Stone
I closed the door, leaving Serenity asleep on her bed. Running a hand through my hair, I stepped into the kitchen and grabbed a beer. Sitting at the table, I drank half of it down and closed my eyes.
What kind of shit was that? Serenity had scared me half to death. Her contorted face held such anguish that I had to physically grab her in order to pull her out of the vision.
I shook my head. She’d barely missed death once already today, and then this? It was still hard to believe that the bullet had grazed her head.
This day was turning into a real shit-show. It didn’t help that we were no closer to figuring out who the guy was, either. This had to end before Serenity got killed.
It was time to set up a sting. Let him walk into my trap, for a change. That meant I had to bait him. Even if there were some downsides to that idea, it was better than running around like a chicken with its head chopped off.
A knock sounded at the door, and Vanetti stepped in. He took in my beer and raised a brow. “Ricky told me what happened. Where’s Serenity?”
“She’s asleep. She passed out as soon as she laid down.”
“Good.” Vanetti stepped to the fridge and grabbed a bottle for himself. He popped the cap and sat down at the table, taking a long swig. “It sounded like she got something from her vision.”
“Yeah… the tattoos on his fingers. That’s pretty vague, but I guess it’s better than nothing.”
“Did she tell about the vision she saw at the window?”
I huffed out a breath. “Not really… I mean… this vision seemed like it was full of dark emotions. I think she tried to pull herself out of it, but was stuck there until I pulled her into my arms. It scared her. Hell, it scared me. I thought she was a goner there for a sec.” I shook my head. “I’m not sure how much longer we can do this. I think we’d better change tactics.”
“I tend to agree.” Vanetti splayed his fingers on the table. “Let’s see what we can come up with. We need to set up a sting. Where would be a good place for that?”
“The first thing that comes to my mind is Razor’s shop. But I doubt he’d go for that.”
Vanetti huffed. “Probably not, but I’m sure we could convince him to cooperate.”
∞∞∞
An hour later, Serenity came into the kitchen, her hair tousled, and her eyes still a little droopy. She stopped short to see Vanetti and me. “Oh… hey.”
I gave her a small smile. “Feeling any better?”
“Yeah. My headache finally went away, and my butt doesn’t even hurt anymore. Small miracles, right?”
Vanetti’s brows rose, and he sent me a pointed stare.
“She got hit by a piece of burning furniture in the explosion last night. It burned right through her dress before I got it off of her.”
Vanetti raised a brow. “The dress?”
“No! The furniture.”
He snickered. “Right.”
Serenity shook her head at me before opening the fridge and taking out a can of Diet Coke. She brought it to the table and sat down. “I just realized I should have added hazard pay to my contract.” She raised her brow at Vanetti. “You got off easy, considering all the times I’ve nearly died, and we’re not even close to being done yet.”
His lips turned down, but he nodded. “You have a point, but I think you’re being more than compensated.”
Unable to argue with that, she shrugged. “So, any ideas on what to do next?”
“We’re working on it,” Vanetti replied. He sent me a pointed stare. “But first, we need to find somewhere else for you to stay.” He glanced toward the living room. “It’s not safe here.”
“I’ve got a great security system at my house. We can stay there.”
Vanetti shook his head. “I don’t like it. Besides, you don’t want your place to get blown up, right?”
“You have a point. So what did you have in mind?”
“I could put you up in a hotel for tonight, then you could go to a different one the next night, and so on, until we flush the guy out.”
“I have a better idea,” Serenity said. “Why don’t we just stay at my place? Stone’s enemy doesn’t know anything about me. We should be fine there while we figure out our next move.”
Vanetti nodded. “I like it. What about you, Stone? Think it will work?”
“Yeah. It’s a good idea, as long as no one knows.”
“Then it’s settled.” Vanetti stood. “Leave your bike and car here, and go home with her. That should throw him off your trail for now. In the meantime, I’ll look into those ideas we discussed. We’ll talk some more tomorrow.”
“Sure.”
