Smitten (16 page)

“Hey, girl. I thought you were going out with the ladies tonight.”

“I just got home. I left early. It was a bachelorette party for one of my friends, but after hanging out with them all day, I decided to call it a night. I was hoping maybe I’d see you. I texted your phone, but you didn’t reply.”

“Did you? I didn’t hear it, but I’ve been driving so that’s probably why.”

“Well you’re here now. That’s all that matters.”

Yay. Lucky me.

“I can’t stay long. I’ve still got to take Cami and Russ home.”

I think that was the first time anyone acknowledged Russ standing there. Roberta slid off me and extended a hand. “Hi, I’m Roberta,” she said with a flirty smile.

“So I’ve heard. Hunter’s told me a lot about you.” He smiled back at her, obviously checking her skimpy shorts and tank top. “I don’t think he did you justice, though.”

Her smile widened
, and I bit back a groan. I should’ve warned him not to feed the beast.

“I think I like you already,” she replied, hooking her arm through his and leading him to Ripper.

“This is my friend, Russ, I’ve told you about,” I introduced.

“Yeah, we’ve met before,” Ripper said, the disdain clear in his voice. Neither of them attempted to shake hands with each other.

“So why'd you want to talk to me?” I asked, curious about his earlier message.

Ripper got an excited gleam in his eyes. “We’re going to the races tomorrow night. We race for pinks—you know, ownership—in the final race. I usually race two cars.” I wasn’t expecting what he said next. “Since Manny isn’t around anymore
, I want you to be one of the drivers.”

Chapter Twenty

Cami-

“I’m scared,” I kept my voice low as I glanced around, making sure no one else could hear me talking on the phone. Everyone’s attention
was gathered around the group of flashy vehicles parked around one end of the old abandoned runway in the middle of the desert.

“Don’t be,” Hunter replied. “I promise I’ll drive as safe
ly as possible. I’ve had driving courses with my
other
job, so I know what I’m doing. Everything will be okay. I promise.”

I knew it wasn’t wise for me to contact him on the phone with everyone milling around his vehicle. He couldn’t talk freely, but I’d been mortified when Ripper had gone on to explain he wanted Hunter to race his Camaro—well, the department’s Camaro. “What if you lose that car to someone else?”

He chuckled briefly. “I’m not going to lose it—I’ll win this thing. I’ve got to go now. They’re trying to get us organized.”

“Please be careful,” I whispered again.

“I will. See you when it’s over.” The line went dead, and I slipped my phone back into my pocket with a frustrated sigh.

“What’s the matter, Cami?” Roberta’s voice came from behind me
, and I turned to face her. “Nervous for Ripper?” She gave a half smile. “You shouldn’t be. His cars always win.”

“I’m sure he knows what he’s doing,” I replied, not caring one bit about what might happen to Ripper. I chose to be honest with her. “It’s Hunter I’m worried about. He’s never been a drag racer.”

Roberta stepped closer, speaking softly. “You don’t have to keep up pretenses with me, Cami. I know this isn’t any sisterly concern on your part. You’re no more Hunter’s sister than I am, but you seem awfully close to him. What is he to you? Your partner? And who’s that Russ guy who was with you last night?”

“Russ is a friend of ours we
took with us yesterday. He’s not a . . . ,” I hesitated, leery about saying the word out loud.

“Got it,” Roberta said with a knowing look. I wondered if she realized I hadn’t answered her first question. If she wanted to assume that meant I
was
a cop, then so be it. I’d never said it.

I decided to try and turn the focus back to her. “I’m sorry Manny disappeared. I hope we’ll be able to figure out what happened to him.”

She studied me with a hard look for a moment, and I wondered if perhaps I’d opened too difficult of a wound for her, but then her features softened. She shrugged and turned to watch the activity around the vehicle. “He wouldn’t have run off without saying anything to anybody. Ripper and I always knew what was going on with him. All I know is he argued with my brother at the auto body shop over money from one of the deals they had going. I was tired of hearing them fight and told him I was going home, and he knew where to find me. I never saw him again.” She glanced at me. “Ripper said they figured out their issue and he’d left, leaving Manny working on one of the cars in the garage with Seth. Seth said Manny had still been upset when he left.”

“How’d you find out he was missing?” I asked trying to keep her talking.

