In a flash, she grabbed her mug of cold coffee and threw it in Jake’s face. Before he had a chance to react, she ran for the stairs.
CHAPTER 25
The woman had a one-track mind.
Nic lay on top of Vivian, pinning her hands above her head so she’d stop trying to grab his dick. Since he couldn’t fake an erection, one touch and it would be game over.
A loud noise from above caught his attention and he pulled back.
“What’s that?” Vivian asked. “I hope it’s not that crazy friend of yours.”
“I’ll go see,” he said, pulling one of the blankets around her. “Put this on so you don’t get cold.”
“This is why I love you.”
Seeing her bright eyes, his heart twisted painfully. For the first time since she’d arrived at the ranch, he was seeing Vivian, the woman who’d been his mentor, his confidante, and his friend for the past decade. What had happened to her that she’d lost herself? He dropped a tiny kiss on her lips and rose to his feet.
When he was still a couple steps away from the door, Lauren rounded the corner and ran into his chest. Automatically his arms went around her. She looked at him with pity in her eyes. His fiancée had apparently decided he needed rescuing. He dropped his arms as Vivian approached.
“My, my. Look what the cat dragged in,” she hissed. “Aren’t you supposed to be in New York?”
Lauren’s eyes darted between Nic and Vivian as if she didn’t know how to answer. Nic bit back a groan. How the hell was he going to get her out of here?
Ignoring Lauren, he put his arm at the small of Vivian’s back and led her to their makeshift bed. If he stayed between the two of them, Vivian wouldn’t be able to hurt Lauren. And right now, keeping Lauren safe was the only thing that mattered.
Vivian pulled the blanket more tightly around her shoulders, all trace of desire gone. Hatred flashed in her eyes and rang in her voice. “Why is she here?”
“I don’t know.”
“Well, get rid of her. Before I do.”
Fuck. Vivian wouldn’t buy his act unless he was hard on Lauren. Hell, he was so pissed, it wouldn’t be much of a stretch. He turned to face her. “What the fuck are you doing here? I told you when you left, that we were done. That I never wanted to see your lying face again.”
Lauren flinched. But when she straightened her spine, Nic knew he was in trouble. “I… I couldn’t stay away. I quit my job for you.”
Vivian’s mouth gaped.
“You shouldn’t have.” Nic shrugged and threw his arm around Vivian, pulling her against his side. “Viv and I belong together. You lost your chance.”
“I’d do anything for you.” She bit her lip. “I’m even willing to share.”
Vivian turned to Nic. “You see? I was right. She’s nothing but a whore.”
Lauren eyed Vivian up and down, and grimaced. “Come on, Vivian. You know you can’t handle a guy like Nic. You need someone like me to pick up the slack.”
All his blood dropped and pooled in his feet. She was playing a very dangerous game.
“Someone like you?” sputtered Vivian.
“Someone young,” Lauren said, emphasizing the word.
Vivian lunged at her. “You little bitch!”
Lauren chuckled and jumped out of the way. “See?”
Nic tried to get between them. “Ladies. Let’s all calm down.”
Vivian shrugged and turned away. Nic felt a moment of relief when she picked up her skirt and slipped it on. He’d seen more than enough of her teddy. She jammed her arms into the sleeves of her blouse, tying it in a knot below her breasts. Finally she picked up her purse.
“Leaving so soon, dear?” Lauren asked, echoing Vivian’s mocking words.
Without answering, Vivian headed for the door and Nic wondered if this would be the end of it. He’d managed to get her to admit to the stalking but not to murdering Summer. Would it be enough?
As she came even with Lauren, Vivian pivoted and Nic knew he’d made a deadly error. Before he could reach them, Vivian grabbed Lauren from behind and put a strangle hold on her. Nic’s heart stopped beating when he saw the blade against Lauren’s throat.
“Drop it!” shouted Jake as he threw himself into the room.
Jesus fucking Christ. Vivian had Lauren by the throat and now he had to worry about Jake, too. At least he hadn’t come barging in with his gun drawn.
“Well, well, well. What have we here?” Vivian asked, her light and flirty tone at odds with the situation.
