rock on her ring finger sparkling under the store lights. Rich husband. Pampered woman. But happy.
Rachel loved seeing people this way, comfortable in their environment, the world they created with decisions. The beautiful, sophisticated woman didn’t give off any airs. She had money, her man’s money. Rachel imagined her man treated her as though his money belonged to her just as much as it belonged to him. Equals.
Why did life have to be such a struggle for some people and so seemingly easy for others? Rachel wanted that. Just once, she’d like to know what it felt like to be that woman, the willowy one with shopping bags, admiring a sparkly dress as though contemplating an upcoming party, no worries in the world.
All her life, nothing had ever come easy for Rachel. Granted, she’d gotten herself into trouble as a teenager, but that girl had grown up. Finally. Now that she wanted a good, honest life, life seemed to oppose her every effort. What was she doing wrong? She tried so hard and never got ahead. The constant battle had become routine. She’d gotten fired today, and it had barely fazed her. Routine.
Leaving the mall, she didn’t feel like going home. Somehow, getting fired deserved some kind of memento. Rachel adjusted her backpack as she crossed the street, glancing back to see the man in the suit had left after her. Was he crossing the street, too?
As she walked down the sidewalk, she began to get an uneasy feeling. Nothing like this had happened in years, not since the disastrous affair she’d had with that executive. He’d contacted her last week, trying to reconcile. After all this time, why? His call frightened her. She’d gently refused his invitation to dinner. Had that started up trouble again?
O’Shuck’s was a few blocks from here. She covertly looked back. The man in the suit still trailed behind her. He seemed to catch her notice of him but didn’t stop following her. She didn’t recognize him, but he was far enough away not to be sure. Would Jared stalk her?
Alarm kicked up the knock of her pulse. She walked another block and looked back. Still there. He was following her.
Rachel walked faster. O’Shuck’s was just up the street now. She could see the lights. Almost at a jog by the time she reached the door, she checked the sidewalk. The man walked toward her, looking right at her.
Rachel entered the pub and breathed her relief. What was she going to do now? What if the threats started again? She wasn’t sure if it had been Jared who’d threatened her the last time, and she didn’t recognize the man following her now.
Trying to appear calm, Rachel walked toward the bar. O’Shuck’s drew a nice working-class crowd and boasted Haggis and Irish coffee. She came for the short walk to her apartment, the company and the atmosphere, which was much better than her apartment. Anything was better than that.
Dropping her backpack and putting her cell phone on the bar, she took a seat and waited for Hans to see her. Glancing back toward the door, she didn’t see the man in the suit.
“Hey, Rachel.” Hans had a deep-creased grin for her and a sparkle in his Viking blue eyes. He stepped over to her. “The usual?”
“Make it a vanilla latte.”
“Coming right up. Special occasion?”
“I was fired.”
Hans winced and then said, “Ooh. That is rough. That old bitty come up with a reason?”
“The bus broke down and I was thirty minutes late.” She looked back again and saw the man in the suit standing just inside the door, looking right at her. What the...
He was tall and well built and now that she saw him close-up, blond with a buzz cut and a handsome face. Definitely not Jared Palmer. But had he been the man who’d threatened her before?
Hans put the drink before her. “Sorry, Rachel. You’re good peeps. You don’t deserve that.”
The stranger began to approach.
“That man followed me from the mall,” she said.
Hans looked to the man. “You sure?”
“Positive.”
“Sir,” Hans said to the man as he stopped next to her chair. “The lady says you followed her. Do I need to call the police?”
Hans to the rescue. She felt safe...for now. But what about when she went home?
“You’re very observant,” the stranger said.
Of all the things a dangerous man could say, Rachel didn’t expect that. She sensed nothing sinister about him, not as sinister as she’d felt the last time.
The ding of her cell phone indicated someone had texted her. She looked down and saw her boyfriend had finally answered her. What the text said made her pick up the phone.
Sorry. No easy way to say this. I met someone else. You’ve been great. Take care.
That effectively shifted her focus. Rachel read the text again to make sure it said what she thought.
“You’ve been great?” She scoffed as the insult began to mushroom. “Take care.”
Had she really dated someone this insensitive and clueless? Lowering the phone, she looked up at the stranger, who reached into his jacket for something while clips of the last six months passed in her mind. Her boyfriend had been fun to be with but now that she had a bird’s-eye view, his superficiality became obvious. She hadn’t known anything deep about him.
“I believe this is yours.”
Startled, she looked down at what the man had taken from his jacket. Her wallet. He put it down on the bar.
“How did you—”
“I’ll have what she’s having,” the stranger said to Hans as he sat on the stool next to her. “And put hers on my tab.”
“How did you get my wallet?” she demanded. Then she recalled what he’d said.
She backtracked what she’d done with her wallet. She’d had lunch and put it back in the zipper pouch. Hadn’t she zipped it shut?
“I saw you go into a shop at the mall. Your backpack bumped the door frame and your wallet fell out. I started to go over but I heard you talking to your boss.”
She had bumped the door frame. But had it been hard enough for her wallet to slip out?
“I’m Luke Bradbury.” He swiveled to face her better.
She looked down at his offered hand and then back up at his drool-worthy blue-gray eyes, crinkling with an all-out charm-packed grin. Now that she wasn’t afraid of him, she could appreciate his looks. He was a great package. Dressed as though he had money, too.
Ordinarily, a man like him would capture her interest. He did capture her interest. But something about this one had her holding back. No, not him. Her boyfriend had just broken up with her in a text message. He was a successful businessman like Luke must be. She’d dated a lot of men like that. Successful men attracted her. Their stability. They had what she wanted. But maybe her criteria needed some tweaking.
Beyond his attractiveness, Rachel began to wonder why he’d come to this pub.
“Why did you follow me here?” Why hadn’t he approached her after she left the shop?
“I confess.” More charm oozed from him. “You looked so upset. I didn’t want to intrude.”
Intrude? “You had my wallet.” Hardly an intrusion to return it...
While he didn’t frighten her the way the other man had after her affair, she had to be careful. She didn’t know who’d threatened her back then. And Jared contacting her may have stirred danger. She snatched up her wallet and put it into her backpack, this time making sure she zipped it shut.
“Yes.” His smiling eyes made a pointed journey down her body and back up. “A perfect excuse to meet you.”
She