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  ***

  Nick pulled Holly closer. His hands explored her body, sliding under the back of her shirt to caress her soft skin. He wanting nothing more than to take her inside and explore more, but he didn’t want to move too fast.

  Despite Holly’s passionate reaction to his kiss, Nick sensed she wasn’t quite ready to give herself to another man, and who could blame her? Her marriage to Stan was barely cold and she was just learning to figure things out on her own. He would wait for the right time rather than risk scaring her off.

  Reluctantly, he pulled away, eliciting a groan of protest from Holly. He studied her face, tracing the corner of her mouth with his thumb, holding her gaze for a few exquisite moments before slowly bending in for one more quick kiss.

  “I enjoyed our dinner very much Holly. Goodnight.” He walked backwards down the walkway, his eyes on Holly standing in the doorway apparently still dazed from the effects of his kiss. She raised her hand in a wave. He answered back with one of his own, then turned to walk to his car, a grin creasing his lips which burned with the memory of their kiss. She would definitely be worth waiting for.

  Pulling away from the curb, Nick glanced in the rearview mirror. Two blocks down another car also pulled away. Was he being followed?

  He drove slowly to the next intersection and then circled around the block, breathing a sigh of relief upon seeing the other car continuing straight ahead.

  “Getting paranoid in your old age, man.” He chuckled out loud – now he was talking to himself. He had learned to be a little paranoid over the years. In his line of work it was a necessity.

  Even though the car he’d thought was following him was long gone, he decided to circle by Holly’s house one more time, just to be sure she was in there, safe and sound.

  Chapter Three

  Holly sipped her first of tea of the day, smiling at the bright rays of early morning sun peeking through her kitchen window. The thick mug sent tendrils of steam towards the ceiling and she peered through it at her bright yellow walls. She’d painted the kitchen shortly after Stan had left; the color always made her feel cheerful.

  She thought about her date with Nick. His kiss last night had stirred feelings she hadn’t had in a long time. She wanted to see more of him. But she couldn’t ignore the warning bells going off in her head, reminding her of what getting involved with someone entailed. Her only adult relationship had been with Stan and he had walked all over her. She’d fought too hard to get to where she was now and couldn’t risk that happening again with Nick.

  Her thoughts drifted to the warning Nick had given her at dinner and she glanced at her phone with a frown. Those phone calls she thought were innocent hang-ups seemed a lot more suspicious now.

  Realizing she had more pressing problems, she reached for the newspaper laying on the table. Opening it to the classified section, she started scanning the help wanted ads. Having a career was another thing Stan had squashed, meaning now she had no education or skills and would have to settle for an entry level type of job.

  The ringing of her cell phone interrupted her from her task. She checked the I.D. and felt her heart jump at the name on the display – Nick!

  “Hi there,” she answered cheerfully.

  “Hi, yourself.” Nick’s voice sounded good. Too good. “Remember last night, how I told you my good friend owns the Cooley Art Gallery?”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  “Well, I happened to talk to him today and it seems he has an opening over there. I thought you might be interested.”

  Holly felt a rush of excitement. Working at an art gallery would be a dream job for her. For a moment, she was speechless.

  “Holly?”

  “Are you kidding ... I would love to work there!”

  “Great. He said to just bring your resume over anytime. He’ll be there all day.”

  “Wow, this is awesome. I was just looking in the paper and there are no suitable jobs at all. I can’t thank you enough, Nick.” Holly felt emotion rise up in her throat, making it hard for her to talk. Not only had Nick remembered she loved art, he had also taken the time to talk to his friend about her.

  After exchanging the usual pleasantries, Holly hung up. The truth was she could have talked to Nick all day, but she was too excited to get over to the art gallery. Her excitement quickly gave way to anxiety when she had to come up with a resume – whatever would she put on it?

  ***

  Holly stood in front of the mirror, inspecting herself with a critical eye. She’d changed her outfit three times, trying to get just the right look for an art gallery interview.

  Her current outfit was one Rose had insisted she splurge on and, while Holly had balked at the expense at the time, now she was glad she did.

  The tan stitching on the black skirt and jacket gave it a classic but trendy feel. The skirt was short enough to show off her shapely legs, but not so short as to make it inappropriate for business. The form-fitting jacket hung just below her waist and was tailored to fit her perfectly. A tan silk blouse underneath gave the outfit an air of class, and some funky jewelry added an artsy touch. Perfect.

  Rummaging in the bottom of her closet for shoes, she emerged with a pair of black medium-heel pumps. Trying them on to make sure they still fit, she made her way over to the bathroom. Standing in front of the vanity mirror, she swiped on a little mascara and lip gloss. A final pass of the brush through her silky ash-blonde hair and she was ready to go.

  Grabbing her resume, Holly squelched a case of nerves. It had taken her a good three hours to come up with something appealing, given her lack of job-related experience, but the end result was pretty darn good.

  Holly gave herself one last glance in the mirror before she headed out to her car. Pulling in a deep breath, she tried to imbibe herself with an air of confidence. Despite the fact this was her first job interview in almost fifteen years, she felt incredibly positive about it.

