Sex and the Sleepwalker

by Donna Sterling

  The weekend-long tailgating party had begun.

  Two of the beauty queens danced provocatively with Kappa Alpha guys in a grassy clearing between tables, no doubt killing time before joining parties on campus or at frat houses. Other guests watched, clapped and whistled.

  Brynn, dressed in a red University of Georgia T-shirt and tiny black shorts that hugged her slender hips and nicely rounded bottom in a seriously distracting way, was encouraging the retired professors to dance, making sure no one was left out of the action.

  Cade tried not to glare at Smitty, the likable yet annoying frat-boy-turned-insurance-salesman who was admiring Brynn’s trim backside a little too much for his liking. As long as the guy kept his hands to himself, Cade supposed he’d have to let him live.

  Whether she realized it or not, all of the men watched her on the sly. She’d attracted a lot of male attention back in college, too. She hadn’t seemed to notice then, either. She’d been aware of his interest, though. Openly aware. Undeniably aware.

  Now she avoided him with that same intensity.

  God help the poor sucker who tried to get her alone.

  Calm down, Hunter. You can’t stop her from choosing another man to spend time with…even intimate time, if it comes to that. But the thought that it might had kept him on edge all evening. He wasn’t sure what he’d do if she took on male company for the night. Unless, of course, she chose him.

  He no longer held out much hope for that. She’d been avoiding him since their talk that afternoon.

  Maybe she shied away from him out of loyalty to her boyfriend, Antoine, Trish’s cousin with the “continental charm.” Cade wondered when he’d show up. That thought, too, made him unreasonably tense. Cade didn’t think he could take it if Brynn showed signs of being in love with the guy. Or even of being in lust with him.

  Cade mentally scoffed at himself. So much for his vow never to let Brynn Sutherland under his skin again.

  But how could he resist a woman who got upset that he hadn’t followed his dreams? He didn’t know anyone else who’d ever given a thought to what his dreams were or whether he’d achieved them. She’d also recognized the force that had driven him since he was a kid: to be one of the “good guys.” He hadn’t consciously recognized that motivation in himself until she’d said it. It stunned him to realize anyone knew him that well, let alone someone he hadn’t seen in years.

  When she’d broken off their conversation today and gone back to ignoring him, he’d been as disappointed as he had last night, when she’d run from his bed.

  This afternoon’s television broadcast hadn’t helped his mood any, either. He hadn’t expected the news of the abductor’s note and “Pied Piper” moniker to become public so soon. Media attention was, without a doubt, what the perp craved. Publicity could encourage him to strike again, and sooner rather than later.

  At least some of the details hadn’t been publicized yet. Like the fact that every woman he’d taken was a loved one of an Atlanta cop. Two were wives, the other a daughter. That juicy little tidbit would be leaked to the media soon enough, Cade guessed. And Brynn, knowing that her brother was not only an Atlanta cop, but the lead detective on the Piper’s case, would realize how much danger she was in. Which would only complicate Cade’s job all the more.

  Annoyed by the media coverage—and the fact that Smitty had finally persuaded Brynn to dance with him—Cade decided to get on with another part of his job: to find out as much as he could from and about the people in her immediate environment.

  Since he’d already talked with Lexi that morning and many of the guests throughout the day, he decided to spend some time with the one he’d spoken to the least. The one who could tell him the most about Brynn’s boyfriend. Trish.

  THE PARTY WAS CLEARLY a huge success. Everyone seemed to be having a fabulous time eating, drinking, dancing or flirting. Brynn couldn’t wait until it ended.

  Her less-than-sunny mood had nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that Trish, dressed in only a black bikini, high heels and a sheer little wrap around her slim hips, was practically welded to Cade’s side. They’d sat at a table talking, just the two of them, for what seemed like hours. Now she stood arm in arm with him as he talked to other guests, flashing not-so-subtle invitations to him with her big ol’ baby blues.

  Brynn couldn’t take another minute of it.

  “Um, Trish, honey,” she called, “I need your help with something for a few moments. Would you mind?”

