THEY ARRIVED BACK at the hotel to find Sam pacing the foyer. “Where have you been? I have been worried sick!” Sam exclaimed, rushing to her.
“At the beach,” Pepper said. “What’s wrong? Why didn’t you just call me, silly?”
“I did call you. You didn’t answer.”
“Really?” Pepper rummaged in her purse for her phone. It was dead. “Shit, sorry!”
“Where’s Kade?” Connall asked.
“Talking with the detail.”
Before Connall could comment, Kade strolled into the foyer, appearing completely relaxed.
“I need to get into my room,” Pepper said. “I have to charge my phone.”
“We’re back now,” Connall said. “There’s no rush.”
“No. I have to charge my phone,” she pressed. “He… I mean, they might call about my mom.”
Sam sighed. “I’ll take you upstairs, while the boys talk. Come on.”
Pepper shrugged out of Connall’s coat and handed it to him. “Thanks for this.”
I thought you were keeping it.
She smiled. Safer if you have it.
I’ll come and say goodnight in a bit.
She nodded and followed Sam to the elevator. They arrived at her room and Sam handed her a room key. “I’m hanging onto a spare one.”
“How come?” Pepper asked.
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because you’d lose your head if it wasn’t attached.”
Pepper giggled as she opened her door. “Sometimes it scares me how well you know me.” She stepped inside and let out a quiet whistle. The Jean Pierre Lafayette Room was on the main level of the mansion and housed a king-sized bed and fireplace, along with historical furniture on meticulously restored hardwood floors. Beautiful seemed inadequate a word to describe the room.
Pepper glanced into the bathroom, surprised to see a whirlpool tub that she fully intended to take advantage of. “Wow.”
“I know,” Sam said. “It’s lovely, huh?”
Pepper noticed her bags in the corner and found her charger, plugging her phone in and powering it up. No missed calls from him. She almost cried in relief.
“Only six calls from you,” Pepper teased Sam.
“I was worried. Kade couldn’t get Connall either.” Sam sighed. “I should’ve known everything was okay.”
“I’m really sorry. We lost track of time.”
“I’ll bet.” Sam leaned against the desk and crossed her arms. “The beach, huh? This must be serious.”
“I’m lost,” Pepper admitted. “Completely.”
“I know. Are you able to talk to each other telepathically?”
Pepper gasped. “How did you know that?”
“Because Kade and I can.”
“Shut up!” Pepper ran her hands through her hair. “How is this even possible?”
“I’ll take that one,” Connall said from the doorway.
“Thanks.” Sam smiled. “I’ll leave you to it, okay? We don’t have as much to do as I thought tomorrow. We’re meeting in the lobby for lunch, so try to sleep in if you can.”
Pepper nodded and when Sam left the room, Connall closed the door behind her. He turned and smiled. “Lost, eh?”
Pepper groaned. “Did you hear that or “hear” it?”
“I heard you say it out loud.”
“Didn’t your mother ever tell you it’s impolite to eavesdrop?”
He chuckled. “On more than one occasion.”
Pepper stifled a yawn. “I really want to know about the telepathy thingy, but honestly, I don’t think I’d remember anything you told me.”
“Go to sleep. We’ll have plenty of time to talk about all the things you want to know.” He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Lock your door behind me. If you need me… well, you know how to call me.”
She grinned. “Yes, I do. That part I think I have down.”
She followed him to the door and locked it as he instructed. Even though the tub beckoned, she was too tired to wait for it to fill, so she washed her face and changed into something more comfortable before falling into bed. She secured her ear buds and pressed play on her iPod, the sweet sounds of Fallen Crown lulling her to sleep.
* * *
Pepper was awakened by the ring of her cell phone. She grabbed it and glanced at the clock and sighed. Two a.m. “Hello?”
“Ahh, my love,” came the familiar voice. “How is your room at the Gastonian?”
“It’s fine.” Damn it! He knows.
“I trust your mother is doing well. Did she find her cat?”
“Was that you?” Pepper sat up, her heart racing. “Did you hurt my mom?”
He let out a sardonic chuckle. “Oh, my love, I wish I could take credit for this one. But, alas, I can’t. Although, I did hide Morris. He’s fine, though. A little dirty, but still in one piece.”
A knock at her door had her flying out of the bed. Did he find her?
“Tomorrow we have some work to do, hmm?” he said.
“Like what?” she asked, rushing to pull on a pair of sweats.
It’s me, love. Open the door.
Pepper instantly calmed. She opened the door and put her finger to her lips. Connall stepped inside and closed the door.
“My love? What are you doing?” her stalker demanded.
She rubbed her forehead. “It’s the middle of the night. Um… I was yawning.”
“Hmm. Well, I’d rather you stayed focused on me and what I’m saying.”
“Sorry,” she grumbled.
She glanced over at the Icelandic god that was “made for her.” He took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Everything seemed better when he was close.
“Can I go back to sleep now?” she asked.
“Please may I go back to sleep now,” he corrected.
“Sorry. Please may I go back to sleep now?” she whispered.
