Out of Turn

CHAPTER SIX

My hand trembled slightly as I answered the call.

“Hello?” My voice was soft. I didn’t want to wake Kade.

Silence for a moment, then, “Kat. It’s me.”

“I know.”

“Did I wake you?”

“I was up.”

A beat. “I guess you’re wondering why the hell I’m calling you in the middle of the night.”

He sounded tired, the deep gravel of his voice telling me he was in bed maybe, or had just woken up and was perhaps trying to fall back asleep.

“Yeah. I guess.” My voice was thick as a great wave of sadness rose in me. I rested my head on my knees and stared out the window.

“I had a dream,” Blane said. “About you. You were here with me, and we were curled up on the couch together, watching some movie. And it was so real, and God, it felt so good. And then I woke up.”

Yeah, been there, done that. When I didn’t speak, he continued.

“I was so wrong, Kat, my own doubts and insecurities made me think you’d do things that I should have known you never would. And I wanted so bad to call you, tell you, once I realized what a fucking dick I’d been. But I was afraid. Afraid I’d gone too far, afraid you wouldn’t be able to forgive me or even want to forgive me.”

They were words I’d wanted to hear from Blane for months, words I’d thought I never would hear. I waited for the surge of happiness that I’d thought I’d feel, but it didn’t come. Instead, I just felt tired.

“Kat? Are you there? Please, say something.”

“What do you want me to say?” I asked with a sigh. “After all we’ve been through, do you think you can call me, say you’re sorry, and it’ll all be okay? It seems to always be about you—what you want, what you need. Am I supposed to just forget what happened?” I paused. “How could we ever go back to the way we were?”

The question wasn’t rhetorical—I was really asking. I couldn’t see a path to a new life with Blane, at least not one where I wasn’t constantly terrified that my next step would cause him to turn on me again.

“Kat,” Blane spoke softly, “where are you? Let me come to you, see you, touch you. We can talk.”

“You can’t,” I said without thinking. “I’m in Las Vegas.” I wondered what my answer would have been if I’d been at home instead, and whether I’d have let him come over.

Silence. “Vegas?” Blane asked, a note of warning entering his voice. “What are you doing there?” A pause. “Are you with Kade?”

“Who else would I be with?” My reply was sharp, the change in his tone affecting mine.

“I see. And are you two still just… friends?” There was no mistaking his meaning or the leashed anger in his words now.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I snapped, guilt hitting me hard. I knew exactly what he meant. “What do you care if I’m in Vegas with Kade or what we do here? In case you’ve forgotten, Blane, you and I broke up.”

“That doesn’t mean I stopped loving you. I just never imagined you’d come between Kade and me like this.”

“That’s not fair,” I said. “You know that’s the last thing I ever wanted. None of this would have even happened if you had listened to me instead of your uncle.”

“Don’t bring my uncle into this—he has nothing to do with it.”

“Bullshit!” I exploded. “He has everything to do with it! He tried to buy me off months ago to stop dating you, and when that didn’t work, he made up an affair between me and Kade that you never should have believed!” I was yelling now, seething with anger. “So don’t you dare try and take the high road, Blane! The blame for all of this is staring you right in the mirror.”

I ended the call, trying to get my boiling emotions under control. I was so angry and yet devastated. I buried my face in my hands.

Kade’s hands on my shoulders weren’t a surprise and I didn’t resist as he pulled my body toward his chest to envelop me in his arms. His skin was warm against my cheek and he smoothed my hair as I cried.

I was struck by how wrong this was, crying on Kade’s shoulder about Blane, and forced myself to stop. As cruel as Blane had been, he’d been right. It wasn’t going to get any better between them while I was still in the picture.

“Kade, I can’t,” I said thickly, looking up at him. “We can’t. This”—I motioned between us—“can’t happen. Things will never be right between you and Blane so long as I’m around.”

“Is that what he told you?” His eyes were intense, even in the dim light, his expression grave.

“It’s what I know,” I said. “And you know it, too.” I moved to get off his lap, but he stopped me, holding me close.

