With that, she turned and stomped out of the kitchen, never looking back, and never seeing the wide grin on Paul’s face.
Chapter 19
It only took two hours for Paul to start missing Amber’s constant presence. He knew it would happen, but thought he could at least make it through the first half of the day. She had become a part of him, and he knew she was missing him, too, although, of course, being Amber she would never admit it.
The emptiness was understandable considering they’d practically been joined at the hip for the past two weeks. But still, if it weren’t for his monthly staff meeting scheduled for that afternoon…
He stood looking out the window of his executive corner office. It was a prime piece of Los Angeles realty, and less than a year ago he could never have afforded it. But everything had changed last March, when the Kodak Theatre needed additional security personnel for the upcoming Academy Awards at the last moment. An industry friend had recommended Paul’s agency, and Paul, recognizing the hand of fate when he saw it, pulled together the necessary manpower in a matter of days. He managed to get his new team bonded and trained within a week, and G-Force made an excellent showing at the ceremony.
The following Monday morning, the phone lines in his small one-room Westwood office began ringing off the hook. At the time, he and Vanessa were the only office staff he had, but they’d managed.
It was this same boom in business that kept him away from home almost day and night for the following months. And the reason Michelle was able to slip away with Joachim long before he found them in the hotel room.
It had only been a few months since all that happened, but it felt like a lifetime ago. Now, G-Force’s administrative staff of twenty-three, and field staff of one hundred and fifty-one men and women, provided personal protection to the L.A. elite, did security consulting for Fortune 500 companies and were soon adding a new retail line of security products.
With his newfound success, Paul moved his staff into the elegant suites they now occupied, and bought a new home far away from the hustle and bustle of Hollywood.
G-Force was growing at a phenomenal rate, and Paul was determined to make sure that growth didn’t stop anytime soon.
All he needed to complete his new life was a woman to share it with. He smiled to himself, thinking of the angel waiting at home for him. She was as good as gotten.
Just then, his assistant knocked on the door.
“Come in,” he called over his shoulder, and turned as the door was opened.
Before Vanessa could introduce the visitor, Keith Montfield circled around her and came into the room. “Well, look who decided to return to the world of the living.”
Vanessa just shook her head and closed the door.
Paul started toward his friend with a smile and an outstretched hand. “Hey, Keith, how are you?”
Keith accepted the handshake before flopping down in his favorite chair. “Good. Although, I was starting to worry about you.”
“What do you mean?”
“I know you have a home office, but you rarely work completely from home. Were you sick?”
Paul’s mouth twisted. “No.”
Keith’s sharp eyes narrowed on his face. “Glad to hear it. Family okay?”
Paul chuckled and propped himself against the desk. “For a detective you stink at interrogation. Just ask me what you want to know.”
“Who’s the girl?”
Paul stood and circled the desk trying to decide how to answer. Amber had left the hotel lobby before Keith and his officers arrived, so how did he know about her?
As if reading his mind, a slow smile came across Keith’s face. “Oh, I see, you didn’t realize I knew about her.”
Without revealing anything in his expression, Paul sat down behind the desk. “She’s a friend of a friend.”
Keith shrugged. “Must be some friend to cause such a fuss. That Kennedy guy couldn’t shut up about her.”
Paul relaxed. “Did you let him go?”
He nodded. “As the sun was rising, just as you asked. Although I still don’t understand why you didn’t want us to charge the guy.”
“If he’d been arrested, the press would’ve been all over it. And then there would’ve been questions about what caused it—”
“And then they would’ve wanted to know who was the mystery woman.” Keith nodded in understanding.
“Exactly.”
“Well, we let him go, although he was none too happy.”
Paul rested his elbows on the desk and leaned forward. “What about that other thing?” When his friend dropped his head, he had his answer.
“Sorry, Paul, you were right. When I questioned my men, I found out one of our rookies has a big mouth. The kid was impressed having a big-time celebrity athlete in the back of his patrol car, and he blabbered all the way back to the station.” He shook his head. “Freaking idiot. Anyway, you can be sure he won’t be making that mistake again.”
Paul searched his brain, trying to remember when he first spotted the black Mustang in his neighborhood.
Keith frowned. “You’ve seen him, haven’t you?”
“I hate it when you do that.”
“You shouldn’t be so easy to read. But if this guy is giving you a hard time, just let me know.”
“No, I’ve just seen a strange car in the neighborhood, but it could be anyone.”
“I’d trust my life to your instincts.” He stood. “If you think it’s him, it’s him. So what do you want to do about it?”
Paul shook his head. “Nothing I can do until he makes his move.”
“Well, I know you can take care of yourself, old friend, but if you need anything just let me know.”
Paul smiled, looking at Keith’s stoic expression. When he made that fierce expression, Paul could easily see vestiges of the scrawny kid he’d rescued from the neighborhood bullies all those years ago.
He’d found the boy, bloodied and cornered by a group of neighborhood kids, his thin, little fist balled and preparing to defend himself to the bitter end.
