by LR Potter
“What about Olivia Terry?”
“I’ve told you, I don’t want her, I only want you,” he replied, as he ran his lips down her neck to the pulse which beat frantically at the base of her throat. The fluttering of his tongue against her skin caused her nipples to harden into stiff points. She moaned when his fingers slid up underneath her top and ran his thumbs over her sensitive lace-covered breasts.
It took everything she possessed to pull away. Rush Drayton had always been able to make her lose her head. But she’d never endure it this time. “Rush, please don’t… please stop,” she begged as he continued to stroke her nipples and sought to return his lips to her skin. Eventually, her words broke through.
With his eyes over-bright, he stared at her uncomprehendingly. “I don’t understand,” he said.
This time she couldn’t stop her chin from wobbling or her lips from trembling. “I know I was wrong in what I did. I shouldn’t have taken Blake and gone to El Paso. I know I should have trusted you more. But I don’t understand how you could leave and take her to the same place we were to be married. Do you know how much that hurt? Do you care?” she asked as tears slid down her cheeks.
He stared at her uncomprehendingly. “The Caymans?” he asked, unsure.
Falling back heavily in the rocker, she stared at him in disbelief. “You can cut the act, Rush. I know… I know!”
Falling back on his heels, he looked at her, irritated at her tone, “What do you know?”
“Did you think the papers wouldn’t be all too happy to announce your happy reunion with Olivia Terry?”
“Olivia Terry? Yes, she was in the Caymans, but she wasn’t with me,” he said.
“How can you say that?” she asked.
He shook his head sadly. “Why can’t you trust me just a little?”
“But there were pictures of you together,” she said, a little less sure.
Standing to his feet, he moved to the door and stopped and without turning around he said, “The newspapers want to sell papers, Trinity. At some point, you need to quit believing everything you see and start believing in what you know.” Without another word, he walked out.
She laid her head back and allowed the tears to fall. She’d made the right decision. She couldn’t live a life where she would have to be constantly on guard against Rush and his libido.
Scrubbing her hands over her face, she brushed her tears away. She’d cried all she was going to over Rush Drayton. As she stepped into the hall, she heard the murmur of voices in Rush’s office. She gathered her courage and walked to Rush’s office. He was sitting behind his desk and Alex was seated across from him.
Both men turned to her when she entered. “Rush, can I talk to you privately?”
“I’ll go make those calls,” Alex said to Rush as he walked out and quietly shut the door behind him.
“What do you need?” he asked somberly.
“I think it’s best if I go back to my condo. I want to take Blake with me.”
He arched an eyebrow at her. “Do you now?”
“Please, Rush. Don’t make this any harder. I’ll agree to any joint custody agreement you want, but please don’t take him away from me.”
Slowly, with his lips in a grim line, he nodded. “With one condition,” he said.
“Anything,” she said quickly.
“You take one of Alex’s men with you. You’ll need protection for a while until things die down with your father and with… us,” he finished softly.
She jerked her head in a nod. “Of course. I’ll just get my things…” She started to turn away, but stopped and stepped closer to his desk. A little unsteadily, she twisted his grandmother’s engagement ring from her finger and stared at it for a long moment before handing it to Rush. He hesitated before reaching out a hand to accept it from her. “I wish things had been different… not so complicated… so hard. This really is for the best,” she murmured.
“Okay,” he said softly as he stared down at the ring.
“Okay,” she repeated. Taking a deep breath, she turned to go.
The raspy tones of his voice stopped her. “Trinity?”
She turned her head. “Yes?”
“If you need anything, call me.”
With a quick nod, she continued on her way.
Trinity waited in the spare room until Jorge loaded her few belongings in the car. Finally, she went to get Blake. Rush was in the nursery holding him when she entered. She watched as he held him close and spoke softly to him. Tears sprang into her eyes. Being without Blake was going to be hard on Rush… just as hard as it would have been on her.
