Wyatt (Lane Brothers #1) (9 page)

Do not hit your cousin, Wyatt. Ma will not be happy.

I keep repeating that mantra over and over, looking anywhere and everywhere but at him in case it makes me lose my temper.

And then I see her, the most perfect woman I have ever seen in my life.

I say “woman” because even though she looks no older than nineteen, this girl carries herself with a quiet maturity that is breathtaking. I want to know everything there is to know about her.

With her dark blond hair blowing in the gentle breeze and the way she smiles at the girl walking beside her, I instinctively know that she is nothing like the women I usually date.

Nah, this girl is not just pure; she’s one of those rare gems who genuinely cares more about people than she does about money, looks, or prestige.

“Are you fucking listening to me, Lane?!”

I drag myself back to the conversation and turn back to Bolton, wishing I could just clock him one and wash my hands of the fool. I do not want to be here speaking to him a moment longer when I could be talking to that vision who just captured my heart.

“I stopped listening a while back since you’re not saying anything I haven’t heard before, Bolton. You can stand here insulting and cursing at me all day and it wouldn’t make a difference. You’re failing the semester and will be lucky not to flunk another year. You’re so high right now it’s a wonder you can stand up straight, and from the charges on your credit cards, you’re drinking, too. Your parents aren’t footing the bill for your schooling because your father cleaned out Aunt Lynn’s trust fund last year. If you want my parents to keep paying your way, you get your shit together. Or you’re on your own, pal.”

He doesn’t like that, but then I didn’t really expect him to. Jerry has poisoned this kid so badly that even if we were to give him everything his greedy heart wanted he’d still hate us all.

Too bad for him my father is one of those old-school bastards who believes that being born rich doesn’t give you an excuse to be lazy. I went to college on a track scholarship after I proved to scouts that I had what it takes to go pro or even attend the Olympics.

I spent four years of my life training and keeping my grades up. I could have graduated early if I wanted to. There was no easy ride for me or any of my siblings.

The fact that Bolton gets a free ride and still can’t find it in himself to earn it with good grades makes me sick.

Bolton starts yelling again, and by this time we’ve drawn a crowd. The blonde beauty looks over and winces, smiling apologetically at me before turning with her friend and walking away.

The feeling of loss I get is so acute that I make up my mind to find out who she is and anything else I can before the day ends. It’s not every day that I feel this strong attraction, and if I know myself as well as I think I do, I’m going to go after her with everything I’ve got.

I leave not long after, Bolton still unhappy while I haven’t done anything but piss the kid off more.

“You sort that kid out?” Dad asks when I reach the car and dial his number.

“What do you think?”

“Tell me again why I’m footing the bill for that kid when I didn’t even pay for my own sons to get an education.”

“Ma,” I say, grinning when all I get is a resigned sigh. “He’s not worth this, Pop. I say we leave him to it and just wait till they kick his ass out.”

“Yeah? And then I’ll not only be footing the bill for his old man to sit at home and do nothing, but him, too.”

That’s true but I don’t have a solution to this problem and we both know it. The Conrad men seem to be that irritating breed of human who have no respect for hard work or earning your own way.

“My advice? Tell Aunt Lynn to leave him and just wash your hands of the lot of them.”

Tough love, baby, tough love.

“I’ve tried that already, Wyatt. Your aunt doesn’t seem to see the pitfalls of holding on to her marriage. Hell, she doesn’t seem bothered by the fact that her husband has two mistresses and a penchant for the track. It’s—”

“A lost cause, Pop, I know. Listen, I have some stuff to take care of right now, but I’ll call you later and we can hash out something, if it’s even possible to fix this mess with Bolton.”

“Okay, son.”

I disconnect, only to call my younger brother Jared and get him in on my next mission—finding out who that woman was so that I can land me a good girl.

An hour later I’m sitting in my hotel room with a heavy heart and no plans other than to get drunk, sleep, and go back home empty-handed in the morning.

My bird is Eloise Carver, top five in her class and one of those people who volunteers for everything, just because she can. She’s well liked, seems to be genuinely popular, and seems to have a lot of friends.

She’s sweet and beautiful and perfect for me. And totally out of reach because that poor girl not only came out of the hospital recently after surviving a car crash that almost killed her, but she’s in morning for the family she lost in that same fatal accident.

