Chapter 6
Lucy
The next morning could have felt weird. But it felt perfect to me.
I woke up snuggled in his arms, his eyes locked on me in a warm, dreamy way that made my toes curl.
Bronson.
What a man.
He’d fucked me softly. Then he’d fucked me raw.
And remnants of the exquisite memory were still with me, every time I shifted and felt one of my sore muscles.
The man fucked like a stallion.
We had a quick breakfast, then he let me out of my beach house cage, taking me on a walk on the beach as the tide pulled back from the shore.
The sand was warm underfoot, and the seabirds were already out hunting for a meal.
Bronson didn’t look like a man on duty right now.
He’d left his shirt at the house, and the sun hit him fully, highlighting his sculpted chest.
There was a scar along his left ribs, and another by his collarbone, and his back was covered in them, as though someone had taken a whip to his flesh at one point in time.
He looked real in a way that made every other man I’d ever seen fade away.
His hand found mine without either of us commenting on it, fingers lacing together as naturally as if we’d been together for years.
That simple contact sent a quiet ripple through me that was entirely out of proportion. I could see how a woman might build a life around a man like this.
“So,” I said.
He grunted.
“Last night.”
“Yeah.”
I laughed softly. “Are we going to talk about it or just acknowledge it in grunts?”
He looked at me sideways, and there was the faintest pull at the corner of his mouth.
“What do you want to say about it?”
“I don’t know. That it happened. That it was…” I searched for the right word, then gave up, “really good.”
“It was,” he agreed, and the simplicity of it somehow meant more than an elaborate compliment would have.
“I, um, I wouldn’t mind if it kept happening.”
His grip tightened, sending sparks through me.
Then his posture shifted, like a question had been answered that he’d never asked.
“That works for me,” he rumbled.
And I didn’t need more than that. Not right now.
Bronson was a man of few words.
It made sense that this is how he would approach something as life-altering as what had happened last night.
There was a quiet ease to him that hadn’t been there before.
We walked for a while without talking, and the silence was comfortable in a way that still surprised me. I’d spent twenty years dealing with Jimmy’s mercurial moods.
Bronson’s silences felt like a rest in comparison to that.
I tripped over a small hole in the sand, and his grip tightened automatically, steadying me without a word, and I thought about how that was exactly what he did.
He made me feel steady and grounded in his presence. I could almost forget that someone was trying to kill me.
“I heard you and Cal talking last night. Do you really think it’s Jimmy?”
He scanned the beach in one direction, then the other, before starting our walk back to the beach house.
“I don’t think it’s Valerie,” he rumbled softly as he stroked my cheek, “or Jenna Love. That leaves one name.”
“I keep thinking about Jimmy,” I said quietly.
Bronson didn’t interrupt. He just stayed beside me, steady and waiting.
“The men he used to bring around,” I went on slowly.
“His business associates. There were always these guys who felt like they had a dark edge to them. I never knew what they did. They weren’t the security detail, and they weren’t other music producers.
Whenever I walked into a room with them, they’d change the conversation.
” I swallowed. “I always assumed it was industry stuff. Contracts. Deals. I didn’t question it because… I trusted him.”
“What kind of men?” Bronson asked.
“Um… Older. Expensive. Sometimes they gave me old money mafia vibes.” I frowned slightly, trying to pull the memory into focus. “They came around a lot, even when we were touring. Jimmy always met them in private with the door closed and a security guard stationed in front of it.”
“Do you remember any of their names?”
I shook my head. “No. I didn’t pay attention.”
Bronson’s jaw shifted slightly. “I’ll pass it to Cal.”
Maybe it was nothing. Or maybe he was right, and Jimmy was behind these attacks.
“The timing lines up,” Bronson said, his voice matter-of-fact. “The attempts started after the divorce filing. He’s stalling the process. And if something happens to you before it’s finalized…” He didn’t finish the sentence.
He didn’t need to.
My stomach tightened.
“He inherits everything,” I said quietly.
“Yeah.”
That knowledge sat there, real and heavy between us.
I tightened my grip on his hand without thinking.
“I’ve known him for half my life,” I said. “I built everything with him. I trusted him completely.”
