by Aliyah Burke
She didn’t want to ruin her basking in the glow with reality. “What is it?”
“About us. About what I did to you.”
Yep, that banished the warm feeling like a cannon shot. Anger simmered and she struggled to remain calm. “There’s nothing you can say about that.”
“There’s a lot I can say, for instance why I did what I did.”
She struggled out of his arms and stood naked by the bed looking down at his amazing physique. “Really suck at this pillow talk, Ralston. Or am I supposed to call you Lucifer now that we’re back to talking about…what should I call it? Oh, how about, “super-secret lie to your girlfriend and rip her heart from her chest and step on the still beating organ without a fucking care in the world,” does that about cover it?”
He raked his green gaze over her and she nearly covered up. Swinging his feet to the floor, he stood as well and she had to tip her head back to meet his fierce stare. “Are you finished?”
“Sure thing. I think we covered that pretty damn well.”
“We’ve not covered a fucking thing,” he bit off. “We’re going to—”
He reached for his pants the second she heard the car engine pull up. It took her about the same amount of time to dress and she trailed him out into the living room. She gulped when he withdrew a sidearm. Where the hell had that been?
“Stay here.”
She peered beyond him and groaned. “I think you may best stay here or you’ll be back in the hospital with another gunshot wound.”
“You know who it is?”
A tall woman stepped from the gray SUV and stalked toward the cabin, her dark blonde hair confined in a single braid down her back. She wore a suit that cost more than anything in Riz’s apartment and if she’d not lost her ability to identify shoes, a pair of Louboutin heels. Her lightly tanned skin held the perfect amount of makeup yet it was the fire blazing in her eyes that worried Riz.
“Yes. That’s my mother.”
αβ
Her mother? Ralston ran a look over his attire and suddenly wished for tactical gear. He’d met her father and other family but this woman, well, he’d heard she was dead. But this woman was far from deceased.
“Riz!” she called out. “Come out here right now, don’t you make me come in there after you.”
The woman at his side, muttered something beneath her breath and inched by him, heading for the door. Ralston grabbed her arm and drew her back.
“Let me go first.”
“You’re in more danger than I am,” she countered.
“That’s fine but you’re not going out before me.” He held her stare until she nodded.
At the door, he checked his SIG once more before opening the door and stepping out onto the porch. The woman arched a finely plucked brow but didn’t speak until Riz moved to his side. Hard blue eyes canvased him before softening as they moved over Riz.
“Oh my baby,” she cooed and opened her arms.
Ralston was shocked and more than a bit surprised to see Riz dash past him and into her mother’s waiting arms. “Mama,” she said, curling her own arms around the impeccably dressed woman.
“Who’s the ass with a gun?”
Ralston stepped forward, shoving the SIG into the waistband of his pants and allowing his shirt hem to drape over it, hiding it from view. “Ralston,” he answered.
“I wasn’t talking to you, I was asking my daughter who she walked out of a cabin with smelling of sex and appearing all rumpled.”
Duly chastised, he crossed his arms and waited for Riz to speak. The tears in her eyes and down her face were more of a dagger to his heart than her hitting him.
“This is Ralston Dansen, Mama.”
She drew back slightly from her mother and shot him a brief look. Riz’s uncertainty of how this would play out sat on her face, she’d always been full of expression.
“Ralston, my mother Wilhelmina Powerton.”
“The ass who broke my baby’s heart? Then what are you doing with him? Does this have to do with the guy breaking into your apartment and hurting you?” She looked down at her daughter. “Why didn’t you come to me? Why didn’t you call me when this happened? What in the nine circles of hell possessed you to come to the cabin with him?”
Really? Nine circles of Hell? He didn’t think he was that bad. Then again, my call sign is Lucifer.
Riz put some distance between her and her mother. There were similarities between the women but Riz was all raw passion, freedom, and fire whereas her mother reminded him of a coiled snake, one you had to watch very carefully because she may strike at any moment.
“I didn’t come with him, Mama. I came by myself and can we please not talk about me smelling like sex, I’m not living at home.”
“No but you should be. Fine, I’ll let it go. I still would like to know how it’s come to this that I had to hear about you being attacked from the police. Why didn’t you call me?”
“Never crossed my mind given how I was treated when he did what he did.”
She glared at him then back to her daughter. “One, that was your father’s side and I have no doubt your uncle deserved it. Two, I can threaten you all I want, I pushed you out of my cootchie into this world, it’s my right.”
“Oh my God, seriously?” Riz smacked her head then threw up her hands in defeat.
He snorted then tried to appear straight-faced when Riz glared over at him, blush staining her cheeks, making her all the more adorable.
“He knows where babies come from, he’s not a fool.” Her mother moved back to be directly in front of her child. “Bottom line, you’re my baby and I’ll protect you to the death. You should have come to me. Now invite me in this hellhole and fill me in on what we’re going to do because you know that asshole will be showing up.” She marched by to the door and entered as if she’d actually been invited in.
Ralston glanced to Riz who looked pained. She met his gaze and sighed.
