Out of Turn (34 page)

“Just hear me out,” Blane said quietly. “If I get arrested, and the worst should happen—if I go to prison—I want you to stay. In my home. For as long as you’d like.”

I stared at him, stunned. Finally, I found my voice. “Stop talking like that, Blane,” I said, not sure what else to say. “Everything’s going to be fine. You’ll see.”

“It’s better to prepare for the worst,” he said. “You know that. And I don’t want you to have to worry about where you’re going to live. My estate will take care of the house and grounds. Mona and Gerard will still be there, too.”

I swallowed hard. “I couldn’t do that, Blane,” I said, my voice thick. “I couldn’t live there, not without—”

The
you
got stuck and I broke off, turning to look out the window so he wouldn’t see the tears in my eyes. This nightmare had to end. Kade had to get that DNA so Blane could clear his name.

His hand gently grasped mine, which lay on the seat between us. Blane slotted our fingers, pressing our palms together. I didn’t look at him, but I held tightly to his hand.

A few minutes later, we pulled up at The Drop. Blane had driven around to the back door, where the employees entered. He let go of my hand to turn off the car and we sat there in a silence that wasn’t uncomfortable.

I didn’t want to get out of the car, didn’t want to let him out of my sight. What if they came and took Blane away when I wasn’t there?

“If I get out of this,” Blane said roughly, “if I still have a name worth giving to you, please tell me you’ll give us another chance.”

Our eyes met, blue to gray. Regret and guilt were twin knives tearing me apart from the inside out. I’d put the final nail in the coffin of Blane’s and my relationship the moment I’d decided to sleep with Kade. I couldn’t take that back, and neither could I form the words to tell Blane. I couldn’t bear to see the look in his eyes turn to one of loathing and disgust.

I shook my head. “We—we can’t,” I stammered. “I—Vegas… It’s too late.” I couldn’t manage any more, my throat had closed up. I jumped out of the car before I broke down completely.

“Kat, wait!” Blane called, but I ignored him, hurrying for the entrance. He followed me and was quicker, slamming the door closed just as I started to pull it open. He spun me around until my back was against the metal door, his hands closing on my upper arms to hold me in place.

“Listen to me,” he said, his voice low and intense. “I don’t give a damn about what happened in Vegas. I know you still love me. Don’t give up on us because of Kade,” he implored. “Let me back in. Let me prove to you that I’ve changed, that I still love you. I can offer you more than Kade ever can or will. Please, Kat.”

His desperation leaked into me. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think.

Then he kissed me.

C
HAPTER
T
HIRTEEN

B
lane’s lips were warm and soft, his hands moving up from my arms to cradle my jaw. His mouth moved over mine, not demanding a response but close. The scent of his cologne teased me, invoking too many memories. The feel of his body against mine made my knees weak and butterflies quivered in my stomach.

Thoughts of resisting faded away as my lips parted beneath his, our tongues entwining. My arms slid around his waist to pull him closer. Blane groaned, his kisses growing more heated.

“Don’t go into work,” he whispered against my lips. “Come home with me.”

It was tempting, God, it was so tempting, but I pulled back. His lips glided smoothly down my neck.

“I can’t,” I said, breathless. “It’s not that simple.”

“I love you. You love me. What could be more simple?”

If only he’d believed that three months ago, instead of the lies about us. Yes, I’d forgiven him, but my heart wasn’t healed. Not yet.

And then there was Kade. As the fog of desire lifted from my brain, I thought of him, abruptly remembering that he
and I had stood in this exact spot a few months ago and put on a “show” for the madman stalking me.

“I-I need to get to work,” I stammered, pushing against Blane. He seemed reluctant to release me but did so.

“I’ll come back for you,” he said.

I nodded, glancing away from him. “I’ll see you later.” I hurried inside, the compulsion to look back nearly overwhelming.

Tish was working tonight and I waved to her as I stuffed my purse under the bar. It was really crowded and Scott, also bartending, was glad to see me. I dived in, grateful not to have to think about all Blane had just said.

I couldn’t keep my thoughts at bay for long, though.

I had no idea what to do. I felt torn, almost literally, in two.

I still loved Blane, that was true. I loved him, was attracted to him. When we were together, I felt like it was how we were supposed to be, that fate had determined our destiny. He was my first love, my first real lover.

