Before you were born, I was just like you are now. Headstrong, driven, and I wanted everything! I pushed away anyone who tried to get in. I met William on a shoot, and my whole life changed. I changed. A kind, warm man—I loved him almost immediately. When I met Rick, William and I were already engaged. Madeline, there are times when something unexpected occurs that changes you forever. I felt a sweet, contented love for William. But I was so drawn to Rick.
She jumped with a start. Her mother, in love with two men, who were also brothers? But why tell me? I don’t even care. Her gaze dropped back to the letter.
And I know you really won’t care about all of this.
At this, a smile nudged at Madeline’s lips.
Rick Sayers is your real dad.
Her smile faded, while her focus concentrated on the news for a long moment.
You have no one left in the world, and my last request is for you to take this key.
She grabbed the key from the bed.
It goes to a safety deposit box, where you will find something I want returned to Rick, and it must be you who returns it. The instructions on how to find him are there, too. I am writing this well before my death, to ensure you fulfill my last request. I know you will do that. I intend to make you promise, and I hope I have, because it’s the only thing which means anything to me ever since I was diagnosed. It’s my one request of you. I want to say one more thing. I love you with all that I am, and I hope you find your light.
Love, Phoebe
Madeline’s forehead furrowed with irritation. Damn her. Why wait all these years? Now I have to call the office and cancel everything! She studied the key in her hand. National Security.
An hour later, she sat in her rented Lexus in the parking garage of the San Jose National Security building and looked at the item which had been under lock and key in a secure bank vault. A wooden box? About the size of a shoebox, with unusual designs across the old, hand-carved pine lid. The sides held more strange markings, ivory swirls, and an antique lock secured the lid.
What a strange thing to keep in a safety deposit, and Phoebe wanted her to take the box all the way to... She studied the airline ticket. Phoenix, Arizona? Lifting out the small map which came with it, Madeline stretched it out over the passenger seat. A red line defined the route. Following the course from Phoenix with her finger, she paused.
Nowhere? That’s a town’s name? In the middle of nowhere. Phoebe must’ve devised this as a joke. “She’s sending me to fucking Nowhere?” She laughed aloud and started her car.
“You just have to have everything and will run over anyone just to get somewhere!” Her mother’s words to her many years ago.
Now she sends me to Nowhere? Very funny, Phoebe! Her smile dropped. But none of it was really funny at all. To go and find her father, and did he even know of her existence? Maybe this Rick guy won’t even give a flying flip that he has a daughter. Madeline shrugged and entered the flow of freeway traffic. That would be okay, because I don’t either.
CHAPTER TWO
Highway To Nowhere, Arizona
Madeline followed the highway off the interstate outside of Phoenix. The cowboy town of Wickenburg appeared as a real surprise. A perfect, classy rendition of a modern Western town.
After that—absolutely nothing. She released a disgruntled sigh at the sight of the marker for the Yucca Forest. Forest? That’s a joke, right? She glared at the puffs of swirling, dry dust which continued to wisp from the hot asphalt. The desert reflected a relentless, heated mirage, like a vision from hell all around. Miles and miles of scorched nothingness, until, finally, the sign appeared.
Nowhere, Arizona, Population...?
Madeline read the sign at the edge of town with jaded eyes. Yeah, not so funny. I bet it is a question because I do not see anyone out here or anything else for that matter. She pulled the car into the dirt lot, marked Public Parking, which many lost tourists must’ve perceived as a beckoning oasis. The entire metropolis consisted of an off-brand gas station, a trading post and a dilapidated tire repair shop.
The place looked like a ghost town. Big surprise. Unlike all the moisture in her body, her irritation had not evaporated. The trading post, I guess. Like there are so many options. Her exasperation continued as she made her way across the hot, sandy lot. Multiple trickles of sweat dampened an inevitable path down between her shoulder blades. Her newly purchased, lime-green sundress stuck to her torso, and she stopped to tug it away from her chest.
