The Maxwell Series Boxed Set: Books 1-3

by Alexander, S. B.

  A silky hand touched my wrist. “Are you okay?” Chloe asked. “You look like you’re in pain.”

  I was. My head hurt so fucking bad that I had a knot the size of a nasty volcano waiting to erupt in my stomach. “I have to go out to my truck. I’ll be right back.” I rushed out into the sunshine and squinted so hard I thought my head would burst. I climbed into my truck to check the console for any aspirin, even though it didn’t help my migraines. Maybe taking the whole bottle might. I rummaged around and came up empty. I growled, the small act putting more pressure on my head. I got out of the truck. The parking lot and the cars in it tilted in one direction then the other. Flashes of light followed by patches of dark spots blinded my vision. I lost my footing and fell on my ass. I covered my eyes, pressing my hands to my head in hopes of pushing the pain away.

  I wasn’t sure how long I’d been on my ass when a soft hand touched mine. I peered up, my eyes barely open, to find Chloe and some hefty dude towering over me.

  “Kade, what’s wrong?” Chloe asked.

  “Head,” was all I could say.

  “Did you hit your head?” the guy with her asked.

  “Don’t yell.” Every syllable was like a nail to my head.

  “We’re not,” Chloe said. “Al, we should take him to the emergency room.”

  Chapter 21

  Lacey

  The Swain Middle School team drifted onto the field around two thirty that afternoon. Aaron, Shaun, and I continued with our respective roles. Only this time, I played catcher. Eddy was up first, practicing his curveball.

  “All right, let’s see what you got.” I readied the catcher’s mitt.

  Eddy wound up and threw the ball. I jumped up and caught his wild pitch. As I returned the ball to Eddy, I spied Aaron watching me from his group down along third base. I stuck him with a glare.

  He trotted down the line to home plate. “It doesn’t appear your coaching is paying off for the kid.”

  “Go back to your group. I don’t need your advice,” I said low.

  “You want me to show you how it’s done?” His snide tone rode my nerves.

  “Do you want to get into a knockout in front of the middle schoolers?” My knee was positioned at his groin. I so had the itch to raise it just a little.

  “You just better pray you don’t pitch like that in our first game.” He jogged back to his group.

  I silently swore as I put on what I hoped was a winning smile for Eddy and threw him the ball.

  Just over an hour into practice, a vehicle screeched to a halt next to the field. I watched it warily.

  Kelton hopped out of his truck. “Lacey!” Kelton shouted. His hands were flailing.

  My heart rate ramped up. Kelton didn’t get nervous, ever. I looked for Mr. Camp.

  His sharp jaw dipped. “Go.”

  I handed the ball to Pam, quickly grabbed my bag, and ran to Kelton. My first thought was Dad. Lorenzino had come into town and hurt my father.

  “We need to go.” Kelton’s handsome face was twisted in fear. “Kade is in the emergency room.”

  I shut my eyes, shaking my head. I didn’t just hear that. A panic attack hung in the wings. Breathe. The buzzing started. My legs were quaking.

  “Get in.” The timbre of his voice was high and firm.

  “What happened?” I strapped on my seatbelt. “Was it Lorenzino? Greg? What? How badly is he hurt?”

  “Don’t know.” Kelton sped through the streets of Ashford as fast as the stop signs and traffic lights would allow. “A lady called from Kade’s phone and told me to get to the hospital. I tried calling you.”

  “A nurse. A doctor?” All I could see was Kade hurt with blood all over him. The sunlight dimmed in my peripheral vision. I closed my eyes, held onto the passenger door, and prayed I didn’t black out. Kade didn’t need me to panic, and neither did Kelton. He’d already seen one of my blackouts, and he didn’t need to witness another one.

  “Don’t know. We’re here.” He threw the gears in park at the emergency room entrance and jumped out.

  I blinked, breathing in deeply. Once I felt I had complete control of myself, I hurried as fast as I could on shaky legs. Thank God for automatic doors.

