by J. S. Scott
“Nope,” he muttered in a low baritone that vibrated against Kristin’s ear. “I’d say you’re always much too worried about everyone else except yourself. Your entire life is dedicated to other people’s welfare. But then, who takes care of you?”
She snorted. “I can take care of myself.”
“I have news for you, Scarlet, you’re not doing a very good job. I can tell you’re exhausted and stressed out. I’m willing to bet the only time you’ve drunk to excess was in Vegas.” He toyed with one of her curls playfully. “Why then? Why only when you were in Vegas?”
“Because it’s the only opportunity I’ve ever had,” she answered with a squeak.
“My sweet little liar,” he rumbled. “You did it for the same reason I did. I’m not a hard drinker, but I got more than a little plastered that night.”
“Then you tell me why we did it, Dr. Freud,” she answered sarcastically, knowing Julian had a theory.
“Because trying not to touch you is like trying not to fucking breathe,” he answered forcefully.
The heat in his tone made Kristin bite back a groan. Being here, being with him was both torture and bliss. “Being drunk made everything explainable,” she admitted painfully.
Julian moved so fast that Kristin could barely track his motion, and he had her pinned beneath him on the couch before she could even protest.
His chest was heaving, his eyes stormy and tumultuous as he answered, “We aren’t drunk anymore.” He grasped her wrists and pinned her hands to the sofa. “And I still feel it, Kristin. So do you.”
Her first instinct was to deny that she still felt some inexplicable pull toward Julian, but his raw honesty wouldn’t let her. “I’m afraid,” she finally said breathlessly.
His expression softened. “And you think I’m not? You think I like having my balls tied in a knot by a gorgeous redhead who makes me fucking insane?”
The “gorgeous redhead” part got to her, as did the thought of a superstar like Julian being confused about her. “I’m just a regular woman, Hotshot. Nothing special about me.” Not even remotely.
“You can never tell me that, because I won’t believe it,” Julian denied. “Do any damn thing you want to piss me off, but I’ll still want you, Kristin.”
Feeling raw and vulnerable, she told him tearfully, “I don’t understand what you want from me.”
“Everything and nothing,” he shot back. “I want you to give us a chance. I want you to admit that we have to explore this thing or go crazy. Give us three months together to actually have fun. Give somebody a chance to actually take care of you. I’ll take care of your parents forever. Your mom will never need something she can’t afford. I promise.”
Jesus! He’s the only man who could say something like that and make it sexy!
Kristin didn’t want somebody to take care of her.
Did she?
The more Julian asked, the better it sounded. For once, she wanted something greedily, selfishly. She wanted . . . him. Not because he offered to leave her wealthy, but because she wanted to, for once, feel like she was a priority.
“That isn’t the way my life works. It never has,” she panted out.
“Then change it,” Julian growled. “Nobody needs you right now but me, and maybe I’ll ask for everything, but I sure as hell will give it back.”
He would. Kristin knew he would. For whatever reason, Julian Sinclair was focused on winning her over. But what would happen after he did?
“Stop overthinking everything, Kristin. Just decide if you want to take a chance, do something just for yourself.” He loosened his grip on her wrists, but still held her in place with his body.
It was a challenge, and she knew it. But she couldn’t stop herself from responding. “Fine. I’ll do it. We’re already married. Three months. And then you end this,” she told him wildly, for once not thinking about the consequences.
Julian made her just that irritated, mad enough to take up any gauntlet that he threw down.
“Yeah. Then I will,” he agreed gutturally, as if he didn’t want to think about later.
Now that the bargain was struck, Kristin felt a moment of panic. “Let. Me. Up.”
He grinned down at her. “Scared?”
Hell yes, she was terrified. She’d made a deal with the most wicked male she knew, and one who posed the biggest threat to her sanity.
Julian backed off, allowing her to sit up.
She snorted. “Of course not. Three months will pass quickly.”
He just continued to smile, which made Kristin want to punch him.
