Double Crossed Read online

  Double Crossed

  by Lacey Silks

  MyLit Publishing

  Double Crossed © Lacey Silks 2014

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be constructed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental. All sexually active characters in this work are 18 years of age or older.

  This book is for sale to ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It contains sexually explicit scenes which may be considered offensive by some readers. Please store your files where they cannot be accessed by minors.

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

  ISBN: 978-1-927715-17-8

  To all the Bimbos!

  You girls rock!

  She returns home with secrets.

  He wants her to trust him and move on.

  But not all secrets are meant to be told.

  Home to aid with her parent’s healing from an attack, Annabelle Waters has four weeks to find them a new place to live, take care of their farm and study for her last exam to get her nursing degree. And if that wasn’t enough, commitments she’s made in San Francisco continue stalking her.

  Eager to help her ease back to town, Derek Fields is determined to convince Annabelle, the girl he’d last seen as a kid, to stay in her home town. His best friend’s little sister is no longer a scrubby girl, but a woman who haunts his dreams and revives his desires.

  The moment their paths cross, Derek and Annabelle find that their attraction cannot be controlled. Consequences disappear as their friendship grows, only to be tested by a man who’s had a plan for Annabelle Waters for much longer than she’s known him.

  And sooner or later, all secrets come out...

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  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  More Work by Lacey Silks

  Connect with Lacey online

  PROLOGUE

  Derek – Three weeks earlier

  On my third day stalking, the urge to be closer to Annabelle Waters had grown to the level of uncontrollable despair. I sat by the bar, watching from a distance as she laughed with her friends. She turned to the side, exposing her sun-kissed neck. Watching her like that, without her being aware of the lecherous thoughts I had, I felt like a predator. This morning I promised myself that I’d actually talk to her. Yet here I was, at nine in the evening, feeling my pulse race each time she gently brushed her long hair to the side, exposing her jugular. Was the adrenaline overwhelming my body similar to what a leopard felt when it saw a gazelle? My mouth watered as I thought about my lips on her skin and my teeth biting into her flesh. Except it couldn’t be just adrenaline, because what I’d felt for Annabelle was pure lust.

  Maybe if I was lucky, she’d recognize me. The girl I remembered from my hometown as a kid was nothing like the bombshell I was looking at right now. Annabelle had freckles and strawberry-blonde hair, similar eyes to Eric’s—my buddy who’d asked me to check up on his sister—that glowed from a distance and pursed lips that were begging to be kissed. And that new body she grew into was to die for. Over the past three days I’d been thinking about the different ways she’d changed since the last time I saw her. She was barely a teen back then. And looking at her now, I felt so drawn to Annabelle that extending my one day stay in San Francisco was a necessity. I just couldn’t let her go.

  “Can I get you something else?” the waitress asked. She batted her lashes at me like a provocative siren, and if I hadn’t been this hard for Annabelle, maybe I’d have looked away. But a man wants what a man wants, and right now, my groin was controlling my mind. And if what’s-her-name offered to relieve me, I’d have no choice but to jump at the chance.

  “Yeah, another one of these.” I pointed to my glass filled with bourbon. I wasn’t sure how I’d get back to the hotel. I wasn’t drunk just yet, but enough to know that I couldn’t drive.

  She leaned forward, her double-D tits almost spilling out of her top, forcing my gaze to rest there. How couldn’t I look? With the amount of testosterone pumping through my veins, I was ready to succumb to anything that oozed with sex. And this waitress was definitely oozing.

  She licked her lips invitingly, saying, “I’ll be right back.”

  My gaze flew to the table where Annabelle sat. She threw her head back in laughter, and if I thought that her beauty would drive me insane, I didn’t know that the sound of her voice could raise the hairs on my arms and cause my blood to course through my body like Viagra.

  If Eric had seen me drooling like this over his little sister he would have killed me for sure. What the hell was I expecting to find here? The girl had left our hometown almost four years ago, and three years before then I’d been away on a classified mission. I was sure that the last time I’d seen her, she barely began puberty. And there was no way I could talk to her. She’d know that Eric had sent me, and I gave him my word to be discreet when I agreed to check up on her. I wondered whether she’d even recognize me. Could I take that chance? I should have left on day one when I saw her chatting with the same two friends in a park, or yesterday when she was humming a song under her breath at the grocery store. Why was Eric so worried? She appeared extremely happy during the three days I’d been following her. I felt like a fucking stalker. As much as I wanted to go over there and see her now, or better yet, ask her to come back to my hotel room, I couldn’t. I had no choice but to turn on my heel and go back to my country home in Ogden where I’d wait until she returned from school in a few weeks.