“Now, there’s a sight that must be a dream or sumpthin!” The hoarse voice issued from somewhere in front of her.
Her head jerked up.
Three old men sat along the wall in the shaded trading post veranda. Their eyes remained glued to Madeline.
“I didn’t see you there…” Her voice faded at the sight of their animated expressions. They were staring at her dress. She gazed down at herself. The light material of her sundress stuck to her breasts, and she wore no bra. The rest of it hugged around her hips and pulled up short on her thighs as the discomfort from the heat grew along her sticky skin.
“Yep, we’ve been out here in the sun way too long, fellas,” the man with the long, gray beard said, meeting her gaze with a serious expression. “Or, maybe we’re all dead, and this here is the angel they sent.”
His companions nodded solemnly in agreement.
“Um, I wonder if you could help me?” Madeline asked as she ignored the banter.
The old-timer stood and stepped closer. “I would give you anything in the whole world!” he replied as his buddies broke out into laughter.
Madeline swung her eyes over to them.
One appeared to be long and lanky, his legs stretched out in front of the rocking chair he occupied, the other one heftier and so much shorter his feet barely touched the deck.
“Yep, just ask me. I’m Jasp and will gladly be at your disposal! I’d give you the moon and all the stars.” The bearded one grinned at her, kneeling on the deck with a pleading expression on his wrinkled face. “My kidney?”
The other old-timers’ laughter became hysterical.
Jasp glared at them. “Quiet, you heathens!” He looked over at her. “But first, you’d best get inside the post here before you melt.”
Madeline was puzzled.
“You know, inside the store here?” He motioned his head toward the building.
She climbed the steps and stopped to read the sign at the door.
Welcome to Nothing and Nowhere.
If you are looking for something,
You won’t find it here!
She heard the men snicker from behind her, and a smile pulled at her lips. Yeah, appropriate. Madeline didn’t know what she expected to find inside this firetrap-looking store in the middle of nowhere, and the initial shock hit her with a jolt at the contents of the old, high-beamed building.
Snake skins hung over wire clotheslines. Indian headdresses, dream catchers and beaded necklaces of all colors and sizes hung from metal hooks on the walls. Magnificent, life-sized wooden statues?
In awe, she surveyed the nearest sculpture–an Indian maiden, carved from smooth, glossy wood that must have once been an entire stump from some tree. Amazed by its strikingly alive presence, her bewildered gaze rose to the ceiling; a perfect replica of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel cherubs greeted her astonished eyes. Their expressions appeared serene and curious as they leaned on chubby elbows, listening to God.
“Yeah, we get that reaction all the time out here.” Jasp stood behind her.
“Who’s the artist?” She studied the panoramic mural covering the spans of ancient wooden ceiling.
“The local Indians call him.” He glanced back at his companions. “The Man Who Cuts from the Sky.”
Madeline’s focus shifted as she lost interest in the beauty of the sculptures and concentrated on the goal at hand. “Yes, well, I’m looking for someone.” Her gaze moved from one ancient, desert-worn countenance to the next.
The o
ld men remained implacable, not responding.
“A man, oh, about fifty, I guess,” she continued the description.
They did not even blink.
“Didn’t you read the sign, sweetie?” Jasp gestured toward the fly-spotted door.
Madeline shook her head with humor twitching at the corners of her lips. “No, really. I mean how many people actually live here?”
They continued to gaze at her with blank expressions.
“I mean, if he lives here, then it shouldn’t be...” Her words faded at their unblinking stares.
Jasp opened the reach-in drink cooler and took out a Coke bottle. He used the machine’s attached bottle opener, popped the cap and handed the cold drink to her. “Listen, lady, it’s like this. If anyone does live here…” he paused and glanced over to the door, “…if they moved here to actual Nowhere? They came for nothing, to be nowhere, so they may not want to be found, you get it?” Muffled chortles from his friends echoed in the background.
