Sharing Hailey (16 page)

Chapter Fifteen

They spent the next five days at the resort. They didn’t hear anymore from Daniel. He didn’t call, and they had no idea if he was still on the island or if he’d gone home…and no way of finding out. Jake and Nikki had made it safely to Austin. They’d called every day to make sure Hailey was safe. Even Landon and Meredith had called. Their concern touched her.

Hailey was worried that Daniel would be waiting for them when their flight landed in Phoenix, so she’d suggested they change their return flight to arrive two days earlier. Mark and Tony hadn’t argued. They got into Phoenix at midnight, slept in at the hotel until ten that morning, then started for home.

The closer they got to Albuquerque, the more nervous Hailey became. Even the talk radio that Tony and Mark were sniping at couldn’t keep her mind off Daniel. She wanted to ask them if she could stay with one of them. But she hesitated.

Why? She hadn’t had a problem asking Mark if she could stay with him the night before they left for Hawaii. It should be easier now that they were lovers.

But it wasn’t. It was harder.

Was it
because
they were lovers? Because they all had expectations that hadn’t existed before?

As the lights of Albuquerque twinkled in the distance, she knew she couldn’t wait any longer. She cleared her throat. “Guys?”

“Yeah?” Mark turned down the radio and twisted in the front passenger seat so she could see him.

“Would one of you mind if I camped out at your place for a few days?”

Both men sighed.

“It wouldn’t be long,” she hurried to assure them. “Three or four days.”

Tony spoke. “Sunshine, you can stay with us for as long as you want. Remember? We’re the ones who want to marry you.”

“Yeah, but I’m not ready for that.” And
that
was what had been bothering her. Would they let her go when she was ready, or would they pressure her to stay? More importantly, would she have the willpower to return to her own home when the threat from Daniel had passed, or would she slip into the mindless bliss of cocooning with them?

“Where do you prefer to stay?” Mark asked. “Your house?”

“No. That’s the first place Daniel will look.”

“So, my place or Tony’s?”

She was thinking Tony’s. It was a sixth-floor loft, and access was restricted. No one could get in the building without a security fob. But she didn’t want to hurt Mark’s feelings. Didn’t want him to think she was choosing Tony over him.

The road and engine noise didn’t mask the uncomfortable silence in Tony’s SUV as she struggled with her answer. She jumped when Tony said, “I’ve got a plan. You wanna hear it?”

Anything to keep from hurting Mark.
“Yes.”

“Let’s stay at my place tonight. Security’s pretty good. There are cameras in the parking garage and the public areas. Daniel can’t get into the building unless he knows someone who lives there. Tomorrow we can reevaluate.”

“Is that okay with you, Mark?” she asked tentatively.

“It’ll be a little crowded with the three of us, but I don’t mind if you don’t.”

He was coming with them. Why was she surprised? Of course he was. It wouldn’t be the first time the three of them had shared Tony’s loft. But it was usually one night and unplanned after clubbing downtown.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to Austin for a while?” Tony asked.

“No. Jake’s worried enough about Nikki. He doesn’t need me around making things worse.”

“He’s gonna worry about you whether you’re here or there.”

“He’ll worry less if I’m here. Outta sight, outta mind. And speaking of Jake…” She checked her watch. Six o’clock. That meant it was seven in Texas. “I need to call him and let him know we got home okay.”

“Tell him you’re staying with us, so he doesn’t worry so much,” Tony said as he steered the car down the ramp and off the interstate heading toward downtown.

Jake answered on the first ring, as if he’d been waiting for her call.

“Hey, little sister, what have you done?” he sang, his rendition of the Billy Idol tune a little off-key as usual. It was his standard greeting when she called him, since he used it for her ring tone.

“Hey,” she said. “How’s Nikki?”

“Great,” he answered enthusiastically. “She saw her doctor today, and she’s gained five pounds since last month. I swear, her butt’s a little bigger and—
Oww
.” Knocking and rubbing and static replaced his voice. Were they fighting over the phone?

The scuffling sounds stopped, and Nikki said in a breathless voice, “Don’t you believe a word he says! My butt is not bigger!”

Nikki must have won the battle over the phone because she heard Jake in the distance. “But honey, it’s supposed to be bigger. I read it in one of those books you gave—
Ouch
.”

Hailey laughed. Sounded like things were back to normal.

“Are you home, yet?” Nikki asked.

Tony was turning left off of Central onto Third. “Almost. Just a couple more blocks. We’re staying at Tony’s, so tell Jake not to worry.”

The parking garage loomed off to her left. She hated parking garages.

“I will.”

“Tony’s about to enter the garage, so I’m going to lose my signal. I’ll talk to y’all tomorrow.”

Nikki’s voice was suddenly serious. “All right, sweetie. Y’all be careful. Okay?”

Love for her sister-in-law overwhelmed her. Nikki could have been pissed with her about Daniel’s attack, but she wasn’t. She’d been nothing but concerned.

“We will,” she croaked, then swallowed to clear her throat. “Bye.”

As they wound around the garage, Hailey peered into the shadows, searching for any threat, anything unusual. Everything seemed fine when Tony pulled into his parking space, but she was still uneasy.

Exiting the toasty car, she began shivering despite her leather jacket. She missed Hawaii already. She buried the lower half of her head in her coat and jammed her hands into the pockets like a turtle withdrawing into its shell.

His hand at the small of her back, Tony guided her to the elevator. Mark followed with their luggage. She walked quickly, her clogs clunking on the cement. When they were in the elevator with the doors closed, she relaxed a little.

“What’s going on with Nikki and Jake?” Tony asked as the car started up. “Why were you laughing?”

Hailey couldn’t hold back a grin as she told them about Nikki’s weight gain and Jake’s comment about her butt.

