One and Only Page 13

  “You’re playing dirty.”

  Blake dropped his arms. “Come on, Elizabeth. I don’t bite.”

  Goose bumps ran down her spine. She knew that wasn’t true.

  “Are you lost?” he asked softly.

  She frowned. “No. I know exactly where I am.”

  “Good. Then come and snuggle.”

  She looked across the store at the man who had helped them. She didn’t know how their bonus system worked, but the price of the living room furniture had made her eyes water.

  Her gaze skipped to Sam. She’d been hovering in the distance, keeping an eye on what they were doing. Goodness knew what she would think of Blake’s snuggle time experiment.

  “Okay, Romeo. But don’t get any ideas about where this might lead. I’m a kiss free friend zone.”

  “I won’t forget.”

  Elizabeth frowned. “You have one minute to imagine yourself snuggling in your living room. After that, you’re on your own.”

  Blake threw the cushion onto the opposite end of the sofa. “I’m all yours.”

  Her authentic self sat beside Blake.

  “That’s not snuggling.”

  “Stop complaining,” she muttered.

  “You promised me one minute of snuggle time.”

  “If we snuggle how you imagine snuggling, we’ll be arrested.”

  Blake sighed. “If you don’t relax, the store will be closed before any snuggling takes place.”

  “Sometimes you can be so annoying.” Elizabeth leaned back and wiggled closer. “Are you happy now?”

  His arm dropped around her shoulders and he pushed her head against his chest. “That’s better.”

  “Your sweater prickles.”

  “It’s cashmere. Cashmere doesn’t prickle.”

  For purely ergonomic reasons, Elizabeth rested her arm across his flat, hard-as-rock stomach and relaxed. Beneath her ear, Blake’s heartbeat was strong and steady.

  She sighed when his arm rubbed hers. “What do you think?” she asked.

  “You feel better than the cushion.”

  It took a few seconds for his words to sink through the haze of wishful thinking fogging her brain. When she realized what he’d said, she jerked upright.

  “Oww. Your elbow poked me in the ribs.”

  “Oops, so sorry. Next time you should stick to the cushion. I come with a few rough edges.”

  Blake rubbed his side. “No kidding. I guess this means you won’t be trying the king-sized beds with me?”

  “You guessed right,” Elizabeth growled. But she was going to enjoy helping him spend plenty of money.

  Blake sipped his double-strength white chocolate mocha and smiled. Shopping with Elizabeth had almost bankrupted him. But it had been worth every cent to see her excited about fabric samples and coffee table options.

  He hadn’t been able to convince her to try the beds, but she had pushed him onto one. He took that as a win.

  “You’re too happy for a man who just spent a lot of money on furniture.”

  He cradled his coffee in his hands. “I see it as more of an investment in my future.”

  “How can the type of furniture you bought be an investment?”

  “It isn’t. I was talking about my own future. I’m looking forward to lots of snuggle time.”

  Elizabeth clapped her hands over her ears. “I don’t want to hear about your love life.”

  “At the moment I don’t have one, but I’m ready to change that.”

  “You’re a confirmed bachelor, Blake. You always tell me how great it is to be single. You don’t have to answer to anyone, you can leave your dirty laundry around the house, and you don’t have to clean up after yourself.”

  “When have you ever known me not to clean up after myself?”

  Elizabeth grinned. “I might have slightly exaggerated your less endearing qualities.”

  “What about you?”

  “You know all my bad habits.”

  “Not all of them,” Blake said. “Daniel told me you have a thing about making sure all the windows and doors are locked before you go to bed.”

  Elizabeth looked at her cup of tea. “It’s not a ‘thing’. I like to know I’m safe.”

  “I can understand someone checking the locks once, but three times? Unless there’s a reason, most people would consider that a little extreme.”

  “I’m not most people.”

  The stubborn look on Elizabeth’s face told him to back off. He ignored it. “What’s going on?”

