“I’ll call her later this week and push the story.”
“No,” Amy said. “If you do that, it’ll only feed her suspicions. Wait for her to come to you.”
“All right.” Ty opened the door to an expansive patio, lush with potted floral arrangements. “And I’m sorry about the house thing. Paige is a bit of a pitbull when she latches onto something. There’s a reason we used to call her Princess.”
“Ty the tiger?” Amy asked.
His smile was quick. “Okay, so there’s more than one stubborn soul in the family.”
“It is kind of nice to hear that someone admires your house. I was just surprised. I didn’t realize it had fans.”
“I guess you know who to call if you ever do want to sell it.”
“I’ll never sell it,” Amy said, and only realized how fiercely she had spoken when Ty looked down at her in surprise. “It was the house my parents bought when they got married. It’s filled with memories for me, and with their love. I can’t imagine ever surrendering it willingly.” She lifted her chin. “They’ll take me out of it in a box.”
He nodded understanding as they crossed the patio. It was a lovely yard, and very serene, even with guests milling about and chatting. There was a little waterfall near the house and the water flowed around the patio into a pond. Amy spotted koi swimming in the pond and admired the variety of exotic plants around the lip of the pool. They crossed a little bridge to a gazebo that was empty for the moment and she took a deep breath.
“You’re doing great,” Ty said.
“It’s intense.”
“They don’t mean to be.”
She nodded understanding. She could feel the love in this family and the concern they had for each other. She wouldn’t think about her own situation in contrast, not until she was home alone again. “They just want you to be happy.”
He opened his mouth, then closed it again, so clearly at a loss for words that Amy smiled. His gaze met hers and he smiled. “You keep doing that,” he mused.
“Doing what?”
“Throwing me off guard.” He brushed a fingertip across her cheek, launching a thousand shivers. “It’s disconcerting.”
“I’ll stop.”
“No, don’t.” There was a heat in his eyes again, one that prompted tremors with her.
Amy had to look away from him for a moment, because she was so disconcerted.
The garden had been cleverly designed so that it was hard to tell exactly where the property lines were, though Amy had no doubt it was an extensive property. Large trees blocked the view of other houses. She wondered that there wasn’t a pool, because the house seemed to have everything, then saw the glass conservatory that enclosed the indoor pool.
“So, you have tenants.” Ty was leaning against the pillar of the gazebo and she realized that he’d been watching her compose herself.
As if he really was smitten.
“Good ones,” she said, hearing the doubt in his voice. “I went to high school with Lisa, and she teaches now at the primary school. When her parents split up, her mom moved in with her, then they moved into my place. They have the second floor of the house, and it works out pretty well for all of us.”
“That sounds official and cheerful. What aren’t you saying?”
Amy grimaced and decided to admit the truth to him. “I hate the extra doors.”
“What doors?”
“To give them privacy and security, I had a door installed at the bottom of the stairs, blocking off the main floor. There’s another new door at the top of the stairs, securing their apartment.” She wrinkled her nose. “The doors just look wrong. The house used to be so open and inviting. Now it doesn’t feel the same.”
“And you only have half your house to yourself.”
“Which is better than not having it at all.”
He smiled. “Always making the best of whatever comes your way, aren’t you?”
“Am I?”
“I think so. It’s admirable, Amy, but wow, it makes me want to help you out.”
“We’ve made our deal,” she told him sternly. “And you gave me your friend’s number at the bank.” He arched a brow. “I’m going to call him this week.” She saw something dawn in his eyes and shook a finger at him. “No making arrangements behind the scenes. No pity funding. No mercy meddling.”
“You’re taking all the fun out of it.”
Amy refused to be charmed. “No upping the ante. No changing the rules. I’m not a charity case.”
Ty sighed theatrically and she found herself smiling. “I guess another friendly bet is out of the question, then?”
“Like what?”
“Like… Derek will quote the roof to you at cost and plan to do it himself on a long weekend.”
“That sounds like you know him well enough to anticipate what he’s going to do, which doesn’t make it much of a wager.”
“True. You could negotiate with my inside information, though.”
“How so?”
“If Paige is going to torment you the whole time, they should pay you.”
Amy bit back a giggle. “She’s not so bad.”
“She was only getting warmed up.”
“She’s just enthused.”
“Is that what you’ll say when she’s trying to peel your wallpaper to see the plaster, or pull back your rugs to check the floors, or pushing aside your clothes to assess the size of your closets?”
“You make it sound as if I need to be defended from her.”
Ty lifted a hand. “Consider me a volunteer. If you want me to play defense when they come, just let me know.”
Amy’s heart warmed despite herself. “Do you protect all the women in the world?”
“Just the ones I like.” Their gazes met in that electric way once more and Amy almost forgot to breathe.
“Let me think about it,” she said lightly. “Shouldn’t we go back inside?”
“Definitely. I need more wine for round two. You?”
“Yes, thanks.” She must have straightened visibly, because Ty claimed her hand and gave her fingers a squeeze.
“You’re doing great. I can already hear the accusations of what an asshole I am to have let you go.”
