Bad Karma (13 page)

Zach swallowed hard. Suddenly it all made sense. Her aversion to alcohol and her reluctance to go out to a bar. He pulled her back into his arms. “I’m sorry you went through that. It was terrible for everyone, but you can’t go back and undo what happened. You have to go forward and make the best of the rest of your life.”

“
I’m trying,” she said against his shoulder. “But he won’t let me.”

“
You’ll be safe here. This is a much smaller community and we have a sheriff who doesn’t stand for people being run over in his county.”

“
I hope you’re right.” She didn’t pull away again, but remained leaning against him as though drawing strength from their contact.

Cassie returned with the burgers on a platter. “I’m not a grilling expert, but I think these bad boys are ready.”

Zach and Sky joined her at the outdoor table and ate, with little conversation, each deeply engrossed in their own thoughts.

Later, Zach walked them back to their house, holding Sky’s hand along the way. “I’m glad you leveled with me, Sky.”

She nodded. “Me too.”

“
I think we should talk to Rafael Solis about your stalker. He needs to be informed so he can intervene, if necessary.”

“
I just keep hoping that this man doesn’t find me. Maybe I’ve finally lost him this time.”

Zach cast a doubtful glance at her. He didn’t for a moment think she believed it either.

~*~

Sky lay awake for a while, thinking about Zach and his willingness to be a part of her life; no matter how bad the situation appeared. Maybe the move to South Padre Island would prove to be the best thing that ever happened to her.

Zach was the polar opposite of the doctors and interns who had pursued her in the past. He was laid-back and easy going. He waited for her to express her preferences.

She smiled in the darkness, remembering their goodnight kiss. He had drawn her close and kissed her thoroughly. And then he’d walked away. He didn’t grab or make suggestive comments. He just walked away.

For a fleeting moment, Sky wondered if his reticence might be due to lack of interest on his part, but she had more than a passing knowledge of the male anatomy and could tell that Zach was physically interested in more than a platonic relationship.

Grinning, she rolled onto her side, wondering what it would take for Zach to make his move.

He wanted to take her out on a date, but she was afraid. Not afraid of him. She was afraid of what might happen to her.

The last time she’d gone to a party, she had wound up in big trouble. She recalled the night when one of the Residents had been celebrating a birthday and he’d invited all the nursing staff...At least, he’d invited all the young, pretty nurses. The party had been held at a local bar, close to the hospital and popular with the younger staff.

She’d taken her own car, planning on having a glass of wine and wishing the birthday boy well before leaving. But there had been music and someone had asked her to dance. When she returned to her wine, she’d drunk the rest and immediately begun to feel woozy and disoriented.

The room was spinning and she couldn’t frame her words. She was adrift in a sea of leering faces and knew immediately what had happened.

She’d been drugged.

Skyler had pulled herself to her feet and groped for her keys. Despite protests, that she should stay, she’d pushed her way out the door and managed to get into her car. If only she’d locked herself in and stayed in the parking lot, her whole life would have remained the same. But in her panic to get away from her unknown pursuers, she’d started the car and pulled out into traffic.

She made it onto a main thoroughfare and stuck to the slow lane, struggling to remain conscious and to keep the car between the yellow lines.

As she neared the turnoff that would take her home, an SUV shot out of nowhere and crushed in the passenger side door. Her car went spiraling down the access road and into a parked car.

Sky had no memory after that.

She’d been told that they had to use the Jaws of Life to pry her from the wreckage and that they’d transported her to the hospital where she’d been working. Doctors she’d assisted in surgery had repaired her knee and monitored her through her concussion.

When she awakened, she’d been informed that the other driver and her small son hadn’t survived the accident.

Sky had been filled with remorse, certain that she was at fault. But the crime scene analysts had determined that the other driver had been driving at an excessive rate of speed and, although Skyler was impaired, she had not been to blame.

Her blood alcohol level had been negligible, but someone had laced her drink with Rohypnol, the so-called “date-rape” drug. The police had launched a full scale investigation into the incident, but were unable to prove definitively who had tampered with her drink.

Sky had gone through Physical Therapy at the same hospital, with all her coworkers looking in on her to offer encouragement. And her parents had been on hand, lending their support.

Throughout it all, Skyler still blamed herself. If she’d stayed home, the other driver and her child might still be alive. If she hadn’t gotten behind the wheel, there was a good chance that two lives might have been spared.

It seemed the only ones who blamed her for the deaths were Sky herself and her mysterious stalker.

