“Well, at least I won’t be here, with you.”
What Rory didn’t know was that she did have some place to go. When her grandmother, Agnus, passed away last year, she’d left her house in Wyoming to Wynn, although she hadn’t seen her grandmother or anyone on that side of the family in twenty years. The attorney told Wynn that most of the property had been sold right before Agnus passed, but the remaining two acres and house remained, which Wynn inherited as next of kin. She’d kept the inheritance a secret, thinking one day she might need a place. At least she’d planned far enough ahead that she wouldn’t be living on the street.
Wyoming was far away from New York, and exactly what she needed.
“You’re not leaving.” Rory’s jaw hardened.
“Get it through your head. I’m leaving,” she said through clenched teeth.
He grabbed her arm and jerked her hard against him. She saw his hand and a glint of metal about the same time she heard a soft click then a cool touch on her wrist.
“I guess I get to use these after all.” One corner of his mouth slid up into a dangerous smile.
Wynn dropped her chin. One cuff wrapped her wrist and the other circled his. She tilted her head, catching him in what she hoped was a deadly glare. “Unlock these handcuffs at once!”
“Not happening. After you’ve had time to think about all this, you’ll see that leaving isn’t the best idea.”
“This is wrong. This is kidnapping. Let me go!” She gave a jerk of her hand and the cuffs jingled. “Where is the key?” she seethed.
“Safely tucked away.” He patted his front pocket. “You won’t get to it because I plan to stay awake all night to see that you behave yourself.”
“Go to hell! This won’t keep me here.”
He laughed. “Calm down. You’ll be thanking me later.” He winked and touched her cheek, but she jerked her face away.
CHAPTER 2
AFTER DRINKING HALF a bottle of whiskey, Rory passed out. Unfortunately, which he must have thought would seal his plan to keep her from leaving, he fell asleep with his back against the door to her closet so if she somehow got away, she couldn’t get to her clothes.
He didn’t understand how badly she wanted to leave.
Once he was snoring and had been out for an hour, she wiggled her cuffed arm, testing him. No movement from him.
Slowly, she leaned in, careful not to wake him, and touched his shirt where he said he’d placed the key. Carefully, she slid one finger inside the pocket, feeling for her freedom nestled there. Just as he had said, the key was in his pocket. She was a little shocked that he hadn’t made things a little harder. Wasting no time, she grasped the key. He groaned, shifting his shoulders and his lids popped open. Her breath stilled in her lungs. Sweat beaded on her forehead. He moaned something inaudible, blew out a breath laced in stale whiskey, then closed his eyes, his snoring returning, deeper this time.
Thank God!
Within seconds, she had the handcuffs unlocked and was standing, looking down at the slumped man she’d once loved. Once thought he was a kind man. He had his hand tight around the neck of the whiskey bottle, about the only thing he loved these days. He’d be out for a good six hours, but she couldn’t risk moving him to get into her closet.
Scanning the inside of the bedroom, she worked her bottom lip. After tonight, she couldn’t stay and wouldn’t be back. Wynn didn’t need her clothes to be happy. They were only material things.
In his closet, she found his gym bag, dumped out shoes and other odds and ends, but kept the hand weights inside because a woman always needed to have some form of protection with her. Dragging it out to her dresser, she quickly removed everything out of the drawers, dropping clothes on the floor in her haste. At her vanity she grabbed a handful of bottles, dropped them in with her clothing and started to slide the zipper close when she paused, eyeing her jewelry case. Although she didn’t plan on ever wearing anything from the box again, she deserved every diamond and gold bracelet because she’d worked for each piece. So, she dropped the entire contents into the bag.
Sliding her feet into a pair of flats she had sitting by her vanity, she quietly tugged the bag down the hallway and the long, spiral staircase, panting by the time she made it to the ground floor. She guessed the jewelry and weights must weigh a ton. From the entry table she grabbed her purse and took out her car keys, laying them aside. If she planned to sever all ties, she had to leave everything Rory had his name attached to. That included the Lexus. Wynn didn’t need the luxurious car any longer, at least not where she was going. It would only draw attention to her and that was the last thing she needed.
In her wallet, she counted two hundred in cash. Plenty for a plane ticket, but what would she eat on when she got to Wyoming? She wouldn’t be using her credit or debit card because she didn’t want him tracking her down. Remembering the cash Rory had hidden in his office, Wynn hurried to use the key from under the desk calendar and unlocked the bottom drawer, taking out the envelope buried under a stack of files. He didn’t know she knew the stash was there. Inside it, she counted a thousand, all in twenties, so crisp the bills felt like they’d never been used.
“Sorry, Rory,”
