“According to what you told Mr. Durand you began dating again,” Zach said.
“Yes. He, well he didn’t beg, that’s not how he is, but he convinced me he would stop trying to run my life. He was very persuasive and I decided to try again because I did like him.” She paused to ask if she could have some water.
Ben got her a bottle from the fridge under the mini-bar, she took a deep drink, and continued.
“That lasted for two weeks before he began again, so I broke it off…again.” She shook her head. “Round two, onto round three. He begged me for another chance and much against my better judgment I gave it to him because, as I said, I liked him and to be honest I felt sorry for him. He seemed so desperate to make things work.”
“But on his terms,” Ben said.
“Yes.” Her expression darkened. “When he began telling me he didn’t approve of some of my friends so I wasn’t to see them anymore, that did it. I told him I was done and I meant it, to the point of quitting my job so that I wouldn’t have to be around him.”
“Have you found a new one?” Zach asked.
“Yes. It doesn’t pay as well, but being away from him made it worth it. For the first couple of weeks he would call me, night and day. I didn’t answer or return his calls when he left me messages saying how much he missed me. So he started with the emails.” She smiled dryly. “Same song, different verse as they say. Next came the flowers and gifts. Well, not next, because he started that a couple of days after I broke it off.”
Zach nodded. “Things must have escalated from there if you’re afraid of him.”
“They did. He started turning up at places, like the grocery store, or when I went to a movie with friends. He didn’t do anything, but he was around and he let me know it. More than once I saw him parked across the street from where I’m working, just sitting there, watching the building.” She took a deep breath. “The last time that happened I was so pissed I confronted him. He told me there was no law that said he couldn’t be there. Then he said, ‘I want you back, Irene. One way or another it’s going to happen so make it easy on yourself and go to dinner with me tonight.’ I’m afraid my reply wasn’t terribly nice. I told him to go fuck himself.”
Ben chuckled. “Short and not so sweet. Obviously he didn’t like that.”
“No kidding. When I got home that evening there was a package on my front porch. I almost threw it away, but I needed to know what was in it.” She stopped talking to take another drink.
“My guess would be it wasn’t a nice piece of jewelry,” Zach said.
“Don’t I wish? Well, actually, not. I didn’t want anything like that from him. You’re right though, it wasn’t. There were three dead roses and a note which said, ‘Please accept my offer of dinner. You know how to reach me.’ That’s when I knew for certain I should be very afraid, so I finally called the police. That was a waste of my time and theirs. They talked with him and some of the people at his company. They all said that he and I had a history of breaking up and making up a few days later, which was true, unfortunately. The police wrote it off as just another lover’s spat. The officer I talked to said the roses had probably died because they’d been sitting in the box for a while without water.” She rolled her eyes. “I have a friend, an older man who knew my parents. We’ve kept in touch so I called him. He came over, I told him everything that was going on with Greg, and he immediately told me to get in touch with a man, your Mr. Durand, who he said could help.” She looked at Zach and Ben. “Can you?”
“We’re going to do our best,” Zach replied. “Right now, I suggest we take a break. If you’re hungry the motel has a decent restaurant.”
“I…” She worried her lip. “What if he’s here somewhere, watching the motel? I mean, inside.”
Zach looked at Ben and it was if they knew what the other one was thinking because Ben said, “I’ll go down first and find a safe place to keep an eye open for him.”
“While I act like your, well, perhaps not loving but definitely interested escort,” Zach added moments later. “The man you came to see for an afternoon’s assignation.”
Irene sucked in a breath. “If he is here, that’s going to make him really angry.”
“Which is what we’re going for,” Zach replied. “Get his attention off you and onto me. We need him to do something overt. He hasn’t, so far.”
“Something that will give the police a reason to arrest him for stalking or harassment, or worse,” Ben said.
Zach took her hand, half expecting her to pull it away. When she didn’t, he said, “This could be dangerous for you, if he decides to teach you a lesson for ignoring him and starting to see another man.”
She nodded; her expression a mix of fear and determination. “As long as I know you’re going to stop him before that happens.”
“We’ll be with you every step of the way, although I’ll stay well out of sight,” Ben told her.
“Then let’s do it,” she said resolutely as she got up.
“Give me five to get down there and pick a spot,” Ben said as she started toward the door. “Go to the main restaurant, Zach, not the one where we ate breakfast. I’d stand out like a sore thumb there.”
“You’d stand out anywhere with your hair and beard so how about we switch roles.”
When Ben hesitated, Irene said, “He’s right. So you’ll be my—” she grinned, “—afternoon delight.”
“Good lord,” Ben muttered. “All right, since both of you insist, get moving, Zach. We’ll be down there in ten.”
Zach reminded him to put his phone on vibrate—“If I spot him, I’ll text to let you know”—and left.
* * * *
“I don’t see him anywhere,” Irene whispered as she and Ben waited to be seated.
“Zach knows what he’s doing,” Ben whispered back.
“I meant Greg.”
“He’s hardly going to be where you’d notice him, and that’s presuming he did follow you.”
