“He’s no threat to anything other than your ego,” she retorted, taking a couple of steps back and lifting her hand to the door, ready to open it and call for help if she needed to. But she hated the idea of Buck being caught up in Harrison’s sticky web. “Why don’t we ask him?”
“Do you really want to do that?” Harrison didn’t advance, he didn’t try to stop her. “Or do you want me to tell you who the man in your bed really is?”
Her heart skipped a beat. Not because of what he was implying about Buck, but because he knew they were sleeping together. Had he spied on them, or was he simply looking for a reaction? “I know who he is.”
“No, you don’t. Not really.” He gave her a sympathetic smile. “Poor, poor Haley. Made the wrong choice again. How does it feel to be such a bad judge of men?”
She let out a long breath. “Get out.” She sounded bored. “I don’t care what you have to say. I just want you to leave. If not, you’ll be hearing from my lawyer.”
“Or you’ll be hearing from mine. I can’t have my kids being around a man who beats women. Isn’t that what you said?” he taunted.
“About you, yes.” She pressed her lips together to stop herself from saying more. Harrison wasn’t worth her time.
“And yet you’ve shacked up with a man who has been accused of beating up a woman. It seems you have a type. What would the courts think of that?” He smiled benevolently. “I’ll see myself out.”
“Make sure you shut the door behind you,” Haley called, but didn’t follow, she didn’t trust her legs to work. His accusations about Buck shook her to the core, even if they were just his way of trashing Buck.
Turning around, he made his way back out through the kitchen, heading for the back door. But before he left, he turned and said, “Google him if you don’t believe me. It’s all there online.”
With that, he left.
Haley stared at the door for several minutes, unable to move. What the hell did Harrison want from this, other than to ruin her newfound happiness? More to the point, how did he know about Buck since they’d only known each other for just over twenty-four hours? Had Alicia or Marie told him?
Did it really matter? That was the question it all came down to. Did it matter if Harrison knew?
A knock at the door made her jump and she swung around, yanking it open, her face pale as she locked eyes with Buck. “Are you okay? I thought I heard you shouting.”
“Yes.” She passed her hand over her face. “No.”
She crumpled, the residual tension of her meeting with Harrison catching up with her and dragging her down into a pit of anger and resentment. He was trying to ruin her life once more.
Buck’s strong arms caught her, and he held her close, while she slumped against him. “What happened?”
“Harrison was here.” She watched his expression cloud over until he looked like a thunderstorm rolling down off the mountains. His hands tightened around her waist and his eyes scanned the house for any sign of her ex-husband. “He’s gone.”
“What did he want?” Buck asked as he let out a pent-up breath and eased his hold on her.
“I don’t know what his motives were.” Haley didn’t want to repeat the rumor Harrison had planted in her brain. But she needed to hear Buck’s denial. “He said you were accused of beating up a woman.”
Buck’s sharp intake of breath alarmed her. But not as much as when he let her go and walked away from her, pacing the hallway like a caged lion. Her heartbeat increased as Buck kept his eyes averted, not wanting to look at her, not wanting to contradict Harrison’s words.
She knew the answer before he opened his mouth to speak. “It’s true. I was accused of beating up a woman.” He put his hands on his hips and stared up at the ceiling. “Krella Josovich.”
Haley reached out and placed her hand on the wall, needing its solid support as she fought to comprehend what Buck was saying. All those promises, all the trust she’d put in him, all for nothing. She didn’t care if she was his mate, she could not live with a man who had raised his fists to another woman.
“I think you should go.” Her strangled voice was barely audible as she closed her eyes. Her happy ending was fading away and she hated the devastating disappointment that threatened to sweep over her.
“No.” Buck swung around, his face contorted in agony. “You don’t understand.”
“There is no excuse for hitting anyone, let alone a woman.” She abhorred violence in all forms, but a man, especially one as big and strong as Buck, should never hit a woman.
