She followed Luke outside and climbed into his golf cart.
“Layla?”
She shook her head. “What?”
“I asked if everything is okay. You look a million miles away.”
She forced a smile. “Fine.”
He studied her and finally nodded. He started the vehicle and they swung by to pick up the kids. Tiffany and Sean babbled about their day. They wanted to call Kai and Gracie to come over to swim.
“It’s not our house to invite people over,” she chastised them.
She jumped when Luke’s big palm covered her thigh. “It’s fine. What’s mine is yours while you’re here.”
Including you? she wanted to ask. Thankfully, she didn’t voice the words on the tip of her tongue. If only it were true. She studied his profile as they motored along the road to his house. He was so strong. His nose was straight without a hint of a break. His square jaw was dusted with a five-o’clock shadow, the same dark color as his hair, and his lips looked both firm and soft. She wanted to taste them again. Last night’s peck only whetted her appetite. It’d taken every bit of control she possessed to walk away.
The kids unbuckled and jumped out of the golf cart when Luke pulled into his garage. Her piece of junk car was still sitting in the driveway. She hoped it wasn’t leaking oil. She was considering driving it to Georgia. She prayed it’d make the trip. They entered the house and Layla was a bit disappointed at the clean, fresh scent. Now that her appetite had returned, she hoped for a repeat performance from Kaitlyn.
“Layla! Look!”
She glanced up at Tiffany, who was motioning her with her hand. She peeked at Luke and was surprised to see a blush creeping into his cheeks. She rounded the corner and glanced into the great room. Her heart stopped but her feet kept moving of their own accord. Sitting in front of the windows overlooking the lake was a brand-new baby grand piano. She ran her hands reverently over the black wood. It was exquisite. She turned to Luke. “What is this?”
He scratched his jaw. “I thought that was obvious. It’s a piano.”
“I know that. I mean why?”
His shoulder lifted. “I thought you might want to play while you’re here.”
“Is this because you feel guilty for not letting me go with you?”
He shook his head. “I ordered it this morning, before any plans were made.”
Her heart squeezed in her chest. I could love this man, she thought. She placed a hand on his arm, stood on her tiptoes and kissed him.
#
Luke had been nervous for Layla to see the piano he had delivered this afternoon. The room begged for one, he’d tell her. He’d been planning on getting one for a while. Anything so she didn’t think he was reading too much into their relationship…not that they had one. She was a client, nothing more. At least, that’s what he tried to tell himself. His heart had other ideas. When she pressed her lips to his, he clenched his fists to keep from reaching for her. If her siblings hadn’t been watching, he’d have picked her up, carried her to the sofa and followed her down, molding his hard body to her softer one.
The contact was brief, intense and shattering. The truth hit him upside the head. He wanted her more than he wanted his next breath. He’d never felt this deep attraction for another woman. He was in serious trouble. It was a good thing he’d be leaving tomorrow. Hopefully distance would knock some sense into him. Even if she felt the same attraction, he could never act on it.
He didn’t realize they were just staring at each other until notes of a Beethoven song drifted in the air. He glanced over to see Tiffany and Sean seated on the padded bench, their fingers flying along the keys. He looked at Layla. She was watching the kids with a watery smile.
“I didn’t know the kids played, too.”
She nodded. “My mother was an incredible pianist. She taught me how to play and the twins, too. There was always music in the house when I was growing up.”
He didn’t know much about classical music, but he knew the song they were playing was hauntingly beautiful. It seemed much too sophisticated and intricate for ten-year-old fingers. “They’re incredible.”
Layla nodded and wiped a tear. “They haven’t played in a year. I made sure there were pianos in the houses we rented, but neither wanted to play. I tried but I think it brought sad memories of Mom.” She smiled at him. “I don’t know how to thank you.”
“It was nothing.”
“No, don’t downplay this. This is the nicest thing anyone’s done for us...besides saving us from an armed intruder,” she amended.
