by Anna Collins
I saw a shadow looming over me and looked up to see Tristan was smiling down at me. His face was not as cold and impassioned as it was when he was training. I didn’t know how he could switch this on and off, but it was a good thing he was able to.
“I don’t think I can do this without telling you something. It has been weighing heavily on my mind. There didn’t seem to be a good time to tell you about this. I’ve been trying, but there always seemed to be something interrupting us. This is something that needs to be said, but I would really like to do it in private. I don’t know what your reaction is going to be and I don’t need them to see us fighting like cats and dogs,” Tristan said as he made me follow him out into the hallway until we found an empty study with a lot of books which Spencer probably had never read.
There were several volumes which probably cost a small fortune, and they were most likely going to end up as a casualty of war. They were apparently coming here to kill Spencer and anybody who stood in the way of their mission. They were probably being paid quite handsomely for their services. The person coming after Spencer wouldn’t be there in person. He would use his money and influence to send those willing to put their lives at stake for a certain amount of cash.
“I don’t know what this is about, Tristan, but I’m not sure we have time for it. They will be here shortly, and I need to be in the right frame of mind. I keep hanging on, but I feel my grip slipping from reality. You’re just going to have to wait for a better time to tell me what is on your mind. How much more am I supposed to take? When I feel I can’t go on, I look at you, and I know there’s still some fight left in me,” I said as I tried to exit the room only to have him grab me insistently and push me back into a leather backed chair that swiveled.
I kept on waiting for what he was going to say, but he only stared at me like I was going to burst into flames. I tried to get up, but his hands on my wrist kept me immobile and unable to retreat from the room.
“This can’t wait. You need to know this. I’m sorry it took me this long to finally spit it out. I hadn’t realized when we first met, but I did feel there was something familiar about you,” Tristan said as his hands were shaking. Whatever this was, it had been flailing madly in his mind as he was trying to find the right words to say.
I wanted to encourage him, tell him that whatever this was it wasn’t going to change anything, but his eyes told a different story. This was something that was going to change how I felt about him, but I didn’t know how this was possible. I was about to find out.
“If you’re going to say it anyway, then you may as well get on with it. It would be better that whatever we have to say to one another should be here where nobody else can hear. I want you to know I wouldn’t change a thing about anything we did. I only wish we knew each other long before now. We could have done something about this chemistry between us. Talk to me, I’m willing to listen to what you have to say,” I said trying to wrestle free, but finding there was no point.
“I had no idea how hard this was going to be. I’ve gone over this in my mind several times, and it never ends well. I want you to know I never meant to hurt you. Everything you have seen, everything I have shown you…it is the real me. I don’t feel good about any of this. I shouldn’t have slept with you without letting you know the secret I have been carrying,” Tristan said as he circled the room, allowing me to rub my wrists; they were raw from the way he was holding me with a force I found quite intoxicating.
He went to the window and placed his hand on the glass. He couldn’t see anything with the shutters drawn. There was a small hole where a gun could be placed or from where somebody could see what was coming. It was almost like Spencer had taken everything into consideration for this very day. He had prepared himself for the possibility this place could come under fire. I thought the guards were more of a precaution, but their placement was as if he had foretold this from the moment he went into seclusion.
I did see Tristan was dealing with something, but I had no idea how to help him with that. I got up slowly, not making any untoward moves in case I was going to startle him into doing something we were both going to regret. He was strong and whatever this was had to be said his way. There was no forcing the words out of his mouth. They were going to come on his time.
“You don’t have to say anything, and I think I already know. You’re afraid of commitment. There’s no shame in that, and I’m sure a lot of guys can say the same thing. You don’t believe in being with one person for the rest of your life. It scares you to think I can change you, but I’m not here to do that. I want to accept you for who you are. We both have flaws, and it’s something we need to get past,” I said hoping I was getting through to him but then seeing in his eyes, he had more to tell me than some kind of commitment phobia.
“There’s no doubt I have never wanted to be with one woman for the rest of my life. Jessica saw this, and I see now she only told me those things to push me away. Her family is more important than any kind of animalistic sex. I can’t in good conscience let you go on thinking we are strangers. The one thing we’re not is strangers. The one thing we’re not is passing ships in the night. This chemistry is not just from star-crossed lovers seeing each other across a crowded room. Look into my eyes, and I mean really look and tell me what you see,” Tristan said as I stared dreamily into those eyes and then something hit me I didn’t see coming.
They not only appeared familiar, but it was almost like I had seen them before. I didn’t know what to make of it, and then I put my hand up to my mouth in shock at the realization he wasn’t just spouting off about us not being strangers. It was right in front of me, and I had been blind all of this time. It was like a cloud was over my eyes. The shroud had been lifted and the light of a new day was shining like never before. Danger still persisted outside these doors, but there was a safety net in his arms I wasn’t expecting.
