by A M Jenner
“Hi, Marilee! Why’ya at the back door? Come on in. What’cha need?” Derrek was nothing if not hospitable. Marilee stepped in and Derrek closed the door behind her.
“Is your Dad here?” Marilee asked.
“Yep. He’s in the shower. Wanna wait?” His smile was a mile wide.
Marilee nodded and Derrek led her through the kitchen and into the living room. She seated herself on the couch, grateful the drapes were drawn against the night and prying eyes.
Derrek sprawled on the floor next to a large spread of paper.
“Report for school,” he explained as he motioned to the mess. “I’ve got all my notes and now I’m organizing the whole thing.” He frowned slightly and nudged the nearest sheet. “All there is to know about the cheetah and then some.”
He suddenly looked up, a grin erupting on his face. “Like why they got thrown out of the football game…for ‘cheetin’.” He giggled as he returned at least some of his attention to the school project.
She smiled at his joke and wished the only thing she had to worry about was a school project. Watching Derrek, she wondered what she was going to tell Richard.
After the whole day’s worrying and fretting and getting nowhere in her planning, Marilee realized she had to tell him everything. If she didn’t, she’d crumble and nothing would be left but a little pile of rubble. Tony would win.
She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. She couldn’t let that happen. Her very life depended on winning this.
Marilee watched as Derrek shuffled a piece of paper from one pile to another, and the now-familiar warm feeling invaded her heart for this boy. She loved him. She had for a long time now. If she lost this relationship with Derrek, she’d lose more than she was willing to forfeit. Richard may turn from her because of everything, but hope flared inside that he’d believe her. Accept her. Like her, at least as a friend.
No, Tony couldn’t prevail. Not this time. Not now. Marilee closed her eyes and thought about what she would tell Richard.
Chapter Twenty-two
Richard stepped from the bathroom clad only in a dark blue terrycloth robe. He crossed the kitchen before he realized they had company. Through the open doorway into the living room he saw Marilee, and his heart skipped, his loins tightening at the mere sight of her. Lately, his thoughts had him sweeping her away to some private lair and making her his.
He shook his head to clear it. She’d never given him any indication they were more than friends. Sometimes he caught a look in her eyes, but before he could analyze it, the look would vanish and she would smile her friends-only smile. It was a good thing she couldn’t read minds!
She appeared deep in conversation with Derrek. If his son had invited her over on some pretext of needing help with his cheetah project just to throw the adults together, he’d skin him alive.
The boy invented excuses to be with her and involved Richard as much as possible. Richard knew Derrek wanted him to marry Marilee. Richard didn’t want to rush his fences, but he’d need some indication from Marilee….
Richard dropped that thought and hurried into the bedroom to get dressed. He drew on the first things he found; comfortable jeans and a green sweater hastily dragged over his head and drawn into place.
Pulling on grey woolen socks to keep his feet warm, Richard emerged from the bedroom. He managed a neutral expression as he entered the front room. With Marilee here, the room seemed smaller; cozier; more like a complete home, though her petite frame didn’t really take up much space.
Marilee looked up, saw him and rose from the couch.
“Hi…” her greeting trailed off. Richard’s gaze swept Marilee, noting the rumpled clothing smudged with dried mud and grass stains at the knees. Marilee usually dressed neatly. Twigs lodged in her unkempt hair. What adventure had she been up to?
He grinned at her. “You look like you could use a cup of cocoa. Come into the kitchen. I’ll make you one.”
“Thanks.”
Derrek started to rise, but Richard gave him a serious look and nodded at his school papers. He sank back to the floor, a frown on his normally happy face.
Marilee seated herself at the table while Richard busied himself among the cupboards. “Sorry it’s only an instant mix. Derrek and I used the last of the real stuff yesterday, and I haven’t been to the store yet.”
“That’s all right,” she replied, “I can’t make the real stuff anyway, so I’m used to the instant kind.” She smiled back at him.
