by Erica Penrod
They hadn’t reached the end of the line before Ryder announced he needed to go potty and stood in the appropriate stance, with his legs crossed.
“Here.” Cassie traded Rhett’s hand for Ryder’s. “I’ll take him, if you’ll stay here,” she said to Kip. “I’d hate to lose our place in line.”
“Sure. Do you want something to drink?”
“Yes, please,” she called over her shoulder, as she followed the signs to the restroom.
She was just about to enter when a voice called her from behind. “Excuse me, miss?”
Cassie turned around to see a tall, handsome man, somewhere in his fifties, dressed in starched jeans with a crease down the middle and a button-down shirt underneath a leather sports jacket. A tan felt cowboy hat, which didn’t detract from his thick dark hair, fit perfectly on top of his head, and was the same tone as his alligator boots. His eyes stopped her in his tracks.
“Are you Cassie Carter?”
“Yes,” she said, trying to avoid staring into his frozen eyes. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”
He smiled, and she felt a sick feeling swim through her body. Something screamed inside of her to run.
“I got to go potty.” Ryder tugged on her arm.
Cassie nodded. “If you’ll excuse—”
“That won’t be necessary,” he said, and grabbed her arm hard enough to bruise. “Just come with me, and no one will get hurt.”
She didn’t move.
“I’d hate for Mr. Morgan and your other child to be in harm’s way, should you be uncooperative.”
Cassie swallowed. She didn’t know what to do. The man’s momentum pulled her forward before her mind had a chance to catch up. She held onto her little son’s hand, and he started to cry.
“Just act as if were old friends,” he growled as he maneuvered through the crowd. “In some ways, I suppose we are.” He kept his head forward, just out of her line of vision.
Her brow furrowed, trying to recall the man’s face, but she couldn’t. She felt paralyzed by the fear rippling across her flesh, but her need to protect her son kept her searching for help. About 100 yards away, she saw Skyler. Desperate for her attention, Cassie slowed and twisted, as if she was maneuvering the crowd. Her captor turned and looked at her, then yanked on her arm, pulling it nearly out of socket. Skyler was closer, but occupied by the screen in her hand. Cassie wanted to scream, but feared the man may scoop up Ryder and run. She took small, deliberate steps though her body was being stretched, waiting for the girl to notice her.
Just then, Ryder called, “Skyler.”
Skyler smiled and walked towards Cassie and Ryder. Before she reached them, Cassie pushed Ryder into the teenager’s legs.
“What are you—” Skyler hugged Ryder.
“Take him,” she pleaded.
Skyler hesitated until she noticed Cassie being heaved in the opposite direction. Terror covered her face as she picked up the weeping child. “Cass …”
Cassie shook her head in warning, silently begging the girl to do exactly what she asked.
The young girl’s arms wrapped tightly around Ryder, and she turned around. Relief flooded Cassie as she watched them walk away. Her knees went weak, and she stumbled.
The man slowed his pace and looked back at her. “Come on—” He noticed her empty arms. “Where’s the kid?” he said through gritted teeth.
“Safe.”
He wrenched her arm again, and she gasped. “It doesn’t matter. You’re the one I need, and we’ll be long gone before anyone can do anything about it.”
“Who are you?” Cassie asked. “What do you want with me?”
“I want what belongs to me,” he said, and jerked her forward.
Cassie felt her mind cocoon within itself, shielding her from the trepidation of what would happen next. Rhett and Ryder’s faces flashed in front of her, and she was so thankful to know they were safe with people who loved them, because if she didn’t make it out—
A brilliant light blinded her as they stepped through the double doors. Outside of the center, a black car with tinted windows waited at the curb. The man opened the door and Cassie knew this was where things were about to get ugly.
* * *
Kip shoved his way through the crowd. Skyler’s texting abilities were lightning-fast. She’d pointed him in the right direction and he’d taken off like a shot. He thought he’d found Cassie once, only to discover he had the wrong woman. Then, the light from an open door cut through the crowd and he saw Cassie being thrust out of the building by someone Kip hoped he’d never see again.
