The Trustworthy Groom (Texas Titan Romance) Read online

  “Maybe I should talk it through with her in the morning though. I don’t want to hurt her.” Brady pushed a hand through his hair.

  James shook his head. “I’m sorry, but do you know Hailey at all? She’d tell you off and go try to find the stalker herself.”

  Brady would’ve laughed if the situation wasn’t so serious. James was right.

  “You need to go. I’ll tell her why you had to do this.”

  The center of his chest felt hollow and achy. He didn’t want to leave Hailey, but he knew her dad was right. James stood and offered his hand. Brady rose to his unsteady feet and shook his father-in-law’s hand.

  James released his hand and nodded. “You’re a good man, Brady Giles. Someday, I’d be proud to call you my son-in-law.”

  Brady was surprised and pleased to hear that. Especially after the confrontation a couple of nights ago when James had basically told Hailey to leave him. Brady didn’t know what else to say, so he slowly turned and trudged to the front door. James stayed by his side and typed in the code so the alarm wouldn’t go off. There was a police car and an unmarked car out front. They were taking Hailey’s security serious, now.

  Brady turned on the porch and glanced back at James. “Please tell her how much I love her.”

  James nodded.

  “And keep her safe.”

  “You know I will.”

  Brady walked off into the night. He’d promised he’d keep Hailey safe, and he’d failed. Her dad and all of his security had a much better shot at it than Brady did. He pulled his phone out and dialed his agent’s number. He needed to apologize for all she’d gone through tonight with the police, and he knew Claire would help with the lawyer, annulment, and the press. Brady might as well get it all started. If it would protect Hailey, he would do anything. If only it didn’t hurt so much.

  Chapter Twenty

  Hailey’s eyes slowly opened. She was confused for a second. Why was she at Izzy’s house, and where was Brady? She quickly remembered the bomb and how they couldn’t sleep at their house, but still, Brady should be here, lying next to her. She’d fallen asleep in his arms, and although it was terrifying to think his stalker now wanted to kill her, it didn’t matter if she had Brady close. He would protect her just like he had last night when the bomb went off, and he had protected her with his body. She knew he had burns on his back, but he hadn’t complained once.

  She scrambled out of bed and into the attached bathroom, quickly brushing her teeth, washing her face, and redoing her ponytail. She could fix up later, but she wanted to find her husband. Hurrying out of the bedroom, she took the stairs up to the main level two at a time. The sun was bright, beaming through the windows. She wondered how late it was. Had she slept in?

  Her family was congregated in the kitchen. The flat screen television in the attached living area was on ESPN, so they didn’t hear her approach. X was scrambling eggs, and Izzy was stirring some juice. Her parents sat next to each other on barstools. They both looked like they’d aged ten years.

  “Hey,” she called out. “Where’s Brady?”

  Everyone focused in on her, and the only way to describe their gazes was pity. Her mama looked to her daddy like he should be the spokesperson. He stood and walked to her, grasping both her arms with his hands.

  “Sweetheart, Brady wanted me to tell you how much he loved you, but there was no other option.”

  Dread washed over her. What was he saying? Where was Brady? “What are you talking about?”

  “Everything he’s doing is to protect you.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. He already protected me.” She glanced at Izzy who held the whisk she’d been using to stir the orange juice in one hand as if she was frozen. “Where is my husband?” Hailey demanded.

  Her dad shook his head sadly. “He left in the middle of the night. I think he went home, sweetheart.”

  “Why didn’t he take me?” Her voice broke.

  “Oh, sweetheart.” He gathered her close, and she smelled his coffee and peppermint scent, but it didn’t comfort her. No one but Brady could comfort her now.

  “Oh, no.” Her mama gasped, pointing to the television.

  “Brady Giles announces the annulment of his marriage to the daughter of the Texas Titans’ owner, Hailey Knight” flashed across the screen.

  “There was a lot of speculation and rumors about the rushed marriage,” one commentator said.

  “This is a lot for Giles and the Titans to deal with, what with his stalker and the bombing in his house last night.”

