“What’s with you? It’s just another bar. Let’s go to my place and you can appreciate me there.” They were parked across from the gas station in Fruitland Park. He moved her hand higher to where she could feel how hard he was for her.
“You’d back out on me like you always do. Anyway, I’m not in the mood right now.” Kitt sat back and folded her arms.
She might as well have slapped him. “That’s different. You were always hot for me before.”
“I really want to go and you’ve always done what I wanted before.”
“Except what you wanted most, and I just now offered.”
She looked out the window and Rob peeled out of there. Not in the mood? How crazy was that? She’d been after his body for years and he was ready to give her what she wanted. What he’d always wanted but never allowed himself to act upon.
“You’re not even tempted?” he asked.
She hesitated for a second but then shook her head. “That can wait. After all these years, it’s just a short time more.”
And a visit to a dive just to check out the woman she’d evidently become immediately jealous of couldn’t wait? Disbelieving and shook up, he instead drove Kitt straight to Sugar’s. Had his worst fear come true? Was she “over” him?
Neither of them spoke but he could feel the heat of Kitt’s anger. “Don’t bother to get out,” she said when he stopped at the kerb.
She jumped out and ran towards the house.
Rob banged his fist on the steering wheel and drove away. Just because he wouldn’t take Kitt to that honky-tonk, she’d turned him down. He’d thought what he offered was more important to her than anything. Well, screw her. She didn’t know what she wanted. Or if she did, it obviously wasn’t him. Lionel, be damned. Maybe she really loved that wimp.
Entering the condo, Rob headed straight for the refrigerator where he popped a beer and, tipping his head back, let the cold stream flow down his throat. Kitt acted shocked when she saw the matches from The Silver Spoon. What the hell? She was a grown woman now. Maybe that was what she was trying to prove with her request to go there. Jealousy was another possible motive. Or maybe she was just playing hard to get.
And what was the craziness with her and the Kangaroo Gas Station? The price was the same as the station’s across the street. And he wasn’t sure she’d even paid attention to them.
It really stung that she wouldn’t come home with him. He wanted her. He’d always wanted her but he hadn’t let himself take Kitt. Today, he had a place he could bring her with pride. Years ago, they’d met at the old barn they’d visited yesterday. He’d really had to put up his guard alone in a deserted spot with Kitten, but her parents didn’t approve of her seeing him and it was the only place they could be together.
Switching on the TV, Rob kicked off his shoes and wiggled his toes against the plush carpet. Nice. He loved his new digs. Chuckling, he pushed a button and the chair reclined. This was the good life. It was what he’d always wanted, although the circumstances for getting this far weren’t quite what he’d imagined.
Muting the stupid talk show that came on, Rob used the remote to bring in music. Soft rock. Leaning back his head, he closed his eyes. He’d always thought Kitt was pretty but she’d changed over the years. In high school, she wore glasses in the classroom, parted her brown hair in the middle and dressed plainly. No doubt due to the stuffy parents she had. But nowadays, she was smokin’ hot. Her long brown hair was streaked with gold and fringed bangs framed her gorgeous eyes—not glasses. Wearing short shorts that tickled his imagination, she looked sexy as all get-out, and there was nothing he’d like better than to slide his hot hard cock inside her sweet warm pussy.
But they couldn’t fuck in the barn on a dirt floor or anywhere there was a chance they might be caught, like her aunt’s house. He’d come back to Summerville to show everyone he might be Jed Harrison’s son but he wasn’t lazy or poor and he wasn’t the rotten-ass kid they thought he was in high school. When he finally made love to Kitt, he wanted everything to be exactly right. They’d waited too long for anything less. And today, he’d offered and she’d turned him down.
Kitt Maxwell was the only one who’d known him as a good guy. She always believed the best of him. Even though she’d heard firsthand from some of her friends he’d screwed them, she still liked him. She wanted him and he knew he could have had her, but he didn’t want to ruin the way she looked at him like he was some sort of god. He was a stupid ass to have taken the first fuck, because every girl after that who went out with him expected her turn, and if she didn’t get it, she made up lies that were worse.
