by Unknown
“Did you meet my brother-in-law? The Monster.”
She met his gaze, a smile growing on her lips. “You really called him that?”
“We called him a lot of things,” Blake admitted. “We weren’t sure about him in the beginning. Actually, after our first introduction to the guy, we wanted to kill him, but he grew on us. He’s really good for Jess. They make a great team.” He envied Jess her relationship with Tanner. They reminded him of his parents. He wanted something like that for himself, which was why he’d tried his damnedest to keep away from Abbey. She didn’t want anything to do with him and life was too short to force a feeling that wasn’t there. He wanted someone who wanted him, someone he could confide in through the good and the bad. He’d been doing really well until she’d run into his arms like a tight end headed to the end zone. And boom, he was right back in the palm of her hand, needing to comfort her, needing to keep her safe and wishing like hell that she felt the same way.
“Julie introduced me to Tanner in the very beginning, but I never really talked to him after that. He was pretty busy too. I read that this was their first project together.”
“Yep. Jess jumped in with both feet and dragged Tanner with her.” He grinned at the picture. His tiny, big sis, dragging her giant of a husband anywhere always made him smile.
“The guy that kidnapped you is still in prison?” she asked.
“For a very long time,” Blake confirmed.
“And the guy that nearly ran us over today… You think he remembers you too?” she asked.
Blake nodded. “It’s possible. Yeah.” He hated the worry in her pretty eyes and squeezed her hand. “Hey, it’s going to be all right. We’re safe here. Troy made this place a fortress.”
“But what happens when we’re not here? I can’t hide out at Julie and Troy’s house until I’m old and brittle. I have a life to live.” She closed her eyes and shook her head as if something else was behind the words.
“Don’t we all,” Blake said around a yawn. His involuntary stretch sent a fresh wave of pain across his middle.
Unfortunately, Abbey had a sharp eye on him. “You can have a couple more ibuprofen if you want, then you should go back to sleep and get a few more hours of rest.” Abbey reset her watch alarm and shifted like she might leave.
“I’m okay. Will you stay?” Blake closed his eyes and squeezed her hand. He hadn’t been lying. He did sleep better with her next to him. The fresh citrus scent of her seeped into his pores with every breath and relaxed him like a full body massage.
She exhaled a long-suffering sigh, but he gave her a pitiful look and she caved with a tilt of her head. “Fine. But I’m not staying all night long. Just a few more minutes.” She propped up a pillow against the headboard and leaned against it, still sitting up.
“Few more minutes is good,” he mumbled and passed out again.
A light sensation along his neck woke him slowly. Something was different, but he couldn’t figure out what. He didn’t budge as he let his senses come to life. First, his pillow was different, not as fluffy. He caught the fresh scent of Abbey and wanted to inhale all of her. He liked that she was still here with him. But wait…she was more than here. He had his arm wrapped around a different pillow. A moving pillow. A breathing pillow. And his hand wasn’t wrapped around a pillow, it was cupped around…a hip. He concentrated on the soft sensation along his neck, the way the caress sent every nerve ending alert and begging for more. He took another whiff, careful to keep his breathing even, careful to make sure Abbey thought he was still asleep. Because somehow, he’d ended up laying his head on her stomach and instead of shoving him off or away, she’d let him stay. That light caress against his neck was her fingers gently weaving through his hair. He didn’t want to move, could barely manage to get air into this lungs knowing it was Abbey touching him now.
Then a feeling came over him and he wanted to block it out completely. He was not feeling pressure there. No, no, no. Not now. But Mother Nature said, “Yes, now.”
Fucknuts. He had to go to the bathroom.
Chapter Eight
Moonbeams filtered in from the window as Abbey gently stroked Blake’s soft hair. It slid between her fingers like thick silk and the red streaks glistened in the pale light. She’d have to wake him up soon and end the few perfect minutes she’d stolen to touch him. To touch him. She hardly ever touched anyone, with the exception of dance partners. Usually she didn’t think too much about it, but taking this time with Blake set a precedent for her.