“Yes, my love. I will call you in a few hours.”
She hung up and pulled away from Connall.
Connall frowned. “How often does he call you?”
Pepper rubbed her arms, the chill of the room settling into her body.
“Pepper?”
“Every few hours,” she said reluctantly. “I was sure I missed his call while we were at the beach, but he must have been busy.”
She started to shake and he pulled her back to him, wrapping his arms tightly around her and stroking her back.
“If he’d called and I missed it…” She couldn’t finish.
She felt Connall’s rage and whimpered at the intensity of it, pushing him away from her.
“I’m sorry, lass,” he said and dragged his hands down his face. “Give me a minute.”
Pepper put as much distance between them as she could.
Connall frowned. “I won’t hurt you, Pepper.”
“I know that intellectually.” She gripped one of the bedposts and sighed. “But you’re so… so angry. It’s scary.”
“I’m sorry.” He held out his hand. “Give me your phone.”
She handed him her cell phone and waited while he scrolled through the calls.
“Come with me,” he said.
She followed him to his room, surprised to find it right next to hers. He pushed open the door and waited for her to precede him inside. Once inside, he closed the door and picked up his phone. “Ali? Aye, it’s late here. I need you to look into something for me.”
Pepper watched, fascinated by him. Every movement was one of total and complete authority. She hugged herself. Could she trust him? Trust that he could protect her?
He faced her and frowned as he continued his conversation. “Aye. Max is heading back the day after the wedding, but Brodie’s staying. Thanks.” He hung up and set the phone on the bureau. “Of course you can trust me, lass.”
She swallowed. “He’ll kill you if he finds out about you.”
Connall gave her a crooked smile. “Ah, my beautiful girl, I’m not so easily killed.”
She shifted from one foot to the other. “Um, why did you come to my room?”
“I felt your fear.”
“What does that mean?”
He held his hand out to her. “Come here.”
Pepper hesitated, but not for long. She slipped her hand into his and once again, her fear disappeared.
“Now, isn’t that better?” he asked as he wrapped his arms around her.
She let out a long sigh. “Hmm-mm.”
“Do you want to sleep here? You can sleep in the bed, and I’ll sleep on the floor.”
“No, I’m okay. I’ll go back to my room.”
He lifted her chin. “Are you sure?”
She nodded. “You’re right next door if I need you.” She stared up at him. “Congratulations on keeping that tidbit of information from me, by the way.”
“I didn’t want to scare you… having a man you don’t know so close.” He grinned. “Besides, this ability to keep things from you isn’t going to last long. You’ll figure out how to read my mind and I won’t be able to surprise you with anything.”
“Not sure if that makes me feel better or worse,” she said. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
She stepped into the hallway and Connall followed. She grinned. Gallant to the end.
Of course.
Pepper reached into her pocket and groaned as she faced him.
“What’s wrong?” he whispered.
“I left my key in my room… Sam has the spare.”
“Why does Sam have the spare?” he asked.
She bit her lip. “Because I lose everything.”
He chuckled and held his hand out to her. “Well, we can’t get it now; it’s the middle of the night. Come on.”
Pepper made her way back into his room and set her phone on the nightstand. “Do you have any ibuprofen?”
“What’s ibuprofen?”
“Painkiller.”
He frowned. “Headache?”
She nodded. “I could call the lobby if you don’t have any.”
He grabbed a bottled water. “Drink this. You’re probably dehydrated.”
She tried not to snort out loud. If only drinking water actually worked.
She sipped the water and forced a smile. Connall slipped his hand to the base of her skull and gently massaged her neck. Her headache disappeared within seconds. “Better?” he asked.
She let out a sigh of relief. “Surprisingly, yes.”
“Good.” Connall smiled as he grabbed one of the pillows and dropped it on the floor.
Pepper retrieved it. “I can’t make you sleep on the floor, Con. Just sleep in the bed.”
“I don’t mind. I’ve slept in worse places.”
“That’s sweet, but so unnecessary.” She rubbed her arms to ward off the cold. “Besides, it’s freezing in here and I might need the body heat.”
“Right. Sorry. I have the window open.” He closed and locked it and then turned back to her. “In you go.”
“But you sleep on top of the sheet, okay? No monkey business.” She climbed into the bed, shivering as she tried to burrow under the blankets.
“Got it.” Connall followed and tucked the bedding tighter around her. “Och, love, you really are freezing.”
“I know. I’m always cold,” she admitted, her teeth chattering. “You feel nice, though.”
“Come here.” He pressed his chest closer to her back and covered her arm with his, linking their fingers together.
As his body heat warmed her, Pepper thought how strange it was that she felt perfectly safe, even though she was in bed with a man she’d met just a few hours before.
“Why don’t you have an accent like Sam’s?” he asked.
Pepper giggled. “My mother. She moved from Savannah to California years before I was born, but moved us back here when I was seven. We tried to hack it on our own, but San Jose’s expensive and my mom knew she needed help, so she moved us back to Georgia to be close to her family.”
“Makes sense.”
