The tears were gone, and he was back on familiar ground. Lifting her hand, he pressed a kiss to her smooth skin. “You know, nobility happens to be a good quality in a husband.”
“A husband, Duke?”
“Yes, a husband.”
12
JAKE CONSIDERED HIMSELF one of the more knowledgeable people in the security industry, but Mallory’s tutelage proved his knowledge base was nothing to hers. They’d been playing a very intense game with her unraveling the mysteries of his system and him savoring each obstacle he tossed in her path to easy infiltration. His triumphs were coming few and far between.
True to her word, she hadn’t questioned him about the Sentex 2000. She could have cut her research time significantly with internal knowledge of his system, but he was paying to watch how a real burglar worked. So she worked while he watched and analyzed, discovering that the key to her thoroughness was the way she broke down the job into components that forced her to ask questions he’d never have asked when designing a system.
Addressing the ways to access the property meant a thorough understanding of the fencing, the best entry points, the structure and placing of the gates, the distance between the entry point and the building, the timing of the surveillance camera sweeps, the presence of armed guards or watchdogs.
When Jake designed a new system, he focused on all the ways of getting onto the property and into the building. Mallory however, spent as much time analyzing how to get onto the property and into the building as she spent on how to get back out again, which raised new questions that needed answers.
She made sure she found those answers no matter how long it took. They’d spent two days researching details about the property to determine how best to approach the building. Another two days studying the building plans for entry. She collected each piece of her research and formulated a theory, which she then presented to him for confirmation or denial.
Her accuracy rate had been nothing short of astounding.
If Jake hadn’t known better, he’d have thought she’d been inside his head when he’d conceived his design, and this had made him more determined than ever to make Mallory part of TSS.
Unfortunately, being together twenty-four seven hadn’t shed any light on what would make an offer attractive to her.
Not money, surely. Even if he’d been in a position to pay her some ridiculous sum, she wouldn’t be sufficiently motivated. She seemed to have enough money to live the way she wanted to and appeared content. Nor would the challenge of growing TSS be an incentive when she wasn’t personally invested in the company.
If he could have moved past fling into a relationship, Jake might have stood a chance. But she’d been stone-walling him in the us department.
Her friend at the police department had run into trouble tracking down the ten-year-old information they needed. He’d had to launch a needle-in-a-haystack type of search that wasn’t yielding results quickly.
This left a question mark between Jake and Mallory: although she claimed to accept that he hadn’t sounded the alarm, he wasn’t sure he believed her. Not when she refused to move their relationship one step beyond bed or work.
She wouldn’t go near his place and had point-blank refused to meet his parents when he needed to drop off tickets for a cruise he was sending them on to celebrate their thirty-fifth wedding anniversary. She was keeping their relationship under control with firmly delineated boundaries.
Jake didn’t want boundaries. He wanted her.
But the more time they spent together, the more he realized how important control was to her, and how insightful her father had been about her unwillingness to mesh their lives. She thrived on challenges, but she liked a neatly controlled life to come back to in between them.
Jake had been doing everything he could to prove himself worthy of standing by her side in those in-between times, but his efforts were yielding results about as fast as their police investigation. So he decided to kick-start the process, but he couldn’t do this alone.
Luckily, he didn’t have a problem admitting when he was outclassed and outgunned, so he went straight to people who could help him.
“Hey folks.” Jake turned the corner of the flagstone path that led to the backyard of the suburban home he’d grown up in.
Though it was late on a Saturday, his parents were still involved in mulching the yard—a job Jake knew from personal experience would take the better part of the weekend. His dad wielded a shovel while his mom was on her knees in the flower bed. Her obsession with fresh air, sunshine and anything that bloomed had long ago infiltrated their lives, and Jake couldn’t help but smile at the familiar scene.
“Hello, son,” his father said, propping the shovel against a trellis. “You must be busy lately. We haven’t seen or heard from you in weeks.”
“Too long, Jake,” his mom admonished, extending a gloved hand for him to help her to her feet. “You could at least call once in a while to let us know you’re alive.”
There was no debating her point, although he suspected she would forgive all once she heard about the twist his life had recently taken. Flashing the envelope with the cruise tickets, he said, “I hope these will make up for my negligence.”
His mom mellowed with a smile, kissing his cheek before she tugged off the garden gloves and plucked the envelope from his hand. “Your gift is lovely, Jake. Thank you.”
“We’re looking forward to getting away,” his father added.
“Do you all want some help with the mulch? I’ve got time.”
His father shook his head and waved toward the table. “High time for a break. We’ve been at this all day, and we’re not even close to being done. Should have hired professionals.”
“And miss being outside getting fresh air and exercise?” his mom countered in a too-familiar argument. “Not likely.”
After pouring a glass of iced tea from the sweating pitcher on the patio table, his father motioned Jake to sit with him. “So what’s been up with you lately?”
He sat down to visit with his folks, enjoying the familiarity of his childhood home, envisioning Mallory sitting at this table beside him. The thought made him smile.
