Page 4 of Crossroads of Innocence
The single bulb barely lit the wood-lined stairwell that led to his private room. The old stairs creaked beneath his weight, and he took them two at a time. His heart thudded harder against his chest with each step that brought him closer to Jude.
He’d imagined this moment a million times. Jude showing up at his bar. Explaining what pushed her out of town. Confessing she still loved him and asking for forgiveness.
Forgiveness his head demanded he withhold, but his heart…well that was a different story. One look at Jude had sent a tidal wave of emotions crashing over his head, leaving him shaken to the core. Shaken and furious at whoever had hurt her—had marred her beautiful skin and sent her running back to the one place she’d left behind.
Back to him.
He hesitated at the top of the stairs, nerves skittering along his spine. He could do this. Hell, he was used to putting his own needs on the backburner to help others. Wasn’t that what he’d been doing his whole life? If Jude was in trouble, he’d do what he could then watch her walk away. But this time, he’d make sure to guard his heart.
Swinging open the door, Jude spun toward him with his mom’s ancient Yorkipoo in her arms. “This can’t be Macey.”
He couldn’t help but chuckle. “One in the same.”
She smiled, the first since he’d laid eyes on her downstairs, and it knocked the air from his lungs.
“Well, hello, my old friend.” Jude lifted the tiny mass of cream and black fur so they were face to face then placed a kiss on the dog’s forehead before snuggling her close. “I remember when you were just a puppy. You were the sweetest little thing. I bet you still are.”
He spared the pair another glance before shutting and locking the door then crossing the office-turned-apartment to the recliner in the corner of the room.
Jude stayed rooted in place with Macey in her arms. The bill of her hat cast a shadow over the delicate features of her face, but there was no hiding the tension rippling off her in waves. Her smile melted away, replaced by a hint of confusion. “Why isn’t she with your mom?”
The question was like a punch in the gut. Macey had always been his mom’s dog. He’d wanted something bigger, fiercer, but his mom insisted on the tiny dog she could take with her. Macey had fallen for his mom as hard as his mom had fallen for Macey—the two inseparable.
Until a few years ago when he’d had no choice but to turn his life upside down and do everything he could to give his mom what she needed. That included moving her from the home she’d loved for decades and into an assisted living apartment, selling his place to help with the finances, and taking in the dog who was heartbroken with the new arrangement.
But he didn’t want to share everything with Jude. Not now. Not after she’d decided she didn’t want to be a part of his life anymore. She’d once been the one who helped him through his problems, supported him through the challenges forced at his feet. Now she was just one more problem he had to handle.
And Lord help him, but he couldn’t stop the thrill shooting through his body that she’d come back. That she’d picked him to help her.
Trying to appear more casual than he felt, he leaned back in the soft, olive colored chair and hooked his ankle over his knee. “Mama moved and couldn’t take Macey with her. Now tell me what happened.”
She nodded and set Macey on the floor. “Right. I’m not here to catch up. I’m here because I didn’t have anywhere else to go.”
Her statement sliced through his chest. So he was her last resort? He brushed aside his injured pride. “And why did you need to leave wherever the hell you’ve been all these years?”
She looked him in the eyes, her spine straight and chin lifted. “Because someone wants me dead.”
* * *
Sayingthe words out loud shook something loose, and Jude’s entire body trembled. The truth had followed her like the devil on her heels since she’d left her apartment in Michigan, but she’d tried to tell herself she was overreacting. That the man who’d attacked her—the one who’d shown up at the Chill N’ Grill, wasn’t related to the picture she’d accidently taken.
But she couldn’t hide from the bitter truth any more than she could hide from the criminal who wanted to kill her.
Wade shot to his feet, his face pinched in concern. “What do you mean? What happened?”
Fear coated the roof of her mouth, making it hard to get out the words stuck in the back of her throat. She’d only told one person what she’d seen, what she’d captured on film, and that’s what started the runaway train that brough her back to Tennessee. “I accidently took a photo a few nights ago.”
He frowned. “What kind of photo? And how did that lead to someone wanting to kill you?”
She held up a palm, cutting off any more questions. “Please. Just let me get this out.” Rubbing her fingers along her collarbone, she sucked in a breath to calm the anxiety flapping in her gut. “I was at the pier and wanted to get a picture of the sunset. That’s what I do now, by the way, I’m a photographer. The light was shimmering off the lake and it was the perfect shot. Then I noticed two men arguing. I was annoyed they were in my way, but I managed to get a few photos without them.”
Wade nodded along with her words, reaffirming her in his own way that he trusted what she had to say. Something she needed more than he realized.
“When I left, a man approached me. He was in plain clothes, but he flashed a badge, assuring me he was a detective, and said he wanted to see my camera. I was caught off guard and showed him the shots I took. He tried to grab my camera, but something seemed off. No officer would act like that. So I took off. Jumped on my motorcycle and rushed home. I parked my bike in the lot and rushed to my apartment. That’s when I was attacked. The detective followed me and jumped me in the hall of my apartment building.”
Her fingers floated up to touch the hidden skin where the man’s hands had choked her.
“Do you need a minute?” Wade ask, his voice hollow.