“I don’t care,” Kade said fiercely. “Stay with me. Just a little longer. You’ve been happy with me—could be happy with me. Just give us some more time.”

His plea tore at me. I felt like I was standing on a precipice that held nothing but empty days and nights ahead of me, endless stretches filled with loneliness and despair. I had to let Kade go or risk the two of them being estranged forever.

Could we have just a little more time? Kade was right—I’d been the closest to content and happy in the past twenty-four hours with him than at any other time in the past three months. And I didn’t want to give that up. Not yet. It was selfish of me, but I wanted just a little more happy, something to tide me over in the bleak near future that awaited me.

I gave a reluctant nod. “But you have to promise me that this won’t go any further. I won’t drive an even bigger wedge between you and Blane.”

Kade kissed me, his palms cradling my face. “I promise,” he murmured against my lips. I clung to him. His kisses were like a forbidden drug, comforting and sensual. His desire for me was a heady thing.

I allowed him to lead me back to his bed, where he again laid me down spoon style, his arm draped across my waist.

“Go to sleep,” he murmured into my ear. His hand rhythmically stroked my hair, relaxing my tense body.

My eyes were heavy and I sighed, exhaustion and the emotional turmoil taking their toll. I felt safe and protected, cherished even, in Kade’s arms. I yearned to close my eyes and wish all my problems away. But nothing’s that easy.

When I woke again I was still in Kade’s arms. I turned to look at him, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. He was awake.

“Did you sleep?” I asked.

“No.”

“Why not? Are you all right?”

“Why would I waste the time I have with you sleeping?” he asked with a lopsided smile. “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.”

I didn’t smile. That remark may have been a joke for anyone else, but for Kade it had been a near reality too many times for me to find it funny.

I brushed my lips across his chest before pulling away. My eyes felt like sandpaper and I really wanted to brush my teeth. I rolled out of bed and walked to the bathroom, feeling Kade’s eyes on me the whole way.

I showered, wrapping myself in a towel afterward. My clothes were in the other bedroom, but when I left Kade’s to head that way, I smelled coffee and changed direction to peek into the living room.

Kade had thrown on a pair of jeans and was setting a tray on the dining table. He must have sensed my presence, because he turned around.

“Hungry?” he asked. The way his eyes raked me from head to toe told me he had more than food on the brain.

I had to be strong. What had happened last night—and I shivered just thinking about it—couldn’t happen again, not if I wanted to be able to live with myself afterward.

“Is there coffee?”

“Of course.” His smirk clearly signaled that he knew I had to have my coffee. He poured a cup and handed it to me.

“What time is it?” I asked, adding sugar and cream to the steaming cup.

“Almost noon.”

I about dropped the cup. “Seriously?” I hadn’t slept that well or that long in months, which explained why I actually felt rested this morning, even after the middle-of-the-night phone call with Blane.

Blane. My thoughts skittered away from him. I couldn’t think about him right now, wouldn’t ruin the moment by dwelling on how horrible our conversation had gone last night.

“I’m going to take a shower,” Kade said. “You eat and get dressed. Let’s go have some fun.” His eyes widened suggestively, the way he said “fun” making it sound like an endeavor of the utmost importance.

I wasn’t hungry but drank more coffee while I dressed and blow-dried my hair. Guilt gnawed at me even as I tried not to think about all of it.

I should be on a plane home. I shouldn’t have agreed to stay. Blane knows I’m here, knows who I’m with.…

The coffee cup slipped from my shaking fingers and shattered on the marble sink. Coffee and porcelain went everywhere, including on me.

“Shit,” I cursed under my breath. I didn’t want Kade to see. He was so pleased I was staying, I couldn’t let him know the guilt I felt. It didn’t matter if I was happy with Kade, had been so thrilled to see him turn up on my doorstep. I was a selfish brat to still be there. But I couldn’t leave. I promised him I’d stay.

I needed a drink.

I walked into the living room, listening to the distant sound of Kade’s shower running. The bar had plenty of vodka and I reached for a bottle, then grabbed a glass.

