Las Vegas Sidewinders: Toli & Tessa (Book 6) Read online

  Chapter 2

  The day of the wedding was a typically hot but gorgeous summer day in the desert. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and as Tessa rode in the back of the limousine towards the Strip, she couldn’t stop the flutter of excitement in her stomach. She’d been up early this morning, unsettled and exhausted after spending the night without Toli. She and Raina had slept at a hotel nowhere near the Strip, sharing a suite with her mother and sister. Her father had slept at the house with Toli and Anton. Almost everyone involved in the wedding had played musical beds last night, hoping to keep anyone who might be trying to get details about the wedding from figuring out what was going on or who was where. Toli, Frank and Anton would be leaving the house early and going to the hotel where Sergei was staying to get ready there. Then they would head to the Strip for the actual wedding.

  Tessa and the other women in the wedding party were getting ready at the Bellagio but then would get dropped off at the Wynn before being secretly transported over to the Venetian, where the wedding was actually taking place. It was extremely complicated, but Avril was a top-notch wedding planner and had been doing an incredible job keeping them organized and on schedule.

  “We’ll arrive with just two minutes to spare,” Avril said, glancing at the binder in her lap. “Tessa, you will meet the hair and makeup artist as soon as you arrive, okay?” She had a slight lilting accent that was hard to place, but she spoke perfect English.

  “We’ll get her there,” Tessa’s sister, Ava, said with a grin. “We all have our schedules!”

  Avril looked up. “This is how I keep everything running smoothly. Without schedules—”

  “You’re very efficient,” Tessa interrupted softly, hoping she wasn’t offended by Ava’s light teasing. Ava could be abrasive sometimes and the last thing they needed was for the wedding planner to get upset.

  “Oh, yes,” Ava caught Tessa’s warning glance and gave a bright smile. “I don’t know what we’d do without you.”

  Tessa stifled a giggle and turned as her daughter tugged at her hand.

  “Mama, potty!” Two-year-old Raina pouted, making a face.

  “Remember, you’re wearing special panties today,” Tessa said patiently. “So if you have to go, you can go and it won’t get your clothes messy.” She avoided saying “diapers” because Raina was determined that she not have to wear them anymore. She was almost potty trained, but today wasn’t the kind of day Tessa wanted to deal with an accident.

  “Potty!” Raina squealed.

  “Raina, enough!” Ava spoke gently but firmly, meeting Raina’s big blue eyes with her most serious expression. “Today is Mama’s wedding to Toto—if you want to throw flowers you have to be a good girl. Otherwise Auntie Ava will take you right back home and you won’t be allowed to go.”

  Raina’s eyes rounded and for a moment it looked like she was going to cry. Instead she scowled, folding her arms across her little chest. “Potty.” But that was all she said and Tessa bit her lip not to laugh.

  “We’ll be there in two more minutes,” Tessa whispered. “And then we’ll go, okay?”

  Raina stuck out her lower lip, but nodded her head.

  “Thanks,” Tessa mouthed to her sister.

  “You shouldn’t think about anything today except that hunk you’re about to marry.”

  Tessa arched an eyebrow. “You don’t have to pretend, you know. I know you don’t really like him.”

  “Not true!” Ava shook her head. “He’s wonderful to you. I’ve never seen you happier.”

  “I’ve never been happier,” Tessa grinned. “He’s amazing. I keep pinching myself to make sure it’s real.”

  “I never thought I’d see you getting married again,” her mother, Jean, said with a smile.

  “Bet you never thought you’d wind up with a 16-year-old step-grandson either!” Tessa laughed.

  “No, I definitely did not!” Jean laughed.

  “Tony play?” Raina asked. She didn’t seem able to call anyone by the right name. Toli was Toto, their friend Zakk was Jazzy and Anton had become Tony. She had no problem with Mama or Daddy, but somehow other names eluded her.

  “Anton is helping Toli today,” Tessa said. “But he’ll play with you tonight.”

  “Okay.”

  “She seems to adore her new big brother,” Jean said.

