He stared into her gorgeous emerald eyes. Her lids were slightly swollen and he knew she must have been crying a lot during the last few days. “Are you going to be OK when I leave?” He tucked a tendril of hair behind her ear so he could see her face better. He wasn’t sure when he would have to leave. Leslie hadn’t gotten back to him yet.
She nodded, putting her hand on his chest. His reaction to her touch was immediate. No other woman could do that to him. He wanted her so badly, but he didn’t know if she still needed to talk more. He stroked the side of her face with his thumb as he studied her. Did he really deserve someone so sweet? She smiled and tugged at his T-shirt. Guess she didn’t need to talk. He pulled it over his head with one hand just as his phone started vibrating. As he reached for the phone, he kissed her nose and said, “Hold that thought.” It was Leslie. She had set up a flight for him to catch in two hours. That meant, at best, he would have an hour with Sarah. And he was going to take full advantage of it. He ended the call and turned back to Sarah.
“We’ve got an hour.”
She groaned with disappointment, and he knew they were both on the same page. His lips were on hers within seconds. She tasted so good. He couldn’t believe he almost lost her because of a misunderstanding. Sarah squirmed as he consumed her mouth. In what seemed like a blink, Sarah had shrugged out of her clothes. He hadn’t realized she had done it until her hands yanked on the waistband of his shorts. The girl was motivated. He kicked off his shorts and flipped onto his back, pulling Sarah on top of him. He loved that she was still wearing her bra and panties. She knew how much he enjoyed relieving her of them. She smiled devilishly at him as he scanned her body. Man, she was beautiful. At least he would have this visual of her to get him through the next two weeks. Then, in five weeks, she would officially be his wife.
Chapter Thirty
Sarah
AS JON ROLLED the tinted window down and his beautiful blue eyes beckoned her, Sarah’s breath caught in her chest. He was really leaving. She’d wasted so much time brooding over Mia Thompson’s lie and now he was going to be gone for two weeks. Tears pricked in her eyes as she leaned in through the opening and he pressed his forehead to hers, still fixing her with his eyes.
“Be safe,” he whispered. “I love you.”
She smiled because he always said those words when he left without her, whether it was to the store, a business meeting, or on a flight. She knew the I love you was his way assuring his last words to her were meaningful just in case something happened to one of them. It was kind of morbid, but who could blame him after all he had been through? He kissed her lips forcefully, sucking in her bottom lip as if he wanted to devour her, and when he pulled back, she knew he had to leave.
“Be safe. I love you, too.” She tried to smile to tell him she would be OK, but she was sure it came off looking like she was going to vomit. The window rose, and the car inched forward as Sarah turned toward the house. She wiped the tears before they ran down her cheeks. She and Jon had never been apart overnight since their engagement. At least until she disappeared two days ago, and in her mind two more weeks felt like two months.
She regretted not believing in him. She didn’t know what was wrong with her. She kept making mistakes. She had always relied on her intuition, but lately it wasn’t working. First she believed Megan was selling her to the press when it was really Chase. That was the only way Sarah could explain Liam’s press leak. Though it could have been anyone involved in the intervention, and it may never truly be revealed. Then she trusted a complete stranger, who ended up being a journalist, just because he pretended not to know who she was. She still hadn’t seen the fallout from that. And finally she believed Mia over Jon? Maybe she was going crazy—probably stress induced.
She didn’t really feel like doing anything except sulking and hating Mia, but her car wasn’t going to drive itself home. She needed to pick it up before dark. She took her phone out of her pocket and sent a text to Craig, who most likely had been watching the good-byes on the security cameras. She waved at the camera as she passed it by the front door.
Fifteen minutes later, she sat in the passenger seat of Jon’s car as Craig navigated the 405. She didn’t know much about Craig. He was the quiet one on the security team—serious and analytical. Sarah wasn’t sure if she had ever had a conversation of any substance with him before, and it didn’t seem like today was the day that was going to change. She knew Raul better. He had a playful, positive way to look at every situation, and his teasing personality clicked with Sarah’s right away. But Craig’s serious demeanor made her uncomfortable.
