The Strong Silent Type

by Marie Ferrarella

  Teri’s head jerked up. She couldn’t have been more surprised than if he’d just ripped off his shirt to announce that he was really Tarzan. “You asked my sister?”

  “Callie.”

  She stared at him as if he’d suddenly turned into an alien life form. Or the man of her secret dreams. “You actually communicated something personal to a member of my family?” To cover just how deeply moved she was, she placed her hand over her chest, feigning shock. “My God, Hawk, there’s hope for you yet.”

  “Only if you marry me.”

  Her knees suddenly went out on her. Afraid of sinking to the floor, she grabbed his arm. “I think I need to sit down.”

  But he wouldn’t let her sit. Instead, he swept her into his arms, holding her close to him. “I won’t let you fall.” She looked up at him, her eyes dazed with disbelief. He could hardly believe any of this himself. But he felt freer than he ever had in his life. And happier. “I’ve never, ever felt about anyone the way I feel about you. These past couple of weeks have been hell.”

  Happiness curled through her, filling every nook and cranny. “You mentioned that.”

  How had he managed to survive these past two weeks without her? Without holding her like this? “Did I also mention that I love you?”

  “No,” she allowed. “That’s new, although the ring did give me a hint.”

  “Marry me, Teri—”

  Butterflies turned into eagles. Eagles with grins on their beaks. “There you go again, using my first name and getting me all misty.” She looked up at him, her tone becoming serious. She was a goner and she knew it. “You don’t play fair, you know.”

  He combed his hand through her hair, cupping her cheek. “I’ll play any way you want me to, Teri, as long as you say yes.”

  “To the partnership?” she teased.

  “To everything.”

  She cocked her head again. “Now, that might be tricky. My father always taught me not to issue blanket statements I might regret.”

  “You won’t regret this, Teri. I swear you won’t regret this.”

  “I know.” She threaded her arms around his neck, standing on her toes to do so. “I’m so in love with you right now, I’m going to burst. So yes, the answer’s yes. Yes, I’ll become your partner again, and yes, I’ll marry you.”

  He framed her face with his hands. “That’s all I want to hear out of you for a while.”

  “No problem,” she whispered just before he brought his mouth down to hers and sealed both their fates.

  Epilogue

  A ndrew struggled against the wall of loneliness that threatened to close around him.

  Last night had been a surprise. He’d come home from the movies with Brian only to have Teri tell him that she was getting married. To Hawk.

  Of course, in a way, he’d seen it coming. Seen the way the young man had looked at his daughter. Probably the way he’d looked at Rose once.

  That made four now. Four out of five of his children were getting married, not to mention his nephew, Patrick. Out of the blue, just like that. He thought of how empty the house was going to seem soon. It made him miss Rose all the more.

  Maybe he should go back up there, he thought. He’d hoped that she’d call him, but she hadn’t. She’d had time to think things over.

  Maybe if he went, tried to persuade her a little, that might do the trick….

  He stopped and cocked his head. Was that the doorbell?

  Telling himself he was probably hearing things, he shut off the tap water and stopped rinsing the dishes before stacking them in the dishwasher.

  The soft peal of the doorbell disturbed the atmosphere. Well, at least he knew his hearing was as good as ever, he congratulated himself. He grabbed a towel and dried his hands as he made his way to the front door.

  They didn’t see too many door-to-door salespeople in this part of the city and it was way too early for one of the neighborhood kids to be trying to sell cookies, or wrapping paper, or whatever their schools were pushing these days to raise funds, he thought.

  Like as not, it was either Rayne or Teri. Both had gone out together just a few minutes ago. One of them had probably forgotten her keys. It wouldn’t be the first time.

  Slinging the towel over his right shoulder, Andrew reached for the doorknob and swung the door open. “What did you forget?”

  The words hung in the air, mocking him, as he looked into the face of the woman who called herself Claire.

  She looked nervous, vulnerable and completely uncertain. It took her a moment before she responded. “Everything, apparently.”

  ISBN: 978-1-4268-7038-5

  THE STRONG SILENT TYPE

  Copyright © 2004 by Marie Rydzynski-Ferrarella

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Silhouette Books, 233 Broadway, New York, NY 10279 U.S.A.

  All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

  This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

  ® and TM are trademarks of Harlequin Books S.A., used under license. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.

