Austin's Revenge (The Townsends Book 4) Read online

  “Hey, I just wanted a little kiss. If you didn’t want to give me one, all you had to do was say so,” he grinned, throwing his hands out to his sides in mock surrender. He took a step back and done his best to look innocent, but he could tell by the look on her face, he hadn’t even come close. His mom had told him a long time ago, he always looked guilty of something, but he really was just wanting a kiss.

  “Oh, I would love a kiss,” she breathed, stepping close enough to run her hands up his chest. “But do you remember what happened the last time you kissed me?”

  He groaned, taking a step back, doing his best to shake the memories of the last time. They had been halfway down the hall to his bedroom before he had realized what he was doing. “Yeah, maybe we should just go.”

  “Oh, now see, you’re just no fun,” she said in a pout. She wasn’t fooling him though. He could read the twinkle in her eyes. She was trying to trick him into kissing her anyway. He also knew himself well enough to know, she’d end up getting her way.

  “Hey,” he mumbled, doing his best to sound offended, but he was honestly to busy getting lost in her eyes to succeed. “I can be a lot of fun.”

  “Really?” she asked sweetly.

  “Yeah.”

  “Then prove it.”

  “How?” he asked, taking a step closer.

  “Kiss me,” she breathed.

  “Mandy,” he groaned. “The last time I kissed you, we almost…” He stopped mid-sentence, swallowing hard and just stared down at her.

  “We almost what, Zane?” she asked, huskily.

  He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. “Amanda, you know darn well what we almost did. I will not take advantage of you like that.”

  She placed her hand against his cheek and very solemnly stated, “I wasn’t suggesting for a second that you would, but that shouldn’t stop you from kissing me.”

  “Oh, Baby,” he whispered. “You have no idea what you’re asking of me.”

  “Oh, come on, Zane. Just one little kiss.”

  Without realizing he was going to do it, he had moved the rest of the way in and cupped her chin in his big hand. When their mouths touched, he instantly forgot all the reasons they shouldn’t be doing this.

  He wasn’t sure how long they stood there kissing before he heard a loud thump coming from outside his front door. He jerked his head back, still clutching her tightly. “What the heck?” He waited to see if he heard anything else. After a few seconds, he let go of her and turned as if he was heading toward where the sound had come from.

  She grabbed his arm, stopping him. “What is it, Zane?” she asked, her eyes growing huge when she realized he had instantly switched to cop mode.

  “I don’t know, but I need you to stay in here,” he grumbled low, moving toward the living room once again.

  “What?” she asked, automatically following behind him.

  He seemed to sense what she was doing without looking and held his hand out behind him, telling her once again, “Stay in the kitchen. I’m going to see if there’s still someone out there.”

  She bit her lip, starting to feel very queasy in her tummy. “Maybe we should call the cops.”

  He chuckled, shaking his head. “Mandy, I am a cop.”

  “I know,” she hissed, rolling her eyes. “But if it was Austin, he would be less likely to try something with a different cop.”

  He sighed, rubbing his temples. “Maybe, but I don’t want to call other cops over here if there’s no reason to do so. Just stay in here. I’ll be right back.”

  It wasn’t but a few seconds later and she heard Zane exclaim loudly, using a few of those words his mom would threaten to wash his mouth out with soap for. She knew he’d told her to stay put, but she couldn’t wait any longer. His cursing a blue streak just made her that much more nervous. She was afraid he was going to get hurt.

  “Zane, what is it?” she asked, peaking around the door frame before walking out into the living room. When she saw him standing in the open doorway to the porch, she moved up behind him, to see if she could figure out what was going on.

  She smelt it before she saw it. The tang of blood wafting in from the open door. When she saw the dead cat laying on the welcome mat, covered in its own blood, she couldn’t stop the scream from bubbling up her throat and escaping her mouth.

  Zane spun around, pulling her into his arms. “Shush, I got you, Baby.”

  She gasped and started crying. “Why would he do that? She was just a stray cat. There was no reason for him to kill her,” she whispered, sobbing harder. She buried her face in his neck, wadding his uniform up in her hands.

  “He’s just mean. He doesn’t need a reason for anything he does,” he answered, holding her close with one arm, while he grabbed his phone off his belt with the other hand. He managed to speed dial the police station to talk to his chief while still comforting her. “Hey, Chief, I’m going to be running late.”

  “What’s going on?” the man asked, his voice coming through the phone in a gravelly, concerned tone. Zane was never one to be late, and his chief knew if he was going to be late this time, there had to be a pretty good reason.

  “Someone left a dead cat on my front porch. It’s a pretty gruesome mess.”

  He heard the older man grumble a few of his own choice words before he asked, “Do you want me to send Daniels and Rogers?”

  “Yeah, sounds good.”

  “I’ll let your partner know what’s going on, as well.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I’m guessing, this was probably that Austin Green, again.”

  “Well, I’m not going to come right out and say that without proof, but if you’re asking what my gut tells me, yeah.”

  ******

  Zane watched the man long enough to predict where he was heading before turning to go back around the other end of the aisle he had been standing in. He snorted, “It figures,” and headed up the next aisle over, silently.

