Chapter 6
6
HOPE
“ W hat is this thing? Grave Digger’s grandfather?” And were those flames painted on the hood?
“It’s borrowed,” Vaughn said in a flat tone.
The old pickup was jacked up so high the door handle sat in line with my eyes. I almost needed a stepladder to get inside.
Vaughn didn’t. He climbed in on those long muscular legs with ease.
With a grunt and a puff, I hauled myself into the passenger seat and slammed the door. “This thing is completely impractical.”
He cast me an unimpressed look. “Getting in would be easier if you weren’t so short.”
Don’t take the bait. Don’t take the bait.
I held my tongue for as long as I could, which turned out to be roughly two seconds. “I’m not short. The average height for Mexican women is five foot two, and I’m taller than that.” By a whole inch.
He turned the key, and the truck started. “Sounds to me like you’re a little sensitive about it.”
“Like being tall is such a great thing.” I rolled my eyes.
“It’s worked out well for me.”
“Do you know what I hate about tall guys? I mean, aside from statistically getting better jobs and making more money than everyone else?” I angled my body to face him.
He rolled down his window and leaned his elbow on the sill. “This should be good.”
“You don’t even need a decent personality to get by in life. Your pickup lines can be as boneheaded as What’s up? ”—I attempted a deep, manly voice—“and some vapid dimwit will swoon all over you just because you’re breathing air with less oxygen and can reach stuff on a high shelf. Give me a short king any day.”
He cast me an amused look. “A short king?”
“They’re more loyal, appreciative, and will treat you like a queen.” I listed the qualities off using my fingers. “Don’t argue with me. It’s science.”
“To each their own, but I like being big.” Grim shifted position, casually placing a tattooed hand high on his upper thigh and squeezing. “Everywhere.”
Holy hell. Why was that so hot?
It’s me. I’m the swooning dimwit.
I cursed my traitorous eyes for glancing across to see if he was bluffing about the size of his manhood. Thankfully, it was too dark to tell one way or the other.
I redirected my gaze out the window. “Only a man with a small dick would say something like that.”
“Is that so?” His tone dripped with sarcasm.
“Why are we still sitting here? Let’s go.” I gestured to the quiet street.
“You haven’t buckled up.”
“I only live a couple of miles out of town.”
He made a face like his last nerve had stretched thin and if it snapped, Armageddon would be unleashed. I thought Grim was about to argue with me, but he didn’t. Instead, he reached across me for the seat belt and clicked it into place.
He stayed close, his body heat and tobacco scent invading my personal space and sending a shiver of delight up my spine. “You ride in my car, or any car for that matter, you buckle up. Got it?”
I fidgeted in my seat, nervous and more than a little turned on by his sudden intensity. “Geez. Okay, Dad .”
A rumbling noise came from deep within his chest, and he gave me an even more forceful don’t test me glare. “Let me make this clear, Gatita. If you keep acting like a brat, I’m going to treat you like one. And if you think I won’t enjoy every moment of disciplining you, you’re wrong.”
I returned his stare with what I hoped was an equally menacing one. “Then let me make this clear to you, Grim. You might be used to people doing whatever you say, but you don’t intimidate me. And if you even think about laying a hand on me, I’ll punch you in the throat.” I pointed down the street. “That way. Drive.”
A muscle in his jaw flexed, and his nostrils flared with the measured breath he exhaled. Eventually, he shifted into gear and pulled onto the street.
An uncomfortable silence accompanied the short journey to the house I shared with Daphne, so I was relieved when Vaughn turned off the main road onto our long dirt driveway.
He parked and hopped out to retrieve my bike. The climb down from the truck was almost as difficult as getting in, and I landed a little awkwardly.
Vaughn passed me the bike and cast his eyes over the house. It was little more than a beach shack with a vegetable patch on one side and a long row of cages on the other. A few of the dogs barked at our arrival. I hoped we didn’t wake Daphne.
“We run a rescue for strays,” I said to explain the noisy welcoming committee. “Daphne patches up their injuries, and I train them.”
“I thought you said you live with a doctor.”
“She used to be. It’s a long story, but she prefers working with animals nowadays.” Keeping one hand on the bike, I adjusted the long strap of my purse across my body. “Where will you go now?” There were few accommodation options available in the village, and none of them would accept guests at this hour.
He hooked a thumb over his shoulder. “I’m going to head back to the restaurant and clean up.”
He was going to what?
“It can wait until tomorrow,” I said. “Besides, it’s locked up.”
“That won’t be a problem.”
Why was I not surprised?
“You don’t know where the cleaning equipment is. I’ll go in early and?—”
“Gatita, I can find a mop and bucket. You’ve had a hell of a night. Get some rest, all right?”
I frowned. “It’s confusing when you’re nice to me.”
“I’m never nice. I’m only taking care of the mess now because I don’t want your boss showing up early and finding the restaurant looking like a murder scene. The fewer people who know what went down, the better.”
“I’ll have to tell Dee. I don’t want to lie to her about the danger we’re in.” Movement from inside the house caught my attention. “And she’s looking through the curtains at us right now, so there’re bound to be questions.” I waved toward the shock of curly flame-red hair by the front window to let Daphne know I was okay. It wasn’t every day I got dropped off by a strange man in a truck that looked like a Monster Jam relic.
Vaughn delivered Dee a critical glance and frowned. “Just tell her to keep it between the two of you.”
“She will. She’s good with secrets.” My hands tightened on the bike’s handlebars. Please don’t ask me what those secrets are . “I’d better go,” I said quickly. “Thanks again for tonight.”
