“What time is your last appointment?” Christy whispered next to her. She was one of the stylists, as well as one of Geneva’s best friends. They had attended cosmetology school together and hit it off immediately.
“I have one more after Mrs. Norris.” Geneva glanced at her watch, thinking that her client, Wendy, should be there soon. “Why do you ask?”
“Tonight, Kim and I are planning to hit up that new restaurant near Ponce City Market. I hear the food is amazing. You in?”
“Umm, maybe.”
Honestly, she wasn’t in the mood to hang out, but if she went home, all she’d do was think about Myles. Seeing him the night before had already caused her a sleepless night of tossing and turning. Maybe it would be good to hang with the girls.
“Yeah, I’m in, but you guys don’t have to wait around for me. I’ll meet you there around eight.”
“Cool, but aren’t you gon’ need a ride since your car is in the shop?”
“Nah, I’ll get there.” Laz was planning to stop by and help lock up, and she could always get him to drop her off.
They were just tying up the details for their evening when Geneva’s client returned.
“Whew! Thanks for the break. Those two cups of coffee this afternoon might not have been a good idea. Got me running to the bathroom every thirty minutes.”
Geneva smiled at Mrs. Norris. “No problem. I’m almost done with your hair. I’ll have you out of here in about ten minutes.”
“Sounds good.”
The rest of the day flew by, especially since Geneva’s five-o’clock appointment had canceled. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. It gave her a chance to wash a load of towels and take care of some paperwork.
A soft knock sounded on the office door, and she looked up. Vanessa, one of their most recently hired stylists, was standing in the doorway. “Hey, there.”
“Hey, Gen. My last client just left. So, it’s just us. Do you still have time to give me a quick updo?”
“Oh, yeah, that’s right. I’m glad you reminded me.” Geneva hopped up from her desk, stuck her cell phone in her back pocket, and grabbed the shop keys. “Can’t have you going on this blind date looking any kind of way.”
Laughing, they went back out to the salon, and Vanessa settled into Geneva’s chair.
“All right, girl. With all of this thick hair, how do you wa…”
The sound of a car screeching to a halt in front of the building captured their attention seconds before the shop’s front window shattered. Shards of glass flew everywhere, pelting them like torrential rain. Geneva’s heart slammed against her chest, and she dropped to the floor, pulling Vanessa down with her. Screams filled the air, and she wasn’t sure if they were hers or Vanessa’s.
“What the hell is—”
The loud crash against a nearby wall halted Geneva’s words. Her arms flew up, covering her head as glass exploded, echoing through the space like large hail ping-ponging off the walls. A burst of white powdery substance detonated into a massive cloud of smoke.
Geneva coughed and blinked several times, unable to see through the sudden fog. Panic rioted within her as her mind raced, trying to figure out what was happening. Body pulsing with adrenaline, she stood but banged the side of her head against the corner of a cabinet.
Pain blasted through her skull.
Nausea clawed at her throat.
Heart racing and head pounding, fear seized Geneva. She couldn’t see through the thick swirl of powder. Vanessa? Where was she?
“Vanessa!” The word flew from her mouth in a hoarse panic. “Vanessa!”
“I’m here. I’m here,” she cried.
Geneva heard her moving around nearby, crying and mumbling something Geneva couldn’t understand. She reached out, patting her hands aimlessly around on the floor as her anxiety grew with each piece of glass she touched.
“Gen? Where are…” Vanessa made contact with Geneva, pulling on her pants leg. “Oh, thank God. We… Ohmigod, ohmigod!”
Geneva startled at Vanessa’s sudden scream.
“Fire! Gen, we gotta get out of here.”
“Gas…I smell gasoline,” Geneva rasped on a cough.
Fear propelled her into action. She and Vanessa blindly grabbed onto each other. Pulling. Tugging. They stumbled. Collided. Banged into furniture.
Geneva didn’t stop moving. “Run! Run! This place is going to blow!”
Chapter Four
Myles had a problem. He either needed to figure out how to move on from Geneva or admit that he wanted a relationship with her. Otherwise, he was going to mess around and lose his job. He couldn’t keep zoning out at work with thoughts of her like he’d been doing for much of the day.
For years he’d been able to keep a wall around his heart and not get attached. One stupid dare to get a kiss out of her, and he’d ended up screwing himself. Geneva was an addiction. An obsession of sorts. One that Myles might not be able to break.
“Like I said, you guys did a great job in Los Angeles. The feedback has been outstanding,” Mason Bennett said, cutting into Myles’s thoughts.
The owner of Supreme Security-Atlanta glanced around at the small group of people in the office. He rarely called impromptu meetings, but since those who had been on the trip were in the building, he pulled everyone together for a quick debriefing.
Myles straightened in his seat and forced himself to pay better attention. They were in Hamilton Crosby’s office. He was Myles’s supervisor and a managing partner of the company. Also present were three others from their security team, sitting at the small round conference table. While Hamilton sat behind his desk, and Mason stood near it.
“In the future, though, Atlanta’s Finest won’t be traveling around the country to train security specialists,” Hamilton added.
