Always Be True

by Alexis Morgan

  The lights from a passing car outlined Tino’s face with stark clarity. The man was definitely furious and spoiling for a fight. She hadn’t yet decided if she was going to give him one. “And the second choice?”

  “My place.” He shot her a quick look. “You can bunk in my room, and I’ll crash in my brother’s. Or I’m sure my mother wouldn’t mind if you slept in her guest room.”

  Decisions, decisions. “I would rather not bother my grandfather. I will tell him and my parents what happened, but I’d rather not do it when I’m tired.”

  “And frightened?”

  She sighed. “Yes, Tino, I’m frightened. A little, anyway.”

  A warm hand settled over hers. “Only a little? Because I’ve got to tell you that seeing those kids go after you and Clarence with a pipe scared the hell out of me. I’m only sorry I wasn’t there to walk you out myself.”

  It wasn’t really his job to watch over her, but she couldn’t bring herself to point that out. “No need to apologize.”

  She leaned her head back and closed her eyes. “Personally, I’m happy that no one was seriously hurt, and that they didn’t actually rob the computer lab. At least the police have a lead on the kid who stole my things. Even if I get it all back, I’ll still change my locks and cancel the credit card that was in my wallet.”

  Tino released his hold on her hand. “That’s my girl. Always looking for the positive in any situation and then coming up with a plan of action to minimize the negatives.”

  His words of praise would have pleased her more if they hadn’t been laced with just a hint of sarcasm. Besides, she wasn’t his anymore. It was amazing how much that idea still hurt.

  They’d reached his family home. “So, are you coming in with me or should I go talk to my mother?”

  In the end, there was only one right answer to that question. “With you.”

  Chapter 21

  Tino walked around to Natalie’s side of the car and opened the door for her. While he didn’t mind performing the small courtesy, it worried him when she hadn’t made any move to get out on her own. Clearly, the confrontation at the center had left her badly rattled, even if it surprised him that she had admitted she was scared at all. As much as he wanted to rant and rave about what had happened, he shoved his anger down deep inside. For now, she needed his protection, not his temper.

  But, God, what if that asshole had gone after her with that pipe instead of Clarence? The old man clearly knew how to handle himself, but Natalie couldn’t have defended herself against that kind of attack. Hell, one blow could’ve killed her. It made him physically sick to know how close he’d come to losing her.

  He offered her a helping hand when she finally tried to get out of the car. She made it on the second attempt and then nearly collapsed right there on the driveway. She might have hit the pavement if she hadn’t grabbed onto the car door for support. Tino muttered a favorite obscenity left over from his army days that he normally reserved for desperate times and scooped her up in his arms. After kicking the car door closed, he headed for the door to the annex.

  Natalie struggled to get down. “I can walk.”

  Right. A stiff wind would send her kiting across the backyard right now, but he couldn’t risk an argument that might draw his mother’s attention. If that happened, Natalie would end up sleeping in Ricky’s old room next door. Tino had no intentions of sharing his twin bed with Natalie, but he needed her right where he could watch over her.

  He set her down but kept a steadying hand on her arm while he unlocked the door. Once inside, he led her over to the couch. “Sit and get that ice pack back on your face while I pour a couple of stiff drinks. Play your cards right, and I’ll even let you have one of them.”

  As jokes went, it was pretty poor fare. Even so, Natalie made a valiant effort to smile. Her mouth twitched a bit more when he handed her a small dollop of bourbon in a plastic cup from the kid’s menu at a fast-food restaurant. He held up his matching one as he started pacing the floor, far too keyed up to sit down.

  “Sorry, but the cut crystal must all be in the dishwasher. Remind me to fire the maid in the morning.”

  A frown replaced the smile as Natalie’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Is that a dig of some kind, Gianelli? Because if so, tread lightly. I’m in no mood for any of your reverse snobbery. Not tonight. In fact, not ever.”

  Maybe he had been poking fun at the differences in their lifestyles a bit, but at least he was smart enough to deny it. “Write it off as a poor attempt to lighten the situation.”

