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“Fuck, Luke!” Bo exclaims. “This is serious. If we can’t trust our employees, we are screwed.” I agree. Trust in our line of work has to be earned, but once it is, it’s hard to understand how someone would break that trust.”
“Exactly,” I agree. “I can’t believe it’s true, but I’m not willing to take any chances with Marley’s safety.”
“I understand, Luke. Do what you have to do. Is there anything I can do to help?” Bo asks, looking thoughtful.
“I’ll forward the files to you,” I tell him. “We can never have too many eyes on this. You might notice something I miss.” We work side by side for the next few hours while the girls chat about their high school days. Bo nor I find anything useful as we comb through our staff one by one. I’m beyond frustrated, but I won’t give up. I’ll do whatever is needed to keep Marley safe.
MARLEY
We only have two days left until our wedding day. I can’t wait to be Luke’s wife. I know in my heart I already belong to him and he belongs to me. I never dreamed I’d be this happy. Mom has always discouraged me in believing in a happy ever after. Life won’t always be easy, but I know that I will be happy with Luke. He’s the kind of man does his level best to give me what I want and need. I plan on doing the same for him.
Shelby and I have had so much fun over the last week getting reacquainted. Daisy has insisted that we have a bachelorette party. I hadn’t even considered having one until Daisy and my friends brought it up. Shelby, Hillary, and I have been close friends since high school. We haven’t seen one another as much in recent years, but the minute I called to tell them I was getting married, they were excited for me and wanted to be involved in the planning.
Luke isn’t happy about us going out to a bar for the party. I know he is worried about the information Agent Morris gave him. Honestly I’m worried too. I don’t want anyone else getting tangled up in this mess again. It was bad enough Daisy got caught up in it with me when I was taken. I would be happy to have theparty here, but Daisy insisted I needed to get out of the house. I’ve been cooped up in here for almost two weeks. I can’t lie. I’m getting a touch of cabin fever. This house is gorgeous, and there’s plenty to keep me busy, but it’s the thought that I can’t just leave when I want that’s getting to me.
At first, Luke and Agent Morris had shut the idea down all together, but Daisy can be very persuasive. We are having a combination bachelor-bachelorette party at Jay’s. This way we can all let our hair down and enjoy ourselves, but the guys can keep an eye on us girls. Daisy had accused Luke of being a party-pooper, but after some good-natured bantering between the siblings, we have finally made our way to Jay’s.
It is so good to see my old friends again. Shelby, Ashley, and Hillary are hitting it off with Daisy. The five of us are downing Jell-o shots. Well, most of us are. Shelby is more reserved than the rest of us. She’s decided she’ll be the DD, even though we don’t need one.
“One of us has to keep our head on straight,” Shelby declares when the drinking begins. The others protest at her attempt to not drink, but she holds fast. It doesn’t take long before I’m dying to pee. Liquor runs right through me. Shelby accompanies me to the ladies’ room. Bo insists on escorting us to and from the bathroom, like we can’t find the way on our own.
When we are alone, Shelby turns to me with a smile. “I’m so happy for you, Marley! I wish I could find a nice guy like you have found. Luke seems so great.” I can’t keep the smile from my face either.
“He is great,” I agree. “He is more than I ever dreamed of finding in a man. Don’t get me wrong, he can be bossy and overbearing when he’s worried about me, but mostly he’s loving, kind, and thoughtful.”
“You’re such a lucky bitch.” Shelby laughs as we are washing our hands and checking our makeup in the mirrors.
“You need to lighten up, Shelby,” I counsel her. “Let loose andhave a few drinks. Luke and the guys will make sure we get home safely.”
“I am having fun, Marley. I don’t need to drink to have fun. Seeing you all is wonderful and meeting Daisy has been great. I feel like I’m gaining a new friend.” She is quiet for a minute before continuing, “So I’m going to be paired with one of Luke’s brothers for the ceremony?” I glance at her to see a mix of uncertainty and excitement on her face. I grin, nodding.
“Yep, Bo, the one who insisted he walk us to the bathroom,” I tell her with an eyeroll. “He’s as over protective as his brother.” Her eyes widen, turning to me, her face flushing a deep shade of red.
