“They’re worth money to her.”
“What?”
“Mrs. Hartfield is in financial difficulty. Apparently, she’s run through all her inheritance from her husband. Mostly through illegal gambling.”
“Seriously? She’s gambled away all her money? But the boys have nothing. I have nothing.”
“But Aaron did. He was left an inheritance from his father but it was held in a trust until he reached a certain age. When he died, she expected it to come to her. But he didn’t have a will and inheritance rules state that if he had children it goes to them.”
“Oh my God.”
“Yep. Winifred thought the money was coming to her until she found out the boys were alive, along with most of the town, thanks to your mother. Not sure what tied up the funds being released to her. You didn’t tell anyone you were pregnant before leaving town?”
“No, just her. There was no one else to tell. How do you know all this?”
“Jardin’s investigator is very good.”
“Oh my God. And I was worried about her bribing people to get the boys, but if she hasn’t got any money...”
“Sprite, she doesn’t even have the money to pay her B&B bill.”
She frowned. “Meg shouldn’t be out of pocket because of her.”
“She won’t be,” he reassured her.
She hugged him tight. “You’re a good man.”
“Don’t go spreading that around. You’ll tarnish my reputation.”
She snorted.
“So why is she sticking around if she hasn’t got the money to bribe anyone? Why come at all? Did she really think I would just give them to her?”
“Good questions? How about we go and ask old Winnie?”
She smiled. “Yes, I think that’s a great idea.”
Trepidation had her trembling as she walked up the stairs and onto the wide, wrap-around porch of Meg’s B&B. It was a beautiful old house that she’d lived in with her husband until he’d died. After his death, she’d turned it into a B&B.
Saxon ran the bell and Meg answered. She was a sweetly rounded lady with a huge heart. Every year she held an Easter egg hunt in her extensive gardens for all the kids in the neighborhood, and she had a ready smile for everyone. Today, though, she looked troubled and tired.
Her eyes widened as she saw who it was then she smiled. “Saxon, you’re back.”
“I am.”
“Thank the Lord.”
“I believe you have a rodent problem.”
“You could say that. Come in if you like.”
Saxon shook his head. “We’ll stay out here. If you wouldn’t mind getting Mrs. Hartfield for us?”
“Oh, I don’t mind at all. Not if she’s gonna be gone soon?”
“She’ll be gone very soon,” he promised. He looked down at her as Meg disappeared and took her hand in his. “Ready for this, sprite?”
“As ready as one can be when they’re about to talk to one of Satan’s minions.”
He grinned down at her. “Just remember your trick with the mole. Put a big, hairy one on the end of her nose.”
She burst out laughing just as Winifred reached the door.
“Well, I’m glad you find something amusing,” she said haughtily.
“Mrs. Hartfield, I’m Joel Saxon.” He didn’t offer her his hand.
Winifred’s eyes narrowed. Like a hawk eyeing its prey. “Yes, Mr. Saxon. I know all about you. What my private investigator found made for very interesting reading. I know all about your perverted ways. That is not an environment I want my grandsons to grow up in.”
“For God’s sake,” Aspen muttered.
The other woman’s gaze turned to hers, her sharp blue eyes as cold as ice. “I should have known that someone who’d grown up as you did wouldn’t think twice about what you are subjecting your sons to.”
“My sons mean everything to me. They’re my world. I love them. I certainly wasn’t going to get rid of them like you wanted me to.”
The older woman stiffened. “I told you before that you misunderstood me.” She looked around. “I suppose I should invite you in.”
“Oh, we’re not staying,” Saxon told her in a dark voice. “Why are you here?”
“I told you, I’m worried about—”
“Stop wasting my time,” Saxon told her. “I’ve very low on patience having just come home to find you’ve upset my family, and created havoc in my town. Now, what do you really want? What’s it gonna take for you to leave?”
She straightened and gave them both a haughty look. “Two million.”
