Stone’s Throw to Unity (Hearts and High Stakes #6)

Chapter 1

ALEX

Alex slid his eyes closed, a soft sigh escaping him as he sipped his coffee and twisted the blinds shut so no prying eyes could snap an unwanted photo of him.

The whirlwind events of the past few days had meant a host of media camped outside his Hamptons home, some of them even wandering down to the beach in an attempt to catch a glimpse of the couple who had been the talk of the town and beyond.

His home used to be a sanctuary, but that had been before the media descended like vultures.

The walls were a soothing shade of cream, with large windows that let in the soft morning light, offering a breathtaking view of the ocean beyond.

The sound of waves crashing against the shore was a constant, calming backdrop, a reminder of the world outside their bubble of chaos.

Alex glanced out at the pool, its surface shimmering under the early sun.

It was a stark contrast to the turmoil inside him—a beautiful, serene scene that belied the storm brewing in their lives.

The house had always been their peaceful escape.

Now, it felt more like a fortress under siege, with reporters lurking around every corner, waiting to pounce.

Ava’s surprise visit to her own funeral had sent tongues wagging and thrust them into the middle of the media spotlight as questions he didn’t want to answer were constantly tossed their way.

He couldn’t shake the image of Ava standing there, alive and well, as the mourners gasped in shock.

He had been overwhelmed with relief, but underneath that relief was a gnawing fear that hadn’t left him since.

She had come so close to being taken from him for good, and the thought haunted him in every quiet moment.

Warm hands slid around his midriff as he stood in the darkened room, and he felt Ava press against his back. “Are you enjoying your quiet time in the dark, Ace?”

“I’m enjoying the reporters not being able to take a picture of me while I try to drink my morning coffee,” he answered as he twisted to face her.

She glanced over his shoulder, her arms still around him. “Still? Hasn’t there been anything else newsworthy yet?”

“Not as newsworthy as one of the Hamptons most prominent citizens resurrecting herself at her own funeral.” Alex shook his head. “Avs, your timing stinks.”

She heaved a sigh. “Weren’t you happy to see me?”

“Of course, I was.” Alex set his coffee down on the desk and pulled her closer. “I’m always happy to see you. But I wasn’t expecting you to come strolling down the aisle larger than life.”

“You have to admit, it fits my style.” She grinned at him.

“It did, yeah. But still…kind of threw me.”

“Sorry,” she answered with a peck on his lips before she let go of him, grabbing his coffee mug and taking a sip. “I didn’t expect The Board to send an assassin after Chris nor that I’d be in a battle with him in the church’s bell tower.”

“Or that you’d owe your life to Sebastian Bancroft…again.” Alex heaved a sigh as the man flitted across his mind. He didn’t like the guy, didn’t trust the guy, and most importantly, hated how he flirted with Ava constantly.

“Yeah, he’s come through for us more than once. But we did save his life, too, and we are a key part of his plan to bring down The Board. So, we’re sort of even.”

Alex tugged the coffee cup from Ava’s hands to take another sip. “Yeah, well, I don’t like him.”

“I know,” she said, sliding an arm around his waist and leaning her head on his shoulder. “I get it, Ace, I do. But we need him right now.”

“Why can’t the people we work with hate us?”

Ava craned her neck to glance up at him with a confused chuckle. “What?”

“We literally have to work with him and now stupid Chris. Why don’t we invite a few more ex-boyfriends of yours into the mix and work with them too? It’s like the whole world is out to ruin our relationship.”

Ava offered him an amused glance as she pulled him closer. “No one is going to ruin anything, Alex. I love you, and I’m committed to you.”

Alex scrubbed his face before he nodded. “I know. And I trust you. I just…don’t trust Bad Boy Bancroft and his brand of business. Am I literally the only one who suspects that he is behind the plane bombing?”

“Nope,” Kyle said as he flicked on the lights and walked into the room, holding his mug labeled with his nickname, “Doc.” “I totally think Biceps Bancroft could have set that up.”

“Why would he do that?” Ava asked.

“Are you kidding me?” Alex said. “Ava…”

“Yeah, Ava, for real. Get with it. He’s been leaving you roses forever. And then, he gets you all alone at this creepy cabin and no one can know you’re alive.”

“You guys are reading way too much into this. Sebastian didn’t bomb a plane and kill four innocent people just to get some alone time with me.”

