Authors: Elle Saint James
Tags: #Romance
Declan spoke again in a quiet tone as if they were surrounded by a crowd of people. “I know we obviously have some explaining to do, but right now you have to trust me. We really need to get out of the open.” He looked over his shoulder at the black lonely road behind him and then back at her.
“That’s a lot to ask given what I heard.”
He sighed. “I know, but here’s the thing. A powerful someone with an unknown agenda wants you dead. That is the information we are operating under.”
“How can you know that?”
“I have friends with connections.”
“Like the
friend
with the live satellite feed of my house as it blew up? You still haven’t explained any of that to me.”
“I know. We got a little distracted.”
The memory of the satisfying sexual diversion relaxed her a little. “Touché.” But it didn’t explain anything or put her immediate fears to rest. “So talk now, and make me believe, or I’m not going anywhere with you. Start with the guy who had my house under surveillance.”
“His name is Clay. He was the one who sent us with the picture of you. He wasn’t monitoring you so much as he was checking to see if we did what he asked.”
“So why did my house blow up? And who did it?”
“I don’t know yet. Clay is looking into it, and as a part of that query, he’s discovered the additional information about the recent warrant issued for you.”
Ava huffed. “So what did I do
this
time?”
“The warrant is for first-degree murder. And a bench warrant makes it so that any law enforcement officer can bring you in.”
“I didn’t kill anyone.”
“Of course you didn’t.” He reached out and grabbed her arm. She allowed it. “Please, let’s go back to the motel and talk all of this over.”
“Who was I supposed to have killed, huh?”
He pushed out an even breath as if trying to remain calm. “Eugene White.”
“Mr. White?”
Shit
. The other guy she’d threatened with a shotgun only a few hours earlier?
“Yes. Apparently, Mr. White had just recently filed a complaint against you for threatening his life by discharging a shotgun at him.”
“I didn’t hit him. In fact, I didn’t even aim at the stupid ass. I just pumped a round into the air to scare him off.”
“And I believe you. However, it looks especially bad for a man who complained that you shot at him with a shotgun to then end up dead from a shotgun wound after he tattles on you for the earlier incident.”
“Still, even if I’m arrested, I can prove my innocence in like two minutes. I was with Marisol all the rest of the night.”
He leaned closer. “But that’s only if you live long enough to even get to an arraignment.”
“What does
that
mean?”
“It means that anyone with the power and clout to even
get
a bogus bench warrant issued and put into motion so quickly will certainly have the means to see you dead before you ever speak a word in your own defense.”
“You’re just trying to scare me. Who would care if I’m alive or dead?”
“That’s a great question. We’re trying to find the answer. But the warrant wasn’t issued until half an hour after your home exploded.
After
the debris was searched by the unknown persons in the vehicles sent there moments after the explosion, then the warrant was in play. That can’t be a coincidence. Also, it wasn’t sent as a nationwide dispersion to every state agency. Only local law enforcement within a fifty-mile radius of your home got a copy.”
Ava teetered on the edge of believing him, but didn’t trust her own judgment. She looked intensely into his beautiful icy-gray eyes, searching for deception. He stared back never once flinching.
The sound of a car approaching intruded on their staring contest. They both looked away in time to see a sheriff’s cruiser slow and ready to pull alongside them, red and blue lights on the car’s roof already flashing a warning.
Declan’s heart practically stopped beating in his chest when the sheriff’s vehicle approached, patrol lights on top already spinning and lit up to detain them. Was he ever going to catch a fucking break tonight?
If the sheriff already had that warrant in hand and then learned her name, he’d arrest Ava on the spot, and she’d be out of his protective reach and his ability to help her. Unfortunately, the bogus warrant for her arrest looked legitimate to anyone else. Declan knew that if she got into the back of a law-enforcement car of any kind, even the local dogcatcher, he’d never see her again.
She’d disappear like she’d never been born. And Declan couldn’t let that happen.
The person responsible for the explosion and resulting bogus warrant dispersion was obviously rich beyond the normal scope of human existence and powerful enough to buy anyone he needed to attain his goal. This truly pissed him off.
For now that objective was at polar odds with his and Troy’s. Someone wanted Ava dead. He vowed to keep her safe and alive, or they could move his dead body out of the way before getting to her.
She glanced at the sheriff’s car now slowing next to them, then gazed into his eyes. “What do you want from me?”
“I only want to protect you until we can sort this all out. I’d like to get you out of the state. The drastic measures and fetching of supplies, including the plastic, had to do with cutting your hair and dyeing it black so you wouldn’t be recognized locally. That’s all. Troy is particularly fond of the color of your hair. He was in a foul mood at the suggestion we change it.”
She stared at him unblinking, like her mind was at war with her heart. Eventually, she nodded slightly. “Okay. Fine. I believe you. Now what?” She glanced at the police car with unease.
“Kiss me.” Declan didn’t wait or give any further instructions. He leaned forward, grabbed her shoulders gently, and kissed her. She didn’t fight him, thankfully.
They continued kissing until the sheriff’s door opened with a squeak. He stood at the open door and called out. “You folks doing all right?”
Declan released her, forced a grin in place, and replied, “We’re fine.” He desperately searched his mind for a reasonable explanation of why they were out on the side of the highway and not in the SUV. They’d been out to dinner? Sounded lame, and besides, where had they been? He didn’t know of any all-night restaurants nearby. He certainly didn’t want to say they’d been at a bar. A field sobriety test along the side of this deserted highway would just be the cherry on the cream puff of his day.
Fuck
.
Say something!
