by Lexi Blake
His hand moved back to the steering wheel. “I married Lynn because we’d been dating for a couple of years and we decided it was time. Jocks were Lynn’s thing and when she realized I was going to actually get into the pros, she started pushing me to commit. And it’s to Henry’s everlasting credit that he never tells me he told me so. I thought I was in love so we got married and everything was good for a time. We struggled to get pregnant, found out she had endometriosis. I wanted to adopt, but she was insistent. She became utterly obsessed with having a baby. We spent every dime I made on IVF and I’ll be honest, I got tired of being treated like a sperm donor. I know infertility is hard and it was hard on Lynn, but after a while it didn’t feel like we had a marriage anymore. We had a project and she was determined to finish it. I didn’t understand why we couldn’t adopt. There are all these kids out there and they need parents. I didn’t get why we had to put ourselves through hell when we could go out and open our arms and have what she said she wanted.”
“Did she ever manage to get pregnant?”
“No. It never worked for us. Then my first major injury happened. For the first time in years I spent more than a few days at home with her and I realized we lived two completely different lives. But she begged me to keep trying and we went to counseling. I wanted to retire from the game. I wasn’t ever going to be an exemplary player. I went into football because my dad loved it and it was a good way to get a scholarship. I didn’t want to go pro at all, but Lynn insisted that I would make a ton of money and set us up for the rest of our lives. She convinced me I could go to law school after my pro career was through.”
She couldn’t imagine anyone walking away from football, but then she’d spent much of her teen years and adult life surrounded by the culture. “I thought it was every boy’s dream to be a professional athlete.”
“It was when I was a kid. But the older I got, the more I wanted to do something different. Maybe it was Harvard and Henry. I got to be friends with Henry and he was incredibly passionate about the law. It rubbed off on me. Anyway, I let that go to please my fiancée and my parents. But the second injury—I knew it was career ending.” His voice was gravelly with emotion.
She wanted to have her hand in his again. “And you decided to go back to school.”
His head nodded slowly. “I did. That was when Lynn left me. She explained that she never wanted to marry a boring lawyer and that’s all I would ever be. She told me she was leaving me for one of my teammates and she’d been having an affair with him. I didn’t see her again for six weeks. I was ready to start divorce proceedings when she showed up and told me she’d been diagnosed. We needed the insurance and that’s why I stayed on the roster. I know everyone has this idea in their head that if you play pro ball you’re an instant millionaire.”
She knew the truth. “Not at all. Don’t forget I spent a lot of time working in the Guardians’ front office. Unless you’re a superstar, you don’t make millions until late in your career.”
“I made the league minimum most of my career,” he admitted. “Back then it was almost three hundred thousand. At the end I was up to six hundred. I know that’s a lot of money . . .”
She interrupted him because it was obvious he hated explaining money to her. “Your agent takes a cut. The IRS takes a big cut. And then there’s living expenses.”
“I bought my parents a house. That wasn’t cheap. My wife didn’t believe in living within her means,” he replied. “I still managed to sock money away. I made some good investments, but those IVF treatments were expensive and they were nothing compared to her medical bills from the cancer treatments even with good insurance. When the team booted me, I got to keep my insurance for a couple of years. It’s why we didn’t divorce. I went back to school and she chose to go to her parents’ home for treatment.”
“Why would you pay her medical bills?” She had to ask the question though she already knew why. Because he was a good man.
He shrugged slightly as they started through the Lincoln Tunnel. “She was my wife. I couldn’t leave her with nothing.”
“It sounds like she left you with nothing.”
“Well, I couldn’t have lived with myself if I hadn’t helped her. But I didn’t love her. At that point, I knew I’d never honestly loved her. I shouldn’t have married her. If there’s one thing you learn as a defense attorney, it’s that there’s always two sides to any story and no one ever thinks he’s the villain.”
“Why would her parents hate you? Carey apparently spoke to them. He told me he has dossiers on people he might have to hire.”
David chuckled, though it wasn’t an amused sound. “That does not surprise me. As to why my in-laws hate me, that’s simple. Lynn wasn’t good at telling the truth. She told her parents I was the one who had the affair and that was why she left. She was dying at the time and I wasn’t going to defend myself. It was better they hated me than be disappointed in her.”
“So that’s why you didn’t visit her.”
“She didn’t want me around,” he explained. “She never loved me. She loved my potential and the life I could have provided for her, but never me. So that is my truth. I’m sure Lynn would have something else to say. I didn’t go to her funeral but I paid for it. It wasn’t the same as what happened between you and Carey Kendrick’s son. There was no young love involved. Just a whole lot of regret.”
It was easy to see it still affected him, and she wished she’d never reopened that wound. “I’m sorry.”
He looked a little ghostly in the lights of the tunnel. Remote. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. I wish she’d lived. I didn’t want anything bad to happen to her, but I prefer my life now. I wish I’d followed my gut in the first place and borrowed the money for law school. All I ended up getting from years of playing was a beat-to-hell body, arthritic knees, and a potential sword hanging over my head.”
