Perfect Target, page 29
Her mother's lips tightened. "I did ignore some signs," she admitted, not going fully in on her confession, but it was probably a big step for her. "I didn't see how badly you were falling apart when you were a teenager. But you were also hiding it from me, Piper. You were pretending with me just like you were pretending with everyone else."
"Because I didn't know who I was when I was a teenager. Was I Katie Carmichael, the beautiful, sweet girl next door? Was I Piper Nolan the sexy superstar with the world at her feet? I had no idea. I didn't like either one of them, really." She paused. "But I can't blame you for everything. The drinking, the drugs, they were on me. I have to take responsibility for myself, and I have. I don't do that anymore."
"You did have to come to that conclusion on your own," her mother agreed. "I could send you to rehab. But if you didn't want to do it, you weren't going to do it. I tried to check in with you, but you weren't talking to me. You blamed me for everything."
"You were a good target for a long time."
"So, where do we go from here?"
She thought about that. "If you want to be my mother and not my manager, then we can try to salvage our relationship. But I'm not going back to acting. That's over for me. I want to bake. I want to run my business. I want to be real all the time, not just part of the time."
"I thought you were excited to get a second chance."
"That was fake excitement. I was using the second chance to get information. I can't get into the details, but John Nicholson and Ethan Cawley will lose everything over the next few months."
Her mother stared back at her, silently calculating her words. "Were they connected to Joel?"
"Yes. I know that not all of Hollywood is as bad as a few powerful men, but I'm done. Can you accept that? I'm not walking away from our family. I'll still be there financially as much as I can for you and for Nana, but I have to live an authentic life that's completely mine and totally honest."
Her mother slowly nodded. "It will make me sad never to see your talent on the screen again, but I can support you, Piper. You need to live your life and I don't want to see you go back to that wild and unhappy girl you were in your teens. I believed you had matured enough to be able to have your TV career again and not fall into old patterns. I thought it was your second chance, but if it's not, then it's not."
Relief flooded through her. "It's not."
"Okay. Then we start from now—mom and pastry chef."
She smiled at the tightness in her mother's expression. "It's killing you, isn't it?"
Her mother blew out a breath. "No. I lived through some terrifying hours last night when the FBI made it clear you were in terrible danger. We've been at cross-purposes the last ten years, apart more than we've been together, but when I thought you might die, all I could think about was how sorry I was for wasting the time we'd had, for being angry and trying to control you. I won't say it will be easy, but I'll try. I want to be your mom again. I want us to have a relationship."
"Then maybe something good has come from all this." She stood up. "I should get back to Beck."
Her mother rose. "Tell Beck I look forward to getting to know him better."
When Piper entered Beck's room, Flynn and Savannah were there, and the three were engaged in a lively conversation.
"What did I miss?" she asked.
"We located Hailey Meyers," Savannah said. "She was having an affair with Larry and tried to warn him about Joel. Apparently, she had been personally involved with Joel at some point, too, and had learned what he was doing. She figured out where Joel was storing his digital blackmail. She gave that to Larry, but they hadn't figured out how to access it. Those were the numbers on the paper you found, which we finally decrypted this morning. We have it all now. Everything Joel had on everyone. And it's big, Piper. There are more people involved than just the men you were going after."
She was stunned. "I can't believe it."
"It's true. And this is just the tip of the iceberg," Savannah added. "We know Larry had some insurance somewhere, which we haven't found yet, but we will."
She wanted to believe the men would pay, but it wasn't easy. "Nicholson and Cawley have a lot of money. They'll run to some island, just like Kevin Richards did."
"They're already in custody," Beck interrupted. "They're being interrogated as we speak."
"I can hardly believe it. What about Congressman Trent?"
"He resigned from his position this morning, but bad press will soon become the least of his worries," Flynn interjected.
"This is amazing. Why did Hailey run? Why didn't she tell the FBI everything when Larry died?" she asked.
"Hailey was scared of Joel," Flynn said. "She thought he'd kill her before anyone could catch him."
"He probably would have. He had no soul. I saw the coldness in his eyes. He didn't care who he hurt as long as he got what he wanted." She let out a breath of relief. "What about his mom and sister?"
"Our team is talking to them now. It doesn't appear they knew anything," Savannah said.
"It's over, Piper," Beck said with a smile. "We're just down to the cleanup."
"It feels that way, but I'm still worried that they will find a way to escape any consequences. They've always seemed so untouchable."
"We won't let that happen," Beck told her. "Trust me."
She met his gaze. "I always have."
The nurse came into the room and said, "Good news, Agent Murray. I have your discharge papers."
