Casting the Dice Page 11

  The state police had an emergency number for reporting idiot drivers. What was the code? “I don’t want to frighten you, but the silver Cadillac is chasing us.”

  She gasped and turned to look through the rear window. “It’s not the car my kidnappers tried to force me into.”

  “That’s good.”

  She massaged the edge of her seat cushion. “What are we going to do?”

  “Try to get away from him again.” Annie got points for staying calm. More than he could say for himself. He was not in the mood to play bumper cars or whatever this idiot had in mind.

  The light changed, and the car in front turned right.

  “Hang on.” He whipped left under the expressway overpass then slammed on the brakes at the signal on the other side.

  The obnoxious driver followed, sitting right on his bumper. The Caddy’s door opened. A shoe hit the pavement.

  Hal had waited through this three-way signal many times, but he couldn’t wait now. Five cars faced him across the intersection, ready to bolt as soon as they got their green.

  Now.

  Brakes screeched. Horns honked, but Hal was clear and accelerated onto the interstate. The Caddy would have to wait if he wanted to follow.

  Hal stretched his arms against the wheel drove as fast as possible. Green highway signs flashed overheard. They passed an eighteen-wheeler, a pickup, a sedan.

  “The Cadillac is speeding up on your left.” An edge of panic undercut Annie’s words now. “He’s getting close.”

  A step van drove ahead of them. He prepared to pass, but the Caddy pulled parallel and slid across the line. Hal slowed to keep from running into the van and swerved into the breakdown lane. The Blazer barely fit between the van and the railing, but he passed and pulled in front, loosening his cramped fingers.

  Whew.

  A tight voice came from the passenger seat. “That was close.”

  Hell. His pursuer roared up on his left, disappearing in his side mirror moments before a sickening scrape reverberated through the car. The heavy SUV shuddered but held steady and Hal pulled into the emergency lane again.

  He looked ahead, and his gut went into free fall.

  “Hal!”

  Yeah, I see it. The emergency lane merged with the single lane exit. A split second later the Caddy pulled over ahead, completely boxing him in.

  If he slowed, the van on his left would crush him.

  There was only one thing left to do.

  12

  The car vibrated beneath Annie hard enough to launch into space. The exit lane rushed toward them. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for certain death.

  And waiting some more.

  Then a little longer.

  No crunch of metal. No hideous shrieks of the car crashing through the rail. Annie opened her eyes and pressed a hand to her heart. The Cadillac was gone. They’d escaped.

  Hal left the interstate for a city street. Several blocks on, she recognized the sweeping lawns, live oaks along the golf course, and palm trees next to the lagoon. Her father used to bring her here. Hal detoured around a fenced-off area with large machinery and men in hard hats, over a concrete bridge, and parked on the curb in front of a columned peristyle.

  She sagged against her seat, waiting for her pulse to calm.

  “So far so good.” He gave her a smile, flashing his dimple.

  “This is not funny, Hal.” He and the silver Caddy had been zooming toward the single lane exit which was an extension to the right lane—not the breakdown lane Hal roared down. If he hadn’t gotten ahead of the Caddy, they would have crashed and gone over the barrier. “Why didn’t you slow down instead of racing that imbecile?”

  “We would have crashed for sure.” His brows lowered. “I had to take the chance.”

  “I didn’t mean to complain. I’m just…” She rolled her hand back and forth and eased out a deep breath.

  “I know. Me, too.” He squeezed her hand. “I need to walk off this adrenaline.”

  She stuck her cell in her purse and stowed it under the seat, got out, and went around the car to meet him. Hal squatted beside his door, rubbing fingers along an ugly dent. He shook his head. “Kurt’s going to kill me.”

  A long patch of paint had been scraped off, too. “I’ll beg for mercy for you.”

  “I’d appreciate that.” His deep voice rumbled, amusement lurking. “Come on, let’s go look at the lagoon.”

