Southern Sass (Southern Desires Series Book 6)

by Jeannette Winters

  “I knew you’d like them.”

  “Love might be a better word. Where did you find them?”

  “While you were cooped-up in here freezing your butt off, I decided to do some snooping. I know it’s not nice, but when you get dropped off in the middle of nowhere with no Internet or television, they have to expect you to do something.”

  Donna had a point. This place was peaceful, but when you’re used to being on the go all the time, it would get boring real quick. Unless, you’re here with a lover. Then this place would be perfect.

  Sissie didn’t want to think of Ryan. Especially not with his daughter standing right in front of her. Donna wasn’t a child, but nobody wants to think of their parents being intimate.

  “So what other goodies did you find?”

  “How about a working Jacuzzi? One problem.”

  “What’s that?”

  “No swimsuits.” Donna looked bummed. “Bet even if there were some you wouldn’t undress and get in.”

  “It’s not the gettin’ in that worries me. It’s the gettin’ out.”

  They both laughed. “Oh yeah. The droplets would turn to icicles.”

  “Yeah, I don’t think your father had us come here to freeze to death.”

  “I don’t know about that. I’ve been driving him crazy lately. What did you do to get sent here?” Donna teased.

  Oh, wouldn’t you like to know? “I’m a master at pushing buttons.”

  “Just one more thing I like about you. You don’t take his crap.” Donna covered her mouth then said, “Sorry. He’s my dad, and I love him dearly, but he can be very . . . pushy. You should see him in the office. No one questions his authority. They’re all afraid of him. Yet here you are, not even half the size of him, and I’ve seen you hold your own.” She nodded. “Very impressive, Sissie.”

  Sissie didn’t feel as though she was holding her own. If she had, she’d know what the heck he was up to instead of having absolutely no idea where she was. “He’s not as bad as he pretends to be.”

  “Oh, really? Have you tamed the giant?”

  Sissie laughed. “Not at all. I figured out his bark is worse than his bite.” And what a sweet bite it was. She didn’t want to think of what it had been like in Ryan’s arms, but how could one not wish to be back in heaven? She needed to remember where she was and who she was with.

  “Good for you. Just don’t tell anyone that. He’d lose his edge.”

  She brought her finger to her lips. “Not a word.”

  Donna’s face turned serious, and she sat on Sissie’s bed. “I’m worried. I talk like he’s invincible. He’s not. And, Sissie, he’s all I have. If anything happened to him, I’d be . . . alone.”

  Sissie sat beside her. She understood those feelings all too well. She was pretty much alone from a much younger age than Donna. The only time she really felt as though she had any family was when Hannah came and spent the summers with her. She knew it was because Hannah’s father had to work and needed a babysitter, but for Sissie, it was a lifesaver. Those days were precious memories.

  Now Hannah was an adult and was married to Mark. She had her own life and her own friends. Sissie missed those times but would never tell that to Hannah. The last thing she wanted was Hannah spreading herself out even more by trying to fill some pathetic need Sissie was having.

  She could see the same thing going on in Donna. Alone even when you’re not. “Your father knows exactly what he’s doing. Think about everything he’s done all these years to keep you safe. What’s a few more days?”

  Donna’s eyes welled up. “But I never knew before. I was so darn busy being angry with him for trying to control my life that I never even noticed what he was doing. If I had, maybe we could’ve spent more time together. Instead, I did everything I could to distance us. And now I wish he was here with us.”

  Sissie didn’t miss the word us. It’s exactly how she was feeling, as though they all belonged together. It was scary how quickly she’d bonded with Donna. She’d met Ryan before, and knew there had been a connection, but she didn’t expect it to be so strong. It was as though the world had tipped on its axis, and everything she thought she knew had somehow changed. She had two choices: fight it or embrace it.

  She took Donna’s hand into hers. “I wish he was here too. The saying that you can’t make up for lost time is wrong. You can do anything you put your mind to. Whatever you believe you’ve lost, you can recreate. You can’t rewrite history, but you can change the future.”

