Chapter 18
Water splashed when Jude jerked in disbelief. What the hell was she suggesting? Voicing pure reaction, he said, “Don’t be idiotic. Blair was unhappy, but she wouldn’t blow herself up. She wouldn’t kill an innocent driver.”
Rather than take offense at his insult, May persisted. “Did you know the driver?”
So that was her train of thought: not Blair, but Sid. He scoffed at her. “Yeah, I knew him. Not the brightest bulb around. Dumb as a rock, in fact. But a nice enough kid. He wanted in the SBC, only he sucked as a fighter. He had a glass jaw, a wide swinging punch, and no control. Didn’t matter how many times he heard the rules, Sid couldn’t remember them when he got excited.”
“Like in a fight?”
“Exactly.”
“You never fought him?”
“Hell, no. It would’ve been a massacre. In the SBC, you have to earn certain fights, and he hadn’t even come close to beating a contender in my league.”
“So he wasn’t happy.”
“He wasn’t so depressed that he’d blow himself up. Hell, he was getting his life turned around. I told him I couldn’t use my influence to get him in the SBC, but I did give him a job as my driver.”
Like a dog on a meaty bone, May jumped on that. “He asked you to influence the right people to get him fights, and instead you hired him?”
“Yeah. Sid liked the deal. He made good pay and he didn’t have to get his brains bashed in. He accepted the fact that he wasn’t cut out as a fighter.”
May mentally chewed that over before asking, “Did he know Elton?”
“How the hell should I know? Before the trial, I barely knew Elton. Some of us hung out in his clubs, and he’d sponsored a few of the guys in the SBC.”
“Sponsored them how?”
“Paid for some of their training and stuff in exchange for them wearing T-shirts and shorts that advertised his nightclubs. But after all his accusations, they cut him off. They boycotted anything that Elton touched. They stopped going to his places, and during the matches”—Jude smiled, remembering—“a few of the fighters made a point of ripping up the shirts or shorts with his logo on them. With the cameras and reporters around, that made one hell of a statement.”
May scooted closer and again cupped his face. “Jude, what if the driver didn’t know the bomb would explode on impact? What if he thought he could toss it in the backseat, and then leave the car and get away before it blew?”
“That’s an awful lot of ‘What-ifs?’ isn’t it? You’d have to assume Sid was a murderer, and that he had some grudge against Blair.”
“Not Blair, you.” She sank her teeth into that theory. “Think about it. You just said he was desperate and not too bright. He wanted to fight, and instead you made him your lackey.”
“I made him a driver,” Jude clarified. “He liked cars, and he made a hell of a lot more than he ever had as a half-ass fighter.”
“I understand the generosity behind what you did—but maybe he didn’t. Maybe someone else was able to twist things around and impress his thoughts in a negative way.”
“You mean Elton?”
She shrugged. “It’s possible. You said Sid wasn’t smart. You said the fighters hung out in Elton’s clubs. You’re certain Blair wouldn’t do such a thing, and we both know you’re innocent. That only leaves the driver.”
“Jesus.”
“It’s worth looking into.”
Jude hated to admit it, but she had a point. “I know for certain that Elton never sponsored Sid. He only picked the most visible fighters, the sure bets.”
“The crowd pleasers.”
“Yeah.” Jude’s mind churned. “I can have Denny check into it. He’d know how to ask around without alerting anyone to our suspicions.”
May grinned. “So now it is we?”
“No.” He grabbed her shoulders. “It’s me. It’s Denny. It’s professionals. You will keep your sexy little ass out of it.”
Her nose went into the air. “My ass isn’t little.”
“Your ass is perfect, and I’m not about to put it on the line. So you either give me your word that you’ll leave it to me, or it ends right here.”
Her expression went flat. “What ends?”
“This whole theory, damn it.”
“Oh.”
“What the hell did you think I meant?”
Lifting one shoulder and avoiding his gaze, she muttered, “I don’t know. Our association?”
Jude shook her—not hard, but enough to get her attention and to let his disgruntlement be known. “Our relationship, damn it.”
Her smile came and went. “Okay. You have my word—if I can have yours that you won’t give up on this, that you’ll follow every lead, that even the tiniest hint will get your undivided attention.”
“Deal.” He looked down at her breasts. “Why don’t we seal this with a—”
A voice crackled over the intercom, saying, “The bank official is here.”
“Shit.”
May giggled again, and that lightened Jude’s mood enough that he didn’t mind the interruption.
Stretching out an arm to press the intercom button, he said, “Give him coffee, Denny. We’ll be down in five.”
“Will do.”
“Hey, Denny, you alone?”