“We have known each other since we were in high school. I was a senior, and you were a young and impressionable woman of discernible taste. You tried to stay to yourself, but I found a way to talk to you. I had to do some digging to learn about your interests. I was never into comic books, but I pretended to be for your sake. I know I left without saying a word, but I found myself in some trouble. I was given a choice to go to jail or enlist in the Marines,” Tristan said as he stood there and looked at me. My eyes were finally opened.
“It can’t be, but it is. I knew there was something, but I would have never even imagined in a million years it was this. I can see him, but you have changed in so many ways. You have turned your body into a temple. You were never much for lifting weights. I never really cared about that superficial nonsense. I can’t believe you are here. I don’t know if I should slap you or kiss you, Trevor. Why didn’t you tell me this before? I am angry, but not because you’re Trevor. I’m angry because you didn’t trust me to tell me who you really are,” I said feeling like my world was spinning and then I clutched onto a Louis 14th desk.
“You don’t know how sorry I am. When I realized it was you, I didn’t know what to do. Let me help you to your feet. I just got you back. Losing you all over again is more painful the second time than it was the first time. I should have been up front, but I really didn’t know how you were going to take it. I broke your heart. It has become painfully obvious our paths were destined to cross,” Tristan said as he lifted me to my feet with my hair over my eyes and bent forward to catch my breath.
“This is a lot for me to digest. I should have seen it, but you certainly didn’t look like this back in high school. I can only assume it came from your time with the Marines. You have had a colorful life including fighting for your country and then coming back to make your fortune. You have invested wisely and become a billionaire from your holdings. It’s no wonder you can speak the same language Spencer does. You both come from the same place. Your money came from your family, but you took it upon yourself to make yourself into a self-made man,” I said touching his chee
k and seeing that lanky kid I couldn’t say no to. We never had sex, and I would’ve been able to spot had we done anything more than kiss back in high school.
“I’m surprised you’re not angrier, but maybe this whole thing about facing this illness has made you realize what is important,” Tristan said as he had his hands wrapped around my waist.
“You’re lucky you found me at a weak moment. I don’t want to waste another minute. I’m glad you finally had the courage to tell me. I would have seen it myself, but I was dealing with something a lot more important. I never had a chance to really look at you and see what was right in front of my eyes. I can’t believe the transformation. You know it never mattered to me you were different than other guys. You still had this quality I was drawn to. You had a softer side. What you have seen and done since leaving me has given you a harder edge. I like you know how to take charge of a situation. It’s human nature to fight for what you believe in. You have freed my body and my soul, and for that, I am forever grateful,” I said looking at him, seeing our time apart had twisted his image into something my body craved like the air I breathed.
I felt a little sick to my stomach, but it wasn’t because of what he said. I was dry heaving in his arms. He lowered me onto a Corinthian leather black couch which stuck to my hands because of the sweat accumulated in my palms.
I was sitting there for less than a couple of seconds before a gunshot was seen screaming across the room, embedding itself in a Shakespeare original named Macbeth. It had sailed right through the metal. If I had been standing, I would have been the first casualty. I was in the direct line of fire. The steel plating did nothing to stop the rounds from breaking through to the other side.
We were in trouble. This was a game changer and one that was going to make all of us sitting ducks. I had just learned about Trevor and Tristan being the same person. I wasn’t going to have time to rekindle the romance I had never had a chance to fizzle. I needed him, and I was going to fight for what had been lost.
“So, what do I call you? Do you go by Trevor or Tristan? Now that I know the truth, there are few things which should have been painfully obvious from the very beginning. Looking into your eyes always felt like I knew you, but I didn’t pay any ninth,” I said while I was still trying to absorb all of this, admittedly not doing a very good job.
“I left Trevor in the past where he belongs, and I never want to hear that name again. You were the only one who gave me any reason to think we could be more than just friends. Nobody saw under the exterior. I rebelled, acted out for no good reason other than to be noticed and get a little bit of too much attention,” he said as he suddenly looked at something past me. I turned to see he was staring at Spencer who didn’t look happy at all to see we had reached the interior of his office.
Chapter 18
There was that silence hanging in the air. I wasn’t sure what to expect from Spencer barging in on our conversation. I had just been given some interesting news. I wasn’t sure what was getting underneath his skin, but Spencer was angry. He was trying not to show it, but it was seeping through in the way his lip curled and the way his eyes bore holes into the both of us. It was as if we had committed some unforgivable sin.
“I was wondering where the both of you went off to and I find you here of all places. This place is my sanctuary. I don’t like anybody being in my office. I keep things I care most about in here where I can see them any day I’m doing work for long hours. I suppose, there is no harm done. I can look past this indiscretion this one time. Promise me you will never come in here again without my permission,” Spencer said as we both nodded in confirmation as he turned and motioned for us to leave.