  “If he comes back.” Donna’s words were spoken so softly it ripped at Sissie’s heart.

  He will. He has to. He promised. “Trust and believe.” Because that’s what I’m doing.

  Donna let go of Sissie’s hand and wrapped her arms around her. “I don’t know what I’d do without you, Sissie.”

  “Oh, you’d be fine.” Not sure I would, but you’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.

  Donna let her go and said, “That’s not what I mean. It’s just that since meeting you, everything seems to be better.”

  That wasn’t how Sissie would describe it. But then again, Donna didn’t know what had been going on. I better keep it that way. “I guess we were meant to meet.”

  “Yeah. For once Dad’s control worked in my favor. You know, I’m sorry I’m here talking like I’m the only one missing him. I can see you are too.”

  Sissie smiled at her. “That I am.”

  “So in my snooping, I came across a few options for filling our downtime.”

  “Besides the Jacuzzi?”

  “Yes. It looks like Don is fond of puzzles, Scrabble, and cards.”

  “Hmm. How does poker sound to you?” Sissie asked.

  “Sounds like I’m about to take you to the cleaners.”

  Sissie laughed. If anything positive came from this, she got to spend more time with Donna. Through her, Sissie felt closer to Ryan than she had before. Like we all were meant to meet.

  Ryan nicked himself shaving—twice. He knew why: lack of sleep and the urge to rush to the office and face Carl. He had every intention of doing that when he arrived last night. But when he’d pulled into the office parking lot Collins had called him, telling him to stand down.

  It pissed him off that Collins was still running this as a mission. Deep inside Ryan understood. What he couldn’t get Collins to understand was he wasn’t, and never would be, in the military. Collins words last night still haunted him. “Don’t take it personally.” How else was he supposed to take it? Those assholes were in his company, and one of his trusted staff was missing.

  Ryan had an obligation to these people. To him, it was no different than how Collins thought of his team. The only difference is my team has no idea they’re risking their lives by working for me.

  Ryan was tired of waiting for Collins to call back. Grabbing his phone from the kitchen counter, he called Lou. It was a long shot he’d get any answers, but sitting in his house drinking coffee all morning wasn’t why he came back. If that was the case, he should’ve gone with Sissie and Donna to wherever Don took them. Right now he felt useless, and he wasn’t comfortable with it. A month ago if anyone told him his life would be spinning out of control, he’d have said they were crazy.

  “What’s up, Watson?”

  It was a good sign that Lou answered. “I’m not going to sit here much longer unless I have a valid reason to.”

  “There was a second attempt, this time at the Nash ranch.”

  Son of a bitch. He suspected it was something big, and going after Mark’s family wasn’t good. Ryan was so damn glad Sissie and Donna weren’t in Honeywell any longer. “Anyone get hurt?”

  “The foreman, McLean, took a bullet in his right shoulder, but he’ll be okay. All fatalities were on their side.”

  This time. What about next? His fear level spiked. “How can you be sure Donna and Sissie aren’t in jeopardy?”

  “Watson, I can’t be. No one can. We need to do what Collins says, so B
rimlow can finish what she’s working on.”

  “What does that have to do with Derrick Nash?”

  “The connection is Collins. They figure anyone they can grab and use as leverage, they will.”

  “So why is Carl here? Why take out my right-hand man, Henri?”

  “Because you know where Brimlow is.”

  “They don’t need me for that.” Ryan wasn’t the only person who knew her whereabouts.

  “No, but even though you never knew it, you were holding a critical piece to her research. They may want to know what else you’re keeping from them.”

  This was all coming full circle. Seven years ago he was tempted to burn the bunker down and everything in it. He never suspected what he’d kept hidden was so damn crucial.

  “Lou, I don’t know anything else.”

  “You know more than you think you do. Even the fact that you knew about Janet’s meeting with General Floyd is something they didn’t want revealed. There could be more that hasn’t come to light yet.”