“I guess I can appreciate that. And, believe me, I don’t want to even be here!” She took a drink and held the blessedly cold bottle to her cheek. “His name is Rick Sayers.”
Their expressions showed no recognition.
“So, you all never heard of him, right?”
“Hey, Bucky?” Jasp called out to one of the old-timers.
The lanky, long-legged one lifted his balding head.
“What’s my name, Bucky?”
“Jasp?”
He faced Madeline. “See?”
“What?”
“That there is Bucky.” Jasp pointed to the man who had just spoken and then to the heavier-set man who stood next to him. “And that’s Jinx. Those are all the names we have.”
“Just one name?”
All three nodded their heads.
“So, this man I’m looking for would have just one stupid, idiotic nickname?”
They looked startled at her comment, and then laughed. “Yep, we just go by one stupid, idiotic name…each,” Jasp added with a grin.
“Is there a motel or somewhere I can stay for the night?”
Their laughter halted at her question. “Young lady, I sure don’t mean to be rude, but…” Jasp motioned again at the sign on the door.
Madeline told herself to keep her cool. Yeah, right, as my car and everything in it melts to a pile of molten, smoldering shit.
Jasp stepped closer to her. “We do have some accommodations.”
The long-legged Bucky drew in a gasping breath. “We do?”
“It’s an old trailer, but it’s got AC and runnin’ water and all.” Jasp leaned on the counter.
Wearing a sly expression on his face, Jinx snapped his suspenders, and they popped back over his round belly. “Yeah, the owner is gone just now, and he won’t care.”
“You’re offering me someone’s place?” she asked.
Jasp nodded. “Unless, you wanna drive another twenty-five miles to the next town?”
“No, I don’t want to go any farther!” she nearly shouted.
Jasp stepped back, his watery blue eyes widening at her loud tone.
“I mean, yes, I will take it. Thank you.” Madeline gave him her best boardroom smile.
She waited for him to get into his truck and start it.
He finally moved out of the dusty parking lot.
Man, does this guy drive slow! Madeline drove behind Jasp, as he maneuvered his old Ford pickup through the ruts and holes on the so-called road. The dirt flew up over the windshield and dust consistently blocked her sight. How far away is this place, anyway? Twenty minutes spent already on this washed out track they called a road. The car vibrated from the washboard rivulets carved into the hardened dirt as another bump came up and pushed her out of her seat. “Oh!” Madeline tried to hang onto the steering wheel.
The dust cleared suddenly, and the narrow ribbon of road stretched out toward a towering mountain. “What the hell?” She peered through the dusty windshield. “Where the hell did he go?”
Halting her car and not wanting to get out of the air-conditioned interior, she leaned over and peered out through the passenger side window. A knock sounded, causing her to jump.
Jasp stood by the driver’s door, sweat running down his face.
She released a frustrated breath and rolled down her window.
“It’s over there.” He pointed to a narrow dirt path lined with pink rocks, but no trailer and no other sign of life.
“Um, I don’t...” Her voice faded as she saw Jasp wasn’t there anymore. She glanced around nervously, but didn’t see him anywhere.
With a groan of disgust, she put the car in reverse. I am so sick of this place already! A loud scraping noise made her jump forward in the seat. Her foot pressed firmly on the accelerator, and the wheels spun loudly. She released the gas and hit the brakes. “Oh, God, I didn’t! Did I run him over?” With shaky legs, Madeline stepped outside of the car. I may have killed an old man, out in the middle of nowhere. Anxiety riddled her as she held her breath and went around to the rear of the car.
The back end of the sedan rested neatly over a sand embankment, appearing permanently lodged in place. “What am I supposed to do now?”
“Yeah, what are you going to do?”
Madeline jumped back and peered up at a ridge she hadn’t noticed before.
A tall, sun-enhanced silhouette stood at the highest part. The light from behind him obscured his features.
