by Becca Van
Misha sat up straighter in Spence’s lap, meeting first Clay’s and then Spence’s gaze. “Bella showed me how to change a tire.”
“You don’t need to know how to do that, baby,” Clay said. “You only need to call one of us to come do it for you.”
“And what do I do if you’re out on a call? Or if I get stuck in the middle of nowhere where there’s no cell phone reception?”
Bella’s heart swelled with love when Kent and Dawson came up behind her, both of them clasping one of her shoulders each.
“She’s right.” Dawson squeezed Bella’s shoulder. “It’s good to know how to do something like that so the women don’t get stuck.”
“I agree,” Kent said as he leaned down and kissed her temple before taking a seat beside her.
Dawson sat on her other side and kissed her cheek. “How did you know how to change a tire, baby?”
Bella told them about Maria and how she’d learned to do the task before teaching Bella.
“Your sister was a smart woman.”
“Yes, she was.” Bella frowned.
“What’s wrong, darlin’?” Kent asked.
“She was smart and yet she still dated that idiot, Brett. It just doesn’t seem to add up.”
“Did you actually see them together?” Misha asked, trying to tug her hands from Clay’s and Spence’s grasps as they studied her grazed knuckles.
“Only a couple of times. Maria’s body language was all off, though, for two people in a new relationship.”
Dawson turned in his seat to face her. “How do you mean, baby?”
She frowned as she tried to think how to explain. “Maria often had her arms crossed in a defensive gesture. Thinking back, the smile never reached her eyes either. Wouldn’t a couple in an exciting new relationship want to touch each other often? To hold hands and other stuff?”
“They would.” Dawson nodded.
Bella sucked in a breath when she remembered what Brett had said to her the last time she’d seen him. “He actually told me he only went out with my sister to get to me.”
“He fucking what?” Kent surged from his seat, the chair making a noisy scraping sound, and it slid away from him across the tiles. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
“Neither do I.” Dawson combed his fingers through his hair. “I’m going to call Cooper and Tanner. They need to bring the bastard in for questioning.”
“Make sure Jasmine’s there, too. She might be able to pick up more on the asshole than they can, since she’s been trained to,” Kent said.
“She isn’t going to like that.” Clay smirked.
“I don’t give a fuck,” Dawson snarled. “She’s here to do a job and she’ll damn well do it.”
Bella stood and hurried out of the kitchen after Dawson. He was just pulling his cell phone from his pocket when she caught up with him. “I don’t think Jasmine will let whatever is going on between her, Cooper, and Tanner get in the way of doing her job, Dawson. You’re being unfair expecting that she will. You need to calm down.”
Dawson pinned her with his gaze. “Why the hell didn’t you tell Kent and me what that asshole said to you?”
Bella realized then that Dawson wasn’t angry at Jasmine or his work colleagues. He was angry with her for keeping quiet about what Brett had said to her. She inhaled deeply and took hold of his free hand. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, but I didn’t know you or Kent very well yet.”
She glanced toward the doorway when Kent came through it. He didn’t stop walking until he was standing next to Dawson. “Don’t you trust us, Bella?”
She knew then that she’d hurt both of the men deeply. She could see disappointment in their gazes as well as anger. “I should have told you when I agreed to be in a relationship with you, and for that I am truly sorry. I should have told you as soon as he’d said that to me, but…I guess I didn’t trust either of you yet. I didn’t deliberately withhold information from you once we started a serious relationship. With everything else going on, I forgot until just now.”
Dawson scrubbed a hand down his face. “Okay. I believe you, baby. I’m sorry for overreacting.”
“I believe you, too, darlin’.”
“Do you forgive me?” Bella asked.
Dawson snagged an arm around her waist and tugged her against his body. He scraped the stubble on his chin over the top of her head. “I forgive you, baby. I shouldn’t have gone off half-cocked, and you have no reason to be apologizing.”
