by Joanne Rock
“Okay,” Lianna said, situating herself more comfortably on the seat now that she didn’t seem to fear getting in trouble. “For starters, Alex was very interested in your arrival. He asked me to follow you.”
TWO HOURS LATER, Marnie had her bags packed.
She’d offered no protest when Jake announced they had enough evidence in his case to vacate the Marquis. Between Lianna’s lead about Alec Mason—who she recognized from the photograph in Jake’s online files—and the paper trail Jake had obtained from the hotel’s database, he had enough to turn over to the police and ensure Marnie wouldn’t be a suspect. And while she was relieved beyond words about that, she was even more glad to leave the hotel because of the uneasiness that had settled over her ever since those men had grabbed her. Although she’d stopped shaking long ago, she still felt a chill deep in her bones that no amount of layers had taken away.
Now, she tossed her bag in the back of the SUV, her leather boots crunching in the snow as the exhaust warmed her legs. White Christmas candles glowed in every window of the resort, imbuing the place with a magical allure in spite of the scary night she’d had.
“I don’t want to leave,” Lianna protested a few yards away as Jake hustled her out a side entrance.
They weren’t running out on the bill since the place had their credit cards, but they weren’t exactly following checkout procedures. Jake had thought it safest to leave as fast as possible without anyone in the resort being any wiser. That way if Alec came looking for them—and Jake felt certain he would—they would buy themselves a little time.
“Do you really want to be there when your boyfriend shows up now that you know what a rat bastard he is?” Jake asked her as they got closer to Marnie.
He carried his bag and a dark plum leather suitcase that must belong to Lianna.
The other woman hadn’t even bothered to change into street clothes yet, her red velvet gown visible between the gap in her long winter coat as she walked.
“He’s not my boyfriend,” Lianna reminded Jake. “Remember? I haven’t seen him in person in a year.”
Marnie didn’t want to think about the fact that Alec had been at the Marquis with another woman while flirting with Lianna and pretending to have a relationship with her back in Miami.
She hopped up front in the passenger seat while the other two settled in. Marnie watched Jake as he came around the SUV, a fresh snowfall dotting his shoulders and lingering in his dark hair.
He’d certainly worked quickly and efficiently here, flushing out evidence against Alec faster than she’d envisioned. But while she was grateful to him for finding out who wanted to frame her, she couldn’t help but regret their time together was coming to an end quicker than she’d imagined.
While her rational side told her maybe it was best that they part before she fell for him—a possibility that felt all too real even after knowing him a short while—her heart longed for just a few more days.
A few more toe-curling nights.
“All set?” he asked as he fastened his seat belt.
Not by a long shot.
“Yes.” Marnie nodded, trying to ignore the lump in her throat. “But where are we going?”
She knew Jake wanted to keep her and Lianna safe. But she didn’t know what keeping them safe involved.
“We can go to my house,” Lianna offered, leaning forward from the backseat. “I live just north of here.”
“No.” Jake put the vehicle in gear and pulled out onto the access road in the same direction they’d come from. “He’ll know where you live. Don’t you get it? He tried to ruin Marnie financially and then frame her to boot. You have no idea what he’s capable of.”
When Lianna remained silent, Marnie mulled over the fact that Alec had turned out so much worse than even she’d pictured. And she’d spent a lot of time winging darts at his mug.
“Why do you think he wanted to implicate me in his crime?” Marnie stared out into the snow rushing at the windshield as Jake’s tires spun around a wide turn. “I don’t understand why he had so much ill will against me. It’s one thing to fleece me out of my savings, but it seems sort of excessive to make it look like I stole millions.”
In fact, she was royally pissed off, and not just at Alec, either. How could she have dated someone so manipulative and heartless?
“One of the best ways to get away with a crime is to make it look like someone else did it.” Jake said it so matter-of-factly that she realized he’d probably seen scenarios like this a hundred times in his line of work.
As far as he was concerned, she was just another gullible mark. And man, that knowledge didn’t settle well.