“Ava, he was a Board member for a long time. This is probably normal for them.”

“I’m pretty sure their nefarious deeds are for profit and control, not dating.”

Alex lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “Just saying that I don’t like the guy, and I wish he didn’t like you.”

“I don’t care as long as he can help us take The Board down. I’ve had enough of this upheaval. Between the kidnappings and the attempted murders, I’m finished.” Ava crossed her arms, peering through the blinds at the photographer on the beach, scanning their windows for one of them to appear.

“So, on that note,” Kyle said, shifting the conversation, “I talked to the fam again about leaving, but Julia is kind of being insistent, and when Julia gets insistent, there’s no changing her mind.

” He frowned slightly, knowing how stubborn his stepmother could be.

“So, we’re kind of stuck with the Harringtons until this is over. ”

Ava nodded, understanding the implications. “That’s fine. I think we can use the help. There’s no way we can leave the house without being surrounded by reporters, but… maybe Julia can help us with that.”

“Julia’s pretty decent with the press,” Kyle chimed in, offering a shrug. “She totally handled all of Dad’s misdeeds with ease. Even had people liking him when he was accused of murder.”

“That’s not what I had in mind,” Ava clarified, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “Although Sierra’s a media shark, right? Maybe she should handle our press releases.”

Kyle grinned. “Oh, boy, Sierra will eat reporters alive, yeah. You could totally put her on that. So, Julia’s out for that job?”

“Exactly,” Ava confirmed. “I want Julia to pretend to be me and lead reporters on a wild goose chase while we make a clean getaway to the Beach Comber.”

Alex let his head fall back between his shoulder blades. “Ugh, we have to literally sneak out of our own house and not even for anything cool like an arcade.”

“There’s a creepy old arcade at the Comber,” Ava said. “Maybe you could hang out there while we talk.”

Alex offered her a fake laugh as he let his arm fall around her shoulders. “Ava, you’re so hysterical. No. I’ve got to be there to stake my claim.”

She raised her eyebrows, an amused expression on her lips. “Stake your claim? Are you serious? I’m not a piece of land.”

“Okay, that was caveman-ish of me, but you get what I’m saying. I need to be there so Chris and Sebastian know I’m still around.”

Ava squeezed his side. “I won’t let them forget. Now, we need a plan to get out of this house. Sebastian has already texted me five times this morning. He’s not happy with the delay.”

“Umm, has he seen the throng of reporters outside? Does he want us to lead them right to his hiding spot?” Alex asked with a fling of his hand in the air.

“I’ve told him that. He doesn’t care. But we do need to discuss next steps. So…we put Julia in a blonde wig, we send her out to drive around for a bit. The three of us escape down the beach.”

“That sounds like a plan. Oh, and we ask Sierra to handle the media,” Kyle said with a nod and a grin. “They’re all having breakfast. Let’s go tell them the plan.”

Alex screwed up his face. “Why are you so excited?”

“Because I’m in the inner circle on this.

Usually, the plan was like…Kyle can do the stupid part, and the three of them were the inner circle.

Right? Like, obviously Dad and Julia are close.

And Sierra is the chosen child. And then there’s me.

Always on the outs.” Kyle grinned at them, stretching his arms to the side.

“But this time…I’m the chosen one. I’m on the team.

And they are just doing the stupid part. ”

“That’s an awesome reason to be excited, Doc. Let’s go tell them,” Ava said.

They left the upstairs office behind, making their way to the breakfast table overlooking the pool and ocean beyond. Julia smiled at them before she shot a worried glance over her shoulder. “Uh, I think there was just a reporter out there trying for some photographs.”

“Yeah, Big Mike got him,” Alex said. “Thanks.”

“So, what’s the plan?” Sierra asked. “I feel like this is a disaster of epic proportions, the media is getting away from you, and you two are just sitting doing nothing.”

Ava screwed up her face at the girl, and Sierra shot her a shocked look. “Have you seen the news?”

Alex shifted his weight, pulling Ava closer. “Uh, we were busy being happy that Ava was home.”

Sierra stared at him with an unimpressed expression before rolling her eyes.

“Well, some of us have a pulse on this crisis. Look…” She brandished her phone, swiping to show them several headlines.

