Fearless (19 page)
She grabbed the nearest pillow and hurled it at his head, but he caught it in mid-air. “Get the hell out of here,” she cried. “I don’t need you, I don’t need anyone.”
He smirked. “So you’ve said. Enjoy your life of solitude, Lexi. I hope you like cats. They may be your only companions in the not too distant future.” He tossed the pillow back at her. “Have a nice life.”
Lexi lay in her bed for the next twenty minutes with her eyes closed, pretending to be asleep in case Josh felt inclined to say good-bye. She didn’t want him to say good-bye. She didn’t want him to leave at all. She had been counting on at least four more days with him. Four more days to say all the things that were in her heart before she had to let him go. Now she had only a few minutes before he was out the door and out of her life.
She still had time to slip down the stairs and apologize, but it wouldn’t change anything between them. She knew their brief relationship and their long-time friendship was over. There was no going back now. She couldn’t pretend she wasn’t in love with him any more than she could pretend she was going to be willing to give him the commitment he needed.
She heard the door slam and buried her head under the covers. She would have to go down and lock the door, but she wanted to make sure he was out of sight first. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing she felt safer with him in her house, in her bed, in her life. She was a strong, independent woman who could look after herself. She had been looking after herself since she was a teenager and Sierra went off to college, long before she had the financial resources she had now. She had worked hard to secure her financial future, build a business and a life that made her proud. She didn’t need a man to complete the picture, especially not an opinionated, arrogant, jealous man who tried to convince her to rethink her life plan.
The cell phone on her bedside table vibrated and she grabbed it, hoping the call display would reveal the familiar number. Instead, it read ‘unknown,’ and a feeling of dread overcame her. If someone were watching her, watching the house, they’d know she was alone. She pressed the connect button and ran downstairs to secure the doors and windows before setting the alarm.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Lexi. It’s Mark. I hope I didn’t catch you at a bad time?”
Mark. Had he been watching her house? He wouldn’t have risked calling her unless he knew Josh had left. She set the lock and leaned against the heavy wood door, trying to catch her breath.
“What do you want, Mark?” She peeked out the narrow panel of glass beside the door, half-expecting to see him on her doorstep. The dark street was deserted, except for a neighbor walking his dog.
“I thought we should talk. Can I come over?”
He had to know she was alone. He wouldn’t have asked to see her if he thought Josh might be there. “Uh, I don’t think so. I was just going to meet a friend for a drink.”
“Great, where are you going? I can meet you there.”
“I have nothing to say to you, Mark. Good-bye.” Her trembling finger pressed the disconnect button and she waited to see if he would call back. Within seconds, the phone buzzed, letting her know she had a text message.
Please don’t do this. I need to see you. M
She clenched the phone in her hand. Should she ignore him or ask him to leave her alone? At any other time, she would have picked up the phone and called Josh to ask his advice about getting rid of a persistent suitor, but he wouldn’t be there to offer advice or pick up the pieces for her anymore. It scared her to realize how much she’d come to rely on him. While she was still trying to decide how to respond to the first message, the phone buzzed again, startling her.
I know your boyfriend left. Did you have a fight?
She quickly typed in a response.
Leave me alone.
She prayed he would listen, but her gut told her that was too much to hope for.
The doorbell rang and she jumped back, looking for anything she might be able to use as a weapon. She spotted the fireplace poker by the hearth in the living room and tiptoed across the room to grab it. She hunkered down in a chair, hoping the incessant ringing would stop. She heard a voice call her name through the window beside her.
She screamed, scrambling to the other side of the room. It wasn’t Mark; it was a man she’d never seen before. He flashed what appeared to be a police badge.
“Lexi, I’m Josh’s friend, Derek,” he shouted. “Can I come in?”
She ran to the door, poker in hand. She set the chain and opened the door a crack, peeking through. “How do I know you’re a friend of Josh’s?”
