The Cabin (13 page)

you,” he whispered.

She placed her palm flat on his chest and sank her

forehead against his shoulder, feeling his arms come

around her. Tears welled in her eyes, and she thought of

Alice Parker changing her name and befriending her

eighty-two-year-old grandmother. There was no escap-

ing that Jack’s work had touched their lives in a new

way. Susanna didn’t know what to do. Didn’t know

what he’d do if he thought his family was threatened by

anyone, never mind by someone he’d put in prison.

“Let me help,” he said softly.

He wasn’t ordering her, and he never pleaded. He

was, Susanna knew, simply telling her what he could do.

He was a lieutenant with the Texas Rangers. He could

help. He wanted to help. She lifted her head off his

shoulder and saw his self-control drop into place, the ex-

perienced law enforcement officer back on the case.

“Jack, it’s us this time—Gran, the girls, me. We’re the

ones with the creepy stuff going on. I hope it won’t

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105

amount to anything and that Alice was honest with me,

but it’s not just you this time. It’s not strangers.”

His eyes darkened. “Why the hell do you think I’m

here?”

She stepped back from his embrace. “How long do

you plan to stay?” she asked, fighting for a little self-

control of her own.

“I have time coming to me. I can stay as long as I

need to.”

“We’re leaving for the Adirondacks in the morn-

ing—”

He managed a half smile. “What about my open in-

vitation?”

Her heartbeat quickened. She pictured him up there

in the mountains with her. Was that what she wanted?

“Jack, I really think I can handle this situation myself.

I don’t want to mess up your vacation time.”

His expression was unreadable, whatever he was

feeling tamped down somewhere deep and inaccessible.

“I’m not here because I don’t think you can’t handle the

situation. You have local law enforcement you can call.

I’m here because I want to help.”

“The hell you are,” she said abruptly, dropping onto

her chair, studying this intelligent, independent man

she’d loved for half her life. “This is payback for me try-

ing to do an end run on you.”

“Whatever it is, Susanna, I’m here, and I’m not going

anywhere until I’ve talked to Alice Parker myself. Make

the best of it.” He grabbed his hat and bag and started

for the door, stopping halfway and turning back to her.

His eyes were very dark. She tended to forget how in-

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Carla Neggers

timidating he could look—except she’d never been in-

timidated by Jack Galway. Never. He pointed his hat at

her. “If you’d called me at six o’clock this morning, I’d

still have come. Alice Parker has no business being any-

where near my family.”

“I know that, but you said yourself there’s not a

damn thing either of us can do about it unless she breaks

the law—”

“Susanna,” he said, “tell me you’re not relieved

I’m here.”

Her mouth snapped shut. She couldn’t say a word.

He grinned as if he had his answer and pulled open

the door. He gave her office another appraising scan.

“It’s nice. You’ve done well for yourself.”

“Thanks.” Her throat was still tight, her nerves frayed

from seeing him. No one could see through her de-

fenses to her vulnerabilities better than her husband

could. She tried to take in a decent breath. “Where are

you going now?”

“Subway station.”

In other words, he had no intention of answering to

her. He’d do as he damn well pleased. Relieved. Oh,

yeah, she was relieved he was here.

But part of her
was
relieved, and that just added to

her jumble of emotions.

She tilted back in her chair, raking both hands

through her hair, and she gave him as casual a look she

could manage. “Should I expect you for dinner? Um—

should I make up the bed in the guest room?”

“Now we get to the crux of matter. Where does the

husband sleep tonight?” He put on his cowboy hat and

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107

winked at her, sexily. “Don’t worry, darlin’. I’ll let

you know.”

He left, shutting the door softly behind him—as if to

tell her he was in total control of what he was doing. Su-

sanna banged a few keys on her computer and counted

to ten. Or tried to. She got to seven and jumped up,

charging across her office and out into the hall.

She leaned over the stair rail. He was on the bot-

tom step.

“Don’t you think you’ve put me on the defensive,”

she yelled down to him, “because you haven’t. I want

you to keep me informed. I won’t have you tearing

around in my city—”

He kept walking, his footsteps echoing in the stair-

well. She thought of the other people in the building,

wondered if they thought she was a lunatic. Most

didn’t know she was married to a Texas Ranger. That

didn’t fit their profile of a successful Boston financial

planner.

“Jack!” She pounded the railing in frustration. He

knew every way there was to get under her skin.

Still no answer.

“Fine,” she muttered. “Have it your way, Lieutenant

Galway.”

She swooped back into her office, slammed the door

and flopped onto her leather couch. She touched her lips

where he’d kissed her and swore silently, not because

of the kiss, but because of her reaction to it. He was an

overwhelming presence, her husband. It would be so

easy to sit back and let him take control of everything,

except she’d never done any such thing in all the years

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they’d been together. He wouldn’t respect her if she

did. But it would be so easy.

Well, he was
not
coming to the Adirondacks. She’d

only bought snowshoes for herself and the girls. She

didn’t have room for him. There was no guest room in

her cabin, not if Gran came, and with Alice Parker in

town, Susanna had no intention of leaving her grand-

mother alone.

As she calmed down, she realized she was getting

way ahead of herself. Jack had come to Boston because

of Alice Parker. Never mind that he wasn’t wearing his

badge and carrying his weapon, he was here because of

his work.

It was something she needed to remember.

��

Seven

Alice stood outside Jim’s Place, debating whether she

should go in and find Iris and apologize to her for lying.

It didn’t seem like a good idea. Jim Haviland and Davey

Ahearn were mad at her, and they and Susanna Galway

would regard any contact with Iris Dunning as an affront.

