Stripped Defenseless (18 page)

A
cell phone rang, and Zack answered. “Moreno speaking.”

Poppy
turned back around and listened intently.

“Like
I said before, Gavin, I don’t need to tell you shit. You’re screwing with me,
and it’s pissing me off.”

Ooh,
this was getting interesting, but who was Gavin?
She tried to remember if she’d
heard Kade’s last name. It had to be him.

“No,
fuck you,” Zack yelled. “I’m going to kill the cheating bitch, and if I find
out you’ve touched her, I’m going to kill you, too. You got that?”

Shit.
This guy was nuts.

Poppy
peeked over the seat to see the side of his bright red face. He slammed his
hand onto the steering wheel, and she ducked back down.

“Listen,”
his voice lowered. “I’ll give you another chance, Gavin. I know how
manipulating that little whore can be, and she obviously has your balls in a
sling, so all you got to do is—hello?
Hello?
Motherfucker hung up on me,”
he yelled.

Poppy
heard a swish, a crack, and then a thunk on the floor. He’d thrown something at
the window, and she was pretty damn sure it was his cell phone.
What a
freak.

She
was really going to have to be careful getting that briefcase away from him.

The
speaker beside her head started blaring
The Best Is Yet to Come
as the
SUV lurched forward, accelerating.

Good.
The sooner she got to the next destination, the better. She got cozy on her
side and plopped her arm over her ear to block out the deafening music.

Maybe
a little nap to pass the time wouldn’t hurt.

* * * * *

The
overhead lights in the kitchen spotlighted Kade as he slammed the cell phone on
the counter. Ava stood in the shadows of the wood-burning fireplace, against
the bedroom door watching him. She’d heard everything and was horrified.

“Are
my ears deceiving me or did you just call the man who wants to kill me and ask
for a reason?” she asked through the dusk-darkened room.

Slowly,
Kade looked in her direction. His mouth was pursed and his forehead crinkled.
“I need to know, Ava.”

“So
you asked
him
? Do you think I’d lie to you?”

“No.
That’s not it.” He shook his head and closed the distance between them.

Before
he could reach her, Ava put her hand up, making him stop an arm’s length away.

His
clear blue gaze swept over her as she stood there wearing one of his flannel
shirts, buttoned up only half way. She’d been in a hurry to run into his arms
after she heard Jax leave but then was shocked when she heard the phone call.

“I
didn’t think you’d tell me,” he said. “You haven’t exactly been happy with me.”

“I
just let you make love to me,” she said and pointed at him, poking him in the
chest with her finger.

“After
you asked Jax to take you with him.”

Another
sting of guilt ripped through her, and Ava dropped her arm, allowing Kade to
step forward. Her anger fizzled with him so near, his strong presence much like
a sedative. He caressed her cheek as she stared up at him. Flickers of light
from the fire danced across his ruggedly handsome face. Always so serious.

Ava
wanted to make him smile. She could imagine making that her life’s goal and
never growing bored of it.

The
reality was spending more time with Kade wasn’t an option. Not if she wanted to
survive. And damn him for putting her in a situation that jeopardized her right
to live. “I didn’t know what else to do.”

“Can
we call it even?” A half a grin peaked the corner of his gorgeous lips. His
fingers dragged her hair back and then slid down between her breasts.

Why
did he have to be so tempting?
She nodded, mindless under his watchful gaze.

“So
tell me what happened, Ava? Why does Moreno want you?”

With
her hand in his, she followed Kade to the couch in front of the warm fire. She
had no desire to rehash the memories of Zack, but she would rather Kade hear
the story from her than from the devil himself.

He
sat down at the edge of the brown leather sofa and drew Ava next to him. His
concerned and caring expression gave her some comfort but not nearly enough.

“Tell
me,” he said in his deep husky voice. “You can tell me anything. I'll
understand.”

God,
she hoped so. “I thought he was a normal guy at first,” she started. “We went
out on dates. He brought me jewelry and flowers all the time. I didn’t need
that stuff, but I thought it was sweet. Know what I mean?”

He
nodded. “Go on.”

She
took a breath. “I moved in with him and started noticing things. Especially
when he was campaigning for Senator Wadsley. Zack would be talking on the phone
to someone and then just become this different person, threatening and
harassing.”

Shaken,
she looked up at Kade. His entire focus was on her, so she continued. “One day
I asked him who he was talking to and he flipped out. He said it wasn’t my
business and to stay out of it or I’d be sorry.”

Kade’s
eyes narrowed. “Then what happened?”

“I
didn’t want to stick around to see what happened next, so I started packing my
bags.” Ava pressed her hand to her flushed forehead. It had beaded up with
perspiration. After all this time, the very thought of Zack still terrified her.
“But before I could leave, he pushed me against the wall...and beat me
unconscious,” she said, closing with a whisper.

Talking
about that day was humiliating. To relive it all in her thoughts turned her
stomach. How had she not seen it coming? It was the same question she’d asked
of the many women who’d sought shelter and safety at the battered women’s
shelter where she volunteered. She’d wanted them all to believe they could
survive and be strong enough to fight back. But now she knew how terrifying physical
abuse really was. Enough to force her to run and hide.

Kade
gathered her onto his lap and held her, taking her by surprise. His solid arms
were comforting as she leaned into his embrace.

“Zack
promised to hunt me down and kill me if I left, Kade. He said he’d find me no
matter where I go. Now, do you understand why I can’t sit around here waiting
for him?”

“You
can’t run forever.” He loosened his hold on her, and Ava looked into his
unresponsive eyes.

