Wilde for Him (22 page)

Christine shook his hand, seemingly unaffected by Kevin's not-so-subtle interest that had Ben clenching his teeth in annoyance. "It's nice to meet one of the guys Ben works with." she replied with a smile, then returned her attention back to Ben. "What did you want to ask me?"

"Nothing," he replied gruffly, and cast a quick keep-your-mouth-shut glare at Kevin—a warning that his friend didn't bother to heed.

"Actually, he wanted to know if you'd accompany him to a wedding this Saturday," Kevin said with a persuasive grin as he sat back down in his chair. "Our good friend, Joel Wilde, is getting married—"

"Jesus, Kevin," Ben said, cutting him off midstream. "I already told you that I'm on assignment, and I'm sure Joel will understand why I'm not there."

Christine placed her hands on her hips, looking very determined—and sexy as hell. "You shouldn't have to miss a friend's wedding because of me. I don't have any plans for this weekend, so there's no reason why the two of us can't go together."

Ben crossed his arms over his chest and narrowed his gaze in a stern attempt to get her to back down. "We already talked about keeping your public appearances to a minimum."

She wasn't the least bit intimidated by his authoritative tone or demeanor. "Where is the wedding and reception being held?" she asked.

"That doesn't matter."

"It's a backyard ceremony at Joel's parents' place," Kevin said, providing the details that Ben was so reluctant to share. "Very small and low-key. Mostly family, a few good friends, and a slew of security agents to keep an eye on you and keep you safe." He winked at Christine, letting her know that she could count on him to watch over her, too.

Christine grinned broadly. "Perfect. We'll be there," she said to Kevin, then turned that sassy, confident attitude Ben's way and pointed her finger at him. "And no arguments from you about it."

And that was the end of that, Ben realized as he watched Christine walk away with a seductive sashay of her hips and her cute little pleated skirt flirting around those smooth thighs of hers. She collected the small box and the rest of the packages and letters that mail delivery had dropped off a while ago, then disappeared into one of the back offices.

Once she was gone, Kevin glanced back at Ben, and didn't bother to contain his amusement. "That one has a lot of spunk. I like her. And obviously, so do you," he added much too perceptively.

"She's a client," Ben replied, his tone brusque and to the point.

Kevin shrugged. "Doesn't change the fact that you have a thing for her."

This time, Ben scowled at his friend—as if that would make a difference to someone he'd fought side by side with in the Iraq War. He knew it would take a helluva lot more than just a glare to make Kevin back off.

"Just leave it alone, okay?" The last thing Ben wanted was to discuss his relationship with Christine with Kevin, or anyone else for that matter—mainly, because there was nothing to talk about. Another week, and this assignment, and his affair with her, would be a thing of the past. End of story.

A shrill, hair-raising shriek, straight out of some horror flick, erupted from one of the back rooms. Even before the bloodcurdling scream had a chance to ebb, Ben was on his feet and racing toward the sound with his weapon drawn, and Kevin right on his heels as backup. He turned the corner to the office, prepared to fire a shot at the person attacking Christine… except as his gaze scanned the entire room, he realized that there was no one in there but her. At least that he could see.

Oddly enough, she was kneeling on top of a nearby desk, with her arms wrapped around her stomach. Her whole body shook with fear, her face was drained of color, and she was muttering, "Oh God, oh God, oh God," over and over again.

Still unsure of the situation, he kept his gun firmly in hand. "What happened?" Ben barked out, hating the way his own stomach twisted with that awful sense of foreboding. Something was wrong, and he had no idea what had put that look of terror in her eyes.

"Ssssnakes," she said, her panic a tangible thing as she pointed a trembling finger at the floor behind the desk. "Get them out of here, please!"

Ben rounded the desk, and sure enough there were three decentsized snakes slithering across the carpet—all of them black with a yellow stripe and red markings. "What the hell?" he muttered in confusion as he holstered his weapon. Then he caught sight of the open box on the floor. "Did someone send them to you?"

She nodded jerkily. "Why would someone do that?" she asked, her voice breaking on a sob.

