Hooked By Love (15 page)

Josh

A loud click of the front door ripped me from a crazy dream. I assumed it was Zack sneaking in, thinking I would reprimand him or something, but nothing could possibly derail my mood after last night.

The rain had subsided and I gradually woke after my blissful time with Amber. A long time had passed since I’d felt so connected to a lover, if ever. When I realised that she was lying in my arms, I remembered how we’d fallen asleep, exhausted and totally spent.

Amber’s naked body was warm and soft against mine and I breathed in the sweet scent of her hair. I kissed her temple, her silky soft skin still moist from the exertion of our lovemaking. I traced my fingertip down her arm and over her hip. Under the sheets, I gripped her firmly to pull her into me again. I could barely contain myself. I’d never wanted a woman so much in my life but I didn’t want to wake her.
Not yet anyway
.

She was sleeping, her breathing deep and slow in the silence of the house. Again I heard the front door slam shut.

Did Zack really have to make so much noise?

‘I don’t want the woman I love to be disturbed,’ I whispered almost inaudibly to myself, revelling in the last bit of my sentence.

Despite the banging, my goddess didn’t move, clearly a deep sleeper, so I decided to take a quick shower to cool myself down. I carefully slipped out of bed and headed for the bathroom, where I stood under the showerhead for a good ten minutes, letting darting pellets of water massage my shoulders and neck.

I was finally happy. I’d been searching for what seemed like a lifetime for someone to fill the void that no amount of money ever could. To think I never would have met Amber had Craig not bought their building.
Some things are just meant to be
.

I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a fluffy white towel around my waist. As I reached for the door, I caught an unmistakeable whiff of smoke. I yanked the door open and for a split second, I stood frozen to the spot.

Horrified, I watched the billows of smoke curl and crawl around her face. ‘Jesus! Amber, wake up!’

I raced to rouse her, but she was unconscious. The room was thick with smoke. I lifted her body, wrapped in sheets, and carried her downstairs. The kitchen and spare room on the ground floor were on fire, lighting up the entire place in bright hot flames. I carried her outside and placed her on a patch of grass.

‘Amber? Amber, can you hear me?’ I screamed.

The neighbours had started to make their way to the house. I yelled at a woman I recognised to call the police and an ambulance and she quickly retreated back down the drive.

‘Here, let me see her.’ A man’s authoritative voice came out of nowhere. ‘It’s okay, I’m a doctor.’

I moved aside and glanced at my house going up in flames.
Zack!

I’d heard him come in, hadn’t I? I imagined him in his bedroom, slowly suffocating on the smoke.

‘Please stay with her,’ I said to the doctor and without a second thought, I ran back into the house.

My skin nearly blistered as I ran past the inferno, heading for the staircase, but the fire had grown rapidly, enveloping the upstairs entirely. The tall flames danced all about the top landing, blocking off any path to Zack’s bedroom door.

‘Christ, no! No! Zack, wake the hell up! Zack!’ I screamed with every ounce of breath left in my lungs.

The smoke infiltrated my body, choking me until I could hardly speak.

My eyes filled with tears. ‘Please, God, not Zack!’

My oesophagus pulled shut every time I drew in a breath. If I didn’t reach Zack, he’d die.

A rough thick glove wrapped around my forearm, pulling me back.

‘Zack’s still inside!’ My voice grew weaker. Zack couldn’t survive that fire, even if they got to him now. ‘Please, save my nephew.’

The last thing I saw before I passed out was the raging fire gutting my home.

***

I woke long before Amber at the hospital. She was worse off than me, but she’d be okay, according to Dr. Benson.

‘Can I see her?’ I asked, my heart torn by the death of my nephew.

‘She should wake up any moment, but please, don’t excite her too much,’ he told me. ‘I’ll be back in an hour to check on her.’

I stumbled to Amber’s side. Her pretty face was unscarred but patches of soot showed here and there. I ran my hand over her forehead and her eyes opened. She wasn’t supposed to see me yet, not until my bloodshot eyes had shed their awful pinkness, but she knew instantly that something terrible had happened.