“I’ve hired a consultant to work with me on my newest system. She’s been helping me get ready to launch.”
“She?” his mom asked. “An engineer?”
“A very unusual engineer.” Jake explained a few of Mallory’s more unique consulting abilities. “She comes at security from such a different perspective that I’ve already spotted ways to improve my designs. I’ve decided I want her working exclusively for TSS.”
“Really?” his father asked. “What kind of offer can you make her?”
“That’s the trouble. I can’t figure out what will attract her. Money and perks won’t do the trick. I’m sure of that. The only leverage I’ve got is me. I’ve been trying to convince her that she wants me around full-time.”
Jake waited while the significance of that statement settled in. His father set the iced tea glass back on the table slowly. His mom asked, “Are you dating this woman?”
He nodded.
“You sound very serious about her.”
“I am,” he admitted, gearing himself up for the real explanation. “Very serious. I want to convince her to marry me. I like being around her.”
“Then give her some time, son,” his father cautioned, and Jake suspected by his frown that he was questioning whether his son had lost his mind. “You’ve only been together what…a few weeks?”
He nodded, and his mom reached across the table and slipped her hand over his, a gesture that revealed worry more than words ever could.
“It’s not like you to be this impatient,” she said.
Jake smiled to reassure her. “No, it’s not. I’ve fallen for her in a big way.”
“A woman you just met?” his father asked as though he still hadn’t decided whether he was hearing Jake right.
Here it was—the truth. “A
ctually I met her ten years ago.”
“Who is she, Jake?” his mom asked. “Do we know her?”
“Not personally, but I did tell you about her. She was the woman I met during the break-in at Innovative Engineering.”
Jake twisted his hand around to grasp his mom’s, squeezed lightly and waited. His father put two and two together first.
“You’re not referring to one of the burglars, are you?”
Jake nodded. “The burglar’s daughter. Her name is Mallory Hunt.”
The sudden silence contrasted sharply with the bright afternoon sun, and Jake took in his parents’ flabbergasted expressions, experiencing a firsthand glimpse of what Duke had referred to about the difficulties in meshing lifestyles.
“I haven’t lost my mind, folks, in case you’re wondering.” Jake gave them a wry smile and proceeded to explain everything he knew about Mallory.
He told them all about how she’d gone legitimate and her friends had gone non-prosecutable. How her father had served his debt to society. He made no apologies for Mallory, her father or their friends. Not for their circumstances or their unusual lifestyles. He didn’t feel the need to apologize. Not one of the crew had impressed him as needing an apology. They were candid people who cared about the woman he loved.
A fact that didn’t go unnoticed by his parents.
As an only child, Jake had always interacted closely with his parents, had always had the freedom to speak openly, but he honestly wasn’t sure what to expect from them right now. He knew they loved him unconditionally, but he really couldn’t predict their responses to this unusual situation. He did know his parents would listen and be open-minded. He was counting on it.
And they didn’t disappoint. They listened. With his mom still holding his hand, he explained Duke’s opinion about Mallory letting people into her life, and his own observations that reinforced this view.
“I’m getting nowhere trying to convince her that we can have a future,” he said. “I’m sure she recognizes what we have is special, and I believe she cares about me, but she won’t even acknowledge the issues, let alone address them.”
His mom searched his face. “Do you love her, Jake?”
“Yes.”
Her expression softened. Her hand tightened around his. “Then that’s good enough for us.”
His father met his gaze and said simply, “Tell us what we can do to help you.”
DUKE SAT DOWN at the drafting table in his office, flipped on a desk lamp then dragged a high-power magnifying glass over the blueprints. He hadn’t talked to his daughter in days, and after so long with no news about what was happening with her and Trinity, Duke almost regretted calling off his crew from their spying detail.
But after his conversation with Trinity at the gym, he’d decided to give the man some room to maneuver. Duke knew the crew’s constant presence would keep Mallory on the defensive, and that would do nothing to further his cause to see his daughter settled and happy. He hadn’t been able to back off entirely, though, and had been driving by Mallory’s place at odd times to scope out how often Trinity’s car was in the driveway.
The man had apparently moved in with her, which made Duke edgy for an update. As a result, his imagination was in overdrive, so he had settled in for a stint of late-night work as a distraction, even though Opal was heading to bed.
She had to work early, and restlessness would have him tossing and turning. See, he could be a considerate partner when he chose; he’d just never given himself the chance before.
And Opal had been making it very rewarding to be considerate.
He smiled. She’d been spending every night with him, and each day when she arrived at his house after work, a few more of her personal items accompanied her. Clothing. Her impressive stock of fashion and fitness magazines. Even her laptop had made an appearance last night so she could pay bills with her checking software. He’d cleared a space beside his own desk unit and hooked her up to the Internet so she could work by his side.
