by Jill Sanders
“Thanks,” she said, looking around the room. “But I’m afraid it’s not as simple as a court battle.”
“We’ve been through worse,” Jamie said, looking between her sister and TK. “Trust us.”
Mel wished she could believe that but knowing the power that Ethan had, she doubted it.
“Ethan won’t stop at the law,” she said, looking to Brent.
“Good, and when he crosses that line,” Dale said stepping into the room, “I’ll be here to catch him.” He wrapped an arm around TK. His eyes moved around the room and landed on Darla.
Mel hadn’t even realized Dale or Darla were there, along with all of the other employees she’d hired over the past few months. Her heart ached and her eyes teared up once more.
“Thank you,” she said softly. “All of you. I don’t know how I’m going to pay you all back,”
“This time off is payment in itself,” someone said, causing everyone to chuckle.
“Drinks,” someone else said.
“Chicken wings,” someone else added.
Mel laughed. “I suppose since we’re officially closed down for dinner, a round of wings and beer is on me,” she said and everyone cheered.
By the time Don Hathaway, Brent’s lawyer, walked through the front doors, most of the employees, her family, were all enjoying wings and beer while listening to the jukebox and watching a game.
Brent, Dale, and Mel sat at a table discussing her case.
Her parents had not only filed extortion and intellectual theft cases against her, they had actually filed a corporate espionage suit against her as well.
Corporate espionage. As if she would be even capable of such a thing.
“Who are your parents?” Dale asked.
“Roy and Belinda Hawk,” she answered. Only after seeing Dale’s and Brent’s blank stares did she realize that the men didn’t know who her parents were. Sighing, she closed her eyes briefly. “Regal Intellectual Corporation,” she said and met Brent’s gaze.
“RIC?” Dale’s eyes grew wide. “The company that created the big brother system that protects and watches everyone’s bank accounts and credit scores. Holy… mother of…” He stopped himself, then gasped. “You’re an heiress.”
She felt her entire body sag. “I’m… me,” she said, feeling suddenly tired. “Penniless. The manager of this place.” She met Brent’s eyes and could see the worry there. The one thing she didn’t see was anger or, as she would have with so many other men in her past, dollar signs. She’d missed that in Ethan’s eyes before marrying him.
“Where does this leave us?” Brent asked Dale.
Dale was quiet for a moment before taking a deep breath. “Seriously? That kind of screws us. Sorry,” he said to her. “Your parents are what? In the top ten richest people in the States?”
“Fourth,” she said, dryly. “They are. I’m not,” she tried to assure Brent.
“I don’t care if you’re the queen’s niece,” he said, taking her hand. “Family doesn’t define us.” She remembered he’d said that to her before.
“They do when these are your family members,” Dale added as the group behind them cheered when a team made a goal. “Nutjobs, each and every last one.”
Mel smiled. “I’ll take these nutjobs over the two-faced people who raised me any day.”
Brent squeezed her hand. “Whatever it takes, we’re with you.”
“And your ex?” Dale asked. “I’m going to head into the station and see what I can come up with on Ethan Melbourne.”
“His father is the chief of police in Auburn,” she said, avoiding Brent’s eyes. “He works for the department as well.”
Dale nodded. “Haven’s a little out of his jurisdiction,” he said with a smile just as Don moved over to sit in the chair Dale had vacated. “Besides, if the man steps foot in town, we’ve got ourselves a nice new chief of police ourselves. One that doesn’t take too kindly to people coming into town and messing with our own.”
“Brian Laster,” Brent said with a shake of his head. “Never thought the man would amount to anything.”
Dale smiled. “He’s turned out to be a first-rate chief.”
For the next hour, the three of them talked legal options. Since Mel had been unaware of the charges filed against her when she’d left Washington State, he believed he could get the charges of eluding felony charges dropped. Especially since she’d never been convicted. Her other saving grace was that she had proof that she didn’t have the funds her parents claimed she’d taken off with.
Honestly, she was pretty sure that if her parents had known that she hadn’t taken the money, they never would have pressed those charges in the first place. Still, she doubted they would press charges against Ethan even if they had proof that he was the one who had taken the money. After all, according to her father, Ethan was the head of the house and therefore responsible for all financial decisions.
What had Ethan done with two hundred thousand dollars? How had he hidden it from her parents? Was he even still in the Seattle area?
Shortly after nine, everyone left and they locked up. Feeling slightly better after the talk with the lawyer and her friends, Mel headed upstairs with Brent.
“How about you head in, take a bath or shower,” he said to her. “I know how being locked in the slammer makes one feel dirty.” He smiled.
She did feel dirty. She had ever since the reporter had stepped into the office and spilled her secrets. But the kind of dirty she felt couldn’t be washed off with soap and water. Still, she nodded and gathered a pair of her pajamas to change into after the long hot shower she planned on taking.
From the moment she stepped under the hot spray, she allowed the rest of her emotions to flow out of her. She sat on the cold tile floor, hugging her knees to her chest as the water flowed over her, washing away her tears and the day’s weariness from her muscles until she was nothing more than a pile of jelly.
