felt shock rip through him. “He was my...stepfather.” Like that distinction mattered. Technically, Gregory Montgomery had adopted him. Of course, most folks didn’t know that Mark had hated the bastard with every bit of his soul.
“He committed suicide two months after my parents died,” Davis said.
Mark glanced over at Ava. She was in her car, appearing for all intents and purposes as if she was about to drive away and leave him.
“Sometimes guilt can drive a man to take his own life.”
Davis seriously thinks that Gregory murdered the McGuires!
And...and Mark couldn’t say that he hadn’t. Because he knew just how twisted Gregory could be.
Ava cranked up her car.
Mark jerked away from Davis. “Ava, wait!” He lunged toward the car. Her window was rolled down, and his fingers pushed through the opening and locked onto the steering wheel. “Wait,” he said again, his voice softer.
She didn’t look at him.
“I didn’t hurt them, Ava.”
She nodded. Blinked several times. Oh, no, was she crying? He couldn’t stand it when Ava cried.
“I would never do anything to hurt you.”
Again, she gave the faintest of nods.
Davis was a few feet away, watching them far too closely.
“Where are you going?” Mark asked her. “You said you were starting a new job in Austin soon. You can’t just stay in some motel.” Not with that creep out there watching her. “Stay here. You’ll be safe.”
Her head turned then, and she finally stared into his eyes. He didn’t see any rage there. No accusation. Just the same trust that he always saw when she looked at him. “I don’t want to bring any danger to you. He was in your house. Whoever this guy is...I don’t want him hurting you.”
And I’d be destroyed if he hurt you, Ava. Can’t you see that?
“I’m going back to the ranch with Davis.”
“You hate staying there.” He knew Ava hadn’t stepped foot inside the main house, not since that night.
She shrugged. “There’s a guest cottage I can use.”
“You can stay here.” She’d been asking to stay hours before, and now she was running away.
But then Davis stepped forward. “We have better security at our place. He already got in here once. He won’t reach her there.”
Because the McGuire ranch had basically been transformed into a fortress after those murders. The brothers had wanted to make sure their home was always protected.
Even if that protection had come too late.
“I’m sorry I involved you,” Ava said. Her hands were curled around the steering wheel.
He leaned forward a bit more and caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger. “This isn’t over, Ava.”
“Mark, I—”
He kissed her. A fast, hard kiss, right on her lips. And yes, he knew Davis was watching. So what? It was time all the McGuires realized that Mark would be taking what he wanted.
And what he wanted most was Ava.
He pulled back and held her surprised stare. “I’ll be seeing you very soon.” She wasn’t getting away from him. Not this time.
* * *
THE COPS WERE USELESS.
He watched as they scurried around the Montgomery ranch. Were they seriously looking for clues? There weren’t any to find. He was too good. He hadn’t left any evidence behind, nothing that could be traced to him.
This isn’t my first ball game.
And Davis McGuire was there, too. Stalking around, questioning everyone.
Some of the idiots there actually stuttered when they talked to Davis. Like he was some kind of big deal. He wasn’t. None of the McGuire brothers were.
The only McGuire who mattered...that was Ava.
She’d left Mark. Good. She’d taken his warning. He’d already known that she was planning to move to Austin. He’d learned that during one of his trips to her place. He liked to keep tabs on Ava. To find out just what was happening in her life.
He was glad that she’d come back home. Back to me. He’d grown tired of waiting for her, so he’d started trying to...scare her a bit. Nothing too bad, of course. Just little nudges to make sure Ava realized Houston wasn’t the place for her.
She was back now. She’d left Mark.
So it was finally time for him to move in...
I’ve been waiting, Ava. So patiently. Now you will be mine.
* * *
AVA HATED HER family home. It was beautiful, a sprawling ranch with a bluff and a lake, surrounded by old-growth trees. Her father had once said it was a slice of heaven. He’d told her that when her great-grandfather had emigrated from Ireland nearly one hundred years before, he’d taken one look at the land and fallen in love with the place.
Ava didn’t think the ranch was heaven. To her, it was much closer to hell.
She parked her car near the small guest house and very much not near the main home. When she got out of the vehicle, she wasn’t surprised to see Brodie already heading toward her. Brodie and Davis—identical twins who were both way too keen on the overprotective vibe. One look at Brodie’s tense face and she knew that Davis had already spilled about the events of the previous night.
She thought he’d lecture her. Instead he pulled her into his arms, nearly crushing her in a giant bear hug. “It’s about time you came home.”
The words hurt. She knew he didn’t mean to hurt her. Brodie loved her. She knew that. But when Brodie looked at the ranch, she knew he saw hope for the future. He and Jennifer were getting married and planning a family. Ava had no doubt the two of them would be deliriously happy there.
When she looked at the ranch, she saw her father telling her to run. She saw blood and death.
“It’s...temporary,” she told Brodie as she pulled back. “I’ll start looking for a new place in the city as soon as—”
“He was wearing a black ski mask.”
Right. He’d definitely already gotten the update from Davis. She bet that every one of her brothers had—and, knowing them, they’d be checking in with calls or visits ASAP.
Конец
