I'll Never Stop

by Jessica Lynch

  “It was only a fling,” she whispered. When he turned to look at her closely, watching her intently, she raised her voice. “I… I was lonely. I wasn’t even there long.”

  “Come here.”

  There was a warning in the command that she couldn’t even dare ignore. With as much slack as the strap allowed, she leaned into him.

  Once she was in reach, Tommy gripped her chin lightly between one hand. “Lies, Grace?” he whispered, lifting the other to stroke her cheek lightly. “Come, come, darling. You’re so much better than that.”

  Chilled sweat dripped down her spine. She fought to keep her expression confused. Innocent. “What… what do you mean?”

  His hand moved from her cheek, jerking so fast that he had another chunk of her hair in his grasp before she could protect herself. A flash of temper flared up in him, twisting his beautiful features into something ugly as he lashed out. Like before, he didn’t tug for long, just long enough for her to cry out in pain.

  He definitely had her attention now.

  “Not long?” he echoed. “It was long enough that you moved all of your belongings into his bedroom. Putting your pill holder in the top nightstand drawer just like you did at your last place. You might act like you don’t want me to take you from here, but you made it so easy for me to do so.” He stroked the underside of her chin with his free hand. “Admit it. You were begging me to rescue you. Did he hurt you? Force you to stay? Help me understand.”

  Her eyes flew open. Mere inches separated them. This close, she saw the certainty in his gaze. He really believed that. Her confirmation was all he wanted—and she couldn’t give it to him. No matter what she did, Rick was in trouble. She wasn’t going to give Tommy another reason to justify his insanity.

  “What? No. Tommy, it wasn’t like that. I—”

  “You didn’t think he’d protect you, did you? The second you traded that hotel for this place, I could’ve taken you at any time. Her locks kept me out. His didn’t. Pope put my eyes and ears in place for me within days of you moving in. All I needed was the chance to switch your pills out, then have my guys be watching for the first time you swallowed one without him hovering over you. O’Dell was in charge of the feed tonight and called me the second you passed out. Nothing could have stopped me.”

  Grace didn’t know how to react to that. Rick insisted she move in with him because he wanted so badly to be the one to watch over her. It would gut him if ever discovered that leaving Ophelia behind was almost the same thing as flagging Tommy down. It was like a flashing neon sign that said Here I am, take me.

  Then, of course, there was Tommy’s admission that he bugged the house.

  She didn’t put it past him. And since she believed him, she thanked God that he had his goons watching the tape. It was bad enough that Boone and Pope and O’Dell got an eyeful of her with Rick. What if Tommy had seen her being intimate with another man?

  Grace refused to think about it. No use obsessing over the past. She had the here and now to worry about.

  Still, she had to say something. “The invitation.” It was a thoughtful murmur, more shaky than not as she recalled vividly the evening Phil Granger delivered Tommy’s letter to her. “That wasn’t real.”

  “Real enough, Grace. Don’t you think I wondered how you would react to my reminder? It might not have been the exact date I planned for, but every other detail was real. I gave you your space. I gave you time. It’s over now. You’re mine. He had no right to try and take for yourself.”

  “It wasn’t his—”

  Tommy’s jaw went tight. “Don’t cover for him. I won’t allow it. I should’ve expected something like this eventually, though. Of course, that oaf would fall for you. It’s easy—and I should know. You’re too easy to love, Grace. But that you would use him to protect you was a miscalculation on my part. Trust me when I say this: I won’t make that mistake again.”

  The meaning was clear: once Rick was out of the way, he wouldn’t have to. She was running out of time. She needed to convince him to leave Rick alone. “You’re right, Tommy. I… I was afraid you’d be mad at me for running away again. The invitation made me realize you knew where I was and I got scared. So when Deputy Hart—” Not Rick, don’t call him Rick “—offered to take me home with him, I went. That’s all it was.”

  Her denials made him angry. He gave her hair another rough yank, even as his voice stayed light. “Oh? Then why did you stay?”

