Texas Hellcat

by Shelley Stringer

  “Come on. I’ll walk you to your apartment. I don’t want you to be late to work.” He grinned at me over his shoulder as I joined him.

  Five

  “There is no way Liam Covington is interested in me,” I blurted out as Jen followed me through the front door to the apartment. I headed to the galley with the groceries we’d bought at the market down the street. I’d run over all the conversations I’d had with Liam since the first day we’d run together while Jen helped me shop.

  “How can you be so blind, Kelly-cat? He couldn’t be more obvious if he leaned over and sniffed your crotch,” she threw over her shoulder, pulling a beer from the fridge.

  “Classy analogy.” I shook my head as I studied the stalks of celery in my hand. “He’s just playing with me or something,” I retorted. “Sometimes I feel like he’s teasing me, setting me up for a joke. Like I’m the only one who doesn’t know he’s talking over my head.”

  When Jen didn’t immediately reply, I looked up at her and caught her frowning.

  “What?”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone with bigger inferiority issues than you, Cat. To be such a driven, take charge personality, you sure have a negative self-image. We need to delve,” she urged, taking a barstool at the counter. Jen was our resident psychology major, working part-time for social services while she finished her master’s degree. She loved to diagnose personality disorders whenever one of us relayed personal information.

  “I don’t have issues,” I countered as she rolled her eyes at me. She took a drink of her beer and then contemplated me over the top of the can.

  “You seem to be operating under the assumption you are somehow not Liam Covington’s equal. You see him as untouchable, out of your league. Tana told me you said so yourself. Why do you think so? I’ve only known you since college, but you’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever met. You’re ambitious and driven, you have a degree from the University of Texas, and you’re hot. Why wouldn’t he be interested?”

  “I’m not hot,” I countered as I felt a blush rise on my cheeks. “I’m…average. I’m okay-looking, I guess,” I murmured.

  “Cat, you’re anything but average. The few times you’ve gone out with us, guys drool over you.”

  “Yeah, we’re gonna have to do something about the hundreds beating the door down,” I rolled my eyes at her as she shook her head.

  “You’re every bit his equal, and he is crazy-hot. You need to seriously flirt back. He’s into you.”

  “Who’s into you?” Sunni asked as she pushed through the front door, followed closely by Tana.

  “This hot new guy at work who asked her out,” Jen replied as Tana gasped.

  “Covington asked you out? I knew there was something there,” she gloated, placing a bottle of wine on the cabinet. “Every woman at work is drooling. He is sex in a suit, all serious, sensual as hell…he drips power and everyone is wondering just how much ‘power,’” she said with quotation marks in the air

  “I haven’t heard anything like that,” I mumbled, chopping vegetables for a salad.

  “Just because you don’t stick around for lunch. Seriously, Kelly…if you’re ever going to have a social life, you have got to socialize more. For a PR rep, you really are introverted.”

  Sunni, Jen and Tana gathered around the bottle of wine like it was water in the desert, glasses in hand. I shook my head. This was the routine every night. They drank, I cooked. I didn’t mind. It seemed domestic, the first time I felt like part of a real family. I liked playing mom, since I’d never really had one. I busied myself with boning a chicken I’d cooked the night before, and seasoned the meat before I added it back to the salad. Some hummus and pita bread completed our dinner. I put everything out on the counter as they continued to pick my personality quirks apart.

  “This this is a great opportunity for you to come out of your shell. And Mr. Covington is hot and a major turn-on. I hope you said yes. Where is he taking you?” Tana asked as she dipped salad into a bowl and took a stool at the bar.

  “It’s not really a date, ladies. He asked me to go with him to the gala next Friday night. I’m sure he just didn’t want to go alone, and since we’ve been running together every morning,” I continued. Everyone dropped their forks and stared at me.

  “Since when have you been running together? You didn’t tell us,” Tana countered.

  “It’s not what you think. We ran into each other one morning, and we discovered we run the same trail. He started meeting me outside the building. He says I shouldn’t run alone,” I muttered, embarrassed they were making so much out of our morning jog.