Amy knew she shouldn’t have felt flattened by the reminder, but she was. She forced a smile. “Let me be the bitch instead.”
“We’ll argue about the details later. Come on. Maybe half an hour more, then the gifts will be opened and we can leave.”
“No. Your aunt is putting out a buffet.”
“I was going to take you out for dinner to compensate for pain and suffering.” He arched a brow. “To have you to myself.”
“I think we should stay and do it right.” Amy squeezed his hand. “Besides, I’ll get mine back soon enough.”
“All right. Definitely more wine.” Ty held tightly to Amy’s hand and led her back to the house. “Then you should meet the bride and groom.”
“And Stephanie and Trevor.”
Ty nodded and led her back to the house.
* * *
“One down, two to go,” Ty said when they were driving back to the city. He had tapped in Amy’s address into the GPS once they were in the car, having committed it to memory when Derek and Paige worked it out of her. She’d watched but hadn’t protested. He took that as a good sign that she was trusting him more.
“Four to go,” Amy corrected. “Two rehearsal dinners and two weddings.”
“I forgot the rehearsal dinners. You’re right again.” He spared her a glance. She didn’t look as if she’d been too shaken by his family, which was a relief. “How do you think we did?”
“You want a score?”
“Absolutely. On a scale of one to ten.”
“Eight,” Amy said without hesitation. “We nearly blew it on the meet-cute.”
“Even with your brilliant variation on the truth of the elevator meet.” Ty shook his head. “At least a nine.” Amy didn’t say anything and he
wished he wasn’t merging into traffic and could turn to look at her.
“It was clever to mix it with part of our actual first conversation.”
Ty nodded. “I knew that if they heard you’d told me off, they’d like you and believe that you caught my interest.”
“You make it sound like they think you terrorize them.”
“I have been told that I’m bossy.”
He smiled at the sound of her giggle. “How was it my idea to get the Keurig?”
“Hot coffee. You said you only like it hot, and I remembered Katelyn complaining that every time she makes a pot, it gets cold before she remembers to drink it.”
“She seemed pleased.”
“You’re one of her favorite people forever now,” Ty said with satisfaction. Could he give Amy a similar coffee maker without insulting her?
“Was the necklace she was wearing one of her own pieces?”
“Yes. You can tell because it was all twisty wire and asymmetrical.”
Amy chuckled. “I liked it.”
“I guess I’ll have to look at it again, without my preconceptions.”
He felt Amy’s satisfaction with that and liked it a lot.
They rode in silence for a few minutes, and Ty watched a pair of black SUVs in his rearview mirror. They were swerving in and out of lanes, and looked like they were racing.
They were closing fast.
He wondered whether their course was erratic because the drivers were drunk. Either way, he was going to get Amy out of harm’s way.
“You know, we never finished our discussion about those books,” he said, not wanting Amy to notice the SUVs.
“You’re right. Did they change your mind about the genre?”
“Not a bit. Take that first one, the new release with the naked guy on the cover.”
Amy named the title.
“Right. Castration would be too good for that guy.”
“So you said. Why didn’t you like him?”
Ty pursed his lips and quoted. “‘You’re at your most beautiful when you’re struggling to survive.’ Seriously. How is it sexy that he likes to take her to the brink of death, then save her? Again and again and again?”
“It’s about control and trust.”
“It’s twisted. Lock him up and throw away the key.”
“Like in one of your thrillers.”
“Absolutely. ‘The good ended happily and the bad unhappily. That is what Fiction means.’”
“Who said that?”
“Oscar Wilde, and it’s true. This genre is screwing with my conviction that the good guys win.” One of the SUVs cut off the other one and nearly missed a sedan in the lane behind Ty. He gripped the stick, assessing the traffic ahead and hoping for a gap to open.
“How so?”
“If this is what women want, then a normal guy, with normal appetites, hasn’t got a chance.”
“Maybe it’s what women like to fantasize about.”
To Ty’s relief, the SUVs weren’t catching up that quickly. They were both changing lanes rapidly, swerving right and left, but the volume of traffic was holding them back. Brakes squealed behind them and a horn was honked. Ty spoke quickly to keep Amy from looking back. “Maybe it’s a bad sign for society at large if that’s the case.”
Amy straightened, as provoked as he’d hoped. “How is it up to you or any other men to decide what’s right for women to fantasize about?” she demanded in a hot tone that made Ty wish he could look at her. “We’re not property or chattel who need our thoughts managed. Men fantasize about all kinds of stuff that I’d call twisted…”
“Not most of us,” Ty felt obliged to note. One SUV was zooming up the lane to their right, but the gap between the cars ahead wasn’t quite wide enough yet.
“But some of you do, and that’s apparently okay, given what’s in the magazines at the corner store.” Amy was indignant. “But if a woman fantasizes about being dominated or about being taken in a rough way or about bondage, then it’s assumed there’s something wrong with her.” She took off her glasses and shook them at him. “There’s nothing wrong with fantasy…”
Ty wanted to look at her so badly it hurt.
“What about that book? You know, the one that sold a bazillion copies,” he asked, wanting to keep her from looking behind them. “The one that was a movie.”
