by Lori Foster
Brent raised his hands to her breasts, urging her on, his fingers finding and toying with her nipples, plucking, tugging, rolling them gently. Shadow arched her back and her thighs tightened. At the moment of her release, she again shouted that she loved him, then collapsed against his chest. He came with his own deep groan of fulfillment.
Long after the waves of her climax had receded, Shadow was still kissing him, though gently now, tender little nips on his chin and throat. She said again, "I love you, Brent."
Brent sighed, his hands holding her close in near desperation for just a moment. "What am I going to do with you, Shadow?"
She propped her elbows on his chest and stared down at him. "Do with me? You mean more than you've already done? I didn't know there was more, but hey, I'm all for it."
He smiled, but it was only a halfhearted effort.
Shadow leaned back down and cuddled against him. "We can simply continue as we are. Having fun. Enjoying each other. Making the most of our time together."
"I don't like the sound of that," he warned, eyeing her closely. "As if our time is limited."
"Well…" She toyed with the lock of hair over his forehead, before meeting his gaze. "I don't plan to go anywhere. But I wouldn't want you to stay here if you were unhappy."
"How could I be unhappy with you around?"
Brent could tell by her remote shrug that he'd hurt her. He wanted to kick his own ass, but more than that, he wanted to see her smile again, to hear her laugh. Her laughter never failed to arouse him and her smiles made him feel like the luckiest man alive.
He could tell her he loved her, he thought, whether he was certain of his feelings or not. But Shadow was always honest with him and she deserved his honesty in return.
He cared, just as he'd told her. But he didn't know about love; it wasn't something tangible, wasn't something he could easily grasp. Shadow was unique and different and … special. The way she made him feel was special. She said she loved him.
But, a tiny voice in his head insisted, plenty of women have claimed to love you.
Shadow shoved herself up into a sitting position. She brushed her hair out of her eyes. "I need to go home, Brent. I have to check my messages and—"
"You're coming back here tonight, Shadow." He had no intention of letting anyone, especially some loony secret admirer, get near her. She wouldn't be hurt. He'd see to that, one way or another.
"Don't get all heavy-handed and bossy on me, Brent. I said I would spend the night. But I need some clothes and my makeup and a few other things. Tomorrow is a workday, and I'll probably go straight from here."
"All right." Brent lifted them both to their feet. He couldn't keep his eyes, or his hands, off Shadow's naked body, with her standing so sweetly before him. He touched her cheek, her kiss-swollen lips. "Will you try to hire someone tomorrow? I don't want you working alone anymore." She started to draw back, ready to refuse, and he teased, "I did ask nicely that time. No demands at all. You see, I'm trying, even though I personally think I'm much better at issuing orders." He grinned at her. "Ah, the concessions I make for you."
"True." She chuckled, then gave up with a groan. "I'll see if there isn't a worthy applicant in the bunch first thing tomorrow morning. How's that?"
"It's great." Then he added, "For now."
* * *
Chapter 8
« ^ »
Still hearing the echo of the last message to play, Shadow stared at her answering machine. He'd called her again, not once, not twice, but three times. And he hadn't been happy. No, he'd been nearly incoherent with jealousy and anger.
She rubbed her arms and looked at Brent.
"This changes everything," Brent said, and his voice was as hard as his expression.
What could she say? "I … I don't know."
Brent nodded, then started for her bedroom.
"Where are you going?"
He didn't look at her. "To pack some of your clothes."
She hustled after him. "I can do that." Though she'd never admit it to Brent, she was relieved she wouldn't be staying home alone tonight. "I'll only need a few things for tomorrow."
Brent ignored her, rummaging through her closet until he found a suitcase, then opening it on her bed.
"Brent I don't need that case. I'll only … wait a minute! Brent, stop." She caught his hand, now in possession of two shirts. "What do you think you're doing?"
"You're not staying here alone."
She didn't want to, but she heard herself say, in a firm voice, "You can't force me to stay at your house."
