Blind Faith

by Kimberley Reeves

  “Now you sound like Rose,” she said with a groan.

  “You should listen to her; Rose is a very smart lady.”

  “Don’t you mean pushy and overbearing?”

  “That too,” he agreed. “And now, Miss Cross, you have to make a very important decision.”

  “Will, I…need time,” she started but he cut her off.

  “I’ll give you two minutes. You can stay here and brown bag it like poor Rufus had to do, or you can come home with me and have a delicious steak dinner.”

  “Steak sounds much more appealing…wait a minute,” her voice was suspicious, “how did you know Rufus ate half my sandwich? Will Duncan, were you following me?”

  “Of course not,” he sounded genuinely offended. “I just happen to be sitting outside the school when you left, and by sheer coincidence was driving this way.”

  “Hmmmm, that was over two hours ago. What made you come back?”

  “Well, I…uh…didn’t exactly leave. You see, I dropped in to get a book on…” he glanced around at the rows of books, desperate for a plausible subject when Rufus nudged Will’s leg with his nose. “Golden Retrievers,” he said with a note of triumph.

  “Really? You must have discovered quite a lot if you spent two hours browsing books about them.”

  “Yes, it was pretty fascinating stuff. Did you know they originally came from Ireland…?”

  “Scotland, you mean?”

  “Ireland, Scotland, whatever. They have an instinctive love for water, which is why they’re such good hunting dogs, and they’re very intelligent. Oh, and they are extremely loyal to their owner.”

  Serena arched a brow. “So…based on what you read, Golden Retrievers are more of a one man, or woman, dog?”

  “Definitely,” he said with conviction.

  “And being so loyal to one person would also make them superb guard dogs then because they would naturally be suspicious of strangers?”

  “Yes, I’m sure several of the books mentioned they make excellent guard dogs.” He eyed Rufus who didn’t seem the least bit concerned there were half a dozen people milling around the aisles. “Or not,” he mumbled under his breath.

  Serena made a clicking noise with her tongue. “You didn’t even look at any of the books on Retrievers, did you? If you had, then you would know they make horrible guard dogs because they are too trusting and gentle and are usually as amiable to strangers as they are to their owners.”

  “Uh, oh, busted. Okay, I admit I didn’t browse the canine aisle, but I did read the entire swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated.”

  Serena bit back the laughter bubbling up inside her. “I suppose I have to forgive you for the tall tale you just told since you caught me stretching the truth too.”

  “Does that mean we can go home now? My stomach is so empty it’s starting to gnaw on its own lining.”

  She had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing that time, and was glad that Will grabbed up her brief case and ushered her out of the library before she embarrassed them both. Once they were outside, it couldn’t be contained and burst from her lips like a volcanic eruption. All the way home, Will kept her going with amusing quips while she begged him to stop. It didn’t even occur to her until she’d climbed into bed that night that she’d spent the entire evening in his presence without once feeling uncomfortable or worrying about letting something personal slip during their conversations. Maybe tomorrow she would feel differently, but tonight Serena was happy about the way things had turned out.

  ***

  Will leaned against the wooden railing of the deck admiring the view, which was beautiful, breathtaking…and wholly female. Serena and Rufus where out on the lawn where they’d been playing tug of war with a rubber chicken for the past twenty minutes while he soaked up the vision of pale blonde hair shimmering in the late afternoon sun and a smile that warmed him from the inside out. Her light hearted laughter made the Serena he’d moved in with a month and a half ago seem like a completely different woman than the one he saw rolling around on the grass.

  In the two weeks since he’d followed her to the library he had seen a lot of changes in Serena. For one thing, she didn’t throw up a road block if their discussion happened to touch on her past anymore. Of course he’d been careful to let her set the pace, and he never tried to steer the conversation in a direction she seemed hesitant to go, but he was content with that. He considered any progress a victory, including the laughter that seemed to come more easily with each passing day and the fact she didn’t shy away from his touch like she used to.

  “Hey, Will, are you still on the deck?”

  “No, I went back inside,” he called back.

  “Very funny, wise guy.” Serena got to her feet and took hold of Rufus’ collar. “We have a visitor. Can you get the door while I go wash up?”

  “Are you sure? I didn’t hear a car drive up.”

  “I didn’t hear it either,” she said as Rufus led her towards the deck. “Luckily, I have a vicious guard dog that alerts me when someone is here.”

  “Now who’s being a wise guy?”

  Will was still chuckling as he headed inside, but his good mood slipped a notch when he discovered who was at the door. “McKinley…this is a surprise.”

  “A pleasant one I hope,” McKinley flashed a smile as she swept past him then did a well-practiced pivot so he could get the full effect of her shapely body. “It’s been a long time, but you haven’t changed much. You’re still as handsome as ever,” she gushed.

  “Thanks,” he mumbled, then realized she was waiting for him to return the compliment. “You look good, McKinley. Serena had to go wash up but she’ll be out in a minute.” He closed the door and nodded towards the living room. “You can wait in there if you like.”

  “Come and talk to me while I wait,” she looped her arm through his, leaving him little choice but to go with her. “I’m sorry I didn’t stop by sooner. When I heard it was you that had rented out the top floor, I wanted to race right over here and see you but Rose insisted I give you two a little time to adjust to being house mates before I paid a visit.” McKinley stopped beside the sofa and somehow managed to snake her arms up around his neck before he realized what she was doing. “I’ve thought about you a lot, Will.”

