“Cute? Cute?” Her smile fell when Reese stilled. “What?”
But she already smelled it.
Smoke.
He rushed to the back of the truck, looking out toward the back of the lot and across the street where their furniture store stood—smoke pouring from the windows.
“Fuck! Get inside.” He whipped around again when Jared and Duncan came crashing through the back door, both men leaping over the stairs and rushing toward them as they stared in the same direction.
All three men sprinted toward the store, looks of horror on their faces.
Erin watched them race away, her heart in her throat.
They’d built every piece of furniture in their store by hand.
Each piece was unique, and they spent hours creating the most beautiful furniture she’d ever seen.
They loved what they did, and their furniture was always in high demand.
Thinking of all that beautiful furniture destroyed made her stomach hurt.
The sight of flames licking at the roof brought tears to her eyes.
Relieved to see the manager and their two employees standing across the street, visibly upset, Erin breathed a sigh of relief when her husbands came to an abrupt stop next to them just as a fire truck pulled up. Ace and Linc pulled up on either side of the street and jumped out of their cars, immediately shouting orders and clearing the area.
Her fathers-in-law came rushing by with her mother-in-law in tow, the looks of horror on their faces making the situation all the more real.
Ben Preston pointed toward the back door of the lingerie shop, eyeing both Erin and Isabelle. “Both of you, get inside. Now!”
Watching the fire, Isabelle approached, her face pale. “I can’t believe this.”
Erin put her arm around the older woman and tried to speak, but nothing came out except a croak. Swallowing heavily, she shook her head. “Neither can I. How did this happen? They’re going to be devastated.”
Taking her arm, Isabelle nodded. “I know. Come on. We need to get inside.”
She could barely hear her over the sounds of the sirens of more fire trucks approaching and the shouts of the residents of Desire rushing to the scene.
Isabella shook her head, her eyes brimming with tears. “You’re right. This is going to devastate them.” Wiping away a tear, she sniffed. “Come on, Erin. Let’s go inside. I want to see the babies. All this noise is going to scare them.”
Erin nodded, sliding a hand in her pocket with the intention of calling Boone. “I’ll be there in a few minutes. I think I left my cell phone in the SUV.”
She watched her mother-in-law make her way to the back door of the store, tears in her eyes when she turned to look back at the fire.
Running a hand through her hair, Erin looked back, as well, her gaze sliding to her husbands.
Although they had their backs to her, she could tell by their posture that they were furious.
Two more fire engines arrived, along with an ambulance, the noise deafening.
She wanted to go to them, but they started toward the back of the building, probably to check on the warehouse located behind the store.
Watching them until they disappeared around the side of the building with Linc and Rafe, she blinked back more tears.
She didn’t see Ace but would bet money that he was still there, barking out orders and taking charge.
Knowing Boone and Chase would want to know, she looked away, anxious to call them and get back inside.
Just as she reached for the door handle, she saw her phone on the ground and reached out to pick it up. A hand closed over her shoulder, and something hard pressed against her back.
A gun.
She froze, her heart pounding with fear, her senses sharpening.
“Hello, Erin.”
Although his voice had deepened over the years, she recognized it at once.
Taking a deep breath, she straightened and turned, fighting to hide her fear as she faced a man who’d aged twenty years in the last five.
His hair had turned gray, matching the stubble on his face, and he looked and smelled as if he hadn’t showered in days.
Swallowing heavily, she lowered her gaze to the gun in his hand. “Hello, Nelson.”
Chapter Ten
Erin looked toward where her husbands had been standing, but she had to face the truth.
She was on her own.
“They’re gone. I figured burning down their store was one way to get them away from you.” His cold smile sent a chill down her spine. “Nice distraction for the whole town, don’t you think?”
Surreptitiously looking around for the FBI agents who were supposed to be following Nelson Stark, Erin studied him, looking for any weakness.
“I assumed you’d be long gone by now. I figured you’d left the country.”
He stood only an inch or two taller than her and had been slightly overweight the last time she saw him, but now appeared thin and gaunt.