Amy exhaled in exasperation. “No one who has criticized that book has read it. It’s not my favorite, but neither is it about what everyone assumes it’s about.”
“What’s it about?” Ty asked through his teeth. He silently urged the sedan ahead of him to move just a little faster…
“Consent and trust. And love healing wounds.”
“Seriously?”
“They have a contract and a safe word!” Amy cried. “If you actually troubled to read the book or paid attention to the movie, instead of making assumptions about its content, you’d realize that she’s the one who’s in control of the situation, and that’s what’s so powerful about it! Besides, it’s fiction!”
The second black SUV was behind the first one, waiting to pass on the right and swerve ahead. The first one accelerated, then swerved toward Ty’s back right bumper.
The sedan ahead changed lanes.
“Hold on,” he muttered, shifted down, and floored the accelerator. Amy gasped and dropped her glasses into her lap. The car shot forward like a rocket, exactly as Ty had planned, passing the sedan. He changed to the lane on his right, then the one to the right of that, giving the SUVs lots of room. The first one raced past them, weaving between the two lanes.
Amy picked up her glasses and put them on, then twisted in her seat to look out the back window. She then peered into the side mirror.
Ty took an exit, choosing an alternate route to leave the other SUV behind forever, then slowed to a sedate pace in the middle lane.
“Okay?” he asked when Amy remained silent.
“Were they racing?” she asked.
“And too close for comfort.”
She nodded. “Were you listening to me at all?”
“Yes. Not particularly well, but I was listening.” He cast her a smile and saw that her lips were tight.
“I don’t believe it,” she said, folding her arms across her chest. “You were just trying to distract me.”
“Well, maybe a little.”
“Don’t you think that’s condescending?” she asked coldly, and Ty knew he was in trouble.
“How is it condescending to protect someone?”
“I’m an adult, not your leetle seester,” Amy said. “Why wouldn’t you tell me what was going on?”
“I didn’t want you to worry.”
“So you deceived me.”
“Deceive is a little strong…”
“You didn’t tell me the truth because I’m just a woman, and I can’t be relied upon to remain calm in a bad situation?”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“I know you’re a good driver. I’ve seen that already. And you’re not a risk-taker or a daredevil, either.”
Ty felt his temper rise. “Funny how those don’t sound like good traits.”
“I know you’d do your best to keep us safe, but I’m not a child. I deserve to know what’s going on around us.”
“I don’t think it’s wrong to be protective!”
“And I don’t think it’s wrong to be told the truth. Do you seriously think I don’t know anything about danger or death or taking risks to survive?”
Ty would have admitted he was wrong if she hadn’t continued.
“And I don’t think it’s wrong to expect to be treated as a responsible adult and an equal!”
His temper flared. “How does that mesh with all those naughty fantasies?”
“Perfectly well.”
“Really?”
“Really. They’re games. They’re explorations and role playing—and they’re done in an environment of complete safety.”
“In a
n ideal world,” Ty muttered. “So, is the guy who likes to see his beloved struggle to take another breath only sexy because he doesn’t fuck it up and leave her to fight for too long? Because she doesn’t actually—oops—die?”
“Pretty much.” Her tone was considering and he wondered why. “It’s his perfect control that’s hot.”
“Control,” Ty muttered. “And which universe do these people live in where anyone has perfect control?”
“A fantasy one,” Amy acknowledged. “That’s the point.” Her voice hardened. “It’s fiction.”
“It’s a slippery slope.”
“Not for me.”
Ty bit his tongue.
Hard.
A terse silence filled the car then, and Ty gave all his attention to his driving. There wasn’t a lot of congestion, but he was furious with Amy for refusing to see how dangerous all of these ideas were. It was a slippery slope, in his opinion, from consenting to naughty games and women being shipped in boxes against their will to serve as sex slaves.
She waited until they left the freeway completely, then cleared her throat. “These discussions are a bit lop-sided, aren’t they?”
“What do you mean?”
“What are your fantasies?”
“Oh no, we’re not going there.”
“Why not?” she challenged. “Afraid I’ll think castration is too good for you?”
No, just that she’d think he was boring. Predictable. Safe. Vanilla.
Fucking nice.
“I never thought you’d be a big chicken,” she taunted.
“I’m not afraid. Just private.”
“Uh huh.” Amy made a clucking sound and Ty saw red. He pulled into a parking lot, squealed the tires, and put the car in park.
Then he gave Amy his undivided attention, along with a healthy dose of honesty. “Okay, you want the truth. Here it is. All this bondage stuff seems unnecessarily complicated to me. The role-playing, the knots, the games, the mind-fucking. And I think it is a slippery slope to tendencies that aren’t nearly so much fun. What if your hot dominant lover decides to ignore the use of your safe word? There’s too much latitude for abuse, and the person who’s going to be on the losing end of that is, nine times out of ten, going to be the woman.” Ty shook his head and held up one hand for a moment. “Don’t say trust again. I hear where you’re coming from, but I’m not sold. Not every guy listens, especially in the heat of the moment.”
Simply Irresistible Page 14