Years ago, management affectionately referred to their security personnel as Atlanta’s Finest. Some were former military, but the majority had law enforcement backgrounds. Everything from beat cops to FBI agents was represented at Supreme, and their skill sets were second to none.
“We decided that we’ll start offering training here on-site,” Hamilton continued. He explained that with the number of requests they were getting from around the country, it made better financial sense to do training at their headquarters.
Myles admired Hamilton and Mason. They were well connected, and with their business acumen, there was no telling how far they could take Supreme Security. The company initially started in Chicago and had expanded to Atlanta. Now there was talk that they might branch out to other cities in the near future.
Myles glanced at his watch, realizing he’d been away from his post for over twenty minutes. Unlike the others in the meeting, he had to get back to the front desk.
He stood and buttoned his suit jacket. “I need to get downstairs before Parker thinks I’ve abandoned him.”
Like most of the team, Myles hated when he was assigned front desk duty. Too much sitting around. He understood the need for making sure the building was secure, but they all preferred to be out in the field.
“All right, Myles. Thanks again for your help these past couple of weeks,” Mason said, then snapped his fingers. “Oh, and don’t you guys forget London’s birthday party next week. We want to see all of you. There will be plenty of food, drinks, and music. It’s going to be a good time, so don’t miss out.”
Myles assured him that he’d be there and then headed to the stairs that would take him to the main level. The ten-thousand-square-foot renovated warehouse had everything they could possibly need, with room to expand. Mason and a design team had outdone themselves. The state-of-the-art building included a huge fitness center, crash rooms, a well-stocked kitchen, an indoor shooting range, and it even had a helipad on the roof.
When Myles reached the ground floor, Parker stood at the other end of the long hallway. The former SWAT officer had moved to Atlanta from Chicago well over a year ago and fit right in at Supreme.
�
��Laz is on the main phone line. He said he’s been trying to reach you.”
“Really?”
Myles pulled his cell from his pocket as he walked behind the long counter that overlooked the reception area. Glancing at his cell phone screen, he realized he had two missed calls. He picked up the receiver and pressed the red button that was blinking.
“Laz, what’s up, man?” Myles sat in one of the high back leather chairs located behind the desk counter.
“Someone tossed a Molotov cocktail into the front window of Geneva’s salon.”
Myles sprung forward. “What? Is she okay?”
“I’m not sure. I’m on my way there now, but I wanted to find out if you heard anything else about last night’s incident with her car. There might be a connection.”
“Nah, and I haven’t talked to Gen. I might see if I can reach Ashton,” Myles said of Laz’s old partner, a detective with Atlanta’s police department. “Maybe he can shed some light on where that case stands. Who called you about the Molotov?”
“Journey. She’s in Alpharetta with Dakota and the kids,” Laz said, referring to Hamilton’s wife. “She’s worried because Geneva called her pretty upset. It scared her, man, and you know there’s not much that shakes my sister-in-law. I’ll let you know what I fi—”
“I’m on my way.” Myles hung up, then realized he needed someone to cover the desk for him. “How long are you here for?” he asked Parker.
“For a couple of hours. Go ahead and leave. I’ll get someone to cover for you while you go check on your girl.”
“She’s not my girl,” Myles said in a rush. He snatched his phone from the desk, then searched the area to make sure he wasn’t leaving anything behind.
“If she’s not your girl, what is she?”
“She’s my…”
“Your what?” Parker pressed.
Myles glared at him. He didn’t have time for this. All he could think about at the moment was getting to Geneva and making sure she was okay. “Hell, I don’t know what she is, but don’t call her that.”
Parker shook his head. “Man, you guys are dropping like flies.”
“Yeah, whatever. I’ll be in touch.”
You guys are dropping like flies. The words played around in Myles’s head as he drove to the salon. Three of Atlanta’s Finest had gotten married in the past year and a half. The same ones who had vowed to never marry.
Was there something in the air?
Myles hoped not. He had no intention of ever settling down, and it was crazy even to imagine him and Geneva as a couple. Hell, it was crazy to imagine himself with anyone. A bachelor for life. Myles did what he wanted, when he wanted, and with whom he wanted, with little care about those outside of his immediate circle of family and friends.
Then why was his heart practically pounding out of his chest with worry? Why was he driving like a madman through the city?
He knew the answer. To get to Geneva.
He turned the radio up in the car, hoping the contemporary jazz flowing through the speakers would drown out his thoughts. He was just going to check on Geneva and make sure she was all right. That’s it. Nothing else. It didn’t mean anything.
At least that’s what he kept telling himself.
*
Anger and helplessness warred inside of Geneva as she sat on the bumper of the ambulance with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. An EMT was tending to the cut on the side of her forehead and had also removed a few slivers of glass from her hand. Geneva couldn’t take her eyes off of the front of the salon. The large plateglass window had been obliterated, and black smoke clung to the exterior brick around the opening.
It all seemed like a bad dream. One minute she was about to do Vanessa’s hair, and the next, they were running for their lives. Firefighters were still on-site, but the sprinkler system—which hadn’t come on immediately—had contained the flames at the front part of the salon. But it hadn’t come on soon enough for Geneva. The building managers were going to get an earful by the time she was done with them. It wasn’t until she and Vanessa were almost out of the building did the sprinklers activate.