Bella reached up and cupped his cheek. “Thank you. I’ll try not to keep anything from you.” She glanced over to Kent. “From either of you.”
Kent moved around her and pressed his front to her back. “Thank you, sweetheart. We’ll do the same unless it’s work related.”
Bella nodded. “That’s all I can ask for.” She met Dawson’s gaze again. “So are we good?”
“We’re good, baby.” Dawson bent down and brushed his lips over hers, and the moment he swiped his tongue over the seam of her mouth, she opened to him. He kissed her deeply, passionately, and didn’t let up until she was sure she was about to pass out from lack of oxygen. He released her lips and, with hands on her hips, turned her toward Kent.
Kent was waiting for her. Instead of bending over, he swept her up in his arms as he swooped down and slanted his mouth over hers. His kisses were just as wild and passionate as Dawson’s had been.
If they hadn’t had visitors, she would have led her men to the bedroom, stripped out of her clothes, and begged them to make love with her. Her breasts were swollen, her nipples hard and aching, and her pussy was wet. Her clit was engorged and throbbing each time her heart beat.
Kent broke the kiss and gently lowered her feet back to the floor, sliding her down his body and letting her know he was just as aroused as she was. He gave her another kiss on the lips, this one soft and gentle, before turning her back toward the kitchen. Bella walked on wobbly legs, pushing her desire for her men down as she tried to figure out what to cook for dinner. She was going to invite Misha, Clay, and Spence to stay for the meal and hoped that they would agree. She enjoyed all of their company but especially Misha’s. They were already friends, and she had a feeling they were going to end up being best friends.
If her relationship with Kent and Dawson lasted, she wanted to have kids. She could see hers and Misha’s children playing together and hoped that little dream came to fruition.
Chapter Seventeen
His patience had just been rewarded. He hadn’t even known there was another woman living on the ranch in one of the other houses, but as he watched her instructing the slut who’d managed to escape him on how to change a tire, he stared at her face whenever she turned his way.
It took him a while to figure out where he’d seen her, but he did. He’d actually spoken to her a few times when he’d gone to the Chamber of Commerce to do some contract work. He’d even thought about putting her on his victim list, but she’d been so sweet and innocent he’d vetoed her. He’d been wrong. She wasn’t as sweet and innocent as she’d portrayed. Maybe he could take both women and have some fun. He could just imagine those two women staring at each other with terror as he worked on one while the other watched. Of course, he’d have them both trussed up and gagged so they couldn’t cry out or escape.
He scanned the property, committing the layout of the buildings as well as trees and bushes to memory. He almost missed him, but when he saw movement near the tree line near the fence, he brought the binoculars back. There was another man watching one of his quarries. He targeted where the asshole was looking and nearly laughed when he saw that he wasn’t looking at his escaped victim, but the other woman. Maybe it would be easier for him to get both of them if he had some help. Of course, once he had what he wanted, the fucker would have to die.
There was no way he was letting anyone who’d seen his face live. Perhaps involving someone else in his life’s work wasn’t such a great idea. He was going to have to think long a
nd hard about what to do and how he was going to get to the slut that hadn’t died. The other woman might have to be left by the wayside after all. Getting the sheriffs’ woman was paramount and the only way to stop the gut-wrenching craving churning in his stomach. If they were such good friends, it might be better to grab one to lure his target out. That bitch needed to die and soon.
* * * *
Bella had spent her workday running. Not literally but figuratively. She’d been so busy she hadn’t had time to stop for a lunch break. If it hadn’t been for Tiffany bringing her a cup of coffee, she wasn’t sure she would have gotten through her day. She’d spent the day finalizing the annual Buffalo Bill Art Show as well as the Western Hands Exhibition and the bookstore author signing, which all fell on this coming Saturday. Since it was Thursday, she still had another day to complete the arrangements, but because the Annual Patrons Ball was scheduled for Saturday night, she knew she’d need most of Friday to finalize that event.
