When Drew had first returned to Harper Falls, Tyler had already been back for over six months. Awkward hadn’t even started to cover their first few meetings. Tyler had been silently belligerent, Drew quiet, almost stoic. But lately that had started to change, at least on his part.
A few months ago, Jack was stabbed by a drunken ex-employee. They all rushed to the hospital and circumstances had left Tyler and Drew alone for the first time in over ten years. She saw it as the perfect chance to address the elephant in the room. They weren’t in love, but they were still attracted. She suggested they have a marathon shagging session and get it out of their systems, then move on.
Drew hadn’t taken her up on what she thought a perfectly logical idea. Instead, he got angry — angrier than she had ever seen him. And he had stayed that way. Maybe that was part of the reason Tyler was losing her mad. Let him carry it around for a while. Ten years had been long enough for her.
“Then hand it off to one of your employees. There seems to be an unending supply of them. Hell, you could have sent Boyd.”
“Again, romance is in the air.”
Drew ran a hand through his dark, expertly cut hair, scrubbing at the scalp underneath. Tyler recognized it as a sign of frustration. When he was younger, mussed hair was always an indication that Drew was nearing the end of his rope. Apparently, that hadn’t changed.
Tyler realized this was a fruitless exchange. She was tired and just wanted to get Drew and her brother out as quickly as possible.
“You know what? Never mind. Thank you for coming to check out the alarm, even though it didn’t turn out to be anything serious.”
“I’m not so sure about that.” Drew looked M.J. up and down, his low opinion obvious.
“Yeah? Well, fuck you, Harper.” M.J. turned to Tyler, a sneer on his lips. “You taking up with this over-privileged asshole again? You never did have the sense God gave a gnat.”
“Watch your mouth.” Drew practically growled the words, his body coiled for a fight.
No, Tyler thought. The last thing she needed was Drew beating the pulp out of her brother. The blood would be murder to remove from the concrete floor. Then there was trying to explain to her mother how she’d let poor M.J. end up in the hospital. Not tonight, thank you very much.
“As I was saying. Thank you, but as you can see, it’s just my brother. You can leave secure in the knowledge you did your duty and I’m fine.”
“I’m not comfortable leaving you alone with him.”
Tyler wasn’t afraid of M.J. Even on his best days he was unpredictable. He rarely attacked face-to-face — too much chance of physical damage. He liked to sneak up on his foes. Better yet, get his younger brother to fight his battles for him. Kyle had a sweeter disposition, but he was too easily swayed by M.J. Left alone, he might have been a good man; he certainly had the potential. Unfortunately, M.J. was determined to have his brother end up as far in the gutter as he was.
“He’s my brother.”
“Ty—”
“Don’t call me that.” No one had ever called her Ty — only Drew.
Drew’s dark eyes clouded over briefly before he closed them, taking a deep breath. When they opened again, all emotion was gone. The brown was neither warm nor cold. Only flat — neutral. For some reason, that hurt more than any sharp words or angry looks.
“My advice, not that you’ll take it. Get rid of him as soon as possible, lock your doors. And for the love of Christ, up the volume on your damn alarm.”
He turned and left. Not slamming out; instead, closing the door with a gentle click. The sound made little bumps rise on Tyler’s arms. Sometimes loud was just better.
“Over-bred jerk. That’s what happens when you’re born to money. You think you have the right to boss the world.”
M.J. picked up a delicate crystal figurine that had been a gift to Tyler from Dani on her last birthday. The Phoenix rising from the ashes. It had always been one of Tyler’s favorite images. Rebirth, the ability to start over and overcome mistakes, adversity.
She knew her brother well enough to know he wasn’t admiring the skilled craftsmanship. He was calculating how much it would bring at his favorite pawnshop. Tyler reached over and carefully removed it from his hands, his chipped, dirt-caked fingernails scraping along the edges as he reluctantly let go.
“You aren’t welcome here, M.J. Especially when you’re in that condition.”