Richard brought two large mugs to the table, adding napkins and spoons for each. He retrieved the teapot from the stove, feeling the side to see if the water was still hot from an earlier use. It was. Bringing the packages and teapot with him, he poured the water. Handing her a packet, he sat down with his. Both were silent as they opened the cocoa pouches, emptied the rich brown powder into the water and stirred the contents.
Richard removed his spoon from the cup, setting it on the napkin. He dropped one hand to his thigh, the other rested on the table. Ignoring the cocoa he’d just made, he looked at her. He noticed with a catch in his throat that even rumpled, she was stunning. He also saw pain in her beautiful eyes.
Wanting nothing more than to gather her close and protect her, kiss her and hold her tenderly, Richard quickly blocked those thoughts from his mind. She only liked him as a friend. He had to remind himself of that. They were friends. Just friends. Blast it.
He took a deep breath and said, “Now, what’s the problem, and how can I help?”
Marilee was staring into the mug she’d wrapped her hands around. It looked like she was using the heat of the beverage seeping through the ceramic as a lifeline, and he wondered what had happened to her today to bring her to this point.
He watched her take her own deep breath, hold it for a moment, then let it slowly out, shaking her head as though to dispel the dark thoughts tormenting her.
Another deep breath gave her courage to lift her eyes. “I’m not sure where to begin,” she confessed in a small voice. “It’s all so complicated.” Her eyes dropped back to her cup.
Richard didn’t dare move for fear he’d scare her. He wasn’t sure how he knew that, he just did. He had to consciously keep from reaching for her.
His voice low and warm, he said, “My mother used to tell me to begin at the beginning, go on until I came to the end, and then stop.”
Marilee smiled, as fleeting as it was small. One more deep breath and she began.
“Well, the beginning then. Last October, Tony was late coming home from a business trip.” Her eyes darted up to his face and then dropped back to her cocoa. Richard caught his breath with the next sentence.
“Tony, um, is…my husband.” He easily read the misery and pain on her face. Richard felt as though the softly spoken words had been yelled as someone punched him in the gut.
Shock kept him silent as Marilee continued, her eyes still on her hands; he took time to school his features to neutral. He hadn’t counted on another man being in the picture. Oops. Just friends. Just listen.
“He didn’t have time to unpack his suitcase this time as he usually did because we had to get ready for a costume party; a benefit his law firm throws every year for a local orphanage.
“We came in late afterwards and went straight to bed. When I got up in the morning, he’d already gone to the office, so I thought I’d unpack for him. In the bottom of the suitcase, I found a small velvet pouch. I thought it was my gift. He usually brought me things when he’d been away, so I opened it. I shouldn’t have. I’m not snoopy, but I really thought it was for me. Besides, as I was unpacking for him, I had to know what it was to put it away.”
Marilee paused, looking up. His look must have been neutral enough to give her the courage to continue.
“The bag was full of diamonds. Different shapes. All sizes. It was like a rainbow as they tumbled onto the bedspread. I was stunned. I stared at them for a while, trying to figure out whose they were and why Tony had them.
Reason-wise, I came up empty, except maybe they were a client’s. But then, why would Tony have them? Nothing made sense, so I put them back into the velvet bag.
“When Tony got home, I handed him the bag.” Marilee shuddered with the remembering. “Tony got angry. As usual, he started yelling and then he threatened me. When I started to cry, he hit me. He’d never hit me before, ever.” Her voice caught; her eyes were full of misery.
As she took a sip of cocoa, Richard noticed she was shaking. His hands balled into tight fists. He wanted to kill the bastard. Unaware of his thoughts, Marilee sighed and then continued.
“He said they belonged to him. He’s a very successful lawyer, I know, but how could we afford a whole bag of diamonds? Tony saw the look on my face, guessed what I was thinking, and laughed. He said I was so stupid I couldn’t see what was going on under my nose.”