He leaned down, eyes narrowed, and said through his teeth, "Watch me."
"I don't believe this!" Her nervousness over the calls was forgotten, smothered beneath her need for independence.
He stepped past her. "What's your parents' phone number?"
Shadow watched him suspiciously. She'd seen many moods from him, but this was a new one. "Now, Brent…"
He stalked to her little telephone table by the front door, opened a drawer and riffled through it until he located her personal phone book. Intent on his purpose, he paid no mind to Shadow's escalating temper.
She practically shouted, "I don't have my parents' number written down! Good grief, I know it by heart. It hasn't changed since I was ten years old."
Brent faced her. "Tell it to me."
This was interesting. She folded her arms over her chest, wondering what Brent intended to say to her parents. She'd told them a little about him, but nothing at all about the anonymous calls. Deciding quickly, she recited the number.
He dialed it without hesitation.
"Hello, Mrs. Callahan? This is Brent Bramwell, a friend of Shadow's." He paused, then said, "Oh, she told you about me?" His gaze met Shadow's briefly and she could have sworn that was raw satisfaction dancing in his dark green eyes. "She's fine, ma'am. No, I swear, nothing's wrong with her. That is, nothing you aren't already aware of. Yes, of course I was joking."
Shadow stuck her tongue out at him. He covered the mouthpiece and whispered, "Not yet, honey. How about when we get to my house?"
Her face colored, which only satisfied him more.
Brent listened a few minutes, laughed a few times, then explained about the calls, the flowers, the notes. He was very detailed, Shadow thought, peeved. But he was also calm enough that he wouldn't alarm her mother. He surprised Shadow by telling her mother that he wanted Shadow to stay with him.
"Yes, ma'am, but the thing is, she's concerned she'll shock you. I understand, but she'll be much safer with me until this whole thing can be resolved. I thought you might be able to talk some sense into her."
Brent's gaze filled with triumph and he handed her the phone. His grin was entirely too smug.
Shadow, knowing her mother well, took the phone and said without preamble, "No, Mom, I won't come home. I know, but I'm fine, really. No, it's true. I have this outrageously expensive security system Brent insisted on me buying…" She paused, then said, "Yeah. I suppose he is. I'm not sure about that. He hasn't really said. Yes, I love him."
Shadow could tell by the look on Brent's face that this wasn't the conversation he'd anticipated. Rather than her mother telling her to go with Brent, she was trying to coerce her into coming home. Shadow could have told Brent what the outcome of his call would be.
She rolled her eyes. "All right, Mom, I'll think about it. Give my love to everyone." She laughed. "Right. Goodbye."
Brent scowled at her. "What in hell was that all about?"
"My mother said you sound like a rascal and a thoroughly likable young man. She also said I should try to keep you happy so you'd stick around."
"What did she say about you staying with me?"
"When she accepted that I wouldn't come home, she said that I probably should and to be very careful if I don't."
"Aha! So she agrees with me?"
Shadow shrugged again, barely managing to hold her laughter. "I suppose she did. But, Brent, I'm thirty-one. I don
't always do what my parents want me to. I told you before, I've been on my own since I was seventeen."
"Does that mean you will or won't stay with me?" he demanded.
"Tonight I'll stay. Tomorrow I have to be at my own house." His anger and frustration were palpable and Shadow went to him, gently touching his arm. "Brent, can't you understand?"
"That you want to drive me nuts? Oh yeah, I understand that well enough."
"If I come to stay with you, it will mean I let him drive me out of my house. I'd be miserable knowing I'd given up."
"I wouldn't let you be miserable."
He was such an easy man to love, she thought with a small chuckle. "We both have jobs to go to, other commitments." He didn't relent, and she added, "Would you leave your home because of a few phone calls?"
He snorted at that, then turned thoughtful. "All right," he said finally. "But remember, I did give you options."
Shadow was surprised and perversely disappointed by how quickly he gave up. She turned away to finish her packing.