Knowing that her kind smiles and apparent bubbliness come so easily, despite the pain and grief she must feel, only makes her that much more alluring, but if there’s one thing I won’t do, it’s take advantage of a grief-stricken woman.

Seems I’ll have to wait this out and revisit the topic in a few months, because while I won’t go there now, I have no intention of just forgetting a woman who I am pretty positive might be the future Mrs. Lane and the mother of my children.

I go home the next morning with a heavy heart but hopeful that all is not lost.

I should have known, though, and I’ve spent the next few years kicking my own ass because after that, I was called upon again to track Bolton down when he went missing and dropped out of school.

And then I discovered that my cousin had stalked Ellie, kidnapped her, and spent weeks hurting and starving her. It’s my fault. I made one miscalculation. I fucked up by letting Bolton see my interest in Ellie.

If I’d kept it hidden as I should have, she would never have been on his radar and he would never have noticed her. She’d have finished school and escaped being used as a pawn in a rivalry that Bolton just wouldn’t let go.

So yeah, telling Ellie that that piece of garbage was my cousin and that I’m partly to blame for her suffering is not exactly at the top of my list of things to do.

But if my brothers are here with bad news, I may not have a choice but to tell her so I can get her to my family home and the protection it offers. She may hate me in the end, but love or hate, I will never let her go just so that my crazy-ass family can hurt her.

Tuning back into the conversation, I hear them discussing what seems to be Jared’s romantic woes and Miah’s assertions that he’ll never get married and saddle a poor woman with his crazy moods.

Seems my brothers have won Ellie over.

“You bums done eating all my food and flirting with my girl, yet? Say thank you and get your greedy asses to the office while I clean this mess up and get Ellie situated.”

Twenty minutes later, I’ve cleaned up, loaded the dishwasher, and made sure Ellie is situated in front of the TV so she could relax and enjoy herself.

When I have loaded her up with snacks and watching one of the numerous DVDs I bought for her, I kiss her deeply and leave her to go talk to the Three Stooges who are waiting for me.

Ellie

Wyatt thinks I’m unaware of the tension that’s been present since his brothers arrived and crashed the little party we had only just started. I’m a little bummed to have the real world intruding when we’ve only just found this new relationship, but I’m also excited to have met them because it removes whatever small doubts I had left and proves that while Wyatt may be nuts, he’s totally legit and trustworthy.

That gives me hope and the giddy idea that the pleasure we shared is only the beginning of what could be a wonderful life together.

Now as I sit watching a movie I don’t want to watch, I think about everything that’s happened since I woke up tied to a bed. I wonder what one look could have done for the guy, because honestly, as cool as Wyatt is, I just don’t see him as the type to have an unrequited crush for this long without doing something sooner.

Which leads me to believe that there’s something he isn’t telling me. It’s not really surprising because we don’t, in fact, know each other. I know he thinks he knows me because he’s been watching me for so long, but he only knows the surface stuff and the things he could dig up.

He doesn’t know that I still fight a fear of the dark, and that for me food was a weird thing because of my ordeal. When Bolton had me, he’d starve me for days before giving me the worst things to eat.

              I force myself away from these thoughts. Instead. I think about the attractiveness of the Lane brothers. They all look the same, except that Jace has green eyes instead of that intense navy blue.

What are they talking about in there? Why are they here? And more importantly, what’s going to happen? As observant as I’ve become over the years, I saw all that tension flowing off Wyatt and the man had a bigger gripe with his siblings than the harmless flirting they’d done over breakfast.

I’m basically the Jamie Lee Curtis of stalking survivors, because no matter how scary stuff is, I just always need to creep down that dark hallway and take a peek.

I need to know what monster is coming for me next, because I know that if I’m going to win whatever battle comes next, information is key. With that in mind, I slowly rise from the sofa and make my way to the arch separating the living room from the foyer. From there, it’s a left turn and three doors down the corridor and I’m at the door to his office.

Creeping slowly, quietly, I press my ear up against the door and listen, praying that what I hear doesn’t prove me wrong and make the trust I’ve given him my biggest mistake.

“She’s still too fragile!”

Me? Fragile? Oh man, as if!

I’m superwoman, Halle Berry from
Gothika
and every other surviving heroine alive. I may be a little messed up and downright quirky thanks to Bolton Conrad, but one thing I will never be in my life is fragile.

“Fragile? That chick is Xena Warrior Princess wrapped in a five-three package of blonde bombshell, bro. She’s strong and I know if you just tell her everything she’ll be able to hack it.”