I followed behind Tristan, seeing him differently, knowing things had changed. I wasn’t sure if they were for better or for worse. It might have been a good idea for him to confess, but I wasn’t sure I was ready to hear the declaration of undying feelings from a past love. I didn’t know what we had back then, but I thought I deserved more than for him to disappear without even a word to say where he went.
I had searched for his parents and his whereabouts. I thought I was getting through to his mother, but then his father stepped in and told me I wasn’t going to get any answers. I tried to argue with the firm belief that love could conquer all. If he didn’t want to be with me I would forget about him, I decided. That was easier said than done.
I was going out of the office, and then I saw something which seemed a little out of place. There was a photograph of Spencer when he was younger, with darker hair and a light in his eyes which had disappeared because of the illness he was suffering from. There was a woman in the photo with him in a two piece black bikini and a purple Chanel bag over her shoulder. I didn’t get a chance to see it up close and personal, but something was nagging at my subconscious. I needed to get in there again. It wasn’t that I wanted to get in there, it was more that I needed to. Like something had gripped me by the wrist and wouldn’t let go imprinting a metaphorical hand burning into my skin.
“I may have found a way for the both of you to get out of here. I have a boat down by the lake, it will give you a head start. It’s not fair for the both of you too have to be here to fight a battle which isn’t of your concern. It would be best we parted company,” Spencer said as I stood there quite confused he was acting this way.
“I don’t know what happened, but something has apparently changed your opinion about us staying here and being by your side through all of this. I told you I was going to stick around. I would think this was what you wanted considering you did bring me all the way here. Is there something you need to tell us? It would be a better idea if you were honest about this. I know this is not something you are used to, but I feel it’s necessary for all of us to stay on the same page. You can’t possibly do this alone even if you do have a contingent of men who have seen their fair share of skirmishes,” I said still thinking about the photo, having it get lost in my memory with thoughts of Tristan back in the day.
“I thought what you wanted was to get as much distance from this place as you could possibly muster. I’m giving you a way to save face and still live to fight another day. I don’t know what’s going to happen in the next 20 minutes, but the ground will soak with blood from both sides. The battle will rage on, and the gunfire will be faintly heard by neighbors. They won’t know what this is, but they may send someone to investigate,” Spencer said as he was obviously trying to get rid of us and he wasn’t very subtle about it.
“I think I’m starting to understand. You brought me here for selfish reasons, and it had nothing to do with saving my life. I get the feeling the cure for you had something to do with me. I don’t know what that could possibly mean, but I think I’m getting a little too close to the truth for your liking,” I said shaking the tree to see what was going to fall out.
There didn’t seem to be any reason to dance around the topic. His intention was to use me. I wasn’t any closer to finding a cure for the poison increasing in intensity. I hadn’t noticed before, but there was something shiny swinging back and forth around his neck. It was a silver heart, and there seemed to be some kind of inscription, but without getting my hands on it, there was no way to know what it said.
“I find it’s a pity you don’t see a good thing when you’re staring at it. I have been taking care of myself for a long time, and I don’t need either one of you to hold my hand. I was wrong to keep you here under my protection. I have gotten what I wanted, and there’s no reason for me to keep you any longer than necessary. Leslie is in the lab. She would probably have something more to say about this, but this is not her house to dictate the terms. I was asking you to leave, but now I’m telling you to leave. There is nothing here for you,” Spencer said as if the fact we were still here was going to unveil something from a closet, like some kind of skeleton from his past.
“You’re going out of your way to get us to leave. You should be ashamed of yourself for using Leslie to do your
dirty work for you. It’s obvious you thought she could get our cooperation. You purposely led us astray making us both believe there was the possibility Willa could live. I’m not going to allow you to get away with this. If you think we’re going to leave because of some kind of tantrum, then you really are delusional,” Tristan said as he stood up for me and made me believe we were in this together until the end.
“I’m afraid I can’t take no for an answer. The both of you will be forcefully ejected from my home. If you try to fight, then you won’t like what happens next. Do yourself a favor and leave before you find yourself overwhelmed and outnumbered. It’s not going to make much of a difference if two more are here. We’re either going to win this or lose it in grand fashion. You have my appreciation for coming here. I was a little startled to learn you were so willing to drop everything and get over here. I know you tried to convince me to leave my home, but there was really no way I could have done that,” Spencer said with a little bit more color in his cheeks.
He did not sound like the raving lunatic screaming the sky was falling. He seemed more put together, lucid and able to string sentences together that made sense. The clarity in his eyes was not something easily seen by others. The cloud of mistrust and confusion was gone, and in its place, there was a man of confidence. This was a man who was secure in his own wealth and status in life.
