“She doesn’t hate you,” Caitlyn told him soothingly.
“Yes, she does. She told me so tonight.”
“She didn’t mean it. You remember when I was a teenager, I said all kinds of things.”
He suddenly smiled at the memory. “You were a handful. But at least your sassiness was cute,” he agreed, falling silent for a minute. “How is it that we gave her the worst of both of us?”
“I don’t really see my sassiness as being bad. It’s served me well from time to time.”
He gave her an incredulous look. “It got you into trouble more often than not, if I remember correctly.”
“Yes, but it was also the very trait that made you look at me—really look at me. I can’t imagine my life without you and Sophie in it. I’m glad you were hard on me in the beginning. I can tell you I didn’t appreciate it at the time but I do now.” She stared him in the eye. “And mark my words, one day Sophie will too.”
Alec didn’t dare to hope. His daughter was more like him than her mother, and he knew exactly how he’d feel if someone tried to rule his life, make his decisions for him. There was no way in hell he would ever forgive them.
Maybe Sophie would be different. He sent up a silent prayer. It couldn’t hurt. He would need all the help he could get. He loved his daughter more than life itself, and wanted nothing more than for her to be happy.
“I hope you’re right, honey. I really do.”
Chapter 22
Kellie stretched her body out beside Darryl. The early morning sunlight peeked through the slit in the curtains. She blinked at the brightness and tried to push the sleep from her mind. This was the first time she had ever let a man stay the night.
It was a turning point in her life. One she could get used to, she reflected. She ran her hand down his chest until she found her prize just below his naval. His morning erection was just beginning to show, and by the time she had explored him, it was fully awake and demanding satisfaction.
She hadn’t told many people about her past, only a few within the LAC knew, which was why they had worked around her handicap. Then there was her rape, which even fewer people knew about. Amelia knew, of course. Those who knew included the detective who worked the case, the rapist himself, the psychologist she’d been assigned to, and her boss, Lewis Carlisle.
Now Darryl knew. What had possessed her to tell him the truth?
She had no answer. Temporary brain dysfunction due to sexual arousal, she assumed. He was certainly detrimental to her mental health. She’d thought one or even a handful of nights with Darryl would suffice. Now she wasn’t so sure.
She rolled onto her side and placed a kiss on his chest as her hand began exploring his body. Her lips moved against his skin as she descended, taking pleasure in the soft sounds he made as her fingernails scraped lightly across his abs. She wrapped her fist around his arousal and pumped lightly, feeling him harden further from her ministrations. His hips rose and a guttural moan escaped his lips. Kellie leaned down and placed a kiss on the tip before taking him into his mouth. She relaxed her throat to take him deep, her tongue sliding along the sensitive underside of his cock.
Darryl held her head in place as she lathered attention on him. He tensed beneath her hand and knew he was close. She reached between his legs and cupped him, squeezing him lightly. He caught hold of her shoulders and pulled her up his body. She let out a frustrated breath and fought against him, annoyed that he was denying her.
Her nipples tingled as they rubbed against the hairs on his chest and she groaned, her excitement heightened.
“Next time, I promise,” Darryl said, his voice husky. “Right now, I need to be inside you.”
She practically purred at the admission and forgave him, then reached into the drawer of her bedside table and extracted a condom. Straddling him, she took her time to roll the latex sheath over his length, feeling the pulse throb beneath her fingertips before impaling herself on him, feeling him deep inside, stretching her. She moved slowly at first, making sure she felt him every bit of the way up and down before moving faster and faster as her own body demanded release. She moaned his name as she climaxed, her body going into spasms as she collapsed on top of him.
Darryl kissed her sweaty forehead and mumbled good morning in her ear. She smiled and kissed his chest, catching her breath before lifting herself off him, almost orgasming a second time as her sensitised nerves reacted with the friction.
She flopped without grace back onto the mattress, her body sated. Darryl reached over and pulled her into his body and his heat had her snuggling in close to him. The blissful world of sleep enveloped her again as her heavy eyelids closed.
***
Kellie awoke an hour later to Darryl watching her sleeping, and she grumbled. Hopefully, she hadn’t snored or drooled. It had been a long time since she’d slept—actually slept—with another person. She blinked to clear the cobwebs from her mind. Maybe when she was more awake she would appreciate the gorgeously naked man beside her.
“You’re staring,” she complained, around an unladylike yawn. She glanced over at him. The ivory sheet was pooled around his waist, highlighting the golden glow of his skin. She swallowed hard as desire flowed through her and pooled between her legs. She shifted to ease the throb.
His liquid chocolate gaze washed over her and her nipples tightened into hard buds. Darryl noticed and his attention zeroed in on them, burning her with the heat of his gaze. The sheet covering him tented in the most delicious fashion that had her unconsciously wetting her lips. After last night—and this morning—she thought she’d finally been sated.
“You’re so beautiful.”
Kellie snorted. She knew the truth of how she looked in the morning, complete with bed hair and morning breath. “I doubt it.”