“…Daddy is going to miss you so much. You be a good boy for mommy. I’ll see you soon, okay?”
Rush turned and saw her standing in the doorway. With one last kiss to his son’s head, and with grim determination, he handed Blake to her and walked away without looking back.
~*~
Rush stood at the window with his balled fists pressed against the sides of the sill. He watched as Trinity fastened Blake into his car seat. He watched as she turned around for one last look at the house before climbing into the towncar, and then just like that, she was gone. The knot in his stomach grew until he could hardly breathe. He’d thought if he gave her enough space when they returned from El Paso, she would find her way back to him, but it appears he’d gone about things the wrong way.
He’d not been aware of the photographs in the newspaper. He rarely looked at papers anymore. He’d grown up ignoring the headlines. He’d found the newspaper Trinity had left on the dining room table. He’d cringed when he’d seen the photographs. The only one which had actually been recent was the one in the airport. The other photographs had been taken long before he and Trinity had gotten together, when he actually had been seeing Olivia Terry.
He’d needed Oliver Terry, Olivia’s father, to assist with a part of his project in the Cayman’s, and of course, Olivia had accompanied her father. She’d tried to finagle him into spending time with her, but Rush had just wanted to finish what he had to do and then go back home to his hurting family. He’d not wanted to return to the Caymans in the first place, but the project was going awry. It hadn’t been until Hunter Amhearst had shown up with his father – who was also part of the project – that Olivia had given it a rest with him. As far as Rush knew, Hunter and Olivia were still on the island.
He saw how damning the photos were, but damn it, why couldn’t she have trusted him enough to ask? But he knew the answer to that particular question – because she never would trust him enough… or at all. He couldn’t hold off the inevitable any longer. This was where they had been headed ever since they’d begun… over. Rush heaved a sigh as he leaned his head against one balled fist.
Chapter Nineteen
The hollow feeling inside Trinity’s chest lingered, even though it’d been a month since she’d driven away from Rush and her life with him. In that month, she’d not seen him one single time. He’d had his attorney draw up a joint custody agreement. The arrangement set was he got Blake on Tuesdays and Thursday evenings and then all day on Sunday. The attorney had brought the paperwork to her and she’d signed it only after a quick perusal. She wanted Rush to be a part of Blake’s life. Also, she’d promised him she’d agree to anything if he wouldn’t take him from her. So every Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Sunday mornings, Anna arrived to collect Blake to take him to Rush’s. When Blake was with her, one of Alex’s men was also with them. She no longer thought of it as an intrusion, but a necessity.
She missed Rush. She missed the brush of his fingers against her cheek. She missed the sound of his voice as he spoke to Blake. She missed the way his eyes lit up when she’d walked into his line of sight. But there would always be more Olivia Terrys and she couldn’t cope with that kind of pain. It was better if she just ended it now, the pain would eventually go away. In order to preserve her sanity, she refused to read the society page of the newspaper. She didn’t want to know who t
he latest beauty was for billionaire playboy, Rush Drayton.
She had called Gavin Lassiter, her boss from the LaMont Gallery, to tell him she wouldn’t be able to return. She was too afraid to leave Blake with anyone. Gavin had hated to lose her skills, and between the two of them, they had come up with an alternative situation. Instead of her going to work, the work would come to her. Since her spare room already had a worktable installed in it, the transition was seamless.
So in time, her life fell into a semblance of a life. There were parts of it that were full and other parts that left that awful hollow feeling in her chest. Sundra made it a point to either come for dinner or they’d go out on the nights Blake was gone. Trinity’s father called continuously, but she ignored the calls. He was tied into too much to the pain in her life. And she struggled enough to maintain a grip on sanity without him rocking her fragile existence askew.