There just didn’t seem to be enough hours in her workday, and she’d worked an hour later than usual to get everything she wanted to get done, finished. Her neck and shoulders were sore and tight with tension, and she had the beginnings of a major headache. She hadn’t even realized she didn’t have any pain medication in her desk drawer where she usually kept it, but there was nothing she could do about it now. All she wanted to do was get home to Kent and Dawson, take a long hot shower, and crawl into bed. She knew if she didn’t get the tense muscles to relax, she was going to end up with a full-blown migraine.
She hated getting those because they made her sick to her stomach and her brain ended up pounding so hard she felt as if a jackhammer was lodged behind her skull. Plus, there was the wonderful added benefit of feeling as if her brain was on fire. Just what she needed. Not.
Bella shut down her computer, grabbed her purse, and rummaged in her bag for her cell phone. She hadn’t had a chance to call Kent and Dawson to let them know she was going to be late, but she would do so as she walked to her car. She didn’t want them worrying about her.
Thankfully, the cleaners were already hard at work cleaning the offices, so she didn’t have to worry about locking the building up. She waved to Ben and Sarah, the wonderful couple contracted to clean the offices, and then headed out. She was about to turn the corner and head up the side of the Chamber of Commerce building as she wrapped her hand around her cell phone. She pulled it from her purse, looked down as she swiped a finger over her screen, and then glanced up when she heard footsteps close by.
Bella cursed under her breath when she saw Brett was behind her. He was walking way faster than normal, obviously to catch up with her. She glanced about, hoping to see someone else nearby, but her hopes were dashed. The parking lot was empty and everyone from the office besides the cleaners had already gone. She dug her keys from her purse as she hastened her stride and had just unlocked the door to her car when Brett called out.
“Bella, wait up.”
Bella opened her car door and sidled behind it, using it as a shield as she turned to face Brett.
He tried to give her a sexy smile but failed miserably. The smile he gave her looked more like a shark eyeing its prey. “You’re leaving work later than normal.”
Bella nodded and frowned. It wasn’t a secret that the Chamber of Commerce work hours were eight to five, but she shivered with trepidation. She felt as if he’d been watching her and didn’t like feeling so vulnerable.
“What do you want, Brett?”
“I want you to go out on a date with me.”
Bella shook her head and wished she hadn’t when the pounding in her skull intensified enough to make her stomach roil.
“Please, just give me a chance. We could have something really great together.”
Her mind flashed back to Maria’s face, the moment she’d introduced Brett to Bella. There hadn’t been an ounce of attraction in Maria’s eyes. “You didn’t really date Maria, did you?”
“Yes I did,” Brett snarled, his demeanor changing from cajoling to angry in an instant. “We went out the night she introduced you to me.”
Bella had her answer. Her sister had gone out with Brett once. She shivered when the hair on her neck stood on end and goose bumps raced over her skin. Three weeks later Maria was dead. Was Brett the serial killer? Fear permeated her body right into her soul. She was so damn cold inside, and yet she was sweating.
“I need to go.” Bella sat in the driver’s seat and inserted the key into the ignition. She was just reaching for the door handle when Brett rushed forward. He grabbed hold of the top of her door to prevent her from closing it.
“You’re not leaving until you agree to go on a date with me.”
“I’m not dating you, Brett.” Although her insides were shaking with fear, she was able to keep her voice even and calm. How she did that while she was terrified, she had no idea.
“Why the fuck not?” Brett shouted at her as he leaned down. His face was so close to hers she could feel his breath on her cheek.
Bella decided that being honest with him might get him to back off. “Because I’m already in a relationship.”
Brett’s face twisted into a parody of pure rage, and Bella began to tremble. She grabbed hold of the door handle and tried to pull the door closed, but he wrenched the door back, opening it wider. She was shocked and scared, but she wasn’t about to let him see that, so she glared at him instead.
“You fucking those deputies?” he asked in a scream.
