Burned by Desire (Highland County Heroes Book 2)

by Lily LaVae

  It sucked to be ignored, and what Livy had said earlier still made her furious, especially since it seemed to be true. “Just when do you actually correct papers, or do anything for those kids?” she snapped, grabbing a tea from the four pack just to piss Livy off.

  Livy slid back in the seat, up to her full height. “Excuse me? I give ten hours a day to those kids. You try teaching kids who not only write, but speak, in text, how to appreciate Shakespeare. I spend every Saturday morning reading through all their papers and uploading all the grades, then sending out a ‘little Johnnie might be missing grades’ email. I work my ass off for ten months out of the year. I deserve a couple hours a night to do with as I please.” She took one of the bottles and twisted off the top, then threw it into the carry-case.

  “I’m sorry, Liv. You’re my only friend in all of Santinas. Other than my aunt, and she doesn’t matter because she doesn’t know me. When I found out you’d gotten a job here, I came here to be close to you. I don’t want to fight, I’m just…” She sighed, unable to put her thoughts into words.

  “Angry, hurt?” Livy offered. “I get you. I still think you needed him just to scrub your mind of that other asshole. You don’t have to think about him anymore. Seriously, block him from your phone. If you don’t, I will.”

  She didn’t want to think about the professor, so didn’t answer. Melody took a long drink of the sweet, sharp beverage and grimaced. “It’s like really bitter sweet tea. How do you drink this?”

  Livy laughed and drained about a third of a bottle. “Once you get past the first one, they’re smooth. Just chug it to get the taste taken care of, then enjoy the rest. I’ve got another in my car.”

  Of course she did. “In all seriousness, Liv, you really should cut back.”

  Livy rolled her eyes. “Maybe this summer, when I don’t need it to relax.”

  They’d never broached the topic of drinking before, but Melody already knew what Livy would say. She would still drink all summer, saying she was only having a good time. “I’ll remember you said that.” Despite her thoughts, Melody wanted nothing more than to dull her own day away with a little forgetful juice. “But since you brought it,” she lifted her drink in toast, “down the hatch.” She tipped the bottle back and let the bitter liquid flow past her tongue. It hit her stomach hard, but Livy was right. The after-taste was gone.

  Livy handed her a second one. “There, that wasn’t so hard, was it? Now, tell me about this guy that’s got you all wrapped up. He can’t be that great, can he?”

  Melody twisted off the bottle top and took another drink, just wanting to get good and buzzed so that whatever she said to Livy, she could claim she was drunk. “Well, I told him I wanted him and he delivered. Like a good pizza joint.” She laughed at her own joke and Livy laughed at her. Who knew a hard iced tea and a half could make her so funny?

  “And did he make you want him again and again?” Livy licked the top of her bottle, then drank.

  “Yes, but it doesn’t really matter since you said he won’t want to see me again.” Tears welled up behind her eyes, outside of her control. When did she get emotional? “I need a tissue.” She stood quickly, and stumbled over the coffee table that seemed to have moved from where she’d put it. The hallway to the bathroom tipped and pitched as she walked.

  She never drank more than half a beer and usually over the course of hours, but she hadn’t expected the hard iced tea to hit her so quickly. She found a tissue, then made her way back to the couch by sticking to the wall. Once she sat, she couldn’t remember why she’d gone for it in the first place.

  Livy stared at her from her regal position on the couch. “I’ve decided something. I’m going to give up my carousing ways until I find the right guy. And,” she paused for dramatic effect, “dun, dun, dun… I’m going to help you get Gage back.”

  “What?” Livy had been in her corner the whole time, always angry about Melody’s past and encouraging her to embrace her future, but she’d never encouraged her to stick to one man.

  “You heard me. I’m going to help you snag that man. He’s a protector. So, stop trying to be stronger than him, let him protect you.”

  She remembered being on top in the truck and how he’d moaned and arched under her, murmuring her name. “I don’t think he minds when I’m the boss for a bit.”

