Do You Take This Cop?

by Beth Andrews

  Though Nick’s arms hung loose by his sides, his hands opened and closed. “Does your ex-husband have visitation rights to Austin?”

  Knowing what she was about to say would be the end of any feelings Nick might’ve had for her, she licked her dry lips and forced the truth out in a thin voice. “I don’t have an ex-husband. I’m still married.”

  THE TOP OF NICK’S HEAD tingled, the sensation moving down to his limbs, until his entire body felt frozen. Until he had to lean back against the windowpane just to remain on his feet. He stared at Faith—no, not Faith. What had she said her name was? Lynne. Sweet God. He’d made love with her, had cared about her and had started fantasizing about having a life with her and Austin.

  And he hadn’t even known her real goddamn name.“You’re married? You took your son away from your husband.”

  She winced. Good. She should wince. She should be scared out of her lying head. “I had to,” she said.

  He didn’t stop her when she crossed to the dresser. He was afraid if he touched her now, when his feelings were so close to the surface, he wouldn’t be able to control himself. “Was Austin really abused?”

  She scooped up an armful of bras and panties and tossed them into the suitcase. “You’ve spoken to him. You know I didn’t make that up.”

  “Maybe you coached him. Told him what to say.”

  Instead of getting angry, as he’d half hoped, she zipped up the suitcase and, using both hands, slid it to the floor. “I didn’t. But I don’t blame you for wondering.”

  He sneered. “Well, hell. Thanks for being so understanding.”

  She ducked her head, her hair covering her face. Pushing away from the window, he stalked the length of the bed. Tried to keep his cool, to keep his riotous emotions in check. She continued packing as if she hadn’t just dropped a bomb on him. What clothes didn’t fit in the suitcase were shoved into a large duffel bag. Shoes were tossed into plastic grocery bags and set by the door. She didn’t even glance at the paperbacks lining the small bookcase or the knickknacks on the nightstand.

  “This isn’t the first time you’ve had to cut and run with little notice,” he said slowly.

  Reaching under her mattress, she didn’t even glance up at him. “No.”

  “And you never told the police Austin was abused…”

  She pulled her hand out, and with it, a thick business envelope stuffed with money. “I wanted to. I wanted him to pay for what he did to Austin but… Miles, my husband, was brought up on charges of abusing a child. He molested a boy who attended the after-school program he’d set up for underprivileged youths, but there wasn’t enough evidence to convict him.”

  “So you just let him get away with it?”

  Her eyes flashed. “You’re a cop. You should know better than anyone that even if I had told the police what Miles did to Austin, there’s no guarantee he’d be sent to prison. And after he was acquitted in his trial he was so…smug. As if nothing could touch him. And he was right. That’s when I knew if I wanted to get Austin away from him, I had to do something drastic.”

  “I’d say kidnapping your own child is as drastic as you could get.”

  She yanked the zipper of the duffel bag closed. “It’s not kidnapping. He’s my son. Mine.”

  “Why didn’t you tell the prosecution about Austin’s abuse? That could’ve been enough to help them get a conviction.”

  “Don’t you think I get that?” she asked, throwing the bag on the floor. “I’ve lived with that decision every day. Do you have any idea what I’d give if I could go back and do it all over again? How many things I’d do differently? I was just…” She pulled her hair back from her face with both hands. “God, I was terrified. The night I found out what he was doing to Austin, I tried to leave, but Miles warned me if I so much as stepped outside without his permission, he’d have me arrested for taking his son. That no judge would grant me custody of Austin over him. Not with my background.”

  Faith had the same defeated tone he’d heard all too often in victims. “You could’ve gone to the police—”

  “He said they wouldn’t believe me. That they’d see me as a vengeful, gold-digging whore,” she snapped. “And since that wasn’t far from the truth at the time, I believed him. He warned me that if I filed for divorce, he’d get Austin. He had everything I didn’t,” she continued, ticking the list off on her fingers. “Wealth, connections, a spotless reputation. I had nothing. All the credit cards were in his name, all the bank accounts. So I stayed. But from that night on, I never left Austin alone with his father. I even slept in his room to make sure Miles couldn’t get to him. And I prayed that somehow, someday, we’d be able to get away.”