Tyler could practically see the wheels turning in her brother’s brain. How to play this? Intimidating? Contrite? Sniveling? He’d tried them all before and none had worked. He knew she had no soft spot for a man who had bullied her when she was too little to fight back, insulted her when she could no longer be pushed around. There were no more weak spots he could exploit.
Therefore, he stole from her when he could. As far as M.J. was concerned, it was the only thing she was good for. She looked down at him, treated him worse than the dirt beneath her feet. In his twisted mind, she owed him whatever he could take. She was a lousy sister, lifting a few valuables now and then was payback. The least that he deserved.
“You should be careful, Tyler.” There was an unattractive whine to his voice. “You and your friends are starting to piss off some of the residents of Harper Falls.”
“Is that so?”
This wasn’t a new conversation. M.J. loved to jab at her and he saw Rose and Dani as his best option for getting a reaction. There was a time when it would have worked — no longer. She had nothing to defend. Not that her friends were perfect, thank God. What her brother could never — would never — understand was that her bond with the other two women was so strong nothing could begin to chip away at it. She had no need to justify them to M.J. or anyone else. They had earned everything they had, everything they were. That was a concept he would never understand.
“It’s late, M.J. I’m tired and you stink. Go home, wherever that is these days, and take a shower.”
She walked over to the door and opened it again. She waited silently for him to leave.
“Dad was right.”
“Dad was never right, M.J. About anything.”
That stopped him for a moment. If there was one person in the world who M.J. had admired, it had been their father. He saw him as the pinnacle of manhood. He had come and gone as he pleased. Treated his wife as an annoying necessity, and turned a blind eye to every nasty deed his oldest son perpetrated. Few had grieved the day Martin Harper’s speeding car had missed the curve on a rain-slicked road in Colorado. But M.J. had.
“You’re useless.” He hissed the words. “You were never anything but a blight to our father and you’re nothing but the same to me.”
She waited until he was out the door before responding. She should have let it go. Nothing she said would change a damn thing. Still, every now and then it just had to be said.
“I’m going to tell you something, M.J. You, undoubtedly, will take it as a compliment. Believe me, it isn’t. You are your father’s son. Mean to the bone and so self-centered, a dog could pee on a car tire three counties over and you’d take it as a personal insult.”
“Huh?”
“Go away, M.J. And don’t come back. If you steal from me again, I’ll press charges. Mom won’t be able to talk me out of it next time.”
“Bitch.” M.J. spat as she closed the door.
Tyler smiled at her brother’s parting words.
“Damn, right,” she said to the empty room. “And proud of it.”
DREW SAT IN his car and waited.
He wasn’t going anywhere until M.J. had gotten his sorry ass out of Tyler’s place and was well on his way back to whatever hole he had crawled out of. If he had to, he would sit there all night.
Absently, he ran his hand over the steering wheel of his car. It was his weakness, that and a certain leggy, gray-eyed hellion. But unlike Tyler, cars didn’t talk back. And unlike cars, Tyler couldn’t be bought. Not that he would want her that way. If and when they were together, it would
be free and clear of anything but giving in to the overwhelming desire that seemed to fill up a room whenever they were in it.
Drew thought about turning on the heat. The October days were still warm, but the nights grew chilly fast. His classic Mustang wasn’t made for stakeouts. Back in the day, when he and Jack scrambled for money, living on boxed mac and cheese, they would stand around for hours, sometimes in the pouring rain — even the occasional snowstorm. They became experts at stand and wait.
He could count on two fingers the number of times either they or their clients had ever been in danger. One had involved an irate ex-girlfriend and a hockey player. Drew had come away with a nasty scratch on his neck caused by the ex’s three-inch fingernails. The ex had spent the night in jail. And the hockey player had been so impressed by her tenacity, he’d married her. They still sent Drew a Christmas card every year. Five years hitched, two kids and another on the way. Go figure.