  Visit Silhouette Books at www.eHarlequin.com

  *Unflashed series

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  Table of Contents

  Chapter One T here was no recognition in the woman’s eyes. Try as he might to will it there, Andrew Cavanaugh didn’t see even the slightest hint of acknowledgment that he and she had grown up together, that the teasing and name-calling of two shy adolescents had masked the growing attraction they shared for one another. There was no indication on her face that she remembered they had gotten married straight out of high school and that soon afterward, while he struggled to make his way up through the ranks of the Aurora police force, they’d been blessed with children. Five in total. No indication that she even knew who he was or that he’d spent the past fifteen years of his life searching for her, praying that she’d somehow managed to escape the watery grave that had claimed the vehicle she’d been driving that day. She was Rose, his Rose, he was sure of it, even though the name tag on her uniform proclaimed her name to be Claire. She didn’t belong in this diner. She belonged home. With

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two I t seemed as if only seconds had gone by. Suddenly, the roof was alive with uniformed personnel that poured out from both the fire escape and the rooftop entrance. The extra commotion only added to the lightheaded feeling Teri vainly struggled to keep at bay. She was careful to keep her eyes trained forward. Any quick movements on her part seemed guaranteed to make her lose her bearings and fall. “About time you got here,” she said to one of the policeman. “The fun’s all over.” The officer closest to her took one look at the growing red splotch to the right of her rib cage. “Looks like it just started. In case you missed it, you’ve been shot.” Concerned, he raised his eyes to her face. “You better get yourself to a hospital.” Drawing in a deep breath was out of the question. Breathing itself was becoming a challenge for her. She was deathly afraid she was going to pass out. “Yeah, I guess I’d better.” She couldn’t manage the sentence without a sense of dread descending ove

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three H e came. The words vibrated in her brain, bringing with them a wave of relief and happiness. Teri waved away the paramedic who’d just tried to get her to lie on the gurn
ey. “I’ll sit, but I won’t lie down.” She looked at Hawk who stepped back as the gurney was brought out of the ambulance. The dread drained out of her. She didn’t have to face going in alone. “Did you forget something?” “Yeah, my better judgment.” He’d seen the relief that had leaped into her eyes, so intense that for a second it stopped him in his tracks. What was that about? Was she actually afraid of hospitals? He hadn’t thought she was afraid of anything. It was part of the woman’s appeal. The paramedics were pushing her through the doors. And Hawk was not fading back into the parking lot—he was coming in with her. “What about the statements?” she asked. “I told Mulrooney to tell the victims I would be by later to take them.” There were nurses and attendants scattered throughout the rear of the ER. Ha

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four I t just happened. She hadn’t planned it, or even thought it out. To say she had never thought about kissing Hawk would have been a lie. She had. Several times. The man was tall, dark and handsome by absolutely anyone’s standards. But she wasn’t really attracted to him, she’d insisted. Brooding men weren’t her type. She liked outgoing, gregarious men. Men who knew how to have fun and didn’t mean anything by it once the good times were over. Simple. That was the way she liked it. Jack Hawkins, on the other hand, just breathed complexity. Every word he uttered—when he deigned to utter any—all but screamed the word. No, she wasn’t attracted to him. Nope, not a whit. If anything, Hawk was her pet project. She meant to drag her partner out among the living if it was the last thing she did on this earth. She had to get him to loosen up and smile more than once every nine, ten months or so. Nothing else, just that. Kissing him hadn’t been a means to that goal. What had brought he

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five T eri stopped dead. Behind her, the ladies’ room door she’d just come through lightly tapped her as it swung back into place, nudging her out of her trance. Feeling a little woozy, she’d gone in for a couple of minutes respite without several sets of male eyes watching her, most notably Hawk’s. She’d had the feeling all day that he’d been waiting for her to pass out, or visibly droop. Which was a great incentive to keep pushing. But she hadn’t expected to be waylaid by the sudden appearance of her father walking along on what she deemed now to be her turf. “Dad, what are you doing here?” Her eyes narrowed as she crossed to him. Granted, this whole building had once been her father’s domain and she knew he had to miss being here, had to miss being the chief of what had become a damn fine police force. But the first reason that occurred to her for his presence had nothing to do with his having a bout of nostalgia, or meeting up with old friends. It was far more personal than

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six H awk frowned. It was taking far too long to down this one beer. Every time he bent his elbow, about to drink some more of the deep amber liquid, someone else would come up to bend his ear instead. If he didn’t know any better, he would have said that the whole establishment had been packed with people who belonged to T.A.—Teris Anonymous, there to try to purge as many words out of their system as was humanly possible without imploding. It was his idea of a living hell, being surrounded by an endless supply of people who did nothing but talk. And talk. And talk. Even people he thought kept mostly their own council, like his partner’s older brother, Shaw, couldn’t seem to pass up the opportunity to stop by and say something to him tonight. In Shaw’s case, it was advice. The tall, muscular detective took a chair next to him at the small table Teri had staked out for them while her older sister, Callie, flanked him on the other side. He was getting a triple dose of Cavanaughs,

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven T he alleyway between the two crumbling buildings was enshrouded in darkness despite the sunshine that existed on the street just beyond the perimeter. It was as if nothing bright could be allowed to enter here—no sunshine, no hope. The air was foul, filled with the smell of decay and rotting garbage the city had neglected to pick up. Pickup was sporadic. Following behind Hawk, Teri glanced over her shoulder toward the curb where he’d left the car parked, wondering if they would find it in one piece when they were finished here. Teri nearly tripped over what she thought was a mound of garbage, catching her balance just in time. The mound moved, drawing into itself. She sucked in her breath. Two eyes stared out at her from somewhere within the pile of filthy rags, then closed again into slits before disappearing altogether. Adrenaline doing double time, she felt for her weapon as she hurried to keep up pace with Hawk. The phone call he’d received earlier had brought them h

