by Susan Hayes
She held her head a little higher. “I’m not embarrassed to ask for help, not if it keeps my baby safe. I learned my lesson a long time ago. Some things I can’t do alone.”
“You’re not alone, Dani.” He squeezed her hand before turning around and raised his voice to be heard over the noisy crowd. “Guys, I need a favor. My girlfriend’s ex is stalking her, and I need to get her and her daughter out of here. My dad’s bringing my car around front. I need a few spotters outside to make sure nothing happens on the way to the car. Anyone up for that?”
Every man and woman within earshot went silent, then got to their feet. It was an inspiring moment, and Dave’s heart swelled as he looked around at his fellow officers.
Dani’s fingers tightened on his hand and there were tears of gratitude shimmering in her eyes as she addressed the patrons of the bar. “Thank you. All of you.”
“It’s what we do,” someone said, and the rest nodded and rumbled in agreement.
“Who we looking for?” someone else asked.
“Suspect’s name is Robert Blackstone. Six feet tall, dark blond hair, blue eyes, lean build. He’s already done time for domestic assault and firearms charges, so assume he’s dangerous.”
“He shot me and Mommy,” Casey piped up.
Dave swore several of the cops closest to him actually growled under their breath at that little revelation, and he didn’t blame them. If he got his hands on Bobby Blackstone, the man was going to learn a painful lesson in karma.
****
They made it to the car without any problems, escorted every step of the way by a cadre of off-duty police officers. It was a surreal experience Dani knew she’d never forget. How could she, when she’d watched a room full of strangers offer her their support and protection without the slightest hesitation? She’d been grateful and humbled by their actions, and once this was all over, she’d find a way to thank them.
Dave was driving faster than usual, weaving in and out of traffic. She didn’t recognize the route they were taking, either. It was clear that he was making sure Bobby wasn’t following them. Casey was already relaxing in the backseat, her attention taken up by her beloved video game.
Dani did her best to relax as well, but it wasn’t easy. She wanted to know the details of what had been done to her car and why Dave believed it was Bobby who’d done it. She wanted to talk about how he’d found them, desperate to work out what she’d missed. It had to be her fault, something she’d done or forgotten to do.
The alternative was that one of the few folks who knew where she was had betrayed her, and Dani refused to believe that was possible. The only people who knew her location were her family and the people who had gotten her out of Washington and protected her along the way. None of them would tell Bobby where she was.
“You okay, sunshine?” Dave asked as he brushed his hand over hers.
She thought about it for a minute before nodding. “I’m okay. Upset about Jo’s car, mad at that jerk for chasing us across the country, and wondering what I missed that let him find us again. My thoughts are all over the place right now.”
“I think you’re pretty damn—darned focused, considering the circumstances,” Dave said, belatedly trying to watch his language around Casey.
It was amazing to her how much he cared about her daughter, from curbing his swearing, to the way he’d held her and promised to keep her safe. It was obvious that Casey trusted him. More than that, she loved him, and Dani understood why. She was more than a little in love with the man herself.
Pushing that thought aside for now, she mustered a grin and said, “Considering the circumstances, I’m hoping you have a bottle of wine at your place.”
“That can be arranged. I should warn you, I wasn’t expecting to have you over so soon. My home is a little…light on homey touches. I do have plenty of space, though.” His voice softened a little as he added, “And you are both welcome to stay as long as you like.”
Dani reached out to place her hand on his thigh. “When this is all over, we’ll talk.”
His jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed. He didn’t argue with her or try to tell her how it was going to be, but she knew it wasn’t what he’d wanted to hear. She simply couldn’t make any promises right now.
Even if she was tempted to say yes.
By the time Dave was satisfied that they weren’t being followed, Dani had no idea where they were or even what direction they were heading. The houses flashing by the window all looked similar, brick bungalows with tidy yards and upscale cars in every driveway. When Dave pulled into one of these driveways, she was a little surprised. Somehow she’d pictured him as a high-end condo in the city kind of man.
“You live here?” she asked, gesturing to the house in front of her. Red brick, white trim, whitewashed stairs leading up to a small porch and a front door painted to match the brickwork. All that was missing was a picket fence.
“I got into house flipping for a while. You know, buy a fixer-upper, do some improvements, sell it for a profit, repeat. I picked this one up a few years ago but somehow never got around to selling it. The market went soft. Plus, I like the area.” He pointed back toward the city center. “Most of my family live many miles thataway. It worked for me.”
Dave got out first, taking a moment to check to see that the street was empty before gesturing for her to leave the car. The neighborhood reminded her a little of home with its lush green lawns and trees lining the streets. Life here was a little slower than it was in the city proper. She liked it. Dani took Casey by the hand and Dave walked them to the door, then drew her in close so that he could point out the keypad where most people had a regular lock. He punched four keys, and the light display shifted color from red to green. “The code is seven-eight-nine-three. Remember it. Same number for the alarm panel inside.”
“Did you just give me the key to your house?” she asked as she stepped inside.
“I guess I did. Does it bother you?” He was chuckling as he locked the door behind them and punched the same four-digit code into a flashing panel beside the door.