How
could he still want her to stay after what she’d just told him? How could he
not comprehend how frightened she was?

“You
have to trust me, baby. I know you’re scared, but you have to believe me when I
say it’s for the best that we handle Moreno in person.”

No.
No way. She wanted to scream at him, but she held her tongue. Trying to reason
with him was pointless. Her body shivered as she stared up at his stubborn
expression. This was the man Zack hired to find her. No matter what her heart
was saying, she was going to have to force herself to listen to her head. How
could she rely on a man who had drugged and kidnapped her for money?

She
couldn’t. She needed to get out and away as soon as possible. But how?

“Talk
to me, baby,” Kade said. “Tell me you’ll trust me.”

Ava
forced her mouth into a grin. “Okay,” she lied.

* * * * *

Poppy
awakened after a slapping sting made contact with the cheek Jarred had already
bruised. Her eyes fluttered open to see Zack straddling her body, leaning over
her with a malicious smirk. Darkness surrounded them, but the moonlight shone
on half of his face.

“You
snore when you sleep,” he said. “Did you know that?”

Oh,
shit. She tried to sit up but was immediately greeted with a gun to her
forehead.
Her
gun, goddamn it.

Zack
chuckled and pulled the trigger back. “What the hell were you thinking, you
little whore?”

“The
house on Bluebird Street,” she said as clearly as possible with her trembling
lips. “I want it.”

Shaking
his head, he pulled the gun down her sore cheek, skimming it along her tender
skin. “I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about.” The cold steel ran
down her neck to her bare breast. “But what you have here,” he nudged the
barrel against her nipple, “makes up for what you lack,” he quickly brought the
gun up to her forehead again and tapped it against her skull, “here.”

“Fuck
you,” she belted out. If Poppy Q. Smith was going to die, she’d do it with
style.

“Honestly,
I’d love to fuck you, but I’ve got business to tend to. A woman who just
happens to look a lot like you is waiting for me, and I don’t have the time or
energy to screw you both.” He backed off.

Poppy
sat up and clenched her jacket shut. Her eyes located the briefcase resting in
between the two front seats.

“Get
out,” he ordered. “And don’t even think about touching that money, or I’ll put
a bullet through that pretty head of yours.”

She
climbed over the seat and felt the barrel on her bottom as she did.
Dickhead.
Pervert. Son of a bitch.
She’d get that fucking briefcase from him if it
was the last thing she did.

“Out
the door, my little blonde harlot,” Zack said as he followed her over,
adjusting his aim from her ass to her chest.

Poppy
was so close to the money, she swore she could smell green crisp dollars.

“Out,”
he yelled. “I’d shoot your head off, but it would ruin my new interior.”

Reluctantly,
she opened the door and slid out onto the snowy ground in her heels. “How the
hell do you expect me to walk in this crap?” She threw her arms up, but before
she could turn around to face Zack, his foot propelled her away from the
vehicle and flat into the pile of dirty snow that hugged the plowed road.

She
tried to scream, but her entire body stung. Before she could get to her feet
again, Zack, his SUV, and her money drove away.

Trembling
with anger and pain, she stood at the edge of the road and kissed her destiny
good-bye. She wasn’t usually a crier, but she figured this moment was probably
as good as any. Tears filled her eyes and ran down her cold, bruised cheek.

Just
then an enormous black truck with chains on its tires drove up on the opposite
side of the desolate road. She squinted and saw a brawny man with dark features
roll down his window. “Need a ride?” he called out.

Poppy’s
mama always said not to get into a car with strange men, but what other choice
was there? She was freezing, it was dark, and he had a vehicle to get her
closer to her destiny.

* * * * *

Pulling
away from Kade’s embrace, Ava excused herself to the bathroom. Her clothes were
still in there, and the more she had on, the less chance she had ending up
naked with Kade,
again
.

She
needed to remain focused if she wanted to stay alive. And although the idea of
trusting Kade was alluring, it wasn’t practical.

They
weren’t on the same team.

It
was her against the unknown, and so far she was losing. But not for long.

She
pulled on her jeans and patted her pocket to make sure the pills were still
there. Yep. It was time to take action.

“Ava,”
he called from the other side of the door. “Are you hungry yet?”

“I’m
starving.” She slipped on her snug T-shirt and tied his flannel shirt around
her waist to hide the appearance of the capsules.

After
taking a deep breath, she opened the bathroom door and almost ran right into
him. He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, waiting for her.

“Hi,”
she said, attempting to act as normal as possible.

His
clear blue gaze swept up her body and met her eyes. “Are we okay?”

“Just
fine.” What did he expect her to do? Cartwheels? “Why don’t I make dinner?” She
attempted to walk past him to the kitchen, but he grabbed her arm.

“You
don’t need to do that.”

“I
want to. Really. I feel bad for destroying the meal you made earlier. You could
go play with your detective stuff.” She waved her free hand toward his computer
equipment.

He
loosened his grip and smiled down at her. “It’s been a long time since a woman
cooked for me.”

Ava
watched as he bit into the small cut on his lip, reminding her he was just a
man. Not some mysterious force who ruled her fate.

He
leaned down and kissed her lips. “I’d love it,” he whispered against her mouth.

Get
a hold of yourself, Ava.
She swallowed down the rising desire to strip the clothes off his body, push
him onto the couch, and ride him until she was completely satisfied. “Okay,
I’ll get started.”

* * * * *

Poppy
plopped into the front seat after climbing up the mountain that was the man’s
truck. A difficult task for a petite woman in three-inch heels. She supposed he
was single because no sane woman would go through this stunt more than a few
times.