Page 49 of Deadly Conflicts

“I just feel a little out of sorts,” Ally answered. “I think I’m just tired. We were up late last night and then I got the call from my boss early this morning. That put me in a bad mood. Running into Vince outside the office didn’t help.”

Jake narrowed his eyes. “Excuse me?”

“I told you about that,” Ally said.

“No. This is the first I’m hearing about it.”

“But … .” Ally broke off, biting her lip. “I guess I didn’t tell you. I told James. He was the reason Vince followed me.”

“What do you mean he followed you?” Jake worked overtime to control his temper, but he seriously wanted to punch something. Vince’s face would do nicely, but that wasn’t an option. He had to remind himself that Ally wasn’t at fault here and raising his voice would do nothing but alienate her – and that was the last thing he wanted.

“He said James didn’t give him his cell phone number so he looked up an address,” Ally explained. “He thought just showing up at James’ house was a bad idea so he looked me up. He wanted me to give him James’ cell phone number because the office phone goes straight to voicemail.”

“Oh.” The answer made Jake feel a little better, but only marginally. “I still don’t understand why he followed you to the office.”

“He said he was pulling up when I was leaving and he honked to get my attention and I didn’t notice so he followed me.”

“Did you hear honking?”

Ally shrugged. “A lot of people honk at me when I’m driving,” she said. “I tell myself it’s because I’m hot, but in reality, I think they just don’t like the way I drive. I’ve learned to ignore it.”

Jake didn’t want to laugh, but he couldn’t help himself. “Your driving has worried me on more than one occasion,” he said. “What did Vince say to you?”

“Just that he needed to talk to James.”

“And that’s it?”

Ally nodded, but for some reason Jake didn’t entirely believe her. He had a feeling Vince hit on her. She wouldn’t admit to something like that because she didn’t want to upset him. Instead of pressing her, though, Jake opted to let it go.

“I’ll be glad when we find his stupid car,” Jake said, brushing Ally’s hair away from her lovely face. “If we never have to see that guy again, you won’t hear me utter one word of complaint.”

“You never complain anyway,” Ally teased, kissing his chin before resting her head on his chest. Jake hugged her close as he swayed back and forth, enjoying the way her body melded to his. “Can I ask you something?”

Jake smiled. “When Mandy says those words to your brother he says he wants to deafen himself with Q-tips.”

“Yes, but she knows that and enjoys playing with his emotions,” Ally said. “I have a legitimate question.”

“Okay. Shoot.”

“Do you ever think about our future?”

It was a simple question, but it caused Jake’s heart to drop to his stomach. She was fishing. Did Mandy say something? No. It was impossible. She loved Ally too much. Still … . “I think about our future,” Jake confirmed. “I think it’s going to be great.”

“But … do you ever think of what comes next?” Ally pressed, lifting her chin so she could stare into Jake’s eyes. “What do you see for us?”

“Happiness.” Jake knew it was too simple of an answer but he didn’t want to show his hand before he could surprise her with a big proposal. He wanted everything to be perfect when they had the big discussion. This was not what he had in mind. “What do you see for us?”

“I want to get married and have a family.” Ally refused to pull punches. “You want that, too, don’t you?”

“Ally, I want you and all of that,” Jake said. “I … what are you getting at?”

Ally licked her lips, unsure how to proceed. “Nothing,” she said finally, shaking her head. “I just want to be loved.”

“You are loved, angel,” Jake said, cupping the back of her head. “I swear that I’ve never loved anything as much as I love you.”

“I love you, too.” She smiled, and this time the emotion made it to her eyes, although they were still tinged with sadness. “I guess I’m just feeling pouty today.”

Something niggled the back of Jake’s brain. “Did Vince say something to you?”