Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Kara
It was just my luck that not only was I having a shit day, but Cal was here to witness it.
Walking to my car, driving home, it all happened in a blur. I wanted inside, to unwind and sleep off the day. There was no way I wanted to discuss any of this with Cal or my overprotective, out-of-line, nosey brother. Both of whom just waltzed right into my house like they owned it. Guess that was my fault for giving Dan a key.
I stalked toward him, my hand out. “Give me back my key.”
“Not a chance, Karebear. Tell me what happened. You can’t just pretend I didn’t walk in on you punching a board member in the face. A board member who is probably back on his feet. He could not only report your assault, but get you fired. Jesus, woman. What is going on?”
“It’s no?—”
“Don’t!” Cal’s voice sounded from right behind me. “This is far beyond nothing, Kara. Someone sent you a nasty surprise, then he waltzed into your room like he owned it. He talked to you like?—”
“He’s a staff member. He can go where he wants.”
Cal’s hand gripped my bicep and before I knew it, he turned me, his body hovering over mine as he spoke. “He came in like he had a claim on you. Like you would just roll over and obey him.”
“As you can see…” I pulled my arm free of his grip. The discomfort, the pain from the bruises they couldn’t see had my heart thumping. This was getting out of hand. He let me pull away, unlike the times Ian would grab me, holding tighter when I fought.
Cal’s brow pinched. “Kara, let me see your arm.”
“No. Jesus, Cal. You don’t get to walk away from me, then all of a sudden pop back up like nothing has changed.” I walked away from him and my brother. I needed a minute to think.
I took the stairs in a rush to get up to my bedroom and change. I shut the door, locking the handle before making my way to the closet. I changed from my dress and sweater to a pair of comfy leggings, a tank top, and I pulled on an oversized, faded gray sweatshirt.
One of my favorites that has been with me for so long now.
It also used to be Cal’s, so it swallowed me.
Ignoring the hulking man standing just outside my bedroom door, I went back downstairs, my heart hammering. I knew what I needed to do. I needed them to—they needed to know everything. But I was growing more and more embarrassed as the minutes ticked by. I could have stopped this months and months ago.
I stopped in the doorway to my kitchen to watch my brother. He moved around like it was his kitchen. Obviously, he was here a lot, so he knew where everything was. He pulled out my gran’s cast iron skillet and set it on the stove.
I was so distracted by the movements in my kitchen that it wasn’t until he wrapped his arms around me that I realized Cal was right behind me. I should have known though. It wasn’t like him to just let me be…unless it involved him running off to the Army after he graduated college.
I was still a little bitter. So sue me.
“I need you to tell us what is going on. Please, don’t let him get away with it.”
“Cal, don’t. You waltz in like you never left. A knight with a big sword to slay my dragons, and yet…” I sighed, trying to get free of his ironclad grip.
“I know my leaving hurt you. I’m sorry about that, but I went away to do something I needed to. Something for me. I couldn’t explain it at the time—hell, I still don’t know what lit a fire under me when it did. That is not what is important right now though. I’m here to help. I won’t let you be hurt like that.”
“I’m sorry today was?—”
“Karebear, as I see it, there’s nothing for you to be sorry about. This is not your fault. Someone—” Dan turned and shared a hard look with Cal before he turned to face me full-on, “I’m pretty sure your actions toward that jackhole means it’s his fault. How long has this been going on?”
Looking away from him, I knew what I needed to do. I needed to tell them the truth. I just...they were going to lose their ever-loving minds. If I wasn’t careful, they’d do more than get pissed. Cal was a trained Special Forces dude. The measures he would take to save me... My heart thundered in my chest.
The arms around me, the comfort I felt with him being this close made it easier. I patted his hands and when they released me, I padded down the short hall to the closet. With a shudder, I opened it and grabbed the Amazon box I’d been keeping the things in that had been left for me, minus the gross dead flowers, and walked it back to the dining room table. I dropped the box and went back into the kitchen. There was a bottle of Arbor Mist rosé in the back of the fridge. And before you say it, I know many would say that’s not real wine, but it’s the best I could handle. I was not a big drinker, but this situation deserved a bottle or three.
