Deal Breaker

by Patricia Rosemoor

  “Yes, ten.”

  They made plans to meet at a restaurant not far from Bryce’s riverfront apartment, shook hands and then went in separate directions. They’d barely made it outside to the plaza before Hailey whipped out her cell phone.

  “I’m going to call Danny, find out where to bring the money.”

  “Whoa, not so fast. He knows it’s coming.” She’d spoken to him three times that morning, once on the ride into the city from Lake Geneva, once after they got the marriage license, once an hour before when they were on their way to the courtroom where they’d been married. “I have to get the money first.”

  “But you went to the bank right after we got our license this morning.”

  “I made the arrangements, but I didn’t want to carry that kind of money with me all day, so I still have to pick up the cash.”

  “You’re sure you’re going to be able to get it?”

  “Yes, of course.” He could feel her anxiety growing. “Things are actually working out faster than I expected.”

  Normally a couple couldn’t get married in Chicago until the day after they got their license, but they’d gotten the license first thing this morning and then he’d tapped a political contact to speed up the process. It was late afternoon, but the bank would be open for another hour.

  “We’re a day ahead of ourselves,” he continued, “so relax already.”

  “I’ll try. I just want to get this over with.”

  This was rife with meaning, only Bryce didn’t have the code. He wasn’t certain if she simply meant paying off her brother’s debt or if her statement included him. Once he made the deal, she had the option to walk. And that would be okay with him, he told himself. He’d never meant to marry anyone in the first place. He’d certainly never meant to pick up any kind of attraction for Hailey. It must have something to do with his feeling sorry for her plight.

  As to Danny, what kind of brother caused his sister such heartache?

  During those lengthy cell phone conversations, he’d gotten no sense that Danny was sorry or that he wanted to stop his sister from marrying a man just to get the money. And when he’d insisted that they not give the money to her brother but directly to the man he owed—the man who’d threatened him—Hailey had sounded almost apologetic. Why she would trust her brother with that much money, Bryce didn’t know, but he certainly had his doubts.

  Still, he couldn’t help but admire his new wife for her loyalty to her brother. She would stand by Danny no matter what. If he was interested in a real relationship, one that encompassed a forever bond and romantic love, he’d want a woman who would feel that way about him.

  But of course, given the circumstances, that was impossible.

  When they got to the bank, the money was ready—ten packets of hundred-dollar bills. He set the packets in his briefcase. Considering how much money it contained, he was surprised when it didn’t feel heavier.

  Once they were safely out of the bank and in his SUV, doors locked, Bryce said, “Now call your brother.”

  He noticed Hailey’s hand tremble slightly as she held the cell phone.

  “Danny, it’s me.” She took a breath that sounded relieved. “Yes, we have the money.” Her forehead tightened. “Why do you want us to meet you in a parking lot?”

  At that point, Bryce took the phone from her. “Danny, this is Bryce. What’s the address?”

  “No address,” came Danny’s familiar voice. “We’ll meet at McKinley Park. The lot is at Pershing and Leavitt. Be there at eight.”

  “I don’t think so.” Bryce wasn’t giving over control by going to a location in an unfamiliar neighborhood where anything could happen to them. “Try Clark and Lincoln. We’ll be in the park. And make it an hour from now.”

  He wanted to make certain there would be people around and that it would still be light enough so he could see the face of the loan shark who would be taking the money.

  “I can’t give orders to the Iceman!” Danny protested.

  “Then ask him if he really wants the money. Clark and Lincoln in an hour. And I want your friend to give me a receipt.”

  “Are you crazy?”

  Bryce cut him off, and when he handed the cell phone back to Hailey, he realized she was gaping at him.

  “What did you do?” she asked in a fear-laced voice.

  “I just made sure we would all come out of this alive. Do you have objections to that?”

  The color seemed to drain from her face. She shook her head. “No. No, of course not. But what if—”

  “No what-ifs.”

  “You’re awfully sure of yourself.”

  “This Iceman is going to want his money…so he’ll be there.”

  AN hour later, Bryce was proven right. He’d parked on Stockton Drive in Lincoln Park, which swept along the lakefront along most of the north side. He’d left the case of money in the trunk. Even though the park was safe, there was no sense in taking chances with that kind of loot.

  They’d barely taken a bench sheltered in back by bushes and overhead by a huge maple than two men approached on foot from busy Clark Street. Dressed in designer trousers and a shirt the same blue as his eyes—the same blue as Hailey’s wedding blouse—Danny Wright was still the handsome blond heartbreaker he’d always been. In contrast, a design was shaved into his companion’s short hair and the man wore slouch jeans and a bright white muscle T-shirt that showed off his bulked coffee-colored arms decorated with tattoos.

  When the men approached the bench, Hailey shot to her feet. “Danny!” She launched herself at her brother and threw her arms around his neck.

  “Sis.” Danny hugged her, but his gaze zeroed in on Bryce, who was getting to his feet. Then he looked around on the bench and on the ground and then back to Bryce. “Where’s the money?”

  There was a look of desperation in his eyes that Bryce had never seen before. The man truly feared for his life.

  Bryce turned to the loan shark and asked, “Where’s the receipt?”

