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A lot of things happened very quickly in the next few seconds. The girl nearly dropped the plate, but Ty caught it just as the burger was ready to slide to the floor.
“Emily! Watch what you’re...”
Emily was reaching for something in her back pocket as her eyes grew even wider.
“Oh. My. God. You’re Bree Mathews! Right here in The Hide-Away! Oh, my God! No one’s going to believe this!”
Bree saw the iPhone in Emily’s hand. The girl was raising it to take a photo. An image of Bree blasted out to the internet would ruin her plans to hide here in Russell. She jumped to her feet and reached for the phone with a distressed cry. Cole stood and grabbed Bree’s wrist, yanking her back and closer to him. Ty snatched the phone from Emily’s hand. They all stared at each other in confusion, panic and anger.
Ty was the first to speak. “Emily! What is wrong with you? Is it a full moon today or what? Everyone’s going full-bore crazy around here! And Cole, for the last time, get your effing hands off that woman!”
Bree was close to his side now, and the heat emanating from his body took her breath away. His grip was rough, just short of painful. He glared down at her then back at his brother.
“She grabbed for my niece and I damned sure want to know why.”
Ty nodded in understanding. “I get that. But everyone’s safe now, so let her go.”
Cole looked down at Bree, and her face flamed with humiliation. This day was turning into one hot, glorious mess. He slowly loosened his hold on her, and she took a step away, rubbing her wrist.
“Emily.” Ty looked at the girl who was clearly his daughter. “What on earth is wrong with you, girl?”
Emily’s eyes were still bright with excitement, and her voice was breathless and quick.
“Daddy! This is Bree Mathews! She’s famous! She’s from Hollywood! And she’s standing here in our restaurant!” The men clearly had no idea what she was talking about, and the words started tumbling out of her mouth. “Oh, my God! Don’t you know? She was Miss California and a runner-up to Miss America. Then she married Damian Maxwell, the actor from that big hit TV show about high school from a few years ago, Drama in the Halls. Remember? He played the hunky coach? And then...” The words were coming fast and furious as Emily recited the timeline of Bree’s life. “Then his show was canceled and he and Bree went on the reality show Hot Hollywood Housewives. She was supposed to be the ‘good girl’ of the group, and the other ladies were so mean to her. By the third season, Damian was doing drugs on camera. When she caught him with Jessica Darling, one of the other wives on the show, Bree had an epic meltdown.”
“Emily,” her father said, trying to intervene. But his daughter was on a roll.
“She flipped an entire table on its side in a restaurant. It was awesome! Anyway, even though she divorced Damian, they tried to keep her on the show for another season, but she refused. Now she plans events and stuff for famous people, and she wrote a cookbook, and I heard she might get her own show on Bravo. Some people hate her because they say she ruined Damian’s career. He hasn’t had a hit since she left him, but of course that’s not her fault. Daddy, she’s famous. And she’s standing right in front of us!”
Emily finally stopped for air. Bree dropped her head, wishing the floor would open up and swallow her whole. Three decades on this earth, and her entire life had just been recapped in breathless detail by a teenager in less than a minute. And the highlight was that she flipped a table over in a crowded restaurant. That was what people thought of when they saw her. What did that say about her choices? About her values? About her?
“Are you filming something here? Is that why you’re here?” Emily was bouncing up and down now. “You are, right? You’re filming? Why else would you be in a place like Russell? Oh, wow...”
This was her chance to protect herself, and Bree took it. She plastered on her best pageant smile.
“Yes. Yes, we’re filming here. But it’s a huge secret. That’s why I didn’t want you to take the picture. No one can know about it, or it will all be ruined. I’m just here checking things out, but if the press finds out, we’ll have to find a new location to go to. I didn’t think anyone would recognize me out here...”
Cole snorted. Again. “So you didn’t think we had television? Or the internet? Or teenagers?”
Damn his arrogance.
“Look, it was all very last minute, and I didn’t know the show was popular in rural...in the country...places like this...” She closed her eyes, trying to think of a way not to sound offensive. But she never thought anyone would recognize her here in the boondocks.
Emily was still focused on the idea of a film crew arriving. “You’re doing a ‘Bree in the country’ kind of thing? That would be so funny! Maybe we’ll have a dance here at The Hide-Away and you could film it! Daddy, you’d let me waitress, right? I could be on TV!”
