Escaping Shadows, page 13
Georgina stopped and then started laughing. She laughed so hard her head hurt and tears streamed down her face.
“I don’t get what’s so funny,” Kord said to her, and Georgie had to take a couple of deep breaths to stop from laughing
“I never thought my grandfather liked me. Women were only good for the marriages they could bring in. It was always the oldest son who was important. My grandmother was a cold, undemonstrative woman and I never really spent much time with them. But it was only my grandfather who came looking for me. All he had to do was email me, which he did. No one else did. It was clear we didn’t know each other, so he started by asking why I hadn’t taken money from my trust. I told him everything. Then he started to ask about college, the classes I took, and what I wanted to do with my life. I said I’d always loved business but had never had any practical knowledge beyond a couple of internships in college. Everything I knew was theoretical. We talked about my job at Harper’s and then how I was saving for a truck. He began to ask me what I would do in certain business situations. We started off using ‘that bar you work in’ as an example, but over the past several months we’ve been discussing major corporations. One situation we discussed was the family-held business with divergent interests. It was a discussion about ethics, but it was this. It was my father and my brother. I instructed him on the recovery of sold assets and he followed it.”
“Sounds like you have one person in your family that loves you,” Kord told her and she saw it now. He hadn’t been the warm, fuzzy grandpa, but he respected her opinion and took the time to get to know her better.
“He’s giving me the empire, isn’t he?” Georgie asked everyone on the plane.
“Sure looks that way,” Ryker told her with a smile on his face. “The question is, what are you going to do with it?”
Georgie looked back at Kord and then at Ryker and Sebastian. In just that second, her whole life could change if she wanted it to. She’d be the one sitting at the table with those two men as equals instead of pouring their drinks.
“Got any openings for an intern at Faulkner Shipping?” Georgie asked Ryker.
Ryker smiled one of his rare smiles as an answer. She snuggled back into Kord for the rest of the flight. She had a man who loved her when she had been a bartender, a grandfather who actually did care about her, and real friends. From the darkness came the light and this light was called Shadows Landing.
17
It was very late by the time they got back to Shadows Landing. Ryker agreed to start business lessons tomorrow morning, but now she had some time with Kord all to herself.
“Thank you for finding me. I can’t believe you got a presidential advisor, a pair of billionaires, a socialite, and a spy to help find me.”
“I love you, G. I’m not going to sit back when something bad or tough happens. I want to be by your side. If that means making a makeshift basket sling and lowering you out the window after crashing your parents’ party, then so be it.”
“I love you.” And she did. So much. Yet, she was slightly worried about what would happen now. Her life was about to change. Would Kord stick with her through it all, or would the issues that accompanied what she wanted to do be too much for him? Kord opened the door to his house and they walked in hand-in-hand. “Kord, I want to take over my family’s businesses by becoming president of Greyson Holdings.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less, G.”
“I’ll have to be away from Shadows Landing more and I’ll be up late, working on stuff and then there are all these events.”
Kord kissed her forehead. “If you’re trying to scare me off, it’s not working. If this is something you want, I’m here to support you. However, if you don’t want me in your life, you do need to tell me. The choice has always been yours, Georgie.”
Georgie followed him up the stairs and into his bedroom as she thought about what he’d said. He had always let it be her choice, and he waited for her to make it. He’d wait again. She knew it. But she already had her answer.
“You’re my anchor. You have been even before I knew I loved you. I always looked for you at the bar and in town. I always drifted to your side. Now, you’re my rock, my home, my shelter, my love, and my partner. I can’t imagine doing this without you. But I’m scared. I left that world and I don’t want to go back into it.”
“G, you left your parents and their pressure. You left their society because of the fakeness of it all when you were nothing more than a pawn on the chessboard. You’re not the pawn anymore. You’re the queen, and the queen can do whatever the hell she wants.”
“Like kiss her boyfriend?”
“Especially that.” Kord didn’t swoop down and kiss her this time. He waited, handing over control to her. Georgie rose on her toes and placed a kiss on his lips.
Kord kissed her back. The kiss was so deep her toes curled as she sank into him. He loved her, reverently, as he stripped her clothes from her. She took her time unbuttoning his tuxedo shirt and sighed when she pushed it off over his muscled shoulders.
“One good thing about all of this is I get to see you in a tuxedo more often.”
The talking stopped then. For this conversation, words were not needed. Kord kissed her back, no longer handing all control over to her. Instead, it was a give and take. Lead then follow. Together they chased each other toward the highest point and jumped into the unknown together.
It was hard to go back to work as normal the next day. Kord spent the morning filling Granger and Olivia in on what had happened while Harper and Georgie spoke privately in one of the conference rooms of the sheriff’s station.
“I’m happy for Georgie,” Granger said with a frown. “But I’m worried, too.”
Kord nodded. He’d seen the size of her trust. It was hard to reconcile that with the bartender he fell in love with. However, a trust that size meant one thing. “Exactly. They were desperate before, but now? They’re going to be even more dangerous. Someone needs to be with her at all times.”
“Stone has practice in Charleston today. He can drive her to Ryker’s and pick her up when practice is over. You know Ryker has crazy security so she’ll be safe there,” Olivia suggested.