Crap. No ice.

Taking one of the room keys and the ice bucket, I stopped by the door to Kade’s bathroom.

“I’m going to get some ice!” I called out. I wasn’t sure whether he heard me or not, but I’d be back in a few minutes anyway. Grabbing one of his white shirts, I took off my stained cami and pulled it on, tying the tails so it wouldn’t be so long on me.

I padded down the thickly carpeted hallway in my bare feet, wishing I’d checked out the room’s welcome packet so I knew where to find ice. Surely it couldn’t be far.…

But damned if I wasn’t wrong. I searched what felt like the whole floor and was about to give up. A detour down one last corridor and I was done—I’d drink bourbon instead.

I turned a corner, then stopped short. There, not twenty feet in front of me, was David. Looked like he’d gotten untied without a problem.

He spotted me and I didn’t know what to do. Should I say hello or was there some other proper protocol for this particular situation? Did Hallmark make a card for it? Then David did something that made me rethink that.

Raising a tiny walkie-talkie to his mouth, he said, “Found her. Floor thirty. Northeast corridor.”

I dropped the bucket and ran.

I chanced a glance behind me to see that David was in pursuit, and gaining. I’d gone quite a ways from our room and the identical hallways were a maze. Panic made me confused and I made a wrong turn. Backtracking wasn’t an option, so I kept going.

Looking behind me again, I didn’t see David. I slowed. Had I lost him?

Frantically struggling to get my bearings, I turned down another long corridor and ran right into David.

“Leaving me tied to the bed was a bad idea,” he hissed.

Before I could say or do anything, he hit me, his fist slamming into my cheek with enough force to knock me to the ground. Pain exploded in my head and then, mercifully, everything went dark.

When I regained consciousness, I wished I hadn’t. My head throbbed and I could feel that my face was swollen. One eye wouldn’t open all the way.

Raising my head, I realized I was tied to a chair. Each of my wrists was tied to an arm of it and each ankle to a chair leg. Nice.

Looking around, I realized I was in an office of some sort. There was a desk and a couch, both in mahogany and red leather. It reminded me a little of Blane’s office, very professional, which was why it was so disconcerting to feel the ropes chafing my skin. The windows made it clear that it was still daytime, but also that I was no longer in our hotel. The view was different.

The door opened and I jerked my head around, then bit back a groan. Shouldn’t have moved so fast.

David walked in, followed by the two other big guys from last night. They wore suits, but that did nothing to make them look more civilized. They were the muscle.

“Glad to see you’re awake,” David said, moving to stand in front of me.

“You really hold a grudge,” I replied, meeting his eyes. “If I’d known you’d do this just because I tied you up and didn’t screw you, I’d have gone all Lorena Bobbitt on you.”

David’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t be ridiculous, stupid girl. I don’t give a damn about you. That little trick Dennon pulled last night has my bosses breathing down my neck. I want the money back.”

“You knew when you hired him what his fee was,” I countered. “It’s bad business not to pay someone for a job.”

“I knew his fee, but he was supposed to fail,” David hissed. “Now I’m out four million dollars with no fucking idea of how he got in.”

“He’s going to show you,” I said. “That’s part of the deal.”

“You’re right—he is going to show me,” David sneered. “And he’s going to give the money back. You’re insurance against that.”

“That’s why I’m here?” I asked. “You’re planning to threaten him with me?”

David’s smile was cold. “Go after the Achilles’ heel and even the smartest of them will fall.”

“You have no idea who you’re dealing with, do you.” It wasn’t a question. Somehow I doubted Kade had provided much of a résumé to this guy. “Taking me was a big mistake.”

David turned away, ignoring me as he looked at his cell phone. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. We won’t rough you up too much, just a little if he doesn’t cooperate. But we’ll know here shortly.”

“You’ve already told him that you have me?” I asked, panicking. “Are you insane?”

David glanced my way with a frown. “I don’t appreciate your tone or insinuation,” he said.

