Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 52227 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 261(@200wpm)___ 209(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 52227 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 261(@200wpm)___ 209(@250wpm)___ 174(@300wpm)
“Apparently, the earlier messages might not have been clear enough,” the stranger said, pulling on one glove, then the other. “So, I’ll give you some clarity. If you don’t kill the story, trouble will find you.”
That sounded a hell of a lot like a threat to Aiden. “Who are you?” he asked again.
“Me? I’m the messenger sent to get you to see reason. If a friendly warning won’t get you to act in your own self-interest, then name your price to destroy the article. You might be wealthy but everyone wants more money, no?”
“What?” Aiden hadn’t anticipated being bribed, but he had his answer ready. “You can’t buy me,” he said. “The truth will come out.”
The man shook his head slowly, almost mockingly. “Such a shame. I thought you were smarter than that. I suggest you think about it. Do. The. Right. Thing.”
Oh, he planned to, Aiden thought. They just didn’t agree on what that was.
With a salute and a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, the man walked away and into the woods. Aiden watched him go, unease slithering down his spine. They knew where he lived and had obviously done a background check on him if they knew about his trust fund.
Once the man disappeared from view, Aiden went inside for a glass of his father’s brandy. The house was quiet and he assumed Lizzie and his father were in the TV room on the other side of the house.
He took a healthy sip and over time, the stiff drink calmed his nerves. The stranger’s threats—because that’s what they were—and the attempt to bribe him weighed heavily on his mind.
He’d known that writing the article would be dangerous but once he returned home, that risk seemed far away. Even when he’d received the note telling him to kill the story, the threat didn’t hold nearly as much weight as this stranger who’d made his way onto the property.
Aiden thought about calling the police, but he had no proof, no idea who the man was, and escalating the situation and potentially making it public seemed like a bad idea. But his brother, Remy, used to be NYPD and now worked as a private investigator. If anyone could help him, it would be his brother.
Except Remy and his wife, Raven, were on the other side of the world on a luxury vacation in Japan. They’d planned for it and had been excited for a while and Aiden didn’t want them to cut the trip short. Raven might throttle him if he did, he thought with a grin. Of course, she’d understand, but he refused to disrupt their vacation. With two and a half weeks until publication, he had time to wait until Remy returned.
Headlights flashed through the windows from the driveway as a car drove past the main house and toward the gatehouse. Aiden rose to his feet and strode out the back door by the kitchen, assuming that car was Brooke’s. He had no plan, no idea what he’d say, but he knew he had to see her.
He reached her as she exited her car, her back to him, her concentration on locking the vehicle.
“Brooke.”
She spun around, her eyes round with surprise. “Oh my God, Aiden, you scared me.”
He held his hands up in an I mean no harm gesture, and she relaxed, her shoulders dropping as she laughed.
Her reaction had him grinning while he barely held back the urge to pull her into his arms. For just a moment, it felt like old times, when they were friends and things weren’t so complicated. But as much as Aiden missed their friendship, he wanted to recapture their feelings for each other more. He wanted the relationship they could have had if he hadn’t been young and stupid, and he’d chosen differently.
As the laughter faded, he gave in to the urge to touch her. Stepping closer, so only inches separated them, he grabbed her by the hips and pulled her body into his. Her delicious curves aligned with his harder edges, and he groaned.
Brooke’s eyes flashed with heat as his erection pressed against her stomach.
“You’re so beautiful,” he said.
She splayed her hands across his chest, and tilted her head, staring into his face. He sucked in a long breath. Her flushed cheeks, glazed eyes, and plump lips beckoned to him, and he hadn’t even kissed her yet.
His heart pounded as he lowered his head, ready to get a taste of her after all these years. Taking him off guard, she rose onto her toes and kissed him first.
Her soft lips met his and with a groan, he wrapped an arm around her waist and deepened their connection. His tongue slid into her mouth and as he tasted her, he found heaven. Everything he’d been looking for was right here, in his arms.