  Kelton strode up to a gorgeous blond girl who was sitting in a chair against the bank of windows to our left. When she saw Kelton, she popped up, and her long hair spilled around her shoulders, framing her porcelain skin.

  “I didn’t know what to do. Kade had to run out to his truck for something,” she said in a singsong tone to Kelton. “When he didn’t come back, I went out there. He was on the ground, holding his head. He was conscious, but seemed to be in a lot of pain. I asked my bodyguard to bring us to the hospital. Then I called you.”

  “I have to call my father,” Kelton said, stomping toward a water fountain on the wall.

  She set her big brown eyes on me as her pink lips split into a smile. “Hi, I’m Chloe.” She extended her long delicate fingers.

  My pulse raced. “I’m Lacey, Kade’s girlfriend.” I gave her my unsteady hand, clenching my jaw tightly. My anxiety and any sense of a panic attack morphed into confusion and anger.

  “So, I hear,” she said with a sprinkle of disappointment underneath.

  Kelton returned, his eyes a little red. Then he swung his gaze between Chloe and me, and the color drained from his face. “Um… My dad is on his way back from the Berkshires.”

  Before I lost my cool as to who this girl was and what she was doing with Kade, I wanted to make sure he was okay. I scurried over to the information window. “I’m here to see Kade Maxwell.” I twirled my hair while the middle-aged blonde typed on a keyboard.

  “He’s in with a doctor. I’m sorry, you’ll have to wait,” she said.

  Tears pricked my eyes. I wasn’t sure how many more surprises, lies, and pain I could endure. I was trying to be strong, except the people I loved were making it hard for me to persevere. I wanted to be an adult and reason and work through a problem. I couldn’t do that if I was lied to or treated like I was a fragile piece of glass that would break if someone blew on it.

  I chiseled out one last piece of strength, opened my eyes, and went back to Kelton and Chloe. Kelton was on the phone again near the main entrance. Chloe had resumed her seat along the window.

  I parked my butt into a chair across from her. “So you found Kade at his truck. Where were you two?” If she says a hotel, I’ll reach out and punch her.

  “We were at the Ashford Library. He was tutoring me. I suck at math, and I have a test on Monday,” she said in her flowery voice.

  “And how do you know Kade?” If she says she dated him, I might still punch her.

  “I don’t exactly. He knows my dad, Jeremy Pitt.”

  I seriously was going to have a mental breakdown. I grimaced at Kelton. He was staring at me as he listened to whoever was on the other end of his phone. After his call, he stalked over to me and sat down one chair over.

  “So, you’re my cousin?” I asked Chloe.

  “I guess your dad finally told you,” she said in a silvery tone. “It’s about time. My mother has been worried about you and him.”

  “So, you know Kelton?” I was confused.

  “Not exactly. I was at the boxing match last week with my father. Kelton and Kade were there.” She tucked strands of hair behind her ear.

  Kade hadn’t told me that part. I got that he knew of Pitt. The entire city of Boston knew of him. But she had said Kade knew her dad as though they were business acquaintances. I guessed they sort of were, if Kade was tutoring her. Why didn’t Kelton react when I said we were cousins, though? Expletives usually flew out of his mouth when something surprised him, and if Kelton knew, Kade must have known, too.

  “My dad spoke to the doctor here.” Kelton fidgeted w
ith his phone. “Kade is going to be fine. He’s having an MRI done. Apparently, he’s having migraines again.”

  Migraines? Again? For as long as I’d known Kade, he’d never been sick or complained of headaches. At this point, I wasn’t sure how much anger was stored in me. What else hadn’t he told me? With all the information he kept close to his chest, I wasn’t surprised the guy didn’t have something worse than migraines. Why was it so critical that he keep all this from me? He was not only hurting himself physically, he was hurting me emotionally. He was driving a wedge in our relationship.

  Chapter 22

  Kade

  After my MRI, I had to wait until my father arrived before I could leave. He wanted to take a look at the results of the scan himself. I knew my migraines were a result of stress, but my father was always cautious, and I was grateful he was. There was always that chance my migraines could lead to something else.