Paul knew the bigger boys wouldn’t have hurt the little guy too bad. They just wanted him to prove himself, to prove he could hold his own. But one runt against a dozen just wasn’t a fair fight and so he’d intervened…and won a friend for life.
“Want to get some lunch?” Keith asked.
Paul glanced at his watch. “No, we’re having our monthly staff meeting later, and I’ve arranged to have food brought in.”
“Okay, well, about the Kennedy thing, just give me a ring if you need anything.”
After saying farewell to his friend, Paul returned to his place of contemplation by the window. It was funny how fate had always intervened on his behalf.
By rescuing a skinny little boy all those years ago, he now had a close ally in the LAPD. And for a security specialist that was definitely a good connection. If someone had not recommended him to the head of security at the Kodak Theatre, G-Force would’ve never had the boom in business that followed. And if Luther had not called him that night asking him to find Amber, he would’ve never met her. Rosalie had always said he was favored by God. At times like this, he was inclined to believe her.
All morning Rosalie had been torn between amusement and exasperation with Paul’s houseguest, but by noon the scale had tipped toward exasperation.
Paul had not told her much about the girl when she’d shown up that morning, only that she was a friend who would be staying with him indefinitely.
Rosalie had thought no more of it, especially when she realized the girl was sleeping in one of the guestrooms, not in the master bedroom with Paul. But now, she realized that sleeping arrangement was more than a little deceptive.
Over the course of the morning, the beautiful young woman had proved to be as territorial as a lioness, and she was guarding her den with an unsettling fierceness. Right then she was sitting in the chair, feeding Joachim his bottle.
It had been like this all day. Amber had not
left his side.
Realizing Joachim would not be needing her anytime soon, she decided to pick up around the house a little, but whenever she touched anything, the girl would appear and explain why it could not be moved.
Rosalie had been a wife a long time, and a woman even longer, and she knew what was going on. She was being sent a message, and it wasn’t easy to mistake the meaning. She was being told in no uncertain terms that she was not welcome.
After finishing the few breakfast dishes, Rosalie opened the freezer looking for something to prepare for dinner. She always cooked for Paul and left the dinner in the oven before leaving for the evening.
“What are you doing?” she heard the young woman ask.
“I was taking out something for dinner.”
“That’s okay. I’m planning to fix a roast for dinner. Paul loves my roast.”
Rosalie was back to amused. Did this twenty-something beauty see her—a sixty-year-old married woman—as competition for Paul’s affection?
In good grace, Rosalie shut the freezer. She turned toward the other woman and felt herself soften a little. There was so much love in her eyes when she looked at that baby. Whatever was going on between her and Paul may not have been resolved yet, but there was no doubt about her feelings for Joachim.
Maybe she could clear things up with a simple statement. “You know,” Rosalie said, trying to sound casual, “me and my Enrique have been married for thirty-seven years now.”
Amber glanced up at the older woman with a confused expression on her face. “Congratulations.” She turned her attention back to the baby.
Rosalie’s eyes took on a faraway expression. “He was such a handsome young man, so strong and strapping. Our families worked together in the orange orchards.” She sighed dreamily. “Oh, how I enjoyed watching him work. When he would reach up—” she imitated the gesture “—the muscles in his arms would flex and ripple like waves on water.”
The girl smiled. “You really love him, don’t you?”
Rosalie smiled in return. “Yes, I do.”
Amber looked away and her long lashes concealed her eyes. “You’re lucky to find the kind of love that lasts a lifetime.”
Rosalie shook her head, and frowned. “No, no, not luck. Destiny.”
Amber arched an eyebrow. “Destiny?”
“You don’t believe in destiny?”
“I guess a little, but not in picking a husband. That decision is too important to leave to destiny.”
Rosalie’s eyes widened, wondering if maybe she’d misjudged the situation. “You and Paul…”
Amber’s eyes widened. “Oh, no! I mean—not that there’s anything wrong with Paul…absolutely nothing.” She sighed. “He’s so not wrong, he’s right, know what I mean?”
The look on Rosalie’s face said she did not.
“Never mind. Suffice it to say there is no me and Paul.” Joachim finished the last of his bottle, so Amber positioned him over her shoulder for burping. She stood and walked over to Rosalie, patting the baby on the back. “Have you ever met a man so perfect in every way, you ask yourself, ‘okay, what’s wrong with him?’ I mean, a guy this perfect should’ve been snatched up a long time ago, right?”
Rosalie nodded in understanding. “Did it ever occur to you that maybe that guy is asking himself the same questions about you?”
Amber smiled, and it turned into a laugh. “Good point. No, I hadn’t thought about it from his point of view.”
“When a squirrel is running across an open field, and in his path he discovers a perfect, untouched acorn, do you think the squirrel stops and examines the acorn for flaws or looks around wondering why no one else had taken the acorn? Do you think he drops the acorn back on the ground and leaves it, just in case something is wrong with it?”
Amber quirked an eyebrow at the strange analogy, but said nothing.
“No, he snatches up the acorn as fast as he can, and scurries it away to his home before another squirrel tries to steal it from him. When God blesses you, you don’t question the origins of that blessing. You should just thank God, and enjoy the blessing.”
