by Krista Lakes
Laura had arranged for the weekend off of parent duty two weeks ago, back when she was still with him. She'd had this fantastic idea to steal him away for a sexy weekend adventure. Then they'd broken up.
That was a week ago.
She turned and went back into the empty house, and she immediately missed her siblings. She had no idea what in the world she was going to do by herself this weekend. If nothing else, the barn was going to get a good cleaning.
She sighed and glanced over at her phone. He hadn't called her. The only message she'd gotten from him since she told him she wanted a break was two days old.
I'm fine. Home in California safe. Don't worry about me.
That was it. It broke her heart that he knew she'd be worried. She'd tried to call him, but the first time it went straight to voicemail. She was too much of a chicken to try again.
Besides, she knew it was what needed to happen. They needed a clean break to keep from coming back together. They needed this. The kids needed this. It was the right thing to do.
But, oh, did it hurt.
It hurt so much more than she was expecting. The first few days had been rough, but it was the silence that was driving her mad. She kept thinking the pain would start to vanish, that she would want him less now that he was gone, but it was only getting worse.
She had thought that pushing him away would prevent the pain of losing him. Instead, it had made the pain of losing him real. She didn't hurt before, but she did now.
Laura was an idiot, and she knew it.
She sighed and looked around the house. It was so quiet and empty without the kids jumping up and down. She didn't know what to do with herself. Dinner was on her own tonight. She went to the fridge, and nothing looked appetizing. She looked over at the empty table and felt an immense loneliness crash down on her.
It was the last thing in the world that she wanted to feel. She didn't want to be by herself. If she were alone with her thoughts, she would end up changing her mind about what she'd done. She'd call him again. She'd have to deal with the pain.
She thought about going to the barn, but there wouldn't be any humans there. It was a Friday night, and all the ranch hands would be home. The camp kids weren't coming until next week, so she'd be just as alone there as she was here. Besides, she didn't want to have to shower again.
So, she decided to go to Sandy's. Elena was probably working since she always seemed to be working. It only took a couple of minutes to hop in the car and make the short drive to the restaurant.
The evening air was cooling quickly, and the sound of crickets filled the air. Everything smelled like pine needles as she walked across the full parking lot and into the restaurant. It was a busy night with plenty of locals and even more visitors enjoying the mountain evening.
Laura walked in and headed straight for the bar. She found an open seat and snagged it, checking around to see if she could find Elena.
“What can I get you?” the bartender asked. It wasn't Elena. It was a young guy with dark hair and matching dark eyes. She didn't recognize him, but he was probably just new for the summer.
“Is Elena here tonight?” Laura asked, trying not to sound too desperate.
“Sorry. She called in sick,” the guy told her.
“Oh. Um, let me think about what to drink. Thanks.” Laura smiled at him, and he turned and went on to the next customer.
Laura chewed the inside of her cheek. She wasn't sure she wanted to stay in the crowded restaurant without Elena. Despite the room being crowded, she'd never felt more alone. But, if she went home, she knew she'd just spend the evening moping around and crying.
“Can I buy you a drink?” A man slid into the chair next to her. He was fairly good looking with shaggy blond hair and an easy smile. “It looks like you could use one.”
“You really don't have to,” she replied. The last thing she wanted was another guy who expected her to give something she wasn't ready to give.
The guy held up his hands. “No obligations,” he promised. He leaned in. “I just don't want to drink by myself. Please?”
Laura hesitated. She was so lonely tonight that she was tempted. “I don't know.”
“Look, I just broke up with my boyfriend,” the guy admitted. “We were supposed to have this romantic cabin thing, so I drove all the way up here to meet him. And he broke up with me and is spending our time in that romantic cabin with another guy.”
“Ouch.” Laura winced. That sounded like a way worse breakup than hers.
The guy shrugged. “So, I need a drink. You look like you need one, too,” he said. “And now you know you don't have to worry about me hitting on you.”
She couldn't help but smile a little bit. The guy was charming. “Okay. One drink,” she agreed.
“My name's Chad,” the guy introduced himself, holding out his hand. She shook it and smiled.
“I'm Laura.”
“Nice to meet you, Laura,” Chad replied. “What do you like to drink?”
“Here? I like their Moscow mules,” she told him. “Best in the state.”
“Sounds good.” He grinned and held up his hand to catch the bartender's attention. “Moscow mules for the two of us. Put it on my tab.”
It only took a moment for the bartender to come back with two shiny copper mugs filled with delicious ginger beer and vodka.
“Well, your ex-boyfriend is an idiot,” Laura announced holding up her cup. Chad clinked his against hers and smiled.
“Tell me about it,” he agreed. “Cheers.”
And they both drank. It tasted delicious. Laura wasn't sure what the secret ingredient was that Sandy's used to make theirs taste better than anyone else's, and Elena refused to tell her.
“So, why are you here drinking alone and looking like someone kicked your dog?” Chad asked.
Laura sighed. “I told my boyfriend we needed a break. He hasn't spoken to me since.”
Chad winced. “That's rough.”
