Carter had never heard the edge of fear in Rica’s voice before, and she hated that she might have been responsible for even part of it. She cupped Rica’s cheek and very softly kissed her bruised mouth. “All right. But you’re coming with me.”

Rica shook her head. “I can handle him.”

“He’s crazy, Rica. To try to do what he just did?” Carter brushed a stray lock of hair off Rica’s cheek. “I’m not leaving you alone, especially not with him anywhere in the vicinity.”

Enzo moaned and twitched, and Rica caught her breath.

“All right,” Rica said impatiently. “All right. Where are we going?”

“Come on.” Carter took her hand. “I’ll take you home.”

Chapter Eighteen

“Where are we going?” Rica tugged her seat belt forward and shifted sideways in the bucket seat. With each mile that Carter put between Enzo and them, Rica regained a little more of her self-control. Still, every time she remembered the venom in his voice and the cruel indifference of his hands roaming her body, a wave of loathing washed through her. Looking at Carter helped banish the horror.

“Back to Provincetown.”

“That’s the first place Enzo will look.” Rica pulled the blue blazer she’d snatched from a closet closer around her. She had been in such a hurry to get away that she hadn’t said good night to anyone, not even her father. Carter had urged her to tell him she was leaving, at the very least, but Rica had feared that Enzo would intercept them at any moment. “He won’t care that you’re a woman. He’ll hurt you, Carter.”

“You’re shaking.” Carter turned on the heat, then reached across the gap between them and took Rica’s hand. Her fingers were cold. “He’ll want to hurt me. But he didn’t get where he is by being stupid. He won’t do anything until he knows what all the consequences might be. He’s not coming tonight.”

“But he will come.” Rica shivered despite the blast of hot air. Enzo had threatened her before, even physically accosted her, although he’d never come as close to raping her as he had that evening. Still, she’d never been so frightened, and it was more than the near rape. He had almost succeeded in stripping her of the one thing she clung to, her ability to define herself by her own rules and desires. She was not a pawn in her father’s game or a victim of circumstance if she controlled who touched her life, her body…her heart. “He won’t forget this.”

“Neither will I.” Carter’s hand tightened on the wheel as she remembered coming around the corner and seeing Enzo molesting Rica. Her dress had been bunched around her thighs, and he was grinding himself between her legs. Rica’s cheek was flaming from where he’d struck her, and her eyes were wild with panic. Carter knew if she’d had her gun, she would have put it to the back of his head and pulled the trigger without a second’s remorse. She still wanted to. And because she knew that Rica would sense her anger, just as she sensed Rica’s lingering panic, Carter forced the image from her mind. All that mattered was that Rica feel safe. “How’s your cheek? Should I stop for ice?”

Rica tentatively probed her left cheek. Her entire head throbbed. “My jaw hurts a little when I move it, but I think it’s just swollen.”

“Maybe we should have it checked.”

“No. No doctors.”

“Rica, if you’re hurt…”

“I’m not. I’m fine. Please, just take me home.”

Carter heard the panic just below the surface, and the sound tore at her. She knew that Rica had to be hurting in more than just her body for her control to slip enough for her fear to show “Hey, it’s okay. Why don’t you put your seat back and try to get some sleep. We’ll be there in about an hour.”

“You should stop somewhere and I’ll rent a car. There’s no need for you to take me home.”

“Rica,” Carter said softly. “What do you take me for? I’m not leaving you alone.”

Rica studied Carter’s face, which was obscured by shadow. Who was she really, this woman who had come into her life and made her feel safe? She knew nothing of her except things she wished were not true. “You just said he wouldn’t come tonight.”

“He won’t. But I’m not leaving you alone after what happened.”

“I’m all right. It’s not the first time Enzo has been…difficult.”

Carter’s fingers tightened around Rica’s. “How long?”

“Since we were teenagers.”

“Bastard.” Carter glanced at Rica. “Did he force himself on you then?”

“He tried,” Rica said, her expression distant. “I always managed to stop him.”

“I’m surprised your father let him live.” Carter’s voice hardened. “He didn’t blame you, did he?”

“I never told him.”

“Why?” Carter lifted Rica’s hand and brushed her lips over Rica’s fingers, hoping to soften the question.

“He would have killed Enzo,” Rica said with certainty. “And I didn’t want that.”

“I’m not following, honey,” Carter said gently.

“Because even when we were young I could see that Enzo was the son my father had never had.” Rica stared at Carter. “Don’t you see? As long as he stays in my father’s favor, Enzo will take his place, not me. Most of the family will welcome him as successor.”

“Jesus,” Carter murmured. “So you kept quiet all these years so you wouldn’t be pressed to take over?”

“Yes.”

“And now I’ve made things a lot more difficult for you.” Carter thought bitterly of the irony that by investigating the suspicions that Rica was connected to organized crime, she’d made Rica’s efforts not to be involved even harder. Everything was turned around. “Jesus, I’m sorry.”

Rica leaned over and kissed Carter on the corner of her mouth. “No. You’ve made everything better, if just for a little while.” Then she leaned her head against Carter’s shoulder and closed her eyes.

Carter drove on, wondering how long it would take Enzo to make his move on her, and if she could make things right for Rica before he did.

“Rica.” Carter stroked Rica’s shoulder and kissed her forehead. “We’re here.”

“Mmm.” Enjoying the sensation of Carter’s arm around her and the heat of her body, Rica rubbed her cheek against Carter’s shoulder. The stabbing pain brought her awake and she jolted upright. “Oh, God.”

“What is it? Your jaw?”

“Cheek.”