Bronson grunted. “Sure. But that doesn’t mean he’s a good man.”
“Even though he’s been cheating on me for years, I didn’t think he was capable of something like this.”
“This isn’t about love,” Bronson said quietly. “It’s about money.”
The words landed hard.
And suddenly I feared it was all true.
I hadn’t wanted to believe it, but the signs were all there.
Anger roiled inside me at this ultimate act of betrayal.
My voice came out thin and weak. “I trusted him completely.”
He lifted my hand to his, kissing it briefly. “That just means you gave your trust to the wrong man.”
That led me to the other question rolling around in my mind.
“Why did you let me take this walk on the beach today? You’re so relaxed right now.”
And my killer was still out there.
Bronson rumbled, “I know you only wanted a one-person security detail, but that decision is out of your hands now. I asked Cal to set up half a dozen men around your place last night. Three of our team are back at the house, hidden in the dunes. And the other three have been following us this whole walk.”
I looked back, but only saw a young couple in love walking a quarter mile back.
“Them?”
“Yup. And the guy fishing up ahead.”
I glanced in the other direction and saw him, a pole in the water as he slowly reeled his line in.
For the first time, I accepted the fact that Jimmy was probably behind this. It only made sense.
I held onto Bronson’s hand a little tighter, and he let me.
“I’m tired of doing everything alone,” I said, and the words came out before I’d decided to say them. “I’ve had people around me my whole career. And I’ve still felt completely alone, other than Valerie.”
He was quiet for a moment. “I’m with you now. And I’ll keep you safe,” he rumbled, and I knew without a doubt that it was true. “I’ve got you.”
“Tell me more about Red Oak Mountain,” I said, because I needed to think about something that felt lighter than my life.
He looked out at the water, and something in his face eased. “It’s quiet.”
“There’s only one stoplight. Everybody knows your name and half your business whether you want them to or not,” he chuckled.
“There’s a farmer’s market on Saturday mornings.
My buddy Holt makes elderberry wine that will make you dream of warm summer days.
” He glanced at me. “The land I own sits just south of town. Three hundred acres. A creek runs through the south end. Good fishing.”
I could picture it with perfect clarity. Kids running around barefoot, playing in the creek, catching crawdads during the day and fireflies at night.
My songs had been about places like that my entire career, and I wanted something just like it with everything in my soul.
Listening to Bronson describe it in his simple, unhurried way made it feel possible. Like he was showing me a door to a new life. One I’d always dreamed of.
“It sounds perfect,” I said honestly.
He looked at me for a moment, his voice serious. “Once we get this sorted, you should come see it for yourself.”
It was a gruff invitation. One made without any fanfare. But I understood exactly what he was offering underneath those plain words.
He was inviting me into his life.
Pointing at the future and putting me in the picture.
How was I falling for this man? I’d only known him for days.
But none of that mattered.
Bronson was the only thing that mattered now.
“I’d love that,” I said impulsively, falling into the magic of the moment.
He grinned, then surprised me by leaning down and kissing me.
“Sounds great,” he said huskily after he pulled back.
I laughed. “I’ve always wanted to have sex on a beach,” I blurted out because I couldn’t help myself. “Maybe we could indulge for a minute? You’d have to ask your spies to look away.”
He shook his head. “Not while the mission’s running. I can’t keep you safe if I’m busy fucking you.”
“But,” he continued, “Hidden Lake’s got a really good shoreline. And I’ve got a couple of ponds on my property, too.” He looked at me steadily. “I’d be happy to christen each one with you if you wanted.”
“Bronson Hale,” I laughed. “That might be the most romantic thing anyone has ever said to me.”
“If that’s true, you need better men in your life.”
After a moment, he turned serious. “Lucy Lee. I’m not going to let Jimmy get you. I’ll keep you safe even if I die trying. I promise.”
His words were a balm that soothed the pain in my heart.
My future was a mystery. But I knew Bronson was telling the truth. He would protect me against anyone who tried to hurt me.
Our hands stayed linked all the way back, steady and unbroken, as the tide rolled in beside us.
I didn’t have answers yet.
I didn’t know what Jimmy had done, or what came next, or how any of this would get resolved.
But I knew I didn’t want this to end.