Operation Revenge (23 page)

Irritated, Haley snapped, "My boyfriend is Simon Wilcox."

"Mr. Wilcox is talking to an officer right now. When they're done you may see him."

"What happened here?" she demanded to know of him.

The officer cleared his throat. "A man held a gun on Mr. Wilcox and demanded his wallet and keys."

"Oh, God!" Haley glanced toward Simon and found him watching her.
Are you all right?
she mouthed. He winked at her and then turned his attention back to the officer. She looked at the officer next to her. "Why is the ambulance here?"

"Mr. Wilcox did a number on the man that tried to mug him." The officer smirked. "He broke his nose. I would have done a lot more if someone had held a gun to my head and threatened me."

Horror washed over her along with an overwhelming desire to hurt someone. Turning her head, she gazed toward the ambulance and noticed a man sitting inside. His shirt was covered in blood. "Is that him?" She gestured toward the ambulance.

"Yes."

"Thank you." Seething inside, she marched toward the ambulance. As she approached, the man raised his head and stared at her. A smirk came to his lips. "I wouldn't look so damn smug if I
were you," she told him. "You're the one covered in blood and hurting. You had better be glad you didn't hurt him."

He sneered. "You don't scare me, bitch."

Something inside of her snapped. Before she could stop, she threw herself at him. In a frenzy, she punched and scratched him. Two paramedics grabbed her and hauled her off him. "Let me go!" she screeched.

"You crazy bitch!" the man bellowed.

"I'll show you crazy." Haley tried to break free of their grasp.

"Let her go!" Simon said forcefully as he moved through the crowd to the ambulance.

"Not until she calms down," one of the paramedics uttered.

Simon stepped in front of Haley and touched her on the cheek. "It's all right, sweetheart."

"It's not all right," she croaked, her eyes filling with tears. "He could have killed you."

"But he didn't."

"Please, let me go," she said. "I won't try anything." Once they released her, she threw her arms around Simon and clung to him for dear life. "If you had died I-"

"Hush," he whispered, stroking her back. "I'm fine."

"I'm never letting you out of my sight again." Haley turned her head and brushed her lips against his cheek.

Simon pulled back and looked into her watery eyes. "I'm sorry about dinner."

"I don't give a damn about dinner." She framed his face with her hands. "Come home with me."

"I still have work to do."

Haley looked at him as if he had grown another head. "You were almost killed and all you can think about is work. To hell with work. I want you home with me."

He smiled crookedly. "If I say no are you going to beat me up?"

"I just might." She leaned in close and kissed him tenderly on the mouth. "Please, come home with me."

"All right."

Chapter 24

After a night of tossing and turning, Haley rose early, got dressed, and headed downstairs to the kitchen. Once there, she put on a pot of coffee. While she waited for it to get done, she moved to
the window above the sink and glanced out. The sky was gray and it looked as though it was going to start raining any minute. She could not help but think that the weather suited her mood.

"Morning'," Daniel said, strolling into the kitchen. He held a paper bag up for her to see. "I stopped on the way home and bought muffins. If you pour me a cup of coffee I'll let you have the chocolate chip one."

"When the coffee is ready I'll get you a cup," Haley said, turning to face him.

"Damn," he muttered, eyeing the dark circles under her eyes and her pale skin. "Someone had a rough night. Are you all right?"

"No," she answered, rubbing her tired eyes. "Last night - last night someone tried to mug Simon." Her heart squeezed painfully and she took a deep breath to calm herself. "If you want to know the details you'll have to talk to Simon."

"Is he all right?" Daniel asked, concerned.

"Oh, he's fine," Haley said. "It's like he's not bothered by what happened at all. That son of a bitch held a gun to his head and-" She broke off, quickly changing the subject before she did something stupid, like start crying. "Let me see if there's any fruit that we can have with the muffins." She moved to the refrigerator and opened the door. Searching through the contents inside, she found a bag of mixed fruit and took it to the counter.

"Does Gran know?"

"No, and Simon doesn't want her to," she told him. "He doesn't want to upset her, so please don't say anything in front of her."

"My lips are sealed," he said. "You know, I wouldn't be surprised if old Chad was behind the mugging. He did say he wanted to make you and Simon suffer for-"

"What?" Haley dropped the bag of fruit on the counter. "He - what did you say?"