  “Yeah, right.” She held up her glass. “Give me another, barkeeper, and maybe I’ll even believe you.”

  He poured them each another shot and then put the bottle away. “Knock that one back, Blondie, and we’ll go upstairs to get you settled in for the night.”

  She sipped her drink without protest, which probably spoke to how badly shaken she was by everything that had happened. It wasn’t like her to take orders without a fuss. Finally, Natalie pushed herself up off the couch and walked over to the small kitchen. He drifted after her, unhappy about even that small distance between them. His head told him that she was safe here in his home; his heart couldn’t get past the fear of what might have happened to her if his arrival at the parking lot had been delayed even another five minutes.

  Natalie washed and dried her empty glass, treating it with the same care she would have fine crystal. Then she held out her hand to take his and did the same to it. “I halfway expect you to rip into me any second now about what happened.”

  Tino leaned a shoulder against the wall, pretending a calm he certainly didn’t feel. “I plan to, but not tonight.”

  “Why?”

  Because right now she looked so damn fragile, as if the slightest wrong touch would shatter her. If he told her that, they would be having the fight tonight. The woman prided herself on her independence and strength. Had no one ever pointed out how tiny she was? Again, he went for the convenient lie.

  “I’m too tired to do justice to the lecture I have planned. Tomorrow will be soon enough, when I’ve caught my breath and my heart has recovered from seeing you and Clarence being attacked. Be warned: there will be hollering, more than a few choice obscenities, and maybe even some strategic tossing of precious objects.”

  A little spark was back in her sad blue eyes. “Well, I’m glad I get to rest up for it. I’d hate to miss any important nuances because I’m too tired to appreciate the performance.”

  “Okay, now that we’re agreed on that much, let’s head upstairs.”

  He led the way, taking the steps two at a time to buy himself a little time to check the condition of his room. Luckily, years in the military had only reinforced the housekeeping lessons he’d learned from Marlene and Joe. He kicked a stray sock under the bed and turned back the covers. At least he’d changed the sheets only the day before.

  When Natalie appeared in the doorway, she obviously wasn’t too tired to study the narrow confines of his room with great curiosity. He tried to see it through her eyes and wondered what she was thinking, not that he was about to ask. Instead, he pulled a clean T-shirt out of his chest of drawers along with a pair of his gym shorts and handed them to her.

  “You can sleep in these. The shorts will be huge, but maybe you can cinch in the drawstring waist enough so they’ll stay up.”

  That was unlikely considering the difference in his size and hers. The image of her sleeping in just his T-shirt with nothing on underneath it filled his mind. Damn, he wouldn’t go there. He couldn’t, not and keep his hands to himself.

  Meanwhile, Natalie clutched the clothes as if he’d given her a priceless gift. “You shouldn’t give up your bedroom. I can sleep on the couch downstairs.”

  Actually, he liked the idea of having Natalie tucked into his bed even if he wasn’t sharing it with her. “I don’t mind. I’ll be right next door in Jack’s old room.”

  “But—” she started to protest.

  “My
room is more comfortable. My brother pretty much stripped his bare when he got married and moved out.”

  “If you’re sure.”

  “I am. The bathroom is two doors down. I’ll lay out a clean toothbrush and a few other things you might need. Feel free to take a shower if you want. Clean towels are on the shelves over the toilet. Now, I’ll let you get yourself situated while I lock up downstairs.”

  “Thank you again for everything.”

  “You’re welcome.” He closed his eyes for a few seconds. “I don’t usually entertain guests, so give me a holler if there’s anything else you need. Toss your dirty clothes down the steps when you’ve changed. I’ll run them through the washer before I turn in for the night. It won’t take long to dry them in the morning.”

  He almost made it out the door when she stopped him. “There is one thing I need, Tino.”

  “What’s that?”

