Never Give You Up. Shady Grace

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СКАЧАТЬ rubbed her sweaty palms over the robe covering her thighs. “Not really. And since when does Terry McCoy need a vacation? Did something happen and he needs to hide out with a convenient little widow like me who lives in the middle of nowhere?”

      “Of course not.”

      “Bullshit.” Mary glared at him, regretting opening the door this morning when she could’ve enjoyed an earth-shattering dream.

      Gabe shrugged. “Look, all I know is, he wants a break and he wants it to be here with you.”

      Her back stiffened. She looked around the room, anywhere but directly at Gabe. He seemed pushy about this apparent vacation, and it scared her. When she had the nerve to finally look back at him, something strange lingered in his calculating eyes that made her think this visit was a cover-up to something else. She had her dumb moments like everyone else, but she wasn’t an idiot. The McCoy’s probably owned several vacation homes across the world. It made no sense to Mary he’d want to come here to her quaint little cabin in the woods, where nothing but hard work was the highlight of the day.

      “Why didn’t he just call me if he wanted to see me?” She didn’t bother to mention she’d left messages on Terry’s voicemail, and his lack of a response hurt her feelings. Now she was frustrated and angry.

      Right now all men were the same in Mary’s eyes. They couldn’t be relied upon or trusted.

      Gabe’s smile faded slightly. Perhaps he sensed she wasn’t comfortable with the conversation. “He’s been busy, Mary, and to be honest, he’s been out of sorts lately.”

      “When you two flew into my life my husband wound up dead.” She took another long drink from the mug, needing a rush of caffeine. Maybe something stronger would be more appropriate during this strange conversation.

      Gabe cleared his throat and looked down at his cup. “I’m sorry for your loss.” He tapped his hand against the cup, the silver ring on his baby finger ticking the seconds away.

      She blew out a shaky breath. “Don’t mention it. The asshole treated me like garbage anyway. Now I finally get to do what I want.” She hoped to God he couldn’t tell how hard it was for her to say that. How much it hurt to be alone, even when the pain didn’t physically hurt anymore. She didn’t want him thinking she was still the same terrified woman he’d first met a few months back. All this back talk and toughness was only a front. Deep down, she was a lot like her father.

      Gabe’s brow arched but he made no further comment.

      “Why doesn’t Terry stay with you and Mima?” Mary picked up her coffee cup, pushed her chair back and strolled over to the kitchen window, which faced a thick stand of pines. Maybe Gabe wouldn’t notice how upset this conversation made her.

      All alone with Terry. The criminal who kissed me then left me hanging.

      Even when he’d come to say hello and checked up on her, he always had some kind of bodyguard with him, which in itself made her uneasy. Even if she agreed, there’d be men with guns behind the trees. She didn’t want to live in fear again, even if it was for a short while.

      “Mima’s cabin has one bedroom. We’d be packed like sardines.”

      She glanced over her shoulder. “I’m sure he has other friends in your business that could show him a good time.”

      “I wouldn’t say he’s looking for a good time. More like a good rest, with someone he trusts.”

      Mary sighed. It seemed as if everything she said was going in one ear and out the other. “I’m sure there are many other private locations, resorts, small towns, hookers, to keep him busy.”

      “No.”

      “Why not?”

      “He wants to be here with you. It’s really that simple.”

      Nothing is simple these days. She closed her eyes tight, wishing she could be somewhere else, and rubbed the sudden ache in her forehead. “We barely know each other.” A part of her wanted to run and hide, but the other wanted to hear more.

      She opened her eyes and stared out the window, feeling hopeless and alone, picturing that night. He’d told his man to wait in the chopper. Then he closed the back door before he pressed her against the hallway wall and made her mind blank with lust. It happened so quickly after a few drinks that, like a common floozy, she’d held him tight and taken everything he’d given. Those criminal lips still held an imprint on her soul.

      To say that she felt ashamed of her actions was an understatement.

      Pushing aside her wayward thoughts, Mary sought out the picture of her and Tom standing in front of the house a few years back. She knew damn well the smile on her face was fake, his grip on her arm too tight. Everything was a lie. Everything was forced. Terry would probably hurt her, too.

      “Did Tom really drown? Be honest with me.”

      Gabe’s expression remained the same. Calm, cool, and completely unreadable. “Yes. He drowned. It’s a common way to die.”

      She shook her head in disbelief and turned back to the window, trying to fight the tears rushing to the surface. Her whole body trembled. Why did she have to be leery of everything? She wished she was strong enough to throw caution to the wind and be like everybody else who didn’t give a shit about action versus consequences. She cared too much about every little thing it physically pained her.

      A hand touched her shoulder and she jerked around in horror. “Jesus, you scared me,” she panted. “You guys are always sneaking up on me.” She backed away. “Don’t do that anymore.”

      “I’m sorry.” Gabe stepped back and looked down at her with what appeared to be sympathy in his eyes. “I would never hurt you, and Terry wouldn’t either. He’s not an evil man.”

      Mary swallowed the lump in her throat. What was the true meaning of evil anyway? A man who hit his wife or a man who took another man’s life?

      Gabe frowned. “I’m confused. I thought you two were really hitting it off? He hasn’t shut up about you since the doc took that bullet out of his shoulder.”

      Mary couldn’t look him in the eye. “I don’t know what to tell you.” She blew out a deep breath and stared out the window again, her gaze lost in the endless sway of green. Knowing Terry talked about her lifted her spirits, but there were still many questions left unanswered. “He made me feel like I was beautiful.” She bit her lip, realizing she’d said that out loud, and turned back to Gabe with her shoulders square. “But now I know better than to believe anything a player says.”

      Gabe appeared to be taken back by her words but didn’t say anything else in Terry’s defense. “Would fifty-grand make it easier on you?”

      She’d just taken another sip of coffee and nearly choked on it. “What?”

      “I’ll pay you to babysit him. Think of yourself as an innkeeper, or bed and breakfast hostess . . . whatever.”

      Mary threw her hands up in frustration, cursed out loud, and opened the cupboard door. “I’d have to cook for him too?” She grabbed a bottle of liquor and added three fingers to her coffee. The bottle rattled against the cup. She sorely needed СКАЧАТЬ