“A sword?”
“I spend every day of my life worried I’ll end up like Trey,” he admitted.
The thought made her heart ache. “Not every player gets it. Most don’t. Trey had a much longer career than you did.”
“Well, I still do everything I can to hold it off. That’s my side of the story. I don’t know if that changes your mind about me or reinforces your decision, but it’s the truth.”
She shifted in her seat, turning toward him. “It changes my mind, but I don’t know what we’re doing. I want to ask you on a date, but I don’t know how wise that is.”
“If it helps, I would say yes,” he said, his tone warmer than before. “You’re not my client. We share a client, so it’s more like dating a coworker. If you have a hard line against that, I’ll have to work to soften that up because you’re the only woman I’ve wanted in years.”
The words alone made her body heat up. He wanted her. “Do you want to come up and we can talk about . . .” She laughed, her first genuine laugh in hours. “I was going to say we can talk about whatever you found out from the kids today, but I swear if I have to even think Oscar’s name again I might scream.”
“Okay, well, how about we go back to your place and talk about anything except the case. I could do without thinking about it for a while, too. Although I would feel better if I’d punched that kid.”
She laughed again, her heart light at the thought of spending another night with him. “I’m glad you didn’t or I would have to play your lawyer. Let’s order pizza. I’m in a comfort-food mood. And wine. I could use some wine.”
They would talk. They would get to know each other better. They would decide if they would go to bed together. God, was it wrong that these normal choices excited her? That she felt real for the first time in years?
He turned down the street that led to her building and stopped at the red light.
“What do you want on your pizza?” she asked. “I know you’ll need some kind of meat. Let me guess. Y
ou’re an Italian sausage guy. Extra cheese. Please tell me you don’t mind mushrooms. I can’t live without them. It might be a deal breaker.”
“Is that your building up ahead?” David asked, paying no mind at all to her flirty tone.
She sat up straight. There were two big news trucks outside her building.
A horn honked and she realized the light had turned green. The traffic was heavy and there was no way David could move to one of the outer lanes before they stopped at the next light.
“Why are they here?” She sank down in her seat and wished she’d brought a hat or something.
“Just be cool. We’ll drive by and head someplace safer,” he promised.
The car rolled another few feet and that was when someone noticed her. The camera crews turned like predators scenting an easy meal and they were all over the car. They swarmed all around the Audi and she heard the click of a button as David checked to make sure the doors were locked. Knuckles rapped on the windows and suddenly people were shouting questions. If there was any thought that this was some kind of a mistake, it was tossed away as they started shouting her name.
“Isla, what do you have to say about Trey’s incarceration? Is it true you were his lover and he killed his wife for you?”
“Isla, how much money will you get if you manage to help keep your lover out of jail?”
“Did you know Trey planned to kill Portia? Or was that a surprise? Did you help him set her up?”
“What?” She couldn’t believe what they were asking.
“Don’t acknowledge them.” David’s words came out in a hard tone. “Don’t even look at them. Stare straight ahead. Give them nothing. Don’t you dare let them see you cry. Keep your face as blank as possible.”
“An insider said someone else was in the penthouse that night,” a reporter said. She was in a form-fitting suit, a wireless microphone in her hands. “Was that you? Were you there when Trey Adams killed his wife, and did you help him clean it all up?”
She started to turn, but his hand came out, stopping her.
“Not a word.”
“But she mentioned a witness.” If there was a witness, shouldn’t they get that name?
“Their witness is very likely some crackpot who called in to the station. Look out the front window and stop reacting right now, Isla. You can’t give them anything to use. And don’t cry. You can cry all you like when we get someplace safe.”
They kept yelling their questions and the day was crashing in on her. This was how her life was going to be. This would always taint her.
“Noah? I’m going to need Drew’s place. Can you call and have it prepped?” He had his cell phone pressed to his ear. “Of course it is. No. That won’t be a problem. Yeah, we have a press invasion at Isla’s. Same old, same old. Thank you.” He moved the car forward an inch, but the reporters were standing in front as well. His jaw tightened and he dialed the police. “Yes, there’s a car surrounded by reporters on Fifth outside the Tranor Building. It’s holding up two lanes of traffic. Thank you.”
“What do we do?” She hated the fact that her voice was shaky.
“We wait for the cops and pray my temper holds because I would really like to mow down a couple of reporters right now.” Despite his words, he put the car in park. “When we get to our new destination, I will be filing several suits against a couple of media firms.”
Somehow the fact that he was brutally angry calmed her down. He was here with her. “I don’t think you can sue them.”
“I’ll find a way.” His hands were tight on the steering wheel.
“Well, right now all they have is me looking confused and staring out the front window. I think we’ll be okay.”
“You want to give them something else to talk about?” His voice had gone husky, his eyes still on the reporters in front of them, but his jaw had softened slightly.
“What would that be?”
He was silent for a moment as though thinking about what he was going to say next. “They think you’re involved with Trey Adams. Show them you’re involved with me.”
