Page 98 of The Breakdown
“Like what, Vaughn?”
“Like maybe how she wants to leave. I don’t know. I’m not exactly a catch anymore, am I? And the way I’ve put her off…I wouldn’t blame her if she wanted to leave again.”
“Vaughn, she’s not going to go because you’ve hurt your back. You ought to know her better than that.”
“But maybe it would be better for her if she did. I don’t want her to feel like she has to take care of me.”
“I don’t,” Natalie said, entering the room. She’d come in through the kitchen without them noticing. “I like taking care of you.”
Vaughn clamped her mouth shut. Then, tentatively, said, “You do?”
“Can’t you tell?” She sat down next to her and gripped her hand. “Nothing makes me feel warmer inside than helping you.”
“But I’m…useless.”
Natalie shook her head. “No, Vaughn. You’re everything.”
June smiled, moved by her words. Vaughn kept flushing. June stood, aiming to give them some privacy. “See if you can get her to eat. She won’t do it for me.”
Natalie looked at the plate on the tray. “Vaughn, you finish eating while I run back to the guesthouse to shower and change. Then we’ll watch a movie together or something. How’s that sound?”
Natalie did this every night with Vaughn. She either put on a movie, having signed them up for something called Netflix, or she worked a puzzle with her or played a board game. It was really quite sweet and Vaughn seemed eternally grateful and liked having her near.
Vaughn grumbled but Natalie pulled her close and kissed her on the forehead, shutting her up. “Fine, I’ll eat,” Vaughn finally said.
“Good. I’ll heat it up for you.” She took the plate and carried it into the kitchen to put into the microwave.
June was still smiling in the doorway. Vaughn caught sight of her.
“What?”
“Just enjoying watching you give in. It’s a sight I’ve rarely seen.”
“Oh, be quiet.”
June laughed and left her alone, bypassing Natalie on the way back into the kitchen. She worked at washing the dishes as she heard Natalie return Vaughn’s plate to her and leave.
It sure was nice to have Natalie around.
Chapter Forty-two
Goddamn fucking Tito. He’d really screwed him. He’d paid him good money, real good money to do one thing. Find Natalie. And did he do it? No. Or at least he wouldn’t know if he had because the asshole wouldn’t answer his phone. So he’d said good riddance to him, just like he had that little fucker Tom. Christ, was everyone out to screw him over? Did he have sucker written on his forehead?
He pressed on the gas pedal and cursed at the weak horsepower the little car had. No good fucking car. Couldn’t Nico do better than this? Better than a fucking used little piece of shit? He’d said it would keep him incognito. Ha. That might be the only thing it was good for.
He drove faster, gripping the worn steering wheel tightly, and squinted ahead. Even the headlights seemed to be weak. Christ, it was dark. He took his foot off the pedal and coasted, uncomfortable with the unfamiliar terrain. But that had been his life lately. Uncomfortable. Nico had put him up in some Godforsaken house in the west valley, out near Surprise. A small tract home with weeds growing in the backyard and scorpions around every damn corner. This morning he’d gotten out of the shower to find one crawling up the bedroom curtain like it owned the damn place. He’d called Nico furious and he’d promised to send someone out, but he’d yet to follow through. And of course Allen couldn’t be there when the guy came, because it would blow his cover, so he’d gone for a drive. The drive had continued though once he’d received the phone call. The phone call he’d been waiting for from his contact at the police department.
“Fuck you, Tito, you giant bastard.” He pressed on the gas again and sped onward, thinking things over. “Fuck you, Tito, and fuck you, Detectives. None of you will get the best of me.” He laughed.
He’d heard the cops had come looking for him after the search warrant had been executed. Maybe they’d found something after all. Maybe it had something to do with his business dealings. Or maybe it was all the info on Natalie he had stored on his home computer, something he’d forgotten he’d had. He wasn’t sure, he just knew they were after him. That’s where Nico Fitz came in. The two of them went way back. In fact, Nico had been the one to give him his start at a real business venture. He’d believed in him and given him the capital needed to get things rolling. He’d trusted Allen after Allen worked for him for a couple years making deliveries and collecting fees. Allen had been good at his job. He’d been a real ball buster and he always got results. He’d gained respect for that.
So now Nico was helping him once again. Hiding him, supporting him, funneling him news. The cops, they’d never catch on. Nico was too good and had too many connections. Allen was home free if he wanted it. He was being offered a safe place in South America, all the women he wanted, and a new business to boot. All he had to do was say yes and Nico would send over the new passports and wire him the cash he needed. But there was one thing he needed to do first.
One thing he had to do. The one thing that was a long time coming.
Chapter Forty-three
Natalie hummed as she dressed and combed her hair after her long shower. The hot spray had massaged her tired shoulders and calmed her weary mind. She had so much on her mind lately, it was a miracle she could even still form the words to write when it came to her blogs and promoting products. But luckily, she’d been able to pull it off, enough to bring a paycheck or two so she could at least keep paying Vaughn rent. Vaughn had told her not to worry about it so much, but she did. She knew the ranch was still struggling even though business was picking up. It would be a while before things started to noticeably improve on the financial front, and in the meantime, she wanted to keep up her end of the bargain.