As Vanetti walked out, Serenity’s brows drew together. “How long was I out?”
“It’s after five, so almost two hours. Let’s grab our things and we’ll head out.”
“Okay.”
It didn’t take long before Serenity was leading me to her car in the parking garage. She stopped in front of a gray Corolla and popped the trunk. “I know this isn’t what you’re used to,” she began. “But it’s all I’ve got.”
Her cheeks warmed with embarrassment and she shook her head. “I had to sell my Tesla to help pay my lawyer’s fees. I loved that car. Luckily, my dad kept this from my college days and let me take it.”
“It’s fine. Do you need me to drive? I can if you’re not feeling up to it.”
“No. I’m feeling a lot better after that nap.” She unlocked the car, and I opened the passenger door. I had to push the seat all the way back in order to fit inside. There were signs of wear and tear, but it was in pretty good shape considering how old it was.
She pulled out of the garage, and I slipped my ball-cap down over my head in case my stalker was watching. Twenty minutes later, we turned into her driveway. She pulled the car into the garage, shutting the door behind us .
“I have a guest bedroom for you.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to tease her about sharing her bedroom, but I held back. Now wasn’t a good time for that. I followed her inside the house and down the hall to a small room with a double-bed, noticing that it was directly across from the master bedroom.
“The bathroom is right there.” She pointed to a small bathroom with a tub and shower combo.
“Got it.” I took my bag into the bedroom and left it on the bed. It seemed like hours since we’d eaten our sandwiches, and I was starving. I stepped to her bedroom door and leaned against the frame as she put her things away. “Any chance we can get some dinner? I could take your car and pick up something if you want to stay here.”
“That would work, but I could probably whip up something faster if you don’t mind an omelet.”
I shrugged. “Sounds good to me, but you should let me help.”
Her eyes widened. “Okay. I won’t say no to that.”
I followed her into the kitchen, and she put me to work slicing up an onion and some peppers while she cooked up some bacon and potatoes. It surprised me how well we worked together, but then, she was easy to be around.
“How’s your head feeling?”
She smiled at me. “Not too bad, but I’m afraid the numbness is wearing off. Want to see the stitches?”
“Sure.”
She stepped close and turned her head, lifting her hair from the area. I helped move her hair away, enjoying the feel of her soft tresses between my fingers. I examined the neat, even stitches, grateful the wound was smaller than I thought. “Wow. He did a great job. No one would believe you got grazed in the head.”
She huffed. “I know, right? I have a hard time believing it myself. I thought for sure it was from the glass.”
Unable to resist, I wrapped my arms around her. “Yeah. I could hardly believe it either.” She snuggled against me, and I closed my eyes, grateful she didn’t pull away. “I never thanked you, so… thanks, but don’t ever do that again. I’m not sure I’m worth the risk.”
She pulled back to meet my gaze. “What? Of course you are. Besides… it’s my job.” She made a flipping motion with her hand. “And I don’t think I’d like it if you… if you got shot. Besides, I signed a contract.”
“Wait. Are you saying you like me? So I’m not just a job?”
She blinked a few times and shook her head. “I never said that.”
I tugged her back into my arms. “But you’d be upset if I got shot?”
She tilted her head to meet my gaze, and her right brow rose. “Of course. You know how I am with blood. I might have fainted.”
I nodded, grinning. “That’s right. How could I forget that?” Her lips were inches from mine. All I had to do was lower my head just a little more—
Her gaze darkened, but instead of giving in, she pulled out of my arms. “What happened to being professional?”
“I didn’t say I was going to act professional,” I teased.
She rolled her eyes. “How are you coming with the peppers. About done?” She turned back to her bowl with the eggs and started beating them to death.
I smiled and picked up the cutting board. “All done. Want them in the pan?”
“Yes.”
Using the knife, I slid the onion and peppers into the hot, buttered pan. She took over and began to stir them around. I leaned back against the counter and watched her work. A few minutes later, she added the eggs and spices, and the smell was heavenly. It was fun to watch her get lost in her cooking, and I could tell that she enjoyed it.