“I’m going to sue his butt ten ways to Sunday,” she muttered, out of sorts and angry with herself.
“I’ll represent you,” offered Lianna. She popped up from the backseat, a business card in hand.
Reading it, Marnie saw she’d used her real name at the Marquis. Lianna Closson, Attorney At Law.
“You’re a lawyer?” She turned around in her seat to see the sexpot in the Mrs. Claus-Gone-Wild dress.
“Defense against medical malpractice mostly, but I’ve been thinking about taking on some flashier clients to make ends meet in this economy. And I’m no longer using Wells by the way.” She tucked a silver card case back into her purse. “You can be my first flashy client. And we’ll whip the pants off this guy in court. Because while I may not always get my man in my personal life, I can guarantee you I’m a shark in court.”
She smiled and Marnie had to laugh, seeing Lianna in a whole new light.
“Somehow, I can picture that.”
Jake turned the wheel hard all of the sudden.
“Hold on,” he warned as they ducked in between some trees and he switched off his headlights. “Someone’s following us.”
10
TAKING HIS 9 MM from the glove compartment just in case, Jake sat in the darkness as snow piled on the windshield.
Inside the SUV, he could hear the women breathing as they all waited. Watched.
After a long minute, the car that had been following them finally approached, the headlights cutting a dim swath through the snowy trees. Maybe it was nothing—just someone else who’d checked out late. But Jake’s sixth sense twitched something fierce.
Then the car’s headlights spun wildly, the car careened out of control on the snowy road and it landed—hissing steam—in a ravine nearby.
“Oh, no!” Marnie peered over at him, worried.
Crap.
Did he dare play Good Samaritan? What if the person in the other car had followed them on purpose? On the other hand, how could he not check when someone could be seriously injured in the other vehicle? At these temperatures, they could freeze to death in a hurry.
“I’m going out.” Jake met Marnie’s gaze in the dim interior lit only by moonlight. He checked the rearview mirror. “Lock the doors and do not leave the vehicle for any reason. I’ll be back.”
He clenched his hands tight around the gun and the steering wheel to resist the temptation to kiss her, touch her, reassure her. Then, levering the door open, he braced himself against the blast of cold air.
“Hey!” a man’s voice shouted in the distance, echoing through ice-laden trees.
Alec Mason?
One of the men who’d grabbed Marnie earlier?
Both possibilities made him grip the 9 mm tighter as he dodged toward a frosty tree for cover. He moved silently through the soft cushion of snow that stifled sounds.
“Lianna?” the man shouted again, the voice closer this time. “Is that you?”
Jake pressed his spine to the tree, frozen bark rough against the back of his head, trying to see into the whiteout before the guy was on him. Who the hell would be looking for Lianna? Could she be working with Alec Mason after all?
Had he left Marnie locked inside the SUV with a dangerous criminal? He spun to check the vehicle.
From inside the cab nearby, Jake could hear scuff
ling noises. What the hell?
The rear door of Jake’s SUV popped open just as he made out a shape jogging through the trees.
“Rico?” Lianna’s high-pitched voice blurted into the night. Her white coat blended with the falling flakes as she leaped from the vehicle. She took big, awkward steps through the snow. “Rico, I’m here!”
A tall figure emerged from the shadows. Garbed in a long man’s dress coat and leather riding boots that could have only been purchased at the Marquis’s exclusive boutique, the guy who’d pissed Jake off on more than one occasion burst through the tree line. This was the twin he didn’t like—Raul’s brother, Rico, who’d eyed Marnie one too many times.
“Easy there, bud. She’s not alone.” Jake stepped forward enough to be seen. He didn’t raise his weapon, but he didn’t ease his grip in case anyone else came out of the woods. Then again, his fingers were pretty much frozen in place. “Is anyone with you? Were you followed?”
“No.” Rico seemed to assess the situation, looking from the women in the vehicle to Jake. “Is that a gun? What the hell is going on here?”
