Colton 911--Unlikely Alibi

by Lisa Childs

  “But who would want to harm you?” his sister Carly asked. “It makes no sense.”

  “No more sense than anyone wanting to harm Pop and Uncle Alfie,” he said. Had he been the real intended target? Had the killer been waiting for him instead of them?

  “Kylie and I both have had a feeling that we’re being watched,” he admitted.

  Kylie nodded and shivered. “Yes, I have.”

  “Was it you?” Heath asked Detective Parker. “Did you have someone following us?”

  “I wish I had had a detail on you,” Parker replied. “Then we’d have seen who shot at you. Did either of you see anything? Anything at all?”

  Heath cursed. “No, damn it.”

  Kylie shook her head, tangling her long hair around her face. He automatically reached out and pushed a dark brown lock across her cheek. And his fingertips tingled from that brief contact with her silky skin and hair. Damn she was beautiful.

  So beautiful.

  And she’d nearly been killed. They’d both nearly been killed.

  “Then it wasn’t an accident when someone almost ran you over outside True,” Tatum remarked.

  “Someone tried running you down?” Parker asked. “Why the hell didn’t it get reported?” The last question had probably been addressed more to Sean than Heath, as the detectives exchanged a glance.

  But Heath answered, “I didn’t think it was intentional. Just someone driving too fast.” That was what he’d wanted to think—not that he was being targeted next by the person who’d killed Pop and Uncle Alfie. Or worse yet, that maybe they had been killed instead of him.

  Parker groaned. “You should have reported it and that you felt as if you were being watched.”

  Heath stared hard at the man. “I didn’t think you would believe me. Or that you would think I’d made it up.” Like Kylie had made up his alibi.

  Parker didn’t argue with him, prompting Heath to ask, “Do you believe me now? Or do you think Kylie and I staged the shooting?”

  Parker looked from him to Kylie and back, as if considering it. “There were an awful lot of bullets fired without either of you being struck.”

  “Thank God,” his mother murmured.

  Heath bristled at the detective’s comment. “What’s it going to take for you to believe I’m innocent? My own murder?”

  Because it was clear to Heath that someone wanted him dead and maybe Kylie, as well.

  * * *

  The rage was all consuming. Too consuming.

  How many bullets had been fired? Even the shooter didn’t know—not now—as the rush of adrenaline faded to just a slight buzzing in their ears and veins.

  Who had been hit?

  Anyone?

  The SUV had crashed, so someone could have been injured then. But the shooter hadn’t dared to stick around, hadn’t wanted to risk getting seen or, worse yet, caught.

  But even if no one had died—yet—the message should have been clear. The warning sent—loudly and succinctly—with every fired shot.

  Someone was going to die...

  * * *

  Anger bubbled up inside Kylie now, and she jumped off the stool at the island in Farrah Colton’s kitchen. “Detective Parker, there is no way that you can think either Heath or I fired those bullets into his own vehicle! That’s crazy.” She hadn’t been able to stop shaking since that first fired gunshot. Her whole body trembled as she stood before him, staring up into his stern face.

  Frustration overwhelmed her. “Someone tried to kill us, and you’re treating us like the suspects!”

  Heath wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to his side. “It’s okay, Kylie. You’re okay now. We’re fine.”

  She shook her head. “No, it’s not fine.”

  “She’s right,” Fallon Colton agreed. “It isn’t fine. You two could have been killed.” A sob slipped out of her trembling lips.

  A twinge of guilt struck Kylie’s heart. She hadn’t meant to upset the woman any more than she’d already, rightfully, been. “I’m sorry...” she murmured as she closed her eyes and willed away the tears that threatened to slip free.

  Heath tipped up her chin, and she opened her eyes to stare up into his face.

  “It’s okay,” he assured her. “You have every reason to be upset. So am I.”

  But he didn’t look shaken up. He looked mad. And madly handsome.

  His golden hair was mussed, his stubble almost as thick as a beard on his strong jaw. He looked so rumpled and sexy, like he’d just crawled out of bed—a bed he’d shared with a woman, and not just slept in like he had that night they’d shared his.

  Then she felt it, the slight tremor, in the hand he’d cupped under her chin. He really was unnerved, too. Then he dropped his hand from her face and turned toward the detective. “Are you going to do anything constructive besides hurl accusations at us?”

  “I haven’t accused you of anything,” Detective Parker pointed out. “All I’ve done is ask questions.”

  But he clearly hadn’t liked or trusted the answers they’d given him. Some with just cause. Maybe she shouldn’t have lied about Heath’s alibi. But if she hadn’t...

  She worried that the detective would have already arrested him. But then he might have been safer in jail than he was with someone trying to shoot him.

  “You’re asking the wrong questions,” Heath said. “Of the wrong people.”

  Sean Stafford finally stepped forward then. “Joe, I’m worried that they’re in danger. All of them.”

  Parker didn’t argue with his coworker; he just nodded. “It’s possible that someone might have a grudge against the whole family. You could all be potential targets.”