When the water turned cold, she turned it off and took a few moments to compose herself as she slipped back under her careful protective shield.
Then she walked into the bedroom she’d shared with Brent for the past two months and stepped into a wonder world filled with soft candlelight and music. He’d somehow gone and gotten soft pink roses, a dozen of them, which he held out in front of him as she stepped into the room.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his eyes running over her face. “I couldn’t protect you against your past. But I’m hoping that you’ll take this promise from me now that, no matter what happens, I will be here for you in the future.”
“Damn,” she said, reaching up to wipe another tear that had escaped her eyes. “I told myself I was done crying,” she said softly as she stepped into his arms.
Her head ached from all the tears, but when he kissed her, everything, the entire day of horrors, fell away.
With Brent’s arms wrapped around her, she felt she could stand up against anything. Even her parents and her ex.
Then he kissed her, and she knew that whatever her future held, she would never let go of this feeling. The feeling of being loved. Even if they hadn’t said the words yet, she knew that she’d lost her heart to him long ago.
She knew how he felt. Every single time he touched her or kissed her, he showed her. He told her how he felt about her in his daily actions too—the way he would go out of his way to do the little things for her that most would overlook. Holding the door open for her. Stopping and picking a purple flower in the field and handing it to her. Saving the last slice of pie for her. And sipping tea with her when she knew he wanted coffee instead.
So many times he’d sacrificed little things on her behalf. Ethan never had and never would do that for her. Not even her parents had sacrificed as much.
As she slept with his arms wrapped around her, she thought about the possibility of leaving now. Could she make it on her own again? The Haven police had the make, model, and registration information for her truck, which meant she’d ha
ve to find other means of travel. Where could she go? Her plans to head to Helena were out, since several people around her knew she’d been heading there in the first place.
Was there anywhere she could go now?
What if Ethan came here? What if someone she had grown to care for got hurt? What if Ethan came after Brent? Or Dylan and baby Bella?
That thought had her almost jumping out of bed. If it wasn’t for Brent’s arms resting over her stomach, anchoring her to the spot, she would have left.
TK’s and Jamie’s words played over in her mind. They were so trusting, all of them. And they had stuck their necks and their hard-earned money out for her. Not one of her friends from school would have done that.
She doubted that even her parents would do that at this point. They probably still thought that she had taken their money and run. No wonder they’d demanded she return home every time she’d talked to them. Even though they had given her the checking account in the first place.
She frowned. How was it possible for them to file charges if they were the ones who had opened the account in her name?
She’d been too dazed from the day to really ask the lawyer any questions or give him any vital information. She vowed to have another meeting with the man the following day and then forced herself to shut everything down. She fell asleep counting Brent’s breaths as her head rose and fell with his chest.
Chapter 23
Three days after Mel had been taken in, they were sitting out on the patio having dinner when a shiny black Rolls-Royce drove into the parking lot.
“And it begins,” Mel said under her breath.
In the past few days, they’d discussed the possibility of her parents or Ethan showing up. They had decided how to handle any situation and had Don and or Dale waiting on standby for either scenario.
“Parents first,” he agreed and took her hand. “Together.”
“Together.” She nodded and stood up and moved to the edge of the parking lot along with him.
He felt her tense when her parents stepped out of the car.
Since the other day, he’d done a little research into Roy and Belinda Hawk. Still, the couple looked younger than he’d expected. Not that he’d been expecting old people, but the stylish clothes they were wearing took years off their lives.
Mel looked so much like her mother that he would have known they were mother and daughter from across the room.
“Mom, Dad,” Mel said in a calm voice.
If he hadn’t known her, he would have believed she was the essence of quietude. The fact that her hand still clung to his was the only outward sign that she needed his strength.
Her parents ran their eyes over him, over the building behind them.
“Melinda, we think it’s high time you came home,” her father said in a strict tone.
Mel took a heartbeat before chuckling. “Go to hell,” she replied. He smiled and gave her hand a slight squeeze. “I didn’t take your money.”
“Didn’t you?” Her mother spoke for the first time.
Mel turned towards her and, instead of answering, she tilted her head slightly.
“Mr. and Mrs. Hawk, why don’t you come inside? We can discuss…” he started, only to have her father jerk his eyes towards him.
“Keep your dog on a leash,” he barked.
Brent’s eyebrows shot up. “That was your one chance,” he said calmly. “I’ll ask you to leave my property.”
Mel’s mother chuckled and looked down her nose at him. “Really, Melinda, you left Ethan for this.” She motioned around them. “You’re in the middle of nowhere. Shacked up with this… mountain man?”
“I’m home,” Mel said, her chin raising slightly. “Where people treat me with respect and love. Something the two of you never managed.”
Her father’s eyes narrowed.
“This is your last chance,” he said in a low tone.
“Have you asked Ethan about the money?” Brent heard her voice rise slightly.
