Branded (Strand Brothers Series Book 1) (17 page)

Alex sat down and stroked his jaw thoughtfully. “What makes you suspect that?”

I threw my hands up. “Hell, if I know. Call it a hunch.”

“Hmm.”

E glanced over at him. “Whatcha got, Alex?”

“Well, I can see where Reynolds would think Nik is a threat as well.”

Yup, my thoughts exactly. E then voiced our cooperative thought, “Wouldn’t be the first time.”

“No, it wouldn’t,” I confirmed. “See the dilemma?”

Alex glanced up at me as he concluded, “If he gets a chance, odds are, you won’t survive.”

E piped up, “Wait! Was it ever proven Nik was the intended victim in the accident?”

Alex had suspected that for some time. I stalked away to stare out the window and was suddenly there all over again: I remembered frantically pumping my brakes. Rachel’s screams as the deer stood in the middle of the road and stared into the headlights; the storm which had blocked nearly all visuals. How the brakes refused to catch as the car careened out of control and down the embankment, finally coming to an abrupt stop against the huge pine tree with a sickening
thunk
. God, I couldn’t do this. Yet my brain refused to snap back into the present.

E called, “Nikko. Nik, can you hear me?”

I braced my hands against the floor to ceiling glass, panting. I fought the urge to scream and nodded once, hard. Alex and E came up on the either side of me; then, both of them placed a hand on each of my shoulders. Alex soothed, “We’ve got you.”

E affirmed, “Always.”

I continued to focus on breathing while I let the images pass. Once I had my act together, I mumbled, “Thanks.” Then I carefully disengaged from their hold. Their unfailing love never ceased to humble me. Even now, I couldn’t process it. Some day I hoped I could voice my love for them.
No, you can’t. If you do, they’ll die.
Would they? Or was that just fear talking? Aimee’s presence was messing with not only my body, but my mind as well. Normally emotional crap didn’t even hit my radar. Truth, my apathy knew no bounds. So why, suddenly, did I want to embrace them and tell them what they meant to me? I needed another drink, so I went to the bar for a refill.

Alex inquired, “Do you need me to make arrangements with the justice of the peace?”

“Nah,” I replied. “Aimee deserves to have her wedding in her hometown. As soon as she let’s me know the whens and wheres, I’ll have my assistant, Jamie, work out the details.”

E’s brow quirked. “You’re actually having a wedding?!”

I understood his reaction, and was not a little surprised at myself that I’d suggested such a thing. “Yeah,” I confirmed. “She deserves some form of normalcy. Plus, there will be a level of comfort for her where she grew up, don’t y’think?”

“It’s a great idea,” Alex approved and then shot me a peculiar look. “Are you sure
you’ll
be all right?”

Hell no! Yet there wasn’t really another option. For whatever reason, I wanted Aimee to have her special day. Forget the fact it was a marriage in
name
only. No way was I prepared to dive into the whys of the feelings that were stirring deep within me. Just was. I craved to provide for her in any way possible, as well as protect her. And the possessiveness I felt was only growing stronger with each passing minute.

“So, who’s your best man?” E smiled.

I shook my head and answered, “I can’t very well choose between the two of you.”

Alex shrugged. “I’m cool with E having his turn.”

I sighed heavily. How had I forgotten Alex was there at Rachel’s and my wedding? Though, he wasn’t eighteen at the time so he couldn’t be my best man—well, official witness. I asked, “No hard feelings, Alex?”

“None whatsoever,” he assured. “We’re good.”

I walked over to E and clapped his shoulder. “You asked for it.”

His grin was downright contagious. I actually cracked a smile at the same moment Aimee stepped into the room. With an odd expression, she stood there staring at me. If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear she wasn’t breathing. I looked to my brothers for some sort of insight. E shrugged his shoulders while Alex strode over to her and asked, “Everything all right, Aimee?” When he laid his hand on her upper back, I actually growled. E’s surprised look made me aware of just how loud I’d been. Alex immediately dropped his hand, all the while Aimee blinked hard several times.

She finally took a deep breath. I was right, she had been holding it. Why was that? “So, the wedding’s still on?” she asked as she held my gaze insistently. I nodded. Then, she shocked the hell out of me when she asserted, “Were you planning on asking me? Or do I have a say?”

