Burning for Love: Los Angeles Armstrongs 2 (The Armstrongs Book 8)

by Gray, Jessica

  Once they reached the town, it was obvious that something had changed. The sidewalks weren’t crowded with tourists, and the people they saw seemed to be nervous. The owner of their hotel greeted them with a huge smile on his face.

  “So glad you made it back safely! Did you hear about the eruption? The Black Giant has awakened. The Indians say he’s angry, because humans don’t respect him anymore.”

  “Yes. We actually saw the eruption, it was an amazing experience,” Roxie verified with a nod.

  “The village is on orange alert. Everyone should be prepared to evacuate at a moment’s notice. But knowing my fellow citizens, nobody will leave this place voluntarily. We’ve been evacuated more times than we care to remember in the last twenty years and we’re tired of it. I, for my part, will stay and you’re welcome to do so as well as long as there’s no official evacuation order.”

  “Thanks, we’ll stay,” Drake said, before Roxie could voice any concern. She wasn’t sure if this was a clever move, but then, she trusted that Drake and the hotel owner had more expertise in that area.

  “I need to get back to our room and import the data into my laptop,” Drake murmured.

  Roxie nodded and once they arrived at their bungalow, she climbed up to the rooftop terrace and plopped down into the hammock to read. The day had been exhilarating and it wasn’t long before she fell asleep, her smartphone lying on her stomach.

  Some time later, the chirping of her phone jolted her from her slumber. She rolled her neck and swiped her thumb across the screen to take the call. When she heard the voice of her ex, she wished she’d looked at the caller ID first.

  “What do you want?” she asked baldly.

  “You. Roxie, I want you to come back.”

  Roxie had a hard time not laughing at him. Instead, she replied, “Darren, you evidently didn’t get my message. I broke up with you.”

  “When are you coming home? You’ve had your little adventure, now come back and live your life like a responsible adult.” His voice was so patronizing she wanted to grab his throat and shake him.

  “Darren. It’s over between us. Finished. For Good.”

  There was a pause and then he asked, “May I ask why?”

  “Because of your annoying habit to always tell me what to do and how to do it.”

  “You’re immature. Apart from your commitment problems, you never wanted to accept that I know better about what’s best for you.” Darren made an obnoxious sound.

  “It really has nothing to do with me but everything to do with you. I can commit if it’s with the right man” She thought she heard a noise but when she looked around, there wasn’t anything or anyone. Probably the bats. “Look, Darren. Things between us are over. I’m not going to change my mind, please don’t contact me again.”

  “You’ll change your mind,” he assured her.

  “No way. Leave me alone. ” Roxie disconnected the call and leaned back, violently rocking the hammock with one foot on the ground. Was there a grain of truth in Darren’s criticism? Am I too immature to establish a meaningful relationship? No. That was just his controlling and manipulating rising to the surface again.

  After some soul searching, she came to the conclusion that her ex wasn’t right and she was capable of committing to a relationship. In fact, she wanted to commit to one right now.

  Roxie pushed herself out of the hammock and went in search of Drake.

  Chapter 25

  Drake snuck downstairs with slumped shoulders, Roxie’s words echoing in his ears. I can commit if it’s with the right man.

  Obviously she didn’t believe he was the right man. This whole casual thing had been a huge mistake. He wanted her, but she didn’t want him. Easy as that. The air inside wouldn’t let him breathe. Or think. It was as if all the available oxygen had been sucked from his lungs. He closed his laptop and left the bungalow.

  Outside breathing became a bit easier. He followed the winding path without paying attention and stopped in front of the open-air eating space.

  “You do not look so good, my friend,” the owner commented.

  “I’ve been better.”

  “We all are jumpy with the volcano. Would you care to join me?” The owner held up a bottle of aguardiente, an aniseed brandy.

  “The volcano doesn’t worry me, but thanks for the offer. A jigger won’t hurt.” Drake accepted and downed the glass in one gulp.

  “Then what’s the problem?”

