Crossing the Line (Hard Driving)

by Audra North

  They landed in Charlotte and everyone got off, except for Cori and Ty and the flight attendant. Ty’s dad shook her hand on the way out.

  “Go easy on my boy, all right?” He’d been sort of joking, but she’d seen the questioning in his eyes. The worry. Even if Ty hadn’t told her as much as he had about his relationship with his father, she’d seen in the short time on the plane how much Bobby loved Ty, and how much the father depended on the son for peace of mind.

  She could completely understand how that would make Ty reluctant to go against his dad’s wishes . . . to hurt someone who loved him so much. She’d brought her other hand to clasp around the back of Bobby’s and squeezed. “I will.”

  And then she and Ty were alone.

  The moment the plane door closed, shutting her and Ty inside, he was there. His mouth on hers, his hands gripping her shoulders. She responded with the same intensity, having to touch him after spending the past hour so close, within reach of the temptation, but not being able to.

  This was insanity. This need, this desire, was unlike anything she’d ever felt before.

  They made love, fast and hard and hot, coming together just as the plane started to descend, the sensation of free falling only intensifying her climax.

  Wendell’s voice came on over the speaker, letting them know they’d be landing in ten minutes.

  “Oh my God,” she gasped, as the plane continued to slowly drop. “They’re going to open the doors as soon as we land! I have to get dressed!”

  He grabbed her clothes and handed them over, laughing. “You have time. We still have to taxi in, remember?”

  She rolled her eyes at him, but she was grinning as they both pulled their clothes back on, and they still hadn’t touched down by the time she was fully dressed again. She sat back in her seat and buckled her seatbelt right away, and he did the same, then leaned toward her.

  “Hey. I was thinking about what you said about fighting for the youth program no matter what. Because you were right—I shouldn’t shy away from it, especially when this could help so many people. So I called up Belgrave just before the race and stated my case. He’s agreed to meet me a week from Tuesday to talk it over.”

  For a second, she blinked at him, and then what he was saying finally registered. “Ty! Oh my gosh! That’s great! I’m so excited for you! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me right away!”

  He grinned at her. “I can. You’re pretty damn distracting.”

  She blushed and he laughed, but the look of pride on his face was unmistakable. “Anyway, we’ll see what happens.” He wrapped a hand around her wrist, nuzzling into her palm, and looked up at her through his lashes. “But I wouldn’t have done this if it weren’t for you. I would have sat back and stewed—waited for things to fall apart without going after it—if you hadn’t encouraged me to fight for something I cared about.”

  She had to close her eyes against the earnestness in his gaze.

  “And that’s not all. You’ve inspired me to fight harder, in every way. I’ve decided to give my dad an ultimatum. Either he goes to the press with what happened with Youngtown, or I do it for him. But either way, it’s time to stop being a coward. I’m tired of running and hiding. We’re going to get this out in the open and stop letting it burden us, and we’re going to do it our way. Not let some asshole ruin us through conjecture and gossip.”

  Oh my God. “You—he’s going to confess?”

  Ty looked suddenly somber. “Yeah, well. I hope he does. But if he doesn’t, I will. I hate to do it, if that’s what it comes down to, but it’s time for honesty. This cowardice, this secrecy has taken too much of a toll on all of us. And I have you to thank for that realization. You’re the one who set an example of being fully truthful. You’re the one whose honesty and integrity inspired me. You’re the one who has fought against what your parents wanted for you and taken your career where you want it to go, without fear. You wrote about what mattered when everyone else was tearing us down over gossip. I’m so . . . I’m so lucky to have you.”

  Oh.

  The plane bounced and jerked as they touched down, but Cori barely noticed. She already felt so jumbled up.

  Honesty.

  Integrity.

  She needed to tell him the truth. Even if things went the way she wanted them to—which it looked like they were—with her pieces getting advertising dollars, she still needed to tell him.

  She owed him that because she loved him.

  But when the plane parked and he hugged her at the boarding door and asked, “Can I drive you home?” she shook her head.

