Serenity's Deception (Texas Sorority Sisters Book 1) (25 page)

T
he bullfrog and crickets serenade the impromptu picnic. BJ and Jason allowed the companionable silence to fall down around them. They didn’t have to talk. Just being in one another’s company was enough.

On the quilt, BJ, head on a pillow, watched the sun move lower in the sky. Jason sat with his back up against the oak tree where he’d stood a little over four weeks ago watching her take the pictures of the mallards. So much had transpired since that night, so much so, it seemed like eons ago.

Jason glanced down at BJ and gave her a smile. There was something different in his gaze. She didn’t dare hope his look meant more than friendship though she wanted more … so much more. He hadn’t kissed her except that one night. Though he’d been attentive, he had never offered intimacy again. If friendship was all he had to give, she would take what he offered.

BJ cherished her times with Jason—their talks, learning about his past, even him working with her to move beyond her extreme hatred of Madelyne. Jason’s wisdom had shown BJ nothing good would come from harboring her intense hate or dredging up the past. Though not complete, her healing had begun. She could actually think of the woman who brought her into this world without loathing.

Sitting up, she looked at the man who was so dear to her. “Jason.” She waited until he looked at her.

“Yes?” He watched her intently.

“Thanks for being here for me. I still can’t say I’m perfectly okay with Madelyne. What she did, I’ll never understand, but I don’t judge her as harshly. In fact, I feel sorry for her.”