Aspen sucked in a breath. “What?”
Saxon nodded, not looking shocked in the slightest. “I thought that might be the case. You don’t have the funds for the bribes you’d need to get the boys away from Aspen. But I’m guessing in that report from your investigator, it had how much I’m worth and you figured out another way to get your hands on some cash. You’d come here, threaten to take the boys then offer to disappear and forget about the boys if I paid you off.”
“You bitch!” Aspen stepped forward. Saxon grabbed hold of her arm, keeping her back. “How dare you try to blackmail him!”
“I don’t know what Aaron ever saw in you. Piece of trash—”
“Enough,” Saxon said sharply. “You’ll not speak about my fiancée that way. And you are not getting your hands on a cent of my money. We know all about your financial difficulties. I wonder what your friends at the country club will think when you lose everything. When it all comes out what you’ve spent all your husband’s money on.”
Her eyes darted back and forth between them.
“They might not understand that such an upright, church-going, pillar of society is engaging in illegal gambling.”
“You’ll regret this! I’ll find someone to help me get those boys! I’m going to shut you down! I will—”
“You will do nothing,” Saxon told her quietly. “Because if you try to cause us any sort of trouble, if you ever show your face here again I will make you suffer. And do not think I won’t. I will dig up every piece of dirt I can on you. I’m pretty certain there are skeletons in your closet you don’t want exposed, aren’t there, Winnie? For instance, I find it very interesting that a man as fit and healthy as your husband had a heart attack and died.”
“Wh-what are you implying?” Winifred looked like she was about to faint. Her eyes were wide and wild.
“I think you understood me. Now, to show that I’m not a completely bad guy, I’m going to pay your B&B bill and get you an escort out of town.”
Winifred’s face turned white then bright red and she flung herself at Saxon, fists flying. Aspen stared in shock as Saxon easily subdued her, placing her hands behind her back and holding them there.
“Meg, love?” he called out, over Winifred’s screeches of fury.
Meg, who had obviously been close by and listening to it all, appeared in the doorway. “Yes?”
“Could you call Jake for me, tell him I was just attacked.”
“Oh, I would be delighted.”
“Wait, where’s her lawyer?” Aspen asked.
“Left town this morning,” Meg told her. “Said he wasn’t getting paid enough to put up with this town.”
Aspen climbed into Saxon’s Jeep, watching as Jake escorted a still screeching Winifred into his car. “Will he really lock her up?”
“I expect not. He’ll probably give her a warning and send her on her way. She won’t be back.”
“I can’t believe she thought you would give her two million dollars so she wouldn’t come after the boys.”
“I would do anything to protect my sons and their mother. But I wasn’t going to give that witch a cent.”
She looked up at him, eyes filled with tears. “Thank you. For everything.”
He leaned over and kissed her gently. “I will always protect my family. You’re mine.”
“Yes, always.”
He ran his thumb along her lips. “I h
ate that I wasn’t here for you. But I am glad that you asked for help.”
“I was so shocked when everyone turned up to help me. I wish you’d been here, but we had things under control here and you were needed elsewhere.”
He started up the Jeep. “I need to tell you about Keira and Julian.”
She bit her lip, hesitating. “Were you, I mean . . . did you ever . . . were you involved with Keira?”
“What? No.” He shook his head. “No, sprite. I wouldn’t bring her back to our home if that was the case. No, Keira and Julian were involved with my brother, Cole.”
She stared at him in surprise. “They were the couple he was interested in?”
“Yep.”
“The ones he accused you of corrupting?”
“Yes.” He smiled tightly. “I believe his exact words were that ‘I was an immoral, perverted asshole who got off on corrupting good people and ruining their lives’.”
“What? That jerk!”
He pulled up outside his house.
“He obviously doesn’t know you like I do. You’re a good man, Joel Saxon. You’ll be an amazing husband and father. I know it.”