“His car was left parked outside his parent’s house, suggesting he’d gone home, but no one remembers seeing him. He was known to go off on his own now and again but never for more than a day. After two days had gone by with no contact from him, his mom filed a missing persons report. The only things anyone could find missing were his wallet, cell phone, and the clothes he’d been wearing.”

“All things he’d keep on himself,” I muttered, mostly to myself, but she still heard.

“Exactly. So unless he had some money stashed away somewhere, and he bailed on us, then something bad has happened to him. There’s been no record of him showing up anywhere.”

It definitely seem
ed suspicious and dangerous too. If Ripper had done this, then I didn’t want Hunter anywhere around him. I wanted this case done.

“Hunter’s been a huge support,” Roberta continued, volunteering more information. “I’m glad he took the place of the other guy I was working with. He’s always been there for me when I’ve needed him. He’s got a good shoulder to cry on.” She glanced at me with a devious grin. “And he’s a hell of a good kisser too. I swear I’m addicted. I’m hoping maybe when all is said and done he’ll continue to stick around.”

It was all I could do to keep my face in what I hoped was a neutral expression. I couldn’t even think of words to speak. I wanted to puke at the mere thought of losing Hunter to her. The rational side of my brain reminded me he was in no way interested. I didn’t need to worry, but my heart was beating so loudly at her declaration that my pounding pulse was on the verge of drowning out the rest of my hearing. Hunter was mine! He belonged to me! She was clearly waiting for me to say something, but I didn’t know what to answer. I was saved by a ringing sound from my pocket.

“Hey Russ, what’s up?” I answered when I saw his icon pop up, relieved for the escape.

“Where are you?” he asked.

“Standing in the middle of nowhere at some abandoned airstrip, why?”

“Dang! I wasn’t paying attention to the time while I was researching at the library. I wanted to come watch Hunter race.”

“Well, I wish you were here instead of me. I’m a nervous wreck
 . . . okay, maybe that wasn’t the best term for tonight.” I ran my fingers self-consciously through my hair, turning away from Roberta who looked as calm, cool, and beautiful as ever. “I’m seriously freaking out here,” I quickly whispered, slowly walking farther from Roberta. “And this girl—she just told me she wants to keep dating Hunter after the case is wrapped up. What do I say to that?”

Russ laughed loudly. “Tell her she’s delusional! There’s no way Hunter will even glance at her twice after this case is done. She’s so not his type. She reminds him too much of Gabby. He hates it.”

An image of Clay’s co-conspirator popped instantly into my mind. “He said that?” I asked, feeling some of my insecurities slip away.

“He most certainly did. And you know
exactly
how much he loved Gabby.”

I wasn’t sure why I hadn’t seen the resemblance between the two of them before now, but it made total sense. They were similar in build and appearance, very aggressive around men, always flaunting themselves. Gabby had always looked at me as if she knew something I didn’t—which I guess she had—but now I realized Roberta treated me the same way. Immediately
, I wondered what she might be hiding. Maybe she already knew I was Hunter’s girlfriend, and she was just messing with me. I needed to keep my eye on her.

“How long do you think the races will last? Do I have time to get out there?” Russ added
, breaking into my thoughts.

“I wouldn’t even begin to know how to tell you where we are. I’m not even sure I could find my way back at this point.” I glanced at the desert terrain surrounding us. “I do know it took us about forty-five minutes to get out here
, though.

He sighed, sounding disappointed. “Yea, it sounds like you’re too far out anyway. Tell Hunter good luck and to call me if he
ever does anything like this again.”

“I will. Have a good night.”

“Who you talking to, baby?” Ripper’s voice caught me off guard so badly I jumped.

“Oh, for goodness sake! You scared me
half to death, Ripper!” I placed a hand over my heart and tried to slow my breathing. “I was talking to Russ. He wanted to know if there was still time for him to catch the races tonight.”

Ripper’s smile was replaced with an immediate frown. “I don’t like that guy.”

“Really? Why?” I asked innocently, knowing the exact reason he felt that way. It secretly brought me pleasure to know it made him upset. Anything that made him uncomfortable was a bonus in my book.

“Because I think he’s trying to put the moves on my girl.” He reached out and drew me closer to him.