  The look Trish shot her made it clear that she did indeed mind. Brynn smiled and crooked her finger. Reluctantly, Trish whispered something to Cade, then followed her up the porch steps and into the house.

  When they reached the library, Brynn pulled Trish into the spacious, stately room and shut the door. “Trish, please listen to me. I’m telling you for your own good—don’t get involved with Cade Hunter.”

  Trish frowned at her. “Why not?”

  “Because you’re vulnerable right now. You’re on the rebound after your divorce. Why get into another relationship that’s bound to end badly?”

  “What makes you think it’ll end badly? Cade is nothing like my cheating, son-of-a-bitch ex.”

  “Oh, you don’t think so?” This was just too much to take! “Then let me tell you about how my relationship with him ended back in college. Cade demanded that I have sex with him, and when I wouldn’t, he got it from someone else.”

  There. She’d said it. It had hurt, yes—like a bandage being torn from a wound—but at least Trish had been warned.

  “You wouldn’t have sex with him?”

  Brynn blinked. Her friend clearly hadn’t gotten the point. And the incredulity in Trish’s expression reminded her of why she hadn’t discussed the matter in any great detail with Trish or her other sorority sisters. Her virginity had been something of an oddity.

  “I was only eighteen, Trish! And I—I…” Knowing her friend would never understand, Brynn threw her hands up in exasperation. “What difference does it make why I didn’t have sex with him? When I said no, he turned to someone else.”

  “Well, what did you expect him to do?”

  Brynn’s exasperation grew. Trish just didn’t get it. “He turned to one of our sorority sisters.”

  At last, shock and disapproval registered on Trish’s face. Since her husband had slept with one of her friends from the yacht club, she was particularly sensitive to the issue of a man betraying a woman with one of her friends. “That bastard!”

  Much better. Brynn nodded, mollified.

  “Who was it?” Trish asked.

  She bit her lip and shook her head, suddenly unsure if it had been wise to tell Trish about her heartbreak with Cade. She certainly wouldn’t mention Rhiannon’s name, as she had to Lexi that morning. It wouldn’t be fair to spread unsubstantiated rumors about the possibility that Cade had fathered Rhiannon’s baby. “Who it was doesn’t matter, Trish. The point is, he broke my heart. And it took years for me to get over it.”

  “I’m so sorry, Brynnie.” Compassion softened Trish’s voice. She had spent hours telling Brynn about the anguish of discovering her husband’s affair and her friend’s betrayal. Brynn knew she now empathized completely. “You don’t still have feelings for him, do you?”

  “No, of course not. I learned my lesson about Cade Hunter a long time ago.”

  “Good.” She hugged Brynn, then drew back with a lopsided smile. “Then don’t you worry about me, hon. I’m not in this for any long-term relationship. In fact, now that I know how he treated you, I believe I’ll punish him for all the wrong he’s done and leave him with a broken heart. That would be poetic justice, wouldn’t it?” With a bittersweet grin, she squeezed Brynn’s shoulders, turned away and left the library.

  Brynn fought the urge to grab her by her pretty blond hair and yank her back in. Trish clearly had her mind set on seducing Cade. Brynn couldn’t allow that to happen! Intent on running interference—although she had no clear idea how she’d do th
at—she made a move to rejoin the party.

  But then a man stepped out of the shadowy hall, filling the library doorway. Brynn’s heart turned over. Cade. She was too startled to speak.

  His face was dark, serious. “Was that true, Brynn? What you told Trish. Did I really…break your heart?”

  “You were listening at the door,” she accused, mortified.

  “Your voice carried into the hall.” He drew closer and repeated his question. “Did I break your heart?”

  She didn’t want to admit that. Not to him. “Of course you did.”

  He stared at her, looking genuinely stunned. “I didn’t think you cared enough to get hurt. You broke up with me and didn’t look back. You refused to talk to me or see me.”

  “It doesn’t matter anymore, anyway.” She tried to move past him, but he caught her shoulders.

  “It does matter.” He searched her face with an intensity she hadn’t seen in him since their early days, and she felt more naked now than she had last night. “I didn’t turn to any of your sorority sisters for sex.”