“I love your optimism,” he answered, amused.
“I told you I’d make your life miserable. I will,” she threatened as she stood, needing some distance between her and the incredibly intoxicating, masculine scent of the hottest man in the universe. Even she couldn’t resist his ability to get under her skin, which in turn made her want to get him naked.
Did she have some kind of fetish for angry sex?
Foreplay.
She turned back once she was a safe distance from the couch. “I’m going to bed. I have to work tomorrow.” Maybe she’d do a few laps in his Olympic-sized bathtub to blow off steam.
“No you don’t. In fact, you need to pack,” he mentioned casually before she could walk away. “We’re taking a vacation. Sarah got a temp to cover you, and your dad just hired your mom a companion and assistant so he can spend some time with her without being her caregiver.”
Kristin was starting to see red . . . again. “What? I don’t think I heard you right.”
“You heard me just fine. We’re going to go away for a while. Someplace warm.”
Since they’d had their first major snow recently, she shivered at the thought of a warm tropical breeze and some downtime. What would that be like? “I can’t go anywhere. I have responsibilities here.”
“Not anymore,” he informed her. “And it’s not like we’re leaving for months. It’s a vacation.”
“Where?” Not that she was really going to go. But she was curious about what he had planned.
“Maui,” he informed her. “I have a place there. Call it business if you want. I should probably see how it’s going.”
Hawaii? Was he serious? “I can’t just leave,” she told him hotly, chewing her lip to keep from getting excited at the prospect of going somewhere she’d always wanted to go.
“We won’t. We’ll stop at your parents’ place in the morning to say good-bye.”
He was missing the point completely—which Kristin knew was intentional. She tried not to think about warm ocean water and tropical cocktails. “I can’t.”
“Start packing,” he shot back, completely ignoring her statement. “I’d like to get an early start. Your parents are thrilled that we’re actually going away on a honeymoon.”
Oh. God. “You told them?” she asked, her voice coming out as a surprised squeak.
He rose and moved to stand in front of her. “Of course. I talk to your dad almost every day. We have a business together. Certainly you didn’t want me to lie to them?”
“He never told me,” she answered, upset now that her dad hadn’t even mentioned that he talked to Julian.
“I asked him not to. If it helps, I just told him the day I was flying back to Amesport. I told him we got married in Vegas. That I finally realized that I wanted to see you every day for the rest of my life. Then I told him about Maui, but I told him I wanted to surprise you.”
“It doesn’t help,” she snapped. “And he didn’t ask why I hadn’t told him we were married?”
“Of course he did. But I told him we wanted to tell him and your mom when we were together,” he said with a serious expression on his face.
“No wonder you won an Oscar,” she retorted angrily. “They fell for that?”
“Completely. I can be very convincing.”
“I don’t doubt that,” she mumbled unhappily. “You’re leaving me no choice but to play along. You
realize they’ll be sad to realize they aren’t having grandchildren in the near future.”
“Why? I can arrange that.” He raised a brow at her suggestively. “I do know how the process works.”
Kristin wanted to hurt him. If he didn’t have a huge gash on his forehead from saving her ass on the stairway, she probably would have. “Fine. I’ll go. But I want to go sightseeing. A lot.” If there was one thing Julian probably hated, it was being out in public.
“Me too. We can island hop if you want,” he answered with an agreeable smirk.
“And I want lots of cocktails with the little umbrellas. Oh, and snorkeling with the giant turtles. I want to do that, too.” If he thought she was going to just hang out on a beautiful beach with him and love it, he was mistaken. “I hate sunbathing.”
She’d be sunburned within minutes. With her fair complexion and red hair, she didn’t tan. She burned until she looked like a lobster.
“Me too,” he agreed. “Very boring unless you’re doing something fun.”
He was being so accommodating that it was nauseating. Funny, but she’d assumed a superstar like Julian would be happy lying on a beach somewhere. How hard was it going to be to truly think up things that he’d find tedious and annoying?
