowned at him. “Is your house as big as his?”
Her lack of tact didn’t insult him because he knew she hadn’t asked out of prurient interest. Ashley wasn’t a gold digger. In fact, she looked almost accusatory as she waited for him to answer.
On a groan, she said, “It is, isn’t it?”
The idea obviously didn’t please her. “How about you tell me, after I’ve taken you there tonight?”
The reminder of the evening to come had her straightening in her seat again. “Okay, I will.” She looked out the windshield. “Pull up to the intercom and push the button to let them know we’re here.”
Quinton did as directed, and a second later the gate opened. A voice he recognized as Denny’s said, “Nice car. Come on in, then. I’ll walk out front to show you where to park.”
Quinton accelerated through the tall gates, which immediately clanked shut once the car was clear. All along the tree-shaded drive, monitors picked up activity. Jude Jamison’s home had good security. He liked that.
Wide porches wrapped around a two-story brick and stone structure with a six-car garage. A sweeping cobblestone walkway led to double columns at the entrance. Fall colors bloomed in the landscaping around the house, grounds, and a large fountain.
Instead of Denny stepping out, as he’d said he would, Jude Jamison himself strode down the porch steps. As a fan of the SBC, Quinton was anxious to meet Jude. But as a man soon to be intimately involved with Ashley, he wanted to talk to Jude about threats, security, and any plans that might be in the works.
Leaving the car running, Quinton opened his door and stepped out. He couldn’t help grinning as he extended his hand. “Jude Jamison. This is a pleasure.”
Jude smiled, too, and accepted the handshake. “I can say the same. Never in a million years did I think to see Ashley with a date. How’d you do it?”
Ashley yelled out the window, “Just look at him, Jude. It should be obvious.”
Jude laughed. “It’s Quinton Murphy, right?”
“I take it Denny filled you in.”
“He’s a regular chatterbox.” Jude nodded at the Bentley. “Mind if I take a look? I’m a bit of a car nut myself.”
“Feel free.”
Jude opened the door and slid behind the wheel. “I almost bought one of these, but since meeting May, cars haven’t been the first thing on my mind.” He flexed his hands on the wheel, then turned to Ashley. “May is anxious to see you. Why don’t you go on in?”
“Oh, I get it.” Lip curled, she opened the door and flounced out. “The boys wanna talk shop. By all means. I don’t want to get in the way.”
Jude rolled his eyes. As Ashley started past Quinton, he caught her arm, pulled her around, and gave her a sound kiss on her mulish mouth. A breeze caught her hair, and he tucked it back, then smoothed his hand over her cheek to her shoulder. “See you in a bit.”
New color bloomed in her face. Her lashes fluttered and one side of her mouth tipped up. “Yeah. Sure. In a bit.” She sighed, turned, and strode away in that long-legged, impatient way of hers.
Satisfied but also anxious, Quinton watched her go up the front steps and through the entry doors. He’d never tire of looking at her, just as he’d never tire of her mood swings.
“I see your interest in cars is about to wane, too.”
Pulled from his introspection, Quinton grinned at Jude. “Convince Ashley of that if you can.”
“She scares me, so you’re on your own.”
“Yeah, right.” Quinton studied Jude through the open driver’s door window. He was big and lean and muscled all over. “How’s that promotion go? Jude Jamison is the most fearless man in the SBC?”
Jude dismissed that claim with a shrug. “Everyone has to have a slant.”
“In your case, I believe it.” He braced his feet apart and crossed his arms over his chest. “I was there in Colorado for your title fight with Sanchez. Biggest night the SBC ever saw. Those tickets were sold out months in advance.”
Grinning, Jude propped one arm through the open window. “That was a hell of a night, wasn’t it?”
“I got my money’s worth. No one had ever beaten Sanchez, but you dominated the fight from jump. Sanchez spent all his time backing up, trying to avoid you.”
“I like to push the fight.”
“That’s obvious. You always have the other fighter on the rebound. Ducking you did Sanchez no good. You knocked him out in the third round. Everyone was screaming so loud, my ears rang for days afterward.”
Again, Jude shrugged. “Anyone who stays in it long en
ough is bound to lose.”
“You’ve never been knocked out.”
“I’ve been lucky. Hell, that night with Sanchez, he damn near had me a few times. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t follow through on his submissions. He relied on a stand-up fight.”
