“Why is my father holding her?” Jagger looked over to find Justice looking out her window as if trying to figure out where they were. She seemed like a smart girl and probably worked out that they were getting close to Goose Creek. He had orders not to bring her directly to the main house. The plans changed once Justice’s friends realized she was missing for about two hours.While she was passed out, he got a text from Hobbs telling him to drive and await further instructions. He was probably going to have Jagger take Justice to another location and keep her there until further notice. Jagger just needed that address, so for now, he was driving in circles and about to run out of gas.
“Let’s just say your father has some damning files on my sister that could put her away for a long time. She was his assistant and accidentally stumbled across some information that she shouldn’t have.” He told his sister that working for someone so powerful was a bad idea. Hobbs was in the local news for various scandals more times than he could count. But Jules had her ideas, and listening to her older brother cramped her style. He wasn’t stupid; he knew how attractive his sister was, and he also knew she didn’t have the experience that would warrant a man in Hobbs’ position to hire her. He tried to stay out of her affairs, but it rubbed him the wrong way that someone would try to take advantage of her like that. She was only twenty-three years old—the same age as Justice, according to the folder of information he received about her.
“So, my father made some shady business deal and washed his hands of the whole mess by pinning it on your little sister?” Justice didn’t seem to ease up with her questions. He nodded, not wanting to talk about his sister anymore. He needed to turn the tables and ask her a few questions. If she wanted answers, then so did he.
“You said your father tried to sell you to Wolf two years ago. How did you escape?” Jag asked.
Justice smiled, and it practically lit up the almost dark cab of the truck. “My grandmother is Norma Jeane Hobbs, and she owns the ranch that takes up most of Goose Creek. She had a few of her guys come over and bust me out of the room that my father had me locked up in. She held my father and his guards at gunpoint. Granny Norma has more nerve than any womanI’ve ever known.” Justice’s smile faded. “She risked everything to rescue me and help me start over, and now it will have all been for nothing.” Jagger thought she might be playing the sympathy card, but when he chanced another look at her, he saw she was crying. He fucking hated when women cried; it did weird things to his heart, and that was the last thing he needed to happen with Justice. He needed to remember that she was just a job; otherwise, he would be leaving his sister in the hands of the devil, and he couldn’t let that happen.
“Listen, Justice, I’m sorry you’re going through this with your father. He has my sister, and I can’t let anything happen to her. We are all each other has, and I won’t let your father destroy her life, not even to save—” He stopped short of saying the word and sounding like an uncaring ass. “Mine,” Justice finished for him, nodding her head as if understanding. “He’ll never let either of you go, Jagger. You know that, right? If you take me to him, he’ll be pleased and want to keep you around. He’ll find a way to keep you on his payroll. If that means using the one person you love in the world, he’ll do it.” Jagger swallowed past the lump in his throat. Fuck, he knew Justice was right. He was thinking about the very same thing while she was passed out. But he didn’t know what else to do.
“Right now, I have no choice. I have to stick to the plan and deliver you as promised. He said he’d kill my sister if I don’t show up. I’m sorry. You seem like a nice kid,” he said.
“Kid?” Justice whipped around in her seat and practically jumped at him. “I’m not a kid. I’m twenty-three years old, and if you haven’t noticed, I’m a full-grown woman.” Justice puffed out her already impressive chest, and Jagger smiled at her. He noticed that she wasn’t a kid, and he noticed all her sweet curves when he hauled her body against his and loaded her into her pickup truck. Justice Hobbs turned him on in ways that would only make this entire job go sideways, and he couldn’t allow that.If he thought about her being the same age as his kid sister, that made the time they were going to spend together much more bearable.
He chuckled at her theatrics. “All I’m saying is that you’re about the same age as my little sister, and I think of her as a kid.” He shrugged, trying for casual, but that only seemed to rev up her anger. Justice crossed her arms over her chest, made a little “Humph” sound, and sat back in her seat. He couldn’t help his laugh—she was adorable. But he also knew she had quite the temper. If he wanted to keep his balls intact, he needed to remember she could hold her own.
“Honestly, Jag, I don’t give a fuck how you see me. Why don’t you just do us both a favor and get this nightmare over with and drop me off at my dear old dad’s house? I’m sure he’ll be true to his word and hand over your sister and let you both walk away, just like you hope.” Jagger could hear the sarcasm dripping from Justice’s words, and he didn’t find it a bit funny. He knew that he and his sister were caught in the middle of a shit storm, and if he believed Justice, she was just as much a victim as they were. The question was, would he be able to get the three of them out of the storm safely, or would he have to choose between his sister and a virtual stranger? He felt bad for Justice, but he’d pick his sister every time.
CHAPTER THREE
Justice knew that Jagger was either stalling or lost. He circled the same block three times as if he was trying to kill time. He stopped for gas and locked her in the truck, which she couldn’t fault him for. She planned on running while he was pumping gas, but she also knew that he’d probably be able to catch up with her. From the looks of him, he worked out and would have no trouble chasing after her. Lately, her gym routine has involved thinking about driving to the gym and then having a nap and calling it a day. Her pre-dawn mornings and early bedtime made it nearly impossible for her to have any type of active lifestyle or social life.
Jagger checked his cell phone again and sighed. “Fuck,” he whispered.
