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“I’m fucking tired of the name calling.” Ricky paced the gleaming hardwood floor, twin blotches of color staining his cheeks. “I had no choice. She was talking to those brats, and I couldn’t risk them telling her about the cat.” He faced her with an earnest expression, his voice pleading. “I didn’t mean to run the stupid thing over, but it clawed my leg, which pissed me off.” His tone hardened when he continued. “It’s not my fault I didn’t check to see if it was dumb enough to go back under my car.”
Is that what started this catalyst of harassment?Allie straightened, wanting answers but needing to get out of there more. She started to push to her feet, but Ricky jabbed a finger at her sternum, halting her momentum.
“Stay put,” he ordered.
“I want her out of here.” Gina glared at Allie as if everything were her fault then snapped at Ricky again. “Until now, I was only on the hook for vandalizing her car, those flowers, and feeding you info, you moron. I won’t be a party to kidnapping.”
“And I want out of here. Two to one, you lose, Ricky.” Allie tried to rise again, only this time the rat bastard pinned her down with his hands on her shoulders, the heavy pressure giving her goose bumps of apprehension. If Brett’s ex was telling the truth, it was Ricky who ran her off the road and locked her in the dark at their apartment complex. How could she have been so wrong about him?
“You” – he pointed at Gina – “sent me the text when she left Casey’s, making you an accessory in running her off the road, and you agreed to follow what I say when we started this.” He glared at Allie. “ And you brought this on yourself.”
There was no reasoning with him, so Allie changed tactics, praying Gina would see she had been in bed with a crazy person. “You’re right, Ricky. I never should have let you go.”
Gina rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. He’s obsessed, not stupid.”
“Kind of like you with Brett,” she shot back, unable to resist the taunt.
Gina’s face turned a mottled red, but Ricky chuckled and winked at Allie like they were friendly collaborators. “It was good luck when Gina went through the open house I held here and we got close right after you dumped me, Allie.” He leaned over her, his jaw and tone hardening again when he said, “Imagine my surprise when she ran to me after seeing you come on to her husband at Casey’s the first time you went there. Your car gave you away.”
With her mind reeling from the connection between her and Brett’s ex, Allie scooted back on the couch, putting a few inches between herself and Ricky’s intimidating stance. She kept glancing between the two, noticing they were both angry, neither liking the fact she was here, and she could all but hear the questions running through their heads on what to do now. Allie prayed Brett would figure out where to look for her but couldn’t rely on him coming across a clue. These two must have conspired to pull off the pranks against her without suspicion falling on either one.
Allie glared at Gina, who was lashing out at a complete stranger out of greed. “That first night, I didn’t see you at Casey’s.”
Gina smirked and crossed her arms under her chest. “Neither did Brett, but I saw you, the way he looked at you when you were dancing and again in the parking lot, when he opened your car door.”
Mimicking her pose, Allie folded her arms and taunted her right back. “Too bad you read the situation wrong. He was insisting I leave, not urging me to stay. He wasn’t happy with me that night.”
“I know him much better than you,” she snapped. “There was interest reflected on his face I haven’t seen for any other woman, not since he looked at me that way.”
Gina had started to say something else when the screech of tires drew Allie’s gaze to the front windows. Relief swept through her when she recognized the large truck slamming to a halt in the driveway and the angry men piling out and storming up to the front door.
Chapter Twelve
“Damn it, Brett, stowthe guilt and slow down,” Reed snapped, right on Brett’s heels as he dashed up to Gina’s front door and started pounding after finding it locked.
“No,” was all he bothered replying, grateful for once for Slade’s quieter, low-simmering temper. “Gina! Open up or I’ll bust the fucking door down.”
