Chapter Eight

“A tail? As in we’re being followed?” Laia twisted her neck to look behind them. Sure enough, a small white sedan was zigzagging through traffic, clearly trying to keep up with them.

“Yeah.” Kade maneuvered around a car in front of them, smoothly shifting into the center lane, then back into the left lane. His gaze flicked back and forth between the highway ahead and the rearview mirror. Other than the clenching of his jaw, the man looked as cool as a proverbial cucumber, like he’d been a professional racecar driver his entire life.

She turned to Rosa, but her daughter was sleeping peacefully, one tiny hand curled into a fist around Smoke’s fur. Oddly, Smoke had draped one front leg across her lap, as if he was trying to protect Rosa from being thrown forward.

“Can you lose them?” She sure hoped so. If he couldn’t…

“Working on it. Hang on, and this time I mean it. Grab onto something.”

Laia gasped, her eyes widening at the traffic jam a hundred yards ahead and completely blocking all lanes. She grabbed onto the armrest and held her breath because Kade wasn’t slowing down.

“Smoke, down!”

She hazarded a glance to the seat behind her. Smoke lay down, still maintaining a protective leg across Rosa’s lap. Amazing. How did he know to do that?

Kade slowed the SUV, slightly, anyway, then jerked the wheel to the right and gunned the vehicle up the shoulder and past the unmoving cars. An exit ramp loomed ahead. Some of the cars stuck in the right lane crossed into the shoulder, forcing Kade to slow down.

She glanced behind them again. The white sedan was still doing its best to follow them.

Kade punched the SUV up the ramp, riding the tail of the car ahead of them until they made it to the stop sign. At the top of the ramp, he cranked the wheel and passed the line of cars, looking both ways at the intersection, then gunning onto the road.

Several minutes passed before he slowed the vehicle on the rural, twisting street. A short distance ahead, he took the entrance to the Garden State Parkway south, casting more looks into the rear- and side-view mirrors before taking a deep breath. “I think we lost them.”

“How did they find us so quickly?”

“They must have left someone nearby on a side street to watch for us.” He glanced over his shoulder at Rosa and Smoke. “That, and there was a tracker under your car.”

“A tracker?” Oh God. How long had it been there? Days? Weeks?

“Yeah, but I destroyed it.”

Laia’s heart jackhammered and her knuckles were white where she had the armrest in a death grip. She really hadn’t imagined it. They had been following her all this time. “Where are we going?”

“A friend’s house.” He tugged his phone from his belt and cued up a number. “Jamie,” he said. “Mind if I stay at the shack for a few days? I’ll explain later. Call me back.” He ended the call, then dropped the phone into the center console.

“The shack?” That didn’t sound particularly inviting, more like an outhouse in the middle of the woods. “Do we need to stop for sleeping bags, bug spray, and bear repellant?”

Kade snorted, and she glimpsed his right-side dimple. “Nah. We’re good. But we do need to get some food. Jamie hasn’t been around for six months. Probably won’t show up for another six. Whatever food he’s got in the shack is probably covered with three shades of green mold by now.”

Yum. Though Kade couldn’t see it, Laia wrinkled her nose. “Where is this place, exactly?”

“Manasquan.”

“Manasquan? That must be some ‘shack’ your friend has.” That part of New Jersey was right on the water. Like Rumson, the cost of houses there was through the roof.

“It’s not bad.” While still keeping one eye on the road, Kade picked up his phone again and placed another call. “Jose,” he said when a voice answered, then, “Yeah, I know it’s been a few years. I need your help.” Laia heard another man’s voice but couldn’t make out the words. “Fernando Colon was released two weeks ago. I want to know what he’s been up to. Someone’s been watching my brother’s wife, and her house was broken into. We already know this has something to do with Colon, and I want to know what he’s after. I’m willing to pay for it. Whatever it takes.”

A moment later, he ended the call and began tapping his fingers on the wheel. Silence filled the passenger compartment, as if neither of them wanted to address the hulking white elephant taking up most of the space and hogging all the air.

“Who was that?” Laia asked, looking at Kade’s hard profile.

“An informant.”

Bile rose in the back of her throat. Her house had been broken into. They’d just escaped a “tail” by racing down the highway at breakneck speed. Now Kade was calling informants. This was all becoming far too real. Her world was about to fly apart all over again.

“Don’t worry. We’ll figure this out.” Again he rested his hand on hers, squeezing it and casting her a quick glance.

She looked down at his hand, so big and strong. So reassuring and—

Don’t even think it.

As the exit numbers went down, she began chewing on one of her nails. Manasquan was only twenty minutes or so from Asbury Park and her job, but how in the world could she possibly return to work with everything that was happening? She couldn’t, and there was no way she’d drop her daughter off at daycare.

