The Protective One: A Billionaire Bride Pact Romance

by Cami Checketts

  MacKenzie’s face scrunched up. Isaac. He seemed destined to give everyone a hard time. “You should do what you want.”

  “I am, don’t worry. Cal spoils me far too much.”

  MacKenzie smiled. Her friend was so happy and in love. She was thrilled for Haley, but knew such a happy ending could never happen in her own life, at least not until Squire was arrested and she somehow got back to her own reality. Yet there’d be no Isaac in Chicago to infuriate and excite her. She shook her head and focused on what Haley was saying about wedding plans. Isaac didn’t deserve a spot in her desires.

  5

  Isaac slammed a hay bale into the trough. Cutting the strings off, he pushed it out to the cows. Usually when he worked, his mind would conjure all kinds of ideas for welding projects. Everything from the horses in the next stall over and the towering mountains and cascading pines gave him ideas for something to weld. He’d started to sell his work online and it was going well. Because of Haley’s insistence that he upped his prices, most of his pieces sold for thousands of dollars. If he could just get his own place and not have to work on the ranch, or maybe partner up with someone who would help him take it to the next level.

  Yet today all he could think about was MacKenzie and he didn’t believe those visions would make good welding art for home decor. He smirked to himself, his smile growing as he remembered how MacKenzie had felt in his arms. How that kiss had rocked him to the core just like their first kiss when they were teenagers. There was one recurring thought he wished he could eradicate—she didn’t even want to be friends with him. His shoulders rounded and he pushed at his hair, smearing some hay dust onto his forehead and making himself sneeze. He shook his head. He needed to focus on the ranch and his welding work, not the beautiful woman occupying his sister’s house, his sister’s store, and his every thought.

  His dad’s truck rolled up in a cloud of dust. “You done loafing with the sick herd?” he hollered through the window.

  Isaac used to get so irritated when his dad would say he was loafing, but it was just the way his dad talked and wasn’t worth a fight. His mom had believed Isaac could do no wrong. In her eyes he’d been hard-working, talented, basically everything a young man should be. He missed her and her ability to soften his dad up. “Almost. Once I finish up here, I want to work on some welding projects. I’ve got a bunch of orders backed up.”

  His dad scowled and gripped the steering wheel tighter. “What do you think this is? A dude ranch? We don’t take time off to make pretty flowers. There’s fence up the canyon to mend.”

  Isaac sighed. He made sure this ranch ran like clockwork and he rarely took any time off. If he would’ve told his dad he was going on a date or even going fishing with buddies, he would’ve smiled and said to go. For some reason, his dad wasn’t supportive of Isaac’s art and thought it was a waste of material and time. “Dad. I’m making good money selling my work online.”

  “Great. Do it after you fix my blasted fence.”

  “Yes, sir.” Isaac stalked to the stack of hay and picked up another bale with each hand. He needed to get his own house and move his equipment and be done with the ranch, but he didn’t have enough saved yet and he never would if he kept working fourteen-hour days for his dad. Yet how did he tell the man who had raised him and supported him in everything but welding his entire life that he was quitting? Especially now that Mom was gone and Haley and Taz weren’t going to be around as much either. Even though their relationship wasn’t great, Isaac was all that his dad had now. He’d work extra hard so he could get everything done then sneak in his shop and weld. His dad couldn’t complain when Isaac worked harder than three regular men.

  MacKenzie exited the little house. She’d had a hard time sleeping last night, and for the first time since the murder, it wasn’t because of nightmares or fear of closing her eyes and Squire finding her. It was that darn Isaac and his double-darn kiss. Ooh, she was mad at him. If she saw him this morning, she’d tell him off.

  Her jaw dropped open and her hand froze on the door handle of her car. Isaac was across the dirt road, hefting a hay bale in each arm as if they weighed no more than pillows. His thin cotton shirt did nothing to hide the muscles rippling across his back and shoulders. The man needed to buy thicker clothing. He might as well have been shirtless. The indecency of the overconfident oaf. MacKenzie hugged herself, remembering the feel of being in those arms last night.