Bella didn’t bother to deny him, but she didn’t answer either. His lips twisted and he bared his teeth to her, reminding her of the shark she’d likened him to earlier. She kept her gaze on him as she swiped a finger over her cell phone and hit speed dial one. He snarled at her, snatched the phone from her hand, and threw it into the back of her car. When he grabbed her upper arm in a hard grip, she knew she was in real trouble.
He hauled her out of the car and onto her feet before she could stop him, and then he slapped her face so hard her ears rang. Pain slammed into her cheek, jaw, and just below her eye. Her headache intensified to agony, and bile rose in her throat.
She tried to fight him off using the nails on her other hand, but he gripped her wrist with such bruising force she felt the bones roll. Just as she wondered if he was about to break her wrist, he released her. Bella blinked, trying to get her blurry eyes to focus, and when her vision had cleared, she wished it hadn’t.
Blood sprayed in a wide arc, splattering her face, clothes, and arms. Brett made a garbled, wet choking sound as he clawed at his throat, and then he fell to his knees only feet from where she was standing in horrified shock. Her mind screamed at her to run, but her legs were shaking and her body wouldn’t cooperate. She stared with a macabre horror at the grotesque clown mask covering the face of the man who’d just killed Brett.
Bella turned her head as her stomach heaved. She clung to the side of her car as she vomited over and over again, until there was nothing left to come up but acidic bile. When a hard hand grabbed her braid and tugged her hair, she fell over backward, landing painfully on her ass. She reached up and back, scratching at the hand pulling her hair, digging her nails in so deep she felt the killer’s skin building up under her short nails. She gagged again, but she didn’t have time to get sick now, no matter how much pain she was in. Bella needed to fight for her life.
She bent her knees, trying to get her feet under her, but the masked killer was moving too fast. And then she was being lifted off the ground by her hair. Her scalp burned as she felt strands being ripped from the follicles. He wrapped her hair around his wrist and then spun her around with a hand on her shoulder, to face him.
Her breathing was loud and raspy, and though she tried to stop the quakes shivering through her body, she couldn’t. She was so scared she couldn’t even think. She cried out when he shoved her into the passenger seat of her car and did something to the door before slamming it closed. Bella clasped hold of the handle and tugged,
but it didn’t open. She scrambled over the center console to get out the still-open driver’s door, but she wasn’t fast enough. He slammed his fist into her jaw as he sat in the seat, and she fell back into the passenger seat.
He started her car, closed the driver’s door, and sped out of the parking lot, tires squealing on the bitumen and blue smoke rising into the air.
Bella grabbed her aching head as she straightened in her seat, and when he sped around a corner and she bumped into the window, she clasped her seat belt, pulling it across her body before shoving it into the clip. He glanced her way, but she couldn’t take her gaze off of the bloody knife in his right hand, blood still dripping from the blade.
Her breath wheezed in and out of her lungs as panic set in, but she knew she needed to get a hold of herself so she could think straight, so she would have a semblance of a chance of getting out of this alive.
“Why are you doing this?” Bella managed to ask from between trembling lips.
His beady brown eyes stared at her blankly from the holes in the mask. She wondered if he was smiling at her when she saw the mask move. Bella trembled and turned to look out the passenger window, trying to figure out a way to escape. It was really hard to think straight when her face and head were pounding, but she couldn’t give up. She had to find a way to get free. Kent’s and Dawson’s faces swam in the front of her mind. They loved her as much as she loved them, and they would be devastated if she died. She shoved the fear down deep, took a ragged breath, and tried to bring up the anger she’d first felt when she’d been told Maria had been killed.
“You’re sick. If you let me go, I can make sure the sheriffs find you some help.”
His eerie laugh brought the fear right back up to the surface, causing her to tremble again. He let go of the steering wheel and moved his left hand down to his waist. He unclipped a phone from his belt, wrapping it in a tight grip, and shoved his fist into her ribs. Her breath left her lungs in a whoosh as pain radiated into her side. He laughed again and then threw the phone into her lap.