  He grabbed a strand of Spanish moss off a nearby oak, pulling it apart as they walked. Sunlight danced off ripples behind a row of ducks gliding under another concrete bridge, and the smells of damp earth and lush vegetation drifted to her.

  Hal rubbed both hands over his head. “My heart still feels like it’s about to jump out.”

  “I can help push it back inside.” She rested a hand on his chest, needing to experience something real, something solid. His body heat moved through her, melting everything along the way.

  “That would be good.” He wrapped his hands around her waist, keeping his hold loose, but trapping her hand. Maybe he didn’t mind her touching him. Maybe he needed to touch her, too.

  “What happened to the guy who fended off sharks for his friends?” Annie’s mouth curved.

  “That dude was out of the office.” He shook his head.

  “Nah, don’t believe that.” Annie smiled. “Having guts is in your genes.”

  Hal looked at her with such solemnity, her heart hiccupped. Every one of his fingers made an indelible impression through her shirt, and an effervescence sparkled through her. “You’re the one who’s brave, Annie.”

  “I didn’t do anything, you’re—”

  He pressed a finger against her lips. His brown eyes, the color of her favorite angora sweater, warmed her the same way. “You didn’t freak out. You realize how admirable that is?”

  She held her breath. Fitzwilliam Darcy, the hero in Jane Austen’s classic, told Lizzy he admired her and then in the next sentence declared his love. Would Hal say something about “love” now?

  Get serious. You’re not living in a nineteenth century novel.

  She still couldn’t stop staring at his chiseled mouth. Had she ever seen lips so firm, so commanding—not that she wanted to be bossed—or so masculine?

  No need to swoon here.

  “You didn’t scream.” He smoothed her knit top over her hips and dropped his hands. “You climbed down a sheer brick wall. That takes courage.”

  Warmth filled her. “I guess.”

  “Modest, too.” He bent his head, bringing his mouth temptingly close. She pressed a fingertip to the little white scar on his chin and lifted on her toes to brush her lips across his. He tugged her flush, and she pressed into him, slid her hands over his shoulders, eager for his kiss.

  All of a sudden, he broke away, grabbing her hand and racing across the grass. He ducked behind a thick live oak. She stumbled over the tree roots. His hand slipped away, but she kept going—straight over the edge.

  Cold water swallowed her. She lurched for the bank. Her shoes slipped in the mud, and she plunged deeper. Foul water poured into her throat. She sputtered and kicked. Air. She had to get some air.

  Hal’s face swam into her vision, and he reached out. She struggled to take hold of his hand, but he only got farther away. Her throat closed. Water rose. Help! I’m drowning.

  His hand latched on and jerked her forward.

  He wrapped her arm around his neck, his lips moving. Her feet bumped the bank. She stopped gasping. The panic faded. Hal grabbed a tree root and swung onto the bank, pulling her out of the water.

  She coughed a long time, but finally she could breathe. Her pounding pulse slowed and the ringing in her ears vanished. She reached under her wet hair and rubbed moisture off the hard case of her aids then took in Hal’s dripping jacket and the pants plastered against his thighs.

  “Sorry you had to get wet, too. I’m okay now.” She stopped to take another breath and pushed hair out of her face with shaky
hands. She repeated that while Hal rubbed his hands down her arms. “What happened?”

  “I heard a gunshot. We had to hide in case someone was shooting at us.” Hal rubbed a hand over his mouth, his intense gaze on her face.

  “Let’s get away from the lagoon.” She took his hand, but he put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. They passed the ice cream shop and continued along the sidewalk. “Was it the silver car?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t see it now.” Hal looked toward the construction crane. “I thought I heard a gunshot, but the boom could have come from over there.”

  She wiped water from her face and turned his wrist to view the dial of his big watch. “I still want to talk to my aunt’s lawyer. You can drop me there, if you want, but I need to change clothes first.”

