Careless (16 page)

Mike opened the sheet of paper and read the
printed note. He threw his head back and laughed. “This guy’s got a pair. I’ll
give him that.”

“What does it say?”

“It says I can expect a bullet in the back
of the head if I ever think about takin’ what’s his again.”

“No!” Tori’s eyes were wide and frantic. “I
won’t let him hurt you.”

“Baby, relax,” Mike said, trying to draw
her into his arms.

She held her hands up to ward him off. “You
can’t touch me.” She looked around, glancing at the windows surrounding them.
“He could be watchin’ us right now.”

“I hope he is. If he wants a show, let’s
give him one.”

“How can you joke about this? That bastard
just threatened your life.”

It wouldn’t be the first time someone had
threatened to take him out, and in his line of work, he doubted it would be the
last. “I’m not worried about him. Trust me, I’ve dealt with guys like this
before. They’re all bark, no bite.” He smirked. “Hell, he probably doesn’t even
know how to fire a gun.”

“Are you crazy?” she cried, pacing back and
forth over the limestone floor tiles. “You don’t know that. We don’t even know
who the hell we’re dealin’ with.”

“Listen, it’s only a matter of time before
he slips up and when he does, I’ll nab him.” He reached into his pocket for his
Blackberry. “I’m gonna call the station, get them to come over and run these…”
he said, nodding toward the pictures.

Her mouth fell open. “You can’t be serious.
You’re not thinkin’ about turnin’ these over to the police?”

“Of course, we have to. It’s evidence.”

“Those are pictures of us having sex.”

“I know what they are, Tori.” He smiled,
trying to lighten the mood. “Trust me, the boys downtown have seen pics like
this before.”

“Yeah, well, they’re not gonna see pictures
like this of us.” She tore them up before he could stop her.

“That wasn’t smart. You know he’s gonna
have copies and who the hell knows what he plans on doin’ with those… usin’
them to blackmail you, post them on the Internet…” He stopped when he realized
his tirade was only making matters worse. She hadn’t asked for any of this and
she sure as hell didn’t deserve it. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. Listen, at least
let me get the boys out here to do another sweep of your bedroom. Maybe there’s
a camera hidden in there somewhere that we missed.”

“Oh my God,” she said, looking around
frantically. “They could be anywhere… everywhere. I can’t stay here anymore.”
She ran down the hall toward the bedroom. “I have to get out of this house.”

He followed her down the hall and watched
her throw clothes into a suitcase. “You’re right; we’ll go back to my place—”

“No!” she shouted. “I can’t stay with you.
He can’t think there’s anything between us.”

“There is somethin’ between us, and I’m not
gonna give that guy the satisfaction of thinkin’ he’s won. He hasn’t and he
won’t.”

“Please, I’d never forgive myself if
something happened to you. Just do me a favor, and keep your distance from me
for a while.”

He knew there was no sense trying to reason
with her when she was scared out of her mind. “We’ll play it your way for the
next couple of days, but when you’re out there on the road, you better believe
I’m not lettin’ you out of my sight.”

“I don’t care what you say. I’m not gonna
let you put your life at risk. I…” She looked around the room. “Forget it, we
can’t talk here.”

Mike sensed she was about to say something
important, but since the room obviously wasn’t secure, she’d thought better of
it. “Fine, we’ll go somewhere where we can talk.” He grabbed her suitcase and
led her out to his truck. He watched her set the alarm and lock the door, but
he knew it was pointless. The guy had already proven that if he wanted to get
in, he’d find a way.

She sank into the cab of his truck and
covered her face with her hands. “I can’t believe this is happenin’.”

He reached across the seat and grabbed her
hand, bringing it to his lips.

She pulled away quickly. “Don’t. He could
be watching us.”

Not touching her or comforting her when she
obviously needed his support and reassurance was making Mike crazy, but she was
right. They couldn’t afford to take chances until they knew who they were
dealing with. “I want you to stay with me, so I can keep you safe.” He put the
truck in reverse and backed out of the garage, keeping his eyes trained on the
bushes surrounding the house as he pulled out of the driveway.

