How to Lose a Fiancé Page 7

  “Okay,” she whispered in his ear. “I’ll give you a chance to earn that trust.”

  Brody held her close. He wanted her trust and so much more, but he had to take this slow, prove that he wouldn’t play with her heart or ditch her. He cared deeply for her, and he didn’t even know her that well. He could hardly imagine how invested he would be as time went on. This spicy beauty was the one for him, and he was going to prove that he was the one for her.

  “Brody!”

  He jumped and whirled to face the man who’d yelled his name, putting himself between the person and Kaimbrey.

  A man emerged from the trees. Brody’s stomach tightened, but as the man got closer, he realized it was Tate. He lifted a hand and grinned. “Oh, hey, bro.”

  “Brody, Kaimbrey!” Tate pushed through the thick undergrowth and launched himself at his brother. Brody patted his brother’s back, surprised at his exuberance. Tate was usually pretty laid-back. “You’re both okay?” Tate asked, pulling back from Brody to look at Kaimbrey. Brody looked down at her too.

  Kaimbrey nodded up at him. Her beautiful face was dusty and tear-stained and she looked exhausted and rumpled, but she was still too attractive for him to resist.

  “Did those men catch you? Where have you been?” Tate pulled out his walkie-talkie and spoke into it. “I found them!”

  “What’s your location?” was the reply.

  “I don’t know. I went straight east like the other guy said. I know where base camp is. We’ll head that direction.” He turned to Brody. “You’re really okay?”

  Brody smiled. “You’ve been worrying about me, I take it?”

  “Both of you. Let’s head west to the trail I was on. It’ll take us back to camp, and you can tell me what happened.”

  They started walking, and Kaimbrey shared with Tate everything that had happened. Brody let her voice keep him entertained and enjoyed her making him out to be the hero. It seemed they were past her worrying about him being a player. He hoped.

  Men came racing out to meet them as they approached the camp where Kaimbrey and Cally had originally been held. The real world. Brody wished he could just be back in that cave, holding Kaimbrey. But now it was time to prove himself, and that wasn’t something Brody had ever shied away from. As a college athlete, an investment consultant to millionaires, and a devoted son and brother, he’d proven he was loyal, talented, and hardworking. He glanced down at Kaimbrey. She was worth anything he had to do to prove his devotion to her.

  Chapter Twelve

  Kaimbrey held Brody’s hand tightly as they walked into the camp. Tate’s searching for them had warmed her heart. What would it be like to have a family member be so concerned for her? She hadn’t seen her own brother since last Christmas, and they hardly even texted each other. Brody and his brothers were such dedicated, loyal people. She wanted to be a part of that, but could she ever earn that right?

  She saw Cally and hurried to hug her, pushing the conflicting emotions in her head away for a minute. “Oh, girlie, are you okay?”

  Cally laughed. “Traumatized, but really pretty great. You?”

  “Right as my mama’s pecan pie.” She tilted her head toward Brody and lowered her voice. “And on pretty good kissing terms with the man I’m supposed to catch.” She winked, showing more confidence than she felt. She and Brody had kissed for a long time, and then this morning she’d revealed her fears of him being a player and that she’d been hurt. He seemed devoted to her, but her lack of trust ran deep and she still had to stay in control of this situation and get him to propose.

  Cally blinked at her. “You’re not still thinking about … Emma’s offer?”

  “Why wouldn’t I be?” Kaimbrey drawled out. “I’ve been trying to start my charity for years and got nothing but rejection. This is my chance.”

  “But what about Brody?”

  Kaimbrey felt her heart soften and expand. She cared for him far too much, and they hadn’t known each other very long. Going through something traumatic like last night was bound to make her feel emotionally connected to him. She needed to slow down and make sure she could trust him, make sure these intense feelings for him weren’t just going to flare and then burn out. She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. “We’ll see what shakes down after the deal plays out. Maybe that handsome man will make the cut; maybe he won’t.”