Obviously, to scare the crap out of her, Ben thought.

And the ploy had worked. He could only assume that this was yet another threat toward Christine to make Nathan drop out of the upcoming election.

But the more important question was, who had sent the box of snakes? Someone who knew she was deathly afraid of them, and as soon as he was able to calm her down, he'd find out that information.

Kevin stepped around him, then crouched down in front of one of the long snakes. "Honey, they're just common garter snakes," he said in an attempt to soothe her fears. "I used to play with these snakes all the time when I was a boy. They're completely harmless and won't hurt you. In fact, they look just as frightened as you are."

"I… don't… care!" Her voice rose hysterically, pushing her to the verge of hyperventilating. "Get rid of them!"

Realizing just how real Christine's phobia was, Kevin's gaze softened with compassion. "Take her out of here and I'll round up these guys and put them back into the box," he told Ben.

"Thanks." Ben moved out of the way of a snake heading toward his shoe. The last thing he needed was to have the damn thing slither its way up his pant leg. "If you could take them with you when you leave and see if you can trace the return address on the box, I'd appreciate it."

"You got it," Kevin said as he reached for one of the snake's tails, gently lifted it off the ground, then guided the reptile toward the box it had arrived in.

Ben held a hand toward Christine to help her step down from the desk. "Come on, let's go sit in the reception area while Kevin does his thing."

She glanced at the floor skeptically, then shook her head, her loose hair flying wildly around her face. "I… can't."

Her fright was so genuine, and he felt something in his chest tighten with the kind of tenderness he hadn't experienced in a very long time. Understanding that she wasn't quite ready to place her feet on the ground, not when a few of the snakes were still on the loose, he scooped her into his arms and carried her out of the room and to the reception area. He placed her on the couch, and she immediately curled her legs beneath her on the cushion.

She ran still-shaking fingers through her hair. "I can't believe that someone sent me a box of snakes. I must have really pissed someone off." she said in an attempt to make light of the situation.

Ben didn't laugh, because he knew just how serious this newest threat was. "I'm pretty sure that it's all tied into your father's race for governor."

"I don't get it," she said as she smoothed the hem of her skirt over her thighs. "If someone wants my father to drop out of the election, then why did they send me the snakes?" She shuddered as she said the word.

Initially, Ben and Nathan had agreed to keep the details of those blackmail letters to themselves, but now that the intimidation tactics were escalating, Ben knew it was time to apprise Christine of the whole truth.

He looked at her, meeting her wide-eyed gaze. "The notes that your father received are demanding that he drop out of the election or risk losing what's most precious to him… and that would be you."

"Me?" she asked incredulously. "This person is using me as leverage, and as a target?"

He nodded, glad to see her fear being replaced by a more productive emotion like anger. "It appears that they're letting your father know that they're serious about their threats. How many people know about your aversion to snakes?" he asked, hoping for some kind of insight as to who might be behind this latest hoax.

"Not many, really. It's not something I bring up in casual conversation." She thought for a moment, her expression slowly reflecting a noticeable level of disdain. "The one person who is very aware of my fear of snakes is Jason. He was with me when I was bitten by one."

He couldn't even begin to imagine the scenario that had led to such an incident. "How did that happen?"

"Jason was an outdoorsy guy, and about a month after we were engaged, he took me hiking for a day on some trails at a state park in Antioch," she said, a slight frown marring her brow as she remembered, and explained. "We came across a snake, which I almost stepped on because of the way it blended in with the foliage. I thought it was a rattlesnake at first because it was shaking its tail and hissing at us, and of course I freaked out. Jason laughed and told me it was a gopher snake and insisted that it wouldn't hurt me. He thought it was funny that I was so frightened, and he deliberately pushed me toward the snake. I screamed, and the snake struck out and bit my calf." She absently rubbed at that spot on her bare leg.

"Jesus." Ben scrubbed a hand along his jaw as a slow-burning fury coursed through him. Her ex was a certified asshole, and Ben wished he would have beat the shit out of him when he'd had the chance that first night at Envy.