Then there was Kade. Even though we couldn’t be together, that it was wrong on so many levels for me to want him, I couldn’t stop. When I was with him, I felt alive. He challenged me, brought out more than I thought I had in me. And although he pushed me away with one hand, he still clung to me with the other, needing me, wanting me. Kade was a drug I couldn’t seem to give up. An addiction that had me craving more.

Where did all that leave me? Confused and so anxious, I was nearly sick with worry, fear, and guilt. What would become of the three of us? Blane said he didn’t care about what had happened in Vegas, but could that really be true?
And Kade didn’t even know we’d made love. Would his feelings for me be different if he did?

The Drop was busier than I thought we’d be for the Fourth, and it wasn’t until almost closing that Tish and I had a chance to chat.

“The cops came by my house yesterday,” she said, grabbing a peanut from the snack bowl on the bar.

I frowned. “That’s weird. What for?”

“They were asking about you.”

My eyes went wide. Was this what Blane had meant about the cops looking into every part of my life?

“What did you say?” I asked.

She shrugged, shelling the nut and popping it into her mouth. “There wasn’t a lot to say. They wanted to know if you and Blane were back together, if you were living with him, if I’d ever seen you with some girl named Kandi or heard you talk about her.

“Of course I told them you weren’t back with Blane, that piece of shit,” she continued with a disgusted snort. “And that the last time you mentioned Kandi was months ago when she broke you and Blane up.”

I closed my eyes in dismay.

“What’s wrong?” Tish asked anxiously. “Did I say something I shouldn’t have?”

I shook my head. I couldn’t blame Tish. She’d told the truth, as far as she knew it. “It’s fine,” I said. “I’m sorry they bothered you.”

“Why are the cops asking me about you?” she asked. “What happened?”

I gave her a quick recap of Kandi’s murder and how Blane was a suspect. It had been on the news, but I knew how little attention Tish paid to things like that.

“So they’re asking me because they think maybe you were involved somehow?”

I gave a helpless shrug. “I have no idea. Maybe.” Which was a lovely thought to dwell on the rest of the evening.

Scott and Tish were just as eager to leave as I was once we’d closed. I said good-bye to them, promising to lock up when I left. I had to go back to the storeroom for more liquor to stock. If I’d been the one scheduled to work tomorrow, I wouldn’t have bothered, but I hated to leave the bar in that state for the next person to deal with.

Once I was in the storeroom, I scanned the shelves for what I needed. The air-conditioning couldn’t keep up with the heat out front, so I felt sticky and hot, but it was cooler in there.

I wanted to hurry. If I could get to James’s house, maybe I could help Kade. Not that he likely needed help, especially mine, but that’s what I told myself to justify going over there.

I heard the door open behind me and I spun around in surprise. I should be alone now, no one else was here. When I saw who’d entered the room with me, my heart lodged in my throat.

James. How the hell had he gotten in?

“I’m so glad to have a moment alone with you, Kathleen,” he said.

“What are you doing here?” I asked with more bravado than I felt.

James took a step closer. “I thought I’d stop by your fine new working establishment and check in on you, seeing as how your boyfriend’s going to be arrested for murder.” His fake sympathy was grating. “The cops say you two are back together, though if you ask me, hooking up with a murderer can’t be good for your health.”

“Blane didn’t murder anyone,” I said. James took another step forward and it was all I could do not to back away.

“How sweet, standing by your man,” he sneered. “Or stupid.” He moved closer until he stood right in front of me. “For all you know, you could be next.”

My heart was hammering in my chest and I swallowed hard. Was that a threat? The last time I’d been alone with James, he’d attacked me. I’d gotten away only because of the stun gun I’d borrowed from Alisha. I had no such weapon now.

James reached out to trail a finger from my neck down inside my cleavage. I slapped his hand away and his eyes narrowed in menace.

“You know,” he said softly, “I could maybe be… persuaded… to go easy on your guy. Involuntary manslaughter instead of murder one. Ten years, but he’d be out in five.”

Blane. I could help him. My mind spun. If things progressed far enough for him to be arrested, this would be better than the alternative. On the other hand…

“You forget,” I said, “I still have a rather incriminating recording of you threatening me, remember?”