He undid his seatbelt then hers and reached for her. He kissed her. Hard and deep. The world faded around them. When he drew back, she was panting heavily. Damn, the man could kiss.
She licked her swollen lips, settling back in her seat as she tried to remember what they’d been talking about. Right, Keira and Julian. “Tell me all of it. What happened between him and Keira and Julian?”
“I told you how dad left me half his empire. But it wasn’t for me. Going to an office each day was like death to me. Finally, I couldn’t take it any longer. I told Cole I’d had enough. I was quitting. I wanted to open a BDSM club. He looked at me like I was shit on his shoe. Told me I was ruining my life and if I walked out the door I shouldn’t expect to come back. So I opened the biggest BDSM club in the city. Cole thought I was ruining his reputation, the company’s reputation.”
“How do Julian and Keira come into all of this?”
“They worked for him. Julian was one of his project managers. Keira worked as his personal assistant. I could tell Cole was attracted to them, but he hung back because they were married and off-limits. But he didn’t see the way they watched him.”
“They wanted him too.” It would have sounded crazy before she’d come to Haven. Around here, ménage relationships were almost the norm.
“I knew they cared about him. I also knew Keira was submissive. Julian was trickier. I thought he was submissive until I saw him topping her at the club. He’s a switch.”
“They came to your club?”
“Yeah, they were excited, interested, like two kids in a candy store. I was running classes for people who wanted to learn to be Dominants. Julian came along. Somehow Cole found out. He flipped his lid. He stormed into the club when they were there and created a huge scene.”
“He blamed you.”
“Oh, yes.” He smiled bitterly. “He wanted them to leave with him. I told them I’d have him removed. That they could stay under my protection, but they loved him and went with him.”
“What happened?” It all so was crazy.
“I don’t know all the details, but from what I gather he ended up spending the night with them, then got up the next morning and told them he’d made a mistake. That he wasn’t into any of that perverted shit and that he wanted nothing to do with them.”
“Oh, shit.”
“Yeah. Keira rang me in tears. Told me what he’d said. I was furious at the way he’d treated them. I went to confront him, and we fought. With both words and fists. And then he told me he longer had a brother. I left and haven’t spoken to him since. Found a manager for the club, changed cities and moved here. I’ve never looked back.”
“Oh, Saxon.” She reached for his hand, squeezing it.
“Don’t feel sorry for me. Feel sorry for Keira and Julian. That bastard treated them far worse.”
“What happened to them?”
“They quit. Found new jobs. Julian said it took them a while to decide to try playing again. They went to a few clubs. Eventually, they decided they were ready to find a permanent Dom. Unfortunately, they found their worst nightmare. They met a guy in a club. They thought he was wonderful, turns out he was a sadistic bastard. He invited them to come on vacation to Colombia. He drugged them, locked them up, and beat them. He’d brought them there to fulfill his sick fantasies. He damn near killed them. Might have, if one of his servants hadn’t helped them escape.”
“Oh my God.”
“That’s why I had to go see Jake this morning. To warn him.”
“What? You mean this guy is still out there?”
“Yes. He’s disappeared. He’s rich and has connections. Fortunately, there’s not much to tie me to Julian and Keira. So I doubt he’ll figure out where they are. I covered my tracks well. I’ve also asked Curt to increase the security around here. But if you’re worried about yours or the boys’ safety—”
She reached up and placed a finger over his lips. “I know you’ll keep us safe. I’m more worried about them. Why did Julian call you?”
He sighed. “He didn’t have anyone else. He managed to track me down through the manager at my club in L.A.”
“He called you because he knew you would help. Like you always do. You help people.”
“I didn’t do much,” he replied. “I can believe some things of Cole but I never thought he would be so careless with them. So uncaring. He’s not the man I thought he was.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“I haven’t suffered the way they have.”
Hadn’t he? She wasn’t so sure. He climbed out of the Jeep and came around to open her door. She slid out then leaned up on tiptoes to kiss him. “You’re a good man, Joel Saxon.”
