Could This Be Love?

by Lee Kilraine

  “Very funny, Pia,” Tansy said, not sounding amused at all. “Why is she here with you? I thought you’d be back at the apartment last night.”

  “I told you it might take a few days.” Avery sat next to Tansy, looking over her face carefully, trying to get a read on how she was feeling. “I thought you and Rory were at the beach.”

  “We got in a fight last night.” Tansy sniffed. “I thought you’d be back to help me.”

  “Sweetie, I am helping you. I’m trying to track down Michelle and Bob so we can see if anyone in the family could be a bone marrow donor for you.” She reached up to brush a wisp of bangs off Tansy’s pale cheek and frowned. “You don’t look good. Do you want me to call your doctor and see if he has any other ideas while we wait for your test results? Maybe a steroid shot or something?”

  “No, I’m okay. Tired, but I’m even a bit hungry.” Tansy brushed Avery’s hands away and sat back to take in the room. “Do they have room service?”

  “Sure.” Avery moved the paper on the coffee table to find the room service menu underneath. She held it out to Tansy. “Order anything you like. It’s good to hear you have an appetite finally.”

  Tansy pushed Avery’s offer of the menu out of her way when her gaze snagged on the newspaper’s front page photo. She reached forward, grabbing the paper off the table. “I heard on the radio megastar Sijan Cates was in town. Oh, wow. You met him? When?”

  “A couple of days ago.” Avery couldn’t contain her excitement over the help it might bring. “Tansy, that photo is how we’re going to find our family. Michelle always reads The Tattler. She’ll see that photo and call me.”

  Tansy’s gaze flashed up at Avery, then over at Pia, before turning to look at the paper again. “Oh, yeah. Mom does love her gossip. Smart thinking, Avery. Too bad I didn’t get to meet him.”

  “Well, you might. He’s got a thing for your sister,” Pia said.

  “Wha . . . what? Seriously?” Tansy squinted over at Avery, then down at the photo one more time before looking around the room. “Nice hotel. I’ve had such a miserable time sleeping the last week, but this place looks cozy. Could I stay with you for a few days?”

  “Of course you can, sweetie.” Avery reached out and squeezed one of Tansy’s hands. She never could say no to Tansy, so it looked like they’d all stay another night. “But we’re only here one more night.”

  Pia cleared her throat and raised an eyebrow at her.

  The reminder of last night sent a flush of warmth through her body. “Or possibly two nights. Hey, want to come watch us work? We’re setting up and rehearsing a commercial this morning.”

  “No thanks. I’m going to order room service and relax. Feel free to go do whatever.” Tansy released a big yawn, stretching her arms overhead. “Oh, I bet there’s a jet tub, too, isn’t there? A soak in the tub sounds perfect. Do you have any bubbles? Avery, could you call room service and order me a stack of pancakes, a scrambled egg, bacon, toast, and a cola?”

  “You are having a good day, aren’t you?” Pia cocked her head.

  “Well, I’m a single woman now.” Tansy’s voice sliced out edgy, before it cracked. She pressed her lips together, then jutted her chin up. “Who needs guys like Rory anyway?”

  Avery frowned and stepped forward. “Hey, Tans, we don’t have to go work. How about we just hang out with you?”

  “Honestly, I could use some alone time to pamper myself, so go work.” She flashed her beauty queen smile and closed herself in the bathroom.

  “Does she sound okay to you?” Avery looked toward Pia as she picked up the hotel phone to order breakfast. Into the phone she said, “Yes, I’ll hold.”

  “Something does seem off, but Tansy often seems off to me, so I may not be the best judge.” Pia shrugged. “Stop worrying. Your photo’s on the cover of the tabloid and, just like you said, not a single paparazzo recognized you.”

  “You’re right.” Avery released a sigh. “Now we wait. Oh, boy. You know how bad I am at waiting.”

  “I do. That’s why you should pass the time having more amazing sex. You know you want to. I heard you commit to another two nights with the man.”

  “Just because I committed to staying another night or two in Climax, doesn’t mean there’s going to be another . . . um, climax.” Avery glanced away from Pia’s grinning face. Her gaze fell on the tangle of soft sheets on the bed. Remembering everything that had happened in those sheets sent a warm flush swirling deep in her stomach. Maybe she did deserve one more night with Sijan. The only thing was, she didn’t know if she could handle it. Or if she could walk away afterward.

