Cross My Heart Read online

  He should have.

  She laughed, but the sound was more of a tremor.

  He felt certain she had her own share of regrets.

  “You have to admit, we’ve been curious about what that kiss would be like for over ten years. And now we know.” She turned and started to straighten up, fixing the blanket which already lay folded on the couch, obviously avoiding looking him in the eye.

  Okay, so deep down she agreed with his unspoken assessment. The thought didn’t make him feel any better.

  “I’m thinking of taking Uncle Marc up on his invitations.” She glanced over her shoulder as she fluffed a pillow.

  His eyes widened. “You’re kidding.”

  She shook her head. “I came back here to face the past and move on. I need to gauge his sincerity.”

  “I thought we agreed he’s full of crap,” Ty said, not wanting to think about her moving on any more than he wanted her getting anywhere near her greedy uncle or any other relatives who’d never lifted a hand to help her when she was a child.

  She picked up the pillow, holding it against her chest. “We did. We still do. But I need to go, for my parents as well as for myself.”

  “You aren’t going alone.”

  A relieved smile spread across her beautiful face. “I was so hoping you’d say that. So you’ll be my date?” Her cheeks flushed red the minute the word flew out of her mouth.

  Ty didn’t think Alex, whatever his last name was, would appreciate the label, either. But Ty didn’t touch the comment any more than he’d take the word date seriously. Once again, she needed him, nothing more. Even if the kiss had been everything he’d ever imagined and one helluva lot more.

  Chapter Six

  After seeing his niece again for the first time in ten years, Marc Dumont drove to work, ignoring Paul Dunne’s phone call demanding a meeting. Marc didn’t think they had anything to discuss. The man was a prick. Always had been. There probably wasn’t a lot of difference between Marc and Paul, but Marc liked to console himself that he was at least trying to be a better man. Paul had no morals and no intention of reforming.

  Marc thought of his niece. She’d grown into a beautiful young woman. When he looked at her today, he no longer saw his brother’s spitting image, only her own strength and beauty. But back when he’d become her guardian, looking at Lilly had reminded Marc of all his failures.

  At the time there had been many, the most glaring of which had been losing Lilly’s mother to his brother, Eric. Marc had believed himself in love with Rhona, but she only had eyes for Eric, who’d always been the golden child anyway. All things went his older brother’s way. He’d won Rhona, started a successful vintage car business, and he’d married wealthy. Marc hadn’t known about Rhona’s money when he’d fallen for her, but what a bonus. Of course it had become Eric’s. His brother Robert merely went on his harmless, merry way while Marc seemed to bungle one relationship and job after another.

  And when he looked at Lilly, Marc hadn’t seen the woman he’d loved and lost, he’d only seen his brother. His competition. The person he had a chance to defeat one last time.

  Marc used to blame his actions on drinking, but he accepted the truth now. He’d allowed jealousy to rule his life, and he’d made both decisions—to drink and to destroy his niece and steal her money, he thought, bile rising in his throat. But at least Marc was trying to make amends. Paul had no such desire.

  Whatever Paul wanted from Marc now—and Marc knew for sure it had everything to do with Lilly’s trust fund—he didn’t want any part of the other man’s scheme. The trustee had been siphoning money from the estate for years, as Marc had discovered during his first few months of sobriety. A time when he’d decided to take control of his life and see where things actually stood.

  Paul, who’d known he could put anything over on a drunken Marc, claimed he’d intended to pay the money back before Marc inherited. A bald-faced lie if Marc had ever heard one. When Marc had threatened to go to the authorities, Paul had countered with a warning of his own. If Marc turned him in, Paul would expose Marc’s lies and abuse of his niece. That left them in a stalemate, since Marc couldn’t afford a public scandal now that he had a respectable job and the prospect of a future.

  They’d both had too much to lose, so Marc had remained silent. After all, as soon as he inherited, the old bastard would be out of his life for good. Now there would be no inheritance and possibly no future if his fiancée bailed on him once she realized there was no money.

