The Rules (17 page)

Gavin lifted her chin. “Me, too. Whatever you did in the past doesn’t matter to me. Stop beating yourself up.” His forefinger traced the line of her lower lip. “I hate to see that look on your face.”

“What look?”

“Like you’re hurting.”

She tightened her grip on his arm and took a deep breath. Her upper lip twitched, and when she spoke, a faint tremor filled her voice. “Have you ever done something so stupid that it results in consequences so bad that other people suffer? And no matter how much you want to take it back, you can’t?”

Pain spiked in his chest as guilt reared its ugly head. “Yeah.” The emotionless response served to buffer the current reality and the memory of the night that changed the trajectory of his life.

Terri shifted to get a better look at him, her eyes questioning, but Gavin avoided her gaze and stared straight ahead. If he could avoid it, he never talked about the night a drunk driver hit the car he rode in with his father.

“If I had made some different choices, my father would still be alive today,” he said quietly, barely squeezing the words pass his tight throat.

“I thought a drunk driver hit the car you and your father were in.”

“Yeah,” he answered. It wasn’t a real answer.

Terri kissed his cheek. “Stop beating yourself up,” she said, using the same words he said to her minutes before.

He almost laughed. Much easier said than done.

The car drifted along in silence for several miles.

Terri’s hold tightened on him again, and she rested her cheek against his shoulder. “Stay tonight, okay?”

He kissed her forehead. “Okay.”

She held on strong—as if holding on for dear life—and it took a little while for Gavin to realize, he was holding on just as tight.

You were wearing the hell out of that dress
.

Terri smiled at the text on her way back to the car after a lunch date with Gavin. They’d been practically inseparable since she attended the party at his mother’s house over a week ago. A line had been crossed, bringing them even closer together, and allowing her to feel comfortable enough to make a surprise visit to his workplace. His enthusiastic smile and hug when he came down to the atrium to meet her eliminated the tiny doubt she experienced about the impromptu visit.

They ate on the first floor of the building, at The Brew Pub, the restaurant that made up the family’s casual dining chain. Gavin ordered a meatball sandwich, and she indulged in a double cheeseburger with bacon and a fried egg on top. They also shared a plate of Wreck ’Em fries, a high calorie appetizer covered in a mountain of chili, cheese, and jalapeño peppers. Afterward, they went up to the executive floor for dessert, a quickie on the sofa in his office.

She texted back.
You didn’t look so bad yourself, Pretty Lips
.

Gavin wore a charcoal designer suit and a horizontally striped navy and silver tie today. He always looked delicious in clothes or out of them.

If I didn’t have to go out of town, I’d put these lips on you.
He and his older brother Xavier were going to do an inspection at the Portland brewery and would be there for a few days, until the weekend.

She grinned, which had everything to do with him. Terri stopped beside her Jimmy.
I’ll miss you
, she typed, and froze. She stared at the words, finger hovering over the send button. There was nothing wrong with telling him she’d miss him. After all, they spent a lot of time together.

She hit the button and flinched, immediately regretting the impulsive move. Her stomach a painful knot of nerves, she waited for his response. It arrived seconds later.

I’ll miss you more.

Smiling again, she leaned against her vehicle, savoring the words. He made her want to do girly things like bat her eyelashes and twirl a strand of hair.

Gavin sent another message.
Gotta run
.
I’ll call you tonight and bring you something back
.

She was about to tell him he didn’t have to, but he hated when she put off his gift-buying. Instead, she typed,
Thank you
.

Terri climbed into the truck. First, a run to the post office to buy money orders for a few bills and mail the cutest little pink dress she bought on sale for her niece, make a quick stop to put gas in her vehicle, and then over to Aldi’s Market for a box of gourmet cheese straws which, thanks to Gavin, she was now addicted to. All that before going home to change for yoga and then making sure she was relaxed and waiting by the phone in time to receive Gavin’s call.

Before she drove off, her cell phone rang and she fished it out of her purse. Her heart leapt when she saw her brother’s name and she quickly answered. “Hey, big head. How’s my favorite brother?”

“I’m your only brother.”

“That’s why you’re my favorite.”

“You suck.” Damian gave a short laugh. “Um, are you sitting down?”

The hesitancy in his voice caught Terri’s attention and her hand tightened on the phone. “Yes,” she answered cautiously. She watched a trio of women laughing on their way into the building, holding doggy bags from their recent lunch.

Her brother blew out a short breath. “He’s out.”

A jolt of alarm made her mute, and the world came crashing down around her.

“Leesh, you there?” Damian asked, using her nickname.

Terri gripped the steering wheel with her left hand to keep the world from spinning. “I’m here,” she replied shakily. “How can he be out? They gave him five years.”

“Good behavior or some nonsense, I don’t know.”

“He destroyed lives. He hurt a lot of people.”
He hurt me
.

“I know, but the local news said he’s been released. There was a write up in the paper about it, too.”

“When?”

“Yesterday.”

Terri rested her forehead on her arm. Nausea climbed her intestinal tract and threatened to spill from her lips.

Breathe. Breathe
.

“Leesh, I can hear you breathing. You don’t sound good. Talk to me.”

She swallowed hard, fighting back the nausea and dizzying terror. “He can’t find me. I covered my tracks and have a new name he doesn’t know anything about. I’m far, far away. He
cannot
find me.”

“He won’t, as long as you’re careful. No bank account. Nothing in the public eye.”