  Ryan felt better when he thought it was all in Collins’s hands now. Knowing this wasn’t only about what you have, but also eliminating you for what you know, changed the rules. This revelation validated keeping the truth from Donna. If he’d shared the details with her, he knew Donna would turn over every leaf until she found who was behind this.

  Yet, that was the problem Collins and his team faced now. From what he gathered, every time they cut off the head, another grew back. Ryan couldn’t comprehend how Collins thought he was going to win.

  “So Carl is here after me?”

  “After whoever might know anything. So yes, you’re on that list.”

  “Why Henri?” No one knew if he was alive or dead. He could only go on what he’d been told about these guys. If he was alive, he probably wished he wasn’t.

  “Two possible scenarios. Either he stumbled upon something Carl was doing, or they knew it would bring you back to the office.”

  “So you think I’m playing right into their hands?” There was a pause, and that wasn’t like Lou. Ryan knew he wasn’t telling him everything. “Give it to me straight,” Ryan barked.

  “We have guys close, but no one on the inside.”

  Ryan brought back a few of his personal security force. The majority of them now reported to Collins and Lou. “So you don’t want me going to the office?”

  “Actually we need you to.”

  That was unexpected. “Are you saying that—?”

  “You’re bait?”

  He didn’t like the sound of that. But he knew he’d do anything he needed to put an end to this. What did it matter if he lived a long life, if the ones he loved weren’t around to spend it with him?

  “What do you need me to do?”

  “Go in and call an emergency meeting. In that meeting, we need you to fire Carl.”

  “What exactly is that supposed to do?”

  “Piss him off. Force him to make a move.”

  Yeah, got that. “It’s the move that concerns me. We don’t know what happened to Henri. I’d rather not appear on the missing person list if possible.” I don’t want to show up in the obituaries either.

  “We believe he’ll have you abducted when you leave.”

  He couldn’t believe he was actually going along with this asinine plan. Nothing about it sounded safe. Options were limited, and if it meant getting their lives back, the risk was worth it. “I assume you’re going to be monitoring everything.”

  “Your new limo driver is one of ours. He’ll provide you with special cuff links. We’ll be able to hear and track you through them.”

  Having a bulletproof vest would also ease his mind. If those bastards decided to put a bullet in his back, none of this would matter. “Do you think that’s enough?”

  “Any more than that, and they’ll suspect something. Less is more.”

  No. More is more. He needed to trust them to do what they were trained to do. “When’s the driver arriving?”

  “He’s on his way. He’ll text you when he arrives.”

  Now wouldn’t be soon enough for Ryan. The longer he waited, the more he questioned his sanity. “Is there a way for me to talk to Donna and Sissie?” He knew there was a fifty-fifty chance of not making it out alive. If possible, he’d like to hear their voices one more time.

  “We couldn’t risk leaving them with a SAT phone.”

  “So they have no way of communicating with the outside world?” He hadn’t known that was part of the bargain.

  “It was a judgment call. Emotions running high might have them doing something rash. We couldn’t afford their location to be compromised.”

  “Shit, Lou. How the hell do you know they’re okay?”

  “Farrell made sure to place monitors in key locations. They’re fine.”

  Ryan was relieved to know they weren’t completely on their own. He didn’t doubt they could take care of themselves under normal circumstances, but this was anything but normal. “Let’s keep them that way.”

  “That’s the plan.”

  He wished Lou would show some signs of emotion in his comments. Instead, it sounded too damn routine to him.

  There was nothing he could do except put the latest plan into action. He ended the call and headed to his bedroom. At no point had Lou told him to go into the office unarmed. He opened his dresser drawer and pulled out a small caliber gun and an ankle holster. He figured they might frisk him if they, in fact, snagged him. But he hoped they wouldn’t feel it through his boot. Reaching it was going to be tough because he strapped it lower than he usually would, but he needed it to be unnoticeable, not practical.

  Ryan pulled on his suit coat and went back to the kitchen. He’d prefer a shot of whiskey, but he opted for another cup of strong-ass coffee. This was going be one hell of a day. I hope it’s not my last.

