Wilde for Her (A Wilde Security Novel) (Entangled Brazen) (19 page)

Chapter Twenty-five

Eva had been shaking with anger since she left the hospital. What the hell did Cam know about her ideal family anyway? And fuck him for that comment about her not knowing what she wanted. She knew exactly what she wanted and she would have told him if the dumbass had just closed his mouth and listened.

She’d also been banging things around her mess of a kitchen for the last hour, not really accomplishing much in the way of cleaning, but the clang of pots and pans against the sink was satisfying. Maybe she could use one to beat some sense into Cam’s head.

Now there was a satisfying thought.

Still, she should probably do some actual cleaning. Shelby was away for a few days, visiting their mother at the psychiatric institute in Virginia—God knows why she even bothered after what happened between them—but Eva might as well take advantage of her sister’s absence and put the house back in order. Besides, the monotony of chores might help her find her Zen place so she could deal with Cam tomorrow on an even keel.

And she would deal with him. This thing between them was far from finished.

Somewhat steadier, Eva started unloading the dishes she’d tossed in the sink. Some of them looked clean already, but she’d been so pissed off she hadn’t paid any attention to whether the plates stacked on the counter had been clean or dirty, so they were all getting washed. She stoppered the sink and turned on the water as hot as she could stand it, then added a few squirts of dish soap.

The doorbell rang.

Cam?

Her heart did a funny jitter thing.

She left the sink to fill and strode into the living room, grabbing her side arm from the closet on the way. Just in case. A woman home alone could be too much of a temptation to some desperate criminal, and it was late enough at night that she didn’t feel one-hundred percent safe opening the door without her gun. She checked the peep hole, her heart now threatening to gallop out of her chest at the thought of having it out with Cam tonight—

Preston.

Sighing, she tucked her weapon into her waistband and pulled her shirt out to cover it. Unlike Cam, Preston wouldn’t get why she’d answered the door with it, which was just another reason in a long list of many why it’d never work between them. Why it took her so long to figure that out, she didn’t know. She’d kick herself for it later.

She opened the door and barely got a squeak of sound out before he pulled her into his arms.

“I’m so sorry,” he breathed into her hair, and his hands roamed a little too far down her back for comfort.

“For what?” She ducked out of his embrace and ignored his stricken expression.

“You haven’t heard? It’s all over the major news stations. I thought…with him being your best friend…”

“Oh. Cam.” She wasn’t sure how she felt about him being here just because he thought Cam was in the hospital.

He wrapped his arms around her again. “I’m so sorry. I’ll admit I never liked Camden, but I can’t imagine what you’re going through right now. I’m here for you, okay? Anything you need.”

“What are you—Cam’s fine.” She shoved at his shoulders until he backed up a step. “
Vaughn
got hurt, but he’s going to be okay.”

“Vaughn?”

“Yeah. Cam’s twin?”

He blinked like he had no idea what she was talking about. She planted her hands on her hips and stared in complete amazement. “Wow, you really didn’t listen to me much when we were together.”

Yet another reason their relationship wouldn’t have worked.

For the first time, she saw Preston Linz without the filter of her idealism, and she wasn’t liking what she saw. Preston put on a good act, but he only cared for one person: himself.

“Twin?” he said through his teeth. “There’s
two
of him?”

“Of course not. They’re two completely separate people who happen to look alike. What the fuck’s wrong with you? You’re acting like—Oh, shit. The sink!” She left him standing in the open doorway and ran back to the kitchen, catching the faucet just in time before the basin overflowed with water. The bubbles were another matter. They had multiplied like rabbits and spilled over onto the counter and floor.

Cursing, she plunged her hand into the scalding water to find the plug and felt Preston at her back, uncomfortably close.

His breath rustled the hair by her ear. “Were you fucking them both?”

She jerked backwards in shock, but found his body behind hers, pinning her against the sink.

“Because Camden’s been fucking both you and Lark.”

But at least we both figured out the kind of man he was before we made any stupid mistakes, right?

Eva’s heart pumped double time, spilling adrenaline into her blood. Lark had been in Vaughn’s hospital room. Only one reason she’d have gone to see him. They had some kind of relationship—and Preston thought Vaughn was Cam.

