by Mia Dymond
“Who’s your employer?”
“I can only guess Mrs. McGuire. I’m spending most of my time there, but I don’t have anything that belongs to her.”
“Did you take the letter to the police?”
“No, I took it to Harvard.”
“Even better. Does he have an opinion?”
“The team is meeting to discuss it now.”
“How is your project progressing with him?”
“Quite well.”
“Spill, Gracie.”
“His kiss makes me weak.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yes, literally. My knees turn to jelly.”
“Well, that’s good, right?”
“I suppose.” Grace rested her head on the back of her chair and sighed as she moved her gaze around the room.
The mocha-colored walls soothed her tension, replacing it with warmth and comfort much like hot chocolate on a cold, winter day. Pictures of Bailey’s travels hung in matching black frames covered in rhinestone studs on all four walls; bright photographs of a yellow-beaked toucan in the Brazilian rainforest, elephants and giraffes in the African wild, and beautiful Hawaiian waterfalls brightened the room. Bailey’s personalized touches completed the look: a leopard-print throw covered the top of a black, leather sofa; a black iron dressmaker’s mannequin with a red boa hung around the neck stood in one corner; and two Mad Hatter top hats, one with a zebra-print feather and one with a tiger-striped feather stuck in the brim, decorated a nearby bookcase.
She lifted her head and sat back upright in the chair. “You’re such a girl, Bailey.”
“Huh? Where did that come from?”
“This office is the epitome of feminine, bold, and confident all rolled into one.”
“You had a hand in it, remember?”
“Only the organization. The design is every bit you.”
Bailey grinned. “Someone told me that it’s important to be happy in your space.”
Grace laughed, genuinely relaxed now that Bailey had put her at ease. She had made the right decision, running to Bailey for comfort.
Bailey sat forward and placed a hand on her forearm. “Grace, do you think we should re-schedule our vacation? At least until Harvard figures out what’s going on?”
“Absolutely not.” She shook her head in sheer determination. “I refuse to let this creep ruin my life.”
“It might not be safe.”
“Harvard, Ice, and Diesel are working on it. All I can do is wait and that makes me furious.”
“Something tells me that those men will get to the bottom of things soon.”
“I hope so.” She patted Bailey’s hand. “We’re going to Sea Gull Island no matter what.”
***
He wrung his hands while he waited impatiently for the phone call he would most likely receive in the next few minutes. In the whole scheme of things, twenty-four hours had not been a lot of time but he managed to take action and hopefully, he made the appropriate decision.
He ran a hand over his jaw and released a hard breath, deeply angered with himself. Damn his desperation. Damn his weakness. He wasn’t a criminal. In fact, up until now he never even considered stepping outside the law. Once he completed this obligation and his debt was repaid, he fully intended to live his life lawfully. Fate would just have to cooperate.
Just as he suspected, his cell phone vibrated from inside the pocket of his jacket. He took a deep breath, read the screen, and then answered the call.
“I have done as you requested,” he said by way of introduction. “I sent a demand letter and gave her forty-eight hours to respond.”
“Your initiative is commendable. Do you have reason to believe she will comply?”
He took a brief pause to consider their target. It had been his experience that she tended to follow a mental checklist in any task she performed. Details appeared to be important to her and very rarely, if ever, did she deviate from her plan. He had every reason to believe she would cooperate.
“Yes. She’s a reasonable woman. I’m confident we will have the object in our possession soon.”
“Have you constructed a back-up plan?”
“Yes. I’ll send another warning, if necessary.”
“Have you made allowances for law enforcement?”
“If she seeks help, the note is untraceable.”
“You took proper precautions?”
“Absolutely. Under no circumstances do I want to risk identification.”
“I will allow you to proceed but do so with caution. This package is quite desirable to me and quite frankly, acquiring it is the only hope you have at saving your life.”
He swallowed hard at the other man’s frank warning. “Yes, sir. I will contact you as soon as it is in my possession.”
CHAPTER FOUR
Under the cover of darkness, Grace sat in the passenger seat of Bailey’s convertible, giddy with excitement as her friend drove across town to Storage Solutions. Despite Harvard’s warning that she steer clear of the storage unit, she had every intention of finding whatever it was that the lunatic wanted; she was only being logical, the unit needed to be searched.
“Why exactly did you drag me out in the middle of the night?” Bailey steered into the parking lot of the storage company and stopped next to the keypad that opened the gate.
“So no one would follow us.”
Bailey shrugged and lowered the window “What’s the code?”
“1234.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously.”
Bailey punched the numbers “You couldn’t come up with something a little more secure?”
“I didn’t create the code; the storage company gave it to me.”
The gate slowly opened and gravel crunched beneath the car’s tires as Bailey drove through.
“Go left,” Grace told her, “and right at the second row of units.”
Bailey frowned as they stopped in front of their destination. “Where’s the light?”
“There’s not one.” Grace handed her a flashlight. “This will do.”
“We really are undercover, aren’t we?”