“Just me and the intercom.”
May blinked, then whispered, “He can’t hear in here, can he?”
Jude chuckled. “Not unless I push the button.” He did just that to say, “Do me a favor. Check around, discreetly, and find out if Sid knew Elton in any way.”
For several seconds, Denny didn’t reply. “Sid, the driver who—”
“Yeah.”
“What are you thinking?”
“May has a theory, and I promised to check it out.”
“A theory, huh?” With warm sincerity, Denny said, “Damn, I knew I liked that girl. Consider it done. And Jude? Tell her I said thanks.” The intercom went dead.
Jude looked at May, naked in his tub, her skin and hair wet, her dark eyes consuming. Her smile made him feel powerful. Along with gnawing sexual awareness, he detected the warmth of her concern, her trust, and her caring.
He whispered, “Thank you,” before giving her a lingering kiss that promised things to come. “Now, wash up and get dressed so we can get this business settled. The sooner it’s done, the sooner I can show you around, then drag you back off to bed.”
May laughed. “A wonderful plan.”
The best laid plans, Jude thought later, as May stared into the monitor with dismay. “It’s my parents.”
Not another photographer or deliveryman, not the idle spectator? Jude’s interest quadrupled. “Really?” He joined May at the monitor. “Well, Denny, buzz them through.”
Not minutes ago, Tim had stormed off, full of blustering annoyance over being “forced,” as he saw it, to sign the loan papers. Jude didn’t give a damn how Tim felt about it, but he knew Tim’s behavior had shamed May, and he hated that.
Both he and Denny had seen enough cocky young men to take it in stride. In fact, Denny had half grinned while watching Tim put his signature on the paper and seeing it all notarized. Denny saw it as a step forward, a way to force Tim into being the man he could become, instead of the boy his relatives had allowed him to be.
Now, May’s father was here, and as she stared in horror at the monitor, Jude slipped his arm around her.
“Tim must’ve called them.”
Her tension was a live thing, practically putting her hair on end. Jude tugged on one soft, light brown lock resting against her shoulder. “Why do you say that?”
“They’re here because of the loan.”
“Maybe they’re here because their only daughter is living with a man they don’t know.”
Turning on him in amazement, May said, “I’m not living with you.”
Jude cocked a brow. She sounded aghast. “That offends you? Should I say visiting for an extended period?”
Hands to her cheeks, May whispered, “This is getting worse and worse.”
“What is?”
“Don’t say anything. Let me deal with my folks. In fact, maybe you and Denny could just go downstairs—” She tried to shoo them on their way.
Jude planted his feet. “Not on your life.”
When she looked to Denny for help, he scowled. “I ain’t budging.”
Looking like she wanted to kick them both, May grouched, “Fine. Suit yourself. Stay and suffer it all. But don’t say I didn’t offer.” Grumbling, she started around them to open the front door.
Jude shared a look with Denny. Just how bad could two parents be? Okay, so he knew they weren’t the type to win mother or father of the year. Ashley had given him enough clues for him to suspect they’d be difficult to deal with.
But he wasn’t without some expertise in that area. He’d trained with fighters who carried chips on their shoulders the size of a wrecking ball. He’d placated sponsors, and pleased announcers. He’d worked with temperamental producers and directors.
He’d gone through a grizzly trial that would have destroyed most men.
Without a doubt, he could handle two overbearing, disapproving parents.
A silver Jaguar screeched to a jarring halt at the end of the drive. Car doors slammed. Not a good sign.
Two people stepped out, a short, garish-looking woman and an overly polished man in reflective sunglasses. As if in physical pain, May groaned.
Wishing he could spare her, Jude propped his chin on the top of her head. “Relax,” he told her, “I’m good with parents.”
“Ha!”
Denny patted her shoulder. “Stop your fretting. Things’ll be just fine.”
“Go ahead,” she said. “Keep telling yourself that while you still can.”
Palpable hostility preceded her parents’ approach. Jude looked first at May’s mother and wanted to wince. Short, bloated, and with hair an unnatural shade of blond that needed touching up two months ago, she looked nothing like May. Her clothes, the total opposite of what May usually wore, looked comfortable to the point of being sloppy, as if she’d worn them for two days, even to bed. A lit cigarette hung from her lips, and she carried a traveler’s mug of something in her left hand. She squinted eyes of an indistinguishable color, as if she hadn’t seen daylight in some time. Her gaze roved over May with screaming disapproval.
Her father, on the other hand, wore well-tailored casual slacks and a designer polo shirt. Tall, lean and toned, with an air that shouted “on the make,” he couldn’t have been more opposite of his wife.
They got as far as the bottom of the porch steps—and stopped.
