Defying Desire

by A. C. Arthur

  That had Tia sighing. “I guess I shouldn’t have said it was advice. It was almost in the form of a threat.”

  Noelle threw her head back and laughed. “Then I know where it came from. None other than Trent with his domineering military mentality.”

  Camille rolled her eyes. “Please tell me he hasn’t been browbeating you.”

  Tia felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment. Did the light spankings he gave while they were in the throws of passion count as browbeating? She cleared her throat.

  “He’s definitely doing something to me,” she said without another thought. The question now was what she planned to do about it.

  Linc and Adam were looking at each other conspiratorially. Trent tried to ignore them, he didn’t have time for their antics right now. He’d gone over the folder he had with Tia’s personal information in it twice since arriving back at his place earlier this afternoon. He’d stopped by her apartment once more just in time to see the police wrapping up. Taking the lead investigator’s name was just a formality, Trent had every intention of investigating this matter himself.

  Nothing in her file indicated that she’d ever had a stalker. But that didn’t mean there wasn’t one out there. Trent had seen this all before, someone totally obsessed with someone else until all rational thought simply fled from their mind. And with Tia’s visibility there could be any number of suspects running around.

  That’s exactly why this impromptu visit from his brothers was inconvenient. He wanted to spend his time solving it, not rehashing it over tea. Not that Donovan men ever drank tea.

  “What do you two want?” he said going back to his desk and taking a seat at his computer.

  “See I told you he’s crabby,” Adam said nudging Linc.

  The brothers moved closer to the desk. “Trent’s always crabby, Adam,” Linc said looking closely at his younger brother.

  “What is up with you two and these female terms? Crabby? I’m a guy, I’m not crabby.”

  “Then let’s just say you’re in a foul mood,” Adam suggested.

  “Let’s just say I’m pissed off because some nutcase has decided to make Tia his target. Slashing her tires wasn’t good enough, he had to go one step further by invading her privacy.”

  “This kind of stuff happens every day, Trent,” Linc pointed out.

  “That doesn’t make it right.”

  “No. It doesn’t. But I don’t recall you getting this worked up about it, either.”

  Looking over at the two of them Trent sighed. In his haste to get rid of them he’d been talking directly into their trap. “I’m a military man, any type of injustice bothers me. That it happens to be someone I know just makes it worse.”

  Linc sat on the edge of the desk looking down at him. “And that it happens to be the woman you’re sleeping with makes it…what? Personal?”

  “It makes it important.”

  Linc raised a brow.

  “All right, it’s personal!” Trent yelled sitting back so that his chair leaned with him. “She doesn’t need anything else on her mind right now. I’m trying to get her to see a therapist about her grief issues. I don’t want her to hurt any more than she already is.”

  “And there you have it,” Adam said to Linc. “Just like I told you.”

  Linc nodded while Trent looked from one of them to the other. “What are you talking about?”

  “You’re in love with Tia,” Linc said simply.

  “What? Hell, no!” he said jumping up out of his chair. “I’m a Donovan, remember? The last one standing as I recall.”

  “The last one to fall, I believe,” Adam said with a grin spreading across his face.

  “You’re crazy. I’m not in love with her or anyone else. I don’t do love and relationships.”

  “And why is that, Trent? You never really told us,” Linc questioned. “I mean, we all had our issues with relationships but you’ve always gotten what you wanted out of them. I don’t ever recall you having a broken heart or going through any type of drama over a female. So what gives with the no-commitment routine?”

  Dragging a hand over his face Trent realized that it was either talk to them now or talk to them and his mother later. Because if Adam and Linc thought he was in love there was no doubt they were ready to spread the word and Beverly Donovan would be the first person they’d go to.

  She’d already called him from Camille’s house just before Tia had finished with her bath. He had a confirmed lunch date with her tomorrow afternoon and he already knew what the topic of discussion was.

  “Look, I can’t be in love with anyone. What’s the point?”

  “What’s the point in being in love?” Adam asked and shrugged his shoulders. “Contentment. Satisfaction. Partnership.”

  “And unlimited sex that goes beyond any casual encounters you’ve ever experienced,” Linc chimed in. “That’s a stupid question. We’re grown men, the rules we made for ourselves years ago don’t and shouldn’t apply anymore. All of us are more than capable of having long lasting, fulfilling relationships. Adam and I have found it, so what’s your problem?”

  Trent moved to the window and fiddled with the handle that would open and close the blinds. “I wasn’t looking for love,” he said solemnly.

  Adam sighed. “Neither were we. But we weren’t stupid enough to turn it away when we found it. Well, at least I wasn’t,” he said smiling over at Linc.

  Trent had to chuckle at that. Jade had come back into Linc’s life by way of a debt her sister, Noelle, owed to his casino. In an attempt to work that debt off, she’d ended up losing even more money to Linc’s gaming tables. The two of them had been involved briefly in college but the moment he realized who she was, he knew he wanted another chance with her, so he’d offered her an ultimatum—be his date for a week during the Donovan family reunion, or be prosecuted for the full amount she and her sister now owed to the Gramercy. In the end Linc fell in love and instead of professing his love to Jade, he’d attempted to make another deal with her. Unfortunately, Jade wasn’t one to make deals on love. Now look at them, happily married, with twins on the way.