She squinted and shaded her eyes to try to get a look at the stranger.
The man—she knew that much for sure—descended the long, rocky incline with ease. “What are you gonna do, now that you’re stuck?”
Madeline felt disgusted to hear an amused taunt in his voice.
His features became clearer as he came closer. Light bronzing reflected from his face while he gazed at her with amused, dark eyes. Silky black hair fell softly over his forehead. His confident stride was accompanied somehow by an easy gait.
Her eyes focused on his well-built body as he halted at the bottom and gave her an engaging smile.
Startled, she gawked at him with her mouth agape. He looked familiar in some strange way, but not. He reminded her of someone, but she could not place it. She snapped her jaw shut and attempted to appear unaffected by his smile while gathering her senses. “Who the hell are you?”
His smooth face held a distracted expression while his eyes studied the car’s back end. “Yep, it’s stuck pretty good!”
“Where did you come from?”
“You know it takes a whole day to get a tow truck to come out here, right?” He continued to ignore her questions and strolled around to the other side of her car.
“Wait!” Madeline called and scrambled in the loose sand to follow him.
He knelt close to the rear left tire and held out a copper-hued, long fingered hand.
Her mind drifted for a fraction of a second, imagining that hand…
“Do you have the keys?”
This is one fine-looking piece of man. The realization washed over her.
“Miss?”
“Uh, yeah, in the ignition.” Great, he’s going to get me out of this.
The fine-looking piece of man went around to the driver’s side, leaned in and pulled the keys out.
She stood transfixed, watching him as he opened the trunk and took her suitcase out. “What are you doing?”
Turning away, he headed toward the side road. “We’d better travel fast in this heat.”
Madeline felt more irritation at the Nowhere quirky attitude so often encountered in this desert hell and rushed to catch up with him. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m getting you to where you need to be.”
She laughed. “And just how do you know where I—?”
“There is only one possibility.” He kept walking.
Breathing hard, she shook her head and broke into a run to keep up with him. “Is everyone around here crazy?”
Without a response, he took long-legged strides and soon disappeared over a small hill on the so-called road.
“Hey, wait up!” Her strappy sandal caught on something, her legs buckled and she went down on hands and knees on the sun-baked path. “Oh!” Immediate pain jolted up her thigh. “Oww!” The pain lacerated her as if a thousand burning needles had pierced the skin of her leg.
The fine-looking piece of man appeared above her and knelt down. “Oh, man.”
“Fuck! It hurts. What the bloody hell?”
He tilted his head back, eyes narrowed. “There sure are a lot of ugly words coming from such a beautiful mouth.”
Madeline grew very still, gulping breaths of hot air while trying to assess why her leg hurt so badly. “Look, I don’t give a damn what you think!” Her pain-infused tone pelted out at him. “And using a pick-up line on me? Come on, now!”
His expression reflected his amusement as he laughed and swung her into his arms to carry her over the landscape. “Looks like I don’t need a line, lady. I just picked you up without one.”
Her mouth dropped open at the corny joke.
“Never fails. Every time some tourist comes out here, they land in the chollas.” He carried her up the steps with ease and carefully set her on the trailer porch.
“Ahh!” Cactus needles dotted her upper thigh. “Oh, no.” She hissed in pain, flinching at the wounds on her leg.
“Okay, come on.” He tugged at her arm.
She stumbled, and he steadied her again.
“Wait!” He swung her back up into his arms and carried her into the trailer. He gently laid her on the couch by the door. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
She released an agonized breath and fought the urge to cry. God dammit, this hurts!
“Okay, I have the water started, and I grabbed the hemos from the first aid kit.”
“The water?”
With a concerned expression on his face, he carefully lifted her dress.
“Hey, hold up, mister!” Madeline grabbed the hem of the sundress.
His head shot up. “What?”
Tame Me: A Filthy Billionaire Romance Page 2