He smiled. “You’re a smart lady, Lexi. Here are my credentials and I.D. Hell, I think I even have a picture of Josh and me on my phone here somewhere.” He slipped the badge and identification through the crack in the door while he scanned his phone. He held up his phone to display the photo. There was a group of men sitting around a table in what appeared to be a bar. Josh was sitting beside Derek, his arm around his shoulder.
She slid the chain off, pulling the door open. “I’m so glad you’re here,” she whispered. As she spoke, her phone vibrated in her hand. “Oh God, it’s him again.” She glanced at the screen.
Who the hell is that guy?
Derek stepped inside, closing and locking the door behind him. He took the fire poker out of her hand and set it against the wall. “Okay, why don’t you tell me what’s going on, Lexi?”
“Mark, Chris’s cousin. He’s watching the house. He knows Josh left and he’s demanding to see me.”
He pointed to her phone. “Do you mind if I have a look?”
She handed it to him, crossing her arms over her mid-section. “I had no idea he was watching me. I don’t think Josh knew either.”
Derek frowned. “That doesn’t sound like Josh to me. He’s always been so vigilant when there’s a threat. Could he have been distracted?”
She felt the heat creep up her neck.
He chuckled. “Say no more.” He gestured toward the living room. “Mind if we have a seat? I need to get some more information about this stalker.”
Her stomach plummeted. “My God, you really think he’s stalking me?”
“If these messages are anything to go by, I’d say yes.” Derek claimed the chair next to the fireplace. “Josh told me about this guy, but he didn’t seem to think he’d be bothering you again. Guess my old buddy underestimated him, didn’t he?”
She sank down in the chair across from Derek, watching him scroll through the text messages on her phone. “What should I do?” she asked, feeling terrified and helpless. She was grateful Derek was there with her, but she wished Josh were there to hold her and reassure her.
He stood up. “Chances are he’s long gone, but I’m gonna go outside and check things out.” He pulled his gun out.
She gasped. “Please be careful.”
He smiled. “Just another day in the life of a cop, Lexi.”
That made her think of Josh and all the years he had spent putting his life on the line, protecting innocent civilians like her. He was still a hero; the fact that he jumped on a plane to come to her aid proved that, and she had repaid him with callous words he didn’t deserve. She wished she could rewind the last hour of her life so she could have Josh back in her home and her bed.
“You stay put, okay?”
She nodded, taking her cell phone from his hand. “I feel bad putting you in this situation, Derek. You’re not even on duty.”
He grinned, flashing a bright white smile through his dark goatee. “Josh has had my back more times than I can count. We were partners once, way back when. I was glad to help him out.”
She watched his retreating form as he passed through the doorway into the foyer. Josh was right. Derek was her type: tall, dark, and sexy. Had it not been for the fact that Josh had taken up permanent residence in her mind, she might be interested in the handsome cop. As it was, her only thoughts were of Josh and how she was going to get out of this mess.
Josh glanced at his cell phone as people milled about the terminal waiting area. His plane would be boarding soon, but he knew if Derek was calling, it must be important. He pressed the button to answer the call. He quickly made his way to a quieter section of the terminal, away from the buzz of excited travellers. “What’s up, buddy?”
“Man, I hate to tell you this, but we got a problem here.”
Josh sank into a seat facing the window where the planes were loading cargo. “What do mean? What kind of problem?”
“That Mark guy is staking out Lexi’s place. It looks like he’s got it bad for your girlfriend.”
Josh clenched his fist, furious with himself. He had been so caught up with getting her into bed that he had failed to do the job he had promised to do: protect her. “For the record, she’s not my girlfriend, Derek.”
He whooped. “Well, hot damn, that’s the best news I’ve heard all year.”
Josh felt a fresh wave of fury wash over him. Derek was one of his closest friends, but he would tear him apart if he laid a hand on Lexi. “Keep your hands off her, Derringer.”
He laughed. “Relax; you think I don’t know the deal? You can pretend she’s a friend, but I know you, remember?”
“Just tell me what this dickhead’s been up to.”