“Yeah. In this case, I'm the idiot,” she admitted, taking another sip of her drink.
“We're all idiots in love,” Chad replied. He held up his glass, and she happily toasted again
“To idiots,” she agreed, drinking deeply.
She went to set her cup on the counter and nearly missed, sloshing some of her drink onto her hand. She frowned at the cup, surprised at how strong the alcohol was. It certainly didn't taste that strong. Either that, or she was turning into a complete lightweight.
“So, do you think you'll ever find love again?” she asked. She made sure not to take another sip of her drink. When the bartender came back, she was going to order some food. It was probably hitting her harder than she thought because she had an empty stomach.
“I don't know,” Chad said with a shrug. “I hate relationships at the moment. What about you?”
“I'm afraid I might have really screwed things up,” she admitted. She turned the copper cup, so it caught the light. It was pretty. “This was our second chance. Do I really deserve a third?”
“We all deserve love,” Chad told her. “I hope it works out for you.”
“Thanks,” she replied. “I hope so, too.”
He took a deep sip of his drink and set the empty cup on the counter. “I need to use the restroom. You okay by yourself?”
“Of course,” she told him. She frowned as she looked past him and saw a familiar face. Craig, Ethan’s security guard, sitting in a booth by the end of the bar. What was he doing here? “Actually, I think I see a friend of mine.”
She went to stand up from the bar stool, and the whole world spun. She couldn't seem to get her legs to respond to her commands. It was like she was swimming through jello.
“I think... I think...” she stuttered. She looked over at her drink sitting on the bar. She picked it up and nearly sloshed the remainder all over her front. “How strong were these?”
“Are you okay?” Chad asked, looking concerned as she nearly knocked her drink over.
“I think you need to go home now, Laura,” Craig said, suddenly beside her. “I think you've had a little too much to drink.”
“But I didn't,” Laura protested, but no one heard her.
“Do you know this guy?” Chad asked her, motioning to Craig.
“Yeah,” she said with a smile that felt way too big. She nodded, and her head felt like a bobble-head doll. “He's my boyfriend's bodyguard. He's good.”
“Bodyguard, huh,” Chad said, looking skeptical. He looked like he might have been sizing up Craig, like he might try to defend her honor in a moment. “You're sure?”
“She's sure,” Craig assured her, putting her arm over his shoulder. “Thanks, buddy. I've got her.”
“We're good,” she told Chad. Her words slurred far more than she intended. “Thanks for the drink.”
Chad shrugged. “Sure. Hope it works out for you.”
Craig pulled her to a standing position, her arm over his shoulder and supporting most of her weight. She was fairly sure he was going to have to carry her out. It was a good thing he was strong.
“Thanks,” she replied. “You too.”
Craig nodded to Chad, and they started walking out of the restaurant. Laura's head spun, and the lights were too bright for her to look at. Luckily, Craig's car was parked right out front where it was easy to get into. He opened the door and got her in the passenger seat.
“Craig, I think that guy spiked my drink,” she said. She couldn't believe it. He had seemed so nice. “It's a good thing you were here, Craig or I'd be in big trouble.”
Craig reached over her and carefully buckled her in. She heard the seat belt click and her eyes started to close. She couldn't seem to stay awake. Craig smoothed the belt over her shoulder.
“He didn't spike your drink, Laura,” Craig said. “I did.”
And the world went black.
Chapter 37
Laura
Laura's head throbbed, and her mouth felt like she'd eaten fire. She shook her head, trying to clear out the ringing in her ears and figure out where she was. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the gray light and for the world to stop spinning long enough to get a clear image.
She was in some sort of empty warehouse. Pale gray light filtered in through windows on the second floor, but other than that she couldn't see much. Everything was dusty, so she assumed that where ever she was, it wasn't in active use.
She tried to rub her eyes to get the grit out of them but found them tied behind her. She was on a hard metal chair, the kind used for church get-togethers and elementary school concerts. It was not a comfortable thing to be tied to.
“Hello?” she called out. It hurt her voice to talk, but she had to find out if she was alone. Her voice didn't seem to travel far.
She waited for a reply, but nothing came. She swallowed down her panic. She was alone and tied to a chair. The last thing she remembered was Craig's face telling her he had drugged her. He was the one who tied her up and left her here.
“Anybody?” she called out again. “Somebody, help me!”
Again, she was met with nothing but silence.
No one would even notice she was missing for at least two days. Dallas and Ivy were at their grandparents. Elena didn't know she wasn't home, and no one at work expected her to show up this weekend.
She struggled against the ties on her wrists, wrenching her shoulders and cursing as the ropes cut into her skin. She kicked against the zip ties on her ankles, but all it did was cause pain. She couldn't escape.
She was alone and tied to a chair by her ex-boyfriend's security.
She started to laugh. It was either that or cry, but she wasn't sure she had any tears left in her. Laughing worked just as well. After everything, she wasn't going to lose those she cared about. They were going to lose her, and airplanes had absolutely nothing to do with it.
