Uncensored Passion (Men of Passion)

by Bobbi Cole Meyer

  * * *

  The pounding on the door wouldn’t stop. As he was coming out of his alcohol-induced sleep fog, Trey thought that it was just the echo of his headache before he realized it was actually someone at the door. He wondered why they hadn’t rung the bell instead of repeating that incessant pounding.

  He pushed off the bed, glancing at his watch. It was 8:30 p.m.

  “Just a damn minute,” he yelled as he reached the front door.

  He jerked it open, prepared to curse somebody out, and was shocked to see Sarah Upton there.

  “Sarah? What’s wrong? Why didn’t you ring the doorbell?”

  “I did. Several times over a period of ten minutes. I finally decided it must be out of order.”

  “How did you know I was even back in town?”

  “Your hotel said you’d checked out. I had a feeling you were back when you didn’t answer your phone or check in with your progress report, plus I saw your car parked in its slot downstairs and I remembered that you had driven it to the airport.”

  “You should be a detective, Sarah,” Trey said gruffly. “Come in.”

  She looked at his rumpled clothes and bloodshot eyes, shaking her head. “I can see I woke you. Guess you were so tired you just fell asleep in your clothes, huh?”

  “Yeah, I was exhausted and the scotch helped. But that’s all right,” he declared, raking a hand through his hair. “What’s up?”

  “A lot. The proverbial shit has hit the fan, Trey. I wanted to let you know before you walked into the firestorm.”

  “I’m really in no mood for riddles, Sarah.”

  “Well, first of all you can forget your assignment. That has definitely ended.”

  “I know that.”

  “But I think you don’t know the real reason why.”

  “Because I’m done with it. It was a fluff piece of crap that shouldn’t have been investigated to begin with. J.J. is just a kid who is trying to find himself and he took the job as pool boy while he decided what else to do. But I know Johnson is chomping at the bit to fire me and when I report that I found nothing untoward going on, well, that will be it. I’ve accepted that, too.”

  “J.J. Romero tried to commit suicide, Trey.”

  “What?” Trey felt the blood drain from his face.

  “His mother stopped him, but it seems the boy has lost touch with reality. Don’t know the details, other than he’s under psychiatric care. I heard Gavin Johnson talking about it.”

  Trey sank to the couch muttering curses, remembering the look on J.J.’s face when they had first met, feeling the burden of guilt for bringing this down on that kid and Kayla.

  Dammit, I suspected J.J. was on the edge. Wonder if Kayla knows? She’ll be devastated. Another reason for her to hate me, stirring all this up.

  Sarah had been talking, but Trey hadn’t heard most of it. Just enough to know he’d been fired. He tuned back in as she said, “…on top of that, Johnson’s talking about bringing charges against you so you’ll lose your PI license. I’ve got your things from the office. They’re in a box I left in the hallway. Want me to bring it in?”

  Shit. “No. I’ll get it.”

  Trey got the box filled with his name plate, a pen set, his personalized stationery and cards, and a picture of him and his buddies from his early days in the Army, and placed it just inside the door. When he turned to face Sarah, she handed him his paycheck.

  “Gavin said to tell you not to dare use those cards or the firm’s stationery. Jerk! But there’s something else I want to give you, Trey.”

  “What?”

  “This.”

  She extracted a folder from her oversized purse and handed it to him.

  “What is it?”

  “It’s the reason Gavin Johnson hates you, Trey. I did that investigating I told you I was going to do and found what he’d been compiling on you. I copied it all and it’s all there in that folder. I think you’ll be surprised when you read it. It explains why he tracked you down and solicited you to join the firm—and why he’s been so intent on destroying you ever since.”

  Trey opened the folder and began to read. He was astonished when he realized that Gavin Johnson was Lieutenant Dorri Haines’s uncle.

  Reading Gavin’s scribbled notes, filled with the venom of someone seeking revenge, he finally understood. The man blamed him for her death. He thought he had just sat back like a coward and ordered her to go out and try to talk the terrorist down, that she had lost her life being heroic while he had lived and taken the credit for the completed mission.