When he’d rolled onto her and woken her out of a deep sleep, she’d nearly jumped a mile. Especially when he’d closed his hand over her hip. But in the seconds it had taken her to rear up, she’d realized he was sound asleep. That one factor changed everything. His possessive touch hadn’t scared her. On the contrary, it was nice to pretend she could even consider enjoying the way his hand cupped her hip. His warm breath wafted across her stomach and tickled the bare spot below her T-shirt and above her shorts.
For the gazillionth time, she wished she were normal. Wished she wasn’t so afraid of people. Of men. Of contact and connection. But making connections meant sharing stories and she could never share her story with anyone she cared about. Sure, her sister, parents and a few other professionals knew her secret, but no one else did and that suited her fine.
Blake took a deep breath and Abbey froze. Oh God, was he awake? She’d promised herself she’d only stay like this a few minutes. She didn’t want him to catch her like this, fondling his hair or being caught beneath him.
“Ab,” he murmured.
Shit! She removed her fingers from the softness of his hair. “What?”
“I knew you’d stop,” he mumbled, then sighed again. “I have to go to the little boy’s room.”
Abbey shook her head and couldn’t help the smile that found its way to her mouth. “The little boy’s room, huh?” she repeated, easing away from Blake as he rolled over, a grimace on his face. “You need some help?”
“No.” His face squinted into a pucker as he tried to sit up and finally plopped back down. “Yes.”
“Mm-hmm. I thought so.” She moved to his side of the bed and helped him up and over to the bathroom. “Do you need some help or are you gonna get everything handled in there?”
Blake’s sidelong glance nearly melted her panties. “That’s three. I’m totally making a list. Three jokes in one day. This is a new record, right?”
Why did she do this to herself? Why did she say things she knew he would pounce on? Especially when his reaction would cause a chain reaction. She loved his jokes and his devastating smiles.
She sobered immediately. That was the problem. She wouldn’t be able to keep him smiling. Her true nature was a relationship killer. Her skittishness. Her inability to touch and be touched like a normal human being.
“I fucked up again,” he said softly, turning to face her. “I always say the wrong thing around you. Maybe you should just slap some tape across my mouth and we’d be fine.”
She shoved him gently into the bathroom. “Go do your business, boy. It’s the middle of the night and I want to get back in bed. My bed,” she clarified before he could make another smart remark.
He watched her for a sec then closed the door behind him.
Abbey sighed, wishing the night over already. Wishing she’d never gone to that Seger Hughes concert to begin with. Wishing she could be different.
Kim sat back in the comfortable leather of the booth and watched the club rage around her. The music blared, strobe lights flashed in the dark room, bodies undulated on the dance floor and the smell of sweat and perfume hung in the air. She hadn’t been to a club in so long she’d forgotten the chaos. The way the bass rumbled in the furniture beneath her, the way the sound drowned out almost everything. Everything but her thoughts.
Stephanie came back from the bar with their drinks. “Here you go,” she called, speaking over the music and handing over Kim’s club soda with lime. Step
hanie slid into the booth in her short black skirt and silver sequined top. “You sure you don’t want anything stronger?”
“I’m sure.” She hadn’t quit drinking completely, but she’d quit drinking in clubs. Well, most of the time. She made bad decisions while drinking alcohol. Very bad decisions. She got too loose when she drank. She let her guard down. Life was too short to lose control like that on a regular basis, especially in a strange town.
“What do you think of the club?” Stephanie tipped her chin toward the packed dance floor.
“Carl is really one of the owners?” Kim asked. He hadn’t struck her as a club owner. He struck her as a pompous asshole, but those were two separate things. The club owners she’d known in the past had been fairly decent guys. Not that she remembered very well.
“Yeah.” Stephanie laughed and took a long drink of her rum and Coke. “Shocker, right?” She pointed to the blond bartender with impressive breasts busting out of her black tank top as she mixed drinks. “That’s his mistress.”
Kim nearly choked on her club soda. “You know this for certain?”
