Dangerous Delusion

by Rhonda Brewer

  If Aaron wasn’t at the bunkhouse, Nick would beat him later. Nick’s priority was to get ready for his date with Lora. He was a wreck, but he couldn't wait. He never got nervous before a date. Hell, most of the time he didn’t even look forward to them.

  His previous companions were not ones to introduce to mom, and the ones that did meet his family usually didn’t last very long. Then there were the ones that wanted to say they’d bagged a cop. None had potential, but with Lora, he saw a future, and it had nothing to do with his Aunt Cora telling him she was the one for him.

  By the time he pulled into the bunkhouse, Aaron sat slouched on the step with a beer to his lips. Nick’s urge to punch Aaron subsided a little. At least until the fucker grinned at him.

  “There’s another in the fridge….” Aaron jumped to his feet when Nick pushed his head to the side. “What the fuck was that for?”

  “You and your oversexed imagination.” Nick stomped up to the door.

  “It was a fucking joke. It’s not my fault Jess took it seriously.” Aaron followed him into the house.

  “Watch what you say in the future.” Nick pulled off his t-shirt as he headed into his bedroom.

  He showered, shaved and dressed quickly. When he wandered back into the living room, Aaron was on the couch with his feet crossed over on top of the coffee table. He met Nick’s eye when he walked into the living room.

  “She means a lot to you, doesn’t she?” Aaron wasn't his usual teasing self.

  “Yes. She does.” Nick flopped down in the armchair across from his brother.

  “I’m happy for you, bro.” Aaron rolled the beer bottle between his hands and dropped his gaze down.

  “But...” Nick knew his younger brother probably better than he knew himself.

  Aaron may be his brother, but he was also his best friend. Not that Nick wasn’t close to the rest of his brothers, because he was. It was just that Nick and Aaron were only eleven months apart and growing up they were always together.

  “It’s just with this case; I worry you’re gonna take too many chances if she’s in jeopardy.” Aaron glanced up.

  “I won’t. Yes, I’ll do what ever it takes to keep her out of this guys clutches, but I’m not stupid, bro.” It stung that Aaron would even consider Nick would do something careless.

  “I know, but I can see Lora’s it for you.” Aaron smiled.

  “Oh, so now you’re the cupid of the family.” Nick chuckled.

  “Fuck no, but you’re different with her, and it’s good to see.” Aaron sat back on the sofa.

  “I’m sure you’ll find someone too someday.” Nick assured Aaron.

  In high school, Aaron had fallen for a girl, hard. The year his brother graduated, she dumped him, left the province and never looked back. Very few people knew how much Aaron loved Bethany, and Nick had been sworn to secrecy. Nick believed it was the reason Aaron never dated a girl for more than a night or two. Aaron didn’t want to go through that pain again.

  “There isn’t a woman out there who has the patience to deal with all this.” Aaron wiggled his eyebrows.

  “You may be right.” Nick tossed a pillow at his brother.

  With time to kill before his date, he called Isabelle to make sure everything was set. He’d booked one of the private booths at his cousin’s restaurant because Isabelle insisted it was the most romantic.

  Nick was watching a ball game with Aaron when his phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen, and his heart flipped in his chest at the sight of Lora’s beautiful face.

  “Must be the pretty waitress.” Aaron chuckled.

  “Hello,” Nick slapped Aaron on the chest as he stood up.

  “Nick, hey. Listen, I can’t go out tonight.” Lora sounded panicked.

  “Is something wrong?” Nick spun and glared at Aaron.

  He knew Hulk was at the house, so Nick was pretty sure that she wasn’t in danger. This sudden change had to be because of Aaron’s little joke.

  “I… shit… I can’t talk now. I’ve got to go.” Lora ended the call before he could say another word.

  “Fuck,” Nick tossed his phone on the table and trudged to his room.

  “What’s wrong?” Aaron stood at Nick’s bedroom door.

  “She canceled.” Nick snapped as he changed into his work out gear.

  “Why?” Was Aaron that dumb?

  “Why? Seriously?” Nick picked up his bag. “Why the fuck do you think?”