  Sarah said, “I didn’t believe a word of that, Trey, when I read it, because I know you better than that. And now I know what really happened over there.”

  “How could you, Sarah?”

  She sat down beside him on the couch and laid a hand over his. “Don’t be mad at me, Trey, but I looked up one of the men who was with you over there and had a long talk with him. The one whose name is in that folder, a Major Finley, and he told me the truth about that day. He didn’t want to, but I more or less dragged it out of him. He only told me because I explained what Gavin was doing to you. He told me that because of Dorri Haines’s incompetence, all of your team could have been killed and the mission destroyed if you hadn’t done the only thing you could do in the circumstances.

  “He told me how you falsified the report of her death, purposefully leaving out her traitorous actions so her good name wouldn’t be tarnished and she could be buried with honors.

  “He’s just mustered out of the military and has returned to America, and he said that he’s gotten more than one message from Gavin Johnson, who tracked him down through his sister, that he wanted to talk to him about that incident. He’s been dodging him because he had given his word to you never to talk about it.

  “Like I said, it was only after I convinced him I was on your side and told him Gavin was trying to hang you out to dry that he confided the truth to me.”

  Trey looked fondly at the shapely, middle-aged woman. He shook his head. “You’re something, Sarah. You really should become a detective.”

  She laughed. “Guess I’ve been around the best, like you, long enough to have picked up some good methods of snooping. Trey, you have to tell Gavin the truth. You can’t just let him blackball you with every agency. You don’t deserve that. The man will ruin you if you let him, all because he believes you’re a coward, that you deliberately let his niece die to save yourself.”

  “Sarah, it’s all in the past. I’ve let it go long ago.”

  “But Gavin hasn’t, and he won’t ever, unless you tell him the truth. You’re a good man, Trey, an honorable man, and dammit, you shouldn’t have to suffer because of it.”

  Trey gave her a hug. “Sarah, that’s the second time I’ve heard you curse on my behalf. Sounds like I’m corrupting you.”

  “If you don’t tell him, I will.”

  “No, Sarah. He’ll fire you and it will accomplish nothing except to mess up your life, too. I don’t think Gavin Johnson will accept the truth, even when and if he hears it. He made up his mind long ago, and nothing is going to sway him. Maybe harboring that bitterness toward me was the only way he could cope with the loss of his niece. Don’t worry about me. I’ll find something to do. Right now, I’m just trying to digest the news that J.J. tried to shoot himself and that he’s in a psychiatric ward.”

  “Yeah, it’s a shame. That awful father of his is to blame, but of course, he won’t admit it, even to himself. You’d better watch out for him, too, Trey. The man was acting like a lunatic when he stormed into the office, but I guess when your kid tries to kill himself, it makes you kind of crazy, especially if you try to blame others when you know it’s your own fault.”

  “That’s got to be hell. And I hate that J.J. was driven to that edge, feeling he had no other choice. God, there’s so much I hate about this whole damned thing!” Trey muttered, raking a hand through his hair. “Anyway, thank you, Sarah, for coming here and bringing me
this,” he indicated the folder he was holding, “and mostly for being such a good friend. Seems I’m really running short on those.”

  “Let’s just say that I have a lot of collecting to do on that day—or night—I decide to call in those markers, handsome,” she joked as she stood with the repeated warning, “You watch your back, Trey. Take care of yourself.”

  “I will.”

  Trey rose beside her, embracing her again.

  “Now you get some rest,” she ordered. “Looks like you need it. But you’d probably be more comfortable if you undressed first. If there’s anything I can do for you, just let me know.”

  “You’ve done more than you should already, Sarah. Thanks.”

  After he’d closed the door behind her, Trey sank back down on the couch, thinking about J.J. and the part he’d played in his attempted suicide—and he knew that he had played a part. He had set that ball rolling and felt as responsible as though he’d almost pulled that trigger himself.

  God, I hope that kid snaps out of it. He’s got his whole life ahead of him. Guess when Kayla hears of this, she’ll blame me and herself, too.