Vaughn grunted, climbed back into the truck, and slammed the heavy door, but he didn’t drive away.
Eyeing me through the open window, he lifted his brows and gestured toward the house. “This is the part where you walk to the door and go inside.”
It took me a moment to realize he wouldn’t leave until I was safely in the house. Vaughn’s surprising bout of chivalrousness warmed my chest, even if it was a little over-the-top. Our nearest neighbors were a half mile away. There was no one around apart from Daphne and the dogs.
I tilted my head. “Should I be concerned about the wannabes coming back tonight?”
Surely they were on their way to the nearest ER for treatment.
He leaned forward and rested his brawny forearm on the steering wheel. “You let me worry about them. And Hope?”
“Yeah?”
“Make sure to lock up.”
“I will,” I replied, wondering how my neck didn’t ache from the constant whiplash this man gave me. How could someone be such an ass one moment, then considerate and protective the next? I didn’t know what to make of him. “Okay. Bye, then.”
Vaughn nodded and held my stare. It might’ve been my imagination, but I could’ve sworn he seemed as reluctant to leave as I was to go inside. Which was absurd. Clearly, we didn’t get along and had no reason to see each other again. So why did it feel wrong to turn my back on him and walk away for good?
As though the spell had broken, Vaughn blinked and shifted his gaze to the dash. “Go on, now. I haven’t got all night.”
Ass .
His gruff response provided the timely reminder that I didn’t need this man in my life, so I pushed the bike to the front of the house and leaned it against a wall. The porch light came on, and Daphne opened the door just as I climbed the stairs. She wore a long pink nightshirt that read I’m good in bed . My mastiff cross, Titan, squeezed past Daphne’s legs to greet me while a few of the other house dogs sniffed my shoes and clothes.
Dee remained focused over my shoulder, giving Vaughn the stink eye with her lip raised in a sneer. There was nothing unusual about her expression. Despite having a heart of gold, Daphne was the least trusting person I knew and looked at almost everyone with cynicism.
“You’re home late,” she grumbled.
“It’s a long story.” I closed the door and fastened the lock on the handle as well as the dead bolt.
Daphne nodded toward Vaughn’s truck. “Who’s the prince of darkness?”
“That’s an even longer story.” I pulled back the curtains in the living room and made sure the window was secure just as Vaughn’s truck revved and headed down the driveway. I watched a cloud of dust swallow up his taillights and ignored the heaviness in my chest that felt oddly like disappointment.
Using her cane for support, Dee hobbled toward the kitchen. “I’m up now, so you may as well tell me what’s going on. I’m assuming there’s a good reason you’re checking all the locks.”
I dumped my purse on the counter and sat at the breakfast bar. Daphne took milk from the refrigerator, poured it into a saucepan, and lit the gas burner. Hot cocoa and a chat was a ritual of ours when I came home from work. Daphne would fill me in on any issues with the dogs, and I’d give her the gossip from town. This was the first time in a week we’d had a chance to catch up in the evening. Daphne had been hitting the hay early because her MS had been knocking her around. She’d improved these last few days, though, relying on her cane less and being more upbeat, but she still tired easily.
Titan rested his chin on my lap for a pat. “There was trouble at the restaurant. Four cartel members came in right before closing. I tried to get them to leave. It didn’t end well.”
Daphne’s eyes shot to mine. “Did they recognize you?”
“No. They were low-level.” I took my phone out of my purse and plugged it into the charging cable in the wall. “Vaughn moved them along.”
To avoid Daphne fussing over me, I chose not to mention the knock to my head. I didn’t have a concussion, and I knew this because she’d taught me the symptoms. Not only did I help Daphne with the dogs when they needed treatment but I was also her assistant when people from the village turned up on our doorstep needing medical attention.
Daphne placed the saucepan over the burner, adding cocoa powder and sugar. “Vaughn? Is that who dropped you off?”
“Yeah.”
“And when you say he moved them along?—”
“I mean he beat the shit out of all four of them, and I’m pretty sure that was his version of showing restraint.”
She arched one brow, probably thinking the same thing as me. What kind of madman took on four lowlifes and kicked their asses?
A dangerous one. That was who.
“They’ll be back,” she said.
“Vaughn hopes he hurt their egos enough that they won’t return. Well, not tonight, anyway, but he thinks those guys were at Javi’s because the cartel plans on gaining control of the village in the near future.”
A few years before I’d arrived in Playa de la Palmera, a different cartel had tried to weasel their operations into the village. The townsfolk had armed themselves, surrounded the narcos, and run them out of town. The residents here weren’t easily intimidated by bullies.
“They can try.” Daphne folded her arms. “What else do we know about your new friend? Aside from him having a death wish.”
I snorted. “He’s not my friend. That man is bossy, rude, and the most frustrating person I’ve ever met.”
“Except he just saved your ass and made sure you got home safely.”
I threw my hands up. “He went through my purse and called me a pain in the ass.”
Daphne laughed. “Girl, sometimes, you are a pain in the ass.” She poured the hot cocoa into mugs and passed me one. “He’s no tourist. What’s he doing in Playa de la Palmera?”
I took a sip and shrugged. “Said he was passing through.”
“Sounds like bad-guy code for If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you .”
“You’re laying it on a little thick, aren’t you?” Although I had wondered about his evasive answer at the time.
She blew across the steaming surface of her cocoa. “He’s hiding something.”
“Aren’t we all?”