The music stopped and the kids hopped off the bench. “Can we swim now?”
“Well, that was short lived,” she grumbled.
“How about dinner first?” Luke suggested.
“Is Kaitlyn coming over again,” Sean asked hopefully, his hands clasped in front of his body as if he were praying.
Luke chuckled and ruffled his hair. Sean soaked up the attention like a sponge. “No, but she did leave food for us.” Kaitlyn had met the delivery of the piano and showed the men where to place it. She did a great job. He had no idea where to put one. Hell, she’d decorated his entire house.
The kids rushed to the kitchen and scrambled onto the bar stools. He opened the fridge and pulled out Kait’s famous lasagna. She’d included garlic bread and a tossed salad. The kids chattered away while they waited for the food to heat. It was almost like they were a family. His brain cautioned him not to get too close. To step back before it was too late. The stupid, sentimental organ in his chest said, leap.
#
Once the meal was over, begging commenced. The kids were disappointed they fell asleep last night before they could try on their new swim suits.
“Look,” Tiff said, yanking up her shirt like a drunk sorority girl at Mardi Gras. “I’m all ready.” The Little Mermaid smiled at them. “It’s Ariel, like me!”
“I’ve got mine on, too,” Sean boasted as he jumped to his feet, his hands on the button of his jeans.
Layla held up a hand. “We believe you.”
He shrugged and plopped down next to his sister.
“You can’t go swimming outside. It’s almost winter,” Layla informed them.
“But it’s not cold,” Sean protested.
“Yeah, there’s no snow on the ground,” Tiffany pointed out.
“It’s been a mild fall,” Luke added. “And the pool’s heated.”
“You’re all ganging up on me. Fine.”
Tiff and Sean jumped to their feet and threw their arms around Luke. “Thank you.”
“Hey, I’m the one who said yes,” Layla fake pouted, her hands on her hips.
“Yeah, but he’s the one who talked you into it.” Then they grabbed his hand and tugged him forward. He grinned over his shoulder. “Do they know how to swim?”
Layla was smiling at them. “Yes. There was a pool at the house where they grew up and they took lessons before they could use it.”
Luke’s pool was more adult-friendly with a diving board and waterfall cascading into the deep end, a hidden grotto beneath. A hot tub bubbled nearby. Lush plants surrounded it along with lights and in the warmer months, blooming flowers. The kids stripped in record time and after heeding his command to walk, not run, they cannonballed into the blue water.
He flipped on the underwater lights and Layla carried their wine glasses from dinner outside. On the bottom level beneath the wide deck was an outdoor kitchen and seating area and a fully-stocked bar. They each took a chaise to watch the kids frolic in the pool.
“Luke, come play with us!” Sean shouted.
“I don’t want to get my hair wet and mess it up,” Luke insisted, running his hand over his short cut.
The kids guffawed. “You’re silly,” Tiff said. “You come in, Layla.”
She waved. “Maybe tomorrow.”
Luke ignored the pang that told him he’d be gone tomorrow. He’d be off solving their case so they could go back to their lives.
Pushing the thought aside, he padded to a storage closet and found some toys for them to use in the pool. They splashed around in glee. He took his seat and picked up his wine glass.
“Again, I know this is above and beyond,” Layla murmured. “Thank you. I’ve never seen the kids happier.”
“Kids should always be carefree and happy,” Luke said. He could feel Layla staring at him. He turned his head. “What?”
“It’s really none of my business, and you don’t have to answer, but Kaitlyn said you raised her and your brothers.”
Luke watched the kids doing handstands in the shallow end and took a sip of wine. “I did.”
“What happened to your parents?”
“They were killed in a plane crash when I was in college.”
“I’m sorry. That had to be so hard.”
“It was.”
“You’re the oldest?”
He nodded. “I was a freshman on a football scholarship. After the accident, we didn’t have family who could take Kait, Ben and Grant. Both of our parents were only children and our grandparents were dead. They would’ve been split up and sent to foster care. They were just kids. I couldn’t let that happen.”