Thank God they’d been the only two in the salon at the time. Had it been an hour earlier, some clients would have definitely gotten hurt.
A Molotov cocktail.
Geneva couldn’t believe someone had thrown one into her beauty shop. The cops’ initial assessment was that the perps threw two bricks through the window first, followed by two large bottles. The first bottle had been filled with gasoline and motor oil. The other was filled with baking soda, of all things. Geneva couldn’t figure out the purpose of that one.
It didn’t matter, though, because once she got her hands on those responsible, she’d risk going back to jail to make them pay. Deep down, she knew the guys from the night before had something to do with it. Last she heard, one was locked up because of warrants, but the other had paid the fine and was out. They still didn’t have the name of the one who got away. His boys hadn’t rolled on him.
Either way, there was no way she was letting someone get away with this. She had worked too damn hard to make a success of her business, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to let some cowards ruin everything.
“This is a pretty nasty gash you have here, but it doesn’t look like you’ll need stitches,” the EMT said. The woman was so petite, she could’ve easily been mistaken for a fifteen-year-old. “Besides the headache, are you experiencing any dizziness or nausea?”
“Just a headache,” Geneva said, but it was more like a jackhammer had been set loose inside her skull. It was probably a combination of bumping into the cabinet and the stress of having her salon destroyed.
Laz’s voice snagged her attention. He had arrived a few minutes ago, and after making sure she was all right, he went to talk to the police officers. Some of them he had worked with in the Atlanta PD.
Geneva winced when the EMT put a large bandage over the cut.
“Sorry about that. It’s probably going to be tender for a little while.”
Once the EMT was done asking her questions and bandaging her up, Vanessa walked over.
“Are you all right?” she asked and hugged Geneva. They clung to each other, both sighing loudly as if it was the first time they’d been able to take a breath.
“I will be. What about you?”
Vanessa hadn’t sustained any injuries, but she had broken down into tears when they finally made it out of the building. Crying hysterically, it took Geneva several minutes to calm her down.
“I’m okay. I guess my blind date is off.” She gave a humorless laugh and wrapped her arms around herself. Tears filled her eyes again, but none fell. “I’m just glad we made it out.”
“Yeah, me too.” Geneva squeezed the young woman’s arm, hoping to offer some type of comfort. “I’m so sorry you had to go through this.”
“I’ll be fine. The initial shock is wearing off, and my dad just got here. I’ll stay with him and my mom a couple of days until I get my nerves under control.” Her voice shook, and she gave a little laugh. “I can’t stop shaking.”
“I know the feeling. Call me if you need anything. I mean it, anything. I’ll be working with the insurance company and figuring out the next steps. I should be in touch with you in a couple of days to let you know where we go from here.”
“Thanks, Gen. Take care of yourself.”
“Yeah, you too.”
Dread lodged into Geneva’s chest as she watched Vanessa walk toward an older gentleman.
What am I going to do?
Anxiety swirled around inside of her. From employees to clients, people were counting on her to get the next steps right. She had to figure out how to get her business back up and running soon, but how? She wasn’t even sure where to start.
“Gen!”
Geneva turned at the sound of the deep male voice. She huffed out a breath when she saw Reuben rushing toward her. As promised, he had called and left a message on her voi
cemail the night before, but she hadn’t returned his call.
“Are you all right?”
She nodded and tightened the blanket around herself. She wasn’t surprised to see him. A friend of his had recently opened a coffee shop that Reuben frequented at the opposite end of the strip mall.
“What the heck happened? Was anyone else hurt?” he asked, the concern in his eyes warming Geneva’s heart. Some in the community thought he was still the same old gangbanger from years ago, but she had seen the change in him.
Geneva told him about the Molotov, the fire, and how she and Vanessa had barely escaped. Her voice cracked on the last words. She wasn’t a crier but glancing at the front of the shop, where the huge window used to be, was almost her undoing.
“Come here. Everything is going to be okay. I’ll check my contacts to see if anyone has any information. We’ll find whoever did this.”
Geneva allowed Reuben to pull her into a hug, but she kept her hands securely in front of her, where she held onto the blanket. Numbness enveloped her. She might not ever be okay. Her dream had literally gone up in flames.
Reuben tightened his hold, and she immediately felt uncomfortable when he nuzzled her neck. Maybe in the past, she would have welcomed his attentiveness, but those days were gone. She had no intentions of picking up where they left off years ago.
Geneva pulled back, easing out of Reuben’s hold. She appreciated his concern but couldn’t deal with him right now. Standing in front of the storefront, her gaze swept the interior of the salon. Charred furniture. Black, soot-covered walls. Water damage. Moments ago, she’d been angry enough to put a serious beating on someone. Now, misery consumed her. She swallowed the despair in her throat, only for it to return seconds later.
What a mess.
She had worked so hard to build her business. Everything she had went into making it a success. Time. Money. Determination. What did she have to show for it? A shell of a space that still smelled a little like gasoline.
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