“You don’t understand,” I said. “You’ve got to listen to me. Let me go. Now. If he comes here, he’ll kill you.”

For a moment, I thought David understood, then he laughed outright. “A hacker’s going to kill me? Good God, I must have walloped you a bit hard if you think a computer geek is capable of that.”

My eyes slid shut in dismay. Kade was trying to turn over a new leaf and this asshole was going to screw it all up. “Please,” I said, opening my eyes, “you have to listen to me.”

David ignored me now, still on his phone. He headed for the door.

“Let me go!” I yelled. “Please!”

The door shut behind him.

Well, shit.

I sat there for I don’t know how long, waiting. The ropes were too thick to break and I rubbed my wrists and ankles raw trying. The chair was too heavy for me to scoot to the desk to reach the phone or look for scissors. I was well and truly screwed.

The sun went down and the lights on the Strip came on. My back ached and my mouth was bone dry. I was starving, my stomach cramping with hunger pangs, and I tried not to think about how badly I had to pee. I knew Kade would come, hopefully sooner rather than later, and when he did it wouldn’t be pretty.

Sometimes I really hate it when I’m right.

Darkness fell and with it came the inevitable.

I was dozing, my head drooping down to my chest, when the lights went out in the office, plunging me into darkness. I jerked awake as emergency lighting clicked on, a dull red glow. I listened hard, then started when I heard yelling and gunshots.

The door flew open and David barreled inside.

“What is this shit?” he gritted out.

“What’s happening?” I asked.

“I don’t fucking know. The lights went out, and when they came back on my men were gone. No one is answering their radio and the front desk security is silent.” He looked panicked, his eyes darting around wildly. The gun in his hand shook slightly.

“Kade’s here.”

David’s gaze whipped to mine.

“Untie me,” I said, trying to get through to him. “Let me go. There’s still time.”

“No, there’s not.”

Both of us looked toward the door—in the direction the voice had come from—just as a gunshot sounded. David yelled in pain and dropped his gun. Kade was there in an instant, kicking the weapon away. It skittered across the floor.

“David, why’d you have to go and be an asshole?” Kade chastised him. “Our arrangement was working out so well. It’s not my fault you’re fucking incompetent.”

David glowered at him, cradling his injured hand. I was glad Kade hadn’t hurt him too badly.

“Fuck you, Dennon,” David spat.

Kade ignored him and walked over to me, careful not to turn his back to David. I lowered my head, letting my hair obscure my face. I didn’t want Kade to see, not yet. I just wanted to get out of there.

“You all right?” he asked softly, crouching down to cut through the bonds on my wrists. I hadn’t even seen him pull his knife.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said, flexing my freed arms. I winced when I rubbed my wrists where the ropes had scraped me.

I was grateful for the low light and kept my face averted as Kade finished freeing my legs.

“Let’s go,” he said.

But as I stood, my knees buckled immediately from having sat for so long. Kade quickly caught me around the waist, keeping me from falling. I turned my face away, but he was too quick. Catching my chin in his hand, he forced me to look at him.

Kade went very still when our eyes met. I didn’t move, barely breathing, afraid of what he’d do. His gaze moved slowly from my swollen eye to my cheek.

“Go wait for me in the hall,” he finally said, helping me to the door. His voice was quiet and calm, which was utterly terrifying.

“No, Kade, don’t,” I whispered. “Let’s just go.”

His fingers barely brushed my damaged face. “Do as I say,” he said, and this time his tone was such that I knew better than to argue.

I walked out of the room and Kade closed the door behind me. The hallway was empty and I stood there, straining to listen, praying Kade wouldn’t kill him.

A crash came from inside the office and my nails bit into my palms. I heard grunts and thuds, glass splintering, a man’s scream. Was Kade all right? What if David got the upper hand? Should I do something? But Kade had said to wait here.

I was nearly hyperventilating when Kade finally emerged. I threw myself at him, relieved to find him unscathed. I wrapped my arms around his neck and his circled my waist.

“It’s okay,” he said softly in my ear. “You’re safe now.”