A strange disquiet rolled over Jude.
“Hi, Mom, Dad.” In a preposterous show of enthusiasm, May stepped farther out to greet them. The second she started to chatter, Jude realized how truly nervous the visit made her. “You just missed Tim. I think he’s coming back here, though. He said he only planned to go by the lot to check on things and to—”
“Good God,” her mother interrupted in a rusty smoker’s voice. “Where did you get that ridiculous outfit?”
Her mother’s cutting criticism obliterated any good will Jude had affected. May looked incredible, and anyone who couldn’t see that had to be blind.
“I bought it for her.” Wearing a false smile and keeping his anger in close check, he stepped in front of May. “Hello. I’m Jude Jamison.” He held out his hand.
Her father pulled off reflective sunglasses. “You’re the one trying to do some fast moves on our Tim.”
Obviously, there’d be no handshakes, so Jude switched his attention to May’s father—and went mute. Good God, he looked exactly like…Well, like May. Sort of. But more like…
Only that didn’t make any sense.
“No, sir,” Jude explained politely, while wild suppositions came together in an awful possibility. “Actually, I’m helping Tim.”
Flipping ashes onto Jude’s porch, her mother said, “Help him by bankrupting him?”
“No.” May tried a smile. “You’ve got it wrong. Jude only—”
Her mother lashed out. “I don’t want to hear from you. Do you think I wanted to come here today? Do you think I enjoy this crap? You dragged your brother into this god-awful mess and now I have to fix it.”
Denny sidled up next to Jude, saying in a low voice, “Un-fucking-believable.”
“Mother, you know that’s not true. If Tim hadn’t lost the money gambling—”
“He has an illness. The doctors told you so. When he drinks, he loses good judgment.”
Crossing his arms over his chest, Denny interjected, “Then he shouldn’t drink.”
May’s father redirected his disdain. “Who the hell are you?”
Before Jude could try to get a handle on things, May again thrust herself into the spotlight.
“Let’s start over with introductions.”
“It says a lot,” her father pointed out, “that we’ve never met either of these men, and yet you’re living with both of them.”
The suggestive slur staggered Jude.
“Visiting,” May corrected, taking the awful insult in stride.
Her mother snorted. “Whatever you call it, you’ve aligned yourself with them against your brother.”
Jesus, Jude thought. May’s parents were beyond horrible. They bordered on insane.
Smile slipping, May said, “Mom, Dad, this is Jude Jamison. He’s lived in Stillbrook for about a year or so now. He buys his artwork from me.”
“Makes one wonder why,” her mother sneered.
“I enjoy art,” Jude told her.
“You’re enjoying something, all right.” Jude opened his mouth, but May quickly said, “And this is Denny Zip, a close friend of Jude’s.”
Denny nodded. “Not quite a pleasure, but—” Jude elbowed him.
“Jude, Denny, this is my father, Stuart, and my mother, Olympia.” Trying to play the good hostess, May stepped aside and indicated the door. “Why don’t we all go in and get comfortable? We can discuss everything over coffee, and maybe clear up some—”
“Tim isn’t signing your goddamn papers,” her father said, “so you can just forget that.”
Jude took evil delight in saying, “He already did.” Wearing the impersonal, blank mask he’d perfected for necessary confrontations, Jude expounded on that, to make sure there’d be no misunderstandings. “The terms of repayment are spelled out. My banker notarized everything. It’s official.”
“You bastard,” her mother hissed, and she threw down the burning butt of her cigarette without regard to where it landed, or the damage it might do.
Jude stared at it, watching it burn, knowing it’d leave a mark. Gasping, May started to bend to get it, but Jude caught her upper arm and held her still. He’d let the whole damn house burn down before he’d let May retrieve that butt.
“Don’t you have enough money?” Olympia con tinued, and with every accusatory word, she further revealed herself as a crude, uncouth, and fanatical person. That she had birthed and raised May sickened Jude. “How dare you take advantage of poor Tim that way? How greedy and conniving do you have to be?”
May had been trembling beside him, but she suddenly went rigid.
Only for her did Jude keep from lashing out. “Understand, Olympia, I don’t want your son’s money, and I don’t want to take advantage of him. He put himself in this fix. My only involvement is to assist him with buying himself out of the immediate trouble.”
Stuart laughed. “By stealing the car lot from those of us who worked damned hard to build it?”
“I neither want nor need your car lot.” Jude transferred his attention to the male half of the dreadful duo, and again, the dark eyes and similarity of features struck him. “As long as Tim repays the loan as stipulated in the contract, there won’t be a problem. I can promise you that the terms for repayment aren’t unreasonable and shouldn’t cause Tim any hardship.”