She leaned into the leather bucket seat and typed out a text to Jessica letting her know she was OK.
Sarah: Jon left for Europe. It’s not his.
Jessica: He told me.
Sarah: I think I’m going crazy. What was I thinking? Do you have time to talk?
Jessica: I’m with your mom, probably not the best time. I’ll call you in a little bit.
Sarah: You didn’t tell her what happened, did you?
Jessica: No. She’s clueless.
Sarah: Good. I don’t want her to know I had doubts.
She stared at her phone wishing Jessica had more to say so she could feel less awkward about the silence in the car. She waited an entire minute before calling Cami. It was pretty rude of her friend to abandon her when she needed her the most, and Sarah wanted an explanation.
“Hey. I just wanted to let you know it’s not his kid. I misunderstood what Mia had said. And I was wondering if you were OK. You disappeared so quickly. Did you get sick or something?” Sarah didn’t really believe she got sick, but it was a more polite way of approaching the conversation than asking, “Where the hell did you go?”
“No. I heard you arguing upstairs, and I figured you didn’t want me there to witness all your dirty laundry.”
When she put it that way, it sounded like the most decent response to a bad situation, not abandonment. “Thanks. We worked it out. He’s not a cheater. It’s my issues with trust that caused the problem.”
“Maybe subconsciously you know he’s a bad person and that’s why you don’t trust him.”
“If you knew Jonathan, you’d never say that. He’s the most kind, loyal, and honest human I know.”
“He didn’t put Mia in her place, and he lied to you about the stalker. You didn’t even know about it until Mia told you.”
Sarah had told her about the stalker on the car ride to gather her belongings from the house.
“He was just trying to protect me. He didn’t want me to worry. It’s probably just some psychotic fan.”
“What if it’s not, Sarah? What if the stalker is someone Jonathan hurt, not a fan, and he comes after you?”
“I’m tough. Besides, I have security with me all the time now.” Sarah looked over at Craig, who was pretending not to hear her conversation. His face was stern without expression. “In fact, I’m sitting in the car with Craig right now on the way to pick up my car from the hotel.”
“Oh.” Cami sounded surprised. “Jonathan’s left already?”
“Yeah. He just stayed to make sure I was safe, but he couldn’t get out of the tour. He’ll be gone for two weeks.”
“We should get together while he’s gone. What are you doing tomorrow?”
“I have a dress fitting, but I’m free tomorrow night.”
“We’re going out. I’ll text you the details.”
By the time Sarah got off the phone, they were pulling into the hotel parking lot.
“Where did you park, ma’am?” Craig drawled.
She smiled. He always called her ma’am or Miss Sarah. He told her once it was because of his southern upbringing. Sarah wasn’t used to such formality. People in Minnesota just weren’t so respectful, especially to people who were younger than them. “On the side there.” Sarah pointed. She had parked out of the view of the street just in case Jon sent out a search party looking for her car.
H
e circled around her car once and then parked about five stalls down, leaving the car running. “Stay in the car,” he said tersely. Then he reached down and grabbed something off the floor, stuffing it in the back of his jeans as he closed the door behind him. When he passed in front of Sarah, she saw the butt of his gun sticking out of his waistband.
What had he seen? Sarah strained in her seat to see her car, but a huge vehicle blocked her view and she couldn’t even see Craig anymore. A chill ran through her. She clicked the door lock to make sure no one could get in and listened nervously for a clue as to what was happening outside. After several minutes Craig crossed in front of her, a piece of white paper pinched between two fingers, and she unlocked the doors. He set the paper on the backseat, locked the doors, and started to back the vehicle out of its parking space.
“You’re scaring me. What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry, ma’am. I don’t mean to frighten you. We won’t be able to pick up your car at this time.” He fastened his seatbelt as he pulled to the parking lot exit.
