Eligible Bachelors: Wife For A Week Part 13

It was metal. It was black. It looked like the barrel of a gun. But it wasn't a gun. She glanced at Nick to see how he was taking this latest development. Not well. aIt certainly looked like a gun,' she said with a cheesy smile. aFrom a distance.'

aActually, it is a gun of sorts,' said Kai. aIt dispenses darts.'

aAh,' she said. aGood to know.'

aAre you hurt?' asked Nick grimly.

Her head was pounding, her arm aching. It was five minutes to twelve. aHurt? Me? Of course not.'

Kai was making sure no one else was injured. Jasmine was soothing ruffled tempers. Nick was looking at her, his face set. aI can't believe you crash-tackled him,' he said at last. aDon't you have any concern for your own safety whatsoever? What were you thinking?'

aI was thinking of you!' she said heatedly. aI thought he was going to shoot you! I couldn't just stand by and do nothing.'

aUm, excuse me,' said Jasmine tentatively, abut I thought we might go and find my father and then get you both home. He's probably out on the balcony waiting for the fireworks to start.'

aWho needs to go outside?' muttered Hallie. aThey've already started in here.' But she followed Jasmine and Kai out to the balcony with Nick at her side and stood where Kai decided it was best to put them, backs to the wall in an alcove.

aAnother attempt?' said John when he joined them and Kai told him of the waiter and the dart gun. aI had hoped we were being overly suspicious.'

aI wish I knew who was behind it all,' said Nick.

aYeah,' said Hallie glumly. aPity the waiter got away.' Lara Croft wouldn't have let the waiter get away. Lara Croft would have nailed the waiter and then they'd have known who was behind the attempts on Nick's life. aI wasn't really thinking straight when I tackled that waiter,' she told Nick apologetically.

aFinally, she sees reason,' he murmured.

aI should have pinned him down.'

Nick stared at her incredulously. John Tey smothered a chuckle.

aI have our people looking for him,' said Kai. aWe'll find him.'

People were crowding onto the balcony. It was almost midnight, and, as far as the Chinese were concerned, the start of a bright new year. As far as Hallie was concerned it was the end of a long day with more ups and downs in it than a triple-loop roller coaster. aTwo more minutes,' she said, glancing at the glowing neon clock set high on the hotel wall.

aI shall wish for a better new year for you,' Jasmine told Nick earnestly. aOne without a.s.sa.s.sins.'

aThanks, Jasmine.' Nick's features softened before hardening again as his gaze rested challengingly on Hallie. aYou could try wishing for some more sense.'

Ha! Hallie smiled sweetly. aMy wish is that the vase I bought you turns up tomorrow.' Then she could stuff him in it.

aWhat vase?' said Kai, his head snapping round as he pinned her with his gaze.

aThe one I bought for him at Lucky Plaza,' she said. aWhen you and Jasmine were in the bathroom.' Kai was looking at her in disbelief. aSeparate bathrooms,' she added hastily. aAs opposed to being together in the same bathroom.'

aYou bought a vase,' said Kai. aFor Nick. From the corner shop near the bathrooms in Lucky Plaza.'

Hallie nodded.

aA funeral vase.'

Hallie nodded again. aYes, that's right. The one in the window.'

aAnd the salesman let you?' said Kai.

aWell, he took some persuading, but, yes. I arranged to have it delivered before the New Year, but it hasn't arrived.'

Kai was turning to John, shaking his head and muttering something. John was staring at her, open-mouthed, as if frozen to the spot. Nick and Jasmine looked as baffled by their reactions as Hallie felt. aWhat?' she said uneasily. aWhat's wrong?'

Ten. The countdown to midnight began in Cantonese.

Nine. aThe shop you speak of sells funeral vases, sure enough,' said John.

Eight. aBut they don't sell them empty.'

Seven. aWhat do you mean, not empty?' she said.

Six. aThe one I bought was empty.'

Five. aWell, they don't deliver them empty,' said Kai.

Four. aWhen you bought Nick that vase...