  My scans were normal. The doctor gave me medication and a prescription before my father wheeled me out to the waiting area. Immediately, my brothers, Chloe, and Lacey converged on me like hungry paparazzi.

  “Is he going to be okay?” Chloe and Lacey asked in unison.

  I brought my hands up to shield my eyes from the bright lights. The medication hadn’t kicked in yet. Kross whipped off his sunglasses and handed them to me. I slipped them on, sighing in relief.

  “He’s going to be fine,” my father said. “I want to get Kade home. He needs some rest.”

  I thought I’d like a dark, quiet place with Lacey and me snuggled together, then threw out the part about Lacey and me. Her posture quickly changed from rigid to loose to rigid again, and she pursed her lips. I went to grab Lacey’s hand, but she backed away. Yep, something was bothering her. She hadn’t let me hold her hand after I lied to her in the school parking lot the other day. Hurt wormed its way down into my chest. I had it coming. Until my head cleared, I wasn’t in any position to talk about Pitt, the mob, or anything else, except to tell her I loved her. Somehow I didn’t think those words would dissolve the friction between us.

  “Migraines again, bro?” Kody asked. “Too much of your brain is spent on us and family. You need to get back to working on cars or something other than worrying about loved ones.”

  Lacey’s head whipped around toward Kody. I’d give anything to be in her head right now.

  “I have to run,” Chloe said. “Thanks for helping.” She placed her hand on mine. “I’m sorry about your headaches. We’ll talk soon.”

  Lacey winced when Chloe touched me.

  Then Chloe turned to Lacey. “It was nice meeting you. When we have a chance, we’ll get together. I’d like to get to know my cousin. If that’s okay with you?”

  Lacey smiled through the hurt and anger that shone in her eyes. “I’d like that. Maybe by then I’ll be in a better mood. Sorry for all the questions.”

  My gaze shot to my brothers in search of some clue to what had transpired between Chloe and Lacey. None of them gave me any signs.

  “One thing my daddy taught me about men,” she said to Lacey. “The protectors are the hardest ones to tame, whether they protect your feelings or your life.” Then she hugged Lacey before dashing for the door.

  Lacey appeared to be mulling over that piece of wisdom. Hell, I was too.

  “Come on, Lacey. I’ll take you to get your car,” Kelton said.

  She hesitated before she followed Kelton. She flashed a weak smile at me. “I’m glad you’re okay. Can I stop by later on? We need to talk.” She looked past me to my father then back to me.

  “That should be fine,” my father said.

  I gripped the arms of the wheelchair, holding back my urge to vault out of it and cocoon her in my arms and make all her anger, hurt, and pain go away. But if I did, she wouldn’t listen. Sorry wasn’t going to be enough this time. I was certain of that.

  The ride home with my father had been deathly silent, which was a welcome relief. The medication the doctor gave me was just kicking in, and my head no longer felt like someone was beating it repeatedly with a sledgehammer.

  After a shower, I went down to the theater room, a perfect place for migraine sufferers. No sooner had I sprawled out on the couch than the stairs squeaked.

  Lacey padded in with her arms crossed over her chest as she chewed on her lip. “Has your headache gone away?” she asked in a flat tone.

  “It’s waning.” I debated whether to launch into my speech or let her say what was on her mind. “You’re upset. And I’m to blame.”

  “I am upset and confused.” She sat down on an ottoman on the side of the TV. “How come I didn’t know about Chloe and your tutoring job? Did you know that she was Pitt’s daughter?”

  In one week our lives had turned to shit. I explained everything, starting with the boxing match and ending with, “I am a dick for not telling you any of this. Your father’s adoptive family wasn’t my story to tell. In no way is this an excuse, but I was taught not to come in between a family’s problems. So I waited for your dad to tell you. I’d planned to tell you about Chloe after school today. You were busy.”