“I suppose.” She jumped when the hostess came up beside them to ask how many.
“The two of us, if it’s not too early dinner,” Ben replied. “We’d like one of the more private tables if possible.”
The hostess smiled knowingly, said it wasn’t too early, and then led them to a table for two at the edge of the room, handing them menus once they were seated. “Your waiter will be with you momentarily,” she told them.
When the hostess left, Irene asked Ben, “Do we want to play this to the hilt and order wine?”
“You may, if you want. I’ll stick to coffee.”
“Because you’re working?”
“That, too,” he replied.
“Ah, I get it. You don’t drink, right?”
He smiled. “Right, and let’s leave it at that.”
With a small shrug, she said, “In that case I’ll have coffee, too.”
They went silent at that point, perusing their menus. When the waiter arrived, they ordered, and Ben told him they’d like coffee while they waited.
“Now what do we talk about,” Irene asked when he’d left.
Although his reply was, “You’ve got me,” he rested his elbows on the table and leaned forward as if they were having a very personal conversation.
She did the same, smiling as she asked, “It’s none of my business, but are you married?”
“Was, but we’re divorced. Why?”
“I just wondered. I know we’re pretending, but I still wouldn’t want to kiss a married man.” Their faces were inches apart so it took only a slight movement for her to close the distance and press a brief kiss to his lips. “There,” she said, sitting back with a grin. “If he is around and watching that should really piss him off.”
Ben chuckled. “Then he’ll come after me, guns drawn, to defend your honor.”
“As if,” she replied, laughing. She sobered. “Not to defend my honor, to but to show you I’m his possession and no one else may touch.”
“Not
a nice thought, but given his actions since you broke off with him, very possible.”
“Your coffee,” the waiter said, appearing next to Ben to fill their cups. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“No problem,” Ben replied.
“I’ll be back with your dinners in a few minutes.”
Ben watched him leave, shaking his head. “I should have known he was there.”
Irene grinned. “You were so wrapped up in me you wouldn’t have noticed if the room was on fire.”
“Uh-huh. On the other hand, if Nash is watching he might think that’s the truth.”
She shivered, taking a quick look around. “I don’t see him.”
“You won’t unless he wants you to.” Ben felt his phone vibrate and surreptitiously took it out, holding it beneath the edge of the table while he read Zach’s text. He came, he went, he saw her kiss you, not happy.
Good, Ben texted in reply. Putting his phone away, he said, “We didn’t see Nash, but Zach did. I gather he was upset.”
Irene’s hands clenched. “Now it begins.”
“Now it ends, if Zach and I have anything to say about it. Take a deep breath and let’s enjoy our dinner.”
“The condemned’s last meal?” she said under her breath.
Ben heard her and took her hand. “Keep the faith, to use another clichéd expression. As soon as we’re finished we’ll go back to the room and decide what to do next.”
She gave him a wan smile, then pulled her hand free so that the waiter could put down their plates. They didn’t talk much as they ate, other than Ben reminding her occasionally that she should smile. “We’re lovers enjoying dinner together, not two people heading off to a funeral.”
“You could have chosen a better metaphor,” she replied, smiling as he’d asked her to.
“Sorry. Umm, going to an execution? No, that’s just as bad. Going to the dentist? To the closest dumpster so scrounge for our meals?”
“That’s yuck,” Irene retorted.
“It’s not that bad if you’re starving, or so I’ve been told.”
She made a moue of disgust, saying, “I’d rather starve,” and went back to eating.
Ben might have argued that she’d change her mind if she were to end up living on the streets, but then she might have pressed for how he knew that and it wasn’t something he was about to reveal to a virtual stranger.
Chapter 9
When Ben and Irene returned to Zach’s room he was on his phone. “Letting Durand know where things stand,” he explained when Ben asked.
“Does he have orders on what we’re to do next?”
“No. He rarely does that because he trusts his team members to know better than he what has to be done.”
“Good,” Ben replied. “In that case, I think Irene and I are going back to her place.”
“We are?” Irene said, obviously surprised.
“It seems to me, now that Nash is aware I’m in the picture, it might be a good idea to push his buttons some more. My guess would be that he’s watching your townhouse.”
“I agree,” Zach said. “Irene, do you carry a spare key with you?”
“Of course. I’m not normally ditzy, but I have had my moments when I ran out of the house without the ones I usually carry.” She dug into her purse and handed Zach a ring with three keys. “Front door, back door, and my car,” she explained.
“Excellent. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a couple of things I have to do before I head to your place, Irene. Ben, why don’t you take her down to your room?”
Irene put her hands on her hips, shaking her head. “I’m also not stupid, normally. I know you have guns with you. You don’t have to try to hide the fact.”
Ben grinned. “She’s got you there, Zach.”
“You do, too,” she said, poking Ben’s chest.
“Of course, although not on me. They’re in that.” He nodded toward the weapons’ case Zach got down from the closet shelf.
“What if someone broke in here,” she asked, frowning. “Or the maid got nosy?”