The other time had made them. When Jack had saved an up-and-coming actress from a crazed stalker, H&W became the go-to bodyguard service in California. They were a media sensation. They could pick and choose their clients, and charge exorbitant rates. The athletes and movie stars didn’t even blink at their fees. In the meantime, Drew and Jack were able to move out of the craphole they had been sharing and each had bought their own place.
It said a lot about how fast circumstances could change. Drew Harper was born to wealth and privilege. If you could buy it, he could have it. When he left all that behind, he wondered how he would cope.
Not only had he survived — he thrived.
And now, years later, he was in the position to buy anything his heart desired. And like then, he only wanted one thing, the one thing that would never be for sale. Tyler Jones.
He sat up a little straighter as the door to the converted warehouse opened. M.J. shuffled out, turning to say something, or to listen. Drew wasn’t certain which. The exchange only lasted a few moments. Tyler shut the door, and according to the app on his phone, engaged all the built-in security. Smart lady.
Drew watched to see what M.J. was going to do. He’d always been a mean sucker, and now by the looks of him, he was a drug-addicted one. A dangerous combination, no matter what Tyler thought.
An old, beat-up tan Nova pulled up and M.J. crawled inside. The street light illuminated the driver’s side well enough for Drew to get a good look. Kyle Jones. The other brother. If he remembered right, Kyle took his cues from M.J.
He waited a minute after the car pulled away from the curb then followed. He was going to make sure they were down for the night and didn’t decide to circle back in an hour or so.
Harper Falls, for all its affluence, had a section of town that was a bit rundown. He hated the word, but Drew supposed it could be called trashy. The rents were low and the inhabitants more on their way down than scrambling to get out. That was where he expected M.J. and Kyle to go. Instead, they turned down a neat little street lined with pretty trees and well-maintained yards.
Jasmine Avenue. Well, now. It seemed the Jones boys still ran home to Mommy. Why the woman put up with them was a mystery for the ages, one Drew would never be able to solve.
It was a safe bet that they were in for the night. Drew could have gone home, spent the night in his big, comfortable bed — and not slept a wink. The driver’s seat of his car suited him much better. Putting his head back, he watched as the last light in the Jones house went out. And he let his mind drift back to when Tyler lived there. When they were feeling their way towards love.
ELEVEN YEARS EARLIER
DREW TRIED TO concentrate on what Miranda Lloyd was saying. Something about a boat and her parents. She seemed to think her bright pink lipstick and pushed-up cleavage were all that was needed to keep his attention. A week ago, she would have been right.
Now, after a brief meeting with a tall, lanky brunette, nothing Miranda had to say held the least bit of interest for him. It didn’t help any that Tyler Jones and her friends were sitting a mere two tables away. How was he supposed to think of anything else? She had been on his mind constantly.
Not that he hadn’t noticed her before. Tyler was the kind of girl that generated second looks. He admitted part of her appeal was that she was so unlike the girls he had known all of his life. Harper Falls was not a big town, but it had very distinct economic and social factions. He and Tyler Jones did not reside in the same ones.
Drew was a Harper. He never understood why a last name should raise him above anyone else. His mother seemed to think the answer was obvious. His family founded Harper Falls. Built it from the ground up. Russell Harper had been a great man, so Regina Harper said. A visionary.
Drew couldn’t argue. The town library was filled with books on the subject, all touting his ancestor as either the greatest mind of the twentieth century or a man nearing sainthood. Of course, all those books had been written by relatives or people paid to paint a favorable picture.
From the time he could recognize letters as words, those books were required reading. At first, he took them as gospel. Why wouldn’t he? His mother would quote passages as though they were scripture. His father never disputed a single fact. Until he was eight, he thought Russell Harper walked on water. He attended a private school named after the man. His family and friends would never speak a word that didn’t adhere to the well-trodden myth. Keeping the darker side of the Harper legacy tucked away was easy when he was little, before the rest of the world, and the internet, intervened.