“Release Ms. James. No one needs to get hurt, ma’am.”
The intensity of Jake’s expression and the tightness of his body clearly said to Nic that he was set to make a move. Nic chanced a glance to the side window and caught a reflection. Kaden’s gun was pointed at Vivian. And Lauren was in the way. The panic etched on her features jump-started his stopped heart, which began thundering in his chest. As she stared at him wide-eyed, his mind raced with a thousand possibilities, each more gruesome than the last. “Get out,” he said to Jake. The bodyguard’s presence only added to the confusion.
“Darling, I’m not stupid,” Vivian said, shaking her head. “If he leaves, he’ll tell that delicious bodyguard of yours.”
Jake held up his hands. “No, ma’am. I won’t.”
“Such a good boy.” She smiled, then her expression hardened. “Hit him.”
Nic blinked. “What?”
“I said hit him.” When he hesitated, she added, “Knock him out. Now.”
This wasn’t good. But maybe they could trick Vivian? He locked gazes with Jake, trying silently to convey his plan. “Sorry, man,” he said, right before punching Jake in the side of the head. Jake’s eyes rolled back and he crumpled to the ground. Nic had to admit that under the circumstances, the bodyguard’s acting was pretty damn good. He actually wasn’t certain whether Jake had passed out or not. Breathing hard, he turned back to Vivian. “Let her go, Vivian. I love you, not her.”
“No. Since the cow is here, I might as well use her as a test.”
“A test?” he repeated stupidly.
“Of your love.” Smiling, she lowered her head and licked Lauren’s neck. “If you truly love me, you’ll let me kill her.”
He didn’t want Vivian dead, but if she hurt Lauren, all bets were off. Before he could say anything, Vivian pressed the blade, piercing Lauren’s pale skin. Lauren whimpered, a sound that tore at his heart. He was going to kill Vivian with his bare fucking hands.
Vivian cackled as blood began to drip down Lauren’s throat. “So pretty,” she mused. When the stream of blood reached Lauren’s white T-shirt, he flashed back to the accident, to Rachel’s blood splattered on the front seat of the car, the stark contrast of red on white turning his stomach. He started to drift. Fighting back, he tore his eyes away from Lauren’s neck. He was not going to pass out.
“What’s the matter, darling? Is the blood making you woozy?”
Ignoring the jibe, Nic forced himself to focus on Vivian’s face and not on the blood dripping down Lauren’s neck. He swallowed hard. He had to get the knife. But how? As he searched the room, he again saw the glint in the window. His mouth went dry.
If Kaden fired now, he’d hit Lauren.
In one long leap, he jumped on the women, knocking Vivian back. Grabbing her knife hand, he pulled it away from Lauren. But Vivian kept her other arm around Lauren’s throat in a death grip. The three of them fell to the floor in a tangle of arms and legs.
White hot pain shot through him as something sharp pierced his side. But Vivian still held the knife. With a cold emptiness in her eyes, she slammed the hilt down toward the side of his head. He raised his arm, deflecting the worst of it, but the momentum sent him sprawling on his back.
Vivian shoved him with her foot and scrambled upright, using Lauren as a shield. Nic caught his breath. The knife was once again pressed against Lauren’s throat. Vivian peered down at him. “Tsk, tsk, darling. You’ve cut yourself.”
&n
bsp; What? He brought his hand to his temple but Lauren shook her head and pointed to his side. “Vivian, he’s bleeding. Let me help him,” she begged.
With his gaze locked on Vivian, he sat up and slid a hand over his side. The area was wet. He raised the hand to his face and sucked in a breath. The bitch had stabbed him. Unable to resist, he glanced down at the wound. And began to sway.
No! Fuck no!
He had to get Lauren out of here. His gaze snapped back to Vivian and he swallowed repeatedly to force back the nausea.
“Are you angry, darling?” She was enjoying all the commotion. Or was it the blood that excited her?
Fighting down the bile that rose in his throat, he flashed her a grin as if he too were in on the joke. He needed to get back into character. “What’s a little blood sport between lovers?”
Lauren twisted her head so she could see Vivian’s face. “Is that what happened with Summer? Did your sex play get out of hand?”