Three. a...you ordered his execution.'

Two. aI what?'

One. aThat's why someone's been trying to kill him.'

Oh, dear.

The crowd roared as fireworks erupted in the sky, huge blasts of colour raining down from the heavens, each one more spectacular than the last, and all around them people were laughing and embracing, kissing and shaking hands, their faces alight with pleasure and the glow from the fireworks.

She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. They were all staring at her: Jasmine, Kai, Nick and John; all waiting for her to speak, but she had no idea what to say. Her hands were trembling, h.e.l.l, her entire body was trembling with a mixture of fear and disbelief. This was a joke, right? It had to be a joke. But the expression on Kai's face a.s.sured her it wasn't.

A fresh blast of fireworks opened up the sky with a crack that made her jump; a kaleidoscope of red, green and gold, while her gut roiled and her head ached with the sure knowledge that in buying Nick that d.a.m.ned vase, she'd made a huge and deadly mistake.

aI-' What on earth could she say? She looked to Nick. aYou-' Nope, she still couldn't find any words. She put a hand to her aching head and shrugged, still helplessly enmeshed in Nick's gaze. Good Lord, she'd put a contract out on him. How the h.e.l.l was she supposed to explain that?

She couldn't. Not now. Maybe not ever. It was just too bizarre.

But they were all still waiting. Waiting for her to say something. Anything. She opened her mouth and took a deep breath. aSorry about that,' she said finally.

CHAPTER EIGHT.

HALLIE had never pegged Nick as the coldly furious type and he wasn't. His was more of a simmering, bubbling fury and only his iron control, and quite possibly the presence of Kai and the Teys, kept it contained. They'd left as soon as the fireworks were over and the drive home had been mercifully conversation-free. Once at the villa she and Nick had said their thank yous and their goodnights and headed for the bedroom, and once they were there, Nick wasted no time in shrugging off his jacket and tie and opening a couple of shirt b.u.t.tons.

Hallie eyed him warily as she set her purse down on the counter and folded her wrap. Her brothers had tempers, all of them. She was no stranger to eruptions of the masculine variety. Pete's was like a summer storm, all noise and flash and gone in an instant. Luke's involved pacing, pointing and a great deal of arm-waving. Jake's was controlled and biting, and Tris...Tris didn't do temper very often, but when he did he flayed people raw. Hallie was hoping, really hoping, that Nick was going to be a little less like Tris and a lot more like any one of her other brothers in that regard.

A timid knock sounded on the door and Hallie opened it to find Jasmine standing there holding a tea tray.

aPeppermint tea,' said the younger girl, pressing the tray into her hands. aIt's very soothing,' she added, and fled.

aI knew it,' said Nick as Hallie nudged the door closed and set the tea tray on the sideboard. He was pacing now, from one end of the room to the other. This was good. Pacing she could deal with. Pacing expended energy that could otherwise be used for yelling. Tris never paced.

aI should never have gone shoe-shopping with my mother,' he was saying now. aShe's a bad influence. I should have gone to the country club and found Bridget instead. Bridget would have pretended to be my wife for a week. She'd have ripped Jasmine to shreds, alienated John, tried to seduce Kai, and driven me insane, but so what? At least she wouldn't have ordered my execution!'

Uh, oh. He'd stopped pacing. aTea?' she offered.

aWhy me?' he roared. aWhy you? Why now? Do you know how close we are to securing this deal? Do you have any idea how much it's worth?'

She knew. aI have a plan,' she said quickly.

aNo! No more plans. I know your plans and they never, ever work!

aAre you sure you wouldn't like some tea?' Hallie sniffed a steaming cup. aI think she put alcohol in it.'

He stared at her. Stared at the tea.

aI'm calling your brothers,' he said abruptly. aI'm going to tell them all about this man, wife and funeral-vase fiasco and then I'm going to get them to come and take you home.'

aYou can't,' she said pleadingly. aYou need me.'

aTo do what?' He was back to roaring.

aTo go back to the shop and cancel the hit.'