  “Here you go, handsome.” The waitress lowered my drink, and leaned over the table. Her red curls brushed my arm, temporarily shifting my attention to the well-endowed beauty. “You don’t look like you’re from San Francisco.”

  “I’m not.”

  “Has anyone shown you around town?” That hungry look in her eyes and the way she licked her lips and squeezed her arms to make her tits look even bigger definitely made me consider whether I should reciprocate her flirting.

  “There’s no need, thanks.”

  “Well, if you do find a need, any kind of a need, this is where you can find me.” She reached between her boobs and pulled out a napkin with a scribbled phone number.

  “Thanks,” I winked. “Maybe I will.”

  I’m such a douche.

  From my peripheral vision, I saw Annabelle leave her table and walk toward the ladies’ room. “Excuse me,” I said to the waitress and headed in th
e direction of the restrooms. I wasn’t too sure why I’d done that. My body took over my mind, and all I knew was that I wanted to be closer to her. It wasn’t as if I’d follow her in there. The mystery of what drew me to Annabelle would remain just that. I leaned against the wall in the hall leading to the men’s room, waiting patiently. Maybe I wanted her to recognize me after all. I could say I was meeting a friend here, right? Would she buy that? No way. Annabelle was too smart for that. And I for one couldn’t lie to a woman.

  The sound of a flushing toilet echoed from behind the door. I listened as water flew from the faucet and drained into the sink for a few seconds before it was shut off. And when the door swung open and the first sight of her caught my eye, I whipped my body around, bumping right into my waitress, pinning her to the wall. My mind was buzzing with alcohol and adrenaline all mixed into a blend of what the fuck am I doing? and hoping to hide from Annabelle, I grasped the waitresses’ arms and closed my mouth over hers. She welcomed my tongue, giving in as soon as my lips touched hers.

  This felt good and bad at the same time. In my mind, I pictured Annabelle on the receiving end of my kiss, moaning into my mouth, complying with my hands wandering over her curves and cock hardening against her belly. The waitress pressed into my body. Her hips writhed and fingers dug into my arms. But something felt off. The boobs squishing against my lower chest felt like overgrown watermelons instead of two juicy oranges, and I felt the blood begin to drain from my cock. There was no way I could find relief as long as Annabelle Waters was on my mind.

  “Get a room,” Annabelle chuckled as she passed by. Knowing the shy girl she was, I was sure she didn’t pay too much attention to us making out in the middle of the hallway.

  As soon as I was certain that Annabelle had returned to her table, I pulled away from the waitress

  “What’s your name, sweets?” I asked, holding her steady. I knew I’d had a bit to drink, but she looked like she’d just had a few ounces of liquor as well.

  “Karla. That was incredible,” she panted, wrapping her fingers around my neck and pulling me back to her hard mouth.

  I gently pushed back, saying, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  “And I’ve been waiting the entire evening for you to make a move.”

  “Listen, this was a mistake.”

  She looked down to my crotch where my bulge was dying down at the pace of a turtle, and smirked, “You sure about that?”

  How the hell was I supposed to get out of this?

  “I just don’t want you to get fired. How about I call you?” I asked, giving her unnecessary hope.

  “You promise?”

  Shit, I didn’t want to lie. “Yeah, I do.”

  If I don’t lose your number, I added in my mind.

  “All right, then. Do you know these girls? You’ve been watching them for a while now.”

  I followed her gaze to the table where Annabelle sat.

  “Not all of them. One is my buddy’s sister.”

  The front door opened. A cold gust of wind blew through the restaurant, which was odd for a hot day like today. The clouds darkened outside as a man walked in. He stopped by the door, his hands on his hips, looking around. The overgrown beard on his face made him appear older than he probably was. There was something spooky about him. From the dark clothing to the soiled boots and a long trench coat, he looked like he just traveled thousands of miles. And for whatever reason, I didn’t like him at all. An eerie feeling passed over me. That look of hate in his eyes would make the devil himself squirm.

  “I better let you get back to work.” I walked the waitress back to the bar, my gaze never leaving the new arrival. I sat down on the stool, waiting for him to move. He scanned every single table before resting on Annabelle’s. My heart raced. This couldn’t be good. Was Eric’s instinct right? Was Annabelle in trouble? And just as fast, the guy’s eyes softened and hard jawline curved out. He casually walked over to her table. Annabelle froze for a moment, obviously startled by him, but recovered within a second. That moment of fear I thought I saw in her eyes disappeared quickly.

  At that moment, I wished I could read lips. It appeared that Annabelle was introducing the man to her two friends. Was he important? He didn’t strike me as someone she’d hang around with. And after a few words, he leaned down, kissed the top of her head and squeezed her shoulder. For a moment I thought the press of his fingers was bound to leave marks and I cringed. But instead of pulling away, Annabelle smiled. Maybe it was a thing they had?