  It was hard to think with the throbbing. Taking a deep breath, she pushed past the agony. She was a trained dancer, goddamn it, who danced on mangled toes, who leaped on sprained ankles, who performed an échappé with a pulled calf muscle. There was no time for pain. The show must go on.

  “I’m sure you’ve seen him. You know everything, Tommy, you always do.” A little boost to his ego couldn’t hurt. “He’s a big guy and, okay, maybe I led him on. If he had feelings for me, I could use him for what I wanted. He means nothing to me, though. Not… not like you do.”

  “Oh, Grace.” He let go of her hair for a moment, running his fingers through the length before gripping it again. “I wish I could believe that. I really do.”

  Visibly grimacing, she leaned into his grasp so that when he inevitably pulled again, it wouldn’t be as painful. Each time he did, it broke her concentration, and she knew that’s why he did it. He stopped every time she brought it to his attention that it actually hurt her, though, and when he saw her grimace, he loosened his grip again.

  “What’s wrong, Grace?”

  How could he ask her that? How did he not know? “You scare me.”

  “Why?” He actually sounded surprised. “Because I love you?”

  “No,” she said, and the next words out of her mouth were the absolute truth, “because you only think you do.”

  As expected at it was, the next yank had her squealing.

  “Don’t you ever doubt my love for you,” he snapped. “You’re all I think about, morning and night.”

  “That’s not love, Tommy,” she panted through gritted teeth. “That’s obsession.”

  Another harsh tug. A fresh jolt of pain. Tears sprang to her eyes.

  “You’re hurting me. If you… if you loved me, you wouldn’t do this.”

  Those were the magic words. He immediately let go. “I don’t want to.”

  Through the sheen of tears in her eyes, she saw the pout pulling on his lips. Grace heard the apology in his tone. And it scared her even more how quickly he could turn like that.

  Tommy reached for her, sliding his hand through the top of her hair, caressing her scalp with the tips of his fingers. “I’m sorry, my love. It’s the separation. Being separated from you so long, it’s made me do a lot of things I’d rather not.”

  Grace picked up on the hint of regret in his voice and seized it with all she had. “Then don’t! You don’t have to do any of this, Tommy. Call off your bodyguard, don’t let him hurt Rick. Please. I’ll go with you. We… we don’t have to have a wedding, not yet. But we can start over. Wouldn’t you like that?”

  She would do it, too. Anything to keep Rick from getting hurt. Grace refused to let him pay when his only crime was caring for her. Then, when she eventually broke free of Tommy again, she had to hope that she was far enough away from Hamlet so that he wouldn’t go back and take his anger out on the innocent townsfolk.

  This wasn't just about her. She had Rick to think of. Maria. Sylvester. Phil. Jefferson and his wife. Even Natalie Newton.

  For a moment, as Tommy moved away from her and leaned back against the Jaguar’s leather seat, she thought she might have done it. He might just give in. She waited on bated breath, her heart lodged in her throat.

  Please. Please, please, please.

  His eyes darted over to the front of the house. A wrinkle marred his perfect brow for a moment, a tic in his jaw the only other sign of his anger. When he turned to face her again, his expression was carefully blank.

  “You’ve had your fun. I�
��ll forgive it because maybe I wasn’t as clear as I should’ve been. You’re mine, Grace, and you have been from the moment I saw you dance. We will get married, and we will do so tonight. And then I will never let you get away from me again.” He paused, and even in the dim light, Grace saw the dark look that shadowed his face. “Hart has to die. If you have no one to escape to, it’ll make it that much easier to keep you.”

  She knew in that instant that all of her words—her explanation, her pleading, her promises—had fallen on deaf ears. Tommy Mathers has made up his mind and, as always, it was final.

  That didn’t stop her from trying one last time.

  “You—you can't do that.”

  Tommy pressed the start button. The Jaguar purred all around them, soft enough that Grace still heard him when he said—

  “You can’t stop me.”