  She smiled goodbye to Cally and headed Brody’s direction. He wrapped his arm around her and tucked her into his side. If this was just a passing fancy, why did it feel so comfortable and yet heady to be in his arms? Brody seemed to be the real deal. If that was true, then there was no reason not to let it all work out. She could secure the proposal, get the funding, and then explain to Brody about the challenge and how she hadn’t been able to tell him about it, or Emma had said the deal was null and void. Brody was great; he’d understand.

  He bent down close and whispered against her ear, sending warm tremors through her. “They’re saying we have to answer some questions, but then I get you all to myself, right?”

  “Yes, sir,” she agreed, hugging him close.

  “Good.” Brody’s lips brushed her cheek and then her forehead before he straightened. Kaimbrey was hungry for more kissing, but she wanted to be alone with him for that.

  The next couple of weeks were going to be a hard balance between learning to trust and keeping a huge secret from him. It wasn’t going to be easy, but too many people’s futures rode on her playing it right. She glanced up at Brody’s handsome face. Ah, Brody. Hopefully he was as laid-back and awesome as she thought he was. Most people wouldn’t like being tricked like this. She bit at her lip and pushed away the surge of guilt. She had to do what she had to do. Brody would understand.

  Brody watched as the police led Kaimbrey away for questioning. She was safe. She was beautiful. He was falling so hard and fast for her. Last night had quickly brought them together. Now he needed to slow things down and just savor getting to know her, earning her trust. It was perfect that they both worked and lived near Ogden. It was Sunday today. He might not make it to church, but he was going to take Kaimbrey somewhere alone and then continue what they’d started last night.

  An FBI agent escorted him into one of the tents and started asking him questions. Brody thought he responded correctly, but his mind was not there—it was with Kaimbrey, and he suspected that it would be there always.

  Chapter Thirteen

  They finally finished with the questioning, and the police took Kaimbrey home late in the afternoon. Bri had quizzed her up and down, hugging her over and over again. Finally, Kaimbrey had showered and gotten ready for Brody to pick her up.

  Someone rapped on the door, making Kaimbrey freeze. She remembered the last time she’d heard a knock on this door. “Brody?” she squeaked out.

  “Yeah,” he called back through the door.

  At the sound of his voice, all anxiety drained away, replaced by a flood of hope and joy. She dodged around Bri and hurried to open the apartment door, smiling at Bri’s laughter behind her.

  “Hey.” Brody’s eyes slowly traveled over her. “I’ve missed you.”

  Kaimbrey sighed. “You are a smarmy one; that’s for sure.”

  “Smarmy?” His brow squiggled. “Not sure that’s a compliment.”

  “Okay, let’s amend it to charming.”

  He grinned.

  “Hi, little brother,” Bri called from behind Kaimbrey.

  Kaimbrey turned, and Brody lifted a hand. “Hi, little sister.”

  Bri planted her hands on her hips. “Why do you get to be the big one?”

  Brody chuckled. “Maybe because I’m three years older than you and a lot bigger.”

  Bri harrumphed. “Logic. I hate it. So what are you planning to do with my best friend?”

  Brody’s eyebrows arched. “Take her on a fun date.” He turned to Kaimbrey. “Are you wearing a swimming suit?”

  “No.” She put her hands on her hips. “You didn’t send me that memo
.”

  Brody smiled and tucked her hair behind her ear, making the sensitive skin of her earlobe tingle. “It’s summer and you’re with me. Plan on a swimsuit at all times. Unless you’d rather skinny-dip.”

  “Brody Jepson!” Bri exploded. “You watch that mouth.”

  Brody grinned and nodded obediently. “I think I will.” He lowered his voice. “Watch Kaimbrey’s mouth, that is.”

  “You stop it,” Bri admonished him.

  Kaimbrey laughed and went to put on a suit. She and Brody said their goodbyes to Bri and loaded into his nice black truck. An unmarked police car followed them—the police had promised to watch them until Jack was apprehended, which was very comforting.

  Brody drove up into the mountains until they reached a small reservoir. He fetched a canoe from the back of his truck and carried it easily down the slope and plunked it into the water. He was so well-built that Kaimbrey watched him with awe.