  Livy rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t talking about sex. If he likes a little give and take, then do that, later.”

  She tried to remember where she had heard that information before and who it was who’d told her. “Wait, the FBI guy told me to keep my hands off Gage today too, for my own good.” Her lip curled around the words, but she slurred them all the same.

  “You might end up back with him quicker if you do. Let him pursue you a bit. He likes an investigation, let him investigate.”

  “Just how can I do that? We’re linked by this story. Without the story, I’ve got no reason to see him. He’s so busy saving houses and lives…he doesn’t have time for me outside of our professional connection. Small as it is.” She hadn’t looked at it before, but the drink had made her tongue loose enough to say just exactly what she felt. She drained the second bottle.

  “Your cheeks are all red. You should probably slow down. You’re going to make yourself sick.” Livy set her bottle on the table, still half full.

  If there was any night to drink herself into oblivion, it was that night. Gage had been so cold and she’d only made it worse. “I told him he let his dick control him last night.”

  Livy spurted for a moment, then full on laughed. “You don’t hold back when you’re pissed, do you?”

  “I did it in front of the FBI guy.” She bit her lip, suddenly embarrassed all over again. Gage was a professional and she’d brought their sex life to his work place.

  “Who is this FBI guy, and why don’t I know about him?” Livy opened the last of the four bottles and handed it over.

  “He’s hot. Not as hot as Gage, but damn. He’s got this amazing dark hair that is sort of wavy and thick. He’s cut, but not chiseled. He’s cockier than I can stand though.”

  “Hmm, too bad I just swore off men for a while.” Livy laughed and tucked her legs under her on the couch.

  “I don’t think he’d go for anyone right now. He totally gave me the feeling of being less than appealing.” His words finally made it through the fog. “I think his words were, ‘I don’t mix business with pleasure.’”

  Livy had started to drink, but yanked the bottle from her lips and laughed. “In that case, I’ll stay out of his business and focus on his pleasure.” She waggled her eyebrows.

  Melody laughed until her stomach hurt, then she remembered she hadn’t eaten anything but popcorn before Livy had come over. “Should we eat something?”

  “In the state you’re in, you’ll get sick if you start eating now.”

  She made a face at Livy and took the full bottle, and tried to drain it all at one time. She got most of it down before she had to come up for air and everything in the room got closer, then farther away. She picked up the tissue and stared at it. Why did nothing make sense in her head? It sounded right as she thought about it, but then when she tried to say what she was thinking, it came out all wrong.

  “I want him, Livy. Again, and again, and again. I want him right now.” The admission sounded great until she hiccupped.

  Livy laughed and set down her bottle. “Give me your phone.”

  “I don’t want to. I want Gage.” Why had she said that? Melody blinked as she handed Livy her phone. “You don’t know my password anyway.”

  “I do.” She punched in the four digit code, then pressed a button.

  “What are you doing?” She felt so heavy, as if the couch had sucked her halfway into it and she couldn’t get up.

  “First, I’m blocking that asshole from ever contacting you again. Twelve messages in one day? You haven’t answered a single one. Doesn’t this jerk get the hint? You should file a stalking report… Better
yet, get him fired. Write a tell-all in your paper.”

  Melody bit her lip and the tears came for no apparent reason. It was as if her emotions could tell what was happening around her before she could. “I don’t want Gage to know. Ever. I don’t want him to think I let this guy take advantage of me.”

  “I hate to break this to you, but you did. You totally let him take advantage of you, but it doesn’t make you wrong, it makes him a predatory fucking jerk.”

  Melody let her head fall back against the couch and closed her eyes.

  “I’m also sending a text out to a mutual friend to come over and keep an eye on you. I need to head home and I’m worried you’re in for a rough night.”

  “I’ll be fine.” Her stomach pitched and she swallowed hard to keep her lie.

  “Yeah, I’m sure.” Melody could practically hear Livy rolling her eyes.