“For a dedicated bachelor, you don’t seem too concerned, that’s all.”
Dave turned and gave her a look that nearly melted her heart. “I’ve come to realize I’m not that dedicated to the whole bachelor thing. Not anymore.”
“I guess that’s something else we should talk about after this madness is over.”
“You better believe it.”
He looked down at Casey and offered her his hand. “C’mon, munchkin, I’ll give you two the nickel tour and then we can order pizza.”
Dani followed behind them and tried not to giggle. Every room was a testament to Dave’s single status, from the bare, off-white walls and steel-and-glass furniture to the massive flat-screen television that dominated an entire wall of the living room. She managed to keep her composure until they got to the kitchen.
Remembering all the jokes about his freezer, Dani popped open the freezer door and burst out laughing. “Dear God. You have Pizza Pops in here! I thought no one over the age of ten was allowed to eat those.”
“Mock my pantry again and that’s what we’ll be having for dinner. I bet Casey would love that, wouldn’t you, munchkin?”
Casey tipped her head to one side as she considered. “I think I’d rather have real pizza. Maybe we can have those for breakfast?”
“Maybe we can. Or maybe I’ll make pancakes.”
Dani couldn’t resist. “Do they make frozen pancakes, too? Are those like waffles you put in the toaster? Because I don’t think those count.”
“Careful, sunshine. You know how much I like it when you get sassy.” He winked at her before looking down at Casey. “How about you and me go order up some pizza while your mom phones your grandparents and lets them know what’s going on.”
Dani hesitated. “You think I should?”
“At this point, I don’t think there’s any reason why not. Go, talk to them. Casey and I will h
andle dinner, and then I should touch base with Jared and find out what’s going on at Leo’s. We’ll share info once dinner gets here.”
On impulse, she crossed over to him and stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his mouth. “I think I’m starting to like it when you get bossy.”
His answering kiss was hot enough that she could still hear her heart pounding when she left the kitchen to call her parents.
It was the first time she’d been able to really talk to them since she’d left. It was good to hear their voices, but what they had to tell her didn’t make her happy. A fire at the restaurant, vandalism at the house, a broken window—she didn’t doubt for a second that Bobby was responsible for everything.
Despite the somber tone of their conversation, she felt better for having called them. After years of living and working together it was hard to suddenly have barely any contact with the people she loved. Still, the time apart had been good for her, too. She and Casey were coping fine on their own. Dani was building up a new support system here in Chicago, filled with good people who treated her like family…and one man who treated her like a goddess.
Staying here and making a new life for herself and Casey was feeling more and more like the right thing to do.
Her good mood lasted until she walked into the living room. Dave was on the couch with a tearful Casey sitting in his lap, and both of them were avidly staring at her game. Dave was asking question and after question and Casey was answering, pointing to the screen with one hand and wiping her eyes with the other.
“What happened? What’s wrong with Casey?” Dani demanded the moment she spotted her daughter’s tears.
Dave lifted his head and she gasped as she saw the fury darkening his eyes. “While you were gone we figured out how Bobby was able to find you. Casey’s sad because she thinks it’s her fault, but it isn’t. None of this is your fault, munchkin.”
He pressed a kiss to the cap of Casey’s caramel curls and she snuggled deeper into his arms. That small action eased Dani’s worries and she let herself relax again.
“Of course it’s not your fault, love bug.”
Casey looked up her and sniffled. “You’re not mad?”
“At you? No. At Bobby, yes. I’m very mad at him for what he’s doing. I still don’t understand how he found us, though.”
Dave pointed to the screen of the game. “He used this. Come here and I’ll show you.”
Dani took a seat beside Dave. He wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders, drawing her into his side so that she was snuggled up to him and Casey.
“He used her game? The one his parents gave her?” she asked as she recognized the main page view of Farm Friends.
“Casey tells me that the console came with the game already installed. I checked, that’s not standard.”
“No, Stella and Robert said they thought Casey would like it, so they had it installed at the store before they sent it.”
“I don’t think that’s what happened.” Dave flipped to another screen. “Whoever installed this sent an invite to another game account. See? This was done the same day the game was activated. They added a character named Lucy Goosey to the friend list. Casey thought it was part of the game.”
Dani stared at what he was showing her and tried to breathe despite the feeling that someone was sitting on her chest, crushing her. “But I checked, and there’s no chat function in this game. Casey couldn’t talk to anyone, so how did he know where we were?”
Dave flipped screens again. “I don’t know what his initial plan was, but as it turned out, he didn’t need a chat program to communicate with Casey. There’s a bulletin board where the players can post notes and announcements. And Casey named her town buildings and people after real places…something Lucy suggested she do via the board.”
“I’m sorry, Mommy. I didn’t know!” Casey crawled into her lap, wetting Dani’s top with a fresh bout of tears.
“It’s okay, bug. This is not your fault. No one’s mad at you, okay?”
“He’s a bad man for tricking me. I liked Lucy!” Casey wailed.
Dave reached up and stroked Casey’s back. “He’s a terrible man, and now that we know how he found you, we’re going to be sneaky and catch him. He’s going to go back to jail and never bother you again. But to do that, I’m going to need to borrow your game for a while, okay?”
