A Lover's Vow

She would have to remind him of that in front of everyone, Dalton thought, frowning. He knew how to fix that. “Had I known you were parked outside in the cold waiting on me, Jules, I would have hurried home,” he said in a deliberately seductive tone.

“Yeah,” Bobby chimed in, grinning. “If you ask me, that was some kiss you laid on her before she could even get inside your house.”

Dalton frowned. Well, nobody asked him. He didn’t have to meet anyone’s gaze to know their eyes were on him and Jules. Speculating. Wondering. Assuming. He glanced over at Carson. It was time to get the conversation back on track.

“Regardless of that email my father received, we’re reopening his case. My brothers and I have already discussed it.”

Carson shook her head. “Sheppard won’t allow it. Like I said, he won’t take a chance with your lives.”

“Why would anyone not want Sheppard Granger cleared?” Jules asked, her mind turning with all kinds of questions. Dalton could see it in her eyes. Spinning like a whirlwind. Just like the name he’d given her.

“Only Sheppard can tell you why he assumes that,” Carson said after a brief hesitation.

“Doesn’t matter,” Dalton said matter-of-factly. “Dad has served fifteen years in prison too long. Granddad made us promise to do what we could to get him out.”

Carson shook her head. “Sheppard wouldn’t want you to do that. He’ll be eligible for parole in a few—”

“We don’t care about that,” Caden interjected. “He didn’t kill our mother, and it’s time we proved it.”

“He does not want the case reopened,” Carson stressed again.

“Do you think we’re wrong in wanting to clear our father?” Dalton asked.

“No, but my client doesn’t want—”

“What do you think?” Jace interrupted.

“It’s not what I think. It’s what my client wants.”

Jace didn’t say anything for a moment. He’d been observing Carson closely, especially during her exchange with Dalton and Caden, but mostly with Dalton as she kept repeating her client’s wishes. He must still be getting over the shock of learning that she was a woman... a very attractive woman. She was all business. Professional. Straight to the point.

Suddenly, something hit Jace in the gut, and he couldn’t help breaking into the conversation to say, “A client you’re in love with.”

The room fell quiet. Everyone stared first at Jace for having the audacity to make such a bold statement, then at Carson, who had yet to deny what he’d said.

Instead, she drew in a deep breath, met Jace’s direct gaze and said, “Yes. I’m in love with Sheppard Granger.”

Seven

“I don’t like this,” Dalton said while pacing Jace’s office the next morning. “Dad should have returned our call by now.”

Caden, who was staring out the window with his hands shoved in his pants pockets, slowly turned around. “Did you honestly expect him to?”

Dalton stopped his pacing. “Yes, why wouldn’t he? You think Warden Smallwood didn’t get the message to him like he said he would?”

Caden braced his hip against the window ledge. “Oh, I’m sure he got the message, but it’s my guess that Dad’s planning his strategy.”

“What strategy?”

“How he plans to deal with us,” Caden replied, running a frustrated hand down his face.

Sitting at his desk, Jace leaned back in his chair and nodded. “I think you’re right, Caden.”

Dalton crossed his arms over his chest. “And why do you think he’s right?”

Jace stood and came around his desk to sit on the edge. “Think about it. We’re dealing with our father, Sheppard Granger. A man who ordered his attorney to hire bodyguards to protect us without letting us know. Bodyguards who even now refuse to back off until he gives the word. We’re dealing with a man who would gladly spend the rest of his days behind bars if he thought doing so would keep us safe. I figure Carson has contacted him. She’s told him about last night’s meeting, and now he’s trying to figure out how to deal with us.”

Caden left his place by the window to stand beside Jace. “And you heard Carson last night just like we did, Dalton. She was adamant about Dad not wanting us to reopen his case.”

Yes, Dalton thought, he had heard Carson; however, he’d been somewhat distracted. Jules’s presence had made it hard for him to concentrate for most of the meeting. After all, whether he wanted to give her credit or not, she had been the one to notice that Bobby had been tailing him. More than once, his attention had been drawn to her against his will. She’d taken off her coat last night, and the black skirt and red blouse she was wearing had grabbed his attention. For once, he’d regretted that red was his favorite color. He’d been aware every single time she’d shifted positions on the sofa. Hell, she’d even crossed those gorgeous legs and all he could think about was how it would feel to get between them. And although he hadn’t been close to her, that hadn’t stopped him from inhaling her scent. And the more her fragrance flowed through his nostrils, the more he’d thought about sex. The-fuck-through-the-night kind.

