Page 21 of The Charmer's Gambit
“No, but he knows now after seeing all the boxes.”
“Jesus, Rach, why didn’t you say anything Sunday morning? Never mind, I know why. You knew I wouldn’t leave.” I pictured her pinching the bridge of her nose as she let out a long sigh. “You need to get a restraining order.”
“The last time I tried that, he showed up with the paperwork and burned it two inches away from my face.” I shivered at the memory, both in fear and rage. “You know it’s not that easy with him.”
“Maybe Will or Garrett—”
“No.” I didn’t know what she planned to suggest, but my answer was adamant. “I’m not involving them, or Evan. You might trust them, but I barely know them.”
“But—”
“No. We’re not having this discussion.”
She was quiet for a long moment. “Do you need me to come home? Because you know I will.”
“No, no, of course not.” The last thing I wanted was to take her away from happiness. Ryan was my issue. “I can handle him.” I fought the urge to laugh hysterically at that pronouncement. As if I’d ever been able to handle him.
“Have you ever considered talking to Caleb’s friend? You know, the sexy fed?”
My brow pinched at the mention of my brother’s name, then my heart sped up.
“You mean Mark?” I never told Sarah how much he already knew about Ryan, and her dropping his name out of the blue made me wonder what she suspected.
“Yeah, he’s FBI right?” she asked.
I swallowed roughly. “Uh, yeah.” Except I didn’t think that was true. I suspected Mark was really involved in black ops ofsome kind, maybe the CIA or something even more elusive. Half the time I called his cell phone, it went straight to voicemail and he replied a week or so later with a vague “Sorry, work trip.” But he always called me back. And he was always there when I really needed him. Like three years ago.
Shoving the memory from my mind, I switched focus to a more comfortable topic. Something a little more fun. Revenge.
“Actually, that reminds me, did you still want me to reach out to him about pranking that twin of yours?” After Abby forced Sarah to participate onThe Prince’s Game, we discussed a few ideas for payback. If anyone could pull off an elaborate ruse, it was Mark Kincaid.
“Yeah, I do, but I want to plan it for next year. I’m currently punishing her by letting her think I’m still suffering from a broken heart. Once I admit to dating Evan again, then I’ll need to lull her into a false sense of contentment before really getting revenge.”
I laughed. “I approve.” Abby deserved it, and worse. “Just let me know when to talk to him.”
“You could talk to him about Ryan.”
My insides churned at the reminder of why she’d brought up Mark.
Sarah had no idea how her words affected me, how they dragged up memories from a moment I’d prefer to forget. The moment I broke and called for help. Mark hadn’t asked any questions, but he had to know. It was written all over my face and neck in bruises. Yet he showed up, helped me move, and never demanded a reason. Just handed me a business card with a mysterious phone number and told me to call it if I ever found myself in a similar situation.
To this day, it sat idle in my wallet. I couldn’t bring myself to discard it despite knowing I would never use it. I made apersonal vow that afternoon to always take care of myself first and to never end up in a similar situation again.
“Rachel?”
I cleared my throat as I tried to remember what sent me down the rabbit hole. Talking to Mark. About Ryan. Right. “Uh, yeah, maybe.”
“Come on, Rach. You know you want to let the sexy fed kung-fu Ryan’s ass.”
My lips curled. “That is a fun image.” Mark would take his pompous ass down with a single punch.
“He could dispose of the body too, right? I like this plan. Let’s call the fed.”
I rolled my eyes. “If only it were that easy.” Sarah only knew small details about Ryan, and I intended to keep it that way. A ding on my computer drew my attention to an incoming email from Janet. Will’s name was in the subject line. “Uh, I gotta go.”
“Work?”
“Yeah. Looks like Will just became our client officially.”