“Macoy, stop!” Kip yelled as he ran through the doors.
Cassie looked back at him. The look in her eye was a combination of fear, rage, and relief.
The villain shoved Cassie into the car, rotated his head towards Kip, and sneered. “Stay out of this, Morgan.”
Kip took a step forward.
“That’s far enough,” Macoy said, pulling a gun from his pocket. “If she gives me the hard drive, this will all go away.”
Kip raised his hands in the air. “You? You killed Danny?” The pieces weren’t fitting together. Macoy was one of the backers on the television show—not a thug.
“Sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands.” His eyes hardened. “Her idiot husband and Sanders stole my money, and I want it back,” he said with a voice full of venom. He pointed the gun at Kip’s chest. “Now, tell her to give me the hard drive.”
“I will, I will,” Cassie’s voice echoed from the car.
Kip could just make out her profile in the dark car. No amount of money was worth her life. “Okay. Okay. Let’s just slow this down.” Kip took a step towards the vehicle.
* * *
“Don’t hurt him,” Cassie begged, as she gripped the leather seat, her hands sweaty with fear. Macoy’s attention was all on Kip—in a way, that scared her more than anything. The door to the building opened, and Kip’s dad slipped out with a gun in his hand.
Cassie kicked Macoy in the back of the leg. He swore, jerking around to glare at her.
Kip took advantage of his distraction and lunged for his gun. Cassie screamed as the weapon went off. It clattered to the pavement, out of reach.
Kip struggled to hold on to Macoy, both men grunting. Macoy’s elbow connected with Kip’s throat, and he gasped. Ben tucked his gun in the back of his belt and grabbed on to Macoy. The two fell to the ground, with Ben managing to get on top.
Cassie leapt from the car to help Kip, who was still gasping. “Are you okay?”
Kip nodded, his face a dark red but his eyes alert.
Kip’s father kept one knee in Macoy’s back as sirens filled the air and a crowd gathered.
Cassie let out a big sigh as tears fell down her face. Kip held her close and kissed the top of her head. “You’re safe—”
A gun went off and everyone ducked. Kip covered Cassie’s body with his own.
Cassie looked out from under his arm and saw Austyn Macoy standing there with a smoking gun in her fingertips. “Let my father go,” she demanded, pointing the gun right at Ben’s head.
Ben glared. He wasn’t the type of guy who liked to be outgunned.
“Austyn, don’t,” Kip pleaded. Cassie moved to gouge the girl’s eyes out, but Kip held her back.
“Don’t what?” she scorned Kip. “Save my father?”
Cassie exchanged a look with Kip. The accidental meeting in Park City didn’t look so accidental anymore. She suspected they’d used the television show to keep an eye on Kip, just in case he was involved in Danny’s shady dealings. The two of them showing up together had sealed the deal in Macoy’s mind.
She waved the gun at Ben. “I said let him go.”
Ben stood up with his hands in the air.
“You knew about this?” Kip asked Austyn.
“Daddy said he had business with you. I didn’t know he wanted her,” she said, waving the gun at Cassie.
Aiden Macoy gave his daughter a conniving smil
e. “Thanks, sweetheart,” he said, before diving into the car. The driver squealed the tires as he sped off.
“Daddy, wait!” Austyn cried. Her jaw dropped, and she blinked several times. Her words were muffled by the arrival of wailing squad cars.
Kip stepped up to the shaking woman.
“Kip, no!” Cassie warned.
“It’s alright,” he said to Cassie, then turned back to the wounded girl. “Austyn, just give me the gun.”
Black tears streamed down her face, ruining fifty dollars’ worth of makeup. Kip put his hand on the quivering pistol. Austyn let go and let out an anguished cry, crumpling to the asphalt. “I can’t believe he left me,” she mumbled over and over again as the police put her in handcuffs.