“Were you following me?” Jake took another step forward.
He needed to find out who’d been behind them on the road before he relaxed his stance.
Rico lifted his hands about waist high.
“Take it easy, dude. I came after Lianna when I saw her leaving the Marquis. I couldn’t tell who she was with and I wanted to make sure she was okay.” He leaned sideways to see past Jake. “Is everything all right, Lianna?”
“I’m fine,” she called back. “For crying out loud, can’t you put the gun away, Jake?”
“Was anyone else with you in the car?” Jake pressed, unwilling to relax his guard until he was damn certain no harm would come to Marnie.
Hearing that she’d been manhandled tonight had awoken dark protective instincts that still had him on edge.
“No. I tried picking up speed when I couldn’t see your taillights anymore, but then I started fishtailing and—boom. I live in Southern California. We don’t get weather like this.”
He studied the guy, weighing his words. In the end, he trusted his gut. Raul had been a stand-up guy helping him out earlier. Could his brother be that different? Besides, Jake had solid evidence implicating Alec Mason, and he had no reason to believe Rico was involved in his case.
Finally, Jake slid the safety back into place on the weapon and tucked it inside his jacket.
“You can ride with us.” He motioned the guy toward the rear door where Lianna still peeked out into the snow. “But we’re not going back to the Marquis.”
The other guy nodded, but he kept a wary eye on Jake.
“Sure thing. My brother can retrieve the car in the morning.” He moved toward the SUV and Lianna, whose arms were already outstretched. “I just hope someone clues me in on why we’re on the run with a handgun in the middle of the night.”
Jake figured he’d leave that up to Lianna. He wasn’t in the mood to talk considering all that had happened tonight. He would be on the phone to the cops as soon as he got Marnie somewhere safe.
Stepping up into the driver’s seat, he punched in the request for lodging on the GPS and steered the vehicle back onto the main road. The faster he got checked in and handed off the dirty work to the authorities, the quicker he’d have Marnie all to himself. And with a hunger driven by that edginess that had gnawed at him all day long, that moment couldn’t come soon enough.
“THERE IT IS.” Lianna pointed out a blaze of red and green Christmas lights from the backseat.
Marnie smiled at the sight, her mood more relaxed now that they’d left the Marquis behind. It had taken almost an hour to drive twenty-five miles in the wretched weather, but they’d found the bed-and-breakfast. Or at least according to Lianna’s pointing finger they had.
Marnie had the sense that Lianna was not a woman accustomed to the backseat. A moment later, the GPS confirmed they’d arrived at their destination, the All Tucked Inn.
It was hardly the Marquis—no elegant candles in the windows or stately chimneys at regular intervals. The All Tucked Inn was more of a country farmhouse that had spawned as many additions as it had survived generations. The original building looked to be a large white clapboard affair in the Federal style, but the addons were an assortment of oddities that had a collective charm. Draped with evergreens at every window and red and green miniature lights around all the porch posts, the bed-and-breakfast gave the impression of being a safe hideaway from embezzlers—and overzealous sexual thrill seekers.
Pulling into a parking space to one side of the door, Jake switched off the lights while everyone piled out of the SUV. Marnie noticed he hadn’t said much in the car ride, letting Lianna and Marnie do the talking as they filled in Rico on Alex McMahon aka Alec Mason. Even now, as Jake carried in their bags, his jaw remained set like granite.
Marnie liked Rico well enough. He couldn’t take his eyes off Lianna. And for her part, the formerly flirtatious Lianna seemed utterly smitten. There was a definite connection there that went beyond the obvious. They cared about each other.
Or maybe that was just her optimistic side talking. Jake probably saw something totally different when he looked at the couple.
She wanted to say something to break the tension as they walked in silence toward the inn, but before she could, an older woman with long silver hair tied in a festive red bow met them at the door.
“Welcome!” She held the door wide, making room for the four of them as they trooped inside. “I felt so bad for you being out in this weather. I worried ever since you called for your reservations an hour ago. I’m so glad you made it safe and sound.”
