Chasing Trouble

by Sonia Stanizzo

  “So, tell me about this Nick you’ve been shacking up with. Jade said he’s gorgeous.”

  Ava blew out a breath. “I’m sure Jade gave you all the details.”

  “She did, but I’d love to see how uncomfortable you get talking about romance.”

  The fierce look Ava threw at Lauren was supposed to be threatening, but it only made her friend laugh.

  “All right, all right. Jade’s given me enough info to quench my curiosity. But answer me one thing. Is he really as hot as Jade said?”

  “Hey, why does my woman need to know about the looks of another man?” Jack, Lauren’s husband, came into view in the background, cradling their six-month-old son, and Ava’s godson, Ryan.

  “I’m only looking out for my best friend’s interests.” Lauren threw the words over her shoulder. The smile on her face showed just how smitten she was with her husband. And she had every right to be. A sexy ex-football player holding a baby was enough to make any grown woman drool and her ovaries ache.

  “Hey, Ava,” Jack called out. “How are things?”

  “Great. On your lunch break again, are you?”

  “He’s starting to drive me crazy. He needs to stay at work,” Lauren complained with a laugh.

  “And you love the way I come home and drive you crazy.” Jack wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

  “Do I need to hang up and leave you two alone?”

  “No,” Lauren said.

  “Yes,” was Jack’s answer.

  It had been years since she’d seen Lauren so happy. After a terrible childhood and personal struggles, she was finally living the life she deserved.

  “Ignore him. He can wait. He won’t leave until he has his lunchtime special.”

  A laugh burst from Ava’s lips. “I still can’t believe you’re talking about your sex life. Boy, how you’ve changed.”

  “That’s because I’ve got something good to talk about now.”

  “You bet you do!” called Jack, who was now out of screen shot but obviously not out of hearing range.

  “Well, whatever you’re doing to my girl, keep it up. She has a beautiful glow.”

  “I plan to.”

  Lauren rolled her eyes. “You two are too much. I’m going to feed Ryan now. If you need me for anything, just buzz.”

  Then Ava remembered she did need Lauren. She wanted to talk about Maggie’s photographs. “Actually, I’m going to send you some photos I took. They’re pictures I think you might be interested in selling at your shop.”

  “Sure, send them through and I’ll have a look. Who’s the photographer?”

  “Nick’s mother, Maggie Williams. They’re pictures of the farm, and they’re absolutely stunning.”

  Jack’s head reappeared on the screen. “The guy you’ve been shacking up with is Nick Williams?”

  “I haven’t been shacking up with… Wait, you know Nick?”

  “Nick Williams, your mate with the gazillion car dealerships? Is that who you mean?” Lauren asked Jack.

  What were they talking about? “He owns a dealership here in town, but a gazillion? Hardly.”

  “Nick and Brad Williams are the owners of Williams Enterprises. They have car dealerships all around Australia and are now venturing into manufacturing their own vehicles. They’re worth millions,” Jack supplied.

  How did she not figure that out for herself? The caryard with the familiar Williams branding splashed across the building should’ve given it away. But in her defense, the building wasn’t the flashy, sleek ones that were scattered around the country—one just down the road from her office in Brimland Point. The one they drove past still had the old charm of the original building, only bigger and with a caryard attached to the workshop. And Nick not once mentioned he was the Williams dealership.

  “The bastard.” How could he keep this from me?

  “Ava, what’s wrong?” Lauren asked with concern.

  The expression on Jack was the complete opposite. A grin split his face. “He’s been getting dirty on the farm, pretending he doesn’t own a multimillion dollar company, hasn’t he? He could never truly shake the country boy out of him.”

  “Jack, Ryan needs a nappy change. Get on to that, will you?” The tone Lauren used told Jack he’d said too much. When Jack’s face left the screen, Lauren focused her attention back on Ava. “Sorry about him. Wouldn’t know what was wrong even if it punched him in the nose.”

