Xavier (Men of Forbidden Temptation Book 5)

Chapter 11

Momand I sit down in our seats on opposite sides of the podium where Dad is standing. This is the same seat that I’ve grown accustomed to taking during every single town meeting.

My seat is to the right of Dad, while Mom’s seat is on his left side. The entire town expects Mom and me to be Dad’s right and left hand women, so to speak, so this is where we sit.

Today’s crowd is enormous, possibly the largest we’ve had in years.

That can mean there’s a ton of damage that needs to be repaired, or it could mean there’s an abundance of people willing to help wherever is needed.

I hope it’s the latter of the two, especially with my mind on other things right now.

Dad clears his throat to get everyone’s attention. All conversations end as every pair of eyes turns toward us.

“Good afternoon, everyone. I hope everyone stayed safe during the storm. I did my first preliminary trip around the island a little bit ago, and I’m happy to say that overall, Scarlett Island has been blessed.”

Several people clap and cheer for him as he pauses to gaze around the crowd.

He gives everyone a friendly smile before continuing.

“We have some houses with roofs destroyed and missing, and several large trees are down. It will take a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, but I know we will, once again, come together to help our fellow community members.”

The claps and cheers cause Dad to pause his speech once again. This is usually how post storm meetings go.

Dad talks. People cheer.

The entire town loves him and the way he always puts the community first.

I’m glad I moved back home. The sense of community was missing in the big city.

It feels amazing to be a part of such a loving and tight-knit community where, for the most part, everyone looks out for one another.

At least it used to be that way before more people moved to town. Now, it’s getting to the point where we don’t really know one another and murders are happening in broad daylight.

With another enormous grin, Dad continues. “With the sun shining brightly above us, I am hopeful about the future of our town. I’m hopeful that we will continue to prosper and thrive as a community. And I’m hopeful that power will come back on today.”

Whoa. We’ve never had power turned on so fast after a hurricane before. Did Dad find out while he was driving around town?

His smile disappears as his expression turns serious. His eyes narrow slightly as he waits for silence to wash over the crowd.

“On a separate note, I want to give my praise to my daughter, Brianna, for being incredibly heroic. Two days ago, she witnessed a break in and an altercation that ended up with a man being murdered in cold blood.”

I feel sick. My stomach churns and threatens to expel my croissant from earlier.

Why would Dad bring this up now? Doesn’t he usually wait until the police have more information before having a press release? Why is today different?

“The murderer and his accomplice are still at large. I don’t know if they stayed in town to weather the storm or if they left before the storm hit. I promise you, the police department is working around the clock to find them and bring the killers to justice.”

Gossip immediately starts up as soon as Dad stops speaking.

Of course, they are gossiping about the murder. This is the juiciest bit of information they’ve heard since my breakup with Austin, and even then, this is better.

Dad might think the town will help find the two men, but they won’t. This town is full of nothing but a bunch of gossipers.

Sure, they might look out for one another, but when it comes down to serious crime, they all scamper away scared.

Dad continues to release details about the murder, including the vehicle the men were driving.

To be honest, I’m proud of daddy for not giving in to the police’s demand to stay silent about the murder. People need to know what happened, so they can better prepare themselves in case they encounter the men.

Dad has always been open and honest with Scarlett Island’s residents. That’s just one reason they love him.

Movement in the crowd gets my attention. My heart races, thinking it could be the killers, but it’s only Xavier.

My heart leaps in my chest, and my mind immediately registers disgust.

He’s rugged and manly, but he’s also grumpy and unhinged. I heard through the gossip vine about the bar fight that he had started.

It was incredibly reckless, not to mention irresponsible. His life is very different from my boring and predictable life.

My heart shouldn’t race when I think of him. My stomach shouldn’t fill with butterflies when I see him. And my pussy shouldn’t throb when he looks at me with his dark gaze.

But it does.

Wanting to be near him feels kind of dangerous, like doing constant loops on a roller coaster. It’s thrilling, exciting, and turns me on. And for some reason, I want more of it, but I know I shouldn’t.

The few talks I’ve had with him over the past two days have been unexpected. Fun even.

We might not have told each other secrets, but he’s slowly revealed tiny bits and pieces of who he is.

He was able to get me talking about myself and even my relationship with Austin.

My gaze locks onto Xavier as he walks through the crowd toward a man.

They have a short but intense looking conversation. There are no smiles involved at all. Just quick whispers between the two men.

Who is this mystery man Xavier is talking to? A friend?

I’ve seen this man in town once or twice before, but I can’t remember his name. He’s married to a teacher at the local high school, that much I remember, but I’ve never actually met him before.

After a few moments, Xavier and the man break apart and head toward the outskirts of the crowd.

What is going on? Why are they acting suspicious all of a sudden?

Xavier has been the center of everything bad that’s happened to me this week, except for my breakup.

