Forever in My Heart Read online

  Jamie scanned the kitchen for signs of intruders still lurking. He had shoved his gun in the waistband of his jeans and wasn’t afraid to use it. “Are you sure no one else is here?”

  “I heard a couple pairs of feet running out the back before Jimmy grabbed me. I presume they’re all gone.”

  Jamie reached out to steady her when she hopped off the work table and swayed. “Easy there.”

  “You don’t think someone else could be here, do you?” she asked.

  If there was, they’d sure as hell be sorry. “Don’t worry. Tristan and I will check after he finishes examining the back lock.” Jamie stepped forward and lifted her chin to the light. “He got you pretty good. Maybe we should take you to the hospital to make sure it’s not broken.”

  She pulled away. “No way. I’m not going to the hospital. It’s bruised, that’s all.”

  Apparently she was as stubborn as him. “Okay. No hospital. Are you hurt anywhere else?” He began looking at her arms, lifting her shirt, wincing at the black and blue marks that marred her smooth skin.

  “Hey, what do you think you’re doing?” She yanked down her shirt.

  “I’m trying to see the extent of your injuries. I got a little medical training in the army and wanted to see if your ribs are bruised or broken.”

  “Why don’t I take you upstairs, Vick, and we’ll see how bad it is,” Lucy suggested.

  “Not until we check out the rest of this place first,” Jamie said.

  Tristan walked into the kitchen. “The lock was picked. It’s not expensive, so it would have been easy to do. I’ll replace it. We should check out the lock on the front of the store, too.”

  “Let’s make sure no stragglers are around,” Jamie said to Tristan. “Stay here,” he called to the women.

  Jamie walked through the café, taking in the overturned tables and chairs. Clearly, Jimmy was looking for the flash drive here. Not finding anyone suspicious lurking, they headed up to Vicky’s apartment. It, too, was empty, but it was hard to tell if it had been searched. Clothes littered the floor. A bra hung on the post of a chair. Since the bed and couch cushions weren’t touched, Jamie presumed it meant the sexy little spitfire downstairs wasn’t the best of housekeepers. He fingered a black lace bra. Her taste in lingerie was definitely to his liking.

  “We’re clear here,” he said to Tristan.

  “I’ll run down and tell them it’s safe to come up and then get started on the locks,” Tristan said.

  Jamie paced the room, knowing he’d have to explain why Jimmy had broken into Vicky’s place. Then he’d have to explain about the drive. Damn his brother for placing them all in the middle of his mess.

  He met them on the stairs. “I’ll help Tristan and then we’ll talk.”

  Vicky nodded before being whisked away by Lucy.

  Downstairs, he did a more thorough examination of the café. He straightened the chairs, picked up the pieces of a few that had been broken. It was even more important Tristan and he search for the drive now that Sal’s idiot friends had managed to put two and two together and consider the café a viable hiding spot.

  Having finished, he and Tristan went upstairs where Lucy was putting on a pot of coffee.

  “How is she?” he asked.

  “She’s got some bruises on her torso, but nothing that won’t heal,” Lucy said. “She’ll be out in a minute.”

  When Vicky emerged, Jamie wanted to gather her in his arms and hold her but refrained, remembering their earlier conversation. Her jaw was swollen, her fair skin already showing signs of the black and blue that was sure to form. Even her lip was cut.

  She sat in a kitchen chair and pulled her legs up to her chin. “I don’t understand what they wanted. Was the cash in the register taken?”

  “Not that I could tell,” Tristan said.

  “I don’t get it, then. I don’t have anything of value.”

  Jamie exchanged glances with Tristan. “That may not exactly be true.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Jamie exhaled. “I think I know why Jimmy broke in and what he’s after.”

  ****

  Vicky had been feeling sorry for herself. Sure, break-ins happened in the city, but her family had been lucky to never have had to deal with them—until the DiSilva boys were in town. Now she sat, head on her knees, at her kitchen table and tried not to feel like a victim again.