The interior of the farmhouse glowed with holiday warmth. A fire crackled in a huge stone hearth while two sleeping black Labs slept on a braid rug in front of it. A tall fir tree packed with ornaments loomed in the far corner of the room. White lights twinkled above piles of brightly wrapped presents. Clearly, their hostess had lots of loved ones in her life. A family. Children and grandchildren. Seeing all those cheery decorations reminded Marnie that she would be the only one of her siblings at Christmas dinner without a significant other, let alone a spouse and kids. As much as she loved her family, there was a certain loneliness in being surrounded by so many couples. Even her friends were pairing off at an alarming rate. In the past months, two of them had found The One—the guy they wanted to spend their lives with.
The thought sent Marnie’s eyes toward Jake. Would he want to be with her tonight, or would he be all about the investigation? The need to be with him warmed her blood, melting the chill she’d carried in from outside.
Fifteen minutes later, rooms were assigned, keys were distributed, and Marnie found herself in a back wing of the house with Jake. Jake had liked that he could see three sides of the property from their room. Apparently, former cops appreciated a wide range view. He’d asked that Lianna and Rico take the rooms nearby so he could hear if there were any disturbances.
For their part, Rico and his lady lawyer seemed oddly polite with one another—a real switch from all the overt flirting they’d done earlier in the week. Marnie wondered what the night would bring for them behind closed doors. She knew the confusion that came when you didn’t know where you stood with a guy.
Like her. Now.
She unpacked the bulky gowns she’d bought at the Marquis and shoved them in an antique, painted wardrobe just so they would be out of the way. The room could have been an advertisement for shabby chic, the vintage cabbage rose wallpaper broken up by big, airy windows dressed with white lace curtains. Sturdy farmhouse furniture kept the room from feeling too precious, the oversize bed and stuffed chairs swathed in simple, crisp white fabrics. As a nod to the holiday season, a pewter urn of fresh spruce boughs stood tall in one corner, a handful of wooden ornaments dangling off some branches.
While she found her nightgown and switched on the gas fireplace, Jake used the inn’s wireless connection t
o email his evidence to the local cop shop. He balanced a phone in one hand while he hovered over his laptop perched on the pullout stand of an old-fashioned secretary desk. He’d shoved aside the wooden rolling chair with his foot, all restless energy and intensity.
She had the feeling she was seeing the most authentic version of him, a man she wasn’t entirely sure she’d understood before now. When they first met that day he’d handcrafted molding around her furniture to make the cheap stuff look like beautiful pieces, he’d flirted with her quietly—a nice, normal guy.
Then, she’d peeled away that laid-back veneer when she’d discovered he was a P.I. who’d been watching her. Later, his urgent kiss in the car and his unrestrained lovemaking in the hotel had shown her a man of deep passions.
Now, seeing him work at the job he was so clearly meant for, she began to understand who he was underneath all that—someone intensely driven in his quest for justice. Someone who wasn’t afraid to walk away from a job—or a woman?—if they didn’t conform to his high standards.
The realization made her wonder how they’d ever ended up together in the first place. What did he see in someone who’d been under suspicion for a felony?
As he finished his call and turned toward her, she felt as if she’d been caught staring. Clutching her flowered bag of shampoo and toothpaste, she nodded toward the bathroom off to one side of the homey accommodations.
“I was going to shower.” She backpedaled toward the bathroom, her socks gliding over a section of the varnished hardwood that wasn’t covered by a throw rug. She felt awkward around him tonight, unsure what it meant that they were sharing a room. “What did the police say?”
He stripped off his coat, cueing her into the fact that he’d done nothing else since he’d walked in the room other than take care of business. Apparently she was the only one thinking about peeling his clothes off.
“They whined about jurisdiction until they received my files. Once they saw how much I’ve got on Alec, they started paying more attention.”
“But since we don’t know where he is—”
