Elisabeth Naughton - Wait for Me

She pushed his hands aside and rose.

Fear and heartache clawed at his soul. He was going to lose her if he didn’t do something to make this right. Rising, he fought back the tears stinging his eyes. “Katie, please.”

She wiped at her cheeks. “I can’t. I don’t even know you.”

“You do know me. You know everything that matters.” When she turned for the door, his voice hitched. “Please. I can’t lose you a second time.”

She paused with one hand on the door. “Don’t you understand, Ryan? You already did.”

* * *

“Mitch, this is ridiculous.”

Kate dropped blankets and a pillow on the couch. Calming waves tickled the shore in the moonlight outside her beach house, but the familiar sounds did nothing to settle the desolation in her heart. What she wanted was to be alone, to wallow in her misery. What she had was an overprotective brother who wasn’t giving her an ounce of space.

“Don’t even think about arguing with me on this one.” Laying a sheet over the couch, Mitch shot her a frown. “You’re not staying by yourself right now.”

Frustration curled through her. “I’m not a child. I can take care of myself.”

“Would you just stop arguing? You always were a pest when you set your mind to something.” He tossed the pillow at the end of the couch, fluffed a blanket over the cushions.

“Did Ryan send you over here?”

“He suggested it. And I’d have listened if I hadn’t already made plans to be here.”

She let out a frustrated groan. “I need to be alone right now.”

“No, you don’t.” He flopped onto the couch, toed off his shoes, leaned back against the armrest, and propped his feet on the cushions. “You need to be doing something to take your mind off Ryan. Making dinner for me would probably do it.”

Her eyes slid closed, and she tried to muster up the exasperation he deserved. But instead, a pathetic laugh bubbled through her. She pushed his feet out of the way and dropped onto the couch.

Mitch sat up with a grin, tossed his arm over her shoulder, and chuckled. “See, isn’t that better?”

As she dropped her head in her hands, the laughter turned to tears. Her chest tightened, the implication of what she’d done sweeping over her. Sobs wracked her body, and as hard as she tried, she couldn’t stop the dam from breaking. She wrapped her arms around her head in embarrassment, some tiny part of her vaguely aware she wasn’t alone.

“Oh, crap.” Mitch’s arms circled around her, pulling her tight against his chest. “It’s okay. Let it out.”

Her tears soaked into his blue T-shirt. She sniffled and tried to turn her head.

Mitch glanced down and waved a hand. “Go ahead. Use it as a tissue. It’s just a Cubs shirt. They suck this year.”

Gripping the soft cotton, she couldn’t help but chuckle through the tears. She fought for control, dragged air into her lungs, only to have the dam break all over again.

Mitch ran a hand down her hair. “You’re going to be okay. Cry it out.”

How could she hurt so bad after only a few weeks? A month ago, she hadn’t even known Ryan Harrison. Today, her world was tumbling down around her because she couldn’t have him.

And what hurt most was knowing that even with everything she’d been through, knowing all the lies, all the deceit, she still wanted him. She wanted his arms around her. Wanted his body lying next to her. Wanted that family she’d never expected, never let herself hope for. In a few short weeks, he’d changed everything for her. And she didn’t know if she’d ever be able to set it right again.

Somehow, she steadied herself. Pushed back from Mitch and drew in large gulps of air.

He brushed a tear from the corner of her eye. “You never were much for emotional outbursts.”

Sniffling, she ran a hand across her face. “I’m still not. I told you I wanted to be alone.”

“What can I do?” he asked softly.

“Nothing. There’s nothing anyone can do.”

“Kate, Ryan’s not a bad guy.”

“I know that. I don’t want you caught in the middle, Mitch. I know you love him.”

“I love you too.”

Tears welled inside again, and she covered her eyes with her hand. “I know,” she managed in a weak voice.

“Isn’t there any way you two can work this out? It’s obvious how much you love him.”

“I do. Too much. But sometimes love just isn’t enough.”

His frown tore at her.

She swiped at her face again, desperate to change the subject. “Speaking of relationships…” She sniffled. “Simone tried to fire me today. Said she couldn’t in good faith be my lawyer anymore because she’s sleeping with you.”

A cheeky smile spread across his face. “What did you tell her?”

“I told her she couldn’t fire me because I was the client. And when she argued I told her if she brought it up again, I’d convince you to break up with her.”

His smile widened. “And what did she say?”

“She backtracked rather quickly. I think she’s got the hots for you, Mitch.”

His smile turned to a full-blown grin as he leaned back against the couch and threaded his fingers behind his head. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

Seeing how happy he was made Kate remember how unhappy she was. Tears threatened again. She’d cried more in the last few weeks than she had in a year. She was sick of being such a girl. She rose, wiped her face again. “I need to go lie down.”

He pushed off the couch. “Are you going to be okay?”

That was a ludicrous question at the moment. Her heart had just been ripped to shreds, and she still didn’t understand what had really happened to her. But knowing that wasn’t the answer Mitch wanted to hear, she mustered up a pathetic smile. “I’ll survive. I’ve learned how to cope along the way.”

* * *

Wind pelted the small house. A sliver of moonlight peeked through the sheer curtains in Kate’s living room, shining right in Mitch’s eyes. Tossing an arm over his face to block out the light, he muttered curses. Whatever happened to real curtains?

Slap. Slap. Slap.

Good God, what was that? He flopped onto his side and yanked the pillow over his head to block out the relentless sound and obnoxious light. How the hell did Kate ever fall asleep in this place?

