Love Inspired Suspense April 2015 #1 (31 page)

She had the same determined line to her mouth that he had seen on her face outside the Watkins house right before she took off on her own. She had made some kind of decision, and he guessed he wasn't going to like what she had on her mind.

The blue of Stephanie's eyes deepened to navy, the intensity of her gaze imploring him to listen to her. She dropped his wrist, and he immediately missed the warmth of her touch. “We can use this, Rick,” she said softly.

“No.” Trying to trap Hale wasn't worth the risk it would take to pull it off.

“Yes,” she countered. She crossed her arms and lifted her chin in defiance. “You don't get to call all of the shots, Rick. This is my life, my problem.”

“We need to power down the cell now and get Hale off our trail. Then we need to get out of here and warn the vet.”

She shook her wet head. “No, Rick. What we need is to stop Julian. This phone is our way to do that.”

Rick was tired of arguing. He leaned down to reach around her and grab the phone off the bed, but Stephanie blocked him. She placed her hands on his upper arms again, holding him back. Their faces were only inches apart. Rick's chest tightened at the nearness. He swallowed and then stepped back and let her talk.

“We've been in this hotel long enough for Julian to locate us again already. If he suddenly loses our trail he'll know that we've figured out how he's tracking us.”

“So what if he knows that we're onto him? He'll have to come up with a new game plan. That will give us time to find a real safe house for once.” Rick was ready to take back the upper hand. No more Julian Hale popping up unexpected sounded very appealing. He could take Stephanie far away and leave the work of taking down Hale to his colleagues.

She put her fingertips against her temples and squeezed her eyes shut. “You're not seeing the bigger picture, Rick. Don't you remember what Detective Shelton told us at the hospital? That Julian's pride would be his downfall? This is our chance to trip him up.”

She kept her hand on the phone behind her back and out of his reach. “If we play dumb and let him follow us, we can lure him wherever we want him to go.”

“I suppose you think I'm going to let you play some kind of bait in order to do that? Because I'm not.” Rick widened his stance. He wasn't backing down on that part. He had promised Terrell that he would protect Stephanie as if she were a member of his own family. Terrell would never let her purposefully put herself in danger, and neither would Rick.

“Like you care.” She mumbled so low it was almost too quiet for him to hear what she said. Her already-flushed face deepened to a horrified purple. Rick guessed she hadn't meant to say that out loud.

Rick's voice rose a little in volume. “What is that supposed to mean, Stephanie? I don't put my life on hold like this for people I don't care about. I've done nothing but try to protect you.”

“And ignore me.” Her gaze locked onto a hangnail she picked at on her thumb.

Her words were like a kick in the gut because they were true. He should clear the air right now and let her know it wasn't anything she had done, that he had only been trying to maintain a professional distance, that she shouldn't take it personally. He reached for her. “Stephanie, I...”

But before he could apologize, she popped up off the bed and put her own distance between them. “I shouldn't have said all of that. You're right, you have put your life on hold for me, and I appreciate it so much. I really only want for you to be able to go back to your normal life and not have to be responsible for me anymore.” She squeezed her arms around herself. “This favor for Terrell has been too much to ask of anyone.”

Tell her you're sorry. Tell her that you've enjoyed being with her and that you care about her safety, too, not just for Terrell's sake.
But Rick bit back his apology. It was better this way.

Flustered, Stephanie changed the subject back to Hale. “Aren't you sick of Julian having all the power?”

“Yes, but putting you at risk on purpose is too high a price to pay in order to tip the scales. I'm not going to let it happen.”

“Well, it might not be up to you.” Stephanie hung her head. “Because I've already called Detective Shelton.”

FIFTEEN

Thursday

R
ick filled the doorway of Gary Shelton's cubicle. He flexed his fingers, trying to control his anger and annoyance at being called back to Seattle for a chat with the detective. He had to leave Axle all alone in that vet's office hours away in order to humor the man, but he refused to be bullied into using Stephanie as bait. “You do not outrank me, Gary.”

Shelton shook his head. “You're right, I don't outrank you, Powell, but those who do are on my side on this one,” he said. “And frankly, if your head was in the right place, you'd be on board, too. I'm not asking that much.”

Rick's fists clenched tight. It would feel good to knock the smug look off Shelton's face. Gary Shelton was a friend, but not so good a friend that Rick would put Stephanie's life in danger in order to please him.

Am I making too big a deal of this?
After all, Shelton was only asking him to stay in Seattle and to leave his cell phone turned on so Hale could track it. Rick wanted to destroy the stupid phone and drive Stephanie far, far away. Maybe that desire was more evidence that he had gotten too close to her and too emotionally invested to do his job well.

But his gut told him that somehow Hale would figure out how to twist this to his own advantage. His intuition also told him that Shelton would see any harm that might come to Stephanie as simply a sad but necessary price to pay for protecting the greater good. Shelton viewed Stephanie as nothing more than a pawn in the big picture.