“I always thought I was a good Dom and a terrible man. That I’d make a crap father and husband. But now I know that all I needed was a reason to want to be the sort of man who could have a family. I won’t be like my father was. I won’t ignore my wife and children because I’m chasing something shinier or because I want more money.”
“I know you won’t. You’re nothing like him.”
“At least I know what not to do.”
“Joel, I’ve seen you with the boys. Hell, I’ve seen you with the entire town. Your methods might be interesting at times and you may have the view that you’re always right—”
“I am.” He turned and taking her hand in his, led her into the house.
“But I know you do it because you want to help. You wouldn’t do that if you didn’t care about other people. And you’d never abandon those under your care. Hell, you went to Colombia to rescue two people you hardly know just because they meant something to your brother.”
“That wasn’t the only reason. I also feel some responsibility.”
“Nobody could have known this would happen.”
“No, but maybe if I hadn’t interfered they could have made more of a go of it with Cole.”
“It sounds like he’s pretty closed-minded. I don’t think that anything you did would have changed the outcome.”
“When did you get so wise?”
“Oh, I don’t—” A scream filled the air. It was terror-filled and chilled her to the bone.
Joel raced towards the sound. She ran behind him, fearing what could have caused a scream like that. They raced into the living room where they found Keira lying on the floor, Julian stood in front of her, his body poised to attack, his focus completely on the man standing in the far corner of the room. He stood with his hands at his sides, trying to look as unintimidating as possible.
It wasn’t really working.
“Aspen, take care of Keira,” Saxon commanded, stepping slowly forward. “Julian, it’s all right.”
“I’m so sorry,” Keira said as Aspen approached her and crouched down next to her. “I just had a fright. I didn’t know anyone was in here and the
n he just of appeared out of nowhere and I startled. I’m so sorry.”
“Sh,” Aspen told her. She wrapped her arm around the other woman’s frail shoulders. “It’s all right.”
“I slipped trying to back away and fell over, then Julian rushed in as this man was trying to help me. I was still too scared, though. I was trying to push him away. Julian got the wrong idea. I have to calm him down.”
“Keira, it’s all right,” Saxon told her in a low voice. “Just let Aspen take care of you. Are you hurt?”
“No, I mean, nothing more than before.”
Julian made a low, angry noise. Almost more animal than man. His whole body shook.
“I apologize for upsetting her,” Jardin Malone said in a low voice. “I was just trying to help her up.”
“He really was, Julian,” Keira said. “He wasn’t hurting me, it was my fault.”
“Julian,” Saxon said in a low voice. “Julian, look at me.”
He continued to stare at Jardin. Normally she would have said that the slimmer man wouldn’t have a chance against the lawyer, but there was something so focused about Julian. As though when he attacked he wouldn’t give up until one of them was dead.
Keira gripped her hand tightly. “I have to fix this.”
“Joel has it under control,” Aspen said with confidence. “He won’t let anything bad happen. You can take that to the bank.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, pet,” Saxon said dryly.
“I know you can work miracles, Sir.”
“All these compliments are not going to get you out of your punishment for keeping things from me.” He looked back at Keira, his gaze filled with concern.
“I’m sorry to be such a bother,” Keira told her. Tears filled her eyes then she blinked them away.
“You’re not a bother,” Aspen said warmly. “I am scared to help you up on my own, though. Julian, perhaps you could help Keira. You know best how to take care of her.”
“Julian, Keira needs you.” Saxon’s voice was low.
Julian turned to look at Saxon. Then back at Jardin.
“He’s not going to hurt her,” Saxon told him. “He’s a friend.”
“He is, Julian,” Aspen added. “Jamie and Caleb’s paternal grandmother showed up last week. She was threatening to take them away from me. Jardin helped me. He’s a good guy.”
Saxon's Soul (Haven, Texas Book 5) Page 26
