LaCasse Family Series

by Ju Ephraime

  Therèse felt as if someone had given her a kick in her guts. She actually clutched her stomach in sympathy. She had been trying to forget the scare she had on the island, and now he had to tell her what had almost happened to Wolfe’s wife. She ran into the bathroom, dry heaves racking her body as she broke out in a cold sweat.

  “What’s the matter, chérie?” Foxx wanted to know as he held her while she kept heaving.

  Then it hit him. Therèse was thinking of the person who had scared her into leaving him two years ago. And now she was back, so she must be feeling very vulnerable. He could have kicked himself. The truth was he hadn’t taken her story very seriously, but now that he saw her reaction, Foxx realized she must have been scared out of her mind for it to still have such a powerful effect on her. He would have to get Clay to recommend someone he could hire to guard her when he was not around.

  God, he had been so selfishly thinking of himself that he’d never given much thought to the emotional strain she had to have been under. She must think him an uncaring fool because, instead of discussing the situation to try and solve the mystery, he was more interested in the arousal thrumming heavily between his thighs, almost with a mind of its own. He knew she enjoyed their time together, too, but it was the way he’d flat-out refused to discuss it that had him ashamed.

  “Chérie, are you feeling better now?”

  “I’ll be okay. It was just the shock of hearing what nearly happened to Daphne. It brought back the fear and the strain I was under when I thought someone was following me to harm me and came very close to succeeding.”

  “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. Instead of looking into this problem, I behaved like a bastard and didn’t take you seriously. I didn’t stop to think how alone you must have felt being in a strange country and having your life threatened. I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

  “What can you do now? I didn’t tell you at the time, and it’s been over two years now. Unless you are seeing someone else… Are you? I didn’t think to ask because I missed you so much.”

  “Therèse, you’re kidding, right? What kind of man do you think I am that I would be seeing someone and spend the night with you in my bed?”

  “You are a very sensual man. I didn’t expect you to be without a woman for all this time.”

  “Well, believe it. I was too bitter after the way you left me to get myself embroiled with any other woman. I’m not saying I didn’t go out on the occasional date, but that’s all it was, a date. Whoever the woman was, she knew that from the get-go. I insisted on being upfront and honest so there were no unfulfilled expectations.”

  “You sound so cold and unfeeling.”

  “I’d become cold and unfeeling; it was the only way I knew to protect myself. I had no intentions of getting involved in any emotional entanglement. I’d had my fill. Are you telling me you didn’t see anyone while you were home in England?” He held his breath because he didn’t think he could take it if she said yes.

  “No. I was so busy with the store during the day and missing you like hell during the night. My alumnae sisters said I was like a battered dog; all I wanted to do was to lie in a corner and lick my wounds. The only thing that kept me going was the store. I didn’t want it to fail because then I’d have been both financially and emotionally broken. At least you had the occasional date, in which you insisted ‘on being upfront and honest so there were no unfulfilled expectations.’ I had nothing.”

  He let out the breath he’d been holding and immediately felt as if he had put down the heavy weight he’d been carrying for two long years and counting. He didn’t want to even think of Therèse being with another man. The very idea was disturbing to him.

  “Therèse, tell me you didn’t expect me to live the life of a monk.”

  “Of course, I didn't. But that’s no reason for you to be so cold and calculating. It’s no excuse for your actions, Foxx.”

  “It was a necessary action, and I took no pleasure from it. Just keep that in mind.”

  “Oh, you are just full of yourself, Foxx.”

  “Okay then, let me take my ‘full’ self into the shower so we can get out of here, d’accord?” he said, grinning.

  “Oui, d’accord,” she answered, turning away from him so he wouldn’t see her smiling.

  God, how he loved this woman! It pained him when he allowed himself to think about the time that had been wasted while being away from her.

  chapter

  THIRTEEN

  He was in and out of the shower in record time. When he walked out, he purposely had a towel wrapped around his waist to hide the fact that he was as hard as a rock again. A vain effort, as he could do nothing about the tent in front of him, but Therèse was not in the bedroom, so he wasted no time getting dressed.

  Walking into the kitchen, he was surprised she wasn't in either the kitchen or the drawing room.

  “Therèse, where are you, darling?”

  “I’m on the verandah. Are you ready?”

  “Yes, chicken. What are you doing hiding on the verandah?”

  “I wasn’t hiding. I wanted to give you some privacy to get dressed.”

  “You were hiding, chicken. But I’ll not hold it against you.”

  “Let’s get out of here.”

  Taking her hand, he grabbed the keys off the hook next to the door and walked into the garage.

  “Today we’ll take the truck. I have some errands to run after I drop you off at the hotel. I’ll be back to get you in an hour.”

  “That’s fine with me.”

  She sat back and allowed her mind to wander over the events of the last couple of days, particularly last night and this morning. It hurt her to learn that Foxx had been with other women. No matter how he tried to explain it, it hurt nonetheless. Then again, she had not really expected a man as virile as he was to deny himself the pleasure of the opposite sex.

  But more than anything, it shocked her to think Foxx might not have taken her account of what had transpired two years before seriously. Quite frankly, she didn’t know whether she was more angry or hurt.

