Moonlight Kin 2: Aidan's Mate (Mid-Length Novel) (19 page)

She peeked around the corner. Carl was coming down the sidewalk toward her. Crap! That was quick. She thought she’d have more time before they discovered that she was missing.

Jenna ducked behind the building and searched for a place to hide. There was none. Her heart trampled her ribs, as she waited for Carl to come around the corner and find her.

She heard change jingle, then drop into the soda machine. A second later there was a loud thud as a soda fell into the tray. Carl repeated the process one more time. Jenna listened to his footsteps fade and heard a door close.

She waited a breath, then glanced around the corner again. Carl was gone. Jenna hurried to the old man’s room and knocked on the door. It seemed like it took forever for him to answer. When he did, Jenna rushed inside.

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be rude, but can I please use your phone again?”

The old man frowned. “You want to tell me what’s really going on here?”

Jenna gave him a pleading look. “I can’t. The less you know, the better.”

“If you’re in trouble,” he said, “we could call the police.”

Jenna held up her hands. “No! No police. They wouldn’t be able to help.” She dropped her arms. “I just need to use your phone again.”

“Be my guest.” He pointed to the table.

“Thank you.” Jenna picked up the receiver. There wasn’t a dial tone. She pressed a couple of buttons, but nothing happened. “Was it working earlier?”

The man shrugged. “Don’t rightly know. I haven’t tried to use it.”

Jenna slumped into the chair by the window and scrubbed a hand over her face. This couldn’t be happening. No one had this bad of luck.
No one but her.

Ethan had won. He’d get the land, ruin her, and take Aidan down while he was at it. The thought of Aidan getting hurt sent a fresh wave of pain crashing down upon her.

He doesn’t want to speak to you.
Robert had made that clear
.
There’d been no room for misinterpretation.

The elderly man put his hand on her shoulder and gently squeezed. “Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do for you?”

Jenna looked up. She was out of options. Well all but one. And she didn’t hold out a lot of hope that it would work. She stood.

“Is there any way that you can give me a ride into town?”

The man nodded. “I could do that.”

“We’d have to go now.” She glanced out the window. “Right now.”

Ethan had her keys, but she was a mechanic. Any mechanic worth their salt could hotwire a car, if they had the right tools.

“Where’s your vehicle?” she asked.

He pointed to a faded blue Chevy truck parked outside the door.

“Ready?”

He nodded.

Jenna checked one more time to make sure the coast was clear, then ran for the man’s truck. She climbed in a second before the door to Carl’s room flew open.

Ethan and Carl rushed out, their heads swiveling left and right as they searched for her.

Jenna dove for the floor of the truck. Had they seen her? Were they coming?

The old man climbed into the driver’s seat and looked at her. “I take it you’re hiding from those men?”

She nodded.

His brown eyes narrowed. “You haven’t done anything illegal have you?”

Jenna laughed. She couldn’t help it. The stress was too much. “No. Nothing illegal. Cross my heart.” She made the sign of an ‘X’ over her chest.

The old man chuckled. “I believe you.” He reversed out of the parking space, then threw the truck into gear. He gave Ethan and Carl a friendly wave as he drove by.

“What are they doing?” Jenna asked, afraid to move from her spot.

“They just ran behind the building. No doubt they’ll be climbing into their vehicle in no time to look for you.” His gaze focused on the road. “Where to now?”

Jenna inched up until she could peek out the window. There was no sign of Carl or Ethan, but he was right, they would be coming. “I need to get to Main Street, before they do.”

“You got it.” The old man put his foot on the gas and the truck shot down the road.

She smiled at him. “Thanks,” she said, then added, “I’m Jenna.”

“Pete.” He shook her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“Pete, you wouldn’t happen to have a pair of pliers I could borrow, would you?”

He pointed to the glove box. Jenna reached in and grabbed them. “Perfect,” she said. “Thanks!”

* * * * *

Pete dropped Jenna off near her car. She’d spent most of the ride into town constantly looking over her shoulder. She knew she didn’t have long. Jenna broke the driver’s side window out, not caring that people were watching her.

“It’s my car,” she said, when someone reached for their cell phone.

They scowled at her and walked on.

