Fiancé by Friday

by Catherine Bybee

  Ruth laughed. “He doesn’t want to retire at all. He’s fought me for years on the subject. I keep hoping that Annie will have a baby and Charles will realize there is more to life than the military.”

  Gwen couldn’t imagine dedicating her life to something so passionately other than a family. “I’m sure he will come around.” Gwen wasn’t sure of anything…but it seemed the right thing to say.

  “He despises Annie’s husband.”

  “Oh…that’s not good.”

  “Tell me about it. Andrew is a teacher. High school English. The two of them couldn’t be more opposite.”

  “Your daughter and Andrew?”

  “No. Andrew and Charles. Charles is a leader and Andrew is a follower. Or so my husband keeps telling me. Personally, I like him. He adores our daughter. But my husband thinks she should have married a military man. Between her life here and a relationship that ended abruptly with an enlisted man…Annie was ready for stability. A high school English teacher fit in her life. I think if Charles gave him a chance…moved closer so we could get to know him better, his view would change.”

  “Did you know Andrew before they married?”

  “Not very well. We met him when they were dating but didn’t think much of it. One day she said they were getting married and then the fighting started.”

  Parents getting involved passionately never ended well. “She rebelled,” Gwen said.

  “Yes. She did.” Ruth sighed. “They eloped and moved south. We’ve visited a couple of times. Stressful ordeals those were.”

  “That’s too bad. Life is too short to quarrel.” As much as Gwen despised her father, she didn’t go out of her way to fight with the man when he was alive.

  “I think once I get Charles off base his attitude will change.”

  Ruth was old enough to know that people seldom changed, but Gwen wasn’t about to remind her of that. It was obvious Ruth was ready to move on with their life, even if her husband wasn’t.

  “I’m sure it will work out.” Gwen was sure of no such thing…but if there was one thing she had learned after living in the States for nearly a year it was that Americans were wonderful at saying things they didn’t mean. To be fair, the British were, too. However, her friends in London wouldn’t think of sharing such private information with a mere stranger. Ruth was in obvious need of a conversation with a woman who didn’t know her husband. Perhaps Ruth knew if she spoke with people who knew him they’d offer a different opinion.

  Gwen glanced at Ruth and noticed a small smile on her face.

  “It will.”

  When they arrived back at the house Gwen noticed the car she and Neil had driven there was gone.

  Her heart jumped. He left? Maybe he moved the car?

  No. The car wasn’t anywhere in the drive and when they walked into the house Charles said he’d left. She panicked for a moment before he told her that Neil would be back within the hour.

  Gwen decided to spend the time alone in her room. When had she become so dependent on a man? On anyone? Maybe before moving to America she’d moved through life with an escort. Since the move, however, she’d found her independence and loved it. So why did the thought of moving around now without Neil feel so wrong? It was one thing to be infatuated with the man, quite another to not see herself without him. He was a dangerous gamble that came with a warning.

  Working through the drama surrounding Neil required another set of ears. Karen’s or maybe Eliza’s. Even Samantha would offer sound advice.

  The question was how could Gwen contact one of her friends and not risk exposing any of them before Neil was prepared to deal with the bird-killing man?

  Blake met Dean and Jim at Karen and Michael’s home in Beverly Hills. Karen had called in a panic, saying something about dead birds and the need for Prozac. None of which made any sense.

  Inside Michael’s home, Karen sat on a sofa with her knees curled up into her chest. Beside her Michael sat and stroked her back as the both of them talked to Dean and Jim.

  “I got here as soon as I could.” Blake glanced at Karen and asked, “Are you OK?”

  “Better now.” She was pale and obviously shaken up.

  “Seems our bird-guy is interested in Karen after all,” Jim said.

  “Someone jumped the fence here and broke into her car. She found another dead crow, this time mangled and in the front seat of her car.” Dean watched Karen as he spoke. “I have a crew coming over to investigate.”