Jason’s hand covered hers. She relished his touch. All those years she had lived without this man were empty and meaningless. She prayed he’d give her another chance.

~~~

Jason couldn’t believe how much BJ had changed in four weeks. He knew he loved her, but was uncertain if she felt the same. But it was now or never. He had to make his move.

“Remember the day when I retrieved the snake out of your car?” He witnessed the furrows between her brows. Fairly certain she didn’t know where he was headed with this line of questioning, he smiled inwardly.

“Yes?”

“When you said you
owed me big time
?” No longer able to hold back his grin, he displayed it proudly when BJ showed bewilderment. “Well … I’d like to collect now.”

“Collect what?”

“I’m calling in your marker.”

“My what?”

He loved to see her mind working feverishly to make sense of what he was saying. “Your chit. Your IOU.”

Finally dawning on her, she dimpled up. “You name it, you can have it. Of course, within reason.” Her laughter was music to his ears.

“Great! That’s just what I wanted to hear.”

“What do you have in mind in way of payment, Mr. O’Connell?”

“I would like for you to accept my invitation for dinner to Eddie V’s in Austin. How ’bout it?”

“Eddie V’s—
wow.
Pulling out the big dogs, huh? I think I can spring for it.” She laughed. “I’d love to. When?”

“No, you won’t be paying for it, I will. I just want your company. Friday night, will that work?”

“Sure. I’m free.”

“Good. I’ll pick you up at the front door at six o’clock.”

“Six, Friday night. It’s a date.”

The sparkle in her eyes made him want to gather her up in his arms and kiss her senseless. He refrained even though it was harder than anything he had done in a long while. The kiss and telling her how much he loved her would come later, when everything was just right. Friday night. He hoped she felt the same about him, but he was going to make his move. But it was getting harder and harder to refrain from telling her just how much he loved her and wanted her for the rest of his life, if she would have him.

Don’t let her chop that limb out from under me again, Lord. I don’t think I could survive the fall this time.

O
utside BJ’s office window, a new container with a huge, hearty plant sat on the terrace to replace the old shattered one. No pottery shards, black soil, or traumatized fern. Everything back to normal, only the terrifying memories remained but there had been a bonus … that night she and Jason reconnected.

In many respects, BJ was glad for that night. If it weren’t for the fear of something happening again to her or Jason, she would be ecstatic. Their nightly ritual of talking and bonding had given BJ a ray of hope of more than friendship. Her love for Jason had never stopped, but she was uncertain of his feelings. Friendship or something more? Tomorrow night might give her the answer. Eddie V’s was expensive. Maybe, just maybe.

Ever lurking in the back of her mind—something would happen to take him from her again.

Her cell rang and BJ pressed the button on the Bluetooth receiver hugging her ear. “Good morning, BJ Spencer.”

“Hey, funny face.”

All the dark thoughts faded with the cheery greeting. “Hi, Randi. What’s up?”

“Just calling to let you know I’ll be there this afternoon. Should arrive around twoish. And we need to talk.”

The tone of Randi’s voice caused a knot to form in BJ’s stomach. “Something I need to know now? Not backing out on me, are you?”

Randi’s light laughter eased the tension. “No. Not hardly. With what you’re paying me, shoot, I could retire before I’m fifty. So I don’t plan on bailing on you yet.”

“Yet?
Hmm
.”

“You worry too much.”

 “Then what?”

“It’s about the books for Heritage House. I’ve been going over them and I found several discrepancies. Some things don’t seem to quite match up.” Randi gave a slight pause. “I don’t want to discuss it over the telephone—too complicated. I’ll show you when I get there. It might be nothing, but …”

“All right, I’ll see you this afternoon. And I’ve got a few things to tell you too.” She figured the smile in her voice wouldn’t slip Randi’s notice.

“Oho. Me thinks me smells a juicy morsel. By any chance does the tidbit have anything to do with the delectable Jason O’Connell?”

“Like you, I don’t wish to discuss such things over the phone … too complicated.” BJ gave a lighthearted laugh. “I’ll see you this afternoon. Be safe.” She disconnected before Randi could counter and prod her for more.

Z
itt-zitt.
BJ looked at the missed call, punched the button to retrieve her voice mail.

This is Mateo Hernandez, Jason’s foreman. Jason is in a meeting and asked me to call. He’d like you to meet him at Fielder’s Pond in an hour. He said to tell you he had a surprise.

BJ’s pulse raced at the thought of Jason wanting to see her in an hour. A surprise? She couldn’t imagine what it could be but after their new beginning, anything would be special.

She went in search of Sidney, told him where she was headed, minus the get-together part with Jason, but would be home in plenty of time for Randi’s arrival at two. Within minutes she was in her Jeep heading down the road, her camera equipment in the back. She figured she’d show up early and use the extra time to take photographs and hopefully, when Jason got there, take a few more pictures of him.

Thoughts of the shooting niggled at her mind. She still wasn’t convinced that Chief Doggett was behind it or the text messaging. Yet the threats and the target practice could have come from an overzealous person in town wanting to scare her away for the inheritance. But whoever they were, she wasn’t running.

Willing herself to relax, she began to enjoy several sightings of wildflowers alongside the road and a field of phlox in and among the post oaks. The beauty of the flowers weren’t enough to erase her troubles or to keep them at a distance, but her anxieties weren’t as dark and looming in her mind as before.

BJ was jarred out of her reverie with a tap on her bumper. “Hey!”

She looked up into her rearview. An oversized black truck, a huge chrome brush-guard across the front was less than ten feet from her Jeep’s backend. The windows were tinted and she couldn’t make out the driver gaining on her once again. Before she could react, another tap, harder this time, jerking her around, causing her tires to lose traction. Her Jeep began to fishtail across the white hatch marks on the road before she could gain control and swing the Jeep back into her own lane.