“Pearl Harbor memorial?” she tried desperately.
“Done. We’d have to hop to Oahu, but that’s not a problem.”
Was there anything she could say where he’d disagree?
She gave up. She’d have to think on how to make his life so miserable he’d divorce her. “Good night,” she said tightly.
He finally balked. “Wait. I’ll come up with you.” He grasped her hand to keep her from escaping.
Kristin looked up at him, noticing that his other hand was rubbing his forehead. “Are you okay? I’ll get you your meds.” He looked like his head was hurting.
“I took them upstairs. I’ll be fine. The only thing I really want is my wife,” he answered in a fatigued tone so genuine that Kristin couldn’t bring herself to argue.
Without saying another word, she led him to the elevator so she could get him upstairs without making his pain any worse, still annoyed with herself that Julian was so damn easy to forgive.
CHAPTER 14
“I can’t believe my baby is married. Let me see your ring.”
Kristin cringed as she and Julian entered her parents’ house. Her mom was standing right beside her dad, upright with her hands on her walker.
Julian nodded at her father. “Hello, Dale. Good to see you again.” The two men shook hands before Julian swooped in and kissed Kristin’s mother on the cheek. “Cindy, you’re looking as beautiful as ever. I still say I know where Kristin got her looks.”
As they all made their way into the living room, Kristin felt nausea rising up to greet her. She loved her parents, and she’d never lied to them, because there had never been a reason for her to make up falsehoods. She’d spent her youth with her mom, and she’d never gotten into trouble.
She listened as Julian smoothly told her mother that he had wanted to wait and let Kristin pick out the ring of her dreams.
She’d spent a tense night in Julian’s guest room, the same one she’d used to watch him over the weekend. Surprisingly, he’d kissed her tenderly and let her go to bed, but she’d slept very little.
Taking her place next to her mom on the sofa, Kristin put an arm around Cindy’s fragile shoulders, noticing that she wasn’t tremoring quite as badly today, and she seemed fairly steady with her walker. “I feel guilty for leaving,” she told her mom earnestly while Julian and her father spoke boisterously across the room.
Her mother squinted up at her in surprise. “Whatever for? I’m not dying. I just can’t walk straight.”
“I’ve never left you and Dad for very long—”
“No, and it’s past time you did, baby girl,” Cindy Moore told her daughter firmly. “You’ve given up enough of your life for us. Now that you’ve found Julian, he should be your priority.”
“He’s aggravating sometimes,” Kristin blurted out without thinking.
Her mom chuckled softly. “They all are, honey. Some are just worse than others. Your father fusses over me like I’m a child. He forgets my brain is still working. I just can’t always express myself right.”
Occasionally, her mother’s speech was slurred, especially when she was tired. Eyeing her parent carefully, Kristin could see the twinkle in the woman’s eyes. “Because he loves you,” she answered softly.
“I know he does,” Cindy replied. “I love him right back. But it doesn’t mean we don’t argue.”
Kristin swallowed hard as she looked over at her father, a big redheaded man who’d stood by his wife all of these years. Her father could be stubborn and proud, but he looked far less stressed out now that he had competent people running Shamrock’s. “He looks good.”
“Thanks to that young man of yours,” Cindy crowed. “You chose well, sweetie. He’s a keeper. I’m glad you saw that and married him right away. The way that he’s helped your dad is almost a miracle for us.”
Tears sprang to Kristin’s eyes. After all she’d done, it had never been enough to save her mom and dad from living a difficult life. But Julian had swept in and saved the day with an infusion of money and talent that had made Shamrock’s the hottest place in town. “I wish I could have done more myself,” Kristin murmured regretfully.
“Honey, you did. You kept the business running. Do you think your dad and I don’t know what you sacrificed for us? And what you’ve always given up for me,” Cindy said tearfully. “That’s why we’re so happy that you found Julian.”