“But you were just a kid, too.”
He had been young and wild and drunk on the freedom of being away from home for the first time. He was a football player—starting quarterback as a freshman—so he was big man on campus. The girls had flocked to him and he’d loved it. He was projected as a Heisman Trophy candidate and a future in the NFL was inevitable. Life had been good…until the coach called him into his office before a big game. His parents had been on their way to watch him play and the small plane went down. There were no survivors.
The only bright spot in the horrendous tragedy was that they’d left his siblings at home. It’d been a prime-time Thursday night game and his brothers and sister had school the next day, otherwise, they would’ve been on board. If they had been…Luke couldn’t even let his mind go there.
“They were coming to see one of my games.” And he’d felt guilty every day since. “I couldn’t continue to play ball at the level I needed to compete and raise a family, so I walked away.”
Layla was silent for a moment, maybe realizing how similar their circumstances were. Then she turned to him and rested her palm against his forearm. “Did you ever regret it?”
His denial was immediate. “Not even a little bit. I had to sacrifice, but Grant, Ben and Kaitlyn are all successful and we stayed together. That’s all that matters.”
She smiled sadly at him, her eyes shiny with unshed tears. He didn’t want her crying for him and he didn’t need her pity. He had a good life—a great life. His dream of being a pro football player had died and been buried along with his parents, but it was probably for the better. He had a job…a company he’d help build…that he loved. He looked forward to going into the office every day. And, he didn’t ache every morning getting out of bed like he would’ve taking punishing hits at the pro level.
He knew Kait worried about him being alone but he’d hardly lived like a monk over the years. He’d dated and slept with more than his share of women and though he’d never truly been in love, not even with his ex-fiancée, he’d been in serious lust a few times.
“It must have been hard being so young and raising three kids. I’m a lot older than you were and I only have two and it’s tough.”
“It wasn’t easy,” he admitted. “But you do what you have to. Grant was two years younger, so he shouldered a lot of the load. Ben did what he could and Kaitlyn tried to mother us, even though she was the baby. Her passion for cooking developed by feeding three growing boys.”
The inflatable ball the kids were playing with bounced up on the deck. Luke popped up to retrieve it and tossed it back. He refilled their wine glasses before he sat back down.
Layla took a sip. “How did you go from an eighteen-year-old college drop-out to owning a successful multi-million-dollar company?”
“Hard work. I joined the police force. They put me through the academy and I took classes at night for a Criminal Justice degree. After Kait left home, I felt at loose ends. I was working as a detective but I wasn’t happy with the job anymore. Too much bureaucracy and red tape. I’d been toying with the idea of opening my own security company when I got word that my best friend from childhood had been severely injured.”
“Logan?”
He nodded. “He was a Navy SEAL. I flew over to see him in the hospital and I knew the road back would be long and hard if he wanted to return to combat. I offered him an alternative. And here we are.”
He looked over at her. “Do you regret giving up your career?”
She turned to watch the kids frolicking in the pool and repeated his earlier statement. “Not even a little bit.”
#
Luke stepped off the treadmill and wiped his face with a towel. He hoped the punishing run would cool the lust he couldn’t seem to control around Layla. If he wore his body out with exercise, it wouldn’t react so strongly to her, right?
After the kids turned into pint-sized prunes, he brought them inside to his basement. He hated the term man cave, but that’s pretty much what he had going on in the lower level. Besides a fully-furnished weight room, he owned several classic arcade games…ones he’d enjoyed playing when he was young…a pool table, a game table, dart board and another giant screen television. Doors led to the outdoor kitchen and patio space and to the pool beyond.
He’d taken turns teaching the kids how to play Pac Man and then stood back in awe as they crushed him. Layla took a turn and screamed when the ghosts chased her, jumping up and down. The kids jumped with her and they all laughed until their stomachs hurt.
