Sinful Pleasures (15 page)
Authors: Ashley Shay
Tags: #Erotica, #Menage a Trois (m/f/m), #Menage Everlasting, #The American Heroes Collection
“That could be true,” Morgan agreed, “but we aren’t going to take any chances for a while. Besides, we have a wedding to plan and
“Great, thanks a lot,”
Jude looked at
Jude opened her mouth to answer, but the words never came. The truck was rammed from behind, sending it into a spin that propelled them off the divided highway, across the median, and into oncoming traffic.
Morgan fought the wheel, trying to control the skid as the truck’s wheels caught on the pavement. Another vehicle slammed into the back side of the truck bed, keeping the momentum going as the pickup slid in reverse, careening into the guardrail and bouncing back across the double lanes of traffic. A tractor trailer missed them by inches. The driver swerved the rig into the emergency lane, barely in time to avoid the pickup as it skipped across the road to end up on its side in the median.
Jude couldn’t move. She was trapped beneath Morgan and strapped in by her seatbelt.
Jude could hear people running to help, calling out as they ran. She felt the truck rocking and heard footsteps on metal as someone climbed onto the overturned side to reach the door. A face peered in through the windshield to look at them and then disappeared just as quickly.
She heard several male voices shouting orders. The men heaved on the driver’s door and managed to get it open despite damage to the metal and the angle the truck lay on its side. Several pairs of hands lifted Morgan out of the vehicle and then returned to help her out. As soon as she was free,
“Are you okay, babe?” he asked Jude.
She nodded, still too shaken to speak.
An elderly lady stepped forward timidly. “I saw it,” she said in a shaky voice. “It was one of those SUV things, dark green with
She wrung her hands nervously. “I think he hit you on purpose. It looked like he sped up when he got close. My son said I should keep my mouth shut, but it’s not right. You could have been killed.”
Morgan stirred on the ground, and
“Where’s your son, ma’am?”
“I’m here.” A disgruntled man stepped to the front, casting his mother an irritated look. “Guess you got plenty of time to play witness for the lawsuit that’s going to come out of this.”
The man shrugged arrogantly. “I didn’t see anything.”
The guy swallowed hard, backing up while keeping an eye on
“What happened after it hit us?”
“It swerved from the impact but kept on going. I focused on your truck.” He spread his hands. “Sorry.”
“I’m fine, but I think Morgan hit his head on the door when we spun into the guardrail. Where’s the damn ambulance?”
On cue, the sound of sirens broke up the crowd. Several people returned to their vehicles, pulling back on the road and driving away, including the reluctant witness and his mother. No doubt escaping before their names could be taken, Jude thought with disgust.
* * * *
“There’s no evidence of a concussion,” Dr. Liu said, shining the light in Morgan’s eyes one more time. “Do you remember if you hit your head?”
“Hell, Doc, we were spinning like a top going down the road, I don’t remember hitting my head, but I must have.” Morgan looked at the emergency room physician impatiently. “Did you find any lumps?”
Dr. Liu gave a long-suffering smile. “I think it’s possible you may have suffered a whiplash-induced blackout.” He punched a few keys on the laptop in front of him, studying the results of the X-ray. “Since I don’t see any trauma or swelling, I’ll release you tonight if you have someone that will be in the house with you.”
“He’s covered,”
“Then he’s free to go as soon as I get the paperwork printed out. The nurse will be back with a form to sign.” Dr. Liu stopped at the doorway. “I suggest you see your primary physician in the morning, Mr.
“Right,” Morgan growled at the retreating doctor. “No sex.”
On the heels of the doctor’s departure, Bishop Taylor walked into the examination room. As usual, his expression was unreadable as he studied the three of them. “I figured you might need a ride home. I also got a lead on that green Suburban.”
Bishop looked every inch the Special Ops soldier as he brushed off
Even though it was dark, Bishop slid on a pair of amber-colored sunglasses before getting behind the wheel of his black Mercedes. Dallas, Jude, and Morgan all piled into the backseat, drawing strength from each other. Without a word, Bishop pulled out of the hospital parking lot and turned left, taking the same route Morgan had a few hours earlier.
Jude sat silently for a couple of miles until she couldn’t stand it any longer. “Nice car. Did you win the lottery?”
Bishop looked in the rearview mirror for a long second before replying. “I do a little security work on the side. I like to keep busy.”
“Security obviously pays better than the fire department.” Jude didn’t know why she was pushing him. Maybe because he scared her a little, and he had his eye on Tracey. That scared her a lot.
He grinned, shaking his head in disbelief. “You’re playing the older sister routine? I didn’t figure you for that type. It’s all legit, sis. I’ll let you check my books anytime you want.”
Jude started to come back with a less-than-gracious reply when
“That’s a real good idea,” Bishop said. Jude watched him glance in his side mirrors to keep check on the traffic around them. He seemed constantly vigilant no matter what he was doing, and Jude wondered if he ever truly rested.