  “She canceled because of what I said?” Aaron grabbed Nick’s arm, and he dropped the bag.

  “She didn’t say, but why else. Now let go before I use you for a fucking punching bag.” Nick snarled.

  “Bro, I’m sorry.” Aaron was sincere, but at that moment, Nick didn’t give a fuck.

  Aaron released him, and Nick snatched the bag from the floor. The gym would help work out some of his shitty mood. He wasn’t angry with Lora. People thinking she fucked Nick in John’s office had to be humiliating for her.

  Nick never got sore over most things, but he had a feeling his chance with Lora was done. He cared about her more than any woman he’d ever met, and now it seemed as if she ended things before they even started.

  His stomach clenched when he thought about how she would keep him at arm’s length again. It would make it harder to keep an eye on her as well. Not that he didn’t trust Hulk or Crash or any of the guys, but he wanted to be the one to keep her safe. Be her superhero. How pathetic was that?

  Nick was falling in love with her, and it scared the shit out of him. Not because he was afraid of spending his life with someone, he was terrified of losing her. Could he admit that to her? Was he ready to acknowledge that to himself?

  Sitting in the car was not only monotonous, but terribly uncomfortable. There hadn’t been any movement in the house all day, and he wondered if the women had moved their club night to some other place.

  If that was the case, then he needed to find out where the rest of the old bitches lived. The only one he knew besides Daphne was Sheila. It was going to take lots of patience to figure all this out. The first thing he had to do was get rid of the body at his house before it started to smell.

  Since the sun set, it was probably the best time to drag the body out to one of the parks and let the idiot cops find her. He still laughed when he thought about how they hadn’t figured out what happened to the couple that bought his house. Nobody even reported them missing. Hell, nobody even knew they’d bought the house. Sheila had done everything through an agent, so she never got to meet the couple, and she certainly didn’t know he lived in the house.

  The amount of stupidity he’d found in people was shocking. He’d fooled so many without a single one of them figuring it out. It was why it was so great that his love was the only one who knew how he felt, and the extremes he’d gone through to make sure they could be together. Yes, his love would be pleased.

  How could she not? No other man in her life ever did so much for her. Nobody loved her like he did.

  Chapter 13

  Lora dropped her phone on the table at the sound of Molly crying from the other room. She’d hated to cancel her date, but when her mother brought Molly back from the park, the little girl had a fever and vomited all over herself.

  “Mommy’s coming, sweetie.” Lora ran as she heard Molly gagging again.

  “I just called Daphne and told her I’d be staying home from cards tonight.” Her mother opened the front door. “I’m going to run to the pharmacy and grab some juice for Molly.”

  “Get the one they use for kids with all the electrolytes,” Lora shouted as she made her way into the bedroom where Molly had the bucket in front of her again.

  “My belly hurts, Mommy,” Molly moaned.

  Her daughter didn’t get sick very often but when she did, it was usually bad. When Molly gagged again and stuck her head over the bucket, Lora rubbed her back until it settled.

  A few minutes later Molly gave her the bucket and flopped back on the bed. Lora used
a cool cloth to wipe down her little face and gave her a sip of water to rinse her mouth.

  “Nana’s gone to get you some special juice to make you feel better,” Lora whispered and kissed Molly’s forehead.

  “Okay,” Molly sniffed.

  “Do you want to come lay on the couch?” Lora hated to leave Molly alone in the room.

  “No, I’m gonna sleep.” Molly turned onto her side, and her eyes fluttered closed.

  “Okay, just call out if you need me. Mommy will hear you over the monitor.” Lora pulled the covers over her daughter and tiptoed from the room.

  When she walked back to the living room, she was startled by the man who stood at the open front door. She covered her mouth to stifle the scream until she realized who it was.

  “A.J., you frightened the bloody crap out of me.” Lora groaned.

  “Sorry, I ran into your mom, and she said you’d be out in a minute.” Aaron walked in and closed the door.

  “What are you doing here?” Lora cringed, because her tone sounded rude.