She nodded, a gleam in her eye. “I hired a private investigator to make sure. He’s got proof. Pictures, motel receipts. The bastard thinks I don’t know…but I do. I know a lot.”
Kim had no idea what she’d do in the same position, but Stephanie’s narrowed eyes said she didn’t have the same issue. “You have a definite plan,” Kim said. “What is it?”
“I’m actually still working on it. I just know I gave up my education for him. I admit marrying him for security, but I wouldn’t have if I didn’t honestly like him.” She shook her head. “He’s changed. I thought he appreciated me, respected me, but all I am to him is something pretty on his arm, something to flaunt to his friends. Do I want him to pay for that? For treating me like something he owns instead of someone he loves…yeah. I do.” She took a sip of her drink. “If that makes me a bitch then so be it. He made me what I am today. I’m not sure what’s happening with the money thing, so I’m waiting. I hope to God it’s not as serious as he makes it out to be. Have you found anything yet?” she asked.
“Not yet, but I haven’t looked at everything. Hell, I didn’t even know this place existed. I didn’t find it in the paperwork so far.”
“Surprise,” Stephanie said. She took another hefty swallow.
“Stephanie,” Carl eased up to the table and moved Stephanie’s drink out of her reach. “I’d like to speak with you for a minute.” He indicated a door on the wall behind them, and Stephanie gave Kim a now-what-is-it stare.
“Fine. I’m coming. Be right back,” Stephanie said to Kim, then went with Carl.
Carl kept his hand around her slim waist as the crowd swallowed them. Stephanie’s heels gave her a solid two inches of height over her husband.
“Fancy meeting you here,” a male voice said, a voice that sounded vaguely familiar.
Kim glanced up to see Leo Frost standing over her table. What were the chances? “Hello.” She really couldn’t ignore the man. Wearing a pair of dark blue jeans and a white button-up shirt with thin navy stripes, the sleeves rolled up his muscular forearms, Leo’s look shouted Hollywood Royalty.
It was interesting to see the number of women who watched him—and subsequently—her.
He took the open spot next to her in the booth. “Mind if I sit down?”
She lifted a brow as she snorted. “Would it matter if I did?” She moved over to get a few more inches of personal space.
He flashed his famous smile and Kim had to admit that it packed a punch. The man was gorgeous, no doubt about it. But he was also a dickhead of major proportions. He’d lost her as a fan even before she’d learned about his altercation with Ellie Morgan. Looking back, Kim suspected it was when the high school cheerleader had pressed charges against him.
“What’s a pretty lady like you doing sitting all alone in a club like this?”
“Is that the best line you’ve got?” She really wasn’t in the mood for small talk, but she also wasn’t a fan of sitting alone in a club. Too many unpleasant things had come of that in the past.
Leo pressed his lips together and nodded his head. “Tough crowd, tough crowd. Let’s try again.” He narrowed his outstanding blue eyes. “You couldn’t have been stood up. That would be pure stupidity on someone’s part.”
Okay, so he didn’t plan to give up. Why that should set her palms tingling, she didn’t know. “No, not stood up. Here with a friend. A female friend,” she stressed. “It’s girls’ night out so…” She made a gesture to shoo him away. “Feel free to bother someone else.”
Carl picked that minute to come back to the table. “Stephanie wasn’t feeling very well and she took the limo home. She didn’t want to cut your night short. The driver will come back for you as soon as he drops her off. Hope it’s not too much of an inconvenience.” He gave her a chilly nod and turned to leave.
“Wait!” Kim called. Carl faced her and she continued. “I’ll go with her.”
“Too late. They’ve left.” With that declaration, he walked away.
Kim opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Stephanie took the limo home? Without her? What the hell? So she was stuck here? With Leo Frost and half the eyes in the club watching them?
Leo eased back against the booth as if he planned to stay. “You look like you just lost your best friend.”
Maybe because she had.
“Good thing I’m here to keep you company until the limo comes back.” He shot her a smile as he adjusted to face her more.
“Unless I grab a taxi and get a ride home,” she said.
“Taxis are hard to come by in this neighborhood. C’mon, hang around a few minutes. I’m harmless.”
