Her Forever Hero (Unexpected Heroes) (28 page)

“No one will believe you. They never believe the woman,” he spluttered.

“Oh, no, Jimmy, it’s not a lie. It’s the full-blown truth. And if you’re the one breaking into my place, trying to scare me into doing whatever you want, though I don’t know how you could think I could be scared of you, considering how pathetic you are, I suggest you stop. I won’t stop until you’re destroyed.”

“You can’t do a damn thing to me, you trashy rich bitch!” He was losing it more and more by the second.

“Oh, I can, Jimmy, because, unlike you, I have friends—very powerful friends who don’t like to see me get hurt. You’ve broken the law, you’ve tried to scare me, and you are the one who will pay. You’re not coming after me, you pathetic excuse for a man,” she told him grimly. “I’m coming after you!”

“You won’t get away with this! I guarantee you.”

“I already have, Jimmy. If you so much as call me again, I will have you in jail so fast your head will still be spinning a week later. Stay the hell away from me, from my friends, from my town, from my life. Or pay the consequences.”

Grace hung up the phone to the sound of Jimmy spluttering on the other end of the line. And as she sat back on her friend’s couch, she smiled. A feeling of freedom filled her unlike anything she’d felt in a very long time.

Somehow she knew Jimmy would be too scared to retaliate against her. She could finally go home. So much had been happening to her in such a short period of time that she hadn’t even had a chance to analyze how she felt.

Cam was back in her life, or had been until their last fight. Was she ready to give that up again? Was she ready to let go of the hurts of the past? Maybe it was time she did exactly that. First, she had to get a clear head, and she needed to be alone to do that.

But it seemed her troubles were over.

“Open the door, Grace!” There was no response, so he pounded with his fists even harder. “Open the damn door or I swear I’m going to break it down this time.”

When the door came flying open, Cam nearly fell forward. He caught himself at the last minute and then found himself standing with Grace inside her house. They were both wearing scowls.

“I’ve told you all week that I need time to think, Cam—that I don’t want to talk to you right now.”

He hadn’t seen her in nearly two weeks, because a week before she’d moved back to her house—and that had really irked him—she’d been avoiding him over at his brother’s house. He was done with being avoided.

“You look stunning,” he said, taking a step forward.

“Don’t you dare sweet-talk me and expect to get not only into my house but into my pants as well.”

“You’re not wearing pants,” he pointed out, which only made the heat in her eyes go up another ten degrees.

“Get out right now, Cam, or I’m calling the sheriff.”

“Good, call him. I need to talk to him about a case he’s a witness for,” Cam said smugly as he sat down on her couch and made himself at home. “You know the sheriff and my dad go fishing just about every Sunday when the weather permits.”

“Yes, remind me of all the connections you have. I don’t care. You’re still trespassing.”

She sat down across from him, folding her arms and glaring, letting him know in every possible way that he wasn’t welcome in her place.

“That wasn’t what I was doing at all, Grace. I was just reminiscing.”

“I told you I needed time to figure things out, Cam. I’d appreciate it if you would give me that time.” Some of the anger drained and he spotted the fatigue enveloping her.

“I’m sorry, Grace, but this couldn’t wait any longer. I have a lead in your case.”

The last of her anger vanished right before his eyes and she looked so vulnerable at that moment, he couldn’t help but rise and move toward her.

“Don’t, Cam,” she said, but without any heat this time.

“You need to be held, even if it’s just for a few moments,” he told her, and pulled her from the overstuffed chair she’d sunk down into.

She fought him for only the briefest of moments before she allowed him to capture her in his embrace, and she rested her head on his chest.

“It’s okay to not always be the strongest person in the room, Grace. You’re strong, and that’s admirable; but you’re also a real person, and contrary to what you were taught, we all need others in our lives. We don’t have to fight our battles alone, and we don’t have to figure it all out by ourselves. Let me take some of your stress and pain on my shoulders. They’re wide and strong and waiting to hold your burdens.”

“You’ve always had the best lines, Cam.” She sniffled.

“It might sound that way, but I love you, Grace. I mean what I say to you.”

“You don’t love me, Cam. You don’t even know me anymore,” she said, tears in her voice.

“I know everything I want and need to know about you.”

“No. No, you don’t. We were young and stupid when you left for college. We both made mistakes—mistakes that hurt people and that we can’t take back.”

“I know all about Jimmy, Grace. That wasn’t on your shoulders. That was all him. Don’t punish yourself for a crime against you. Your mother should go to prison for what she did to you.”

Anger still filled him to even think of what Grace had gone through—and, worst of all, he should have been there for her, shouldn’t have assumed she was cheating on him, that she hadn’t waited for him.

“We were both foolish when I left for college. I was selfish and wanted to see the world, thought I had everything in the palm of my hand. And you were just young and you trusted the wrong person. Can’t we let go of the past and move forward? I still love you, just in case you didn’t hear me. I still want to be with you. And though you might have a hard time admitting the truth, I can see it shining in your eyes whenever you let your guard down. I know you love me, too. I know you believe in us.”

She was silent for several moments, so Cam stood there with her in his arms as he tried to show her by his touch how special she was to him. He never wanted to let her go. If he messed this up this time, he might not ever get over it.