I pulled down the first cup I saw in the cabinet. The large coffee mug had a unicorn on it that said, Keep Calm and Poop Rainbows . I didn’t buy it for myself; this was a gift for my birthday last year from Dan. It was not a wine glass either, but I needed the smile it brought me. Dan was always good at doing something to make me smile. He really was a good big brother.
When I put the bottle up and went back to the dining room, Dan saw the mug and snorted.
“Wine in a coffee mug. Should I worry?”
“No.” I plopped down in a chair and cringed watching Cal pull on a pair of blue nitrile gloves. He just carried them all willy-nilly in his pockets? What in the hell has he been doing that this had become common practice?
I watched him, my cheeks flushing as the wine slid down my throat. He methodically went through the box. Each envelope and folded piece of paper was examined. The longer he looked, the redder his neck and face got. After three minutes of dead silence, he tore off a glove, pulled his cell from a pocket, and dropped it on the table. He tapped his finger against the screen. The phone rang one time before it was answered.
“Johnson.”
“Get in here. Bring Berkley and a kit.” He hung up and looked over at me.
My heart was racing now. Who was that on the phone? Why were they here, and what kind of fuckery was going on?
There was a knock on the door. Dan moved to open it. Two men came in, one holding a big, yellow case.
“What’cha got?”
“Bag and tag everything. I want it sent to Annabel’s team for fingerprints and anything else they can find. Do this one quickly. We know who is behind it; I just need to catch him.”
“Cal,” I stood up, “Just leave it alone. After today, he’d be stupid to try anything else.” His hard gaze met mine, and I had enough sense to take a step back. The look in his eyes had the small hairs on the nape of my neck standing on end. I held up a hand when he started my way.
“Do you have any idea how bad today could have gone? Any idea at all, Kara? He sent you a package with dying flowers and a bloody rat.”
“It wasn’t real!”
“This time!” He stalked closer, his eyes pinning me in place. “What makes you think it won’t get worse?”
“Ease up, Cal.”
I took a second to think. I didn’t know. I couldn’t know, but I could hope. He was caught…but then again, I was a fan of those True Crime shows…they never made it easy on you, nor did they do what you would expect them to do.
“Answer me, Kara. Why would he stop, especially after you laid him out in front of me? He’s going to double-down now. I see this all the time.”
“I-I don’t know.” My voice broke, but that didn’t stop him. Cal pulled me against his chest. One hand held my chin, tilting my head back so I had to meet his gaze.
“I won’t let him hurt my girl. I can’t. I’ll end him first.”
“I’m not yours…”
His lips tipped up with a wicked smile. “You’ve always been mine. I was just too stupid to see it back then. I promise you, he will not get to you again. We will not let that happen.”
“Damn straight. I can’t believe you hid this, Kare.” I looked toward the kitchen; my brother was pacing, his ears as red as his face. “I’ll kill him. He won’t get away with this.”
That look he was sporting meant trouble. He was contemplating doing something stupid. I patted Cal’s arm, and he let me go. I stopped before Dan. “Look, you big oaf. I love you, I do, but if you do whatever it is you’re thinking, I’m calling Gran and letting her beat the stuffing out of you with her cane.”
“She’s right, man. Let us handle this.”
“It’s my fault. I brought her into the school. Call out for tomorrow. I’ll get a note posted onto your class planner and send out the email to the students.”
“I’m not hiding from the likes of Ian Sterling. I’m not a coward, Daniel.”
“You may not be a coward, but he’s right, you’re not going to work tomorrow.”
“Let me set the two of you straight right here and now. I may have some bad things going on, but I will not run from them. My students count on me to provide them with the knowledge they seek.”
