by L. P. Dover
He nodded once and gave me a small smile. Even though we went out for drinks, he never let on that he wanted something from me—keeping it professional. I liked that about him. At first, I was worried he’d try to come onto me. That wasn’t the way I wanted to start working for him.
He poured himself a cup of coffee and joined me at the table, only he didn’t sit down. “Good morning. I wanted to tell you I’m heading back to Charlotte today. When you return to the office, we’ll start working together more.”
“Sounds great. I look forward to it.”
Mrs. Walker wrapped up an egg and bacon sandwich and handed it to him. “Be safe going home. You need to visit more. I miss you and your brothers.”
He looked at her and his gaze softened. “I will. Tell Clayton I owe him a game of golf.”
Mrs. Walker kissed his cheek. “Will do, sweetheart. You take care.”
“You do the same.” Then he glanced down at me. “See you back in Charlotte.”
“Okay,” I replied with a nod.
Once he was gone, I stood and grabbed a plate from the counter so I could load it with eggs, bacon, and toast. As soon as I sat down to take my first bite, Preston walked through the back door. I didn’t dare look at him, so I kept my focus on my plate until he turned his back to me. He fixed a plate of food and started back toward the door, but then Glenn came in.
“Wait,” he commanded, staring right at Preston.
The muscles in Preston’s jaw ticked, but he turned around slowly. “Can I help you?”
“Yes, you can. Take a seat.”
I’d never heard Glenn sound so demanding before. He looked angry and I hoped it wasn’t because of me. Preston stood frozen in place, then huffed and stormed over to the table, setting down his plate with a loud clank.
“Did Wade tell you what you’ll be doing today?” Glenn asked me. His gaze shifted to Preston when I shook my head, then came back to me. “I’m sure you remember talking about expanding Chandler Enterprises, right?”
“Of course. But you never told me what you were going to do,” I said.
“You’re right, I didn’t. I wanted to make sure I had everything in place before I announced it.” He nodded over at Preston. “This is where he comes into the picture.” Preston’s eyes widened, his expression appalled. “We’re expanding into the music industry. And since this guy has experience in the art, I’m putting him in charge. There are five auditions today and I need you both to work together. See if any of them are good enough to receive representation.”
And just like that, I lost my appetite. The blood rushed from my face and I probably looked like a ghost.
“Are we done here?” Preston snapped impatiently.
Glenn nodded once. “Yep. Be ready in an hour. George will drive you and Emma to the theater.”
Grabbing his plate, Preston walked out the door and back to the pool house. Glenn watched him go, wearing a look of sadness I’d never seen before.
“Please don’t make me work with him,” I pleaded, trying to process what just happened. “I can get along with just about anybody, but not him. He’s changed.”
His brows furrowed. “What happened between you two? I’m just wondering why he’d say he doesn’t know you when you say otherwise.”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. One day, our band is practicing new songs, and the next, he up and disappears. Do you know where he’s been the past few years? I’ve tried looking him up, but always come up empty.”
His focus was on the pool house. “That’s because you won’t find anything. He’s had a hard life, Emma. I’m hoping he’ll come around. All I ask is that you please do this for me.”
I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t say no. “Okay,” I gave in. “I’ll get ready to go.”
After I finished breakfast, I hurried to my room to change into a pair of dress pants and a pink, silky top. When I walked downstairs, Preston waited by the front door, dressed in dark jeans and a light blue, fitted T-shirt. Other than his shitty demeanor, he was still one of the sexiest men I’d ever met.
“I’m ready,” I called out.
Preston’s gaze scanned down my body, but then he opened the door and walked out. Clenching my teeth, I begrudgingly followed behind him. Glenn’s driver, George, stood by the car. He reminded me of the older guy in Men in Black. George opened the car door and we both slid in, but I made sure to sit as far away from Preston as humanly possible.
Once on the way, I kept my focus on the road until my phone rang. I pulled it out of my purse and saw Andrea’s name pop up on the screen. “Hey,” I answered.
“Hey, you never called me. Tell me what’s going on. What’s Preston’s deal?”
I glanced over at him but he didn’t acknowledge me. “Do you mind if I call you back later? I’m on my way to listen to some bands play. My boss wants to dabble in the music industry.”
“Oh my God, that’s awesome. It’s a shame you and Cliff never joined up with another band.”
“I know,” I said low. “But it is what it is.” I often wondered what it’d be like to travel the world and sing. For a time, I thought it was possible. Preston was an amazing guitarist and singer.
“All right. Call me back when you get a chance.”
We hung up and I slipped the phone back into my purse. “That was Andrea, by the way,” I said, knowing he wouldn’t look at me. “Not that you care, but Cliff and Andrea got married last year. They’re expecting a baby.”
“Good for them,” he grumbled.
The man was impossible. “Did you fall and hit your head or something? Or were you always a super mega douche and I was too stupid to see it?” More like too in love with him. Back in college, I never let on that I had feelings for him. I’d tried to keep my distance, especially since he was always with someone else. The girls loved him.
His head turned and he stared at me, eyes cold. “I’m not here to hold hands and skip down memory lane. Let’s just do what we gotta do and be done.”