Kristin wanted to weep, but she kept her sorrow buried as she spoke. “I gave up those things willingly, Mom. I love you. You and Dad are my entire life.”
Her heart ached. Obviously both of her parents had felt guilty for squashing her childhood and her adult life. That’s not what Kristin wanted, but it felt nice for them to acknowledge that she’d loved them enough to give up whatever was needed for her family.
“You’re a good girl. You always were. You’re special, honey.” She nodded jerkily toward Julian. “Now it’s your turn. With a man like that, I think you need a little alone time.”
“I’ve always wanted to go to Hawaii,” Kristin answered, trying to sound excited.
“I know. I think your dad put in his opinion about where you should honeymoon.”
“So this wasn’t a coincidence,” Kristin said carefully.
“I doubt that,” Cindy said with a happy smile.
Julian planned this trip? He wanted to please me by picking a destination I wanted?
No. It had to be a coincidence. “He has a place there,” Kristin informed her parent.
For the first time in a long time, her mom chuckled. “He has a place in a lot of locations, from what I understand. He has investments all over the world.”
Not knowing what to say to that, she answered, “Well then, I’m glad he picked Maui.”
“Go and have a wonderful time. I want lots of pictures. I’m glad you’re happy now, but I just wish I hadn’t missed the wedding,” Cindy commented wistfully.
“We can have a big reception when we come back, Cindy,” Julian suggested as he moved across the room with her father.
Kristin watched as her mother beamed at Julian happily. “A wonderful idea. It doesn’t sound like your brothers and your cousins got to attend the wedding, either.”
“They didn’t,” Julian confirmed.
“Then a reception is definitely in order,” Dale stated robustly.
“It’s settled, then. Right, darling?” Julian sat on the arm of the sofa and put his hand on Kristin’s shoulder as he made the affectionate remark.
“Of course, my love,” she answered through a clenched jaw.
Dale Moore slapped Julian on the back. “We can get the ball rolling on that. Cindy and I are retired together now. It will give us something to plan.”
“Thanks, D
ale,” Julian said, sounding grateful.
“I so wish you’d call us Mom and Dad like Kristin does,” Cindy told Julian sincerely.
Kristin watched a myriad of emotions pass over her husband’s expression. Her mom’s comment had been innocent enough, but maybe he wasn’t ready to use those titles, out of respect for his murdered parents.
Before she could speak up, Julian did. “I’d be honored. I lost both of my parents a few years ago now.”
“Oh, Julian. I’m so sorry. What happened?” Cindy’s stunned expression was proof that Kristin’s parents didn’t know about Julian’s tragedy.
“They were both murdered in a home invasion,” he said flatly.
Kristin could see the horrified expression on her mom’s face as she spoke. “I’m so sorry. We can’t be your parents, but we’d like to be a second pair of parent figures to you.”
His lips formed a slow smile. “Thank you. You’ve raised a smart, beautiful, giving, and loving daughter. For that alone, I’d be proud to call you my honorary mom and dad.”
It was an awkward but deeply touching moment for Kristin. She had a feeling it was an action that was pivotal for Julian, and she was gratified that he handled it with grace, for her parents’ sake.
Hugging her mom tightly, she whispered in her ear, “I love you. But I’ll call while I’m gone.”
Her mother blew her off. “Don’t bother. I think Julian will keep you busy. If anything comes up, we’ll call you.”
It seemed strange to finally see her parents looking healthier, stronger. Stress had taken its toll on both of them, but they looked better.
She stood and hugged her dad as she whispered, “Are you going to be okay?”
“Fine, fine. Go on and have a good time. You’re a married woman now, and you don’t need to keep putting off living your life because of us anymore,” he boomed loudly enough for everyone in the room to hear.
“I don’t regret it.” She didn’t try to deny that she’d been living a half life. Maybe things hadn’t exactly worked out as planned, but she’d take a vacation to Hawaii as a new start.
Her parents didn’t need her anymore.