Drew wouldn’t say he had any startling, eye-opening revelation. It was much more gradual than that. He came to the realization that Russell Harper was not a God walking amongst us; he was just a man. To be honest, as the heir to the empire, it was a relief. No one could live up to the image his mother promoted. His great-grandfather had been a brilliant but flawed human being.
It was the beginning of his own personal awakening. The start of him moving away from a Harper-centric universe to where he could see the possibilities outside of the small, sheltered box of Harper Falls. It was also the beginning of a rift with his mother that had grown wider with each passing year.
Drew shook off the creeping thoughts before the melancholia he was becoming increasingly familiar with settled over him. At ten, he saw his future as a single, rigid path. There was no left or right, only straight ahead. Harper all the way.
Now at sixteen, he knew he had choices. When he thought of getting out, seeing new things, meeting new people, any depression over his future would lift. Discovering he had the ability to be his own man was like a fresh breeze after a summer rain.
He took another glance at Tyler Jones. That was what she was. A refreshing breath of air. Nothing stagnant or cloying about her. If he had been intrigued before, their meeting on the bridge had amped his interest a hundred times over. Her face — made up of fascinating angles. Her lips, full and tempting. Then there were those eyes. They were a wild, exciting mixture of colors. Stormy and flashing like silver lightning. Then they changed to the palest violet imaginable. She told a story with those eyes, drawing him in.
“Drew.”
“Hmm?”
“What is wrong with you lately?”
Miranda was used to being the center of attention. Boys fell over themselves to impress her. She had to admit that part of Drew Harper’s appeal, besides the obvious good looks and money, was his aloofness. No piece of ripe fruit falling at her feet, he provided her with a challenge. Letting him slip through her fingers was not going to happen. It wouldn’t be good for her ego or her reputation.
“Let’s get out of here and go back to my place. My parents are out of town until Friday. We’ll be alone.” She purred the word. It was a sound she had often practiced. As far as she was concerned, she had perfected the tone and intent. She’d had boys melting since she was thirteen. With Drew, she might as well had been coming on to a brick wall.
“Drew!”
“What, Miranda?”
His voice had been
harsher than he’d intended but, Christ, the girl could get on his nerves. He regretted it even more when he saw he’d attracted the attention of several other customers. Including Tyler Jones and her friends. Their eyes met for only a second, but he felt that same jolt. He would have sworn she felt it too. Until she turned and whispered something to her companions that had them all laughing uproariously.
Drew felt his stomach clench. Maybe she wasn’t as different as he’d thought. Laughing at him, whatever the reason, was not cool. Then, just as he was about to give her a huge push off her pedestal, she turned her head towards him, ever so slightly, and winked. No one else saw it. Not her friends, not Miranda. But he did.
“Ready to go?”
Miranda gave him an exasperated look. Honestly.
“Yes.” She huffed out the word. “I’ve been ready for ages.”
“After you.”
Drew pulled out his wallet, tossing enough money on the table to cover their drinks and a healthy tip.
He paused at Tyler’s table, not focused on her, but on Rose.
“Long time, no see.” Not the most brilliant of lines, Drew admitted to himself. “How have you been, Rose? We miss you at the Academy.”
Rose looked over his shoulder at a toe-tapping Miranda and smiled.
“I’m sure they’re crying in the halls. How are you, Drew?”
“Good, all’s good.”
“Do you know my friends? Dani, Tyler, this is Drew Harper.”
“Hi.” Dani gave him a little wave. She was a looker, Drew thought. All that white, blond hair and deep, emerald eyes. Any guy would be drawn to her.
“Drew.” Tyler said his name with a straight face but a twinkle in her eyes. Today, they were silvery, sharp, and laughing.
“I think I’ve seen you around.”
His eyes held Tyler’s for just a second longer. He would have stayed, used the opportunity to be near her. Unfortunately, Miranda had no desire to exchange chitchat. Not with three girls she considered so far beneath her lofty social status.
“Drew.”
If You Only Knew (Harper Falls #3) Page 4
