The Men with the Golden Cuffs (Masters and Mercenaries #2)(6)

But when she’d first met Adam Miles, she’d felt like he liked her. He’d smiled and been friendly. There had been genuine concern on his face. She’d felt safe with him. But it meant nothing since Jake Dean seemed so damn willing to shove her to the side.

But the truth was neither one of them would accept her if they read her work. That would sink her. Jake had probably run her pen name. That was why he’d rejected her.

“Sweetie, we’re home. Let’s go inside.” Chris got out of the car. He opened the back door and held out his hand. Bridget ran around the car and stood beside him.

Serena was enveloped in their arms as she got out of the car. Tears pricked her eyes. No matter what her ex said, she was loved. Even if she only had these two people beside her, she was blessed beyond measure.

Serena wrapped her arms around them. Whatever happened, she would be all right.

“Okay, sweets,” Chris said, squaring his shoulders. “Let’s do this thing.”

She sniffled a little. It seemed wrong that she now had security protocols for walking into her own house. It seemed like a bit of overkill, but Chris and Bridget insisted on it. And it really did make her feel better.

Her two newest purchases had been all about safety. The alarm trilled as she entered her house. And her dog panted and wagged his massive tail.

“Hey there Mojo!” She turned off the alarm and got to one knee, the big mutt licking every inch of her face.

“Yes, Mojo is such a guard dog. Are you going to love the stalker to death? Yes, you are. You’re going to take him down by humping his leg!” Bridget rubbed a hand down the dog’s back. “You couldn’t have gotten a pit bull?”

She tightened her arms around Mojo’s neck. “I went in to get a killer, but they were going to put him down. He’s so sweet. I had to save him. And he’s big enough that he should make people think twice.”

Chris stood looking at them, shaking his head. There was a baseball bat in his hand. He’d bought it right after the first death threat and placed it just inside her front door. “You two stay here until I get back.”

He walked off, doing his normal perimeter sweep. She had gone with him a few times since he’d decided on this particular protocol. He would walk through each room, checking her closets and even looking under the beds.

Bridget walked to her answering machine. She frowned at the blinking light. “What’s the bet?”

“I’m not betting. We both know who it is. I need to change my number.” Serena filled Mojo’s bowl with his favorite kibble.

Bridget pushed the button and Doyle’s voice came over the line. Cool and crisp, he was every inch the pretentious professor, even in a voice mail message.

“All right, Serena. I got your latest little legal form. My lawyer is looking over it right now. I don’t think anyone with half a mind will buy it. You wrote that smut while I was supporting you with a legitimate, respectable job. You wrote that filth on my dime. I want half. I’m not going away until you start paying me. Do you understand?” Then an angry click.

Bridget’s face was bright red. “I am going to cut his balls off with a really crappy pair of scissors. I want him to feel every single moment of pain. After I cut his balls off, I’m going to stomp on them with my best shoes and then feed them to my cat. Wait. I’m not feeding my cat anything fatty and full of itself. She’s on a strict diet. I’ll feed them to that little yippee dog next door. That thing could use the cholesterol. That way I kill two obnoxious birds with one stone.”

“Doyle?” Chris asked, a dark look on his face.

Serena nodded. “I think he just figured out I’m not going to write him a check.”

Bridget shook her head. “And you shouldn’t. He did nothing to help you. He divorced you over those books. He can’t come back now and expect to get half the money. The divorce is final.”

But according to her lawyer, Doyle had the right to file the claim. He seemed to think he could change the law. He wouldn’t win, but he could make her life difficult. Her lawyer thought they were after a quick settlement to make them go away, but Serena wasn’t going to give that man a dime. She would go to court and watch the judge throw out his case.

It all made her ridiculously tired.

She hugged her friends and said good-bye, promising to call if she needed anything. She set the alarm the minute the door closed, sealing herself in for the rest of the day. It was only afternoon, but she would stay here, locked in.

The cops said the stalker hadn’t done anything to her yet. They didn’t get that this man had already changed her life for the worse. She was isolated, utterly alone, and vulnerable.

Her cell phone trilled. Another message. Probably more threats from Doyle.

She pulled up the text.

You can’t tease a person and expect God to forgive you.

She sank to her knees. He had her private cell. She brushed away her tears and called the police. They would tell her the same thing. He hadn’t specifically threatened her. He hadn’t shown up at her house. He used disposable, untraceable cell phones.

There was nothing they could do but make a report.

But by god, she would have her report. Jake Dean and Adam Miles might not choose to take her case, but she would find someone who would. She wouldn’t stop. She wouldn’t lay down for this *. She wouldn’t let him take her life. She wouldn’t stop writing because she was scared. She wasn’t giving him an inch.