He stared at her in disbelief. And then, aNo! Absolutely not! These people are professional killers, Hallie. They're not going to be impressed by you saying you made a mistake and didn't realize you were ordering my execution after all. They'll kill you to keep you quiet.'

aI'm not going to tell them I made a mistake,' said Hallie. aI'm going to tell them I needed the job done before New Year and that they failed to deliver. I'm going to tell them that the terms of our contract have been breached and that I no longer need their services.'

aYou're going to fire them?'

aYes.'

aI don't believe this, a he muttered. aIt's like living in a black comedy. I'm calling your brother. The dangerous one. Maybe he'll know how to handle you. What's his number?'

aI can't tell you,' said Hallie. aWell, I could, but then I'd have to kill you.'

aGet in line,' he snapped. aWhat's the number?'

aYou can't have it.'

aThen I'll ring every dojo in Singapore until I find your other brother. Or every charter plane operation in Greece. Yes, that might be best. That brother can probably get here faster!'

aNo! Listen to me, Nick. I can fix this. First thing in the morning.'

aIt's New Year's Day, remember? The shop won't even be open.'

aMaybe not the shop,' she agreed. aBut they'll be contactable somehow. Kai will know how it's done. We'll ask him.'

aThis would be the Kai who took you to the plaza and let you buy the vase in the first place.'

aTo be fair, he didn't know I'd bought it,' said Hallie. aHe's Jasmine's bodyguard, not mine. But I'm sure he'd agree to help.'

Nick was pacing again. Muttering beneath his breath and raking his hand through his hair. Very Luke. She opened her mouth to explain her idea some more.

aNo.' He held up his hand for silence. aDon't talk. Don't say another word. Let me think.'

So she closed her mouth and concentrated on pouring the tea and stirring in sugar, lots of sugar, to help with the shock. She was shakier than she wanted to admit, horrified by the notion that she'd inadvertently ordered Nick's execution. She'd wanted to make her own mistakes, sure enough, but she'd wanted to make her own little mistakes. Not huge, deadly ones she wasn't at all sure she was going to be able to fix. aI'll call Tris if that's what you want,' she offered quietly. aI can call him now.'

Nick shot her a hard-eyed glare and Hallie looked away, looked at her tea. She was going to cry, dammit, she could feel the tears building behind her eyes. She put her hand to her cheek and hastily wiped away the first escapee. Another followed.

aNo crying!' said Nick hurriedly. aI don't do crying.'

aI'm so sorry, Nick. I've ruined everything for you.'

aNot yet, you haven't. Let's think about this. Maybe it is as simple as cancelling the contract. We could call them. Get them to meet us at the shop. Let them know we're coming in and that plans have changed.'

aWe? What we? There is no we because you can't come!' She wouldn't let him come. aIf I walk you into that shop they'll shoot you on the spot and stuff you into that vase before I can say good morning. I need to go there alone.'

aNo.' One word, simple and irrevocable.

aYou can't come. You have to pretend you don't know anything about it. If they think I'm cancelling their services because they botched the job and you discovered I ordered your execution, they may well kill you anyway. Out of sheer professional pride.'

aHow much alcohol did you say was in that tea?' he asked.

Hallie pa.s.sed him a cup and he swallowed the contents in one go.

aI hate this,' he muttered.

aYes, but it'll work,' she said with far more confidence than she felt. aTrust me.'

aI do trust you,' he said. aIt's the bad guys I don't trust. What if your luck runs out? What if you get hurt? I'd never forgive myself.'

aYou have to think positive,' she said. aThink Lara Croft in Tomb Raider.'

aLara Croft has big guns and multiple lives. You have no guns and one life.'

aTo live the way I choose. I choose to do this, Nick. This is my mistake. I want to fix it.'

He was closer now, close enough to reach out and touch, and the conflict between wanting to keep her safe and wanting to agree with her plan was there in his eyes. He lifted his hand to her cheek, his eyes almost black, his tension a living thing.