  He easily lifted both bales over a fence and dropped then in a trough, sliced the twine with a pocket knife, then tossed hay around to the cows in the pen. MacKenzie’s mouth was dry and her palms were sweating.

  “Stop it,” she muttered to herself. These feelings were nothing, just a physical reaction to a good-looking man. He brushed a dark curl from his face and MacKenzie licked her lips. So what? She was attracted to him. That did not mean she liked him. She’d thought movie stars and singers were attractive before and obviously she was never going to date them or be “friends” as Isaac had suggested.

  “A physical reaction,” she said aloud. “It means nothing.” He turned her way as if he’d heard her and lifted a hand in greeting. His lips curved up in an irresistible smile. Her breath whooshed out of her. Okay, it was an intense physical reaction.

  MacKenzie yanked on the door handle and slid inside. She revved the motor and squealed the wheels in her hurry to get away. The mistake she made was glancing out the window. Isaac resembled a very handsome, very big, middle-school-aged boy, who’d just been kicked in the stomach by the school bully.

  MacKenzie steeled herself against any kind of pity for him. That was the last thing she needed. Match the desire she had for him with sympathy and she’d crawl around begging him to be friends and let him walk all over her with his imperious attitude. It was not happening. She pushed the old Accord to its limits, driving south into town and was going much too fast when she noticed the flashing lights in her rearview. She blinked her eyes against the annoying light as the bottom dropped out of her stomach.

  “Oh, crap. Oh, crap. Oh, crap.” She could not be getting caught by a policeman. She didn’t have a driver’s license or any kind of identification. The hair on her neck stood on end. What if the policeman figured out who she was and turned her over to the FBI? What if Tureen had really killed Klein and he came for her? Even if Tureen was gone, she didn’t know who to trust. Oh, this was bad, this was so bad.

  She pulled over because there was no hope of the Honda outrunning the shiny police car. A nice-looking man, about her age, came up to the open window. He grinned at her, brown eyes twinkling. “Hey. You’re Haley’s friend.”

  MacKenzie attempted to smile, afraid it came out as more of a grimace. Calm down, calm down. “Yep. I came to run Sugar ‘n Spice for her this summer. Wanted to get away from the city and the heat.”

  “Smart. It’s great to see you again.” He pointed at himself. “Josh Crusie. We danced once when you visited years ago.” His smile broadened. “Then Isaac set his sights on you and it was all over.”

  So this guy remembered Isaac had liked her all those years ago, but Isaac had never given any indication that he remembered their teenage romance. Just because Isaac had been amazing then he definitely was not now. Her blood pressure spiked as she thought about the kiss from years ago and the kiss from last night. How dare he make her fall for his tricks again? Ooh, that man ticked her off.

  The policeman rested his elbows on the window frame and leaned in. “You were going pretty fast.”

  “Yeah. Sorry,” her voice squeaked. Now he would take her into custody and the FBI would arrive as soon as he put her fingerprints into the system or whatever they did. Unless Klein had survived and ferreted Tureen and whoever he was working with out, she was as good as turned over to Solomon Squire and dead by nightfall.

  Josh cocked an eyebrow. “Don’t you have an excuse? Everyone always has an excuse.”

  MacKenzie shook her head, sweating palms stuck to the steering wheel. “I was ticked a
t Isaac and not paying attention to anything.”

  Josh roared at that. “Isaac’s a good guy, but I’ve been ticked at him a time or two myself.”

  “Are you … good friends?”

  “Oh, yeah. Always been friends. I remember how long he mooned over you after you left. Driving us all crazy, wishing you’d come back to town. Begging Haley to give him your number, but she claimed she’d lost it or something. I don’t think she liked the idea of her brother going after her friend.”

  MacKenzie’s mouth fell open and she couldn’t close it. “Isaac mooned over me? He didn’t even act like he remembered that we’d kissed.” Her face heated up. What was she saying? And to Isaac’s friend, no less.