  Nick tried to hold on to his anger, but realizing what she’d gone through, hearing the real fear in her voice, didn’t make it easy. Not when all she wanted was to protect her child. “How did you and Austin escape him?”

  “After his acquittal, Miles threw a party for all the people who’d supported him during the trial. I’d been so hopeful he’d be sent to prison, and was so crushed when he was found not guilty, I…I had too much to drink and I accused the head of his defense team of helping a monster go free.”

  “What did he say?”

  “She. Allison Martin. Miles interrupted us before I could say much more than that, but then…then Allison called me. As much as she hated to think she’d had a part in setting a pedophile free, she’d done some digging into Miles’s background and what she found convinced her I was telling the truth. Unfortunately, she knew it wasn’t strong enough to convince the D.A. to bring up new charges against Miles.”

  “So this Allison helped you escape.”

  “She felt so guilty…we came up with a plan, and one day Lynne and Jon Addison just…disappeared. Allie gave us enough money to get by until we could get settled somewhere. We’d even hoped we could stay in Serenity Springs, her hometown. That we could start a new life there.” Faith pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. “But that’ll never happen. We’ll never be free of Miles.”

  Serenity Springs. No wonder Austin had been so freaked out when he’d let it slipped they’d lived there. And then, when Nick had asked Faith about it, she’d said it was a town called Serenity Hills. Another one of her many lies.

  “Are you going to spend your entire life running?” He strode over to her, too pissed to care that she backed up, her hand at her throat, her eyes wide. “You can fight him now. You have a decent job. Friends. Damn it, Faith, you have me. We can fight him together. Once Austin tells the police what his father did—”

  “There’s no way I’m letting my baby live through it again. I saw what that other boy went through. He came forward and had to relive every detail in court, only to be made to look like a liar. And afterwards he—he took his grandmother’s sewing scissors and slit his wrists,” Faith said hoarsely. “He was only eleven years old. He survived, but I have no idea what’s happened to him since.”

  Nick burned at what that poor kid must’ve gone through. “It’ll be hard for Austin, but he lives with it every day. He needs to know his father is being punished. He needs to heal.”

  “And what if we fail?” she cried. “What if Austin has to live with Miles? I can’t take that chance.”

  “I’ll keep you and Austin safe.”

  “That’s not your job.”

  He grabbed her by the upper arms and lifted her onto her bare toes. “The hell it isn’t! I love you!”

  Her head snapped back as if he’d sucker punched her. He felt as if he’d just taken one to the chin himself. He hadn’t meant to let that slip. Hadn’t wanted to admit, even to himself, how much he’d fallen for her and her kid.

  And he’d thought she looked scared before. “You…you can’t love me,” she said in a desperate whisper. “Faith Lewis isn’t even real.”

  He gritted his teeth instead of shaking her as he wanted to. “You think I’m happy about this? You’ve lied to me and my family from the minute you stepped
into town, and yet, real or not, I love you. I want you and Austin in my life.”

  Her eyes welled with tears. “I’m sorry.”

  He let go of her. “You’re sorry? That’s the best you can do?”

  “I can’t stay—”

  “You mean you won’t. Because it’s easier to run and be on your own than ask for help. You’d rather have your pride than build a real life in a place where you can belong.”

  She looked stricken. “Even if Miles was charged with abusing Austin, I can’t put my son through the trauma of a trial.” Picking up her duffel bag, she adjusted the strap over her shoulder, then took the handle of the suitcase in a white-knuckled grip. “I’ve made too many mistakes already. Doing things by the book doesn’t work with Miles. He’s a master at manipulation and getting what he wants. He’s already gotten away with his abuse for years, and there’s nothing I can do to change that.”

  “Only because you’re too scared to try.”