  “Did you meet the contractor?” Annie’s aunt’s attorney asked when he settled behind his desk.

  Annie recognized William Smith as soon as he’d let them into his office, but she didn’t remember meeting any contractor. She glanced at Hal in case this was something she’d done when he’d been around, but he shrugged. “This is someone my aunt hired?”

  Smith nodded. “As I explained during our first meeting, the estate can pay him once the property is sold, but he’s insisting on payment immediately. That’s why I arranged for you to talk with him.”

  “I’m pretty sure we didn’t even connect.” She dug her fingers into the nubby fabric of the chair arms. That pile of lumber she’d seen in the patio upon her arrival must belong to this person. “I got a bad migraine right after I left here.”

  Now she knew why, too. She’d been in a hurry when she left his office, anxious not to make the contractor wait. Her shoulders slumped. Making him wait was exactly what she’d done. “I don’t even remember where I was meeting him.”

  “You should contact him and explain.” Smith opened the file on his desk. “I’ll give you the contact information. Then you can let me know what he says so we can proceed.”

  She took the slip of paper the attorney offered and thanked him. In the elevator, she showed Hal the name. “How do you say this?”

  “Prejean.”

  “Pray-shawn?” She asked, and he gave her a thumbs-up.

  “You should try and get straight with him.” The elevator pinged, and Hal held the doors open. “You’ll probably get a better price if you list the property on your own.”

  In the lobby, she sat on a padded bench and called the number. No one answered, and she sent a text. “I hope he returns my call. He’s got to be annoyed I stood him up.”

  They’d left the Blazer parked in the Quarter and headed back to the bookshop. After half a block, she stopped and stared across the street. “That’s the casino over there, isn’t it?”

  Hal nodded. “Side entrance.”

  “If it was this hot the day I was supposed to meet Prejean, I might have gone inside to wait. I could have met Randy then.” She flicked perspiration from her temple. “But what do his friends want with me?”

  “I don’t know, Annie.” Hal steered her across Canal Street. The pedestrian mall on Royal Street had been removed to allow through traffic, forcing all walkers to the narrow sidewalks. As they walked, the old-fashioned lanterns blinked on at the street corners.

  They’d changed clothes and left the apartment in a hurry to get to the attorney’s office, and neither of them had said anything about that wild kiss in the park. The kiss had probably been normal but coupled with the high-speed chase and the near drowning, it qualified in her opinion as wild.

  Longing surged through her again now. She’d never kissed anyone the way she had Hal. Could she blame the adrenaline rush—or the adrenaline crash? Or the fact she could be losing her mind?

  They passed Brennan’s, the old courthouse, an art gallery, a bed and breakfast, and finally reached the bookshop.

  Uh-oh.

  A padlock hung from a thick chain locking the double French doors, and she cupped her hands to peer into the dark shop.

  “Annie?” Hal waved her over to the alley doorway. “There’s a notice here.”

  He stepped aside instead of reading over her shoulder. She glanced at him, thinking that strange, but he might be respecting her boundaries. The shop, after all, was her property.

  She read it through twice.

  “What’s it say?”

  “It states there’s a lien against the property. Which we know from the attorney.”

  Hal rubbed a finger over the keyhole of the alley door. “The contractor’s changed the alley lock on you, too.”

  Her stared agape. “Can he do that?”

  “I don’t know, but somebody did.”

  “But all my clothes are locked inside. We need to find a hardware store and get some strong pliers to cut the padlock.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea. It wouldn’t hurt to stay somewhere else until you get in touch with Prejean.”

  “Where can I go?” She rubbed her arms.

  “There’s an indoor mall near where we parked. Let’s go over there and regroup. Get some grub and think about this some more.”

  A short time later, she entered the cool cavern where a walkway wound through glittering shops. “What exactly are we doing here?”

  Hal gestured to a woman’s apparel shop. “Buy what you need for tomorrow.”