“Fancy words to mask your greed.”
“I made the loan official in the hope that paying the money back will teach Tim responsibility. If he learns from mistakes, he won’t keep making the same ones.”
“Don’t preach to me about responsibility! Just because you bought yourself a not-guilty verdict doesn’t change who and what you are.” May’s father uttered that dig with a curled lip and an expression of loathing that detracted from his GQ image. “I don’t want Tim anywhere near the likes of you.”
That gibe infuriated Jude, leaving him at a loss as to how to deal with the situation. If these people weren’t May’s parents, he’d dismiss them from his thoughts and have them thrown off his property. But he cared for May. From the beginning he’d wanted to protect her.
Now he realized she needed protection most from those who should have loved her.
“How dare you.”
Everyone started at the quiet ferocity of the words, no more than a whisper, but infused with so much anger that they cracked like a whip.
Jude looked down at May, appalled to realize the words had come from her. All color had leeched from her face. Her lips were pale and trembling, her eyes glassy behind her glasses. Deep breaths had her chest heaving.
Oh God. Intent on shielding her, Jude tried to block her with his body. “May—”
Lips barely moving, eyes glued to her father, she held him aside. “It’s all right, Jude.” To her parents, she said, “Both of you should be thanking him, not insulting him.”
“Thank him for trying to steal the car lot?”
“You can’t really be that stupid.”
Her mother choked. “How dare you—”
“Jude could buy ten car lots more lucrative than ours.”
“Not ours, missy. You have no part of the lot.” Her mother delivered that reminder with grotesque glee.
“You think I should care?”
May didn’t raise her voice. She spoke so calmly that it scared Jude, and he took her hand, only to find her fingers cold.
“I haven’t lost much, not with the way Tim’s run it into the ground. Instead of coming here with laughable accusations, you should be checking on him, supervising what he does.”
Her father shouted, “At least he tries!”
“If you actually cared about him at all, you’d help him to grow up. Denny and Jude have shown more genuine, constructive concern for him in two days than either of you have in his lifetime.”
Her mother’s face, ravaged by alcohol and nicotine abuse, turned florid. “You little bitch. This is how you treat your family?”
Jude’s fragile tether on his temper snapped. “Now, wait just a minute.”
May jerked her head around to look him in the eyes. “Stay. Out. Of. This.”
Taken aback by her desperate vehemence, unsure if she reacted to a sense of family loyalty or to a need to deal with the situation on her own, he clamped his mouth shut.
May nodded, then again faced her parents. She separated herself from Jude by taking a small step forward.
“Someone attacked Tim because of money he accepted while gambling. Not a little money. Fifty thousand dollars.”
“That’s absurd,” her father blustered.
“Yes, it is. Tim didn’t borrow from a reputable bank. He borrowed from someone willing to kill to get the money back. Jude not only covered his debt, but took him into his home to protect him until the mess could be sorted out.”
“And conveniently ended up with signed loan papers.”
“So? He owes Tim nothing. He certainly doesn’t owe you. Would you give away fifty thousand dollars? If it wasn’t for Jude’s generosity, Tim might’ve been murdered for his stupidity.”
“We’d have handled it somehow,” her father claimed.
“I’m glad to hear that.” May still stood like a soldier, her arms rigid at her sides, her feet together, her shoulders back. “Then handle it now. Dredge up fifty grand, pay Jude back, and he can tear up the loan papers.”
Her mother’s eyes narrowed. “Just like that, huh? You tell him to tear them up and he does? Just what the hell are you doing with him to have so much influence?”
Jude couldn’t believe Olympia’s inference. She wasn’t a natural woman, definitely not a natural mother. Sensing his rage, May reached back, took his hand, and gave him a squeeze.
“Jude would tear up the papers because the debt would be paid and he’s an honorable man.”
“He’s a murderer!”
May squeezed his fingers so tight, Jude winced.
“Get off his property.”
Again, Jude murmured, “May…”
“Right now. Leave. If you don’t, I’ll call the cops.”
“Call them,” her mother taunted. “They probably know him by name.” She pointed at Jude. “They’ll know who’s causing the problems.”
“Of course they know his name. He’s a movie star. He’s the most respected fighter in the SBC.” She glanced at Denny. “Call the cops.”
Denny said, “Uh…”
Jude said, “Not yet, Denny.”
“I’ll tell them about Tim,” May offered. “I’ll tell them that he was gambling and lost money to someone who beat him black and blue. The same people who said he’d be dead if he went to the cops.”
Her mother wanted to strike her; Jude could tell.
