“What?” he questions, surprised. “Why?”
“Because I wanted to beat the shit out of her,” I tell him in all seriousness.
He bursts out laughing. I place my hands on my hips and glare at him.
“What? Don’t you think I could take her?”
He continues to laugh as he pulls me closer. “There is no doubt that you could take her,” he says before kissing the top of my head.
I smile. “Anyway, her job said she was on vacation.” I shrug. “I guess she could be in town, but where would she be staying? Why wouldn’t she be working?”
“Hmm,” he says still in thought, “there’s no telling.”
“I still haven’t figured out where she got all the pictures.” I bite on my bottom lip as I rack my brain for answers. Like always, I come up with nothing.
“Come on. We can think about this all day and it won’t get us anywhere,” Slade says taking my hand. “I want to forget about everything Jessica.”
I’m more than happy to comply with that.
“Are you going to tell me what happened between you and Tate last night?” I ask as he pulls out of his parents’ driveway.
“I was just being an idiot.” He slides a look over to me. “It was nothing personal toward Tate.”
I nod my head in understanding. I know how guys can be, and I’m sure they shared a few words first that added to an already bad situation.
As we’re driving down the highway, I look up to see that he has passed our exit. “Where are we going?” I wonder aloud, looking out the window, watching the passing of our exit sign.
He looks over to me with a grin on his face. “I am taking you shopping.”
“For what?”
“I think we need to redecorate our bedroom. That was your intention when you bought the new sheets and comforter, right?”
I bob my head, slightly embarrassed that he figured it out so easily.
Holly had confessed last night to telling him. She told me that it was an accident and by the tears in her eyes, I could tell she never meant to let it slip.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asks in a soft voice.
I take in a deep breath, knowing this conversation was going to happen. I’m just glad he’s sober now. “I was afraid of where it was going to take us.”
He stays quiet as he pulls off of the highway and into the parking lot of the home store. Once he parks I start to open the door but he grabs a hold of my arm to stop me.
“What do you mean, ‘where it was going to take us’?”
“I was afraid that if I showed you those pictures and video it would make you miss that life. Make you want something more than what we have.”
He pulls my arm until we are face to face. He reaches up and softly cups my face in his hand as his baby blue eyes bore into mine. “No one could ever give me more than what we have, Angel. I can’t explain that enough to you.” He closes his eyes for a brief second and lets out a long breath. He then opens his eyes and searches my face. “I love you and you love me. Those words alone hold more power than anything someone from my past ever had over me.”
I give him a little smile and lean closer into him, giving him a soft kiss. I get out of the car and he walks over, taking my hand. “Now, let’s go get some new furniture to break in.”
I laugh as he pulls open the door for me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
SLADE
As Angel picks out new furniture for our bedroom, my mind wanders over recent events. I woke up this morning to all kinds of messages, and each one had a different story of what they had heard, none of which were the truth. I called Josh, Tate, Micah, and my father. I apologized to them for my behavior and just the situation in general. They all said it was okay and that they understood. I spoke to Tate the longest. We both apologized and said we were going to act like it never happened. Angel already has enough shit going on, and I know he is important to her, so I needed to rectify that part of last night.
“Do you like this bed, baby?” Angel calls, getting my attention.
I look up at the four-poster bed. It’s similar to the one I already have, but has more of a classy feel to it. It’s white wood with a canopy that hangs over the top. The white sheer fabric drapes down all four posts and touches the floor. I smile as I imagine using those to my advantage.
“I think it’s perfect.”
“Perfect,” she says turning to look at the salesman. “We’ll take it in a king.” She then starts pointing to the dressers and nightstands that go along with it.
I knew she would sleep in this morning so I dragged my hung-over ass out of bed and had a cup of coffee out on the back porch. When that didn’t work, I went for a drive. I needed some time alone to go over the events from last night. I needed to figure out what I could do to stop Jessica. I’m pretty sure she wants me to contact her so she could run to Angel and tell her I’m going behind her back. Well, that isn’t going to happen.
Angel brings me out of my thoughts as she hooks her arm through mine. “Were you even paying attention?” She giggles.
“Absolutely,” I say as I watch the man write down all the numbers that belong to the furniture.
“So, what all did I pick out?” she asks, putting the other hand on her hip.
“All of them,” I respond without hesitation.
“You were paying attention.” She smiles brightly.
It’s not like it was a hard guess. Of course, she wants all of it.
The man tears off a piece of paper and hands it to me. “Take this up to the counter.”
“Thank you so much for your help,” Angel says excitedly, and I can’t help but grin.
We walk up to the counter and I hand them the paper. “Are you sure you liked it?” she asks, hesitant.
“I loved it.”
She smiles and digs through her purse for her wallet. “What are you doing?”
“I’m getting my wallet out to pay.”
I shake my head. “You are not paying, Angel.”
“I should pay. It’s my fault that we’re getting new furniture,” she whispers.