“It seems he was staked out in front of her house earlier. He saw you leave and started calling and texting her. He was demanding to see her.”
Josh tried to recall whether there had been any cars parked on the street when he got into his cab. He was usually hyper-aware of anything or anyone that looked suspicious, but when he left Lexi’s house, his only thought had been whether she would try to stop him. When she didn’t, he slunk down in the back of the cab and closed his eyes, shutting out the cabbie’s voice and the low drone of the country music station on the radio. He replayed every minute of their time together in slow motion, reliving every word, every kiss, every touch, knowing it would be their last. “I’m gonna head back over there, man. Lexi must be scared out of her mind.”
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Coop.”
“Why the hell not?”
“I think we have a better chance of nailing this guy if he knows you’re not around.”
Josh knew his friend was right. Mark hadn’t come out of hiding until he left, and he wouldn’t show his face or tip his hand again unless Josh was out of sight. Still, the thought of going home and sitting on his hands, losing sleep over whether Lexi was safe, would make him crazy. “Derek, you gotta promise to keep me up to date. I mean I want hourly reports, night and day.”
“You got it, brother. Don’t worry; your lady’s in good hands with me. You know I’ll take care of her.”
Josh knew that was true, but his gut told him he was the one who should be there protecting Lexi, holding her hand, making her feel safe, not Derek. “All right, my plane’s boarding soon. So what’s the plan, a restraining order?”
“Yeah, we’ll get a restraining order. You know with guys like this, restraining orders aren’t worth the paper they’re written on. He’ll violate it, and we’ve got him.”
“Okay, sounds good. I’ll call you when I get home. Thanks again, Derek.”
“You got it, buddy. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ve got it covered.”
The final days of the trial were a nightmare for Lexi. Between dodging the press and Mark, she was exhausted. The press learned of her involvement in the high-profile case after her testimony, and once her connection to Trey was uncovered, pandemonium ensued. Reporters were camped out on her doorstep asking questions about her involvement with Chris, whether she believed he was capable of committing such a heinous act, and how her family felt about her involvement in the case.
Trey had been able to convince Sierra to accompany him on a brief trip to Europe to promote his upcoming tour, but they were due back today. Any hope that her sister may be spared the gruesome details of her relationship with Chris were quashed when she woke up to a picture of her bloody and battered face alongside that of Chris’s deceased wife on the front page of the morning newspaper.
Derek peeked over her shoulder. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered.
She dropped her head in her hands. “You can say that again. How the hell am I going to explain this to my sister? She’s pregnant, and this kind of stress is the last thing she needs right now.”
Derek poured two cups of coffee, adding cream and sugar to his before setting both mugs down on the table. “Her husband knew about this, right?”
She took the mug he offered. “Thanks. Yeah, Josh told Trey about it before he came out here. But we’d hoped to keep it from Sierra.”
He picked up the paper and glanced at the photo. “Doesn’t look like that’s gonna happen now.”
She scraped her fingernails over her scalp. “Damn it, why didn’t I consider the impact this would have on my family? I never should have agreed to testify against him.”
He reached across the table and grabbed her hand. “You did it because you wanted to see him get what he deserved. You wanted justice for that woman’s family. You did the right thing, Lexi.”
She smiled and squeezed his hand, grateful for his support. She could understand why Josh counted Derek among his closest friends. He had been her rock over the past several days, often staying up half the night to listen to her vent. “Thanks, Derek. Tell me, why hasn’t some smart lady snapped you up by now?”
He grinned over the rim of his coffee cup. “Same reason you’re single. I’m not willing to compromise”
She smiled before indulging in a sip of the steaming brew. Raising her cup, she said, “Here’s to maintaining our single status.”
He touched his mug against hers. “Cheers.” He paused. “You ever think about what it might be like to have someone to come home to at the end of the day?”
She had been thinking about it more lately, especially when she crawled into bed in the wee hours of the night, scared and alone, longing for the feel of Josh’s strong arms around her. “I don’t know, maybe once in a while, when I have a weak moment.”