Rick towered over the smaller man sitting at his desk, but Shelton wasn't backing down. The detective stood to his full height, his eyes turned to steel. “This is our chance to stop this maniac, Rick. It's time to put an end to this cat-and-mouse game you've been playing with him. We can't blow this opportunity just because you are sweet on her.”

Rick slammed his fists onto the detective's desk sending papers flying. “Don't try to make this about me. You're the one who has let this get far too personal. You want to catch Hale so badly you can taste it. I'm not going to let you gamble with her life.”

“This isn't your call anymore, Rick. It's gotten bigger than you, and if you can't maintain your professionalism, I'll make sure they take you off Stephanie's protection detail.”

Neither man paid any attention to Stephanie sitting in her chair inside the cubicle, her face turning a deeper cherry red by the minute. She cleared her throat, drawing the men's attention to where she sat. “I'm sitting right here. Don't I have a say in this?”

The detective answered, “Of course you do” at the same time that Rick growled, “No, you don't.”

Her blue eyes connected with Rick's. “Come on, Rick. We've been over this. You know you are tired of playing Julian's game.”

Rick glared at her. He
was
tired of Hale's cat-and-mouse game. He wanted Hale to know what it felt like to be the mouse for a change, but he didn't want Stephanie to be the cheese in order for that to happen. If they left the cell phone behind, they could disappear without being followed by Hale for once. That had to be the best course of action to keep Stephanie safe.

She stood up and went toe-to-toe with him. “Well, I'm tired of it. I want my life back.”

The detective sat back down in his desk chair; the smug tip to the edges of his mouth had returned. “Go back and get your dog, Rick. Hole up in another hotel if you want to. It doesn't matter where you two go as long as we make it look like you are still running and trying to hide. In the meantime, we will set up a team to nab Hale whenever he shows up again.”

Rick looked into Stephanie's imploring eyes, ignoring the detective. “It's not going to work,” he told her. He couldn't care less what Gary Shelton wanted him to do at this moment. This was between him and Stephanie. “Julian Hale is too smart for this. He'll see right through it.”

“Then nothing has changed,” she said.

Stephanie and Rick breathed in and out in unison. It became a game of who would blink first.

“Fine,” Rick said, throwing up his hands. “But we are doing nothing more than keeping the cell turned on. We are not sending Hale a formal invitation to join us, and you are not putting yourself in any unnecessary danger, got it?”

She smiled. “Got it.”

Rick kneaded the back of his neck. “You are a real pain, you know that?”

“Yup.” She scrunched up her nose. Then she gave him a goofy, crooked smile and held up her index finger. “But I'm cute.”

Rick chuckled. “That you are.”

The demanding cry of Rick's cell phone ringtone interrupted them, making all three people in the cubicle jump. He unclipped his phone from his belt and stared at it. “Call from,” the robotic voice of his phone's operating system announced, “Allison Townsend.”

Allie?
He blinked at the caller ID on the screen, unbelieving.
Really?
He hadn't heard from her in a year. He had forgotten that he'd added her married name to his contacts. What could she want to talk to him about now all of a sudden?

“Rick, it's Allie.” Her voice shook with emotion. “We need to talk. Is there somewhere we could meet?”

He listened to what she had to say. Something had really scared her, but she refused to talk about it over the phone. She insisted they had to meet in person.

“I'll call you back,” he told her, and that was as much of a promise Allie was going to get from him now or ever.

* * *

After Rick explained Allie's request, Shelton rubbed his hands together.

“Well, look what we have here,” he said. “The perfect scenario just dropped into our lap.”

Rick could almost see steam coming from Shelton's ears as the gears inside his brain turned.

“You should go meet your fiancée for coffee and take Stephanie along with you. It's a perfect way to draw Julian out of hiding. You ignore Stephanie while you make goo-goo eyes with your long lost love. Stephanie acts all rejected and hurt and wanders off on her own. Meanwhile we watch and hope Hale will try to capitalize on the situation.” Shelton looked as though he was enjoying the soap opera scene he was dreaming up, but the idea did not sit right in Rick's stomach.

This smelled of setup. It had to be more of Hale's games. Rick couldn't shake the feeling that they were walking into a trap.

“She is my
ex
-fiancée. And she happens to be married, by the way—let's not forget that important detail.”

Gary Shelton wasn't known for his fidelity or for any long-lasting relationships. In his mind that would probably be an insignificant distinction, but Rick wanted Stephanie to know the difference.

Shelton waved off his words as if he were swatting away annoying flies. “Semantics. Just give the woman your full attention and keep your back turned to Stephanie while you're at it.”

“It's the ‘hopefully Hale will try to capitalize on the situation' that concerns me most,” Rick grumbled.

“We'll have more guys than you can count who won't take their eyes off her for a second. You have to trust your team, Rick. Nothing's going to go wrong.”

Famous last words, Shelton.

* * *

The silver BMW slipped effortlessly between two cars into an open parking spot across the street.
She even parks elegantly.