~*~

Cassie sprinted down the beach, taking the same route as she had the previous day. Invigorated by the early morning air, she felt eager to see what the tide had brought in. She considered the morning jog a healthy way to start the day after she’d dropped Skyler off at the hospital.

Anxious to establish some sort of order in her new life, Cassie embraced the opportunity to have the beach to herself...Almost...

The shiny red four-wheel-drive truck was parked on the beach again, tucked up close to the dunes.

Cassie slowed her pace. She didn’t see the fisherman out in the surf. And she didn’t see him on the beach.

But when she neared, Javier Rios swung down from his truck and intercepted her.

He stood, barring her path, with his hands on his hips. “I wore a shirt.” Indeed, the dark blue knit tee, over his swim trunks emphasized his incredible physique, his biceps and triceps bulging out of the short sleeves.

Cassie slowed to a stop, but continued to jog in place. “So I see.”

“
I thought you might want some company.”

She shot him a skeptical look.

He grinned. “Okay, I wanted your company. Do you mind if I jog along with you?”

“
It’s a free beach.” She resumed her easy gait with Javi falling into step alongside her.

“
Where did you move from, Cassidy?” he asked.

“
My parents live in Austin.”

Javi turned his head to look at her. “And that’s where you moved from?”

Cassie grinned. “I didn’t say that, did I?”

“
No you didn’t. Is there some reason I can’t know where you’re from?”

Cassie had been reluctant to tell him she’d moved from College Station which was known as a University town, home of Texas A&M University. She didn’t want to discuss her education or her scholarships or her gigantic brains. But she was also reluctant to tell a complete lie. “Near Huntsville.”

“
And you came all the way down to South Padre to work as a delivery girl at The Net?”

She rolled her eyes. “Did you come to jog or talk?”

Javi grinned and quit talking.

They jogged silently for some time and eventually Cassie slowed to a walk as Javier loped ahead.

Javi slowed and jogged back to her. “Did I wear you out already?”

“
I’m pacing myself,” she said. “I haven’t jogged in a long time.”

Dark eyes cruised up and down her body. “You appear to be in great shape,” he said. “Especially since you offered to kick my ass, what was it? Oh yes, it was, all over the beach.”

Cassie grinned up at him. “Sorry. I’m not used to having strange men put their hands on me. I may have over-reacted.”

“
Not so. I was impressed.”

Cassie laughed. She swung her arms to loosen up and continued walking back the way they’d come. “Why did you come looking for me today?”

Javi drew a deep breath and blew it out. “I don’t know, but I had to.”

“
You’re not my type.”

Javier looked at her and exploded with laughter. “I’m not your type! And what type is that?”

“
Don’t get me wrong,” she said. “You’re a very attractive guy, and, according to your friend at the fire station, you have plenty of female admirers. But, I don’t think you should use steroids. They mess with your head and make you angry all the time.”

He looked astonished. “You think I would use steroids?” He pressed his hand to his truly excellent pectoral muscles, as though that would validate his indignation.

Cassie made a scoffing noise in the back of her throat. “I don’t think you built that shrine to muscledom on your mama’s fried chicken.”

Javi hooted. “I can’t believe you think I’m using illegal substances to bulk up.”

“
Seriously, Javi, That stuff makes your dick shrivel up to nothing.”

He gave her a look. “And you would know this, how?”

“
I read it somewhere.”

“
Hah! I assure you that I’m not now, nor have I ever used steroids or any other illegal drug.”

“
Right.”

“
I would be happy to show you my unshriveled dick.”

“
No, thank you.”

“
Cassidy...”

“
My friends call me Cassie.”

“
Look, don’t give me a hard time here. I’m trying to tell you that I like you.”

She arched an eyebrow at him. “You do? Why?”

He grinned and made a snorting noise. "Beats the hell out of me.”

Cassie laughed. “Stumped you, huh?”

Javi shook his head, suddenly serious. “No, I could tell you why you appeal to me, but you wouldn’t listen. You have me pegged as a womanizing steroid junkie and nothing I can say will change your stubborn little mind.”

She shrugged. “Prove me wrong.”

“
I was going to ask you to go out on a date with me. I want to get to know you. I thought you might let me take you to dinner.”

She slanted a grin in his direction. “That sounds nice, but I’m not going out right now.”

A strange look passed over Javier’s face. His eyes were so dark she could barely see his pupils, even in the bright sunlight. “Are you involved with someone else?”

“
No, its my...my roommate.”