"Thank God!" Beck said. "I can't wait to get out of here. No offense."
The nurse smiled. "Not the first time I've heard that."
They stepped into the hall so Beck could sign his papers and get dressed. Savannah pressed some car keys into her hand. "Beck's car," she said. "I assume you'll drive him home."
"I will."
"Good. Then we'll get back to work."
"Don't worry," Flynn added. "We won't let anyone slip through the cracks, Piper."
"What about what I did?" she asked. "The lines I crossed. What about my friends?"
He met her gaze. "It seems to me that all you and your friends did was try to help our unit take down a ring of predators and make the world a lot safer."
Relief washed through her. "Thank you."
"You're the one who deserves gratitude. You risked your life, Piper. You'd make a good FBI agent."
She laughed at that. "I'm going to stick to baking desserts."
Beck walked into his house on Wednesday afternoon, wincing with pain as his cracked ribs ached with each step. But it felt good to be home. He sat down on the couch as Piper hovered over him.
"What can I get you?" she asked. "Do you want coffee? Lunch? Something else?"
"I'm fine."
"What about an extra pillow?"
"I don’t need anything but you." He held out his hand.
She slipped her fingers into his and sat next to him. "I want to take care of you."
"I feel the same way."
"I'm fine."
"You may be slightly better than me, but you're not fine," he told her, seeing the shadows in her eyes, and the bruises and scratches on her cheeks.
"I will be. I can't quite believe it's over. I guess I can go home now. I can get my life back to normal."
"You can do all that, but…" He tucked an errant strand of shimmery gold hair behind her ear, thinking again how close he'd come to never seeing her beautiful face again.
"But?" She gave him a questioning look.
"I'm hoping your new normal might include me."
"Do you want it to include you? The other day—it feels like a lifetime ago now—you got spooked."
"I did," he admitted. "My whole life I've been committed to one person—my brother. Whatever I did, whatever decision I made, was based on him, on the promise I made to my mother. Even when he grew up, and went to law school, everything I was working for was to get him to the end of that journey."
"You did it."
"I did." He paused. "I never thought I had room for anyone else. I couldn't take care of another person. I had nothing more to give, and that didn't feel fair, so I avoided relationships that were going that way. Then you showed up."
"Your fantasy girl," she murmured.
"You were my fantasy girl, but not in the way you think," he said. "I didn't sleep with you because you were a TV star. It wasn't Katie Carmichael who haunted my dreams—it was the young woman I pulled out of the ocean, who was beautiful, scared and brave. I couldn't forget her. And when I got to know the woman you are now, that's when I fell for you. You were still beautiful, scared, and brave, but you were also sweet, sexy, funny, and a fighter. You were willing to put your life on the line for a just cause. You got under my skin in a way no one else has. I knew I shouldn't have slept with you. It wasn't professional. You were under my care."
"And you took really good care of me. I'm the one who pushed, Beck. I'm the one who said it would just be meaningless sex. I took advantage of you."
"No, you didn't. And the real problem was that I didn't want it to be meaningless. The other morning when you said how good we were together, I panicked, because you were saying exactly what I was feeling, but I was still hanging on to my plan to fly solo, which was never going to work once I got to know you."
"I get it. It has been fast, Beck. To be honest, the only kind of sex I had before I met you was meaningless. You said you never let yourself love anyone or commit because of how much time you spent taking care of your brother. I wasn't holding back from love or commitment because I didn't want to take care of anyone. I held back because I didn't know how to love someone else when I didn't love myself."
His heart tore with her words.
"I didn't know who I was," she continued, her eyes growing moist with unshed tears. "Every time I looked in the mirror, I saw someone different, and most of the time, I didn't like her. The lines between TV and reality blurred for me. It didn't help that I was self-medicating my anxiety or trying to figure out who I was at wild parties with people who didn't care about me at all."
She took a much-needed breath, then continued. "I've never been in love, Beck. All the relationships the paparazzi gave me, all the times I was allegedly heartbroken or in a love triangle weren't true. I might have looked like I was with dozens of people, but I was alone, and I was lost. The first time you rescued me was the first time I realized how low I'd sunk. I knew I had to get help. And the smear campaign actually made it easier for me. I couldn't go back to my life. I had to change it."
"You did a good job making those changes. You got sober."
"Yes. I don't think I was addicted as much to the alcohol as I was addicted to not being alone with my thoughts. I didn't want to think, so I had to be in places and with people where I couldn't think. But over the past seven years, I've done a lot of growing up. I got comfortable with the new me. I finally felt like I could be happy, and I could be myself. That's why when Juliette died, I finally found the courage to act. I know you don't approve of what I did, but I had to do something to fight back. I had to help now because I didn't help before."