“And who’s your girl?” I asked with a nervous giggle while trying to resist the urge to shove him away.

He smiled and brushed his lips against mine. “You know it’s you. Now how about a big good luck kiss for your man?”

I was so thankful Ripper was a guy with good breath, or this job would’ve been even worse. “Sure.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and let him kiss me deeply—all the while trying to pretend it was Hunter instead. But Hunter was a better kisser than Ripper. There was no comparison.

Ripper pulled away with a smile, winking before he swaggered to where he’d left his car. I turned away and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.

“Is it really that bad kissing my brother?” Roberta asked, arms folded as she stared at me.

I sighed. I’d forgotten she was there. “I’m sure he’s fine for some
girls. But he’s not my type.”

She g
ave me a little sneer. “I bet I know who is.” Her gaze flickered to where Hunter was bent under the hood, looking at the engine of the red Camaro.

“What do you mean?” I feigned naivety.

She sauntered toward me. “I mean I think you have a thing for your partner.”

I swallowed hard, again not sure how to reply.

She trailed a finger across my back as she walked past. “Don’t worry, Red. Your secret’s safe with me. He’ll never know.”

Roberta thronged her way to where Hunter was standing next to Seth and Nick and threw her arms around him, dragging his face to hers for a kiss. She hugged him when they broke apart, staring
over his shoulder and giving me a taunting wave before she kissed him again.

I turned away unable to watch her flaunt it anymore.

Chapter Twenty-One

Hunter-

I’d beat every car pitted against me. Ripper had been right—he always won too. Since I’d come as part of his “group,” I’d been lumped with him, but when everyone found out the Camaro didn’t belong to him, they demanded we face off. It was more or less a formality, but Ripper wasn’t happy with the development in the least
.
He raced to win vehicles. Nearly every year, his two cars—entered as a team—were the victors and each raced for pinks. Now, instead of having two cars to take home, he was getting none.

I searched the crowd for Cami’s face as we got into our vehicles, but couldn’t see her anywhere. I hadn’t been able to talk to her all night because Roberta was constantly hanging on my arm, dragging me around and introducing me to people
as if I was a prize she’d won. I was feeling frustrated.

We drove up to the start line and stopped.

“Hey!” Ripper shouted, gesturing at me through the window. I pushed the button to lower it. “You ready to lose that pretty car of yours?”

“I thought you said this was just a formality!” I hollered back.

“I changed my mind. Sorry! I gotta get something out of tonight!” He grinned and rolled his window up before I could say anything.

I looked his souped
-up Dodge Dart over one last time before turning to face the strip in front of me. My knuckles tightened on the steering wheel. It was time to give this guy a taste of his own medicine.

Roberta’s friend, Cherise, who I’d met at the club
, stood in front of us on the midline in a half shirt and barely-there shorts. She grinned as she held a handkerchief in the air. I watched her fingers carefully, waiting for her to release it. The second she did, I hit the gas.

The cars peeled out, squealing loudly as we tore down the old cracked asphalt. I could see Ripper still beside me, neck and neck. I shifted gears, gunning the engine
, and edged forward, speeding faster and faster as the digital odometer rapidly ticked higher.

Shifting again, I buried the gas pedal once more. I shot out far ahead of Ripper and couldn’t help grin
ning. I might not be able to stake my claim on Cami yet, but I sure as hell was going to smoke him in this race.

The wheels of the Camaro ate
up the road beneath me as the speedometer pushed past one hundred and twenty, and the car almost felt like it was floating when it hit the minor bumps in the road. One twenty-five and still climbing—I chuckled at Ripper’s headlights in the rearview mirror. This race was mine.

I didn’t expect the
coyote when it ran out in front of me. I reacted naturally, hitting the brakes and jerking the wheel to avoid it. It was exactly the wrong thing to do. There was a jarring impact as Ripper’s car clipped the back of mine, and suddenly my world was spinning around in circles as my car flipped through the air.

The sound of breaking glass and crunching metal screeched around me as I hit the ground with a crash, the hood smashing in towards me.
Over and over I rolled—again and again—until I was certain the car would never stop. Dirt and gravel pelted me through the broken windows, as well as shards of glass. Instinctively, I lifted my arms to shield my face from all the debris. I gasped for breath as air bags burst to life around me, hitting me hard and filling the air with power. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion, and I had no control of anything.