  “I wanted to apologize.” Aaron shoved his hands into his pockets and gave her a sheepish grin. “I really didn’t mean anything, it was a joke.”

  “You didn’t have to come all the way over here to apologize.” Lora smiled.

  “Yeah, I felt terrible that you canceled your date with Nick over this.” He looked so pitiful.

  “I didn’t cancel my date with Nick over that. Molly’s sick.” She realized why Aaron felt the need to come tell her he was sorry. “Oh my God, does he think that’s why I canceled?”

  “Yeah, he got pissed at me because he thought you were embarrassed and didn’t want to go out in public.” Aaron sighed.

  “I need to call him. I swear that had nothing to do with me staying home tonight. I’m so sorry, A.J.” Lora picked up her phone.

  “Me too. It’s just... I’ve never seen Nick this serious over anyone before.” Aaron smiled. “He's a great guy, and I’m glad I didn’t ruin things for you two.”

  “You didn’t, and I know how great he is.” Lora tapped Nick’s number.

  “I’ll get out of your hair. I hope the little one gets better soon.” Aaron waved as he opened the door. “If you need some medical advice give Dad or Ian a call.” Then he was gone

  Nick’s phone rang several times and then went to voicemail. She tried again but still no answer. Maybe Aaron wasn’t the only one to piss off Nick. She’d meant to tell him her daughter was sick, but Molly started to throw up again.

  She tried Nick’s phone a third time, and as she was about to end the call someone answered.

  “Hello,” It wasn’t Nick, and she couldn’t place the voice.

  “Hi. I was looking for Nick.” She glanced out through the living room window.

  “Let me see if I can get him to stop pounding the shit out of the heavy bag.” The man chuckled.

  Now she really felt awful. He was at the gym taking out his frustration on a poor defenseless punching bag.

  “Thanks,” Lora replied.

  She heard the guy tell Nick his woman was on the phone, but he didn’t answer. Was he pissed at her too?

  He rolled her onto the grass, then balled up the heavy plastic and stuck it down in a garbage bag. He’d burn it when he got home. He didn’t like burning the plastic because it smelled terrible, but he couldn’t take a chance.

  He stuck it down under the spare tire in his trunk until he could make it out to the place where he disposed anything that could lead back to him. He wasn’t stupid. The property his family owned was so far in the woods that he couldn’t drive in there with his car. He’d bring his vehicle as far as he could and then pull out the ATV hidden in the trees.

  He didn’t have time for that right now. He had to get back to Daphne’s house, in case Sheila showed up. Then he’d follow her until she led him to his love.

  Chapter 14

  Punching the leather bag wasn’t helping with his mood. It just made him sweat. The music blared in his ears from his earbuds as if it was taunting him with Love Hurts by Nazareth.

  “Hey, Nick,” He heard the faint shout in the background and ignored it because he wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone.

  He’d seen Bull, Trunk, and Keith when he stomped into the building, and knew they'd question why he was working out for the second time that day. Especially, when he'd mentioned his date with Lora earlier.

  He was thankful Keith had a fully functional gym on his property, but he wished he was in one where nobody knew him. At least then nobody would harass him.

  “Hey, Rocky,” Bull tapped him on the shoulder.

  “What?” Nick spun around as he yanked out his earbuds.

  “Who the fuck pissed in your cornflakes?” Bull growled.

  “What do you want, Bull?” Nick pulled the gloves off his hands.

  “Your phone was dancing on the bench, so I answered it when I saw your lady’s picture.” Bull held up the phone. “You’re welcome by the way, Dick smack.”

  "Fuck you, doorknob." Nick snatched the phone and mumbled thank you as Bull sauntered away.

  “Hello,” Nick tried to sound casual.

  “A.J. just dropped by to apologize.” Lora’s voice was barely above a whisper.

  “What are you talking about?” He appreciated Aaron had consideration enough to do that, but what good would it do?

  “He seemed to believe I canceled our date because of what he said,” Lora said with a scoff.

  “Isn’t that why?” Now he was confused.

  “No, Nick. Molly’s sick. She’s running a fever and throwing up….” Nick stopped her before she said another word.