This did not make sense. “Why?”
“Why?” he repeated. “Why what?”
“Why me? You’ve got a club full of women who’d give their teeth to spend time with you, but you’re sitting here with me. Why?”
Leo tilted his head and leaned one forearm on the table and the other on the back of the booth as he sat forward. “I’m not sure. I guess because I liked the way you stood up for Bonnie at Nathan’s office. People don’t stand up anymore. I hate when bullies get away with shit.”
Damn. Kim studied him and slid her finger over the rim of her glass. She actually liked that answer. More importantly, she hadn’t expected it.
“I think you might’ve said something to Wyncott a minute ago too, but he bugged out too fast. Smart man. For a bully. If you really want to jam out of here, I’ll be happy to take you home.”
A nice offer, but one she doubted she’d accept. It wasn’t like she couldn’t wait for the limo to return and worst-case scenario had her waiting for a cab. Besides, he was kind of growing on her.
“I see your brain working.” Leo took a sip of the drink in his hand. “Smoke is puffing out of your ears.”
Damn. Hard to resist that one. A grin curved her lips.
“It’s about time. Shit, I was going to have to pull out the big guns.”
Her smile widened. “I’m afraid to ask,” she said, taking a sip of her soda. “What’s ‘about time’?”
“Good, you should be afraid ’cause it’s top secret. If I told you, I’d have to kill you.”
Kim chuckled as a waitress stopped at the table and set down drinks in front of them. “Oh, I didn’t order those,” she said, pushing the glass away.
“Compliments of Mr. Wyncott,” she said. “The tab is open for as long as you’re here.” She gave Leo a furtive glance before bustling off to another table.
“Well, that’s nice of the man.” Leo said, finishing off his old drink and lifting the fresh one. But he didn’t take a sip. He just looked at it. “Mine’s different than yours,” he said.
Kim picked up her glass and sniffed. “Jack Daniels and water. On the rocks,” she said. Her usual. Her old usual. It had been a long time since she’d had one in a bar. Interesting how Carl knew her drink. “What abou
t you?”
Leo took a sip. “Seven and Seven. The man did his homework.”
“Why?” Kim asked. “Weird.”
“You look like you need to solve the oil crisis.” His piercing blue eyes seemed to see right through her. He picked up her Jack and handed it to her. “Maybe he knows he’s a prick and he’s trying to make up for it.”
“Do pricks do that?”
Exhaling hard, he lifted his own drink. “You’re asking like I should know. I won’t take offense. Yet.” He clinked his glass to hers. “Here’s to making new friends.”
One Jack wouldn’t kill her. It wasn’t like she planned on having any more. She could nurse this until the limo came back. Kim took a sip and felt the cold bite as it slid down her throat. “Wow. Strong.”
Leo leaned toward her and she caught a whiff of him. Pheromone heaven. The guy smelled fantastic…a combination of spice and man. “I need you to do me a favor,” he said.
The old naughty side of her screamed to come out and play. There were a dozen different responses on the tip of her tongue about the kind of favor she’d love to do for him. The kind of thing her old self participated in on a regular basis, but the reincarnated Kim kept her gaze steady. “Really…and why would I do that? We don’t know each other.”
“We could amend that by talking tonight.” He took another sip of his whiskey.
“Is that what you really want or are you looking for something else? Because I guarantee that you will not, under any circumstances, get lucky with me tonight.” She sounded so sure of her statement, she even believed it herself.
He grinned and it was like getting hit with a sex stick. Her woman parts wanted to get smacked again. Repeatedly. Kim crossed her legs and took a steady breath. Easy, easy.
“That’s what I like about you. No fucking around. No bullshit.” He took another sip of his drink.
Kim didn’t say anything as she took another swallow of Jack. The liquor gave her sense of power. It always did, which was why she’d learned to keep her distance. “So you don’t like bullshit, but you work in a business that’s full of it. How’s that working for you?” She expected a smile, but instead she got a glimpse of desolate eyes before Leo turned back to his whiskey.