Forever in Love (3 page)

He returned her squeeze. She straightened and he watched her return to the kitchen. One day, when she was older, she’d understand.

Chapter Two

Bonnie stepped into a light spring drizzle. She was the last to leave the office for the evening, due to a glitch in the payroll program. And if that hadn’t been enough one of the suppliers delivered the wrong wood and she had a project waiting for it in the morning. Thankfully she worked everything out so all she had to do was make sure the correct order was delivered in the morning and checks would be on time for the employees.

Vibrations shook her hip and dug her cell from her jeans pocket and checked the display on her phone as she adjusted the strap on her purse. She frowned and paused at the bottom of the stairs. Why would he call her after all this time? Curious, she slid her thumb across the screen.

“Well it’s been a long time,” she greeted.

“Hello sassy.”

She halted. Had his voice always been that deep and sinful? She closed her eyes and waited for him to speak again.

“I really need to see you.”

The sentiment warmed her straight to her toes. “Now why would you do that? It’s been like ten years.”

“That means you’re all grown up.”

Her keys fell from her hand. She stooped to retrieve them. “And that means what?”

“Bonnie.”

At the new voice, she turned her head. Pain exploded in her skull. The phone skittered from her hand as she dropped to her knees. The next blow caught her on the shoulder, knocking her to the ground. She threw a hand up, deflecting the third, but she wasn’t in time to dodge the kick aimed at her ribs.

“Didn’t think I’d find you, huh?” her assailant taunted.

Tears blurred her vision while her head swam. If she could get away. Get to her car, maybe she’d have a chance. Bonnie got to her knees, crawling toward her vehicle. Her attacker cackled above her. Something cold touched her hand. She glanced down. Her keys. She snatched them up.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Fingers tightened in her hair and yanked her to kneeling.

She swung her fist, the metal snagged the thick jersey material, ripped through the fabric until it sliced flesh and caught the man in the groin. He released her with a howl. She scrambled to her feet, hitting the lock on her vehicle.

A hard body crashed into her sending her flying face first into the unyielding corner of her car. Blackness raced to the edges of her mind as she was dragged away from her car and kicked. She tried to roll away, but something heavy kept her pinned in place. Hands tightened at her throat, forcing the air from her lungs. She clawed at his wrists and the backs of his hands. Every breath she gasped fought past her lips, until her body went limp from exhaustion, the brain doing its best to preserve what precious oxygen it needed.

Shouting stilled her attacker’s movements. He leaned close to her, his breath hot and fetid against her cheek. “You tell that arrogant asshole I’m coming for what’s mine. Tonight’s your lucky night, ‘cause the next time I catch you alone, I’ll kill you.” With a final strike he moved off her.

Even with his weight cleared from her chest, she still had trouble breathing. Stabbing pain blasted through her system. Bonnie whimpered and rolled to her side, curling into a ball.

“Bonnie!”

Footsteps pounded across the pavement. She must’ve blacked out. The cold from the concrete seeped into her clothes and chilled her bones. Every breath she inhaled sent a shiver of agony scurrying along nerve endings. She tried to focus on the frightened voice, but she could barely open her eyes. All she managed was cracking one lid. The face so familiar and worried swam before her vision.

“Bonnie.”

Who was this Bonnie? Gentle fingers brushed her hair from her face. “I’m sorry,” she murmured.

“Stay with me, sis. Ya hear me? Stay with me.”

***

The room was quiet. Bonnie managed to open her eyes and peer at the tiled ceiling. She’d been dreaming, but couldn’t remember about what. She shifted and her body erupted in aches and pains that caused her to cry out. A figure moved.

“Hey. You’re awake. Take it easy.”

“What happened?” Was that her voice? Why was it so scratchy?

A gray-haired middle age woman moved into her line of vision. “Do you remember what happened?”

Remember...Bonnie concentrated a moment. Fuzzy images. She was walking. “I got off work.”

“Where do you work?”

“Cal’s Construction, I’m the office manager and bookkeeper.” Now that she remembered. “My brother works there.”

“Your brother’s name?”  The nurse prompted as she slipped a blood pressure cuff on her left arm.

“Dexter.”

“Good. Can you tell me your name?”