  “A woman,” Drake offered.

  “Isn’t it always a woman? We can’t live with them, nor without them. My own wife doesn’t stay with me, because she hates this place.”

  “And why don’t you live with her?” Drake asked.

  “She’s an Indian and lives in the jungle,” the man said with a chuckle, “I like visiting her and our three kids in their village for a while, but I can’t live there. There’s no running water, no electricity, no streets, nothing. Despite the odds, we’ve managed to stay in love for more than fifteen years.”

  Drake wondered how this kind of relationship could work. He wanted to fall asleep and wake up next to the woman he loved every single day for the rest of his life.

  Drake was on his third jigger when Roxie appeared. “There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you.”

  “Here I am.” He flung his arms wide and didn’t even try to hide the bitterness in his voice. Roxie seemed oblivious to his attitude and she walked right up to him and kissed his cheek.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” He pushed up from the chair and walked around the table.

  Roxie followed him. “I can tell something is wrong. What is it?” She attempted to wrap her arms around him from behind, but he shrugged her off.

  Drake glanced at her, unable to stand the look of pain that crossed her face as he rebuffed her advances.

  “Drake, I can tell something’s wrong. What is it?”

  “Who were you talking to up on the terrace?” He said it louder than intended and glanced around. Nobody was there. And the bottle of aguardiente was missing as well. The hotel owner must have fled the scene. Fine with me. He didn’t need witnesses to his humiliation.

  Roxie hunched her shoulders and avoided eye contact. “No one important.”

  “Do you always fight with unimportant people?” He sneered.

  “I didn’t fight…” By the expression on her face, she knew it was a lame excuse.

  “That’s bullshit.” He turned to leave.

  “Fine. I was talking to one of my girlfriend’s back in the States. Charlene, the one who’s with your cousin Evan.”

  “Yeah, I remember who Charlene is.” Drake tried to hide the hurt from showing in his voice. She was really going to stand there in front of him and lie? He should have known it. “You told your best friend, that I’m not the right guy for you. Thank you very much.”

  Roxie acted as if he’d slapped her. “What in the hell are you talking about?”

  “Your phone conversation.”

  “You were spying on me?” she demanded to know, her face going pale and fire sparking to life in her eyes. “How dare you!” Roxie paced away from him, and the longer he remained silent, the more agitated she became. She finally stomped her feet in anger and took off in direction to their bungalow.

  Instinctively he followed her, but then stopped and raised his fist. Who the hell did she think she was? I haven’t been spying on her. She was talking loud enough for the entire compound to hear.

  Chapter 26

  Roxie stomped back to the bungalow, furious with Drake, but mostly with herself. She’d allowed her pride to keep her from telling Drake she’d been fighting with her ex. And then, she’d accused him of spying on her. Well done, girl! Now he’s rightfully furious and you may have lost the man you love forever.

  After fuming and pacing for more than an hour, she realized she had to swallow the pill. Apologize and tell Drake the truth. But he wasn’t at the eating area. She scoured the enti
re grounds, walked every winding path, even checked the pool, but he was nowhere to be found. Instead he found the owner of the place scribbling notes into a journal.

  “Hello, do you know where my friend is?” Roxie asked.

  “He left for town.” The owner nodded toward the exit.

  Meanwhile it was a pitch-black night and Roxie yawned. Going to search for Drake in town would be like hunting for the needle in the haystack. She’d wait for him to return to their bungalow.

  Disillusioned and sad, she got ready for bed. She left the front door unlocked for him and then drew the curtains before slipping beneath the covers. But a sound from the rooftop terrace scared her and she imagined killer bats invading her space. With a thumping heart, she got up again and climbed the ladder to close and lock the trap door.

  Despite her agitated state of mind, sleep claimed her exhausted body after a short time and she woke when faint daylight entered through the cracks in the curtains. Sleepy, she rolled over to Drake’s side of the bed and her hand fumbled for him.

  Roxie shot up in her bed. He wasn’t there. And judging by the smooth cover, he hadn’t come back last night. Sadness morphed into worry, and anger. How dare he!