Oh, no.

The contract on Cam’s head. Soup’s death. All of it started after Preston saw her and Cam together at the bar in Key West.

A rising sense of dread trickled down her spine. “Preston, tell me you didn’t—” But she didn’t get the chance to finish her sentence. An engine rumbled to a stop in front of the house and a car door banged shut. Footsteps crunched on the snow of the walkway, then the porch’s screen door creaked. She’d left the interior door open, and the footsteps paused.

Please not Shelby. Or—

Cam appeared in the archway between the dining room and kitchen, his gun drawn, his eyes flat as he took in the scene in front of him: Preston pinning her against the sink with his body, her shirt soaked down the front, the white fabric translucent.

For one horrifying moment, Eva feared he’d get the wrong idea, but Preston nixed that by grabbing a knife out of the butcher block. He pressed the blade to her neck and swung her around, using her as a living shield, and her whole body went cold. Her brain shut down. She couldn’t form a coherent thought, leaving her confused and shaking.

“Whoa, okay. We don’t need to hurt anyone.” Cam raised his hands in front of him, let his gun dangle from his index finger as he bent down and set it on the floor. Straightening, he stripped off his jacket, then his shirt. “I’m unarmed, see? No back-up weapons.”

He continued to speak to Preston in calm, soothing tones, and his voice served as a beacon in a sea of darkness for her to focus on. She heard her name. Once, twice. The kitchen came back into focus, slowly at first, then in such sharp relief, it gave her a headache.

“Eva,” Cam said, “you okay? Eva?”

“Y-yes.” The knife bit into her skin, but seeing Cam acting so calm relaxed her enough that she was able to think again. Control. She needed to get control, even if it was only over the way she died. She swallowed, felt the knife’s edge dig deeper, and ignored it. “Yes, I’m fine. Preston hired our bomber. I think he may have killed Soup, too.”

“Damn junkie should have done his job in the first place,” Preston said. “All he had to do was get Camden out of my way. Instead, he took my money and ran. I couldn’t let that stand.”

Cam nodded. “Yeah, but like you said, Soup was a junkie. Nobody cares about him, right?”

“Exactly,” Preston said.

“The car bomb didn’t kill anyone and Gordon Dunphy will go down for that. You’re smart. We can’t prove you were involved in anything—except for this. Right here, right now. But you’re smart, right, Preston? You get that if you hurt Eva tonight, you will get caught. She’s a cop. Assault an officer of the law, that’s a long prison sentence. Murder an officer, that’s automatic life.”

“I’m not going to hurt her. I want her to make a decision. The
right
decision.”

“She already has.” Cam turned his pockets inside out and held up the ruby-studded ring. His gaze locked on hers. “She gave this back to me tonight.”

Preston’s breath grazed her ear again and she shuddered in revulsion. “Is that true?”

“Go ahead,” Cam prompted. “Tell him what you told me.”

She opened her mouth to play along, but stopped. There Cam stood, bare chested, his pockets turned inside out, the ring he’d bought for her in his hand, and a plea in his eyes. Outwardly, he appeared calm, but she saw the terror trembling through him—and she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t choose Preston over him, not even to save her life. She held his gaze, saw his eyes widen.

No,
Cam mouthed.
Don’t.

“I love you, Cam. I’ll always pick you.”

…

Oh fuck.

Cam launched across the kitchen as Preston let out an inhuman howl of rage, and the knife dug into her neck. Eva dropped to her knees and—

Blood. So much blood.

No, no, no. He couldn’t be too late.

Except she was moving, sweeping out her leg, knocking Preston’s from under him. He stumbled backwards, and Cam caught him in a tackle around the middle, shoving him into the scalding water in the sink. The guy screamed, the sound carrying up though the water and bubbles.

“Cuffs!” Cam said and Eva scrambled out of the kitchen, slipping and sliding until she hit the dry linoleum of the dining room.

Preston bucked, slashed out with the knife, and caught Cam’s bare chest with the edge, but he shoved the asshole’s head under the water again. He knocked Preston’s hand against the counter until the knife dropped, then kicked it out of the way and hauled Preston away from the sink, flattening him out on the kitchen floor.

