“You!”
Eliza jumped to her feet; her purse fell to the floor. “Me? Are you crazy?”
“Before you say no—”
“No!”
“Hear me out.”
“No!” She needed out of the room. Needed out of the hotel. Eliza grabbed her hat and shoved it on her head.
Carter stood and stopped her from reaching for her purse. He placed a hand on her arm, and she pulled back as if stung. “Listen, Eliza. You’re half the reason I’m in this mess.”
“Hey,” she said poking him in the chest with a cracked nail. “I didn’t invite you to that bar, and I certainly didn’t suggest you get into a fight. So don’t blame me for this.”
“What was all that about me being an honorable man?”
“The truth of that will change the minute you try and blackmail me into marriage.”
“Who said anything about blackmail? I was proposing—”
She tried to step around him only to be blocked again. “Yeah, well don’t. I’m the wrong woman for you for more reasons than you could possibly know. Now give me my damn purse so I can leave. I do have a life to live.”
“This discussion isn’t over,” he said.
“You’ll be talking to yourself, because I’m done.”
Carter clamped his jaw shut and stared.
She folded her arms over her chest and stared back.
He cracked first, stepped back, and reached for her purse.
Remembering the gun, she moved to intercept him. “I’ll get it…”
Carter reached it first. The purse wasn’t big, and the moment Carter’s hand touched it, his face turned to stone.
She tried to grab the bag he lifted out of her reach.
He undid the clasp.
“Stop.”
And dumped the contents on the bed.
Eliza froze, staring at the weapon she’d carried with her all her adult life. Not even Samantha knew about it. And no one knew why.
“You want to tell me what this is all about?”
Her chest heaved with every rapid breath she took. “You want to know what this is all about? I’ll tell you what it’s all about. None of your damn business. That’s what it’s all about.” As quickly as she could, she shoved the contents into the bag, the gun last, making sure the safety wasn’t tripped, and then stormed out of the room.
She made it as far as the door.
She opened it and found herself faced with two suit-wearing men holding badges.
“Miss. Havens.”
“Sonofabitch!”
The detectives glanced at each other and put their badges away. “We need to speak with you.” They glanced around at the audience of Carter and all his men. “In private.”
****
Not too often in Carter’s life, at least since the age of eighteen, did he ever feel off axis. Apparently, all that was changing today.
His bodyguard stood beside the detectives, and his staffers had turned down the television set and were tuned in like an uplink to the net.
Carter took a chance and placed a hand on Eliza’s shoulder. She didn’t flinch.
Worse, she trembled.
“What can we do for you, detectives?”
“It’s Billings, right?”
“That’s right.”
“We need to speak to Miss. Havens, alone.”
“Eliza?” As if saying her name snapped her out of a daze, she shook off his hand and glared at him over her shoulder.
“I have this,” she told him.
“If you’d come with us, we can—”
“Hold up,” Carter stepped in front of her, stopped them from leading Eliza away. He might not know what she was hiding, but he wasn’t about to let her leave the hotel in custody without some explanation. “I am a lawyer and was a judge before seeking office. If you have a reason to take Miss Havens—”
“I’m sure you’re a brilliant attorney, Mr. Billings, but even you understand that some things shouldn’t be discussed in the hallway of a very public hotel with an entourage of people at your back.”
Taking the clue, Jay said, “That’s our cue, gentlemen. Time to give everyone some space.”
“No.” Eliza grasped Carter’s arm and tugged him back. “I’ll go.”
“The hell you will.”
“Listen, Hollywood. I get that you feel the need to protect and serve here, but you don’t get it. I’ll just go. Everything is fine.”
“If you’re in trouble…”
“I’m not.”
“She’s not.” Both Eliza and the detectives spoke at the same time.
“I’ll call you later,” she promised and then stepped away from Carter’s protection and walked alongside the detectives down the hall.
What the hell is going on?
Carter met the eyes of his bodyguard, Joe, and nodded toward the retreating figures. Taking the hint, Joe followed them.
Unable to pursue without drawing attention to them, Carter watched until Eliza turned the corner and disappeared.
The woman he’d just asked to marry him was being escorted away by bona fide detectives and hadn’t been surprised in the least. Expected it even.
The gun didn’t faze her.
She didn’t explain it.
Twisting on his heel, almost colliding with Jay, Carter returned to his hotel room and swung his cell phone to his ear. “Go.” He told his staffers. “And I shouldn’t have to tell you to keep your mouths shut about what just happened.”