by Rose Wulf
Their gazes held for a long minute before Seth quietly admitted, “I can’t tell you why, though I’d like to, but yes…I’d rather you leave them out. Just call me and let me handle it.”
Releasing a breath, Veronica sat back properly and nodded. “Okay,” she said. She had opened her mouth to add more, but then the waitress was back with their dinner-sized lunches and the focus shifted.
Chapter Four
Veronica couldn’t help but wonder what it said about her that she was sad when her lunch with Seth came to an end. It wasn’t like they were on a date (though he did insist on paying), and even if it were a date, it was an arguably poor one since they spent the majority of it discussing whether or not she was being stalked by a could-be-murderer. But, as Seth walked her to her car, she found she just didn’t care. The more time she spent in Seth Hunter’s presence the more she wanted to keep spending time with him. It was almost disturbing.
Seth fell back when Veronica stepped toward the driver’s side door of her car, clearly trying to respect her space, so she turned to face him properly with a smile. “You really didn’t have to pay,” she said again.
“It was the least I could do,” he assured her, an almost smile lighting his lips.
Oh, those lips…. All of a sudden, Veronica had the strongest urge to step up and kiss him. As impressive as everything else about him seemed to be, she just couldn’t imagine that his kiss would be anything less. The need to find out was devastating.
His nostrils flared as a light, warm breeze kicked up, and she saw his eyes drop to her lips as her tongue darted out to wet them. He didn’t say a word, but his jaw tightened and she couldn’t help but wonder if he might have been fighting the same urge.
Could I be so lucky?
The lone cloud overhead, which had been blocking the sun, drifted past and allowed the sunlight to shine properly down on the parking lot. Almost simultaneously Seth squinted and reached up, lifting his sunglasses from where they were hanging on the collar of his shirt and returning them to his face as he said, “I should let you go.” He paused, his hands slipping into his pockets again, and asked, “Will I see you tomorrow?”
Laughter lifted her lips once more and she replied, “Unless you magically curb your caffeine addiction.”
A shadow of a grin tipped his lips. “Highly unlikely,” he assured her.
“Until tomorrow, then,” Veronica declared, extracting her keys from her purse. Seth nodded silent agreement before turning and striding away. She remained still for a minute, simultaneously disappointed in how the not-quite moment had played out and enjoying the view before her more than she should. And as she watched him walk away she found herself wondering what kind of car he drove. What does it matter what kind of car he drives? Shaking her head at herself, she turned finally and stepped up to her own car. He made the strangest thoughts pop up in her head.
She was barely in her car, seat belt clicked into place, when her cell phone began buzzing from the confines of the purse on the passenger seat. When she dug it out she instantly recognized Mandy’s laughing face on the screen and put the phone to her ear, saying, “Hey, Mandy.”
“Hey, are you busy? I found myself with an afternoon off, and I can’t remember the last time we went to a movie together,” Mandy declared.
Laughing lightly, Veronica replied, “As a matter of fact, I am officially free. When’s the showing?”
“Half an hour.”
“I can do that. Meet at the theater in fifteen?”
“Deal,” Mandy agreed.
As Veronica dropped the phone back onto the passenger seat she couldn’t help but reflect on how much busier her day was becoming than she’d anticipated. But that was okay, especially considering the company she was getting to keep. Although if she was still thinking about Seth when she met up with Mandy her friend was bound to notice, and how would she explain that? Then again, she was starting to think explaining would be easier than putting that gorgeous, well-mannered man out of her mind.
Though the movie was only barely two hours it ended up being well past nine before Veronica pulled back into her driveway. She eased her car up the drive until it was parallel with her small rental house and cut the engine, a smile seemingly engraved on her lips. She wasn’t entirely sure that she’d stopped smiling since lunch.
“Whoever he is,” Mandy had begun as they walked out of the ice cream shop, hands wrapped around single-scoop cones, “he must be gorgeous.”