Ty looked at Bree in confusion, and she figured she’d better settle his daughter down a bit.
“I’m sure we can figure out a way for a pretty girl like you to be part of the show.” The girl beamed at the compliment. “But it’s critical that no one, not even your very best friend, knows that I’m here right now. Seriously, I’ll have to leave and never return if word gets out. You know how it is once news starts spreading on social media. The press will be here in a heartbeat, and I can’t have that...”
“I promise. Cross my heart and hope to die. I won’t tell anyone if you’ll promise that my friends and I can be part of the show. I didn’t get the photo of you before. Y’all moved too fast.”
Ty swiped his finger across the screen on Emily’s phone, which he still held. He nodded.
“She’s right. No picture. And she won’t ever be taking pictures of anyone without asking permission first, right?” He gave his daughter a stern look and handed her phone back to her.
“I’m sorry, Daddy. I promise. I just lost my head...”
Bree smiled. “It’s all right, Emily. Just remember to keep my secret, okay?”
Emily nodded, hugged herself and danced back into the kitchen.
Bree grabbed the hamburger in front of her. A girl had to eat, right? She took a large bite of it and sighed. This burger alone might make up for the lousy day she was having.
She wasn’t at all surprised to hear another grunt from Cole.
“You proud of yourself, Hollywood? Lying to a nice kid like that?”
She was too ashamed to have any fight left in her. She wiped her mouth with a napkin before answering, and her voice was barely a whisper.
“No. No, I’m not proud at all.”
Ty’s voice was low. “Then why did you do it?”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, blowing the air out slowly through her lips. She didn’t care about Cole’s opinion, but Ty deserved the truth. She raised her head and met his puzzled gaze.
“I thought it would be kinder than telling your daughter that someone out there wants to burn me alive. Because that’s what the truth is. I have a stalker, and the whole situation has taken a bad turn. I’m trying to lay low for a while until they can find him. Nell’s daughter, Caroline, is my cousin’s friend, and she suggested I come here.”
Her gaze dropped back to the bar, and the room fell silent. Ty turned and took a bottle from a shelf. He poured the golden liquid into a shot glass and slid it into her hand. She downed it with one swallow, welcoming another burn. She looked up and nodded, and he refilled the glass. But this time she took just a sip before taking another bite of her burger.
“Someone’s threatening to kill you?” Ty asked.
She shrugged. “Or worse. He says he needs to ‘cleanse me by fire’ to remove my sins and make me worthy. He broke into my beach house Saturday while I was gone and burned all of my clothes, because he thinks I dress like a whore.” She took another sip from the glass. “And he sent a threatening message to my cousin’s home in New York while I was there, even though I hadn’t publicized the trip. So now I’m on the run.”
She tried to give Ty a smile, but felt her mouth trembling, and bit down on her lower lip to steady it. Cole, who’d been still and quiet at her side, inhaled sharply. She looked over, but he turned away, staring at Ty. Once again, the brothers carried on a silent conversation. Cole shook his head abruptly, but Ty just glowered at him. Cole’s shoulders slumped and he nodded as he took a step closer to Bree. He lifted his chin toward the shelves behind the bar.
“Give me a hat” was all he said.
Ty handed him one of several Hide-Away ball caps for sale above the cash register. Cole moved behind her and put his hands on either side of her face, making her gasp. He pulled her hair back and through the opening of the cap, creating a ponytail as he pushed the hat low on her head. Before she could protest, Ty started to explain.
“If Emily recognized you, someone else might. Cole will take you out to Nell’s place in his truck. He lives out that way. That fancy car is no way to lay low in this part of the country. My guess is half the town already knows there’s a ninety-thousand-dollar Mercedes parked at The Hide-Away. Leave me the keys and I’ll pull the car around back, then take it home after dark and put it in my barn. I’ll see if my wife, Tammy, can take you shopping for something a little more...casual. We’ll tell people you’re a college friend of Caroline’s. Everyone loves Caroline Patterson...er...McCormack. She’s married now, right? She married that guy from Boston?”
Bree nodded, feeling stunned. “Yeah, they got married in Barbados. Look, why are you doing this? You don’t know me, and you don’t even like me.” She looked over her shoulder at Cole. His close proximity was making her nervous.