  Her jaw went slack at the blatant lie. “Are you forgetting about Rhiannon Jeffries?”

  “I never slept with Rhiannon. We were friends. Platonic friends. Her family belonged to the same country club as my father. And because I spent six months a year at my father’s house, I—”

  “Give it a break, Cade. We were all at a party together, remember? Two days after we broke up. Or maybe you didn’t notice I was there. You were on the sofa all evening, making out with your so-called platonic friend.”

  “So you were paying attention.” He actually had the nerve to sound annoyed with her, as if she’d somehow deceived him. “You didn’t act like you noticed or cared.”

  “Did you expect me to wail and gnash my teeth?”

  He thinned his lips and took a deep breath. When he looked at her again, he made a clear attempt to start over. “Brynn, I admit I was wrong. I made a lot of bad choices. But, as unlikely as it sounds, sleeping with Rhiannon wasn’t one of them. I never had sex with her. I brought her to that party just to make you jealous, hoping you’d come back to me. And Rhiannon went along with it to get to some other guy. Not the brightest of moves on our part…but we were both just so damn desperate.”

  Willingness to believe him welled up in her, but she fought it. Why should she believe him now when she hadn’t back then? And why should she care now, one way or the other, whether he’d had sex with someone else?

  He still made her feel things too deeply. That hadn’t changed at all. Abruptly, she tried to break free from him.

  He kept firm hold of her shoulders. “Brynn, I’m sorry that I made you think I was involved with Rhiannon. And I’m sorry for giving you that ultimatum. I’ve never regretted anything more.” Remorse showed in his eyes, the kind that bordered on heartsickness.

  She was utterly tempted to forgive him and melt into his arms. Was she crazy to let down her defenses that much? This was the man who had ripped out her heart and stomped it flat!

  “I forgive you.” She forced a tight smile while her insides waged a battle. “We’ve both grown up, anyway. Moved on. Found happiness, et cetera, et cetera.”

  “Don’t do that, Brynn.” His hands tightened on her arms. “Don’t shut me out. And don’t be so sure I’m the only one to blame. You made me believe I was important to you while we were together. The way you held me, the way you kissed me. But then you kept pushing me away, and I realized I wasn’t a part of your plans. You didn’t want to get too attached. That’s why you kept me at a distance. I just wanted to break down your barriers, Brynn, and close the distance between us.”

  “I was too young to get serious about anyone. We were both too young.”

  “I can see that now. But, at the time, all I saw was you. And I knew that your feelings for me went only so deep, and my time with you was limited.” He released a harsh breath. And his voice turned wry, self-deprecating. “You’d think I’d have been used to that, but for some crazy reason—” He bit off the words and shook his head, as if to deny he’d said them. Or to shake off a painful thought.

  The unfinished statement made sense to Brynn only when she remembered what she’d pried out of him about his past. His wealthy, prominent father and exotic-dancer mother had waged an anticustody battle over him when he was seven. Neither side had wanted him. They were forced to share custody. He was shoved from one household to the other and back again. The significance of his childhood suddenly put his behavior toward her in a whole new light.

  Your feelings for me went only so deep. My time with you was limited. You’d think I’d have been used to that….

  She pressed a hand to her heart. Had she hurt him? No. This was just his way of turning things around. Shifting blame. Confusing her.

  “We can’t change what we did, Brynn, but we can decide what happens now.” He ran his hands down to her elbows and pulled her against him. “You were right when you said we’ve both grown up and moved on. I’m not expecting you to change anything in your life for me, and I don’t plan on hanging around too long. But I think there is something you want from me, just like I want it from you.”

  Heat fluttered in her stomach, and she looked away from him, knowing what he meant. Knowing he was right.

  “Come to bed with me,” he urged. “Tonight.” With a soft, devastating note of humor in his voice, he added, “Awake this time.”

  Temptation rushed through her in a hot, dizzying surge. What would it hurt?

  But she was having a harder time now than ever seeing him in his true light. She wasn’t even sure any more what that was. She was pretty certain, though, that somewhere a bright, urgent warning should be flashing: Danger. Danger.

