Chapter 6
Chapter Six
S he’s still with you?”
Cole’s deep voice carried the sucker-punch of reality Elias knew awaited him if he and Quinley were recognized and seen together. “I couldn’t exactly leave her by the side of the road outside her parents’ gates with the reporters.”
Last night, Quinley had taken the fork from him after he’d fed her a single bite, sliding him a begrudging glare as she’d fed herself from then on. He’d remained in position and watched as she’d finished a little more than half of the plate. Good enough for that battle, he’d mused.
She’d gone to her room then, and other than a few thuds and the sound of water running as she made use of the bathroom, he hadn’t heard from her as he’d finished unloading the last of the groceries he’d brought with him, checked the locks once again, and turned in himself after shooting off a text to Cole.
Now up at his usual crack-of-dawn time, Elias was washing up last night’s dishes when Cole’s call came through.
Elias didn’t like waking to a mess in the sink, but after the day and the drive and witnessing Quinley’s internal battle and physical response, he’d been just as exhausted.
He tried to keep his voice down to give her some much-needed rest, but Cole’s frustration with him raised his own.
“You should’ve left her at Ana’s.”
“She wouldn’t let me drop her off at Ana’s, and she didn’t want to stay in town. When she heard I was going to the mountains, she begged to come along.”
“Elias, what were you thinking? Do you know how this looks?”
That the runaway bride ran away with a limo driver associated with her best friend? Yeah. He did. But it was too late to undo the damage now. “The plan was to drop her off at her parents’ house in Asheville,” he said, repeating what Quinley had told him regarding the codes and pool house lacking camera coverage. “That’s where she planned to lay low, but someone was there, and there were reporters outside.”
“Yeah, her parents are there,” Cole confirmed. “They’ve gone into hiding because of all the media coverage. Lachlan sent them off on one of the private jets because their house was surrounded by paparazzi thinking Quinley would go there since she’d obviously left the hotel.”
She would’ve been better off staying at her parents’ house in Wrightsville and pretending no one was home. Not that she could’ve known that at the time. “What about you and Ana? How are things there?”
“We’re trapped. They’re stacked five deep here at Ana’s, and the neighbors are not amused.”
“I’ll bet.” Ana lived just over the bridge in an older, otherwise quiet neighborhood. Elias didn’t imagine any of them liked the hassle of not being able to get in and out of their own homes due to the road being blocked by reporters and their vehicles.
Elias finished the dishes and dried his hands before he lifted one and pinched the bridge of his nose. “So do they also know it was Blackwell Rentals?”
A snort was Cole’s response.
“I’m sorry, Cole. I know this is the last thing you needed. I take it Lachlan has contacted you about…me?”
“They named Blackwell Enterprises as the owner of the getaway car before Ana and I left the hotel so, yeah. We’ve talked, and I told Lachlan that you were leaving, and she must’ve jumped in on her own since to my knowledge you’d never met.”
“That’s the truth. He can’t be too angry if it’s the truth, can he?”
“What do you think?”
Elias groaned. “That it looks bad regardless.”
“Elias, I get why you did it. I probably would’ve done the same if I’d been driving, but you should’ve left her somewhere, not hightailed it to the mountains together. When Lachlan finds out you’re still together, he’s going to believe the worst. They all are.”
“I know. I’m sorry. Like I said, it wasn’t the plan.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t see us getting that contract with the resort after this, but what you do now is going to get all of us raked over the coals if people find out.”
Elias groaned softly at the reminder. “I’d forgotten you were trying to get a full-time contract with him.”
Cole and Gage had been attempting to land a car-service contract with the new resort and the other Lachlan-owned hotels in the area, something that would allow them to add another vehicle to the business, but with the latest turn of events?
“I’m more concerned about how this will come down on you—and Ana. I don’t want Quinley’s actions to come back to bite Ana and her boutique. Or you and your businesses.”
