by Nicole James
“Shocking? How?” When he wouldn’t elaborate, Liam glared at him, but finally picked up the magazine and sat in a chair, reading it slowly.
“She was a victim, bro. Worse than this shop was. What was done to her was damn right child abuse.”
When Liam finished, he tossed the magazine on the desk and buried his head in his hands. “Jesus Christ. I wouldn’t even give her a chance to explain.”
Ava squatted next to his chair and touched his forearm, gently pulling his hands from his face. “Liam, did you know she couldn’t read?”
He pinned her with pain-filled eyes. “I had no clue. I would have helped her.”
“You didn’t know.”
He bit his lip and shook his head. “I should have listened. I should have given her the benefit of the doubt.”
Jameson hated to see him like this, and he didn’t know if what he was about to confess would make it better or worse. “Brother, I need to tell you something.”
Liam stared at him, waiting as if for the other ball to drop.
“She, uh…” Jameson dropped his eyes to the desk and slowly rubbed his hands together.
“Just say it.”
“She was paid a thousand dollars for that story. She came to apologize, and she gave the check to me. Signed it over to pay back the money I gave her mother ten years ago.”
He frowned. “When was this?”
“The day after the shoot.”
His brows shot up. “And you’re just telling me now?” He surged to his feet. “Goddamn it, Jameson.”
“I’m sorry.” His eyes cut to his wife’s, then back again. “I should have told you that day, but I thought you were through with her, and hell, I didn’t know about any of this.” He nodded to the magazine.
Liam’s gaze dropped to it. “I have to find her. I have to talk to her. Now. Today.” He spun.
Jameson stared at his brother’s retreating back as he moved to the stairs and dashed down them, then his gaze met Ava’s. She grinned in that, I was right, way she had. He rolled his eyes, and she burst out laughing. Jameson glared at her. “Go ahead and say it.”
She smiled huge and did exactly that. “Told you so!”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Velvet sat in a booth in the back of the diner, her nails clicking against the thick coffee mug. It was five minutes after three. Her eyes scanned the street outside for Agent Sanders. It was hard enough coming up with an excuse to get out of the shop, but she felt like a sitting duck. What if one of the guys ran out to grab a cold drink or food? Hell, they could walk right past here.
Being left waiting was fraying her nerves, and sneaking around had them already worn down. She wasn’t sleeping, she was barely eating, and she was a nervous wreck most of the time.
The door opened and she glanced up. Sanders walked in and pulled his shades from his eyes. It only took him a second to spot her.
“Hello, Velvet,” he said, sliding onto the red vinyl seat.
A waitress came over. “What can I get you, honey?”
“Coffee. Thanks.” When she walked away, he glanced at Velvet. “You look tired.”
“I’m not sleeping much.”
The waitress returned with the carafe and a mug. “Did you want to order food?”
“No, thank you. Just this,” Sanders replied. When she’d retreated, he snagged a couple packets of sweetener from the bowl, tore them open, and dumped them in his mug. He stirred it slowly, his eyes studying Velvet. “What do you have for me?”
Her hand slipped into the pocket of her jacket, and she pulled out her phone. She showed him the pictures she’d taken of the register receipt and the deposit slip. There was almost two thousand more in the deposit.
He took her phone and texted the photos to himself. “Good. If the serial numbers from the PO Box money show up, it will prove he’s laundering money through the business in addition to mail fraud.”
“So am I done?”
He shook his head. “We were able to pick up some conversations in his office. There are other business accounts. There’s much more money going through that business than just the phone scam. We need to know where it’s coming from. If they won’t talk about it, we need you to see if you can find something.”
“Can’t you just break in after hours or something?”
“If we were discovered, we’d have to move too soon. I want this case locked down with air tight evidence.”
“These men” —she fiddled with her fingernails—“are not nice men. They’re dangerous.”
“I understand.”
“Do you?”
“Look, we overheard them talking about some shipment coming in tomorrow. They talk quietly, and we just can’t pick it all up. We don’t know what the product is. Could be counterfeit goods—”
She cut him off, dread filling her. “Or drugs.”
He nodded. “Yes, if I had my guess, cocaine or heroin. But it could be anything. We need you to find out for us.”
“They’re already suspicious of me. They watch me like a hawk. I had to make up a story just to meet you. My brother thinks I’m out buying tampons.”
“I’m sorry, but this is the deal we made. You cooperate—”
“I am cooperating!”
“And you help us get evidence.”
“I’m living a lie, and I hate it.”
“I know this is difficult for you, but that was the deal.”
“Fine!” She started to slide from the booth, but his hand reached out and gripped her wrist.
“Same place, same time tomorrow.”
She yanked her arm free. “Great. How many accidents do you think I can have?”
He grinned. “You’ll think of something. If it’s one thing I’ve discovered about you, Veleena, it’s that you’re a very resourceful woman.”