  22

  Rick’s house was located on the outskirts of Hamlet. However, it wasn’t set far back in town, on the side closer to the rugged mountain that acted as one of the natural boundaries. No, it was a gulleyside home—which meant that it was nearer to the narrow strait that led visitors back out again.

  That also meant there wasn’t much time. She only had one chance. If Tommy drove her out of Hamlet, she would never see any of her friends again. And Rick—

  Her heart ached as her stomach clenched.

  If Tommy’s goon did anything to hurt Rick, if his blood was on her hands, she would never forgive herself. It would be better to fight now than to give in and let Tommy win.

  Grace took stock of how she felt. Her scalp was tender from where he pulled her hair, but she could deal with that. With her heart pounding and her body tensed and ready to run, she barely noticed the aftereffects from Tommy’s sedative. Okay. The blasted gown and the heels would be a problem. She knew that. It was a good thing she was prepared to climb out of them and take off naked if she had to.

  The realization that she’d rather go streaking than spend one more second in Tommy’s company was sobering. She’d do anything to get away—especially since it was the only chance she had to make sure Rick stayed safe.

  It was obvious from the quiet that no one else knew about the threat in Hamlet. Unless she managed to snag the radio hanging off Tommy’s belt and figured out how to break into the sheriff’s channel, her only hope was to get away and find help.

  Rick wasn’t home yet. She’d only been in the car for minutes. She could do this—

  In one fluid motion, she unfastened the seat belt with one hand while reaching out with her other. The passenger door flung open as the seat belt whipped back into place.

  Cursing under his breath, Tommy jerked the wheel, slamming on the brakes so that the car came to a sudden squealing stop. Fury and fire blazing in his dark blue gaze, he unclasped his own seat belt, lunging across the console so that he could grab her.

  Grace was already halfway out the door. The most Tommy got was a fistful of her gown and she tore it from his grip with an adrenaline-fueled strength. Knowing she wouldn’t get far in the murderous heels he slipped on her feet, she kicked them off, then started to sprint.

  Tommy stayed by the Jaguar. He didn’t have to chase after her, not when his simply stated threat followed close on her heels.

  “If you don’t get back here right now,” he warned, “I’ll call my associate and tell him to hurry it along. You wouldn’t like that, would you, Grace? Maybe he doesn’t wait, but he goes looking for Hart instead.”

  Rick.

  If she didn’t do what Tommy wanted, she was as good as signing Rick’s death warrant. If Boone found Rick before she could warn him, there was no doubt that the bodyguard would shoot first and ask questions later. If Tommy gave the order? There wouldn’t even be any questions.

  Despite the threat, Tommy’s voice was cajoling, giving her the hope she desperately wanted to cling to. Even so, there was a hint of steel beneath it. He’d follow through on that threat in a heartbeat. He made it clear that he wanted Rick dead just because she chose him instead. Even if she went back, he could still take his jealousy out on the other man.

  Grace had to get to Rick. She simply had to warn him.

  So she kept running.

  Tommy’s steely tone followed right behind her.

  “There’s a chance—a small one, mind you—that he might survive against Boone. My man prefers a fair fight if he can get one, but we both know that I’m not above cheating to get what I want. You come back here, come to me, and we’ll see if he makes it. You try to get away again, and he’ll be dead as soon as Boone has him in his sights.”

  There was a chance.

  A chance Rick might not have to face off against Boone. A chance she might escape from Tommy.

  Could she throw Rick’s life away on the chance that he wouldn’t capture her again in minutes? That she could get to Rick in time?

  Grace stopped.

  “‘Atta girl,” Tommy murmured when he saw she had turned back to face him. He extended his hand out to her, gesturing for her to come closer. “Come back now, sweetheart, and maybe I won’t have him taken care of after all.”

  He might’ve blackmailed her into giving up her head start, but that didn’t mean she was foolish enough to believe him. If he was thinking any clearer than she was, Tommy would’ve known that she wouldn’t have been able to outrun him when he had his vehicle. He didn’t need to resort to threatening Rick.