  Hailey’s jaw dropped, but she couldn’t focus on anything they said but one ugly word. Annulment? Brady wouldn’t do that to her. Not without talking to her. Wasn’t it just last night that he’d asked to marry her again? Told her what her wedding ring meant to him, what she meant to him? She glanced at her beautiful ring. It felt so heavy on her hand.

  This wasn’t happening. No, no, no!

  “Like I said, sweetheart,” her dad said. “He’s doing this for you. To keep you from being hurt by the stalker.

  The stalker? Hailey would find the stalker and hurt her. After she cussed Brady up and down. He’d promised to try not to be stupid. This was way past stupid, and he was going to regret it real soon.

  She pulled from her dad’s grasp and spun on her heel.

  “Where are you going?” he asked.

  “To find him!”

  “You can’t go anywhere near him. That stalker means business,” her dad said.

  “Have your stupid bodyguards follow me. I don’t care, but I am going to find Brady.”

  Izzy hurried to her side and slid out of her Sanuks. “You’ll need these.”

  Hailey gave her a quick hug and slid them on her feet. Her sister’s support meant everything to her. “Thanks.” She ran to the front door and threw it open. The alarm split the morning air, but she didn’t care. They could deal with it.

  Running down the sidewalk, she could hear her dad behind her instructing the private security to follow her. They caught her in their vehicles half a minute later. One of them rolled down his window. “Do you want a ride, Ms. Knight?”

  “No.” She kept running, even though it was awkward in the soft shoes that were a size too big for her. She needed to burn off some of her anger, or she might strangle Brady herself. How could he do this to her? He’d told her he trusted her and loved her. Then he announced their annulment to the world? She thought her heart would shred in two if she wasn’t so angry. “And it’s Mrs. Giles,” she said to the security guard. She had no clue how annulments worked, but she wasn’t about to let her husband just dump her.

  She made it to their driveway and hurried up the sidewalk. The security guards were out of their cars and by her side quickly. They moved pretty well for big dudes.

  Hailey put out a hand as she reached the front door. “I need to talk to my husband by myself. Can you please stay here?”

  They both nodded and took up stations by the door. She punched in the code for the front door then entered quickly and entered the security code so the alarm wouldn’t go off. How in the world had the stalker gotten in here and planted a bomb? Especially with her and Brady both home. She shook those thoughts away. The police and investigators could deal with that. She had to find her husband and cuss him good. Her steps faltered as she started up the stairs toward his suite. Was he still her husband?

  She walked gingerly past the mess that used to be her bedroom. There was a crew in there already tearing apart the charred walls. It was noisy as they banged and pried and busted things up.

  One of the men saw her and smiled. “You all right, miss?”

  “Yes, thank you.” No dang way was she all right, but she wasn’t going to tell him that.

  She hurried past them and to the next set of stairs. Was it really only last night that she and Brady had been kissing right here before her world had literally exploded? Everything after that was fuzzy and nightmarish, except for Brady. Now,
Brady had ditched her. Her chest tightened, and she fought to catch a full breath.

  Hurrying up the stairs, she entered his suite. A young blonde woman stood at his dresser, holding something.

  “Hello?” Hailey thought she was going to hyperventilate. Who in the world was in Brady’s room? This couldn’t be real. He couldn’t have another woman in here.

  The girl turned around and the breath whooshed out of Hailey. “Nissa? What are you doing here?”

  She recognized what was in her hand. It was a bottle of Brady’s cologne. She didn’t have any cleaning supplies. Weird.

  Nissa gave Hailey her customary sweet smile. “Just cleaning. It’ll take a lot to get the smell of smoke out. Can I help you with something?”

  “I’m looking for Brady,” she said. “Have you seen him?”

  Nissa gestured toward the windows she’d been facing. “He’s right down there.” She smiled. “You can look all you want.”

  Hailey quirked an eyebrow. Nissa was warm and friendly as always, but it bugged Hailey that the young girl had obviously been watching her husband.

  Walking across the room, she looked out the windows. Three stories down, she could see Brady swimming laps in the pool. She pressed closer to the glass, aching to be close to him, talk to him, touch him. After she cussed him good and long.