  She tossed her makeshift sleepwear onto the bed before closing the distance between them. Her hands slid around his waist as she pulled him close for a quick hug. “If I haven’t said it enough, I really was glad that you were there tonight. Not just for me, but for Clarence, too.”

  It was so damn tempting to heat up the embrace, but only a complete asshole would ask more than a little comfort from a woman who’d been through such a traumatic experience.

  “Me, too.” He held her close for several seconds before stepping back out of reach. “You’ll feel better after a good night’s sleep. We both will.”

  Not that he expected to have one with her just on the other side of a thin wall. He went into full retreat before he lost control and begged her to let him hold her all night long.

  —

  Natalie waited until the sound of Tino going down the steps to the living room below had faded before going in search of the bathroom he’d mentioned. It was late, and she was tired, but a shower sounded heavenly.

  She smiled when she spotted the collection of toiletries that her host had provided her with. The shampoo, conditioner, and shower gel had all come from different hotels. He’d also laid out the promised toothbrush along with a disposable razor, a hairbrush, and a tiny bottle of body lotion. Right next to the motley collection was a bottle of ibuprofen.

  Bless the man, he’d thought of everything.

  Just like his bedroom, the bathroom was clean and orderly. Tino hadn’t had time to do a quick polish, so it had been that way before they’d arrived. Interesting, although maybe it was stereotyping on her part to think that a place shared by three brothers would be messier. Finding out the man liked things tidy added one more bit of information to the puzzle that was Tino Gianelli.

  As she brushed her teeth, she studied the red mark where the teenager had smacked her. Her cheek still hurt, but at least it wasn’t swollen. With luck, by tomorrow, a little makeup would hide the evidence from the people at work, not to mention her grandfather and parents.

  After stripping off her clothes, she stepped into the shower and pretended the heat of the spray would wash away the fear left over from the assault. It worried her that those boys had intended to steal the new computers. She’d have to see what she could do about installing a security system in the computer lab. There was no way she’d let some juvenile delinquents rob the other kids of a chance at a better future.

  Ten minutes later, she dried her hair as much as possible with a second towel and pulled on the T-shirt Tino had given her. It hung more than halfway down her thighs and covered far more than most of her own nightgowns. She tried on the shorts. Even after cinching the drawstring as tightly as she could, they still threatened to slip down off her hips. One good tug would probably send them tumbling to the ground, but luckily no one was likely to test that theory.

  Pausing to study her image in the mirror on the back of the bathroom door, it was just as she feared. She looked awful, especially with the red blotch on her face and her hair drooping down in wet ringlets. The oversized shirt and baggy shorts were just the icing on the cake.

  The only way this night was ever going to end was if she went to bed and slept through the rest of it. She bundled up her dirty clothes and the wet towels. Tino must have been listening for the bathroom door to open because he was waiting when she tossed everything down the steps.

  He ignored the soggy mess at his feet as he stared up at her. He might not have laughed out loud, but there was no mistaking the amused twinkle in his dark eyes.

  “Not a word, Tino.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Then he gave up and snickered. “Think if I snapped a picture to post online, you might inspire a new fashion trend?”

  “Stuff it, Gianelli. I’m going to bed.”

  “I’m just saying.” Then his voice gentled. “Sleep easy, Natalie. You’re safe here with me.”

  “I know.”

  She meant that. With every fiber of her being, she knew the man staring up at her would stand between her and any threat from the world outside. She loved that about him. In fact, she loved everything about the man. Unfortunately, they still had some serious issues to work through, and tonight wasn’t the best time to start that process.

  Even so, for the longest second, she stood poised at the top of the stairs, not sure which way to go—into the sanctuary of Tino’s room or down the steps into the temptation of his arms. Maybe she was a coward or simply too tired to take that first step. In the end, she offered him one last smile and went to bed.

  Chapter 22

  When he checked on her, Natalie had fallen into a deep slumber, probably thanks to a combination of the bourbon and exhaustion. Lucky her. Tino had given up on sleep an hour after he’d crawled into bed. It was tempting to lurk in the corner of his own room and watch over Natalie, but he headed back downstairs to flop on the couch. Late-night television had nothing to offer, and the book he was reading didn’t hold his attention for more than a page or two.