  “Is there anything on your surveillance cameras?” Blake asked Michael.

  “I don’t have surveillance cameras. Only an alarm system.”

  Blake couldn’t imagine a man of Michael’s worth and fame not having a better system. “Time to put one in.”

  Michael nodded.

  “Guess this means we need to keep an eye on Karen and let Neil know he and Gwen can come back.” Dean stood and placed an empty coffee cup on the table in front of the couch.

  “Only problem with that is no one knows where Neil is,” said Blake.

  “I’ll start a track on him…credit card use, bank account. He’ll show up eventually. Or maybe Gwen will call again.”

  Blake would have his own people start searching. The thought of his sister running off with a paranoid retired marine made him edgy.

  “Do you think we’re dealing with a fan?” Michael asked Dean.

  “Could be. Or maybe someone ticked at you, Karen. Any ideas who we’re dealing with?”

  “I don’t have any real contact with the clients at Alliance and you know my co-workers.”

  “What about at the Boys and Girls Club?”

  “Jeff is the head guy there. Happily married. Most of the volunteers are housewives. There’s no one I hang out with or really know outside of the organization.”

  Dean paced the room. “What about the kids? A lot of kids in those places are high risk. Or maybe even mandated to go there after school.”

  Karen looked stunned at the question. “The kids are great.” She paused. “Most seemed happy when they found out Michael and I got married.”

  “Most?” Dean asked.

  The hair on her arms tingled. “Well yeah. There’s this one boy. I think he has a crush on me. Got a little upset the last time I saw him.”

  Dean removed a pen from the inside of his suit pocket. “What’s his name?”

  “Oh, c’mon, Dean. He’s just a kid. Not capable of what’s been going on here.”

  “Do I have to remind you how many kids are sitting in juvenile hall convicted of murder?”

  “Juan isn’t that kid. I know him.”

  “Really? Where does Juan live? Who are his parents? Any priors?”

  Karen glanced at Michael and back to Dean.

  “I’m just going to ask him a few questions, Karen. If he’s a good kid, he has nothing to worry about.”

  “He’ll never trust me again.”

  “It’s a risk you’re going to have to take,” Michael told her. “The sooner they rule him out as a suspect, the sooner they can search for whoever else is behind all this.”

  Karen sighed and ran a hand over her face. “Juan Martinez. He’s a good kid, Dean. Last I looked it wasn’t against the law to have a crush, so please don’t come down hard on him.”

  “If he’s been planting dead birds to scare you, I’m going to make him piss himself. If he isn’t behind it he’ll be fine.”

  Jim stood and joined Dean as they turned to leave the room. Blake followed them out. “You really think a kid did all this?”

  Dean placed his sunglasses over his eyes as they stepped outside. “Anyone capable of killing animals can eventually kill people. And yeah, teenage kids do that shit. Most don’t graduate to murder until they’re old enough to get a drink in a bar, but that doesn’t mean it’s not unheard of.”

  A couple of black and white squad cars rolled down the drive and Jim walked over to greet them.

  “What about the bugging of the house, tampering with th
e surveillance equipment?” Blake asked.

  Dean shrugged. “We didn’t find a bug. Yeah, there’s interference in the line, but that could be anything. No guarantee the system in Tarzana was messed with either. Outside of the stolen electricity mucking up the system.”

  “You think this is all a bunch of shit piled up to be meaningless?” Blake asked.

  Dean shoved his hands into his pants pockets and rolled back on his heels. “I think you need to open your mind to that possibility. Now might be a good time for you to consider that Neil isn’t invincible and that he might just have a case of PTSD. He wouldn’t be the first vet to come down with it.”

  Blake felt sick to his stomach. Damn it, he trusted Neil.

  “Something else you might want to do.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Search through Neil’s belongings…his files. Maybe you’ll find a clue as to where he is. I know I’d feel a whole lot better with him and Gwen back here. I’m sure Neil left with an armload of weapons and ammunition. If there’s a war going on inside his head…that needs to be addressed before someone gets hurt.”