  Hearing Jamie’s words, her head snapped up. “What do you mean?”

  He stared at her a beat before sitting in the chair next to her. “A few weeks ago, Jimmy cornered me outside my parents’ house. He said Sal had a flash drive, and he wanted it back.”

  “What’s on it?” Vicky asked, sitting up straight now.

  “He wouldn’t say.”

  “Why does Jimmy think you have it?” Lucy asked.

  “I haven’t a clue. Sal and I were never close. And even if I knew where it was, I wouldn’t give it to the likes of Jimmy.”

  His proclamation gave Vicky more relief than she realized, and she let go of the breath she’d been holding.

  Lucy brought steaming cups of coffee to the table, and she and Tristan joined them.

  “Still, he thinks you either were told or know your brother well enough to figure it out. What did you tell Jimmy?” Vicky said.

  “I told him I didn’t know anything and to take a hike,” Jamie replied.

  “That day I saw him punch you out back was because he doesn’t believe you, right?”

  Jamie nodded. “I also think he’s responsible for breaking into my apartment.”

  “And now the break-in here,” Tristan added. “The little trio has been busy.”

  A sudden thought popped into Vicky’s head, and she shot accusing eyes at Jamie. “That’s why you wanted to work on my place. Not because you’re this noble person and wanted to help me out. It’s because you think the drive may be here.”

  “It’s not the only reason. I offered to fix up your place the first day I came in here, remember? And now, given this…you have to admit it makes sense. Sal was here right before he died. I’ve searched my parents’ house and didn’t find anything. It’s possible he hid it right here, under all our noses.”

  Hell if he wasn’t right. The idea of something belonging to that criminal hidden in her café had Vicky shivering.

  Fury rose in her. “So you wanted to use me and my café as a means to perform your own personal search and didn’t think I had a right to know?”

  “I didn’t want to involve you in something that had a potential to be dangerous and put you at risk,” he exclaimed.

  “Yeah, well, that really worked, genius.”

  Jamie shot a pleading look at Tristan.

  “Vicky, you’ve told Lucy you wanted to redecorate the café but couldn’t afford to. Jamie and I are trying to build up a reputation in this town, which has been difficult. People don’t know me and don’t trust Jamie. If we could show them our work and that we have your support, we hoped it would boost our business,” Tristan said.

  “And while you were ripping out my floor, you’d search for the drive?” Vicky asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

  “Yes,” Jamie replied.

  She cocked an eyebrow at him. “And what happens if you find it? Then what?”

  “I hadn’t thought that far ahead,” Jamie said.

  Vicky stared at this man she had started to trust. Since her divorce, it had been difficult for her to trust anyone, especially men. And now that she had started to, despite the warnings from her family, he did this.

  “You’re a smart guy and strategizing is something they teach you in the army, right? You can’t convince me you didn’t consider what you would do if you found the drive.”

  Jamie frowned at her, and she had the satisfaction of knowing she’d been right.

  He sipped his coffee. “If I never found the drive, there would be no issue, and I would have to figure out how to get Jimmy and his idiot goons off my ass. If I found it,
I could go to the authorities and let them deal with it. Or…”

  She knew what he was going to say before he spoke the words, but she refrained from interrupting him, needing to hear him say it.

  “The third option is to see what’s on it,” he finished.

  “And then what? Hand it over to Jimmy?” she snapped.

  “Hell, no. I’d call the cops.”

  She wasn’t sure she could believe him. She wanted to, but she felt raw, tired, and confused.

  “I’m supposed to believe you were going to search my place for the drive and, if you found it, turn it over to the cops?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then prove it.”

  He rubbed at his unshaven jaw and seemed to be considering his options. “Fine.” He handed her his cell phone. “Call your brother.”

  ****

  Jamie already had two cups of coffee, and now they churned unpleasantly in his stomach. He’d probably be up all night. His head still sported a bump from getting belted by Kate and now he waited for Vicky’s brother to arrive. The brother who was just waiting for a reason to slap cuffs on his wrists and haul him into jail. And while Jamie hadn’t done anything wrong, Nick could give him a hard time for not coming forth with the information on his own. Rather, he’d been bullied into it by Vicky.

