Everything She Wanted

by Jennifer Ryan

  “Taking it to a judge means you might lose everything and wind up with only one million. The house and five million is a huge sum of money.”

  “She only offered you a million plus the trust your father set up.”

  Evan didn’t know what to think. “It’s more than I deserve after what I did. Five million is a hell of a lot more than you deserve after you cheated on Dad all these years. You set that shelter on fire. You could have killed someone. There were children there.”

  His mother waved her hand at him to brush all that aside, like it didn’t matter. Like nothing but getting all the money mattered. “It’s ours. She doesn’t get to decide who gets what.”

  “You’d rather a judge decided. That clause in Dad’s will states that if I fight it, I get nothing. I’ll take the million and the trust and be done with this whole damn thing.”

  “You’ll let that bitch run your father’s company.”

  “She can have it. I never wanted it.”

  “The money it makes means you’d never have to work a day in your life. You’ll run through that million as fast as you do a bottle of booze and a woman.”

  “Well, you’ve got a real high opinion of me. Maybe she’s right. You’re just using me to do your dirty work. You want her and Alex out of the way, so you can have it all. But where will I be, Mother? Rotting in a cell. Dead too. Burned alive in my apartment.”

  “For God’s sake, Evan, we’re fighting for our lives here. Don’t let her turn you against me. I’ve always been on your side. I protected you when you killed that man. I will always protect you.”

  No, she’d use the information that he killed that guy against him if it came down to her or him going down for this mess. He was in too deep. Nothing would get him out of this now, but that didn’t mean he had to sink deeper into the muck his life had become. If he took that settlement, left town, maybe he’d have a chance to do something with his life before it was too late.

  “Take the money and the house. It’s more than you would have gotten if I hadn’t killed Dad. Let it be over. Move on. Find another rich husband and live off his money.”

  His mother stopped her pacing. A thoughtful look came into her eyes. Yeah, he’d planted a new pursuit for her to follow, but would she let go of this bone she’d held on to like a rabid dog?

  “I spent almost my whole life with that man. If not for me, he’d have been nothing,” his mother shouted.

  Yep, a rabid dog who’d lost its mind. His father built that company. His mother didn’t do anything but spend the money and fuck every guy who struck her fancy. She liked expensive things and meaningless sex with eager young men who wanted nothing more than the money and things she showered on them.

  Evan tried to see a glimpse of the nurturing mother who gave birth to him and used to push him to be the best in school and sports. That woman disappeared long before he hit middle school. He sometimes wondered if she ever existed. The woman ranting about five million not being enough certainly didn’t seem like the mother he remembered, or maybe just imagined he had, as a kid.

  “Are you listening to me?” his mother snapped.

  “What? Sorry, you were saying . . . you made Dad the man he was. Right. It was all you.”

  “Sarcasm is not helping.”

  “What do you want me to do? They’ve made an offer. Make a counteroffer and settle this thing before we both end up in jail.”

  “We aren’t going to jail. I countered for fifty million.”

  Evan rolled his eyes. “She’d have to sell the company to pay out that kind of cash. She’s not going to do that.”

  “She refused the counteroffer. She said her offer was final. Take it or leave it.”

  “Take it.”

  “No fucking way.”

  “You’ll lose in court. If they prove I killed Dad and that lady, I’m going to jail. And so are you.”

  “Me. I didn’t pull the trigger.”

  “No, but you planned it. You sent me there. You knew I did it and covered it up. In the eyes of the law, you’re just as guilty as I am.”

  “You’d take your own mother down with you.”

  “You took me down when you pushed all the right buttons to get me to do it.”

  “Well, it wasn’t far for you to fall after you killed that other man. The careless life you lead brought you down.”

  Yes. Careless of him to get into trouble in the first place. Even more thoughtless to let his viper of a mother know what he’d done and not expect her to use it against him someday. That’s what she did, used ­people to get what she wanted.