It was Sunday afternoon and Trinity and Sundra were at a mutual friend’s wedding. The wedding was held outside and set up in one of Savannah’s inner courtyard parks. The day was sunny and bright and the champagne flowed. The weather, this close to fall, was mild and balmy, the humidity almost nonexistent. Trinity had purchased a new dress for the occasion, a strapless, pale pink dress piped with black. It hit her mid-calf and swirled elegantly against her legs. She wore her hair up and her makeup was minimal. She stood next to her flamboyant friend, who was dressed in a bright, cherry-red, form-fitting dress. Most redheads couldn’t get away with wearing a red dress, but Sundra was the exception. She laughed and made the rounds, dragging a reluctant Trinity along with her.
They were standing in a group of people and Sundra was regaling the group with a story about being a cheerleader at the private Catholic high school she’d attended. Trinity’s face had just broken into a smile when she caught a glimpse of someone across the crowd that made her blood run cold and her smile faltered… Olivia Terry. Frantically, Trinity began looking around the crowd for Rush. She didn’t know if they were still dating or not, but she wasn’t prepared to see Rush yet.
With her heart pounding she turned around in a complete circle to find Rush before she came upon him by accident. She glanced back at Olivia Terry and was surprised when Hunter Amhearst moved towards Olivia and handed her a drink. Hunter and Olivia? Trinity guessed Rush was tired of playing house with her as well.
Trinity must have been staring because it drew Sundra’s attention and she turned to see what had captured her attention. “Son-of-a-bitch!” Sundra murmured. “I can’t believe he’d be here with her.”
“Have you seen Hunter lately?” Trinity asked her.
“I saw him at my father’s firm, for about ten seconds. But he was acting all weird and couldn’t seem to get away fast enough,” Sundra replied.
It was as if their discussion of him drew his attention, because Hunter turned in their direction. He smiled hugely when he saw Trinity and excused himself from Olivia and made his way towards her. He faltered a little when he saw who she was with, but once set on his course, he continued. When he reached them, he gave a small, brief acknowledgement to Sundra before pulling Trinity into a quick hug.
“Hey. I wondered where you’d gotten off to,” he said to Trinity.
“Well, I’ve turned into quite the homebody lately. That’s what happens when you have a child,” she said with a smile.
Hunter nodded and furled his brows. “Can I talk to you?” he asked Trinity quietly.
“Of course,” she replied.
Moving a little ways away from the group and Sundra, Hunter’s hand remained on Trinity’s elbow as he leaned into her and asked, “Have you seen Rush lately?”
The questioning smile on her lips faded as she shook her head at his words.
“I know it’s probably not my place to say, but he’s not doing so good from what I hear,” he said.
Trinity stilled next to Hunter. “I’m… I’m not with him anymore, Hunter… not since he was in the islands with…” she glanced across the courtyard to the woman he’d just left, “Olivia.”
Hunter shook his head. “You saw the paper?”
“Of course. And he didn’t deny it. I’m sorry, Hunter. I’m not trying to be rude about your… date, but how could I stay?”
“He wasn’t with her,” Hunter said quietly.
“I think it’s great that you’d defend your friend, Hunt, but I saw the proof.”
“She was with me in the Caymans. I went with my father and she’d gone with hers. They are all tied up in business together, my father, Olivia’s father, and Rush. If you’d looked closer at the pictures, you’d have realized most of them were shot here in Savannah from before and not in the islands. I saw it as well. Olivia and I had a good laugh over it. I didn’t know you’d believe it. I mean, Rush was so head over heels for you. How could you doubt it?” Hunter said.
Trinity’s mind swirled. Rush had said to her, The newspapers want to sell papers, Trinity. At some point, you need to quit believing everything you see and start believing in what you know. She’d not understood and he’d let her go. He’d not fought for her. This hurts almost more than thinking he’d cheated on her. He’d not left her for someone else… he’d just left.
Thinking of his first words, Trinity asked, “What’s wrong with him?”
“I hear he’s drinking too much and working too much. I’ve been told he’s quite the bear these days,” Hunter said.
“There’s nothing I can do. I’m sure he’s just worried about his projects,” Trinity replied softly.