Then there was Jack Galway. Alice suspected he was

in Boston by now, if Susanna had told him a corrupt cop

he’d put in prison had moved into his wife’s neighbor-

hood under an assumed name.

Alice knew she was feeling sorry for herself. She’d

been feeling sorry for herself since Susanna had read her

the riot act the night before. Her words still stung. Then

again, Alice had lasted up here longer than she’d ever

meant to. Lying to an old woman. Getting her to talk

about her life. Iris had gone on about Blackwater Lake

and the man she’d loved up there so long ago, and Alice

had sat there, choking down clam chowder, listening.

Goddamn snake in the grass was what she was.

She didn’t want Iris to hate her.

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Alice swore silently and turned to leave, running

right into Destin Wright. He grabbed her by the shoul-

ders and steadied her. “Hey, hey, hey, you’re like the

Whirling Dervish. What’s going on?”

He was the last person she wanted to see while she

was sitting on the pity pot. Destin Wright always felt

sorry for himself. Even when he was worth millions,

he’d probably felt sorry for himself. No matter how

much he had, it was never enough. He was a self-ab-

sorbed ass, and Alice couldn’t stand listening to him.

Over the past few weeks, since she’d arrived in Boston,

they met at Jim’s Place on nights she was trying not to

bump into Iris. She liked Iris but knew she was pushing

her luck getting too close to her. Nobody else seemed

to like Destin, either, although they tolerated him, some-

times egging him on when he started talking and

wouldn’t stop. It was as if he thought the world spun for

him and no one else.

“I hate Boston,” Alice blurted. “I can see why peo-

ple clear out and move to the Sun Belt. I don’t know why

I ever left Texas.”

He shrugged. “Everybody hates Boston in February.”

“I’d hate it anytime of the year. I don’t give a damn

about all the history and old buildings, I hate riding the

subway, and why the hell do I care about Harvard and

MIT? You can have them.”

“Not me. Harvard rejected me.”

Everything
was about him. She tucked her hands into

the pockets of her parka. She wasn’t wearing gloves.

She hated gloves. “I lied to people about who I am.”

That perked his interest. “No kidding? Who are you?”

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111

“My name’s not Audrey Melbourne, at least not yet.

Not legally. It’s Alice Parker. I was a police officer in

Texas, and I screwed up a murder investigation and

served time for witness tampering.”

“Ouch.”

“Susanna Galway—” Alice squinted up at the street-

light, dark still coming too soon for her tastes. She

looked back at Destin, knowing he’d lose his interest in

listening to her pretty soon. “She’s the wife of the Texas

Ranger who arrested me.”

“Jack arrested you?” Destin laughed, impressed. “No

shit. He’s a hard-ass.”

“Yes, he is.”

Destin shifted, looking handsome and Harvard-like

in his camel cashmere coat and black scarf and gloves.

Rich, Alice thought, although she knew he was dead

broke, almost as broke as she was. “Maybe that’s why

Susanna’s been so distracted,” he said, “and won’t take

a look at my business plan, because she’s been worried

about you. I know she’d go for this idea. It’s hot.”

Alice resisted rolling her eyes. She knew the conver-

sation would eventually boomerang back to him and his

scheme to start a new company. As far as she could see,

begging a hundred thousand dollars from Susanna Gal-

way was no better than Alice extorting fifty thousand

off Beau McGarrity. At least Beau would get something

in return. Susanna would just get Destin off her back.

“I’m not asking for charity,” he said for the thou-

sandth time since they’d met. “This is such a no-brainer.

I just want someone to—to—”

“To recognize your brilliance,” Alice finished for him.

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Carla Neggers

He settled back on his heels and nodded. “Yeah.

Yeah, this is one fucking brilliant idea. A hundred thou-

sand in angel money. It’s not that much to ask.”

“Susanna has that kind of money?”

“Shit, a hundred grand’s pin money for her.”

Alice could feel the cold from the sidewalk seeping

up through her boots. She’d bought winter boots on

sale, but they were ugly and clunky. She had on her cow-

boy boots tonight. They were cheap. If she’d become a

Texas Ranger, she’d have bought herself good boots.

But that wasn’t going to happen now, and even Australia

was slipping away.

“There has to be a way to get Susanna to loosen up

her purse strings,” Destin said.

“How much do you think she’s worth?”

“Oh, five million easy. Maybe even ten mil by now.

She’s got some of the best instincts I’ve ever seen. She’s

an investor and financial planner, not an entrepreneur—

that’s where I come in.”

He was getting to the point where he’d strangle his

own grandmother for another chance at the brass ring.

Alice could see it in his handsome blue eyes, hear it in

his deep voice. Suppose she was looking in the wrong

place for her ticket to Australia and her new life. Should

she forget Beau and instead think about prying a few

grand off multimillionaire Susanna Galway?

Except Beau might not let her forget Beau.

And then there was the Galway who was a Texas

Ranger.

Destin started toward Jim’s Place, but Alice touched

his arm. “I’m kind of persona non grata there right now.

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113

I don’t think anyone believes I’m here to make amends

for what I did—I think I’m at least part of the reason

Susanna and Jack are on the skids. I feel bad about that.

Anyway, I’d like to talk to you. Do you mind if we go

somewhere else?”

He looked at her a moment, the charming facade

dropping off, telling her she was right about him.

This was the Destin Wright who lacked empathy for

others, who thought the world owed him. He was

smart and ambitious, and he’d do anything. Any scru-