Courting Darkness (40 page)

Haden singled out every woman the guy had tried to pick up, his red face turning a shade darker with each fingered declaration. Taking hold of his wrist, Haden leaned closer, as if to confide a secret. “And the woman you’ve been doing all those drive-by’s on, especially that one.”

Surprise registered on the guy’s face as his alcohol-sodden mind strained to connect the dots of Haden’s warning. Just to be clear, Haden jerked him closer, not even attempting to bank his fury, and growled, “Stay the fuck away from Olivia. If I see you near her house or her parents again, I will not hesitate to kill you.”

Her stalker blanched, a whole lot of
Oh shit…
filled his face, turning him three shades of gray. Haden released him when he jerked his arm back. The lack of resistance sent the guy off the stool and into the blonde seated beside him.

“Hey!” she snapped indignantly, whipping her head around to pin the guy with a baleful glare, but those hazel hate beams didn’t make it to the asshole scrambling to catch his footing, they locked on Haden.

Fuck me…

“I should have known it was you!”

“Oh really…and why is that?—because I was saving your ass from another prospective raping?”

Ashley cast a dismissive glance at the guy who’d been hitting on her and was now backing away, no doubt preparing to bolt for the nearest exit. Haden slid off the stool, bent on pursuing his quarry, when the feisty little waif reached out and grabbed hold of his wrist with a surprising amount of strength for such a little waif.

“Where is she, Haden?”

He arched his brow, giving Ashley the full measure of his sardonic grin. A warning that if she knew what was good for her, she’d let him go. “You ask that as if you actually expect me to answer. Let go of me, Ashley.” His warning growl would have sent many men running for the hills, yet this feisty female actually tightened her grip on him, blunt little nails digging into the underside of his wrist.

Clearly, this ballsy little chit had learned nothing since the last time she’d tangled with him. Were he not of a mind to get his hands on Olivia’s stalker, he’d be tempted to remind her of just who the fuck she was messin’ with.

As he tensed to jerk his arm from her grasp, she demanded, “Did you kill her?”

Haden froze. He was certain it was to the female’s chagrin that her voice cracked, her brave façade crumbling as tears pooled in her multi-colored eyes. A sigh blew past his gritted teeth, his gaze breaking away to track his quarry’s progress as the guy pushed through the crowded dance floor, already nearly to the exit—too late to catch him without making a scene.
Goddammit!

Dropping his glare back to Ashley, he snapped, “Of course I didn’t kill her. Why would you think that?”

Her chin notched defiantly. “I just figured you were on a roll. Or are you going to try to tell me you didn’t kill Mitch?”

“Nope. That one was pure pleasure. Complete with
malice aforethought and everything. Perhaps you should take heed, little bird, that you don’t end up getting stung, as well.” He rotated his wrist and pulled back, easily breaking Ashley’s grip. “You’ve sorely tested my patience, Ashley, and do not think, for one minute, that just because I saved your life once, doesn’t mean I won’t take it.”

His warning went ignored. Perhaps she didn’t believe he spoke the truth.

“If you don’t have her, then where is she?”

Why he offered her this scrap of detail was a question he was later left to ponder. Haden certainly didn’t owe this female any answers. Perhaps it was her tenacity he couldn’t help but respect. It most certainly wasn’t the tears she struggled so valiantly to contain. Sighing, he conceded, “Olivia is with Liam. At present, I know not where they are, but assuredly, I am most anxiously awaiting her safe return.”

Ashley eyed him skeptically, as if she couldn’t quite decide whether or not to believe him. He shrugged, not really giving a shit, either way.

“Do you know the man that was sitting beside you?”

“No. Why?” Wariness crept into her voice.

“Did you speak to him? Did he tell you his name?”

“Pat, I think he said. Why?”

“A last name?” he snapped impatiently. “Did he tell you his last name?”

“No, he didn’t. Why do you care?” she demanded.

“Because he’s looking for Olivia, and contrary to popular belief, I’m not her biggest threat.”

Chapter Thirty-One

Olivia wished she could say it was with greater joy that she returned home. Sometimes facing reality just plain sucked. She’d be lucky if she even had a job to return to and she had no place to live. Returning to her parents’ house of lies was not an option, and she just didn’t think she could handle Ashley right now. They were a few miles outside of Evercrest and she was oh so tempted to beg Liam to turn around and take her back to
Landaketa.

It’d been harder than she thought to say goodbye to Rebecca and Henry—Niall, not so much. But in all fairness, he had saved her life, and although that angel was crass and war-hardened, it was obvious he and Liam held a deep bond of kinship.

Perhaps if she felt better, her outlook would have been more optimistic. Just as Liam had warned, the transition back had been a hard one—likening the experience to the worse hangover of her life and a severe case of jet lag. Her bones ached, and exhaustion made every breath an effort. Not even the ginger tea Rebecca had sent with her could calm Olivia’s turbulent stomach.

Liam took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, concern creasing his brow. Perhaps he, too, was feeling the mounting unease of returning. “How are you doing?”

She looked up at him and tried unsuccessfully to force a smile that, no doubt, resulted in a pained grimace. “Truth?”

“Of course.”

“I’m dreading this. I don’t think I’m ready.”

“It will be all right.”

How could he say that? How could he sound so sure? She scoffed an unladylike snort. “It’s easy for you to say. I’m upset with my parents for lying to me about you. I have no place to live, and I probably lost my job. Oh, and did I mention the police are looking for me? They’re questioning me over Mitch’s death. And I’m so nauseous right now that all I want to do is go somewhere and throw up.”