  And didn’t say anything else.

  She needed time to think and process everything. When she told him, she didn’t want it to be a rushed confession in the car.

  “My car is parked here,” she said reluctantly. “I’ll be okay. But I’ll miss you, Ty. And thank you. Thanks for . . . everything.”

  She leaned forward and kissed him again. This time, the heat between them was intense, and he pressed his hips against hers, making her moan at the feel of the hard ridge between her legs.

  When they finally parted, he laughed. “Yeah. I guess it’s better that I don’t drive you home. We’d probably have to pull over a couple of times because I wouldn’t be able to concentrate.”

  She made herself laugh in response. “Besides, we both have to go to work tomorrow. I need my sleep.”

  But he didn’t let her go just yet. “What about this coming weekend? Do you need sleep then?”

  What was he talking about? “Well, I—”

  He laughed against her lips. “You don’t have to answer. I was clumsily trying to ask you out again. I’m not racing this weekend. And so . . . you’re not covering anything . . . right?”

  She nodded. There was a truck race, but she usually watched those on TV.

  He shrugged. “I’ll send Wendell to the airport for you and fly you down to Charlotte for the weekend? We can hole up in my house and avoid the paparazzi. What do you say? Two days together, no interruptions?”

  She hesitated, thinking about the conversation that they would be having on Saturday morning. She couldn’t keep putting it off. And then it wouldn’t be two days, more than likely. He’d probably send her packing within the first two seconds of finding out about her deception.

  She nodded and forced a smile. “Okay, sure. That sounds great.”

  “Saturday morning, then. I’ll call you in the meantime.” He dropped another kiss on her lips. “Now go get some rest. You’re going to need to stock up for this weekend.”

  She waved. “Bye, Ty.”

  She turned to walk away, out to her car.

  “Bye, gorgeous,” he called from behind her. “Sweet dreams.”

  * * *

  By the time Friday night rolled around, though, Ty wasn’t feeling so hot.

  He called Cori like he had every night that week, then gone to bed early, thinking that a little rest would cure him, but he woke up around midnight feeling like his body had been hit with a bag full of bricks.

  Goddammit. He couldn’t be sick. He was supposed to fly up with Wendell to Norfolk in just a few hours to pick up the woman he . . .

  He what? Loved?

  He shook his head. Couldn’t be. They’d only been seeing one another for six weeks or so. Was it possible to fall in love that quickly?

  It was just that she made him feel something he’d never felt before, and that had to count for something.

  He slept for a while longer, but when he woke up again just before dawn, feeling thirsty and ragged, he knew there was no way he’d be able to bring her here today.

  Fuck.

  His hands shook as he dialed her number. Holy shit. He hadn’t been this sick in ages. The numbers swam in front of his eyes. By the time he hit “Call,” he was breathing hard with the effort to make a simple phone call.

  “Hello? Ty?” Her voice was raspy from sleep, and it was a testament to how sick he was that his arousal barely regis
tered.

  “Hey,” he croaked.

  “You sound awful. Oh God, are you sick?”

  “Pretty much.” He had to close his eyes as a wave of nausea swept over him. “Can’t make it today.”

  “You sound—really sick. How did this happen? I just talked to you a few hours ago. I’ve never heard you sound this bad.”

  He did sound pretty bad, didn’t he? Even the effort of talking was hard because he had to think. He lay on his side on the bed, resting the phone on his ear while his hands clutched at his stomach.

  “Ty? Are you there?”

  He grunted. He liked hearing Cori’s voice. It was soothing, even if he was having a hard time talking back to her.

  “What’s your address?” Her voice sounded a little bit panicked, and he frowned. He didn’t want her to worry. That was why he’d called her in the first place. So she wouldn’t worry. And why was she asking for his address?

  Oh, well. It didn’t matter why she wanted it. He would give her whatever she wanted. Didn’t she know that?

  He told her where he lived.

