Matt—The Callahan Brothers (Brazos Bend Book 2) (27 page)

“Where did he send you?”

“A ranch in Montana. I hated it. Stayed only long enough to save up enough money to get me where I wanted to go.”

“Where was that?”

“A navy recruiter’s office.”

“Wait a minute. I thought you wanted to make your own decisions, to answer to no one else. So you up and join the navy?”

“You’re not seeing the big picture. I’ve always loved the water, been fascinated by the ocean. I wanted to travel. I was broke at the time, so the service was my best option to do what I wanted to do. Signing up was my choice, my decision, and I made it independent of expectations by anyone other than myself. I loved the sense of freedom that gave me.” His grin was wry. “There’s nothing quite like the selfishness of youth.”

“Are you telling me I need to grow up?”

He laughed. “No, not at all. If anything, I was reminding myself to tread carefully as I approach another life-changing decision.”

“What’s that?”

“Physically, I can’t do the job anymore. Either I take the desk job they’ve offered me or I retire and do something else.”

“I’m having a hard time seeing James Bond at a desk job.”

He groaned. “Would you give up the Bond business, please? I do think I’ve mentioned it drives me freakin’ crazy.”

Ignoring that, she asked, “So, what’s the problem? Are you having trouble figuring out what you want?”

“Yeah, I am. That’s why I came home, although I haven’t exactly had much time for it.”

“Don’t blame me if you can’t make up your mind. From my point of view, it’s a no-brainer.”

“And why would you say that?”

She gestured toward the vineyard. “When did you buy this land?”

“A few years back.”

“Before the accident in the helicopter?”

“You mean before you shot me and ruined my leg?”

“Don’t be snotty. I’m trying to make a point here. This land represents something.”

“Yeah, a way to stick it to my father. I bought it out from under him.”

“Maybe that’s part of it, but that’s not all of it.”

“You’re going to say that I bought it to give me an excuse to come home. That deep down I want to reconcile with my father and that Four Brothers gives me an excuse to do that. I could come home and grow my grapes and bottle my wine. I could settle down and live the life I’d have lived if my mother hadn’t died when she did. I’ve thought of all that and maybe there’s some truth to it, but—”

“You’re putting words in my mouth, Callahan.” Torie stretched out her legs, crossing them at the ankles. “Here’s what I think. I think coming back to Texas and planting roots here would be wrong for you.”

He bristled. “What?”

“If you wanted this, you’d have already been here. The gunshot gave you the perfect excuse. You had it all set up so that you could come home and sink your roots. But you didn’t do it when you had the chance, so that tells me it’s not right and deep down you know it.”

He rolled to his feet, shoving his hands in his back pockets, and gazed out at the deepening dusk. “That’s certainly a strong opinion from someone who once hung from a helicopter to take Peeping Tom photographs of a celebrity wedding.”

She ignored the insult. “It makes sense. You chose the navy. Then at some point, you chose to work for the CIA. You’ve lived the life of a nomad, an adventurer, and maybe that’s what suits you. Maybe you needed to buy the ranch to figure out that isn’t what you really want.”

“Pretty expensive lesson.”

“I understand you have money to burn, so what does that matter? God bless microchips, hmm? Besides, you gave your best friend his dream and that’s what really matters to you. People matter to you. Les, your brothers, even your father.”

“Hold on a minute.” He whirled around and glared at her. “When did I lose control of this conversation? I’m supposed to be making you feel better, not have you psychoanalyzing me.”

“But psychoanalyzing you does make me feel better.” She grinned like an imp. “It makes me remember that even though I have a crazy creep on my tail, I’m still mentally healthier than most people out there, present company included.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“I know what I want, Callahan. Maybe I can’t have it, but at least I know what it is.”

“So what is it you want?”

Oh, what the heck. Quit being chicken. Roll the dice, Bradshaw. That’s what you do.
She drew a deep breath, then confessed, “You.”

He reared backward. “Me!”

“Pitiful, isn’t it?” She sighed with real dismay and added. “I always fall for the wrong type of guy. I like alpha male bad boys who don’t treat me as nicely as they should. It’s a character flaw of mine. I’m in love with you, Matt Callahan.”

***

Washington, DC

Perfect.

She exited the building’s front door alone, her stubby little skirted legs moving quickly as they carried her into the billowing chill of a stiff spring wind. Silly woman still wore a lab coat.
Wonder if she’ll have enough sense to take it off before lunching at the Four Seasons?

She’d been easy. The woman was clueless and flattered by the opportunity to be interviewed by such a prominent and respected magazine. Extracting the information from her would be a breeze.

She was coming closer now. He pulled the ball cap lower and hunched down in the rental’s front seat. Look at that long blond hair. Clear, healthy complexion. His grip on the steering wheel tightened.

She looked so much like the bitch.

The bitch.

The bitch.

Blood rushed, pulse pounded. The bitch. The bitch. The bitch.

Foot tapped against the gas pedal.

She ruined everything. Took everything away.
She’ll pay ... pay ... pay.

Foot stomped, pressed the pedal to the floor. Tires spun.

The bitch the bitch the bitch.

Her face turned. Surprise, then fear. Terror.

His cackling laughter rang out inside the rental car.
Wait ... wait ... turn the wheel now.

The bitch dived away, fell to the ground, just as the car swerved and roared past.

His laughter peaked, then faded away.

Hmm ... hope she doesn’t cancel lunch.

***

“She’s really good,” Mark Callahan said as he flipped through the bluebonnet photographs Torie had loaded onto the lake house computer. “I think she should call the boyfriend.”

“Ex-boyfriend, and I think that’s a dumbass idea.” Matt prowled the room, scowling down at the stack of printouts his brother had handed him.