  “I don’t begrudge either of you your happiness. It’s just not for me. It can’t be.”

  “Why?”

  “Because of what I do. I’m not into real estate and I don’t own a casino. I don’t wake up every morning, get dressed and leave for the office only to return at dinnertime to be with the family.”

  “So this is about your job with the special ops team?” Linc asked.

  “It’s about not knowing if I’ll return from a mission standing tall or in a pine box.”

  The room was quiet and Trent turned to face his brothers. “Every time I leave for an assignment I watch Mom looking at me with that sadness just etching her eyes. I know that she worries every day I’m away because I can read it in her letters. Dad worries but he’s always let me do what was necessary for me. You guys are just you and you respect my choices. But each day I’m away, fighting, I think of you and the impact my death might have on you. Not in the conceited way, but it’s tough knowing that my occupation could cause any of you pain.” He sighed. “And if I fall in love and marry a woman and start a family, I’m putting them in the same predicament.”

  “Wow,” Adam stated. “That’s heavy. I never knew you felt that way.”

  Trent gave a half smile. “I know. You just thought I was this rough and tough soldier who didn’t give a damn about anyone but himself.”

  “Nah.” Adam shook his head. “That’s not what I thought, either. You’re my brother and I’ve always looked up to you. The way you knew exactly what you wanted and you did it no questions asked. I just didn’t realize what you were giving up to be that way.”

  “Trent, man, we accept you and your career choice because we know it’s important to you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have a full life because of it. The woman you chose to be with, if she loved you in return, would accept you just as we have.”

&nb
sp; “But that would be one more person I’d hurt.”

  “What if you’re hurting her now by not admitting you love her? Did you think of that?”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Trent said finally. “She’s not in love with me. She’s perfectly content just sleeping together.”

  Adam laughed and Trent glared at him. His brother always found something funny.

  “If that’s what you think then I’m going to stop looking up to you. I watched the two of you at Camille’s party and then again at the shower yesterday. And I saw you in the truck this morning. Tia’s not content with just sleeping with you and I don’t care if that’s what her mouth says.”

  Linc nodded. “I have to agree with him, Trent. Maybe you can’t see it because up until now you haven’t wanted to see it.”

  That could definitely be true. But Trent had known from the start that Tia wasn’t like the other women. He’d known the moment he first kissed her that she had a power over him, a power that he would never willingly give to another. His brothers were right, he was most likely in love with her. He couldn’t be sure because this feeling was still foreign to him, but he wasn’t stupid by a long shot. There was something going on between the two of them, something more serious than the “lovers only” agreement they’d made.

  On the desk his phone rang. Adam answered it.

  “It’s Devlin,” he said handing the phone to Trent.

  Trent went to the phone. “What’d you find out?” he asked immediately.

  Devlin answered without pause, this was the way they worked. “Interestingly enough there’s a security camera at the front entrance to the apartment complex. But there’s no on-duty guard and no secured entrance, go figure. Anyway, I got a copy of the tapes from the last week. Looked at the one from last night and the previous night first. A blue sedan with a female driver came in and out both times. Now, normally I’d chalk this up to a resident except for the hours she came in and out—in at nine-forty-seven Friday night and out at three-sixteen, and in at two-ten on Saturday and out at three-thirty.”

  “Okay,” Trent spoke as he ran the times through his head. He’d gone to Tia’s place at about nine-thirty on Friday, he remembered because they’d been eating pizza at close to eleven after their romp in the bedroom. He’d left around three because she hadn’t wanted him to stay all night. A fact that had bothered him at the time so he was pretty pissed off when he was leaving. Still, if there’d been a car in the parking lot that hadn’t been there when he pulled up Trent was sure he would have noticed it.

  “During those hours on Friday she could have easily slashed the tires. And the hour she was there on Saturday coordinates with the exact time you said Adam picked Tia up and took her to the baby shower.”

  “And she never returned from the baby shower, but the assailant wouldn’t have known she wasn’t coming back.” He was rubbing his hand over his head. “They would have had to know about the shower specifically. About Jade and the babies.” His stomach twisted with the implications.

  “Right,” Devlin agreed. “They knew the duration of the baby shower and was sure to get in and out in that timeframe.”

  “So we’re looking at a woman who not only knows Tia, but knows my family.” Either factor was cause to have Trent’s mind numbing with rage.

  “Bingo. I’m about to go over the tapes for the entire week. I’ve sent the first two over to Josh to magnify the images and get me a name. I just wanted to let you know where we stood.”

  “Good. Thanks, Dev.”

  “There’s another reason I called, Trent.”

  Pinching the bridge of his nose Trent wondered if things could get any worse. “Go ahead.”

  “While I’ve been in here looking at these tapes I got a call from Troupe.”

  Yeah, they’d gotten worse. “And?”

  “And we ship out on Saturday. Clobol has been spotted in Dubai. They want us to bring him in.”