  “Drink plenty of fluids and take some pain reliever. Get to a doctor if you need to, baby. I’ll get on the road right away. I might hit traffic, but I should hopefully be there in the early afternoon.”

  Wait. What? She was coming here? Why? He was sick. He’d called to cancel.

  But now that he was lying down, he was feeling too tired and weak to say it.

  “Bye, Ty. I’ll see you soon.”

  The line went silent, and he slipped into blissful sleep.

  Chapter 14

  It was just before noon when Cori pulled up in front of a block of restored brownstone townhomes in downtown Charlotte and parked in front of a tidy unit with a red door and a brass knocker. Cheery-looking flowers hung in window boxes on the bottom-floor windows and the small patch of grass behind the wrought-iron fence lining the sidewalk was a beautiful, perfectly cut square of green.

  It was lovely, and exactly what she would have expected of Ty. Nothing too flashy, but well maintained and welcoming.

  It was a shame she wasn’t here under more pleasant circumstances. Ty had sounded terrible when he’d called this morning, and she’d known right away that she wouldn’t be able to rest without knowing that he was okay. She’d driven the entire way without stopping.

  She got out of the car, grabbed the overnight bag she’d packed, and headed up the walk to the door, ringing the bell and hoping she wouldn’t be an unwelcome surprise.

  If he was even awake enough to hear the doorbell. A long time had already passed with no answer. Uh-oh. What if he wasn’t even here? What if she’d come all this way, like a fool, and he was at his parents or—

  She heard a bolt turn, and in the next moment Ty was standing in the doorway, blinking in the afternoon light. “Cori?”

  His voice was a harsh whisper, and he was dressed in sweats and a long-sleeved shirt, even though it wasn’t that cold. His jaw had heavy stubble on it, and he wavered on his feet like he might keel over at any second.

  He looked awful and wonderful at the same time.

  She didn’t try to explain herself, just stepped inside, dropping her bag on the floor and kissing him. “Come on. You need to go back to bed.” She wrapped an arm around his waist and started to walk him away from the door, then realized she had no idea where to go.

  He must have realized her dilemma, because he lifted a hand toward a staircase to the right. “Upstairs.”

  His hand dropped heavily to his side.

  Christ. Poor guy was really ill. She practically pulled him forward and slowly went up the stairs with him, feeling terrible that she’d gotten him out of bed in the first place. “I’ll get you settled and then make you some soup and get you some water and juice.”

  They made it to the landing at the top of the stairs and he groaned. “Just sleep.”

  “Sleep will help, but you need fluids, too. When’s the last time you drank anything?” Through an open doorway at the end of a short hall, she saw a bed with rumpled covers. That had to be his. She led him forward.

  “Dunno. Last night?”

  She barely refrained from rolling her eyes and huffing “Men.”

  “Why you here?” He was panting, his words coming slowly and labored. She debated for a second whether he needed the emergency room, but decided against it. First, she’d try to just get some liquid in him.

  “To take care of you.” It came out through gritted teeth, though, because he was leaning heavily on her now, letting her take almost half his weight as they moved to the bed. Finally, she got him there and he rolled onto it, hitting the mattress with a grunt.

  He rolled to his back and looked up at her through pain-glazed eyes. She tucked the covers over him and felt his forehead. Burning up. Not surprising, given how out of it he was.

  “I’ll go get you some fluids and some medicine.”

  After she got him settled with a bottle of water and some painkillers, she headed out to the nearest market. While rummaging in his kitchen, it had been pretty obvious that he wasn’t the type to keep groceries at home. She wondered whether he’d just gotten too used to living off takeout while on the road.

  She’d found a key ring on a table in the entryway and tested a couple of them before finding the one that unlocked the front door. She was glad she’d done that, despite how forward it felt, because when she came back from the market, he was still sleeping. She would have felt even worse if she’d had to wake him up again.

  But he must have been up at some point, because one of the bottles of water was gone, and half of another. The pills were gone too.