It was already dark outside, even though it wasn't quite seven. Brent stood by her side as she turned on the security system, then walked out to his car. He held her small overnight bag in one hand, her arm with the other. She was silent on the drive to his house, feeling melancholy again, a mood she wasn't familiar with and didn't quite know how to handle.
They entered Brent's house to the sound of a ringing phone. Brent had headed for the bedroom, so Shadow picked it up. She listened for only a moment, not saying a word after her initial greeting. Brent sauntered back in, and she handed him the phone with a wry smile. "It's your stalker, not mine."
"What?" Brent took the receiver with a curt, "Hello?" Then he groaned. "What do you want, Joan?"
Wanting to give him privacy, Shadow wandered aimlessly through the house. It was beautiful, but not decorated to its full potential. With diamond-paned windows, hardwood floors and a fireplace in nearly every room, the place bordered on historic, but the spacious rooms were largely empty, the walls bare. The few pieces of furniture or rugs were purely functional, not at all decorative. The only completed rooms in the entire massive, five-bedroom house were the family room, the kitchen and Brent's bedroom. These were furnished with heavy mahogany and cherry-wood pieces done in bold, basic designs. There wasn't a plant or a picture to be found.
Shadow was looking at a guest bedroom, one close to the hall bath, when Brent found her. She'd been thinking what a wonderful room it would be for a child. Overlooking the backyard, it had a closet big enough to be a play space, filled with plenty of shelves for toys.
She turned to Brent, trying to mask her thoughts. "Did you get everything straightened out with Joan?"
"She wanted me to have dinner with her."
"You told her no?"
"Of course I told her no. I have no interest in seeing her again. I wish to hell she'd leave me alone."
Shadow smiled. "She told me yesterday that you were unfaithful to her during your engagement."
Brent stiffened. "What did you say?"
"Not much. Mostly I just listened. I decided she was lying." Shadow looked down at her hands, clasped in Brent's much larger ones. "She's not a happy woman, Brent."
He rubbed her knuckles and asked, "Why do you say that?"
"Because she doesn't understand what will make her happy. She thinks you and your money will do it for her. She doesn't know she has to make herself happy, not rely on someone else to do it for her."
Brent frowned at her. "What're you trying to tell me in your twisted way, Shadow?"
She asked suddenly, "You haven't done much with this house. Why is that?"
He searched her face. "Your quick turns in conversation make me dizzy. All right. I haven't done much here because I wasn't certain I'd stay, and I haven't had a lot of free time."
"Are you certain now?"
Borrowing her tactics, he didn't answer but asked his own question instead. "What's this all about, honey?"
"My mother asked me if you planned to stay in town or if this was a temporary visit to take care of business. I didn't know the answer to that. It made me realize there's a lot I don't know about you. What your plans are for the future, what you want say … five years from now. If you've set any long-term goals for yourself. I was just curious, I suppose."
Brent chewed on the inside of his cheek, scrutinizing her. "And you decided to ask all these questions here, in this particular bedroom? Or was it because of Joan's call?"
Shadow shook her head.
"I don't understand you, Shadow. Nothing new in that, I suppose. But I've asked you to marry me and that alone should tell you I don't plan to uproot anytime soon. Or even if I had planned to, I wouldn't go unless you could go, too. And as far as my goals for the future, I haven't set any. My business ventures are forever expanding, so I don't have to consciously set goals for them. I simply grow and expand with them."
"And personal goals? Any thoughts on them?"
"Only to the point that I'm thirty-four and therefore at an age where I should be having children of my own, a wife to come home to." He lifted her hand to his chest. "We could have a very nice life together, Shadow."
It wouldn't be enough, she knew, not without his love. But she couldn't tell him that. She'd made too many demands already. "Don't you see? We could have a nice life apart, too. You shouldn't consider marriage just because it'd be convenient right now."
He placed his palm over her flat belly. "And if you're pregnant? That would be a lifetime commitment for both of us."
"You wouldn't have to be married to me to do your duty to the child."