“He is,” Veronica admitted, knowing it was pointless to deny that she was still somewhat distracted. She’d found herself comparing the hero of the movie to Seth and, unsurprisingly, the hero had come up short. “But it’s not what you think.”
“Oh?” Mandy asked, both eyebrows raised. “You’re not giving it up without making him earn it, are you?”
Veronica had paled, nearly choking on her ice cream, and quickly managed, “No! No, it’s not…we’re not together.”
Mandy’s expression relaxed at that and she’d offered a grin as she teased, “But you want to be ‘together’ with him, don’t you?”
The only struggle Veronica had had with answering that was how honest she should really be, because the answer was yes. There really wasn’t even any point in denying it, at least to herself. She’d been attracted—on a surface level—to him since before she’d even known his name. Needless to say, she was more attracted to him now than she’d been a week ago. Not that it’ll ever happen, she reminded herself as she stepped up to her front door and stuck the key in the lock. But, hey, a girl could dream.
Veronica pushed the door open easily, but she didn’t register the strange niggling feeling in the back of her mind until after she’d closed it behind her. Her hand paused over the doorknob, and something told her not to lock it just yet. The hair on the back of her neck was standing up and suddenly there was a rapidly-growing pit in her stomach. The smile fell from her face as she tried to look around the open living room and kitchen areas of her house. She felt like her insides were shrinking and her instincts were screaming at her to turn and run as fast as she could.
She was frozen as she realized that, somehow, she just knew that there was someone else in her house.
Holding perfectly still, Veronica prayed her eyes would adjust as she tried to discern the shapes of her furniture in the darkness. Light switch, her mind whispered, as if even her thoughts were susceptible to being overheard. There was a light switch along the left wall, just a few feet in. All she had to do was reach it.
Okay, I can do this. She swallowed past a lump that had formed in her throat sometime after she’d stopped breathing, released her pent up breath, and slowly moved forward. It occurred to her call out, but then she wondered if that wouldn’t be incredibly stupid. If someone was going to break into her house they certainly weren’t going to panic and run away if she called out to them. In that regard, turning on a light wasn’t likely to help, either—but at least she’d be able to see.
Her hand slid along the wall, palm flat and probably clammy, until she finally found the cool plastic of the switch cover. Another inch over and she was able to slip her thumb beneath the switch and shove it up a little harder than was necessary. Fluorescent light immediately flooded the kitchen, covering a decent amount of the living room space as well, and for a moment Veronica had to squint against the intrusion. Between her squinted eyes she saw another blur of movement, but before she had time to really register the sight there was someone leaning over her and snarling.
He was standing so close that each exhale sent a wave of hot, heavy breath rolling across her face. Dark, angry eyes locked onto hers and it was in those eyes that Veronica realized exactly who he was. Gregory Richards. The man who had tried to threaten her in the park the day before. The man who had talked about killing people.
“H-how did you get in here?” Veronica heard herself asking. Her voice was a bit shaky, but she figured that was understandable. “What do you want?”
; Richards narrowed his glare at her and all of a sudden he had one hand wrapped around her throat and was pinning her to the wall, the toes of her shoes just barely touching the carpet. “You screwed things up for me, Veronica,” he hissed, leaning closer as if she needed help hearing him.
Her blood ran cold at the realization that he knew her name. What else did he know about her? What was he going to do to her?
“What’s wrong?” Richards taunted, lips lifting at one corner in a heartless smirk. “Cat got your tongue?”
Veronica choked when she tried to speak around the hand at her throat but she managed, “Get…out.”
Richards’s eyebrows rose at her apparently-unexpected show of backbone. “Do you really think telling me what to do is a good idea for you right now?” He shook his head almost before he was done and added, “Never mind. It doesn’t matter, ‘cause I’m gonna kill you. And then I’ll ‘get out’.”