“Quinley mentioned that on the drive,” he said. “She’s worried about Ana having to interact with Lachlan but said she didn’t think her ex would punish Ana because of how things went down.”
“You never know,” Cole all but growled. “We’re all about to find out. Quinley’s called him, right?”
Elias inhaled and grimaced. “Not yet. I told her it might be best to get some rest first. Call him this morning. She…wasn’t in great shape last night. She got sick on the drive and almost passed out after we got here. I got some food in her and sent her to bed.”
Silence followed Elias’s words.
“And she went to bed alone?”
Elias stilled at the low-voiced question. “I’m the only other person here so, yeah, alone .”
“Make sure it stays that way.”
A rough laugh left Elias. “You can’t be serious right now. You know me. And Quinley is a walking disaster.”
“She’s a beautiful, vulnerable walking disaster.”
“What are you implying? You think I suddenly won’t be able to control myself? Seriously?”
“I’m saying she’s hurting and not thinking clearly. She might…seek comfort. I don’t want you caught in the crossfire any more than you already are.”
“She ran out on her fiancé yesterday and left the dude at the altar. She— She was so desperate to get out of there, she climbed over a penthouse balcony in a wedding dress and six-inch heels. Trust me, she is not a loose cannon I want to tangle with.”
He couldn’t believe his own brother thought him so basic that he’d take advantage of Quinley with everything going on. That he of all people, in this circumstance, would be drawn to her. “I’m helping her out because she’s Ana’s friend, and…she needs a hand at the moment. One that won’t bite her. That’s all.”
Silence followed, and he heard Ana’s soft voice in the background.
“Hang on,” Cole said to Elias.
He listened to the muffled conversation taking place but wasn’t able to make out the words, so he went to the fridge and pulled out the bag of lemons before elbowing the fridge door closed.
When life threw you lemons, what did you do? He smirked at his own little joke and found a knife and the natural, organic sweetener he used instead of sugar.
“Ana wants you to tell Quinley to call her as soon as she wakes up. No excuses. She’s to call.”
Elias juggled the phone at his ear and sliced a few lemons. “I’ll tell her, but it doesn’t mean she’s going to. She’s in rough shape, like I said.”
“Then you call Ana and put it on speaker so Quinley can listen,” Cole said in his best older-brother voice. “Ana’s worrying herself sick over Quinley, and if nothing else, Quinley can take a second to reassure her best friend that she’s okay. It’s the least she can do after leaving Ana to give the ring back to Lachlan and handle the fallout with him and Quinley’s parents.”
“I’ll tell her,” he said again, not making any promises. “But my guess is that I’ll be driving her back to Carolina Cove sometime today.”
“And if she doesn’t want to go?
“I’ll help her find a place here, I guess? What do you want me to do, Cole? Speaking of which, does Ana have Quinley’s purse? She didn’t grab it, and she has no cards or ID.”
“I don’t think so, but I’ll ask.” Cole repeated the question, and Elias groaned when he heard Ana’s negative response.
“Lachlan had his people lock down the hotel after they realized what was happening, in case it was a kidnapping or ransom attempt. It must still be there or boxed up by Lachlan’s private security.”
“Even with the video of her leaving on her own?” He couldn’t keep the surprise from his voice.
“Just because she left on her own didn’t mean she wasn’t coerced or threatened to do so. It’s standard procedure, and until Quinley makes a statement or contacts Lachlan, you are a possible kidnapper.”
Elias didn’t have Cole’s military training or any clue what Quinley’s personal security would’ve done in the name of procedure, but to hear his good deed flipped to kidnapping left him staring at her bedroom door in unease.
Lachlan was a powerful man. But was he vengeful? The type to punish the innocent to save face?
“Things could get worse.” Cole’s voice lowered with warning. “This could come back to bite you all too easily, like I said. Ana won’t like me for saying this, but you need to distance yourself from Quinley as soon as you can until she gets this mess sorted out.”