Casey nodded. “Take it. I don’t like that game anymore, anyway.”
For the next few minutes, Dani sat in silence as Dave explained everything he’d figured out while she was on the phone. Casey had originally named her town’s buildings for her home in Seattle, but lately she’d been switching the names to the ones in Chicago. First the name of the school house. Then later she’d added a restaurant called Leo’s and a few other landmarks that would make it easy for Bobby to track them down.
Her bastard ex been in indirect contact with her baby girl since the day he’d gotten out of prison, and somehow she’d missed it. It was her fault he’d found them.
“Now that we know how he was doing it, we can end this,” Dave said at the end of his explanation.
Dani nodded, guilt and fury devouring her from the inside out. She needed this to be over. She wanted her life back. “Whatever it takes, count me in. I need to make up for my mistakes, which means we’re going to need a plan.”
Dave nodded. “I’m going to make a call to my precinct and get some officers over here. Then we’re going to have pizza and make a plan to get him out of your life forever.”
Chapter Ten
For Dave and his guests it had been a long, mostly sleepless night, followed by an insanely stressful day, but everything was finally in place.
Ben and Chase had gone to check on Dani’s home the night before and done a thorough sweep. There was no sign that Bobby had been there. Security footage from Leo’s had clear shots of Bobby damaging the car in their lot. What Dave hadn’t seen last night was the threat carved into the paintwork on the passenger side door: Next time I won’t miss.
Dave and his family had seen to it that still-shots of Bobby’s face were now in the hands of every officer involved in this case. The bar was being watched, and the cops near Dani’s home were doing extra patrols through the neighborhood in case Bobby appeared. Outside of Dave’s house, several officers were already in position. This was where they all expected him to come because they’d deliberately baited the trap to draw him here.
This morning Dave had logged in as Casey and added a new note to the Farm Friends bulletin board, announcing to everyone that Casey and her mom were going to be spending the weekend with her “new daddy.” He’d tweaked a few of the building names, too, giving Bobby a virtual road map to his house. It hadn’t taken long for the Lucy Goosey character to appear and respond, and by afternoon Dave was certain that Bobby knew where to find them. Now it was simply a question of when he’d appear.
The plan was simple. Draw Bobby in and arrest him on sight. He was already wanted in connection with the crimes he’d committed in Seattle, as well as the vandalism to Dani’s car and uttering threats. The tape also put him in the same location as Dani, which meant he’d violated even more of the terms of his parole by being anywhere near her. There wasn’t anything his parents could do to buy him out of trouble this time.
It was too risky to have Casey with them, so she was spending the night at his parents’ house. Jared, Nicky, and Nick’s girlfriend, Lia, were there, too, just in case Bobby found his way to them. Dave had intended for it to be just himself and Ben in the house, but Dani had balked at that part of the plan. No amount of arguing had dissuaded her from her plan to stay and be part of the action. There was a determined set to her jaw, and a fire in her eyes that showed Dave just how important this was to her.
He still didn’t like it, but he had to admit he liked seeing Dani this way. There was no trace of fear or doubt, only determination and a fierce courage that was sexy as hell to watch.
The three of them were sitti
ng in his living room. He and Dani on the couch and Chase sprawled at the foot of Ben’s chair. They’d been sitting here for over an hour, waiting. “It’s not too late for you to head over and spend the night with Casey,” he said, trying yet again to convince her to change her mind.
Dani glowered at him. “Don’t start that again. Even if it wasn’t already too late, I’m not going anywhere. You need me to draw him out, and I need to be here.”
Ben grinned. “I didn’t see it before but damn…you remind me of our mom. Bro, I don’t know whether to congratulate you or offer my condolences on your taste in women.”
“I’m not the one whose wife managed to not only fend off the punk kids robbing her at knifepoint, but actually browbeat one of those kids into acting as her assistant when Chase got hurt and needed stitches.”
Dani perked up. “I haven’t heard this story yet.”
“That’s because it starts with my brother sticking his foot so far down his throat that Kelly walked out on him and got a ride home with Tag. She left Ben standing at the curb outside the bar, looking like a lost puppy.”
Ben flipped his middle finger at him before turning to Dani. “I was trying to keep Kelly safe and got carried away…a lot like someone else in this room is doing right now.”
Dave winced and Ben laughed at him. “Truth hurts, doesn’t it?”
“I’ve come to understand it’s a family trait. We protect the ones we love,” Dave said.
Both Dani and Ben went silent for a moment as his final word hung in the air between them.
Love? He’d surprised himself with that one, but the more he thought about it, the more he knew it to be true.
Dani got to her feet and for one terrible second he thought history was going to repeat itself. If she walked away from him now, he knew he’d never let himself take this chance again. Instead of walking away, she leaned down and kissed him, her eyes alight with happiness and a smile on her sweet lips.
“I love you, too, you pushy man, which is why I’m not letting you do this without me.” With that, she straightened and walked out into the hall before tossing a look back over her shoulder. “I’m going to make coffee. Who wants some?”
