Derek wanted to know the answer to that question as well, but he wasn’t going to grill her in front of her former suitor or their old classmates. He could easily see that she wanted to hurt Bennett as much as she thought he’d hurt her. That would solve nothing, and it definitely wouldn’t help in figuring out who the responsible party was who had been terrorizing her. He should never have allowed her to go to the restroom unescorted when it was obvious that someone had wanted to scare her all evening.
Scare being the operative word. Had someone wanted to actually harm Tessa, they had more than enough opportunity to do so over these past two weeks. Someone was out to frighten her and make her life unbearable. They needed to figure out who that someone was before these non-violent acts escalated into something more physical.
“I’d like to leave,” Tessa whispered, her words practically blending with the loud music still coming from the large speakers. She was holding her high heels close to her chest, though he was relieved to see that she wasn’t embarrassed by what had taken place. She was angry. “I need some fresh air.”
“Tessa, why would you think—”
“I’m sure you can come up with an answer to that one all by yourself, Harris.” Derek had made sure he’d remained in between Tessa and Bennett. She’d already dealt with something that had truly upset her, and he would damn well see to it that nothing else happened on his watch. He blamed himself that this was how her evening had come to an end. He wasn’t about to let Harris do any more damage. “Enough. I suggest you leave this matter alone. She told me how you started to tell her what she could and couldn’t wear, and how you would be waiting at home for her after a shift to confirm she wasn’t going out with friends for a drink. Let me tell you something. You so much as look at her with hostile intent, and I’ll be the one making sure you understand the word enough. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”
“Bennett, just tell him that she means nothing to you anymore,” the blonde woman urged in a rather nasally tone, her green eyes all but shooting daggers Tessa’s way. Had Derek not seen her glued to Bennett’s side for the last ten minutes, he would have actually considered that this woman had something to do with whatever had happened to Tessa. “Tell him.”
“Claudia, just stop your nagging,” Bennett warned, pulling his arm out of her grasp before trying to take another step toward Tessa. Derek shifted his body and made sure Harris understood him this time.
“One more advance and your face won’t be matching that pretty billboard picture anymore.” Derek waited for Harris to recognize that he’d pushed too far. “I asked you once already. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, yes, I understand,” Bennett said, both hands up in the air as if to ask for forgiveness. “But I haven’t done anything, nor would I ever.”
“I hear you,” Derek shared, resting a hand on Tessa’s lower back as she started to take a step toward the front entrance. Only a handful of classmates had overheard the heated exchange of words between Tessa and Bennett, but it was enough that word would get around town. “Now stop before you’re in the back of a patrol car, heading to jail for misdemeanor harassment. Do yourself a favor and steer clear of Tessa for the foreseeable future. I don’t want to think I made a mistake by letting you off with a warning. You’re a smart guy, Bennett. Don’t push her any further toward that inevitable restraining order, or your business might suffer.”
Derek guided Tessa through the thinning crowd, reading her body posture. She’d reached her limit on what she could take from her tormentor, and she was ready to fight back. He’d never been so glad for the additional week he’d taken to be home, because he would be right by her side every step of the way. She wouldn’t have to deal with this on her own.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Tessa managed to finally lift her cup of tea without causing the warm liquid to spill over the side. She wasn’t so sure if it was due to the adrenaline leaving her system or the deep-seated anger that had set in upon recognizing the culprit who had been standing right outside the restroom door.
“How can you be so damn sure that it wasn’t Bennett?” Tessa asked, raising her gaze so she didn’t miss any of Derek’s facial expressions. Something she noticed since yesterday was that his tone of voice rarely changed under any circumstance, making it hard to tell what he was thinking unless she was looking directly at him. Even then, it was only when his eyes darkened that indicated his change of intensity. “How long was he out of your sight before you saw him again? Or that snake he had on his arm, for that matter? It would have taken no more than five seconds for either one of them to reach into the restroom and turn off the light.”
Tessa tried to put that simple action into perspective. All someone had done was flip off the light switch, possibly as a joke. No one had tried to harm her, and no crime had been committed. Once again, she was left wondering if she’d made something out of nothing—a mountain out of a mole hill.
“Harris wasn’t anywhere near that restroom, Tessa.” Derek had removed his tuxedo jacket over an hour ago, when they’d entered her modest home. He’d loosened his bowtie so that both ends were hanging loose underneath his undone collar, and he’d also rolled up his sleeves twice so that they fell halfway up his forearms. He looked comfortable, like he intended to stay for a while. She hadn’t conveyed her gratitude. In fact, she hadn’t said a thing on that subject. She just knew that she wasn’t ready to be left alone. “That’s not to say that he didn’t have someone else pull that type of juvenile bullshit stunt, just like you said.”