“And he ran out of gas.”
“While my tank was still full.” Jude grinned in pleasure. “Lack of preparation has brought down more than a few fighters.”
“Speaking of lack of preparation…” Quinton walked around to the passenger side and got in. “Do you have a few minutes?”
“A couple of hours, actually. The ladies will be a while getting ready.”
“Perfect.” He patted the car’s console. “Why don’t you drive her to wherever you want her parked, and we can talk.”
“I take it this has to do with Elton Pascal?”
“Denny told me some of it, and Ashley filled me in on the rest. I don’t want to put a damper on your big day—”
“Anything that threatens May or Ashley takes precedence.”
“I assumed as much.” Quinton accepted that any man with honor would want all the facts. “I have some news to contribute.”
Jude put the Bentley in gear and drove around to the back of the garage, toward a large tent erected specifically for parking. “Between my cars, Denny’s, and May’s, the garage is full.”
“But you still want additional cars out of sight,” Quinton guessed, seeing other vehicles had already taken residence inside the tent.
“So far, the press hasn’t caught on to anything unusual. I snuck my family in during the middle of the night. May’s family comes and goes so that’s not news to anyone. I don’t want my wedding to become front-page fodder for more speculation.”
“I imagine the press can be a real pain in the ass for someone with your public profile.”
“And my history.” He squeezed the steering wheel. “Elton’s done his best to make my life hell with his fucking accusations. I’ll be so glad to put this business behind me.” He visibly relaxed his shoulders. “But in the meantime, I promised Ed Burton an exclusive on the wedding. He’s a reporter and photographer for the local papers, but he’s also become a friend. He’ll take our wedding photos.”
Jude pulled into an empty space and turned the car off. When he handed the keys to Quinton, his face showed the strain he was under. “Every second I have to guard against paparazzi and intruders and now Elton. I’ll be leaving with May tonight, as soon as I can get her away from the reception.”
“That’ll be here also?”
“Yeah. With Elton still lurking around, I wasn’t about to risk taking May anywhere else. I want her out of the country where I know she’ll be safe.”
Quinton nodded his complete understanding. “Denny told you that Ashley felt like someone had been watching her?”
“He told me.”
“Last night, while I was at work with her, someone slashed two of my tires.”
Jude’s expression hardened. “You think someone saw the two of you together?”
“I think it’s probable enough that I hired two bodyguards to keep an eye on Ashley. She doesn’t know, and I’d just as soon keep it that way. She’s…” Unwilling to insult her, Quinton searched for the right word.
“Prickly to the point of drawing blood? I know. But she’s also family to me now, so you don’t have to watch what you say around me. May loves her, so I love her.” He shrugged. “It’s as simple as that.”
“Glad to hear it.” If Ashley’s own family wouldn’t step up to the plate, at least she had solid support from the next best thing.
“The bodyguards are reliable?”
“I’ve used them before. They’re the best.”
“I take it with a quarter-million-dollar Bentley, you can handle it on your own?”
“I can and I will.” Even with a man about to get married, Quinton felt territorial. “I won’t let anything happen to her.”
“Good.” Jude opened his door. As he was stepping out, he said, “Then I guess I better call off my guys before they all run into each other and start a riot.”
It took Quinton a second before he burst out laughing. He too left the car, grinning at Jude over the roof as he pocketed the keys. “How long have they been watching over her?”
“The night of our rehearsal dinner, we learned that Elton had slipped under the cops’ radar. Denny put men on her then and there. Before she’d even gotten home, they were tailing her.”
“I’m relieved to hear it.”
Jude looked out over the land surrounding his home, came to some inner decision, and gave Quinton an incomprehensible nod. “Wait until you see May and Ash together. They have a special bond that goes deeper than even they realize.”
Whatever Jude tried to tell him, Quinton didn’t get it. “Meaning?”
Jude just shook his head. “I love May, so I’m not about to let anything hurt her. That means protecting Ashley, too.”
That rubbed Quinton the wrong way, and he slowly straightened. “You can relax on that score, because from now on, I’ll be taking care of her.”
Of course, Jude didn’t back down an inch. “Denny won’t like it.”
“He’ll get over it.”
“Ash might not like it, either,” he warned.