I drew back to look him in the eyes. “I was never worried that I wouldn’t be.”

Kade frowned a little at that, his thumb brushing my cheek, but I took his hand and stepped back. “Can we go now?”

He nodded wordlessly and moments later we were heading toward the front doors of the building. A black man, bigger than the other men I’d seen, stood nearby, holding a lethal-looking rifle. I froze in my tracks, my grip tightening on Kade’s hand.

“It’s okay,” he said. “I know him.”

I was still fearful and Kade seemed to sense that, pulling me closer as we neared the man.

“Thanks, Badger,” Kade said, clasping hands with the guy. “Appreciate your help.”

“Anytime,” Badger said. “Did you leave the little fucker alive or is there a mess to clean up?” Badger had the same British accent as David.

“He’s alive, but there’s a mess,” Kade replied.

“Did he shite himself?”

They both laughed at that, hardy-har-har, but I really wanted to leave. I pressed Kade’s hand in a silent message.

“Gotta go, my man. Thanks again,” Kade said, taking the hint and clapping Badger on the shoulder one last time. He helped me out the door and into his rented Mercedes. I relaxed against the seat with a sigh.

Kade took my hand again once he’d started the car, and he didn’t let go until we were back at our hotel. I grabbed his sunglasses from the dash and put them on before I got out, using one hand to finger-comb my hair over the bruised side of my face. When Kade saw this, his jaw tightened, but he didn’t say anything.

Once back in our suite, I headed straight for the bathroom. I was in there a long time. I knew I had to do damage control with Kade but was putting it off.

I showered and brushed my teeth and tried to avoid looking in the mirror, which wasn’t easy. I put Kade’s shirt back on when I was through, finding it somehow comforting to me in a way I didn’t want to examine too closely.

After pawing through my makeup bag, I spent several minutes caking makeup on my bruises. It helped a little, but other than an icepack, there was nothing I could do about my swollen, bloodshot eye, so I put the sunglasses on again.

The smell of food made my stomach rumble and had me hurrying to finish brushing my hair. It had been twenty-four hours since I’d eaten and I felt more than a little shaky. When I came out of the bathroom, Kade was standing in front of the windows, his back to me, a drink held loosely in the hand at his side.

“Something smells good,” I said with forced cheerfulness as I headed to the dining table. It was laden with dishes, the aroma making my mouth water. It seemed Kade had ordered one of everything on the menu for me. I grabbed a plate and started helping myself. “You don’t mind if I start, do you?” I asked over my shoulder. “I’m starving.”

“That’s fine,” Kade said, his voice flat.

I avoided looking at him, rounding the table to sit cross-legged in a chair before attacking the food piled on my plate. I heard the clink of ice in his glass as he made another drink.

Several minutes passed in silence that grew thick and heavy. I barely tasted what I ate, the churning in my stomach telling me what was coming though I resolutely tried to ignore it. Denial had become a favorite state of mind lately.

“It’s good,” I said. “You should come have some.”

I felt more than heard Kade approach. He took the seat next to me and set his drink on the table. I caught a glimpse of his hand. The knuckles were raw and torn. I briefly wondered how well David had fared against Kade’s rage, then decided I didn’t really care. He’d hurt me and I was sure that now he was very, very sorry he had.

Kade sat on my injured side, which bothered me. I kept my hair hiding my face. I didn’t want him to see, didn’t want to talk about it. But he reached out and removed my sunglasses.

“No, leave it,” I said, trying to grab the glasses back, but he’d already whisked them away. My fork clattered to my plate and I looked him in the eye. Time to tackle this head-on.

“I’m. Fine,” I said firmly. “I know it looks bad, but I’ve been through worse. It’ll heal in a few days, okay?”

“It’s not ‘okay,’ ” Kade said. “You could be dead—”

“I’m not,” I broke in. “And thank you, for not killing him.”

“I wanted to,” he said matter-of-factly. “Nearly did.”