Her heart stalled in her chest, the once-delicious food in her stomach suddenly thinking about making a second appearance. She hadn’t expected him to say his intent so casually. It didn’t matter that she wasn’t all that surprised to know what he was planning, but hearing it said out loud was different. Those words put everything in perspective. And as soon as the first wave of fear had settled, Veronica realized she was angry. She didn’t have any intentions of dying that day.
“Now hold still,” Richards instructed, his voice nearly a purr. His other hand came up, grabbed hold of her upper arm, and latched on to it. A moment later he eased his hold on her throat, putting awkward pressure over her collar bone in order to keep her off of her feet, and then he leaned in.
Veronica watched in horror as he bowed his head, for a second thinking he intended to do something unspeakable to her before killing her, until she realized he wasn’t aiming for her lips. He had an awkward hold on her, and he seemed to be leaning toward her throat. And then, as she watched, his lips curled back and the kitchen light reflected off of something far too long and far too pointy to be an ordinary canine. Is that a…? She shoved the thought aside. It didn’t matter; what mattered was getting the hell away while she could.
Before Richards could lean too close to her chest, Veronica shoved her free arm between them, hoping he’d believe that she was trying to shove him away. A mirthful chuckle drifted up from him as he paused to flash her an arrogant smirk and she knew he’d fallen for it. She gave a little shove with her elbow—now pressed into his ribcage—for effect even as she dipped her hand into the edge of her purse and prayed it was facing the right way. Her hand wrapped around the slim canister she was searching for just as she felt his slimy tongue touch her throat and she nearly gagged. Instead, she turned her head as far away as she could, squeezed her eyes and lips shut, held her breath, and tugged the pepper spray free before firing it into his face.
Richards immediately leapt backwards, releasing her with a string of colorful curses as he began coughing and choking violently.
Veronica stumbled once, nearly dropping the pepper spray, before spinning and darting toward the door. She didn’t know whether or not her pepper spray would stall him for long, but she wasn’t willing to take that risk. And, when this was over, she was buying stock in the company.
“Bitch!” Richards roared, his voice raw. What little effect it might have had was ruined when he immediately began choking all over again.
His renewed choking fit had barely begun when Veronica yanked the front door open and all but jumped through. She was fighting the need to cough herself and her eyes were watery, but if she could just get away then it would be worth it. There was a sharp tug at her shoulder, indicating that Richards had latched on to her purse, and Veronica nearly twisted her ankle in her rush to slip free of the leather straps. And then she was sprinting forward again, putting as much distance between herself and her attacker as possible.
She didn’t stop running until she was across the street, when it occurred to her that all she had was her pepper spray and her cell phone, and she turned cautiously back around. If he came at her again she could at least scream and hope someone heard her.
But he wasn’t right behind her. He wasn’t chasing her at all. He was glaring through undoubtedly-watery eyes and standing calmly in the entryway of her house. Her purse was hanging carelessly from one hand, and as she watched he managed a cocky smirk and stepped backwards. The door shut a moment later, leaving him alone in her house and her stranded on the street.
Veronica sucked in a breath, feeling an entirely different burning beginning in her eyes, and shoved it back. There would be time enough for tears once she had a little more distance between them. And definitely once she’d figured out where she could go.
“I want you to call me immediately.” Those had been Seth’s words at lunch earlier that afternoon. And that had been his instruction for if she thought she saw one of them.
If I call him I won’t have to worry about dragging anyone else into this mess. That certainly made her decision easier. But she wasn’t going to call from across the street of her house. She didn’t want any of her neighbors to see her and start asking questions, and, more importantly, she knew full well that Richards had at least two partners. The last thing she needed was one of them sneaking up on her.
Without a destination really in mind, Veronica turned and started walking down the street. She was still holding her pepper spray and at this point tears were dripping down her cheeks. She was blaming the pepper spray for the tears as well as her nose sniffles and sore throat. And though it occurred to her that she probably looked like a mess, she walked.