  Josh laughed at that. “Oh, he remembered.” Josh straightened up and slapped the car with his hand. “Well, slow down and I’ll forget I saw you. Unless you want me to tell Isaac that you remembered him kissing you back in the day.”

  “No!” MacKenzie shook her head, clinging tighter to the wheel. “Please don’t.”

  He chuckled and held up both hands. “Okay. I won’t. Take care now.” He gave her a two-finger salute and then strode back to his car.

  MacKenzie wilted into her seat. She’d just dodged a huge bullet and she knew she should be grateful Josh hadn’t asked for her license or anything, but she could only think of his revelations. Isaac had wanted to call her? Isaac had told his friend about liking her and kissing her as a teenager? Part of her wanted to scream with joy, the other part wanted to find him and slug him. She slowly drove into town, forcing herself to go to work and give herself a chance to decide which part she’d act on.

  6

  MacKenzie said goodbye to the elderly lady and her forty-something daughter. The two had about bought the store out. She gave a happy squeal after the door shut. If she kept selling like this, Haley would have to teach her how to do ordering as well. She missed being at home, teaching her second-grade students and training for Spartan races, but it felt good to be productive again. Thankfully, school wouldn’t start for another seven weeks so at least her students wouldn’t be thinking she was dead.

  She sank into the chair, a satisfied grin on her face.

  The door squeaked open and she called out, “Hello, welcome to Sugar ‘n Spice.”

  Brad strutted in, white teeth flashing against his tanned skin. “So are you the sugar or the spice?”

  MacKenzie fought to keep her face neutral. She couldn’t smile at this guy, after learning what he’d done to her friend. How was she going to kick him out of the store? “I think you should leave.” Might as well be direct.

  Brad’s lips turned down but he recovered with an easy chuckle. “Guess you’re the spice.”

  “Please leave.”

  Brad ignored her request and strode to the desk. “I thought we had a great time last night. What’s going on?”

  Guess he was going to be direct also. “Haley called.” She arched an eyebrow.

  He watched her carefully, no indication of the guilt he should feel. Several seconds passed and the silence became heavy. “And?” he finally prompted.

  “And I know all about … what you did to her.”

  He tilted his head to the side. “That I’m Taz’s father?”

  “Yes.” She nodded. “And it wasn’t consensual.”

  Brad’s face filled with sadness. “Is she still stuck on that story?” He took a long breath. “That was a really bad night, MacKenzie. We both had too much to drink and we were young and dumb. Look, I shouldn’t have let things go as far as they did, but I know she was willing. You have to believe I would never take advantage of a woman.” He paused and searched her eyes. “Can you believe me?”

  MacKenzie studied him. Either he or Haley was blatantly lying. She wished she could say for sure it was him, but the honest truth was she had only been around Haley at girl’s camp a couple weeks each summer and then come and stayed with her and her family that one time. They weren’t the closest of friends who told each other every secret. Her gut said to trust Haley, but Brad’s sincere look was planting a seed of doubt.

  “The Turnbows have always hated my family. Isaac and Trevor wouldn’t allow me to be part of Haley’s life, they’ve always kept her and my son away from me.”

  MacKenzie hated trying to wade through the truth. Something about seeing Brad bloody and prostrate yesterday had made her want to watch out for him. She could imagine Isaac and his dad being fiercely protective of Haley, but was it fair to keep a man’s son from him if he and Haley had both been drinking and allowed things to get out of control?

  MacKenzie’s gut tightened. She hated herself for doubting Haley and couldn’t stand the thought of Haley or Isaac skewing the story in their favor. If they were deceiving to her about this then maybe she wasn’t in a safe spot. Here she thought she’d run to safety, but really, what had she run to?

  “You know Haley is just trying to make me look bad so you’ll date Isaac instead of me.”

  MacKenzie’s breath caught. The thought of dating Isaac filled her with all kinds of desires she had no right to be feeling.