“But you don’t think he had anything to do with it, do you?” Tessa speculated, not having to go that far out on the ledge to guess what he was thinking. She tucked a flyaway strand that had come loose from the pile of hair she’d secured with a hair tie before she’d taken a shower. It had taken her less than ten minutes tops to quickly wash off the dried wine that had been stuck to her skin and stained her dress. Speaking of which, her outfit was still soaking wet. She could admit to being rather surprised upon finding a hot cup of her favorite tea waiting for her when she’d returned to the living room. “Do you know how humiliating it would be for me to think that I overreacted to nothing more than an accident or preprogrammed timer kicking off the lights?”
“Had someone hit the light switch by mistake upon entering that restroom, they would have immediately flipped the switch back on. It was more than apparent that it was done with malicious intent, but what would someone have to gain by doing that stupid stunt?” Derek asked, resting his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward in the overstuffed chair. “Someone has been making your life very difficult, and these are very targeted attacks. Whoever it is had to be observing your movements.”
“But why?” The delicious tea he’d made her did nothing to quell the frustration welling inside of her. She uncurled herself from the couch and set her cup down on the coffee table in case she lost her composure and threw it across the room. “There is only one person that I’ve upset to any degree within the last three months, and that’s Bennett Harris. Technically, I haven’t gone off on anyone in years, not since a patient tried to cop a feel when I was giving him a sponge bath. He was ninety-one years old at the time and died shortly afterward, so I can pretty much guarantee that he wouldn’t have had the strength to pull some of these stunts off with much success. Derek, no one else would have reason to want to hurt me. None who I have any clue about.”
“But whoever is doing this isn’t physically hurting you,” Derek pointed out, rubbing his fingers across his chin as he contemplated her troubles. And it was a disturbing act, but it wasn’t like she could call the police and expect any kind of real action from them. A threatening call was one thing, but someone turning the light off in a restroom? They would have laughed her out of the station. “It’s like they are purposefully causing you to be constantly on alert for something else to happen. He or she wants to keep you on edge and try to put you off your game.”
“I haven’t done anything t
o anyone,” Tessa said forcefully, wishing she could remember one thing she might have done that would have upset someone.
“You haven’t lost a patient you were primary on in the last two months or so?” Derek was reaching, but she could understand why. Sometimes families didn’t take losing their loved ones without needing to blame someone for their loss. Of course that had happened a time or two in her past career, but she’d never had any of them upset enough to seek her out where she lived or to make her life a living hell. “Did you cut someone off in a parking lot or flip someone the bird? I know it’s a stretch, but you’re going to have to start thinking outside the box.”
He’d left his sentence to hang for just a little bit too long, like he wanted to add something to his statement. Something like, before this turns into something more than innocuous acts that were merely psychological.
“This is Catfish Creek, Derek,” Tessa reminded him, staring off into space as she tried to think of what she could have done to upset someone. Absolutely nothing came to mind. “Everyone knows everyone else’s business. Wouldn’t someone have noticed something?”
The grandfather clock in the corner of her living room began to chime, indicating that the midnight hour had just arrived. Tessa was tired, but she couldn’t bring herself to end this evening. To do so would be to bid Derek goodnight, and his presence was the only thing keeping her grounded. She’d been floating through the days these past two weeks, going through the motions while constantly looking over her shoulder. It was nice to have someone else have her back, even for only one evening.
“You’re second guessing yourself about your tiniest moves, and that is exactly what this person wants.” Derek slowly stood, prompting Tessa to do the same. She twisted her fingers together as she tried to think of something to say that would delay his departure. “Look, why don’t you go and get some rest. I can—”
“Stay here with me.”
The plea practically fell off her lips. She took a step forward to still his hand from reaching for his jacket that he’d laid over the back of the loveseat. His dark gaze met hers, but she never wavered her stare. She needed him to hold her, if only for tonight.
“You don’t mean that,” Derek said softly with a shake of his head. He lifted a hand and drew the back of his fingers subtly down her cheek. She couldn’t even say if the warmth of his skin touched hers, yet he’d left behind a streak of fire as he dropped his hand. “You’re just scared. You—”
“I want you to stay here with me, Derek.” Tessa slowly closed the distance between them, bringing up her hands so that they rested on either side of his waist. She peered up at him through her lashes so that he could see the honesty within her request. “I need this. I need you tonight. I need to feel something other than uncertainty and fear. If you’re worried I’m asking for tomorrow too, I’m not. We both understand each other’s responsibilities. I know you have to go back to your Marines, but please give me tonight.”
Derek’s jawline tensed until the cord of muscle was visible, indicating he was considering the ramifications of such an invitation. She gently lifted her right hand until her palm curled around the back of his neck, the silkiness of his short, cropped hair at the edge of her fingertips. She lifted on her tiptoes until their lips were mere inches apart.
“One night, Derek,” Tessa whispered, something inside of her screaming that he wouldn’t return if he walked out her front door. She didn’t want a vague phone call tomorrow asking how she was or for there to be an elusive offer to help when there was nothing anyone could do about her plight. There was no proof that these strings of incidents were related, and she might very well be losing her mind. If that were the case, she wanted to lose her sanity over something worth it. “Please stay.”