  Chapter Nine

  The morning sun warmed Sijan’s back while the wind stirred the pine trees, causing a light tickling shower of pine needles to rain down. He’d be the first one to admit he had a sweet gig making movies while getting to see the world, but damn, he missed Carolina. It was easy to see why Tynan loved construction, between working outside and getting to pound nails while your mind wandered. Yeah, his mind happily wandered back to last night. He smacked the hammer one last time to pre-set a nail, then grabbed up the two-by-fours to begin building the temporary stud wall Tynan wanted.

  “Si, it’s only eight in the morning. No way your caffeine has kicked in yet. You’re not allowed to swing the hammer and move around heavy planks of wood like you’re Happy of the frickin’ Seven Dwarfs until nine. Union rules.”

  “Ha. Nice try, but you forget I actually work with the Seven Dwarfs. I can act like any dwarf I want. And if I’m Happy, I guess that makes you Grumpy.”

  “If you could just stop the whistling and singing. It’s slicing into my hangover in the most painful way.” Tynan lifted his dark sunglasses up, revealing tired, bloodshot eyes. “Well?”

  Sijan stopped whistling and rested the two-by-fours he was carrying against the sawhorse to look at him. “Well what?”

  “Well, how’d it go with the number-one fan?”

  “Her name is Avery. And . . . it went.”

  Tynan reached for his Styrofoam coffee cup. “Some of those fake stories she was making up made her sound crazy, but hey, I hear sometimes the crazy women are great in bed.”

  Sijan shook his head. “I agree she’s lying about something, but I’m beginning to believe she isn’t an actress after the publicity. She had zero interest in being photographed yesterday. And if you look past the crazy, she’s sweet and funny.”

  “How can you look past the crazy? You forget I was there for that conversation with Pia and Avery at the VFW. Biggest fan, my ass.” Tynan pointed at Sijan. “Those two women are up to something, and dammit, I couldn’t pry it out of Pia last night, no matter how many shots we threw back.”

  Sijan didn’t laugh, even though he wanted to. He loved how his brother had his back, but picturing Pia drinking Tynan under the table was damn amusing. He’d be sure to share that story with his other brothers later.

  “I get it. You have your great-sex goggles on.” Tynan shrugged. “That’s fine. Everyone should wear a pair of great-sex goggles a few times in their life. But, in my experience, crazy tips the scales eventually—no matter how frickin’ fantastic the sex is.”

  “No. I’m pretty sure this is something different. And what the hell do you care if I take extra time to figure out what it is?” Sijan grabbed the hammer from where he’d set it and slipped it into his tool belt. Last night had been about more than great sex, even if he wasn’t sure what it was. He was about to set Tynan straight, but was interrupted when their brothers Paxton and Kaz pulled up in Paxton’s ancient Ford pickup truck. Nice. Living in L.A. and travelling the world to film meant he didn’t get to see his brothers near enough.

  Tynan chugged down some more coffee. “I hope they’re here to work, not yak, since neither my head nor my job schedule can handle yakking.”

  Sijan grinned as they got out of the truck and joined them. “All we need now is Quinn, and it’ll be just like summertime in high school when the Cates Brothers Painti
ng Company kept us in gas and beer money.”

  “There is no way Quinn is leaving Delaney’s side anytime soon.” Kaz hooked his tool belt around his waist. “Hell, if it took me over ten years to catch a woman’s attention, I wouldn’t be leaving her alone either.”

  “Si, I heard over at the bakery you hooked up with Quinn’s hot blonde.” Paxton tossed the white bakery bag in his hands to Tynan, who grabbed out a doughnut before tossing the bag to Sijan.

  Quinn’s blonde? Hell no, he hated the sound of that. “Someone better damn well get the Grapevine better sources,” he said, pointing the chocolate glazed doughnut he had just pulled out of the bag at Paxton. “Avery is not Quinn’s and I did not hook up.”

  Tynan choked on his doughnut. “Yes, because ‘hook up’ would imply a one-night stand. Our brother here thinks he’s serious.”