“Why? We’re right here. Did someone slash my tires or smash my car? What’s happened?” Sarah craned her neck to see her BMW, just catching a glimpse. It looked fine. “Just tell me.”
“I have to get you home. I’ll get Raul to deal with your car.”
“Craig, just tell me what is wrong with my car.”
“I have to talk to Mr. Williams, ma’am.”
“You need to tell me right now or I’m jumping out and walking back to see for myself.”
“That wouldn’t be advised,” he said, and Sarah swore the car sped up.
“Why wouldn’t it be advised?” She just wanted to know what was wrong.
“Because you would get hurt, ma’am. I’m driving too fast for you to exit safely, and the traffic is particularly busy in this part of town. Even if you were able to land safely, you would most likely get hurt by another vehicle.”
“I bet you would lose your job, too, if I jumped.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Just tell me, please.”
“There was a message from the stalker on your windshield. Your car isn’t safe. I’ll have it inspected before anyone drives it.”
The stalker found her? How could the stalker have found her? Sarah looked to the backseat, where the paper sat that Craig had so gingerly handled. She wanted to reach for it but knew it may have the stalker’s fingerprints on it. “What does the note say? I’m going to see it eventually. You may as well tell me now.”
He pulled the car to the curb and took out his phone. He messed with it for a minute before handing it to her. On the screen was a picture of a white piece of paper. She enlarged the picture so she could read the words: LEAVE HIM OR YOU WILL DIE TOO!
The font was Times New Roman. Sarah recognized it. “This could be from anyone. It’s not distinctive at all. Any of the ten thousand teenage girls who want to marry Jon could have recognized me and put it on my car. Why do you think it’s from the stalker?”
“On the bottom of the page, the embedded article fits with the stalker’s other notes. It’s from her.”
Sarah scrolled down the photo. When she had enlarged it, she must have cropped out the article. The title read: JACK WILLIAMS KILLED BY HIS OWN BROTHER.
There was even a picture of the accident. Holy crap. That was severe. The print on the picture was too small for her to read, but she would look it up when she got home. She handed his phone back to him, and he started driving again. She didn’t know what to say. The stalker followed her to the hotel and was threatening her. Part of her was pissed the stalker could be so manipulative, and part of her was bone-chillingly scared.
When they got back to the house, Sarah sat down on the couch, pulling her legs up and draping her arms around them. She felt small and defenseless. She wished Jon wasn’t gone. She needed her fiancé’s warm, protective arms around her. She needed him to tell her she was safe. She glanced up and caught Craig watching her. He had his phone in his hand, his expression torn.
“If you want, I can stay at the guesthouse tonight. I don’t have to be in the security office as long as I have the tablet so I can track the cameras.”
Sarah nodded immediately. She didn’t want to be alone in this huge estate with him all the way over at the main house. He left to retrieve the large tablet from the security office, and Sarah flicked on the TV. Even with the extra-loud drone of the commercials, every noise in the house seemed amplified—the buzz of the air conditioner turning on, a creak from somewhere upstairs. When she heard the kitchen door opening, she knew it was Craig but still felt the need to scoot down so the back of the couch hid her head. He nodded as he came around to face her and sat down on the chair. He propped the tablet up on the ottoman table and turned to her.
“Give me your phone, ma’am.”
She unlocked it before handing it to him and watched him as he fiddled with it for several minutes. When he handed it back, two new icons appeared on her main screen. An icon of a chain with oversized links sat in the upper right corner and one of a canned air horn like she’d seen used as a noisemaker at football games sat in the lower right corner.
“You push the one with the chain and your phone will immediately alert my phone. Our phones will be linked, and I will be able to hear you even if your phone’s mic is muffled because it is stuffed in your pocket.” He took out his phone and pressed several buttons on it as well before returning it to his pocket. “The app strengthens the signal. This one,” he pointed to the air horn icon, “is used for distraction. Push it.”