“First, I keep the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign up so no maid better come in. If anyone else tried they’d have to know how to bypass the security alarm I have on the room door, and this one—” Zach pointed to a much less obvious one on the closet door. “Finally, they’d need the code to open the case. If they blow it, the alarm is loud enough to wake the dead.”
“Wow, I’m impressed.”
Zach opened the case, took out two pistols and IWB holsters, handing the smaller, concealed-carry Ruger LCR to Ben. Then he chose two knives. One he put into the sheath in his boot. The other was already in a sheath that he strapped to his forearm. “You want one, Ben?” he asked.
“Not my weapon of choice,” Ben replied as he reached into the case to remove a pair of brass knuckles. “These might help if I have to punch him out. If it comes to that point he’s going to be beyond pissed and any edge helps.” He put them in his pocket and clipped the holster to the inside of his waistband at the small of his back before inserting the pistol.
“Okay, if everyone’s ready, I’ll take off,” Zach said. “Irene, you’ll have to drive Ben since we only have my jeep. Give me a ten-minute lead, if you would.”
“You know where I live? Duh, of course you do,” Irene replied.
“I always know where the pretty ladies live.” Zach closed and armed the case, putting it back in closet, set the security there, and then left.
Ben resisted chuckling as her gaze followed Zach until the door closed. She must have seen something in his expression anyway because she sighed. “He says that to every woman, doesn’t he?”
“I hate to burst your bubble, but no.”
“Why would it burst…? Oh.” The light dawned. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Now would I do that?”
“I don’t know. Would you?”
“Nope. As the saying goes, women aren’t his thing.”
“But they are yours I take it, since you were married.”
“Well, about that…”
“You were lying?” She gave him a disgusted look.
“Not at all. I was married, and it wasn’t a bad one while it lasted. We liked each other. We even had sex because I had to keep up pretenses.”
“I see. Let me guess, you were hiding behind it so no one would know.”
“Yes.”
“Then are you and Zach, you know, more than partners for your job?”
Ben smile ruefully. “Nope.”
“So here I am, with two handsome men, and neither of you sees me as anything more than someone you need to protect.”
“That and as a woman we like. Well, I can’t speak for him, but I like you.”
“I suppose that’s something, and shouldn’t we get going?”
“Quick change of subject, but yes, we should.”
* * * *
Ben had Irene drive twice around the block, asking her if she saw Nash’s car, which she said she didn’t. Hers was the fourth of six connected townhouses. All of them had garages on the ground level, facing the street, with the entrances to the houses proper next to them, up a flight of steps leading to the front porch. He had her park in her short driveway and they got out.
As they walked to the porch she hesitated, frowning. He saw why seconds later. There was a small package sitting next to the door.
“Wait here,” he told her in no uncertain terms before walking up to the porch. Without touching it, he examined the package, which was wrapped in gold paper and red ribbon. He wished he had latex gloves, but he didn’t so after taking out his pocket knife he held the package by the edges while he cut the ribbon loose. Then he turned it over to slice the tape holding the paper in place.
“What if it’s a bomb?” Irene asked from the bottom of the steps.
“Then I’d probably be dead,” he replied with a tight smile. Using two fingers, he unwrapped the package, revealing a black box which he cautiously opened
.
“Your Mr. Nash is not a nice man,” he said. “But there’s nothing in this that will kill us so let’s go inside to look at what he’s given you.” He pocketed his knife, and carefully picked up the box and its wrapping so that he didn’t destroy any potential fingerprints.
Visibly swallowing, Irene unlocked the front door, holding it open for Ben. There was a vestibule, with stairs directly across from him leading, he presumed, to the main floor.
He was correct. Going up, they entered a large, airy living room. He set the box down on the coffee table in front of the sofa. When they were seated, he turned the box over and at least a dozen photos fell out.
“I knew it. He has been watching me,” Irene said angrily as she spread them out. “These were all taken within the last few days, and—” she touched the corner of one, “—this was taken at the motel.” She looked at Ben. “He definitely is not happy with you.”
Ben agreed since there was an X of red ink across his face. The picture had been taken seconds after Irene had kissed him. “I guess we know who he’s going to come after,” he commented. His phone vibrated at that moment. Taking it from his pocket, he saw he had a text from Zach which said, I’m upstairs. Don’t say anything. There are microphones hidden in each room. Ben showed Irene the text, putting a cautioning finger to his lips to reinforce Zach’s words.
Only mikes? Ben texted back.
That I’ve found. My equipment’s top of the line so I should have found cameras if he put any in here.
Okay. Ben put his phone away then stood, crossing to a desk in one corner of the room. He got the pad of paper sitting there and a pen and went back to the sofa. He says there aren’t any cameras, he wrote, showing it to Irene.
She swallowed, mouthing, ‘Thank God.’ Taking the pen, she wrote, Greg doesn’t have a key. How did he get in?
You don’t have a security system so he probably jimmied a window or the back door.
Next on my list of things to do, she wrote back, sighing. Shouldn’t we be talking, if he’s listening?
With a nod, Ben said, “That bastard needs a lesson in how to treat a woman.”
A Second Chance Page 11