  “Is she as hot as the Grapevine said? I hope they at least got that part right.”

  “Exquisite,” Tynan said. “And her friend registers high on the hot scale too.”

  That caught the brothers’ attention. Kaz was faster. “A hot friend? I should probably invite her for a drink.”

  “Do not drink with her.” Tynan shook his head. “She’ll drink you under the table, and then steal your soul.”

  “She wouldn’t sleep with you?”

  “Nope. Said I’m too scary. I get that occasionally.” Tynan shrugged. “But in this case it’s okay because she and her friend are a few therapy sessions away from being certifiable.”

  “We don’t know that,” Sijan said.

  “Really? What do you know about her, Si?” Tynan was trying to make a point. “Other than what she likes in bed.”

  Sijan opened his mouth to speak, then shut it. He ran his hand across the back of his neck, realizing he didn’t have words to explain his intense connection with Avery. “Okay, so we didn’t get around to talking much last night—” Sijan started.

  Paxton raised his eyebrows. “I thought you stopped jumping head first into bed after your first year in L.A.”

  “This is different. I don’t know what it is yet, but it’s different.” Sijan picked up his hammer again, wondering if his brothers were right to worry. It took only the memory of Avery’s lavender eyes dazed with wonder and pleasure to reassure himself. “Sometimes you have to take the leap in order to enjoy the free fall.”

  “See, I told you he was serious. You can’t be serious in one night, Sijan.” Tynan shook his head. “Especially when her story doesn’t add up.”

  Kaz looked over at Sijan. “Tell that to Quinn, why don’t you. He knew when he met Delaney in high school that he was serious. It just took him a few years to convince her, is all. And all of us.”

  Sijan picked up the crumpled bakery bag and tossed it four feet into the construction Dumpster. He didn’t want to be having this conversation because he didn’t want to examine the situation too closely himself. “I did not say this was serious. I said it was different. And I’ve been thinking I needed something different for a while now. So, I’m trying it on.”

  “Whatever. Just try it on with your eyes wide open, that’s all I’m saying,” Tynan said.

  “I don’t expect everyone to understand, but I figured you guys would get it. Don’t you look at what Quinn and Delaney have and want—” Geez. If his brothers made him talk about his feelings, he was leaving. He usually got this kind of conversation from his mom. “Never mind. I’m done talking about it.”

  Tynan nodded his head once. “Fine by me. That was too close to your feminine side for comfort. Let’s go do some manly stuff, like hammer nails and work the circular saw. If we get the old walls torn down and the new stud wall up, I’ll buy the beer.”

  “I’ve got news for you.” Sijan slapped him on the back as they walked into the house. “You’re going to buy the beer no matter how much we get done today.”

  ***

  Avery couldn’t believe people had been walking around her whole life with these after effects from amazing sex and she’d never noticed. How could she not have noticed? It was almost like a secret club that nobody had ever invited her to. Until Sijan.

  “Stop it,” Pia said, glancing over from behind the steering wheel of her SUV. “I can hear you thinking about the great, fantastic, mind-blowing sex you had last night. And while I’m happy for you, some of us didn’t have great, fantastic, mind-blowing sex last night. It feels like you’re gloating. No one likes a great-sex gloater.”

  Avery looked at her in disbelief. “There is no way you haven’t had great sex and walked around gloating in the last five years. I just never noticed because I wasn’t in the exclusive club. I didn’t know the secret handshake. I deserve one day to savor this.”

  “Okay. I agree, but if you could tone it down a little, I’d appreciate it.” Pia looked at the side mirror and maneuvered over to the right lane to make their turn onto Petey’s driveway.

  She was grateful for today’s shoot to help take her mind off of waiting for Michelle and Bob to call. Why haven’t they called? She leaned over and pulled her cell phone out of her purse, checking to make sure she had the sound turned on. “Maybe you could call my phone to make sure it’s working.”

  Pia parked the car and turned to Avery. “Av, it’s working. Relax. The paper only went out this morning. It’s just coming up on lunchtime now. And that’s Eastern Standard. If they’re in the Midwest or on the West Coast, then The Tattler hasn’t even hit shelves yet.”

