Blacklisted Read online

  Our tongues tangled together. Our teeth clicked clumsily. Neither one of us could catch a breath, but none of it mattered. The rest of the world seemed to slip away as this moment expanded and became the center of my entire universe. I couldn’t recall anyone ever feeling this right in my arms. I felt like if I let her go, I might never get her back, and that made me kiss her deeper, longer, harder. If we were anywhere else, I would’ve pushed my luck and started removing clothes and trying to get my hands on her delectable curves. She went to my head quickly, and all of my common sense disappeared when the throbbing flesh trapped behind the zipper of my jeans took precedence. She made me hard as a rock without even trying.

  I nipped at the plump curve of her lower lip and slowly pulled back because we were in a parking lot, and she didn’t need the entire town of Loveless to know I was ready to strip her naked and bend her over the hood of her car. Not only would the locals have something to say about her getting mixed up with me, but the Lawtons would have my head if they found out I was messing with their newest family member. Kody was crazy protective of her sister, and Case had already warned me to keep my distance. I wasn’t scared of her siblings, but I didn’t want to give her something else to worry about when she already had a target on her back. I told her I would protect her and that meant I would do my best to keep her from getting caught up in the small-town gossip mill, which I knew could grind someone down to nothing if left unchecked.

  I was near panting when I pulled away to catch my breath. I pressed my lips to her forehead and put some much-needed space between us. She was tying me in knots with no effort.

  “Go home, Presley.”

  I was dangerous, but as it turned out, so was she, given the right circumstances. I was going to keep that knowledge to myself so no one else could come along and snatch her away before I had the opportunity to convince her we were a better fit than anyone could imagine.

  Chapter 8

  Presley

  Are you certain you’re ready to go back to work, Presley? You look terrible.”

  I didn’t bother to hide my eye roll as I looked at my mother’s long-term nephrologist, Dr. Kemper. My mother had been under his care since my senior year in college. The man had watched me grow up. He was the one who broke the news to us that there was no hope. He was also the one who told me my mother had passed away. For a long time, he felt like an extension of my very small family. Then Hill Gamble and his partner confirmed that he’d helped Ashby fool me into thinking she’d been injured by whoever was stalking me. Now I realized he didn’t care about me or my mother in the slightest. I’d avoided this confrontation since her passing, because even though I’d gained the Lawtons, it was hard to lose the last person who knew me before my life had been flipped upside down. It was an impossibly bitter pill to swallow to know that the two people I’d trusted so completely when I was at my lowest had conspired against me.

  I was here today because I was convinced this man had helped my former friend orchestrate my mother’s death. Part of me taking my life back was answering any lingering questions about the events that forced me into hiding in the first place. I’d never been the type to wade into a fight on purpose. I didn’t like to make waves. Now I wasn’t going to rest until I knew the truth. Now I was angry in a way I’d never felt before. I’d spent so long being calm and serene for the comfort of others, I’d forgotten how cathartic anger could be when it was called for.

  I forced a fake smile and felt my fingers curl into fists where they were resting on my lap. My nails dug painfully into my palms, but the tiny sting kept me focused on the reason I was here at the hospital in Austin.

  “I’m fine. I didn’t sleep well last night.”

  That wasn’t a lie. I’d been uneasy being back at the apartment by myself. Every little noise and flickering shadow on the wall had me ready to climb out of my skin. On top of that, I couldn’t stop replaying the kiss with Shot over and over again in my mind. Every time I closed my eyes, the image of the two of us entwined would dance across the backs of my eyelids.

  It was almost like it was my very first kiss. I didn’t lose my head over a romantic move like that. I didn’t lose control of my emotions or my body like that. I didn’t forget who and where I was because of a man. Not ever. None of the men I’d kissed before had ever made me tingle from head to toe by simply touching their lips to mine. No kiss had ever had me envisioning silk sheets and naked bodies writhing together. No kiss had ever had me ready to risk it all for a man who was so absolutely wrong for me. I always knew when to walk away, but last night, I knew I would’ve blindly followed Shot wherever he chose to lead me.

  I knew Shot followed me home. I knew he waited outside my apartment until the sun came up because I was still awake in bed, tossing and turning, wondering what in the hell I was doing and when exactly I had lost my mind when I heard the thunderous sound of his motorcycle pulling away. I couldn’t deny that I wanted him, which was problematic in more ways than one. The existing relationships in my life often felt tenuous at best. I didn’t need the kind of emotional earthquake Shot brought with him to disrupt the uneven landscape I was already having trouble navigating.

  Blinking back into focus, I watched the older doctor seated across from me in his pristine office. When I was younger I looked up to him so much. Now, I resented him, and his lies, with every fiber of my being.

  “It’s been a long time since you’ve come to visit. I would’ve reached out after everything happened, but you know how busy I am, and frankly, I didn’t want my name tied up in the mess Ashby created. It was humiliating to have the FBI and the Texas Rangers lurking around the halls of the hospital.”

  I had to bite the tip of my tongue to stop myself from screaming at him. He sounded so pompous, so removed. He also sounded like he hadn’t played a part in the events that unfolded, as if he hadn’t taken advantage of the fact I admired him and would never think to question him. Old me was an idiot, but I was learning.

