Chapter One
Crimson Creek, Texas, months later…
“You got everything?” Tucker Cobb asked.
“Yup, because I don’t have an extra square inch of space.”
Mary Cobb scrutinized her car. The back end was nearly on the ground, and she’d had to sit on the trunk to close the darn thing. Her first semester of medical school started at the beginning of next week, and she had a long drive ahead of her.
It was only five in the morning, and the sun hadn’t risen yet. Mary also hadn’t had a cup of coffee, so she was barely coherent. It was January 3rd, and the temperature hovered around forty degrees due to a sudden cold snap.
“I’m so damn proud of you.” Her grandfather squeezed her tight. Tucker was in his late sixties with gray hair, blue eyes, and he had a thin build.
“Thanks, Granddad.”
They stood in the parking lot, outside of his Tuscan-style mansion. It was ostentatious, even by Texas standards. With the nude classical statuary, huge fountains, and over-the-top marble staircase, it reminded Mary of a Roman emperor’s palace, although she’d grown up here. Tucker had a taste for the theatrical and audacious, so it suited him.
After her parents died, Tucker had taken Mary in and raised her. For all intents and purposes, he was her father. She’d come to live with him as a small child, and she only had a few memories of her parents.
“Not only are you the first Cobb to earn a degree, but you're also the first to go to graduate school.” Her academic achievements were a source of pride and Mary did her best never to disappoint Tucker. “I wish we’d had time to see the carnival before you left.”
“Me too.” Mary loved circuses and carnivals. It was the last happy memory she had of her parents. Before they died, they’d taken her to the circus, and she remembered almost every moment of the night. Her parents had even met at the carnival, so maybe Mary was predisposed to like them. Maybe it was genetic.
“Before I forget, here’s some mad money.”
It was his term for cash spent on fun, rather than practical items. For as long as she could remember, he’d been giving her a twenty here or there whenever she went out with her friends. Only this time, Tucker handed her five-hundred dollars.
“No, it’s too much.”
She tried to give him three of the bills back, but he wouldn’t take the cash. He’d always been very generous. Last night, he’d thrown a going away party for her, and she’d gotten a pile of presents, including a stethoscope and a fancy pants version of Gray’s Anatomy, a quintessential medical text.
“Nonsense. Get some takeout, or go to a movie or buy some new duds. Hell, go nuts and do all three. I know you’ll spend most of your time studying, so I want you to enjoy yourself before school starts. You hear?”
“Yes, sir.” She fired off a mock salute and tucked the bills into her purse.
Mary didn’t know what her grandfather really did for a living, but they lived an upper-class existence. He owned an expensive home and Tucker had been able to afford a private school education as well as pay cash for her college tuition. He was also footing the bill for medical school, and Harvard didn’t come cheap. Whenever she asked Tucker about his career, he evaded the question, which only made her more curious.
“Keep your phone with you and check in with me every night.”
“I will.”
It was a thirty-hour drive, and Mary figured it would take her three and a half days to make it to Boston. She’d rented a small one bedroom apartment near the university. Mary had stayed on campus all four years during undergrad, and she was grateful to get off campus for a change. Although, the apartment complex advertised to students and Mary figured there would be a lot of future lawyers and doctors in the building, too.
“Before you go, we gotta talk about your safety.”
Mary groaned.
She should’ve started in August, but Mary had to delay classes until January due to a near abduction. A man had tried to grab her and throw her into his van a few months ago. Then right before she’d been due to start college last semester, yet another attempt was made. This time the man had almost snatched her from a grocery store late at night and tried to put her in the trunk of his car.
Since then, Tucker had kept her under constant guard, which was nothing new. She’d grown up in a gated house with other safety measures like a personal bodyguard who’d stayed with her when her granddad was away for the evening, instead of a babysitter.
“I’ve arranged for a security firm to watch you while you’re away.”
“I appreciate it, but maybe they’ve given up?”
