Sweet Temptation

An ache started low in his gut when he thought of Hannah. So young and beautiful. So full of life. His only comfort was that she hadn’t gone alone. David had been there with her, had gone with her. And Micah had been the one left alone.

And you left Angelina alone.

The thought was a fist to the gut. He’d spent so much time alternately grieving for and being angry at Hannah because she’d left him. And then he’d done the same thing to Angelina. Hannah hadn’t had a choice, but he had.

His cell phone rang, and he reached to grab it off the nightstand so it wouldn’t wake Angelina. He moved away from the bed as he flipped it open.

“Hello,” he said in a low voice.

“Micah, this is Chad. Look I have some stuff you need to see. Is there somewhere we can meet?”

Micah shook his head in confusion. “Where are you?”

“In a cab. I flew into Bush half an hour ago. I think I have our guy.”

Adrenaline surged in Micah’s veins. “You know who it is?”

“Yeah, I think so. Now we just have to find him. I brought all the information I could dig up on him with me. Can we hook up somewhere?”

“Yeah, sure. Look, give the cabdriver this address. Have him bring you here.” Micah relayed the address to The House. “Thanks a lot, Chad. I owe you one, buddy.”

“No problem. David was my friend too. I looked out for Angelina the best I could after he died.”

“Yeah, I know,” Micah said quietly.

He hung up and went back to the bed where Angelina was now propped up, her eyes sleepy and her hair falling in waves over her shoulders.

“Who was that?” she said in a drowsy voice.

“Chad. He’s on his way here. He thinks he knows who our guy is.”

Her eyes widened. “That’s great! I mean, I guess it is. Will you be able to find him?”

“Just having a lead on his identity will give us plenty to work with. We can track him then. Learn his habits, his quirks, find out if he has any connections here. If he’s used any credit cards. Yeah, we’ll get him, baby. Don’t worry.”

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “You should probably get dressed. He’ll be here in half an hour.”

He got up and walked toward the door. “I’ll wait downstairs for you. Come down when you’re ready.”

She nodded and he went down the stairs to wait for Chad.

Angelina took her time showering and getting dressed. She was in a mellow mood today and her clothing would reflect it. She chose her most worn pair of jeans—her most comfortable—and a cotton T-shirt that had been washed until it was faded and soft. Not bothering with shoes, she padded down the stairs.

She heard voices from the front sitting room, so she ventured in there. Micah and Chad were sitting across from each other and both looked up when she entered.

Micah stood, as did Chad, and she went to stand next to Micah. It was automatic, and he pulled her into his side, a gesture that comforted her.

“Hi, Chad,” she said softly.

He smiled warmly at her. “Hey, kiddo. You doing okay?”

She nodded. “Micah said you’ve found him?”

“Yeah, we were just getting to that.”

Chad pulled out a folder and handed it to Micah. What happened next was a blur. One moment Micah was flipping open the folder, and the next Chad whipped out his pistol and hit Micah in the back of the head.

Micah went down, blood spilling from the wound on his head. Angelina’s knees buckled, and she dropped down next to Micah, her hands going to his shoulders.

“Oh my God, what are you doing?” she screamed up at Chad.

Chad pointed the gun at Micah, his eyes so cold she shivered.

“Get up, Angelina. Do it now.”

“What is wrong with you? I need to call an ambulance. Are you crazy?”

The realization was slow to come, but when it did, it hit her like a sledgehammer. Her gaze flicked to the open folder lying next to Micah on the floor. It held empty sheets of paper. There was nothing there. It was all a trick.

She stared in horror at Chad. Nausea bubbled in her stomach. “It was you,” she whispered. “You’re the creep who’s been stalking me.”

“Not stalking. I never stalked you.”

“What the hell would you call it then?” she spit out. “You made my life hell. I lived in constant fear. I had to pack up and move in the middle of the night.”

“You should have come to me,” he said calmly. “I took good care of you. For a little while you leaned on me. You should have seen that I was perfect for you.”

Oh, sweet Jesus. He was insane. Out of his ever-loving mind, and now Micah lay on the floor with a head injury.

“Get out of the way, Angelina. I don’t want to accidentally shoot you when I shoot him.”

Terror blew through her chest, robbing her of breath. He was utterly serious. There was no emotion, no reaction in his eyes. He would calmly kill Micah without a second thought. Unless she could stop him.

She rose to her feet, careful to keep her body in between Chad and Micah. Her knees shook, her palms were sweaty, and if she so much as breathed wrong, she was going to puke.