Brent thrust his hands in his pockets and turned away. "It wouldn't be a matter of duty." He whirled back to face her. "Do you think I'd avoid involvement in my child's life?"
Helplessly, she stared at him. "I don't know, that's just it. I mean, there's involved, and then there's involved." She smiled, trying to lighten the tension in the room. "This may all be a moot point. The odds of me being pregnant can't be all that great."
"Oh, I don't know. Not to brag, but I'm good at anything I do." He touched her belly again and looked almost wistful. "I'd say it's possible."
"But not probable. Let's wait before we worry that topic into the ground, okay?"
Brent gave long consideration to her suggestion and finally nodded. Shadow had the distinct impression he'd made a strategic—and temporary—retreat. "What would you like to do for dinner? We haven't eaten yet."
"Do you have peanut butter and jelly?"
"Uh, no. I don't think so."
"Then the first order of business is a trip to the grocery. Then—" she yawned dramatically "—I think I'd like to make an early night of it. What do you say?"
"Do you intend to attack me again?"
"I was considering it."
Brent instantly feigned his own yawn, complete with an elaborate stretch. "I suddenly feel faint with exhaustion. An early night it is."
* * *
She got another call the next day. Shadow's temper was frayed to the limit, her disposition not to be envied, and she hadn't gotten enough sleep the night before. The only bad thing about that was it couldn't be blamed on Brent. They'd made love twice, then he'd fallen asleep, his arms around her, her head on his shoulder. It was the most comfortable position imaginable, yet sleeplessness had kept her up long into the night.
The call was short, something about showing her who was in control. Ha! She already knew—Brent was.
Without trying, he'd managed to control her thoughts, her feelings. Effortlessly, he made her want him, love him … almost need him. Life had taught her to need no one but herself.
Her life would be every bit as complete without him. Who was she kidding? Brent was the part of her she hadn't known was missing, a part that filled her up, made her whole, more content, more fulfilled. She could make it without him—she wasn't dramatic or a fatalist. Life wouldn't end without Brent. But it sure wouldn't be as wonderfu
l, either. Not even close.
Shadow paced, ignoring the pile of papers on her desk that needed her attention, knowing she should be out front helping train the new girl she'd hired just that morning. But she couldn't seem to clear her mind. The papers would wait and Kallie did a commendable job of training. When the phone rang, Shadow stared at it, a malicious smile slowly dawning over her face. She needed an outlet for her temper and her annoying admirer would do just fine.
"Hello?" she fairly sang.
"I wanted to give you fair warning."
Oh, hell. Wrong stalker. "What do you want, Joan?"
"I told you. Just a friendly little warning. Brent will tire of you soon. Then I'll have him back. Why don't you save yourself a little heartache and give up?"
"Well, now," Shadow said, her voice sugary sweet with politeness, "I appreciate your concern for my welfare, indeed I do. But it's unnecessary. Truly. You see, I'm enjoying every little minute I spend with Brent. So no matter how long it lasts, there won't be a single wasted second."
"You little bitch! Can't you see he's only using you?"
"That's okay. I'm using him, too." Shadow could hear Joan gnashing her teeth. It pleased her.
"I'm going to see him this afternoon. He likes to make love in his office, did you know that?"
Her words had been softer, more in control. Shadow grimaced, not liking the mental picture that formed. She said carefully, "I had the impression Brent liked making love just about anywhere. But no, I haven't been to his office."
"Well, I have. I will get him back."
Rapidly tiring of the game, Shadow said, "Joan, if you can get him back, then I don't want him anyway. I wish you luck." And she hung up. Spiteful witch. She thought about calling Brent and warning him, then decided it might smack of jealousy, so she resumed her pacing instead.
Ten minutes later, she got yet another call and this one was from her number one annoyance. Shadow thought, rather humorlessly, that he must be as bored as she was, but most probably for different reasons. She already missed Brent terribly. This guy was just plain missing.
"What do you want now?" she asked.