  Therèse needed to be alone to sort the entire thing out. How could he believe she was just making the entire thing up? Men are such selfish beings sometimes. As much as she loved this man, she would have to find a way to deal with this before they could move on.

  “You are so quiet. What are you thinking about?”

  “Nothing in particular. I’m just thinking about the things I have to take care of when I get to the hotel. And then I realized I’d left my cell phone in my other bag at the hotel. The battery is probably dead by now.”

  “Do you have a charger?”

  “Yes, I do, but since I’ve been here, I find I no longer need to have a cell phone with me all the time as I do in England. The cost of using my cell phone here is enormously expensive, so the phone is, more often than not, lying around dead for several days before I remember to charge it.”

  “Who did you say is managing your shop while you’re here?”

  “My parents are. I also have a real estate company managing the listing. Remember, I put it on the market. My parents have told me business is picking up a bit, but my heart isn’t in it anymore.”

  “Why? I thought this was what you wanted to do more than anything.”

  “Well, I thought so, too, but I soon realized that no amount of money could compensate for the constant pain I was living with in England.”

  “You mean there was no fun back there? I thought I read somewhere that the English knew how to party and have fun.”

  “They do. Don’t misunderstand me. The little town I lived in, Bedfordshire, was okay. I wasn’t far from London, so I could have gone there as often as I liked, but my heart wasn’t in it. It left me hungry the few times I went with the girls. So, I decided against going and remained at home alone.”

  He felt an answering pulse in his groin. Any thought with Therèse and hungry in it had that effect on him. He
was always hungry for her. He decided to make light of the situation to ease the pressure between his legs. “You poor baby, what were you hungry for? Tell me. Is it something that was not available in England? Some special food?”

  “Foxx, I don’t want to continue this conversation. Oh, look, we’re here. Thank you, kind sir, for the ride. I’ll see you in an hour.”

  “Wait, let me park and walk you to the elevator.”

  “I’ll see you in an hour, Foxx. You don’t need to get out of the car. I’d give you a kiss, but I don’t want to leave myself exposed for someone to throw something at me. So I’ll see you later.”

  “You should try to get this out of your mind. I know it might be difficult for you to do, but you’ll have to try. Otherwise you’ll be giving in to fear, and your attacker will have won.”

  Holding up his hand, he stopped her from responding.

  “Just go, so you can get back.”

  He watched her walk away until she had disappeared from sight. He had to get to the pier to talk to Clay and be back in an hour, so he had to get a move on. The traffic was always heavy at rush hour with everyone on his or her way to work.

  He was in luck and arrived at the café just as Clay was getting ready to open for business.

  “Clay, hold up. I want to talk with you, and I don’t want to do it where we can be interrupted.”

  “Hi, Reds, you can come inside. I’ll leave the door closed while you’re here.”

  “Great, I won’t take up too much of your time. I have to pick Therèse up in an hour.”

  “How are things on that front?”

  “That’s what I wanted to talk with you about.”

  “Come on in. What’s going on?”

  “When I talked with Therèse a week ago, she told me the reason she’d left the island the way she did was because someone had threatened her and almost killed her twice, when rocks were thrown through her hotel window and the windshield of the vehicle she was driving. At the time I had some reservations. It seemed so far-fetched, like something out of the movies. I chose to let it go in one ear and out the other, but in spite of my reservations, I still wanted her.”

  “Did she return to England? I’ve not seen her in here for a day or so.”

  “No, she didn’t return to England. She’s been with me.”

  “Ah, so what’s the problem? I thought that was what you wanted.”

  “Clay, come on, man. I’m counting on you. It seemed someone had indeed frightened Therèse off the island. She is very nervous. Then I made the mistake of telling her about the problem Wolfe had with his ex and Daphne almost being kidnapped.”

  “What do you want me to do?”

  “I want you to recommend someone I can hire as a bodyguard for her. I’d ask you to do it, but I know you are sometimes tied up with the café. Do you know anyone?”

  “I know just the man for you, but he’s not cheap.”

  “Money is no object. Please get in touch with him and arrange for me to meet with him here. I don’t want anyone to connect us. Don’t tell him it’s for me until I’ve had the opportunity to observe him myself.”

  “Wow, how soon do you want to meet this man?”

  “Today, if you can get a hold of him. Call me on my cell. I’ll be at the restaurant with Therèse today.”

  “You don’t have to drive yourself crazy. I’ll do the job for you, Reds. I happen to like Therèse. I’ll get one of my boys to cover for me at the café if this becomes too time-consuming. Although I don’t anticipate that; I believe it’s one of your old flames.”

  “Really, what made you believe that? No, don’t tell me. Just get to the bottom of this as soon as possible, Clay. I hate to see her afraid of her own shadow.”

  “Are you going to tell her about this? You know you can’t put much over on her. Think about it. If you are not going to tell her, maybe we should have a code word if I should call with an update and she is present. Think about it. You could say something like ‘where’s Charlie fishing.’ And I’ll respond with ‘in the sink.’”

  “You’re being silly, Clay. I’ll talk with you later.”

