Head Over Heels (The Bridesmaids Club Book 3) (13 page)

Annie opened the wrapping paper and unfolded the gift. “You printed my logo on the front of some aprons? They look so good.”

“I ordered different colors so that you could coordinate them with what you’re wearing. What can I do to help?”

Annie looked around the kitchen. “What if you and Matthew unpack the boxes on the shelves over there. I don’t need the equipment this morning, but it needs to go away.”

Matthew left a mug of coffee beside Annie. “Wise choice.”

Annie took a sip of the coffee and grimaced. “Thick and black.”

Sally put her bag on the floor and walked across to the coffee machine. “At least I can make a decent cup of coffee.”

Annie went back to her recipe, and Sally and Matthew unpacked boxes. Before too long there were pots bubbling on the stove, meat dishes cooking in the ovens, and three apple crumbles half made.

Annie glanced at the clock on the wall before mixing rolled oats, sugar, and cinnamon together. “Have you seen the black pickup since last week, Sally?”

“Nope. I’m beginning to think it was all in my imagination. Did you want these kitchen scales put anywhere special?”

Annie shook her head. “They’re my spare ones. They can go in any of the drawers on the far wall.”

Sally opened a drawer and slipped them inside.

“Maybe the baddies don’t know you’re living with your family?”

“Or maybe they’ve made their point already,” Matthew added.

Sally didn’t want to think about Mitch Zambezi or the people he worked with. “Todd called me last night.” Matthew made a choking noise and Sally glared at him. “He’s going to start clearing out the barn earlier than next Saturday. He figured that with so many bodyguards and security people floating around, we might as well put them to work.”

Matthew crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Sounds like I’m working for the right person, then.”

“Be careful what you wish for,” Sally said. “I’m going out to Todd’s ranch after school tomorrow. You and Sean are going to help us empty the barn.”

“No way. Tuesday’s Sean’s day to babysit you. You only need one of us at a…” Matthew’s gaze shot to the monitors on the back wall. “Are you expecting anyone, Annie?”

“No one’s supposed to be here except you.” She wiped her hands on a dish towel and walked toward the monitors. With one flick of a switch, the camera zoomed in on the front gate.

“It’s a black pickup,” Sally whispered. “Can you see the license plate?”

Annie pushed another button and Sally gasped. “It’s them.”

Matthew was already talking on his cell phone. He finished the call and checked all of the windows and doors. “The police are on their way. Don’t move out of the kitchen.”

And just like that, Sally understood why Todd had been so paranoid.

***

By the time Todd arrived at Annie’s kitchen, the parking lot had at least six vehicles crowding the front entrance. He didn’t know how the hell he was supposed to get in, so he rang the buzzer beside the front door and waited.

Within seconds the door unlocked and he made his way into the reception area. Matthew came out of a corridor and met him halfway across the room. “She’s all right, just a bit shaky.”

“Take me to her.” Todd followed Matthew’s fast stride through a double set of doors. He’d been on his way to the veterinary clinic when Matthew called. He’d jammed on his brakes so damn fast that the car behind him almost slammed into his truck. With nothing in his head except making sure Sally was safe, he’d raced across town in record time.

The kitchen was organized chaos. Dylan and another guy were standing beside Annie. A police officer was checking the security footage on the monitor beside them and another two officers were talking quietly. He ignored everyone except Sally. She was sitting beside a woman wearing an orange shirt, sipping a hot cup of something and doing her best not to cry.

When she saw him, Sally’s eyes filled with tears.

He held her gaze as he walked toward her. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. “The police are questioning the driver now.”

He looked quickly around the kitchen. He’d kill the bastard with his own hands if he was in the room. Whoever had been in the pickup had terrified Sally and it wouldn’t happen again.

“He’s not here. They’ve taken him to the police station.” Sally bit her bottom lip. “I thought you were over-reacting with all of the bodyguard stuff. I was wrong. I’m sorry.”

