Circle of Deception (18 page)

The bed shook as he crawled in behind her. “Abby.”

“Yeah.”

“Nic and I are no longer lovers.”

“No? What brought that up?” Did their time together during the last few days have something to do with it?

“I saw Jack while I was out.”

“And?” Her whole body ached from tension. Thoughts of circling Jack’s throat with her hands zipped through her mind. The dirty SOB better not have told him about what happened with the baby so many years ago.

“We talked about you.”

Jesus H. Christ! Was he trying to drive her crazy? She wanted to yell,
Spit it out!
But pure fear held her back.

“I know about you and Jack.”

“And?” Hadn’t he already known? They hadn’t lied or hid it. They had a one-night stand. Nothing more. Besides, her marriage to Rex wasn’t real. So no need for confessions.

“It was the same for me and Nic. When you get bad news, it can make you do things you regret later.”

“Yeah.” She waited for him to touch her. He didn’t move. “Listen, that was a long time ago.”

“You don’t have feelings for him, do ya?”

She never remembered him acting so tender and uncertain, wanting to talk—that was, besides giving orders.

“No more than as a friend.”

He sighed. He actually sighed. Then it hit her. He’d been drinking. Another first, in a line of firsts with him.

When she heard snoring, she relaxed. Jack had kept his promise. He hadn’t told Rex her secret. How much longer could she go without telling him about their child?

Chapter Sixteen

“I
THOUGHT YOU
said the security was low-key.” Abby looked around as they pulled in front of the large ranch-style house.

Though an average four-foot fence lined the property near the main road, a decorative ten-foot gate stood at the entrance of the half-mile-long driveway. Once they’d given their names to the man standing next to a parked ATV, the guards patted them down for weapons and searched the Cadillac.

Expecting the search, Abby and Rex went along without protest. They’d hidden a few weapons in the car, hoping some would go undetected, and they would later sneak one or two into the house. The guards found two out of five. The guards had glared but said nothing as they were thrown in the back of the ATV, and they renewed their search for more until they were satisfied they’d found them all.

When the guards waved them on, a large Titan pickup truck and black SUV had appeared out of nowhere and surrounded them as Rex drove onto Brody’s property.

In front of the house, every man she spotted carried an AR-15 or AR-47 semiautomatic rifle. Scary crazy to say the least.

“Think of where Collin and Olivia live. They have ten-foot-high walls with broken glass on top. If Olivia had her way, they’d have a moat, but Collin was afraid it would scare the kids.” He snorted.

She laughed, covering her mouth. What normal person, finding herself surrounded by armed guards, would be making jokes and laughing? No need to make the guards nervous.

“Well, yeah, you got me there.”

The front door swung open and Brody jogged toward them. Faded jeans molded to his slim hips and runner thighs. With his pale yellow polo shirt showing off his tan, he stood out among his guards who dressed in black and looked ready to burglarize the house. Keeping an eye on Brody, she said, “We better get out before they think we’re about to run over their boss.”

Rex turned off the engine and the locks clicked. Before Abby could pull on the lever, Brody lifted the handle and held the door for her to get out.

“Welcome to Eagles Landing.” The magazine-quality smile stretched across his face.

“Eagles Landing? Are there eagles around here?” She had noticed the design in the gate of two birds with wings spread.

“A couple nests. Most are found in northern Alabama.”

“Interesting.” She really was interested—she’d always thought the magnificent birds lived only out west. Avoiding Brody as he reached for her hand, she stood. She’d never been a touchy-feely type of person and never would be with him. A strong arm came around her waist and pressed her to a tall, hard body. She looked up into Rex’s grim face. Scratch that—she’d never been a touchy-feely type until she met Rex.

“I’m so glad you’re here and just in time. The other guests are waiting. Usually I have around ten couples, but I thought you might appreciate a more exclusive gathering. Four couples. Should make everything more fascinating.” He waved them through into the foyer. “Your bags will be taken to your room. Don’t worry.”

Make everything more fascinating?
What did he mean by that? The man made her nervous enough, but he continued to creep her out.

“Here” Brody indicated a servant holding a tray with several glasses of white and red wines. “Take one. I requested several bottles from the winery I own in Napa Valley.”