“You’re vulnerable in that classroom.”
“I am going to class. Apparently, you and Cal conducted some plan here, so…deal with it. I’m finishing this week; we have two days. Then I’m going to go out and enjoy the fair this weekend. I’m going to eat my weight in elephant ears and sausage dogs. Maybe even some chili cheese fries and have a fucking root beer. I will not let some slimy weasel ruin my life.”
“Kare—” Dan started, but I cut him off.
“I’m not going to hide! End of discussion.” I pushed past them both and went up the stairs. I knew they meant well, but saints save us. At this point in my life, I might just crack them all over the head with a lamp.
“Thank God this week is over!”
“Are you guys going to the fair this weekend? Mom is making me take my little brothers.”
“Are we meeting at the main gate or the side gate?”
“I’m so ready. They have the new Ferris Wheel out there. We drove by it yesterday. It’s so much bigger than the one from last year.”
“I’m not going on that thing, it’s too high.”
I chuckled as the kids in the room got louder. The fear I had in my gut that I’d see a clown was real. Was I riding that Ferris Wheel; hell no. Not even thinking about it. I was solely going for the food.
Grinning to myself, I pushed my planner into my bag. Everyone was ready for the fair. It was a yearly tradition, and even I, with all the crap that has been happening, was counting down the time. I’d agreed to let not only Dan, but Cal and his team go with me. It made them less grumpy and at least this way, if I stuffed myself to the point of vomiting, I’d have a designated driver.
The thought made me grin wider.
“So,” Cal said from behind me as I locked my classroom door. “You ready to grab something to eat and head back to your place?” I managed to not jump. Barely. Okay, so not really. I totally jumped. At least I didn’t squeak this time.
I really hated when he did that—popping up like a freaking ninja. Good thing I didn’t have a bad heart or something because he did it every time I came out of my classroom. Once today, when I was heading out to hit the break room to relieve my bladder, I almost didn’t make it.
He was supposed to be keeping a stalker away, and this was how he did it? If I hit him…I’d be in the wrong. Right?
“I’m ordering a large pepperoni and sausage pizza with extra sauce and cheese, opening a bottle of wine, and watching the last few episodes of 9-1-1 and 9-1-1 Lonestar .”
His chuckle filled the empty hall around us. “Fair enough. Mind if I join you for some fun?”
I bit my lip as I turned to walk backwards. My gaze met his. “Hmm…yes. But, the first time you say ‘that’s not how they do it,’ I’m kicking you out.”
He stalked closer as my back hit the door that led to the parking lot. He stopped, just far enough away to say he wasn’t touching me.
“Deal, but I never said we’d be watching the TV.”
My cheeks grew hot as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to my mouth.
The last few days, he’s done all he could to show me what I’ve been missing. I didn’t want to miss anymore. I was woman enough to put the past behind us. We were not together back then. Back then, there was—nothing more than feelings that, if I’m being honest, I never shared. Neither did he. So we could push past that and pick up where we should be.
His warmth caressed me just long enough to send a shiver through my belly before he pulled back. Without a word, he pushed the door open, turned me by taking my hand, and led me out to the parking area.
The drive home was full of heat and tension. We’d stopped to snag a pizza, and he’d made a trip across the street to the pharmacy. The bag he came out with had my heart thundering. The man had bought a giant-sized box of condoms.
Maybe it was me, but I was thinking he might be expecting a little more than I could accommodate. I’d give it the old college try though. I wanted—needed—to know just how far he would take this. Could I handle him being this close?
Yes. I’d been waiting years to get this man in my bed.
Years!
I pulled into my driveway, parked, and got out. The whole way to my door, I could feel the heat of him behind me. I quickly unlocked the door and went inside. Cal wasted no time following me in. I hadn’t planned for the evening to go this way, but…I wasn’t about to put a stop to it.
My dreams had a lot to live up to.
And tonight, he was all mine.