  Nick’s footsteps could be heard as he thundered up the stairs. Inside, he stopped and stared at Jamie, now comfortable on the couch.

  “What the hell is going on? What happened to your face?” Nick demanded of his sister.

  “Calm down and we’ll explain everything to you.” Brown eyes that were full of desire only earlier today now burned with annoyance as she pierced him with her gaze. “Won’t we?”

  “What’s he doing here?” Nick demanded.

  Jamie took a deep breath and rose. “We need to report several crimes. Let’s sit. This may take a while.”

  Jamie stuck to the facts. He’d expected Nick to interrupt him while he spoke, but the detective sat at the table, arms crossed, and a scowl on his face.

  When Jamie finished, Nick looked to his sister. “Why didn’t you call me?”

  Jamie was also curious as to the answer to that question. Rather than calling the cops, as he would have expected, she called Lucy, knowing she’d bring Tristan and him.

  Vicky glanced away and shrugged. “I acted on instinct, which was to call Lucy.”

  Nick nodded at Jamie. “You should have reported the B&E and the threats from Jimmy.”

  “I can take care of myself and who’s important to me.” He shot a glance at Vicky.

  “From where I’m sitting, being your friend sounds dangerous,” Nick snapped. “Tell me again where you’ve searched for this missing drive.”

  “At my parents’ house. I’m not aware of any property Sal owned. The next logical place for him to hide it was here,” Jamie said.

  “Any clue what your brother could have been hiding on it?”

  Jamie felt as though he were on an interrogation stand but kept his gaze level on Nick. “No.”

  Nick stood and began pacing the kitchen. “Was there ever a time when Sal left the main area of the café and could have hidden it?”

  “No, but his henchman did,” Vicky said.

  Jamie shook his head. “I don’t see my brother trusting anyone to hide something that had such importance.”

  “I agree,” Nick said. “While it doesn’t seem Sal had time or opportunity to hide the drive in the café, the possibility should be ruled out. Did you ever receive a note or any type of texted warning from Jimmy?”

  “It was all verbal,” Jamie said.

  “You really have a knack for getting into trouble, Sis. See what happens when you hang around people like him?” He nodded in Jamie’s direction.

  The man was getting on Jamie’s last nerve. He tried to be nice, but he’d had it. Jamie stood, knocking the chair over backward. “I’ve had it with people judging me. What happened to innocent until proven guilty or were you absent the day they reviewed that at the academy?”

  Nick rose and took three steps until he was nose to nose with him. Jamie didn’t care. He wanted to pound something, and he’d put his one hundred eighty pounds of muscle against Nick any day.

  “Guys. This isn’t helping,” Vicky said, pushing between both men. Her hand was ice cold through his shirt, and he could have sworn she trembled even though it was far from cold in her apartment.

  “She’s right.” Jamie grabbed a crocheted blanket from the couch and placed it over her shoulders. “Here, you’re shivering.” He wanted to pull her against him, but caught the warning look in her eyes and refrained.

  “Thanks,” she said to him before turning to her brother. “Now what?”

  “I’ll file both break-ins. I’ll need you both to come into the station and sign the reports.”

  “What about the drive?” Vicky asked.

  Nick cast a glance at Jamie and then back at his sister. “I think you should move forward with his plan to search for it while he fixes up your place.”

  Jamie felt himself relax for the first time in several hours.

  “I’ll help as much as I can around my schedule. The moment you find something, assuming you do, you call me. No playing hero and looking at what’s on it. And no contact with Jimmy, you got that?” He spoke to both of them, but Jamie knew he was directing his last comment to him.

  Jamie nodded.

  “I don’t think you should be alone here, either,” Nick added. “I want you to go to Ma and Pop’s for a few days.”