“Fine,” I said, shifting to look out the window. I couldn’t stand to look at him anymore.
We arrived at the local arts theater and I hurried out of the car, not even waiting on George to open the door. The building was ancient, and according to the history books, it was the first theater ever to hit the Americas. It had been renovated a few times, but nothing took away from the architecture. You could look at it and tell it was built a long time ago, a classic beauty. I couldn’t wait to go inside.
There was a lady standing by the entrance and she waved when I walked up. “Hi, you must be Ms. Turner,” she greeted, holding out her hand. “I’m Miranda. Mr. Chandler told me you’d be arriving with Mr. Hale.”
Smiling, I shook her hand. “It’s good to meet you.”
Preston stopped by my side, and wasn’t a complete dick, taking her outstretched hand.
“The bands are all ready for you,” she explained. “I’m going to show you inside and then leave you to it.”
“Great, thanks.” I followed her inside and breathed in the smell of the theater. It was amazing to think our ancestors from hundreds of years ago might have been in the same building. That was what I loved about Charleston—the history. I’d been dying to take one of the ghost tours I’d heard so much about.
Miranda handed us a stack of papers that had each band’s information on it. “I’ll be in the back if you need me. The bands were told to play one song, unless you prefer to hear more.”
“Thank you,” I said. When she hurried toward the back of the theater and took a seat, I turned to Preston. “You could pretend to look somewhat interested,” I growled low.
Not waiting on an answer, I marched to the front row and took a seat, while he chose to sit a couple spots away. Since it was his job to find the talent, I waited on him to acknowledge the band, but he didn’t. Cocksucker.
“Good morning,” I announced. “Please, begin when you’re ready.”
The lead singer looked back at his band and nod
ded before staring down at me. “We’re First Sanity, and the song we’re going to play is called Summer. It’s one of our biggest hits.”
The second the guitar played, I was sucked back to a time eight years before. It reminded me of what it was like to belong to a group. I could almost see myself up on stage with Preston and Cliff, auditioning for opportunities like this.
A smile lit up my face and I closed my eyes. I didn’t realize how much I’d missed it.
Once we arrived back at Glenn’s house, Preston went straight through the side gate, no doubt to hole up in the pool house. Glenn was in the living room with a tumbler full of whiskey.
“How did it go?” he asked, sounding hopeful.
I set my purse on the couch. “The bands were great. I just wish I had a little input from my partner.”
His lips pursed. “He didn’t help, did he?”
“Not at all. In fact, he was a downright ass, refusing to acknowledge the bands, or me for that matter. Please tell me I don’t have to work with him anymore. I didn’t sign on for this.”
Sighing, he tossed back his liquor. “I know, but I need your help. Just give it another week.”
“A week?” I gasped incredulously. I couldn’t handle another day.
Glenn stared right into my eyes, his features morphing. There was something about Preston that made him a different man—a man steeped in grief. “Please, Emma. All I ask is that you work with him for another week. There are more bands scheduled to play for the next few days, and then again on Monday and Tuesday of next week. Once Wednesday comes, you can head back to Charlotte.”
“I’m starting to think I should ask for double time having to put up with him. As a side note, he won’t make it to next week if he keeps up with this attitude. I will kill him first.”
A mischievous smile spread across his face. “You’re more than welcome to smack him around a few times. You won’t get fired if you do.”
Now that made me laugh. “It’s a serious possibility.” But then I sighed in defeat. “All right, I’ll stay. But it’s not something I want to do.”
“Thank you, Emma. Just take notes on the bands you like, and what you like about them. I trust your opinion.”
That meant a lot coming from one of the most successful men in the country. “If you trust my opinion, why does Preston have to be there?”
His gaze shifted over to the window and out to the pool house. “I’m sorry, you’ll have to trust me on this.” He blew out a heavy breath and grabbed his suitcase from the floor.
“Are you leaving?” Surely, he wasn’t going to leave me alone with Preston.
Glenn glanced down at his bag and then over at me. “I’m needed in Charlotte. I have no doubt you’ll be okay here by yourself. Mrs. Walker will cook your meals and you’re more than welcome to drive one of my cars.”
Dread settled into the pit of my stomach. It was going to be one of the worst weeks of my life. “Now I really need that double time pay.”
He chuckled. “It’s already been applied.”
Mouth gaping, I watched him walk out the front door. Well, damn . . . I should’ve asked for triple pay.
Preston
Grabbing my car keys the next morning, I opened the front door of the pool house and walked out, only to run into the one woman I wanted to avoid.
“Hey,” she gasped, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. She was dressed in a white skirt and a light blue top.
Clenching my teeth, the last thing I needed was to look at her long, tanned legs. But dammit to hell, I couldn’t stop. There’d been a time when I’d wanted those legs wrapped around my waist as I fucked her. “What do you want?” I snapped.
Her face immediately soured. “And here I was trying to be nice.” Huffing, she nodded toward the front of the house. “It’s time to go. We have more auditions to listen to.”
I scoffed. “Correction. You have more auditions to listen to. I have other plans.”
Throwing her hands in the air, she walked away. “Have it your way, douchebag. Works better for me anyway. Now I don’t have to look at your face for the rest of the day.”