“I think it’s more than that. Maybe you should call him or something?”
Trinity immediately shook her head. “I couldn’t possibly.” Needing to change the conversation until she had a chance to digest the information Hunter had given her, she said, “How long have you and Olivia Terry been an item?”
“On and off for a while. But we kinda rekindled it in the Caymans. She’s fun… nothing serious, though,” Hunter said, as he cut his eyes over to where Sundra stood, looking at them quizzically. “Well, I need to get back to Olivia before she sends out a search party. If you get a chance, check on Rush. He’s a really good guy and I think you were good together. Okay?” he said.
“I’ll think about it,” Trinity said, knowing she wouldn’t.
As he turned to go, Hunter stopped and said, “How’s your father doing? It looks like things are really heating up with that case of his. How many death threats has he had, like forty?”
Trinity blushed. She must seem like the most uncaring person. Not wanting to say she didn’t have contact with her own father, she said, “I… he’s fine, I think. Only the good die young, right?”
Hunter smiled and gave her a quick hug and nodded once again to Sundra before he moved back to Olivia and her group.
Sundra came to her quickly. “What did Hunt want?”
“He said Rush wasn’t with Olivia in the Caymans,” Trinity said in a voice which conveyed her uncertainty.
“But what about the pictures?” Sundra asked.
“He said most of them had been taken in Savannah before. He said… he was with Olivia in the islands, not Rush,” Trinity said softly, not trying to hurt her friend. “Sorry, Sundra.”
Sundra shrugged her shoulders. “What do I care? We’ve not been together for a long time. We’ve both moved on,” she said with false bravado.
“I know,” Trinity said gently.
Trinity was still thinking about Hunter’s words when Anna brought Blake back home later that night after his Sunday visit with Rush. As she accepted her precious baby from the other woman, Trinity asked her as casually as she could, “Anna, how is Rush doing?”
Anna paused and then said, “I don’t think he’s well.” Obviously not wanting to elaborate, Anna said, “I must be getting back. I’ll see you Tuesday as usual?”
“Yes, of course, Tuesday,” Trinity replied.
After Anna had left, Trinity hugged Blake to her and kissed his dark hair. As she inhaled his
scent, she could smell Rush’s cologne that lingered on him. Her chest tightened. No! She was not going back down that road. She didn’t know what was wrong with Rush, but there was nothing she could do to help him. Not that he’d welcome her help anyway.
~*~
On Thursday of the next week, Anna stopped on her way out after dropping off Blake from his routine visit. “Trinity, Mr. Drayton has requested to change his visitation day this week from Sunday to Saturday, if that’s possible.”
“Of course. Whatever works better for him is fine with me,” Trinity assured her.
“I’ll let him know, ma’am,” Anna said as she turned and departed.
Trinity couldn’t help but wonder why Rush needed to change his visitation day. Maybe he had a hot date planned and expected it to run over into Sunday morning. The thought stabbed so hard at her heart, she winced against the pain. The day would come when Rush Drayton would marry and Blake would have a stepmother. She didn’t know how she’d deal with that.
Saturday came and Anna picked up Blake as scheduled. Trinity spent the morning working on a painting damaged in a fire before deciding she needed a break. Since Blake wasn’t with her, neither was any security. She’d long since been newsworthy. Changing into a pair of white Capri pants and blue and white striped shirt, Trinity made her way out of her building and headed down to a nearby café for lunch. She wanted to enjoy the last remaining days of warmth and chose a seat outside on the sidewalk.
She’d just ordered a glass of tea and had sat back to watch the people going up and down the street when a voice behind her had her tensing.
“Hello, Trinity,” her father said quietly.
She turned her head and met his gaze steadily. “Father.”
“Do you mind if I join you?” he asked.
Trinity was confused by his mannerisms. Normally Arthur demanded things, he didn’t ask permission… at least not from her. It was probably this factor which caused her to allow him to sit.