Page 40 of Cornered

“I want to help you, Mom. I want to help Steph. Do you understand? I want to help. Steph, she’s not going to hurt you. Are you, Mom?”

Cherry took another step, and Steph gave a faint nod at whatever she saw on Cherry’s face. Cherry finally stopped about three feet away, and Tate grabbed a breath into air-starved lungs.

“You told me to take care of Benji,” Cherry said. “All my life, you’ve told me to take care of him. But I can’t do that if I’m in prison, can I?”

Confusion flickered on Helen’s face. “What? I...”

“Drop, Steph!”

Cherry’s cry sent Steph down like her legs had turned to wet noodles. The weapon slid away from Steph’s temple and time slowed. Cherry launched herself at her mother and the two women joined Steph on the tile floor.

Tate bolted toward them.

A gun went off.

Everyone went still.

“Steph!” His shout echoed in the split second of silence, then chaos erupted.

Steph rolled one way. Cherry the other. A red stain on her green business shirt.

Then time sped back up. Cherry’s mother had a matching red stain on her abdomen, only hers was growing. But her hand still searched for the weapon, closed her fist around the grip, and yanked it up to aim it right at Tate.

Cherry threw herself in front of him as two shots sounded. One hit Cherry and she dropped.

The other hit her mother right between the eyes.

Cherry slapped a hand to her side and met his gaze while tears slid down her cheeks. “I had to make it right,” she whispered. Then her eyes closed and she went limp.

SEVENTEEN

One Month Later

STEPH WAITEDwhile Tate pulled to the curb of her home, then went to join him. He hugged her. “You look amazing.”

“Thanks. So do you.” A wave of shyness swept over her. Which was incredibly weird because she’d never been shy a day in her life. She pulled her coat tight and slid into the passenger seat. He waited until she was buckled to shut the door.

Gentlemen did still exist.

Tate settled into the driver’s seat, his leather-gloved hands gripping the wheel. “Sure is nice of James to have us all over again.”

“The weather’s been so good I’m sure he wants to take advantage of it.”

“He and Lainie set the date for their wedding, did you hear?”

“Of course.” She shot him an amused look and realized he was slightly nervous as well for some reason. “New Year’s Eve. I can’t think of a better way to spend the evening.”

“Yeah, me too.” His fingers flexed on the wheel, and he aimed the vehicle toward the road that would take them up the mountain to the lake house. “Cherry coming?”

“She is.” Could this conversation get any more awkward? What was going on with him? She didn’t think hedidnerves. “This is her first outing since ... everything. Thank goodness Lainie was there. She and her medical expertise are the only reasons Cherry lived.”

“I heard.”

More stilted dialogue. Steph decided to just go with it if it made him feel better. “Anyway, she’s finished with her rehab and ready to start living again. I think she’s excited and terrified all at the same time.”

“I know the feeling,” he muttered.

“Sorry? What was that?”

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