  ***

  After Roxie had stormed off, Drake needed to cool his anger. A beer in town seemed like a good idea. On his way to the exit, he met the owner.

  “Hey there, going out?” the owner asked.

  “Yeah, gonna have a beer in town,” Drake answered.

  “Here, take this for the way.” The owner poured him a generous glass with aguardiente and Drake downed the pungent schnapps in one gulp.

  “Thanks man,” Drake said and bid his good-byes. But when he’d reached the exit, he scratched his head. It wasn’t his style to run away from a problem. He should at least talk to Roxie. So, he returned to their bungalow. But she wasn’t downstairs.

  He looked for her on the rooftop terrace. Empty. Drake plopped into the hammock, the exhaustion and alcohol taking its toll. With images of their sexual interlude in this exact place he soon drifted into a restless sleep.

  Well past midnight loud fluttering woke him and he almost fell out of the hammock, turning his head. What the heck? Drake needed a few moments to realize he’d fallen asleep on the rooftop terrace. He shuffled to the trap door, to find it locked from the inside.

  Boy, that woman is seriously furious! She locked me out.

  It crossed his mind to pound on the door until she opened it up, but then the entire compound would be privy to their fight. He grabbed the towels hanging on the balustrade to dry and rolled one into a pillow, the other one would service as blanket.

  Drake settled in the hammock and after a while, his anger dissipated enough to fall into a dreamless sleep. It had been a mistake to agree to a non-committal relationship. Tomorrow he’d rent another room for himself and he wouldn’t have to see her again except for the drive back to Quito.

  “What are you doing up here?” an angry voice cut through his dreams.

  Drake blinked and rolled to the side to make the voice go away.

  “Hey, I’m talking to you!”

  He blinked again and opened his eyelids wide enough to see a very angry Roxie towering over him. It wasn’t a dream. Drake scratched his stubbly face and then pushed out of the hammock, causing her to back up.

  “As if you didn’t know. You locked me out of the room,” he growled at her.

  “No! I wouldn’t.” She shook her head, “You stayed out all night, but how on earth did you get up here?”

  “I was here all night. You locked me out,” Drake insisted.

  “The owner said you went into town…” Roxie scrunched her nose in that cute way and he completely forgot his anger, or his intention to stay away from her. Damn. Damn. Damn.

  “I changed my mind and came to talk to you, but you were gone. That’s why I came up here to wait for you.” Drake fought the smile forming on his lips.

  Roxie made the shape of an “O” with her mouth, but no sound came out.

  “Come here,” he said and took her hand.

  “I’m so sorry,” Roxy said, biting her lip, while she followed the tug on her hand and inched closer to him.

  Drake’s heart warmed. Maybe there still was hope. “Don’t be. It was my fault too. I drank so much that I passed out the first time I closed my eyes.”

  “I didn’t mean to lock you out. I heard a noise on the terrace and became scared …I didn’t peek out the trap door to see what the noise was, I just locked it tight.”

  “You didn’t have to be scared,” he wrapped his arms around her. “I was right here.”

  “I know, but I made such a mess of things…” Roxie nodded and a few tears slipped down her cheeks.

  “No, I should be apologizing for trying to make you into something—”

  Roxie shook her head and stopped him with a gesture. “Don’t. I wasn’t honest with you about the phone call. It wasn’t Charlene – it was my ex demanding I get back together with him. He accused me of being unable to commit and I told him he was wrong. I could commit if the right man came along.”

  “You don’t have to continue…”

  “But I do.” Roxie took a step toward him and placed a finger over his lips. ”As soon as I hung up with him, I realized that you’re the right man. With you, I’d never feel trapped or bored or patronized. I came to tell you that I want to commit. To you. Only you. Because I love you.”

  Drake looked at her for a long moment and then tipped his head back and started laughing. “We are a pair, aren’t we? You convinced me to abandon my need for a lasting commitment and it’s been killing me ever since.”