  “Sometimes it’s better to move on and leave the bad things behind.”

  Blake’s heart pounded. “What happened, Elizabeth?”

  “It’s too late to do anything about it.”

  “But not too late to tell me. Has it got anything to do with all the calls you make to the police in Cedar Rapids?”

  Elizabeth nodded, then took a deep breath. “Two years ago, a man decided he didn’t like the way I was defending my client. He tried to have me removed from the trial.”

  “How did he do that?”

  “By making up a whole lot of lies. Thankfully the judge saw through what was happening. He was charged with perverting the course of justice. He wasn’t happy.”

  Blake gripped his mug. “Did it make it harder for you to defend your client?”

  “My client asked for another lawyer. After everything that had happened, it wasn’t the best news I could have received.”

  “Did the man stop harassing you?”

  “No.” Elizabeth hesitated. “One night when I was driving home, he ran me off the road. My car was a write-off, but I was okay.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “For the same reason I didn’t tell Daniel. You would have worried about me. The day after the accident, my oncologist told me I had breast cancer. I started treatment the following week. Nothing else mattered except getting better.”

  “And that’s why you lock everything? To make sure you’re safe?”

  Elizabeth nodded. “He wasn’t the first person who had intimidated me, but he was the worst. Until Anton de Bresney came along. He started harassing me when I was about to begin my radiation therapy. I decided I’d had enough. I resigned from my job, completed my treatment and came here.”

  “To start your clinic and find true love?”

  “Something like that.” Elizabeth’s cell phone rang. She looked at the caller display and frowned. “I need to answer my phone. I won’t be long.”

  Blake didn’t know who had contacted her, but Elizabeth looked worried.

  “Hi, Andrew.” She listened intently, then moved the phone to her other ear. “Are you sure?”

  Elizabeth closed her eyes. “Okay. Thanks for letting me know.” After she said goodbye, she left her phone on the table and sighed.

  “Is everything all right?”

  “That was my friend, Andrew Gowan. He’s a detective at the Cedar Rapids Police Department. Anton de Bresney has gone home. He went to a family member’s funeral.”

  “That’s good news, isn’t it?”

  “The woman who died was his sister. It looks as though she was murdered by the same gang who hurt her in the hit and run accident.”

  “The case you defended?”

  Elizabeth nodded. Her face was as white as the snow that fell outside. “What if Anton or someone in his family holds me responsible for her death? I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

  Blake held her hand. He didn’t know what she should do either, but he knew someone who could help.

  Chapter 10

  John Fletcher’s eyes never left Elizabeth’s face. He listened intently, making notes on his phone as she spoke.

  “And that’s all I know,” Elizabeth said softly. “Andrew will email you and Detective McCormick with any relevant details.”

  John nodded. “The updated file arrived an hour ago.”

  Blake glanced at Elizabeth’s pale face before turning to John. “What do you suggest we do?�
��

  “The obvious choice is for Elizabeth to leave town, but that may not be necessary. By the sound of things, Anton’s family have bigger issues to deal with. The other option is to continue as you are now and see what happens.”

  Blake was all for the leave option, but Elizabeth wouldn’t agree to that.

  “If I stay, what can I do to be safer than I already am?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Traveling backward and forward between Emerald Lake and Bozeman makes you too vulnerable. If you need to be in town for any length of time, I’d suggest moving into Bozeman. If you can work from Daniel’s home, stay there.”

  Elizabeth bit her bottom lip. “What else?”

  “Try to limit the places you visit. It will make Sam’s job a lot easier if she knows where you’re going. The police are watching the airport. The highway patrol is looking for any vehicles that match the descriptions sent through by Detective McCormick. Other than that, don’t go anywhere without Sam.”

  “I won’t.” Elizabeth picked up her bag. “Thank you for seeing us on such short notice.”

  John shook Elizabeth’s hand. “I’m happy to help. If anything happens, Sam will be right beside you. She knows what she’s doing.”