****
Seth’s mind was racing, his anger building, as he turned onto the street Veronica had called from. Her voice had been choked over the phone—which she’d attributed to semi-pepper-spraying herself—and the story she’d had to tell had him nearly running out to his car. He told himself it was because he had a good lead on Richards, but he knew he was lying. For one thing, he had no intention of detouring to her house to look for him.
There she is, he thought as his eyes landed on the now-familiar head of the blonde perched on the park bench. And he wondered if she’d considered the irony of going to the park for refuge.
He was parked—poorly—a moment later and striding across the sidewalk to where she was seated. She was hunched over, her head bowed and shoulders slightly shaking. Salt was heavy in the air, as well as the lingering aroma of the spray, and he knew she’d been crying. “Veronica,” he called as he dropped to a knee in front of her.
She sniffled, her head snapping up in surprise, and then her face relaxed and she swallowed. “Hi,” she offered.
Seth reached out carefully and wrapped one hand around hers. “Is there somewhere you’d like to go?” he asked, glad to see that she at least didn’t appear to be badly injured. There were a couple of bruises forming that he could see, but he couldn’t smell blood, so she wasn’t bleeding. It was a start.
“Somewhere safe,” Veronica replied tiredly. Her blue eyes were rimmed with red—likely as much from the tears as the spray—and he had the strongest urge to reach out and wipe the tear tracks away.
He refrained. Instead, he gave her hand a light squeeze before standing and tugging her gently to her feet, saying, “I know a place.” He actually knew several, but most of them were out of state and, like it or not, he still had a job to do.
No words were spoken as he guided her to his Corvette and pulled open the door for her, but his chest ached at the pitiful smile she tried to offer him as she sat. Once she was seated he closed the door, moved around the car, and slipped back into his seat silently.
They were on the road before Veronica managed, “Thanks for coming. I’m sorry…I doubt this was what you had in mind when you offered.”
“You’re welcome, and you don’t need to apologize,” Seth assured her. “I never said my offer had limitations.”
Veronica offered up a bitter chuckle and replied, “Maybe you should have, t
hen.”
“Maybe,” Seth allowed, knowing he didn’t mean it the way she did. His fingers tightened over the steering wheel as he snuck a sideways glance at her. She wasn’t crying, but she was still distressed. And something about the sight of her in that state made him want to break every bone in Richards’s body.
They lapsed into silence again until Seth pulled into the private driveway in front of his rented condo.
“Is this…your place?” Veronica asked, an honest tone of curiosity beneath the rawness of her voice.
“For now, yes,” Seth replied with a nod. He cut the engine and released his seatbelt as he added, “It’s also safe.”
Veronica smiled, and though the gesture was sad, it didn’t make him ache as much as the previous one, as she said, “I like it already.”
They climbed out of the car simultaneously and Seth led the way inside, stepping aside to let her pass before shutting and locking the door. Then he turned and gestured toward the spacious living room, saying, “Make yourself comfortable.”
She nodded and turned her gaze outward, and for the first time Seth found himself wondering if it was obvious that the furniture had come with the condo. It was just more convenient to rent already-furnished places, but she couldn’t know that. Would she judge him poorly for that? Was that the kind of thing that even mattered to her? Suddenly it was obvious how much he really didn’t know about this woman. And, as he watched her move toward the large sofa, he realized he didn’t like not knowing.
But that was a dangerous train of thought, so Seth grabbed hold of it and shoved it aside. There were more important, more pressing, things to be taking care of right now. Introspection could wait.
Veronica watched him as he quietly moved toward the couch and sat beside her, leaving a cushion between them in hopes that that would be enough to make her feel comfortable. He held her gaze for a long second, studying the light within their depths until he was satisfied that the damage Richards had caused wasn’t irreparable. Then, carefully, he asked, “Can you…tell me what happened?” He already knew the basics of course—she’d told him those over the phone. It was the details he needed to hear.