  “I keep telling her he is seriously into her, but she doesn’t think so,” Jen sang out to the others as she picked at her salad. “And just try to convince her how hot she is. She doesn’t believe me,” she added to my mortification.

  “Okay, okay…he asked me out and I said yes. I will tell you I told you so when the date comes and goes and it stops there. I’m a running buddy, that’s all. I don’t flirt, and I don’t come on to him. He probably just wants me to go with him to deflect feminine attention or something. Or maybe he’s gay,” I added as I grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge and started for my little retreat up in the loft. “And pick a new subject while I’m gone. You’ve picked me apart tonight.”

  “Oh, speaking of. Did you all see the news today? They found a girl’s body in a wooded area not far from Town Lake. They said it might be the student missing from the dorms,” Sunni was telling the others. I made my way up the stairs and shrugged out of my clothes hurriedly. My sports bra and biking shorts were still in a pile on the wooden floor of the loft, and I picked them up. I was just going to get drenched again, so I dragged them on, pulled my hair back in a pony-tail, and slipped my socks and Nikes on before trudging back down the iron steps to the living room.

  “You already ran today,” Tana objected. I placed my key to our apartment in my sock.

  “I have all this nervous energy. I just want to go and run,” I replied. “You want to come?”

  “Nope. Gonna work plenty of calories off when I go to Tom’s in a bit,” she smiled smugly as Sunni snorted.

  “Yeah, she got the call of the booty on her cell,” she taunted in her Indian accent.

  Jen shook her head. “That would be a ‘booty-call,’ harem girl.”

  “Is that not what I just said?” Sunni retorted. I waved and exited before the conversation could turn to me again.

  Thunder rumbled in the distance toward the northwest where a dark cloudbank could be seen. I scanned the trees across the lake. Stopping by my park bench to stretch, I remembered the girls talking earlier about the dead college girl today. I shuddered, wishing Tana had joined me. It was just past seven, but since daylight saving time was in full swing, I had a good forty-five minutes more of Hill Country sunshine to keep me safe. I plugged my ear buds in and set off to the beat of some hip-hop tunes Sunni had loaded on my used iPod. I’d jogged maybe a mile and a half when I noticed the sky was darkening with the swirling clouds over head. Thunderstorms in Texas were nothing to be taken lightly, and this one had moved in on Austin in a hurry. As thunder crashed unexpectedly overhead, I pulled my ear buds out. An eerie stillness settled over the lake and the surrounding wooded area. My skin prickled with a sense I was being watched. I began to retrace my steps, jogging briskly back the way I’d come. It was shorter to go back than to continue on my normal route down the lake. As I passed a large curve in the path, I could hear footsteps gaining on me. All of the hairs on my neck stood on end, my heart beating in my throat as lightning struck a live oak tree beside the path. The air sparked, the electricity arcing across the tree and over me into the lake. Sparks flew across the path, and the acrid scent of burning wood filled my nostrils. Not taking time to make sure I wasn’t on fire myself, I put my head down and flew, winding around the bends in the path as fast as if I was running relays in high school. Just as I flew around the last bend, I hit
a man in the path full-throttle. We both sprawled on the bike path as he swore.

  “Damn it, Kelly! I’ve been looking for you. Are you all right?” Liam brushed leaves and dirt from his jeans and leaned over to help me up. I winced as I tried to put weight on my ankle. I’d turned it when I fell.

  “I’m fine,” I retorted, brushing his hands away when he tried to look at it. I was mortified I’d come face-to-face with him again, with my day-old workout clothes on that probably smelled to high heaven.

  “No, you’re not. Quit being hard-headed,” he commanded, pulling my hand away. He felt of my ankle as I winced again.

  “You’ve got a bad sprain. Come on.” He pulled me up and then wrapped his arm around my waist. “Can you put weight on it?”

  “Yes. “ I limped along, not really able to place weight on my left foot at all. Luckily, we neared our bridge and park bench that would take us back to the sidewalk.

