Mistake (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Allyson Young

  “I didn’t feel safe in my house. I don’t doubt he’s been in it, although I haven’t seen any sign. Jason’s mind works in devious ways. So I went to Judith’s, and probably put my friends in danger doing it,” she added bitterly.

  “Maybe not. Bryce would have picked up any tail.”

  She appeared to relax for a moment but said, “If Jason has been here for any length of time he knows a lot about me. And he’s been out for three months! He’ll know where I work, who my friends are…who I’ve been…seeing. He might be an asshole but he’s a smart asshole.”

  Bryce clamped his jaw. He didn’t want to hear who else Jenna had been seeing. Jealousy flared, something he hadn’t felt in forever. And who the fuck was Jason?

  “Who do you think might be in danger besides you and your friends?” Darren knew Bryce was listening and was probably trying to be delicate.

  “I don’t know. Maybe my boss, although I doubt Jason has laid eyes on him. But I have no idea who that man would see as fair game. Carla and Judith probably, just because they’re my friends. And Bryce.” He could hardly hear her whisper his name and realized she was afraid for him. Was she trying to shield him?

  “Any other man?” Darren watched her with intensity.

  “No. There were a few after I moved here, but nothing serious and that was in a different time frame. Jason wouldn’t know about them.” Bryce ground his teeth.

  Suddenly, Jenna blurted, “I had coffee with Karen on Sunday. We went shopping. I’m sorry, Darren. He might have seen us together. I’m like the fucking plague. I contaminate everybody I touch.”

  Darren’s face went tight and he glanced at the one-way glass. Bryce was already pulling out his phone. When he reached Karen he told her to arm her security system and not let anyone into the house until she heard from Darren. A cop’s wife, she accepted his directions but the questions and concern were evident in her voice.

  “Okay. I’m on it now. And, Bryce? Sorry about you and Jenna…um…not being together.” Well, that mystery was solved. He put it aside, although he wasn’t surprised Jenna had connected with at least one of the women in his circle. They liked her, too, probably because she’d been around as long as she had and they were able to get to know her. It was unlikely Karen was at risk, but he needed to learn more. Jenna was still talking.

  “—married for five years and it seemed like an eternity after year one. I stuck it out, hoping the meds would help but he just kept getting worse. And then when the ‘until death do you part’ element became painfully obvious I took action. It helped when he got in that bar fight and was put away for manslaughter. It gave me both the time and opportunity to sell up and get gone.

  “The company transferred me as soon as my supervisor found out what was going on, bless her. It helped that their charity is a battered women’s shelter. I jumped at the opportunity to move here.”

  Fuck, Bryce didn’t want to think about what Jenna had endured. Darren wasn’t looking as calm and collected anymore, and had reached to pat Jenna’s forearm.

  “We’ve asked for the file from Minneapolis, but you’ll need to call your current boss and take a leave or something.”

  To Bryce’s surprise, Jenna didn’t protest, and he accepted she was fully aware of what her ex was capable of. He needed to read that file.

  * * * *

  There was no relief, no euphoria now the authorities knew. Jenna was well aware of the limits of their abilities, the way their hands were tied by the very law they upheld. Jason wouldn’t respect restraining orders or parole conditions—she had firsthand knowledge of the contempt with which he held those kinds of things. He deemed himself above all of the rules that applied to others, part of his illness but mostly because he always considered himself superior. His very panache, coupled with incredible good looks and thick charm, was what attracted her in the first place. She had wanted to believe he was the person he projected through and through but what she got was superficial and hid the demons growing beneath the surface. Shuddering against the onset of memories she’d worked hard at suppressing, she thought instead of Bryce.

  What did he mean by second chances? He was absolutely correct in recognizing that she didn’t give second chances anymore—she couldn’t afford to, having learned that particular lesson very well, nearly at the expense of her life. Yet she kept making poor choices, falling for the charmers, even since Jason, desperate for someone to share her life and affirm she wasn’t the person who’d attracted a crazy man. She’d been weak and needy after her flight to Sarasota and eagerly accepted dates with good-looking, shallow men. Scraping them off immediately perhaps spoke to a modicum of good sense, but still…and then she met Bryce. And had sex with him instantly. What was wrong with her?