  Holly locked the house and slid in to the driver’s seat of her car. She turned the key in the ignition, backed out, and pointed the car towards the Cooley Art Gallery.

  ***

  Two and a half hours later, Holly left the art gallery with a smile on her face and a skip in her step. Her interview had gone off without a hitch and she had a really good feeling she might get the job. She had hit it off with the owner, Cal Cooley, right away as well, and the other staff members were warm and welcoming. She felt at home among the various sculptures and paintings. This would be a place she would love to come to work at every day.

  She felt excitement bubbling up inside of her, the kind of excitement one needs to share with someone else. Should I call Rose ... or Nick? Maybe both.

  As she rummaged for her phone, her stomach let out a large gurgle, reminding her she hadn’t eaten since breakfast. She remembered her favorite little cafe was just a block down the street and decided to grab a bite before making any calls. She turned down the sidewalk and headed towards the cafe.

  “Hello Holly.”

  The sound of her name startled her. She turned, feeling a gasp tear from her throat. Standing on the sidewalk behind her was Stan.

  Chapter Four

  “What are you doing here?” Holly felt her brows furrow together. How had Stan gotten back here with no money, and why would he come?

  “I came to talk things out, Holly. We can’t just throw away fifteen years like this.” On the surface, Stan seemed apologetic, but Holly saw the same expectant gleam in his eye she had seen back at the hotel, and it made her furious.

  “I don’t think so, Stan. After what you did to me I have no intention of ever going back to you. We’re over.” Fighting to keep calm, Holly turned and took a step away from him.

  Stan grabbed her arm and spun her back around to face him. “It’s because of that new boyfriend you have, isn’t it?” Holly could see jealous anger clouding Stan’s face. Had he always been this way?

  “Boyfriend?” Holly jerked her arm out of his grasp. “Oh, you mean
Nick? He’s not my boyfriend, he’s a private investigator I had to hire to find you, after you took off with another woman and all our money.”

  Struggling to control her anger, Holly saw Stan’s eyes narrow and a menacing look spread across his face.

  “That money was mine,” he spat. “I earned it. You never worked a day during our marriage.”

  Holly might have been afraid of Stan, except she remembered that he was the kind of bully that talked mean but who ran away when push came to shove, a trait she had overlooked when she fell in love with him.

  “I wanted to work, but instead you insisted that I stay home and take care of the cleaning, cooking, and running all your errands. It was a partnership and that money was as much mine as yours.” Her finger poked repeatedly at his chest, emphasizing each word, anger overriding any fear she might have felt.

  Stan’s face turned smug. “If that’s true, then half of your mother’s precious jewelry is mine too ... and I intend to get my share.”

  The words chilled her to the core. Her mother’s jewelry wasn’t worth a large sum of money, but it was worth everything to Holly in sentimental value. She kept it in a small safe inside her house, and Stan knew exactly where it was. Had it been Stan she’d heard outside the house?

  She took a step back, suddenly grateful that Bill had talked her into changing the locks on the house after Stan had disappeared. She looked at the man before her in stunned silence. The man she had been married to for fifteen years … and who she suddenly did not know anymore at all. She wondered if he had always been this selfish and mean, and she too blind to see it, or if he had changed since he had left. Either way, there was one thing she knew for sure – she never wanted to see Stan Brennan ever again.

  “You can walk away from me, Holly, but rest assured, I’m going to get everything I deserve.” Stan said it as if it had been he who had been wronged.

  Holly turned toward her car, her back to Stan. She couldn’t resist a final parting shot and turned her head to look over her shoulder at him. “That’s right, Stan, you will get everything you deserve.”

  ***

  Pulling the car away from the curb, Holly noticed her hands were shaking. She hated to admit that her confrontation with Stan had scared her. Surely, Stan wouldn’t actually hurt her, would he? No. Holly didn’t think he would. Stan was big on talk, but that was about it.

  She was more worried about him trying to get her mother’s jewelry, or somehow taking away what little she had. She did sense a hint of desperation in his voice, almost like he needed the money to stop someone from threatening him. Maybe he had gotten himself into some trouble back in Nevada. More likely, Eve had gotten him into something.

  None of this was Holly’s problem, but now she needed to protect herself to avoid becoming a victim of Stan’s desperation. Rose and Bill would be able to help.

  No longer in the mood for a cafe lunch, Holly headed towards Rose’s house.

  ***

  Holly went straight to the back door. She knew Rose would be in her favorite place, the kitchen. Giving a quick knock on the screen door to announce her presence, she wrenched the door open and flew into the small but cozy room.

  She blurted out the words before Rose had a chance to turn around. “Rose, Stan’s back in town and he means to make trouble for me!”

  “You saw him?” Rose wiped her hands on a dish cloth and motioned for Holly to sit at the table.

  Holly nodded, sliding into a chair with a sigh. “He must have followed me downtown. When I came out of the art gallery, he was there waiting for me.”

  Rose sat at the table opposite Holly. Holly could see the growing concern in her face and felt a pang of guilt for causing it.

  “What did he say?”

  “At first he acted like he wanted to get back together. I told him we were through and he got kind of mean, and then said he wanted his half of Mom’s jewelry.”