* * * *
Derek had every intention of walking out of Tessa’s house and being the gentleman he’d been raised to be, keeping the promise he’d made to himself not to get too involved in her personal affairs only to end up having to walk away from her.
He’d known earlier this evening that she was different from the rest. He’d reminded himself over and over that he had one more year before he had to make another decision that would affect the next four years of his life. He’d told himself that he would see to it that she was safe in her home, maybe even put a call in to the police about having them do patrol sweeps through the area. He couldn’t leave her unprotected, but he also had a duty to protect himself from damaging his heart.
Now?
Tessa’s supple curves against his body and her lips inches from his made leaving difficult. Hell, she made it all but impossible.
Derek wrapped an arm around her waist and eased her toward him, not stopping until the only thing that separated them were the clothes on their bodies. He captured her lips, unable to get enough of her. The sweet taste of sugar and cream made him think that the addictive taste had nothing to do with her tea and everything to do with the fact that she was a hypnotic aphrodisiac. He no longer cared what tomorrow would bring. They were living in the moment.
Tessa used his body as leverage as she raised herself higher onto her tiptoes to deepen their kiss. She didn’t have to worry, because he didn’t intend on stopping anytime soon. He easily hoisted her up so that her long legs were wrapped around his waist, already accepting that they weren’t going to make it to her bedroom…at least for the first round.
Derek sidestepped the coffee table until they both toppled onto the couch. He pulled his lips from hers so that he could see for himself that she understood the ground rules that she’d already put into place. He ignored the fact that he was repeating her words for his sake only.
“For tonight then.”
“Agreed,” Tessa said breathlessly, already reaching for the unfastened bowtie hanging around his neck. She gradually slid the material out from under his lapel, never once breaking eye contact. “So make it your best effort, Derek.”
Tessa’s challenge was a reckless streak of provocation that immediately raised the heat level. He couldn’t resist leaning down and running his tongue across her lower lip, only to then nip it with his teeth. She still had her legs wrapped around him with apparently no intention of letting him go. He had other plans though. He’d become rigid as a board the moment she’d whispered the word stay.
Derek leaned up and all but forced her to relax her hold on him. She was taking in every move he made. She’d already removed his bowtie, so unfastening the rest of the buttons on his shirt was done with ease. Everything she felt was displayed across her beautiful features and he had to question on whether the desire burning within those baby blues of hers could literally light a fire in something other than his soul.
“Don’t stop now,” Tessa urged in what could only be described as a purr. She was full of contradictions, because this was not the nurse who had taken care of his father. She was every bit the passionate, irresistible woman he’d recognized at the door first thing this evening. She happened to be tossing his bowtie onto the floor, signifying her surrender. He had just started to remove his shirt when she reached for the hem of the top she’d changed into earlier. She pulled on the bottom edge and then drew the soft material over her head, causing some of those beautiful strands to come loose from the haphazard bun. Her sensual smile all but caused his heart to stop beating. He couldn’t think back to when another woman had ever had this type of effect on him. “You’re making my teenage dreams come true, Derek Spencer.”
Derek couldn’t prevent himself from giving her a half smile at the thought of their innocence back then. The things he’d learned over the last ten years had him very grateful that they hadn’t been those fumbling teenagers who thought they knew everything…and he didn’t mind teaching her a few things that would have had the young, naïve Tessa running in the other direction once upon a time.
The swells of her breasts weren’t contained in a constricting bra. They were exposed for his viewing pleasure and he took his time memorizing the sensua
l hue of her porcelain skin, noticing her hardened nipples were the perfect size. He finished removing his shirt, dropping the starched fabric onto the floor. He then stroked his fingers up her abdomen, into a semi-half circle around her right breast. He didn’t go near her nipple, and yet it somehow hardened even more.
Tessa had closed her eyes, breathing in deep enough to cause her chest to rise. The flyaway strands made her look like an angel and he was helpless not to touch. There was no rush. They had all night, so he took his time exploring every inch of her exposed skin until she finally grabbed ahold of his wrist. He’d been so busy watching her body respond to him that he hadn’t noticed she was doing the same.
“Touch me, Derek.”
Tessa had moved his hand so that his palm rested against the side of her right breast, but it was clear she hadn’t expected him to grant her wish. Her lips parted when his thumb caressed her hardened nipple. The nub was so tight from anticipation that he could only imagine how sensitive she was to the contact.
“The way you respond…” Derek leaned forward, pressing his lips against her warm flesh where his thumb had been. He slowly circled his tongue around her areola, once again steering clear of where she really wanted his attention. “I want all these clothes off you.”
Derek pulled back without giving Tessa what she wanted, her protest forming on her lips. He didn’t give her time to say anything as he slid his fingers inside the waistband of the shorts she’d put on after her shower, drawing them down her legs as he shifted his body to untangle her hold on him. He changed his mind. The light pink thong with its damp triangle she was wearing would have to stay on her just a little while longer.
Honor (Bad Boy Homecoming Book 4) Page 6