“Heiress Hoax. Death Becomes Her. Grave Mistake. And my personal favorite, Peek-a-Boo, Ava’s not Through. ”

She arched an eyebrow at them with a scoff. “Do you even have a statement prepared for this?”

Alex swallowed hard as he wrinkled his nose. “We were hoping you would do that?”

Sierra poked a manicured nail at her chest. “Me? You couldn’t pick anyone better. I would be the best to handle this crisis. I’ll handle it so well, Ava will look like a saint when I’m finished. I’ve already drafted six different responses.”

“Good,” Ava said with a nod. “Use whatever you think is best. I trust you completely.”

“Uhh, that may not be a wise idea,” Grant answered with a shake of his head.

“Daddy! What are saying? I am a media savant. I can turn this around in two press conferences easily. I saved your reputation, didn’t I?”

“Actually, I think the credit for that goes to Julia,” he answered.

Sierra shot him an icy glance. “Julia is here because I found her, duh. Now, Alex, Ava, you are doing the right thing leaving your reputations in my hands. I will have this cleared up in no time.”

“Good,” Ava said. “The other thing we need is a little distraction so we can make a discreet escape. We really need to talk to Sebastian and Chris.”

Julia frowned. “I’m not sure that’s going to happen. The media is crawling all over this place.”

“That’s why we need you to play Ava,” Alex said, his fingers tightening around Ava’s shoulder.

Julia’s eyes widened as she lowered her chin. “Me? You want me to play Ava? I’m not sure I have the chops to do that.”

“Uh, no,” Sierra said with a shake of her head. “Julia cannot pull this off.”

“Thank you, Sierra, for that vote of confidence,” Julia said.

“You don’t have to do anything crazy, just…wear a blonde wig and some big sunglasses and take my car out. Drive around for a little while, then come back.”

“Hmm, it could work,” Sierra said, “but we have to be very choosy about where you go. We do not want someone in the media accusing you of being too blasé about this whole thing, or worse—accusing you of an affair.”

“Yeah, maybe don’t go to any hotels,” Alex said with a shrug.

Julia drummed her fingers on the table. “All right. Well, we said we’d stay and help, so I guess I’ll do it.”

“Great,” Ava said with a bob of her head. “Let’s get this going, and–”

“Wait, wait, what am I supposed to do?” Grant asked.

Alex winced as he stared at the billionaire mogul at his breakfast table. “Ummm, hang out and make phone calls and stuff?”

“No, I want in. I need a part.”

“You don’t get a part, Dad. You’re not a media guru, you can’t play Ava, and you’re not in the inner circle. I’m in the inner circle. I have a nickname.”

“Okay, um,” Ava suggested with a shrug, “it might be a good idea to have someone with us when we go to the Beach Comber—to keep watch and make sure we get back safely.”

“What? No!” Kyle whined. “No, he can’t go with us. He’s not inner circle.”

“No, just a…look out,” Alex said with clap on the man’s shoulder.

“Perfect. Yes, I like this plan. I will be right in the thick of things. I brought my gun. This is perfect,” Grant said.

“Grant!” Julia protested. “Please do not get shot or worse.”

“All right. Everyone knows what they’re doing. Let’s get this going.”

With their plans made, they completed the final preparations, putting Julia in a long blonde wig with massive sunglasses and one of Ava’s favorite pink tracksuits before they sent her out to Ava’s pink SUV.

As the security gates opened on the driveway, the throng of reporters pressed against the car, snapping pictures and shouting for a statement.

“I will call a press conference for this afternoon as soon as Julia is home,” Sierra said just before they ducked out the door to make their way up the beach to the old Beach Comber resort where Chris and Sebastian had holed up overnight.

As they walked through the sand, Alex’s thumb absentmindedly rubbed against the back of Ava’s hand. He’d come so close to losing her, and this battle wasn’t even close to being over.

He couldn’t help but wonder how many more close calls they would have to endure. Each time she was in danger, it felt like a piece of him was being chipped away. How much more could they take before they broke?

He tightened his grip on her, as if holding her close could somehow keep her safe from the threats that lurked around every corner. But deep down, he knew that wasn’t enough. They were in too deep, and the only way out was to fight through to the end.

Whatever steps lay ahead of them could cost one or both of them their lives.

He tried to quell the storm brewing inside of him, but every instinct in him begged for him to take Ava and run.

But they couldn’t. They had to stay and fight. For better or worse.