“That would be good,” Kord said with relief. “I want to be there the whole time, but with the holidays coming up, we have the sheriff’s toy drive and town festival to work on. The office is going to be swamped.”
Olivia was already sending a text. “No problem. Stone will be here in ten minutes. I have one more thought. What about Heloise?” Olivia asked.
“What about her?” Kord asked. He remembered Willa also asked about her.
“This woman is supposed to be John Shaw’s wife, but she wasn’t there because she chose duty to her family over duty to her husband. That sounds like an ally to me.”
“I think so too, which is why I called her,” Georgie said as she stepped from the office with Harper right behind her. “We’ll see if she calls me back. I also emailed my grandfather and told him where I was. I invited him to come visit and told him about my new internship with Ryker Faulkner, my boyfriend rescuing me from my parents’ house, and my desire to learn about the family business. I told him there was one thing I wanted more than anything from him. I told him I wanted to have my grandfather in my life.”
Kord put his arm around her shoulder and brought her against his side before placing a kiss on the top of her head. “He’ll be lucky to be a part of your life.”
The door to the station opened and Stone strode in. “Your ride is here. All I require is free drinks at the bar tonight to say thank you.”
“She just quit,” Harper said with a smile.
“Dammit, really? You make the best Old Fashioneds,” Stone said with a pout.
“I didn’t quit all the way. I’m going to work part-time. Wait, why are you driving me to Ryker’s? I can drive myself.”
“G, it’s not safe. Your parents were desperate and we foiled their plan. You have everything they want. We think they will try something,” Kord explained.
Georgie sighed. “Back into the cage.”
“Yes, but you get me in it with you.” Kord winked and Georgie tried to smile.
“Excuse me, but I think I’m a pretty big perk, too. I was on the cover of the biggest sports magazine in the world. I’m five stars on the ice and off of it. You get my company for the low, low price of an old-fashioned.” Stone did a slow turnaround and Kord punched him in the shoulder.
“Not a puck bunny, bruh.”
Stone laughed and slung his arm around Georgie. “Come on, G. This will be a new experience for us both. You getting to hang out with a professional athlete and me talking to a woman who doesn’t want to sleep with me.”
Georgie looked over Stone’s arm and smiled at Kord. He winked back at her and watched her walk out the front door, listening to all the reasons Stone was better for her than Kord. Kord hadn’t thought there was a chance in hell that the Townsend brothers would fit in when they moved to town. It was a very rocky start with them thinking every single man was out for their sister, Olivia. Only one man was meant for Olivia, Granger. And the entire town tried to help them get together. The Townsends never stood a chance. But then Lydia’s kids wore them down. It was hard to be intimidated by Damon, the leader of the Townsends with his tattoos and dark glares when he had Lydia’s kids laughing and climbing all over him like a jungle gym.
Now, the Townsends were . . .dare he say it, friends.
The front door opened and Miss Ruby and Miss Winnie strode in with Skeeter. It was time to get to work. They had a holiday market to plan.
Instead of opening their notebooks though, Miss Ruby and Miss Winnie crossed their arms and glared at him.
“What did I do?” Kord asked as several employees scattered into their offices or hid behind paperwork.
“It’s what you haven’t done, son.” Miss Ruby looked angry and Kord was at a complete loss.
“Hello?” Miss Winnie tapped her finger against Kord’s head. “You just saved the woman you loved and you didn’t propose? What kind of man are you?”
“The kind who knows she’s had shock after shock and needs time to adjust. She’s going to run her family’s business interests. She’s asked her grandfather to visit. She’s dealing with multiple life-changing events. If I asked her to marry me, it would be overwhelming.” Kord crossed his arms and glared back.
“Well, sugar,” Miss Winnie cursed.
“He has a point,” Miss Ruby sighed. “We promised your grandmother that we’d see you happily married and Georgie is perfect for you. You’ve wasted too much time not to end up happy together.”
Kord leaned forward and kissed each of their cheeks. “Thank you for looking out for me. You are the best aunties I could have. And I will ask Georgie to marry me. When the time is right. And you’ll be the first ones to know when I do.” He hoped that would placate them. He wanted Georgie in his life forever, but she needed to find some peace with her family before he asked her.
“Now, about the holiday market,” Kord began to say as Granger got out the map of downtown.
“Not so fast,” Skeeter said, stopping Kord from getting to work. “Big Beard likes Miss Georgie and said something about a dagger with a whale on it is for her.”
“Oh!” Miss Ruby said, looking at Miss Winnie in surprise. “We know it, but it’s stuck in a wall sconce behind the altar of the church. Has been forever.”
Miss Winnie nodded. “From what I can see of it, the handle is a gold sperm whale with sapphire eyes.”
“Big Beard says it’s his and he wants Miss Georgie to have it.”
“We’ll take her there tonight and see if we can get it out,” Miss Ruby said before turning back to Kord. “Unless you have plans with Georgie.”
“My plans can wait. Now that we’ve discussed my lack of a proposal and the pirate request, can we get to the holiday market?” Kord asked.