  Blake did not want to hear that.

  There weren’t many things that made Neil’s palms sweat. This was one of them. A ring sat in his pocket and a lie soiled his tongue. Gwen was up in her room and a priest was on his way. All Neil needed to do was convince the woman he’d been obsessed with for longer than he cared to admit, and who he couldn’t sleep without, to marry him. Then, and only then, could he move in the big, mean world to catch the bad guy and know she was safe.

  Still…his palms were freaking Niagara Falls.

  He’d laugh if his stomach weren’t tossing like a teenager after his first beer binge.

  Neil took the stairs a couple at a time and stood outside their room. He drew in a deep breath and rapped on the door.

  “Come in.”

  He wiped his hands on his jeans and stepped inside. She sat on the edge of the bed as if she’d been resting. Her smile radiated when she realized it was him.

  Might not be that bad.

  “You came back.”

  He paused. “You thought I’d left?” He closed the door behind him and moved into the room.

  “Charles said you’d return…but I-I…oh never mind. Where were you?”

  “I had to get something.”

  She sighed. “Not going to tell me?”

  “I might.”

  Her grin made him smile. With his smile, her worried expression softened. “I see you and Ruth went shopping.” He changed the subject.

  Gwen glanced at her new outfit and lifted an eyebrow. “I can’t tell you how good it feels to get out of those clothes. I know I’m higher maintenance than others in the clothes department, but I dare any woman to wear three outfits for a week and not want to burn them.”

  She’d been a good sport throughout. “You’re talking to a guy who lived in desert camo for weeks on end.”

  “Remind me never to join the military.”

  “I’ll do that.”

  Their conversation paused and his palms dampened.

  Gwen reached over and ran her fingertips over his brow. “What’s going on, Neil?”

  Her blue eyes met his. “W-what do you mean?”

  She shook her head. “You’re smiling, but your eyes aren’t showing it. And you look like you’re ready to pounce. What happened?”

  He swallowed. “Nothing…nothing happened.”

  “But you need to say something.”

  Was he so obvious? “I-I need to leave you here tomorrow.”

  Her smile fell. “I know.”

  “But I can’t.” The lie soured his spirit, but he tried not to let it show.

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’re on a military base. The only place I know where you’ll be safe. Chuck can protect you…hell, the entire base can protect you…”

  Gwen tilted her head. He noticed for the first time that the brown dye in her hair was starting to fade. He pushed a curl away from her eyes and attempted that smile again.

  She frowned. “But?”

  “You’re British.”

  She laughed. “Last I looked my country and yours are allies.”

  “True. But protecting you without your country’s involvement is tricky. Now if you were an American…”

  “My brother has dual citizenship.”

  Perfect! “And he’s married to an American. Blake could stay here, no questions asked.”

  Her brow creased.

  “I need to protect you.”

  She shook her head. “Because of my brother?”

  “W-what? No. Because I need to.”

  “Need to?”

  Oh, damn…she was frowning. “Want to.”

  She smiled.

  He smoothed down the stubble of the goatee with his fingers and tried again. “I want you safe, Gwendolyn. If I’m going to find the guy behind the dead birds and neighbors, I have to know you’re safe. I only know one way to do that.” Neil reached into his pocket and removed the small box with her ring. All she had to do was take it.

  Her jaw dropped. Her eyes widened.

  He opened the box and waited until her gaze moved to the square pink diamond that sat inside the black velvet box.

  She sucked in a quick breath. “Neil.”

  “I need you to marry me, Gwen. As my wife you’ll have the entire US Army, Air Force, and Marines at your side.”

  Her gaze moved from the ring to his. Moisture sat behind her lids. “You don’t have to do this,” she said.

  Oh, yes he did. For more reasons than her safety. “We do. If you want out…after…” He shuddered. “I’ll walk away.”

  A single tear fell from her eye and she looked away. “This isn’t fair.”