  “Yes, I’m scared. Is that what you want to hear? I’m terrified of losing my son.”

  There was only one way to force her to stay. To force her to accept his help. “I could place you under arrest,” he said quietly.

  She paled. “You’d… Would you really do that?”

  He wanted to. It scared the hell out of him how much he’d love nothing more than to take her and Austin to the station, where he could protect them. For the first time in his life, that thin line between right and wrong that he always used as his guide disappeared, and he wasn’t sure where to stand.

  He was pissed, and hurt enough to want to make Faith face her past, to let him help her. But he loved her and Austin enough to let them go.

  “I need to let the private eye out of the closet,” he said. “The way I figure it, you’ve got less than twenty minutes to get out of town.”

  She shut her eyes briefly with a soft exhalation. “Thank—”

  “Don’t even think about thanking me,” he said harshly, curling his fingers into his palms. “Just go.”

  Then he did the hardest thing he’d ever done in his life. He walked away.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  DRY-EYED AND BEYOND exhausted, Faith sat in a lumpy chair in front of the motel room window. Using a pen she’d dug out of her purse, she moved the dusty drapes aside just enough to sneak a peek at the parking lot, squinting against the rising sun. The same two cars that had been there when she and Austin arrived at the roadside motel three hours ago were still parked outside. No one had followed them. Yet.

  She let the drapes fall back in place and set her pen down on the scarred, round table. Shrugging her shoulders to try to ease some of the aching tension, she got to her feet. As she rolled her head from side to side, she glanced at Austin, asleep on the bed. After they’d left Kingsville, she’d headed north, sticking as close to the coast as possible. When the fog had moved in, she’d realized she should’ve gone farther inland, but as usual when she made a mistake, she didn’t try to correct it. Just made the best of it.And that’s what she would continue to do, she thought as she began to pace across the stained, matted carpet. So this motel wasn’t fancy—or clean. They’d be here only a few more hours. Long enough for them both to get some rest. Then they’d be on their way.

  Too bad she had no idea where they were going.

  Her stomach cramped as she thought about starting over again. She had no one to help her, no one she could trust. Plus she’d spent the bulk of her savings on the headstone for her mother’s grave. Five hundred dollars wouldn’t get her far. How was she supposed to keep Austin fed and clothed and safe now?

  Unbidden memories assaulted her. Austin’s laughter as he and Trevor jumped into the pool on the Fourth of July. The warmth of Nick’s family at their picnic. How she and Britney always sang along when “Lady Marmalade” played on the radio at the salon.

  The way Nick had looked at her when they’d made love. The feel of him inside her. How she’d never felt more…complete.

  Wherever she and Austin ended up, she’d be smarter this time. More careful. Like she used to be. No trying to fit into a town. No making friends. And above all, no getting involved with anyone, especially some too-good-to-be-true cop.

  No falling in love.

  Her pulse raced. She didn’t love Nick. Yes, she cared about him and she appreciated him letting her and Austin go, when by all rights, he should’ve arrested her. But just because he was handsome and honest and wonderful with her son didn’t mean she was in love with him.

  Flipping on the light in the tiny bathroom, she recoiled at the sight of the dirt-encrusted sink. There were no disposable cups, just a tall drinking glass with the remnants of someone else’s lipstick. She shut her eyes and tipped her head back. It was only for one night.

  Opening her eyes, she leaned over the sink, studying her reflection in the fuzzy mirror. She was pale, her hair scraped back in a ponytail, her eyes bleak. She looked like hell, which was fitting, considering that’s how she felt. Straightening, she pushed herself back from the sink and about jumped out of her skin when the biggest, ugliest bug she’d ever seen skittered across the faucet.

  With a shriek, she flew out of the bathroom, slamming the door behind her before jumping onto the bed. Austin didn’t even stir as she slid as close to him as possible. He’d fallen asleep about thirty miles before they’d arrived, and once she’d seen how disgusting the room was, she hadn’t brought him in until she’d laid the pink-and-white quilt from home on the bed.