  Swallowing back the bitter words burning across my tongue, I kept the painfully plastic smile in place as I told him, “Law enforcement wouldn’t have been here if you didn’t give them a reason to suspect that you helped Ashby evade capture. You shouldn’t have covered for Ashby when she lied and said she was hurt by whoever was stalking me.” I lifted my eyebrows and my fingernails dug even deeper into my palms. “I wasn’t aware the two of you had gotten so close. I sincerely hope you didn’t know she was the one terrorizing me all along. Not when you knew how hard dealing with my mother’s illness and my job already was.”

  Ashby would come and visit with me and my mother on dialysis days. Back then, I honestly believed she was a welcome distraction, even as self-centered as she tended to be. She would frequently keep me company when my mother was particularly ill and I was too afraid to leave her bedside. Before her plan was uncovered, I thought my former friend and my mother’s physician were nothing more than passing acquaintances. Little did I know the two had been engaged in a torrid affair. Throughout our friendship Ashby had a history of getting close to the people in my life, regardless if they were a love interest, an acquaintance, or someone I admired. I didn’t realize she was coming between me and anyone who might care about me, who might want to protect me, until it was too late.

  “I know I shouldn’t have covered for her when she lied about being pushed in front of a car, but at the time it seemed like a harmless favor for a close friend.” He shrugged as if that lie hadn’t allowed Ashby time to plant the murder weapon used to kill Conrad Lawton in my car, making me the number one suspect in his homicide. “It’s a shame the police still haven’t found her. She has a lot to answer for.”

  He spoke almost as if he was talking about a stranger and not a woman he’d helped to convince me I was losing my mind.

  I blew out a frustrated breath as I struggled to keep my composure. “She does, and since she hasn’t been found yet, I have a lot of questions—some of which I’m hoping you can help me clear up.�
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  The doctor sat up straighter in his leather wingback chair and narrowed his eyes at me. His bushy, silvery eyebrows dipped into a fierce frown and his expression pulled tight and rigid. “I don’t see how I could possibly help you here, Presley. I admitted to the affair. I admitted I lied about her being injured the day you went on the run. There’s nothing more to tell.”

  Leaning forward, I pressed, “What about access to my mother’s room? Did you notice if Ashby came to visit my mother when I wasn’t there?” It wouldn’t be totally out of the question. We were close. She was my only friend, so my mother treated her like a surrogate daughter. She was also in the medical field, so her frequent comings and goings wouldn’t raise any questions. “Is that how the two of you got close?” Because I hadn’t noticed any overt flirting or chemistry when I saw the two of them together.

  Dr. Kemper sighed as he laced his fingers together and looked at me with a hard stare. “Again, I’m busy. I have no idea if she visited when you weren’t around. I’m sure the people investigating have already checked with the nurses and looked at our surveillance footage to see when she came and went.”

  I gritted my teeth and ordered myself to remain calm. “I want to know about the day my mother died. Was she here the day my mother passed away?” If she was, he never reported it, which I found highly suspicious.

  The older man leaned forward as well, and I could feel the way the tension ratcheted up in the room. I was uncomfortable with this kind of confrontation, but I was unwilling to walk away because ultimately he was the one who should have felt uneasy. He was the one who’d done something questionable and possibly lethal. He was the one who should have been worried about the truth coming out, even though I was the one who had the cold sweats and was feeling slightly nauseous.

  “I don’t recall if she was here that day or not.” I watched as he reached up to tug at the knot of his tie. It was the first outwardly anxious sign he’d exhibited. “I was focused on trying to save your mother.”

  I scowled at him as I reached out to grab the edge of his desk. I held on to the wood so tightly that my knuckles turned white.

  “Tried to save her? You told me she died before you made it to her room, that she passed so suddenly there was nothing that could be done. What exactly did you do to try and save her?” My voice rose to a practically hysterical level. I would never forget the heartbreak and crushing disappointment of that day or the absolute devastation that followed. “She was always so closely monitored, it always seemed off that she would’ve suddenly crashed with no warning.”

  “Presley,” he sighed heavily. “You should know better than anyone that sometimes people die without warning. Your entire career is based around that fact. What happened with your mother was tragic, but not uncommon. Again, I wonder if you are really ready to return to work. You don’t sound like yourself right now. You were always such a reasonable young woman.”

  The fact that he sounded disappointed in me made me see red. I jumped to my feet and slammed my palms down on the desktop, making the older man jump in his chair.

  “I think my mother was murdered, and I think you are complicit in it. Even if you weren’t directly involved, you didn’t do anything to stop it. You should, at the very least, lose your medical license.”

  The physician had the audacity to smirk. “Where’s your proof? You work with law enforcement every single day. You know wild accusations don’t mean anything. I’m sorry for your loss, but that’s where it ends. Any medical professional who might review your mother’s case would find I did my due diligence where her rapidly declining condition was concerned.”

  “Leaving her alone with a murderer who you just happen to be sleeping with is not due diligence.” I bit off each word and I could feel furious heat rising in my face. I didn’t lose my temper often, but if ever there was a time for it, now was it.