“I didn’t,” he blurted out. “You have to believe me, I didn’t.”
She shook her head. “Buck…”
“Please, Haley.” He came toward her. She didn’t move, she didn’t run, because the expression in his eyes told her he was telling her the truth. “Krella accused me of hitting her, but I never did, I swear.”
“I want to believe you, Buck.”
“Then believe me. I’ll do whatever it takes to prove my innocence.” Haley had never seen a man more determined. And she had never been more determined to believe a person.
But she needed space. Time to think.
Chapter Twelve – Buck
Buck backed away. Haley’s expression said it all. The seed of doubt had been planted and it was going to take a long time to weed it out. And he might have to accept the root would always be there, festering in her mind.
“Can I explain?” he asked. She looked so pale, like a wounded animal whose strength was seeping from its body.
“Yes.” She gave him a slight nod.
He looked down at the ground as he tried to figure out where to begin. “I had a few successful construction projects under my belt.” The events that followed sparked the worst time in his life. He’d buried those thoughts deep and pulling them out and exposing them to the light was not easy. “I was ambitious and hardworking. Willing to do what it took, sacrifice as many hours as I needed to to make the next step up in my career and earnings.”
Haley walked to the stairs and sat down, hugging her knees to her chest as she listened. He wanted to go to her and hold her close, but he was scared of chasing her further away. The easiness between them was gone and the distance seemed insurmountable.
“Go on.”
“There was a job. It was worth a lot of money and would boost my reputation as a contractor. I put in a bid. So did a couple of other companies.” He raked his hand through his hair, his breath shuddering through his body. “At the same time I met a woman…”
“Krella?” Haley asked.
“Yes.” He nodded, giving her a lopsided smile. “The beginning of my downfall.”
“How?”
“I knew she wasn’t my mate, but Krella was sweet, she was gentle, and she brought out the protective side in me. It wasn’t about sex.” He shook his head. “She was outside my apartment building one day and she knew how to get under my skin. She said she’d been thrown out by her boyfriend and needed somewhere to stay. What I didn’t know is she was working for a competing contractor.”
Haley’s hand went to her mouth. “You were set up?”
“Yes, this contractor really wanted the job. To do so, he tried to destroy my reputation. He also succeeded in destroying the marriage of one of the other bidders.” Buck pressed his lips together, his jaw tight as he went over the events all those years ago. “It was a tough lesson. People stop at nothing to get what they want. They don’t care who they trash, who they ruin.”
“Were the charges dropped?” Haley asked.
“Yes, I had an alibi. Mason. We were working our first job together and had cut the timescale on the job to the bone to get the contract. We were both pulling all-nighters to get it done. I was with him the night she walked into a police station and accused me of attacking her. I don’t know who hit her, but it wasn’t me.” He inclined his head. If anything would make her believe he was innocent, that surely must.
“Mason was your alibi, and then th
ey dropped the charges?” she asked as if to clarify his story.
“Yes, but mud sticks and I lost the contract, just as the other guy lost his wife.” Buck came to stand before her. “I’m sorry you found out like this. It was so long ago…”
He kept his voice even, but in truth he was fighting to keep control of his bear who wanted to track down Harrison and tear his head from his body and grind up his bones until there was nothing left of him. The man was a threat and he needed neutralizing.
Not with physical force. Hurting Harrison would only exacerbate the situation. No, there had to be a way to prove to Haley that Buck was innocent and ensure Harrison never pulled a stunt like this again.
Haley sat for a moment, looking down at her clasped hands. Then she stood up, put her shoulders back and said, “I’m sorry you are on Harrison’s radar. I don’t know what he’s capable of. But this is what he does. He’s a bully.” She looked close to tears. “You don’t deserve to be treated like this when it’s me he’s mad at.”
“I can handle it. Even if he drags the whole sorry mess out into the daylight.” Buck nodded. “The press might run a story on it, but I doubt it. The accusations were proved untrue. Although the case was never solved.”
