All I Need Is You (5 page)

Kay grabbed her handbag. “I’m sure I won’t be out that long.” Although it would please her friend immensely if she was. Sasha had never agreed with her decision to give up on Elliott. If her friend had her way, Kay would have followed him to Northern Virginia and cornered him with an offer he couldn’t refuse.

“A girl can always hope,” Sasha whispered.

Kay pasted a smile on her face and zipped up her coat. “I guess we’d better go, then.” She turned to Jackson and Mac. “Sorry to run out on you. Hopefully we can finish tomorrow.”

“Whenever. Like I said, we’re ahead of schedule.” Jackson exchanged another one of those silent looks with Matt. “I think I’ll come with you guys if you don’t mind.”

“I can close up, Jack.” Mac offered her a sympathetic smile.
 

“Thanks, man. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Jackson retrieved his own coat and followed them out into the freezing night air.
 

He waved at them before getting into his sedan. Sasha gave Kaylee another quick hug. “Call me tomorrow with details. Hopefully something juicy.”

“I doubt there will be anything good to report.” She waited, Matt at her side while her friend unlocked her little economy car and got inside. Then she followed Matt over to his truck. He unlocked it with the remote on his keychain and she threw her stuff on the floor of the cab before hoisting herself up into the seat.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s really going on now?”

Matt glanced over at her. His eyes were so dark she could barely make out the color in the dim interior of the vehicle, but she couldn’t miss his smirk. “You thought I was joking before? When have you ever known boss man to be forthcoming with details?”

Kay couldn’t argue with that. Eli Alexander didn’t like unnecessary questions and rarely bothered with explanations at all. She was probably lucky he’d told Matt anything at all instead of just ordering him to drag her by her hair back to his parents’ house.

“Hold on, I think this is him now.” Matt pulled out his phone and turned on the speakerphone. “Eli, I’m here with Kay now.”

“Good. I don’t want to get into specifics over the phone, but I need to ask her a few questions.”

“Okay, what do you need to know?” Kay asked.

“Are you dating anyone? Specifically, anyone with access to your apartment.”

Kay flushed. Matt kept his eyes on the road, but there was no way she was imagining the sudden tension in the car. It had to be as awkward for him as it was for her.
 

“No. I’ve been too busy recording and working. The only men I see on a regular basis are your brothers and my dad.”

Eli grunted on the other end of the line. “What about Hope’s father? He hasn’t come around recently has he?”

“No. That would require him to acknowledge her existence. Something he doesn’t really want to do.”

“Have you noticed anyone hanging around? Seen anyone who doesn’t look right near the studio or anything?”

Kay exchanged a glance with Matt. He looked as worried as she felt. “Not that I’ve noticed. Am I in danger? I thought the guy who sent those letters was in prison.”

“He is.” Eli paused. “I just received something in the mail that makes me think we might have gotten the wrong guy.”

KAYLEE SAT UP to accept the cup of warm cocoa Julia Alexander pressed into her hands. She’d already been wrapped in a warm blanket and given a plate of cookies to munch on. If Eli didn’t get here soon, she was going to be delirious and in a sugar coma from all the mothering.

“Thank you so much, Mrs. Alexander. You really didn’t need to go to so much trouble.”

“Please, call me Julia. You’re practically family.” Julia fussed around her, adjusting the blanket and tidying the items on the side table.
 

Kay observed her over the top of the mug, wondering what it was about the woman that put everyone instantly at ease. It wasn’t so much that Julia looked different from her own mother, it was that she
felt
different. She exuded a warmth that suggested she would always have a hug and a smile ready for anyone who needed them. Julia Alexander accepted people as they were. She wasn’t looking for imperfections in the people she met or searching for things to criticize.
 

“Thank you, Mrs.… Miss Julia,” she stammered. It was nearly impossible for her to call an older person by their first name. She’d never been allowed to growing up so now she found, it just felt wrong.

“Such a sweet girl. I can tell you were raised right. I still can’t call Mark’s mother by her first name, either. Now, you just drink your cocoa and relax. Hopefully Eli will be here soon.” She patted Kay’s knee and then walked back to the kitchen.
 

Matt stood by the window, his shoulders tense as he peered out the window into the night. It was disconcerting to see him so on edge. He wasn’t exactly a happy-go-lucky kind of guy, but once she’d gotten to know him, she’d discovered he had a quick wit and a surprisingly similar sense of humor. Usually, he entertained her with stories about his other jobs and the changes his girlfriend, Penny, was making to his house. So it was even weirder that he’d been so closed off and tense since picking her up.
 

“It’s getting late. Can’t Eli just meet us at my place? I’m really tired.”

Matt’s lips thinned before he glanced down at his cell phone again. “Eli is almost here. I think he wanted to talk to you first.”

“Okay.” There wasn’t much else to say, so she sat back into the plush cushions of the couch and sipped her cocoa. Someone walked by and she looked up to see the lanky frame of Eli’s older brother, Bennett. He was completely absorbed with reading something on his tablet and almost bumped into the doorframe. He did a double take when he saw Kay on the couch and glanced around as if unsure where he was.
 

“Oh, hello. I didn’t know we had guests.” He exchanged a handshake with Matt and then sat on the edge of the couch next to Kay. “How have you been?” He pushed up his glasses but didn’t look directly at her.
 

