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“How do you know that?” She picked up the card and thrust it at him. “‘I warned you’. That’s what it says. What did the other one say?”
“Something about a snake. I don’t really remember.” He took the card from her and scanned it. “I thought it was from Gregg, I swear I did. Who would be sending me threats?”
“Could be anyone. A crazy psycho fan, probably. My father gets them from time to time, but he takes them very seriously now. You should call the police and get some security here.”
He shook his head. “No, it’s nothing that bad. Probably just someone messing with me.”
And that was the attitude that got her mother killed. Dani didn’t want to frighten him, but crazy fans could be dangerous. Austin didn’t understand. He wouldn’t until something bad happened to him. And she didn’t want that to happen.
“It’s not bad until it gets bad,” she said softly.
Austin reached out and brushed her hair from the side of her face. “I’m sorry. This must be very upsetting to you.”
Yes. It was. He had no idea how upsetting it was. He had obviously never delt with a crazy person. She tried to take in a calming breath, but her fingers shook, giving away her anxiety. All she could do was admit it. “Yeah.”
“I won’t let anything happen to you.”
His soft words sliced through her. Standing there next to him, his muscular frame just inches from hers, she could almost believe he meant it. Almost. He was too nice. Too accommodating. And in the past, she’d been too trusting. This is what had gotten her into all kinds of messes. She wanted to trust Austin, but she wasn’t sure how. “Please call the police,” was all she could whisper.
“I don’t know what they would do. There was no specific threat.” He crumpled the card. “Just stupid things to scare me. And you.”
She wrung her hands, unable to feel at ease. “Then, let’s go somewhere today. I don’t feel like staying here.”
“Sure. Get dressed. We can go anywhere you’d like.” He paused. “At least, anywhere a golf cart will take us.” He winked at her.
Dang, why did he have to look cute like that? Relief passed through her like a cool breeze at the thought of getting out of there. “Okay. I’ll get ready.” She looked up at the now garish-looking balloons. “And get rid of those, please? They’re making me nervous.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
* * *
Austin stabbedat the foil balloon with the only thing he had in his possession that might pop it…a plastic fork from their last takeout meal that he’d dug out of the trash. A couple of the tines had broken off, but it would have to do. The balloon finally popped and he wadded it up and stuffed it into the trash can.
Irritation swept through him as he buried the teddy bear under the white Styrofoam box that had held their Moo Goo Gai Pan. Whoever it was sending those notes was really going to get it when he uncovered the truth. Dani had been so freaked, he thought she might hyperventilate. He was sure these notes were bringing back all the memories of what happened to her mother.
The thought of Dani in distress made him want to punch something, and he found himself tightening his hands into fists. Who would do such a thing? If he found out it was a prank from one of the guys on the team…but even the thought didn’t sit right with him. It wasn’t any of them.
And that only left the obvious. Someone was actually sending him threats. Which didn’t make any sense. The season was just starting. Sure, he was going to be out for a while, but no one expected it to ruin their games. Players get injured all the time. It happens. It didn’t make sense for a threat.
Besides, the notes hadn’t been about football. They’d been about watching out for snakes, which made no more sense than someone threatening him because of his injury. He was pretty sure there were no snakes on the beach at the Billionaire Club resort.
He wanted to just disregard the whole thing, but Dani had been so upset, he knew he couldn’t ignore it. He would be on the lookout for anything else odd, refuse any other deliveries, and make sure no one was stalking him or following them around. That should take care of it, right?
Dani came out of the bathroom and grabbed her purse. She wore the short dress he’d purchased for her at SaleMart, and her expensive sandals. They showed off her legs. “I’m ready. Let’s get out of here. This room is giving me the creeps.”
He forced himself to raise his gaze so he wasn’t gawking. Why had he said that dress looked good? He should have pulled the long one off the rack and insisted it looked better. “Let’s stop at the front desk and talk to Kay. Maybe she can stop any further deliveries.”
Dani nodded. “Good idea.”
When they got to the reception area Simon, was working the front desk. Austin leaned on the counter. “Is Kay in her office?”
“She was. Let me check and see if she’s available.” Simon disappeared behind the desk and a moment later, Kay came out.
“Hello, Austin. What can I do for you?”
“I’ve received a couple of strange deliveries the past few days, and the notes have been on the border of threatening.”
Dani scoffed and folded her arms. “Understatement,” she said quietly.