Vivian jerked back; her eyes filled with disgust. “That bitch was trailer-park trash who couldn’t follow simple instructions. She deserved everything she got.”
The knife jabbed Lauren again as Vivian’s arms tightened around her neck. The cut was deeper this time and more blood flowed. He could see the tears in Lauren’s eyes, but she didn’t make a sound. When she shook her head slightly, his chest contracted. He understood. Vivian hadn’t quite confessed yet.
Nic let his eyes fill with love and adoration as he met Vivian’s gaze. “Did you do that for me? Did you kill Summer because she tried to hurt me?”
As he held her gaze, a smile tugged at her lips, and when she spoke, her voice was low, husky. “She wanted to take you away from me. I couldn’t let her do that.”
“So.” He paused and cleared his throat. “You killed her?”
“Yes. I had to stop her.”
Nic shot her a lopsided grin and pushed to his feet. “Thank you, chérie. Thank you so much.” He said the words to Vivian, but they were meant for Lauren. She’d managed what he hadn’t been able to do: she’d gotten Vivian to confess.
“I’d do anything for you.” Vivian yanked her arm, choking Lauren. Nic felt his own breath leave his body. He took a step closer, but Lauren opened her eyes wide, warning him not to. He hesitated.
“I’ll take care of this little rodent problem now,” Vivian said in a high-pitched singsong voice that told him everything he needed to know about her sanity. “You don’t need her anymore.”
He nodded. “I have you now.”
“We can be together like we always wanted. You know you’re mine.”
“I know,” he said. “But you need to let Lauren go. If you kill her, the police will be after us. We won’t have the future you planned.”
Vivian shook her head. “I can’t do that.”
As Nic took another step to close the distance between them, Vivian yelled at him to stop. He froze but not before his arm hit one of Lauren’s umbrellas. His hand shot out to steady it before the wireless flash unit could dislodge and fall to the floor. When he lowered his gaze to the women in front of him, he caught a glimmer of hope in Lauren’s eyes.
Careful not to show any reaction, he watched her tap the pocket of her cargo pants with her left hand. Did she have the flash controller in her pocket? Warmth flooded his chest and he wanted to smile. This was so Lauren: prepared for anything.
It was dark enough that if they could trigger the flash units, the light would temporarily blind Vivian and she’d let go of Lauren. It was definitely worth a try. He needed to distract Vivian so Lauren could get the controller out.
His eyes on Vivian, he twisted his mouth into a pout. “Let me get my shirt so I can staunch this bleeding, okay? Then we can figure this out.” He backed up to the blankets, picked up his shirt and pressed it firmly against his side. He winced when the material touched his wound.
“Does it hurt, darling?”
“What’s a little pain?” he asked conversationally. From this position, he faced Vivian but he could also keep an eye on Jake, who lay on the floor slightly behind and to Vivian’s right. “Pain adds to the pleasure, don’t you think?”
If he kept her talking, he could edge close enough to make another grab for the knife when the flashes went off.
“I’m glad you think so.” Vivian smiled.
“Promise you’ll punish me when I’m bad?” he said, winking.
Lauren unbuttoned the pocket of her cargo pants. Jake’s fingers twitched.
When Vivian laughed, he smiled. “You’ve always been there when I needed you, and you always knew exactly what to do to make things better.” And he wished he’d been there for her when she needed him. Maybe none of this would have happened. He actually meant every word, and let it show in his eyes. Careful to stay between Lauren and the window, he closed half the distance between them, as Vivian focused on his expression. “Can you tell me, how are we going to get away from here?”
“We weren’t supposed to leave until tomorrow, but I suppose I can adjust the plan. After we take care of our little problem”—she yanked on Lauren’s hair and Nic had to put all his skills to use to cover up his flinch—“we’ll take my car and drive to the airport. A plane will take us to a private island in Caribbean.”
An island? How the hell had she bought an island? “That sounds wonderful.” Lauren held up five fingers. He took a step and she put one down. “Will we be alone on this island?” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Jake’s hand move.
“Yes, except for the natives I’ve hired.”
One step. Three fingers.
“How will we pay them? All my money is gone.”