“Fuck off, Sanders.” She stormed through the diner and out the door. What a jerk, and now she’d been gone too long; Vano was sure to question her. Velvet strode down the street, but she couldn’t get what Sanders had told her out of her head. This whole time, she’d thought this was a simple con her brother was running. But now the FBI thought her brother was involved in laundering drug money. Could it be true? Or was it even worse? Was he actually involved in dealing the drugs himself?
She’d bet her last dollar that whatever was going on, the show was being run by those two ex-cons he’d met in prison. Vano had seemed off lately, like he was under extreme pressure, and that just didn’t make sense, especially with as much money as was rolling in. Those men had to have something they were holding over him, or maybe they were just threatening him. Vano was never one to be easily coerced to do anything, but in the end he was just a small time con artist. Those ex-cons were a whole different league of criminals.
And now Sanders wanted her to dig deeper into their activities. She could really put herself in danger.
Velvet walked around the corner, her head down, her eyes on the sidewalk. She tried to figure out what to do when she collided hard with the solid chest of a man. She stumbled back, and her mouth fell open. “Liam.”
He was just as stunned to see her, but he recovered quicker. “Velvet. I was actually just heading across the street to your shop.”
She frowned, her brain, like a car that missed a gear, was slow to make sense of his words. “House of Ink?” She swallowed. “Why?”
“I need to talk to you.”
“About what?” She didn’t want to let herself hope. This could be about anything. Maybe she’d left something at his apartment.
“I saw the article.”
That was the last thing she expected him to say. She frowned. “The article?”
“The one you sold to Inked Up.”
“Oh.” God, with everything going on, she’d forgotten about it. It was hard to read his face. Was he pissed she’d sold her story, like Jameson had been? Maybe he’d been on his way to the shop to tell her off.
“You haven’t seen it?” he asked, his b
rows dipping.
“No.”
“Jameson got an advanced copy sent to him today by Ryan.”
Velvet looked off down the street, her mind in a fog and murmured, “Maybe it’s in the mailbox.” Her eyes came back to his, and she frowned. “You read it?”
He nodded. “I had no idea you went through all that.”
“What did it say? Did Ryan make me sound pathetic?”
“Not at all. The story was very well written, very respectful of you.” He studied her. “Velvet, I…I can’t believe you were put through all that. Why didn’t you tell me?”
She huffed out a laugh. “Who would want to tell a story like that one? I’ll be a pathetic fool from coast to coast now.”
He grabbed her arm and pulled her close. “Don’t say that.”
She pushed him back. “I have to go.”
“Wait. Please? I’m sorry I didn’t give you a chance to explain. I’m sorry about all of it. Can we go somewhere and talk?”
He sounded so sincere and sweet. She gazed off in the distance, and suddenly everything came crashing down on her. She felt her eyes sting and flood with tears, and she couldn’t stop herself from breaking down in front of him. Her hand clasped tightly over her mouth to keep the sobs that shook her body from escaping.
He frowned down at her, completely stunned. “What is it?”
She shook her head and tried to push past him, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her back, then drew her into the alcove of a doorway.
He cupped her face. “Velvet, tell me what’s wrong.”
She stared up at him, her body trembling and finally confessed. “I’m in trouble, Liam.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“The FBI is after Vano, and they’re using me to get to him.”
“What? How?”
“It’s a long story.”
“I’ve got all the time in the world, Velvet. Talk to me.”
She shook her head. “I can’t. I’ve been gone too long.”
“Walk down the street with me. We’ll get in my truck and drive somewhere. You’re not going back to that damn shop. No way in hell.”
“Liam, but…”
“Come on.” He took her arm and led her quickly down a back street, over two blocks, and came up behind Brothers Ink. His truck was parked in the alley. He jerked the passenger door open. “Get in.”
“Liam—”
“Get in.”
She quickly scooted in, and he jogged around and got in the driver’s seat.
“Where are we going?”
He twisted in the seat, his hand gripping her headrest, and stared intently into her eyes. “Do you trust me?”
She did, with all her heart. “Yes, but—”
“We’re going to go somewhere and talk, somewhere away from here. And I promise you we’re going to figure this all out together. Okay?”
Relief flooded through her body. Someone was going to help her; not just someone—Liam, the most important man in her life. “Okay. But where?”
“We once talked about camping, remember?” Liam looked over at Velvet as he turned the ignition and put the truck in reverse.
“Camping?”
“Yeah. How about it?”
“Now?”
He nodded. “I’ll stop by the farm and grab a tent and sleeping bags. We’ll be away from everything and everyone for the night.”
That sounded wonderful to her. She needed that more than he could possibly know. It would just be one night, and she could deal with Vano, his scary cohorts, and the FBI tomorrow. She did want to get away, and right now letting Liam take care of everything sounded so tempting. Maybe they could work everything out, maybe she could relax and give her frayed nerves a rest, maybe she could even get some sleep. If there was one person on this earth right now that could make her feel safe, it was this man. “All right, yes. Let’s do it.”
He brushed his thumb over her lips. Then he jerked his chin. “Buckle up, baby.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Velvet sat on a blanket on the ground, looking out over the lights of Grand Junction shimmering in the distance. The early evening sky was a hazy purple and a big yellow moon hung low across the valley. The view was amazing with the entire valley spread out before them.