Tori crossed her arms. “No way, not gonna
happen. I’ll stay with my parents.”

“You can’t, you’ll just be puttin’ them at
risk. Besides, they don’t even know what the hell’s goin’ on, and I assume you
don’t wanna tell them?”

“No!” She sighed. “Okay, I guess I’ll have
to go to a hotel then. I’ll just ask Luc to have someone posted outside my door.
Maybe Joe would be willin’ to do it.”

He knew Joe was her head of security. He’d
met the man a few times, and he seemed like a decent guy, but there were only
two people Mike could count on to keep Tori safe: his father or stepfather.
“Okay, you don’t wanna stay with me, you can stay with my dad or Derek. Take
your pick.”

“What’s wrong with you? I can’t just invite
myself to stay in their home.”

Mike punched the call button to activate
the built-in Bluetooth in his truck.

“Please, don’t,” Tori whispered, but he put
his finger to his lips to silence her as the phone rang.

“Hello,” Ashley said.

“Hey, Mom, how are ya?” Mike said.

“I should ask you that. I hear you’ve taken
a leave from your job to help out on Tori’s case. You didn’t even think to call
your own mother and fill her in?”

“Sorry. Listen, that’s what I wanted to
talk to you about. I’ve been stayin’ with Tori for the past couple of days, but
this guy’s gettin’ bolder. She doesn’t feel safe stayin’ in the house anymore.
I want her to stay with me, but the truth is, it’s probably the first place he’d
look for her.”

Ashley gasped. “That poor girl. I can’t
believe anyone would wanna do this to her.”

Mike smiled. According to his mother, Tori
could do no wrong. “So listen, I was hopin’ she could stay with you until we
hit the road day after tomorrow. Derek’s trained to handle situations like this,
and I’d sleep a lot easier knowin’ he was lookin’ after her for me.”

“Of course, honey. We’d love to have her.”

“Thanks, Mom, I owe you one.”

“You don’t owe me anything. It’ll be my
pleasure.”

“You’re the best; we’ll see you soon.”

“We’ll be waiting.”

Mike disconnected the call and glanced at
Tori. “See, no problem.”

She was wringing her hands in her lap. “I
hate botherin’ them.”

“You heard my mother, she’s happy to have
you.” Mike chuckled. “Given the choice, she’d probably take you over me.”

“I love your mom, she’s great.” Tori
smiled. “How do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“We’re in the middle of a crisis, and you
still manage to make me smile.”

“I’ve got your back. You’ve got nothin’ to
worry about, darlin’.”

She bit her lip. “It’s not me I’m worried
about, it’s you.”

Mike grinned. She may not have told him she
loved him in so many words, but she didn’t have to; he heard it loud and clear.
“So here’s the deal. I don’t want you goin’ anywhere alone. I’ll call Luc and
make sure Joe goes with you to the studio tomorrow mornin’. He doesn’t leave
until you do. Got it?”

“I hate this.” She looked out the window.
“I hate feelin’ like a prisoner.”

“I know. But it won’t be much longer, baby.
We’re gonna get this guy, and when we do, I’ll make sure he’s off the streets
for a good long time.”

“What’s the next step?”

Mike turned down his mother’s street and
glanced at the call display on the center console of his truck as his phone
rang. His brother would have to wait. “I’m gonna head back to your place, call
the boys back over. We need to check for bugs, cameras, points of entry, do
another dusting for fingerprints.”

“Promise me you won’t go in there alone.”
She shifted in her seat to face him. “Please, tell me you’ll wait for back up.”

“I will.”

“I’m serious, Mike.” She reached for his
hand. “If somethin’ happened to you…”

He kissed the palm of her hand and smiled.
“You really think you’re gonna get rid of me so easily, sweetheart?”

“I don’t wanna get rid of you at all.”

