I didn’t look at Ronan because I didn’t want to see his censure. I knew I’d messed up. We should have called the police immediately and trusted them to protect Tom.

“The men who tried to grab you now, were they the same ones from last night?”

“I think so. I recognized one of the voices, but they all wore masks, so it’s impossible to say for sure.”

He nodded. “How certain are you that it was the same voice?”

I thought about this. “Ninety percent.”

Was it my imagination, or did his arms tighten around me? Perhaps I just wanted that to be the case because, despite the awful situation, I couldn’t help reacting like a teenage girl with a crush around him.

“I can’t believe Tom would put you in this position.” He sounded frustrated. “If he owes money to someone dangerous, he’s a fool not to sell the company and pay them off.”

I didn’t say anything, but secretly, I agreed. The family company—Dad’s legacy—meant a lot to me, but it wasn’t worth endangering our lives. We could always start over. The Lennox name carried weight. Not as much as it used to, but enough to bring a few clients and potentially a seed investor.

“He’s running out of choices,” Ronan muttered. “Why wouldn’t he sell?”

“Tom will fight like a wild dog when he’s cornered. He doesn’t back down. Especially when he thinks you’re the one trying to take the company from him.” Finally, I voiced a question I’d always wanted to ask. “Why do you hate each other so much?”

Chapter Sixteen

Ronan

“I’ll tell you about Tom and me later.” I didn’t want to think of her brother when she was on my lap. Without exception, Tom Lennox made me angry, and I’d hate to take it out on her. I was already worked up from the adrenaline spike of seeing those men try to shove her into their van. Time had slowed, and I’d wanted to rip them limb from limb. If the guy who’d had her hadn’t given up, I’d gladly have shot him as well as the other. Willow didn’t deserve to be hurt just because her brother was an asshole who didn’t pay his debts.

An insidious voice whispered in my mind that if they hadn’t tried to take her right in front of me, I might never have known how bad the situation was. They might have come for her again, and I wouldn’t have been there. I couldn’t stand the thought.

“Has anything else happened?” I asked.

She hesitated, scanning my face as though trying to get a read on me. “Some photos were pushed under my door recently. They were all of me.”

My chest burned. “Do you think someone is stalking you?”

“Yes.” I could hear the strain in her voice and hated it. “There was no note. I took them to the police and they checked for prints but there was nothing else they could do. Maybe it’s not about me though. It might be a scare tactic for Tom to pay up.”