Susan Mallery - Under Her Skin

“It happened slowly,” Skye told her. “He was nice and I liked him, but it wasn’t love. I wasn’t sure I could ever love anyone like I loved Mitch. Still, he was wild about me and he wasn’t afraid to show his feelings. Not in a way that made me feel obligated, but in a way that made me feel…safe.”

That, Lexi could relate to. Skye wasn’t talking about physical safety, but an emotional place to be secure.

“By the time we got married, I knew I really cared about him, but I didn’t know I loved him until the night Erin was born.” She hesitated, then laughed. “He fainted in the delivery room. He hadn’t been there when any of his other children were born and didn’t know what to expect. I thought he’d had a heart attack and died and I totally lost it. They brought him around and I knew that he’d become everything to me.”

“He adored you and Erin.”

“I know. And he died knowing he was my world.”

Lexi wondered what it would be like to know that she was someone’s world. Then she wondered if she was brave enough to risk that-to give that much of herself. It was easier to stay safe, but did it get her what she wanted? Were the best things in life gained when one took risks?

They reached the top of a slight rise. Kendra had turned so that she could see the house behind her. Glory’s Gate looked large and impressive on the horizon.

“Seriously?” the teen asked. “You grew up there?”

Lexi and Skye followed her gaze. Lexi nodded.

“Wow.”

“It’s not as impressive as it seems,” Lexi told her.

“People always say that, but they’re lying. Why would you ever want to leave?”

“Don’t you want to grow up and get your own place one day?” Lexi asked.

Kendra wrinkled her nose. “Sure, but I live in a town house. Not a castle.”

“It is special,” Skye murmured, staring at the house.

The place had always meant more to her than to either Lexi or Izzy. Skye didn’t care about Titan World-she wanted the house. Had that been part of the deal to get her to marry Ray? Had Jed hinted he would leave her the house? And how did Garth fit into all this? What was he angry about? That he hadn’t grown up at Glory’s Gate? That his father hadn’t acknowledged him? Or was it something else? Something she couldn’t begin to imagine?

“Come on,” Erin said. “Let’s go faster.”

“Let’s not,” Kendra muttered and turned back in the saddle to face front. At the same moment, she tugged on the reins. She went one way, Oliver went the other and almost in slow motion, she slid off her horse and onto the ground.

Lexi practically threw herself off her horse as she scrambled to the teen’s side.

“Are you okay?” she asked. “Did you hurt yourself?”

Skye and Erin gathered around as they all stared down at Kendra, who startled them by starting to laugh.

“If you could see your faces,” she said, giggling. “I’m fine.” She turned to Erin. “It was my fault. I zigged and he zagged, but I felt him trying to shift back, like he was hoping to catch me.”

Erin grinned. “See. Oliver’s really nice.”

Kendra stood and brushed off her butt. “For a horse, but that’s okay. I’m ready to try again.”

Lexi put an arm around her shoulders. “Very impressive. Getting back on the horse is an old Texas tradition.”

For a second Kendra leaned into her, then the teen roughly pushed her away.

“Don’t,” she said stiffly. “Don’t pretend to be nice to me.”

Lexi didn’t know what she’d done wrong.

“You’re just going to leave anyway,” Kendra said, tears filling her eyes. “They all leave.”

The last words came out on a choke, then she turned and nearly ran toward the house.

Kendra’s pain lingered, like a cold, haunting fog. Lexi understood her pain-the fear of caring about someone who would only disappear. She ached for the girl’s wounded heart and wished she could do something to help.

How many people had come and gone from Kendra’s life?

“You can fix this,” Skye said. “Once you and Cruz are married, she’ll see that you’re not going anywhere.”

Words that were supposed to help, but only made Lexi feel worse. Because Kendra was right-in a few months Lexi would be gone.

THE PHONE IN CRUZ’S home office rang. “Yes?”

“It’s Manny. I’m at the hospital. It’s Jorge.”

Jorge was one of their best drivers. “What happened?” There hadn’t been race.

“I don’t know. He was brought in by the paramedics. They said he overdosed on something.”

Cruz felt cold. “He doesn’t do drugs.” Drivers knew they couldn’t screw with their reflexes by taking drugs. Just in case one of them thought he could use a little something to keep himself more alert, Cruz insisted on an aggressive random drug-testing program.

“I know,” Manny told him. “He’s not that kind of guy. They’re working on him right now.” He named a hospital. “They said it would be a couple of hours until they know something. They say he’s going to pull through, at least.”