  They both knew that really wasn’t true. When Jack and Lauren first met, he knew exactly when Lauren needed him and helped her heal from a painful past.

  “I’ve got to go,” Ava said.

  “What are you going to do?” Lauren asked.

  “There’s a farmer boy turned lying bastard I need to have a word or two with.”

  “Maybe you should wait and cool off.”

  There was no way Ava could sit and try to cool off. No, she needed to get this off her chest. And it needed to be done now.

  “Give Ryan a kiss for me. I’ll talk to you later.” Ava ended the call before Lauren could say another word.

  Getting up, she dusted the grass off her jeans and made her way to the garage where her father kept his car collection. Needing something to match her mood, she eyed the red Maserati. Something fast. Marching to the cabinet that held the keys, she hoped he hadn’t changed the combination number. And to her surprise, after punching in the code, the door swung soundlessly open.

  All the keys were labeled, and she found the one she wanted. Climbing in the car, she turned on the ignition, and it roared to life. The vibrations of the engine rumbled through her body, giving her a quick thrill. But it died just as fast as she thought about where she was headed.

  The workshop was where she’d try first. If he wasn’t there then, unfortunately, this baby was going to do a little off-roading.

  As the car shot out of the garage, Ava had one thing on her mind. Nick. She was a lawyer; she knew plenty of ways to get away with murder.

  Chapter 14

  Nick had finished putting in the fuel pump in Ava’s car and was washing his hands when Ben sidled up to him.

  “You know you don’t need to work on the cars whenever you’re here. I just needed help the other day because we were short-staffed,” Ben said and casually leaned a shoulder on the wall.

  “I can say the same to you.” Nick took in Ben’s greasy, stained clothes. “Don’t you have a nice office you like to sit in and bark orders from?”

  There was a nicely decked out office with Ben’s name on the door that hardly got used. Ben didn’t have to work on the tools. Hell, he didn’t have to work at all. His share in the company made him a wealthy man. But he was too hands-on to laze around and twiddle his thumbs.

  Pushing himself away from the wall, Ben sauntered closer to Nick. “Tell me again how you ended up with Ava’s car,” he said, ignoring Nick’s question.

  Drying his hands on a towel, Nick turned and gave Ben what he hoped was a mind-your-own-fucking-business stare.

  “Ahh, come on, boss, when I left you at the pub, you were giving Ava the death glare, and now you’re fixing her car? You’ve gotta give me something.”

  “Don’t you have enough to worry about without sticking your nose in my business?”

  “I’ve got no worries.”

  “I take it Beth hasn’t found out about Jane yet?”

  “Me and Beth aren’t exclusive.”

  “So she’ll be okay with you screwing around with Jane for a couple of days while she was away?”

  Clearing his throat, Ben answered, “Why wouldn’t she?”

  Nick shrugged. “These things spread like wildfire around here. But like you said, you and Beth are only casual. You’ve got no worries.” Slapping Ben on the shoulder, he walked past him and back into the workshop.

  No one should know Ava spent a couple of days with him on the farm. Thankfully, the rain had kept anyone from town coming onto the property and seeing her there. The gossip mill ran strong around here,
and he’d been the subject on more than one occasion. The rumors about him causing Kate to turn to drugs had only recently subsided. The town was happy to claim him as their very own celebrity, but they were also quick to believe rumors. Cause a bit of trouble as a kid and they didn’t let you forget it.

  Following him into the room, Ben scratched his short crop of dirty blond hair. “I’m in deep shit, aren’t I?”

  “You better hope that silver tongue of yours can get you out of trouble.”

  “I’ll be upstairs in the office if you need me. I have a call to make.”

  Nick shook his head as Ben jogged up the stairs. If anyone could worm their way out of trouble, it was him.

  Looking around the shop, there wasn’t anything else that needed to be done. He had to wait for Ava’s tires to be delivered to finish her car, and Jerry and Chris, the mechanics, had the next jobs under control.