Eva returned with the handcuffs, handed them over, then pulled her gun from her waistband and pointed it at the back of Preston’s head. “Don’t fucking move.” To Cam, “I called this in.”

“All right.” He snapped the cuffs around Preston’s wrists, but kept the majority of his weight on the man as he finally looked up at Eva. She had a decent gash in the side of her neck. Wasn’t deep enough to be life-threatening, but she was bleeding down the front of her soaked T-shirt. Her chest heaved, her entire body trembled, but she still managed to hold the gun steady.

She noticed him checking her over and her eyes softened. “I’m okay, Cam.”

Yeah. His strong, capable Eva—of course she was okay. Or at least she would be once she got that wound treated. He drummed up a smile. “Nice moves. Recognized that leg trick.”

“You should. I’ve taken you down with it enough.”

“Got it figured out now. You won’t get me next time.”

As sirens drew closer outside, she grinned at him. “Wanna bet?”

Chapter Twenty-six

“Lark’s missing.”

Eva released a pent up breath and wrapped her cold hands around the coffee Cam set on the desk in front of her. After giving her statement, she’d taken a hot shower in the police department’s locker room and changed into a fresh pair of clothes she kept in her locker, but she still couldn’t shake the cold numbing her to the center of her being. The news only deepened the icy feeling, making her shiver even though it wasn’t completely unexpected. She’d sent officers to Lark’s home as soon as they had Preston in custody. “I was afraid of that.”

Cam propped a hip on the edge of the desk, just like the old days when they had discussed cases late into the night. “The going theory is Preston killed her when she rejected him for Vaughn, but there’s no sign of blood in her apartment. No body. He won’t say what he did with her.”

“I saw her at the hospital yesterday afternoon.” And suddenly, that encounter made a whole lot more sense. She’d gone to see Vaughn, which explained why she was so confused when Eva spoke about him as if he was Cam. “Does Vaughn know?”

“Yeah.” He scrubbed his face with both hands. “He didn’t take it well. He cared about her, more than I’ve seen him care about any of the women he’s dated.”

“I had no idea they were even together until Preston told me. Except, he thought Vaughn was you.”

“Nobody knew. They kept it secret, but it started in Key West.”

She nodded, so weighted down by exhaustion even that small action was a chore. “And Preston lost his mind when she dumped him for another Wilde.”

Cam hesitated. He tried to cover by taking a drink of his own coffee, but she knew him, inside and out. She glared at him. “What?”

Sighing, he set his mug aside. “Preston didn’t lose his mind in Key West. That’s just when he fixated on killing me and started using his political affiliations to track down people I’d arrested who held grudges. Except he made a big mistake by approaching Soup. Yeah, I arrested Soup once, and we had a rocky start to our acquaintance, but he liked me, considered me a friend. Friendship is something beyond Preston’s understanding.”

Eva nodded, knowing he spoke the truth. But if he was aiming to comfort her, he failed. She didn’t feel any freaking better about the whole thing. “You’re stalling. How do you know Preston didn’t snap in Key West?”

“He’s doing a lot of talking in there.” With a tilt of his head, Cam indicated the interrogation room, where Miguel and another detective were interviewing Preston. “It all still has to be substantiated, but he’s confessed to killing at least three women, starting as far back as his first girlfriend in high school. He doesn’t take rejection well.”

She shivered harder. Oh, God, how could she have known him for five years, dated him for two, and not once suspected…

Dammit, she should have seen something. As a cop, her job was to protect the innocent, and instead, she’d literally been in bed with one of the bad guys. Sickness roiled in her stomach, and she feared she might throw up the little bit of coffee she’d drank. She clamped her jaw shut and fought to rein in all of her bodily reactions. She had to maintain control. She was too close to an emotional cliff, and if she let go of the reins on her emotions, she’d tremble over the edge.

Cam growled and stood, pulling her to her feet and tucking her against his chest. “Goddamn you, Eva. You don’t have to be strong right now. Nobody fucking expects that of you except yourself. Let go. Break down. Get it out of your system.”

She balled her fists in his shirt, but didn’t lift her face from the crook of his neck. “If I start, I won’t stop.”