She opened her mouth and froze. What was her name? As if sensing her agitation the nurse patted her hand. “I-I can’t remember.”

“It’s okay. Don’t exhaust yourself.”

“That’s easy for you to say. You know what your name is.”

The nurse smiled. “You’ve got fight, that’s good.”

“I can remember where I work and my brother’s name, but not mine?”

“It happens. Do you know where you are?”

“Obviously I’m in a hospital with some serious injuries. Goodness I hurt all over. My head is killing me.”

The nurse documented the numbers. “I’ll get you something for that. In the meantime you’ve got a concussion, a couple of broken ribs and a few lacerations that required stitches.”

Vague images flashed through her mind. Keys falling. A garbled voice calling her name, she focused on the voice. She squinted and rubbed her temple. “Bonnie. My name is Bonnie.” Relief washed through her. Thank goodness. She let her hand drop to the cover. “Is it okay if I rest now?”

“Sure.”

As the nurse walked out two men walked in. Bonnie cracked a smile at the medium height man with the caramel complexion and mist gray eyes. “Dex.”

“Hey. Good to see you awake.” He leaned down and carefully hugged her.

“Yeah.” She looked beyond his shoulder to the tall, lean man lounging against the wall. Equal parts apprehension and awareness flitted through her veins. “What’s he doing here?”

Dexter glanced over his shoulder. “I thought you called him.”

She settled into the cushions. “I wouldn’t do that.” She rubbed her temple, but maybe she had. “What happened is a blur. I don’t remember much of the attack.”

“The doctor said she had a moderate concussion,” he explained to the other man. “And she may not remember what happened.”

She stared at her brother a moment. “Could you find me some water?”

He patted her hand. “Sure. Be right back.”

“You shouldn’t have come,” she said once her brother left the room.

The other man stepped closer and she held her breath. She hadn’t seen Buck in almost ten years, but time had been good to him. He had a little more gray at the temples while more streaked through his chocolate brown hair and his vivid blue eyes still had the power to mesmerize her. He perched a hip on the bed.

“You shouldn’t have.”

“Then you shouldn’t have answered the phone,” he countered.

His smooth dulcet tones soothed her. “I don’t remember that.”

“I do.” He held her hand between both of his. “We were on the phone before the attack. I heard everything.”

She gasped. “Buck...”

“Even though I’m not in the game anymore, I protect what’s mine,” he murmured an edge in his voice.

“Don’t do anything—”

“Stupid?” he demanded. “It’s far too late for that. We may not know who did this to you, but it’s only a matter of time before we find him.”

“Who’s we?” Fear made her voice wobble.

“Your brother. The security cameras caught the whole thing, but the angles were all wrong to catch the guy’s face. You better hope the police get to the attacker before I or your brother do.”

She studied the tight set of his jaw. “I can’t let you do that.”

Again that little smile. “You should rest and not worry your pretty little head about anything else except getting better.”

She closed her eyes. “You shouldn’t have come.”

A gentle finger caressed her cheek, before his warm breath tickled her skin. “You couldn’t have kept me away because I’m calling in my marker.”

***

 “This is really getting old,” Bonnie said to the man at her side.

Ever since she returned to work three weeks ago, her brother or Cal had walked her to her car. Tonight it was her brother.

“I mean it Dexter, I don’t need you to walk me twenty feet.”

“That guy is still on the loose and you don’t remember who it was, so for your safety and my peace of mind, you get an escort to your vehicle.”

She still could not recall all the events of that evening when someone tried to rob her. At least that’s what the cops were saying. It was an attempted carjacking or robbery and she fought back. Of course she fought back, but one thing bothered her. It had to be someone she knew. A shudder wiggled down her spine. Her attacker had called her by name. If she hadn’t been distracted by her phone call, maybe she could’ve seen the guy. But that begged the question, who did she know that wanted to hurt her?

“Hey? Are you okay?” His voice broke through her reverie.

She nodded, not trusting her voice.

He faced her, concern shadowing his eyes.

“I’m fine. Really. I just realized that the person knew me.”

“Which is even more of a reason why someone should walk you to your car at night.”

“I know.” She sighed. Having an escort was sensible. She didn’t have to like it, but she could see the logic in his argument. They resumed walking.