She laughed bitterly. “As if I ever wanted to be in the public eye.”

The media frenzy surrounding the trial caused her name and image to be plastered in newspapers, online, and on the local news channels.

During their relationship, Talon never saw her as a threat. He trusted that his intimidation tactics kept her securely under his thumb. But he was wrong. She was a key witness in the trial against him. She’d worn a wire and provided plenty of evidence, taking pictures of files and records, in exchange for immunity. So if Talon ever found her, she had no doubt he’d kill her. She collapsed his entire criminal enterprise and helped put him away.

“I didn’t want to scare you, but I thought you should know,” Damian said.

Terri lifted her head from her arm. “Thanks.”

“Be careful.”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. He’ll never think to look for me here. I pay cash for everything and there’s almost no paper trail.” Except for the safe deposit box at the bank that contained her birth certificate, change of name documentation, and the necklace from Gavin, she lived simply with no ties to the local community in case she had to leave under short notice.

“You need any money?” Damian asked, looking out for her in spite of everything that happened.

“I should be giving you money.”

“Leesh, come on.”

“You know it’s true. You lost everything because of me.” Damian invested his savings in the house flipping portion of Talon’s “business,” which turned out to revolve around inflated prices and easy closings fashioned by bribed appraisers and loan officers.

“Because of
him
,” Damian said, voice hard. “You didn’t know when you asked me to invest.”

“But once I knew the truth, I didn’t leave him.”

She turned a blind eye to his questionable business practices because she appreciated being taken care of, having designer clothes, shoes, and handbags—possessions she could never afford on her own—and the peace of mind of having a place to lay her head. A vast change from the life she lived growing up and with her boyfriend of six years, with whom she lived simply in a two-bedroom apartment because he supported two households—theirs and the one for his wife and kids in Alabama.

When she finally did question Talon, he turned on her and made it clear she could never leave him. The threats and abuse became a regular occurrence.

“You paid for it by being his punching bag. If I’d known what he was doing to you…”

No one knew. Not until the trial, when all her dirty secrets came out. The physical abuse. The verbal abuse. The times he forced himself on her.

“Leesh, the past is the past. You paid your restitution when you went to the DA and helped them build a case against him. You risked your own safety to do that.”

“So you forgive me, right?” she asked, quietly.

“There’s nothing to forgive. You were a victim, too.”

“Not everyone felt that way. A lot of people thought I got off easy.”

“They’re wrong,” Damian said firmly. He sighed. “Listen, I have to get ready to go to my second job. You want me to call you later?”

“No, you go ahead. I’m fine.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.”

“Call me if you need anything. Anything at all.”

“I will,” Terri promised.

“I’ll give you a call tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay. Bye.”

Terri disconnected the call. She ran a hand over the soft fabric of her green dress, trying to remember the giddy joy she experienced during the hour and a half she spent with Gavin. The dress was new, purchased expressly because Gavin liked her in shades of this color. Lime green. Forest green. Jade green.

She crossed her arms over her stomach. The nausea was gone but now a dull ache filled her gut.

Rule number two, never fall in love. But she was falling for him. Hard. Breaking her own rule. She didn’t do love. Love brought too much pain.

And what would Gavin think if he knew everything about her?

****

Trudging up the walkway after the driver dropped her off, Terri yawned. She arrived at the double doors that led to the lobby of her building but paused with her hand on the metal handle. A knot of unease settled in her shoulders, and she turned around to scan the parking lot.

She had the feeling she was being watched. No one sat in any of the parked cars, yet she couldn’t shake the feeling. Her eyes scanned the shadows beside the bushes and trailed over the grass and trees outside the wire fence.

Her fingers tightened on the handle of the door. Nothing appeared out of place, but the uneasy feeling filtered into her stomach and sat—as large and heavy as a slab of stone. It kept her there, heart pounding, eyes darting to and fro. Still, nothing.

Probably her imagination, paranoia setting in after the conversation with her brother. Shaking off the disquiet, Terri entered the building and rushed up the stairs to her apartment and shut the door.

She slid across the chain. Flipped the first deadbolt. Turned the second deadbolt. Twisted the lock in the doorknob. She didn’t turn on the lights but walked over to the window and peeped through the blinds, surveying the parking lot.

Still nothing. No movement, except for leaves rustling in the wind.

Breathing easier, she sat on the bed.

She was being paranoid. According to her brother, Talon was only released from jail yesterday.

No way could he be here already.

An hour later, she was sitting on the sofa when the phone rang. She snatched it up on the first ring. “Gavin,” she breathed.

“Hey, there. I meant to call earlier, but I just wrapped up a meeting with my slave driver brother after we spent the night drinking with a bunch of executives.” He laughed.

“They know how to party, I take it?”

“Do they ever.” He yawned. “How was your day?”

“I wish you were here,” she said softly, folding her feet beneath her.

“Me, too.” He paused, quiet for a few seconds. “Are you okay? Your voice sounds funny.”

“I’m fine. I just…” Her face crumbled.
Hold it together, Terri
. “Long day. Tired.”

“I understand. I better go. I just wanted to call because I said I would. We have an early day tomorrow. I’m turning into my worst nightmare, a corporate drone.”

“Stop.” Terri laid on her side with the phone pressed to her ear, the sound of his deep voice calming her fears and soothing her jittery nerves. “Pretty soon, you’re going to ask to be put on payroll. I can tell you’re starting to like it.”