The palest of the Alexander brothers, with his long slender body and hazel eyes, Bennett always seemed as though he’d accidentally wandered into the wrong family. Conversations with him were usually slightly strange, but Kay had come to enjoy their random interactions. He seemed interested in what she had to say no matter how inconsequential.

“I’ve been great. I was recording some new songs with Jackson tonight. But apparently Eli needs to talk to me, so here I am.”
 

Bennett’s brow crinkled as he considered her words. “That’s strange. Why wouldn’t he just call you? Or drive to the studio so he didn’t have to interrupt your work?”

She glanced over at Matt again. “I’m not exactly sure.”

Bennett crossed his arms. “If Elliott asked Matthew to bring you here, he must be concerned about your safety. I was doing some research but I think I’ll stick around for a while and keep you company.”

“Okay, thanks. That would be nice. Why don’t you tell me about your research?”

Bennett sat back and placed the tablet in his lap. “Oh, this? I’m just looking into recent legislation regarding GMOs. That’s—”

“Genetically modified organisms, right?”

Bennett smiled then, a genuine smile, and looked at her directly for the first time. “Yes, that’s right. There’s been a lot of controversy surrounding their use and for good reason. However, I’m working on developing several vegetables that can grow under adverse conditions.”

“You are? Geez, all I did today was sing a few love songs.”
 

Bennett flushed. Even the tops of his ears turned pink. “The arts are a science unto themselves. We need things that make us happy just like we need food.”

While Kay agreed, she was still a little flustered. He was so smart it was kind of scary. “Tell me more about the vegetables you’re working on.”

“Well, I’ve identified a few key crops that would benefit the most. Soy, corn, and wheat to start. Imagine what it could mean for people around the world to have food that grows even through periodic drought or extreme heat. We could end hunger. Or at least make a dent in it.”

Kay tried to follow the conversation, but after too many phrases like
easy propagation
,
mediated transformation,
and
plant genome
, she gave up on understanding. Either way, it was a joy to see Bennett so passionate about something.
 

And it was definitely better than wondering exactly when Eli would walk through the door.

NORMALLY ELI WOULD have ignored his cell phone while driving, but if there was a chance it was Matt calling, he didn’t want to risk missing it.
 

“This is Eli.”

“Hey man, it’s Matt. I’ve got Kay and we’re at your parents’ house.”

Eli let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. A million and one things had gone through his mind when he’d gotten that figurine. Mainly that this nut job had been in Kay’s apartment. Could in fact be in her apartment at that very moment. All he’d cared about was making sure she was safe. He’d spent the last half hour worrying they’d be assaulted or run off the road before Matt could get them to his parents’ house.

“How is she doing?”

“She’s fine. Just a little annoyed that I interrupted her recording session. I know you wanted to talk to her yourself, but she keeps asking what’s going on. What should I tell her?”

Now that he knew they’d reached his parents’ house safely, he could take a step back and think. Who could have sent the figurine and more importantly, why? When she’d first started receiving threatening letters the previous year, they’d gone through her life with a fine-tooth comb. He’d scrutinized her family and friends, her acquaintances and coworkers. Anyone she came into contact with on a regular basis had been suspect. Everyone had checked out with the exception of the man who’d eventually been arrested. So Eli was forced to face an uncomfortable truth.
 

He must have missed something.

“Tell her I’ll be there soon.” He hung up and focused on the road. As he passed the familiar streets leading to his parents’ farm, a sense of calm stole over him. By the time he pulled into the long drive leading to the ranch-style home, some of the stress he’d been carrying for the past few hours melted away. He parked behind Matt’s truck and got out.
 

His father, Mark Alexander, poked his head out of the garage. “There you are. You made good time.”
 

“There wasn’t much traffic since it’s so late.” Eli averted his eyes. Even without traffic, he’d still arrived a half an hour faster than usual. He’d made excellent time because he’d been speeding most of the way. He doubted if his evasiveness fooled his father. Mark Alexander always saw way more than Eli would have liked him to.

“That’s a nice girl in there. Is she in danger?”

Trust his dad to get right to the heart of things.
 

“I’m not sure yet. But I plan on protecting her until I know for sure.”

Mark nodded and clapped him on the shoulder. “I wouldn’t have expected anything less.” Then he ambled back into the garage, no doubt to tinker with his old truck or one of the tractors.

Eli jumped over the few steps to the front of the house and then opened the door with his key. Light, warmth and the sweet scent of his mother’s baking hit him all at once. Kay sat snuggled on the couch under a blanket next to his older brother, and Eli’s eyes immediately homed in on her. When she saw him, she clutched the mug she was holding closer to her chest like a shield.

Bennett stood then and nodded at Kay. “Well, I’d better get going. It was nice to see you again, Kaylee.”

He shook hands with his older brother absently before his attention was drawn back to Kay. She looked like a bundle of softness from the nubby texture of her soft blue sweater to the jumble of kinky curls she’d piled on top of her head in a bun. Her brown eyes sparkled as she took a small sip from her cup.
 

Eli yanked at the buttons of his coat and snatched off the knit hat protecting his bald head from the cold and wind. Kay watched him over the rim of her cup but didn’t speak as he drew closer.