He jumped when Caden snapped a finger in his face. He frowned. “What did you do that for?”

“Because we were talking to you, asking you a question, and your thoughts were a million miles away.”

“Whatever,” Dalton said, not wanting to admit that they had been. “What question were you asking me?”

“What was Jules doing at your house after midnight?”

He’d wondered when they would get around to asking him about that. “Evidently, I wasn’t the only one not listening to what was being said. I think Jules explained herself. She had been parked in front of my place waiting for me to come home.”

Caden rolled his eyes. “We know that, Dalton. We want to know why.”

Dalton slid into the chair in front of Jace’s desk. He had gotten very little sleep last night and was definitely feeling it. “She heard I wasn’t coming to Shana’s dinner party and thought we should discuss it. Of course, it would have been a total waste of her time.”

“And of course you told her that...after you laid that kiss on her. The one Bobby told everyone about,” Jace said, studying his brother.

Dalton’s mouth curved into a frown. “That guy talks too damned much. It was a kiss that wasn’t supposed to happen. She told me to pretend I was kissing her.”

“And of course, you didn’t pretend.”

A slow smile touched Dalton’s lips. “No, I didn’t.” He couldn’t help remembering how kissing Jules had made him feel. After everyone had finally left last night, he’d gone back to bed determined to pick up on his dream where he’d left off. He hadn’t been able to, because his mind had been filled with memories of their kiss...how she’d tasted and how she’d felt in his arms.

Realizing his brothers were watching him, he decided to get them off the subject of him and Jules. “Now I have a question for you, Jace.”

“What?”

“How on Earth did you know Carson had a thing for Dad?”

Jace chuckled softly. “She doesn’t have a thing for him, Dalton. She’s in love with him. There’s a difference. One day, you’ll realize the difference when you come to know love for yourself, and then you can easily recognize it in someone else.”

“I agree,” Caden chimed in. “I caught on when I noticed the look in her eyes whenever she said Dad’s name. I don’t know what his feelings are for her, but I can say she has very deep feelings for him.”

“I can’t believe you called her out on it,” Dalton said, grinning. “Surprised the hell out of me when you did.”

Jace took a sip of the water sitting on his desk. “I surprised myself. I was out of line in doing that, and I apologized to her before she left last night.” Jace rubbed the back of his neck. “My only excuse is that there were so many shockers revealed last night—Carson being a woman, the fact we’ve had bodyguards for over a month now and that one even went on my honeymoon, and our very professional and business-minded father’s close relationship with Stonewall, Quasar and Striker. I guess I had one of those moments when I felt the need to reveal something for a change.”

Dalton didn’t say anything for a moment, thinking that last night definitely had been one big surprise after another. Carson Boyett was definitely a looker, and he could see his father falling for her. He stood up. “So what do we do about Dad? I think we should just get in the car and drive over to Delvers right now.”

“Oh, so now you want to go see Dad when you haven’t gone to see him in over a month?”

“Stay off my ass, Caden. I had planned to go see Dad this week, but now I’ll do it sooner. Especially since Stonewall, Quasar and Striker won’t let up until Dad gives the word. I was followed to work this morning.”

“So were we,” Jace said, “so stop whining. We need to let Dad work this out for himself. But regardless, we will reopen the case, and I think he knows it. He’s worried, and he has every right to be. Let’s give him the rest of the day, and if we don’t hear from him by then, we’ll go to Delvers tomorrow.”

Both Dalton and Caden nodded their agreement.

* * *

“Well, I must say, Jules, it sounds like you and Shana had a very interesting night,” Ben Bradford said, leaning back in his chair at the kitchen table.