  Avery closed her eyes and took a slow breath. She looked at Pia and nodded, reaching for the door handle. “You’re right. I’ll calm down. Okay, let’s go, and besides, I’ll have my phone with me, right?”

  “Right,” Pia said, grabbing her coffee cup and exiting the vehicle. “If work doesn’t distract you, you can always replay last night in your head.”

  The air rushed out of Avery’s lungs as she pictured Sijan peeling her clothes off her body. She tripped over the thought. “Oops. I’m okay. I’m okay. Wow. Being part of the mind-blowing sex club is dangerous.”

  “But so worth it.”

  ***

  A few hours later, Avery, Pia, and their crew of two college students had set up, blocked, and rehearsed Petey’s commercial. All systems were go to film at first light tomorrow. It was in the car on the ten-minute drive back into town that Avery’s worrying reached critical mass. Work had been a good distraction, but without it the coiled up spring in her abdomen began twisting tighter and tighter. After seeing Tansy this morning, she really needed the peace of mind of knowing she had the worst case scenario covered. She looked at the phone clutched so firmly in her hand she didn’t think even Superman could pry it out. Ring, darn it.

  “All right, Av. I’ve been a very good girl today letting you work at a crazy pace, haven’t I?” Pia’s eyes stayed firmly on the road ahead as she drove back into town. “I haven’t complained once. Not a single time, which took superhuman effort. You had to have noticed.”

  “I did. I know what you were doing. I appreciate you trying to keep my mind off worrying.” Avery threw her an appreciative glance. “I owe you, I do.”

  Pia smiled big. “Great. I’m ready to collect. You’re taking me to happy hour. Ah-ah-ah. Do not say no. You owe me, remember? You just said it.”

  “I remember. Okay, happy hour it is. But maybe we should make it more like a happy thirty minutes depending on how Tansy is feeling.”

  “We can run by the hotel, check on Tansy, spiff ourselves up, and then have happy hour. I want the full hour after all the work we did today. Need I remind you what Petey did to me today?”

  Avery covered her mouth with her hand, but not before a snicker escaped.

  “Laugh. Laugh and dance. Petey loves you.”

  “I’m sorry. You’re right. I shouldn’t laugh, but you should’ve seen your face—” Avery started laughing again.

  “Uh-huh. See? I deserve the full hour. Maybe more. And you’re buying.”

  “You got it.” Once she got her lau
ghter under control, they discussed the last details of tomorrow’s shoot until they arrived at their hotel room.

  “Tansy, we’re back!” Avery called, taking two steps into the room only to stop and look around at the shambles strewn from one wall to the other. “Are we in the right room?”

  Pia stood next to her taking it all in. “Yup, right room. I believe those are your clothes all over the chairs, bed, floor, and um, the lamp. Not for the first time, Avery, you’ve been Tansied.”

  “What could she have been doing in here?”

  Rolling her eyes, Pia swept her hand across the post-tornado like scene. “What she usually does, Av. Anything her little heart desires, no matter how it affects you.”

  “Maybe everything just got to her, you know? And she lost it.”

  “She can’t lose what she never had.” Pia arched an eyebrow at her. “I get that you love your sister, but now is the perfect time to point out Tansy is spoiled and selfish.”

  “I know she’s young and irresponsible,” Avery stepped farther into the room, scooping up clothing as she went. “But she’s still my sister.”

  “She’s your kryptonite is what she is. Your weakness. I get it, Av. I do. After losing your parents, you’ve spent years trying to fit into your foster family so much you’re afraid to upset them. You let Tansy walk all over you—” Pia looked at Avery’s face and stopped midsentence. “Hey, all I’m saying is, just because Tansy’s sick doesn’t mean she’s changed. I just want you to be prepared, that’s all. Yo, Tansy!”

  The bathroom door opened and Tansy walked out looking . . .

  Whoa. Avery wasn’t prepared for this.

  Chapter Ten

  “Tansy, you’re going to have to pick your hairdresser out of a lineup”—Pia walked in a circle around Tansy—“because what she did to your hair is criminal.”

  “What did you do to your hair?” Avery dropped the armful of clothing onto the couch and walked over to stand in front of Tansy. She reached out, touching a strand of bleached-blond hair. “Your beautiful chestnut hair. Honey, what happened?”