  “I’ll be there in an hour.” Nick grabbed his bag and waved to the guys as he jogged out of the gym, but not before he heard Trunk shout after him.

  “Another one bites the dust.” Trunk laughed.

  “Nick, she has a stomach bug that’s probably contagious.” Lora warned.

  “Don’t care. One hour. I’ll see you then, sweetheart.” Nick ended the call and ran from the gym back to his bunkhouse.

  Forty-five minutes later he’d showered, changed, dropped by Isabelle’s restaurant to pick up enough supper for four people, a separate order for Hulk, and stopped by the station to get a surprise for Molly. He had one more stop before he got to Lora’s house.

  He walked into Hopedale Pharmacy and went straight to the counter. The Pharmacist would know if there was something that could make Molly feel better.

  “Nick, your father, and brother are doctors, and your cousin is a nurse. You couldn’t ask any of them what to do?” Harold Lawton laughed.

  “I didn’t think of it, Mr. Lawton. My friend’s little girl is sick, and I ran out to get whatever I could to help the little one.” Nick knew he probably looked like a complete idiot.

  Why hadn't he thought to call his father? Even his mother probably could have given him some advice, but Nick knew where that conversation would have led. His mother getting excited about another wedding.

  Jesus.

  Why did all thoughts of Lora make him think of the same thing? It was the first time in his life he ever thought of taking that long walk down the aisle. Maybe Cora wasn't wrong.

  “That stuff should help, but it must be something going around. You’re the second person to drop in for this today.” Harold walked Nick to the exit.

  Harold owned Hopedale Pharmacy and knew all Nick’s family well. The Lawton kids went to school with Nick, his brothers and cousins. There was even a time Isabelle dated one of the Lawton boys for a short time.

  “Thanks again, Mr. Lawton.” Nick left the building with juice, and ice pops specifically for kids.

  After Nick pulled into Lora’s driveway, he grabbed the various bags and made his way up her steps. Hulk was on a bench with his feet propped up on the railing, but jumped to his feet to relieve Nick of a couple of the bags.

  “Are you moving in already?” Hulk teased with a chuckle.

  “Behave yoursel
f, or you’ll get none of Isabelle’s Lasagna and garlic bread,” Nick joked.

  “Shit, sorry, bud.” Hulk grinned.

  Nick managed to knock on the door while he pulled out the separate bag for Hulk. Lora opened the door, and her mouth dropped open.

  “What did you do?” Lora smiled as she stepped back.

  “This bag has supper for me, you and your mom.” Nick held up the cloth bag with the food from Isabelle’s restaurant. “This bag has juice, ice pops, coloring book, and crayons for Molly.”

  “Nick,” Lora stared at him as she choked out his name.

  “That’s me, but this is starting to cramp up my fingers so can I come in and put it on your table?” Nick adjusted the heavy bag of food.

  “Of course,” Lora motioned for Nick and Hulk to come in, and they made their way to the kitchen.

  “What’s all this?” Sheila sat at the kitchen table sipping on a cup of tea.

  “Direct from A Taste of Hopedale to your table.” Nick and Hulk carefully placed the bags down. “Also, some disposable plates so you won’t have any dishes to wash.”

  “Nick, this is too much.” Lora started to pull the containers out of the bags as Hulk made his way back out of the house with his own meal.

  “You have to eat and so do I.” Nick placed the other bag on the table next to the food.

  “Mr. Lawton said this stuff would help keep Molly from getting dehydrated.” Nick pulled the bottles of juice out of the bag. “These will have to stay in the freezer.” He handed her the box of ice pops.

  “Nick, this is great but…” Sheila stopped Lora before she finished.

  “It’s great you would think of Molly like this.” Sheila smiled.

  The two women grinned. Something with the looks they exchanged told him they were hiding something. Then he remembered what Mr. Lawton said earlier about someone else picking up the same items.

  “You already have this stuff, don’t you?” Nick sighed.

  “Yeah,” Lora touched his cheek. “But it was really thoughtful of you to think about Molly.”