“Then don’t.” His hand caressed the back of her head, tangled in the strands of her hair, and pulled gently until she had to meet his gaze. “I’m here for you. I’ll always be here for you.”

As she stared up into the serious blue of his eyes, she saw the truth of his words. From that first day when he leaned across this very aisle and offered her a carrot stick, he’d had her back, saved her ass, and had just been there for her.

She
could
let go because Cam would always be there to catch her and set her back on her feet, no matter how far she fell.

Wrapping her arms around his waist, she leaned into his strength and let the tears come.

…

Eva’s tears destroyed him, but he held her through it, wishing he could absorb her pain, until she finally cried herself into exhaustion. Then he bundled her into the Hummer and drove her home—his home, where she belonged. She moved like a zombie, silent, unblinking, and unconcerned of her surroundings as he led her up the steps to his condo. Fearing she might collapse, he scooped her into his arms the moment the door shut out the cold behind them. The fact she allowed it without protest worried the hell outta him, and he double-timed it to his bedroom.

He pulled back the sheets and gently laid her on the mattress, unsurprised to see her already out cold. Couldn’t blame her. The night had packed a huge wallop—both physical and emotional. At very least, she needed a solid night’s sleep.

He stripped out of his clothes and slid into bed beside her, tucked her in against his chest. She sighed and nuzzled closer in her sleep. His muscles loosened, his heart beat easier, his lungs expanded for what felt like the first time since walking into her house and seeing that knife held to her throat.

She was safe. In his arms and safe. And fuck their friends-with-benefits arrangement with all its rules, he was never letting her go again.

…

Eva woke nestled in bed with Cam’s even, sleeping breaths rustling her hair. For several disorientated moments, she couldn’t remember how she end up here, but didn’t care all that much because his arms were warm around her, his heartbeat comforting under her ear.

Then, as the fuzziness of sleep cleared, memories of last night seeped back. She reached up and traced the edge of the bandage on her neck. Yes, the whole thing had been real. Damn. She kind of hoped it had all been a terrifying dream.

The movement woke Cam, and his arms tightened around her. She smiled into his neck. “Your shoulder’s gotta be asleep by now.”

“Yup,” he agreed but made no move to release her.

“Why don’t you let me go?”

In a surge of movement, he changed positions and tucked her underneath him, his thighs trapping hers. “Never,” he said and dipped his head.

His lips, gentle on hers, stirred up a hot need low in her belly. She threaded her fingers through his hair and tugged him down, demanding more. He indulged her, treating her to lingering kisses that stoked the fire burning within her.

Christ, she’d missed him.

His big hand traced the outline of her body, found the edge of her shirt, and pushed it up, exposing her bare skin. He broke away from her lips and slid lower, trailing kisses down her body. She arched toward his mouth and felt his lips curve as he nuzzled her lower belly.

“Still want that cookie cutter family?” he asked, working his way down her body. “Two-point-five kids, a minivan, a dog?”

“Hmm. That sounds…” Realization had her bolting upright, nearly knocking Cam in the chin with her knee. “Really fucking dull. I don’t want a dog. I want a parrot. And I’d rather get a root canal than be caught driving a minivan.”

Cam sat up, his hair rumpled and eyes hooded. “That so?”

“Yes, and I do want kids. A couple at least. And I still want them to have family dinners—most nights—and college funds. I want them to have a father they can rely on, who will always be there for them.” She leaned forward and cupped his cheeks in her hands. “And I very much want you to be their father, but I’m afraid I can’t trust myself to make this kind of decision anymore. My taste in men is as bad as my mother’s.”

“Hey,” he said, offended.

“I’m sorry, but I’ve known Preston for as long as I’ve known you. I thought I really
knew
him, and look how that turned out.”

“Because he’s a liar,” Cam pointed out. “A slick, professional liar who charmed his way past a lot of people’s defenses. You only saw the face he wanted you to see, the one he thought would be most attractive to you.”

She knew he was speaking the truth. That’s how serial killers operate. They lead double lives, showing the world a socially acceptable face while their victims are the only witnesses to their true evil. And yet… “How can I be sure I’m not making the same mistake with you?”

Cam removed her hands from his face and kissed each of her knuckles before twining his fingers through hers. “What was Preston’s favorite color?”