Slap. Slap. Slap.

No way he was sleeping with that incessant noise. On a frustrated groan, he tossed back the covers and moved toward the kitchen. Waves crashed against the sand outside. Placing a hand up to the window, he peeked into the backyard.

Slap. Slap. Slap.

The screen flapped furiously in the wind. Pulling the back door open, he eased down the back steps in his bare feet, shivering in the cool night air. Sand gritted between his toes. A gust of wind whipped his hair in his face, reminding him he needed another haircut already. Damn thing grew like a weed.

The screen hung carelessly on rusted hinges. He ran his fingers along the doorjamb searching for a hook or latch of some kind. No way Kate just let it flop around all day and night. Unable to find anything, he made a mental note to fix it for her tomorrow. If nothing else, he could give her a peaceful night’s sleep.

A twig cracked behind him. His fingers paused on the wood. He turned. A shadow darted to the side. Pain exploded in the side of his head before he could follow the movement.

“Motherfucker.” He gripped his head and made it up one step before everything went black.

Light from the refrigerator spilled over Ryan into the dark kitchen. He stood with the door open, peering into the massive cavern. He wasn’t hungry, and a beer wasn’t going to quench the ache in the pit of his stomach. But lying in that bed upstairs remembering Katie next to him wasn’t doing much to help him relax either.

He glanced toward the phone. He should call her. But he didn’t know if she’d listen or just hang up on him. Rubbing a hand over the pain in his chest, he let out a long breath and closed his eyes. He’d give her a day. Then he’d try again. She wasn’t getting rid of him that easy.

His cell phone rang, and he jumped. Slamming the refrigerator door, he reached for it on the counter. Hope pulsed through him. Hope that she’d finally come to her senses.

“Katie?”

“Ryan, it’s Simone.”

“Oh, hey.” Disappointment flowed.

“Ryan, Mitch isn’t answering his phone.”

The hair on the back of his neck stood up at the panic he heard in her words. “What?”

“He’s not answering his cell. He told me he’d have it on him at all times. Kate’s not answering her home phone or cell, either.”

Oh, shit. He didn’t even think, just headed for the hall where he’d left his shoes. “I hired security to sit outside her house. They haven’t called. It could just be the storm.”

“Right,” Simone said, but he knew she believed that as much as he did. “My PI finally emailed his report. My server was down today so I just got it. Ryan, Walter Alexander had two daughters. One of them died of cancer five years ago. Paula McKellen.”

Ryan stopped with one hand on the front door, the keys to his rental car in his hand as realization dawned. “That’s how he was linked to the McKellen name. He married into it.”

“Yes. Walter Alexander is—or was—Karl McKellen, president of McKellen Publishing. His daughter Paula married a Jacob Alexander eight years ago. She died after Tabofren was pulled by the FDA. I think she was in the clinical studies that were stopped.”

“Shit, that’s why he was so pissed.” And that’s why Ryan hadn’t recognized Jake Alexander’s name or put it together with the man he’d met and dealt with in his office. Because the son of a bitch had been using both names, staying under the radar as he ran his illegal drug study. And his father-in-law—Karl McKellen—had partnered up with him and Grayson Pharmaceuticals to get it pushed through the FDA.

“Yeah,” Simone said as rain pelted his face while he ran for the car. He climbed in, started the engine. “But there’s another daughter.”

He pushed damp hair out of his eyes and backed out of the driveway at rapid speed. “Where?”

“Here in San Francisco. Ryan, she works for you.”

“What? There’s no McKellen in my company. No Alexander either.”

“Ryan, his other daughter is Hannah Hughes.”

“No. Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Oh, shit. Hannah, who’d been to Vancouver several times in the last month. Hannah, who’d headed the merger with Grayson. Hannah, who’d purchased that car for him and could have easily used it the day Janet Kelly had died when he’d left it parked in the building garage. And Hannah, who knew every detail of Kate’s return because he’d been stupid enough to share it with her.

Urgency coursed through him. He gunned the engine. “Simone, Hannah knows Katie’s out at the beach house tonight.”

“I’m in the car on the freeway. I already called the police.”

“I might beat you there. Don’t go inside without me or the cops. Do you hear me?”

The line went dead. “Simone?”

Shit. He couldn’t be sure if she’d heard him or not. He dialed the security detail he’d hired to sit outside Katie’s house.

No answer.

Shit!

Foot heavy on the accelerator, he tossed the phone on the front seat and gripped the steering wheel.

* * *

Warm water slid over Kate’s skin. Bubbles surrounded her. Unable to sleep, she’d drawn a bath, hoping the warmth would ease the chill deep in her bones. So far, it wasn’t working.

Her toe turned the faucet on and off in rhythmic succession while she stared at a spot on the edge of the tub. The occasional drip into the basin was the only sound in the room. Ryan’s face flashed in her mind, and she closed her eyes, wanting the water to wash away her heartache.

After an hour on the phone with Tom Adams making plans for the next few weeks, she was drained. Disappearing probably wasn’t the smartest plan at the moment, but it was the best she could come up with. Her parents would understand. Somehow she’d find a way to make Julia understand. And it wasn’t forever, just until things died down. She just didn’t want to know the truth anymore. Staying here while the press was swarming because of the story was only going to prolong her agony.

Running a hand over her hair, she let out a long breath and willed back the tears. Another waterfall wasn’t going to help matters.

The lights went out.

She sat up, sending water lapping over the side of the tub. The wind whistled outside. The screen door tapping down below echoed up to her ears.