Time with Kitt was like an oasis in a burning desert. If her uptight dad ever knew she’d let Rob Harrison crawl in her bedroom window and sit on the window bench across from her bed, he’d have jailed his ass.
Five times. He went there five times, and after the first, she’d have some special snack and a drink waiting. She never made him feel as if she was feeding the poor and hungry, and he didn’t believe she thought of it that way, although she probably knew.
The times they’d met in the barn, he’d played around a little to keep her satisfied so she wouldn’t screw someone else. Afterward, he’d have to jerk off, but it wasn’t so bad because he thought about her. Kitten. She was a gentle soul.
It had been a challenge keeping his pants zipped. And this afternoon he’d finally been ready to drop them. They were both adults and no way was she still a virgin. Look at her. Any guy in his right mind would have made a pass and being human, she would have given in to one of them. Lionel? Probably, but Rob still bet he was a loser.
Would it be a mistake for him to fuck Kitt now? Had she only wanted him back then because he’d played hard to get? Or did she think it would make her a part of the ‘in crowd’—those who’d been screwed by that bad boy, Rob Harrison?
No, Kitt wasn’t like that.
He had to find out what was what with her before she disappeared from his life again. But he didn’t know how to do it without having to field a lot of questions. He’d tried to leave her thinking he was still a chef but the whole truth was bound to come out. Half-truths wouldn’t cut it for long.
The phone was ringing, he suddenly realised. Maybe Kitt had changed her mind. He picked up hurriedly.
“Rob, I want you to pick me up this evening at quarter of six.” Damn. It was Suzette. “I’m having dinner with my agent at the Gaylord Palms in Orlando at seven.”
“It’s five o’clock now. Why didn’t you call earlier, Suzette?”
“I had a spa day. I know it’s short notice, but you needn’t have the Corvette washed. We’ll take my limo tonight.” She clicked off.
Why hadn’t she taken her phone to the spa and called him from there? He’d have to shower and dress and get going fast. If Kitt had come home with him, Suzette would have interrupted their first time getting it on together and that would have been bad. If he’d turned off his cell, he’d probably have lost his job. It might have been worth it. But he needed the money to live in his current lifestyle and without his arrangement with Suzette, he couldn’t keep this condo, the first real home he’d ever known.
He’d grown up in a hovel, joined the navy where he bunked on a ship or in a barracks, and come out to live in a rented room—until Suzette, who often ate at the restaurant where he worked, offered him better.
Kitt had thrown him for a loop when she asked where he worked. He’d answered with Fruits of the Sea, the name of the place where he used to be employed. The way she’d worded the question, his reply only seemed like half a lie. However, when she said she’d been planning to visit there, that freaked him out.
It was too bad Sug had a sick day, but it was a break for him. And it was a good thing he’d made the special seafood salad at home that he’d often prepared at the restaurant. Maybe taking it to their house and his offer to cook would stave off a visit. But what if it didn’t?
If Kitt found out he didn’t work there…
<
br /> Rob was almost certain they’d rehire him but he’d make less money than he did with Suzette and he’d have to work six nights a week again. Perhaps he could negotiate a raise and they’d let him work just five. Working for Suzette wasn’t going to cut it if things panned out between him and Kitt the way he hoped.
He’d jumped at the deal Suzette offered because he wanted to show off for Kitt and the rest of the town where he’d been born. Stand tall in everyone’s eyes. But now that he’d sampled this life, he wanted this little bit of luxury for himself.
Last night, Suzette had wanted to go to some theatre performance and didn’t want to attend alone. It made him nervous to escort her now that Kitt was in the area. Before that, he didn’t worry about being seen out with an older woman. Since she was attractive and well-dressed, it couldn’t hurt his reputation too much. Of course, there was the chance somebody would call him a gigolo. And he didn’t want that, but he knew it wasn’t true.
He didn’t plan to do this forever. He aspired to work at a more upscale restaurant where they’d pay him what he was worth, or better yet, manage or own one. But first he’d wanted to get back to Summerville where he could find out how to locate Kitt. He’d never been able to forget her. Never even wanted to let the memories go.