“You’ll always be beautiful to me,” he said, stroking her hair gently. His eyes told her more than his words. He believed what he was saying.
“You know the right thing to say.”
She shifted closer to him and kissed him softly, tasting him. The fire built slowly and she moaned. Darryl pulled back and dropped a kiss on her nose.
“A good morning to you too.”
She smiled and stroked her hand down his chest. She couldn’t seem to stop herself from touching him. He was all hard where she was soft and the differences between their bodies fuelled her arousal.
“I like the way you feel,” she told him huskily.
Darryl chuckled. “I can tell.”
Kellie slid closer so that their bodies were touching and pressed against him. Darryl held her close and she snuggled against him, feeling cherished and safe. She settled her head in the crook of his arm and took a deep breath, enjoying his unique scent. She closed her eyes and savoured the moment. Too soon, they would need to get up and go to work.
Darryl stroked her back with his hand and kissed her forehead. Despite their many couplings over the past few hours, to Kellie this moment was far more intimate. They lay, their bodies entwined on the bed and listened to each other’s breathing. She could get used to this.
Kellie suddenly stiffened. Could she even dare to hope that there would be a repeat? She knew she wasn’t the best in bed. There was always a level of control she needed to exert at all times which made letting go out of the question. Her previous partners had given her pleasure but they’d had to work hard for her to achieve it. She figured she wasn’t cut out for pleasure so intense she almost blacked out. Last night had proved her wrong.
Could she allow Darryl to slip past her barriers and into her heart? Could she permit herself to love and need him, to rely on him? He was one of the best men she’d ever met and her fear was debilitating. Trust had never come easy for her and she was afraid to give him any power over her.
Intimacy was a new thing for her. She liked her space. Which was why no one ever stayed the night. Not to mention she was prone to nightmares. The last thing she ever wanted to do was to scare the crap out of some unsuspect
ing guy or attack him in her sleep. She was afraid it would only be a matter of time before he thought her too high maintenance, and she couldn’t blame him if he chose to take back the words uttered during passion last night.
“Where did you go in your mind just now?” he asked, seeming to notice her distraction.
“Nowhere.”
“Liar.” He took her hand and linked his fingers with hers. “Do you still see a therapist?”
His perceptiveness amazed her. “Sometimes when the nightmares become debilitating. Not so often nowadays, but they sneak up on me.”
“When was the last time?”
“Yesterday morning.”
He nodded. He must have figured that was why she’d been at the LAC so early.
“The doctor says it’s due to the lack of closure in my case. That they’d probably go away once he’s caught.”
Even to this day, she could still smell him. Sometimes feel him on top of her, inside her. She could see his face when she closed her eyes and often had nightmares about that night. He’d been so strong she hadn’t been able to fight him.
“I try not to dwell on it. It only gives him more power.”
Darryl pulled her tighter against him and she kissed his chest, feeling the small hairs tickle her lips and chin.
“Tell me. How did Donovan react all those years ago?”
She smiled. “In typical Donovan Style. She huffed and puffed and harassed the detective. He pulled her aside one day and said, ‘it’s not as easy as it looks kid. If you think you have what it takes, why don’t you give it a go?’”
“I guess I know how that ended.”
Tears gathered. She blinked them away. At least something good came out of that horrible night. Amelia had fallen in love with the work just like Kellie had with Internal Affairs.
“How did you two drift apart?” he asked, breaking the silence that had fallen.
Kellie stared up at her ceiling. If she looked into his eyes, she would have refused to speak. She didn’t want to see whatever he might be thinking or feeling.
“I wanted to forget. But every time I looked at Mia I saw how much she thought about it. She blamed herself for not being able to save me. As hard as I tried, it was always between us. She would never forget.”
Back then, talking about it hadn't been an option. Her friend may have known all that had happened but not how deeply they'd affected her and she'd been unable to voice them. Until the end.
She hadn't meant to toss a friendship that meant so much to her aside, but by the time she’d come good it’s been too late.
She'd not fought and that was her worst mistake. It was something she'd agonised over and until the other night hadn’t thought she'd get the chance to explain and perhaps move on and start fresh. She was hopeful she can repair what she'd destroyed.
“In the end I left. I never meant to hurt her. I was selfish.”
He rolled them to the side until she lay beneath him. He leaned down and brushed his lips lightly over hers at first, then applied more pressure. His lips moved seductively and a moan caught in her throat. Kellie clung to him as wave after wave of pleasure threatened to pull her overboard into the swirling abyss. Her toes curled and she arched into him.
“You are the bravest, strongest woman I have ever met. I am in awe of you,” Darryl said when he finally broke the kiss, his voice ragged.
She blushed at his words and at the sincerity in his voice, then lifted her head and kissed him again. Her alarm sounded, startling them both. They chuckled at the reaction. He groaned and thwacked a hand over the incessant shrilling, effectively shutting it off. He stared back at her with eyes filled equally with promise and regret.
He ran a hand over his whiskered face. “I’d better go home and change.”