  She took in the high-end clothes and lingerie and gaped at him. “I can get some stuff at a drugstore.”

  He pulled a credit card from his wallet. “Here. Use this.”

  “You are sweet.” She smiled.

  “You’d do the same for me.” He stowed his wallet. “There’s a food court on the second level. I’ll get some take-out and call around for a hotel room.”

  13

  Hal pulled his key card from the slot and shouldered into the hotel room. When he’d called to book a room, he’d gotten lucky. Someone had just cancelled their reservation. Otherwise, he would probably still be standing outside the lingerie store and calling around.

  Annie followed him inside. “I’m glad I insisted on a room with two beds.”

  “That’s all they had.” He tossed the room card on the TV console. Even with separate beds, being in the same room with Annie would mean fitful sleep at best. Because he now knew how she tasted, how she clung to him, how she—Stop!

  “Good thing we’re so close to the garage.”

  “Why does that matter?” He propped his hands on his hips and scanned the furnishings.

  “In case we have to make a fast getaway.”

  His pulse jerked. She was teasing him, right?

  He would rather have taken her to his family’s house because he could trust the physical security there. She liked him enough to kiss him, but surrounded by bounty hunters, she might get stressed enough to lose her memory again.

  He should have disengaged immediately from that kiss in the park. Now she might expect more. He couldn’t give her more. Not if he knew what was best for himself. “Which bed you want?”

  “This one.” She tossed her things on the nearest one and walked to the desk.

  “Those the take-out menus the desk clerk told us about?” The food court at the mall had been closed. “Find one with delivery.”

  He stripped off the windbreaker and the Glock he’d retrieved from the Blazer before discarding his shirt, too.

  “I plan to.” She looked up and stared.

  He plucked at his sweaty tee. “Don’t worry. That’s all I’m taking off.”

  She set down the menu she’d been reading and chose another. “I’ve seen a man’s chest before.”

  What about other body parts? Don’t ask. You’re not going there.

  “Annie.” He waited for her to look at him, but she merely shuffled the laminated menus and started reading another. His throat tightened. If he was going to protect her, he needed to get over his spelling issues and find a better way to communicate.

  She walked to the window then looked at the hallw
ay door. “You think this place is safe?”

  “The door locks.” He flipped the extra security latch and thumped on the solid panel. “And this is a stronger door than the one at the bookshop.”

  She pointed the menu at him. “We had more barriers at the shop. An alley and a stairway.”

  “Don’t forget the bedroom door you locked both nights.” He tore his gaze from her fitted, workout-style top.

  “Automatic reflex.” She chose one of the menus and stowed the others in the binder. “Were you offended?”

  He crossed his arms. “It’s not a question of being offended.”

  “Right.” She mugged in disbelief.

  Damn this woman. She knew exactly what he was thinking. He propped a hand on the back of the desk chair. “I wouldn’t have been able to get in if you needed help.”

  “Help?” She scrunched her pretty eyebrows. “Even when I had that bad headache and was confused, I knew how to unlock a door.”

  “What did you mean you locked the door automatically? I got the impression you had a normal—” Upbringing. Don’t say anything to remind her of her father’s death.

  She frowned. “You got what impression?”

  Hell. How could he say this? “That being threatened was something new to you.”

  “It is.” She stared at him, but he wasn’t about to say another word. “I lived in a communal house while in college. We rented rooms in one big house, and everyone contributed to the groceries and the cleaning. People were in and out at all times of the day and night. You had to lock your door if you wanted any privacy.”

  Especially when she’d entertained those bare-chested men.

  She flopped on her bed and handed him a menu. “I want number seven and an order of egg rolls.”

  He placed the order, studying the skyline out the window, and disconnected. “It’ll be about twenty minutes. While we’re waiting for the food, we can discuss the problem.”

  “I’ve been thinking about that.” She moved to the end of the bed to face him. “We still don’t know who’s responsible for your car exploding.”