BJ tromped the accelerator to put distance between her and the truck. She noticed the sign for the curve ahead. Releasing the gas, she applied her brakes. The truck slammed into the backend harder this time, but didn’t ease up, causing her to swerve. He shoved her down the road, gaining speed. Smoke bellowed out from her tires.

She gripped the wheel, prepared to make the curve. She knew she had a one in a million chance to make the turn. Beads of sweat popped out on her forehead. A tingling sensation began in her armpits then began spreading through her weakened limbs. She knew there was nothing she could do except try to make the curve and … pray.

The screech of tires on asphalt and the smell of burning rubber surrounded her as she attempted without success to slow her car. All her efforts hampered by the truck pushing her faster and faster down the road.

Too late to gain control of her swerving Jeep or stop from taking the twenty-five-mile-an-hour turn at sixty-five, her wheels locked. The surreal and nightmarish feeling of sliding sideways, leaping through the air over the bar ditch held BJ in a dreamlike state of impending doom.

She screamed a prayer. The Jeep tumbled side over side. The metal ripped and crumbled around her, tearing at her flesh. That’s when BJ knew she was going to die.

H
e slammed on his brakes watching the car in front of him fishtail as she attempted to make the curve. Cranking his steering wheel a hard left, out of his peripheral, the black Jeep caught air and flew over the ditch sideways, landing hard, bounced then rolled over several times.

His tires hit gravel and for a moment he thought he was going to end up in the ditch alongside the Jeep. His wheels struck pavement, griped the blacktop, swinging around the curve before swerving all over the road. By the time he stopped his truck, the dust from the Wrangler had settled and steam bellowed out from under the hood. He didn’t see any sign of Goldilocks.

Checking the road both ways, he parked, jumped out of the cab. At a dead-out run he leapt over the ditch landing halfway up the other side as he clawed himself upright to climb the rest of the way. Uncertain how anyone could survive such a crash, he picked his way through glass and metal, around the torn-off driver’s door, noticing the shredded hardtop several yards away. He stepped over pieces of a Nikon and a camera bag completely annihilated. Steam continued to pour out from beneath the sprung hood, and the mixture of antifreeze along with burnt rubber filled his nostrils.

Moving around the mangled car, he saw Goldilocks hanging limp from her seat belt, a pool of blood on the passenger’s door. He felt for a pulse and barely found one. Pulling the switchblade from his pocket, he reached in and in one fluid movement severed the seat belt allowing her body to crash down onto the door, her left leg still tangled in the gearshift. He pulled her loose, dragged her from the wreckage, then left her in the tall grass before he sprinted back to his truck, her moans echoing in his ears.

He backed his truck up around the curve to a low spot where he could cross the ditch, driving through the downed fencing, before stopping next to Goldilocks. She was still out cold, which served his purpose fine.

Stooping, he brushed the hair from her face watching her for a moment before cradling her limp body in his arms, never expecting his body’s immediate reaction of holding her battered flesh next to his. Breathing in deep, he filled his lungs with her sweet, fresh smell, along with the smell of blood, and knew he’d have to get a handle on his emotions.

She’s a job. Now finish it.

None too gently, he shoved her onto the bench seat and then slammed the door. Furtively glancing around, he hopped into the driver’s seat. Without looking at Goldilocks, he sped off across the field.

J
ason tried several times to reach BJ on her cell phone, but each time it went to voice mail. He’d left messages, even texted, but never heard back from her. She must be busy working and unable to answer. Hungry to hear her voice and see her face, he raced up the private road to The Rose and parked in the circular drive. He took the front steps two at a time.

Funny how, in the past few weeks, he began to think of this Austin stone monstrosity as home. BJ made the difference. She was becoming an obsession with him. So much so he could hardly keep his mind on work or anything else. It might be too soon, but he wanted to marry her. Maybe after he did, this craziness might stop, but he knew it wouldn’t, he loved BJ too much.

Before he could open the door, out flew Randi practically in his arms. “Whoa.”

“Oh, sorry.” She made to step around him.

“Where are you heading in such an all-fired hurry?” He looked past her. “Is BJ with you?”

“No. That’s just it. I’m worried about her. I’m going to find her.”

“What do you mean
you’re worried about her
?” Panic stabbed his gut when he saw the anxious look on Randi’s face.

“She was supposed to be here to meet with me at two o’clock, but she hasn’t made it back.”

“Back? Back from where?” Jason didn’t like the sound of this.

“Fielder’s Pond. Sidney said she left shortly after ten saying she’d be here in plenty of time before I arrived. But she hasn’t. And she doesn’t answer her cell either. Jason, this isn’t like BJ. Unlike me, she’s always punctual or she calls.” Randi wrung her hands.

Jason turned on his heels and charged down the steps, jumping into his Jeep. “Call Robby, tell him what you told me. Tell him I’m headed out to Fielder’s pond to look for her. Have him meet me out there
ASAP
.”

“Jason—”

Jason didn’t wait to hear what Randi yelled at him, just tromped the accelerator, peeling rubber as he headed toward the gate. Something wasn’t right. He couldn’t put his finger on the why, but he was certain BJ was in trouble.

By the time he reached the farm-to-market road to Fielder’s Pond, his speedometer read 75 and climbing. He knew this road like the back of his hand and also knew he would be approaching the curve just before the turnoff to the pond. He let up on the gas when he noticed several sets of dark, heavy skid marks on the blacktop that led to the edge of the road. Across the ditch in the field, a stark contrast to the green grass, he saw debris and the undercarriage of a car on its side.

Terror ripped at his insides as he brought his truck to a stop facing the carnage of metal. Even from this distance he knew whose car he was looking at. For one brief moment Jason felt the horrible fear of loss. His hand slammed hard on the steering wheel as anguish filled his heart. He’d lived this nightmare before, but this time his heart felt as though it was being ripped from his chest and he didn’t want to survive if it meant he’d lost BJ again.

“No, God! Not Billy Jo.
Please
.”