The car finally rolled to a stop, landing on its smashed
-up hood, leaving me hanging from the seatbelt. I could feel all the blood rushing to my head. I had to get out of here! I fumbled for the latch and released myself, my head hitting the ground as I slumped out of my seat. There was enough crawl space in the busted window for me to slither my way out. I looked around, trying to orient myself to where I was, but my vision was too blurry. Dragging my hand across my eyes, I tried to refocus, only to discover there was blood dripping everywhere.

Damn. I was injured. There was a terrible ring
ing in my ears, and suddenly I was too weak to care. Cami’s last words floated through my mind, “Please be careful.”

Everything went black.

I heard screaming, somebody was touching me, pressing hard against the top of my head. Where was I?

“Hand me your shirt!” Cami’s hysterical voice demanded, but I couldn’t move to give it to her. My body felt like dead weight.

“I can’t move,” I muttered.

“Hunter! Hunter can you hear me?” she asked frantically. “Stay still, okay? Don’t try to move. Help is on the way.”

“What happened?” I asked, trying to figure out what was going on.

“I think he’s trying to talk, but I can’t understand what he’s saying.” That was another voice I recognized from somewhere. I searched my brain, trying to place it. Roberta.

“The helicopter is on its way. The dispatcher says the
y’ll be here in about twenty-minutes. They’re using my cell phone to track our location.” Someone else blurted out—Nick maybe.

“What happened?” I asked again. Why did we need a helicopter? Was Cami safe?

All I could hear was shouts and talking all around me, but I couldn’t even open my eyes. My body felt so heavy. Everything was heavy, even the warm air blowing on my skin felt too intense.

I drifted off into the void again.

Beating. Beating. Beating. Beat. Beat. Beat. Beat. Over and over again the sound drummed into my head growing louder and louder until it was unbearable. Wind rushed heavily across my face
, and I gasped as stabbing pain rushed through my body.

“Somebody make it stop!” I hollered, trying to lift my hands to my ears, but it felt like they were strapped to my sides. I thrashed about, or tried to anyway.

“Mr. Wilder! Mr. Wilder!” An unfamiliar female voice shouted. “Please try to hold still. We’re loading you into the helicopter. We’ll have you settled in shortly.”

I could feel myself being lifted. “Cami! Where’s Cami?” I asked, fearing for her safety.

“What did he say?” a man’s voice questioned.

“I can’t understand him,” the woman replied. “He’s still not with it.”

I was so frustrated. A sudden wave of nausea rolled through me, and I felt like I was going to throw up. I couldn’t stop it.

“He’s vomiting! Quick! Turn the board to the side!”

Spasm racked my body, and I couldn’t get them to stop. Something hard and thin was poked into my mouth, and I could feel suction.

“I think he’s done. Let’s get him strapped back down. He’s showing definite signs of a head injury,” the female voice said. “Patch to the hospital
, and let them know we’re coming in with a Level One Trauma.”

Soon the beating sound grew faster, roaring in my head, combined with a swaying motion that made me feel sick again. It was too many sensations to handle
, and I gave into the creeping darkness once more.

The bright white lights above me were racing past—or was I racing past them? They made my head pound furiously, and I felt extremely dizzy. I closed my eyes in an attempt to stop it. More urgent voices surrounded me, but I couldn’t concentrate enough to decipher what they were saying. Finally, I realized someone was calling my name, but I was too tired to answer. I chose instead to drift off back to sleep.

Slowly, I became aware of a constant, soft beeping sound, but couldn’t place where it was coming from. Forcing my heavy eyelids open, I found myself lying in a dimly lit space, which I recognized immediately as a hospital room. Cami was slumped in a chair pulled close to the bed, her red hair spread out wildly, a stark contrast to the white blanket. She was breathing deeply as if she were asleep, but her hand was clutching mine. Chris was in a chair on the other side of the bed, asleep with his head resting on his hand. They both looked worn out.

There was a throbbing pain on the top of my head
, and I reached my free hand to feel it, finding bandages wrapped there. I shifted slightly, checking out the rest of my sore body, but everything else seemed to be okay.

Cami woke with a start and stared at me with concern. “Hunter? Can you hear me?”