Jenna quickly hotwired the Bug and threw it into gear. She pulled a U-turn, cutting off several vehicles. They honked at her, but Jenna didn’t care. She hit the gas and the Bug raced out of town. She had to get to Aidan before Ethan did.

* * * * *

“I told you that she was wily,” Carl said. “The girl must be some kind of contortionist. You sure she wasn’t in the circus before you met her?”

“Positive.” Ethan glared at him. “We cannot let her get away.”

Carl met his gaze.

“She couldn’t have gone far.” Ethan pulled a set of keys out of his briefcase and jangled them in front of Carl’s face. “I still have these. Even if she hitchhikes back to town, she isn’t going to go anywhere.”

Carl scratched his head. “What if she went in the opposite direction to throw us off?”

Ethan shook his head. “No, she’s heading to Fortier’s house. I know it. Jenna thinks she’ll be safe there.” He rolled down the window and scanned the sides of the road to make sure she wasn’t hiding in the tree-line. “I’m sure that Fortier will see it my way, once we have a man-to-man chat. He’ll understand why harboring her is a bad idea.”

Carl looked in the rearview mirror. “I wouldn’t be too sure,” he muttered. “He seemed awful possessive, when I saw them together.”

Ethan waved his concern away. “I’m sure we’ll be able to reach a mutually beneficial financial arrangement.”

“Money can’t buy everything.” Carl glanced in the side mirror, then changed lanes.

Ethan looked at him. “Yes, it can. You just need to have enough of it.”

* * * * *

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Jenna spotted the headlights in the distance, when she was a few hundred yards from Aidan’s driveway. The Bug was going as fast as it could, but it was no match for the turbo-charged SUV following her.

She slowed just enough to make the turn, then floored the vehicle once more. The massive metal gate came into view. Jenna leaned out of her car and hit the buzzer.

No one answered.

She could hear the roar of the SUV’s engine as it drew closer. Jenna hit the buzzer again and again. Where was Aidan? It occurred to her that he might not open the gate because she was the one trying to gain entrance.

Jenna slammed her palm onto the buttons and ran it across them all. In her rearview mirror, she saw headlights go by the entrance to the drive, then heard a screech of breaks.

“Please Aidan. Let me in,” Jenna cried. The SUV backed up and stopped, then turned down the driveway.

The speaker crackled. “I told you that Mr. Fortier doesn’t want to speak with you,” Robert said.

“Damn it, Robert! They’re right behind me,” she shouted.

There was a growl and a loud squeak, then Jenna heard Aidan’s voice come over the intercom system.

“Open the gate.”

The gate slid open. Jenna didn’t wait for it to open all the way. The second it was wide enough for the Bug to squeeze through, she drove in.

Gravel crunched under the SUV’s wide tires as the vehicle bore down upon her. The high-beam headlights illuminated the woods around Jenna, temporarily blinding her.

The gate reversed direction. Jenna gripped the wheel tight, her gaze locked on the SUV. There was no way she could outrun the vehicle, if it made it past the gate.

“Shut. Shut. Shut,” she chanted under her breath.

It was going to be close. Jenna’s heart leapt into her throat, as the vehicle barreled toward her.

The distance between the gate and the wall narrowed. It wasn’t going to fit. The SUV fishtailed and skidded to a halt. The gate wouldn’t hold Ethan off for long, but at least it bought her a few minutes. Jenna exhaled, then hurried the rest of the way down the driveway.

* * * * *

“What the hell are you doing?” Ethan shouted. “Why didn’t you follow her?”

Carl stared at the closed gate. “Not sure if you noticed, but that gate is over a foot thick. It would’ve crushed our vehicle had I tried to drive through.”

Ethan slammed his fists onto the dashboard, then jumped out of the SUV. He could hear the puttering of Jenna’s car as she drove away.

He pressed the intercom button and waited for someone to answer. No one did. Ethan pressed all the buttons, then walked over and honked the horn.

A voice came on the line. “May I help you?”

“Yes, I need to speak with Aidan Fortier,” he said.

“I’m sorry, but Mr. Fortier is unavailable tonight. You’ll have to come back some other time.”