She glanced my way. “Want to set the table?”
“You bet.”
She directed me to the place-mats, plates, utensils and glasses. We finished up at about the same time, and my mouth watered with anticipation. “This looks amazing. I cook for myself now and then, but I usually order out, so this is a treat.”
“Then I hope you like it.”
“I’m sure I will.”
While she dished up the food, the doorbell rang. It startled her so badly that she nearly dropped the plate of eggs.
“Whoa.” I grabbed the plate. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Sorry.” She swallowed, wiping her hands on her apron. “Guess I’m a little jumpy.” She hesitated.
“Were you expecting someone?”
“No.” She shook her head.
The doorbell rang again, followed by a couple of hard knocks.
“Want me to answer it?”
She shook her head. “No. It’s fine. I don’t know why I’m so rattled. I’m sure it’s just a neighbor. I’ll be right back.”
She left the plate in my hands and hurried toward the door. Not about to stay behind, I set the plate down and followed her into the living room.
I moved the curtain aside for a quick peek before she pulled the door open. Getting a glimpse of a man with dark hair on her porch, I stepped behind her to see his face.
“Brandon? What are you doing here?”
“I saw the light on and—” He caught sight of me, and his face darkened. “What’s he doing here?”
Surprised, Serenity glanced over her shoulder to find me standing right behind her. “I invited him. We’re having dinner. But that’s none of your business. What do you want?”
He glanced at me and clenched his jaw. “I wanted to talk to you. In private.”
“Anything you have to say, you can say in front of him.” Serenity straightened and crossed her arms. “So hurry up. Our food’s getting cold.”
Brandon let out a huff and his nostrils flared. “Fine. I came to apologize for what I said last night. I’d been drinking. I know that’s not an excuse, but I shouldn’t have said those things. I didn’t mean it. I… I was hoping we could—”
He shook his head and let out a breath. “I don’t want to go through with it. I don’t want a divorce. Will you at least consider giving me another chance to work this out? I’m still in love with you, Serenity. I was stupid and mixed up, but I’ve come to realize you mean more to me than anything, and I’m an idiot.”
Serenity shook her head. “Brandon. I—”
Brandon held up a hand. “Don’t answer me right now. Just think about it. Okay? At least give me that much. You can tell me tomorrow. Or the next day. We had something special once, and I want that again. I want you back in my life. I want what we had, and I’m not ready to throw it all away.”
Serenity huffed out a breath and dropped her arms. “Then why are you suing me? Why go to all that trouble? Don’t you realize how much that hurts? Why would I ever want you in my life again after everything you’ve put me through?”
“I get it. I’m an ass. It was a stupid, mean thing to do, and I lashed out because I was hurting. You changed, and I didn’t know how to handle it. But I’d like to try again. I never really gave it a chance, and I don’t want to regret it. I just need one more chance. If it doesn’t work, then I’ll sign the papers, no questions asked.”
His eyes held remorse and pain, and I hoped Serenity didn’t fall for it. This guy was as shady as they came. With a slight shake of her head, she opened her mouth to respond, but he raised a hand. “You don’t have to answer me now. Just think about it. Please. At least give me that much.”
She threw her hands up. “Fine. I’ll think about it, but don’t expect me to change my mind.”
His shoulders drooped and he closed his eyes. “Thanks sweetie. That’s all I ask. We’ll talk soon, all right?”
“Sure.” Serenity stepped back and began to close the door, missing the sudden hardness in his eyes. His gaze met mine and his nostrils flared as the door clicked shut.
Serenity turned to me. “That was awkward.”
I quickly stepped to the curtain and tugged it open to watch him leave. He stuffed his hands into his pockets and hurried to the street where his car was parked. After he got in, he started the car, and I watched until his tail lights vanished down the road.
One thing was for sure… this little display was all an act, and I hoped Serenity hadn’t been fooled. The man I’d met last night wasn’t drunk. He’d meant every word he’d said to her, so what was he up to?