  Shit, this isn’t good. She has a boyfriend.

  Annabelle stood up, waved to her friends, and gave him her hand. He laced his fingers with hers and my heart sunk. When Annabelle turned away from her friends, I thought I saw sadness fill her eyes. Was she upset she was leaving this early or was it something else? I couldn’t help but feel he had something to do with it. And now I not only didn’t like him, but hated him. If the girl I’d dated was sad, I would stop the universe from spinning to get to the bottom of her sorrows. She obviously didn’t want to leave. I was on the verge of interrupting them when I saw him lean over. He took her lips just as she was about to say something and I couldn’t take it anymore. She leaned into his body with ease and everything inside me shut down.

  I shouldn’t be here.

  I left San Francisco that same night.

  CHAPTER 1

  Annabelle

  Fear can consume you. It can crush your beliefs, strengths, determination, and if you let it, even your soul.

  I thought I knew fear.

  I thought I’d been to hell when I was young, and so I allowed fear to guide me forward. I let it make decisions for me.

  I thought I controlled my fear, but what I didn’t know was that it wedged itself inside my body, steering me like a skillful puppeteer.

  I’d barely scratched its surface.

  I’d barely knocked on its door.

  While I’ve lived with it, I didn’t let it live with me, or so I thought.

  * * *

  The burnt skeleton of what used to be my childhood home smoldered in the noon sun. A few remaining ribbons of smoke drifted to the sky. The green forest behind it made the scene in front of me that much more real. The stack of remaining brick mixed with ash and black stumps stood out among the trees and grasses like a drop of crude oil in a glass of milk. A distinct smell of death mixed with charcoal and scorched wood overpowered the farm air. The fields would be swaying with yellow stacks of wheat and ripe corn within a couple of months, yet there would be no one here to tend to it.

  Not too far to my right, the grunt of fifty pigs sounded in a familiar rhythmic tune. They were bought two days ago, the same day my parents’ house burned down. Mr. Fields, our neighbor, had already fed them this morning. I cringed at the thought of walking into the sty to take care of them. If my father had only known John Huntz had planned an ambush, my parents would have delayed the purchase. But how do you know that a psycho will attack you, pour gasoline around the perimeter of your house, and flick a lighter—that is, after he breaks countless bones in your body and beats you up until you’re unconscious? My parents were fortunate that neighbors and some of my brother’s friends were in the area to pull them out of the inferno.

  When I’d left for school, the four years were supposed to be a life lesson—and they were, just not the kind that I expected. The plan was to return to Ogden, and within time, open up my own clinic, but those dreams seemed to have burnt away the same way my childhood home had. There was no way I could go back to school now. Not with my current debts. Life forced me to be a nurse, and I could still live with that.

  At the time I left, I just wanted to get away from our small town and experience life on my own—and I had. My time in college was good for the first three years. But the last eight months had been nothing short of hell. While my girlfriends partied, I struggled to breathe. As much as I feared coming back home and opening old wounds, at this moment, Ogden seemed like the better
of two hells. Getting away from the burden I’d brought on myself in San Francisco was like a dream come true. And now, it seemed that it all had gone up in smoke; literally.

  I gripped our family photo, the one I had propped on my desk in college, tightly against my chest. My feet had been glued to the ground for almost an hour, standing in front of the remains of my parent’s farm, and I couldn’t find the strength to get back in the car. Still processing, denying, and questioning how this could have happened, my brain felt like it’d been squished into a fist-sized blob.

  “Anna, you can stay at our house for as long as you need.” The gentle touch of a warm hand brought me back.

  Mrs. Fields was almost like a mother to me. The Fields’ lived three miles down the road from us. Her son Blake was my best friend. We’d tried dating once, but it didn’t work. It was too much pressure, and honestly, I never felt those butterflies in my stomach everyone kept referring to when they’d met their soul mate. I hadn’t seen him in the four years since I’d left and wondered how much he’d changed.

  “They looked so peaceful,” I said. “Do you think they’re in pain?”

  I’d stopped at the hospital in Fairview to see my parents on the way here. Both were still in intensive care. My father remained in an induced coma, and my mother, with the third degree burns on her body, remained sedated. They were preparing her for skin grafts.

  “I don’t know, dear. I hope not. Come, Annabelle. You need to rest. I’m sure Eric will get all the details and will come to see you soon.”

  I nodded.

  When Eric, my older brother, called before my last exam I rushed home without thinking twice. Nothing else mattered. No threat from the bastard stalking me on the West Coast would keep me there, and my departure had been accepted quicker than I thought. In fact, he insisted that I go.

  I shook my head getting rid of his disturbed face that flashed behind my eyelids.