Jill Shalvis - Superb And Sexy

Oh, God. He already overpaid her, but that was only because Shayne and Noah made him. If he had his way, they’d all be working for free, squirreling away every penny for a rainy day.

It wasn’t because he was cheap.

Okay, it was because he was cheap. He was so cheap he squeaked when he walked, but he’d grown up poor, had had to literally beg, borrow, and steal his way through childhood. Now, for the first time in his entire life, he had money, thanks to his own hard work and brains, and she knew he wasn’t quite used to it yet. “You said the word raise without getting hives,” she murmured, telling herself it shouldn’t be endearing because he was trying to manipulate her.

“Let me in, and I’ll say it again.”

She meant something to him. She meant a lot. Even more shocking, he meant something to her, too. He meant so damn much it hurt to look at him. At the knowledge, she swallowed hard. Not going to cry…

“Maddie.” He touched the glass as if he wanted, needed, to touch her. “Don’t do this.”

She closed her eyes again.

“I’ll double your salary.”

“Stop,” she whispered.

“Let me in, and I’ll stop. I’ll do whatever you want.”

Oh, God, now there was a promise. Close to doing just that, a noise from the other room stopped her cold.

Her sister’s shocked gasp.

What now?

Maddie locked eyes with Brody. All these past weeks, seeing him had been a secret wish, an unconscious desire like breathing air. Having him come after her, having him want to be with her…

Except now, right this minute, when her sister’s life was on the line and therefore, hers as well. If Brody stayed, then he, too, would be in danger. But she knew him, knew that he wasn’t going anywhere unless she managed to distract him. “Okay, you’re right. Something’s wrong.”

“Finally.”

“I’m waiting on my physical therapist to come out for a session, but we had five inches of rain a few days ago and the road in here is still a little tricky. He’s got a little Honda and won’t come. Maybe you could go get him.” She grabbed a notepad from a small desk near the door and scribbled down an address, then opened the door and slapped it to his chest. “Thanks.”

Praying to God he left to track down the PT who didn’t exist at the address that also didn’t exist, giving her enough time to speed up The Plan, she locked the door again and yanked the shades over the window.

“Maddie!”

Tuning him out, she ran for her sister.

Maddie raced into the kitchen to find Leena holding her cell phone to her ear, shaking from head to toe. “Leena? What are you-”

Leena shut her phone and stared at it like it was a poisonous spider. “He left a message.”

No need to ask who the he was. Only one person could put that look on Leena’s face.

Or Maddie’s, for that matter.

Good old Uncle Rick.

“He already knew I’m not on that cruise like I told him. He thinks I might be on the run.”

Maddie stared at her, absorbing all that Leena wasn’t saying. Uncle Rick and his merry men weren’t stupid. They knew Leena wouldn’t run on her own.

Nope, of course she’d have gone straight to Maddie.

Damn.

Chances were, they’d never not known where Maddie was, but up until now, they hadn’t needed her. Not when they had Leena.

“He’s playing it cool,” Leena said. “Pretending I’m not gone. He said if I just come back and do a job for him, I can get back to my vacation.”

“You don’t have to do what he says. You’ve left Stone Cay behind.”

“Maybe no one ever really leaves.”

“I did. You know I did.”

“Yeah, you left. You had to sneak out in the middle of the night without a forwarding address, and you couldn’t look back. You had to run hard and fast, thousands of miles away. You were young and all on your own, and you were nothing but a child.”

“But I did it.”

“But you had to hide. You had to start a new life.” Leena said this in wonder. “No money, no friends or family or anything. Back then, I couldn’t imagine the courage it took, and now…now that I’m here, I don’t know if I’m strong enough to do the same.”

“Well, I know. Besides, you’re older than I was, and you’re not alone. You have me. You can do this. You can, Leena. I promise.”

They stared at each other, Leena’s fear and Maddie’s strength battling it out. Unfortunately, fear was a formidable opponent, and contagious, as well. Hers and Leena’s differences had always been very obvious, but suddenly, the gap seemed to shrink to nothing until they were both young and scared stupid all over again.

“I want to do this,” Leena whispered.

“And you will.”

“But it’s asking so much of you.”

“Look, you’re out of there. That’s all that matters. The rest will be fine.” Maddie only hoped that was true, but God, she didn’t really want to vanish again. She loved the life she’d made for herself.

Loved.

It.

But she loved Leena more, even if it meant saying good-bye to everyone else. All they’d needed was a few more days, and she’d have had The Plan in motion. They’d have been gone. But now, Rick already knew Leena wasn’t where she’d said she was, and the man Maddie didn’t want to have to say good-bye to had shown up.

God.

“If Rick finds us-”

“If he tries to push us around, we’ll push back,” Maddie said firmly. “We’ll get the authorities involved.”

Leena was already shaking her head before Maddie finished. “Manny,” she said, and the name stopped Maddie cold.

Manny had been one of Rick’s grunt men, young and built, and Leena had gone out with him once. After their date, he’d come on to her strong, wanting sex. Leena hadn’t been ready. She’d refused him anything but a quick kiss, but Manny hadn’t been happy with that and tried for more. Leena’d shoved free of him, and he’d fallen down the stairs.

And died.

That was Leena’s story.

Unfortunately, Rick had another one because Manny had been found with a knife wound in his gut. Back then, Rick had cleaned up that mess, but it wouldn’t stay clean.

“If I stay gone,” Leena said, “Rick’s going to bring me up on murder charges.”

Which would affect them both. “Okay, well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

“Ohmigod.” Leena shook her head. “I’m really doing this.”

“Yes.” Maddie thought of Brody, hopefully on his wild-goose chase after her PT. “But we need to move up the timetable to, like, now.”

“We can’t. I have someone I want to say good-bye to first. In New Orleans.”

“Now?” Leena shook her head. “New Orleans? Who’s in New Orleans-”

“Ben.”

Now it was Maddie’s turn to shake her head. “Leena, no. We can’t do good-byes. We have to leave. Now.”

“No.” Leena’s chin was set. Never a good thing. “I’m sorry, Mad, but I’m not like you, all tough and impenetrable, letting nothing get to me. I have to say good-bye.”

Is that how Leena saw her? Really? Tough? Impenetrable? Cold? Is that how Brody would see her when she was gone? “I let plenty get to me. I just don’t let any of it rule me. You have to be strong.”

“No one’s as strong as you.”

“You are, and I’ll prove it to you. Wait right here.” With a calm she didn’t feel, Maddie raced up the stairs. In the master bedroom, she went to the dresser that she’d commandeered as her own for her stay. Specifically, the underwear drawer. Beneath all the silk and lace that was her own vanity-vice, past the gun she kept there, sat a small jewelry box.

The only thing she had of their mother’s.