  “I’ll be more careful from now on, which is why I’m letting this go. You’d be wise to do the same.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  IT TOOK BEN nearly an hour to drive out of the city to Morgan and Tyler’s place. He didn’t mind the drive. It gave him time to think. Lately, all he thought about was Kate and Alex. Mostly Kate. The woman was driving him nuts with her impatience. No matter how much he tried to distract her from the lack of progress on the case with things to do and oversee at Haven House, nothing worked to cure her incessant need to call Detective Raynott for updates he couldn’t provide and her desperate need to go after the Faradays on her own.

  He finally got her to make them an offer. Their ludicrous counteroffer angered Kate even more. She’d taken to calling them “those greedy bastards.” It made him smile and worry even more that she’d do something that would only lead to more destruction in their lives or her death.

  She didn’t seem to fear the possibility Evan or Christina might kill her. Probably because of the way she’d been raised, the threat of pain and death a constant fear living at home with her parents and later in a few of the foster homes where the ­people supposed to care for her would rather beat her or worse. At this point, he believed the only thing holding her back from seeking her revenge was Alex. Nothing he said or did seemed to make a dent in her stubborn mind.

  She’d done something that took him off guard and asked Donald’s lawyer to prepare her will. She didn’t have any family or other close friends. With Margo gone, if something happened to Kate, the only person she wanted to take care of Alex was him. Smart of her to put her wishes in a legal document, but that little voice in his head nagged that she’d done it to ensure Alex’s future because she intended to end this thing with the Faradays once and for all. Oh, he didn’t think she’d actually shoot them in cold blood, but she would confront them in hopes of getting a confession and evidence to prove what they’d done.

  If the fucking lab would hurry up and send the results of the blood test back to the detective, they’d have some kind of answer. Hopefully something that would put Evan behind bars and stop Kate from doing something stupid.

  Ben pulled into the driveway behind Elizabeth’s and Jenna’s cars. He picked up the flowers from the seat beside him, opened the door, and got out. He took the stone path up to the front doors of the sprawling stone and wood ranch house. Before he knocked, he turned and checked out the view. They’d really found the perfect spot. Isolated. A safe haven away from the city and other ­people. The perfect place for someone like Morgan.

  Her prediction was never far from his mind. She’d been right. She was always right. Kate was meant for him. But how long would he get to hold on to her with the Faradays out to see her dead, and Kate anxious to take them down, making it too easy for them to get their hands on her?

  Lost in thought, he jumped when the door opened behind him.

  “Morgan said you were standing out here. Come in, man.” Tyler shook his hand and pulled him inside.

  “How is she?”

  “Great. The delivery went well. She and Noah are perfect.”

  “I can’t believe she had the baby at home last night.”

  “Me either, but with her gift, I can’t exactly take her to the hospital. Blo
cking out all those feelings and thoughts from other ­people would have tired her out even more than the labor. Doing it here with a midwife and an ambulance on standby was the next best thing.”

  “Let me guess, you had the ambulance waiting outside.”

  “She swore we didn’t need it, but I couldn’t take that chance.” Tyler led him into the living room.

  Morgan sat in the rocking chair, Noah asleep in her arms. She looked beautiful. Radiant. He’d never guess she gave birth yesterday.

  “Morgan, I’m so happy for you and Tyler. Congratulations.”

  Noah looked just like a mini version of Tyler with his dark hair. He pressed his hand to his mouth and blinked his pale blue eyes.

  “Looks just like his dad, but got his mother’s eyes,” Ben pointed out.

  “He got a few of his mother’s other traits,” Tyler said, slapping Ben on the shoulder.

  “Oh, yeah? Your gift?” he asked Morgan.

  “He’s got a lot going on in his tiny brain.” Morgan smiled down at her son.

  Ben held up the flowers. “Where shall I put these for you?”