  “Okay, Reds, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Let her in on it or use the code.”

  chapter

  FOURTEEN

  Therèse was hurrying to get dressed before Foxx returned. She took the time to blow-dry her hair and selected a simple pale lime-colored sundress to wear. She paired it off with some natural-colored sandals. She wore very little makeup, just some mascara and lipstick.

  It was too hot on the island for more than that. The makeup got wiped away in the sweat that ran down her face in a steady stream if she spent too much time in the sun or exerted herself in any way. She was still not acclimated to the heat.

  While switching handbags, she found her cell, which was dead, as she knew it would be. She wasn’t sure if she had enough time to get it fully charged before Foxx returned, but she plugged it in anyway.

  She was looking out the hotel window when she saw Foxx’s truck pulling into the hotel parking lot. She grabbed the phone and was out the door and into the elevator before he had to come looking for her. She stepped out of the elevator into the lobby as he walked into the hotel.

  “My, what perfect timing. Had I not known better, I’d say we are connected by some invisible string.”

  “Don’t rule that out yet. We may very well be connected and you just don’t know it,” she said with a grin.

  Walking ahead to hold the door open for her, he looked back at her, smiling. “Right, anything you say, dear. Far be it from me to question you.”

  “Are you making fun of me, Foxx LaCasse?”

  “No, dear, never. Make fun of you, why?”

  But he was having a difficult time keeping a straight face.

  “Oh, I get it. You saw me at the window. That’s why you’re acting so silly. If you must know, I was waiting for my cell phone to charge.”

  “I didn’t say a thing. Why are you on the defensive?” Foxx asked.

  “I’m not on the defensive.”

  Foxx turned his head to look at her through his long lashes, which prevented her from seeing his eyes.

  “Okay, I admit it. I’m on the defensive. Happy?”

  “No, should I be? I don’t like it when you’re on the defensive because it tells me you’re uncomfortable about something. I’d like to know what it is so I can set your mind at ease.”

  She didn’t want him to know she was getting impatient waiting for him.

  “I’m okay now. Just seeing you has that effect on me. I’m truly fine now. I’m going to check my phone when we get to the restaurant. Do you have a charger I could use? I’m afraid it’s not fully charged, and I don’t know if the signal will hold. I left in such a hurry I forgot mine.”

  “What brand is it?”

  “Nokia.” She had to give credence to her cell phone-charging story.

  “I believe I do have a charger at the restaurant. I’ll try it when we get there. Are you feeling better now?”

  “Yes, I’m better. I told you. I’m always better when I’m with you.”

  “Has anything happened since you’ve been back to give you reason to be concerned?”

  “No, but until recently, I was always alone. It’s only now, since I’m back in your company that I worry about the same individual targeting me again.”

  “I wish you had taken me into your confidence when you were here. I might have been able to do something, but now the trail is cold unless it starts back up again. Promise you’ll let me know if you experience anything untoward before you do something hasty.”

  “I promise. But like I told you, I haven’t been seeing you but for a few days. Before that, I pretty much kept to myself or visited the café on the pier. I hadn’t ruffled anyone’s feathers. I’m a bit apprehensive about it starting up again, but I’m trying not to let it ruin my time with you. If I do, then whoever was doing this wins.”

  “Well, let’s not talk about
it for now. Let’s go get the car.”

  Taking her hand, they walked to the vehicle, and were soon on their way. They made good time, and were soon exiting the highway.

  “We’re almost at the restaurant. I’ll call Wolfe to ask him not to bring up the experience with Daphne when we go over to his house tonight.”

  “Foxx, I’d forgotten all about going to Wolfe tonight. You’ll have to take me back to the hotel to freshen up.”

  “You could freshen up at the restaurant when we get there. I have a well-stocked bathroom in the back of my office.”

  “I’d feel better if I freshen up at the hotel. By the end of the day, this dress will be crushed, and I’ll not feel right if I have to meet Wolfe’s wife for the first time looking anything less than presentable.”

  “You always looked presentable, Therèse. And to me, at the moment, you look perfect. But I’ll take you back to freshen up.”

  “Thanks, honey,” she responded sweetly.

  “Oh, now I’m a honey?”

  “You’ve always been my honey, now and forever.”

  Pulling her to him, he whispered against her mouth, “Then let me have some of that honey.” And he delved into her mouth, right there in the parking lot of the restaurant.

  She wasn’t strong enough to resist him and opened to him like a flower to the rain. In no time, he had her flushed and breathing hard. They were both breathing hard. She opened her eyes to look at him through thick lashes as she'd seen him do.

  That proved to be a mistake. He reached for her again, kissing the corner of her mouth, running his tongue along the seam of her lips, his favorite way to kiss her. He’d told her before he loved how her top lip was so clearly defined with just the right amount of fullness to mimic a juicy plum in his mouth.

  God, how he loved her mouth. He’d have to avoid looking at her mouth if he was going to maintain control of the situation.

  “Now that you’ve ruined my lipstick, everyone in the restaurant will know what we’ve been doing in the truck. I have to apply a fresh coat before I walk inside.”