“The case. You mean the police never found out who beat up Krella?” A crease formed on her forehead. “But you said Krella worked for this guy who wanted the contract.”
“She did. I hired a PI who tracked her for a few days. I thought if I could find the real culprit, it would clear my name. This PI took photos of Krella talking to the other contractor. For me it was enough proof, but not for the authorities.” The local police had been sympathetic, but the photographs were not enough proof for them to take it further. Buck had quit trying to clear his name and instead set about squashing the other contractor and making sure he could never hurt anyone in the same way.
“Bastard,” Haley said as she closed the space between them and pulled him into her arms. “I’m sorry this has all been dragged back up.”
Buck tentatively wrapped his arms around her and sighed, burying his face in her hair and inhaling deeply. “As long as you believe me, that’s all that matters. Whatever your ex-husband has planned, I’m ready to face it. I’m not the same man I was when those accusations were made. I have money, I have lawyers and I will take him down if I have to.”
“Through the courts.” Haley pulled back and searched his face for the answer.
“Yes.” He pursed his lips. “Unless you want me to leave him alone. He is the father of your children…”
“No.” She placed a hand on his shoulder. “I think it’s time Harrison had a wakeup call and realized he can’t go around walking all over other people’s lives and dreams. Alicia and Marie deserve better.”
Haley moved away from him and went into the kitchen. Going to the back door, she opened it and peered outside into the back yard. “Maybe I should set a trap for him, so he doesn’t trespass on my property again.”
“A bear trap,” Buck said, his mood shifting as he sensed this current episode of drama had passed.
“A bear trap? You mean catch his foot in a metal trap?” she asked.
“No, I’ll wait here in my bear form and chase him.”
She laughed. “I think I prefer to imagine him permanently maimed by a trap.”
“I could maim him,” Buck offered lightly.
Haley shut the door and locked it securely. “Let’s leave that up to Harrison, shall we? If he lets this whole thing go then he gets to stay in one piece. If not… Well, that would be his choice.”
“Shall we get out of here?” Buck asked. “I’ve changed my tire…”
Haley put her hands to her mouth. “Do you think Harrison had something to do with that?”
“It was slashed,” Buck admitted.
“Slashed. You didn’t say that earlier.” Her face paled, but then anger sparked in her eyes.
“I didn’t want to frighten you,” Buck admitted. “I thought it was someone walking past, an opportunist, not your ex-husband.”
“Bastard,” she hissed.
“Make sure the house is locked up and let’s go. We can think of how to deal with Harrison later. Right now we should go check on your children.” Buck didn’t think Harrison would hurt Alicia and Marie, but what if he tried to remove them from Tiana and Mason’s house?
“You go ahead, I’ll follow,” Haley said, as if reading his mind.
“I don’t like leaving you here alone.” Buck closed the space between them.
“I’ll be okay.” She nodded and kissed his cheek. “I’d feel happier knowing you were with the girls. I’ll call ahead and alert Tiana and Mason.”
“Do you really think Harrison would do anything stupid?” Buck had to ask. The thought that Harrison might take his anger and frustration out on Alicia or Marie made his bear want to rip something, or someone, to shreds.
“No, I don’t. Harrison is a bully, no more. He hit me because I was an easy target. He knew how much the girls meant to me, how much my family meant to me. He didn’t think I’d ever leave.”
Buck’s fingers curled up into a fist. “He likes to bully people but taking the girls would be too much like hard work.”
“Exactly. I’d report him to the police, he’d get arrested. Believe me, that would be his idea of hell.” She gave a short laugh. “I wouldn’t mind him being locked up with some big strong men who don’t like wife beaters. But I know the girls would worry, and he is their father after all.”
“He doesn’t deserve them.” Buck couldn’t believe Harrison had thrown away his life with his wife and children. He had everything most men crave, and he just threw it away.