“I’m working on her. She’ll come around.”
With a laugh, Jude started them on the path to the back of the house. “So. Have you had any training?” he asked. “You have the cockiness of a fighter.”
“Actually, I have. Mostly for exercise and just because I enjoy it. I’m nowhere near the league of the SBC guys, but I can hold my own.”
Jude clapped him on the back. “Good. With a woman like Ashley, you’re going to need every advantage you can get.”
———
Stiff in the pink gown that showed too much of what she didn’t really have to show and made her feel like confection, Ashley paced around the spacious bedroom. The wall fountains didn’t catch her interest any more than the incredible artwork on every wall.
Except for the hairdresser who still toyed with May’s hair, everyone had left. Ashley was now coifed, painted, buffed, and polished. In some ways she felt uniquely feminine.
In others she felt like an utter fraud.
What would Quinton think when he saw her?
And damn it, since when did she care so much what anyone else thought?
Across the room, her cell phone rang inside her purse. Was Quinton calling her? Like an anxious schoolgirl, she dashed across the thick carpeting and dug out her phone. Breathless, stupidly excited, she smiled and said, “Hey.”
“You think you’re a real tough girl, don’t you?”
Icy cold dread washed over her, then sank into her belly like lead. She swallowed, but couldn’t say a single word.
“You’re still just a girl, and all girls need a man around to keep them in line. I’ll show you. When I have you, you’ll be punished for what you did.”
Through the doorway to the enormous bathroom, Ashley could just see May. She wore a huge smile, carefree and glowing with happiness. Keeping May in her sights gave Ashley courage; this was May’s big day, and she wouldn’t let some scum-ball coward mess it up.
In a whisper, she asked, “Where are you hiding, Elton? What snake hole did you crawl into? You might as well give yourself up, you know. Eventually, the police will find you. They’ll—”
“You can run, little girl, but you can’t hide. Not from me. Hire a hundred men to protect you if it makes you feel better, but it won’t be enough. I’ll still get to you. Count on it.”
“Why don’t you just die and save everyone a lot of trouble?” With that parting shot, Ashley disconnected the phone and dropped it on the bed.
She stared at it, then snatched it back and clicked onto her received calls file. Private name, private number. That figured. Elton was insane, but not stupid enough to leave a number. She turned off the phone so there wouldn’t be a rep
eat call, and stuffed it back into her purse.
“All right, out with it.”
Guilty, Ashley jumped away from the bed. “What?”
The soon-to-be May Jamison shook out the skirts of her extraordinary gown, strode across the room with a concerned frown, and took Ashley’s hands. “I’ve known you too long, Ash. Something’s wrong. Spill it.”
Ashley glanced behind her to the hair designer. Smiling, the woman excused herself and slipped quietly out the door.
Joy blossomed in May’s eyes and flushed her cheeks. She looked stunning. Wildly in love. And now worried.
If anyone deserved a “happy ever after,” May did. She was head over heels in love with her famous fiancé.
Despite Elton’s threats, Ashley felt confident that Jude would never let anything happen to May. Knowing that brought Ashley a measure of peace.
Later, she’d tell Jude and Denny about the call. But no way in hell would she worry May on the day of her wedding.
“It’s nothing.”
“Uh-huh. That’s why you won’t look at me. That’s why you’re clenching your jaw and blinking and doing all those things I know you do when you’re really, really anxious about something.”
Oh, God. Why did May have to be so astute? She quickly racked her brain for a legitimate excuse and came up with the perfect scapegoat.
Crossing her arms and stiffening her shoulders, she said, “It’s Quinton.”
May did her own share of blinking. “Quinton Murphy? That guy you have the hots for?”
“Do not.” At least, not that she’d admit to May. “I like him a little, that’s all.”
“That guy you kissed,” May teased, drawing the last word out in a singsong taunt.
“He kissed me,” Ashley defended. Several times, in fact.
“You let him. And liked it. You said it damn near melted your bones.”
Thrilled to have May on a different track, Ashley shook her head. “I should never confide in you. You enjoy it too much.”
“You should always confide in me. Just like I confide in you.” May made a big production of going to the door, closing, and locking it. Then, careful not to wrinkle her gown, she perched at the end of the bed. “I know I haven’t had much time to talk the last few days, but…”