“And you’re not moving as fast as before.”

“Well let me break a couple of your ribs and see how fast you move,” she quipped.

“Should you even be back at work?”

She huffed. “Dexter, please. You’re nagging.”

“I learned from the best.”

She smiled at that. He opened her door when she unlocked it.

“So what’s going on with you and Buck? I noticed he’s been hanging around the condo.”

“Nothing,” she mumbled and ducked her head so her brother wouldn’t see the flush creeping into her cheeks. “You’ve walked me to my car. Don’t you have something else to do?”

He chuckled. “Sure. Will he be there tonight?”

“You’re not going to leave this alone are you?”

He shook his head, a grin on his face.

“Fine. He wants to go out with me.”

“Really?”

“Why say it like that?”

He shrugged.

“You think he’s too old?” She couldn’t quite keep the defensive note from her voice. The last thing she wanted to hear would be her brother’s disapproval.

Her brother met and held her gaze. “Do
you
think he’s too old for you?” Dexter rested a hand on the door. “I always thought he was cool. He taught me a lot of things growing up, but that could be some of the left over hero worship talking.”

“It might be.” A smile creased her lips. There were many an afternoon she’d come home for school or work and find Buck showing Dexter something or other. They built everything from forts to model planes. They even went fishing a time or two. She slipped her key in the ignition.

“At least you don’t have to lie about your age anymore.”

“Yeah. There was that.”

He closed her door and she rolled down the window. “I’ll see you at home.”

“Chicken and dumplings for dinner?”

“I thought I told you I’d cook tonight?”

She shrugged. “Old habits, lil’ bro. I’ll always take care of you.”

“You need someone to take care of you too.”

As an answer she peeled out the drive-way and stuck her hand out the window in a wave. She didn’t need anyone to take care of her, she was quite capable of doing that herself.

When she pulled into the driveway of the condo she shared with her brother some fifteen minutes, she wasn’t surprised to see a familiar gray Benz parked at the curb. She blew out a breath. This man was going to drive her crazy in more ways than one. With a sigh, she exited her vehicle and locked it with the remote.

“If you keep this up, my neighbors are going to complain,” she said as she strolled toward him.

The corners of his mouth lifted and she was drawn to his lips. Full and sensuous. Just right for kissing. Awareness trickled through her veins, tightened her nipples and pulsed at her core. Whenever she was in his presence she always had the same reaction. And here she always thought her response was a product of leftover teenage crush...or not.

He closed the distance between them, lifted a hand and cradled her cheek. “You look tired.”

She stepped away and his hand fell to his side. The intimate gesture spoke volumes while his deep voice moved over her like silk and sin awakening desires and passions better left dormant.

Not good. She could just imagine pressing her body to his and doing all the things she dreamed of doing when she was a teen. She shook her head. “I am. I worked a full day today.” She crossed the short strip of lawn to the front porch. He followed. Under the guise of finding the right key, she perused his body and hitched a breath. Lean, muscular physique poured into black denim jeans and a short-sleeved polo. Both arms sported tattoos, but in the dim light she couldn’t be sure of what. She dragged her gaze back to his face and longed to tuck the lock of dark hair brushing his forehead back in place.

He frowned. “Should you be working so hard so soon?”

She laughed. “Please, Buck. I sit on my butt all day long.”

He removed the key from her fingers, reached past her, unlocked and opened the door. “And it’s a very nice butt too.”

Heat crept into her cheeks. He was flirting. This handsome virile man was flirting with her. “Why are you here?”

He shrugged, just a casual ripple of muscle. She bit back a sigh of appreciation. “I thought it was obvious.”

She dropped her purse in a nearby chair and moved to take off her jacket. Buck was there to grab to collar and ease it down her arms. “Thanks.”

“Something smells divine.”

“Chicken and dumplings. Make yourself at home, you always did.” She waved a hand toward the living room as she headed toward the kitchen. Once there she flicked on the light, washed her hands and removed the cover from a small bowl. All she had to do was add the liquid and toss the mixture into the bubbling slow cooker. By the time her brother arrived, dinner would be ready. She paused long enough to take a beer from the fridge and hand it to Buck.