“But how do you know a real blessing from a trap of lust?”
Rosalie tilted her head to the side, studying the girl. “You know, I would have to wonder about anyone that nervous about receiving a blessing. Maybe the problem is not the blessing, but that person’s sense of worthiness.”
Amber’s eyes shot back up to meet hers, and Rosalie was amazed at the doubt and fear she saw reflected there.
Seeing that Joachim was falling asleep, she smiled and reached for him, glad for the distraction. “Here, I’ll put the little one to bed.”
Amber’s hands closed around the baby. “No, that’s okay, I got him.” She turned and walked out of the kitchen.
Rosalie sighed. One step forward and two steps back. With a shake of her head, she continued to clean the kitchen.
Later that afternoon, while Joachim was napping, Amber returned to the guestroom to finish drawing her plans, but after fifteen minutes she realized she was not going to get anything done.
Rosalie had already beat her to the ironing, so there was nothing to do until Joachim rose from his nap. She wandered from room to room, trying to come to grips with the strange longing she’d been feeling all morning. It was almost a sadness, and for the life of her, she could not understand what it was about.
She wandered into Paul’s empty office, and as soon as she crossed the threshold and smelled his familiar scent in the air, she had a name for the yearning she’d been experiencing all day. It was not a pleasant realization.
She sat in one of the guest chairs, trying to understand how could she miss someone so much when he’d only been gone a few hours. And it wasn’t as if he wasn’t coming back. She glanced at the clock. He would be back in three hours—not that she’d been watching the time, or anything.
Laying her head back against the chair, she decided to stay there for a while. Right or wrong, good or bad, there was no denying the sense of comfort she gained from being among his things. She would deal with the implications of the emotion later.
When Rosalie passed by the door a few minutes later, she saw the girl sleeping in the wing-back chair, and she was more certain than ever of what she’d suspected.
The young lady may not think she knows what she wants, but her heart has already decided. Poor thing, she thought, it’s such hard work guarding a den.
With a chuckle, she continued carrying the basket of freshly ironed clothes upstairs to Paul’s bedroom.
Chapter 20
Rosalie was the first to notice Paul when he appeared in the entrance to the kitchen. Hearing the noise, Amber looked up from basting her roast when he came in.
Their eyes locked across the room, and the sudden increase in tension in the room seemed almost palpable. Rosalie had the feeling of standing on a track between two oncoming trains. All she wanted to do was get out of the way before she got ran over.
But there was no collision.
“Hi,” Paul said with a smile. His dark eyes roamed over Amber like fingers.
“Hi,” Amber said with an answering shy smile.
And that was the end of the lovers’ greeting.
Mío Dios! Rosalie picked Joachim up out of his playpen. For the first time all day, Amber did not make a move to stop her. How could they be honest with each other when they couldn’t even be honest with themselves? she thought with a shake of her head. She carried the baby out of the room, not even offering up an explanation for leaving.
Paul crossed the room until he was standing beside Amber, and she felt as if the air had disappeared from her lungs as she waited to see what he would do.
“I missed you,” he said, rubbing the back of his hand along her cheekbone. He smiled when he felt Amber tremble beneath his touch.
He waited, hoping for some sign that she’d missed him, but none was forthcoming. What did I expect? That eight hours apart would make her realize t
hat we belong together?
“Hmm, is that a roast I smell?” Paul turned his attention toward the pan sitting on the lowered oven door.
“Yes.” His interest in the roast seemed to break the spell. “It’s almost ready if you want to go get washed up.”
He turned to walk away, and then turned back. Eight hours may not have seemed like much to her, but for him it had been a lifetime.
Grabbing Amber around the waist, he pulled her close to his body. “Oh, I missed you.” His husky words spoken so close to her lips felt like a slight breeze, and then he was kissing her, pressing his lips against hers, applying pressure until she opened her mouth beneath his and his tongue plunged in, seeking her warmth. And in that moment he knew the truth. Despite her calm facade and show of indifference, the same storm was raging inside her. Paul slowed the assault, savoring the taste of her while his hands made small, circular tracings on her back.
It wasn’t until he lifted his head that he realized Amber’s arms were around his neck clutching the back of his collar. Even after he pulled back, her arms remained locked around him. Looking deep into her golden eyes, Paul grinned in satisfaction. She felt the same way he did, even if she would not say the words.
Feeling more inspired and validated than he had in a long time, he reached behind his neck, unlocking her arms, before placing one last soft kiss on her lips and heading for the downstairs bathroom.
After he was out of sight, Amber returned to preparing dinner and tried to block out the silent message Paul had delivered with his lips. It was much easier to pretend she did not understand what she read in his eyes. She didn’t want to think about the wonderful sensations she was experiencing at that moment. Nor did she want to concentrate on the happiness she felt in just knowing he was in the house with her again. She would not think about his warm and tender lips, and how good they always felt.
No, she would not think about any of those things. Because in her heart, in some small corner in the back of her heart, she still did not believe it was real. Men didn’t look at Amber Lockhart and see a wife and the mother of their child.
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