  “They’re beautiful. Thank you. Elizabeth, Jenna, Jack, and the kids are checking out Tyler’s new barbecue out back. I just finished feeding this greedy little boy. He needs a change. Leave the flowers in the kitchen. I’ll put them in a vase after I change this one’s diaper.”

  “I’ll help you, honey,” Tyler said, taking his son from Morgan’s arms. He held out his free hand and helped her up.

  “I’m fine, Tyler. I gave birth. I can still walk on my own.”

  “The midwife said to take it easy. You need to rest and let your body recover.”

  Morgan shook her head.

  “You know I can hear the names you call me in your head,” Tyler said.

  Morgan smiled sweetly at her husband. “I thought you’d like it better than me saying them out loud in front of Ben.”

  “Like he doesn’t feel my pain. He’s got a woman living with him, driving him nuts by not doing what he wants.” Tyler gave Ben the you-­know-­what-­I’m-­talking-­about look.

  “Oh, honey, women will never actually do what a man wants when he wants it. What fun would that be?”

  “Please, Morgan, sit down and rest.”

  Tyler and Morgan walked out of the room arguing, more like teasing each other, and took Noah down the hall to his room to change him.

  Ben left the flowers on the counter by the sink in the kitchen. Elizabeth must have brought the cake and muffins from Decadence Bakery. He hoped to steal some of the cake before he left. He found the crew out on the patio. Jenna’s and Elizabeth’s little ones ran around the grass playing tag.

  “Ben, how are you?” Jack said, stepping up to shake his hand.

  “I’m good. How long are you and Jenna in town?”

  “A ­couple of days. Once she found out Noah arrived, I couldn’t keep her away. Cameron and Marti are on their way over. We’re going to fire up Tyler’s grill and toss on some steaks.”

  “Where is Sam?”

  Elizabeth and Jenna stood by the patio edge with their backs to him, watching the children play.

  “Elizabeth said he had the night off, but left at the last minute to check something out.”

  Elizabeth turned to him then, holding Alex in her arms. “Ben, you’re here. I thought you had dinner with a client tonight.”

  “I canceled when Tyler called me. What are you doing with Alex?” Ben took Alex when Elizabeth brought him over. Alex smiled up at him and rubbed his forehead on Ben’s cheek.

  “He’s getting tired. Kate dropped him off an hour ago. She asked if Sam and I would watch him so she could go to dinner with you.”

  “What? She didn’t call me.” He’d invited her to come this morning. A chance for her to get out of his apartment. She’d said the walls were closing in on her. She declined, saying she didn’t want to leave Alex with his friends again and put them out. No matter how many assurances he gave her that Elizabeth, Jenna, or Marti wouldn’t mind, she’d said no.

  His phone rang before he could call Kate.

  “Hey, Sam, Elizabeth said you had to work tonight. I’m here with her at Tyler’s place.”

  “Yeah, I’m chasing after your girl.”

  “What? What happened?”

  “Nothing yet. I didn’t believe her when she dropped off Alex. I didn’t say anything to Elizabeth. I followed Kate just to be sure nothing was wrong. I thought maybe Evan set a plan in motion to draw her out. Looks like your girl is going after Evan.”

  “What the hell is she doing?”

  “Drinking and playing poker.”

  “She’s at a bar?”

  “Evan’s hangout based on the number of ­people who know him, including the very talkative bartender and waitress working the back room.”

  Ben swore, trying to think through his immediate rage that she’d put herself in mortal danger like this. “Jones Joint. I know the place. It’s where Evan goes to get in trouble. What the hell does she think she’ll accomplish playing poker with him?” Besides antagonizing the asshole into killing her. He tried to set thoughts like that aside and think clearly.

  “Well, as far as I can tell, she’s trying to get him drunk and fooling him into believing he’s winning. She’s tossed in the towel on four winning hands. Either she’s a shitty player, or she’s lulling him into a false sense of security before she cleans him out.”

  “Is she drawing attention from the other players? Anybody else I need to worry about?”

