Wilde at Heart (Wilde Security, #3)(82)

“But you need to know I could have gotten the information Jason wanted without marrying you. It just seemed like a good way to help you with the blackmail situation.”

He quirked a brow. “Killing two birds with one marriage?”

“Oh God. That sounds so horrible when you put it like that, but yes. And…” She swallowed hard, determined to get everything out in the open this time. If they were starting fresh here, she didn’t want any more secrets. “And, part of me, I wanted it. I think even then I was a little bit in love with you already. I just didn’t know it or maybe didn’t want to admit it to myself. As crazy as it sounds, I did truly want to marry you.”

“Good. Because I truly want to stay married to you.”

She laughed softly, wrapped her arms around his waist, and hugged him. “And we’re not going anywhere. I did my part. Jason has to let me go now.”

“I was hoping you’d say that.”

“You were?”

“Well, I would have run away with you, but when I sold to Tuc Quentin, he may have offered me a position as lead developer of DMW’s new video game arm.”

He said it so offhandedly, it took her a few seconds to process it. “Reece! That’s fantastic!”

He raised a shoulder in a shrug. “It suits me better than CEO and allows me time to still work at Wilde Security with my brothers. Dealing with Tuc on the sale of DMW gave me an idea about how I can get Wilde Security operating in the black. Personal security. My brothers have the marketable skills for it and, thanks to Tuc, we already have our first client.”

She laughed. “Something tells me Tucker Quentin doesn’t need help protecting himself.”

“He doesn’t, but if he hires us, it’ll make us more appealing to other celebrities. We both know that world is all about appearances.” He hugged her briefly then set her back and smiled down at her. “But that’s not our world anymore. Which reminds me…” He laced their fingers together and tugged her toward the Escalade. “I have something to show you.”

It was all such a whirlwind, she couldn’t imagine what that something might be. She’d come here expecting to beg for his forgiveness, plead for another chance. Never in her wildest dreams did she think it would go this well.

It wasn’t a long drive to their destination: the strip mall where Wilde Security was located, except he didn’t pull into his usual parking place in front of the office. Instead, he parked in front of the next empty store in the line and climbed out of the car, scrambling around the hood to open her door before she could. As soon as her feet touched the ground, he clamped a hand over her eyes and cradled her elbow, guiding her forward.

“No peeking,” he said.

“Kinda hard with your hand over my eyes.”

A door opened and he ushered her inside, into a blast of warm air scented with sawdust. “Here we are.”

“Where?”

He removed his hand, and Shelby took in the empty store. It had been stripped to the studs, the floor pulled up, the ceiling ripped out, but even so, she could tell it was a good space with lots of room. “What is this?”

“It’s yours.” Reece took her by the shoulders and spun her to face the back wall and the sign propped there.

The Bean Gallery.

Slightly singed, but still legible. Warmth radiated through her. Trembling, almost not daring to believe, she gazed over her shoulder at Reece. Had to blink to see him through the flood of tears. “Here? Next to Wilde Security?”

“If you want it.”

“Yes!” She flung her arms around his neck and kissed him. “Oh God, yes. Of course I want it! I—” A loud thunk from the back of the building made her jump. Shouts and curses followed. Some kind of struggle? She looked toward the noise. “What’s that?”

“Sounds like my brothers are taking care of a pest problem.” He gave her a quick, reassuring squeeze, then walked to the door at the back of the space.

She chased after him. “You have pests here?”

“No, but you do,” he said and unlocked the door, shoving it open.

Outside, the twins had a man flattened out on the icy pavement, and Jude was scooping snow onto a blazing trashcan fire. Eva was there too, directing a pair of uniformed cops to the downed man. The arson investigators followed close behind.

Shelby stepped out into the cold, her gaze tracking over the scene, trying to make sense of it. “What…?”

The twins hauled the man upright. She sucked in a sharp breath, dragging the cold deep into her lungs where it seemed to sit like concrete and made drawing in more oxygen impossible.

Jason Mallory.

His face was scratched from the pavement, and his eyes spit fire at the brothers as he cursed and struggled. But fighting against them was as hopeless as a mouse trying to escape a pair of cats. The twins held him without even breaking a sweat. In fact, they seemed to enjoy it, wearing identical grins.

She gaped at the man, then at the blazing trashcan.

Jason was the arsonist?

“Shelby, you need me,” he said through gritted teeth. “You need me. Without me, The Headhunters will find out you put your father in jail. I’ll make sure of it, and they’ll kill you.”

Fury blasted through her and, before she knew she was moving, she crossed the short space between them, hauled back, and punched Jason hard enough to have pain singing up her arm. He stumbled sideways, and the twins let him fall.