"We immediately went to the state park's first-aid station, where they cleaned and bandaged the bite." She crossed her arms over her chest and rubbed at her arms through the sweater she was wearing. "And I was fine since the snake wasn't poisonous, but Jason never let me forget what a big baby I was about the whole thing."

Ben's hands curled into tight fists as anger and contempt for Jason seethed inside him. Luckily, they were interrupted by Kevin, who walked into the reception area, the box of snakes in hand with the top folded down.

"I got all three of them," he said to Ben, keeping his distance for Christine's sake. "Someone poked some small holes into the box, which is why they survived being mailed. I'll release the snakes somewhere safe and see what I can find out about the return address."

Ben gave his friend a grateful nod. "I appreciate that."

Kevin turned his attention toward Christine. His expression was grim, but his gaze conveyed kindness and sympathy for her situation. "I'm really sorry about all this, and I hope we catch the bastard who sent the damn things."

"Thank you," she said softly. "I know I overreacted back there, and I apologize for being so hysterical about the snakes."

Ben grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "You had good reason," he assured her.

"I'll contact you when I know something," Kevin said, his comment directed at Ben.

"Thanks, man."

Then Kevin grinned at Christine—one of those flirtatious smiles that could persuade a woman to do just about anything he asked. "I'll see you at the wedding on Saturday." Kevin winked at her, then headed out the front door to the truck parked in front of her business.

When Ben glanced back at Christine, she wore a half-smile on her face, the kind that told him that Kevin's charm had woven its spell on yet another female. Ben highly suspected that Kevin had done so to provoke him and force him to face the feelings Ben swore he didn't have for this woman. Judging by the annoyance gripping him, his friend's scheme had worked.

"Back to business," Ben said, redirecting Christine's gaze, and attention, back to him. "Is there anybody else you might have mentioned your fear of snakes to?"

She thought for a moment, and then a startling realization flashed across her features. "Craig knows, and so does Leanne."

Ben frowned. "How would they know about your aversion to snakes?"

"Normally, they wouldn't, but a few months ago Craig asked me to plan and put together a party night at Envy for a client. The guy wanted a Snakes on a Plane theme, like the movie, and I just couldn't do it because it entailed hanging rubber snakes from the rafters, and other snake paraphernalia." She visibly shivered. "Even fake snakes are enough to send me into a panic, so I explained to Craig why I couldn't take the job, and he had Leanne do it instead. Of course, she wanted to know why I refused the event, and gloated over the fact that I had to turn it down because I was afraid of snakes."

So, that left them with three key people who knew about Christine's phobia. At the moment, Jason was the most likely suspect for sending the snakes. The man held a huge grudge against Nathan Delacroix for ruining his career, and he obviously still had a lot of unresolved anger toward Christine. Jason had every reason for wanting to sabotage Nathan's campaign, and had no qualms about using Christine's fears to let Delacroix know just how serious he was about threatening his daughter.

Now, Ben just had to find some kind of proof that Jason was behind this latest effort to scare Christine. If Kevin could link her ex to the box of snakes, they'd have what they needed to nail Jason and put an end to the blackmail attempts.

Madison came back from running her errands, and as soon as she took one look at Christine her entire demeanor changed into best friend mode as she sensed that something was wrong. She approached where the two of them were still sitting on the couch, and she dropped her purse onto the empty seat beside the sofa and glanced from Ben to Christine.

"You don't look well. What happened?" Madison asked, her brow creased with concern.

Instead of making Christine relive the entire incident, Ben gave Madison all the gory details. Her friend blanched, obviously not a fan of slithering reptiles, either.

"Good God!" Madison said with a shake of her head as she tried to process it all. "I'm glad you're okay. Why don't you take the rest of the afternoon off? I'll get those party favors ordered for the bridal shower next month and take care of everything else that needs to get done today."

"That would be great." Christine smiled gratefully at her friend. "I think I've had enough excitement for today."

Ben couldn't agree more.

Chapter Twelve