Todd pulled her into his arms and she buried her head in his shoulder. Even though Sally was nearly as tall as he was, she felt small and fragile in his arms. “You’re trembling.”

Her deep shuddering breaths tore at something deep inside of him. He didn’t want her to feel vulnerable or scared. No one except Mitch Zambezi could be behind what had happened. Mitch knew next to nothing about Sally, but he’d pulled her into his deranged world. He’d wanted to send a warning to Todd, and it was a warning he couldn’t ignore.

Sally clung to his shirt for a few more seconds, then stepped back.

He gently wiped the tears from her face. “Do you want something to drink?”

A small smile tugged at her lips. “Matthew made me a cup of coffee as soon as the police arrived. It was the foulest brew I’ve ever tasted.”

“I heard that,” Matthew said from behind them. “It’s just as well I love you. Otherwise, you’d be coffeeless for the rest of your life.”

Todd was glad to hear Sally’s snort of amusement. At least she still had a sense of humor after being scared witless.

A female police officer walked toward them. “Are you Todd Randall?”

The question irritated him. He didn’t know who else Sally would be hugging, but he was damn sure it wouldn’t be anyone who wasn’t related to her.

The police officer waited for his answer. He cut the dialog going through his head into the bare essentials. “That’s me.”

“I’ve got a message for you from Dan Carter, our Deputy Chief of Police. He wanted me to tell you that Detective Munroe is on his way here from New York. He’ll call you when he arrives.”

“Have you arrested the person driving the pickup?”

The police officer’s gaze was steady. “We’ve taken him to the police station for questioning.”

“That’s all?” Todd couldn’t help the anger boiling inside of him. It didn’t matter that he knew they were following due process. A potential killer had been following Sally around for nearly a week. If it were up to him, he would have shoved the driver in a cell and thrown away the key.

“I realize this must be frustrating for you, sir. I’ve taken statements from Ms. Gray and her brother. They’re free to leave.”

He stared at the young police officer. “Aren’t you worried that someone else might look for Sally if the first guy is out of action?”

Dylan stepped away from Annie. “We’ve got that covered. Sally’s staying here with us until lunchtime. I’ll take her back to her parents’ ranch after that. Matthew and Sean are going to keep an eye on her for the rest of the day.”

Todd knew that it was a good plan, the safest they’d get. But he wasn’t happy. He might not have the combat or security experience that Dylan had, but he sure as hell was more street smart than Matthew and his brother.

Sally wouldn’t like what he had to say, but he was damned if he’d let her stay on her parents’ ranch without him. “You’ve got two choices…”

Sally arched her eyebrows.

“You can stay here with Dylan and I’ll pick you up at lunchtime, or you can come back with me to my ranch now.”

Matthew crossed his arms in front of his chest. “What’s wrong with her coming back to our ranch?”

“She’s safer with me.”

“Like hell,” Matthew growled. “If it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t be here. Sally’s coming home with me, whether you like it or not.”

“Would you two stop it,” Sally hissed. “If you don’t calm down I’ll ignore both of you. I can look after myself.”

Matthew and Todd both started to speak.

Sally glared at them and they shut up fast. “After everything that’s happened, Annie’s behind on her baking schedule. I’m not going into work today, so I’ll help Annie until she’s caught up. Dylan’s going to stay with us. After that, I’ll call Todd and go out to his ranch with him. I haven’t seen Max for a while and I can help clean out the barn for Carolyn’s wedding. Todd can take me back to mom and dad’s ranch for the night. Tomorrow I’m going back to school.”

“We can talk about your job later. But for now, you’re better off staying at our ranch.” Matthew had a stubborn look on his face. “We’ve got more people around.”

Sally glared at her brother. “Here’s a suggestion. If you’re worried about a lack of people on Todd’s ranch, how about you and Sean join us? You can help clean the barn. That way you’ll be able to look out for me and do something useful at the same time.”