  Gasps emanated from some of the other family members. But not Heath.

  Of course he knew that he was definitely a target. Why? Because he was CEO?

  “No, we’re not,” Mrs. Jones denied. “We can’t be.”

  “No, you’re not, Grandma,” Heath assured her before turning back to Parker. “Detective, you should really go. You’ve upset this family enough for one day.”

  The detective didn’t argue with Heath now either. He just nodded. But instead of turning to leave, he warned them, “You need to stick together.”

  “We do,” Mrs. Jones said.

  “Even when you try to turn us against each other,” Heath remarked.

  The detective shook his head. “I wasn’t trying to do any such thing. I’m just looking for answers, Mr. Colton. Answers that you should want now more than ever.”

  Because Heath could become a victim the way his dad and his uncle had.

  “I’ve always wanted the answers,” Heath corrected the detective.

  “Let me find those,” Parker advised. “You all just need to stick close to each other—keep each other safe.” He exchanged a nod with Sean Stafford before he walked out of the kitchen toward the foyer.

  He’d already taken their statements at the scene of where the shot-up SUV had crashed into the ditch. After writing up their report and calling the technicians to collect the vehicle and the evidence, he had driven them back to Farrah Colton’s house. Although riding in the police car had made Kylie uneasy, she had been in too much shock to protest then.

  But now she tugged Heath aside to murmur, “I should leave, too.”

  She’d already felt that she was intruding. Now she felt even more so that she didn’t belong. But then she’d never belonged in a family. She’d never really had one. Just her and her mother and her grandmother and then just her and her grandmother.

  “Yes, we should leave,” he said. “I’ll see if I can borrow a vehicle from Mom or Aunt Farrah.” He glanced toward the twins.

  With the tips of her fingers along his jaw, she turned his face back toward her. “No, I should leave. Alone.”

  His blue eyes wide
ned in surprise. “Alone?” He shook his head. “You’re not going anywhere alone.”

  She reached for his arm and tugged him out of the kitchen and into the hall, but she still pitched her voice to a low whisper when she said, “You can stop overacting now. Despite what Detective Parker said, he can’t consider you a suspect any longer...not when someone’s trying to kill you, too.”

  “Me? Or us?” he asked.

  A chill chased down her spine again. “Uh, you, of course. I’m not a Colton.”

  “I don’t think the whole family is in danger. Just me and maybe you.”

  “Me? Why?”

  “Because you’re the VP of Colton Connections,” he said.

  She shrugged. “So, an employee.”

  He flinched. “I—I...” He sighed. “I will talk to you about that after the funeral. At any rate you said you felt like you were being watched even when I wasn’t with you.”

  She shivered again. “So you’re thinking maybe I was the target?”

  The thought filled her with horror—that someone could have been trying to kill her and had nearly killed Heath, too. Twice.

  With the car. And then with the gunshots.

  But why the twins and then her? It made no sense. Unless...

  Had Ernie and Alfie had the same suspicions she had about Tyler Morrison? Had they already found the evidence she’d been looking for?

  “If I am the target,” she said, “then you’ll be safer if I’m not with you.”

  “I’m not saying you are the target,” he said. “I’m just saying that we don’t know for certain who is. And although I never thought I would say this, I agree with Detective Parker. We all need to stick together.”

  She shook her head. “I can’t stay here with your family. It’s too much of an imposition, especially now...” With everything they were going through. “They don’t need a stranger staying with them.”

  “They don’t need me staying here either,” Heath agreed. “I think they’re safe. I am the intended target and maybe you, too, so neither of us is staying here.”

  She expelled a little sigh of relief. “Good.”

  But then he added, “You’re staying with me. We’re going to get your stuff and move you into the penthouse.”

  She shook her head. “No.”

  This wasn’t a good idea for so many reasons. Living with him would put Kylie in more danger, not less. Because not only would she be in danger from whoever had tried to kill them, but she was also in danger of falling for Heath.

  Chapter 16

  This isn’t a good idea...

  Moving Kylie into his penthouse was dangerous—for both of them. But it would have been more dangerous for her to live alone in her little house.

  “I’ve been doing it for years,” she’d told him as she’d packed up some things and he’d carried them to the little SUV he’d borrowed from his mother. “I’m safe here. The neighbors all watch out for each other.”

  “Do you want to put those neighbors in danger then?” That question had compelled her to finish packing and climb back into the passenger’s seat.

  She was unpacking now in his guest room and not his room.

  She wasn’t moving in permanently, just until whoever had tried to kill them was caught. Though given Parker’s penchant for interrogating the wrong people, Heath wasn’t confident that would be any time soon.

  Needing to stay away from the guest room, where he could hear drawers and doors opening, Heath focused on the view out his living room windows. The last remnants of sunlight had slipped away, leaving only a black sky. There was no glimpse of the moon. No stars.

  The only lights shone from buildings and the street. Someone was out there. Someone who wanted them dead.