  As for Paul Dunne, he was Lilly’s problem. Once she took control of her inheritance, it was only a matter of time before she realized what had been going on for all these years. Then she’d have to deal with Paul Dunne, trustee. The thought gave Marc little comfort.

  He wasn’t a saint, only a flawed man and a recovering alcoholic to boot. He couldn’t help but admit everything would be so much simpler if Lilly had remained dead.

  God, he needed a drink.

  The engagement party for Lacey’s uncle Marc was to be held in her childhood home. Her uncle had been living in her parents’ house all these years, sitting by the fireplace in the den, eating in her mother’s beloved kitchen, and those were just two of what she knew were many other personal violations. All things that had been easier to put out of her mind when she lived three hours and a lifetime away than now when she had to dress for her return.

  Because Lacey dated a businessman, she owned a few nice outfits, but she hadn’t brought them with her on this trip. She planned a quick trip to a mall in the next town over to buy something to wear. Hunter suggested she go with Molly—her uncle’s soon-to-be stepdaughter.

  Although Lacey was wary of the woman based on her relationship with Marc Dumont, she trusted her best friend’s judgment. Hunter felt it important that the women meet, and he believed they would get along well under any circumstances, including the one they found themselves in.

  Lacey understood Hunter had dual motives. He wanted Molly to get to know Lacey and realize she wasn’t lying about the man her uncle had been—and probably still was. He also, along with Ty, didn’t want Lacey to be alone. Which was ridiculous since she’d been on her own for years.

  Still, since it meant so much to them and since she missed having a close female friend around, Lacey had agreed to meet up with Molly at the local mall. It was hard to admit, but she didn’t have many close women friends. She worked, but not in an office where she could meet people her own age. Her employees were mostly young women who didn’t speak a lot of English, and Lacey knew better than to make friends out of people who worked for her. Befriending her clients would have been as professionally ill-advised, and so other than Alex, she spent a lot of time alone. A part of her was looking forward to this shopping trip.

  And not just for herself. Because when Hunter had spoken of Molly, Lacey had noticed a spark in his eyes she’d never seen before, and his lips had curved into a smile. Hunter had a thing for this woman and Lacey wanted to see why. And she wanted to make sure Molly wasn’t going to break her friend’s heart. He’d been too good to her in the past and too protective of her now for Lacey not to feel the same way. She wanted the best for him, and despite the other woman’s connection to Marc Dumont, Lacey hoped Molly was it.

  She met Molly outside the Starbucks in the mall. Lacey knew Molly immediately based on Hunter’s description of a pretty brunette with a fondness for bold colors in her clothing and shoes. The other woman’s bright red top was one indicator, but she still could have been anybody. Her unique-looking red cowboy boots gave her away.

  “Molly?” Lacey asked, walking up beside her.

  The other woman turned. “Lacey?”

  Lacey nodded. “Nice to meet you. Hunter’s told me a lot about you.”

  Molly swallowed hard. “Unfortunately, I can’t say the same. Most of my information’s come from—”

  “My uncle.”

  Molly treated her to an awkward nod.

  “Let’s shop,” Lacey sug
gested. If she spent bonding time with Molly, she hoped the discomfort would ease, and maybe they’d get to know one another better.

  Lacey’s idea worked. What had begun as an awkward greeting changed over the course of shopping, lunch, and chitchat. Molly was warm and fun with a great sense of humor. Lacey enjoyed their day, and now they sat at a table in Starbucks drinking lattes. They talked, if not like old friends, then not like adversaries, either. They hadn’t discussed the past, which was fine with Lacey. She knew eventually she’d have to explain things, but just not right now.

  Molly wrapped her hand around her grande-sized cup and met Lacey’s gaze. “I love shopping,” she said, relaxing in her seat.

  “It isn’t something I do much. Just for the basics,” Lacey said. “I work too much to have time for shopping as recreation.”

  Molly smiled. “You’re a saver, I’m a spender. I think it comes from not having a lot while growing up. I crave the luxuries, not that I can afford them. Thank goodness for credit cards,” she said laughing.