Had she struck May in the past? It didn’t seem implausible. The woman’s certifiable demeanor made Tim’s behavior, and May’s protectiveness toward Tim, more understandable. It also justified his desire to shield her from such ugliness.
If Olympia made so much as a single move toward May, he’d stop her and deal with the consequences later.
“Let’s go, Olympia.” Stuart took his wife’s elbow. “If he robs us blind and leaves us poor, maybe then May will be happy.”
“I’d be happy,” May whispered, a break in her voice, “if you’d even once asked how Tim is faring.”
Jude’s heart completely broke in two. He looked at the tears in May’s eyes, the difficulty she had swallowing, and hoped he’d never go through such an awful thing again for the rest of his life.
Yet these were her parents. No wonder she didn’t date. She probably figured no man would tolerate her relatives long enough to fall in love with her.
“You’ve only shown concern for the car lot,” May pointed out. “And you know what? I’m glad Jude is going to hold Tim accountable. For Tim’s sake, because I love him. Maybe with some good influence in his life, he’ll finally grow up a little. Maybe he’ll learn enough to keep himself alive. Maybe, just maybe, he’ll become a man half as wonderful as Jude.”
“You’re dead to me,” her mother said, wringing a tiny sob from May.
Jude wanted to hold her, but she walked off the porch and stepped onto the entryway to watch as her father revved the Jaguar and peeled away, leaving ugly black tire marks on the otherwise pristine drive.
“Dear God,” Denny whispered.
“Yeah.” Wanting so many things, all of them centered on May, Jude walked up behind her. He wrapped his arms tight around her, holding her close and rocking her side to side. “I’m so sorry, honey.”
“Don’t be.” The gates opened, and the Jaguar disappeared from sight. “I’ve always been dead to them. This is nothing new.”
Jude hesitated, wishing he had the right words, a solution to offer. “Want me to tear up the loan papers?”
Shock rippled through May. She twisted to stare at him.
“I would, you know.” He framed her face in his hands, devastated to see her ravaged expression, the hurt that clouded her eyes. “Whatever you want, May, tell me. It’s yours.”
The tears spilled over, ripping him apart, and then she gave a shaky laugh. She flung herself into his arms and squeezed him. Against his chest, she said, “Keep the loan. Make Tim pay. And most of all—please, please don’t ever change.”
Damn it. Much more of that and he’d be weeping like a woman, too. He returned her hug, tight enough to make her gasp. Emotion overwhelmed him, distorting his sense of caution. He thrust her an arm’s length away, ready to make promises of profound portions. “May, I—”
His cell phone rang, giving him a moment of sanity. He narrowed his eyes, debated with himself, then cursed. “Shit. I have to take this.”
May wiped her eyes and smiled. “It’s okay. I’m okay. Don’t worry.”
Very deflated, but also a little relieved by the interruption, Jude dug the phone from his pocket and connected the call. “Hello?”
“We’ve got some trouble.”
Hearing from Lyle Elliott, the private detective he’d hired to keep an eye on Tim, was something Jude didn’t need. “What’s going on?”
As Lyle explained the situation, May watched Jude and reacted to his darkening scowl. “Jude?”
Jude asked, “Where’s he at?” and “How long?” and then, “Son of a bitch. Hang on.” With no time to waste, he turned and started for the house in a trot. “Denny!”
Denny, who’d been lounging against the column, smiling toward them, straightened. “What’s wrong?”
“Bring a car around.” Taking the front steps two at a time, Jude bounded up and onto the porch. “Tim’s under the old trestle bridge on that stretch of road that heads north.”
“Jesus,” Denny said, and as usual, he caught on without further detail. “Is anyone else there yet?”
May didn’t understand. “What are you two talking about? Why is Tim under the bridge? There’s nothing out there except some abandoned trailers and a dry creek.”
“He’s alone right now.” Deciding he’d have to trust in May’s strength, regardless of all she’d just been through, Jude spelled it out. “Tim’s out there waiting—probably for Elton and his men to meet him there.”
“What?” She shook her head. “No, even Tim couldn’t be that stupid.”
“Of course he’s that stupid. That’s why I’ve had Lyle Elliott discreetly watching the house with instructions to stay with Tim if he tried to leave. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have let him storm off today after signing the loan papers. It’s still too risky.”
“But Tim didn’t seem to think so.” She covered her mouth with a hand. “Oh God. He’s…He’s probably trying to make a deal with Elton.”
“He’s not alone, May. Lyle’s keeping an eye on things.” Jude cupped the back of her head and pressed a kiss to her brow. “Tim will be okay,” he promised her. And as he put the phone back to his ear, he prayed he was right.