  She crept over to the bed. He was sleeping on his stomach, face turned away from her, and when she put her fingers to his neck to check his temperature, he barely stirred.

  Still burning up.

  She sighed and went back downstairs to prepare some broth, but when she reached the doorway to the kitchen, a knock sounded at the door and she froze in her tracks with a gasp.

  Should she answer it? Would that be too forward?

  Then again, she had taken over his home temporarily to care for him, so . . .

  She headed to the door and unlocked it, swinging it open to find an older woman standing on the stoop. She was beautiful, with a little gray in her short-cropped hair, but her dark brown skin was smooth and taut. She was wearing a beautiful rose silk blouse, with gold bangles at her ears that highlighted deep brown eyes that reminded Cori of Ty’s.

  Oh. Of course.

  “Mrs. Riggs?” Cori ventured.

  The woman nodded, a smile stretching across her face. Ty’s smile. Oh, good Lord. Ty’s mother.

  Cori blushed, all too aware of the fact that she probably looked terrible. What an awkward way to meet the mother of the man she was . . .

  She was what? Dating? Sleeping with? In love with?

  Yes, yes, and yes.

  Mrs. Riggs cocked her head to the side. “Ty didn’t tell me he had company.”

  “He didn’t know I was coming.” Cori stopped, realizing how weird that sounded, then explained. “I mean, I told him, but he was so sick and it was so early in the morning that I don’t think it fully registered. I still don’t think he quite understands that I’m here. His fever is pretty high and I’m—”

  “He’s sick? With a bad fever?” Mrs. Riggs strained forward, staring in the direction of the stairs. “Why didn’t he call me?”

  Great. Now Cori looked like an intruder, and she felt bad that Ty had called her instead of his own mother. And she was just standing there, blocking the way.

  “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to keep you outside.” She moved out of the doorway and Mrs. Riggs stepped inside. Cori shut the door behind her. “I was just surprised. I mean, probably not as surprised as you. It’s—Ty just called me because he was supposed to see me today, but he couldn’t make it. He was barely coherent on the phone. I—”

  “He was supposed to see you today?” Mr
s. Riggs snapped to attention, staring at Cori intently.

  Christ. Cori just needed to shut up, already.

  But Mrs. Riggs shook her head. “I’m the one who’s sorry now. I’m usually not so ill-mannered. You’re right that I was surprised. I hadn’t expected a beautiful blond girl to appear instead of my son.”

  Cori blushed hotly.

  Mrs. Riggs extended her hand. “I’m Vonda. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Cori Bellowes.” She took Mrs. Riggs’s hand.

  “Oh, good. I suspected as much, but I didn’t want to assume.”

  She suspected? Had Ty talked to his mom about her?

  But she was too shy to ask, and she grimaced as she pulled her hand away. “Goodness. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have touched you. My hands are as clean as I could get them, but I’m still probably crawling in germs.”

  Vonda made a small sound of amusement. “I’ve been through plenty worse with Ty. I’m just glad he has you here.” She was already moving away, though, toward the stairs. “Would you please excuse me, though, while I go check on him?”

  It was nice to see how concerned she was about her son. In a way, despite the strain in their relationship over Cori’s career choice, it reminded her of her own mother. No doubt, if Cori lived in D.C., Mom would be dropping by regularly just like Vonda did with Ty.

  Cori smiled and nodded. “Of course. I got some groceries, so I’ll just put them away. I was going to make him some soup, so I’ll be down here a while.”

  She was trying to let Vonda know that she wouldn’t disturb them.

  “Thank you. I really am glad you’re here.” She paused for a second on the step and looked at Cori. “When I come back down, I’d love to talk a while, if that’s all right.”

  Cori nodded again and went to the kitchen, trying to focus on a task to help her get over her discomfort. Vonda obviously hadn’t known that Cori was this involved in Ty’s life, and yet she’d been gracious and kind despite finding a strange woman in her son’s home.

  She was glad Ty would have someone who would be there for him when she finally had a chance to tell him the truth.