Declan took a step closer to Ava and said, “We were on our way back from a friend’s house, and…well, something flew out of the car window by accident. We were just looking for it.”
“Is that so?” The sheriff drilled a look his way. “What’d you all lose?”
Declan’s mind went completely blank again. Initially he’d been ready to say that a very important business paper had flown out the window. But it sounded so lame that he didn’t want to repeat it.
Usually he was good at coming up with explanations on the fly. Being within Ava’s sensory range apparently made him stupid. He glanced down into her beautiful face and then put his arm around her shoulders to buy some time to think. He took it as a positive sign that she didn’t stiffen or try to pull away from him.
After a very long silence, Ava said rather dejectedly, “My engagement ring.”
The sheriff tilted his head to one side. “How’d you lose that?”
She shook her head and chuckled. “Well, sir, the truth is, I lost my temper and flung it out the window.”
“Is that so?” the sheriff said once more. Did he believe them or not? Hard to tell.
“Yes, sir. I got very angry when my fiancé told me my mama couldn’t move in with us after the wedding.”
Brilliant
.
Declan put a sheepish expression on his face and chanced a look at the sheriff. It was obvious he bought the story because he lowered his head and laughed quietly.
Nodding toward the SUV, he said, “Is that a rental?”
“Yes.” Time to go. Declan added, “Actually, we’d just decided to come back and look in the daylight when you pulled up. Can’t see anything out here right now anyway.”
The sheriff nodded. “That’d probably be best.”
“Thanks for stopping.” Declan grabbed her hand, turned away from the sheriff, and led her several steps toward the SUV. She didn’t hesitate or balk.
“Where are you folks staying for the night?” the sheriff asked.
Declan’s mind froze, but luckily his feet kept moving. He didn’t want to get caught in a lie too fast, but he also didn’t want to reveal where they were staying. Clay was sending a friend with a new car to the hotel where Troy still waited. They really needed to ditch the SUV. Now more than ever, with the sheriff getting his fill looking at it and no doubt memorizing the plate number.
Plus, once the sheriff got back to the station, it was conceivable he’d discover the warrant. Yet another reason to keep from telling him where they were staying. Declan pretended not to hear the question and kept moving forward.
“Are you at the Starlight Motel over yonder?” he asked in an overloud voice.
Without warning, Ava called out over her shoulder, “Oh, yes. That’s where we’re staying. At the Starlight Motel.”
Crap.
“Well, if anyone finds your ring and turns it in, I’ll send them on over there.”
“Thanks,” Declan said over his shoulder with an arm wave. He then hurried them back to the SUV, hoping the sheriff wouldn’t see fit to detain them any longer.
Once inside the relative safety of his vehicle, he was at war with his feelings. On the one hand, she trusted him enough to believe he was on her side. On the other hand, she’d just possibly screwed them by telling the sheriff where they were staying.
He opted for the half-full glass. “Thanks for your trust. And for coming with me. I promise Troy and I are only trying to keep you safe.”
She nodded. “Okay.” Her gaze dropped to her hands. “I shouldn’t have told him where we were staying, should I?”
Declan shrugged. They were fucked, but he said, “Well, he was obviously determined, and we had to say something. I didn’t have any other motels in mind to blurt out right then anyway. I just hope we can get out of there with our new vehicle before it’s a problem.”
“The sheriff believed us though, right?”
“No doubt, but as soon as he gets back to his office, if he discovers the warrant, he may come after us and thereby find us a little sooner than we’d like.”
“But we didn’t tell him my name.”
He started the vehicle, did a U-turn after the sheriff went by, and headed back to the motel. Once they were headed away from the sheriff, Declan answered, “The warrant that was sent out has your driver’s license photo included.”
She dropped her head. “I’m so sorry.”
Declan put a hand on her leg. “Don’t be. We’ll get through this one way or another, trust me.”
“I do. It’s just been a hell of a night.”
He nodded but then said, “There were some good parts to your night though, right?”
She smiled, but didn’t turn her face in his direction. “Yes. There were some really good parts, too.” Staring out the window, she added, “You probably think I’m slutty for being so eager to fuck strangers, but—”
He cut her off. “No. I don’t think that at all. Women have the same urges as men. As long as you’re single and of a consenting age, you should be allowed to experience pleasure without society calling you names.”
“You are obviously not from around these parts.”
“No. But I like it here. I really like you. In my mind, we didn’t do anything wrong.”
Declan parked the SUV in the same place as before, and they headed into the room. Troy looked like he’d been pacing. The moment he saw Ava, he crossed the space in two strides and grabbed her into his arms, hugging her tight. “I’ve been so worried about you. Where did you go?”
“No time for that now,” Declan cut in. “Did Clay’s guy show up yet?”
Troy released Ava and set her back on the floor. “Not yet, but he called, and he’s on the way. Why?”
Declan pulled the edge of the dated curtain back and peeked out the window. “We had a brief run-in with the local law on the way back.”
“Shit. How’d you keep her from getting arrested?”
He dropped the curtain. “Ava told him a good story. But once he gets back to the sheriff’s station, he’s going to see that bogus warrant. I’m sure he got a good enough look at her, and he’ll probably come looking for the both of us.”
Troy made a face. “It’ll take him a while to track us down here though, won’t it?”
“No,” Ava said. “Unfortunately, I told him where we were staying when he asked.”
“Wanted to challenge us, did you?” he asked with a smile.
“Doesn’t matter.” Declan walked over to them. “I’d give him ten minutes, twenty minutes tops to come after us. The bottom line is that we don’t have the luxury of waiting here any longer than necessary. Can you call Clay’s friend and have him meet us elsewhere?”