Jules had just finished telling him everything, including the fact that for the past month Sheppard Granger had assigned bodyguards to protect his sons. The ex-cop in Ben thought the three guys were pretty good if they’d gone undetected until now. And he wasn’t surprised it had been Jules who’d figured out Dalton was being followed. He knew she was good at what she did.

“You should have seen Shana’s face when Quasar admitted to having gone to South Africa with them on their honeymoon,” Jules said, grinning.

Ben didn’t say anything as he took another sip of his iced tea. He knew Jules was trying to bring a little humor to the situation, but she knew as well as he did that if Sheppard Granger thought his sons needed protection from professional bodyguards, then things must be pretty serious. It didn’t help matters that by being married to Jace, Shana could also very well be caught in the line of fire.

“I wonder who doesn’t want Sheppard Granger’s case reopened.”

He met Jules’s gaze. He knew that she was doing more than wondering. Her mind had already dissected every piece of information she had heard last night, and in addition to that, she intended to do her own research. This time she was driven by more than mere inquisitiveness—her sister might be in danger.

“I don’t know,” he said, placing his glass of tea aside. Having one daughter who could possibly be in danger was bad enough. He didn’t need two.

“You researched the case, right, Dad?”

Yes, he had done his research when he’d known Shana was marrying Jace. He’d known Jace’s father was in prison for killing Jace’s mother and wanted to know more about it. “Yes, and it seemed pretty cut-and-dried. Sheppard Granger’s fingerprints were found on the murder weapon, and he and his wife had been having marital problems. There was even evidence presented that he was having an affair...although no other woman was named. All they had to go on were hotel receipts.”

Jules rolled her eyes. “Circumstantial evidence. Why wasn’t that part thrown out of court?”

“Not sure. His attorney should have been on top of his game. Doesn’t sound like he was.”

Jules nodded as she took a sip of her lemonade. “The issue of Sheppard Granger’s replacing his attorney with Carson Boyett did come up last night. She admitted Mr. Granger felt that Jess Washington, his previous counsel, didn’t do a good job representing him at the trial. And now it seems that Mr. Granger is wondering whether it was intentional, since Vidal Duncan, the man who tried to kill Jace not long ago, was the one who recommended Washington.”

Ben stood to take his plate to the sink. “Under the circumstances, I would wonder the same thing.”

Jules nodded as she ate the last of the fried fish her father had prepared for their lunch. It had been close to three in the morning when everyone had finally left Dalton’s condo. Instead of driving home, although it was only another ten miles, she’d come here to spend the night, only to find her father had spent the night elsewhere. Since she had a key, she had let herself in and used the guest bedroom as usual.

She glanced over at her dad. He was loading the dishwasher, smiling and whistling. He’d been doing both things a lot lately, so she couldn’t be mad at Mona. She probably should be thanking the woman for her father’s jubilant moods. Ben and Mona had met in the grocery store almost six months ago, although for the life of her, Jules couldn’t imagine her six-foot-three-inch, sixty-two-year-old father hanging around any store long enough to hit on a woman. In her opinion, her father had always been a handsome man, but during all the years after their mom had died, neither she nor Shana had known him to be involved with a woman. Oh, they knew he’d dated once in a while, since she could still recall the packs of condoms she and her sister had found in his drawer one year. But he’d never brought any of those dates home to meet his daughters.

Now, not only had he brought Mona, a college professor at the University of Virginia, home, but he was bringing her to family functions, too, like Shana’s wedding and Sunday dinners. Although Mona was legally blind, there was a fifty-fifty chance she could get her eyesight back, since her optic nerve hadn’t been damaged in the auto accident, just her peripheral nerves.

Jules had slept until almost noon that morning, and it had been the smell of the fish her father was frying in the kitchen downstairs that had awakened her. She loved all types of seafood, with fish and shrimp topping the list as her favorites. Luckily for her, her father enjoyed fishing. And no one fried fish and cooked hush puppies like Ben Bradford.

By the time she’d showered and dressed to go downstairs, he’d set the table for lunch. He hadn’t provided any explanation about where he’d spent the night, and she hadn’t asked. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to tell from the smile on his face that he had spent the night with Mona. She’d figured they had become sexually active during their trip to New York last month. But any time she thought about her father having sex when she wasn’t managed to grate on her last nerve. Now more than before, she intended to call Ray Ford the first chance she got.