  Blake stood and shook John’s hand. “Thanks.”

  “You’re welcome. Give me a call on Monday morning. Hopefully, by then, the police in Cedar Rapids will know what’s happening in Anton de Bresney’s family.”

  As they left John’s office, Elizabeth sighed. “I’ll talk to Paul. He might be able to finish a couple of rooms in the clinic for me.”

  Blake held onto Elizabeth’s arm. She was still too pale. “You can’t stay there. Apart from being a construction site, it isn’t safe.”

  “John doesn’t want me commuting between Emerald Lake and town. If I had to choose one place to live it would be Bozeman. But even if I could afford to rent an apartment, I wouldn’t be able to move in right away. Living at the clinic is the best option I have.”

  “No it isn’t. After I’ve moved into my house, you could stay with me.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  Sam met them in the corridor.

  Blake nodded to her before pushing the elevator button. “Why not? I have more than enough bedrooms. The security system is as good as Daniel’s, and it’s not far from Sam’s house. She could meet you at my house each morning and drive you into town.”

  “I can’t live with you.”

  Sam zipped up her jacket as the elevator doors opened. “It’s a good idea.”

  Elizabeth’s eyebrows rose. “You already knew?”

  “Blake mentioned something to me while you were in the bathroom. His new house is perfect. The boundary is wired with motion detector cameras. The house alarm is zoned and there are panic buttons everywhere.”

  “I can’t stay in your house, Blake.”

  “It’s either that or stay at Emerald Lake.”

  They stepped out of the elevator and headed toward the front doors.

  Elizabeth looked as though she had the weight of the world sitting on her shoulders. “I can’t work from my brother’s home. I have to meet Paul twice a week to go over any questions about the clinic. On top of that, I’m trying to build my networks in the community. I have three meetings with other organizations next week.”

  Elizabeth’s face shot to Sam. “I almost forgot. I’m flying to Chicago on Thursday to meet the trustees of a non-profit foundation. Can you come with me?”

  “I’ll check with John. He might decide to ask one of his security specialists in Chicago to look after you.”

  Blake didn’t say anything. As far as he was concerned, traveling to Chicago was too risky. But he didn’t own a half-finished clinic that desperately needed more funding.

  Outside, a fresh dumping of snow had left the parking lot looking like a graveyard for abandoned vehicles.

  Elizabeth shivered. “Sometimes I wish my brother had bought a house in New Mexico. It would be a lot warmer.”

  “Where’s your sense of adventure?” Blake asked. “Skiing is almost non-existent in New Mexico, and you can’t see Old Faithful blow her top.”

  “In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m not the ski bunny type.”

  “I know. Sitting in a chalet sipping hot chocolate isn’t your thing. But hitting the backcountry and throwing yourself over the edge of a mountain is exactly what you need.”

  Sam smiled. “Don’t do that until I’ve finished looking after you. I’ll need backup if you go skiing.”

  Blake unlocked his truck. When they’d left the café, Elizabeth’s hands were shaking so much that he doubted she could have driven to Fletcher Security. So he’d offered to take her, hoping the ride across town would calm her nerves.

  “Where to next, boss?” Sam asked.

  Elizabeth frowned. “I need to get my truck from outside Angel Wings Café, then I’m going home.”

  “Do you want me to drive you to the café?” Sam asked.

  Elizabeth looked at Blake. “Are you going back to Daniel’s house or heading into work?”

  “I need to make sure my office furniture has been delivered. After that, I’ll drive to Daniel’s.”

  “If Sam drops me off by the café, I could pick up my truck and meet you at your new office. After you’ve finished, Sam could go home while we follow each other to Emerald Lake. It would save her having to make a return trip to Emerald Lake.”

  Sam shook her head. “Sorry. I’ve been given strict instructions to follow you everywhere. You can still follow Blake, but I’ll be tagging along, too.”

  Blake winked at Elizabeth. “All the more reason to live with me.” It did his heart good to see a blush warm her cheeks.