“You mean this one?” He held up a familiar flash drive. “I was so sorry to hear about your apartment burning, so I went by,” he said. “The restoration people were very cooperative once I told them who I was. They were impressed
that the district attorney would take such an interest in one of my… constituents.” He pocketed the drive. “You should find better hiding places, Kathleen. It took me all of ten minutes to find it.”

Okay, well, this was an unfortunate turn of events. I swallowed. How far was I willing to go to help Blane? I loved him and didn’t want to see his life destroyed for a crime he didn’t commit. But the price for what James offered was steep, and I didn’t know if I could pay it.

“How could I… persuade you?” I forced the words out, feeling sick to my stomach.

James’s smile was triumphant. His hand slipped inside my shirt to cup my breast, pinching the nipple hard. I stiffened, wincing, but didn’t move or make a sound of protest.

His other hand circled my throat as he shoved me against the brick wall at my back. His grip tightened and he forced my head to turn. “I thought you’d come around to my way of thinking,” he hissed in my ear. “You’ll do anything for Kirk, won’t you. Stupid cunt.”

I shut my eyes tight, struggling to breathe. His hold was painful but didn’t completely cut off my air.

“
Won’t you?
” he demanded again, squeezing harder.

I tried to nod, spots starting to appear before my eyes.

His grip loosened and I sucked in a lungful of air.

“That’s a good girl,” James said. “Now you just do as I say, and I won’t hurt you. Much. Understand?”

I nodded again, suddenly all the more glad I hadn’t told Kade or Blane about getting off work early. I didn’t want either of them to see this.

He yanked on my shirt and it bit into my shoulders before the fabric tore. “Take it off,” he said, letting go of me.

My hands shook as I shrugged out of the shirt. James’s gaze dropped to my breasts.

“Kirk may be a killer,” he said with an appreciative sigh, “but he knows how to pick ’em.”

He fished something out of his pocket, and flipped open a pocketknife. My breath caught at the sight of it. I was abruptly reminded of what James had done to Kandi. Was he going to do that to me?

“Hold still now,” James said, his tone too nonchalant for how close the knife was to my skin. “I don’t want this to slip. That would be a real shame.”

James slid the blade under the elastic of my bra, twisting upward, then tugged. The knife cut easily through the fabric. I didn’t breathe as the blade again touched my skin.

“How about a souvenir?” James said. “I don’t want you or Kirk to ever forget this.”

I stood frozen as he sliced a thin cut down between my breasts. “It’s such a treat, to have you finally minding your manners,” he mused.

I could feel the warm trickle of blood trailing down over my stomach. Terror gripped me. I sucked in my breath to scream.

“Don’t even think about it,” James bit out, whipping the knife up to my throat. “I’ll have your throat slit before you can manage a whimper.”

I looked in his eyes—the steady, calm gaze of a sociopath—and knew there was nothing too horrifying for him to do.

“You’re not worth fucking,” he sneered. “But you can suck my dick. Get on your knees, you fucking bitch.”

“If I do this,” I managed to say, “you promise you’ll only charge for manslaughter?”

James’s fist closed around a handful of my hair and yanked me toward him. I gasped in pain.

“If you do this… and maybe a few more things,” he said. The darkness in his voice made a shudder run through me.

“You don’t need to hold the knife on me. I said I’d do it.” My free hand searched blindly behind me, closing around the neck of a bottle.

He jerked my hair again and this time I cried out. “Maybe I just like you better if you’re scared,” he hissed.

I swung the bottle I held, but James reacted faster than I thought, jumping back so it only glanced off his shoulder. I slammed the bottle against the metal shelf and it broke, spewing booze everywhere but leaving me with a jagged weapon.

“Come on, you piece of shit,” I taunted him. “You’re not afraid of a girl, are you?”

“Like you know how to use that,” he scoffed. “When I’m through with you, you’ll wish I’d killed you.”

“I may not know how to use it, but I bet it can cause some real damage. Let’s see, shall we?” I smiled and leapt for him.

James jumped back again and grabbed my arm that held the bottle. His knife flashed toward me and I just managed to latch onto his wrist, deflecting the slash he’d intended for my face. We were in close quarters now and I brought my knee up, but it missed its mark, hitting him on the inside of a thigh instead of his crotch.