  That was why Kylie was here.

  The only reason.

  She wasn’t moving in because she wanted to be here—like Gina. Gina Hogan had wanted to live with him. Hell, she’d wanted to marry him. But even after dating her for months, he hadn’t been ready to live with her.

  Or with anyone.

  His phone vibrated, and he pulled it from his pocket to glance at the screen. It was as if she’d realized he was thinking about her.

  Gina was calling again. He slid his thumb across the Ignore option. He’d been doing that the past couple of days, ignoring her calls.

  He knew he’d broken her heart when he’d resisted her ultimatums and chosen breaking up with her over being forced into an engagement. But with his own heart broken over the loss of his father, he couldn’t deal with her right now—especially after how angry she’d been when she’d let herself in the other morning and found him in bed with Kylie.

  All those months ago, when they’d been in a relationship, he’d thought giving her a key to his penthouse would placate her over his refusal to let her move in, but she’d still kept pushing for more.

  More of a commitment...

  Was more something he was even capable of? He’d never felt about anyone the way his parents had felt about each other or how his aunt and uncle had. The only thing that made him as happy as his mom and pop had made each other was work.

  Maybe that was all he was capable of caring about.

  What would happen after the wills were read? Would he be removed as CEO? Would the company be sold?

  He had no idea what provisions, if any, his dad and uncle had made regarding Colton Connections in the event of their deaths. Since they’d been so young and healthy, they might not have made any, and they certainly probably hadn’t counted on their dying together.

  Although they’d done everything together, so in some sick way, it was fitting. And, at least, they hadn’t died alone.

  Would he?

  If he didn’t find some way to open up his heart, would he die alone? He hadn’t thought about that possibility—until now—until he could have been killed by any of those bullets that had been fired into the SUV.

  But he wouldn’t have died alone then. Kylie had been with him. Kylie might have died, too.

  Maybe her moving in wasn’t a good idea—for her. Maybe he was just putting her in more danger.

  Because he couldn’t imagine anyone wanting her dead. But then he couldn’t imagine anyone wanting Pop and Uncle Alfie dead either. And they were gone.

  He realized that an eerie silence had fallen in the apartment. There were no more sounds of drawers and doors opening and closing.

  Had Kylie sneaked out of the penthouse like she had the office the other day?

  * * *

  With the clothes, shoes and other personal items she’d brought with her already unpacked, Kylie had no reason to remain in the guest room though it was quite comfortable. With a walk-in closet and en suite bathroom, it was also larger and nicer than her master bedroom in the small house she’d inherited from her grandmother.

  The king-size bed was also so much larger and more comfortable than her lumpy full-size mattress. While she’d checked it out, she hadn’t remained in bed. It was too early to go to sleep even though she’d already changed into boxer-type shorts and a tank top. But she felt awkward walking out into the penthouse, acting like she lived there.

  Because she didn’t...

  This was only temporary. Maybe she’d packed too much stuff.

  But Heath had insisted that she should—because who knew how long it might take Detective Parker to catch the person who’d tried to kill them? He might never.

  Her mother’s boyfriend had never been arrested for his crime, for stealing her prescription pad and ruining her life. Her mother’s.

  And Kylie’s.

  Her mother never should have trusted that man or Kylie’s father or any of the other men who’d let her down. That was why Kylie shouldn’t trust so easily either.

  Could she trust Heath?

  She’d known him—worked wi
th him—for five years. Of course she could trust Heath...as a friend. Not as a lover.

  Not that they were going to become lovers. They were just acting the part for Detective Parker’s benefit and hers because she’d lied to the lawman. Heath was only protecting her from getting arrested and from whoever had tried shooting at them.

  So why was she so reluctant to leave the guest room? To be in his home?

  She hadn’t felt awkward the other night. But she’d been so focused on Heath then, on making sure that he was okay after identifying the bodies. She hadn’t considered how the situation looked until Gina had dragged her out of his bed the next morning.

  Not that she would ever be back in his bed. That wasn’t why she was here. She was here because she was in danger.

  She shivered now as that chill raced down her spine. And she turned toward the guest-room doorway. It was open but for the man who leaned against the jamb, blocking the passage.

  Kylie’s escape. And suddenly she did want to run. From him. And from the sudden awareness coursing through her.

  Maybe it was the kisses they’d shared, or all the things his family had said about how perfect they were for each other, but she couldn’t see him just as a colleague and a friend any longer.

  He was more.

  So much more...

  They’d always had chemistry between them in that they’d effortlessly understood each other. About work...

  But how would that chemistry translate to a physical relationship? Would they effortlessly know how to please each other in the bedroom like they had in the office?

  They could have died today...in that shower of gunfire.

  If they had, Kylie wouldn’t have had the chance to see if everyone was right about them. If they were perfect for each other.

  She wasn’t thinking of the long run, of permanence. She doubted she was any more capable of that than Heath was. She knew him even better than she knew herself.