She was upstairs with the kids right now, getting them ready for bed. It seemed right to have people in the house again. It’d been empty since Kaitlyn moved out. He missed having another person to talk to at dinner.
He’d always thought he didn’t want children after having raised his siblings. He’d had the responsibility too young and now he wanted to enjoy life. But having Tiffany and Sean around was nice. There was something so invigorating about being around their youthful energy.
He completed three circuits on the weight machines and when he was exhausted, he jumped into the shower. He kept clothes in the downstairs bathroom for after he worked out. He scrubbed the towel over his head and donned a faded Bloomington Police Department sweatshirt and sweat pants.
Music drifted to him as he stepped out of the bathroom. The tune was achingly beautiful. Then a voice joined the notes and Luke staggered back a step. The song wrapped around his heart and squeezed. His feet moved forward of their own accord and before he knew it, he was up the stairs without even remembering walking. Layla’s fingers were caressing the keys, her eyes closed as emotion poured from her soul. Luke choked back a lump in his throat. It was a tribute to her mother. When she finished, he stood rooted to the spot, unable to move. Her voice was a precious gift. The world deserved to hear her sing, watch her perform. He vowed to himself to bring Mullins down, even if that meant she’d go back to her former life and he’d lose her.
Chapter Fifteen
Melody Franklin jumped in the golf cart her temporary boss Luke Colton gave her to use and motored back to his house. The kids were at the activity center working on an assignment, but she’d forgotten the notebook where she’d jotted down her notes.
She couldn’t believe her luck to have a temporary job that would pay more in a week than she’d make in months. The kids were smart and eager and teaching them would be easy. She’d almost fainted when she found out Monica Webb was actually Layla Brooks. She’d been one of Layla’s biggest fans. She’d mourned her passing. To find out the woman was alive and so nice and down-to-earth was incredible. She longed to call her family and friends and tell them the news, but she’d given her word she’d keep the secret. Even if they hadn’t asked her to sign an agreement, she wouldn’t have revealed the news to
anyone. There was a reason Layla had faked her death.
She cursed her forgetfulness for leaving the notebook in the house. Luke and Layla had left for the office, so thankfully, the house was empty, saving her from revealing her mistake.
Using the key, she stepped inside and dashed for the stairs.
“Hey, bro, what’s with all the girly—”
Melody gasped when a mountain stepped into the hall…an almost naked mountain. A small—very small—towel barely covered the tall stranger’s lower body. His dark hair was long and shaggy, and a beard blanketed his face. Electric blue eyes blinked wide at her. She closed hers and let out an ear-piercing scream.
“Damn, lady, shh, I’m not going to hurt you.” He grabbed her arm.
Melody didn’t think, she just reacted, bringing her knee up to the towel-covered region.
The man dodged most of her attack but a small grunt let her know she’d scored a small victory. He managed to grab the unknotting cloth before it fell to the ground. “Take it easy,” he hissed. “I’m not a threat.”
“Grant?”
“Up here,” the man ground out.
Footsteps sounded on the stairs and then her new boss appeared, his face split wide with a smile. “It’s so damn good to see you.” He grabbed the nearly-naked man in a huge hug, squeezing hard. “I’ve missed you. Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”
“I wish I had,” the man apparently named Grant responded ruefully. “Maybe then your girlfriend wouldn’t have tried to unman me.”
Luke turned around and shot a questioning glance at her. Heat rushed to her cheeks. “I’m sorry, Mr. Colton. I forgot a notebook. I came back to get it and I ran into…your brother?” The last was asked in a question.
Luke nodded. “Melody Franklin, this is my brother Grant.”
A gasp sounded behind them. They all spun around when Layla appeared. She held up a hand and smiled. “Never mind me.”
Before this could get any more uncomfortable, Melody excused herself, darted to her room and found the notebook. She was out the door and motoring away before her heart rate finally slowed. It would be a long time before she got those blue eyes out of her mind.
Face the Music (COBRA Securities Book 9) Page 10