  “Family is important,” Avril said quietly, her face oddly stoic. “You don’t know how much until you’ve lost it.”

  “Yes, it is,” Tessa said, frowning slightly. “I can’t imagine not having my family.”

  “Are you married, Avril?” Jean asked, trying to lighten the suddenly somber mood.

  “Not yet.” Avril’s lips tilted into a smile. “But I’m hoping a proposal is coming soon.”

  “How exciting!” Jean said brightly. “Have you been dating long?”

  “No so long,” Avril said. “But sometimes you just know. He’s very special.”

  “I’ve been married so long,” Ava sighed, “I don’t remember what it’s like to smile like that over a man.”

  Avril cocked her head. “You should always smile for a man who loves you.”

  “I do,” Ava shrugged. “But when life happens—bills and sick kids and car repairs and such—you forget the simple things like a romantic smile or that look lovers get when everything is new and exciting. You’ll see. Someday you’ll have a house full of kids with the flu, the dog will puke on your new carpet and one of your clients will call screaming about something that went wrong. Those are the days when love is the last thing on your mind.”

  Avril grimaced. “I hope not—I’ve never had a client yell at me!”

  “Not yet!” Tessa chuckled. “There’s still time.”

  They laughed softly as they pulled up to the hotel. “Okay, let’s only think happy thoughts from now on!” Avril said abruptly. “Let’s go!”

  Tiff got to the Bellagio suite where Tessa would be getting ready just before 10:00 and the only other person with Tessa was her sister, Ava. Tessa’s mother had taken Raina for a walk to keep her occupied and Tessa was dreamily staring off into space.

  Putting her bag down, Tiff hugged her friend tightly, happy to see that she was glowing this morning. “You look wonderful!” she said to her. “Toli is going to fall in love with you all over again when he sees you.”

  “I can’t believe it’s really happening,” Tessa whispered. “We met in October, broke up in January, got back together in February and now we’re getting married in August! It’s crazy.”

  There was a knock on the door and Kate stuck her head in with a grin. Soon the room was swarming with Tessa’s friends, the festive mood taking over and keeping them from thinking about anything but the exciting day ahead.

  Avril Marquez glanced at her watch nervously as she looked around the room. The wedding ceremony had gone off without a hitch and now Toli and Tessa were sitting up on the dais getting ready to enjoy the gourmet meal that was about to be served. She should have been proud she’d put on such an extravagant event, but now that she thought about what she’d done, she felt the first pangs of guilt. She hadn’t realized what her boyfriend was up to until just a little while ago when she’d overheard several of the women in the ladies’ room discussing him. Why were they afraid of Marco and why wasn’t he welcome here? Until that moment it had never occurred to her that he’d been pumping her for information and now she looked around, wondering what he was going to do.

  She saw a flash of a dark suit and red hair and she moved in that direction quickly, her long legs taking her across the room in very little time. She slipped out the doors and went to the right, following him.

  “Marco!” She called out his name and saw him frown, slowly turning towards her.

  “Avril.” His voice was quiet, his eyes uncharacteristically cold and calculating.

  “Where are you going?” she asked, frowning. “The reception—”

  “I will join the festivities in just a few minutes,” he
said in a soft but steely tone.

  “What does that mean?” Something about his behavior was making her nervous.

  He narrowed his eyes. “That’s not your concern.”

  “Actually, it is,” she scowled. “I gave you all the information about the wedding and now it feels as though you’re up to something.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Dear Avril, you’ve been good to me, so don’t force me to say or do something to hurt you.”

  She met his eyes in confusion. “Marco, were you just using me to find out about the wedding?”

  He sighed, shaking his head. “Of course not.”

  “Then why are you skulking about in the kitchen?”

  “I’m not skulking,” he grunted, reaching out to wrap an arm around her waist and draw her close. “I just have a surprise for the happy couple and want to put everything in play before I join the fun.”

  “Well, if you tell me what it is I can—”

  “Avril, just go back to your event planning duties and let me have my fun.”