  Trent’s entire body stiffened. The government had been searching for Johansen Clobol, a reported player in one of the largest terrorist organizations in the Middle East. If they had a positive ID on him they would want him brought in ASAP.

  Going to the Middle East now was not in Trent’s plans. Then again, he wasn’t altogether sure what his plans were. Only a few minutes ago he’d admitted that what he felt for Tia went way beyond the normal flirt, sex and goodbyes. Wasn’t this the exact situation he’d been afraid of? Leaving a woman he cared deeply for to enter into a life-threatening situation…a situation he might not return from.

  “You still there, man?” Dev asked.

  Trent let out the breath he hadn’t been aware he was holding. “Yeah. I’m here. Did you call the rest of the team?”

  “I told Josh when I called him about the tapes. I’m going to call Red and Baywatch when I hang up with you. I’ll send them down tonight to scope things out and set up. Josh and I will go on Tuesday. You can follow up on Saturday.”

  Trent frowned. “That’s not how we usually roll.”

  “One of us isn’t usually distracted, either,” Devlin answered quickly. “Look, take care of this situation with your woman first or you’ll be worthless to us. It seems pretty cut-and-dry stalker-type actions. When Josh gets us a name we’ll pick the crazy chick up and you can pack up and head out. Deal?”

  Already being involved with Tia was impacting his career. Or was it his career impacting being involved with Tia?

  “Deal. Call me as soon as you get new info.”

  “You know it.”

  Hanging up the phone, Trent sat down in the chair, resting his elbows on his knees.

  “What’s going on?” Linc asked.

  Trent wanted to answer that question, he wanted to tell his brothers everything but on the coffee table his cell phone vibrated.

  Linc picked it up and handed it to Trent. It was a text message from Sam Desdune.

  Been trying to call you. Left two voice messages last night. Larice Summerfield is missing.

  Trent re-read the message then cursed, throwing the phone across the room.

  Chapter 14

  Adam and Camille had a great home gym. It had been two days since Tia had moved into their home. That meant two days of spending the day at the office with Camille and the nights having dinner with first Jade and Noelle and then with Camille and Adam.

  Normally this would have made Tia feel crowded and anxious, instead she’d felt more rested and serene than she had in months. It may have been due to the king-sized four-poster bed in the guest room that Camille had put her in. Still, keeping with her less-is-more theme, Tia had decided she was definitely indulging in a bed like that when she found her new place.

  That had been one of the thoughts on her mind in the past two days: where she would move to? She’d called Camille’s therapist, Jeanne Brokeman, yesterday and had her first appointment this afternoon. In her estimate it hadn’t gone too badly. Jeanne was a small woman with a very low-key demeanor. She spoke in an almost hushed tone that Tia swore therapists and psychiatrists perfected. Her office had a comfortable feel with warm colors like champagne and beige and cranberry throughout its décor. And talking to her hadn’t been as difficult as Tia had thought.

  The session had ended and Tia had checked her cell phone the moment she’d left the office.

  Trent still hadn’t called.

  It was silly, she knew. She should just call him. But, truth be told, the other Donovans had been keeping her so busy the last two days that she hadn’t really had an opportunity. And if she wanted to be even more honest with herself, she would admit that she was afraid to talk to him.

  No matter how much she craved his touch, his overbearing remarks or even that contemplative look he gave her when he thought she wasn’t watching, she was still scared. She’d warned herself before becoming involved with him and so thought she’d been well prepared, just as she’d thought she was dealing with her grief issues in the right way.

  Trent was too much for her. Ther
e was no way she could have resisted him or the threat he was to her heart. Yes, the physical had crossed over to emotional the night he’d held her in his arms without making love to her. He’d been caring and sympathetic, all the while holding his ground. He knew about the accident because he’d had her investigated. Tia still didn’t know what to make of that. Did he investigate every woman he slept with or did this somehow make her special?

  Still, he’d known and he hadn’t said anything to her about it. Maybe he was respecting her privacy, but then if that were the case he wouldn’t have snooped into her background in the first place. At any rate, the secret was now out and everybody, including her mother, was glad of it. It wasn’t as if she were a murderer and Tia admitted it felt better to not walk around holding something in all the time.

  Except now she was holding something entirely different inside. Another thought that had plagued her for the past two days.

  She wanted Trent Donovan. No, she really wanted him and not just in her bed. Now how stupid was that? She’d gone this long in her life and had made one major reconciliation with herself at the same time dooming her heart to endless pain and suffering.

  Trent wasn’t the settle-down type of man. She’d known that before sleeping with him and while he didn’t remind of her of that fact, she knew it just the same. She’d thought she could stick with just having sex with him. Now she wasn’t quite sure. He had proven to be more caring and tender with her than anyone she had ever known.

  In Adam and Camille’s home gym, she used her favorite method to clear her mind. Sitting on the bench she did sets of fifteen with the ten-pound free weights. She was on her fourth set of ten when she felt a warmth at her back.

  Before she could turn around to surmise what it was his lips were on her neck, his hands sliding down her arms to her wrists where he continued the motion of her lifting the weights.