Grace giggled, flipped on her flashlight, and turned it to shine on her friend. “Yes, and we have to do this fast. If Harvard even thinks I’m out here, we’re screwed.”
Bailey grinned. “And that would be a bad thing?”
“Well, no.” She paused and then returned her friend’s grin. “But I don’t want to get caught.”
“I wouldn’t mind Harvard going all caveman on me,” Bailey mumbled as she left the car and then stood beside Grace on the passenger’s side.
“Oh yeah?” She jammed the key into the claw lock on the storage unit and wiggled it. “What about Ice?”
“What about him?”
“He’s just as much caveman as Harvard.”
“Nuh-uh. Too much testosterone for me.”
“Oh, Bailey.” She giggled as the snap of the claw told her the unit was now unlocked. “There’s no such thing.”
“Yes, there is. The man is entirely too cocky for his own good. What exactly are we looking for?”
She bit her bottom lip. “I have no idea.”
“What exactly do you mean by that, Grace?” Bailey’s blue eyes widened to the extent that Grace thought they might actually pop from the sockets. “You dragged me out here in the middle of the night dressed like a cat burglar and you don’t know what we’re looking for?”
“Well no, but you do look hot in black.”
“Beside the point. I certainly hope you have a plan. You usually do.”
Grace swallowed hard. She wasn’t about to tell Bailey that she picked this moment to take Harvard’s advice and wing it.
“I’ll know it when I see it. The note says it’s precious so I’m assuming we’re looking for some kind of stone.”
“A stone? Like a diamond?”
“I don’t know,” she groaned. “Just start digging through boxes and see what
you find.”
“I hope you brought more batteries,” Bailey grumbled.
“That, I did.”
“Where did you put them?”
“In the car.”
For the next few minutes, they opened and closed boxes in silence. Aggravation poked her like an annoying clothing tag, but she refused to give up. Whatever her stalker was after had to be in one of these boxes.
“Well, lookee here,” Bailey said finally.
“You found something?”
“I found something alright.”
Grace moved to stand beside her friend and shine her flashlight into the box she currently searched. “Oh, my.”
“You didn’t pack these boxes?”
“No, Mrs. McGuire had them packed.”
Bailey held up a pair of silver handcuffs between her thumb and forefinger. “Do you suppose she has an extra pair?”
“Do I want to know what else is in that box?”
“Probably not. It’s a pretty extensive collection.”
“I’m a pretty open-minded person, Bailey, but I would’ve never suspected that the McGuires embraced that particular kind of sex play.” She took the handcuffs from Bailey, intent on sealing them back up in the box, when a loud ping echoed in the silence.
Bailey grasped her wrist and squeezed. “What was that?”
Terror began to climb the vertebrae of her spine. “Probably just the building. The metal tends to creak at times.”
“Grace, I’m wearing two-inch heels. I need a head start if we’re planning to make a quick exit.”
“Relax, it’s nothing.” She took a series of deep breaths in the continued silence and then opened another box. “See? No need to panic. I’m sure we’re fine. Keep digging.”
***
At the sound of his ringing cell phone, Harvard rolled over and snatched the device from the night stand. He gave it a cursory glance so he could rip the caller a new one for waking him.
“What the hell, Ice?”
“Sorry man, I’ve got something you really need to see.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Are you near your computer?”
“Hell, no! I was in bed, asleep.”
“Boot it up. I’ll wait.”
“Can’t you just tell me?”
“No, you need to see it yourself.”
“Hang on.” He released a hard breath and left the warmth of his bed. Two minutes later, he sat in front of his computer, blinking sleep from his vision.
“Okay, I’m there.”
“Pull up the camera at the storage company.”
Suddenly adrenaline pushed sleep from his system and rendered him hopeful they’d caught a lead. He quickly moved his fingers over keys until he stared at a long storage unit, in front of which two figures stood dressed in black as they rolled open the heavy, metal door. The adrenaline quickly dissipated as the curvy figures entered the unit and then pulled the door closed. No, they hadn’t gotten a lead; Grace had decided to take matters into her own hands.
“I take it you’ve drawn the same conclusion I have,” Ice drawled.
“Yep, that’s Grace. Any idea who she commandeered to help?”
“Bailey.”
“Bailey King?”
“Yep.”
“Did you run face recognition?”
“Nope.”
“And you’re sure?”
“Absolutely.” His friend snickered. “I’d know that ass anywhere.”
He grinned, not surprised by Ice’s confidence or honesty. His teammate had an appreciation for all things female which seemed to work in his favor as far as the ladies were concerned.
“So when I confront them, you want me to explain that you identified Bailey by your admiration of her ass?”
“You’re going to confront them?”
“Yes. It’s dangerous for them to lurk around in the dark alone. Besides, I gave Grace explicit orders to stay away from the storage unit.”
Ice snickered. “She listened, didn’t she?”
“Do you want me to use your explanation?”
“No,” Ice mumbled. “Do you need back up?”