Overwhelmed with gratitude that her family was okay, and ticked off more than she could ever imagine, Cassie walked up to the woman in cuffs and looked her in the eye. “I feel sorry for you, and maybe in some way I understand your loyalty. But if you ever,” she grabbed Austyn’s chin, making her meet her gaze, “come near me or my family again,” she let go of her jaw and clenched her hands into fists, “I swear I’ll—”
Kip pulled her away. “It’s over, Cass.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “Believe me, I’d like to let you finish that sentence, but I have a feeling her imagination can fill in the blanks.”
Cassie wiped at her eyes and gave him a half smile.
Kip cocked his head. “But then again, just for the record, what would you do?”
“You don’t want to find out.”
“This is a side of you I’ve never seen before. Remind me to never upset you again.”
She gazed up at him. “Oh, I’m sure you’re going to make me mad, but…” She kissed his cheek. “I think you’re safe.”
While the police questioned them and took their statements, a call came through saying Macoy’s vehicle had been stopped, and he was apprehended a few miles away. The adrenaline drained from her body in reprieve, and her energy was spent until she saw Grace and the girls holding her boys in their arms. She ran to her children. They shook their heads in protest as she covered their faces with kisses. Kip came up behind them and cradled them all.
“How about we get out of here?” he asked the boys.
Rhett looked at Ryder, then at his own empty hands. “I want my snack,” he said.
Cassie laughed and took his hand. From here on out, life could be about snacks and bedtimes, and she wouldn’t complain at all. Normal sounded like heaven right now. “Let’s go get a snack.”
17
Snowflakes fell into the darkness and vanished, like tiny whispers no one heard unless they really listened. Cassie stepped out onto the deck, wrapped a quilt tightly around her, and lifted her face towards the sky. Catching snow on her lashes, lips, and nose, she twirled in a circle.
“What are you doing out here?” she heard her mother say. “It’s freezing.”
Cassie stepped towards her mom. “I know. Isn’t it wonderful?” Her breath followed each word and disappeared as quickly as the snowflakes on her cheeks.
Camille laughed. “Yes, but I’ll enjoy it more tomorrow—on the ski slopes.”
Cassie opened her arms, inviting her mother to share her blanket. Camille stepped inside, stealing some of her daughter’s warmth.
“Someone sure is happy.”
“Of course I am, it’s Christmas,” Cassie said.
Camille shivered. “I don’t think that’s the only reason.”
Cassie grinned. Her toes were frozen, and she shuffled towards the door with her mother. Once inside Cassie’s room, they hung the damp quilt over a chair and sat in front of the fireplace. Grace had arranged for Camille and Justin to fly in and spend Christmas in the Utah mountains as a gift to Cassie. Cassie’s father and the boys were in the theater room watching a football game, while mother and daughter took the opportunity to catch up.
“I’m so glad you’re here.” Cassie rested her head on her mother’s shoulder. “I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t imagine not spending the holidays with you, and I couldn’t imagine—”
“Not spending them with Kip,” Camille finished her sentence.
“It’s crazy, isn’t it?” She sat up. “I mean, it’s too soon, right?” She looked for answers in her mother’s eyes. “I shouldn’t feel this way.”
Camille brushed a piece of hair and tucked it behind Cassie’s ear, like she did when she was a child. “I don’t think feelings are bound by time. They’re not right or wrong; they just are.” She kissed her child’s forehead. “And you’re a capable and intelligent woman. You’ve always followed your heart, and if it says you’re in love … well, then, I believe it.”
“I guess you’re right. It’s just strange, isn’t it?” Cassie took the band from her wrist and pulled her hair up into a messy bun. “I mean, after all these years, I end up working for his family and we meet again?”
Camille studied Cassie’s face. “Kip’s the reason Grace hired you. I thought you knew that.”
Cassie stared into the flames. “No. I thought you and Grace arranged it.”
“Yes and no.”
“What do you mean?” Before Camille could answer, Cassie continued. “Should I be upset about this? I mean, that he didn’t tell me?”
Camille shook her head. “I don’t think so. You know he knew about Danny, and that he was obviously concerned about your well-being. He mentioned you to Grace, and that’s when she called me. I think it just proves that he’s loved you for a very long time.”