  “And I told you I didn’t want commitment, and yet it’s what I truly long for.” Roxie smiled.

  Drake pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight while kissing her until they were both gasping for breath. “I love you, sweetie. I love you so much. I wanted you for mine from the very first moment.”

  Then he released his grip on her, took her hand and knelt down in front of her. “Are you, Roxie Ellison, ready and willing to become my official girlfriend? The kind that wants to spend every one of her days and nights with me, while never neglecting her own life?”

  “I would love to be your girlfriend. I happen to think we make a pretty good team.”

  Drake stood and pulled her into a huge hug. “That we do. An excellent team.” Then he took two steps back and eased them into the hammock, pulling her on top of him. “I think we should celebrate.”

  “Drake, it’s plain daylight!” Roxie protested, but his hands had already found their way beneath her shirt.

  “If you don’t make any noise, nobody will notice. They can’t see up here.”

  ***

  This was the second book in the Los Angeles Armstrongs series.

  Book three features Preston Armstrong. Will he find his happily ever after with his girlfriend Sandrine, or are his siblings right to distrust her? What location would be better to seal his fate than the Eternal City, Rome?

  Coming soon….. CLICK HERE to get an email reminder as soon as ETERNITY OF LOVE is released.

  Curious how everything started with the Armstrongs? The first book of the original Chicago Armstrongs POWER OF LOVE is available for free on most retailers.

  Download here: http://www.jessicagraybooks.com/trevorarmstrong.html

  If you prefer a badass heartbreaker, then Fernando is your man. The chemistry between Fernando and his probation officer Gwen Cohen ignites from the moment they meet – but there’s more than one insurmountable obstacle to overcome for him if he ever want to call her his.

  Order your copy right here: BAD BOY LOVE – FERNANDO

  Thank you,

  Please enjoy a preview of the story of Fernando and Gwen

  BAD BOY LOVE

  Book 1

  FERNANDO

  Jessica Gray

  Preview FERNANDO

  Fernando Garcia leaned against the streetlight, keeping watch ov
er the front doors of the social services office, wondering what his probation officer would be like. Just like everything, there were good ones and some who completely sucked. Fortunately, at least in his experience, most of them had a quest to help their clients turn their lives around and become honest, hard-working, upright citizens.

  As if I even had a chance to become an honest person.

  This wasn’t his first brush with the law. On the contrary, at the age of twenty-five, he’d amassed a long history of petty crimes and misdemeanors. Nothing really bad. But this time had been different. He’d crossed the line and was lucky to have gotten away with probation.

  He sucked in a breath and kicked some pebbles out of his way. He’d been here before, so why was he nervous now? His assigned probation officer would be nice, even friendly, trying to gain his trust. And Fernando would put on his act, pretending he could turn his life around, even though everyone knew it wouldn’t happen. Not by a long shot.

  There was nothing to be nervous about. He’d long ago accepted the fact that he would lead the life of a criminal, whether he wanted to or not. His wishes didn’t matter. Taking care of his younger sister mattered.

  But Amada’s grown up now.

  Depressed by that thought, Fernando opened the front door and trudged up the stairs to the third floor where he presented himself at reception.

  “Gwen Cohen, Room 326, have a seat outside, please. She’ll call you momentarily,” the receptionist said with a friendly smile.

  “Thank you,” Fernando answered and walked down the long hallway to the indicated room. He’d just sat down when the door opened, and a burly man stepped out and walked toward the exit, ignoring him completely. A young woman around his own age was left standing in the doorway.

  Fernando’s chest constricted the moment he saw her, and he had to remind himself to breathe. Oh shit, she’s awesome. Around five-eight, she was tall and slender with blonde, shoulder length hair, and a tan that came from spending plenty of time in the sun. She looked like an advertisement for a typical California girl, and he could easily imagine her in a bikini, holding onto a surfboard. But what undid him was the shimmer in her baby-blue eyes. They were combined with the most heartwarming smile he’d ever seen.