The sporty car fit the image Stephanie had created in her mind of
the type of women Rick would have
dated in the past. Women who were completely unlike her. Allie Townsend's long legs swung out of the door before the beautiful brunette rose from the car and jogged toward the corner coffee shop where Rick and Stephanie stood waiting for her.

Allie swept past Stephanie, leaving a cloud of high-end floral fragrance lingering behind her. Stephanie inhaled the subtle rose and sandalwood tones. It was a lovely scent and a perfect match for the chic woman in front of her. Stephanie tugged at the hem of her dirty T-shirt, remembering she was still wearing the clothes Rick had bought her at the Marysville Walmart several days ago. What must she smell like? She had washed out the clothes in the hotel sink and let them air-dry, but the bar of soap had left them stiff and still dingy. Her other clothes had either blown up in the bomb, or had been left behind at the cabin in their haste to get Axle help. Stephanie shrank back as Allie embraced Rick.

With her immaculate tailored clothing and her flawless makeup, Allie appeared sophisticated and in charge, but her white-knuckle grip on Rick's arms and the way her eyebrows pinched together spoke volumes.
Julian has gotten to her, too.
Stephanie sighed as an almost motherly pity squeezed her heart.

Allie's head snapped to where Stephanie stood. All evidence of fear vanished as Allie's facial features smoothed into a nonchalant expression. A smidgen of curiosity peeked through, but otherwise Allie became a vision of total control. She stepped from the embrace and ran her hands down Rick's arms. “How are you, Rick?”

Sunlight glinted off the giant diamond on Allie's left ring finger, evaporating Stephanie's pity. She wanted to swat the married woman's French-manicured hands away from Rick's arms.
He's not yours to worry about any more,
Mrs.
Townsend
. But she restrained herself, remembering that Rick didn't belong to her any more than he belonged to Allie. With the history the two of them shared, Allie did have more right to Rick than Stephanie, even if she had let him get away. Stephanie remained silent, waiting for Rick to recall that she was standing there, waiting for him to care enough to introduce them.

He didn't.

Detective Shelton had told Rick to “ignore Stephanie while you make goo-goo eyes with your long lost love.”

So the charade begins.
Stephanie shifted her weight from foot to foot and wondered what she was supposed to do. Detective Shelton hadn't given her very clear directions other than to wander off and feign hurt. That wouldn't take much acting on her part. She had played the third wheel before; why was it bothering her so much today? Rick was playing his part perfectly, however.
Maybe he isn't acting.

Cars and cyclists passed on the street, braking and honking at jaywalkers. Yuppie-looking pedestrians streamed by their spot on the sidewalk. Stephanie squinted into the bright sunshine, wondering about the people passing her. Which of them were police in disguise sent to protect her and nab Julian, and which were simply real Seattleites and tourists enjoying an unseasonably warm afternoon? More importantly, where was Julian Hale? Could he see her?

A sweet preschooler bumped against Stephanie's leg. The little girl held a red balloon animal and smiled up at her before her mother led her farther down the street. Stephanie watched a college-age boy lock his bike onto the rack next to her. The first real spring weather in many weeks had driven people tired of the drizzle out of doors en masse. The street was full of color and movement and innocent bystanders. What if Julian started shooting at them again in this crowd? Who would get hit in the cross fire?

Allie's gaze moved between Rick and Stephanie. “You two look like you've been through a war zone.”

“Something like that,” Rick answered her. Stephanie noticed his eyes doing their own scan of their surroundings. He pointed toward the door of the coffee shop. “Can we get inside now?”

Thankfully this gorgeous woman hadn't distracted him too much. Even if he had been giving Stephanie the cold shoulder lately, and was now too wrapped up in this reunion with his former fiancée to remember she was standing next to him, at least he was still the hypervigilant cop Stephanie had come to rely on for her protection.

Allie pouted and flipped her smooth dark hair over her shoulder. “Aren't you going to introduce us first, Rick?”

Before Rick could do the honors, Allie held out her slender hand to Stephanie, keeping her eyes on Rick. “He never was much for manners. I'm Allison Townsend.”

Stephanie shook Allie's hand, feeling as though she wanted to fall into a hole. “I'm Stephanie. It's nice to meet you.”

“So—” Allie elbowed Rick and winked “—does she know about us?” she asked him, her laugh brittle.

Bile burned Stephanie's throat. Val was right, and Stephanie was the fool. She couldn't deny her feelings for Rick any longer, but this woman from his past was so far out of her league. Stephanie's hand rose to smooth down her frizzy, disobedient hair. This tan, elegant woman with her Coach purse, her sculpted eyebrows and her perfect shampoo-commercial hair was Rick's type, not Stephanie in her frumpy Walmart couture. How had she let this happen? When had she stopped fighting against the attraction? She tried desperately to reel her heart back in, to reclaim it for herself, but it refused to obey.

Allie addressed her next question directly to Stephanie. “Did he mention how he broke my heart?”