Her heart rate ticked up and it wasn’t all about the situation they were in. “Seriously? I thought we were trying not to make news.”
He finally turned her way and his lips curled up in a grin. “I’m boring. If you’re having an affair with me, you’ll be boring, too.”
“That might be the worst line I’ve ever heard.” Even with the barbarians at the gates, he made her smile. “Is it going to work?”
“Hell, yeah, it is. Let me lead.” He reached over and put his hand on hers, drawing it up and bringing it to his lips. He kissed her hand and then held it to his chest as though giving her comfort or taking it for himself.
As though? No, she felt so much comfort in the touch of his hand. She leaned in and let her head find his shoulder. Under the thin material of his shirt, she could feel his heart beating against her palm.
Sure enough, the reporters were documenting every move they made.
“It’s going to be okay, Isla. This is going to go away and life will be back to normal again,” he whispered.
Those weren’t the words she heard though. She heard what his heartbeat was telling her. I’m a rock. You can hold on to me and I won’t break. You can count on me.
Slowly she calmed down. “I can’t stay at home right now. They’ll be here for a couple of days. I would be a prisoner here and I would put everyone else in the building in their way, too.”
They kept knocking on the windows.
David ignored them. “You’re right. They’ll camp out here, though the police will try to stop them. They’ll try to hunt us down, but I’m taking you someplace safe. We’ll have a few minutes while the cops are sorting everything out. Is the parking garage secure here?”
“Yes. They keep a tight lid on the garage.” She started when the car was jostled. It was strange to think that a few minutes ago she’d felt perfectly safe in the car. Everything could change quickly, and she had to remember that.
“It’s all right. The cops will be here soon.”
She took a deep breath. They were blocking out the sun now. She tried to concentrate on what he’d said on the phone. He’d called Noah and asked about his brother’s place. “Drew? Lawless? You’re taking me to hide out in Noah’s brother’s place?”
“Well, I certainly wouldn’t take you to Noah’s. He wouldn’t stop hitting on you, and god only knows who he would drag home at two in the morning. Seriously, Drew’s place is empty right now. We won’t be imposing and he’s got the best security in the city. They would look for us at Henry’s. I don’t want to bring this down on Win’s head.”
She let out a shaky laugh. “Noah’s not that bad and you’re right. Win’s been through enough press to last a lifetime. And I’m curious about seeing how a reclusive billionaire lives. You certainly know how to show a girl a good time, Cormack.”
“I try.”
In the distance she could hear sirens.
“See, there they are. They’ll have this whole crew cleared out of here in a couple of minutes, we’ll run up and pack a bag, and then we’ll hunker down and see what’s on Lawless’s Netflix list.” He squeezed her hand.
The sirens were loud now and the road suddenly cleared.
David breathed a massive sigh of relief and turned into the parking garage. “Okay, we’ve got two following us.”
“The guard should keep them out.” She hoped. “Let me off by the elevator and I promise I’ll be superfast. If you want to wait with the car, I won’t be more than five minutes.”
He glanced around, obviously looking for a slot. “I should go with you.”
Unfortunately it was a Sunday and everything was taken. If it had been during the week, there might have been some tenant slots open, but there was nothing on the weekends.
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�The guest spots are taken.” She unbuckled her belt. “I’m grabbing my toothbrush and some clothes and my laptop. I bet the cops won’t be here for long. We have one shot at this.”
She could see in his face he wasn’t happy about the plan, but he nodded shortly. “Hurry.”
He stopped the car and she was out in a shot. Her shoes thudded, echoing through the concrete garage as she raced to the elevator.
What had she done? She’d pretty much announced to the world that she was seeing David Cormack. There would be pictures tomorrow of them huddled together in his car, her hand over his chest. Carey was going to be upset that she hadn’t followed his advice.
The elevator opened and she waved at David. It didn’t matter. This was her life and she wanted to see where it went with him. Hell, she wanted him period. While she was shoving her laptop into a bag she would shove some lingerie in there, too. She’d bought a couple of pieces from Victoria’s Secret when she’d decided it was way past time to get out there and start living again, but she’d never worn them for a man. Most of her dates hadn’t led to sex, and the few she’d had sex with hadn’t cared about anything but their own orgasm.
Would it still fit? Would he like her in it? Or was he sitting down there right now figuring out how badly he’d screwed up by getting involved with her?
She watched as the floors counted off, her heart rate ticking up. Please don’t let there be a reporter at my door.
It was quiet in the elevator. She’d never noticed that before. It was almost eerily silent.
It was stupid that the elevator doors opened and she was slightly afraid to walk down that hall. It seemed longer than it did normally. How many doors from the elevator to her apartment? Six. She was the seventh apartment on the right. It was a thirty-second walk. Why was she hesitating?
The doors started to close and she stopped them. Something prickled along her spine, but she ignored it. She wasn’t going to call David and tell him she was afraid to walk her own hallway alone.