  “Hey, watch it, Butthead,” Austin snarled before turning to see who had rammed into his cart.

  Zane chuckled, crossing his arms over his chest. “Man, don’t you know how to cook, at all? Those frozen dinners can’t really taste that great,” he snorted, eyeing the pile of the things already in the other man’s cart.

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but they taste just fine,” he grumbled, going back to pulling the frozen dinners out of the freezer two and three at a time.

  “I wouldn’t know. I’ve never eaten one,” he replied in an off-hand manner.

  “Lucky you,” the other man grumbled dryly.

  “You know, a few fresh fruits and vegetables wouldn’t hurt you.”

  Austin finally closed the freezer door and turned to look at him. “What is your deal today? Why would you care what I eat?”

  “Oh, don’t misunderstand me,” he said, chuckling. “I don’t. I’m just making conversation.”

  Austin snorted, pushing his cart to the other side of the aisle, where the ice cream was. “I doubt you know how to cook any better than I do. I know Amanda’s staying with you. She’s probably doing all the cooking,” he pouted, sounding a lot like a toddler who’d had his favorite toy taken away.

  “I’m guessing Amanda done all the cooking when she was still in Ruby Falls,” Zane snorted back.

  Austin gave him a dirty look and grunted, “What’s your point?”

  “You treated her like she was your cook or maid. She deserves to be treated better,” he snarled. “She wasn’t your servant.”

  “Really? I still figure she’s doing all the cooking for you,” the other man scoffed. “That would make you no better than me.”

  “Well,” he chuckled, shaking his head, “I actually do know how to cook. My mom is one of the best cooks in the county and she made sure to teach us all how to. As a matter-of-fact, growing up, I don’t remember how many times I heard her say, if you don’t help cook at least once a week, you won’t get anything more than bread and wat
er for the next week. I have to say though, I don’t think any of us have ever pushed her to see if she’d really do it. If any of us were, or are, likely to ever do it, it would be Michael. He pushes her on things all the time. Of course, I think he actually enjoys cooking, so it’s probably not that hard to get him to help, most times.”

  “I really couldn’t care less,” the other man snarled, trying to turn his cart around.

  “I’m sure you couldn’t. Just out of curiosity though, why do you feel so certain Amanda’s staying with me? Were you the one who put the dead cat on my porch this morning?” he snarled, turning instantly into the cop, once again.

  He had such a fierce change in demeanor, the other man nearly jerked himself off his own feet. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Austin choked out, his eyes growing huge as he tried to find anything to look at but the large man in front of him.

  “Your reaction says otherwise,” he said, moving around the cart in front of him, to step closer to the smaller man. “I know you’re the one that messed up my jeep, as well.”

  Austin took a step back, smirking. “So, what are you going to do about it? You can’t prove anything.” He grinned, attempting to poke Zane in the chest with his finger.

  Zane snarled, “You don’t get to touch me,” and knocked his hand away, causing him to narrowly miss slamming his hand into the glass door of the freezer behind him.

  “Hey, you can’t do that. You’re a police officer,” he sneered, stepping back. Zane was actually surprised the guy didn’t pee himself, judging by his expression.

  “I may be a police officer, but I don’t have to put up with you assaulting me.”

  “I wasn’t assaulting you,” he whined, not sounding very sure of himself.

  “If you try to put your hands on me in any way, you are trying to assault me,” he growled, taking a step closer. “And maybe I can’t do anything about my jeep or the dead cat, but if I ever catch you on my property, I can, and I will, do something about that.”

  “Are you threatening me?” the man asked, his voice shaking.

  “I don’t threaten,” he said, switching back to his cool demeanor and grinning like all was well.

  When Austin turned to exit the aisle, he found Joe Harris standing there. “What, did you record us this time too?”

  “No,” the older man said, shaking his head. “But I’m guessing I did hear most of your conversation with the Ice Man, here.”

  Austin’s eyes grew huge, once again, as he made a break for it. He wanted to get away from the other two so bad, he never did get his ice cream. Zane chuckled, shaking his head as he watched the man dart around the end of the aisle before turning to look back at Joe. “The Ice Man?”

  The older man shrugged. “Well, it just seems to fit.”

  Chapter 10

  Thursday, July 31

  Jamie stepped back after digging around in the deep freeze and shut the door with a huff of irritation. “Dang it. I’m going to have to go to the store. I’m completely out of frozen vegetables. I think I’m out of cheese, as well,” she added without even opening the refrigerator.

  “We’re out of cream of mushroom soup too,” Michael threw in as he walked out of the pantry with a bag of potatoes in his hand.

  She shook her head and gave her son a put-upon look. “Is there anything we’re not out of?” She had already been planning on going, or sending Hannah, to the store tomorrow. Apparently, she should have made those plans for a day earlier.

  Her son sat the bag he had in his hand down beside the hamburger she had taken out just a minute ago. “Potatoes and hamburger.”

  She chuckled, slapping him lightly on the shoulder. “Oh, you’re a funny one.”

  “Well, you asked,” he said with a grin.

  She would probably never tell him or his older brother, either one, but the older he got, the more he reminded her of Zane. “Why did I let you talk me into making Shepard’s pie? I was all ready to make lasagna.”