  Chapter Twelve

  He’d expected a bigger buzz in the office when he walked in. But it was quiet, as though it was a regular day. Then it dawned on him. They only knew Henri wasn’t reporting to work. They had no idea what was about to go down.

  Ryan walked up to Connie’s desk. She had her back to him and was on the phone. He could hear she wasn’t happy with whatever she was being told. “Mr. Watson wouldn’t approve.”

  He was glad she was fighting for him but hoping she wasn’t putting herself in harm’s way by doing so.

  “I understand, but I can’t do that without his authorization.”

  He needed to get her out of the situation quickly. “Connie, I need to see you in my office now.” Ryan spoke loud enough so whoever was on the phone heard him barking his orders.

  Connie spun around wide-eyed and shocked. She didn’t say goodbye as she hung up the phone. “Yes . . . right away, Mr. Watson.”

  He could hear the panic in her voice as she spoke. Ryan felt like shit because Connie was awesome. She handled her responsibilities better than anyone else. He’d never questioned her or her abilities. The way she defended him on the phone spoke volumes. Now he was barking at her as he did everyone else who worked for him. Better you hate me than end up like Henri.

  He didn’t wait for her. Instead, he opened his office door and to his surprise found Carl sitting behind his desk. The urge to lunge over and rip him to pieces was almost more than he could control. Thoughts of Donna and Sissie held him back. Ryan couldn’t afford to let this bastard interfere with whatever plan Collins had. That didn’t mean as the employer he had to put up with Carl’s shit.

  Storming over to stand across from him, he peered down at him. “What the hell do you think you’re doing in my office?” Ryan asked through gritted teeth.

  Carl stood up and with a nervous tone said apologetically, “Sorry, Mr. Watson.” But for the first time he saw Carl’s reaction for what it actually was. Disdain. What he saw wasn’t a man who feared Ryan or anyone else for that matter. It was as though he knew his destiny and wasn’t troubled by it. Death doesn’t bother you because you don’t
value life, not even your own.

  “Mr. Watson . . . I . . . I was just about to call you.”

  Bullshit. “And the phone in your office wouldn’t do?” Ryan knew Lou was listening and probably wasn’t too happy at the moment. But the staff knew he was a hard ass. If he came in all jolly, they’d wonder what was wrong.

  “Sorry, Mr. Watson. I wasn’t thinking. You were unable to be reached, and there’s been a tragedy here,” Carl stated while gathering his things off Ryan’s desk.

  Tragedy? Damn it. It was like hearing that Henri had been killed. Because from what he’d learned from Connie, he was considered missing. Ryan wasn’t good at pretending to be ignorant of the facts, but he was learning out of necessity. “Really? What happened?” He didn’t want to hear Carl’s lies, but he knew this probably wasn’t the first one he’d been told.

  “Mr. Brown . . . I mean Henri . . . he . . . something happened to him.”

  Carl was back peddling trying to get himself out of the corner he just put himself in. Ryan hated helping him at all. He’d much rather call him a liar and demand to know what happened to him. Instead he needed to let it go. The answers would come later. For now, showing indifference was all he could do. “That’s rough. Hope everything works out for his family. I’ll send flowers.” It sounded like he was a cold jackass. No matter how hard he was on his staff, he wasn’t uncaring. But for the moment, that worked in his favor.

  “Would you like me to take care of that for you? I’m sure you have plenty of work to catch up on.”

  Connie had entered his office behind him. Continuing with the asshole act, Ryan declared, “No. That’s what I pay Connie to do. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like my office back.”

  Carl rushed out, but Ryan noticed he didn’t shut the door. Since his office wasn’t far, he knew Carl was probably lurking by Connie’s desk, waiting to overhear their conversation. Ryan walked over and took a seat. As Connie went to shut the door, Ryan said firmly, “Leave it open. You’re not going to be here that long.”

  He watched her fingers tremble as she held the pen to the notepad. She stood to wait for instructions.