  “It’s closer to my place, and this storm’s about to hit,” he said, looking down at me, his breath blowing in my hair. His breath smelled good, like he’d recently been sucking on a wintergreen mint. Liam always smelled good. I cringed again with the knowledge he couldn’t say the same about me.

  “No, really, I can just make it to my apartment,” I pulled away from him.

  “Kelly, no. Come on,” he argued as he slipped his arm around the back of my thighs and then swung me up against his chest. “Problem solved,” he breathed lightly, his breath now brushing my lips.

  I held my breath. Oh, why did I have to run into him with stale workout clothes on?

  “Are you in pain?” He drew his brows together as he watched the emotions cross my face.

  “Not how you mean,” I retorted. His expression softened as I asked, “What did you mean when you said you’d been looking for me?”

  “I dropped by your apartment to see if you wanted to go get a drink on 6th street, and your roommates said you’d gone running. I thought I told you not to run by yourself,” he scolded. I met his gaze full on.

  The girls said I should flirt, I was thinking to myself. He’s carrying you in his arms for Crockett’s sake. Say something! “Are you stalking me, Mr. Covington?” I asked, trying to look coy.

  “Maybe. And I think we’re familiar enough, outside the office, to call each other by our first names. Call me Liam.” He smiled, seeming pleased I’d ask the question.

  I glanced up at the large hotel in front of us…the Four Seasons. It sat right on Lady Bird Lake with a beautiful view of downtown. Our company booked all visiting VIP’s there.

  “Is this where you’re staying?” I asked as he entered the lobby with me. Several people turned to stare at us. Without looking in their direction, he headed to the elevators. I felt out of place, the grand foyer was decorated with Austin limestone, massive longhorns hanging over magnificent fireplaces, lush cowhide and leather sofas. Once inside the elevator he placed me gently down beside him, and then pressed the button for the top floor.

  “You have a suite here?” I asked, awestruck.

  “For now. I’m looking for a place downtown, relocating from San Antonio,” he replied, glancing down at me. I blushed under his perusal.

  The doors opened into a large foyer, and he placed his arm back around my waist. “Lean on me,” he urged as he swiped his card and opened the large double-doors. I tried not to gawk at the grand suite before me. It was quite large, seeming to encompass about a fourth of the top story of the hotel. It was richly furnished with traditional Texas-style dark oak furniture, burgundy, yellow and navy Indian textiles, and rich leather.

  “This is beautiful,” I murmured. He guided me through the living area, past a dining table in front of a grand balcony, and through to a large bedroom with a king-sized bed.

  “Um, where are we going?” I asked as he grinned down at me.

  “I thought you might like to bathe and soak your ankle. We can eat and have that drink here…wait for the storm to pass.” He urged me to sit on a large settee beside an opulent granite tub. Filling the tub with hot water, he started the jets and added some bath salts.

  I shook my head. “I’m not taking a bath in your suite,” I argued. He turned back to me, his eyes sliding down my body and then back up again. I was acutely aware, once inside the cool air of his suite, my nipples strained against the tight wet fabric of my running bra. I resisted the urge to shudder as his eyes lingered there.

  “I really should go,” I murmured again. A large clap of thunder made me jump, the sound of the pelting rain making the room seem much more secluded.

  “Don’t be ridiculous. It’s pouring out, and you’re hurt. You might as well get comfortable, at least until the storm passes. Soak awhile and then I’ll bring you some mineral water, and have housekeeping get your clothes to wash.” He took charge as if he were used to giving orders. He removed two fluffy white monogramed towels from the cabinet and stacked them beside the tub.

  Reaching around the tile wall beside the tub, he starting the shower. “If you need anything, let me know. I’m going to shower while you soak,” he commented, pulling his t-shirt over his head. I gaped at the flexing muscles in his shoulders. He was very perfectly sculpted, and just tan enough to make his skin glow a beautiful sugary brown. Sadly, he rounded the corner of the tiled wall before he shed any further clothes.