Sarah tapped the picture on her screen and her ears curled into her head trying to escape the loudest horn, she had ever heard, blasting from her phone.
“You can use it to get noticed in a crowd if you feel you are in danger or if you just need a distraction to get away. The longer you hold it, the longer it sounds. Sometimes all you need is a second of distraction to make an escape. Both apps will work even if you are on the phone or have other programs running on your phone.”
Sarah tapped the chain and an alarm blasted from Craig’s pocket for just a couple of seconds. He didn’t even have to touch his phone before she heard their voices echoing from it.
He pulled his phone out and said, “See. Only I can break the connection.” He tapped his phone and the echoing stopped. “That way, the stalker won’t be able to break our connection. Stalkers are a lot like terrorists.” He sat forward in his chair, resting his elbows on his knees with his hands clasped and outstretched as he met her eyes. “They learn enough about you to strike fear in you, but the more prepared you are—the better you know who they are and what motivates them—the more control you have. We’re prepared. There’s no one getting into this house.” He typed on the tablet for a second and Sarah heard the house’s security system arm.
Just then her phone went off, startling her so much she practically jumped to her feet.
“Hey, Jess.” She inhaled and blew it out her mouth trying to slow her heart rate. “You are not going to believe the week I’ve had.”
“First you have to tell me, did you really…really throw that gorgeous ring out the car window? I didn’t have the guts to ask Jon.”
“What do you think?” Sarah couldn’t believe her best friend believed the tabloid.
“I don’t know. Hollywood turns people crazy.”
“Does it make them stupid?” Sarah paused. “Wait, don’t answer that. No, I’m not crazy or stupid. Though I may be a little crazy.” She was rambling incoherently and knew it. “It’s still on my finger.” She stopped herself before she said any more.
“Good. I would hate to see that beautiful work of art lost.”
“Do you want to hear about my week or not?”
“All right. I’ll shut up. Tell me.”
Sarah shared all that had happened at the restaurant with Mia and how she stupidly believed Mia over Jon. “She’s so damn manipulative. She actually wanted Jon to claim the baby as his because i
t would be easier for her fans to accept than her having a baby with a guy she’s never been seen with, especially because he’s one of Jon’s buddies.” Sarah looked over at Craig, sure he heard every word she said, but he pretended not to be listening. She wasn’t going to leave the room, though. She was still too shaken up about the stalker. Privacy was overrated.
“Oh my god! One of Jon’s buddies slept with Mia? Was it Nick?”
“No. It’s not anybody you’ve met.”
“Is Jon pissed?”
“Honestly, I think he feels sorry for the guy. He called him before he left just to warn him that he’s going to tell the press he’s not the father.”
“And you’re still letting Mia come to the wedding after all that?”
“I think I have to invite her or the press will say that I’m jealous of her and wouldn’t invite her because I see her as a threat to my marriage. If she comes to the wedding, then they won’t have anything to say.” She paused and backpedaled. “Well, that’s not true because they will just make something up. But if she comes, I’ll look better in the tabloids.”
“You are the better person, Sarah.”
“Thanks. I try. Anyway, I have to tell you what else happened. After the restaurant incident, I went to a hotel and disappeared for a couple days. I convinced myself I had to leave Jon. At the time, I believed he had cheated on me and lied to me about it. I can’t be with someone I can’t trust. You know my issues. Well…my friend Cami came and stayed with me the first night. Remember the punishing Pilates instructor that I told you about?”
“The one whose class you never thought you would get into and then a spot mysteriously opened up two weeks after you applied?”
“That’s the one. One woman told me she waited eighteen months to get into her class. The only reason she got in was that another woman’s husband died and she was too grief-stricken to notify Cami that she wasn’t going to make it to class. Cami gave her position away with full knowledge of why she didn’t call.”
Between the Lies (Between the Raindrops #2) Page 29