She blinked. “Um. Blue? I think.”

“Mine?”

“Red, same as mine. But that doesn’t prove anything.”

“His favorite food?” he persisted.

“He…” She searched her memory and came up blank. “I guess he never said.”

“Mine?”

“Baby carrots with a little bit of ranch dressing to dip them in.”

“His favorite sport?”

“Maybe…baseball? He took me to a few Nationals games, but…” When she trailed off, Cam tilted his head in a
go on
gesture. She sighed, seeing exactly where he was going with all this. “He spent most of the time on his phone and never paid much attention to the games.”

“Uh-huh. And my favorite sport?” Cam prompted.

“Hockey. You love the Caps, which is so sad because they always choke during playoffs.”

He smiled and shook his head in exasperation, but her calculated jab didn’t do its job and get him to change subjects. “What about my worst habit?”

His tone was all challenge now and the knots bunching up the muscles between her shoulders eased out. “Biting your nails. You started doing it after you stopped smoking.”

“Which was how long ago?”

“Shortly before we met. You quit cold turkey after eight years as a social smoker.”

He nodded. “My biggest fear?”

Eva started to answer with a silly and arbitrary fear—his dislike of clowns jumped to mind—but then closed her mouth without uttering a sound. Yeah, clowns spooked him and so did Shark Week on Discovery Channel, which she’d always found hilarious, but that was not the kind of fear he meant. He was talking about something deeper, the kind of fear that dictated a person’s every thought and action. And the fact she understood his question without clarification—and knew its answer—told her oodles about how solid the foundation of their relationship was. She’d never be able to answer such a question about Preston because she didn’t know him at his core. Thank God. Getting a glimpse into the man’s twisted soul would have left her scarred for life. As it was, she’d be doubting her instincts for a long time to come.

But Cam? He was a good man, through and through. She’d always been able to trust him with her life when they worked together. Before last night, she’d already decided to trust him with her heart. And, dammit, she refused to let Preston take that goodness away from her.

Eva closed the distance between them and brushed a light kiss over his mouth. “You’re most afraid of losing your brothers, which is one of your best qualities even though it makes you do stupid things like lie to them.”

“Not only my brothers,” he said softly, reaching out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “You, too. I’ve lived every day of the past five years terrified that I’ll wake up and you’ll be gone from my life, and that has stopped me from having the kind of relationship I’ve always wanted with you. But no more. Eva, I love you. My life isn’t worth the air I breathe without you in it, and if that means I risk losing you someday…well, that’s a risk I’m more than willing to take.”

An incandescent joy settled low in her belly and lit her up from the inside out.

“I love you, too, Cam, and I’m not going anywhere.” Swallowing back a lump of emotion, she poked his bare chest. “And I’d like my ring back since I have every intention of marrying you.”

His dimple flashed as he pushed off the bed, found his pants on the floor, and dug the ring out of the pocket. Returning to her side, he held it up and its rubies glittered in the pale morning light from the window. “Our life won’t be sitcom perfect, but I promise whatever life we make together will be perfect for us.”

Tears gathered in her eyes as he slid the ring on her finger, and for once, she didn’t try to stop them. He leaned in and caught the droplets with his lips. Her pulse kicked, spilling a heady mix of love and desire through her blood. She tilted her head back, inviting his lips to explore. Against her leg, his erection swelled and lengthened, and she wrapped her hand around him, stroked him until a growl thrummed from his chest.

She sighed. “Make love to me, Cam.”

“Absolutely.” He nudged her down on the bed, drawing off her shirt, then her pants and panties in one pull as he sat back on his knees. His gaze swept down her, all heat and worship, and a wave of goose bumps rose in its wake.

“Are you wet for me?” He shoved his own pants off and his erection sprang free, long and hard, straining toward her. He took himself in one hand while the fingers of his other teased her entrance until she was ready to detonate.

“Yes. Oh, yes.” She pressed against his hand and his thumb on her clit sent shockwaves rippling outward. Oh, she was close. So, so close. “Please, Cam. I want you inside me.”

“Fuck, yeah.” He lifted her hips and joined them together in a hard thrust, tearing a moan from her throat.