“It’s stunning. How did you find this place?”
Liam had put up the small tent and built a fire. He sat next to her, unscrewed the cap on a pint of Fireball, and passed it over. “My brothers and I grew up around here. We’ve been coming up here camping and hiking for years. I know all the best spots.”
She took the bottle eagerly and tipped it up. The flavor of Red Hots filled her mouth. It went down smooth and warmed her belly. She took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air and tried to relax. A couple more sips, and she felt her tight muscles loosen up. She rolled her head in an attempt to relieve the tension in her shoulders.
Liam cupped her shoulders and began kneading and massaging. She dropped her head, letting him work his magic. “God, that feels so good.” He continued for a long while, until finally she felt the need to remind him why they’d come up here. “You wanted to talk?”
“Yeah, I did.” His hands paused for a moment, and then resumed their ministrations. “Velvet, that night at the photo shoot… I overreacted. I should have listened to you; I should have given you the benefit of the doubt. I’m sorry I didn’t.”
She put her hand over his, stilling his movements. “I understand why you did what you did. I should have told you right from the beginning. It’s all my fault.”
He pulled her around to face him. “That’s not true. We should have talked it out. I just flew off the handle. I regretted it almost immediately, but at the same time I wasn’t sure if you were playing me for some reason.”
“I wasn’t, I swear to you.”
He nodded. “None of it made sense. I’d come on to you, not the other way around, so how would you be setting me up for another con? Then when I read that article I felt like a complete jerk. I’d been so cruel to you. I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right. I understand.”
“You forgive me?”
“Of course, if you can forgive me.”
“Can we start over?”
She flew into his arms, hugging him tight. “Yes. Oh, God, yes. I’ve missed you so much.”
“Me, too, baby.” He buried his face in her neck and held her for a long time before finally pulling her arms from around his neck. He looked down at her, his hand coming up to cup her face. “I don’t want you to be afraid to talk to me. I want you to feel like you can tell me anything.”
“I want that, too.”
“If we’re in this, we’re in this together, okay?”
Her eyes filled with happy tears, and she smiled up at him. “Okay.”
He brushed the wetness from her cheeks. “So tell me about the trouble you’re in.”
Shame flooded through her. “I hate that I’m dragging you into this.”
“Hey.”
She lifted her head to look into his warm brown eyes.
“I want to be the one you tell your problems to, the one you run to, the one you trust emphatically. I want to be it for you, Velvet, your everything.”
“What are you saying?”
He took a breath and his brows rose. “I want to be your husband, the father of your children, and the only man you’ll ever need for the rest of your life, if you’ll have me. Does that spell it out enough, baby?”
“Oh, Liam.”
“I love you, Velvet. I have since the moment you knocked on my door.”
“I love you, too, Liam. I think I fell in love with you when I was fifteen. You were so sweet to me that day, like no one had ever been to me before.”
He smiled. “Okay, then. We’re going to figure this shit out, and then we’re going to move on with our lives, and I promise you, baby, I’m going to give you the life you always wanted and make sure all those dreams you have come true.”
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She searched his eyes. “I know you will, because that’s the kind of man you are. My instincts were right about you from that first day I walked into Brothers Ink. I believe in you, Liam. I always have.”
“I’m going to make sure you don’t ever regret it.” He dipped his head and kissed her long and deep. It was a kiss full of love and emotion. When he pulled back he pressed his forehead to hers. “Now tell me everything and we’ll figure it out together.”
She gazed off at the city lights. “My brother was sent to prison a few years ago. He got out sometime last year.”
Liam nodded. “Yeah, that’s about when House of Crap popped up in town.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know why he picked Grand Junction to set up shop, especially with you guys as competition. It never made sense to me, but maybe there’s another connection that brought him here, maybe one of those other guys—”
“Guys? What other guys?”
“He’s got two men hanging around the shop. They’re both ex-cons he met while he was in prison. I don’t know much about them except they scare the hell out of me.”
Liam’s brows shot up. “Why didn’t you tell me?” He surged to his feet. “Shit, Velvet, that settles it; there’s no way in hell you’re going back there.”
She touched his jean-clad calf. “Liam, I’ve got to, the FBI—”
“Babe—”
“Please, sit down. Let me finish.”
He complied and raked his hand through his hair impatiently. “Yeah, okay. Finish.”
“Vano’s been running cons since he was a teenager, but they were always small time.” She shook her head, looking at the horizon, hating to admit this part but knowing she had to. She was determined never to hide anything from Liam again. She blew out a deep breath and met his eyes. “I overheard something at the shop and discovered he’s been running a phone scam on senior citizens, conning them out of money. They’ve been sending it to him through the mail. A couple of days ago I went to the post office to get it from the box he keeps there. The FBI took me into custody on mail fraud charges.”
“What? Are you serious?”
She nodded. “The penalty is up to twenty years in prison. The agent in charge presented me with a deal: total immunity if I cooperated and helped them get evidence against my brother and the others.”