He might have overreacted concerning The Silver Spoon. After all, it wouldn’t have killed him to take her there, and they could have come back here later. He’d been wound too tight worrying he might lose his last chance with her. Just thinking about her made him hard and horny—and soft and mushy inside.
Maybe he’d give her a quick call now and apologise. He didn’t have her cell phone number, but he could look Sug’s home number up in the phone book, if he could find one.
Rushed and frantic, he yanked open every cabinet and drawer, one after the other and couldn’t find a phone book anywhere. Out of time, swearing furiously, Rob turned on the shower. Kitt would have to call him if she wanted to make up. Her request was unreasonable, after all, so maybe she’d realise that. He hoped she was willing to admit it if she did.
Kitt shouldn’t have been surprised when Rob didn’t call and apologise, and she wasn’t totally, but she was disappointed. She could have gone back to The Silver Spoon in her car but she remembered it was almost out of gas. Too bad she hadn’t been driving when Dan called. By the time she’d filled the tank and drove back to the tavern, Jason would likely be gone. If he’d been there in the first place.
“Stop looking at your phone. Something probably came up,” Sug said.
“I’ll just bet it did.” Kitt grabbed up the newspaper and stomped out the door onto the front porch.
“Sour grapes?”
Sug had followed her out, and in spite of herself, Kitt chuckled. She’d told her aunt an altered story of what had happened, and like Rob, Sug thought Kitt was jealous of the woman on the matchbook cover. Even if she was a performer and Rob frequented the place, Kitt wasn’t worried about him and eye candy. She had more important concerns. She was on a case. And a visit to The Silver Spoon might have yielded some clues.
She stared at the newspaper unseeingly. She was unhappy with the way the afternoon turned out for more reasons than one. She didn’t like the disagreement between her and Rob. She knew he didn’t understand why she’d gotten so ticked off. But he’d acted unreasonably by refusing to go there and dumping her off at home without a word of explanation. It wouldn’t have hurt him to grant her request, and he must have realised that by now. So, why hadn’t he called?
Aunt Sug took a seat in the other rocker. “Does Rob have your cell phone number?” she asked.
“Ohmigosh. He doesn’t. I never thought of that.” She mulled it over for a minute before smiling. It wasn’t an airtight excuse but she felt better anyway. Kitt forced her thoughts away from Rob.
“Jonesy said I should stay a while. She thinks you need me.”
“Doesn’t that woman ever mind her own business?”
“She brought you soup because you were sick. Is that any way to talk about an angel of mercy?”
“Ha! Between the hot soup and her rattling on about nothing, I began dripping sweat, and then she thought I had a fever. She wanted to feed me aspirin. I started the whole thing by telling her I had a pain and touched my breast and it snowballed from there.”
Her breast? Is that what she has? Breast cancer?
“I’ll keep my complaints to myself from now on. I’m lucky she didn’t start feeling me up to find out where it hurt.”
Kitt chuckled but quickly sobered “What did you mean when you told Dad you might have cancer?” Kitt asked. “What led you to say that?”
Sug threw up her hands. “The verdict isn’t in yet. That ache was in my chest but when Jonesy thought I had a problem with my breast, she brought up the subject of cancer. So, when she left, I did a self examination and found a lump. I got scared.
“I didn’t want to go to a doctor and hear bad news. So I put off going and got more and more worried. And frightened. I didn’t even want to hear the verdict alone. So I called and your father answered and I told him.” Sug clutched one breast. “I hoped my sister might want to make up before I cashed in my chips.”
“What can I say except you’re both stubborn?” Kitt patted her aunt’s hand.
“When I realised she wasn’t coming, I finally went.” She wrapped her fingers around Kitt’s. “I didn’t go see him right away and Doc said I’d probably made myself sick by worrying. He did a biopsy and it was benign. He found more growths but had the nerve to say he thinks I just have ‘lumpy breasts’ like a lot of women do. But what if he’s wrong?”