  Hailey sensed a movement from her right side and turned. Nissa held a silver picture frame and was thrusting it at her head. Hailey ducked, but the heavy metal frame caught her on the side of the head, and pain exploded through her skull. She went down hard, crying out.

  An arm wrapped around her throat before she could move. Hailey screamed but didn’t make more than a peep. Nissa locked her other hand around her forearm and clamped down. Hailey couldn’t get any oxygen. She clawed at Nissa’s arms, but the woman wasn’t letting go.

  Hailey couldn’t breathe and darkness edged in on her vision. She flailed against Nissa, terror filling every cell of her body. If she passed out, Nissa could just keep choking her until she was a goner. She dug her fingernails into the flesh of Nissa’s arms. Nissa screamed, released one arm, and smacked Hailey in the face. Hailey pulled in a ragged breath, grabbed Nissa’s arm with both of her hands and sank her teeth into it.

  Nissa howled in protest. Hailey hoped someone would hear, but the workers one flight down were banging things around and were probably oblivious to the fight. Why had she told her bodyguards to stay outside?

  Hailey flung her elbow back into the other woman’s abdomen as hard and fast as she could. Nissa gasped and released her. Hailey whirled and slugged her in the jaw. Nissa fell back against the bedframe.

  “Help!” Hailey screamed and jumped to her feet. Her vision went black and dizziness assaulted her as pain flashed through her head again. She blinked to clear her vision, pressing her hand against the tender spot on her head, and scurried around Nissa. She had no desire to hurt anyone, not even the woman who’d tried to kill her.

  Nissa grabbed her ankle, and Hailey slammed to the carpeted floor, barely breaking her fall with her hands. She yelled as loudly as she could. Nissa climbed on top of her and hit her in the back. Hailey grunted, but she knew she was stronger than this girl. Hailey had trained to defend herself against grown men. She should be able to handle this slip of a woman. Squirming to her side, she pushed and writhed until she was out from under Nissa. Grabbing her arms, she pushed the woman to the ground and pinned her down.

  “Hey! What’s going on here?”

  Hailey looked up to see the same worker who’d greeted her coming in. “Call my bodyguards out front.” She instructed him.

  “How do I know you’re not the one who needs to be restrained?” he asked.

  “Because she’s my wife.” Brady walked around the man, but stopped a couple of feet away. “Nissa?”

  “She attacked me,” Hailey said.

  Brady covered the distance to them and extended his hand. Hailey took it, and he helped her up. Nissa stayed on the floor glaring at the two of them. Brady pulled Hailey in close, and she wrapped her arms around his bare back, inhaling the sharp scent of chlorine. His swimsuit dampened her clothes, and the tears that sprang to her eyes dampened his neck.

  “Go get her security guys and call the police,” Brady told the construction worker.

  “Yes, sir.” He hurried to the stairs.

  Nissa stood, but didn’t advance toward them.

  “How could you?” Brady asked.

  “I’ve loved you my whole life,” the young woman said, tears streaking down her face. “I knew you’d never love me back, but I couldn’t stand to see you with her.”

  “You would never have gotten away with hurting her,” Brady said.

  Nissa shrugged. “I don’t care. She can’t have you!”

  The security guards rushed into the room, looking to Brady.

  “Take her downstairs to my office until the police arrive.”

  They both nodded and grasped Nissa’s arms, hurrying her away.

  Brady held tightly to Hailey but ushered her to the couch. He sank down and held her against him. His arms were trembling around her.

  “How did you know to come?”

  “I didn’t. I finished swimming and was just coming up to shower.”

  Hailey crumpled against him, but then anger surged through her. She glared up at him, trying to remember that she was mad and he deserved a kick in the pants. “How dare you annul our marriage?”

  Brady let out a disbelieving laugh. “That’s what you’re upset about?” He shook his head and tenderly kissed her forehead. “Oh, Hailey, she almost killed you, and you were in here alone with her? Did she hurt you?” He pulled back and examined her, touching her neck.