Ethan growled. “I can’t come back. I have a flight waiting. It’s imperative that I speak with him tonight. It’s about the woman that you just let in. She’s not who you think she is.”

There was a pause.

“Name please?”

“Ethan Manning.”

“One moment.”

Now they were getting somewhere. Ethan waited impatiently. Jenna thought she’d found safety. Thought she could hide from him. She was about to find out that no place was out of his reach.

The intercom crackled. “Are you still there?”

“Yes,” Ethan said.

“Mr. Fortier apologizes for the inconvenience, but he will not be able to see you tonight. He’s otherwise engaged.”

Ethan gripped the sides of the console. “Did you tell him who I was?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I demand to speak to him,” he shouted.

The connection cut off.

Ethan spun around and jumped back into the SUV, then turned to Carl. “Find me another way in.”

* * * * *

Aidan was waiting for her, when she got to the house. His arms were crossed over his chest and his sensual lips were pressed into firm line.

Jenna threw the Bug into park and jumped out. She rushed toward Aidan, stopping a few feet in front of him. “I don’t have much time. I came here to warn you.” She glanced over her shoulder toward the dark driveway.

Aidan’s nostrils flared, but he said nothing.

“The man outside that gate is after me.” She hesitated. “And because you helped me, he’s after you, too.”

He stared at her, his expression unreadable.

Jenna wrung her hands. “I know you said that you didn’t want to speak to me. I won’t bother you after this, but I had to warn you.”

“Who is he to you?” Aidan asked softly.

Jenna sighed and her chin dropped. “My ex.”

“Ex what?” he asked. “Husband?”

Her eyes goggled. “No! God no! He’s my ex-boyfriend.”

His body seemed to ripple in response to her answer.

Jenna wanted to run to him. Throw herself in his arms. It hurt to see Aidan keep his distance from her, but she’d respect his wishes.

“Listen,” she said. “There isn’t time to explain everything. Suffice to say, Ethan Manning is a very powerful man. He has the resources to hurt you.”

There was a spark in his eyes at the mention of Ethan’s name.

“I thought I could protect you, if I stayed away,” she said. “We had a bargain, but he reneged on our agreement.”

“You ran from me.” The pain in his voice shredded her composure.

Jenna closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I didn’t run,” she said. “I led him away.”

Aidan arched a brow. “It looks more like you led him straight to me.”

She flinched. “I had no choice, when I couldn’t reach you by phone.”

“I thought you’d left me,” he said.

Jenna blinked in surprise. “I would never...I tried calling to let you know that I had to leave town, but I couldn’t get through.”

Aidan’s jaw hardened. “You were going to leave with him?”

“Temporarily,” she said. “The bargain was that I’d go with him as long as he left you alone.” Jenna shoved her hands in her pockets. “I know you think I’m stupid for going with him, but you don’t understand what type of man Ethan is.”

Aidan stepped closer. “No.” He shook his head. “You don’t understand what type of man
I am
. And neither does he.”

Jenna growled in frustration. “You don’t get it. Ethan is going to dig into life and uncover all your secrets.” She held up her hand, when Aidan opened his mouth to speak. “Even if all he finds is what I discovered, it will be enough to discredit you and ruin your business relationships. He can take the smallest thing and completely destroy your life. He did it to me. He did it to my friend. He can do it to anyone.”

Aidan was powerful, but so was Ethan. He could use his many contacts to bring down Aidan’s little empire, even if Aidan didn’t think so.

He stared at her.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Jenna needed him to tell her that everything was going to be all right. That he forgave her for leaving. Anything!

Aidan inhaled and slowly circled her. “You smell like him.”

Of all the things he could’ve said, that was what he went with?

Jenna frowned and sniffed her clothes. “I left my things here. I didn’t have any clean clothes with me.”

“I don’t like that smell on you,” Aidan said.

Jenna didn’t think she stunk that bad. She had showered last night. Sure, she’d had to put on the same clothes, but it was either that or go naked.

“I think we have a bigger problem right now than my body odor. Ethan has a plane standing by to take us to Vancouver,” she said. “He’s having someone do an in-depth background check on you as we speak. He’s searching for your enemies, so he can turn them into his allies. Now that you know, you can prepare for his next move.”