  No. Not home. It was just a house. A place where they’d felt safe for a while. But it wasn’t home. They’d never have a home. This was their life—moving from town to town. Keeping their distance. Never having a place to call their own.

  Oh, God. What had she done? Faith moaned and rocked back and forth, sobs racking her body.

  Tears ran down her cheeks. She’d taken away any chance Austin had of a normal, healthy life. Nick was right—she did run from her problems, and she would always be running if she didn’t make a change. Take a chance. For once fight for what she wanted. Austin was worth the risk. So was Nick.

  And by God, so was she.

  She wasn’t the person she used to be, or the woman Miles accused her of being. She hadn’t used Nick. She loved him.

  Inhaling raggedly, she grabbed for her purse on the nightstand, reaching into it for a tissue. After drying her face and blowing her nose, she slid the bag onto her shoulder, tucked the quilt’s edges around Austin and picked him up. She staggered under his weight and he lifted his head.

  “Mom?” he asked, his eyes still closed.

  “Shh…” She kissed his cheek. “Go back to sleep. Everything’s okay.”

  “Where’re we going?”

  Bending slightly so she could unlock the door, she yanked it open and stepped out into the brilliant, sunny morning. “We’re going home.”

  NICK STARED BLINDLY at the ball game on his TV as he finished his bottle of beer. Picking up half of the ham-and-Swiss sandwich he’d made for supper, he brought it to his mouth, but couldn’t make himself take a bite. He dropped it back onto the paper plate and opened another beer.

  Someone knocked at his front door and he sighed. Debated about whether or not to even bother answering the damn thing. If it was one of his sisters—or worse, his mother—he was faking an intestinal illness. All five of them had already called him—at least once each—to check up on him. He didn’t think he could deal with any of them, or their sympathy, in person today.He’d spent a long, hellish night thinking about Faith and Austin, wondering where they were, if they were safe. What he could’ve done or said differently to get them to stay. Then, around nine this morning, he’d gotten a frantic call from Britney. She’d been in a panic over Faith not showing up for work or answering her phone.

  He’d hated lying to his sister, hated pretending he didn’t know what had happened to them. So he’d simply told her he was sure they were fine then promised to check on their house. When he got there, he’d ac
tually been disappointed to find it empty. As if Faith might have somehow changed her mind… Just proved how gullible he really was. Frowning, he took another sip of beer. He wanted to wing the bottle at his expensive TV.

  Another knock, this one more insistent, made him slam his bottle on the table with such force that foam spilled over the top. He got to his feet. Hell, couldn’t a man even brood in peace?

  “What?” he growled, opening the door.

  “We’re back!” Austin cried, and then launched himself into Nick’s arms.

  Stunned, Nick couldn’t do more than react, his arms automatically going around the boy and pulling him close. It was only after a moment or two that he realized what was happening, and he tightened his hold.

  Austin was here. More importantly, he was safe. Nick closed his eyes and buried his face in the boy’s hair. The kid had smelled better, but at this point Nick would take him any way he could get him.

  Letting go, somehow knowing Nick would never let him fall, Austin leaned back, his arms outstretched. “I told you he’d be happy to see us.”

  Nick’s brain started working again and he looked up, his heart doing one slow roll when he met Faith’s eyes. “Is everything okay?” he asked, as Austin clutched his shirt and pulled himself back up. “Are you all right?”

  Faith opened her mouth, but Nick, quickly looking up and down his street, yanked her inside, shutting the door behind her. He didn’t agree with the choices she had made, but he wasn’t about to let them get sent back to her bastard of a husband.

  “We’re fine,” she assured him. She patted his hand, and that’s when he realized he had a viselike grip on her arm. He let go, but noticed he left finger marks on her delicate skin.

  “Sorry,” he mumbled, setting her son on his feet.

  “Can I use your bathroom?” Austin asked. “I really gotta pee.”

  “First door on the right.” He’d barely gotten the last word out before Austin took off like a shot.