Holding Out For A Holiday Hero

Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

“Tis the season…to solve a murder.”

– Detective Harris Avery (What? I wanted a quote, too.)

The cops had left up a line of yellow police tape near True’s front door. Jake saw it the instant he stepped out of his vehicle. The yellow tape definitely clashed with the festive garland that True had hung up around her entranceway. He’d barely noticed the garland on his last visit to her place. The garland inside on her bannisters? Yeah, he’d seen that stuff. But he hadn’t paid much attention the house’s exterior decorations.

Probably because he’d been too focused on her. And then on the dead body. Dead bodies tended to distract people.

He walked around the vehicle and raised his hand to open True’s car door for her.

Someone is in the black BMW. The one parked in front of her neighbor’s house. Only Jake didn’t think that driver was a guest of the neighbor.

Jake’s hand pulled away from the door. He turned toward the BMW.

The BMW’s driver side door opened.

And True opened her door, too. “Jake? What’s wrong?”

A man climbed from the BMW. Tall. With carefully styled black hair, wearing a blue sweater and khakis, and aviator sunglasses perched on his nose, he turned his head and seemed to zero in on Jake.

Then the fool began walking toward Jake. A slightly unsteady walk. And maybe those aviators were a little lopsided on his nose.

“What is he doing here?” Horror filled True’s voice. “Richard shouldn’t be in Rosewood!”

Richard. The ex. No, he shouldn’t be in Rosewood. Richard’s happy ass should be up in Colorado. He should not be making his way determinedly across the road and straight toward True.

She climbed out of the SUV. Stood at Jake’s side. She grabbed for his hand.

Automatically, he looked down. True was holding his hand. His fingers tightened around hers.

“True!” Richard began jogging toward them.

No, toward her.

“True! I’ve been waiting for you!”

Oh, had he?

Richard staggered to a stop right in front of True. And Jake. Richard whipped off his sunglasses and shoved them into the right pocket of his khakis. His bloodshot eyes locked on her. “You didn’t come home last night,” he accused her.

“No,” Jake said, voice flat. “She didn’t. Because she was with me.”

Richard’s glare jumped to him. “Who the fuck are you? And why are you dragging my wife home after some all-nighter?”

Oh, no. This SOB did not just say that shit to me.

“I’m not your wife,” True fired back. “We’re divorced, and you know it, Richard.”

Jake stared back at the other man. And smiled. Richard. Wasn’t the shortened version of that name… “Dick,” he said with a nod. “Yeah, Dick, she’s not your wife. And as for who I am? I’m the?—”

“He’s my b—” True began.

Maybe she’d been about to say bounty hunter. But Jake finished his words before she could, and he very clearly proclaimed, “Boyfriend.”

Richard gaped at him.

“I’m the boyfriend,” Jake repeated. “The man True was with all night long. Last night. And the night before.” His fingers tightened on hers. “Where True goes, I go. Now that we understand who I am and why I’m here…why the fuck are you here?”

Rage twisted Richard’s face. “Y-you’re screwing my wife?”

“I prefer to think of it as making her scream as she comes for me, over and over again.”

“Jake!” True snapped.

And Richard snapped, too . As in, went crazy right in front of Jake. The prick drew back his fist and came in swinging it.

The problem with the swing? Well, problems with it? Problem one was that the guy couldn’t swing for shit. Couldn’t make a strong fist for shit. Another problem was that Richard’s wild and spinning blow might just accidentally hit True.

And that wasn’t happening on Jake’s watch. He moved quickly to shield True with his body because that fist was flying far too recklessly.

The fast movement protected True and resulted in Richard getting in one lucky punch to Jake’s jaw.

“ Jake!” True cried.

Such a weak-ass punch.

Jake smiled at the ex. “Is it my turn now?”

Richard was winding his arm up like he’d punch again.

“I think I get a turn,” Jake decided. “Fair is fair, after all.”

But Richard clearly did not agree. His fist flew at Jake once more.

Jake caught it in mid-air. “Haven’t you ever heard that you should use your words to settle an argument, prosecutor? This is just bad form.” And Jake squeezed the fist he held. Hard.

Richard paled.

“Bad form because you don’t know how to punch.” Jake had used his right hand to catch Richard’s flying punch. Now Jake pulled back his left, and he drove it hard into Richard’s stomach. An oomph broke from Richard as he doubled over. “That’s how you punch,” Jake added with a nod. “And I was using my weak hand because I am a sweetheart like that.”

Richard stumbled away from him.