“You’re disturbed,” her mother said softly, looking pained. “You need help.”
“The only thing I needed help with was to escape an abusive husband. The man who threw me through a wall for purchasing the wrong kind of milk. The man who, after I divorced him, used his connection to you to hunt me down, then broke into my apartment and shoved a gun in my mouth until I gave him the checks to the account that you’d given me.” Brent jerked at hearing this piece of news. The desire to kick Ethan’s ass went up a few more notches. “Then I was forced to work several jobs just to save up enough to escape him once more. I had to hide who I was and keep that knowledge from the two of you for fear that you’d lead him to me once again. Because next time, I didn’t think he’d stop at just threats, something neither of you could ever understand. Because all that time, while I was jumping at shadows and hiding in fear, you took his side.” Mel’s eyes narrowed, and she took a deep breath. “Go. There’s nothing in Haven for you. I’m no longer your daughter. I don’t want a thing from either of you.” Mel’s voice had risen slightly.
Her parents’ eyes moved past her, and when Brent glanced over his shoulder, he noticed TK, Jamie, Mary, and Darla standing in the doorway of the Hard Way, watching and backing Mel up.
“I have a family here,” she finished up. She jumped slightly when everyone behind her erupted in applause. Mel smiled at them and then turned on her parents again. “Just go,” she said, and then she took his hand again and pulled him back towards everyone waiting for them.
When they approached, they were both engulfed in hugs.
To his surprise, when he looked back, her parents were still standing there, talking to one another. Her father got on the phone as they walked inside.
He stood and watched her parents from the windows, while Mel was surrounded by their friends. It appeared as if her father was yelling at someone on the phone, then he hung up and said something to his wife, who immediately broke down and rushed into her husband’s arms.
“Mel?” he said, getting her attention. “Something’s up.” He motioned to the windows.
Mel moved over to stand next to him and, after a moment, sighed. “They are not my problem anymore.” She turned to go, but he stopped her.
“I think…” he said softly. “That they are hearing the truth for the first time.” He pulled her into his arms. “Look at them.” He motioned again.
This time, she took a longer look, as her parents stood in the parking lot, holding onto one another. Both of their eyes were wet with tears.
He felt her shoulders sag slightly. Then she pulled out of his hold and stepped outside. He wanted to follow her but held back. He overheard her ask them, “Do you want to come inside? We can head upstairs to talk?” Mel stood back as her parents walked inside.
“Want me to come?” he asked her as she walked by him. When she nodded, he followed her and her parents upstairs.
Since he figured this was her second chance with her parents, he stood back and listened as they talked.
“We had no idea,” her mother said before sitting down in the television room upstairs.
“I called the bank and confirmed that it was Ethan who cleared out that account,” her father said. “He told us that you took off with it and the only way to get you to come back out of hiding was for him to take care of it.”
“He put a warrant out for my arrest,” Mel said. “You signed the charges against me for extortion, intellectual theft, and corporate espionage.”
“The hell we did.” Her father’s voice rose slightly. Brent stepped forward and put a gentle hand on Mel’s shoulder. She reached up and covered it with her own hand.
“That’s what this says.” She shoved the folder Don had given them a few days back towards them. “Those are your signatures?” she asked calmly.
Her father opened the folder and ran his eyes over the papers and then shoved them back.
“Is this some sort of joke?” he asked, his eyes going to Brent’s.
Her father opened the folder again and took a few moments to read everything carefully.
Then, without a word, he stood up and pulled out his phone. Everyone in the room remained silent while he called someone.
“Jim, it’s Roy. Can you check on a few things for me? I know it’s late, but this is important. Yeah, it’s a legal case. Number…” He read off Mel’s court case number and then gave the man Don’s name and number. “I’ll be waiting,” he said before hanging up. Then he turned back to Mel. “We’ll get to the bottom of this,” he assured her. “It’s growing late. I don’t suppose there’s a hotel in this town?”
He glanced over at Mel and nodded when she gave him a questioning look.
“You don’t need a hotel. We have an extra room just across the hallway,” she said.
Her mother opened her mouth, as if she was ready to turn Mel down, but her father laid a hand on her arm.
“That would be great.” He turned to Brent. “We drove straight through and whatever that smell is coming from downstairs, it smells wonderful.”
Brent smiled. “You’re in luck. We have the best wings in town.” He smiled and motioned for them to follow him back downstairs.
The four of them sat at a corner table. Since their own dinner had been interrupted, they ordered more food along with her parents. Even though the silence was awkward at first, after he started asking her parents questions, it dissipated quickly enough. He kept the conversation light, talking about sports, the weather, their drive from Helena.
Then he mentioned he was from the Seattle area and finally spiked some real interest for the first time. They asked after his family and where he’d lived. To his amusement, they were surprised at the neighborhood he’d grown up in.
His parents, when they’d been alive, hadn’t spared any expense. And since his father had been in banking, he’d known just how much he could spend each year without going bankrupt.