Cole arched an eyebrow at her. “Call it that ‘Southern charm’ you were looking for. We help people in trouble down here.” His mouth twitched again. She decided that was the closest thing to a real smile the guy had. “Even people we don’t like.”
CHAPTER TWO
COLE CALDWELL STOLE a sideways glance at the redhead as he drove out of Russell. She was pressed up against the passenger door, with Maggie curled up on the seat between them. While the dog generally rode with her nose pressed snugly against Cole’s leg, today she lay facing their guest. Her head rested on Bree’s thigh, and Bree was absently scratching Maggie’s ear.
Traitor.
Despite the ridiculous layers of makeup, Brianna Mathews could easily be the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Pulling her hair up under the cap revealed her long, slender neck, fine-boned face and those deep green eyes. Her skin was like porcelain. She was tall, almost as tall as he was. And she moved with a natural grace that said she was confident and very aware of herself. The whole package was sexy as hell.
Too bad she was such a flaming, toxic viper.
The lady could peel paint off the wall with those angry eyes of hers. And her sharp tongue could probably flay a man alive. Cole shifted in his seat, suddenly uncomfortable and surprisingly aroused by that thought. He sure as hell didn’t want anything to do with this woman or any other woman for that matter. And it seemed the feeling was mutual. He grunted to himself, earning him another one of her icy glares.
“What?” she snapped.
He shook his head in the closest he’d come to amusement in a long time. Baiting her temper was as easy as shooting very big fish in a very small barrel.
“Oh, nothin’. I’m just picturing you settling into Nell’s hundred-year-old bungalow. All by yourself. No Starbucks. No fancy parties to attend. No television cameras. Girl, you’ll die of loneliness out here.”
She turned to stare out the passenger window. Her voice was quiet.
“It’s better than dying in a pool of blood.”
Well, hell. She’d just managed to turn him into a complete jackass, hadn’t she? No, actually he didn’t need her help with that. He’d done it all on his own. After a year of feeling pretty much nothing but anger, he now felt guilty. He winced at the sharpness of it.
“Sorry.” There’s a word he hadn’t said in a while. “I wasn’t making light of your...”
“Situation? My very interesting situation?” She dropped her head back against the seat of his pickup then turned to look at him. “We don’t exactly bring out the best in each other, do we?”
He snorted. “Apparently not.”
Awkward silence filled the cab as he made a few more turns. The roads got progressively smaller and the fields got bigger. He slowed the truck as they approached a yellow farmhouse with a wide front porch. There was a wooden farmstand next to the road with a simple sign that read Nell’s Produce. He glanced over at the stand as he pulled into the gravel driveway. It looked like Nell had a good selection of tomatoes and blueberries today. He snuck another look at Bree and bit back a smile at her wide-eyed expression.
A faded red barn stood behind the house. Chicken and geese wandered the yard. The pigpen was off to the left, and he could see Nell’s big sow, Spot, sunning herself there with her piglets. Two old workhorses were standing in a small paddock to the right, head to rump, swishing their tails rhythmically to keep the flies away. In the fields behind the barn, his own beef cattle were grazing. He leased the pastures from Nell, and she kept an eye on the cows and calves for him. Nell’s huge garden stretched along the far side of the house. She grew enough vegetables to keep her stand well stocked. What she didn’t grow herself, she sold on consignment for area farmers. People drove for miles to buy from Miss Nell, because they knew she sold the best locally-grown produce. She served up her unique country wisdom, homemade sweet tea and amazing baked goods to her customers, most of whom she knew by name.
A rangy hound of indiscriminate origin trotted toward the truck, baying loudly, but his tail wagged in greeting. Cole stepped out and scratched the dog’s ears. Maggie sat up in the truck and watched alertly, staying silent.
“Hey, Shep, how are you, old boy?” He looked back at Bree, who seemed to be in some stage of shock in his truck. “Are you going to sit there all day?”
She looked down at the dog and hesitated.
“Don’t worry about Shep. He’s more welcoming committee than watchdog.”
Bree slid across the seat past Maggie and stepped down out of his side of the truck. The woman was acting as if she’d been dropped in the middle of a dangerous jungle instead of a quiet North Carolina farm. Her ironclad confidence slipped just a little, and her face paled. She was clearly out of her comfort zone here. He should have enjoyed it, but instead he was troubled to see her lose that cloak of brittle anger.