“Should I try with my right hand?” Jake asked politely.

“No!” True jumped in front of him. The woman actually put her body between him and her ex. “Stop this, right now.”

All amusement fled because True had just put herself within grabbing distance of her asshole ex. Before that dick could put his hands on her, Jake wrapped his fingers around her waist, lifted her up, and put her back behind him. “He doesn’t touch you. Never again.” Then he faced the jerk once more even as he ordered, “Call Harris, True. Get the cops here, now.”

“True, don’t!” Richard bit out. “I’m here for you! I came back because I need you.”

Behind him, Jake heard her calling Harris. Good.

“You need her, huh?” Jake drawled as he cast a disgusted glance over the ex. “How long have you been here in town, needing her?”

“I-I…a few days.”

Days? “Long enough to stake out her house? To maybe go inside and kill the bastard you hired to stalk her while you were busy with work in Atlanta?”

“What?” Richard shook his head. He almost fell on his ass, but managed to stay upright at the last moment. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. True— hang up the phone. ” He sidestepped so he could try and see her better.

Jake just moved to the side, too. “Were you at the museum last night?” he asked the ex.

Richard hesitated.

Sonofabitch, he was there.

“I just needed to see True! I knew she’d been working there so I stopped by!”

“And how’d you know that? How’d you know where she worked?”

Richard didn’t answer.

“Did you know because you’ve had Dylan Dunn stalking her?”

Richard flinched.

Like that is not at all suspicious. Like everything about the jerk and his stalking ass wasn’t suspicious. The creep had just been parked outside of her house, waiting for her?

“True, I came to the museum, but I didn’t see you in the crowd! Just saw kids and a damn Santa. So I came back here to wait on you.” Richard’s hands fisted at his sides. “Only you never showed up. I was here all night long. You never showed. ”

The ex needed to check that anger. “Yeah, True didn’t show due to the fact that she was with me.”

True’s fingers pressed to Jake’s back. “Uniformed cops are close. Harris said they’d be here soon.”

“You seriously think you’re going to have me arrested? Me?” Richard laughed. A high, grating sound. “I’ll say he swung first, True. I’ll get your boyfriend arrested. I’m a prosecutor, people will believe me. People will?—”

Jake shook his head.

“What?” Richard barked.

“Her neighbor has one of those handy doorbell cameras.” He’d found out about it from Harris. Unfortunately, nothing had been on the camera the night Dylan Dunn had been killed. Probably because Dylan and his murderer both came in through the back of True’s house. So the neighbor’s doorbell camera hadn’t spotted them. But right then, where Richard was standing…a perfect vantage point. “Smile, Dick. You’re on camera.”

And, damn if the fool didn’t try to take yet another swing at Jake. Had the man not heard the words Jake had clearly enunciated? This time when the prick swung, there was no missing the scent of whiskey that clung to Richard.

Jake dodged the blow and because he was tired of bullshit, he drove a hard right cross straight to Richard’s jaw. The dick went down, groaning, and he didn’t get up.

Jake crouched next to his prey. “The cops are coming, and before they arrive, you’re going to understand some very, very important facts.”

Richard blinked blearily at him.

“She’s not your wife any longer. She’s not your anything. You don’t stalk her. You don’t scare her. You don’t get near her again.”

“True!” Richard shrieked.

Jake didn’t even like the prick saying her name. “You’re the dumbass who lost her,” Jake rasped. “And I’m the lucky bastard who has her now.” He never took his gaze from Richard’s face. “I’m also the bastard who knows how to fight in order to keep her. I went easy on you today.” For the camera. Because he knew how to wait and how to drive a man to attack. Thanks for the footage. Your ass will be in a cell soon. “I’ll never go easy again.” You’ve been warned.

Jake would offer no additional warnings.

He rose and shook his head in disgust as he studied the sprawled ex. “Really, True? What the hell did you see in this guy?” Jake turned to face her.

Horror filled her expression as she stared down at her ex.

“I’m sorry, True!” Richard cried out. And, yep, some of those words slurred. The more he spoke, the more slurred his voice became. “S-sorry for the affair! Sorry for hurting you! I’m s-sorry about the baby! ”

Jake stiffened. Every muscle went rock hard.

What baby?

“ I want you back. N-nothing is the same without you. I want you back! Please, True. Please. Give me another chance!”

True shook her head. “That’s not ever going to happen.”

In the distance, a siren wailed.

And Jake realized that wasn’t just horror on True’s face. It was pain. Grief.

What baby?