  He could go back to the farm, but Percy had already warned him if he stepped foot on the property today he’d shoot him. Everything was under control there too. It didn’t seem he was needed anywhere except back at Williams Enterprises. He knew he couldn’t leave Brad to take care of everything on his own for much longer. But how could he leave his mother alone on the farm? How could he walk away from something his father worked so hard to build?

  And then there was the fierce urge to jump in his car and head back to Ava. He had to keep finding new jobs around the workshop to stop himself from tearing out of there. But now there was nothing left to do, not even a floor to be swept; he’d done that too, the mechanics giving him a questioning glance from time to time.

  While Ava was still in town, and their animosity had dropped, why couldn’t they spend the time she was here together? Yeah, they’d agreed it was only a one-time thing. But why couldn’t it be more a short-term thing? Then he could finally purge her from his mind and body, because a few hours with her hadn’t been enough.

  She was all he could think about. The soft sounds she made when his mouth was on her, the quick gasps when he caressed her most sensitive spots, and the long, deep moans when they finally joined. Even her feistiness and strong will was a major turn on. Everything about Ava was unlike anyone he’d ever known. She’d gotten more exciting with age, something he’d never thought possible.

  So if they could just spend a few more days together, preferably in bed, he could get his fill and they could both move on.

  But she was staying at her father’s house, and Bernie wouldn’t like him showing up at their door. When he’d dropped Ava off earlier, he’d seen Bernie in his rearview mirror as he drove away, and if Bernie had a rocket launcher handy, he most likely would’ve aimed it in Nick’s direction.

  No, he couldn’t go back there.

  As he pondered what to do, a sleek Maserati sped into the workshop. What the fuck does this idiot think he’s doing? Even the mechanics shook their heads at the new arrival.

  Getting ready to blast the moron, Nick stormed over to the car just as the door flung opened and Ava got out, her plump lips curled back in a snarl and her nostrils flared. Slamming the door shut, she stomped the few steps toward him and jabbed him in the chest with a sharp fingernail.

  “How dare you lie to me?” she spat.

  That shook him out of his surprised stupor at having Ava arrive there like a Formula One driver. “You’ll need to give me some details about what I’ve lied about.”

  “Don’t play dumb with me. Your simple farmer boy act isn’t going to work anymore.”

  Leaning a hip against the bonnet of the car, he crossed his arms over his chest. Her fiery gaze dropped for a beat to his chest and down the length of him. The clothes he’d thrown on weren’t anything fancy. Working on cars got dirty, so he’d flung on an old, faded pair of jeans and a black t-shirt that had seen better days. For a moment he thought she’d given him an appreciative glance, but it was soon replaced with hellfire shooting from her eyes. And she was hot as hell.

  “You’ve got ten seconds to explain what your problem is or I’m going to kiss you.”

  Sucking in a sharp breath, she bit her bottom lip, and her gaze dropped to his mouth. Fuck it, he couldn’t wait. He stepped forward and reached out a hand.

  Before he could take hold, she slapped his hand away and shook her head. “Don’t you think about touching me.”

  Nick let out a long breath. “Is the ban temporary or permanent? ’Cause it will suck for both of us if it’s permanent.”

  Narrowing her eyes, she slammed her hands on her hips, her chest heaving. This time it was Nick’s turn to trail his gaze over her body. She was still dressed in the jeans and top she wore this morning, and he knew what was under them. The pleasure of removing each item of clothing was like unwrapping the greatest birthday present in the world. He got hard just thinking about it.

  “You think lying to me is a joke? After what we discovered my father did to us.”

  Okay, it didn’t appear she was going to calm down anytime soon. He needed to settle this problem with her and move onto more important things. Getting her in his bed.

  “Ava, can you please tell me what’s gotten you so upset?”

  “You lied!”

  “Okay, we’ve already established that, but can you be more specific?” He had a suspicion as to what it could be. He was surprised she hadn’t figured it out sooner. Or maybe her father had told her yet another doozy to keep them apart.