“Well, as I live and breathe!” a woman’s voice cried out from the front porch. “Colton Caldwell! What’s up, darlin’? You get thirsty for some of my sweet tea on this blistering day? I didn’t figure to see you till the end of the week. That miserable old cow of yours won’t be ready to drop her calf for a while yet.”
Nell Patterson’s face was weather-worn, and her hair was more gray than brown, but her slender body moved with the sure strength of someone who worked hard for a living and didn’t give a darn what anyone thought of her. She was wearing cotton shorts and a white blouse, with a bright yellow apron tied around her waist. It struck him as the tall, sturdy woman stepped off the porch that the way Nell carried herself was very similar to Bree’s. Two strong, but very different, women. They’d either kill each other or be friends forever. Nell spotted Bree at his side, and her brown eyes went wide with surprise.
“And you brought company! And isn’t she a pretty thing? Introduce me to your girl, Colton.”
He gave her a crooked smile and shook his head. “She ain’t my girl, Nell. She’s yours. This is your new tenant, Bree Mathews.”
He watched with grudging respect as Bree stifled whatever terror she was feeling about the farm. She painted on a bright smile and stepped forward to extend her hand to Nell. “It’s so nice to see you again, Mrs. Patterson. We didn’t have much opportunity to talk at Caroline’s wedding, but she’s told me wonderful things about you. I appreciate you letting me use your cottage under the circumstances...” Her formal words and tone were swallowed in a bear hug from Nell.
“Oh, I remember you! You planned their wedding reception, didn’t you? Caroline called me this morning and told me why you’re here. Don’t you worry, honey. We’ll keep you safe.” Nell held Bree out at arm’s length and looked sharply between her and Cole. He could see her wheels turning, and he didn’t like it one bit. What kind of scheme was she putting together in that very clever brain of hers? “But of course, this is a mutually beneficial arrangement.”
Bree looked confused. “I’m sorry?”
“Oh, didn’t Caroline tell you? I need someone to help me with the farm. It gets so busy in the summer, and I just can’t handle it all on my own.” Cole frowned. Nell was the most capable farm woman he’d ever known, and she abhorred offers of assistance.
Bree started to protest. “Oh, Mrs. Patterson, I’d love to help, but I’m afraid I know nothing about farming. I’m a city girl through and through. I know how to cook vegetables, but I know nothing about growing them. As far as I’m concerned, they magically appear at Whole Foods Market. And animals...well, animals and I don’t get along all that well...”
“First, call me Nell or Miss Nell. And second, don’t be silly. You can learn to grow and pick veggies, and you’ll get along just fine with all the animals. Why look, Shep likes you already.” They all looked down to where Shep was lying close by Bree’s feet. Damned if the dog wasn’t looking up at Bree like she was an angel or something. Maggie sat in his truck with the same adoring expression. What the...?
Nell continued. “The cottage is just one hay field away, so you go get yourself settled, and we’ll talk more tomorrow about what you can do to help around here.”
Cole coughed back a snort, and Bree spun to slice him with her angry eyes. He raised his hands in surrender.
“I’m sorry! I can’t help being amused at the thought of you sloppin’ hogs and picking tomatoes and feeding those one-ton horses over there.” He nodded toward Pete and Ruby, Nell’s elderly and famously gentle horses. Bree’s back stiffened, and he knew he’d struck home with his not-so-subtle suggestion that she couldn’t possibly be a farmer. But just look at her, for heaven’s sake.
“Are you saying you don’t think I can do it?”
“Isn’t that what you just said?”
She put her hands on her hips. “I said I didn’t know anything about farming. I didn’t say I couldn’t do it if I wanted to.” She turned to Nell, and he couldn’t miss the stubborn set of her chin. The woman didn’t seem capable of turning down a challenge. “Nell, I look forward to learning more about your farm.”
Oh, this was going to be fun.
“Cole, honey.” Nell dropped something in his hand. “Be a dear and drive Bree over to the cottage, will you? Here’s the key. You know your way around the place and can show her where everything is.” Before he could object, Nell turned back to Bree. “I stocked the fridge with plenty of food, and there’s a dish of my beef stew there for you to heat up for dinner tonight. There are clean linens on the bed. You must be exhausted. And don’t worry about not having a car, honey. I’m sure Cole will give you a ride anywhere you need to go.”