Abby picked up a red and Rex chose white. The taste was bittersweet. Not bad, but she needed to keep her senses clear. Being an easy drunk wouldn’t be a good thing in this situation. The glass shook a little as she raised it to her lips, pretending to sip.

Trying to shake off her uncharacteristic nerves, she concentrated on the beautiful house. So different than what she’d thought outside. Despite being one level, it was open and airy inside. The stained glass surrounding the front door brightened the large, elevated living area.

Two leather sectional sofas faced each other across a massive coffee table. The dark wood floor was broken up by thick white shag rugs. In the far right corner was a kitchen with a marble-topped bar overlooking the living room. The large table on the right as they stepped off the foyer could easily seat twelve without elbowing each other.

An archway to the left appeared to lead to a corridor, probably the bedrooms. When she looked beyond the sofas and a few conversational groupings of overstuffed chairs with small accent tables, she caught her breath. A long glass wall revealed a scene of what she could only call Eden. Palm trees, bamboo, ferns, and every color in the rainbow of orchids and lilies provided the perfect backdrop for boulders of different sizes with water flowing into a small pool. Everything looked natural and soothing.

“You like the courtyard?” Brody whispered in her ear.

She lowered her glass. “Oh yes. It’s beautiful.” She wanted to take off her shoes and dip her toes in the coolness.

“Later. You can try it out.” He stepped away from her as Rex moved between them. “For now, I would like to introduce you to the others.”

The glass pane slid open, allowing people to enter the room from the courtyard. The servant stood to the side to let each person pick out their glass of wine.

The first person to enter was the tall blonde with manufactured boobs Brody had brought to the cocktail party.

“You remember Greta. She was kind enough to play hostess for me tonight.” Brody pulled her into his arms and kissed her. No light peck on the lips for them; instead tongues thrust and parried into each other’s mouths, visible in flashes while Brody’s hand covered and squeezed a full breast.

Feeling a little uncomfortable with the reenactment from the other night, Abby glanced up at Rex. With a smirk on his face, he watched with interest. She jabbed him in the side. His grunt brought his attention to her. She jerked her head at the display and lifted her shoulders.

“Such a sweet candy cane. Always in season.” Brody chuckled as he pulled away. He then slapped her butt as she walked by, barely acknowledging them with a nod as she lifted a glass of white and slunk over to the sectional.

Next, a beautiful man and woman glided in. They looked so much alike they could’ve been related. Their long blond, almost white hair ended at the small of their backs. Abby had never seen a man with hair that long and silky and smooth. The desire to touch it had her clutching her glass a little tighter. Their eyes were the lightest gray and like the color of snow at night with a full moon. The only difference between the two was what they wore. His pale blue jeans were topped with a regular white button-up shirt, while the woman dressed in an ankle-length white cotton dress that was so thin, Abby could see her small dark nipples underneath.

Okay. Talk about getting creepier by the minute.

“I would like to introduce the supreme artists of photography, Leif and Spring Erickson. Their pictures have been shown in the renowned Museum of Modern Art in New York City and in so many galleries, they’re too numerous to count.” Brody leaned over and air-kissed their cheeks. “These are my dear friends, Rurik Volkov and his wife, Abby.”

“So nice to meet you.” The man had a slight lisp and the woman stared at Rex as if she wanted to eat him where he stood. What surprised Abby was how the man looked at Rex the same way. Uh-oh. The couple finally moved away with glasses of white wine—figured—over to the sofa to sit across from Greta.

The last couple to walk in looked like the average redneck and his barely clothed wife. His Dale Earnhardt Junior ball cap had sweat stains around the brim, and his wife’s visible stomach sported a red eighty-eight dangling from a loop in her belly button.

“So you two are Brody’s new friends.” He reached out his hand to Rex and started pumping. “I’m Bubba Hagley and this here is my wife, Kristy.”

Abby tilted her head as the men shook hands. The dark-headed man looked familiar to her for some reason. She’d never met a Bubba before and certainly not the one standing in front of her, but his dark eyes and the way he held himself reminded her of someone.