  Except he did. A master manipulator, he knew exactly what to do and say to get Grace to respond the way he wanted her to. At that moment, threatening Rick was probably the only thing he could do to stop her from running.

  Her heart was racing, her body tensed and ready to dash off again. Because there was something else she knew. Tommy was also a consummate liar. He might mean everything he said. Then again, Rick was probably as good as dead anyway.

  If he wasn’t already.

  Don’t think like that, her panicked thoughts screamed at her. Don’t let him in.

  Too late.

  In the bright light of the Jaguar’s beams, Grace watched the smug satisfaction settle on Tommy’s features. He thought he had her right where he wanted her. For once, he’d found a way to get her to willingly come to him.

  No.

  She glanced over her shoulder, the gulley a dark line and a gaping pit behind her. There was nothing but black and, still, it was a far better sight than the blond devil in front of her.

  “Come to me now, Grace.”

  No.

  This time, when she ran, she didn’t run in the same direction. She didn’t head toward Tommy like he was expecting, either. Instead, her arms pumping as her dress hampered her flight, she darted for the gulley.

  “Grace!”

  Grace spun around. She felt her hands shaking as she gripped the folds in the dress and hitched it up high. One step back. Another. The edge of the gulley bit into her bare heel. If she scooted backward any further, one wrong move and she’d be swallowed up the black abyss behind her.

  “Stay back.”

  Tommy marched forward, hidden by the shadows as he left the Jaguar’s side. “Grace, my love, don’t be ridiculous. Get away from there. You’ll fall if you’re not careful.”

  Didn’t he get it? “Come any closer and I won’t fall. I’ll jump.”

  Tommy went motionless. In the dark, she couldn’t see the expression on his face. His body language revealed his battle, though: reaching for her with his hands, leaning in her direction, while his shiny, shiny shoes stayed rooted to the cobbles. He desperately wanted to grab her, drag her away from the gulley, keep her safe, but he didn’t want to risk calling her bluff.

  She could almost hear him thinking it. Would she jump?

  “I’ll do it,” she threatened. “I… I swear.”

  Tommy hesitated. Then he said, “You leap, I’ll leap right after you,” and she felt her heart lodge in her throat.

  He… he meant it. She knew he did. If she chose death to escape him, the crazy bastard w
ould be right behind her.

  A choked sob broke free, causing her to bow forward at the sudden realization.

  I’ll never be rid of him.

  Sensing her despair, Tommy moved again. Her head jerked up in time to see the moonlight above wink off his silver tie clip. The quick glance was the only warning she had before he closed the gap between them by half.

  Dropping the heft of the awful wedding gown, Grace threw her hands out in warning as she pulled herself up to her full height. Her chest heaved beneath the bodice; a combination of fear and the tight fit had her gasping for breath.

  “I told you to stay back.”

  “I don’t want it to come to this. Tell me what you want. Anything. You’ll have it, and we can forget this silly idea of jumping anywhere. What do you say?”

  That was just like Tommy. No matter what, he thought his money and his power and his connections meant that he could buy her. As if some bauble or a trinket would make this okay. There was only one thing in this world she wanted from him.

  “Call Boone off.”

  “Grace—”

  She leaned back.

  “Fine. Fine. If I spare him, you’ll stop this?”

  “You leave him alone. You call off Boone, you make sure that Rick’s okay. You do that, Tommy, and I’ll go with you.”

  “Only if you forget about him, too. You’re mine. Not his. But I’ll do anything to have you, and if this is what you’re asking—”

  “It is.”

  “Then consider it done, my love.”

  She fought the urge to gag when he called her that. This was too important. She could save Rick. There would be time to jump, time to run later on. For now, her only focus was on saving the man she thought she might love.

  “Do it now,” she said.

  Tommy nodded, pulling the radio off of his belt. It was smaller than the ones Maria and Rick had, more compact, but it seemed to work the same way. He flicked a knob on the side. A red light appeared in the darkness, the indicator that the radio was on. Just as he was lifting it up to his mouth, a soft pop split the still air.