Bree started to say something, then closed her mouth. She’d just been bulldozed by Miss Nell, and Cole knew exactly how she felt.
* * *
BREE WAS USED to waking up in unfamiliar surroundings. She’d traveled nonstop as Miss California, and again as the wife of Damian Maxwell. When she joined the cast of Hot Hollywood Housewives, they were constantly being shuttled off to exotic locations to spice up the show. There were trips to Paris, Hawaii and even the Australian outback on a ridiculous survival challenge. She’d probably slept away from her beloved Malibu home as much as she’d slept in it.
But she still wasn’t prepared when the predawn light filtered through the thin cotton curtains and nudged her from a restless night’s sleep in Nell’s cottage. She sat up and blinked in confusion. Even the outback accommodations were fancier than this place. The bedroom barely managed to contain the queen-size iron bed and a dresser.
She stood and stretched slowly, sighing at the feel of her satin nightgown sliding against her skin. The luxurious fabric was a welcome reminder of her real life, which should be taking place right now far, far away from this country cottage. She’d packed the fancy sleepwear for her trip to her cousin’s baby shower over the past weekend. It was entirely appropriate to wear as a guest at Amanda and Blake’s historic home, or even at the lakeside resort they owned next door to Halcyon.
Here in this rustic whitewashed cottage? Not so much.
But she didn’t have a lot of wardrobe choices, since whatever she’d packed in her weekend bag was pretty much all she had left for clothing. She ran her hands down the expensive material and shook her head. It was ironic that the one thing she’d fought for throughout her adult life—indeed, the driving force behind nearly every decision she’d made—was her desire for security and stability. And now that she’d finally achieved it, some psycho had snatched it all away by torching her clothes and forcing her out of her home.
She jumped when her phone chirped in her purse, indicating an incoming text. The alarm clock on the bedside table showed it wasn’t even 5:30 yet. She grabbed her Hermes bag and dug around inside for the phone. Her personal phone had been left behind in Gallant Lake to prevent anyone from tracing her location. This was just a throw-away burner phone and only a handful of people had the number. She couldn’t imagine which member of that small club would be awake at this hour.
R U awake?
The text was from her cousin, Amanda. Bree grinned and was quick to type a response.
Barely. Why are YOU awake?
Instead of a responding text, the phone rang in her hand.
“Bree! How are you, sweetie?”
“Amanda, what on earth are you doing up at this hour? Did your ghost rattle some chains in the hallway or something?”
Amanda, normally such a level-headed woman, insisted the castle she’d remodeled for hotelier Blake Randall before marrying him was haunted by its original owner.
“Very funny. It’s not the original Madeleine that’s the problem. It’s her namesake. This baby kicks me awake earlier and earlier every morning. If she’s not born soon, I won’t be sleeping at all.”
Amanda not only believed that a ghost named Madeleine haunted Halcyon, she’d also insisted on naming her unborn daughter after her. A feisty five-foot-four, her cousin had been miserably uncomfortable at her baby shower, with the baby occupying a beach ball-size bump directly under her breasts.
“Yeah, well, little Maddy isn’t due for another month, so you’d better start grabbing naps during the day to get your rest.” She left the bedroom in hopes of finding some coffee, and almost swooned at the sight of a small coffeemaker sitting on the counter. She popped in a pod of Sumatra Dark and inhaled the rich aroma as her mug filled.
“Now you sound like Blake. He’d make me stay in bed twenty-four hours a day if he could.”
“That sounds like your husband, for sure. Is he home yet?”
“He won’t be back until next week. He wants to visit all of the resorts one last time before Maddy arrives. So tell me, how are you really doing? Did you get settled in without any problems?”
“Well, I don’t know if I’d call it problem-free, but yeah, I’m here in my temporary prison.” She sat on the blue plaid sofa and told Amanda about her arrival in Russell yesterday and the drama at The Hide-Away, as well as her introduction to Nell and the rustic cottage she was now calling home. She made her disdain for the rural setting very clear.
“Nell has horses and cows and...and pigs.” Bree jumped to her feet in agitation and walked to the front windows. Soft fingers of wispy fog moved across the fields like chiffon as the sun slid up over the horizon. There was a large white farmhouse across the road. It was her only visible neighbor other than Nell.