Marilee paused and took another swallow of cocoa. Her eyes were unfocused, as if she were far away, actually watching her husband. Pain sharpened her voice.
“He consistently told me I was stupid. He loved showing off how smart he was. I had already learned never to show intelligence around him because it made him angry. I was only supposed to be decorative; you know, beautiful but brainless.
He wouldn’t let me finish college, or work after we married. I read a lot of books to pass the time, though he never knew that. He’d have been hateful, I think, because it would have shown I wasn’t dumb. I think he really believes blondes are naturally dumb.”
Marilee looked up at Richard, a guilty grin on her face. “My natural hair color is platinum blonde. It still surprises me to look in a mirror and see the darker hair.” She shrugged her shoulders and looked down at her hands. Silence reigned for a few moments.
His loins felt a strong pull of heat gather at a mental image of her being blonde. She’d be a knockout. He could understand this Tony person wanting to show her off. He mentally shook off thoughts of what he’d like to do to a stupid pig that would hurt this intelligent, sensitive, beautiful woman.
He gently asked, “What happened then?”
Sighing, Marilee continued. “Well, Tony bragged he and some friends were stealing gemstones. Not just diamonds, but other stones, too. My face must have shown him what I thought about his dishonesty. He threatened if I told anybody about the gems, I’d be killed.”
Marilee appeared unaware of the tears coursing down her cheeks, but Richard was very conscious of them. He didn’t dare reach out to wipe them away or take her in his arms and protect her like he wanted to do.
Marilee took another small sip of the chocolate and then continued.
“Tony said the law would hold me as an accomplice since I was his wife. He said the police would never believe I didn’t know about it.” She trembled and bit her lip and then resumed.
“A couple of weeks later, I picked up the phone to make a call, but Tony was already on the line. I heard him talking about getting rid of the problem once and for all. He mentioned a trip scheduled the week after Thanksgiving. The plan was to torch the house with me in it, while he was out of town, so he’d have an alibi.
“I was amazed he didn’t realize I was on the line and had overheard. By then, though, I didn’t dare do anything to make him angry. My fear must have been palpable, because Tony always laughed, mocking me, when we were alone together.
“Every day he went to work, one of his thugs stayed at home with me. The only thing I was permitted to do without a bodyguard attached was go to the gym over at the mall.” She looked apologetically at Richard. “When Tony married me, he insisted I work out three times a week so I’d look good when he took me places. After seeing the diamonds, I was dropped off and picked up there by his men.”
She shivered again, and took a gulp of the cocoa, licked her lips, and continued; almost as if she had to finish now that she’d begun and before her courage failed her.
“While I was being guarded at home, I worked out a plan. I thought I’d learned enough from the mysteries I’d read to get away and hide so he couldn’t find me. When I was let off at the gym, I didn’t stay there.” She smiled up at Richard, and then kept her eyes on his face, finally seeming calm enough to face him while she spoke.
“I’d wait at the gym until the goon left and then sneak away. I got airline tickets at a mall travel agency, picked up really different clothes and make-up at nearby boutiques, and I bought a couple of wigs for my get-away disguises. I even got some hair dye so that when I got here, I could change my appearance. I brought it all home in my gym bag wrapped in my workout clothes. I was as ready as I could be with only one more detail.
“The day before Thanksgiving, I slipped out to the bank and virtually cleared out our joint account, putting the money in the gym bag. I knew the bank would be closed on Thanksgiving, so it wouldn’t show the withdrawal until Friday.
“Early the morning after Thanksgiving, I left. Two flights, a train and a bus ride later, I ended up here.” Her smile slipped now, and fear clouded her face.
“Tony must have hired a really good detective, though. Last night…” Marilee began to cry. Richard quietly rose, procuring the dishtowel from where it hung on the oven’s handle, and offered it to her for her tears.