  I sighed, nervously contemplating undressing. I felt vulnerable in the large open bathroom without a door to close between us. I pulled my sports bra off hurriedly, and then shrugged out of my biking shorts and panties, and quickly slid into the steaming tub of water. I readjusted the rubber band holding my hair so it was double-knotted in a loose bun on top of my head, keeping my hair from trailing in the water. As I soaked, my muscles relaxed. All the tension of the past few days quickly left my body. I’d spent too many late nights at the office, and I’d even been bringing things home with me to finish myself, trying to bring the gala in under budget. Even now, I had piles of faux pearls and feather boas for table arrangements and party favors scattered in my loft. Every available moment the past few days had been spent working out the details for the mega fundraiser...every moment I wasn’t thinking of…my eyes snapped open…Liam! It was surreal. He was behind this wall, naked, the water washing over his body. I shut my eyes again and imagined the water cascading down his muscled form, and then imagined my hands trailing over his wet skin…

  “Hey, are you feeling any better?” His voice startled me back to reality. I looked down hurriedly. The motion of the jets sent the water across my body in a way that hid it like a blanket of currents and bubbles.

  He grinned down at me as he handed me a bottle of water. “Don’t worry. I didn’t look, much,” he teased. He tucked a towel tighter around his waist. Running a hand through his damp hair, he turned and walked back into the bedroom.

  I drew my breath in and tried to steady my quivering voice. “So you don’t live in Austin?” I asked, averting my gaze and soaping my hands with luxurious lavender and vanilla scented soap.

  “No. I’ve lived in San Antonio my whole life. I’m relocating here, taking a larger role in the family business.”

  “Do you like Austin?” I lathered my arms and shoulders, and then sat up and smoothed the lather across my breasts and down to my stomach. As I heard his footsteps approach, I sank down into the water.

  “More and more every day,” he said softly, sitting down on the settee with an ice bucket and towel. He’d changed into a pair of torn, washed Levi’s, but his chest remained bare.

  “Let me have your leg.”

  “Excuse me?”

  He grinned wider and pointed to the bucket full of ice water. “Your ankle. We need to ice it,” he clarified as I raised an eyebrow.

  Okay, Kelly…flirt. Remember, the girls said to flirt. “Oh. All right, fine. You can have the ankle.” I raised my leg and let the soap slide down slowly as he contemplated my trim calf. “I don’t know you well enough to let you have the whole leg.”

&nbs
p; His eyes widened in appreciation. His lips parted slightly, and I detected the slightest hitch in his breathing. I bent my leg and placed my ankle at an angle toward the bucket. He moved it closer, clasping my foot as he drew it inside. Drawing in a wet breath between my teeth, I grimaced as he shot a look at me.

  “That’s really cold.”

  “It’s ice,” he murmured, watching my lips as he leaned forward, our faces almost touching.

  “It hurts,” I objected.

  “I know, baby. We’ll only leave your ankle in a few minutes, and then take it out. It’s the best I can prescribe.”

  My eyes widened. He’d called me “baby.” No one had ever called me that. I tensed, suddenly not confident what my next move should be. What was I doing here? I was so out of my element.

  A faint memory surfaced, from the night I’d been drugged. His face was over mine, leaning in to kiss me softly on the forehead.

  “Liam?”

  “What, Kel?” he asked softly, leaning in closer to me.

  “Did you kiss me, the night you brought me home?” I asked, absentmindedly popping bubbles on the surface of the water.

  “Did you want me to kiss you?” he murmured, brushing bubbles away from my face.

  “I was sort of unconscious. I just have flashes of memory,” I whispered. He watched me intently.

  “I might have kissed your forehead like a good friend,” he teased. After a tense moment, he spoke again. “So, are you a native Austin-ite?”

  “No. I lived all over the hill country when I was growing up. I moved to Austin for college.”

  “Does your family live here?” he continued with his questions. I definitely didn’t want to talk about my screwed-up lack of family, so I was relieved when someone knocked on the door to the suite.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  He bounded out of the room, bending over to retrieve my clothes as he left. I heard him talking in the other room, and then he returned a few moments later with my cell phone.