  “She hit me with a picture frame.” Hailey touched her scalp but luckily there was no blood just a goose egg. “And she tried to choke me.”

  Brady’s entire body shuddered.

  “Like you should worry about me. You know how tough I am.”

  Brady half-laughed again and pulled her to him, kissing her thoroughly. Hailey melted into him before yanking back. “You should be worried about how tough I am because I’m going to kick your butt for trying to ditch me.”

  He laughed again and cradled her face with his hands. “You crazy, beautiful woman. I didn’t ditch you. I was trying to protect you.”

  “Well, it was dumb. The only safe place for me is here with you.”

  Brady smiled and nodded. “I’ll try not to be dumb again.”

  “That’s what you said yesterday. You’re going to have to work really hard to make it up to me this time.”

  “Oh, yes, ma’am. I’ll do anything you say.” He looked much too handsome when he grinned at her like that.

  She pursed her lips and ran her hands over the defined muscles of his shoulders. “Well, first of all, I think you should never wear a shirt around the house.”

  He chuckled. “Okay.”

  “Second of all, I think you should take me on a real honeymoon.”

  “Jamaica to climb waterfalls then lie around on the beach and kiss you all night long?” His voice got low and husky.

  “That should work.” She grinned, her heart rate picking up. “And third, I think you’d better get to work kissing me and convince me that you’ll never leave my side again.”

  He lowered his head closer to hers. His breath warmed her lips, and her stomach jumped with anticipation. “I love you, Hailey Knight Giles. You’re my wife, and I’m never leaving your side.”

  Hailey covered the rest of the distance and kissed him, drinking from the desire and love he showered on her. His lips worked a magic of their own, convincing her with his kiss that he wouldn’t be dumb again, or at least if he did, he would make it up to her.

  He pulled back and grinned at her. Hailey’s head throbbed, but she ignored it as she trailed a hand down his jaw, appreciating every inch of his handsome face.

  Footsteps approached and a couple of policemen entered the bedroom. “Excus
e us, Mr. Giles, Ms. Knight. We need to get some statements from you.”

  Hailey turned and pinned the men with a look. “First of all, it’s Mrs. Giles. Second, my husband is busy kissing me right now. We’ll be with you in a minute.”

  The shorter policeman’s jaw dropped open, but then he grinned. “We’ll see you downstairs in a few minutes then.”

  “Better make it twenty,” Brady said, framing her face with his hands and proceeding to kiss her with an urgency that she loved. She could hear the policemen chuckling, but she could only concentrate on the man holding her. The man she had learned to trust with her secrets, the man who had shown her how beautiful and unselfish love could be.

  Epilogue

  Hailey’s stomach was tumbling every which direction. She loved the anticipation of the first few plays of any football game with her Titans, but they were playing Pittsburgh on a Monday night. Whenever they played Pittsburgh, Gage would get close enough to the Titan’s sideline to grin at her or salute her or something. She shook her head. Gage couldn’t touch her in any way now. Her husband would protect her physically, but more importantly, Brady also helped her to be strong emotionally.

  The Titans kicked off to start the game, resulting in the second play having Pittsburgh on offense. It was a short pass to Gage, and though Brady wasn’t covering him, he was on the same side of the field. Gage sprinted down the field, breaking a tackle Hailey had thought would stop him for sure. Brady came out of nowhere, ramming into the man and wrapping him up. They slammed to the ground together, but the ball popped loose before they hit the turf, and Tyrelle recovered it.

  The Titans’ crowd went wild.

  Brady jumped to his feet easily. Gage slowly stood, and Hailey could see him glaring at Brady. Brady pointed a finger at Gage and said something then turned and strode away. Gage flew at her husband, slamming his fist into Brady’s back. Hailey screamed out, and players from both teams rushed toward the two of them.

  Brady whirled, grabbed Gage by the shoulder pads and had Gage flat on his back before anyone else could interfere. The ref blew his whistle and tossed a flag in the air. Hailey’s stomach dropped. If they gave Brady a penalty for that, she would come uncorked. Did the ref even see Gage’s cheap shot?