“No it’s not.” I pull her close to me. “Now put your wallet away. I’m going to buy you our new furniture.”
She slowly puts her wallet back and gives me a small smile. “Thanks baby.”
“No need to thank me.” I kiss her on her head before I turn around to check out.
They inform us that delivery is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon before we finish up the paperwork.
“What do you want to do for your birthday?” she asks as we get into the car.
“Nothing.”
She looks sideways at me. “We have to do something for your birthday.”
I reach over and grab a hold of her hand. “Let’s just stay home and watch a movie.”
“We can do that any night.”
I’m about to tell her we can do that tonight when my phone starts ringing. I dig it out of my pocket to answer.
“Hello?”
“Slade. This is Officer White. We believe we have a suspect in custody regarding your break-in.”
“Really? What makes you think so?” I ask looking over at Angel.
“He was caught about an hour ago breaking into a house just a mile from your home. He confessed to us that he has hit several houses in the last few weeks in the area.”
“That’s great.” That is the best news I have heard in a while.
“We thought you would like to know. If we find out anything else we will contact you.”
“Thank you,” I say before hanging up.
“Who was that?” Angel asks looking over at me.
“That was the police. They have the guy that broke into our house.”
She smiles brightly and for once, I feel like things are going to get back to normal. They have the man responsible of the break-in behind bars and Jessica can’t contact Angel anymore. Everything is going great.
“Does that mean I can go bac
k to working nights?” she asks excitedly.
And there goes the good mood. “I don’t think so.”
“Come on.” She gives a little laugh. “One night a week won’t hurt.”
I let out a sigh. What’s the harm in it anyway? She wants to work a night shift then I’m not going to stop her.
She doesn’t even wait for me to give her a verbal answer before she is pulling out her cell and dialing Holly’s number to ask if she needs help tonight. And of course, Holly tells her to come in.
As I drive us home, I realize that maybe this is a good thing. This is what we need. We need things back to normal. With Jessica off of her back and the intruder behind bars, things can do just that.
*****
SAMANTHA
I smile as I see Tate walk into Larry’s.
“Hey, Sam,” he greets, making himself comfortable at the bar.
“What are you doing up here?” I ask, leaning forward.
“Just thought I would come hang out with you.”
“How did you know I was working?”
“I called Slade earlier to let him know when the window for the truck would be in. He told me about the police station calling him, and how excited you were to get back to work.”
I don’t know if I should be worried or happy that he and Slade seem to be getting along with last night’s events. I pull out a Bud Light and open it up for him.
He starts to speak but I look up to see Holly making a mad dash for the women’s restroom. “I’ll be right back,” I tell him as I chase after her.
I walk into the bathroom to find Holly rinsing out her mouth in the sink. “Are you okay?”
She nods. “It’s just a bug going around. I think I got it from the Halloween party.”
I look down at my watch and see that we only have a few more hours of work. “Why don’t you go on home? I can close up.”
“No. I don’t want to leave you here alone.”
“It will be fine. I promise. Go home, get some rest, and I will come by to check on you tomorrow.”
She looks like she wants to argue, but she ends up running back into a stall instead.
After several more minutes of hugging the toilet, she agrees to go home and get some rest. I wasn’t going to take no for an answer, work was the last place she needed to be.
Once I help her cash out for the night, I make my rounds to check on all the remaining customers.
I walk back over to Tate and sit on the barstool next to him. I haven’t had the chance to sit down and talk to Tate other than the meeting we had about my mother. I want to get to know him again.
“When did you decide to become an ink junkie?” I tease with a smile.
He lets out a little laugh. “I got my first one when I was eighteen.”
“And which one was that?” I ask looking at all the tribal work on his left arm. It starts at his wrist and works itself up his arm and under the sleeve of his shirt.
“My side.” He motions to his right side. The same side where I had seen some sort of writing the day he opened his front door in only his boxers.
“I remember seeing it the day I visited you.”
He nods.
“What does it say?” I ask, curious. I didn’t get the chance to read it then. I also didn’t want to just stand there and stare at him.
He looks at me and I see something in his blue eyes that I have never seen before, something dark and cold. “I felt I needed a reminder,” is all he says before he breaks eye contact and takes a drink of his beer.
I bob my head in understanding. I can respect that he doesn’t want to tell me. I had felt the same way when Slade asked me about the tattoo I have on the back of my neck.
I decide to change the subject. “How are you and Missy doing?”
He almost chokes on his beer as he wipes away what he spit out of his mouth that spilled down his chin. “There is no me and Missy.”
“She likes you.”
He gets a ghost of a smile on his lips before he smoothes his features. “She is not my type.”
“So, you prefer them covered in tattoos like you?” I laugh and he shakes his head. “What’s wrong with Missy? I really liked her. She seemed so nice.”
“She is really nice. But stop it.” He points a finger at me.
“Stop what?”
“I can see the wheels turning in your head. Stop trying to play matchmaker. It won’t work.”