That sounds like Miah, and I smile at the trust he has in me. It’s flattering and humbling to think that a man who’s only just met me believes in me that much.

“Yeah, bro, I mean she’s so cool and funny and she seems like one of those good people I never thought to meet outside the family.”

Was that Jace or Jared? I think Jace, since Jared is a little gruffer than the others.

“She is, but that’s beside the point. She’s not ready to hear it all and I don’t want her involved in this before we finish it. Have you talked to Roman? What’s happening on his end?”

“He’s setting up the wiretaps and watching the money. Gathering evidence is a process, you know that, and being a cop, he can’t do anything that’s not completely by the book, especially if he’s connected to Jerry and Robert.”

I don’t understand a word of that, but I keep listening because eventually something should make sense. I hope.

“I don’t want any of this going wrong, Jared. Jerry needs to be nailed for this, and when he is we can bring his kid in for his crimes. While I understand you wanting to just off them, you know how I feel about it. The worst thing for them would be being locked in a box with no comfort or luxury.”

Oh, Wyatt, what are you involved in, babe?

“You still need to get this squared with Ellie, because, bro, you cannot stay here with everything up in the air. Jerry knows that something went wrong with the hit, and he’s moving some money around to make new arrangements. I spoke to my boy Case and word is, he’s putting out feelers for something more reliable. You need to get your girl home where she’s safe.”

“Dammit, Miah, what do you want me to do? I’m scared shitless she’ll leave me when she finds out, and why shouldn’t she? I mean—”

“None of it was your fault!”

“No? If I’d never laid eyes on her, if I hadn’t pulled away and actually went for it instead of being a coward and backing off. If, if… There’s no comfort in any of it.”

He sounds so sad and afraid, and despite the nerves bombarding me, I just can’t bring myself to get upset. For one thing, I don’t know what he’s blaming himself for, and for another, I know that whatever it is that’s bugging him, he’s probably looking at it from the wrong angle.

Or at least that’s what I’m telling myself right now because I don’t want anything to burst the bubble I’m floating in right now.

I hear a few mumbles before Wyatt speaks again.

“It’s that serious, huh?”

“Bro, if Ellie was my girl I’d have brought her home yesterday,” Miah growls.

“Fine. Get ready to head out. I’ll go talk to Ellie and pack us both up. For God’s sake, one of you call Ma and tell her not to pull out all the bells and whistles just yet. It would overwhelm Ellie, and after we talk, I don’t think she’ll be ready for that.”

That’s the last I hear before running back to the living room and diving back onto the sofa. The movie is almost over and I don’t have a clue what it was about. I do know that Wyatt is afraid to tell me the truth about something that involves me, and that’s scarier than waking up that first morning.

He comes in a few minutes later and kisses me softly before silently taking my hand and leading me out of the room and up the stairs.

“Wyatt?”

“Not yet, Ellie. We need privacy and I need to talk to you about a few things.”

He’s so somber that I hold my words in until we reach the master bedroom and he closes and locks the door before pulling me close and kissing me so desperately, my ribs creak at his strength.

“Wyatt? What’s going on?”

My shaky voice is soft in the silent room, and he pushes me back to sit on the corner of the bed before taking a few steps back and facing me.

“We need to leave here today, because I just found out some things that lead me to believe that we may be in danger. Shh, baby, I’ll explain everything later, I promise. For now, I need you to trust me. If nothing else, please believe that anything I’ve done or will do will always be to keep you safe.”

Nerves make me tremble and I stiffen my spine against the shaking that threatens to overwhelm me.

“You’re scaring me.”

He drops to his knees in front of me and grasps my face between his hands, his eyes so earnest and loving, I can almost see myself letting go and falling head over heels for this man.

“Never be afraid when I’m near, baby, because I would never let anything bad happen to you. I swear it,” he vows, closing his eyes to take a deep breath. “I have something to tell you that you may not like, but if you just give me a chance to explain, I’ll try to tell you why I’ve done what I’ve done.”

If I weren’t sitting down, I’d probably be on my ass, my knees have gone so weak, so all I do is nod, not trusting my voice at this point.

I can handle just about anything, I think, but I’m terrified that he’ll tell me something bad and then send me back to my old life.

“I told you that I’ve been watching you and that I fell for you a long time ago.”

“Yes.”