  She’d figured out what was wrong with him. He’d been hurt so badly in the past by someone named Valerie he refused to let anyone close enough to do it again. Broken trust. Fear. She understood that. Bryce being different from Jason and the other men didn’t mean she had the energy or inclination to try to fix him—too many women tried to do that with men and failed. Just like some men tried to rescue women. It wasn’t anything she cared to base a relationship on, second chances be damned. Stomping flat the weak protest from her stupid, stupid heart she put her head in her hands and waited for Darren to return to ask any questions the police report from up north might have sparked. And then she’d try to figure out what her next step was going to be.

  When the door opened again it was Bryce who passed through, looking fierce and determined. “Did you call your boss?”

  “Yes. I’ve been granted a leave, but…” She bit her lip and didn’t let her worry escape. Businesses, even ones who publically supported a charity such as the one they’d chosen, couldn’t keep accommodating the star of such a drama. Jenna had no doubt her job would be “restructured” once this thing was resolved with Jason. Part of her was so weary it felt like giving up.

  Bryce talked right over her. “I’ve sent a female detective to pack up some of your stuff—Judith gave me your spare key. You’ll stay with me until we catch the asshole.”

  “Are you insane?” Jenna heard herself nearly scream it and bit her lip again. She sucked in a couple of breaths through her nose.

  “You need protection and apparently I do as well.” Bryce’s calm assertion gutted her and she felt tears prick again. When had she become such a weepy mess? She had put this man in grave danger.

  “I’m sorry.” That was all she could manage without her voice breaking.

  Shrugging, he continued, “Not like you did it deliberately. Your ex is nuts for sure but you thought he was put away forever. I imagine you’d have done things differently if you’d known.”

  He sounded so calm, the consummate police detective, and Jenna tried hard to match his demeanor. “I don’t understand why you think me staying with you is the best option.”

  “We weighed it out. We decided not to let on that you’ve figured it out and know it’s your ex who’s after you again. He’ll think you’ve moved in with me, especially as he’s probably used the past while to watch you.”

  “I could go to a hotel, hide out…” She trailed off as he shook his head.

  “Probably better to push him, Jenna. He won’t give up and you can’t hide forever. I’m surprised he hasn’t acted by now.”

  “If he knows you’re a cop, and he in all likelihood does, it’ll have made him cautious, Bryce. That’s what probably has saved us—you, until now. But it’ll have worked him up, too.”

  “Then best we set him up to make his move.”

  “I can leave Sarasota.”

  “And he’ll find you again. The miracle of the Internet. And he might want to chat with your friends.”

  Oh my god, what have I done? Jason would definitely “ask” anyone who knew her where she’d gone and he wouldn’t care how he got the information. It was why she’d eschewed all friendships back in Minneapolis, and hidden her situation from her work colleagues.
That and because she was ashamed, as so many maltreated women were ashamed, like it was somehow their fault their men acted out toward them.

  “So you want to draw him out, have him make his play.”

  “You’re quick on the uptake, Jenna,” Bryce agreed. “We’ll put two targets in one place, figure he can’t resist, especially if he doesn’t know we’ve learned he’s in town. And we might catch him before. We’ve got people looking.”

  There was no point in arguing. She had to leave it to the professionals in order to protect everyone. She wasn’t going to think about the ramifications of living in Bryce Meadows’ house. “What if he sees your detective going to my house? I should do that myself.”

  He hesitated, then pulled out his cell. “Michelle? Postpone the visit for now. Provide me cover. Thanks.”