Whoa! What’d I miss here? Alex and E politely left the room to give us some privacy. I stalked towards her and queried, “Didn’t we already settle this?”

She threw her hands up in exasperation. “Really?!” she exclaimed as she began to pace. “A wedding isn’t a business agreement!” she yelled.

“I beg to differ,” I countered.

“You would,” she huffed as she pivoted to face me. “In case you missed something, I
left
you this morning.”

I growled, “Yes. And you see where that got you.”

She marched up to me and began to poke my chest with her forefinger. “I’m fully aware of my error.
But
it doesn’t mean I’ll go through with this farce of a wedding.”

I grabbed her by the shoulders and hauled her up against me. “It’s the only way to keep Reynolds away from you,” I warned.

“You’re hurting me,” she cried.

Instantly I let her go, but I didn’t step back. Neither did she. “Surely you can see this is the only answer,” I imparted.

She shook her head in denial, yet I could see it in her eyes—she was quickly coming to the same conclusion. “But what if…”

I leaned down to where our mouths were only an inch apart.
What are you doing? Back off now before you kiss her.
“No buts. No what ifs.”

Her little, pink tongue snaked out to lick her bottom lip. I wanted to taste her right then and there. Unfortunately—or fortunately, depending on how you wanted to look at it—Alex interrupted us. “I’m sorry for the intrusion.” He inclined his head towards Aimee and then held my gaze. “We have a situation, Nik,” he announced.

“Now?” I inquired with irritation.

“Afraid so.” He had the decency to look apologetic.

“Okay.” I turned my attention back to Aimee and declared, “We’ll work out the details in a little while, alright?”

She half-smiled. “I’ll see you when you’re finished.”

I stepped away from her and followed my brother into the study. If I went by his purposeful stride, along with the staid look on E’s face when I entered, this was not something I wanted to hear.
Ah, shit. What now?

Chapter Twenty

Aimee

For all intents and purposes, I was getting married in the very near future. Put a whole new twist on “for better or for worse” when I considered the circumstances. Should I really marry a man I hardly know? Again with the niggling sensation in my gut, that, somehow, some way I did know Nik Strand. Well, duh. I mean, we had shared some intense moments. Doubtful the image of him pleasuring himself would ever truly disappear, not to mention him talking me through my own escapade. Yeah, I did know him intimately. Although I felt as if there were more, like I was missing something crucial. But what? Once more, I searched my memories, trying in vain, to figure out just how and/or where we could’ve met before. Nothing.
Gah, how frustrating!

As I approached the guestroom, the memory of his almost kiss began to haunt me. What would it feel like to have his sculpted mouth on mine? Better yet, to have those lips on my most private ones. Warm liquid pooled low at the thought. Clearly, I was not going to be able to stay away from him. If he really thought we could live without sex for any length of time, he was sorely mistaken. That smile of his nearly brought me to my knees right there in front of his brothers. Yes, we seriously were going to have to revise that part of our agreement. No way would I keep my hands—or anything else, for that matter—to myself.

It was quite the challenge to avoid touching myself as those thoughts danced through my head. I searched for a diversion and decided it was time to call my parents. The conversation went very well, all things considered. How often did your only daughter call and announce she’d be home soon with a bridegroom in tow? As always, my parents conveyed nothing but love for me, along with respect for my decision to marry a man they’d never even heard of before today. Mom concluded, “We can’t wait to meet the man that’s finally swept our girl off her feet.”

Shoot. How to counter that without giving anything away? “I’ll let you know the details once we have everything hammered out here. I love you both.”

Dad ended our call with, “We love you more, sweetie.”

If they only knew. No, that could never happen. I needed to remind Nik not to inform them of the truth about me. Goodness, they’d never recover from that info. And to think, I would have let Caleb tell the whole world. Truth was, I still would if that was what it took to get him to leave me alone. Well, didn’t make a difference anymore. Yet I wondered for the hundredth time, who did he think I was impersonating? Geez, the look on his face was pure malevolence. Like the devil himself had marked me as his target. Ooh, that thought caused a horrid chill. What I needed at the moment was a hot bath. My mission as I entered the bathroom: locate soothing salts. Before I called Renée or faced off with Nik once more, I definitely had to get my head on straight. After I put my iPod on shuffle, I sunk into the almost too hot tub of water. As I lay back and closed my eyes, Jae Camilo’s “Under My Spell” began to play. Yeah, if only that was the case with Nik. Then my problem would be solved.