“You may want to run away now.”
He moved until he could touch her chin. “I’m not going anywhere. This is proving to be most interesting. You’re a lot like your mother.”
She smacked him on the upper arm. “Don’t you ever say that.”
“Really, Riz? You don’t see the similarities? The attitude, saying whatever you want? The stubbornness?”
“Not helping the situation,” she groused, stomping away.
“Cute as fuck,” he called out behind her earning a middle finger. Despite the chuckle that slid free from him, he headed after her. Mother or not, he was still going to be near in case she needed him.
Her mother was making coffee when they entered and her piercing gaze slammed into both of them. “Perhaps you should get to talking before I take that SIG from you and use it.”
“Mama,” Riz warned.
“Don’t take that tone with me, I’m still your mother even if that fuckard of a father of yours divorced me. I’m still waiting for an explanation.”
Ralston guided Riz to the table and held her chair for her, then sat next to her. Under the fierce glare of Wilhelmina, he began telling the story from when he got the call. An hour later, they had empty mugs before them and the explanation had finished.
“So you’re no longer active duty?”
“No ma’am, I quit after what happened with Riz.”
“Not a normal nine to five job what you’re doing now either.”
“It’s not. But I get to help a lot more people this way.”
“I’ll withhold judgment on you for a bit yet.” She rose and picked up the dishes, Riz helped.
“Nothing for you to judge or not, Mama.”
“I’m still not sure he’s right for you.”
“Oh for all the pigs in—” Riz snapped.
“Mind that attitude, missy. Don’t you dare tell me there’s nothing between the two of you. There’s enough sparks flying between you both to burn down the mountains.”
He tensed at the sound of another ve
hicle pulling in. This time the SUV was black with tinted windows. Two men stepped from the front and one held the door for the back where a tall man slid from the darkness. Tall, dark hair and olive skin.
“Daddy,” Riz breathed at the same time her mother hissed, “Jackass.”
Family reunions were so tricky. Ralston ran his gaze over the two with her father, noting where they had their weapons and at the same time what the best way to disarm and incapacitate them would be.
The three of them strode directly to the cabin and let themselves in. Her father entered the room first and glared.
“Stop glaring at your daughter, Riordian, she’s been through enough without having to put up with your shit and if your jackass followers don’t wait outside I’ll shoot them myself.”
“What are you doing here, Riz?” her father asked, his voice deep and serious.
Ralston stepped up beside her, offering silent support. The moment the man landed his gaze upon him his demeanor grew worse.
“You,” he spewed. “After what he did to your Uncle Lou, you’re still hanging with him?”
Ralston’s anger surged free when he saw Riz flinch from the furious reprimand.
“I’m here keeping your daughter alive.”
“I’ll be out of here by this afternoon,” Riz said.
“The fuck you will,” her mother interjected. “Listen you jackass we both know Lou was into a ton of shady shit so he got what he deserved. If you’d been more concerned about your daughter you would have known that, but typical you, it was all about the business. Her heart was broken as well. None of that matters, are you going to stand there and be upset with her or are you going to help protect her from these foreign fucks who are trying to kill our daughter?”
The flicker of concern on the man’s face was brief but there. Ralston settled his hand on the small of Riz’s back and guided her to the sofa in the living room, aware they were about to go over what happened once more.
“You okay?” he whispered in her ear.
“Not even close.” She leaned into him.
Ralston accepted she needed his strength right then and would take any contact he could. “They care about you.”
“I’ve not seen my father since that day with you and my mother for three years prior to that. How did she know I was in trouble?”
“It’s your mother, just because you didn’t see her didn’t mean she didn’t know where you were.”
This time the explanation took longer because her parents insisted on fighting about every little thing. So it was past lunch when they stopped and walked away from the cabin. Ralston kept his hand on her, needing to feel her. He angled her so a tree trunk was at her back and blocked her in with his hands on either side of her head.
“Riz?”
“I shouldn’t have come here.”
“Why not? This is the place that makes you feel the safest, the memories were the best here. It makes sense.”
“You’re mighty calm about this. My parents want to kill you and there is probably some psycho still after me. What gives that you are relaxed?”
He dipped his head and kissed her. “I’m with you.”
Chapter Seven
“Don’t say that,” she demanded, doing her best to ignore the powerful increase in her heartbeat.
Damn the man for smelling so good and for standing so close. She longed to smooth her hands over his chest and up to loop around his neck before she pressed tight against him and went from there.
“Why not?” he murmured along her skin. “It’s the truth.”
“I’m not doing this with you again, Ralston. You broke my heart.”
“Then let me spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”
And damn her heart for clinging to every word out of his mouth. She heard the hope in his tone and just couldn’t deal with it right now. “You’ve saved my life twice and for that I thank you but no, I can’t do this again. I gave you everything and it turns out all it was on your end was a way to get to my uncle. I know, it was a job. Fine. Whatever. But you broke me. I don’t think I could ever trust you again.”