  Turning to her, he extended a hand. “I’ll take you myself. If Asshole is watching, he’ll get stoked up seeing you pack and drive away with me. It’ll push him hard. I should have thought about it, but—”

  “You knew I would take some convincing and thought to make it a fait accompli.” Jenna finished his sentence and rose from her chair, ignoring his hand. “I’m sorry I involved people in my mess. I appreciate being able to stay at your home, and I hope my ex-husband makes an attempt sooner than later. And that this time he gets put away long enough for me to make a fresh start.” She pretended not to remember Bryce’s comment about how easy it was to track people down. She foresaw a change of work in her future, another tedious move and the effort of making new connections and friends. Except she actually couldn’t risk the latter. The enormity of it overwhelmed her, and she closed her eyes.

  “Jenna?” Bryce’s concerned voice, very different from his professional one, made her open them again and force her features into a calm mask. He’d done a very good job for her, him and Darren, and she wasn’t going to cause any more grief.

  “Tell me what I need to do.”

  Staring at her searchingly, he finally nodded and explained the plan. “We’ll pack up your stuff and head to my place. Make it look very clear that you and I are taking our…relationship…to a different level. From what I read in the file he’ll react. Seeing as his choice of weapons doesn’t include guns, we can hope he’ll try to make this up close and personal.” His teeth showed in a savage smile. “I’m good with up close and personal.

  “We’ll have the neighborhood staked out and covered. We figure there’s little risk and very real gain. Depending on what he pulls, we’ll charge him with everything possible—there’s no way he’ll make bail given his history. And he’ll have to deal with leaving the Twin cities without getting permission from the authorities. He’ll be gone a long time.”

  “Good.” Jenna nodded as emphatically as she knew. A hundred years might not be long enough but she’d take what she could get. And he’d somehow gotten out before, so…She definitely wasn’t thinking about Jason’s personal choice of weapons or how he acted out, not to mention his evilly creative mind. No way would he be on his meds so he’d be out of control when he finally ramped himself up to act. Her stomach soured at the thought and goose flesh, the bad kind, prickled on her arms.

  “I get you’re scared, sweetheart, but it’ll be fine.”

  Shit. She wasn’t hiding it well and Bryce didn’t need the extra concern. He needed to watch his back even more than she did. For a moment she debated about telling him about what happened to her nice neighbor Mr. Fedorich then changed her mind. If he’d read the file then he knew. She would concentrate on her role for now and ignore the dual terror assaulting her—her ex-husband was coming for her and would make anyone in his path pay, and she would be confined in a house with the man she really loved but who didn’t return the sentiment.

  “Only a stupid person wouldn’t be scared, Bryce. I’ll do my best.”

  “Then let’s get to your place once we tell your posse the plan.” He opened the door and waited for her to precede him.

  Wonderful. Carla and Judith would think she’d lost her ever-loving mind. But to her surprise, her friends merely hugged her tightly and assured her they had every faith in the plan. Darren must have been doing some convincing. It made Jenna more determined than ever to be successful bait and get it done. She’d worry about the state of her heart later. The walk to Bryce’s truck was totally made in her head. She smiled and chattered, holding his arm possessively, nodding to a few of his colleagues she’d met. She deserved an Academy Award. It wasn’t until they were back on the road that she relaxed her pose behind the tinted windows and lapsed into silence.

  Chapter Five

  Bryce checked his mirrors frequently. He couldn’t pick up any vehicles reappearing in his view except for Michelle’s unmarked. He ignored the silent woman in the passenger seat because if he allowed himself to think about her he wouldn’t be able to concentrate. Holy fuck. How had she managed to survive let alone be such an interesting and apparently well-adjusted—nope, not going there. He’d think about that later and have a discussion with her about it, too. And he’d fucking well share with her. Tit for tat. His gut roiled at the thought, but he was done being a chicken shit.

  Backing into the driveway with the box of the truck near the front door, Bryce once again scanned the street. Just because Asshole hadn’t followed them didn’t mean he wasn’t lurking someplace close.

  “Do you see any vehicles on the street that don’t look familiar, Jenna?”

  She started and swivelled in her seat to look at him, her cat’s eyes wide, but then obediently surveyed the street. Shaking her head, she answered, “I don’t see any I haven’t seen before.”