“So what are you thinking about, Jules?”

She blinked, realizing her father had spoken and what he’d asked. It was not the time to be honest and tell him what she really had been thinking, so she said, “About Sheppard Granger and his situation.” That wasn’t a total lie, since everything that had happened last night was still on her mind when she woke up this morning, especially that kiss. No matter how tired she’d been last night, it hadn’t kept Dalton from invading her dreams. Last night had been worse, since she now knew how he tasted.

“And?”

She shrugged. “You tell me, Dad. You’ve met him.” A week before Shana’s wedding, Jace had invited her dad to accompany him and Shana to Delvers to meet his father. The only thing Ben had said afterward was that Sheppard Granger was a likable guy. That hadn’t told her much, since there were plenty of murderers who’d gone down in history as being likable.

“The meeting with him didn’t last long, Jules.”

“Doesn’t matter. The ex-cop and ex-detective in you would have sized him up pretty quickly. Tell me something other than he was a likable guy.”

Ben turned from the sink and met his daughter’s intense gaze while heaving a deep sigh. “Apparently, the word likable doesn’t do it for you.”

“No, it doesn’t.”

Ben moved across the room to take a chair. He knew Jules had questions for a reason, and he didn’t particularly like where this line of questioning might lead. “If I had to do a quick character analysis of Sheppard Granger, I would have to say if he wasn’t behind bars, he would be an affluent entrepreneur who, although born with a silver spoon in his mouth, is the type of man who doesn’t have a problem sharing his wealth and thinking about those less fortunate. He would be an awesome benefactor. Not just of his wealth but of his knowledge, which I believe is extensive. I could tell he’s kept himself up-to-date on modern technology, changing trends and world events. I believe that although he’s behind bars, he has a special leadership gift that few men possess, which is why he was able to not only form relationships with the three men you met last night, but also become a positive role model, counselor, adviser and confidant to them, as well as to others.”

Ben paused a moment to gather his thoughts, knowing that his daughter, the ex-cop, was latching on to his every word. “I was able to pick up on those things about him immediately, the minute I walked into the prison. He’s highly respected by more than just the warden. He’s earned the respect of the guards and his fellow inmates. They know he’s getting special favors, but it didn’t seem to bother anyone. In fact, it’s as if they know any favors given to him will eventually benefit them. They know that he will look out for them.”

Jules nodded then asked the question Ben had been waiting for. The one he had known she would get around to asking. “Do you think he’s someone who could have killed his wife?”

Ben didn’t say anything for a minute. “I only met him that one time, Jules, and the meeting lasted a little more than an hour. But it’s my belief that the only way he could have done such a thing is if he’d been pushed, and I mean pushed really hard. I never knew his wife, so I can’t say what he was dealing with. But, according to what Jace and Shana shared with me on the ride to Delvers, the brothers have proof that it was their mother, not their father, who was having an affair.”

Jules already knew that. The way the story went was that one night, while working late at Granger Aeronautics, Shana and Jace had discovered a secret compartment inside a sofa in Sheppard Granger’s office. The secret compartment held a file containing proof of the affair.

What Jules had found just as fascinating was why her sister and now-brother-in-law were in his father’s empty office in the first place. Both Jace and Shana had sealed their lips on that part, but Jules figured they must have been giving that sofa one hell of a workout.

“Throwing that into the mix,” Ben interrupted her thoughts to say, “a jealous husband might do just about anything. He might have snapped.”

Jules rolled her eyes. “Maybe right then, but not a few months later.”

Ben shrugged his wide shoulders. “Maybe not. But maybe he wanted a divorce, and she refused to give him one.”

Jules drained the last of her lemonade. “What if Sheppard Granger’s suspicions are true and whoever sent that email meant business? That means Shana could be in as much danger as Jace. It also means there might be more behind Sylvia Granger’s death than her affair. That may have just been a cover-up for something bigger.”

Ben didn’t want to hear that, although the same thought had crossed his mind earlier. Before he could formulate a response to his daughter’s comments, his phone rang. He stood up, grateful for the reprieve. “Excuse me for a minute. That might be Mona.” He quickly left the room to answer his mobile phone, which he’d left in the living room.