A while back, Tucker had even hired Justice, a biker, to watch over her. Justice had found someone outside the beauty shop stalking her, but hadn’t gotten any information from the man. Since the grocery store attempt, there hadn’t been any incidents, which had been nearly three months ago.
“Could be, but I ain’t willing to take the chance, not when it comes to you. You’re the most precious thing in the world to me. You know that, don’t you?” He tilted his head to the side.
“Yes, and I feel the same way about you.” It had been just the two of them for years since her grandmother had died, and they’d grown very close.
Mary was acutely aware of the passage of time. Her granddad would be sixty-eight years old in a few weeks. He was in excellent health, but he was getting up there in age, and when he passed, she’d be all alone.
“Excellent, it’s all settled then. The contract doesn’t start until the first day of school. In the meantime, Ten is staying with you.”
Tennessee Ross worked for her granddad in some unknown capacity. He was a handsome man, if strange. He stood well over six feet tall with a long, lean build. Ten had thick, dark hair and sported a pair of sunglasses—indoors, even at night, which was weird. Like the rest of the men employed by her grandfather, he wore an expensive suit, though Ten had scruffy hair covering his chin and cheeks, which made the look incongruous.
Mary couldn’t put her finger on why, but something about the man freaked her out. He just wasn’t right and the thought of spending a few days in his company gave her a major case of the willies.
“Yeah, I remember.” Mary managed a smile, but it was difficult. “Are you sure Jasper can’t make it?” Jasper Tan had protected her for years, and they’d gotten used to each other.
“Sorry, but he’s working on something important, so you’ll have to make do.”
“Workin’ on what?” Her accent came and went since she’d spent a lot of time out of the state. Besides, snobby Ivy Leaguers liked to tease her about the “southern fried” accent and she’d been working on it.
He chuckled, but there was an edge to the laughter. “Why? Are you writing a book?”
“What if I am?”
“Then leave that chapter out.” Tucker raised his steely gray brows.
Lately, she’d been pressing him for details, and he’d lost all patience with her on the subject. Whatever her grandfather was hiding, she’d have to find out for herself. Frankly, with school starting, Mary didn’t have time to solve the mystery.
“And while you’re in medical school, I want you to keep your eyes peeled.”
“For what?”
“You might meet an eligible young man, one who shares your professional interests.”
She groaned. “Granddad, I’m not getting a Mrs. I want an MD after my name.” In Tucker’s day, women had gone to college to meet men who had exceptional prospects. Hence, the term getting a Mrs.
“Still, I want you to be open to the possibility. You deserve to be with a driven young man, like yourself. Just make sure he doesn’t get in the way of your goals.”
Like anyone ever could.
She’d been practicing her bedside manner since she’d done imaginary exams on her teddy bears as a kid. Mary had bandaged their make-believe wounds and created her own mini-hospital in her room with baby beds.
“Ready to go?” Ten asked as he walked up to them. He’d poured some coffee into a pair of travel mugs.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.” She took the stainless steel mug he handed her. Mary resisted the urge to open the thing up and sniff the liquid to make sure he hadn’t put something in it.
“Then we should head out, we’ve got a long ride ahead of us.”
“You’re right.” She planned on driving five-hundred miles today.
“Take care of my granddaughter, or you’ll answer to me.” Tucker fixed Ten with a scowl.
“No harm will come to her on my watch.” Ten’s expression was so fierce it sent a shiver up her spine.
“Drive safe.” Tucker kissed her forehead, and she hugged him tight one last time, before breaking the embrace. Tears stung her eyes, and she blinked them away.
She couldn’t help but feel like this was a demarcation, the line between the end of her childhood and the beginning of her professional, adult life. There was no going back, even if she wanted to stop the clock.
She climbed behind the wheel, and Tucker stepped out of the way.
Mary took one last, longing look at the place where she’d grown up and then pulled out of the driveway.
Hello, adulthood.