Jake inched his hand along his leg. What the hell was he doing? Nic’s fist clenched. Jake was probably wearing a backup weapon at his ankle. Now he had two guns to worry about.
One step. Two fingers.
“That’s the beauty of my plan.” Vivian grinned as if about to reveal a big secret. “Your money’s not gone.”
“It’s not?” No need to fake surprise. “But what about the blackmailer? We have to pay her tomorrow.”
Vivian tipped her head back and laughed. Lauren edged the controller out of her pocket. “There’s no blackmailer. That was all me. We have enough money to live on the island for the rest of our lives, just you and me.”
“I can’t imagine anything more romantic.” Horrific.
“It will be, darling. I’ve waited so long for this. To have you all to myself.”
One step. One finger.
With only one step to go, Nic pretended to cough so he could glance in Jake’s direction. Did he understand their plan? As long as there was a hope to end this without killing Vivian, he wouldn’t give the signal to shoot. “Just you and me, as it always should have been.”
As he took the last step, Lauren pressed the top button on the wireless controller. Prepared, Nic squinted against the bright lights that flashed around the room.
Vivian screeched and covered her eyes with the back of her knife hand as the lights blinded her. Lauren twisted and swung her arms locked together, clocking Vivian in the head. Reeling from the impact, Vivian’s hold on Lauren loosened, and she struggled out of her grasp.
Nic threw himself on Vivian, grabbing the hand that held the knife. “Jake! Get Lauren out of here,” he shouted without taking his eyes off Vivian.
Snarling, Vivian clawed at Nic’s face with her sharp nails and tried to knee him in the groin. He twisted his hips just in time to avoid serious injury. “I’ve never hit a woman, but for you, I think I could make an exception.”
Vivian laughed. “Go ahead. I like it rough.”
Despite everything she’d done, seeing the madness in her eyes broke his heart. “It didn’t have to be like this,” he said, pinning her knife hand to the ground.
“This was all about your little whore, wasn’t it?” she spat.
Jake appeared to his left. His gun trained on Vivian, he said, “I’ve got her, sir.”
“
Where’s Lauren?”
Jake indicated the direction of the door with a slight jerk of his head. Nic released his hold on Vivian. When she didn’t make a move to attack him again, he stood up and took a couple steps back. Jake bent down to secure Vivian’s hands with zip ties.
Nic turned away from the sight of Vivian lying on the ground. He should hate her, but he couldn’t. At least maybe now he could get her the help she needed.
Lauren rushed to his side. “Are you okay?” Her hands flew to his temple and then to the cut in his side. He hissed. “Oh God, I’m sorry,” she said, her face turning white.
“It’s just a scratch,” he said, pulling her into his arms and hugging her tight. She was safe and the nightmare was finally over. But he needed to make sure Vivian hadn’t done any serious damage. “Let me see your neck.”
When he brushed her hair back to examine the spot where the knife had cut her, she pressed her head against her hunched shoulder so he couldn’t see the wound. “Don’t,” she said.
“It’s okay—”
“Hey, that was supposed to be my job,” said a very disgruntled Rémi.
Jake looked up and grinned. A grimace of pain spread across his features as Vivian took advantage of the moment of distraction, kicking him in the groin with the heel of her Louboutins.
Vivian picked up the fallen knife and rushed at Nic and Lauren.
Lauren screamed.
“Slap shot!” he yelled, giving Kaden and Jake the signal to shoot. Nic pushed Lauren to the floor and threw himself on top of her. If anyone was going to get hurt, it would be him. Rémi landed on Nic’s back. Shocked and surprised, he could do no more than brace himself on his elbows to keep some of the weight off Lauren.
Jake pointed his gun at Vivian and fired. A window shattered as a second shot rang out. Vivian screamed.
Nic covered Lauren’s head with his hands to protect her as shards of glass rained down. Guilt swamped him when he felt Rémi’s hands cover his own head and heard him grunt as pieces embedded in his back.
As the echo of the shots died out, silence fell. Rémi eased off him and Nic glanced over at Vivian. She lay sprawled on her back, unmoving. Blood leaked from a hole in her forehead. A red stain bloomed on her chest.
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