  “Amen.” Lacey grinned. She had no intention of revealing she tried hard to charge little and pay off fast. She hated being in debt. She’d lived from hand to mouth for so long, she rarely let herself let go. Even though, these days, she could afford to do so now and again.

  “I have to admit you’re different than I thought you’d be.” Molly’s astute gaze appraised Lacey without shame.

  Apparently, it was time to discuss the past. “You mean because I don’t have the word ‘trouble’ stamped on my forehead?” Lacey asked, laughing.

  The other woman grinned. “At least not anymore.”

  So now they’d reached the crux of things. “I wasn’t trouble then, either. What do you think of Hunter?” Lacey asked, the subject change not as off topic as it seemed.

  Molly’s brows furrowed. “I thought he was a good guy.”

  “He is a good guy. And you must still think so or you wouldn’t be here with me, right?” Lacey asked. Molly’s views on Lacey might be skewed, but if she trusted Hunter, she couldn’t believe every lie Marc Dumont had fed her.

  “I have many reasons to want to get to know you better. They don’t all involve Hunter.” Molly absently blotted some spilled coffee from the table.

  Lacey knew her uncle was the other reason. “Do you want to know what happened back then? It might help you understand Hunter better.”

  Molly nodded, but she eyed Lacey warily, obviously uncertain of whether to believe whatever she was about to hear.

  Lacey decided to keep the story short and succinct. She summed up her life, her time with her uncle, her stint in foster care with Ty and Hunter, and their elaborate plan to fake her death to prevent her from being returned by the state to her uncle’s care. But she couldn’t stop the occasional lump that rose in her throat or crack in her voice as she told the tale.

  “My God.” Molly stared at Lacey, shock etched on her face. “Three teenagers pulled that off?”

  “Well, two of those teenagers had street smarts and one had connections.” Lacey crumpled her napkin and tucked it into her now empty cup.

  “You must have been desperate to have run off to New York alone.” Molly’s voice sounded distant, as if she were having difficulty comprehending. “And Ty and Hunter risked so much to help you. I mean, if the police had found the car or linked them to the theft—”

  “They didn’t.”

  “But they had to have known there was a risk.”

  “We were kids. I’m not sure how far out any of us thought things through,” Lacey said honestly.

  She hated being reminded of how naïve they’d been, how little they knew about the ramifications of their actions. Molly was right. Despite how her uncle had turned on Ty and Hunter, they’d been damn lucky they’d gotten away with their plan.

  “I guess what I’m saying is, both Ty and Hunter had to have cared about you a great deal to do what they did.” Molly rose, empty cup in hand, and started for the garbage pail.

  Lacey followed, and they headed back into the mall. “We cared about each other,” she said to Molly.

  As Lacey rushed to keep pace with the other woman, she realized what had Molly so agitated all of a sudden. Molly was threatened by Lacey and Hunter’s relationship.

  The good news was that Hunter’s feelings for Molly were obviously reciprocated. The bad news was that the other woman still hadn’t come down on one side or the other when it came to Marc Dumont. For Hunter, Lacey and Ty, there was no middle ground.

  “Molly?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Wait. Can we stop here and finish talking for a minute?” Lacey asked.

  Molly came to a halt, folding her arms over her chest.

  “You don’t need to worry about my feelings for Hunter or his for me. We’re friends, that’s all.”

  She shook her head. “I’m not worried. I was just realizing what kind of bond you must share, that’s all.”

  Lacey reached out and touched Molly’s arm. “Sometimes you form that kind of connection when you don’t have anyone else.”

  “Maybe. But I saw something special in his eyes when he spoke about you.”

  “Which I’d lay odds is nothing compared to what I saw there when he talked me into going shopping with you.” Lacey grinned. “I’m serious.”

  Molly sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m not usually so insecure, but I’m not, I mean, I haven’t been involved with a lot of guys, and although Hunter’s asked me out—”

  “Often, from what I hear,” Lacey interrupted.

