Liver Let Die

by Liz Lipperman

  Outside, Jordan said good night to her friends and walked with Alex to her car. After holding the passenger door open for her, he walked around to the other side and slid into the driver’s seat.

  Chivalry is not dead!

  Maybe Alex wouldn’t have to drive home tonight, she thought, before scolding herself. She’d never been a onenight stand, and she didn’t intend to start now.

  The ride to her apartment was long enough for the sleepy stage to set in, and Jordan fought to keep her eyes open and stay semi-alert.

  After Alex parked in her spot behind the building, he helped her out of the car. Walking to the entrance, Jordan stumbled and fell into him.

  “Whoa! You really did overdo it tonight.”

  “I’m fine,” she fired back. “You try walking in heels.”

  Alex laughed. “You don’t have heels on, Jordan.”

  Again, her cheeks grew hot from yet another idiot remark. Or was it alcohol flaming the fire? “Oh,” she muttered.

  As soon as they entered the building, Jordan pointed down the hall. “This way.”

  Halfway there a man jumped from the shadows and charged at them. Jordan screamed. Alex let go of her and shoved the stranger, knocking him backward. The man recovered and pushed back before racing past them. In a flash, he opened the door and disappeared.

  “Who was that?”

  “I have no idea,” she said, her stomach in her throat. Too many weird things were happening to her to pretend it was coincidence, but she wasn’t about to share her suspicions with Alex.

  “Let’s get inside your apartment, and I’ll call the police.”

  “No,” she answered quickly.

  Alex’s brow furrowed. “Why not?”

  “I’m too tired to deal with them right now. Besides, the more I think about it, the more I’m sure it was someone more afraid of us than we were of him.” She sighed, wondering if this had anything to do with her visit to the college. Had Derrick sent someone to scare her? “Please, Alex, just open the door. I’m exhausted.”

  He held her stare for a few seconds before doing as she’d requested. Safely inside, Jordan stumbled again and Alex caught her. Lifting up on tippy toes, she touched her lips to his. When he didn’t respond, she snaked her arms around his neck and pressed her body into him.

  This time he did react, groaning as he kissed her back. Jordan couldn’t remember ever falling so deeply into a kiss, wanting so badly to continue doing it for hours.

  But Alex apparently had other plans.

  He pulled away and walked to the door, turning to face her one more time. “I have to get home, Jordan. Get some sleep, and I’ll be back in the morning around ten with coffee. Lock the door behind me.”

  Then he was gone, and Jordan once again felt the sting of rejection. Even though she barely knew the guy, this rebuff hurt almost as much as when Brett tossed her out like dirty dishwater.

  She’d literally thrown herself at him, and he’d passed. What red-blooded man turned down sex? She’d felt his body respond to hers. Why then was she standing alone feeling so unloved in her apartment?

  “Screw him!” she said aloud. He would probably have gotten her into bed then robbed her on the way out.

  She walked to the door and slid the chain over, her mind wandering back to the man who had confronted them in the hallway. She hadn’t been able to see his face clearly with the hoodie, but for an instant, he’d made eye contact with her. There was no denying the man was tall and strong enough to be a match for Alex.

  What was it about those eyes?

  They should have called the police as Alex had suggested, but then, she would’ve had to tell them things she’d rather not just yet.

  Specifically, her encounter with Derrick Young.

  She wasn’t even sure there was something to tell except that the quarterback was abusing his girlfriend. She made a mental note to talk with Brittney again and convince her to tell her parents. If that failed, she’d find a way to tell them herself.

  She stripped off her clothes and threw on an old T-shirt and gym shorts before slipping under the covers. As relaxed as she was from the alcohol, something kept her from falling asleep.

  Something about the guy in the hallway.

  What was it?

  She was sure she’d seen him before, but where?

  CHAPTER 11

  Alex exited Empire Apartments and walked to Jordan’s car, his senses on high alert. Instinctively, his hand moved to his shoulder before he remembered he’d left his weapon back at his own apartment. It wouldn’t have been cool if someone had discovered he’d brought a gun to karaoke night, even with the right-to-carry credentials in his wallet.