  Scowling, the man said, “You’re whack.”

  “I’m careful.”

  “I don’t got no receipt, but I got this.” Remaining calm and cool like his nickname, Iceman pulled up the front of his T-shirt to show Bryce the gun in his waistband.

  “No, you can’t shoot anyone.” Hailey’s plea sounded strangled. Her face had drained of color. “We have the money!”

  “You won’t need that.” Bryce shrugged and remained calm himself. “No need for threats. I just want to make sure there’s proof that Danny’s debt is paid. I find it hard to believe you don’t have an IOU.”

  Bryce didn’t think Iceman was going to answer. His dark eyes narrowed into slits. Bryce could tell the other man was sizing him up.

  Finally, he said, “I got his paper.”

  “Then sign it over to me.” Bryce pulled out a pen and offered it to Iceman who simply stared at it. “Sign it over or no money.”

  Iceman swiped the pen from his hand and from his jeans pocket, pulled out a folded piece of paper. Spreading it out on the bench he paused with his pen over the paper. “Name?”

  “Bryce McKenna.” He spelled it out so the man would get it right.

  Color was flooding Hailey’s cheeks again and to Bryce’s alarm, she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and aimed it at the loan shark. She was taking his photo. Bryce stepped in front of Iceman so he couldn’t see her.

  After signing, Iceman held the paper out of Bryce’s reach. “Money first.”

  Bryce led the way to his car, a hundred yards away. Opening the trunk, all too aware of Hailey taking more photos, he lifted out the case and purposely directed Iceman’s attention away from her. The exchange made, he expected Iceman to disappear, but the man stood there, expression thoughtful.

  “That’s a lot of benjamins to give away. I can give you a chance to win it all back. Tonight.”

  “I don’t gamble.”

  Iceman looked to Danny, threw back his head and laughed. �
�What you think you just did by buying his IOU? You change your mind, Danny knows where to find me.”

  “You leave my brother be!” Hailey said.

  Iceman smirked. “And what if I don’t?”

  “I’ll have you arrested. With proof.”

  She held up her cell phone and jiggled it. Iceman’s smirk disappeared.

  Bryce grabbed Hailey’s arm and pushed the phone out of sight, and when she looked at him, he gave her a warning glare. He could see that she was all wound up and wanted to say more, but in the end, she let a breath whisper through her lips and clammed up.

  “You oughta watch who you threaten, baby, or things might not go so good for either you or your brother.”

  With that, the loan shark sauntered away, swinging the case as if it were a picnic basket rather than filled with money.

  Finally Danny said, “Thanks, sis.”

  I’m probably gonna have to cool it for a while. Let things settle down before I get into another game.

  “Don’t thank me.” Hailey turned to Bryce, her expression one of gratitude.

  “Oh yeah, thanks, Bryce.” Danny held out his hand, but not for a shake. “I’ll take the IOU.”

  Next time I’ll be more careful. Win a little at a time. Iceman won’t even realize what’s happening until I get a hundred grand from him.

  Hearing Danny’s thoughts, Bryce fumed inside. Would the miscreant never learn from his mistakes? He folded up the IOU and stuffed it into a pocket. “Did you think I was just going to pay your debt and give you a pass?” Bryce asked. “You owe me the money now, Danny, and I expect you to pay back every penny.”

  “Hailey!”

  “Don’t look to your sister for help.” Bryce’s hands balled into fists so he wouldn’t touch the idiot because he might lose control. “For once look to yourself. You have a clean slate, a chance to start over, and if you’re smart, that’s just what you’ll do because that’s the last money you’ll get from us.”

  “But I need something now,” Danny told Hailey in a querulous voice. “You know, just to tide me over. Until I get a job.”

  She started to open her bag as if she was going to give him whatever he wanted. Bryce took hold of her hand and shook his head.

  “You can have a job, Danny, working for my building development company as soon as I get this new project in line.”

  “I don’t know anything about that kind of work.”

  “Then you’ll learn. I have a big project coming up. I can use a gofer.”

  “A what?”

  “Someone who goes for things. Runs errands.”

  “You call that a job?”

  “It’s a start. And part of your pay will be held back toward your debt.”

  “You’re not really going to let him do this to me, are you?” Danny asked Hailey.

  “We’ll talk about it later,” she said, her voice now tight.

  “There’s nothing to talk about.” Bryce handed Danny his card. “I’ll be in touch when there’s work. If you don’t like the idea of working for me, then find yourself a job now. Stop relying on your sister to haul your butt out of the flames.”

  Hailey tried to hug Danny again, but he backed off, gave them both a wounded expression before turning away.

  “Danny!”

  “Let him go. He needs time to think things over.”

  “So do I!”

  HAILEY stewed in silence all the way back to Bryce’s apartment, where she took refuge in the guest bathroom and changed into casual clothes and running shoes. The highrise fronted the Chicago River. Bryce’s corner two-bedroom apartment had stunning views both of the river and of Lake Michigan.