“But you didn’t, and we should focus on that.” I smiled, but Kade didn’t smile back. His eyes were bleak as he studied me, and my smile faded away, too.

“This is my fault,” he murmured. “What was I thinking? That I could go legit and everything would be hunky-fucking-dory?”

“It is not your fault. It’s David’s fault, the slimy asshole. You made a deal and he didn’t keep his part of the bargain. You couldn’t have known what he was going to do.”

Kade’s smile was bitter. “I’m like the kiss of death for you, princess.”

“What? No! Don’t say that.” I was dismayed. I pushed back the midnight lock of hair that had fallen into his eyes, then cradled his cheek. “You rescued me,” I said. “Like I knew you would.”

“You shouldn’t need to be rescued.”

His words were so serious, and so final, that my breath caught.

“What are you getting at?” I asked, afraid of his answer.

His hand covered mine, the faint whiskers on his jaw softly abrading my skin as he turned his face into my palm and pressed his lips there. When his eyes again met mine, they were unusually bright.

“Tomorrow I’m taking you home,” he said. “And then I’m leaving. You won’t see me again.”

I couldn’t have heard that right. “What did you say?”

“It’s not worth it,” he said. “I won’t risk you again.” He stood, giving my fingers a squeeze before releasing my hand and heading back to the windows.

My hands turned to ice and I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. I couldn’t breathe. This couldn’t be happening. Not again. I stood up so fast, my chair toppled behind me.

Kade turned around, his dark brows drawn, his mouth turned down in a frown.

“You are not going to do that,” I gritted out. “How could you even say that? I thought we were friends, Kade, and friends don’t just ditch each other when it’s convenient.”

“I’m not ‘ditching’ you,” he retorted. “I’m saving your life. You were nearly killed because of me three months ago when Garrett broke in, and now this today.…”

“That doesn’t matter—”

“It’s done.” Kade interrupted me. His voice echoed finality and he turned away, dismissing me as he walked toward the bar.

“So you’re just going to give up? Just like that?” Anger masked my desperation. I didn’t want to think about losing someone else, forever. I’d been so alone the past few months. Kade had helped me feel alive again.

“Sometimes you gotta know when to fold ’em,” Kade quipped, flashing me a bitter smile as he poured more bourbon into his glass and took a healthy swallow. “Or at least that’s what Kenny always said.”

“Bullshit.”

“You said it yourself,” he said, lifting his glass as though in a toast. “Blane and I won’t ever reconcile if you’re still in the picture. That leaves only one option.”

I sucked in my breath at that, his words cutting deep. It was one thing to blame myself for coming between them, but another thing entirely to hear Kade speak of tossing me aside so matter-of-factly. Guilt stirred within me even as my eyes filled with tears.

“Go to hell,” I said, seething and hurrying past him to my bedroom. It was all I could do to not run. I slammed the door and flopped onto the bed.

My hands were shaking and I felt inches from falling apart. Everything I’d felt when Blane had dumped me came flooding back. The anger. The heartbreak. The loneliness. Even when Kade had been absent the past few months, I hadn’t really thought it would be forever. I’d kept thinking that he’d turn up, sooner or later—that he hadn’t abandoned me entirely.

Now it seemed he was prepared to do just that.

I had to get a grip. This wasn’t me, this needy, weepy person. I’d withstood my father’s death, my mother’s illness and subsequent death, the breakup with my fiancé, being kidnapped—twice—and nearly dying too many times. Surely I could handle this.

But as logically as I reasoned out all that had happened to me, it didn’t stop the deadening ache inside my chest. I wrapped my arms around my knees and rocked.

I don’t know how long I stayed that way, my thoughts in a turmoil, wondering how I was going to get through the next few days, weeks, months. Alone. Again.

Hours passed and, eventually, I must have fallen asleep. Something woke me, though, and I jerked awake, cringing at the crick in my neck. Then I heard a thump and a crash.

Jumping to my feet, I hurried out of my room, afraid but still too sleep befuddled to reason. I stepped into the living room and halted, not fully comprehending the sight that met my eyes.