She tried to pull the mask from her mouth but I gently restrained her arm.

‘Don’t try and talk,’ I told her softly. ‘I’m fine.’

Her eyes bored into mine. Her voice was muffled beneath the mask. ‘The house?’

I contemplated lying to her but I didn’t have the strength to carry through with it. ‘It’s gone.’

She closed her eyes as a single tear rolled down her cheek, then her eyes searched around the room.

‘Zack?’ she mouthed.

I couldn’t answer. The words stuck in my throat. I couldn’t bear to think of him trapped in his room, waiting for me to save him. But just as I had before, I’d let him down. ‘He’s gone, Amber. Zack’s gone.’

I buried my head in the blankets on her stomach and her hand rested on my head. I’d found the most beautiful woman in the world and claimed her, but at a price. Why was there always a price? Why did I have to give up my nephew as a sacrifice? How the hell was that fair?

‘I’m sorry to intrude,’ a voice said from the doorway. ‘I’m looking for Josh O’Neil.’

‘Just leave me alone,’ I muttered into the bedding.

‘I’m Detective Sergeant Harrison from the London Met, sir. I thought you’d like to know, the Fire Investigation Unit did a sweep of your house and no bodies were found.’

A jolt of joy shot through my body.

‘Are you sure?’ I asked him.

Amber sat up, looking decidedly better from the news.

‘Yes, sir. They’re absolutely positive. There was nobody else home,’ he reported.

I looked at Amber with horrid suspicion. Again, she read my mind and shook her head.

‘It could very well have been him, Amber. He could have faked forgiving me just to put me at ease,’ I whispered.

Amber tore the mask from her face and rasped angrily, ‘Do you really think Zack would resort to killing us? He might have been somewhat suicidal, but he’s no killer, Josh.’

‘Any idea who could have started the fire?’ I asked the officer.

He looked at his report and said, ‘A neighbour saw a black Bentley drive away a few minutes before the blaze. Do you know of anyone who drives that kind of car?’

Amber and I exchanged glances.

I looked at the sergeant, ‘Yes, I do. Craig O’Neil.’

‘Craig O’Neil,’ he said, writing the name down in a small notebook. He looked up, wide-eyed. ‘Isn’t he—’

‘Yes, officer. He’s my brother. If you don’t think brothers can be that evil, do the names Cain and Abel ring a bell?’

Craig had taken this too far. This was attempted murder, not just against me but against the woman I loved.

‘I’ll bring him in for questioning. I’ll keep you updated on our progress.’

‘Thank you.’

After the officer left, I told Amber my plan. ‘I’ll rent a property for us in the meantime, all right? Until you’ve fully recovered.’

My heart jumped for joy when Amber agreed.

Amber

‘Hey, Miss Cross,’ a familiar voice said.

I opened my eyes. The handsome young face of Zack looked down on me, alive, so very alive and well. He stood next to Josh, both beaming and holding flowers and chocolate.

‘How’re you feeling?’ Zack asked.

‘Better for seeing you.’

‘I’m sorry I scared you like that. Paul was meant to drop me home after the party but I decided to crash at his place,’ he explained eagerly.

‘Thank God you did,’ Josh said, putting his arm around Zack’s shoulders and giving the boy a hearty press.

The three of us turned our attention to the door when someone gently tapped on it. Josh gave me a questioning look before crossing the room and opening the door.

‘Mr. O’Neil.’ The same police officer from the day before entered. ‘We’ve arrested your brother, Craig, on charges of arson, aggravated assault, and attempted murder. He attended the Queen Elizabeth Hospital shortly after the fire with third degree burns.’

‘I just can’t believe it!’ Zack exclaimed. ‘That bastard!’

‘Zack,’ Josh reprimanded.

‘What? He tried to kill his own family. The man is an arsehole,’ Zack insisted.

I had to agree.