  Her knee bounced up and down. “I’m not even sure I know who you are. You keep so much from me. Time and time again I’ve asked you not to. To let me decide what I can and can’t handle. Yet you continue to choose what you tell me and when. Am I that fragile and pathetic that you think I’d break into a million pieces?” She got up and paced in front of the TV. “I’ve lived through finding the dead bodies of people I loved dearly. I’ve pushed hard in the last year to get where I am. I’m not perfect.” She stuck her hands on her hips and pinned a death look on me. “I’ll always have memories, nightmares, and symptoms of PTSD.” Her face reddened. “How can I heal or face my fears when the one person I love, who’s supposed to support me and help me, chooses to make the choices that are not his to make?”

  I hopped off the couch and moved toward her. She backed away.

  I was about to lose it. I hated that she wouldn’t let me touch her. I grabbed my hair with both hands. No matter what I say, she isn’t going to believe me. Sorry isn’t going to help either. I’ve said that a few times. Yet I continue to lie or keep things from her. Trust is huge for her, and I’d broken that sacred vow.

  “And you haven’t even told me about your migraines?” Her voice broke.

  “Lace.” I shoved my hands in my jean pockets. “Tell me something. Are you allergic to anything? Did you have the chickenpox when you were a kid?”

  “Huh?”

  “Tell me,” I said in a hardened tone.

  She huffed. “I’m not allergic to anything I know of. I had the chickenpox when I was three.”

  “Tell me everything else about your life as a kid.”

  “I see what you’re trying to do.”

  I stalked up to her but didn’t touch her. “We both have a past. We both have things in them that we haven’t shared. We’ve only been in a relationship for six months. We can’t get mad at each other when something from our pasts surface, like my headaches. I’m not apologizing for not telling you about my migraines. The Pitt and Lorenzino saga—that’s a different story. So be mad at me for that. Punch me if you have to.” Just not in the balls.

  Her nostrils flared as her eyes narrowed into slits. “I’ll do you one better. We need a break. I need a break.” She stomped out of the room.

  Chapter 23

  Lacey

  I rushed out of Kade’s and came home. Crash, bang, and boom, the walls were tumbling down. At least that was the way I felt. The weather matched my mood. Lightning lit up the sky as I sat in my sunroom, gazing out into the night. When the thunder rumbled, I shuddered. I hadn’t stayed in the house since the break-in. Even though the automatic lights had been on when I arrived, I’d asked Hunt if he wouldn’t mind checking out the house before I ventured
in. Then I’d asked him to stay inside with me since he was my bodyguard at night. His partner stayed in the car, watching over us from the outside.

  I let my mind wander over everything—Dad, Lorenzino, Rob, Aaron, baseball, ASU, and Kade. I was frightened that my dream of baseball and attending ASU could be in jeopardy. How could I concentrate on the game when every time I turned a corner I had a fast pitch flying at me?

  If I was building a relationship with Kade, I wanted to be his partner. I wanted him to confide in me, ask me my advice, and let me make my own decisions. I never once doubted his love for me. I couldn’t keep going if he kept shutting me out. Maybe we weren’t cut out for each other. Maybe he needed someone who accepted his way of protecting a loved one. Lies might protect, but they can certainly destroy, and he was destroying our relationship more than protecting me.

  I also worried about Dad’s and Rob’s safety, as well as my own. I was on alert with Aaron, and I’d been wracking my brain about where that ledger could be. The box of keepsakes. I uncurled my legs from the chair.

  “Lacey?” Hunt called.

  A bolt of lightning split the sky, and Hunt’s reflection shone in the glass of the sunroom.

  “Your dad has been trying to call you. Here.” He came into the sunroom and gave me his phone.

  “What’s wrong?” Dad asked. “Where’s your phone?”

  “Nothing. My phone is up in my room.” I was upset with Dad, too. He could’ve told me sooner about Lorenzino, his mom, his adoptive family. Maybe we could’ve put our heads together earlier to uncover the ledger. Plus, we could use more family members around us. I surely could. Whether Dad was home or working, I felt alone. Friends were great to have, but they didn’t replace family. Kade was the closest person I’d consider family.