Jake stepped toward True. Lifted his hand and carefully curled his fingers under her chin. “True? You okay?”

Her lower lip trembled. Jake pulled her against him. Held her tight. Curled his body around hers and hugged her. He could feel her pain, and he didn’t know how to take it away.

He was still holding her when the cops arrived.

There were some hurts that never ended. Sure, they’d dull with time. The sharpness couldn’t cut like a knife forever. But the ache would remain.

Richard’s appearance…and his words…they’d stirred up the past.

I’m s-sorry about the baby.

She stood on her porch and watched her ex-husband get loaded into the back of a patrol car. Talk about how the mighty had fallen. Richard had always been the man who prosecuted criminals. But he’d just been cuffed. And he’d be heading to the station soon.

She’d fallen for him so long ago because she’d believed Richard when he said that he wanted to make the world a better, safer place. But somewhere along the way, he’d stopped being the idealistic guy with the big dreams. His ambition had gotten the better of him. The cases he’d taken had been less about serving justice. More about getting his name splashed in the media.

“Guy wouldn’t submit to a breathalyzer. Shouting about how he’s a lawyer and knows his rights.” Harris stood on her sidewalk and glanced up at True. “But we found two empty whiskey bottles in his car. He reeks of the stuff. We also got the footage from the neighbor’s camera.” A wave of his hand toward the brick house to the right. “We can arrest him for assault. Dude is most definitely drunk and disorderly.”

Jake stood near Harris. When True glanced at him, though, she found Jake’s eyes locked on her. No emotion covered his face. “You want him arrested, True?”

She wrapped her arms around her body. “He was at the museum last night.”

Jake nodded. “We both heard him admit that.”

“Do you think he put me in the sarcophagus?” Would Richard do something like that? Once, she would have said no, absolutely not. But then again, she would have also said that he’d never try to assault someone, yet he’d gone at Jake right in front of her.

And Jake had so easily taken Richard down.

“I’m gonna grill him like hell when I get him to the station,” Harris vowed. “I can also guarantee that he’ll be in holding and interrogation for as long as possible. His drunk ass isn’t going to be getting out of the station anytime soon.”

Her breath expelled in a rush. “Thanks for coming here so quickly, Harris.”

Harris’s gaze cut to the patrol car as it pulled away. “You know your ex looks suspicious as hell,” Harris told her.

Yes, she knew that.

“He ever pull shit like this with you before?” Harris pushed as his attention shifted back to her. “Did he ever get rough with you?”

A growl broke from Jake.

“No.” A negative shake of her head. “He’s never been physically violent with me.” Her lips pressed together. “I would have left him if he had been.”

“You did leave him,” Harris pointed out. “There more to that story?”

There was more, but nothing relevant to Harris. “He never physically hurt me.”

“You can’t say that for sure.” Harris rubbed his index finger along the bridge of his nose. “If it turns out that he’s the perp who locked you in that old coffin, I’d say he was all about some physical cruelty.”

Richard wouldn’t do that.

Would he?

Harris ambled away. Her neighbors had all finally gone back inside their homes, too. They’d come out when the cops arrived. Everyone liked a good show.

Everyone but her.

True’s shoulders sagged as she turned and made her way inside. The yellow tape was still up, and she yanked it down before she crossed the threshold. Her house was still. Too quiet. And a faint odor lingered in the air.

From the dead body?

The door closed softly behind her. She waited, knowing what question would come. Almost hating it.

“What baby?” Jake asked her softly.

Her shoulders stiffened as pain from her past washed over her. “I was going to call him Lucas.” It hurt so much to say his name. “I lost him right at thirteen weeks. And nothing has ever hurt me more.” Not even when she’d lost her mother. Then her father.

Losing Lucas…seeing the blood slide from her and knowing there was nothing she could do to stop it…nothing she could do to save her baby…

Jake’s hands curled around her shoulders. “I am so sorry,” he told her.

She nodded. Her eyes closed, the better to hold in the tears. “I went to the hospital by myself. Richard was working on a case.” There had always been some big case with him. “Afterwards, he acted…like it was nothing. Like everything could carry on. He wouldn’t talk about the baby at all. We’d tried for a year to get pregnant. I wanted that baby so much, and I was grieving but he wasn’t. And that was when I realized…” She stopped. “Sometimes, people don’t have the same dreams.” Her eyes opened, and she turned in his arms. “I want to be Santa Claus.”

He frowned at her. “Sweets, I am not sure I am following.”