She ducked beneath his arm and ran toward the house, heart shattering into small tiny pieces. Her bickering parents fell silent as she burst in, both watching her. Their faces hardened and they said simultaneously, “I’ll kill him.”
“He didn’t do anything. I told him no. He wanted more. Please, just, leave me alone.” She stumbled down the hall and fell into her bed where just hours earlier, Ralston had made love to her.
I love him but I just can’t. She had her face buried in the pillow which still carried his scent when her father entered.
The bed dipped when he sat beside her. “Pumpkin.”
She lowered the pillow. “You’ve not called me that since I was twelve.”
“Didn’t mean you stopped being my Pumpkin, just meant you believed you had moved beyond the age of me calling you that. I respected your wishes and stopped.” He brushed a hand along her face. “Life is full of shitty things and worse people. You know that being part of this family and we did you wrong by turning our back on you when Lou was busted. For that I am sorry. I should have stood by my daughter and shouldn’t have thrown her to the wolves making you fend for yourself.”
She buried her face again, not wanting to speak on it. Her father gently moved the pillow away and tipped her chin up. As she stared at him, she noticed somewhere along the line he’d become old. The gray in his hair, the lines on his face. Not much but hey, she’d not seen him for over five years.
“We all do things we’re not proud of but you can’t make that our legacy. This man, this Ralston, he loves you.”
She slammed her eyes into her father’s. “You’re defending him? I thought you hated him.”
“Any father hates the man who will take his baby from him. I have other children, yes, but you’re my first born, my baby. Plus you’re the only girl. I saw how you two were together. Saw the looks, the tender touches. And no, I’m not talking the long kisses he used to steal by the fountain. I’m talking when you would both be in a crowded room and he would be across the room from you and he’d look at you. Those looks. The subtle brushes of his hand along your face. He was in love with you as much as you were with him. The ones he would give when it was only the two of you and you weren’t looking at him.”
“You saw all that? Let’s not forget he was acting? Remember? All for a job.” Bitterness leaked into her tone.
“No one is that good of an actor. No one.”
“How can you say that?”
“Baby, because no one was watching him when he did this other than me and I was doing it from a hidden spot. I was suspicious so I snooped. There were times that it was just the two of you as well and I saw the same look, if you were sleeping. He loves you do be foolish as I was and chase away the best thing that ever happened to you. Don’t try to compare him to an actor. There wasn’t someone there with a camera saying ‘action’ or ‘cut’ and he didn’t have multiple takes. This was real, unvarnished. It was true.”
“I’m tired,” she said burrowing back down into the bed.
“We’ll be here when you want to come back.” He kissed her forehead. “I love you, Pumpkin. Always have. Always will.”
She closed her eyes as he left the room. The room had one single light on when she woke the next time. Outside had gone dark and she realized she’d slept the entire day away. Sitting up, she froze when she spotted Ralston sitting in the chair by the lit lamp.
“You’re still here?”
He arched an eyebrow at her. “Where else would I be?”
“On your way back to Tungsten for your next assignment.”
He rose with a single fluid motion and crawled up the bed lying beside her, tugging her back into his embrace. “No.”
“No?”
“No,” he said.
“I’m not following. I didn’t ask a yes or no question.”
“I was just stati
ng no as in no, you’re not going to avoid talking about us.”
She made to get up but he refused to let her go. “We’re going to have this out now.”
“Fine,” she said. “Talk.”
She wanted to pee and wanted to go right back to sleep but she would hear him out, then tell him to leave.
“I think we should sleep.”
“Talk, Ralston.”
“I made a shit ton mistakes with you and our relationship. I’m not going to deny that. I was there yes to do a job but meeting you changed everything.”
She bit the inside of her cheek to keep feeling anything but pain from his words. Riz didn’t need to have that tingle of aww moving through her. He’d betrayed her and that was that.
“Each day I spent with you the deeper I fell. Two days before shit hit the fan I called my boss and told him I couldn’t do it.”
She cranked her head and stared at him. Outside the window, she heard the call of an owl as he hunted.
Ralston dragged a finger down the side of her face. “I was told to do it and move on because it was a job. I had my orders. They were right. I did.”
“I believed we already covered how I was just a job for you.”
“You’re not listening to me, Rizzo.”
“Sure I am. You’re reiterating how I was a job and when push came to shove you followed instructions before doing anything else that may have been the better option to do.”
“I was a soldier.”
“Still are,” she snapped.
“No. I’m a civilian. I’m no longer a solider.”
“Yet you work with military men.”
“Ex-military personnel.”
Riz tried to turn her back to him but he prevented her from going anywhere.
“I love you, Riz. Have for a long time. What do I have to do for you to realize that is not a lie? Not even close.”
She climbed over him and pushed his hands away when he reached for her. “I need some water, I’ll be right back.”
Rubbing her eyes, she padded out of the room and up toward the kitchen. At the end of the hall, she froze and shuddered. Her parents were on the floor naked. Fucking. She whirled around and hurried back down the hall to the room where she dove over Ralston to the bed and covered her head.