  At the thought of Cowboys Bar and Grill, a slight grin crossed his face. Although he hated to admit it, he’d had more fun tonight than he’d had since arriving in Ranchero—hell, since he could remember. It seemed he’d forgotten how to let go and just be in the moment. Tonight Jordan’s friends had made him feel like he’d known them for years.

  And Jordan …

  He sighed, thinking how she’d awakened emotions that hadn’t stirred in a long time. Having grown up with three sisters in Houston, he knew exactly how to get her to do what he wanted. He’d challenged her. No self-respecting, twenty-first-century female wanted the world to think she wasn’t up for anything a man could do.

  What was the old saying about Ginger Rogers—she did everything Fred Astaire did, except she did it backward and in heels?

  Alex chuckled at Jordan trying to blame her wooziness on high heels when she was wearing flats. He hadn’t minded one bit when she’d fallen into him in the parking lot and definitely not when it happened later in her apartment. He’d tried to ignore her lips on his but had lost that battle with himself when she’d pressed into him, awakening every nerve in his body.

  Especially those south of his belt buckle.

  A sudden rustling of leaves catapulted him out of his daydream. He turned in the direction of the sound, ready to confront the stranger again. Cursing his lack of a weapon, an audible sigh of relief escaped his lips when he saw a squirrel scampering up a tree.

  After the incident in the hallway, he’d better get his head out of his ass and stay alert if he wanted to make it home in one piece. Confrontation without a weapon was something he’d prefer not to experience, especially if he was surprised.

  Despite Jordan’s protests, he should have insisted on calling the police. The man had been hiding in the shadows, and who knew what would have happened if he hadn’t been there. He would feel better once Ray returned home.

  But why had she been so determined to keep the police out of it?

  In all his professional life, he had only come across one reason for that—she wanted to avoid the cops asking a lot of questions.

  Why? He shook his head, knowing the obvious reason.

  He reached Jordan’s car, taking his time to open the door. If the intruder was watching, and he felt certain he was, he wanted to give him every opportunity to make a move. He hadn’t noticed a gun, and although the guy had him beat in height and weight, Alex had taken on bigger men in his career and lived to tell about it.

  He slid behind the wheel, taking a deep breath of Jordan’s perfume lingering in the air in the closed space. Lola’s words about meeting that special someone sprung into his mind. He shook it off and started the car, driving out of the parking lot with a final look in the rearview mirror.

  If things were different.

  But he was here for only one thing, and so far, he wasn’t having much luck. His idea of getting closer to her to find out how deeply she was involved had nearly backfired when her warm body had snuggled into his. Everything he’d ever learned warned that getting too close meant dropping his guard.

  If he’d stayed in her apartment one more minute, he was positive, training or not, he would still be there now—under the sheets doing what he’d wanted to do from the first time he’d looked into her eyes.

  That
couldn’t happen, and he’d damn well better get it into his head. Besides, he’d never taken advantage of a female who had consumed enough alcohol to wipe away her inhibitions, so why start now?

  He pulled under a tree a few houses down and killed the motor, knowing Ray and the others would enter the street from the opposite end. He was confident Jordan’s car wouldn’t be noticed, and even if it was, he’d say he was waiting on them. Once he saw them pull around back, he’d head home, but there was no way he was leaving until then.

  Not while the guy who had jumped them still lurked out there.

  Not while the sensation of her lips on his still burned his entire mouth.

  Jordan swallowed three ibuprofen tablets and stumbled back to bed, thinking it was those last two margaritas that did her in. She wasn’t much of a drinker, usually only having one or two, but for some reason, she’d felt she needed the alcohol to wipe away a particularly stressful week.

  Who was she kidding? She’d had bad weeks before and never felt the urge to drink until she turned stupid.