The women shrugged and finally it was down to business. The whole of Main Street was going to be closed for the holiday market. It would be filled with fairy lights and an open-air market selling handmade crafts for the holidays.
Granger and the sheriff’s department decided where to station officers while Skeeter, Miss Winnie, and Miss Ruby decided who would be in which stall. “You can’t put the Alwens next to the Leonards,” Kord said. “They’ve called us three times in the last month over their kids. Jennifer Alwen and Bobby Leonard are dating and sneaking into each other’s rooms. Instead of handling it as parents, they’re each blaming the other. Last week I responded to the Alwens’ complaint that Bobby destroyed their azalea bush.”
Miss Winnie clucked. “This all goes back to the chili contest of 2007. Cooking competitions can bring out the worst in people.”
“Okay, so we’ll put them here,” Miss Ruby said, shuffling the booths once again.
Ah, the life of small-town sheriff’s department. Shootouts and seating maps for festivals. You never knew what you’d get from day to day and Kord loved every moment of it.
* * *
Georgie had heard about the lessons in the church but hadn’t really thought of attending. Tonight though, Miss Ruby and Miss Winnie brought her to see the whale dagger and attend a crash course on pirate defense classes.
She didn’t know how it felt to have Lacy, at just twelve, somersaulting across the room only to spring up and jab a dagger into a straw dummy. Yet, here she was, having actually been kidnapped and not having any idea what to do with a dagger.
“Ah, Georgie. I heard you were coming to see the whale. Skeeter told me Big Beard said it was meant for you,” Reverend Winston said as women sparring with daggers, swords, and pikes parted ways to allow him through before going back to fighting.
Reverend Winston always was calm, cool, and collected. Be it arbitrating a fight over barbeque styles, dealing with the mafia, pirate ghosts, or shootouts. He defended the town and the church calmly and efficiently, like the good leader he was.
“Follow me. The legend is Big Beard slammed the dagger into place to prevent anyone from taking it as he lay dying after a battle with the British Navy,” Reverend Winston told her as they walked out of the fighting room and armory and toward the front of the church.
“And Skeeter thinks he wants to give it to me? Why?”
“Apparently, Edward Low set Big Beard up to be caught in an act of treachery. At least that’s what Skeeter found in his research. He thinks Big Beard probably sees this as full circle. You, the descendant of a Low captive, fighting against family treachery.” Reverend Winston shrugged. “That’s the best Skeeter could piece together for now.”
Georgie followed him behind the altar to a large sconce.
“Here it is.”
He stepped back and let her get close to it now. It was stunning. It was solid gold and fashioned as the profile of a sperm whale with sapphire eyes. Georgie traced her finger over the gold.
“It’s beautiful.” She closed her hand over it and pulled. Nothing. “Huh, I kinda thought it might be like me pulling Excalibur from the stone.” Georgie tugged harder. Nothing.
“Does she need to slice her hand and drip blood on it?” Georgie turned in horror to Miss Winnie. The old woman shrugged. “Works in movies.”
Georgie bent down to get a better look at what the dagger was stuck in. Maybe she could take a hammer to it. She paused and then dropped to her knees and stared up at it before laughter burst out.
“What is it?” Miss Ruby asked.
“I know why it won’t come out. It’s locked in place with a puzzle lock. It’s the equivalent of breaking a key off in the lock, only this time it’s the dagger. If we solve the puzzle, the lock opens, and the dagger falls out.”
“What’s a puzzle lock?” Miss Winnie asked.
“I wouldn’t have known, but my family sponsored a gallery exhibit and one of the items was a puzzle lock. At the gala I got into trouble for spending too much time talking to the owner of the puzzle lock instead of flirting with someone they deemed more appropriate. There are no keys to this lock. I’m looking at it now and it’s a slide mechanism. Meaning, I have to move the pins to the appropriate spot or it won’t open.”
Georgie used her finger to trace the thick brass base of the sconce that housed the lock. “This might take a while.”
The first go wasn’t right. The tenth go wasn’t right, either. The one hundred seventy-sixth attempt finally got it. It took five hours, but at midnight, the mechanical lock slid open and Georgie was able to remove the dagger.
Miss Ruby and Miss Winnie were asleep in the first pew as she and Reverend Winston stared in wonder at it.
“It’s a work of art,” Reverend Winston said as he looked it over.
The dagger’s weight was heavy in her hand, yet it had an incredibly light blade, giving it excellent balance in her hand. “Well, it’s no lemon zester,” Georgie joked. “What do I do with it?”
“In a nutshell?” the Rev said with a grin. “Stab them with the pointy end.”
Georgie’s laughter woke up Miss Ruby and Miss Winnie, who both exclaimed over the dagger and found an appropriate sheath for the blade in the storeroom. Finally, she slipped it into her leather backpack purse. It was time to go home to Kord.
18
Georgie should have known better than to think Ryker would start her off slowly. Instead, she’d been thrown in the deep end with Elsa, Ryker’s secretary, during an intense first morning. Elsa had a riding crop by her desk—and used it. When Georgie was too nice to someone on the phone, that crop smacked her across the thigh. Not hard enough to hurt, but enough to make her jump.