  “You mean the other two men hitting on her more than they’re concentrating on the game? Unless she decides she likes them better than you,” Sam teased, “they’re no real threat. You should see what she’s wearing. Damn the girl’s got some fine legs.”

  “I’m standing next to your wife, would you like to repeat that for her?”

  Sam chuckled. “Touchy, touchy. Leave Alex with Elizabeth and meet me down here. We’ll keep an eye on her together.”

  “I’m going to wring her neck.”

  “She came here with a plan, let her play it out. Maybe it will amount to something.”

  “Do not let her out of your sight.”

  “I do this for a living, you know.” Sam hung up on him.

  Fear squeezed his heart and made it impossible to breathe easy. Not with her an arm’s length from the man who killed her sister and Donald in cold blood.

  Ben swore and tried to hold on to his temper.

  “Hey, not in front of the baby.” Elizabeth jabbed him in the shoulder.

  “Sorry. Here, take him back.” Ben kissed Alex on the head and handed him to Elizabeth. “I have to go meet your husband at a bar.”

  “What’s he doing at a bar?”

  “Staring at my girlfriend’s legs apparently.”

  “Is that so?”

  “Sorry, he followed her down there. She’s playing poker with the man who killed her sister.”

  “Go. And tell Sam he’s got a perfectly decent pair of legs at home to stare at all he wants.”

  Ben dropped his gaze to Elizabeth’s gorgeous legs encased in a tight pair of jeans. “Yes, he does.”

  Elizabeth smacked him on the arm again. “Go.” Her laugh followed him into the house.

  “On your way to Sam and Kate, I see,” Morgan said from the kitchen.

  “Why didn’t you warn me?”

  “Well, it’s not the most orthodox way to get evidence, but she’ll get what she wants. She’s got street smarts. She thinks outside the box. She understands human nature. She’ll use that against Evan and his mother.”

  “Do you know what’s going to happen? How this will all end?”

  “You should go. You won’t want to admit it, but you’ll enjoy the show. She’ll surprise you.”

  Not much su
rprised him. He’d seen the worst in ­people most of his life.

  He’d wasted enough time. Morgan wouldn’t tell him anything if she didn’t want to because she’d learned that knowing the future didn’t mean you could change it. Fate had a way of making things happen no matter what. If he was destined to be with Kate, he had to believe that in the end they’d be together.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  KATE SAT ACROSS from Evan and tossed yet another winning hand onto the table, forfeiting the biggest pot yet. She hated to do it, but she’d noticed something about Evan. When you played poker, you didn’t play the cards, you played the man across from you. The more Evan won, the more he drank. While she sipped at her Jameson, he downed shot after shot, slamming the glass on the table every time he won a hand, saying, “Hot damn, bitch. You lose.”

  She’d show him.

  Handsy on her left slammed his hand down on her shoulder and dragged his hand across her back. “Better luck next time, sweetheart.”

  “Oh, I’ll get him good in the end,” she said under her breath.

  Sideburn Sideshow next to Evan dealt the next hand. She had Evan right where she wanted him. Drunk. Feeling lucky and invincible. Now she’d bring him back down and leave him and his pockets empty.

  “Evan, baby, you’re back. I haven’t seen you around here lately.” Blondy Big Boobs slid her hand over Evan’s shoulder, leaned down, giving him a full view of her rack, and kissed him on the side of the head.

  Evan scooted back his chair, pulled Blondy Big Boobs into his lap, and tickled her. The high-­pitched giggle fit the pert blonde to a T. “Mandy, God, how I’ve missed you.”

  Mandy raked her fingers through Evan’s hair. “You always know where to find me. You also owe me from the last time you played here.”

  “You know I’m good for it.” Evan pushed Mandy off his lap to stand beside him. “Let me work, darlin’, then we’ll have some fun. I always pay my debts—­one way or another.” Evan winked and Mandy giggled again.

  Kate wanted to gag. “Are we playing poker or hide the Vienna sausage?”