Page 59 of Secrets Beneath the Waves (Beach Read Thrillers #2)

CHAPTER

THIRTEEN

Why had she agreed to this again? Jules slumped against the passenger seat of Dante’s Mazda, staring out the side window at the endless expanse of lakes and mountains and trees just beginning to turn gold and orange and scarlet in the cool autumn nights. This was breathtaking country.

It certainly wasn’t viewing the scenery that she was second-guessing but the fact that she had agreed to this crazy plan of Dante’s.

She shifted on the seat. Too late now. And maybe it wasn’t the worst idea.

Her captain had informed her that he didn’t want to see her back at work for at least a week, and she was getting a little tired of looking over her shoulder every second for the monster who refused to leave her alone.

Brie and Kelli were staying with Brie’s parents, and the staff on her mom’s floor had assured Jules they would take extra security precautions and keep an eye on her mother.

Everyone she cared about the most was safe.

Was she?

The stench of burning wood, the wailing of sirens, the feel of his gloved fingers wrapped around her wrist slammed into her, and she closed her eyes and breathed in slowly until a paroxysm of coughing shattered the tentative calm she’d been seeking.

“You okay?”

Jules caught her breath before turning away from the scenery to contemplate her companion for the week.

Who could have guessed after their disastrous first date that they would end up here?

Together. Prickles of apprehension dug into her skin.

She still wasn’t entirely sure how real the kind, patient, protective Dante was.

If this was truly him, who was the guy at the pub, and why had Dante felt the need to hide behind him? “I’ve been better, but I’ll survive.”

“That’s the plan.” He shot her that grin that always sent conflicting feelings swirling through her.

Before she could respond, he flicked on the turn signal.

“We’re here.” They drove up a winding lane until, after the last curve, his parents’ cottage came into view.

Jules’ jaw dropped a little. “You’ve got to be kidding me.

” The two-story timber-frame home blended beautifully into its surroundings—more trees and mountains, with a small lake glistening in the sun at the foot of a sloping hill.

A tiny v appeared between Dante’s eyebrows. “What?”

“This is your cottage? You’re rich.”

“No, I’m not.” He shook his head vigorously. “My parents are well off, I guess, but it’s their money and their cottage, not mine.” After pulling up in front of a detached, four-car garage, he eased to a stop and killed the engine. “Anyway, it’s safe. That’s all that matters, right?”

“I suppose.”

Dante climbed out of the vehicle and opened the rear door to grab both their bags.

After he’d persuaded her not to return home to pack, they had stopped at a department store on the way up.

Thankfully, she had enough cash on her to purchase a few clothes and toiletries, since it likely wasn’t a good idea to use a credit card, given the killer’s uncanny ability to track her every digital move.

She followed him to the entrance and waited as he shifted her bag to his other hand so he could unlock the door and turn off the alarm.

The inside of the place was as stunning as the outside, with cozy, rustic furniture, a massive kitchen, floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace, and walls of windows that brought the outdoors right inside.

When she stopped at the back of the place to gaze out over the breathtaking vista, she noted a pool, hot tub, and sauna in the backyard.

Definitely not her definition of a cottage, but okay.

She wandered over to the kitchen area, where Dante was unloading bags of groceries into the refrigerator. “This place is gorgeous.”

He tugged a carton of coffee cream from a paper bag. “I’m glad you like it. Consider it home for the next few days.”

“I think I can do that.” Jules pulled a second bag closer and lifted items out one at a time to hand to him.

Once they finished that task, he showed her to her room on the second floor.

This space was lovely too, with a wood-framed queen-sized bed covered with a multi-colored quilt, plush area rug, and a rocking chair in the corner.

Dante set her bag on the bed. “I’m going down to make dinner. I’ll leave you to get settled.”

Jules had stopped in front of a large window overlooking the lake, a ring of mountains behind it. Mesmerized by the view, she only nodded.

Once he’d gone, she continued to gaze at the breathtaking scenery. A hawk glided over the water, and, far out, a lone kayaker paddled by.

Her stomach tightened. Who was that? Was it possible that psycho could have followed them here? She had noted Dante glancing in the rearview mirror numerous times, especially when they were first starting out. He’d have noticed if anyone was following them, right?

She drew in a long, slow breath. Dante was right. Being safe was all that mattered. The problem was, even here, Jules still struggled to fully believe that she was.

What she wasn’t finding hard to believe as she contemplated the stunning view was that there was a God out there somewhere. A creator. She had always believed that. After what had happened with her sister, though…

Not wanting to go there, she turned away from the window, unpacked her few things, and then went downstairs to help Dante with dinner.

The weather had warmed up, so they sat on the patio and chatted about their work over the burgers he had barbequed.

The contrast between this dinner and their initial meetup in the pub—the peace and tranquility, the way he gave her his full attention and asked question after question as though genuinely interested in her—was startling.

When Jules couldn’t stand not knowing a second longer, she set down her salad fork and tilted her head. “You were right.”

A smirk crossed his face. “You have no idea how long I have waited to hear those words from you. About what?”

“I am here with Dante de Marco, not Frat Boy. So why did I spend our first date in the presence of that guy?”

Dante sighed and reached for a napkin to wipe off his face. After crumpling it up and tossing it onto his plate, he said, “It’s a long story.”

Jules glanced around before lifting both hands, palms up. “We have all the time and privacy in the world.”