“You haven’t seen anyone or anything else, have you?”
“No, just those two creeping around in the middle of the night, dressed in black and looking sexy as hell.”
“Did you capture the gate code?”
“Yes. 1234.”
“No way.”
“Honest.”
“I got this.” He stood and headed back to the bedroom. “Keep watching, you might find it entertaining.
He tossed his cell phone on his rumpled bed and reached into the dresser for jeans and a t-shirt. Obviously, there was a whole other side of Grace he hadn’t discovered – maybe she was adventurous, after all.
He stepped into his jeans and then pulled the white cotton shirt over his head and stuck his arms through the sleeves. She surprised the hell out of him when he saw her on camera. Lurking around in the dark didn’t seem to fit her m.o. He pictured her home, tucked beneath the covers in a thin, silky nightgown – probably black, after he’d witnessed her attire tonight. Yeah, black. Black and short. His cock jumped to full attention and he was forced to make a quick adjustment before he zipped up.
Determined to get to the bottom of things, he pulled on a pair of socks, crammed on his combat boots, grabbed his phone and keys, and made a beeline for his truck.
He drove the distance to the storage company at a casual speed, purposely giving the two women a false sense of security before he crashed their party and gave Ice some humorous late-night entertainment. He finally parked on a road behind the facility, left his truck, and then approached the back entrance. He cringed as he punched the code Ice had captured, making a mental note to have Diesel call in the morning and change it. Once he entered, he bent to scoop up a handful of gravel and then took his position.
He rolled a rock around in his palm as he waited in the dark behind the storage unit. He planned to give Thelma and Louise at least ten seconds to process before he coaxed them out. He chuckled at Grace’s belligerence. Although it irritated him to no end that she decided not to follow instructions, at least he would have some fun before he proved his point. He had to admit, he was impressed; Grace had finally operated outside of her organizational binds. Even more impressive was that she managed to convince Bailey to go along.
He shook his head, drew back his arm, and let the rock fly. Exactly on target, the missile hit the side of the building with a loud crack and then bounced off. Time to make an appearance. He jogged to the entrance, braced himself on one hip against the side, and waited.
***
“Grace,” Bailey hissed in the silence, “that noise was entirely too coincidental. Let’s go. Now.”
Grace had no intention of arguing. She quickly closed the box she’d been searching and grabbed her flashlight. With her nerves shaking, she stepped to the open door as she swallowed hard, looked out into the pitch-black darkness, and then glanced at Bailey.
“Coast is clear. Make a break for the car while I replace the lock.”
Bailey shook her head. “No. I’m not leaving you alone. There’s no telling what goes bump in the night around here.”
“Good answer.”
At the sound of a low, masculine voice, Grace jumped and dropped the lock. Bailey screamed and lifted her flashlight overhead.
“Back off, Pervert, or I’ll let you have it!”
Grace watched in horror as the owner of the voice stepped into view, blocked Bailey’s assault, easily pried the flashlight from Bailey’s hold, and then turned it around.
As soon as she recognized the man who stood there, her fear quickly turned to anger. She clenched both fists, rushed toward him, and planted a solid punch to his very solid right biceps. The mountain of muscle didn’t even flinch.
“Harvard! You scared us to death!”
“It’s Harvard?” Bailey squeaked.
“Yes.” She steppe
d away from him. “What are you even doing here?”
He turned off the flashlight and handed it back to Bailey. “I might ask you ladies the same question.”
“Looking for something.” She turned to retrieve the lock and snap it back onto the door.
“Looking for what?”
“She doesn’t know,” Bailey answered for her. “It’s turned out to be a midnight treasure hunt.”
He bent to pick up something from the ground beside her. “Maybe these?”
Grace turned to him to see the handcuffs dangled from his grip. “No. We found those while we searched.”
“Why would you need them?”
“We don’t. We heard a noise and left in a hurry.”
“I know.”
“You know? How could you possibly know about any of this?”
He gestured upward with his index finger. “You’re on candid camera. Ice saw you on film and called me.”
“Oh geez,” Bailey groaned. “Ice knows too?”
He smirked and nodded. “He’s been watching from his computer the whole time. And that noise you heard?” He paused and extended a palm on which a rock rested.
“You threw rocks at the building to scare us?”
“Yep.” He stepped forward and grasped her elbow with one hand while he gestured at the driver’s side of the car with the other. “Inside, Bailey.”
Her friend didn’t argue and entered the vehicle in seconds.
“I told you to stay away from this place,” he continued as he urged Grace to the passenger’s side. “Straight home. I’ll follow you.” Once she sat in the car, he gave her the handcuffs and winked. “Hang on to those, they might come in handy.”
***
He paced rapidly from end to end of the room, annoyed by the fact that the object had not yet been returned. He had searched for the majority of the afternoon, convinced he would find it and then this whole nightmare would end once and for all. He suddenly stopped in mid-step as another wave of anxiety rolled over him. Would it stop? Would he be free from this massive dark cloud over his head?