Daniel grimaced. "Simon didn't tell you. Damn. Never mind." He turned around to leave.

"Not so fast, Wilcox." She grabbed his arm. "You're not going anywhere. Talk to me."

"Fine," he sighed. "I was at the club the other night. Chad was there. I overheard him telling these two guys that he was going to make you and Simon suffer for stabbing him in the back."

"Stabbing him in the back!" Haley growled, her eyes flashing with anger. "He's the one that stabbed me in the back. I didn't do a damn thing to him except to break up with him. Oh, he's going to get it." She marched from the kitchen.

"Where are you going?" Daniel asked, following her.

"I'm going to pay Chad a visit."

"I think not," Simon said from the living room doorway. "You're going to stay away from him."

Haley glared at him. "I just learned from your brother that Chad is planning to make us suffer. Were you going to tell me about that?"

"No," he said without hesitating.

A mixture of anger and disappointment came over her. Trying not to let it show, she looked him in the eyes. "Wasn't it you that suggested we not keep things from each other?"

"Uh oh," Daniel murmured. "You screwed up, little bro."

"Get lost," Simon said coolly.

"Right." Daniel turned and headed back to the kitchen.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you." Simon cleared his throat. "I had a good reason, honey. I didn't want you to worry. Worrying is my job . . . not yours. You have enough to deal with. I didn't want to add to it." He paused. "I was just trying to protect you."

His eyes pleaded with her to forgive him. She gazed at him and felt her anger slipping away. She tried to hold onto it and found she couldn't. When he looked at her that way she couldn't stay angry. It was as if he had control over her. Sighing heavily, she shook her head in disgust. "Damn you, Wilcox," she growled softly. "I hate that I can't stay mad at you."

Smiling, he went to stand in front of her. He leaned in close and kissed her on the mouth. "Thank you," he whispered. He kissed her again and then pulled back to stare at her. "You had trouble sleeping last night, didn't you?"

"Yes," she mumbled. "I suppose you slept fine."

"I wouldn't say fine." He rubbed the back of his neck. "It took me a while to get to sleep. When I finally did it wasn't a peaceful one."

Her heart breaking for him, she embraced him and pressed her lips to his jaw. "I'm sorry."

Simon squeezed her gently. "It's all right. Let's forget about it and go get some breakfast."

Haley wanted to talk more about Chad, but she felt it wasn't the right time. Later they would have a talk. She took his hand and led him into the kitchen.

. . . .

After breakfast, Haley walked Simon to the door, handed him an umbrella and his briefcase. "I wish you wouldn't go to work."

"I'll be fine." He brushed his lips against hers. "I'll call you later."

"Please." Her heart pounding in her ears, she swallowed hard. "Be careful."

"I will." He smiled at her. "You little worrywart."

Haley lovingly caressed his cheek with the back of her hand. "I can't help it. Try to be home before dark. If you can't then have a security guard walk you to your car."

Simon arched an eyebrow. "Anything else?"

"No," she croaked.

"I'll see you tonight." He left, closing the door behind him.

Haley stood there, fighting the urge to run after him and beg him not to go. She glanced at the floor and took a deep calming breath. Would she become a nervous wreck every time he left? She hoped not.

"Haley, dear."

"Yes, Marian?"

"Would you please join me in the living room?"

Groaning inwardly, she followed the elderly woman to the living room, where they took a seat on the couch. "Is there something you wanted to talk about?"

"Yes." Marian fixed her with a piercing stare. "Would you care to explain to me what's going on? Don't tell me it's nothing. I overheard your conversation just now with Simon. You are obviously upset about something and I would like to know what it is."

"Has anyone ever told you that it's impolite to eavesdrop?" Haley inquired coldly.

"If you don't want me to eavesdrop you should have your conversations behind closed doors." She folded her hands in her lap. "Now what's going on?"

"I'm having some trouble with my ex-boyfriend."

Marian wrinkled her nose as though she had caught a whiff of something bad. "Honestly, dear. I don't know what you ever saw in that boy."

"I don't know either, but now it's not just me that he's determined to make suffer. He's going after Simon now."

"I see." She sniffed delicately. "Next time he does something to you or Simon, I want you to tell me about it."