“I want to put up a tree and have presents wrapped and waiting for my child on Christmas morning. I want to hear laughter and see wonder in a kid’s eyes. I want to go trick-or-treating with him. With her. I want to cheer at a football game or clap at a dance recital. Or cry at a theater show. I want kids. Richard…he didn’t. Today—today is the first time that he has ever said he was sorry I lost the baby. It’s the first time that he’s ever told me he was sorry for anything.”

A muscle flexed along Jake’s clenched jaw. “I should have kicked his ass so much more.”

A half laugh, half sob escaped her. “He’s not worth it.” Not worth getting bruised knuckles.

“You love him?”

She shook her head. “A very long time ago, a different me fell in love with a different him. We are not the same people any longer. Or, hell, maybe I never knew him.” Not who he really was. Maybe he’d just been pretending? And maybe she’d just been looking for someone to love. “My parents died. I had no other family. I was lost. And Richard said he needed me.” But she’d grown up over the years. She’d learned important lessons.

Need wasn’t love.

Ambition wasn’t love.

She’d tried to make their marriage work. But when your husband was making out with his legal secretary…

Screw him.

That had been the last straw. She’d left and hadn’t looked back. “I’m not crying for him.” The tears had slipped out even though she’d tried to stop them. “I’m crying for me. Because I wasted too much time. Because I wanted Lucas.” Because she always would want him. “I’m crying for my baby and for everything that could have been.”

His fingers caught her tears. Wiped them carefully away. “I will give you a baby.”

Again, that half laugh, half sob came from her. He wasn’t serious. “What?”

His gaze never wavered. “I would give you anything in the world you wanted. When will you realize that?”

She couldn’t breathe. He seemed so serious. But he wasn’t. Was he? “Jake?”

“That dick out there didn’t deserve you. He hurt you, and, sweets, I will gladly hurt him for you. And if it turns out that he is the one who tied you up at the museum, if he committed murder right here in your house…”

Her gaze automatically jerked toward her tree. Only, no tree was there. It had been removed. Probably because of all the blood on it?

“Harris took it away,” Jake explained as he followed her gaze. “They had to saw off branches for evidence. He said—hell, it was a wreck by the time they were done. I’ll get you another tree, True. A bigger one.”

“I don’t need a tree.” She needed for the fear to end in her life. She needed to feel safe. She needed…

Jake.

Her lips pressed together. After a moment, she released a low breath and said, “I’m supposed to go and search through my stuff upstairs.” That had been the plan, right? To double-check everything. Make sure nothing was missing. Before, nothing had seemed disturbed. She’d even checked her jewelry before the place had been turned into crime scene central. “I’ll, um, go do that.” She pulled away from Jake and turned for the stairs. Then she hesitated. “Is it okay if I stay at your condo again tonight?” True peeked over her shoulder at him. “I don’t exactly relish the thought of coming back to the place where a man was murdered.”

“You can stay with me for as long as you want.”

Relief rolled through her. “Thank you.” She grabbed for the banister and hurried up a few of the steps.

“True.”

Her hold on the banister tightened. She stilled on the fifth step and partially turned to look back at him. Jake had moved to the bottom of the staircase.

“He was a fool to hurt you.”

She swallowed.

“ Any man who hurts you is a fool. A smart bastard would count himself lucky for every second he spent with you. He’d go out of his way to make you happy. Because your smile is one of the best fucking things in this world.”

Surprise had her eyes widening. “That’s probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.”

“I don’t do nice very well. I tend to screw it up when I try.” He squared his shoulders. “I’ll never be the nice guy. I’m not him. But I am the guy who will do whatever it takes to protect you. You can count on me, always. Know that.”

“Thank you, Jake.” She smiled at him. Then she hurried up the stairs.

Jake watched True until she disappeared at the top of the stairs. Her smile lingered in his mind. He raked a hand through his hair. “Best fucking thing in the world.”

She was the best thing in his world. And no one was going to hurt her.

Not some dick ex.

Not some mystery stalker.

No one.

He turned and glared at the spot where her Christmas tree had been. True liked Christmas. But this year, every bit of magic was being drained from her holiday. Dammit, she’d been crying. Breaking the heart that he’d forgotten about.

His hand pressed to his chest—where Jake could have sworn he felt an ache. Or maybe a thawing.

Hell, is this how the Grinch had felt?

Because being with True made him think that just maybe…his freaking heart was growing.

Growing. Thawing. Melting.

For her.

Son of a nutcracker. He was going to have to save Christmas for True. Some days, a bounty hunter’s work was just never, ever done.