  She groaned, leaning her head back on the pillow. Stupid was putting it mildly. What on God’s green earth made her think she could handle that many margaritas? She’d be sucking down pain meds all day for the headache.

  Swearing off liquor forever, she closed her eyes and willed herself back to sleep. It was Saturday and she had nothing planned except cleaning the apartment, something she’d neglected for two weeks. Maybe she’d even catch up on her reading. She had a stack of to-be-read Sports Illustrated magazines on her nightstand, begging for attention.

  But all that would have to wait. Right now she had some serious z’s to catch up on.

  When the doorbell rang, she sprang up, causing the annoying man behind her forehead with the sledgehammer to kick it up a notch. She decided whoever was at her door would have to come back later to peddle magazines or to try to convince her that his or her God was better than hers. Leaning back, she lowered herself down to the mattress, relieved the medicine had finally started to work.

  When the doorbell rang again and then a third time, she slid out from under the covers, intending to give someone a piece of her mind.

  Opening the door, she gasped. “Alex!” Suddenly she remembered she had to drive him to Connor to pick up his car at the bar.

  The smile on his face spread as his eyes wandered down her body. Self-consciously, she brought her hands up to her chest as she realized she was still braless, in a paper-thin T-shirt.

  She was grateful she wasn’t cold!

  The gesture didn’t go unnoticed as Alex laughed. “Unless you want to miss this great breakfast I picked up, you probably should change into something less sexy.”

  Her skin tingled. “It didn’t seem to affect you last night,” she blurted before her brain could filter her words, making her want to slap herself.

  He laughed again. “About that …”

  “Come on in,” she interrupted, not wanting to go down that road with him. “Kitchen’s to your left. I’ll be right back.” She turned and scampered to the bedroom, wondering if he was watching, wishing she’d worn her cute little sleep shorts to bed instead of her old gym shorts.

  Hurrying, she slipped into jeans and a lightweight sweater, stopping to brush her teeth and run a comb through her hair before returning. She really needed another five minutes to put on some makeup but knew he’d probably make some wisecrack about her getting all dolled up for him if she did.

  No, she’d have to face him au naturel.

  When she walked out of her bedroom, she saw him in her kitchen, and she bit back a grin. He looked like he knew his way around, a tidbit she filed away in her mental folder on the guy.

  He glanced up as she crossed the living room. “What do you want in your coffee?” he asked, again checking out her body.

  “I’m up here, Alex,” she quipped, pointing to her face when his eyes finally traveled up from her chest.

  He had the decency to look embarrassed. “Sorry. With that wild red hair and those jeans, I lost my head. Who can blame me?”

  She turned away so he wouldn’t see her reaction. After she sat down at the dinette table, he carried over the coffee, then went back to the kitchen and emptied the grocery bag he’d brought. “Hope you like bagels and cream cheese,” he said opening the package.

  “I don’t usually eat breakfast.”

  Unless it’s chocolate.

  As if he read her mind, he pulled out a box from the doughnut shop around the corner. “Éclairs for dessert but first the healthy stuff.” Reaching over, he pulled the toaster from under the counter. “Aha! I was just going to ask where you kept the knives.”

  Jordan jumped out of her chair. “What did you say?”

  “I wondered where I should look to find a knife, but there was one behind the toaster.”

  Jordan crossed over to where he stood. “Let me see that.”

  With a confused look on his face, Alex held up the knife.

  Jordan smiled, realizing it was the one missing from the knife rack. “It was behind the toaster?”

  “Yeah,” he replied, still eyeing her suspiciously.

  “I’ve been looking for that,” she explained. “I must have accidentally dropped it back there the other day. I use it to pull out Pop-Tarts without burning my fingers.” Blowing out a breath, she settled back in the chair and sipped the coffee. She couldn’t wait to tell Ray about the discovery.

  “This looks like part of a set. Where are the others?”

  This time Jordan was the one with a confused look on her face. “Why?”

  Alex studied her. “No reason. It’s just that sometimes a knife like this comes in a set with a rack.”