They rode in silence for a few more miles with Jude seething inwardly, but she kept her thoughts to herself. She would talk to Tracey in the morning. She didn’t need to get tangled up with Bishop Taylor. The man was an arrogant bastard. And he sure as hell wasn’t living on a fireman’s salary. Despite his explanation for the car, Jude had a feeling the man wasn’t telling the whole truth.
Bishop broke the silence. “This is where you got tapped.” He pointed at the skid marks on the left lane. The dark smears were visible under the lights positioned along the off ramp. “Your witness said the Suburban swerved from the impact but kept on going. I figured he would get off the road fast, just in case someone managed to get the tag number, or there was more damage to the vehicle than met the eye.” Bishop turned on his signal for the exit ramp. “This is the first exit he would come to, and over here is a convenience store.”
“Security cameras,” Morgan said. “They have twenty-four-hour surveillance.”
“That’s right. These stores are at a high risk of being held up. They have security cameras all over the place. I called Mr. Saied, and he let me view the digital feed.” Bishop pulled the Mercedes into a dark corner of the lot. “I’ve got a copy of his files downloaded on my laptop.”
“I don’t know how you thought of this,” Morgan said in admiration. “It’s kind of obvious when you think about it, but it wouldn’t have crossed my mind.”
Bishop opened the laptop and punched a couple of keys. “That’s where most people go wrong, Morgan. They overlook what’s right in front of their faces. It’s human nature to make things harder than they have to be.”
A video feed of the parking lot began playing on the screen. Jude realized Bishop stopped the Mercedes in approximately the same spot the green Suburban had parked while the driver made a phone call. A few minutes later, another car pulled up beside the Suburban and rolled down the window.
Jude gave an audible gasp, unable to believe her eyes.
“Do you recognize the car?” All three men asked in unison.
“That’s my ex-mother-in-law.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No. That’s Genevieve Wheeler.” Jude leaned closer to the screen, watching in shocked fascination as Genevieve handed a fat white envelope to the man in the Suburban. “She’s paying him off for trying to kill us.”
“Looks that way,” Bishop agreed. “But why would she want you killed?”
“She thinks I’m standing in the way of her son’s political career. She wants me out of sight and out of mind.”
Bishop nodded. “I’ll take care of it in the morning.”
“What are you going to do?” Jude asked. “We should call the cops. Let them handle this.”
Bishop slowly took the glasses off his face, staring at Jude until she thought her heart would explode from the tension. “You call the cops and this old bitch will fight back. She’ll pull in every favor she’s ever been owed. Trust me, her society friends are going to back her all the way. You’re going to be portrayed as a bitter ex-wife. Who do you think is going to win in this situation?”
“So what are you going to do? I don’t want you to hurt her.”
“Oh, shit, give me a fucking break,” Bishop exploded. “What the hell do you think I’m going to do? Break her legs?”
“I don’t know what you’re planning to do,” Jude retorted hotly. “That’s why I’m asking.”
A muscle in Bishop’s jaw twitched. “I’m going to show her a copy of this video and tell her that if anything happens to you,
anything at all
, this video will find its way to the police and she will be charged with attempted murder. Is that satisfactory to you, your highness?”
Jude felt more than a little guilty for judging him so harshly. After all, he was only trying to help and she hadn’t thanked him yet. In fact, all she had done so far was hassle the man. She decided it might be time for a truce, so she thanked him in the best way she could think of—by giving him a little insight into her sister.
“Trace likes death-by-chocolate ice cream, and her guilty pleasure is werewolf movies. They scare her to death, but she can’t resist watching them. You take a pint of chocolate ice cream and a scary movie when you visit her and you won’t be sorry.”
Bishop grinned, then he chuckled and started to laugh hard. “Chocolate ice cream and werewolf movies? Seriously? You’re not setting me up to get slapped, are you?”
“White wine doesn’t hurt, either,” Jude added, giggling a little herself at Tracey’s uniqueness. Her sister had always colored outside the lines. She would fearlessly face a mugger head-on but go shrieking under the covers at a phony werewolf with a canned howl. She worked tirelessly for her favorite charities but flitted from job to job when she got bored with whatever new occupation she decided to conquer. Tracey simply danced to a different drummer than Jude.
“Thanks for your help, Bishop,” Jude said. “I’ve got a wedding to plan, and it’s a little hard to do with a death threat hanging over my head. I guess I’m a little nervous.”
Bishop looked back and forth between Morgan and Dallas. “Which one?”
“Both,” Jude answered, looking happily at her husbands to be.
“That’s right, I forgot about the three-way marriage law being in effect in Parrish,” Bishop said. He studied them before speaking. “I have to admit, I’m intrigued. How are you going to make this work?”
“I love them both.” Jude surprised herself she could speak so openly about her unconventional arrangement, especially to a man like Bishop Taylor.
“And you can live with that?” Bishop turned his gaze to the men.
“It’s incredible, man. You’d have to experience it to understand.”
“They make me complete,” Jude said. “I’ve never been happier in my life.”