Her heart flushed and pattered quickly. “You know, I don’t even really remember him as kid, but he says he never forgot me …” She watched the flames dance for a moment. “He said that in some way he’s been in love with me since he was twelve years old.”
“Well.” Camille stood up. “I guess that’s what we’ll call that big rock on your left finger.” She smoothed her sweater. “Fate, destiny, or just an old-fashioned fairy tale.” She laughed. “And in this case, your prince really does ride a horse.”
Cassie held the ten-carat princess cut diamond up to the light, admiring its clarity. When Kip had proposed the night before, she asked if her own set of bodyguards came with the ring or if those had to be purchased separate. Kip just laughed and pulled her close, nestling his face into her hair. It was a perfect proposal, with the horse-drawn sleigh parked beside a frozen lake under the full moon. They enjoyed a thermos of hot chocolate and thick wool blankets while they held each other tight underneath the stars and talked about their future … now that the past was behind them.
“Cassie.”
Looking up, she saw Kip leaning in the doorway. She smiled.
“What are you thinking about?”
“You, of course.” She got up and walked over to him. “And that I can’t wait to be your wife.”
He took her in his arms. “In that case, don’t let me interrupt you.”
“Interrupt me anytime.” She stood on her toes and kissed him.
“I just came to tell you that I got off the phone with the FBI agent, and he said they were able to build a case against Macoy and Sanders. It seems Sanders did some legal representation for Macoy and eventually helped with the operation of illegal gambling rings. They think that’s where Danny came in. According to Sanders, Danny lost a bunch of money and tried to embezzle funds to pay Macoy.”
The air left Cassie’s lungs. “That seems impossible. We never had any money to begin with—that I knew of.”
Kip steadied her. “Sanders said Danny played double agent. He took money from Sanders to pay Macoy and vice versa.”
Cassie closed her eyes, wishing she could make sense of why Danny did what he did.
“The weird thing is,” Kip said, “the accounts and money found in the safe deposit box aren’t linked to Sanders or Macoy. The FBI can’t find proof that it’s stolen, even though Sanders and Macoy claim it’s theirs. According to financial records, the money doesn’t exist until it appears in Dan
ny’s name and accounts. Unless they can prove otherwise, it will belong to you and the boys.”
“What?” she said, baffled and overwhelmed by all of it.
“It means it’s finally over. You don’t need to worry about Sanders and Macoy ever again. And, if something does come up with the money, we’ll put it in trusts for the boys.”
At that moment, little feet came running. Cassie’s heart melted at the sight of her boys in flannel pajamas with a retro cowboy print, barreling down the hallway riding their stick horses.
“You better pull up on those ponies, boys,” Kip said, as he knelt down to catch them in his arms.
The boys slid across the wood floor and toppled into Kip. Cassie picked up the discarded stick horses and leaned them against the wall.
“Who wants to watch The Grinch?” she asked.
“Me, me!” the boys shouted.
Cassie helped Kip up from the floor, and each picked up a child. Before they started down the hall, Kip softly touched his lips to hers and said, “I love you.”
“What about me?” Ryder said, as he squirmed in Kip’s arms.
“I love you too, buddy,” Kip said, and kissed his head.
“Me, too?” Rhett said.
Leaning over, Kip kissed Rhett on the cheek and said, “And I love you, too.”
* * *
Cassie could hear laughter coming from the family room, and she paused for a moment. Christmas morning came with a new blanket of snow, an icy greeting from Jack Frost, and a sack full of gifts from Santa. But for her, it was the voices in the other room that made this Christmas magical; the family she’d always known, and the family she’d grown to love were more than she could ever ask for.
The man in a straw cowboy hat and plaid pajama bottoms winked at her as he raced remote-controlled cars around with her boys. She picked up a foot as one came speeding by, shaking her head as she dodged a collision.
Kip scooped her up in his arms. “Careful, future Mrs. Morgan.” He twirled her around. “I aim to marry you in one piece.”
Cassie tilted her head back and laughed. “Don’t worry … I’m all yours.”
