Bad Boy's Revenge: A Small-Town Romantic Suspense by Sosie Frost

thought they were images of her as a centerfold. I batted her hand away, bending down to grab the oversize sheets of paper, an arm span wide.
    “Maddox—”
    “What are these?” I knew electrical plans, but these were general building construction blueprints. “Are these…for a rebuild?”
    “It’s a long story…”
    No, it wasn’t. It was a very short story, and I got it as soon as I saw the dates stamped on the fucking plans.
    “These were created before the fire,” I said.
    “I know, it’s—”
    “ Nolan Rhys .” I spat the name on the corner of the documents. “He had an engineer draw up plans for your store a week before the fire?”
    Josie stilled. She tried to avoid my gaze. “The night of the fire he offered to buy the property from me. I don’t remember much after the dinner.”
    “Why?”
    “It was…I don’t know. Fuzzy. I must have hit my head in the shop.”
    “What do you remember?”
    “Maddox—”
    My voice hardened. “What do you remember?”
    She sighed, shrugging her shoulders. “Nolan wanted to take me to dinner to offer on the property. We ate, I told him unequivocally no , he ordered a drink just to show we had no bad feelings, and then…I got the call. I think. I know I went to the shop, and I know you pulled me out, but I can’t remember anything clearly after the drink or before the hospital.”
    That fucking bastard.
    It wasn’t the fire that stole her memory—it was Nolan and whatever the hell he put in her wine.
    She had no idea, and no one at the hospital thought to check…
    Fuck!
    Had it not been for the fire, Josie would have spent the night passed out on his mattress.
    And then I would have been put in jail for murder.
    “What?” She bit her lip. She pulled the plans from my hand before I tore them to shreds. “Maddox, of course I knew you were innocent. You’d never hurt me, no matter what the town says. I know you. I trust you. I—”
    She silenced, but those unspoken words weren’t enough to ease the churning, gut-aching rage that threatened to rend through my sanity.
    Nolan .
    This confirmed it. No more hunches. No more suspicions.
    He wanted her. He nearly stole her. And, when she refused him, he destroyed her store, her life, her future. And he framed me for it.
    She knew it too. Hell, only one reason she would have those plans. She stepped away from me, her eyes wide with hesitance.
    “Nolan Rhys torched your shop?” I asked.
    She swallowed. “I’m going to prove that he did.”
    “And then what?”
    “I’m going to put him in jail.”
    That wasn’t enough. It wouldn’t be enough. I turned, stalking to the door.
    Josie called for me to stay. Her hands wrapped over my bicep, pulling me back. “What are you going to do?”
    Like she had to ask. Like she hadn’t already figured it out.
    “I told you. I’m getting revenge on the son of a bitch who hurt you.”
    “How?”
    I didn’t answer. Josie stepped before me, preventing me from leaving.
    “Maddox… how ?”
    What I should have done before the bastard tried to ruin her.
    “I’m going to find Nolan, and I’m going to kill him.”

Chapter Seven – Josie
     
    Saint Christie wasn’t a dangerous town, but in the past year, I’d dealt with arsonists who ruined lives, villains who threatened to kill, and heroes who vowed to murder.
    This was what happened when people were denied desserts. Chocolate made everyone happy—cookies, cakes, ice creams, candies. Give a person a sweet in both hands and they couldn’t hold a weapon. My new motto. World peace and spun sugar.
    Nolan emailed, asking for a second chance to talk with me. He chose the location—one of Saint Christie’s little bistros. It was the nicer of the two, though some in the town insisted the local Subway shouldn’t count as an artisan restaurant.
    No way was I actually eating with him, but Nolan ordered a salad for me before I arrived. He waved me to my seat, grinning as though he weren’t the one responsible for my