  Pacing in front of the car, she took a deep breath and said, “You’re not a farmer boy or a mechanic.”

  That little secret lasted longer than he’d expected. Although, now he couldn’t recall why he had been so eager to keep it from her.

  “Technically, at the moment, I’m both.”

  Scoffing, she swung around and glared at him. “Oh, please. Don’t patronize me. Why did you lie?”

  “I didn’t lie.”

  The hands that were on her hips dropped to her sides. “Lied by omission then.”

  Well, when it was put that way... Noticing the mechanics had stopped working and stared openly at them, he placed a hand on her shoulder and tried to guide her toward the reception area and out of sight. But she shrugged him away and didn’t budge.

  “I told you not to touch me.”

  Briefly closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. “We have an audience. Can we discuss this somewhere more private?”

  She glanced at the men, who quickly spun around, filling the room with banging noises. She nodded and followed Nick into the next room.

  When he turned to face her, she was tapping the toe of her shoe, her eyebrow was raised, and she glared at him again like he was scum under her shoe. He scrubbed a hand over his face while she waited for an answer.

  What should he say? He’d kept who he’d become from her because he thought she left him because he was a broke farmer. It was what he’d believed all these years, and having more money in his bank account wasn’t what he wanted to attract her with.

  “You’d left with Lachlan Ranger.”

  Ava shook her head. “No, I didn’t. You know that.”

  “I know that now. I didn’t know it when you first came back to town.”

  Confusion lined her face. “So?”

  “He had money that I could only dream about.”

  The confusion deepened. “Nick, you’re not making any sense. What does Dad’s lie and Lachlan’s money have anything to do with who you really are?”

  “For years I believed you ran off with Lachlan because of his money and because he could give you the life I wanted to but was way out of my reach. So, when I saw you at Dexter’s, the old hurt and anger came flooding back to the surface. I thought if you knew I wasn’t a poor farmer anymore, you’d be attracted to my money.” God, it sounded worse out loud than it did in his head. But Ava wanted to know, so there it all was.

  She stared at him with a blank expression, not saying a word. He couldn’t tell what she was thinking.

  “This all comes back down to Dad’s lie
.” She blew out a breath. “But how could you believe I’d leave you like that for a rich guy?”

  “How could you believe I’d take a bribe from Bernie?”

  She nodded. “We were crazy about each other but didn’t have much trust.”

  “No, we didn’t,” Nick agreed and sat on the edge of the desk.

  “I can understand why you were hesitant about telling me at first, but I thought we moved past the hostility. Why didn’t you tell me later?”

  She took a few steps closer, and when he reached for her hand she let him take it. Nick answered, “We only found out the truth this morning.”

  “What about when we drove past this place today? You could’ve told me then, Nick.”

  He shrugged. “By that time, you were anxious about going home. I didn’t think it was important.”

  Examining his face for a moment, she must have been satisfied with his answer, because she smiled warmly. She slid in closer and settled between his open legs. Placing her arms around his neck, she nuzzled him below the ear, and heat shot straight to his happy place.

  “I don’t want or need your money,” she said. “I have enough of my own.”

  “Good for you,” he said, dropping his head back as she trailed her warm tongue along his rapidly beating pulse.

  “And whatever this thing is that we have going, it’s obviously not going to be a one-off, but it’s still only temporary—only while I’m in town. So I’ll never have any claim to whatever you have.”

  “I’m okay with that.” He was ecstatic to know they were on the same page.

  Sliding his hands down her back, he grabbed her hips, rubbing her against him, and a shaky breath slipped from her lips at the contact. Exploring hands skimmed down his chest and into the waistband of his jeans, and the muscles in his body tightened. Damn, Ava could turn him on in a second. If her hands found what he was sure they were in search of, he’d take her right here on this desk. It took all his self-control to clasp her wrists and pull them away.

  Frowning, she groaned her annoyance.