I relaxed until the water was cool, then climbed out and wrapped a towel around my body. When I padded into the room to search for something comfy to put on, the song “How To Save A Life” by The Fray began to play. Instantaneously, I lost it. The song always reminded me of Cheryl, even though it didn’t release until four years after her death. Still, after all these years, I couldn’t believe she was gone. While I fell onto my knees in the middle of the room and sobbed for my dear, sweet cousin, I wished with all my heart I had known how to save
her
life. Lost to my pain and grief, I didn’t hear anyone enter, but suddenly, I was engulfed in thickly hewn arms.

“Hush, now,” Nik crooned gently. “I’m here.”

His words belied his very stature. How did such a large, muscled, dangerous man, speak so softly and with such compassion? Most of the time, he appeared apathetic. Yet there were times—
like these
—when he was anything but. I sank into his embrace and let go. He sat behind me and pulled me onto his lap while I cried. As the tears began to subside, he kindly asked, “Wanna talk about it?”

Yes, actually, I did. Though I wasn’t sure why I felt the need to share. “Remember when I told you about my cousin’s suicide?”

“Yeah.” He ran the pad of his thumb along my cheekbone, removing the moisture. “Is that why you’re so upset?”

I attempted a watery smile. “Doesn’t ever get easier, y’know?”

He nodded. Whether he ever chose to share the entire story about Rachel with me, I knew he very much understood loss. I gathered the courage necessary and forged ahead, “She was bullied mercilessly. She tried to tell her parents how bad it was, but they didn’t understand.” I shook my head. “I don’t think any of us really had a clear picture of the hell she endured, day in and day out.”

He stroked my back and waited patiently for me to go on with my story. I took a fortifying breath and continued, “You see, it wasn’t only the traditional BS that goes on in the hallways, at the lockers, in the gym, on the bus, and so on. No, those girls were ruthless.” I choked back another sob before I progressed, “They haunted her every waking moment through technology.”

“Did she report them?” The concern in his voice was almost my undoing.

“She’d changed her passwords, user names, cell numbers, et cetera many times. Still didn’t change a damn thing. Somehow they always got a hold of her info again. Everyone’s hands were tied. The police couldn’t help, no one could. It was unbearable. I tried every way in the world to help her, but she slipped further and further into depression.”

“What’d your parents have to say?”

“Well, as much as anyone else. You know things like: ‘Stay positive.’ ‘This too shall pass.’ ‘You’re better than them; don’t stoop to their level.’ ” I tugged on the towel that was precariously slipping to an indecent position and sighed heavily. “Looking back now, it was stupid. We should’ve done
more
for her. Got her some kind of help.” I shrugged. “I don’t know,
something
.”

“Hey, don’t blame yourself. You were just a kid. Even the adults didn’t know how to handle the situation.”

“Didn’t change the outcome.” Tears began to slide down my face once more. “She called me right before she took those pills. She told me how she couldn’t live one more day like that. I just didn’t understand.” The sobs began again.

He soothed me with his hands and kissed the top of my head. I courageously let the rest out. “The call came around midnight. My parents rushed me up to the hospital. By the time we arrived, it was too late. She was gone.”

“I’m so sorry, Aimee. Really, I am.” When I looked up, his brows were furrowed, as if he couldn’t quite grasp how much he understood my loss. Why was that?

I exhaled loudly. “Like I said, it was a long time ago. That song just brings back the memories.”

“Is that really the
only
reason?”

No. But did I feel the need to confess that? “I doubt you want me to bear my soul here.”

A ghost of a smile played at the corners of his mouth. “I asked for it.”

I did grin at that. “Fair enough. I confess, I’m overwhelmed by all of this.” I waved my hands for emphasis.

“You mean the wedding?”

“Well, yeah. That and”—I squirmed figuratively—“the expectations of our marriage.” There, it was now out in the open.