  “We’re going to hustle inside, and I’ll have my arm around you.” He eased his service weapon out of its holster and slid it into his pocket. Jenna’s eyes tracked the move and she visibly swallowed. “On the off chance Asshole is in your house, you drop right to the fucking floor and cover your head. Got that?”

  “Yes.” Her response was faint but she nodded to underscore her understanding.

  “Okay. You wait until I come around.”

  “Okay.”

  The entry into her house went as he orchestrated, but the house felt empty and a quick walk through established that fact. Jenna extricated herself from his grip, again pale and shaking, and disappeared into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. When he allowed himself to think past the immediate danger and what his woman had endured in the past, he was exhilarated at the opportunity to have her in his home so he might make things up to her. He walked to the side of the window in the living room and watched the street while he waited. Focus.

  “Bryce?” Jenna stood just outside the bedroom door, looking done in, a wad of material in her hand. He made it to her in three long strides.

  “What is it, sweetheart?” He pried the silky stuff loose and felt his forehead wrinkle as it hung from his hand. It slowly took shape, ragged ribbons of ivory material flowing from a band constructed of lace with tiny pink flowers scattered on it. It was, or had been, a nightgown, a really sexy nightgown. “Jesus,” he breathed.

  “I have no idea when he was here,” she whispered, her eyes stark and staring. “I haven’t worn…I mean I didn’t have any reason to wear…”

  Shit. They’d been in bed together every night since they met, and he’d fucked her every night and most mornings, too—a vagrant thought flitted through his front brain before he lost it—and he never let her wear anything to cover up. So she hadn’t seen the desecration of her nightwear and couldn’t date it. But it was a clear statement to her, and one that left its mark. Jason Baker liked knives and straight razors as evidenced by the pictures in the file. The nut bar used them on himself to create some kind of bizarre personal art but obviously preferred the sight of someone else’s blood, considering what he’d done in the bar fight that got him incarcerated.

  Bryce still wasn’t clear how he’d been released, except there was some kind of appeal by a pussy lawyer and some bleeding heart publi
c group who looked into miscarriages of justice for reasons that escaped any normal person. Baker had disappeared within hours of his conditional release and no one had thought to tell his ex-wife who he’d sworn to find and reunite with as soon as he served his sentence. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know what reunite meant to a crazy man.

  Trying to put things into perspective, he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close, into his side. “Well, you figured he’d have been in your house. Now we know and we’re still a step ahead of him. Pack your stuff, Jenna. We should get clear. My place is far easier to defend than this one.” It was true. He didn’t have all that green shit growing right up to the windows for a perp to hide in, and he had a far superior security system. He would know if Asshole had been in his place. And his neighbors knew him as a cop and were perpetually nosy, fancying themselves super sleuths. Bryce heard more reports about so-called misdemeanors taking place in his neighborhood than he cared to—failing to recycle wasn’t that high on his immediate to-do list, the environment notwithstanding.

  “He never threatened me with a knife before.” Jenna’s quiet comment, muttered into his shoulder, enraged him as his thoughts returned to the information on the file. She reacted to the tension in his body, pushing away, composing her features. God, the strength in this woman, something he’d inherently known but never appreciated. He longed to share her burden and give back his strength.

  Jenna wandered back into her bedroom and he returned to watch the street. He managed his impotent fury and stood guard, hoping the activity of packing would help her focus. He wanted to comfort her but knew she’d resent him for it later, and he didn’t need her adding additional height to a wall that was going to take time and effort to scale. What a fucking mess.

  After what seemed like a very long time, Jenna rolled a suitcase into the living room. Another smallish case hung from her arm. Bryce abandoned his vigil and took charge of the larger one, keeping his gun hand free, watching as Jenna retrieved her purse. He went first, carrying his burden down the steps to lift it into the box before returning to ensure Jenna was tucked into his side, relieving her of the smaller suitcase. Michelle’s unmarked unit sat across the street, and he could see her head swivelling as she checked for any suspicious movement. She was off duty but like Darren wouldn’t let a fellow cop down and also didn’t want uniformed cops to give the game away.