She didn’t want that morning to end. She didn’t want the day to intrude on this magic, and she had a suspicion she might never experience it again. Her bottom lip protruded as she sulked and he took advantage of it and nipped on her soft flesh. Heat infused her, but he rolled out of bed before she could retaliate.
She watched with pleasure as he strode about the bedroom collecting his clothes before winking at her. He slipped inside the bathroom and closed the door, leaving her alone in bed.
Kellie collapsed against the mattress, aware of her pounding heart and the huge smile on her face.
Chapter 23
Amelia slammed the stack of papers, held together with an alligator clip, down hard on the café table. The cool salty breeze blew in from the nearby sea and the sides of the oversized fabric umbrella shading them from the harsh morning sunshine flapped loudly. Megan Bailey jerked up from the magazine she was reading to stare at her.
“Sorry,” Amelia said.
“Rough night?” Megan inquired, concern in her voice.
Amelia fought back her irritation. It was not Megan’s fault she’d been up all night, thoughts of Kellie, Coleani and their case rolling around her head. She took a deep breath and calmed herself. The case would come together and as for Kellie, it was all in the past, and should be kept there. Now she just had to figure out where they went from here. Now that she knew why Kel had left, she should be able move on. Unfortunately her emotions were rarely rational.
She didn’t know Megan all that well, but it wasn’t for lack of trying on Meg’s part. The tenacious woman didn’t give up easily and continuously invited Amelia for coffee catch-ups every month and expected her at every birthday and annual holiday get-together she hosted. Amelia felt she simply ignored any attempt on her part to keep some distance between them.
Amelia liked her, as far as females went. She didn’t whine to Amelia about broken relationships or half of the other bullshit most women seemed to complain about to their friends. She had known from the start that she was very sensible, which Amelia respected.
Megan always wanted the bottom line and wanted it from the start. She often reminded Amelia of herself, which explained why she allowed herself to accept Megan’s invitations, although lately they were becoming demands rather than offers. Just another facet of her personality. If she wanted something, she generally got it, and for some reason she had decided she wanted Amelia’s friendship and wasn’t the least put off by her prickly thorns.
Amelia wasn’t even sure what she had to offer in a friendship or any kind of personal relationship. Her social skills had always been lacking and she definitely didn’t have anything remotely resembling tact. Most people took offence to her no-nonsense personality, except for Kellie and Megan. It was almost they were like magnets, all gravitating towards each other as they recognised something in the other that they appreciated.
She’d met Meg when the other woman had called the LAC for research on her first novel. Through a twist of fate, her phone call had come to Amelia and she’d been intrigued with the storyline and the writer’s enthusiasm. She agreed to take a look at the manuscript and comment on the police procedures in her fictional world.
The book had become a bestseller, and Amelia had just finished proofreading the second novel in the series, which was even better than the first. She wasn’t one for giving praise unless it was well deserved, but she had to admit Megan’s stories captivated her until the very end.
Amelia flopped down into the nearest chair. The promenade was busy as always, even early in the day, and seagulls squawked above as they circled looking for leftovers. She rolled her shoulders. “Terrible night.”
“I’m sorry. Want to talk about it?”
“No. Thanks,” she added, hearing the harshness of her answer. “Here’s your manuscript. I’ve marked down some suggestions in the margins.”
Megan nodded and took a sip from the straw sticking out of her iced tea, making no effort to reach for the stack of papers.
“Well, I’m here if you change your mind. Sometimes talking about the problem can help.”
“What good would that do except piss me off more? There’s no point.”
Megan shrugged
her delicate shoulders, her mahogany hair flowing around her head in soft waves as it fell over her shoulders. She was a gorgeous woman at five-foot-six, with a figure most women would kill for. Her small pert nose held a light sprinkle of freckles that was often covered up with a dusting of foundation.
“You have the world on your shoulders, Don,” she said, using the nickname she had bestowed upon her. “Maybe it’s time to spread the load a little. You can’t fix everything that’s wrong. You’re just one person and it would be suicide to try.”
Amelia let out a deep breath, feeling the tension inside her and knowing she needed to get laid. However, she had no viable candidate, so she would have to make do with the gym and something with a lot of sugar and calories in it.
“Yeah, well, someone’s got to do it.” She couldn’t explain her issues surrounding her best friend’s rape and how her actions had led a hurting Kellie to walk away. Shame filled her at how angry she’d been at Kellie all these years now knowing the things she hadn't been able to say at the time.
“You’re good at what you do.” Meg knew enough about her to be able to make the distinction, and often scolded her for working too hard.
“Enough about me.” Amelia’s thoughts were growing bleak and the last thing she wanted right now was a bout of depression. “How are things going with your cousin?”
Simply sitting and chatting was something she’d once done with Kellie, but after the event she had felt less inclined to do so. She missed it.
“Good. Stacey and I are getting along fine,” Megan replied, and took another sip of tea. “I know what you’re doing, you know. Remember, I write detective stories. Deflecting isn't it called?”
Amelia frowned. “I guess I could benefit from a few of those classes about dealing with people. What are they called? How to make friends and influence people?”
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