  Trey sighed. Thinking of Kayla, he wanted to go to her, to hold her while she was hurting. To be held by her, which would be the only remedy to his own hurting, he admitted.

  CHAPTER 20

  All dominoes down

  Kayla had finally pulled herself together enough to go back to work by Tuesday. She had vowed to put Trey and her feelings for him behind her. She was determined to put her life back on track as she sat at her desk, waiting for her next appointment. But her thoughts kept drifting from J.J. to Trey. She felt like she was being tossed about in a storm with no lifeboat in sight.

  I hope J.J. can settle things with his father and someday return to us.

  When the call came through and her secretary asked, “Dr. Saradon, there is a Mr. Trey Cameron on the line who wishes to speak with you. Shall I put him through?” Kayla almost said no.

  Taking a deep, steadying breath, she said instead, “Okay, Amelia. Put him through.”

  Hearing his voice sent shivers down her spine. Her hand trembled as she tightened her grip on the phone but somehow she managed to speak calmly.

  “Hello, Kayla.”

  “Devon—ah—I mean Trey.”

  She heard his audible intake and release of breath as he accepted her deliberate jab before he said, “I have some bad news.”

  “Seems you’re a master of bad news.”

  “There’s no easy way to say this. J.J. was attempting suicide when his mother stopped him. But he’s not really okay. According to what limited information I’ve been given, he’s lost touch with reality and has been committed to psychiatric care.”

  Kayla felt like her heart had stopped for a moment as she gasped, “What?”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t want you to just read about it. Or maybe the story wouldn’t even make the news here or there, or Dr. Romero might squash it completely, but I thought you ought to know. I also think you should watch your back, because Dr. Romero might be even more vindictive now. He might just be out for blood and you’re probably on the top of his list of people he’s blaming, because he’ll never accept the blame himself. He’s a vengeful, spiteful man, Kayla, so just be aware.”

  “You’re no doubt on that list, too.”

  “Well, I guess you could say I’m his first hit. He got me fired. But that’s okay because I was going to quit anyway.”

  Choking back a sob, Kayla couldn’t help giving in to her feelings. She said softly, “Reminds me of a domino effect—one disaster toppling into another until all are down and hearts are broken.”

  “Yes, it does seem that way,” Trey agreed.

  “This whole scenario seems to be proof of that, doesn’t it? One lie led to another, which led to more lies and resulted in irrevocable consequences. Nothing will ever be the same.” Kayla’s voice broke as tears streamed down her face.

  Trey didn’t know what to say to that. After a couple of seconds, while he sat tortured by the sound of her sobbing, he finally said, “I’m so damned sorry for the part I played in it all, Kayla. I love you and I always will. Remember that. Take care of yourself.”

  After he hung up, Kayla sat holding the phone, crying, shaking her head at the culmination of the chain of events that had started out so beautifully, or so she had believed at the time—gorgeous J.J., so eager to be part of her world—their laughter and their nights of fantastic lovemaking with all the whispered promises of a bright future—and handsome Devon, or Trey, with his winning smile and willing submission at being her one-night love slave, capturing her heart forever.

  She dropped her head to the desk and sobbed, feeling drained, completely depleted and lost. And once the damn broke, the tears wouldn’t stop.

  When she continued to ignore the intercom buzzing, her secretary stuck her head in the door to see what was wrong. She stood shocked to find her boss unraveled. She hurried to her side, inquiring, “Dr. Saradon, what on earth is wrong? What happened?”

  Between sobs, Kayla told her to cancel all appointments and to call her home and instruct whoever answered to come drive her home.

  Amelia hurried back to her desk and made the call. She instructed the man who answered the phone, who said he was one of her tenants, that Kayla was in a state of hysteria and needed someone to drive her home.

  Lee, who had answered the phone, said he would be there shortly. When he hung up, he turned to Harm, who had been listening to the conversation from their end and knew something had happened.

  “What is it?”

  “That was Kayla’s secretary. She said Kayla has broken down and couldn’t stop crying, that someone needed to drive her home.”