  He went back to pacing the floor. Damn, he had to do something, had to talk to someone before he exploded. Right now, it was a toss-up between heaving the weights at the wall or calling his brother. Since the first thing would wake up Natalie, he reached for his cellphone. It rang half a dozen times before he heard a deep grumble coming from the other end of the line.

  “Jack?”

  “Right on the first guess, you damn idiot. Who the hell else would be answering my phone at this hour?”

  There was another voice in the background. Well, crap, he’d also woken up Jack’s wife. “Tell Caitlyn I’m sorry for bothering her.”

  “I will, but she knows you wouldn’t call for no reason. The only question is whether you need both of us or just me.”

  “Just you.”

  Tino could tell that Jack was up and moving around. “Can we handle whatever it is on the phone or do you need me to come over? Don’t tell me I need to come post bail, because that could’ve waited till morning.”

  “Smart ass. Remember the day you tore the annex up throwing the weight set around? And how much work it took us to put it back together?”

  “Yeah.”

  Neither of them would forget that day. Jack’s foster son, Ricky, had almost been killed by his stepfather. Jack had held it together until the boy was safely in the hospital, but then he’d returned to the annex to explode in a destructive fury. Tino had come just as close to losing Natalie tonight.

  “I’m on the verge of seeing if I can outdo your performance.”

  His brother sighed. “I’ll bring the truck in case I don’t get there in time, and we need to spend the rest of the night patching drywall and painting.”

  Knowing his brother was on his way did a lot to help Tino regain control. “Good thinking. We’ll need it anyway for an unscheduled job tomorrow. I’ll explain when you get here.”

  “I should be there in half an hour, maybe a little longer if I stop at the all-night doughnut shop on the way. If you want, I can pick up a couple of venti hot chocolates to go with them.”

  “I want.”r />
  —

  The forty minutes it took for Jack to finally arrive were some of the longest of Tino’s life. Pacing the width of the small living room reminded him too much of his time in the military watching the prisoners trapped in the confines of a tiny cell. Prowling outside in the yard was out of the question, because he might wake up his mother. The last thing he wanted was to have her join this party. His nerves were at the breaking point when he finally spotted Jack’s truck.

  It was about time. At least his brother was smart enough to kill the headlights and the engine before coasting into the driveway, lessening the chance of drawing Marlene’s attention. Tino found it easier to breathe as his brother silently joined him in the annex.

  Jack crossed the room to sit at the kitchen table. He plunked down two cups of hot chocolate and flipped the lid open on a box of doughnuts. After picking out a maple bar, he shoved the rest across the table toward Tino when he sat across from him.

  Jack didn’t pussyfoot around. “So what has Natalie Kennigan done to get your knickers in a twist?”

  Still trying to act more in control than he was, Tino leaned forward to study the doughnuts. Good, Jack had remembered to get the ones with chocolate sprinkles. He waited until he’d eaten the entire thing before saying, “She came pretty damn close to getting killed tonight.”

  As an ex–Special Forces soldier, it took a lot to shock Jack. Tino took some pride in the fact that his bald statement had clearly done the job. Jack sat up straighter, his doughnut forgotten for the moment, as he asked rapid-fire questions. “What the fuck? How did that happen? Is she okay?”

  Tino glanced at the ceiling, reminding himself she was sleeping, safe and sound, upstairs. “Keep your damn voice down. I brought her back here to spend the night. She’s okay for now, but that’s due mostly to stupid luck.”

  He sipped his hot chocolate, but the rich taste did nothing to wash away the bitter taste of fear. “God, that is one stubborn woman. It’s not enough that she’s put her heart and soul into the work she does for her grandfather’s foundation. No, she’s got to teach classes herself and then go waltzing around in a deserted parking lot at night. I used to hang around after basketball practices to walk out with her, but that ended after we quit seeing each other.”