“The ogre?” I can’t keep from laughing at her description as I open the door of the bathroom and nearly run into Bo. He’s standing right in front of the door. A line of women has formed while we’ve been in there. Apparently he isn’t going to allow anyone else in there with us. Talk about being over protective.
“What’s so funny?” Bo asks as we exit and move down the narrow hallway. I ignore his question and continue toward the main room of the bar. I’m not about to tell him Shelby called him an ogre. There’s been tension between the two of them from the first day she’d arrived, and I’m not going to add to that tension. I can’t help but notice he made sure to maneuver Shelby in front of him, keeping his hands on her shoulders as he guides her through the crowded bar. He can’t seem to take his eyes or his hands off her.
Hmm, perhaps I need to do some matchmaking, but Bo is a playboy. I don’t want him to hurt Shelby. She’s a sensitive soul. I’m worried he would break her heart. I’ll get Luke to have a talk with him. He needs to know he can’t be trifling with her affections.
We return to our table. I’m expecting Bo to retreat back to the men’s table, but he lingers over Shelby. I can tell he is making heruncomfortable. I’m about to tell him to go back to where he belongs when he holds out his hand.
“Come on, let’s dance.” Bo motions to Shelby to join him. Her face is a deep crimson and filled with— Fear? I’m not entirely sure if she’s even breathing. She stares at him so long I’m beginning to think her brain has short circuited. Daisy elbows her, bringing her out of her trance. Daisy motions with her head for Shelby to accept his invitation. Ashley and Hillary join in yelling encouragement to her. With a deep sigh, she takes his hand, and they walk away. Bo has a huge ‘cat who at the canary’ grin on his face. Lord help Shelby!
“What’s up with that?” Daisy looks at me questioningly. I shrug.
“He’s your brother. How am I to know what he’s thinking?” I sass, and Daisy laughs.
“I meant why was she so reluctant to dance with him?” Daisy questions.
“Shelby hasn’t dated much,” I say. “She’s a little shy, and Bo is intimidating as hell. In addition to that, people haven’t been kind to Shelby over her weight. I hate saying it, but it’s true. The world is not kind to heavier women.” Daisy, Ashley, and Hillary dip their heads in agreement.
“Yeah, Shelby and I were out one night our freshman year of college with a group of friends,” Hillary says, sadly. “A group of guys approached us. They were jocks and really, really hot. They talked to us for a bit. Then one of guys asked Shelby to dance with him. I could tell she was thrilled he’d asked her. They headed out onto the floor. The other guys began shit talking the minute they left the table. They were betting on whether or not their friend could get the ‘fat chick’ to kiss him. It was disgusting. I was just happy she wasn’t there to hear them. I was sure the guy would be pissed if he knew what they were saying, but I was wrong. He was in on it the whole time.”
Hillary looks out at Shelby and Bo on the dance floor. I followher gaze. Shelby is holding herself so stiffly in Bo’s arms. He leans down talking to her, but she only seems to tense even more. I don’t believe he would be intentionally unkind to her the way Hillary is indicating this other guy was, but still I don’t want my friend to be hurt by him.
“Anyway,” Hillary continues, “Sure enough, the guy kissed her while they were dancing. I could see how happy Shelby was as they returned to the table, arm in arm. As soon as they got back, the guy who’d been dancing with her dropped his arm from her shoulders and held out his hand to his friends. They began slapping money into his hand. Then the prick said, ‘I told you I could do it. The fat ones are so easy. I probably could have gotten a blow job out of it, but I didn’t really want her mouth on me.’ Poor Shelby was devastated. She left the bar in tears. This is the first time I’ve ever known of her going out like this since.”
Shit!I suddenly feel guilty. I remember how concerned she’d been when we first began planning our night out. I could tell she didn’t want to come, but she relented for me. Now Bo has asked her to dance just like the other guy. If he does something to hurt her feelings, it’ll partially be my fault. I need to get Luke to talk to him before Bo does something stupid. I excuse myself from the group of women, making my way toward Luke’s table.