“So nice to meet you, sweet thang, and I hope to get to know you much better over the weekend.” Bubba’s grin warned he meant exactly what he was saying. Though he was handsome and a little thinner than she liked, his sable-brown eyes pulled her in, encouraging her to trust him.

“Now, sugar, don’t let him frighten you. He’s a teddy bear and loves all women. He gets carried away at times.” His wife slapped his hand. That was when she realized he’d grabbed hers and held it tight.

“He doesn’t frighten me.” She tugged at her hand, and he continued to grin at her.

“Bubba, I’m Rurik. Her husband.” Rex pulled on her wrist.

Were they going to have a tug-of-war, with her as the rope? Thankfully Bubba had the sense to let go.

With a crooked grin that Abby found interesting, Bubba chuckled as he released her and placed his arm over his wife’s bare shoulders and joined the others. They had passed up the wine.

“Come over here and have a seat,” Brody said as he moved onto the sofa with Greta. “We’re about to be served dinner. We’ll relax tonight, and tomorrow we’ll go on a tour of my farm.”

Abby looked over at Rex and grinned. Though she doubted Brody would point at a building and say, “And that’s where we make the world’s deadliest bullets,” at least they would have a better idea of where it could be located.

“Who’s he?” She watched the redneck lean over and whisper something into his wife’s ear. The woman’s eyes widened as she giggled. When she took a furtive glance over at her and Rex, Abby wondered what she thought was so funny.

“I have no idea.” He downed the last of the wine and then leaned over to answer without the others hearing. “The photographers are actually the twentieth richest couple in the world, so they must be his backers. No matter how much money he made in real estate, he doesn’t have the funds needed.”

“Do you think he’s the inventor?” She nodded toward the redneck. “I hate being presumptuous, but I don’t think he’s that smart,” she said softly.

Rex wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. If the others wondered about their delay in joining them, they would simply appear like many newlyweds, becoming immersed in each other.

“Looks can be deceiving but I agree. We’ve learned that lesson a few times. What about Greta?”

“Give me a break. She’s too interested in impressing Brody with her body. Her mind would be the last thing she’d use.”

“Do I hear the hissing of jealousy?” he teased, and then said, “And by the way, she’s doing a great job.” The grin on his face showed how much he appreciated it too.

Abby looked at the woman. She reached across Brody toward a bowl of fruit placed on an end table. Her breasts swung free of her gaping blouse, giving everyone a clear view. Brody took advantage and tweaked a nipple. With a squeal, she shot up straight to her knees and clasped his hand, not letting him move it away.

“Maybe I need to do the same to you,” Greta teased.

He lifted his shirt, showing off a toned broad chest, and she twisted a tiny male nipple. Brody moaned and, from the slack expression on his face, enjoyed it.

The redneck wife howled with laughter and reached over to her husband, appearing to try the same move. Instead, Bubba grabbed her and started tickling her sides. The two albinos, as Abby thought of them, smiled and watched the risqué roughhousing.

“Obviously, he has the inventor stashed away somewhere. Maybe we’ll get lucky and have the information we need by the end of tomorrow.”

When Rex stayed quiet, she looked up. His eyelids heavy, he gazed into her eyes and then looked down at her lips. Unable to stop herself, she licked her bottom lip. The pupils in his eyes widened until the gray disappeared into the black rim of his iris. She’d never seen him react so fully to her like that before. Was all the sexual horseplay exciting him?

“Hey, you two. Quit being antisocial and come over here and have a seat.” Brody laughed as his hand shot between Greta’s legs and underneath her skirt. She squealed—goodness she could hit high notes—and cupped his groin.

“Mr. Walker, dinner has been served in the courtyard as you instructed,” a servant announced with all the fanfare of one who lived in a castle.

Abby expected horns to blow next.

“Let’s go back outside. We’re eating Roman-style today.” Brody lifted Greta as she screeched in excitement.

“Save my ears now.” Abby never understood a woman needing to sound like a banshee.

Face flushed, Rex snatched her glass and placed it on a table nearby. Before she could ask why he’d done that, he picked her up. She inhaled deeply, but thankfully no high-pitched sound escaped.