“What’s wrong?” Kade asked, tacking on, “Other than the obvious.”

The enormity of the situation was suddenly overwhelming. “I have to call work and tell them I won’t be in tomorrow.”

“Can you take the week off?”

Not really. Given the short notice, her boss would blow a fuse. Then there was that pesky little issue of not getting paid. Between her week-long vacation with Rosa and taking care of her mother when she’d come down with the flu earlier in the year, she’d used up every last one of her vacation days. “I’ll have to.”

She dug around in her bag for her phone and called her boss, Bill Weiss. “Hi, Bill,” she said when he picked up after three rings. “Sorry to bother you on a Sunday, but I, uh, have to take the week off. I have a—” Bill’s expectedly annoyed reaction came through clear as a bell. “I’m sorry, but it’s a family emergency.” As Bill rattled on about her job obligations and how difficult it would be for him to find a replacement on such short notice, she stupidly imagined telling him the truth: A drug cartel is after me. The only thing that would get her was unemployed.

“I’m sorry,” she continued. “And yes, I know I won’t get paid. Believe me, I don’t have a choice. Again, I apologize for the short notice.”

When she’d stowed her phone back in her purse, she leaned back and couldn’t stop the groan from escaping her lips.

“Don’t worry about the money,” Kade said. “Jamie’s place is free, and I’ll take care of buying groceries and any other expenses that come up.”

She shook her head. “That’s very generous of you, but you’ve already done enough for us by helping with the police and giving us a place to stay. I’ll find a way to pay you back.”

“No, you won’t.”

A flash of indignation had her lifting her chin. “Yes. I—”

“Forget it,” he snapped, clenching his jaw.

What did he have to be angry about? “Look”—she shifted in the seat to face him—“I appreciate you driving all the way from Maryland to my house. I didn’t really expect you to do that, and I probably shouldn’t have called you in the first place.”

“Why not?” When he looked at her, he was frowning. “I should always be the first person you call for help.”

“Are you kidding?” She widened her eyes, staring—no, make that glaring—at him. “In the last six years, how many times have you bothered to show up in my life? Twice. On my wedding day and for Josh’s funeral. Your complete and utter absence made it crystal clear to me that whatever you think we felt for each other in that elevator is null and void.” If not completely dead and buried. “So why should I call you first? For anything?”

“It wasn’t like that. It was—” He smacked his palm on the wheel. “Christ,” he muttered half under his breath, then his chest expanded as he took a deep breath. “Let’s just concentrate on getting you and Rosa somewhere safe, then we’ll talk more about what’s next.”

His voice might be calmer now, but judging by the continual flexing of his fingers and a tic in his jaw, he was anything but calm. The same could be said for her. So many emotions screamed inside her head to get out, confusion being at the tippy-top of the list.

This man—the one who’d raced to her house yesterday, taken total charge with the police on two occasions, and was now rescuing her and Rosa from God knew what—wasn’t the same selfish, self-centered man she’d come to expect. This man was more like the person she’d met in that elevator. Kind. Caring. Charming. And who’d gotten her blood pumping with excitement the same way it was doing now. Even having an argument with him was more passionate than anything she’d experienced with Josh. Or any other man.

And that was the most dangerous revelation of all.

Two hours later, and after a quick stop for groceries, Laia’s jaw dropped when Kade parked the Suburban inside the attached garage of Jamie’s so-called shack.

The garage alone was bigger than the entire ground floor of her duplex rental. The house itself was an enormous structure on stilts and situated at the end of a road on the beach. As in… On. The. Beach. As in, uber-pricy beachfront real estate. The kind she and Josh used to live in before…

Before everything bad that could have happened actually did happen.

“Mommy, can we go to the beach?” Rosa kicked her legs up and down, a sign that she’d been in the booster seat for too long.

“No, sweetie.” Laia got out of the Suburban and opened Rosa’s door. “It’s dinnertime.”

The moment Kade let Smoke out, the dog ran right to a short stairway and stood in front of another door, acting as if he’d been here many times before. “I’ve got her.” Kade had opened up his side and was now reaching over to unbuckle Rosa.

As Rosa scrambled into his arms, once again Laia was struck by sheer and utter confusion. This uber-helpful, unselfish side of Kade was still difficult to wrap her brain around. Had Josh been lying to her about him all these years? Either that or Kade had been body-snatched and replaced by an alien.

“C’mon, Cream Puff.” He winked at Rosa. “I think you’re going to like your room. Leave the groceries,” he ordered Laia, using the same commanding tone he’d used when ordering Rosa to wipe her hands before eating. “I’ll come back for them, then fix dinner.” The shock must have shown on her face because he frowned over Rosa’s head. “What? I can cook.”