  Elizabeth’s eye’s narrowed. “It’s not going to happen.”

  He took his keys out of his pocket. “We’ll see.”

  She didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to. The scowl on her face told him that hell would have to freeze over before she lived with him.

  He lifted the collar of his jacket and smiled. The National Weather Service had said the biggest storm of the decade was heading toward Bozeman.

  Hell might be closer than Elizabeth thought.

  “Are you coming?”

  Elizabeth swallowed a mouthful of granola and looked at Blake. “It’s seven o’clock in the morning. Where do you want me to go?”

  “To town.” He dangled a set of keys in the air. “The realtor dropped these off yesterday. They’re the keys to my house.”

  “But you’re not moving in until next weekend.”

  “Change of plans. We went unconditional yesterday. The store we visited yesterday is delivering most of my furniture at nine o’clock this morning.”

  “Don’t tell me. You called them after the realtor dropped off the keys.”

  Blake grabbed a slice of toast off a plate. “Exactly.” In two mouthfuls, it was gone. “What do you say?”

  “You’d better hope there’s more of that bread in the refrigerator. Daniel’s been hiding it from me.”

  Blake’s hand hovered over another slice. “You’re kidding?”

  “Nope. He buys the bread from a specialty baker in town.” To add even more gravity to the situation, she said, “It’s Daniel’s favorite breakfast.”

  Blake walked across to the refrigerator. “There has to be at least another slice or two left. What does the wrapper look like?”

  “It comes in a light brown paper bag.”

  “Like this one?” He reached across the counter and picked up a bag.

  “That’s it.”

  “It’s empty.”

  “Oops.”

  Blake pulled out his cell phone. “What’s the name of the bakery?”

  “Why?”

  “I’ll call them and get half a dozen loaves delivered.”

  Elizabeth scooped more granola onto her spoon. “No one’s going to bring six loaves of bread to Emerald Lake. We’re forty minutes from town.”

  “I’m
a billionaire. Money talks.”

  “Not in Bozeman. I doubt the bakery has someone who can drive out here. Besides, Daniel will be back in another ten minutes. He’s feeding the animals in the barn.”

  Blake looked genuinely worried. “What do you suggest I do?”

  “Grovel. If my brother values your friendship, he might forgive you.”

  “Now I know you’re joking.”

  Elizabeth sent Blake a sweet smile. “Would I lie to you?”

  His eyes narrowed. “No, but you would omit crucial details if it meant you got your own way.”

  She crunched another mouthful of granola.

  The back door opened and Daniel walked into the kitchen. “Morning. Are you ready for the big move, Blake?”

  Elizabeth swallowed what she was eating. “You knew Blake was leaving?”

  “He told me last night.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked Blake.

  “I didn’t want you to lose sleep over me not being here.”

  She would have believed him if she hadn’t seen the gleam in his eyes. It was just as well he was leaving.

  Daniel looked at the plate of toast and frowned. “Have you been eating my toast again, Elizabeth?”

  “Not me. It was Blake.”

  Blake held his hands in front of him. “I didn’t realize it was the last of the toast. I’ll make it up to you by buying lunch.”

  Daniel frowned. “What are you talking about?”

  “There isn’t any bread left. Elizabeth said it’s your favorite loaf.”

  Daniel opened the freezer and pulled out more bread. “Elizabeth knows I’ve got plenty in here.”

  Blake stared straight at her. “I take back my offer. We wouldn’t last one week under the same roof.”

  “I’m glad we got that sorted.” Elizabeth took a deep breath and focused on her brother. Last night they’d had a big discussion about what she would do. Daniel wanted her to stay at Emerald Lake. She wanted to stay in town.

  “I called Paul. He said he could have two offices and a bathroom finished by the end of next week.”

  Daniel shook his head. “It’s the worst idea I’ve ever heard. You’re not staying in a half-derelict building, on your own, while a man with serious mental health issues is looking for you.”