  “Please, Aunt Mary will not understand this. She’s going to have me committed or something.”

  Livy set the hard iced tea in Melody’s hand, kissed her forehead and headed for the door. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

  Chapter 15

  The text came through just as Gage got out of the shower. It had been a long day. He was tired and ready to just forget everything. The floor was cold against his bare feet, but he wouldn’t allow a rug in his bathroom. It was easier to keep a bare floor clean.

  He sighed as he picked up his phone. Melody had sent a text that morning and he’d been working, so hadn’t answered it, then she’d shown up and he hadn’t felt like he needed to reply, but this text was different.

  Melody: Hey Gage, this is Melody’s friend Olivia Adams. She is at her apartment and really drunk. I don’t feel right about leaving her here alone, but I have to go. Can you please come check on her? Fourth street, Apt 45.

  Damn. He scraped his hand down his face and stared at his phone. If he hadn’t looked, he could’ve brushed it off, but if he’d done that, he would’ve felt bad about leaving her. He picked up his phone and typed in a quick reply that he was on his way.

  It had not been his intention to see her again. Not after what she’d done that morning. Announcing their brief history in front of Alexander had made him furious. But in the long run, it didn’t matter. Alexander had also advised him to work with Melody, to keep an eye on her and make sure she wasn’t a suspect and to encourage her to help them by pissing off the real suspect to make mistakes. He couldn’t do that if he didn’t suck it up and take back what he’d said.

  She didn’t live far from him and he was there in just a few minutes. His hair was still damp and he hadn’t bothered to do more than slap on a pair of jeans and a tee. Someone groaned from inside when he knocked.

  “Melody?” He listened at the door.

  He heard shuffling and what sounded like retching, then the door opened. Melody was not her usual put-together beautiful self. She was gray and chewing on her lip. Her eyes were glassy and she stared at him. “You? I was expecting my aunt.”

  “Olivia didn’t tell you she messaged me?” He maneuvered around her and closed the door. “She told me you’d had too much to drink and needed someone to check on you.”

  She swiped her hair behind her ears as her gaze darted all over the room. He followed her eyes and saw the mess of clothes in the corner, the old pizza boxes in the kitchen, a sink piled with dishes.

  “I didn’t clean up…” Her words were slow and strung together.

  “Don’t worry about it.” He went to the kitchen and looked in her fridge. Just as he suspected, she drank bottled water and there was an open case of it in the bottom. He grabbed a bottle and took it to her. She gave him a skeptical eye.

  “Why are you here? You don’t want anything to do with me anymore. Not after we had sex.” She hiccupped.

  She was only half right. He didn’t want to deal with the side of her that felt like she needed to argue with him every time he didn’t immediately give her what she wanted. The other side of her, the smart one with a fire that couldn’t be quenched, he’d like to see more of. He handed her the bottle of water. “You’ll need this.”

  “If I put anything in my mouth right now, I’ll throw up.” Just saying the words made her shoulders heave slightly.

  Luckily, puke was something he was used to. Trauma often caused vomiting and he’d cleaned the bus a fair number of times. “Try laying down and sipping it. If you don’t, your hangover will be twice as bad tomorrow.”

  “And will you be here to see it? Or are you just here to rescue me?” Her big hazel eyes stared at him, challenged him.

  “No, I won’t be here tomorrow morning. You’re in no condition to tempt me with that sweet ass.” He’d loved that part of her completely, not that the rest of her hadn’t been amazing. She’d fit perfectly in his hand. “I’ll get you set and ready to go to bed, then I’ll go home where I belong.” He took her to the couch and helped her sit.

  Tears rolled down her face and she didn’t bother taking a drink. “I can’t believe I did that, Gage. I wanted more from you than just last night. I wanted to start over. I wanted you to see me as a successful, intelligent woman. Someone you could look at and see as more than just a piece of ass.”

  He swallowed hard as his last thought came back to haunt him. “Melody, you’re annoying as hell when you’re trying to be pushy, but I never said you weren’t intelligent.”