“It’s not that I—” Just assumed she’d be the one doing things like carrying Rosa inside and cooking. The same as her life had been with Josh. “I figured I’d do the cooking.”

“Nope. I’ve got that covered.” He grinned, leaving her standing there, stupefied as to how such a masculine face could have such adorable dimples.

After Kade had punched in a code on the security box by the connecting door, they followed him and Smoke inside, through an enormous dining room with a table so shiny she could see her reflection in it. Mahogany. She and Josh used to own a pricy dining table made of rosewood. Funny how none of that seemed to matter anymore.

Next, he led her through a kitchen that was as equally jaw-dropping as the rest of the house. The Sub-Zero appliances alone were worth more than a year’s rent at her duplex, and the living room view was spectacular.

Floor-to-ceiling windows ran the lengths of the east- and north-facing living room–great room, providing unobstructed views of the Atlantic Ocean. There was only one full wall, and it housed the biggest big screen TV she’d ever seen. It had to be close to eighty inches.

“Wow.”

“Yup.” Kade turned so Rosa could look through the windows. “See?” He pointed. “There’s a lotta sand out there with your name on it. Maybe tomorrow, if your mommy says it’s okay, we can all go to the beach.”

“Really?” Her face lit up, then fell. “But I forgot my sandcastle buckets.”

Kade sobered. “I’m sure I can dig one up around here somewhere.” Then he grinned.

Rosa giggled. Looked like even five-year-old girls weren’t immune to his killer dimples. “Can Smoke come?”

Hearing his name, Smoke barked.

“Yes. Smoke can come.”

Smoke barked again, and Laia could swear the dog had actually followed the entire conversation.

Rosa pressed her nose and hands against the window. “Can I go on the Ferris wheel?” Through the window Laia saw that a small carnival had been set up on the shoreline about half a mile down the beach. “Pleeeze?”

Laia could only shake her head. Already, Rosa was a master manipulator when it came to getting something she wanted. “We’ll see.”

“No, you won’t,” Kade interjected. “You both need to keep a low profile.”

She opened her mouth to object, but he was right. They had to remain hidden. Rather than being annoyed with him for making parental decisions for her, she ought to be grateful for him taking charge, not just with the police but of their safety.

“Let’s go look at your room.” Kade led them up the stairs to the second floor.

Rosa’s room was small but had an ocean view and a twin bed with a pretty yellow flowered quilt. Against one wall was an antique oak bureau. The other wall was taken up by a matching bookcase that, to Laia’s astonishment, held several children’s books. On the bottom shelf was a stack of board games, including Trouble, Operation, and Monopoly.

“You like it, Cream Puff?” With Rosa still clinging to his neck, Kade went to the bookcase, then set her on the floor.

“Mm-hmm.” She nodded, reaching for a worn copy of Sleeping Beauty on the lowest shelf.

“You can have the master bedroom,” Kade said to Laia.

She followed him down the hall and into another bedroom, this one huge, with cream-colored carpeting and a king-size scroll-top bed with a matching chest and bureau.

He flipped on the bathroom lights. “This one has a soaker tub even bigger than mine.”

Laia peered around the doorjamb. “You aren’t kidding. It’s big enough for a school of dolphins.”

“Two of them, anyway.”

The heated look Kade gave her made her breath catch. And when he continued staring, a sudden flush of warmth spread steadily from her neck downward.

Were they still talking about dolphins?

He shook his head, as if to clear it. “I’ll get our bags and the groceries. Make yourself at home.” Kade and Smoke left, leaving her alone in the master suite.

With rubbery legs, Laia sat on the edge of the bed. No matter how much she tried, it was impossible to banish the image of the two of them in that tub, naked and—

“Mommy, can I watch TV?” Rosa asked, skipping into the room.

“Come here, sweetie. Mommy needs a hug.” And a change of subject.

Laia held out her arms, then picked Rosa up, hugging her tightly. She nuzzled her daughter’s head, inhaling her sweet little-girl smell. Josh used to do that as he’d read to Rosa. Eventually, he started working late, not getting home until after Rosa had gone to sleep. Then came the frequent business trips. Long before Josh was gone, Laia had effectively become a single parent.

Rosa wriggled her way from Laia’s lap. “Mommy, now can I watch TV?”

“I think that’s a good idea.” That would give her and Kade time to unpack and get dinner ready. Easing off the bed, she followed Rosa downstairs. In the four years they’d been married, she and Josh had never done such simple things together, like preparing a meal or taking Rosa to the beach.

Melancholia dampened her already dismal mood. Things should have been different. Josh should have been helping her raise their daughter, not disappearing on weekends. How had things gone so horribly wrong?

The slow disintegration of their relationship had been subtle, at first. After Rosa was born, it had spiraled quickly into nonexistent.

But if she were honest with herself, it had started the day she’d said I do.