Duke had no doubt that she knew he was using any opportunity, small though it might be, to prove himself. Just as he knew she was testing the water, unwilling to jump in until convinced the temperature was to her liking. He suspected that she didn’t trust him yet. She didn’t want to marry him only to discover he’d had a change of heart.
But Duke wouldn’t have a change of heart. Not when he’d wasted too much time with her already.
Given their history though, she had every right to be cautious, so he didn’t say a word. She could handle the details in whatever way made her comfortable. She would accept his proposal when she was ready, and he’d just be grateful that she hadn’t turned him down.
The telephone rang, jarring Duke from his thoughts. He reached for the receiver and said, “Hello.”
“John Trinity here. I’m calling for Duke Hunt.”
“Speaking. I know your last name.”
“Jake’s father.”
Ah. Duke cradled the receiver against his ear and sat back in his chair, his smile widening. Here was an unexpected, and very interesting, turn of events. “What can I do for you, John?”
“Jake just informed me and my wife that he’s involved with your daughter. We wanted to introduce ourselves.”
Clever. Duke had told Jake to have more than a fling planned for Mallory. What better way to declare his intentions than by getting the families together?
Simple and effective. His estimation of Jake Trinity rose a few notches. “Glad you called, John. The last I talked to Jake, he hadn’t made up his mind what he wanted from my daughter. I’m assuming this call means he’s made a decision.”
“Nothing indecisive about him today.” John gave a laugh. “Strolled right into the backyard where my wife was trying to kill me with yard work, and informed us that he intended to marry your daughter. Given the unusual circumstances of how they met, he wanted a little help convincing his reluctant fiancée.”
“I see.” And Duke did. Jake Trinity was declaring open war on Mallory.
Opal appeared in the office doorway, looking all soft and flowy with her hair tousled around her face, the filmy peignoir catching the light perfectly to outline her flawless form below.
He mouthed, “Trinity’s father.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “What does he want?”
“What do you have in mind, John?”
“Jake seems to think our families getting to know each other might reassure Mallory that the past is in the past. His mother and I are game, if you are. He also mentioned a woman who’s very close with her.”
“Opal.” He pushed back from the desk so the woman in question could slip into his lap and eavesdrop.
“Your son is rising in my estimation with every word you say. Opal and I are happy to meet with you and your wife.”
“Suggest drinks at your club,” Opal whispered.
“We could meet for drinks at my club,” Duke said into the receiver. “When will be good for you?”
As he worked out the details with John Trinity, Opal threaded her arms around his neck and snuggled against him, clearly pleased he’d taken her suggestion.
Duke was pleased, too. Not only by Jake Trinity’s actions, but that he’d taken advantage of another opportunity to prove to Opal that he valued her opinion. By the time he hung up the telephone with a meeting time in place, he found himself ready to head to bed, even though he still wasn’t tired.
“SHEESH, JAKE,” Mallory said when he entered her workshop, glancing up from her computer desk where she sat calculating totals from the research she’d been conducting all afternoon. “According to my numbers, the Atlanta Safe Exchange paid TSS enough money for protective bars on every window of their storage facility. You don’t miss a trick.”
If she only knew. He’d just returned from an impromptu cell phone conversation with his father, where he’d learned his luck still held with his scheme to bring the families together. After helping Mallory with Lance, he’d been reason
ably certain Duke would agree to meet with his folks, but not only had his parents and Duke and Opal met, they’d struck up what seemed to be a very unlikely friendship.
They’d found a number of shared interests and Jake had just learned they’d gotten together again last night for the opening of a new Broadway play.
The third time they’d gotten together this week.
He didn’t share that information with Mallory. Wiping the smile from his face, he dropped his cell phone back into his briefcase on the worktable and asked, “Did my company provide you with the actual cost of the bars?”
She flashed a quicksilver grin. “You have the most helpful staff. What I want to know is if this system is cost-effective.”
This wasn’t the first time during his training that his company’s efficiency had proved a double-edged sword. Or that she’d questioned the cost-effectiveness of the Sentex 2000.
He gave his standard reply. “It’s cost-effective for businesses that want to keep burglars off the premises.”
“Protective bars on every window will deter a good few. Which means we’re back to accessing the building through the roof. Write down a power drill on the tool list, would you?”
Jake obliged, reduced to taking advantage of even the smallest opportunity to prove himself an invaluable asset to her life. He would eventually convince her they were an us, and he’d stack the deck in every way he could think of.
And he wasn’t above playing dirty to get what he wanted.
Mallory.
“Did you get your business taken care of?” she asked.
He nodded, stifling a smile at how she referred to a phone call with his father as “business.” She was trying so hard not to cross the line into his personal life. Too hard.
“Good. I’m ready to get out of this workshop,” she said. “I think the time has come for a dry run. Are you ready?”
Any urge to smile faded quickly enough when he thought about rappelling. They’d been practicing daily, and, as Mallory had promised, he’d improved. His strength served him well even without much technique. Whether it was enough to test in the real setting remained to be seen.
Over the Edge Page 17