Chris opened his eyes and leaned forward.

“Of course I can hear you. I’m not deaf.” I gave a sigh of exasperation. “What happened? How’d I
get here?”

“You don’t remember the accident?” Chris asked with a worried expression.

“Accident?” I tried recalling an accident, but there was nothing.

“What’s the last thing you remember?” Cami questioned.

I paused for a moment, concentrating as I tried to sift through my mind. “There was a coyote . . . and I swerved,” I replied, closing my eyes as memories of the race suddenly flooded back to me. “Did I win?”

Cami snorted, a look of disbelief etched on her face. “Seriously? You almost
died
and all you want to know is if you won? If I weren’t so happy to see you, I’d knock you out myself right now. We’ve been terrified!”

I couldn’t help laughing at her, even though my muscles hurt with the movement. “Well, did I?”

“No, I’m afraid Ripper spun right past you. You rolled off the runway. He skidded to the end. He only sustained some minor front end damage—nothing he won’t be able to fix.”

I grinned wider.

“What now?” Cami asked, not seeming very amused.

“We were racing for pinks. He won the Camaro. I hope he enjoys it!” I chuckled. “Fat lot of good it’s gonna do him. I guess he can scrap it for parts.”

Chris shook his head. “You’re two for two now on assignments. You know that, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean you got shot on your last undercover assignment, and now you’ve barely survived a car accident on this one. The department isn’t going to be too happy about that. Not to mention you totaled the car they gave you.”

“All the more reason for them to hear me out when I tell them I don’t want to work undercover anymore.”

He seemed surprise by my comment. “Really?”

I sighed,
touching the bandages on my head. “I’m tired of being away from Cami. This wasn’t what I signed on for, bro. She’s not getting any rest either, because she’s constantly worried about me. And I’m always worried about her getting tangled in these messes. I want out. Neither of us are cut out for this.”

He stared
at me for several moments before he nodded, signaling he understood, but he didn’t say anything else. I was sure he wasn’t too thrilled about it. He and I had bonded over our job. We worked well together.

I turned to Cami. “So what’s the verdict? How bad off am I?”

“You’re extremely lucky, actually. Other than some pretty good bumps and bruises, you managed to walk away with only a deep head laceration, which required seven stitches. You also have a pretty good concussion going on, but other than that, the CT scan looked fine.”

“We’ve been waiting for you to wake
up,” Chris added. “You’ve been out of it for several hours. The doctor said they wanted to keep you a couple days for observation since you lost consciousness so many times—just as an added precaution. They plan on running another CT scan to make sure they didn’t miss any bleeding.”

“That doesn’t sound very fun.” I didn’t want to stay here another minute, let alone days.

“Enjoy the rest, Hunter. You need it. I’ll stay here to keep you company.” Cami stroked the back of my hand with her fingers.

“You’ll miss your classes. I don’t want you to get behind.”

“I don’t care. You’re more important than any grade. Besides, if I leave here, Ripper’s going to be hounding me and following me around all the time. Is that really where you want me?”

“No,” I replied quickly. I had no problem letting her win this argument. “Stay here. I don’t want you anywhere
near him—though I have to say I’m surprised he and Roberta aren’t here.”

“You’re checked in here under your fake identity. The hospital is helping with your security by only allowing family members into your room—like your brother and your sister. I haven’t told your parents what happened because I want to live a little while longer. Besides, I know your mom would be tearing this place down trying to get to you. We didn’t want to blow your cover.”

“So did the cops show up out there?” I asked.

Cami nodded. “Lots of them, but everyone had pretty much scattered.”

“Was anyone cited?”

“There was no one left to cite but you.
Your car was the only one there—everyone else left. Chris came to the scene for me.”

Anger quickly boiled to the surface. “Are you telling me Ripper and his thugs left you out there
alone
?”

“I refused to go with them. I told them I was going to make sure your car was properly taken care of. It wasn’t like the police weren’t going to know how to find you. Ripper threatened to throw me in the car, but I told him if he did
, I’d never speak to him again.”

I attempted to drag a hand through my hair and was frustrated when I encounter the bandages again. I’d already forgotten about them. “I can’t believe he left you behind.” It made me furious that he’d run off and left her so he could cover his own butt.