  Rose’s eyes went wide; her hand flew to the necklace she wore -- a piece left to her from their mother. “He wouldn’t!”

  “I think he might try to break in and get it. He knows exactly where I keep the jewelry.... I should probably move it to a safe deposit box, but I like having it in the house so I can wear a piece any time it suits me.”

  Rose nodded. Holly knew Rose did the same with the portion of their mother’s jewelry which had been left to her. In a way, keeping the jewelry close felt like having Mom around.

  “Holly, that must have been terrifying!” Rose’s eyes narrowed. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

  “Oh no.” Holly shook her head. “His bark is worse than his bite, but I am afraid he’ll try something rash to get at the jewelry. He seemed rather desperate for money.”

  Rose nodded her head, then a curious look passed across her face. “What were you doing downtown, anyway?”

  Holly felt a rush of excitement which made her momentarily forget about her problems with Stan. “Oh, I didn’t get a chance to tell you yet! Nick knows the owner of the Cooley Art Gallery. They have a job opening, so he arraigned for me to go interview there.”

  “Oh, that’s wonderful!” Rose’s smile of genuine happiness for her sister made Holly feel all warm inside. Then Rose’s face creased into a frown. “So, you did call Nick and tell him you saw Stan, right?”

  “Umm ... well, no.”

  “Why not?” Rose demanded. “Don’t you like Nick?”

  Holly looked down at the floor, suddenly feeling like a small child being reprimanded. A hot blush crept into her cheeks at the memory of their kiss the night before.

  “I do ... it’s just, well, Nick makes me feel ... things. Things that maybe I don’t want to feel right now.”

  “And why not? Surely you are over Stan? It’s been long enough. And Nick is cute. Plus I think he really likes you. You should give him a chance.”

  Holly felt a little nervous at the wide eyed, expectant look on Rose’s face.

  “Rose, I just got free of Stan and I’m enjoying being independent and doing what I want instead of what someone else tells me to do. I won’t give that up for anyone, even Nick.”

  Holly felt completely justified in her feelings so the look on Rose’s face surprised her. It was a familiar look, the one Rose used to give her when they were kids and Holly had just said or done something incredibly stupid.

  “Holly ... ” Rose emphasized her words with a shake of her head. “I can see why you would feel that way, but you’ve got it all wrong. It’s true, Stan was a domineering control freak, but not all men are like that. Look at me and Bill for example, do you see Bill controlling what I do?”

  Holly had never thought about it that way before. Rose and Bill had a wonderful relationship -- the kind she would like to have for herself. Rose did whatever she wanted and Bill was supportive; he never stood in her way or told her what to do.

  Holy realized she might be sacrificing her future because of her past experiences with Stan by assuming every man would act the same way he did. In reality, Nick didn’t seem to be the least bit like Stan.

  “You know what, Rose, you’re right.” Holly pulled her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Nick.

  Chapter Five

  “Are you sure this will work?” Holly whispered from the backseat of Nick’s car.

  “I think so,” Bill answered. “It’s the best way to make sure we can put Stan behind bars so he won’t bother you ever again.”

  They were parked one street over from Holly’s house with a clear view to her back door. Thanks to Nick’s investigative skills, they knew Stan had been watching the house. Holly had made it obvious she was leaving for the evening earlier, and they hoped Stan would take the opportunity to break in.

  A sudden movement near Holly’s back door captured their attention. Stan. They watched him creep to the door, cover his fist with the sleeve of his hoodie, and smash the small pane of glass near the knob. Where had Stan learned to do that? He reached in and, after casting a furtive glance towards the neigh
bors’, opened the door, slipping quietly inside. Holly made a mental note to install a deadbolt.

  “Let’s go,” Bill said to Nick.

  Nick turned to Holly. “You’re going to stay here like we agreed, right?”

  Holly nodded, plastering a wide-eyed look of innocence on her face to hide her real intentions. She watched them jog over to her back door before slipping silently out of the car and following them in.

  ***

  Holly cautiously poked her head in the back door. She could hear the scuffle going on upstairs.

  “Put the gun down and your hands up!” she heard Bill yell. Stan had a gun?

  Concern overrode Holly’s caution and she took the stairs two at a time. At the top of the stairs, she turned right and bounded towards the room which held the safe. She stopped short in the doorway, a jolt of fear wrenching her gut.

  Stan stood at the safe; the door was open and he had obviously been in the act of taking out the jewelry. He was facing into the room, a bag of jewelry in his left hand, the gun in his right.

  Bill and Nick were facing Stan, their backs to the doorway.

  Stan looked over at Holly in the doorway, his face contorted into a mask of fury.

  “You!” he shouted at Holly. He pointed the gun in her direction, the barrel wavering side to side in his shaky grasp.

  Nick and Bill turned to face her, twin looks of surprise on their faces.

  “Get out of my way or I’ll shoot her.” Stan motioned to Nick and Bill to move. They stepped to the side. Stan made his way towards Holly and the open doorway. She moved into the room, just inside the door to block his exit.

  Holly tried to reason with him. “Stan, don’t do this ... you won’t get away with it.” But Stan only clutched the bag closer, his gun hand becoming more erratic.