“Yeah. The problem is that my mom hates the southern accent. She says it makes people sound dumb, so she’d correct me whenever anything seeped through.”
Connall chuckled. “I wouldn’t say that about Samantha.”
“I know, right? Mom came around after getting to know the Moores, but I guess I just speak the way I speak. The southern rarely comes out, which is a shame, because I love it. The sweetness and softness of it.”
“What about your dad?”
Pepper didn’t respond for several minutes. She didn’t know if she could share something so painful. No one had ever asked her this directly before. She never got close enough to anyone to start talking about personal lives… except Sam. Connall didn’t press. He just held her, and Pepper knew if there was anyone she could bare her soul to, it was him.
“He’s dead.” She took a deep breath. “He… um… killed himself.”
“Sweetheart, I’m so sorry.”
“It was a long time ago.” She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. “He jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge while I was at school. Mom did her best to keep the details from me, but it was all over the news.”
Connall kissed her shoulder.
“I remember him being so big and strong. And he was so handsome. Mom said he just couldn’t shut out the demons. Of course, she never shared what those demons were, and I don’t really want to know. The worst part is, that I never felt connected to him, so it was sad, but I always felt there was something missing in our relationship. I feel the same way about my mom. We don’t look alike, we don’t act alike…I have always been the adult, and admittedly, I kind of resented them for that.” She blinked back tears. She hadn’t talked about her father in years. Sam was the only one who knew the facts surrounding his death and only because Pepper hadn’t been able to deflect the question… Sam wouldn’t let her. “I just can’t stop telling you all my secrets, can I?”
“I hope you never want to,” he said.
She rolled over to face him and he stroked her cheek. “Your turn to tell me your secrets,” she said.
He grinned. “I will… in time.”
“At dinner, someone mentioned you’re a vet. Did I hear that right?”
“Aye. I also breed Thoroughbreds.”
“Ew. So inferior to Arabians.”
He chuckled. “You can instruct me on the differences when we get home.”
Pepper ran her fingers over his arm. He was so strong, the veins straining against his skin when he moved. “Did Sam tell you I’m getting my pre-reqs to get into vet school?”
“She did.” He linked his fingers with hers. “Which begs the question, why MGA? Why not vet school? We have a great program essentially right down the street.”
“I don’t know. I guess I figured it was easier for me to get into MGA. Not to mention, cheaper.”
He was quiet for a few tense seconds. “You enrolled to get away, didn’t you?”
“I guess so. Yes.” She turned away from him again, feeling the tears pool in her eyes.
“But it’s not really what you want to do, is it?”
“It doesn’t really matter. Everything’s changed.”
He stroked her arm. “If nothing had changed, what did you plan to do?”
“I don’t know.”
“Yes you do. Tell me.”
“I was going to become a vet.” She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to ignore the wetness on her cheeks. “But I can’t dwell on that, Con. If I do, it will break me.”
“Break, baby. I’m here. I’ll put you back together.”
The dam broke. Just when she was sure she couldn’t cry anymore…
Connall held her through the night. She must have fallen asleep at some point because when her phone woke her up, the sun was beginning to rise.
She was still wrapped firmly in Connall’s arms and headache free when she reached for her phone. “Hello?”
“Good morning, my love,” her stalker said brightly.
“Hi,” she grumbled.
“I do hope your plan is to go home tonight.”
“No, I can’t. I’m in a wedding tomorrow,” Pepper whispered, not wanting to wake Connall.
I’m awake, love.
Sorry.
Connall gave her a gentle squeeze.
“Did you ask me if that would be acceptable?” the man asked.
Uncertain if she was bolstered by Connall’s presence or the fact that she was fed up, Pepper hissed into the phone, “I don’t care if you find it acceptable. It’s my friend’s wedding and I’m going. You can go to hell.”
She hung up and sat up.
Her phone rang, and on autopilot once again, she answered it. “What?”
“I will allow you this, Pepper, but you’re going to pay for your harsh words,” the man warned.
Connall inched out of bed and Pepper watched as he grabbed his cell phone.
“Pepper?” her stalker snapped.
She rolled her eyes, knowing the man could no longer get to anyone she cared about. “Whatever. I have to go.”
“I’ll call you tomorrow.”
She hung up and flopped back on the bed, covering her eyes with her arm. “That felt amazing.”
“Are you sure he can’t get to anyone you care about?” Connall asked, glancing up from his phone.
“Mom’s in the hospital, Sam’s here.” She leaned up on her forearms. “Oh! What about Sam’s parents?”
He stood by the window, pajama pants hanging from his hips and his hair a perfect mess. “They’re well guarded.”
She sighed. “Good. There’s no one else.”
Connall nodded. “Why don’t you go back to sleep?”
“What are you going to do?”
“I need to make a few calls. Max’s brother is taking care of the horses while we’re gone.”
“It’s not even five a.m.”
“But it’s ten at home.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I won’t be long. Go back to sleep.”
She nodded and pulled the covers back over herself while Connall pulled on a shirt, grabbed his room key, and stepped into the hallway.