When he reached it, he frowned, not recognizing the phone number. “Hello?”

“Ben, this is Sheppard Granger. Is there any way you can pay me a visit? Today, if possible? I might need your help.”

Eight

Dalton walked into McQueen’s and glanced around. It was happy hour, and the place was certainly lively. He walked over to the bar and slid into a seat, thinking that just a few months ago, he and his brothers would have been enjoying a drink together after a long day at work. Now Jace and Caden were biting at the bit to get home to their wives.

“What are you having, Granger 3?” Myron, the bartender and owner of McQueen’s, asked. Myron was a fun-loving guy who managed a nice place. The drinks were good and the food exceptional. Myron had started differentiating between Dalton and his brothers by referring to Jace as Granger 1, Caden as Granger 2 and Dalton as Granger 3.

“The usual.”

Myron grinned. “Your usual is coming right up. Where are Grangers 1 and 2?”

Dalton shrugged. “Home with their wives, I suppose. Probably ran red lights to get there.”

“Marriage has a way of doing that to you,” Myron said, placing a glass of scotch in front of Dalton. “So don’t hate them.”

Dalton frowned. “I don’t. I just didn’t expect the changes so soon. Jace, Caden and I were apart for years, living our lives in separate places, but now we’re back in Charlottesville, what do they do the first chance they get? Get married. If that’s not bullshit, I don’t know what is.”

Myron shook his head, grinning. “Doesn’t sound like bullshit to me but good common sense. Remember, I’m also married—and happily. I played your game for years, different woman every day of the week, a flavor of the month. But at some point that crap gets old. I wouldn’t trade being married.”

Dalton figured he didn’t want to hear anything else Myron had to say. He wasn’t in the mood. Taking his drink, he said, “I’m grabbing a table. Talk to you later.”

Crossing the room, he saw several women checking him out, some brazenly, not even trying to hide their interest. Surprisingly, he wasn’t in the mood for them, either—women throwing themselves at him, probably needing a good fuck as much as he did. So why was he having a pity party when he could probably go somewhere and have an orgy? He felt the answer soak deep into his skin, and he could taste it on his lips. Because he only wanted a certain woman. One who was more edgy than soft, sharp than dull, one who invaded his dreams every night like she had a damned right to be there.

He slid into a booth and took a sip of his scotch, loving the taste. He needed it tonight. His brain was on overload. Last night had been a jolt to his system, and something was still kicking inside him. Anger. Frustration. Horniness. All three. He hadn’t liked giving in to Jace’s suggestion that they give their father time to decide how he would deal with them. Shit, they weren’t children but grown-ass men. What was there to deal with?

“Mind if I join you?”

He glanced up and stared into Stonewall’s face. He took another sip of scotch. “Does it matter if I mind?” he asked flatly.

“Not really,” Stonewall answered, sliding into the seat across from him. “Now that you know what my job entails, there’s no longer a reason for me to be discreet or keep a low profile.”

Dalton wasn’t sure whether that was good or bad. The fact that he’d been followed around for a little over a month without his knowledge still didn’t sit well with him. The USN had taught him how to be on his guard, expect the unexpected and be ready. But over time, once he’d put the agency behind him, he had stopped looking over his shoulder. Now it seemed he would have to start doing so again for an entirely different reason.

Stonewall summoned a waitress to take his drink order, giving Dalton a chance to study the man more closely. He figured Stonewall was in his midthirties and worked out a lot, probably hitting the gym every day. Dalton could tell that even while talking to the waitress, Stonewall was scoping out his surroundings and had taken stock of every single person in McQueen’s, somehow making a mental note while not missing a beat. And he was doing so with evident ease and efficiency, which led Dalton to believe he was well-practiced at it.

As soon as the waitress left, that assumption led him to ask, “How long have you been doing this?”

Stonewall’s gaze shifted from the backside of the waitress walking away to Dalton. His eyes were filled with male appreciation, and Dalton knew that the smile touching the man’s lips had nothing to do with the question but with the woman he’d just ogled.