  “Dammit. Look, you’ve got to get to the restaurant for the big luncheon you’re catering. I’ll go,” Harm said.

  “Hell, no,” Lee exploded. “I’ll call and let them know I won’t be in.”

  Luke, who was about to leave for work, wandered in. One look at their faces and alarm bells went off in his head. “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s Kayla,” Lee explained as he grabbed the keys and headed for the garage.

  “What about her? Has she been in an accident?” Luke asked as he followed.

  “No. She’s just gone to pieces at the office and her secretary said someone should come get her.”

  They piled into Lee’s vehicle and made short work of the trip into town, breaking speed limits and by some miracle, not getting stopped or getting a ticket. The entire way, they maintained an austere silence, each man on the same wavelength of thought, each believing Kayla’s breakdown was because of Trey Cameron. Each wanting to find him and make him pay.

  Amelia had cancelled all appointments and was trying to comfort Kayla who seemed inconsolable when the three trooped into the office. Amelia had never seen such an impressive trio of male specimens on a mission as they surrounded Kayla. The biggest one with lustrous chestnut hair lifted her up and, holding her as tenderly close as he might an injured child, whispered, “Ssh, ssh, now. It’s going to be all right. We’re here.”

  “Maybe you should take her to a doctor,” Amelia said.

  “No.” Kayla said between sobs. “No—no doctor. Take me home, guys.”

  As they moved toward the door, Amelia watched in stunned silence. She shut the door behind them, thinking, God, how lucky is Dr. Saradon to have those kinds of men as friends.

  They were almost back to the house before Kayla told them the news, the words torn from the depths of her heart.

  “J.J. tried to kill himself. He suffered a mental break and is in a hospital.”

  “What?” Harm gasped, stunned at the news.

  “Trey called. He said J.J. had attempted suicide and is now under psychiatric care. It’s my fault. It’s all my fault.”

  “No Kayla!” Luke said.

  The others echoed Luke.

  “I should have realized he was just a kid, not mature enough to be
part of our lifestyle. I should have known that.”

  “You can’t blame yourself, Kayla,” Harm insisted. “If J.J.’s gone over the edge, it’s because that father of his keeps pushing him to be what he knows he can’t be. No wonder the kid snapped. The only part you played in it was giving him the only bit of happiness he’d ever known, Kayla. J.J. told me that.”

  “Yeah, he told me the same thing,” Lee said.

  “And if anybody is to blame besides his father, it’s that son-of-a-bitch, Trey Cameron. He brought all this on,” Luke gritted. “Damn, what I wouldn’t give to get my hands on him right now. I’m tempted to go to San Antonio and beat the hell out of him.”

  The mention of Trey’s name brought on a new deluge of tears from Kayla.

  When they reached the house, as soon as the car was pulled into the garage, Lee lifted Kayla and carried her inside, up the stairs and into her bedroom where he placed her gently on the bed.

  They undressed her, slipped a nightgown on her, gave her a couple of Tylenols, and settled around her, Harm on one side, Lee on the other, and Luke sitting at the foot of the bed, rubbing her feet, all speaking in soothing tones, all assuring her she would get through this and be her old self again, given time and rest.

  They all lamented J.J.’s plight in silence as the day wore on. When Kayla finally drifted into a fitful sleep, the men left the room and discussed what they should do to help her through this trauma.

  “There’s not really anything we can do,” Harm said, “except be here for her. God, I hate that J.J. felt the only alternative was trying to kill himself. I wish he’d just talked to us, hadn’t taken the whole burden on himself. Guess that’s typical of a troubled teen, though. They tend to think the world is going to end when things don’t go their way. But hell, we should’ve seen this coming.”

  Lee said bluntly, “Damn shame for a kid to have such a screwed-up family.”

  “I’d like to punch out that damned father of his,” Harm said.

  “I’d like to punch Trey Cameron,” Luke repeated his earlier declaration.

  “That wouldn’t solve anything,” Lee said, “although I wouldn’t mind giving the guy a body slam.”