and Laurel was hoping a corrupt judge would back down from trying to go after Jericho.
“What kind of dirt does Herschel have on you?” he asked. Of course, Jericho wasn’t going to let that slide.
“My father manufactured some of it. Some of it was my own stupidity in handling one of his business accounts.”
And again, that was an explanation best saved for another day. She hadn’t done anything knowingly, but she had known her father. Had known what he was capable of doing. Now that her father knew the whole truth, he would use anything to hurt her where it hurt the most.
By going after Maddox.
Jericho’s stare got worse. So did his profanity. “Surely there’s somebody other than me who can do this for you. Like your ex-fiancé?”
“He can’t help,” she settled for saying. And, in fact, he was a big part of the problem.
“Really? You’d think the kid’s father would have something to say about you asking another man to marry you.” A muscle flickered in his jaw. “What’s your ex’s name, anyway? Leo-something-or-other.”
“Theo James,” she supplied.
Jericho lifted his right eyebrow. “Oh, I get it now. Theo doesn’t have a clean record, either, and your father will use that to get custody of his only grandson.” His eyebrow went higher. “You probably should have picked a different guy to hook up with, Laurel.”
She had. And Laurel would have told Jericho that, too, if the sound hadn’t shot through the room. Since her nerves were already right there at the surface, she gasped, her body readying itself to fight yet another battle.
But it was just Jericho’s phone.
“It’s Jax,” he said, and quickly answered it.
Even though Jericho didn’t put the call on speaker, Laurel was close enough to hear what Jax told him. “We caught the guy in the SUV. He was on the side of the road trying to switch out the bogus plates. I’m bringing him in now.”
The news caused Jericho’s shoulders to relax a little, but that quickly ended when his gaze snapped back to her. “Good,” he said to his brother. “Has he said anything about why he did it?”
“Not a word. He’s already lawyered up, but I’ll see if I can get anything from him.”
“I want to talk to him,” Jericho insisted. “I won’t be long. Laurel Tate’s here, and I need to finish up some things with her.”
Jax paused. For a long time. “Laurel,” he repeated, the venom clearly in his voice. “Why the heck is she at your place?”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
No, he wouldn’t. Nor would Jax approve. Because like the rest of the Crocketts, Jax blamed her in part for his father’s death. They’d never forgive her for that.
Laurel wouldn’t forgive herself, either.
She wouldn’t forgive herself for a lot of things.
Jax cursed, and she had no trouble hearing it. “Please tell me you’re not getting mixed up with Laurel again,” he said to Jericho.
“No.” Jericho didn’t hesitate. Of course, Laurel had known he wouldn’t simply agree to marry her. But hopefully he would when he understood the big picture.
She could practically see Jax’s puzzled expression, but he didn’t press things. “I’ll see you when you get here.”
And at that time, Jax would no doubt want a full explanation as to why their enemy’s daughter was in his brother’s house.
Jericho pushed the end call button and walked right past her. First to the kitchen so he could retrieve his badge from the counter. Then, toward his bathroom, she quickly realized, when she followed him.
“Look, I sympathize with this problem you’re having with your father,” he said, taking a bandage from the medicine cabinet. “Herschel shouldn’t be raising any kid. But I can’t help you.” Jericho slapped the bandage on his shoulder and then went into his bedroom.
She followed him there, too.
Even though there were dozens of things on her mind, important things, Laurel still felt the punch from the old memories here. The room hadn’t changed much in the twenty-two years since she’d been here for the first time.
Since she’d landed in that bed with Jericho.
Laurel made the mistake of looking at him before she could rein in the heat that trickled through her. A big mistake. Because Jericho saw that heat, and he scowled at her.
“My answer’s not going to change,” he insisted, taking a gray shirt from the closet. Once he had it on, he clipped on his badge. “It doesn’t matter what happened between us on that bed. Or what happened over two years ago.”
Laurel was about to tell him that it did indeed matter, but this time it was her phone that rang. She took it from her pocket, and when she saw her father’s name on the screen, she let it go to voice mail—along with the other dozen messages he’d left her in the past couple of hours. She didn’t have to listen to the message to know what he was demanding again.
That she hand Maddox over to him.
Or else agree to every detail of his sick plan.
She didn’t intend to do either one of those.
“I can’t let him get his hands on my son,” she whispered.
“Good luck with that.” It sounded like a dismissal, but she thought she saw some concern in Jericho’s eyes. “I take it you’ve hidden the baby so that Herschel can’t find him?”
She nodded. “He’s with a friend I trust.”
“A friend,” he repeated, that cop’s stare coming at her again. “But I’m guessing this is a friend who can’t help you with your marriage problem.”
“No.”
He huffed, scrubbed his hand over his face. “I can’t do this. What I can do is make some calls and arrange a safe house where you can stay until you work things out with Herschel. For now, I need to get to the station to question this dirt-for-brains suspect.”
Yes, Jericho had made it crystal clear that he had more important things to do and no intention of helping her. So, Laurel pulled out the big guns. Or rather, the picture. It was the screen saver on her phone, and she held it up for him to see.
“That’s my son, Maddox,” she said.
Laurel didn’t need to see the picture to be able to describe it in complete detail. The precious little boy with the blondish-brown hair, amber eyes and a melt-your-heart kind of smile.
Not a newborn baby.
As Jericho had likely been expecting.
Since Laurel was watching