Xavier was there on the beach the night of the bonfire. The night that someone tried to kidnap me. He warned me it wasn’t safe to be alone.

How did he know?

Xavier was there almost immediately after the shooting. He knew I was inside the restaurant. He said it was safe for me to come out.

How did he know I was inside? How did he know it was safe for me to come out of my hiding spot?

He said he needed me to be okay. Why? Why did he need me to be okay?

All these questions swirl around in my mind, making me dizzy. I need these questions to be answered.

I need to know what Xavier knows about all of this and why he always seems to be in the right place at the right time.

That man is always shrouded in mystery. From his abrupt arrival to town, to his every movement.

My gaze roams over the crowd trying to find him, but he’s lost in a sea of people.

I push all thoughts and questions of Xavier to the back of my mind and try to focus on what Dad is saying.

He’s moved on from the murder and is now discussing storm clean up.

“Do we have any other dire situations that need to be handled first besides getting tarps on the roofs that need them and trees cut up?”

No one speaks for several moments. I narrow my eyebrows and gaze at the crowd. Someone must need help. There’s no way we got hit with a category three hurricane and no one needs help cleaning up or repairing the damage.

I stand up and make my way to the podium. Dad moves over to allow me to stand behind the podium.

“Don’t be afraid to ask for help. We are all here for one another. As a reminder, we have cases of water inside town hall for residents. If you need food, a bed, or clothing, please let us know. We want to help out anyway that we can.”

An older woman raises her hand. “The bottom floor of my house flooded, so I could use a hand removing all of my furniture before it molds.”

Dad scoots closer to me and whispers, “Thank you. You’re a natural.”

I sit back down and let him address the newest issue.

He clears his throat. “Where do you live?”

The woman glances around before saying, “I live near the old town hall. Down by the abandoned warehouses. We got hit harder down there and the roads are still flooded.”

Dad sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. “Alright. Do we have any volunteers that have trucks and can help her once the water has receded enough to get in and out safely?”

Several business owners raise their hands and offer their services. A construction contractor offers to cut out the baseboards and drywall to prevent mold from forming.

The woman thanks them with tears in her eyes.

This is what I love to see. The community coming together to help out someone in need.

We didn’t have this in the big city.

Neighbors weren’t friendly. They didn’t greet you when they saw you in the mornings or in the afternoons.

They didn’t offer to keep an eye on your place while you worked late into the night. They didn’t want to accept freshly baked goods or make small talk to get to know you.

It’s the complete opposite down here. Everyone is welcoming and friendly. It’s like a breath of fresh air.

Commotion to my left gets my attention a second before I see the sun shining off the end of the gun barrel.

Time seems to slow as I glance up and meet the gaze of the man that shot and killed Everett.

“Gun!” I yell a second before the blast of the gunshot sounds through the air.

I drop to the ground and crawl over toward Mom and Dad as screams fill the air.

It all seems to happen too fast. Ringing in my ears prevents me from hearing what’s actually going on.

I finally get over to Dad and he pulls us into his arms, shielding us from the potential danger.

I close my eyes and pray they shot no one. I don’t want to be a witness to another murder.

Strong arms wrap themselves around my upper arm and pull me away from Dad.

My gaze locks with Dad’s, but he doesn’t seem surprised or mad that I’m being taken from him.

In fact, he nods.

I try to fight my way free, but the grip tightens. It hurts and I know there’s going to be a bruise, but I continue to try to fight.

“Brianna, stop fighting. I’m only trying to keep you safe.” Xavier’s deep, sexy voice pushes past the ringing in my ear.

My brain finally registers who’s got a tight grip on my arm, and my body immediately relaxes in his arms.

He pulls me behind the row of bushes that line the building, giving us privacy and protection from the shooter.

“Shh, it’s okay.” Xavier whispers in my ear.

What is he talking about?

A puppy whimpers nearby and the sound breaks my heart. “I need to help the puppy. It’s probably lost and hungry from the storm.”

“Brianna, there isn’t a puppy around here.” His voice is soft and gentle, like he’s trying to break some sort of news to me.

Looking down at my body, I am surprised to see my hands and legs shaking.

Xavier runs his hand through my hair. It feels strange, like I’m having an out-of-body moment. “It’s okay. I got you. You’re safe here.”

It takes me several long moments to realize the whimpering is coming from me.

There is no puppy. I’m the one that sounds so scared. I close my eyes, not wanting to face reality.

Xavier’s soft whisper tickles my ear. “I need to check to see if you are alright. I need to make sure they did not hit you.”

He lifts each of my arms and checks my front and back before sighing. “You’re okay. You weren’t hit, but we need to check on everyone else.”

I shake my head. I don’t want to get up. I don’t want to see another lifeless body bleeding out in front of my eyes.

I can’t see another person hurt.

I just want to stay here in Xavier’s comforting arms and pretend nothing bad has happened this week.