  “Shepard’s pie is easier,” he shrugged.

  “Yes, and you like it better.”

  “We had pasta last night,” he said, scrunching up his face and giving himself a mental high five for narrowly managing not to whine. “It’s like eating air.”

  Jamie gave her son an unamused look, causing him to believe he might not have done as good a job at not whining as he had thought. “Okay, I’ve got to go to the store. Tell your dad. I’m going to take Zoe and Emily with me to get them out of here for a little bit. They haven’t been anywhere all week. I’m pretty sure he’s in the game room.”

  “Sure, Mom,” Michael said getting back up from the bar stool he had just sat down on to peel potatoes.

  “I’ll send someone in to help you on my way out,” Jamie said, as she made her way out the swinging doors. “Everybody else is outside playing in the water.”

  She stepped out on the porch in time to see Jeff Campbell drive up in his truck. She waved at him and turned and hollered, “Hey, Zoe and Emily, do you two want to go to the store with me?”

  Both of the little girls come running across the yard toward her, Emily doing her best to keep up with her older sister. They didn’t even stop at their mom. They just ran past her on the way to the car.

  “I take that as a yes,” Jamie said, shaking her head and laughing. “Okay, Alex and Teresa, go help Michael in the kitchen while I’m at the store. He’s peeling potatoes. One of you can help him do that. The other one can get the baked beans going,” she added as Jeff walked up beside her.

  “I don’t mind chipping in for whatever you have to get from the store, but you probably should still go to the store to get it. I’m not much of a cook.”

  “Yeah, I’ve noticed that already. Why don’t you just ride with me?” Jamie asked, deciding she would really like a chance to talk to him without all her older children around. Especially Zane. Jeff, not suspecting a thing, turned back toward Jamie’s Nova, and went around to the passenger door.

  They weren’t on the road five minutes, and someone in a blue Ford pick-up pulled out in front of them without looking, causing Jamie to have to slam on the brakes. “You, stupid idiot. You need to watch where you’re going. I have small children in this car,” Jamie said, shouting at the windshield as the truck drove away.

  Jeff looked over at her and asked in a very dry tone, “You do realize they can’t hear you, right?”

  “Yes, Jeff,” she answered, rolling her eyes. “I realize they can’t hear me, but it makes me feel better.”

  “Well, now I know where Hannah gets her fire from,” he chuckled, shaking his head.

  “Yeah, speaking of Hannah.” She grinned at the opening he had unwittingly handed her. “Why won’t you ask her out?”

  “Jamie, please don’t,” he said, trying not to groan at his own mistake. “Dealing with Zane and all the others is bad enough.”

  “Well, am I wrong to believe you’re in love with her?” she asked, truly feeling concern.

  He sighed, hearing the sincere concern in her voice. She wasn’t going to be anything like dealing with Zane. Honestly, he thought to himself, this was going to be harder. “No, you’re not wrong. I just can’t do it.”

  “Zane says there is no real reason you couldn’t date her. What’s stopping you?”

  He took a deep breath, closing his eyes. “I can’t tell you.”

  “Is there something that’s happened in a past relationship that’s made you wary?” she pressed.

  He nodded his head yes. “That would be the best way to put it.”

  “I get the feeling we’re not just talking about the average broken heart.”

  “No, by the time we broke it off, whatever feelings either one of us started out with, was long gone. Problem is, the feelings I have for Hannah are so much stronger. I don’t believe I’m ever going to stop feeling this way,” he said, unconsciously rubbing at the pain in his chest.

  “She feels the same way about you, you know?”

 
; He groaned as if someone had punched him in the gut. “Jamie, please, don’t tell me that.”

  “Well it’s the truth. I’m not sure she has figured it out yet. I know she knows she has feelings for you. She just may not understand the extent yet.”

  He groaned again, closing his eyes. He didn’t think he could take much more of this without losing his mind.

  “I can tell you really want to give in.”

  “Yeah,” he sighed. “I really want to give in. But I can’t.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I could hurt her,” he whispered, starting to wonder if telling Jamie might actually help.

  She glanced sideways at him, giving him a bemused look. “Hurt her how?”

  “Jamie, I can’t talk about this.”

  “Well, I know you don’t mean you think you could hit her. You have way too much control over your temper. You would never do anything like that,” she snorted. “The only person I think you’re ever in danger of giving in and hurting is Zane. But he could drive a saint to murder. So, I’m completely lost.”

  “I’m talking about getting...” Jeff just shook his head, unable to finish.

  “Come on, Jeff,” she encouraged, glancing over at him once again. “Tell me.”

  “You’re going to think I’m an idiot,” he said, shaking his head. He laid his head back on the headrest and closed his eyes before continuing. “Sometimes, I think I’m an idiot, but I can’t get past it.”

  “Come on. If you talk to someone, maybe it will help you work past it.”

  “I doubt that.”

  “Will you, please, try.”

  He looked over at her, raising an eyebrow. “Can I ask why you care so much?”

  “Aside from the obvious, that I care about my daughter, I care about you. And you’re not going to be happy without her. I can see it.”