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“Mr. Brady and I were talking. He’s in the city to get some investment advice,” Claire said.
Stephanie nodded. She hadn’t picked that up from him, but she supposed it could be true. She canceled the last silent observation. He wasn’t in town for investment advice. He was here to investigate John Reynard.
That realization made her suck in a sharp breath.
“Are you all right?” Claire asked, her gaze anxious.
“I’m...I’m just reliving the moments before Mr. Brady came in,” she answered. “It was pretty scary with those men coming after me.”
“What happened, exactly?” Claire asked.
“Not too much. They came in, and I could tell they—” she gulped “—wanted to harm me.”
“Why?” Claire pressed.
“I don’t know,” she answered, flapping her arm in frustration and wondering if it had something to do with her father. What if he’d let his gambling get out of hand again and they were here to make sure he paid up?
Nothing like that had happened to her before. Nobody had come after her because of her father’s debts, but maybe she’d been lucky in the past.
Craig was also staring at her. Afraid he might try to touch her, she took a quick step back.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“I’d better go.”
She felt relief. She needed some distance from him. But the relief was tinged with disappointment. They had made some kind of weird mental connection, and she couldn’t simply let that go. She wanted to ask if she would see him again, but she couldn’t start a conversation like that in front of Claire. And she already knew the answer, because she understood that she and Craig Brady couldn’t keep away from each other.
She shivered, drawing a reaction from Claire again.
“You should go home and rest.”
“I can’t keep bugging out on you.”
“You’ve just had a pretty bad experience.”
She might have argued except that she wanted to be alone with her thoughts—and her reactions.
* * *
OUTSIDE ON THE STREET, Craig took a deep breath, then looked around, making sure that the two men who had attacked Stephanie weren’t lurking.
Perhaps if the other woman hadn’t come in, Craig would have stayed in the shop. But their privacy had been compromised. Which was lucky, because following through on his impulses would have been dangerous for Stephanie.
He thought about her reaction to his question about calling the cops. A regular, upstanding citizen would have wanted to report the incident, but she’d decided not to do it. Which was good for him, he supposed. If he got dragged into making a police report, he’d have to give his real name.
He wasn’t quite steady on his feet as he walked down the sidewalk, not sure where he was going.
His head was spinning as he tried to take in everything that had happened in the past hour. Starting with the attack and ending with the intimacy of his contact with Stephanie. He was still reeling from that. Probably she was, too, although he knew her reaction wasn’t exactly the same as his.
From the contact with her, he knew that she had never experienced anything like what had happened when they’d touched. She’d been totally unprepared for the way their minds had connected.
To be honest, he hadn’t been prepared, either. But it was different for him. He had known that kind of mind-to-mind contact before—with his brother. He’d mourned Sam’s loss and mourned the loss of that perfect communication. He’d thought he would never experience it again. Then he had—with Stephanie Swift. A woman who was engaged to marry the man who had caused Sam’s death.
He swore under his breath, trying to wrap his mind around all the implications. If she married Reynard, she’d be lost to him. And lost to herself, too, because she’d be committing herself to a man who didn’t understand her and couldn’t give her the intimate contact she needed.
Craig huffed out a breath. And he could?
Yes, of course. He’d proved it when he’d touched her, kissed her. Their minds had opened to each other, but there was an added component he’d never experienced with his brother. He and Sam had been twin brothers, sharing the intimacy of siblings. He and Stephanie were adults—and intimate on a whole new level. Not only could they communicate mind to mind, they were drawn to each other with a sexual pull that was startling in its intensity.
He wanted to make love with her. Desperately. Yet below the surface of that need was a hint of warning. The sexual contact was dangerous if they didn’t handle it right. He wasn’t sure why he realized that truth. He only knew that he wasn’t making it up.
Something else he knew. He couldn’t allow Stephanie Swift to marry John Reynard for a whole lot of reasons. Yet he knew that was another thing he’d have to handle carefully if he didn’t want Stephanie to end up dead.
He winced. That was putting it pretty strongly, but he couldn’t discount that truth. John Reynard would fight for what he thought was his. And if he couldn’t have it, nobody could.
And what about Craig’s original purpose—to avenge his brother’s death? He hadn’t forgotten about that, but he knew he couldn’t simply go blasting into Reynard’s life. All along he’d known he had to be careful about his approach to the man. That was true in spades now.
Chapter Four
“You don’t mind staying here by yourself?” Stephanie asked her assistant again.
“I think I’ll be okay.”
“I’d hate for anything to happen to you.”
Claire gave her a direct look. “The way it sounded, they were after you—not me.”
She answered with a tight nod.
“Go on, then.” Claire looked around. “And maybe you want to take the back way.”
Stephanie hated the idea of sneaking out of her own shop, but she knew that Claire was probably right. She slipped through the back door and stood looking around before heading down the alley and over a few blocks to the house she’d bought. She kept herself from running, but she walked quickly along the afternoon streets. When she stepped inside her living room, she breathed a sigh before locking the door firmly behind her, then looking around at the room she had so lovingly furnished—with some pieces from the Garden District mansion and others that she’d picked up at flea markets and garage sales.
The house itself was old but charming, and she’d gotten it at a very good price after Katrina, from a couple who had decided to leave the city for a safer environment.