Cruz clutched the phone. “I’ll be right there.”

Manny gave him the floor number, then they hung up.

Thirty minutes later Cruz walked into the room. Manny stood next to Jorge, who looked as if he’d been rode hard and put away wet. His eyes were swollen and bloodshot and his normally olive-colored skin had a pale-green tinge.

“I didn’t do anything,” he said weakly. “Boss, you gotta believe me. I don’t do drugs. Ever. I think it’s stupid, and even if I didn’t, my mom would kill me.” As Jorge spoke, he touched the cross he wore around his neck.

“I know. It’s all right. Just get better.”

“I will.” Jorge closed his eyes.

Manny motioned for Cruz to follow him into the hallway. When they’d closed the door behind them, Manny’s expression hardened.

“I don’t like this crap,” he said, sounding angry. “Jorge told me he was out with friends, having a drink. That there were a bunch of guys at the next table who started asking questions about what they did. Who they raced for, that sort of thing. That it wasn’t just fans. Jorge said it was almost like they wanted to know who was who.”

Cruz listened intently, not liking the feeling in his gut. “And?”

“The other guys bought a couple of rounds. It was all very friendly. Jorge wasn’t drinking, but one of the guys got real upset he wouldn’t let him buy him a drink so he got a beer.”

“What was he drinking before?”

“Bottled water.”

Something without flavor. Something safe.

Manny confirmed that. “The doctor said he thinks he was given some kind of black-out drug, but whoever dumped it in gave him too much. It could have been on purpose or by accident. They’re going to give him more tests to make sure he’s all right.”

“Is the hospital reporting this to the police?”

“They want to,” Manny said. “Because it’s you, they’re waiting to talk to you first.”

Because it was him? As if he was somebody? In other circumstances, that would have made him laugh. “I’ll speak to the doctor,” Cruz told his partner. “I think we should get the police involved. Nobody screws with my drivers.”

“I agree. But I don’t get it.” Many shook his head. “Who would do this? It’s stupid and dangerous. If it’s traced back to another team, they’ll be disqualified for a couple of seasons. Jorge is good, but he’s not that good. It’s not worth it.”

Cruz agreed. This was something different than regular sabotage. But who would want to do this to him? He’d made a few enemies on his climb to the top, but none recently. Besides, this was more annoying and frustrating than damaging to him.

“A random attack?” he asked. “Some twisted bastard getting his kicks?”

“Maybe. I don’t know. It doesn’t feel that way to me.”

“Me, neither. Could it be someone Jorge knows?” Cruz asked. “Has he been sniffing around someone’s wife?”

“No. He’s a good kid. Close to his family. His parents are strict Catholics, and Jorge goes to church a couple of times a week. He won’t date anyone his mother doesn’t approve of. He’s not the kind of guy to mess around with a married woman.”

So if the attack wasn’t random and it wasn’t about Jorge, who was left? Who would want to…?

Cruz thought about the possibilities. The one he most wanted to dismiss was the one that kept coming up again and again. Garth Duncan.

First Lexi with the loan, then Jed and the horses, followed by the insider trading. Then Skye and the possibility of money laundering. Was this Garth’s way of welcoming him to the family? And if it was, what was Cruz going to do about it?

LEXI FINISHED HER review of the quarterly accounting statements. Numbers were easy, she thought. They didn’t talk back or try to hurt your feelings. They simply were. There was power in numbers and safety.

As she logged off the computer program, the light caught her engagement ring and caused it to sparkle. They only had a deal, she reminded herself. The ring was to fool the rest of the world. It wasn’t significant. She and Cruz had never pretended to be more than business partners who slept together. Not that he’d been in her bed in a while. Ever since Kendra had shown up and thrown everything off.

Not that she was blaming the teen. The problem was more about Cruz than her. Lexi had the feeling she and Kendra could get along, under the right circumstances. Mostly Kendra giving her a chance and her planning to stay permanently.

Lexi had always thought she would get married and have a family. One day. One day when she was successful. One day when she had her life together. One day when she fell in love.

One day when she stopped being afraid to give her heart.

She leaned back in her seat. Was that the problem? She was afraid to care, to let someone in? No, not someone. A man. It was easy to love her sisters and Erin. Even Kendra would be easy to love. But they were all safe. A man was different. A man might be able to see inside her, to know her flaws. What if they were too awful? What if she wasn’t loveable?