Marilee’s tears faded and she smiled. “I’m not going to cry that much,” she protested as she accepted the towel and dried her face. Somehow, sharing her problems with him must have made her feel better; she didn’t seem so depressed, and sat straighter on the chair. Richard returned her smile and sat at the table again.
“So, what happened last night?” he gently prompted, his chin resting on one fist, his elbow leaning on the table, the other fist again resting on his thigh.
Marilee traced the events of the previous evening and day. “So, what do I do now? Tony’s men have found me. It has to be Tony. No one in Salt Lake even knew I was married, much less that my name is Mrs. Ferguson. I think one of them said Tony had sent them, too.”
She tucked her top lip between her teeth and let it slide out, making a small sound as it came free. He tightened his body muscles to hold him in place. He hadn’t realized such an action and sound could be so sensuous. It was all he could do not to reach for her.
She looked at Richard and shrugged her shoulders in hopelessness. “It isn’t right to come here and involve you, but I don’t know what else to do. I need help.” Tears hung on her lower lashes, ready to fall.
Richard knew she had no idea how appealing she looked. Once again he wanted to gather her close and protect her, but didn’t. Instead, he smiled and rose from the table.
“Well, the first thing I’d suggest is dinner.”
Marilee looked up at him in confusion. “Dinner?”
Richard nodded. “Dinner,” he confirmed. “You know. Food. And a shower.”
“My life may end at any second, and you have the temerity to suggest food?” Her eyes were wide in her face, incredulity marking her features, but Richard noticed the tears had disappeared altogether.
He nodded again. “Can’t hurt; I saw the men in the car out front by the way. It didn’t seem as though they were looking for a casual party to crash, but they weren’t doing anything I could call the police about either. But, if you don’t eat, your life will come to an end no matter what else happens. Besides, you’ll think more clearly and run faster with some calories inside you. When did you last eat?”
“Uh, I guess it was a small bag of chips and a soda at my evening break at work.”
“I thought so,” he laughed as he disappeared into the bedroom, emerging moments later with a clean pair of sweats. “Sorry I can’t get you underwear, but I don’t happen to stock any in your size.”
Marilee giggled. “Thanks for the offer, but my things are just outside your back door. I didn’t dare leave it in my place. I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to do and didn’t want to admit I was going away until after we’d talked.
“Tony’s goons hadn’t actually walked behind th
e house during the daylight that I know about, so I felt pretty safe they wouldn’t come around the back after dark. And you’re absolutely right; clean clothes and a shower will feel heavenly, and dinner sounds utterly divine!” She stepped to the back door and retrieved her bag before vanishing into his bathroom.
Richard looked at the closed door a long moment before he started dinner, calling Derrek in to set the table for three, a smile on his face.
Chapter Twenty-three
The apartment was finally silent. Richard and Marilee settled onto the couch in the living room, having eventually sent Derrek to bed. Dinner had been eaten, after which they’d played three games of Sorry. Derrek had easily won all three games. Marilee looked as if she was pre-occupied with the thugs trying to kill her. Richard’s thoughts refused to focus on anything but Marilee.
Smelling of the spicy-scented soap he and Derrek used, she was positively captivating. He needed to help her out of the crisis, get rid of the brute husband, and then…then what? Then maybe he’d have a chance to win her? Maybe; it was enough. It had to be enough; at least for now.
During the account of her situation, she hadn’t once mentioned loving or being loved by the lout. The urge to strangle the man married to this precious woman was strong. Richard shook his head to clear his thinking.
Marilee perched nervously on one end of the couch, toying with the ends of her hair, which had grown just below shoulder length since he’d met her; she was so beautiful to him.
He thought again about her being a blonde; tried to imagine her there on his couch with the shimmery white hair. He had to take a deep breath to slow his heart rate and steady himself. He had to get his mind back to the business at hand.
Richard spoke first, “Any ideas?”
“No.” Marilee shook her head. “At least not viable ones.” She sighed.
“Well, let’s list all possibilities, and then eliminate any useless ones, okay?”