  “No way. I need to be up early to bake, and it’s more convenient if I’m here. I’ll be fine. I’ll ask Lucy to stay with me.”

  “Lucy isn’t going to be any help if those clowns try to break in again,” Nick said.

  “I’ll stay with her,” Jamie found himself saying before he’d thought it through.

  Nick narrowed his eyes before shifting back to his sister. It may have been the amaretto-laced coffee she drank, but Jamie could have sworn a faint blush stained her pale cheeks.

  “Ah, Sis. Not this again. You told me you’re not involved with him,” Nick said.

  “I’m not,” she said, but the blush on her face deepened.

  Not yet.

  “Are you okay with him staying here?”

  “I suppose.”

  “Then it’s settled,” Nick said and turned to Jamie. “Keep your hands and other body parts off my sister, or I’ll do more than punch you in the face.”

  “Fuck you, Nick. I’m not eighteen, and you can’t tell either of us what to do,” Jamie ground out.

  Nick mumbled something before pulling his sister into a hug. “I’ll call you tomorrow when I finish the reports. Take care of your face, and call me if you need me.”

  A brief nod to Jamie and Nick was gone.

  It was going to be interesting living in close quarters with her. And Jamie had to admit it wasn’t a hardship at all.

  “Which side of the bed do you like to sleep on?” he asked with a devilish grin.

  Chapter Twelve

  Vicky squinted in concentration in order to block out the sounds from the café and focus on securing the last of the fondant to Lucas’s birthday cake. Finished, she stepped back and surveyed her work. It was silly to care that it was precise considering it was going to be consumed by thirty kids in a few hours, but being the perfectionist she was, Vicky tweaked and adjusted until it met her approval.

  She grabbed her camera and snapped pictures at various angles to add to her portfolio. She was sure the replica of the Millenium Falcon would be a popular choice for her customers with young boys.

  The sound of the back door banging closed was followed by Jamie trekking across the kitchen, breathing heavily after his morning run. Only a week of cohabiting and she could already recognize the sound and scent of him. Or maybe it was the way her blood began to sizzle when he walked into a room.

  He used the bottom of his shirt to mop up the sweat on his
face. She should probably be repulsed by his damp hair and clothes, but the T-shirt plastered to his sculpted body looked good…too good.

  “Wow, that’s incredible.” He opened the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water.

  Apparently, he felt completely at home.

  “It’s for my nephew, Lucas’s, birthday. He’s turning seven, and Kate and Edward are having a birthday party for him over at the orphanage he lived at before they adopted him.”

  “That’s right. I’d forgotten he’s adopted. How long, now?”

  “They were married in January—a civil service at the courthouse. Last month they had a small ceremony at St. Christopher’s. The adoption went through back in February.”

  “Lucas is about the same age as Tony would have been, isn’t he?”

  “Yes. Kate believed fate brought her and Lucas together. He lost his parents and sister in a car accident. The only reason he survived was because he was home sick with a babysitter.”

  Jamie swallowed the remainder of the water in one long gulp. “I’m glad they found each other. I only saw my nephew maybe twice, but I remember him as a sweet little boy. It was horrible when he died.”

  More like life-altering. “That’s putting it mildly. My sister lost her entire world when he died in that car accident. The one caused by your brother.”

  He crushed the bottle and slammed it into the recycling bin. “I’ve had it with everyone throwing that in my face as though it was my fault or I could have done something to change it.”

  “I didn’t mean—”

  “Goddamn it, Vicky. You did mean it. I hate what my brother did and that it resulted in my nephew’s death. If I could have prevented it, I would have. I thought you, of all people, would understand. I guess I was wrong.”

  “Jamie, I—”

  She didn’t get to finish her statement before he stalked off to her apartment.

  Well, she put her foot into that one.

  She slid the cake into a box and put it in the refrigerator. As she followed him up the stairs, she braced herself for a confrontation. Apologies didn’t come easy, but her mother had raised her to own up to her mistakes. However, when she reached the top of her stairs, all thoughts of confrontation fled her mind.