The down payment had taken a chunk of the money she’d inherited from her mother. But she hadn’t wanted to live with her father in the Garden District mansion. She’d been happy here—well, as happy as she could be. And now her life had turned itself upside down again.
The first time had been a few months ago, when John Reynard had asked for her hand in marriage, and she’d known she had to accept. Then an hour ago, Craig Branson had touched her, and the world had flipped over again.
Her mind had opened to Craig’s. And his to hers. He’d tried to hide it from her, but she knew he had come to New Orleans because he thought John Reynard had something to do with the death of his twin brother. That was why he’d been at the charity reception the other night. He’d been stalking Reynard—and he’d locked eyes with her.
She thought about that and about what else she’d discovered. Since birth and perhaps before, Craig had been tied to his brother, Sam, in a way that he had taken for granted. That connection had been ripped away by a stray bullet, leaving him hardly able to cope with his life. But he had coped. And he’d vowed to avenge his brother’s death.
She shuddered as she thought about the rest of what had been in his mind. He’d never expected to experience that intimacy with anyone again—but he had. With her.
What did it mean? How was it possible?
She was trying to work her way through the encounter with him when a knock on the door made her whole body jerk.
Was that Craig? Coming after her.
“Who’s there?” she called out.
“John.”
Oh, Lord, John. The man she was going to marry. One of the last people she wanted to see now.
She got up on shaky legs and crossed to the door. From the front window, she saw John standing on her doorstep, his arms folded tightly across his chest. He dropped them to his sides when he saw her staring at him.
Quickly she unlocked the door and stepped aside. He came in and closed the door behind him, then turned to her.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“You were attacked.”
“How do you know?”
He hesitated for just a second before saying, “I was calling to say hello, and Claire answered the phone. She sounded upset, so I asked her some questions. Are you all right?”
“Yes.”
“She says two men came into the shop and threatened you. Then a stranger came to your rescue.”
“Yes.”
“I assume you got his name.”
“He’s Craig Brady,” she said, using the false name that he’d given to Claire.
“And you never met him before?”
She wondered what the right answer was, then decided and said, “I didn’t meet him, but he was at that charity reception the other night.”
“The guy who was watching you?”
She winced. “I guess. I didn’t really pay much attention,” she lied.
John kept his gaze on her, and she worked to keep her expression neutral. She knew he’d noticed Craig at the plantation house. And done what? Maybe had his guys make a move on him?
“So what about the men who attacked you?” John asked. “Had you ever seen them before?”
“No.”
John continued his interrogation. “And what did they want?”
“I never found out.”
His eyes narrowed. “But I suspect you think it has something to do with your father.”
Her mouth had gone dry, but she managed to answer, “Yes.”
“He’s gambling again?”
“I...don’t know for sure.”
“You’d better tell him to behave himself. I’m not a bottomless well of money.”
“I understand.”
“I hate it that he’s responsible for bad stuff happening to you,” he said, the tone of his voice changing. She knew that change. He was feeling tender toward her, and amorous.
He reached out and took her in his arms, cradling her against himself, and she fought to keep the stiffness out of her body. She didn’t want him to hold her, but she could hardly object to her fiancé comforting her after a frightening experience.
He crooked one hand under her chin and tipped her face up as he lowered his mouth. His lips touched down on hers, settled, then began to move with the skill of a man who had made love to many women.
Stephanie tried to relax and kiss him back, when all she wanted to do was duck out of his arms and flee the room.
He was an experienced lover, and she’d convinced herself that marrying him wouldn’t be a personal disaster for her, yet, as he kissed her, she couldn’t stop herself from comparing her feelings now to the sensations and emotions that had threatened to swamp her when Craig had held her in his arms.
Then she’d been aroused. Hot and pliable and ready for sex. Now she was only tolerating the attentions of the man whose bed she would share in a few months.
She hoped he didn’t realize what she was really feeling. And when he drew back, she felt relief and shame warring inside her. If she were honest, she would tell John Reynard that she couldn’t marry him, but she knew that was as impossible as her flying off to Oz in a hot-air balloon.
At least he hadn’t forced her to make love with him. She’d told him that she couldn’t do that until they were married, and he’d grumbled about the edict. But he’d respected her wishes. She wondered if he thought she was a virgin. Probably not. Probably he’d investigated her background enough to know that she’d been intimate with a few men, but the relationships had never gone very far. Maybe he was thinking that he’d wait until marriage so she didn’t have a chance to walk away when she was disappointed.
He looked down at her. “I guess you’re still upset by what happened.”
“Yes. I’m sorry.”
“I should let you rest.” The edge in his voice made her grasp his arm. “I’m sorry. I just can’t...” She let her voice trail off rather than try to explain any further.
“I’m going to have some of my men protect you,” he said.
Her gaze shot to his face. “What do you mean?”
“They’ll be watching over you.”
“You mean they’re coming here?”
“They won’t bother you, but they’ll be around.”
“Yes, thank you,” she managed to say, when she really wanted to scream at him to leave her alone.
He left the house then, and she collapsed into a chair, glad to be alone. Yet at the same time she was terrified by what had just happened. She’d never wanted to marry this man. Now she understood just how bad a decision it would be.
Would be? Was she still thinking that she had a choice?