Both men laughed. Mark shook his head. “Jake just doesn’t think sometimes.”

The elevator doors opened, and they started down the hall, the carpet muffling their footsteps.

“I’m starving,” Mark said while Tony unlocked his door. “We should have picked up burgers. You got any food?”

Tony pushed open the door and held it for them. “Peanut butter and jelly. Bread in the freezer.”

“I’ll make sandwiches,” Hailey offered before Tony or Mark could claim the job. She needed something to do. Now safely ensconced in Tony’s loft, her hypervigilance eased, but she was left feeling jittery—not nervous jittery, but hyperactive jittery. Sitting for two days, first on an airplane and then in the car, didn’t help.

Tony’s dining room was just inside the door, his kitchen to the left of the dining room with a gray granite breakfast bar separating the two. Just beyond the dining room was his living room with a flat-screen TV, a black leather couch and two leather recliners. His bedroom was to the left of the living room, just around the corner from the kitchen. All four rooms—the dining room, kitchen, living room and bedroom—formed one big L-shaped room. Directly behind the kitchen was Tony’s closet, which opened into his bedroom, and on the other side of his closet was the bathroom, also opening into the bedroom. There wasn’t a lot of privacy. In fact, it was like the guesthouse Mark and Tony had shared in Hawaii.

After dinner, she wandered to the floor-to-ceiling windows that extended the entire length of the north side of Tony’s loft, allowing for great nighttime views of downtown from the bedroom and living room. During the day, the Sandia Mountains were visible. It was Sunday night, so not much going on. A few cars. No pedestrians on the sidewalk. Some lights shone from the downtown buildings, but most of the windows were dark. It seemed lonely out there, and she was glad to be inside with Tony and Mark.

* * *

Considering the drama that was now her life, Hailey slept well. Mark and Tony were still sleeping when she woke the next morning. It was just starting to get light, and she was starving. She carefully scooted to the end of the bed so she didn’t wake the men. Then she grabbed the clothes she’d worn yesterday and changed in the bathroom. She found her clogs in front of Tony’s couch, slipped her feet into them, put on her jacket, then grabbed her purse and Tony’s fob off the bar. She dug in her purse for a pen and scribbled a quick message on a note pad.

Gone to get breakfast and coffee. Be right back.

After quietly closing the door behind her, she was startled to see someone else in the hall. A woman. Tall, short brown hair, stunningly beautiful. She was wearing a navy suit and pumps.

“Are you house-sitting for Tony?” the woman asked.

The question surprised her. It shouldn’t have. She
was
coming out of Tony’s loft. And Tony
was
supposed to be on vacation. “Uh, no. We, I mean, Tony got in last night.”

Her brows furrowed. “I thought he wasn’t due back until Tuesday.”

“We had to get back early.” No way was she telling this woman why.
Change the subject.
“I’m Hailey Anderson, a friend of Tony’s”

The woman extended her hand. “I’m Beth Rhodes.” She cocked her head toward a door a little further down the hall. “Tony’s neighbor.”

Hailey shifted the fob from her right hand to her left and shook Beth’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Beth.”

“You too.”

Hailey wondered if Tony had ever dated her. She was beautiful, the perfect match for him. They walked together to the elevator, the uncomfortable silence forcing Hailey to say, “I’m going to pick up breakfast. Is there anyplace close that’s open this early?”

“There are a couple of places. I’ll point them out when we get to the street.”

“Thanks.”

When they exited the building and stood on the sidewalk, the frigid air stole Hailey’s breath.

Beth pointed to her left, west, and wisps of white vapor escaped her mouth as she spoke. “Just across the street on the first floor of my office building is a little Mexican restaurant that has great breakfast burritos. And one block north on Central is a coffee shop that has pastries. Depends on what you’re in the mood for.”

“Breakfast burritos sound great. We’ve gone almost two weeks without green chile.” And Mark had mentioned on the way home that he needed a green chile fix. Burritos would be perfect.

They walked to the building together, and Hailey opened the door for Beth so the other woman didn’t have to juggle her briefcase and purse. Inside, Beth pointed to the small restaurant next to the elevator and said, “Tia’s Café.”

Hailey rubbed her hands up and down her arms, trying to warm up. “Thanks again.”

“You’re welcome.” Beth’s eyes widened. “Now, I know why your name is so familiar. Tony has mentioned you.”

“We’ve been friends a long time.”

Beth slipped a hand in a small outside pocket of her black leather briefcase and pulled out a white business card. As she extended it to Hailey, she said, “I’m a lawyer, but I’m also on the board of an organization that helps women who are victims of domestic violence.”

Hailey stared stupidly at the card without taking it. Tony had told this woman about Daniel.

“Tony says you’re an incredible grant writer. I’d like to talk to you about possibly doing some work for our organization.”

Relief washed over her as she took the card. “Sure. Um, yeah.” She shook her head and said ruefully, “I’m sorry. You surprised me. I’m usually more professional.”

Beth laughed. “Nothing to apologize for. I know that came out of left field.”

A grateful smile tugged at Hailey’s lips. “I don’t have my calendar with me, but I’ll call you in the next couple of days, and we can set something up. Would sometime next week work for you?”

“That would be great. Thanks, Hailey. I’m so glad I bumped into you.”

Fifteen minutes later, Hailey let herself back into the loft with a bag of breakfast burritos and a tray with three coffees.

Tony and Mark were sitting at the granite bar, both in gray sweats. Looked like Mark had been in Tony’s closet. They jumped off the stools and strode across the room. Tony took the tray, and Mark took the bag.

“It’s freezing out there,” she said, her teeth chattering.

“Literally,” Mark said. “God, that smells good. Breakfast burritos?”

“Yep.”

“Oh, yeah,” Tony said appreciatively. “Tia’s?”