  “Marco.” She pushed lightly against his chest. “You’re making me very nervous! This wedding was a big deal and—”

  “Boss, we’re ready!” A tall, beefy man in a suit and a ski mask leaned around the corner.

  Avril’s mouth fell open.

  “Oh, hell.” Marco sighed again. Now he was going to have to get rid of her, something he’d hoped to avoid.

  “Marco!” Avril took a step back in shock, her eyes darting from him to the masked man and back again.

  “I’m sorry, my dear.” Marco stepped forward and gripped her firmly with one arm while using the other hand to cover her mouth.

  Avril twisted and squealed as Marco nodded his head at the man in the mask. The bigger man pulled her from Marco and with one fluid motion snapped her neck. She immediately went limp and the masked man picked her up and threw her over his shoulder.

  “What should I do with her?” he asked.

  “Just put the body somewhere she won’t be found for a while.” Marco wiped his hands on his slacks and adjusted his jacket. He had no time to coddle sweet little Avril, especially now that she was no longer of any use to him. His focus was on the task at hand: getting back the woman he loved and eliminating all the people who’d taken her from him. Tonight would be his greatest show of power and he intended to enjoy every minute of it. Later, when he had Tiff in his bed, he would tell her everything that had happened and explain why he had to go to such extreme measures to have her. She would learn to love him once she knew how far he’d gone for her, and if not, she would at least learn to respect him. He would accept nothing less.

  Tiff knew something was wrong before she saw or heard anything. It was as if a sixth sense washed over her and the hair on her arms stood on end. From where she sat with half of the wedding party—they’d been split into two tables—she had no idea what made her think something was wrong. Zakk was beside her, his arm draped casually on the back of her chair as he chatted with Drake, who was on his other side. Dinner had been served and everyone seemed intent on eating and socializing before the formal reception festivities started. Once dinner was over, Anton would give a toast. Then the bride and groom would do the first dance, followed by dances where Tessa would dance with her father and Toli would dance with her mother, since Toli’s parents had been unable to come. The wedding party would dance next and there would be the usual cake cutting, garter and bouquet throwing, and most likely a lot of dancing and drinking.

  Until right this minute, Tiff had been looking forward to the evening, but something wasn’t right and she scanned the room trying to see some sign of anything that might be amiss. There was a security guard at each of the three entrances to the room, and the hotel’s event coordinator was roaming around making sure everything was going smoothly. Tessa and Toli were laughing softly at some private joke up on the dais. Raina and CJ were at the other wedding party table, being entertained by Anton, Sergei and Tatiana. The only person missing was Avril, and Tiff frowned, wondering why the uber-organized wedding planner had suddenly disappeared.

  “What’s wrong?” Zakk, always in tune with her moods, whispered in her ear softly.

  “I don’t know.” She rubbed her arms and tried to shake the chill that had come over her. “I haven’t seen Avril in at least 15 minutes and it feels like something bad is going to happen.”

  He glanced around, frowning. “Everything seems fine.”

  “I know.” She leaned closer to him. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Ever since I got back from Switzerland I keep expecting something to go wrong. I know it’s dumb, I just—” She was cut off by a loud pop and the sound of glass shattering. Someone screamed and before she could react, Zakk had pushed her to the floor and under the table. Drake, Erin, Karl and Kate immediately followed. There was shouting amidst the screaming and another pop caused something else to crash to the ground. Tiff winced, her eyes wide with terror.

  “What’s going on?!” she whispered under her breath.

  “Everyone listen up!” There was no mistaking Marco Rousch’s voice, loud and thunderous even with all the chaos.

  “Oh my God.” Tiff clapped her hand over her mouth as she met Zakk’s eyes. He put a finger to his lips, his eyes locking with Drake’s.

  “You were warned,” Marco continued in a booming voice. “I only wanted one thing. Since you all banded together to keep her from me, tonight someone will die every ten minutes until I have what’s mine.”

  “She’s not yours.” Toli’s voice was surprisingly calm as he spoke to him.