Mike put the truck in park and reached
across the cab to pull her into his arms, but she pressed her palms against his
chest to stop him. “Please, don’t. He could’ve followed us.”

“Don’t you think I would’ve noticed if
someone had followed us? I do this for a livin’, remember?”

“I’m sorry, I know you probably think I’m
bein’ silly, but I can’t help it. I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you
stay safe.”

Mike wanted to tell her he loved her for
worrying about him, but it seemed like they were in a good place, and he didn’t
want to risk saying or doing something that would put their tenuous
relationship in jeopardy.

He just had to take this loser out of the
equation, earn her trust, and they could start planning a future together. He
didn’t know how they would manage the logistics of a relationship with her
being on the road so much, but he knew he’d trade ten dates with any other
woman for one night with her. No matter how difficult it would be, they’d find
a way to make it work, and if it took time for her to trust him enough to
acknowledge her feelings, he was prepared to wait.

“Did you have fun on your date tonight?”
she asked, reaching for the door handle.

He smirked. “What do you think? I was back
at your place by nine.”

“What’s wrong? She didn’t hold your
interest?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“She wasn’t you.”

Tori smiled and withdrew her hand from the
door. “I hate that you went out with her.”

“Good. Now you know how I felt last night.”

She looked at him, her eyes lingering on
his mouth. “I’m sorry we fought this mornin’.”

“Me too.” He gripped the steering wheel. He
knew if he said too much, they’d be right back where they started last night,
with him feeling frustrated and her feeling defensive. He didn’t want that.
“Listen, this is all new for us. You’re not used to considerin’ someone else’s
feelin’s and neither am I. Why don’t we just take it slow, agree to figure it
out as we go along?”

“Agreed.” She smiled. “I meant what I said
last night. I don’t wanna see anyone else.”

He laughed as the tightness in his chest
finally began to ease. “You better not.”

“So, when will I see you… or talk to you
again?” She dropped her face into her hands. “God, I sound like such a girl, don’t
I?” She looked up at him and laughed. “Don’t think for a minute that I’m gonna
be sittin’ by the phone waitin’ for you to call me, Lieutenant, ’cause I won’t.
I’m too busy to—”

He pressed his finger to her lips to
silence her. “We’ll see each other tomorrow night at Luc’s party.” He brushed
his finger across her bottom lip and groaned. “You don’t know how much I wanna
kiss you right now.”

“I know, me too. But I think it’s best if
we play it safe for now, don’t you?”

Mike reached for his door handle with a
scowl on his face. “You do realize I’m gonna be eatin’, sleepin’, and breathin’
this case until I see this dirtbag behind bars, don’t you?” He came around to
her side of the truck and helped her out of the big cab.

She looked up at him, a pout drawing her
full mouth down. “I guess that won’t leave a lot of time for thinkin’ about me,
huh?”

“Darlin’, I won’t be able to stop thinkin’
about you.”

Tori was sitting in the great room wearing
an old football jersey and sweatpants when Ashley made her way downstairs.

She turned the light on, then hit the
dimmer switch on the wall to diminish the bright light. “You okay, honey?”

“Yeah, I just couldn’t sleep.”

“Can’t say I blame you, given all you’re
going through.” Ashley sat down on the upholstered chair across from the couch
Tori was sitting on. She tucked her legs under her and let her slippers fall to
the ground. “You wanna talk about it?”

How could Tori tell Mike’s mother that her
son was the cause of her insomnia? “I’m just tired and a little stressed. Got a
lot on my mind, gettin’ ready for the tour and all.”

“Can I ask you something?” Ashley looked hesitant.
“If you think I’m overstepping, just say so and I’ll back off.”

“It’s okay…” Tori wasn’t surprised Ashley
had questions. Her son had taken a leave of absence from a job he loved to move
into her home and babysit her. How could she not have questions? “You can ask,
but I’m not sure I’ll be able to answer.” She wrapped her arms around her legs
and rested her chin on her knees. “I don’t seem to have a lot of answers myself
right now.”