Unexpectedly, Sug sniggered. “John Henry liked my boobies and he never mentioned any lumps.”
Kitt closed her eyes. She didn’t want to hear about Sug and John Henry making out.
Sug leant forward. “Notice I said the doctor thinks. So, you see, I still could have cancer. The other lumps are small and he only biopsied one of them.”
“I’m sure the doctor knows what he’s doing. Stop thinking about it.”
“Easy for you to say. He ran some tests to make sure everything else in my system is okay. Those results aren’t in yet.”
“So you think Jonesy is right and I should stay?”
Sug shrugged. “I’ll bet Rob Harrison wishes you would.”
Just as I expected. Kitt grinned. Sug wanted to make up with her sister and play matchmaker.
Sug patted the newspaper Kitt was holding. “Did you read that story in yesterday’s Sun about the freeloader who bilked a woman out of the money left by her late husband then took off with another wealthy widow?”
“Well, that’s exactly why I don’t flaunt the money John Henry gave me to atone for divorcing me for that whore. I don’t want some old codger trying to milk me dry of my ex’s penance money. I’m hanging onto it so I can leave it to you one day.”
“You married John Henry?” Kitt sat stunned, her hand on her throat.
Sug nodded. “I was a fool but he did give me a couple of happy years before he left. And the large settlement helped mend my broken heart.”
“Settlement?” Kitt swallowed hard. Auntie had a lot of money? She could have afforded to go to her sister’s gala anniversary celebration but chose not to. Was that why Kitt’s mom had gotten so ticked off? Or did she know about all this? Kitt hadn’t a clue. As another thought occurred to her, she pressed a hand to her heart.
“Your bad boy did you wrong?”
Sug crossed her arms and rocked harder in her chair. “Stop echoing me, for lord’s sake. John didn’t just have that bad boy image. He was bad, and I was dumb enough to fall for him. But not stupid enough to turn down the penance he wanted to pay me when I found out he was having an affair.”
She threw up her hands. “Quit looking so stricken. I know what you’re thinking, but with Rob, it’s all a façade. He doesn’t want people to know he’s vulnerable. Years of hardship made him act tough but it’s a thin outer shell.
> “And if he’s anything like John…he’s hot in bed.” Sugar fanned herself with her hand. “I missed the sex even more than the man himself. He and I—“
“Please.” Kitt held up her hand. “Don’t elaborate.” She was having enough trouble digesting the news that her aunt had remarried after Uncle Ned died. She didn’t want to hear any sordid details of her sex life with John.
Kitt wasn’t sure what to think about Rob. Jonesy thought he was a gigolo. Was it possible she was right? That man could charm any woman out of her pants and he had money. But he did work. And Sug could be right…
“John Henry wasn’t after money like the guy in the newspaper article. He was loaded with it. So instead of bilking women, he let them milk him.” Sugar smiled smugly.
The newspaper. Kitt sat up straight. The story Auntie mentioned that started this whole discussion about bad boys should have rung a bell right away. It was almost the same as the case she was working. In light of all her aunt’s personal disclosures, it was no wonder Kitt had been distracted. However, a private detective shouldn’t let that happen. Was she too easily sidetracked for this job?
Rob and Auntie presented mysteries of their own. Kitt straightened her shoulders. “I didn’t see last night’s paper. Do you remember the names of the people?”
“Are you kidding? I can’t remember those of people I know, let alone ones I read about. If you really want to find out, the newspaper is in the trash can in the pantry. There might be coffee grounds on it, though.”
Kitt turned up her nose. She hated pawing through soggy throwaways. “It probably wasn’t anyone I know.” Ignoring her aunt’s questioning look, Kitt turned over the newspaper on her lap and there on the front page was a picture of a woman on the ground and a policeman bending over her.
She read the caption. “Woman found dead in Orlando area. Former lover is a person of interest.”
“Ohmigod. He killed her.” I hope it’s not Pamela.
“Who killed whom?” Sug took her reading glasses out of her dress pocket.
Bad Boy, Back in Town Page 5