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight S he was getting to him. Hawk stopped looking over the files spread across his desk, stopped pretending he was reading them. Because he wasn’t. He’d been stuck on the same damn sentence for over ten minutes now. Stuck on it and it still hadn’t registered. He’d never thought it could be possible. It had taken nine months, but she was getting to him. Giving no warning, sounding no alarms. Odorless, tasteless, invisible, like carbon monoxide, Teri Cavanaugh had somehow managed to slip into his system. He would have said that it had all started when his partner had been looped on painkillers and had kissed him in the car, but that, if anything, had just been the trigger. The process had begun a lot earlier than that, although for the life of him, Hawk couldn’t pinpoint exactly when. He was attracted to her. Attracted physically and emotionally, although he would have been the last person to think the latter was possible for him. But if not, why else would he have told her abo

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine C laire stood behind the door, counting off the minutes. Waiting until she was sure he was gone. Then, bracing her shoulders, she opened the door again, needing to fill the small apartment with fresh air. Needing to feel that fresh air on her skin. Her eyes swept up and down the path that led to her garden apartment. There was no one else around. He’d brought the restlessness back, this man with his gray-blue eyes and his photo album. She could feel her adrenaline warming, coursing through her veins. It made her want to cry. She’d finally, finally reconciled with the dark hole that was at the center of her life. Finally reconciled with not ever knowing. It was as if she’d been born fifteen years ago. Born wandering a road, her hair wet, her clothes damp and clinging to her body. Her mind had been a blank, her body filled with pain. She’d long since given up trying to remember, other than thinking someone had to be after her. Someone who would hurt her if he ever found her.

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten I t was too early for the late crowd, too late for the early crowd. As a result, the small Mexican restaurant Hawk had brought her to was thinly populated. Only a third of their tables were in use. She’d ordered a quesadilla. Because food was of no consequence to him one way or another, he’d ordered the same. He wasn’t here to eat, but to listen. Except that there was nothing to listen to, beyond the mild buzz of the conversation from the other tables. Hawk gave her the first ten minutes, then said, “Okay, talk to me.” The smile that blossomed on her face stirred something within him. It was like seeing the sun come out after a long storm. She was a very pretty woman, but when she smiled, she was the closest thing to beautiful that he had ever seen. Not the kind of model-perfect beautiful that could be found on the covers of popular magazines, but a kick-in-your-gut kind of beautiful. It took him a beat to come around. “Did I say something funny?” he asked. “Yeah, you did.”

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven I t was a full-scale attack. There was no other way to regard it. Hawk was assaulting her senses, her mind, her body, just by the very act of kissing her. There was no avenue of escape. She didn’t want one. Her body heated. It was like a fever, brought on by some small, almost undetectable source, infecting her. Spreading until it raged throughout her entire being. Raged through her until she couldn’t even recognize herself. She was like a woman possessed. Possessed by him. Obsessed by this feeling he was creating within her. She enjoyed life, enjoyed what it had to offer, enjoyed, when the timing was right, the in
timacies that were available between a man and a woman. Those were all undertaken with an understanding. There were to be no strings. No regrets. But there was never this storm, this passion that began almost at the very starting line, making her want to race toward the finish banner before it vanished from view. From her grasp. Urgently, she pulled the shirt f

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve T aking a break, Teri looked at Hawk over the rim of her coffee mug. For most of the morning, she and he had been cross-referencing information, searching for a connection, a name, something to hang their newest theory on. A headache formed over the bridge of her nose and she paused to massage it, her eyes never leaving the top of Hawk’s head. He was busy poring over something. Intent. Focused. Unlike her. Her mind bounced back and forth like a ball at zero gravity, going from their case to the night they’d spent together. She didn’t want to feel this way, this happy-glad-Fourth-of-July-sparkler sort of way every time she thought of him. What she wanted, or felt she wanted, didn’t seem to enter into it. The sparkler continued to burn. For the first time in her life, she had feelings, potentially deep feelings for someone—if she allowed herself to admit it—and it worried her. More than that, it frightened her. She’d seen what really loving someone could do. She only had t

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen “I got it!” Excitement quickly obliterated the drowsy state that had begun to descend over her. Teri looked up from the screen where her eyes had been glued for the better part of the morning. She searched for someone to tell about the elusive connection she’d found. “I got it!” she cried again. Deeply entrenched in thoughts that he couldn’t seem to easily shake off no matter how hard he tried, Hawk raised his head and looked in her direction. She’d been rattling around in his head and there appeared to be no signs of stopping. “Anything I can catch?” Not even his sarcastic question could shake the high she was feeling. She’d found the damn thread. “No, but maybe Danny Tierney is.” The name hit him with the force of a bullet fired at close range. “Tierney,” he repeated slowly. “Danny Tierney?” A small fraction of her excitement abated, giving way to something more personal. To a stirring of concern. There was an odd look on Hawk’s face she couldn’t begin to read. “Yeah