  As they settled into the canoe and he started paddling, the muscles in his arms flexed. She blew out a breath. “So, what do you do to be so built?”

  Brody smiled. “I played football in college, outside linebacker, and now I like to lift weights, hike, and mountain bike.”

  Bri had told her about the football before Kaimbrey met him. “You look … impressive.” It wasn’t all looks, either. She’d seen how tough he was when he’d defended her from Jack and the bald guy last night.

  “Thank you. You obviously like to work out too.”

  “I love to run, and I used to do some CrossFit and yoga, but since graduation and getting settled in Ogden with a new job and apartment, I haven’t had time to find a spot to go.” Or the extra cash to afford a membership. But that was okay; a lot of people didn’t have the cash for food. Kaimbrey had been so blessed and didn’t mind living cheap so she could help others more.

  “You’ve been busy,” he said. “With the wedding as well.”

  “Yeah. And I went to Europe with my parents after college graduation.”

  “Your parents.” Alarm shot through his voice. “Where are they? How did they deal with your kidnapping?”

  Kaimbrey glanced around, embarrassed to admit the truth. Causey Reservoir was beautiful. Granite cliffs stood starkly off to one side, while green mountains loomed on the other.

  “K?” Brody’s voice was cautious. He stopped rowing.

  “I …” She bit at her lip and willed herself not to be emotional about this. Though her mom had told her she was too idealistic and pushed away her charity ideas for years, she’d always acted like she loved Kaimbrey before she claimed she was disowning her. But now? It seemed she really was dead to her parents. She shook her head and admitted, “I haven’t heard from them.”

  “What?” Brody exploded. When Kaimbrey looked at him, his eyes were full of disbelief and indignation. “Didn’t anyone get a hold of them? I’m sure they would want to come check on you after going through something like that.”

  It hurt that her parents hadn’t even called to check on her, but with the variety of exotic locations they traveled, they might not have heard about the kidnapping yet. Or maybe they truly had disowned her. “I had a big fight with my mother a couple of weeks ago,” she admitted. She wanted to explain about her charity but was afraid she might give too much away about Emma’s challenge if she got started. “She claimed they would disown me if I didn’t step up and join the family business and stop wasting my time.”

  “Wasting your time?”

  “My job. My life. She hates my degree in social work, she hates that I work with vets, and she hates that I try to help homeless people.”

  Brody’s jaw was slack. He shook his head and then cleared his throat. “Kaimbrey, you are more impressive to me every moment I’m around you. You not only walk the walk of helping others; you do it in the face of losing your family?” His blue eyes filled with appreciation for her. “You’re amazing to me.”

  Kaimbrey’s heart felt like it was swelling. Brody was the best guy she’d ever been around, and to have him so openly admire her made her feel very blessed. The sting of her parents not even caring that she’d been abducted went away. “Thank you,” she whispered past the emotion clogging her throat. She reached out of the canoe and trailed her fingers through the water, but yanked them back quickly. “That’s freezing.”

  Brody chuckled. “Yeah. Mountain lake.”

  She nodded and gazed down into the water. It was crystal clear and a deep blue. She glanced back at Brody, unable to keep her eyes off him for long. He was so handsome and confident. She was glad she’d shared about her parents, but now she wanted to move on. “Not sure why I put my swimming suit on, because I am not getting in that chilly stuff.” She winked.

  “Aw, c’mon. You have to at least try jumping off the cliffs.”

  Kaimbrey looked up and pointed. “Those cliffs?”

  He smiled and nodded. He started rowing again, directly toward the cliffs.

  “Seriously? I like to be adventurous, but you want me to free-fall forty feet into an iceberg?”

  Brody chuckled. “I’ve seen firsthand how tough and brave you are, and it’s probably only twenty-five feet.”

  “Just because I’m a Southern girl and full of spit and vinegar does not mean I like life-threatening situations. Didn’t you get enough of that crazy business last night?” She shivered just remembering Baldy holding her down while Jack almost cut her tongue out. Plus, after being so cold, wet, and miserable, she had no desire to be cold and wet by choice. The only beautiful part had been Brody rescuing her and kissing the night away.