“No, he doesn’t. But that doesn’t change facts.” She kissed him on the cheek and then picked her cell phone up off the countertop. “I’ll be ten minutes behind you, that’s all. If Harrison shows his face again, I’ll call Brad, he’s the local sheriff. He knows about Harrison’s history of abuse.”
“Okay,” Buck said reluctantly. “Don’t be far behind me.”
“I won’t,” she promised.
Buck grudgingly left the house and went out to his truck. He went around it a couple of times, checking that it hadn’t been tampered with. Then he did the same to Haley’s car. He paid particular attention to the tires, he didn’t want her to get a flat on one of the back roads.
Satisfied their vehicles were fine, he got in his truck, looked up and down the street once more, and then drove away. He was certain the sense of being watched he’d experienced earlier was due to Harrison, but he didn’t get the same sensation anymore.
However, that didn’t mean the guy wasn’t waiting for Buck to depart before he came back to cause trouble. Instead of going straight to Tiana and Mason’s house, he looped around the block and came back around, driving slowly past Haley’s house to make sure Harrison wasn’t around.
Nothing.
Aware of his promise to Haley about watching the girls, he drove off, knowing if Harrison, or anyone hurt his mate, they would die a grizzly death.
Chapter Thirteen – Haley
“And he told you that Buck was accused of beating a woman?” Sorcha asked, shocked at the news as they got ready for their shift. After going back to Tiana’s house and seeing her girls playing outside with Rhett, Haley had relaxed, convinced Harrison wasn’t about to kidnap them. It wasn’t his style. But she was certain this wasn’t the end of his threats. Soon, he would reveal his real motives, and Haley had a growing suspicion it might involve money.
Blackmail to be precise. She could think of no other reason, other than simply to hurt Haley, why Harrison would take on a man like Buck.
“Yes.” Haley shut her locker and leaned back against it. “But enough of me, what about you?”
Tiana fixed a smile on her face, even though it didn’t hide her concern about Haley. “Yes, come on, we want all the details.”
Sorcha’s eyes opened wide. “Believe me, you do not want all the
details.”
They giggled as they walked through to the restaurant. “Perhaps you’re right,” Haley said. “But you look happy, which is the main thing.”
“I am happy,” Sorcha replied. “I just wish we all were.” She fixed Haley with a knowing smile.
“I’m happy. I just wish I knew what Harrison’s endgame was.” She shook her head. “What does he get out of making these accusations?”
“He gets to feel big. He gets to believe he’s keeping you down and not letting you move on.” Sorcha sighed. “He’s ruined his own life and now he wants to ruin yours. Or at least try to.”
“Well, he’s not going to. Buck has explained what happened with this Krella. And I believe him,” Haley said firmly.
“And I can confirm Mason was with him at the time of the attack,” Tiana told Haley, and placed an arm around her shoulders. “And we all know he can’t lie.”
“Unless they are lying about lying,” Sorcha suggested. “What?”
“They don’t lie. They can’t lie. Not to their mates,” Haley reminded Sorcha.
“So they say.” Sorcha looked defensive. “You don’t know.”
“I do,” Tiana said emphatically. “I do know.”
“Okay, so have you tried Googling this like Harrison said?” Sorcha asked.
“Yes, and it was reported that a local construction owner was helping with enquiries. He was never arrested.” Haley had done the online search before she returned to Tiana’s house. She had also spoken to Tiana, who asked Mason, who confirmed Buck’s alibi.
“And the case was dropped because Mason gave him an alibi.” Sorcha mused over this for a moment. “So he really was set up?”
“It looks like it.” Haley sighed. “What worries me is the construction company that orchestrated the whole thing has gone bust.”
“And you’re worried Buck had something to do with that?” Tiana asked.
“Oh, I’m certain of it. What worries me is if Harrison goes sniffing around, trying to resurrect this story, he’ll cause more trouble. For Buck and for the rest of us.” Haley inhaled deeply and let go of the anger building inside her. “Why can’t he leave us alone?”
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