“There are some things we can’t take back from those days, some things we can’t forget,” she said, so much sadness weighing on her that it nearly ripped his heart open.

“Tell me, Grace. I’m sure we can figure this out,” he assured her, pulling back so he could see her face.

“I need tea. Do you want tea?”

He could see she was trying desperately to hold herself together and that she was looking for an excuse to be alone for a moment. “Yes, tea would be nice.” He gave her the chance to get away, but only for a few minutes.

When she came back in the room five minutes later carrying a tray with hot water, tea, and fixings, he was seated on the couch.

“You said there was a break in my case.”

Her tone had changed from angry, and then sad, to neutral. She was holding it all in now. Cam wanted to fix that, but he knew she’d been controlled before, so he made himself let her work through it even though that wasn’t easy for him.

“Yes. I have a plan on how to catch the person,” he told her.

Finally, a spark of light entered her eyes. “Who is it, Cam?”

“I’m not going to say that right now. I want to get this person, and the only way to do so is by catching them off guard. I need them to trust me, to think I’m their friend.”

“You don’t trust me?” she asked, her voice deceptively calm.

“No.” He didn’t elaborate and her eyes narrowed once again.

“I’ve been taking care of myself for a very long time, Cam. I can handle this.”

He paused for several long moments and then did something she would have never expected him to do.

“You’re right, Grace. I’m sorry. I just want to protect you. But you need to know.”

She waited and he said nothing further. “So . . .”

“It’s Vince. He was incredibly good, but he’s been siphoning money from his father’s company and collecting money through this nonprofit in your name. He’s watched you. He only takes money from the local bank when you’re in the area, and then it immediately goes into an offshore account. He’s covered his trail well, but we have him. He won’t escape this now.”

“Seriously?” she said after a few moments, completely thrown off by this. “I don’t get it. I don’t understand at all. I really thought it might be my mother. I was terrified it was her.”

“I thought so, too, which is why it took me so long to find Vince. I wasn’t looking in the right places. Axel made a big break in the case finding the company Vince’s father owns in Chicago. After we got that information, it all came together.”

“So does this mean it’s over?” she asked, hopeful for the first time in a while.

“Not yet, but it won’t be long now.” He moved closer to her and put his arm around her. “I’ve missed you, Grace, really missed you.”

“Cam, don’t do this . . .” she begged.

“Just let me take care of you,” he said, which stiffened her back.

“Of course: Cam to the rescue, because poor little Gracie can’t take care of herself,” she said.

“You’re more than capable of taking care of yourself. I’ve seen you do it time and time again. But it’s also okay to be taken care of once in a while.”

“Maybe I am tired of doing it on my own, but it’s not so easy to admit that,” she finally said.

Cam’s eyes softened and it was nearly her undoing.

“Grace, I’m going to pick you up in my arms and carry you to your room. Then I’m going to lay you down and crawl into bed next to you.”

“No, Cam. I don’t want that,” she said, but she didn’t mean it.

“All I’m going to do is hold you, Grace. Because I’ve missed you, and I need to hold you as much as you need to be held.”

At those words, she stopped fighting him. So he lifted her up and carried her to bed, gently laying her down before stripping to his boxers and climbing in next to her, and then pulled her into the safety of his arms.

The two of them still had a winding road ahead of them, but Cam knew that if they didn’t give up on one another, they could weather the storm and make it through anything, just as they’d made it through all the trials that had come before.

“I’ve thought about it, Cam, and you’re right: I’m not going to let my fears keep me hiding in the dark anymore.”

Cam stood in the doorway with a neutral expression on his face. Maybe he’d had enough. Maybe it was too late. She’d run from him one too many times, and maybe he was just finished, but she had to give this her all or she knew she’d be full of even more regrets than she already had. As it was, she had enough to last her a lifetime.

She’d paced in front of his door for nearly fifteen minutes before she worked up the nerve to ring the doorbell. This was it—this was do-or-die. If he turned her away, she would deserve it, but he’d told her he loved her . . .

She was prepared, though, for him to slam the door shut in her face.

When he said nothing after her heartfelt words, a closed door seemed inevitable.

“Are you sure you want my help, Grace? You’ve asked for it before and then you’ve run from me as soon as I try to do what I think is right.”

Grace couldn’t tell what he was feeling or thinking from his tone. It wasn’t exactly cold, but no one could call it warm, either. Fear made her want to turn and run yet again, but she’d convinced herself that she was done running, and certainly done hiding. She’d been through the pits of hell and back. She could get through this moment with the man she now knew she was fated to love until the end of time.

“You’ve been right all along, Cam. I was wrong—you were right. Does that make you feel any better? Does that make you want to help me?”

It hurt her a bit to admit that to this man. But she owed him the right to gloat, if only a little. She’d fought him so hard when all he’d been trying to do was help her.

“That’s a start,” he told her.

“And I’m sorry, Cam, truly sorry for my behavior.”

She tried to open herself up, to let him look into her eyes and see that she was speaking the truth to him. If he could see the honesty in her actions, then maybe he wouldn’t turn her away.

“That’s a little better,” he told her, but his voice was still cool.

“And I want your help. Please, will you help me?”