Despite trying to keep everyone safe, she was the one in danger. There was no way she could have prevented this. She laughed as she realized there was one way she could have avoided being tied to a chair in the middle of an empty warehouse alone.
She should not have broken up with Ethan. If she hadn't pushed him away to keep herself safe, she'd be safe with him. They'd be at some romantic cabin somewhere with plenty of security and not a care in the world. By saving herself from the pain of losing him, she was going to get herself killed. That was certainly one way to prevent the pain, but not the one she had planned on.
Her laughter grew a little more maniacal. It was either that or burst into tears.
A door on the opposite end of the warehouse squeaked open, and Laura no longer felt like laughing. The sound died in her throat as she struggled to see who was coming to see her.
Craig stepped into the pale light from the window and smiled. He didn't look crazy. He looked just the same as he ever did. She had no idea what had made him do this.
“Good,” he said coming closer. “You're awake. I brought you some water.”
He came over and opened a water bottle. With gentle care, he brought it to her lips and tipped it up so she could drink. It was cold and quite possibly the most delicious thing Laura had ever tasted. She sucked on the bottle greedily.
“Whoa, whoa,” he chastised, pulling it away. “Slow down. I don't want you to get sick.”
Laura whimpered. She wanted that water. She would have done just about anything to get more.
“Please,” she begged. “I'm just so thirsty.”
“That's to be expected,” Craig replied. “It'll pass. You can have more water as long as you promise to go slow.”
She nodded, ignoring the pain that it caused to move her head. “I promise.”
He put the water bottle back to her lips. She had to focus and use all her willpower not to chug the bottle. Instead, she took slow, careful sips.
“Good,” Craig praised her when she had finished. “That's much better.”
He put the lid back on the empty bottle and then frowned. He leaned over and carefully wiped a drop of water from her chin like she was a child.
“Thank you,” she said, unsure of what else she could say to that. “Craig, what am I doing here?”
“You're here because Ethan needs to realize how much he needs me,” Craig replied. He set the half-empty bottle down next to her chair and checked the ties on her ankles. He frowned at her. “You need to not hurt yourself.”
“I'm sorry,” she said quickly. He patted her leg as he stood back up. “But what do you mean, Ethan needs to know? I don't understand.”
Craig sighed. “Did you know that he fired me?” he asked, hurt on his voice. “After everything I've done for him?”
“He fired you?” Laura could hardly believe. Up until a little while ago, she thought Craig was a model employee. “Why?”
“They said I had too much overtime,” Craig replied. “He didn't even have the balls to do it himself. He had Bruce do it. He claimed I had too much overtime and needed to take some time off.”
“Ethan told you to take some time off? Isn't that a good thing?” Laura asked, not quite understanding how that meant he was fired.
“No, it's not a good thing,” Craig yelled at her. He took a breath and quieted himself. “He needs me to keep him safe.”
“Oh.” Laura nodded. “Even if you were working overtime, right?”
Craig smiled at her. “You get it,” he said. “Do you know how many hours I didn't bill? I watched him sleep to make sure he was safe. I never billed for that.”
“You watched him sleep?” Laura asked. She hoped he didn't notice the surprise in her voice.
“I'm his security,” Craig explained. “I have to make sure he's safe. Even when he's sleeping.”
“Well, that makes perfect sense,” Laura replied, playing along. There was no way she was going to tell him anything otherwise. She needed him to want to help her, and the only way to do that was for him to like her. “But why did you kidnap me?”
“Because his current securi
ty team is a bunch of fucking idiots,” Craig informed her. He knelt down so he could look her in the eye. He had beautiful eyes. “Do you know how easy it was for me to get you?”
She shook her head.
“I didn't even have to try,” he told her. “I followed you for one night and was able to spike your drink and get you out here without a single one of Ethan's security team even noticing. It's like they weren't even paying attention. They're all too busy chasing stupid leads.”
Laura bit down that they had broken up. If Craig hadn't brought it up, she wasn't about to. Her survival right now depended on Craig believing she was important to Ethan.
“I think you've made your point,” Laura told him. “Can you let me go now?”
He smiled sadly and shook his head. “No, Laura, I can't. He has to see. He has to understand how much he needs me. I can't let you go.”
It was a long shot anyway, she told herself. “What are you going to do with me?”
Craig rose back to standing and looked around the warehouse. “He's coming here so I can show him,” he explained. “I told him to come alone. I'll know if he does.”
“How?”
He held up his phone and tapped his earpiece. “I still have all the security feeds. If he told his bumbling fuck-up of a security director, I'll know.”
Laura swallowed hard. Despite the water, her mouth was dry again. “What if he doesn't come alone?”
Craig faced her. “I like you, Laura. You make him happy, and that's all I want. I want him happy,” he told her. His face went dark. “But, if he doesn't listen to me, I have to prove my point.”
Laura shrank a little in her chair.
“You understand, don't you?” Craig asked. “He needs to know that I keep him safe. That he needs me. I'm only looking out for his best interests.”
“I'm sure he knows that,” Laura whispered. She had to get out of here as soon as possible.