  “I’m sorry I had to take this out on you,” Marco said evenly. “You and I always got along. Unfortunately, you chose the wrong side.”

  “This is my wedding day,” Toli spoke quietly. “Whose side should I be on?”

  “Mine. Always.”

  Peeking out from under the tablecloth, Zakk could see Marco at the front of the room, near the entrance to the kitchen. Most of the guests were now on the floor or under the tables. The waitstaff was against the walls, and several of Toli’s security guards were on the floor, either unconscious or dead. He counted five men wearing masks in various parts of the room, not including Marco, who didn’t seem to care about hiding his face.

  Toli was standing up on the dais, facing Marco stoically, wondering how the hell he was going to get everyone out of this safely. Tessa was beside him, her face pale and drawn, and he knew she was terrified. “You don’t have to do this,” he said carefully. “If you leave now, you have time to get out of the country before anyone goes looking for you.”

  “The only way I leave is with my queen on my arm.”

  “Queen?” Erin mouthed to Tiff under the table.

  Tiff stuck out her tongue and wrinkled her nose in disgust. Zakk slipped back underneath and pulled out his phone, opening the text program and typing a group text to everyone under the table with him.

  At least five of them.

  Drake and Karl grimaced.

  Security down. Zakk continued typing.

  Erin pulled out her own phone and began to type as well; it was better not to even whisper and they all immediately made sure that the volume on their phones was muted. How far is the nearest security guy?

  Drake frowned but waited while Zakk typed: About 50 feet to your left.

  Are they armed?

  Zakk nodded as he read it. Erin had been in combat situations twice, and she was still in the Marine Corps Reserves. If anyone knew what to do, it was Erin. They could see by the look in her eyes, she was already in soldier mode. She’d slid off her shoes and was on her hands and knees, squeezed between the legs of a chair trying to surreptitiously check out the room. Someone was going to have to do something, and she had a feeling it was going to be her.

  Across the room, Toli was furious. This man who’d been the team’s starting goalie the last two years standing in the middle of his wedding reception with a gun was the most ridiculous thing he’d ever seen. How Mar
co had gotten past security, he didn’t know, but there was going to be hell to pay when this was over. He could feel his wife trembling and moved a step closer to her. He wasn’t sure what motivated Marco right now, but he was positive it wasn’t money; short of that, he didn’t know what he could offer him. Certainly not what he wanted.

  “Marco, this isn’t going to end well for you,” Toli said patiently. “You have to know that. There are too many of us here.”

  “Too many of you?” Marco laughed. “You’ll have to sacrifice at least a dozen before anyone gets to me, based on the bullets in this gun and the number of men who are here with me.”

  Toli shook his head. “Is death what you want? I thought it was Tiff?”

  “She comes with a price.” Marco looked around, his voice getting louder as he searched for her. “Where are you, Tiffany?!”

  “Dammit, Marco, stop this insanity!” Toli growled angrily.

  “You were my friend once,” Marco said, facing him. “You chose to turn on me so now I’m forced to make you pay for that.”

  “How did I turn on you?” Toli demanded. “Tiff doesn’t love you! You took her against her will, and in spite of our friendship, that wasn’t right. You can’t force someone to love you!”

  Marco laughed mirthlessly. “Women need to be shown what’s good for them. You cannot believe she’s better off with a Neanderthal like Zakk Cloutier! Tiff needs someone who can handle her—even poor Dave couldn’t truly take care of her. I found a simple way to eliminate him, knowing she was too loyal to divorce him, but once again, she passed over me and turned to someone else.”

  “What do you mean, you found a simple way to eliminate Dave?” Toli felt his heart pounding against his chest and Tessa squeezed his hand so hard it actually hurt.

  “Hemlock is easily attainable and difficult to detect,” Marco shrugged. “It happened quickly—he was my friend at one time, so I didn’t want him to suffer.”

  There were gasps around the room but Toli refused to react, staring at him intently and wondering where the hell his security was. “So you killed Dave thinking Tiff would automatically fall in love with you?”