His thumb brushed over the top of her hand. “I didn’t say it was going to be easy, I said everything is going to be all right. Olivia, you need to sit down with your parents and tell them the truth, about you, about me, about everything. They love you and they were only trying to protect you the best they knew how. Even if what they did was wrong. Until you’re honest with them, they’re never going to accept me as a part of your life. As for a place to live, you have a home—with me. Now for the job, I’m certain Ronnie will understand that your absence was not your fault. And the police we will deal with together. But the nausea, I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do about that except pull over and give you some privacy.”

This time her smile was genuine. How did he always make it sound so simple? Her fear over the unknown and the uncertainties that lie ahead eased a touch. “Thanks. I needed to hear that. What would I ever do without you?”

He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “You won’t ever have to know. Delivering Haden will be my final act of service to the High Court. My covenant is with you—my life will be with you. I will serve my God from this world. There is much to be done here as we near the end of days. Your gift of sight was not by chance, and I trust His plan.”

Olivia wished she had that kind of blind faith, the confidence it took to cast her care to a higher power and believe it would all work out for good in the end. These days she struggled just to put one foot in front of the other. But then, perhaps following Liam’s logic, maybe God knew how much she needed him. Maybe He knew the danger she was in from a gift that felt more like a curse at times. And were Liam not at her side in the days to come, would she fail to have the strength to fulfill her purpose, her calling, whatever that may be?

As Liam turned down the road to her parents’ house, she forced down the rise of panic threatening to choke her. Taking a deep breath, she told herself everything was going to be all right. One thing at a time... And with Liam at her side, there wasn’t anything she couldn’t do.

“You’re not coming in with me?”

Olivia’s panic was nigh palpable. Like a phantom pain, his pulse spiked to her anxiety, his senses growing preternaturally acute. As much as he would like to fix this for her, he just couldn’t. This was something she had to do herself—a conversation long overdue that needed to happen without his presence rankling her parents’ nerves.

They blamed him for stealing Olivia away moments before she was to marry Mitch. They blamed him for leaving her all those years ago and breaking their daughter’s heart. They blamed him for failing to keep her safe after abducting and hauling her across the countryside—not an unfounded blame he shouldered, and one he would continue to bear all the days of his life.

“This will go better if you speak to them alone. I have some things I need to take care of, as well. You’re exhausted and admittedly feeling poorly. Rest here tonight and I’ll be back in the morning.”

It sounded reasonable, but the look on Olivia’s face said the contrary. Now that she was home safe, he needed to see Tate, speak with her new guardian, and if time allowed, do a little searching for Haden, who, no doubt, was in the city anxiously awaiting their return.

If everything went well with her parents, he’d speak with her about staying with them while he delivered Haden to court. The sooner the deed was done, the sooner he could return, and they could finally start their life together. Admittedly, he had more questions than answers about his future with Olivia. They were moving into uncharted territory and he, himself, was changing—he could feel it in the subtle nuances of his energy shifts. His temperament was more prone to emotional rather than analytical processes.

But his strength remained unwavering, the presence of his Creator a constant. As long as that stayed unchanged, Liam could and would adjust to these differences. He understood that taking another path would result in sacrifices, and he was quickly discovering that one’s perception of Heaven was truly relative, because for him, that place was with Olivia. He saw it in her verdant gaze, felt it in her slightest touch, tasted it on her honey-sweet lips, and was submerged in it every time she took him into herself.

“Are you sure you won’t stay?”

It was difficult to resist her pleading emerald eyes that had always melted his heart, or the nervous way she tucked her bottom lip between her teeth. His woman had a talent for bending him to her will. Even now he was tempted to comply. Steeling his resolve, he whispered, “I can’t. And its better this way, trust me. I need to speak with Tate—let him know you’re home safely.”

Something flashed through Olivia’s eyes at the mention of the angel’s name. Regret, perhaps? Either way, he’d be lying if he said the whole situation didn’t eat at him.

“Do you think he’ll be coming back?”

“I don’t know.” Nor was he certain how he felt about that.

“Will you…” she hesitated, clearly at a loss for words and seeming uncertain of how to proceed. “Will you tell Tate…I’m sorry? I didn’t mean to make things so difficult for him. I’m afraid I was rather stubborn and willful.”

A smile tugged his top lip at her sheepish confession. “No…” he gasped, feigning surprise. “You? Willful? I don’t believe it.”

It was a good sign he could tease a laugh out of her. Admittedly, there wasn’t a lot to laugh about lately, but taking humor wherever they could, even in the midst of it all, was good for the soul. Pulling into her parents’ driveway, he parked the Patriot and left it idling.

Leaning over the center console, he took her beautiful face in his hands, careful not to touch the purple shadow beneath her cheekbone, and kissed her. After a long moment, and unable to delay the inevitable, he pulled back and met her emerald gaze. “Don’t worry. It will go well. Just tell them the truth.”

She nodded in his hands, and he couldn’t resist pressing one last kiss to her forehead before letting go. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Olivia climbed out of the car and before shutting the door, turned, and leaned back inside the cab. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

The passenger door closed and before she made it to the porch steps, the front door flew open and her parents came rushing out to greet her. Shouts of joy and tears of happiness filled the air. Relieved and assured he was leaving her in loving hands, Liam reversed the Patriot. After braking for a burnt orange Charger rumbling by, he backed out of the driveway.