  She thought the modern apartment an odd choice for a man who developed conversion condominiums. Then again, his father had started the business. Undoubtedly it was lucrative and this condo in the sky was more indicative of Bryce’s true taste. A downtown apartment of this size cost a pretty penny, certainly more than she’d ever considered spending. Briefly wondering what grand old building had been razed to be replaced by this one, she didn’t know why she was trying to figure the man out. He’d done her a favor only because it was in his own best interest. He wasn’t really concerned with her or with her brother.

  Securing her hair in a ponytail, she left the bathroom. Still dressed in his perfectly tailored gray wedding suit, Bryce stood staring out the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living area where the leather-and-chrome furniture was as modern as the building. Had Grania designed the place to suit her brother’s personality? There was nothing soft about the room, nothing to make it feel like a home.

  She knew what a home felt like—Danny had made sure of that.

  Her emotions picking up steam, she said, “Danny is my brother, Bryce, not yours.”

  He turned to face her and she steeled herself. He was too damned good-looking for her comfort. Too tempting. She had to harden herself against the lure of those green eyes, against the promise of the crease in his cheek when he smiled.

  He wasn’t smiling now, though, as he swept his gaze from her running shoes to her capris and from her T-shirt to her ponytail. “I’m aware of your relationship with Danny, Hailey. What’s your point?”

  His cool tone stiffened her spine. “It’s not up to you to tell him whether I’ll help him again.”

  “When did you become his banker? Or his mother?”

  Feeling as if he’d just hit her below the belt, Hailey gaped at him. Surely he must remember that their mother had chosen a man over her children.

  “That’s not fair. When our mother left me with my brother because it was more convenient for her, Danny did what he had to so that he could take care of me. He’s all I have.”

  “You have me now,” Bryce reminded her.

  “True, as a friend.”

  “That doesn’t make me any less of a friend.” Bryce sat in one of his leather chairs. “And as a friend, I have to tell you, no matter how great Danny was in the past, he’s gone off the straight and narrow. Until he chooses to clean up his act, he’s not to be trusted.”

  “He said he was going to stop gambling.” She had to believe that.

  “I heard him thinking about holding off gambling for a while, until he could figure out how to win the hundred thousand back from Iceman.”

  That stopped her short. “What do you mean you heard him think that?”

  “C’mon, Hailey, you and Grania were best friends for years. I’m sure you got an inkling that everyone in our family is a little psychic.”

  Grania had said as much, but Hailey had thought it was a kid’s flight of fancy.

  “You’re saying you can hear what people think?”

  “Not always, but I have my moments. It’s kind of like radar. If the person is relaxed and his or her mind is open, I gravitate there. Addicts promise a lot of things the person they’re conning wants to hear. Danny needs professional help, the kind you can’t give him.”

  Even though she’d told Danny the same thing herself, she hated hearing it come from someone else. “You may be right, Bryce, but I’m never going to abandon him.”

  “I’m not suggesting you should. What I am suggesting is that you stop helping Danny stay in the life he’s chosen for himself. You need to start practicing tough love and stop enabling him.”

  Bryce didn’t know Danny, didn’t know the years of freedom he’d sacrificed for her. He hadn’t always been the way he was now—he’d been responsible once. She’d needed him then and he needed her now.

  “I would do anything for my brother!”

  “Apparently you’re even willing to get yourself killed. Taking those photos of Iceman was bad enough, but then waving your cell phone under his nose like a red flag was you asking for trouble.”

  Her spirits deflating again, Hailey grabbed the extra set of keys he’d given her and stuffed them into her pocket along with her phone. “I’m going to get some fresh air.”

  “Hailey, wait a minute and I’ll come with you.”
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br />   But she was already out the door. She punched the call button for the elevator. The doors opened immediately, and she stepped in. As the doors whooshed closed, she thought she heard Bryce’s voice, but she was in no mood to continue this conversation. The elevator quickly brought her to the lobby. She rushed to the exit, but the doorman beat her to it and quickly swung open the door.

  “Mrs. McKenna.”

  “The name’s Ms. Wright,” she informed him before jogging off.

  The sun had already set, the street and building lights gleamed against the deepening gloom, and the air felt much cooler than she’d expected. A run along the river was exactly what she needed in many respects. It was a way to cool down her anger, a way for her to think more clearly.

  As she approached the corner, she noted a dark car sat at the curb, its engine running. The driver didn’t seem ready to move the vehicle, so she passed it and crossed the street. Needing to warm up before she went all-out, she started slowly at first, but when she thought she heard her name chase her—Bryce was following her!—she ran full-speed.

  Her morning run used to be a ritual, but the downturn in her life had stolen her motivation, so she quickly found herself short of breath. A quick glance behind her assured Hailey that Bryce wasn’t nearby, so she slowed down.

  And then realized she was being followed…by what looked like the black car that had been sitting outside her building.

  Her stomach knotted. Surely she was imagining things. Veering away from the car, she felt her pulse jump when it followed into an area along the river that had a lot of parked cars.

  Dark.

  Deserted.

  Scary.

  Whipping around in a circle, she looked for people—witnesses. A few strolled down the sidewalk on the other side of the street, away from the river. She bolted toward them.

  “Hey, wait a minute!” she shouted and a couple of women turned toward her.

  “What’s going on?” one of them yelled back.