  Jordan nearly choked on the hot coffee. When her coughing jag was over, she purposely kept her eyes glued to the cup in her hand, sure that Alex knew about the hidden knife rack.

  But how?

  “Oh well, it’s not a big deal.” He sliced the bagel in half and popped it into the toaster.

  As she felt her shoulders relax, she knew she’d overreacted. No way Alex could know about the rack since Ray had hidden it a few hours after the cops left. She smiled up at him when he set the bagel in front of her, trying to read his expression for any assurance that her knife secret was still safe. His return smile satisfied her that it was.

  They finished breakfast and drove to Connor to pick up his car. By the time she returned to her apartment, it was afternoon. Although her head begged for more ibuprofen, she raced to Ray’s apartment and pounded on the door.

  When Lola answered, Jordan rushed in, planting a kiss on the older woman’s cheek. “Hey, Lola. Where’s Ray? I have something I need to tell him.”

  “Here I am, doll,” Ray said, emerging from the bathroom in only his jeans and a towel wrapped around his head.

  For an old guy, he’s still buff, she thought. No wonder Lola transformed into a giggling teenager when they were together.

  “I found the knife,” she said. “Well, actually, Alex found it.”

  Ray’s eyes widened and he stopped drying his hair, letting the towel drop to the floor. He sat on the couch and patted the cushion next to him. “Where?”

  “Behind the toaster.”

  “That’s good news. I meant to run over to the storage unit a few days ago to pick up the rack. I’ll do it this afternoon.” He let out a breath. “That’s one less thing we have to worry about. Now all I have to do is install the security camera I borrowed.”

  “You got it?” Jordan paused, wondering if she should tell him about the stranger they’d encountered last night.

  “Yeah. The guy I know in Dallas loaned it to me for a few weeks, but I’ve been too busy to install it.”

  Jordan sat down beside him on the sofa. “I think it might be a good idea to get it up today.”

  When both Lola and Ray stared at her, she blurted, “Last night a man jumped out of the shadows when Alex and I got home.”

  “Ohmygod!” Lola exclaim
ed. “You’re okay, right?”

  “Alex shoved the guy, and he ran past us and took off out the door.”

  “Did you call the cops?” Ray asked.

  Jordan lowered her head and mumbled, “No,” half hoping he didn’t hear.

  “Sweet Jesus! Why not, Jordan? Did you know the guy?” Ray’s voice rose an octave.

  “Something about him seemed familiar, but no, I didn’t recognize him.”

  “So, why didn’t you call, honey?” Lola asked.

  How could she tell them the real reason without confessing to all the other things she knew would cause Ray to throw a fit? “I figured he was just lost, and we scared him into running.”

  “A lost person doesn’t hide in the shadows and jump out at you,” Ray said, his eyes burning her with that you-shouldknow-better look.

  “In retrospect, I agree we should have called, but I was so tired.”

  “And tipsy,” Lola added with a smile. “Good thing Alex was with you. Did he stay for coffee?”

  Jordan smiled. “You are a nosy one, Lola. Yes, I did have coffee with him, but before you go jumping to conclusions, let me put them to rest. Alex stopped by this morning with breakfast and afterward I drove him back to Connor to get his car.”

  “Darn,” she said, playfully.

  “Jordan, are you sure you didn’t recognize the guy?” Ray asked, his tone demanding they get back to business. “What was familiar about him?”

  “I don’t know, Ray. His eyes, maybe.”

  “I’ll definitely get those cameras mounted today. There are too many things going on to pretend it’s nothing.”

  “Are you going to see Alex again?” Lola asked, apparently tired of the more serious conversation.

  “I don’t know. I can’t quite figure him out.”

  “What’s to figure out?” Ray piped in. “A good-looking guy who’s new in town and who’s obviously attracted to you … I don’t see the problem.” He had that look on his face that all men get when things seem black-and-white and they don’t understand why everyone else can’t see it, too.