"I understand why you did it," he said.
"Getting to know you over this past week filled the last empty void in my life. You're the first man who has ever really known me, all of me—the bad stuff, and the good stuff, and the stuff in between. I feel like you see me, Beck."
"I do see you," he said, gazing deep into her eyes. "And you see me. I put up a lot of walls years ago. After my parents died, I was overwhelmed with grief and pain, and I couldn't let myself feel that again. I had to lock my heart away. Then you came along with a key."
"I wish you hadn't had such a difficult time growing up, but it made you who you are. And I'm who I am because of what I went through. Today we get to choose a future that's not tied to the past. I want you, Beck. And I want every second with you to mean something," she added with a smile. "Although I've never had a man get so worked up about the idea of meaningless sex."
He grinned. "I wanted it to mean something from the first second I kissed you."
"Technically, I kissed you."
"True. But I'm going to be the first one to say I love you."
She drew in a breath. "Really? Those are some big, scary words."
"I've never said them to another woman."
"I love you, too, Beck. I've never said that to another man. It's kind of like we're virgins."
He laughed. "Then I guess we have a lot to discover about each other. Let's start now." He leaned in and took the kiss he'd been starving for. Her mouth was so soft, so hot, so filled with promise. His heart pounded against his chest, which brought a wince of pain he couldn't hold back.
"I'm hurting you." She immediately pulled away.
"Only in the best way." He reached for her again.
She put her hand against his mouth. "Later," she promised. "I don't ever want to hurt you, Beck."
He believed her, and it felt both strange and amazing to have someone so worried about hurting him. He'd been afraid to put his heart on the line, but with Piper, he no longer felt the fear. "I don't ever want to hurt you, either. I may not rush to commit, but when I'm in, I'm in."
"Me, too. As long as you don't mind being involved with a pastry chef."
"Sweets in the kitchen, sweets in the bedroom," he teased. "Sounds like the perfect life."
She gave him a wicked smile. "Well, we might have to make the bedroom a little spicy."
"Oh, man, you're killing me," he groaned. "Damn these ribs."
"It will be worth the wait," she said with a laugh. "We have time."
"The rest of our lives," he agreed.
"With just one caveat."
He gave her a wary look. "What's that?"
"You never ever make me get on another boat."
"Deal," he said, leaning over to take one more kiss, because he just couldn't stop himself.
What to read next…
ALL THE PRETTY PEOPLE
A thrilling, page-turning standalone mystery thriller that will keep you up all night!
Ten years ago, I was seventeen, spending summers with my wealthy family and friends on Hawk Island. One terrible night, I blacked out. The next morning, my best friend, Melanie, was gone—vanished without a trace.
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Today, I go back. To the island. To my sister's wedding. To a group of privileged people with whom I've never belonged. To my best friend's brother, a man who hates us all. To secrets that someone will kill to keep.
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A storm is coming. A storm that will cut off the island from all hope of help. A storm that could allow a kidnapper to escape or a killer to murder again. A storm that will wash away all the lies and deception and reveal the true faces of All the Pretty People.
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Will I be the next one to disappear?
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Other Suspense Titles Available
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Off the Grid: FBI Series
PERILOUS TRUST
RECKLESS WHISPER
DESPERATE PLAY
ELUSIVE PROMISE
DANGEROUS CHOICE
RUTHLESS CROSS
CRITICAL DOUBT
FEARLESS PURSUIT
DARING DECEPTION
RISKY BARGAIN
PERFECT TARGET
Suspense Duos
SILENT RUN
SILENT FALL
* * *
TAKEN
PLAYED
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Lightning Strikes Trilogy
BEAUTIFUL STORM
LIGHTNING LINGERS
SUMMER RAIN
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About the Author
Barbara Freethy is a #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of 75 novels ranging from contemporary romance to romantic suspense and women's fiction. With over 15 million copies sold, twenty-eight of Barbara’s books have appeared on the New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Lists, including SUMMER SECRETS which hit #1 on the New York Times and DON’T SAY A WORD, which spent 12 weeks on the list!
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Known for her emotional and compelling stories of love, family, mystery and romance, Barbara enjoys writing about ordinary people caught up in extraordinary adventures. She is currently writing two ongoing series: The romantic suspense series OFF THE GRID: FBI SERIES and the contemporary romance series WHISPER LAKE.
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Barbara Freethy, Perfect Target