  “But you’ve seen how violent Isaac can be. Do you really want to be around a man like that?”

  As quick as the good feelings for Isaac had come they disappeared. Brad was right. She’d seen Isaac hit Brad so hard he knocked him down. Before watching the murder she might’ve just written off the punch as men having a dispute, but now she could hardly stomach violence.

  Brad’s shoulders drooped when she still didn’t talk. “I’ll let you think about things, but please, MacKenzie.” He reached out and squeezed her arm softly. “Give me a chance to prove I’m not the monster Haley and Isaac try to make me out to be. I felt a real connection with you last night and would really like to get to know you better.”

  MacKenzie simply looked at him. She didn’t know how to respond, especially with her thoughts going a million directions, confused and worried about the situation she may have put herself in, and feeling guilt for doubting her longtime friend.

  “I’ll come talk to you later,” Brad said.

  She managed a curt nod before he turned and walked out of the store.

  MacKenzie went through the motions of greeting customers, stocking shelves, ringing up purchases, advising on decorative arrangements, but her mind was somewhere else. Maybe it was time to cut her losses and leave. Where could she go? She had five dollars to her name. She could wait until she got paid or contact her parents to wire more money, but that seemed really risky. For sure Squire or the FBI would be monitoring them now.

  She drove home to Haley’s house in an almost catatonic state. This morning, after the policeman had pulled her over, she’d been excited and nervous, wanting to confront Isaac about remembering her and their kiss years ago. Now she wasn’t sure who to trust or where to turn. Was Brad really the monster Haley and Isaac were making him out to be? Or was Isaac unstable and violent? Should she be leery of her friend’s brother, especially because of her attraction to him? MacKenzie’s brain was spinning and she didn’t know how to pinpoint which one was lying to her or why. She was hiding her own truths so she didn’t want to judge too harshly, but it was all so sticky and confusing.

  She parked her car in front of the cottage. Easing out of the old Honda and standing next to it in the warm summer evening sun, she wished she felt brave enough to go for a run or even better an intense hike. It would be heaven to push her body and clear her mind. She glanced around wistfully at the verdant mountains. Oh, how she wished to hear that Solomon Squire had been caught and her fears were over, but with the new information Brad and Haley had both given her, she found that there were fears waiting everywhere.

  She couldn’t bear to sit and stew inside her house so she hurried to her bedroom and put on a tank top, workout shorts, and some running socks and shoes. Maybe if she just ran up some trails close to the ranch, she wouldn’t be afraid. Isaac’s dad, Trevor, seemed like a good old boy who would watch out for a woman
. She’d had that instinct the first time she met him years ago, but now she wondered if she could trust her instincts.

  Wandering through the ranch, she remembered Haley taking her on a hiking trail through the canyon to the west when she’d visited before. As she passed a large shed, she jumped when a loud popping sound rang out, like the gunshots that had hit the safe house. Scurrying against the building, she searched for a shooter, but saw no one. The sounds came again from inside the shop. Her heart was beating almost as loudly.

  Drumming up bravery she didn’t feel, she peeked in the open doorway. Isaac had his back to her and sparks were flying from his welding torch as he manipulated a metal loop. The popping sound came from the torch.

  MacKenzie relaxed and watched Isaac as her heart rate returned to normal. He was wearing that darn transparent cotton shirt again, guess he probably had been all day. MacKenzie suddenly wished she hadn’t been at work and could’ve spied on him today in that shirt.

  As he worked, the muscles in his arms, shoulders, and back flexed time and again. MacKenzie forgot all about hikes and watched him, maybe drooling a little bit, but she wouldn’t admit that to herself.

  He turned slightly and must’ve spotted her because he turned off the welder and took off his welding helmet, gloves, and the weird leather drape thing that had been hanging from his helmet. Giving her a slight smile that she found much too sexy, he leaned against the counter. “Hey.”

  “Hey,” MacKenzie whispered, licking her lips, glad he hadn’t advanced on her because she probably would’ve wanted to touch him instead of running away like she should.