The officer ignored Zack’s outburst and continued. ‘Whatever he is he felt bad enough to confess. He apparently did it in a drunken rage, but his contrition came too late. Because of the premeditated nature of the crime, he’ll be remanded without bail until his trial. At least you can sleep soundly at night, knowing he’s safely behind bars.’

When we were alone again, Zack sat on the edge of my bed. ‘I hear you’ll be moving in with us when you’re discharged.’

I looked over at Josh. I was relieved it wasn’t the shock of the fire that had made him ask me. If I were being truthful, I didn’t want to be alone. I was still traumatised by what Craig had done. I shuddered to think that if Josh hadn’t woken up to take a shower, we’d probably be dead. Knowing how close the end had nearly come put life into perspective.

‘Um, yes, it’ll only be for a short while, until I get back on my feet.’

‘Yeah, yeah,’ Zack said ‘You two make me laugh. Why can’t you just admit you’re crazy about each other?’

Heat rushed to my cheeks, but I remained silent. With how I felt about Josh, ‘crazy’ just didn’t go far enough.

Zack stood. ‘Anyway, I’ll see you guys later. We’re going to the cinema.’

‘When you say we, I take it you mean you’re going with Paul?’

It was Zack’s turn to blush. ‘Uh-huh.’

I laughed at his bashful expression. ‘Tell him I said hello.’

‘Will do,’ he said before disappearing out the door.

‘It’s so good to see Zack happy again,’ Josh said as he came to stand beside me. He took my hands in his. ‘It seems we’ve both struck gold.’

I feigned ignorance. ‘How so?’

‘Didn’t you hear what the boy said? I’m crazy about you. In fact …’ He bent down and whispered three words into my ear.

I pulled him closer and buried my face in the crook of his neck, grateful the nurse had taken me off the heart monitor because it would have exploded for sure. It was ironic how one brother had nearly killed me with hatred and the other with love.

Amber

I sat back in my seat and looked around my spacious office, relieved there wasn’t one thing out of place. There was enough room for everything to be stored away. I looked at the framed picture of Josh on my desk, and my heart swelled the way it always did whenever I saw him. Several months ago, Josh had appointed me as the Head of Public Relations at his new chain of counselling services that worked closely with places like the Young Minds Centre. It didn’t take much to convince me to join the company; after all, Josh’s legacy would one day be left in the hands of the four children we planned to have after our Christmas wedding.

I still couldn’t believe how much my life had changed and for the first time ever, in a good way. I was still in the throes of the honeymoon period with Josh and thought it would never end. Every day was like a new beginning. I knew it sounded clichéd, but until now, I’d never known love could be so deep and rewarding.

Zack had discovered this as well. Not because of me and his uncle, but through the relationship he found himself in. He’d been in a relationship with Paul for well over eight months and it looked like they had a bright and happy future together. Not only that, but they made such a cute couple.

My phone rang and Jennifer’s name flashed up on the small screen. Even though we no longer worked in the same building, we still managed to have our morning gossip session before work swamped us. She was the new manager of Young Minds and I was proud to say she was doing a fantastic job running the place.

I connected our call and before I could get a word in, she said, ‘You won’t believe it. I’ve got a new secretary.’

I frowned. This wasn’t something I thought Jennifer would be excited about unless …

‘Don’t tell me she makes a mean cuppa,’ I joked.

‘Oooh look at you with your sexist remarks. “She” happens to be a “he,” actually, and believe me the last thing I want from him is a cup of sodding tea, if you get my drift.’

I laughed out loud. Jennifer would never change and I was glad about that.

‘Anyway, I didn’t call about that.’ Her voice turned serious. ‘I just listened to your message about Craig. Five years inside really isn’t long enough for what he did. He could have killed you both.’

‘I know, but I’m glad it’s all over with. Hopefully when he gets out he’ll take the money he received from selling his share of the company to Josh and retire in Timbuktu.’

‘I wouldn’t wish his presence on any country.’

‘You never know. A few years in prison might be the making of him.’

‘Yeah, if you believe in miracles.’

I looked around the office, then down at the picture of Josh. Yes, I did believe in miracles. After all, I was living one myself.