  Molly laughed. “Although he’s asked me out often, he never pushed when I said no. It became like this game between us and we both enjoyed the tension.”

  “But neither of you ever acted on it.”

  She shook her head. “Not until the night after he discovered that my mother is about to marry your uncle. Then he showed up on my doorstep, food in hand and a lot of questions on his lips.” Molly kicked her booted foot against the floor in disgust. “Before that he couldn’t be bothered to push the dating issue.”

  “Well, you did say you’d turned him down before. And the Hunter I knew had—” Lacey bit down on her bottom lip fast. She had no business telling Hunter’s secrets.

  “The Hunter you knew what? Tell me about him,” Molly urged.

  Lacey frowned. She had been about to say the Hunter she knew had an inferiority complex and desperately needed others to love and believe in him. But what did Lacey really know about Molly? And how much could Lacey trust her with Hunter’s past?

  She drew a deep breath. “Hunter’s a great guy. He’s sensitive even though he tries to hide it, and he needs people he can trust around him.” And that was as much as she was willing to reveal. “But I’d bet if he shows interest, the slightest interest, it’s real.”

  “After ten years apart, you know him that well?” Molly asked.

  Lacey nodded. “Like I said, he’s my family.” Ten years couldn’t erase that feeling. “So forgive me for saying this to you. If you’re playing a game, if you just like messing with the flirtation, then let it go. Don’t bother acting the part of someone who’s been hurt. Just leave him alone and let him move on.”

  Molly’s eyes widened, partly in surprise, partly in admiration. “You’re protective of each other. I respect that.”

  “You care about Hunter.” Lacey decided they’d talked about so much, she might as well lay it all on the line.

  “Our relationship is complicated,” Molly said.

  “Name one that isn’t. The thing is, if you care about Hunter and you trust his judgment, then you need to know one more thing about our past.”

  Molly raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”

  “After I left, Uncle Marc was furious that he’d lost any hope of gaining access to my trust fund.”

  Molly’s shoulders stiffened.

  Lacey refused to be deterred. “He was angry and needed to blame someone. That someone turned out to be Hunter and Ty, but Hunter got the w
orst of it. Uncle Marc had Hunter removed from Ty’s mother’s home.”

  “How do you know Marc was behind his removal?” Molly asked.

  Lacey remained silent.

  “So it’s like you said earlier about the car theft—there is no proof.”

  “Touché.” Lilly smiled grimly. “But I think you need to allow for the possibility that there’s truth in my story. In our story. Talk to Marc. Ask him. And talk to Hunter. I’ve never known him to lie.”

  A smile curved Molly’s lips. “I’ll do that.”

  They started walking again, this time toward the exit of the mall closest to where they’d parked. Lacey felt as though she’d accomplished a lot with Molly, from telling her the truth about the past to opening up the possibility of a relationship with Hunter. In her heart Lacey believed that even if Hunter had ever had feelings for her in the past, he considered her just a friend now.

  They walked out the doors to the parking lot.

  “Where are you parked?” Molly asked.

  “That direction.” Lacey pointed toward the area she’d left Ty’s vehicle.

  “Me, too.”

  They started toward their cars. Since it was a late weeknight, near closing time, and on a drizzly evening, it made sense that the lot was nearly empty. Although it was dark, the overhead lamps provided steady streams of light in all directions.

  “I hope you’re happy with the outfit you bought,” Molly said as they walked.

  “I am. I couldn’t have bought it without you with me to tell me I looked good.” She shook her head and laughed. “I’m just so nervous about seeing all the relatives for the first time, you know?”

  “I can imagine.”

  Lacey saw her car straight ahead of her. She wanted to question Molly about the trust fund before she lost the opportunity. “Listen, I know you were going to help my uncle with—” Out of nowhere, a car careened toward them, cutting off her thoughts.

  Lacey screamed and barreled into Molly, deliberately pushing the other woman toward the grassy embankment on Lacey’s right. She rolled to her side and a nondescript car drove off in a squeal leaving both women shocked and shaking on the grass.