“Okay. What about the girl that was in your house the day I came by? She seemed…interesting.”
He lets out another little laugh. “Yes, she was.”
I frown, knowing that wasn’t an answer. “Is that why you won’t go after Missy, because you’re with that woman?”
He shakes his head.
“What about Little Bo Peep?”
He scowls down at me. “You’re being awfully nosy.”
I smile at him. “I just want to know how things are going with you.”
“My love life?” He leans up, takes a drink of his beer, and then speaks. “Trust me, that is not interesting.”
I don’t understand why he wouldn’t want to date Missy. She is adorable and super sweet. Much cuter than the girl who walked out of his house that morning and the girl from the Halloween party combined.
I sit back in my seat as I start connecting the dots. “You’re like Slade,” I announce before I even realize it.
He looks at me with a blank expression. “Not everyone is looking for love, Sam.”
I sit up and give him a hard look. “I wasn’t looking for love after Jax. It just happened. I didn’t force Slade to love me or want a relationship with me. But you are using women.”
“Like I said before, not all women are looking for love either.” He shrugs. “Some just want to have fun.”
I roll my eyes. “Spoken like a true player,” I mumble.
He lets out a laugh that breaks the tension between us and I drop the subject. “I’m going to do some cleaning so I don’t have to stay late tonight.”
Once it’s closing time I start ushering customers out the door. Once I shut it, I turn to see Tate still sitting at the bar. “You have to leave, Tate.”
He shakes his head. “I’m not leaving until you head home.”
“What is this? Did Slade send you up here to spy on me?” I place my hands on my hips. That is so like him. My first time back working nights and he sends a babysitter.
“No,” he says, sounding offended. “Slade is not the only one allowed to care about you.”
I roll my eyes and begin cleaning off the dirty tables from the customers I just kicked out. Other than that, the bar is already clean.
As I finish up, I turn to face him and he stands. “I’m parked out front. I’ll meet you out back in a bit.”
I frown, confused as to why he didn’t just say, “Goodbye, I’ll see you later?”
I let him out the entrance and lock up the door behind him. I pick up my purse and walk out the back door, locking it behind me as well.
I look down to grab my keys out of my purse as I walk to the Tahoe. I had just wrapped my fingers around them when I feel a hand on my right shoulder.
I go to turn around thinking it is Tate, but don’t get the chance. The hand on my shoulder pushes me forward, slamming the front of my body into the Tahoe door. I start to panic and try pushing back but I can’t move. I feel the hand start to pull on my purse.
I slam my head back and make contact with their face.
“Shit!” they hiss, removing their hand from my shoulder. I turn around to kick them, but they grab a hand full of my hair and smash the side of my face into the window. I feel lightheaded and my knees give out a little as blood fills my mouth.
I start to feel pain in my right hand and realize I’m holding onto my keys so tightly they are digging into my palm. It gives me an idea. I lift my hand and swing, causing them to cuss once again when the keys make contact with their body.
I try to get a good look at who
ever it is as I face them, but they have one hand over their face as they stumble back and it’s too dark for me to make out anything besides the dark clothes.
My face instantly starts to sting when I’m backhanded. I cry out as I lose my balance and fall to the ground.
I attempt to catch a breath as I spit blood onto the concrete from my teeth cutting the inside of my mouth. I try to regain my senses when I feel two hands on my arms, pulling me up. “Sam.”
I try to pull away. “Sam?”
Through my headache and stinging face, I see that it is Tate, helping me up.
“Are you okay?” he asks wide-eyed.
I nod.
“Where did he go?”
I blink a few times, trying to see straight. “What…?’
He shakes me, which does hell to my headache. “Which way did he go, Sam?” he demands.
“I…I don’t know.” I look around the dark parking lot. He lets go of my arms and runs to the side of the bar.
I slump back against the Tahoe as I try to get my shaking body back under control. Only a few seconds tick by before Tate returns. “I didn’t see anyone.” He looks around the parking lot again.
“What happened?” I ask, confused. One second someone was attacking me, and then the next Tate was shaking me.
“I came around the corner and saw you on the ground,” he states, not even breathing heavy from running around the building. “What did you see?” he asks in a rush.
“Just dark clothes.”
“Come on,” he says taking me by my arm and pulling me away from the Tahoe.
“What? Where are we going?”
“You are calling Slade and I am taking you to the hospital.” He places me up in his truck.
“I didn’t even see him and I don’t need to go to the hospital,” I argue.
“That doesn’t matter. You need to report it and you need to get checked out.”
“I’m not going to the hospital,” I snap. “The police station is fine, but I do not need to go to the hospital.”
He ignores my outburst and pulls his phone out of his pocket.
I sigh as I close my eyes, still trying to calm my heart rate. After several seconds, he asks for my phone. I hand him my purse, not wanting to dig through it to find my phone.
The UN Series Complete Box Set Page 69