  Brody tilted his head, appraising her with a slight smile. “You really don’t want to jump?”

  “No, I don’t.” It might not have been kosher to be a wimp on a first date, but she didn’t like heights or cold water.

  “Okay.” Brody shrugged. “Do you care if I jump? Then we’ll go have our picnic.”

  “Knock yourself out.”

  He laughed. “I hope not.” He pulled the canoe up onto some rocks and then proceeded to climb up around to the cliffs.

  Kaimbrey watched him go, clenching her hands together. She glanced back across the lake and saw the two policemen who’d followed them, watching out from the rocks across the lake from them. The lake was small, and they were only a few hundred feet away. They’d stay close until that sicko Jack got caught. She waved, and they waved back.

  Suddenly, a sense of foreboding flooded her with a chill worse than that freezing water. Glancing around, she wasn’t sure what was bothering her. Worry over Brody getting hurt when he jumped off the cliffs? No, he was right: the cliffs weren’t high enough to be too dangerous.

  She kept searching the lake for danger. There were a few paddleboarders on the lake and one other man in a canoe. The man was rowing her direction, but she couldn’t see much of his face, as he was wearing sunglasses and a hat pulled down low. He was a large man, and she could’ve sworn he was focused on her.

  She glanced back at the policemen and unease filled her. Their protection detail was clear across a near-frozen lake, and they didn’t have any kind of boat. If this man truly meant her harm, they wouldn’t be getting to her anytime soon. She glanced back to where Brody was almost to the top of the cliff, and some sort of fight-or-flight instinct kicked in, even though she had no clue if that man had evil intentions.

  She climbed unsteadily out of the boat and ran up the trail, scaling over rocks and calling out, “Brody!”

  Right as she called his name, she heard a rebel yell as he did a front flip through the air, and a moment later, a loud splash echoed across the lake. She had a sinking feeling. Brody hadn’t heard her and had just jumped off. Should she go back down the trail or keep going up to the top? Pinpricks of fear made her body feel encased in ice. Why was she being such a baby?

  She headed back down the trail. Brody was down there, and she wanted to be close to him.

  Movement farther down the slope made her pause. The man from the canoe
was climbing toward her. Was Brody still in the water? The man glanced up, and even with the glasses and hat on, she knew—knew—it was Jack.

  “Brody!” she screamed, and she turned and rushed up the rocky trail. The man’s footsteps pounded behind her.

  “Kaimbrey!” Brody called. When she reached the top, he was scrambling out of the water, staring up at her with apprehension. “You okay?”

  “No!” she screamed.

  “I’m coming.” He hurried to the trail.

  Kaimbrey turned at the sound of footsteps close by. The man hadn’t taken off his hat or sunglasses, but the evil smirk on his lips left her no doubt who he was. “Jack?” she asked.

  He nodded.

  Brody’s footsteps were fast approaching. Kaimbrey’s heart was thumping faster than his footsteps, but he’d thumped Jack into unconsciousness last night. He could easily do the same today. She had nothing to worry about.

  Jack turned and focused on Brody’s approach. Kaimbrey clenched her hands together and prayed.

  “What do you want?” Kaimbrey asked Jack, hoping to distract him so Brody could take him out.

  “To make things right,” he said. Then, with a grin, he rushed toward her and tackled her off the cliff.

  Kaimbrey screamed as her body plunged off the cliff and her stomach tried to claw its way out of her mouth. She screamed as they fell toward a destination she couldn’t even see. They hit the icy water, and all oxygen was cut abruptly off as the water knocked the breath out of her, even more so with Jack’s weight on top of her. The cold water embraced her like a coffin. Kaimbrey was certain she was going to drown in its icy depth as she plunged down and down.

  A hand on her arm yanked her up, and her head popped above the surface. She caught a breath of fresh, warm air, grateful to be alive. Then she looked into Jack’s ugly face, minus the glasses and hat now, and suddenly she wasn’t quite so grateful.

  “Kaimbrey!” Brody yelled before he dove off the cliff.