  “What isn’t?”

  “We…we just found each other. I can be honest and say I’ve wanted us to be together for some time. But this…marriage? And for reasons of safety?”

  Reminding her what she did for a living wouldn’t bode well, so he kept his mouth quiet about Alliance.

  “If something happened to me with Raven, the people here can protect you.”

  Her gaze snapped back to his. “Nothing will happen to you.”

  “There are no guarantees.” He didn’t even know who he was dealing with.

  She stood and walked to the window in the room.

  “There’s always the possibility of you being pregnant.” He set the ring aside and waited for her to respond.

  She huffed out a breath. “We’ve been careful.”

  “Ask your brother about the success rate of condoms.” He wasn’t playing fair. Blake and Samantha conceived Eddie while using condoms. Neil knew damn well those condoms had been tampered with practically guaranteeing Eddie’s conception. Neil moved behind her and laid a hand on her shoulder.

  She moved out of his reach and turned to him. “Not the same thing, Neil, and you know it.”

  His hand fell. All his excuses, all his reasons fled and the truth made itself known. “I can’t function if I’m worried about you. Our enemy knows that, which is why he targeted you to begin with. If you’re safe I can do my job, Gwen.”

  Blue eyes followed his with every blink. “What are you saying, Neil?”

  What was he saying? “We just found each other.” He used her words. “And I want to see where that will go.” He stepped closer and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Please, Gwen. Marry me.”

  Another tear fell from her soft blue eyes and she gave one slow nod.

  Relief flooded him, and he dropped to his knees and held her. When her arms wrapped around him and stroked his head, he knew he’d found home.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  They stood before the priest and Neil’s friends with their heads hung in prayer. Gwen reflected on what she was doing. Skepticism ran deep in her veins about why Neil decided marriage was the best way to move forward. She felt there was something he wasn’t telling her, yet his worry for her over
shadowed everything and made her say yes. When he’d dropped to his knees, her heart had broken. She knew he had difficulty expressing his feelings. What man didn’t? With Neil, that male trait was amplified tenfold.

  Dressed in slacks and a simple button-up cotton shirt not befitting a bride she held Neil’s hand and pledged herself to him. When he returned the sentiment, he placed a ring on her finger. The stunning square pink diamond sat among several smaller white diamonds in platinum. It was exactly the kind of ring she would have chosen…and Neil had managed it without one conversation. She couldn’t stop the smile from spreading over her. When she looked in Neil’s eyes, they sparkled.

  When the priest pronounced them husband and wife, Neil took her into his arms and kissed the worry away.

  After, Ruth and Chuck signed the certificate along with Neil and Gwen, finalizing their marriage.

  They toasted along with the priest and accepted the congratulations of those in the room. Ruth snapped a couple of pictures with Neil’s cell phone so Gwen had something to remember the day.

  “If we knew you were going to get married today, we could have bought you a dress,” Ruth said when she moved into the kitchen to help with the small meal they had planned.

  “Neil didn’t want to wait. Besides, it’s a tradition in my family to marry the same person multiple times.” She’d convince Neil to do this the right way…maybe with Sam and Blake in Aruba.

  “Really?”

  “My brother and his wife remarry every year in a different location.”

  Ruth sighed. “That’s so romantic.”

  “It is.”

  “Charles and I are going to stay at a friend’s home tonight. Give you two some privacy.”

  “That’s not necessary.”

  “Don’t be silly. Of course it is. We’ll have a nice dinner and leave until morning.”

  Ruth was a very nice woman. Not the woman Gwen truly wanted to stand as a witness to her marriage. But Gwen couldn’t exactly invite Eliza, Sam, or Karen to the ceremony.

  “Thank you, Ruth. You’ve been a gem.”

  “My pleasure.”

  They sat down for dinner a short time later and Gwen realized that at this time the next day, Neil, her husband, would be off in the woods to catch a killer. And she would be left to worry about his safety.