“Problem?” She could already guess that there was. Still, she was enjoying that her father’s plan wasn’t going as he wanted. “Let me guess—Daddy has had a little snafu and now he doesn’t know where to unload me. You’re stuck with the spoiled princess, and all you wanted to do was dump me off and rescue your sister.” Jagger shot her a mean look, and Justice knew she hit a nerve. She was starting to feel some of that same fight shehad earlier, and she was ready to give as good as she got. She wasn’t about to let her father—or any other man tell her what she was going to do. Justice wasn’t that same scared, naïve girl her father locked away two years ago.
“How about you sit back and shut the fuck up, princess. Your friends have figured out you’re missing, and your father wants me to take you to a different location.” Jagger pulled his buzzing cell from his pocket and answered it.
“Yeah,” he barked. “Yes, I have her.” Jagger put the call on speaker and held the phone in her direction, and she reluctantly took it from him. Justice knew she wasn’t going to like who was on the other end.
“Hello, Justice Hobbs speaking. Whom might I have the pleasure of speaking with?” She knew she was poking the bear, but she couldn’t help herself. It was easy to be brave when she was still miles away from her father. Seeing him face-to-face and having to deal with his anger was another issue. “Aw, Justice, still with the smart mouth. We’ll make sure that doesn’t stick. I’m sure your future husband won’t mind working all of your bad habits out of you.” Her father’s voice dripped with contention, and Justice didn’t miss the disgust on Jagger’s face as he listened in.
“And whom am I to marry this time, Daddy?” Justice was trying to get as much information as possible before having to face whatever fresh hell her father planned for her. And a part of her was stalling, knowing that once she gave the phone back to Jagger, her father would give him orders on where to take her, and all hope would be lost.
“Why, your fiancé, honey. We already went over all this the last time we spoke. He’s been patiently waiting for you and can’t wait to be reunited with his future bride.” Her father laughed into the phone, sending shivers down her spine. How could the man who used to bring her little treats from his business tripsand read her bedtime stories be the same man talking to her now, planning on forcing her into a marriage she didn’t want? “He said you two were interrupted last time he saw you, but he’ll be waiting for you, and I’ll see to it personally that you two love birds won’t be disturbed this time.” Justice felt sick thinking about what Jordan planned on doing to her the last time they saw each other. She couldn’t take any more and handed the phone back to Jagger before her father could hear her cry. Justice wouldn’t give him that satisfaction.
“I’m back,” Jagger growled into the phone.
“What, no goodbye for your daddy, princess?” Her father chuckled into the phone, seeming pleased with himself. Justice wiped at the hot tears that fell down her cheeks, wishing she didn’t have to cry in front of Jagger. He was handing her over to her father and Jordan on a silver platter. She hated that he saw her weakness, but there was no hiding from him or any of them. This time, she would have no one to save her, and she knew she would have to find a way to endure whatever they planned for her.
“I’m going to need you to find a safe place away from Goose Creek to stay for a while. Her friends from Harvest Ridge stuck their noses where they didn’t belong and called my mother. She has her men scouring the area for my little princess, and I can’t have her messing things up again. I’ve got too much on the line and I’m so close to having that Governor’s office in my pocket.” Jagger sighed, “How long is a while? You told me all I had to do was deliver your daughter to you, and you would let my sister go.” Justice heard the desperation in Jagger’s voice and almost felt bad for him.
“You’re just going to have to be patient, Mr. James. Your sister is in good hands. I give you my word that no harm will come to her as long as you live up to your end of the bargain. I’ll be in touch when things die down around here and Jordan andI can get everything in place for a quick, quiet wedding.” Her father ended the call, and Jagger cursed under his breath.
“So that’s what you were waiting for, driving around in circles? My father is scared. He knows my grandmother won’t let him hurt me, and he knows I have friends who are looking for me. I’m not the same timid, lonely little girl he locked away two years ago. When my friends find me and put you away for kidnapping me, who’ll save your sister then?” Justice knew she was pushing her luck, but she saw her opening and she took it. If she could convince Jagger that her father wasn’t going to honor his word, she might be able to get him to let her go. It was a long shot, but she had to try. Jagger ran his hands through his brown hair, pushing it back from his face.
“I just need some time to think,” he barked.
“Please, Jagger, I know this is hard for you, but my father has no intention of letting you or your sister just walk away. I’m assuming you have special skills that interest my father?” Jagger slowly nodded, and for the first time since they met in the alley behind the bakery, she felt hope.
“I’m a retired Air Force, and I’m a pilot. Your father likes that I can fly him anywhere he needs to go at a moment’s notice. Wolf has a few private planes that I have access to, and I can have your father out of Goose Creek as fast as it takes me to file the flight plan.” Jagger looked worried, and Justice knew she hit a nerve. Her father only kept men around who were at the top of their game. Otherwise, they proved to be dead weight, and he disposed of them.
“He told me you needed help, that you weren’t mentally sound,” Jagger growled as if trying to convince himself that all the lies he was fed were true.
“Dear old Dad loved telling people that, and most of the time, people believed him. After my mother died—” Justice paused, realizing she never told anyone this, not even her grandmother.“He had me locked away in a mental institution for three months,” she whispered. Her grandmother suspected that her father sent her away, but he told everyone, including Norma Jeane, that he was sending her to camp for the summer. Except this camp had padded walls, straitjackets, and bed shackles, and they sedated her every time she started asking questions.
“I’m so sorry, Justice. Why would he do that to you?” Jagger reached across the center console and took her hand into his. At first, she wanted to pull her hand free, but she had to admit she liked the comfort of his touch.