Her plan sounded okay to Todd, but Matthew still looked annoyed.

“I don’t like any of this,” Matthew said. “You need to stay away from Todd, not spend more time with him.”

Sally looked straight into her brother’s eyes. “Do you really think it matters where I go? If Todd’s right about the reason the psycho guy’s here, I could move to Florida and someone would still come after me.”

Matthew glared at Todd, then at his sister. “Someone had better tell me why you were being followed in the first place.”

Todd moved forward, half shielding Sally from her brother. “My wife and son were murdered by a drug lord from New York. The FBI is putting a case together against him and it involves me. He must have found out.”

“You’re joking?”

Todd shook his head. “I wish I was.”

Some of the anger in Matthew’s face disappeared, but not all of it. “I’m sorry about your family. But I don’t want the same thing happening to my sister. You need to stay away from her.”

Sally pushed Todd out of the way. “It’s not your decision to make. Now stop acting like Neanderthals and get out of here. Annie and I have work to do.”

Matthew frowned at his sister. “Have you told Annie you can’t boil an egg without burning it?”

Sally stuck her hands on her hips and glared at her brother. “Go away.” Todd started to smile, but she cut the smile off his face quick-smart. “You, too. We don’t need an audience while we catch up with the orders.”

Dylan walked across the room toward them. “You heard the lady. Move…”

Todd glanced at Matthew. Matthew stared back. If Sally’s life hadn’t been in danger, he might have seen the funny side of the situation. But there was nothing funny about the decisions they had to make from here on in. Whether Sally liked it or not, she wasn’t going to have one minute to herself for the foreseeable future.

Matthew must have realized the same thing. “You and I need to talk.”

“No fighting,” Sally warned. “If I see any grazes or bruises on either of you, I won’t speak to you again.”

Matthew snorted. “And that’s supposed to stop us?”

“It had better, Matthew Allen Gray, or I’ll tell dad you’ve been acting like an idiot.”

“I’m not the only one,” he muttered.

“Maybe not, but that’s no excuse. You’d better get back to the ranch. Sean will think you’re deliberately trying to get out of work.”

Matthew grabbed his hat off the counter and gave Todd one last stare. “I want an update on how Sally is every hour. You’d better make sure she’s safe.”

Todd nodded.

Matthew glanced at his sister. “And if you don’t listen to Dylan or Todd, I’ll never let you leave the ranch again. And I don’t care what dad would say.”

Sally glared at her brother, but didn’t say anything. Matthew took her silence for what it was and left the kitchen.

She turned to Todd. “You next.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He kissed her quickly on the lips. “Call me when you’re finished.”

If he hadn’t moved fast, he had a feeling Sally would have stomped on his foot. She looked hopping mad and ready to explode. He glanced at Dylan and smiled. “Call me if you need anything.”

And then, against every instinct screaming at him to stay, he left.

***

Sally heaved another shovel full of hay out of the loft. It was eight hours after the black SUV had stopped outside Dylan’s storage facility. She’d been right about one thing. The hard physical exercise had taken her mind off Mr. Scumbag Zambezi and placed it very firmly on her aching body.

“Watch where you’re throwing that stuff,” Matthew yelled from below her. “I’m trying to tie a chain around this damn piece of machinery.”

Sally heard Matthew grunt, then a tractor engine start outside.

“Sean’s going to kill us all with carbon monoxide poisoning,” Sally yelled. “Tell him to move the engine fast.”

All afternoon, Sally, her two brothers, and Todd, had been clearing decade’s worth of trash out of the barn. The only way they’d been able to move the heavy steel machinery was to use a tractor. And that meant plenty of chains, smelly exhaust, and more than one curse when their moving prowess went wrong.

Matthew yelled something at Sean and he cut the tractor’s engine. Sally leaned over the side of the loft. Matthew wrapped a heavy metal chain under the raised edge of the engine in front of him. They were trying hard not to damage the stone floor of the barn, but it wasn’t easy.