  Only Dr. Kemper remained unfazed by my outburst. He even smirked at me again as I started to breathe hard. If I were a cartoon character, steam would be coming out of my ears.

  “If you have proof that Ashby was here that day, if there is a scrap of evidence she was alone with your mother, or that I was aware of either of those things, this might be a very different conversation. As it is, your reputation is still in limbo and you should be focused on making sure your superiors don’t regret choosing you for that promotion you fought so hard for. I’ve said all I have to say to you, Presley. Maybe you should consider getting some counseling. It doesn’t seem like you’ve been dealing with your grief in a healthy manner.”

  I pushed off the desk and narrowed my eyes at his smug face. “I’m not going to let this go.”

  “You should. What’s the use of lingering in the past? You can’t bring your mother back.”

  I grabbed my purse and turned toward the door. “No, I can’t. But I can make sure the questions surrounding her death are answered. That is actually what my entire career is based around.” I flipped my hair over my shoulder, pausing at the door. I gave the doctor a frigid look and told him pointedly, “Oh, in case you didn’t hear, my new half brother is the sheriff in Loveless, and my half sister’s boyfriend is the Texas Ranger who initially questioned you. I’m sure if I need to get my hands on any of the surveillance from the hospital, or if I need to question the rest of the staff who looked after my mother, they would be more than willing to help me dig for the proof you’re so keen on me acquiring.”

  I pulled open the door, muttering, “I can’t believe I ever looked up to you,” as I marched out of his office.

  I nodded stiffly at a couple of familiar faces, determined to keep up my bravado until I was alone. As soon as I reached my car, I lost every ounce of composure I had.

  I threw my purse in the passenger seat, not even caring when half the contents fell out. I pounded the steering wheel with the side of my fist and let loose a yell that felt like it turned my lungs inside out. I could feel the hot burn of tears at the back of my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. I was done crying and being afraid. Neither of those things had gotten me anywhere. It was time for action.

  Unfortunately, Dr. Kemper was right. There was no evidence he had done anything wrong the day my mother died. There was also no proof Ashby had been at the hospital that day. Hill and his partner had questioned the entire hospital staff, and they’d already gone over hundreds of hours of surveillance. There was nothing, but I couldn’t let go of the feeling there was more to my mother’s death than a sudden turn for the worse. She’d been the same, sick but holding on, right up until I was offered the promotion. That was the turning point in a lot of things.

  According to Hill and the FBI, Ashby had long been unhinged. When they interviewed Ashby’s family after she disappeared, they disclosed that their youngest had been in and out of mental institutions for the entirety of her youth. The family was wealthy and had gone out of their way to keep her issues under wraps. Which was in a way another betrayal. I’d met the Grants several times. I always envied the tight-knit unit they presented and appreciated how they seemed to warmly welcome me into the fold. They invited me over on holidays. They got me a graduation gift when Ashby and I finished college. They constantly offered their sympathy when it came to my mother, but I had no clue the reason they did all of that was because with Ashby focused on me, on competing with me, on being better than me, on taking everything away from me, she was harmless to the rest of the world. I was the sacrificial lamb they offered up without qualms, and I had no clue until Ashby lost total control of herself. One-upping me suddenly wasn’t enough. She wanted me out of the way so she could effectively live my life. She wanted the rewards I’d earned, and she lost touch with reality when she couldn’t cheat her way into my position.

  One of these days I needed to have a conversation with the Grants as well, but first I had to figure out a way to get Dr. Kemper to come clean about what really happened the day my mother died. I wasn’t lying when I said I knew both Case and Hill would go to the mat for
me if I asked. They were chivalrous, honest lawmen who pursued justice with a straightforward determination. However, this time, the good guy wasn’t going to get things done.

  With my hands trembling I patted the seat next to me in search of my cell phone.

  When Shot suggested we exchange numbers I’d been tempted to give him a fake one but didn’t want to be immature. I kept telling myself to avoid him, but around every corner there he was.

  I hesitated before pressing the call button, trying to remember I was a good, solid, and upstanding citizen. I was a woman who didn’t walk on the wild side. So far the biggest risk I’d taken in my life was saving Shot, then I’d kissed him last night in the bar parking lot and realized there were far more dangerous ways to get involved with him. Maybe he wasn’t good news, but I knew he was exactly what I needed right now.

  Shot answered after the second ring, his voice deep and gruff in my ear. “Didn’t think I’d hear from you so soon after last night.” He chuckled. “Or ever, if I’m being honest.”

  “I need a favor.” My voice was unsteady and my breathing was choppy. I lowered my head until my forehead was resting on the steering wheel. I felt like I was about to open Pandora’s box, and it was terrifying and thrilling at the same time.

  Shot chuckled again, but this time it was sultry and sexy sounding. “If I give a favor, I expect one in return, Pres.”

  No one ever shortened my name. Mostly because I was never casual or the kind of close with anyone for them to be comfortable enough to give me any kind of nickname. And Ashby always said it was lowbrow to shorten our unique names. Shot calling me “Pres” was one more way he was breaking through the walls I’d isolated myself behind for all these years. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t like that I didn’t hate it.