“What I didn’t tell you is that I watched you from afar to make sure you were okay after you got out of the hospital.”

What? But that was four years ago…

“I don’t understand. You saw me in the diner and I shot you down and then you started watching me.”

Wyatt curses beneath his breath and stands, pacing for a few seconds as if needing the space to gather his thoughts.

“No, Ellie. I was keeping tabs on you for a lot longer than that, and then tried to approach you in the diner. When that didn’t work, I took you. For many reason, least of all being that I was tired of watching you fade away.”

“Explain.”

I have a feeling I won’t like what he’s about to say, but I prepare to hear whatever it is that seems to be tripping him up.

“I watched to make sure you were okay after what Bolton did to you, because I felt responsible, Ellie. Bolton, he was…my cousin.”

I think my mind tries to shut down when those words sink in, because my vision blinks on and off for a second or two before I expel my breath and feel my body all but collapse to the floor on my knees.

“Your cousin?”

No, that’s not possible. Wyatt is kind and funny and has weird taste in movies and I like him so much. How can this great person be related to the man who not only mentally scarred me, but almost killed me?

He’s standing still as a statue, almost as if he’s terrified to move any closer or touch me in case I crack and start screaming. I want to when all the negative feelings I’ve been keeping at bay start pounding on the door they’re locked behind.

I hold it together and keep my eyes on him, letting it all sink in as my mind starts working. He’s Bolton’s cousin, related by blood, his family.

But he and the wolf pack of nutters he has downstairs are nothing like that freak and I know it like I knew that my family would want me to live.

The knowledge is more than a feeling, more than just my attempt to tell myself these things to comfort my fragile mind.

Was this what he was so afraid of? Telling me that his cousin…

“Wait. Is this why I’m here? You feel guilty about what he did? Because if you’re trying to sacrifice yourself and your happiness by pretending to love me and—”

“No! No, baby, no,” he mutters, finally coming forward and falling to his knees in front of me. “I love you, that part is and always will be true, I swear. I just, I knew that wanting you was wrong because that animal was my cousin, and chances were that you’d hate me…I really did want to leave you alone, Ellie, but I couldn’t. Call me selfish, whatever, but I couldn’t stay away from you anymore.”

I’m in his arms and clutching at his shoulders as I bury my nose in his neck. He’s so warm and solid and safe that I can’t help wanting to be closer to him, no matter what he just confessed.

It’s hard to accept it all, to know that the man I have feelings for is related to that sicko, and even harder to think that the family I so badly want was Bolton’s.

But one thing I will not do right now is push him away for something that was not his doing. Wyatt is good, and I deserve
good
, Goddammit!

“Baby? I…can you forgive me for—”

“There’s nothing to forgive,” I say, laying my fingers across his lips to stall his words. “You’re not him, and I won’t have you blaming yourself for what another man did. And I also won’t deny us both a good thing, something we’ve only just found because of him. I like you a lot, I told you that, so why should I run away from the first thing that’s made me happy in years?”

The answer is that I shouldn’t, and more importantly, I won’t. There, Bolton, you dick. Take that and shove it in your foul ass!

My answer has the desired effect and I feel him smile against my fingers even as he lets out a harsh breath and lays his forehead against mine. Damn, did I ever once think this guy was bad? I see that’s not possible when he looks so happy just to be here with me that he almost glows.

“I make you happy?”

Oh, I can see he’s going to be a handful anytime I pay him a compliment, the incorrigible man.

“Yes, you do, and no, that doesn’t mean that you can start using that to your advantage. You still know what you can do with those nasty protein shakes of yours. Now, tell me the rest. Why do we have to leave?”

That wipes the smile right off his face, and I shiver when his eyes go an eerie blue that looks to be swirling with anger.

“Jerry Conrad, Bolton’s father, seems to have a bug up his ass about you and has started looking. I don’t know why now, after four years of nothing, but the fact remains that the man is dangerous and I need to get you home where it’s safe.”

“But, but isn’t it safer far away from him?”

I remember Jerry Conrad because sometimes I’d hear Bolton raging at the man over the phone. From what I heard, it sounded like that relationship was dysfunctional and that Jerry was not exactly father-of-the-year material.

The conversations were mostly about money and Bolton’s hatred of his mother, which seemed to upset Jerry a lot. I got the distinct impression that no matter how much Bolton wanted his father to throw his mother away, the man seemed to love his wife. A lot.