The girl was going to fucking kill me. She walked off and there was no denying how unbelievably sexy she was. Her hips swayed back and forth, reminding me of how I hadn’t had sex in weeks. I could use a good fuck, but I didn’t have time. As soon as I did what I had to do, it was back to my computer to find my next target.
The drive to Isle of Palms wasn’t backed up with traffic like it usually was in the summer. Once school was out, it’d be that way soon enough. I hated being there when it was packed with people. My old childhood home was off the main strip of the island, just a quarter mile down from where Shelly’s body was found. We always had a lot more privacy than some of the other places. And in the end, it was one of the main reasons nobody came to my mother’s rescue; she wasn’t heard.
It’d been seven years since I’d last visited the place. My father couldn’t bring himself to sell it, even though he never stepped foot back into it once the investigation was complete. We’d combed that place from top to bottom and never found anything. No clues as to who the killer was.
When I arrived at my house, you could tell it’d been neglected. The yellow siding was more like a light brown, and some of the shrubs had grown across the stairs leading up to the door. It was one of the smallest houses on the island, but we had the best stretch of coastline all to ourselves. We never worried about swarms of people taking up our beach.
I looked up at the house and released a shaky breath. I’d spent years trying to make up for the loss of my mother and sister, but nothing worked. They were gone, no matter how many people I killed.
Taking the wooden steps two at a time, I reached a small piece of yellow crime scene tape still stuck to the railing, and my gut clenched. Everything from that night flashed through my mind.
I remembered walking through the door and seeing my mother’s lifeless body on the living room floor, her chocolate-colored hair matted down with dried blood. My father’s screams still echoed in my ears as he rushed over to check on her. It was a sound I never wanted to hear again.
Searching through my keys, I found the one for the front door and opened it. The smell of dust hit me, but was overpowered by the stench of death. I knew it was my own mind playing tricks on me, but it didn’t keep me from staring at the spot where my mother had died.
Walking around the room, there was a thick layer of dust on everything. Nothing had been moved. I looked out the window at the swimming pool and there was nothing in it but a couple feet of dirty water and sand. What I wanted to avoid seeing most was the spot on the beach where my sister had been found. Her death would always be a puzzle to me. The thought of what happened to her made me goddamned sick to my stomach.
Closing my eyes, I turned away from the window and stormed up the stairs. My parents’ room was the same as it’d always been. And across the hall, Cameron’s door was shut. I stared at it, trying to remember if I’d shut it last time I was there. My hands shook and I could feel the rage inside my chest, aching to let loose. The door handle was cold as I grasped it, a sinking feeling washing over me. Something wasn’t right.
I opened the door slowly, my heart thundering in my chest. Once I looked in her room, I realized why I had that sinking feeling in my gut. “Fuck,” I growled. Everything in her drawers and closet were thrown across the room, as if someone had been searching for something. “Son of a bitch.”
Nothing in the house was turned upside down, except for her room. I didn’t like that at all. Pulling out my phone, I called Glenn.
“Shouldn’t you be at the auditions?” he asked.
“Fuck that. We have bigger problems.”
“What is it? Is Emma okay?”
“Yeah, she’s fine. I’m at my old house. Cameron’s room is ransacked. I think someone was looking for something. Nothing else in the house was touched.”
“What the hell? How did the
y break in?”
I rushed down the stairs to the back door and it was locked, sealed perfectly. What the fuck was going on? All of the windows were secure, and there was nothing that’d suggest a break in. “There’s no evidence of tampering. The front door was locked and the same goes for the back door and all of the windows. Whoever it was must’ve had a key.”
“Holy shit, this changes things, Preston. If the same killer is back in town and has a key to your house, then the murder was personal. We need to go back to the beginning.” Which meant seeking out Cameron’s close friends. “Just do me a favor and keep this under wraps. If the fucker finds we’re onto him, he might run. With Shelly being found just a few short days ago, he’s probably still around.”
Rage consumed me. “Got it. I know what to do.”
Emma
I had an hour before I needed to be at the theater, so I stopped at one of my new favorite cafés down the street. It had the best blueberry scones and hot chocolate. Once I got my order, I sat down at one of the small, white tables and blew the steam off my hot chocolate. I was glad I got in before the morning rush.
Reading the newspaper on the table beside me, I caught a headline about a woman’s body being found on the beach. She’d been my age. And still no leads as to who the killer was. Scary. If anyone tried to hurt me, I’d fight until my last breath.
“Good morning, Ms. Turner,” a voice called out.
Gasping, I jerked my head up, almost knocking over my hot chocolate. John laughed and steadied my cup before sitting down in front of me. He had sandy, blond hair shaved close to his head, and a wide smile, which I didn’t see often on men. It was refreshing.
“Didn’t mean to scare you. I saw you sitting here and thought I’d come over and say hey.”
“Hey,” I echoed, moving the newspaper out of the way. “How are you?”
John Tallman was the lead singer and guitarist for First Sanity, one of my top three choices from the auditions. Setting his coffee down, he smiled. “Doing good. Just getting ready to head into work. I like to stop here in the mornings to get my coffee.”