Carter swore. “I’m going to find someone to check that. There’s gotta be a doctor in this town.”

Rica curled her hand around Carter’s thigh, restraining her as she pushed her door open. “No. Please. It just startled me. It’s not that bad.”

“We’ll take a look at it inside where we can get some light on it.” Carter added frustration and helplessness to her long list of confused emotions where Rica was concerned. But none of her discomfort was Rica’s fault, and she carefully kept her unease from showing. “Just wait here for a few minutes while I check the house. Let me have your key.”

“For what? I thought you said you weren’t worried about Enzo.” Rica gripped Carter’s forearm. “God, he could have been here by plane an hour ago. You’re not going in there.”

Carter took Rica’s hands in hers. “He’s not inside. There’s no way he would have left your house early. He wouldn’t risk missing a meeting with your father or rousing his suspicions. Just the same, I’m not letting you walk in there until we’re certain that he didn’t send one of his friends.”

“You don’t know who might be in there,” Rica said urgently. “You might be brave, but you’re no match for Enzo’s muscle.” She slipped one hand behind Carter and patted her back and hips. “You’re not even armed.”

“Don’t worry.” Carter gently pulled away from Rica and reached for the trunk release. “Let me have your key, Rica. Please.”

“I don’t even have my purse.”

“No spare key under the flower pot?”

Rica managed a small smile. “They’re inside, but the keypad next to the garage door opens it with a code. It’s not very noisy.”

“Well, if there’s anyone inside, they already know we’re out here. What’s the code?”

“0-7-0-5.”

Carter slid out of the car. “Be right back.”

Carter retrieved her Glock semiautomatic from the compartment in the side panel of the Explorer’s cargo area, taking care to tuck her badge and ID down out of sight before closing it again. Then she walked quickly toward the house, staying in the shadows and avoiding the seashells that liberally lined the drive. She wasn’t quite as certain as she had professed to Rica that Enzo hadn’t sent one of his boys to scare them, or, if he was as crazy as she suspected, to manhandle Rica back to Boston. No cars were parked on the street, and none in the nearby driveways looked out of place, but that didn’t mean someone couldn’t have parked a few blocks away and walked. If they had come over by plane from Boston, they wouldn’t have arrived much sooner than she and Rica.

Carter keyed in Rica’s security code and ducked quickly underneath the garage door as soon as there was clearance. By the time the door was all the way up, she was inside the kitchen in the dark. She steadied her breathing and listened, hearing nothing but the sounds of an empty house. The refrigerator running, the wind rattling the windows, the tick of a clock. But then, anyone who was any good would not be making any noise. She moved methodically from room to room, checking closets, shower enclosures, and the dark recesses of the hallways. The house was empty.

She pushed her gun beneath the waistband of her trousers at the small of her back and turned on the outside lights. By the time she started down the driveway, Rica was almost to the porch.

“There’s no one here,” Carter said.

Rica regarded her contemplatively, then nodded. “Thank you.”

When Rica walked past her into the house, Carter followed. She wasn’t surprised that now that Rica was home, she was starting to withdraw. Carter had seen enough traumatized victims to know that most of them just wanted to be alone in safe surroundings. She had no intention of intruding, but she wasn’t leaving.

The kitchen was empty when Carter walked in. She stood still for a few minutes, listening, and when she heard the shower running upstairs, she went through the counter drawers until she found a plastic bag. She checked a few more cabinets, then filled the bag with ice and sat down at the kitchen table until she heard the shower go off. She waited a few more minutes and then went upstairs.

“Rica,” Carter said after tapping on the closed bathroom door, “I’m leaving some ice out here for your face. I didn’t see any aspirin in the kitchen, but if you’ve got some in there you should take…”

The door opened and Rica, wrapped in a towel, her hair wet and tangled about her shoulders, pointed down the hallway to the right. “The bedroom is at the end of the hall. I’ll be right there. Can you find a bottle of wine in the kitchen and bring it up?”

“Sure.” Carter made a concerted effort not to look anywhere except at Rica’s face, but she was painfully aware that the plush sea green towel knotted above Rica’s breasts slanted open a few inches as it fell, revealing a slice of tanned thigh. The swell of unbidden arousal was tempered by the sight of the bruise that marred Rica’s cheek. Rica didn’t need to be groped by any one else that night. Carter looked away. “I’ll give you a few minutes.”

“Just get the wine and come upstairs.” Rica skimmed her fingers over Carter’s shoulder as she passed. “Thanks for the ice.”

Rica stood in front of the open French doors, listening to the sound of Carter’s steady footsteps approaching down the hall. She’d toweled off her hair and pulled on a robe. She hoped the wine would warm her, because she seemed to be frozen all the way through. Where she pushed her hands inside the sleeves of her robe, her body felt warm under her fingertips, but just beneath her skin where she couldn’t touch, she was cold.

Carter stopped inside the door, a wine bottle in one hand and a glass held by its stem between the fingers of her other. “I could only find red. Is that all right?”

“Yes,” Rica said, turning. She’d switched on a reading light in the far corner of the room and Carter’s face looked softer than usual in the lamplight. When Carter’s eyes swept down her body and then quickly back to her face, the look left a thin trail of heat in its wake. Surprised by the odd burning sensation, Rica moved toward her, out of the cold.

“I’ll just leave it here.” Carter backed up a step and set the wineglass and bottle carefully on a bureau next to the door. “You really should get some res…”

“Look at me,” Rica said, opening her robe.

“Rica,” Carter whispered, glancing down despite herself. Rica’s breasts were flushed, as if from the warmth of the shower, and her nipples tight pink buds of invitation. Carter’s stomach clutched.