  “You think I’m a slut. Maybe I am. I didn’t want to tell you, but all through college, I let a professor take advantage of me. At first, I was flattered. He wanted to spend time with me, a lowly freshman, and he told me I was brilliant and would have an amazing career.”

  He let her ramble, knowing she wouldn’t remember much of what she said in the morning anyway. He sat down and she leaned against him, letting her head fall against his shoulder.

  “By the end of the first year, he had me convinced I needed to sleep with him to get published in the school paper. I held out for a long time. I kept submitting articles but they would be returned all marked up. He let me cry on his shoulder, then would try to seduce me.”

  He tensed, hating the guy already. People who took advantage of others were scum.

  “I only found out when I graduated that it was him. He was the one marking up my stories and telling me how horrible they were, all while patting my head and telling me if I really wanted to be published, I just needed to let him do what he wanted. So…I did.” Her voice squeaked and she tipped her face into his shoulder.

  It was in his nature to protect, life and health were sacred. Saying anything wouldn’t take back what had happened, and wouldn’t help her now.

  “That’s why I wanted you so bad.” She hid in his shirt. “I wanted something intimate that would cover all that he’d done to me. I wanted to know what it really felt like.”

  He massaged the back of her neck as he held her. She finally sat up and took a tentative sip of the water, then stood and raced down the hall, just missing both walls by inches. Olivia had been right to call him. While some would find her state funny, she could aspirate on her own vomit or fall and hit her head. He followed her trail to the bathroom and found her draped over the toilet.

  “You must hate me. You must just think…” Her words gave out.

  He held her hair back and found a hair tie on the sink, then used it to put it in a loose ponytail. He turned on a warm bath, then left her for a minute to go search her room for something comfortable to wear to bed.

  He found her room next to the bathroom, and nothing but mountains of silky, slinky underwear. She could avoid a washing machine for over a month and still have panties. He frowned and looked in the next drawer. Nothing but a mountain of tees. They would have to do. At the bottom, he found some yoga pants that wouldn’t put pressure on her stomach. He gathered the panties, tee, and pants and went back to the bathroom.

  “I shut off the water, it was getting deep. You going to take a bath in my tub?” She glanced up at him from her spot on the floor. So innocent
.

  “No. I’m going to help you get cleaned up, and send you to bed.”

  “That sounds nice. But it would be even nicer if you’d stay.”

  It would, but he wouldn’t do that. There had to be distance between them while they were both trying to figure out the arsons. And especially not after what she’d divulged. He would not be another asshole who took advantage of her. After the case, maybe.

  “I can’t, but I am here to help. Arms up.”

  Without any question, she lifted her arms and he removed the soiled tee she’d been wearing and tossed it in the empty clothes hamper in the corner. He chuckled to himself wondering if she’d ever find it in there.

  “Good, now can you stand for me, hold my shoulders to help.” He hovered over her and helped her to her feet. Once she was steady, he bent and stripped off her pants and panties all at once. She didn’t even seem to notice. He turned her around slowly and slipped the hook on her bra.

  “You did that without looking before. Guess you’re better in the dark, huh?” She giggled.

  He let her laugh at him as he eased her into the tub, making sure she didn’t slip or tip over.

  “It’s cold!” She tried to scramble out and he had to hold her in there for a moment.

  “It isn’t, your skin is just hot from the alcohol. I would bet you don’t drink much usually, do you?”

  She shook her head and settled back in against the back of the tub. Her breasts tipped upward and just skimming the top of the water.

  “Don’t you want me anymore, Gage?”

  He took up the soap and lathered the soft sponge she’d left sitting on the corner of the tub. Her soap had the same scent of oils he’d noticed on her skin before. He leaned forward and took his time, washing first her neck in case her hair had left any trace of anything there, then he slowly washed her breasts, and down to her navel. She leaned forward for him and he washed her back, taking care not to rub too hard and make her queasy again.