When he raised his eyebrows, she added, warmth creeping into her cheeks, “To talk.”

That same amusement she’d seen when she had reacted to his slow perusal in the pub danced in his dark eyes now.

“Got it.” For a few seconds, he gazed out over the lake and mountains, his features growing serious.

Then he nodded, as though he had waged some internal battle before making a decision.

“Three years ago, I was engaged to a woman named Carina. She was fantastic. Funny, brilliant, beautiful heart. I spent our entire engagement hardly able to believe that she had agreed to marry me. Then, a few days before the wedding…”

“She dumped you?” Jules desperately needed to lighten up this conversation before she became too invested in Dante de Marco’s life. In him.

He managed a sad half smile before saying, “She died.”

Jules closed her eyes and exhaled. When she opened them, she reached out and pressed a palm to the table between them. “I’m so sorry, Dante.”

“Thanks. It was terrible. Worse than terrible.”

“What happened?”

He shifted his gaze to the mountains in the distance.

“We were out hiking. It was a gorgeous day, and we were laughing and having a great time, talking about our wedding plans and our life together. Then, suddenly, she held both hands to her head and let out this terrible cry of pain before she collapsed. I had no idea what to do. None of my rudimentary medical training had prepared me for anything like that. I called 911 and waited beside her, holding her hand and praying like I had never prayed before. It took them thirty minutes to get to us and by then she was gone. Brain aneurism.”

Jules felt sick. “I can’t imagine what you went through. That day or afterwards.”

He inhaled slowly, still gazing out at the mountains. “It was a long journey. Still ongoing. My sisters were there for me, which I’m sure saved my life. You know the hardest thing, though?” He turned in his chair to face her.

“What?”

“I’d had this strong faith before it happened.

I truly believed in a God who was good all the time.

A God who loved us and wanted the best for us.

But after what happened…” He drove his fingers through his hair, leaving it slightly disheveled.

“Well, I’ve struggled to believe that any of that is true. ”

His words resonated deeply with Jules. She understood them completely, far more than she would like. “I get that.”

He studied her a moment, his eyes probing hers. “You do, don’t you?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“I hope you’ll share your story with me sometime.”

Was she ready to do that? “Maybe.”

Dante nodded. “Anyway, like I said, my sisters have really been there for me. A few months ago, they got it in their collective head that I should move on, find another person to share my life with. I wasn’t nearly ready for that.

I mean, what I had with Carina was a once-in-a-lifetime thing.

At least,”—he shot her a glance before looking away—“I thought so. Which is why I was so resistant to my sisters setting me up with anyone else.”

“And why you were so obnoxious when they did.”

“Yeah.” A sheepish look crossed his face. “I held them off for months, but when they wouldn’t drop it, I decided I would go but that I would pull a How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days on whatever poor woman they picked for me.”

Jules raised her eyebrows. “ How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days? ”

“Yeah, that rom-com with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson?”

“I’m embarrassed for you that you know that.”

He laughed, and the heaviness that had settled over the two of them lifted.

“ I’m embarrassed for me. That’s what comes of having three sisters.

Anyway, I figured I could do the reverse version, only I planned to pull a How to Lose a Girl in Ten Minutes instead of ten days.

You know, intentionally do everything guys do that drive women crazy.

Take her to the worst possible place for a first date.

Make zero effort to dress nicely or groom yourself.

Be rude, uninterested in anything she has to say, ogle other women in front of her, act resentful about having to buy even a drink for her, that kind of thing.

All designed so she would have absolutely no interest in seeing me again, which would let me off the hook.

I figured it was their own fault, since they’d forced me to watch that movie with them a few weeks earlier. ”

“Wow. Okay. I’ve never seen it, or I might have recognized the moves.”

“You should.” Dante glanced around as though someone might overhear him, even though they were miles from civilization. “It’s actually pretty good. Funny. Just do not ever tell my sisters I said that, or I shall be forced to retaliate.”

Jules mimed folding something up and sticking it in her jeans pocket. “I’m tucking that one away for future use.”

Dante rolled his eyes. “Anyway, that’s the story of how Frat Boy came to be.

And speaking of him, I owe you a huge apology.

Even at the time, I wasn’t proud of it. And after all the terrible things that have happened since, I’ve felt sicker and sicker about pulling a stunt like that.

Although, even if none of that had happened, you didn’t deserve to be treated that way. So, I’m truly sorry.”

Jules sighed. “I appreciate that, although I have to take some responsibility. I came in with a really bad attitude myself. There was no way that night was going to go well.”

“Yet here we are.” He lifted his glass of water in her direction. “Friends, maybe.”

She smiled and lifted her own glass. “Friends. Yes.”

“That’s a good start.”

Start? Jules reached for his empty plate. “Since you cooked, I’ll load the dishwasher. Then I think we should watch that movie.”

He gazed at her a few seconds longer, as though contemplating whether to let her get away with the evasion. Then he pushed back his chair and grabbed the salad bowl. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll start a fire and make popcorn.”

If she had to be in protective custody, Jules really couldn’t complain about the circumstances. As she carried the dishes to the kitchen, Dante’s words— that’s a good start —floated around in her mind.

Maybe he was right. After the conversation they’d just had and the way he had been there for her throughout this entire ordeal—and now that she knew that Frat Boy actually had been an aberration—it was possible that something might be starting up between them.

The question was, what, exactly, was that something, and was she ready for it to happen?