  Unable to answer, or think clearly, or come to any kind of decision whatsoever, she mumbled a disjointed apology, pushed past him into the hallway and fled to the sanctuary of her private suite. Lexi could handle the rest of the party on her own. Social activities were, after all, Lexi’s job. For once in her life, Brynn was heartily glad of that.

  She was also thankful that she’d had the foresight to install that new computerized lock on the door to her suite. She could sleep secure in the knowledge that she wouldn’t be climbing into Cade’s bed without giving the prospect a lot of careful, rational thought.

  The last thing she needed tonight was for her subconscious to play more tricks on her.

  CADE STOOD BY THE LIBRARY door and watched her run away from him again. She believed he’d broken her heart! And it had taken her years to get over it, or so she’d told Trish. And she had no feelings left for him.

  How the hell was he supposed to feel about all that? He couldn’t help being a little gratified to know that she’d cared about him more than he’d thought. But he was angry, too. Furious with her. She’d seen his actions in the very worst light. On top of all that, he was disgusted with himself for hurting her. For losing her.

  But he found it hard to accept that he’d been that wrong about her. For her to feel he’d broken her heart, she had to have loved him. Or at least, had to have thought she did.

  Regret tore into him with sharp, punishing claws. Had he failed to recognize the ultimate miracle when he’d found it? But no. He hadn’t mistaken the situation. The barriers he’d sensed in her had been real.

  And they were still there today, stronger than ever.

  Yet he still wanted her with an urgency that baffled him.

  THEY STORMED INTO her bedroom that night—a mob of angry, bickering women wearing nothing but black bikinis and spiked heels. Among them—and substantially more dressed—was the handsome, middle-aged anchorwoman who had delivered the newscast that afternoon. The crowd surrounded Brynn, yelling at her and at each other. She strained to understand what they were saying as she lay in bed, startled and bewildered.

  The tallest, prettiest brunette, who looked like one of her beauty-queen guests, but of Amazonian proportions, addressed her directly. “Cade Hunter. I want him. Wh
ere is he? You said he’d be here.”

  “I did?”

  “How could you want someone like him?” a buxom redhead shouted. “He’s a son-of-a-bitch.” To Brynn, she said, “I’m just glad you tipped us off to his true character.”

  Brynn frowned. “But I never—”

  “I’m not worried about his character, as long as he’s good in bed.” An elegant blonde in white had shouldered her way through the contentious crowd that now filled Brynn’s bedroom. Upon closer inspection, Brynn realized it was Trish. She was dressed as a bride, in the same pearl-seeded gown and veil she’d worn for her wedding to her ex. “Don’t you worry, Brynnie. I’ll rip his heart out for you. Wouldn’t that be poetic justice?”

  “No.” Panic tweaked Brynn’s stomach. Was Trish going to marry Cade to punish him? “Trish, don’t.”

  “Why not? You don’t want him for yourself, do you?”

  The Amazon beauty queen shoved Trish aside, her impatience bordering on rage. “Where is he?”

  “He’s here,” the newscaster stated in professional tones of well-modulated urgency. “According to inside sources, Cade Hunter, the notorious heartthrob, checked in on Thursday. Authorities believe he’s on the prowl for women to sleep with. More on this breaking story at eleven.”

  “He’s here, all right,” confirmed someone who sounded like Mrs. Hornsby.

  “It’s my turn to have him,” a woman cried in a shrill voice, making Brynn cringe beneath her covers.

  “I’ll tear out his heart,” snarled another.

  Brynn suddenly understood what they would do. They would take their pleasure with Cade, then punish him for callously hurting her and Rhiannon, and refusing to acknowledge his own baby.

  But had he callously hurt her, or had she somehow misunderstood? And had he really fathered Rhiannon’s baby, or had Brynn presumed too much? She suddenly wasn’t sure. Yet these wild, lustful women were going to tear him apart.

  “No, wait!” Brynn sprang to her knees on the bed. “I might have been wrong about him.”