“What’s dumbass is wasting any more time on someone who I’ve all but eliminated from our suspect list.”

“I still like him for it.”

“I can put him in Europe the day of the explosion.”

“Last time I checked, they have international flights out of LAX.”

“You just want him to be the perp because he used to shack up with your fiancée.”

“I’m not his fiancée,” Torie said, breezing into the room at the same time Matt snapped, “Shut up.”

An uncomfortable silence settled over the room. Matt resisted the urge to rake his fingers through his hair, knowing better than to betray any nervousness under the circumstances. He and Torie had yet to have a private moment to talk since the single most cowardly moment of his life.

He still shuddered to think about his reaction to her punch-in-the-gut declaration. The way he’d lurched to his feet, stammered out a stupid excuse, and fled was damned shameful. Humiliating. It embarrassed him to think about it.

And he still didn’t know what to say to her.

Torie Bradshaw wasn’t the first woman who’d confessed her love to him, but she was the first woman he believed actually meant it. She was the first woman who left him clueless as to a response, even now, a day after the fact.

Oblivious of the undercurrents, Mark offered Torie a sheepish grin. “He doesn’t like the idea of you talking to your old boyfriend.”

Great. Wonderful. Thanks for the help, brother. “Don’t be ridiculous.” Matt shot his brother a scowl. “I just don’t know what it’s going to help.”

“I want to do it.” Torie folded her arms and faced Matt. The fact that she didn’t look wounded or weepy relieved him.
 

“I don’t see what it can hurt,” she continued. “I never truly did believe that Jason would do these things, and after learning that he was in Rome the day my apartment exploded ... no. If he’d done something like that, he’d have stayed around to watch the fallout. Jason was always one who fed off the excitement of the moment.”

“What would you say to Banning if you did call him?” Matt asked. “You gonna come out and ask him, ‘‘Hey, did you blow up my apartment?’ “

Now emotion entered her expression—disdain. Turning to Mark, she said, “I’ll have to choose my words carefully. If I were to tell him what’s been happening, he’d want to write about it. A stalker-being-stalked story is right up Jason’s alley.”

Mark’s gaze flickered to Matt’s. Silently, he asked,
What do you think? Want to go for that exposure?

Matt indicated no with a barely noticeable shake of his head.

“Jason’s birthday is coming up. How about I call and wish him a happy birthday, then wing it from there? I’ll feel him out. I’ll be able to tell if he’s lying to me or not.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Not everyone possesses your well-practiced talent to lie like a rug, Callahan. Speaking of which, did you happen to read this morning’s newspaper?”

“Which one?” Matt subscribed to a number of papers. “The
Times? Washington Post?
”

“No, try the
Brazos Bend Standard
. Imagine my surprise to see an article by one Sara-Beth Branson filled with quotes attributed to me. I’m pretty sure I’d remember lying through my teeth to a woman named Sara-Beth.”

“You were in the shower when she called, and she was on a tight deadline. I tried to make it easy on everyone.”

“I just found it so interesting to learn that the Jays have offered to host our wedding in Bali.”

“They love you. They gave you their dog.”

“Y’all quit bickering,” Mark said. He grabbed one of the prepaid and untraceable cell phones he made a habit of carrying, and tossed it to her. “Call him.”

Paco chose that moment to trot into the room and sidle up to Mark. When Mark reached down to pet him, Matt shook his head. The dog had taken a liking to Mark. He followed him around, looked up at him with big, soulful eyes. This from the mutt who wouldn’t tolerate anyone other than Branch.

It angered Mark at first, but now Matt suspected that his brother liked the attention. He swore he’d seen Mark sneaking table scraps to Paco at lunch yesterday.

He dragged his gaze off the dog to see Torie checking the clock, and Matt could tell she was calculating the time difference between Brazos Bend and Rome. Punching in the numbers, she said, “He won’t recognize the number, so he’s liable not to answer.”

“If he’s even in Rome,” Matt grumbled. He moved to stand in front of her, his feet braced apart, his arms folded, his mouth schooled into a scowl. “If it’s not faked. Put it on speakerphone.”

Torie hesitated, then set her phone on the desk and took a seat in front of it. Jason answered on the second ring.
“Pronto?”

“Hi, Jase.”

“
Allora, io non sento bene... .”

I can’t hear very well,
Matt translated.

“Jason? It’s me.”

“Torie? Torie, is that you?”

“Yes.”

“Wow. Okay. Hold on a minute.” Banning’s voice sounded excited, hopeful. “Let me get somewhere I can hear better.”

“Sure.” Torie chewed at her bottom lip, a spark of guilt in her eyes.

A few moments later, Jason Banning spoke again. “There. That’s better. I was in a restaurant and it’s noisy.”

“Don’t let me interrupt your meal.”

“No, it’s fine. It’s just drinks before dinner. I’m in Florence on a story for the
Globe.
It’s great to hear from you, Torie. Where are you?”

She shut her eyes. “I’m in the States.”

“Oh.” Banning’s disappointment carried through the phone. “So ... what’s up?”

“I wanted to wish you happy birthday and ... oh, Jase, that’s not it. Things are so mixed-up.”

“What’s wrong, love?”

“I just ... I want ... Jason, I’m sorry about how things turned out with us. I never meant to hurt you.”

“I know. I knew it then, too. You have a good heart, Torie Lynn.” He waited a beat, then asked, “Does this mean you’re having second thoughts?”

Torie grimaced and rubbed her temples. “No, Jason. It’s just that ... well ... I’ve had my heart broken, too, and I know now how it feels. I wish I’d been ... gentler with you.”

Matt gritted his teeth as his stomach took a roll.

“It’s okay, doll,” Jason replied. “You were fine. I wouldn’t listen. I’m sorry I was such an ass about it. I ... didn’t want to let you go.”