  “McKinley…”

  “I’m serious. I’ve missed you and it was just killing me to have to wait so long to come and see you.” She peered up at him from beneath her lashes, a sexy smile playing on her lips. “I started thinking about the last time we kissed and how good it was. I can’t help wondering what would have happened if I hadn’t been dating Rick Porter at the time. He was furious when he caught us together, remember?”

  “What I remember is that…” Will stopped abruptly when he heard a soft gasp from the entranceway.

  Disentangling himself from McKinley’s arms, he turned just in time to see Serena’s stricken face as she stumbled backwards then disappeared around the corner.

  Chapter 4

  Will turned on McKinley, not even trying to disguise the look of cold disdain on his face. “Wait here,” he ordered.

  McKinley latched onto his arm. “Will…please don’t be angry with me. I’m sorry if I came on too strong; it’s just that I’ve missed you so much and was hoping we could pick up where we left off.”

  “This is where we left off,” he ground out.

  Will yanked his arm free, unaffected by the wounded expression that replaced the sultry one she’d worn only moments ago. McKinley had more masks than an owner of a Halloween costume shop and he’d seen enough of them to know they were as superficial as she was. There was no depth to the emotions displayed on her face, although he had to give her credit for perfecting her acting skills over the years.

  He didn’t know her well, but he had known enough women like her to understand that McKinley Cross didn’t care about anyone but herself and had probably never felt a moment of remorse for anything she’d ever done. And she never did any
thing unless it benefited her in some way. Suspicion prickled at the back of his neck. She all but admitted the reason she came here was to see him, so what had she hoped to accomplish by trying to seduce him? Hell would freeze over before he ever got McKinley to volunteer her true motives, but if he pushed the right buttons, he might just get her worked up enough to lose her temper and let something slip.

  “Let’s get something straight,” his voice was deliberately harsh. “I didn’t care to be with you then and I certainly have no interest in being with you now. I thought you were a manipulative, cold-hearted bitch back in high school and my opinion hasn’t changed over the years. There were plenty of other reasons I avoided you whenever possible but I doubt you want to hear them.”

  “Is that so? Go ahead, Will…enlighten me,” her tone was acidic. “Why didn’t you chase after me when every boy in school would have committed murder for just one date?”

  “The truth? You had all the morals of an alley cat in heat and thrived on pitting your current boyfriend against the lucky guy you chose to dump him for. You used people to get what you wanted then discarded them when you were through and didn’t lose a wink of sleep over it.” He leaned towards her, fanning the fiery temper she was visibly fighting to control. “I didn’t want any part of your games but that didn’t stop you from trying to pull me into them, did it McKinley? Maybe you have conveniently forgotten who paid the price for that little show you staged for Rick Porter, but I certainly haven’t.”

  McKinley’s eyes narrowed into venomous slits. “I didn’t plan that and resent the implication that I am somehow responsible for what happened afterwards.”

  “Oh, you planned it all right, just like you planned that little speech about us kissing then waited until you were sure Serena was close enough to overhear you.”

  McKinley was guilty as sin, he’d bet a whole semester’s tuition on it, but she had more tricks up her sleeve than Houdini and he could almost hear the wheels turning inside her head as she carefully calculated which one would work on him. It was impressive really, the way her indignant demeanor slowly morphed into the crestfallen expression of a falsely accused innocent. There was just the slightest hint of a quiver in her chin and she even managed to muster enough moisture in her eyes to make it seem as if she was on the verge of crying.

  “I’m sorry you feel that way, Will,” her voice wobbled. “I can see now that it was a mistake coming here tonight.”

  Will arched a skeptical brow. “Why did you come here, and don’t try to convince me it was because you missed me when we haven’t even seen each other more than a hand full of times since graduation.”

  She seemed to weigh her answer before replying. “Rose said you and Serena were really getting along and that she has seen a huge improvement in my sister since you moved in. She thinks you’re good for Serena, but I disagree. Maybe she seems better now, but it’s only a matter of time before having you around begins to stir up old memories and sends her world crashing down around her again.”

  “I won’t let that happen,” Will said with fierce determination.

  “You won’t be able to prevent it. Serena…she isn’t as strong as we are. Remembering what really happened that night will break her and I won’t let you do that to her.”

  Will laughed, but there was no humor in it. “You don’t have any say in this, McKinley.”

  “We’ll see about that.” She tried to brush past him, but Will gripped her arm and whirled her back around to face him. “What’s the matter,” she smiled up at him, “are you afraid I’ll tell Serena things you don’t want her to know and break up the happy little set up you have here?”

  Will saw it then, it was in her eyes and the cruel smile that twisted her lips. With sudden clarity he knew why McKinley was here and it had nothing to do with trying to protect Serena. She hated it that he had shown no interest in her back in high school, hated that he hadn’t tried to get into her pants when she had done everything she could to make him want her. It still stuck in her craw that she didn’t turn him on, and it was even worse now that he had made it perfectly clear he saw McKinley for what she was; a conniving, vindictive little bitch.

  If McKinley couldn’t have him, she was going to do her damnedest to make sure Serena wouldn’t want anything to do with him, even if that meant hurting her in the process. His gaze raked over McKinley’s deceptively beautiful features, seeing only the ugliness that was hidden beneath her unblemished skin; from the spiteful glint in her eyes to the heartless smile she wore. She was cold and ruthless, and he despised her for making him feel helpless to protect Serena from whatever devious scheme she was cooking up. Regardless of his personal feelings, he couldn’t afford to lose his temper and let her get the upper hand, at least not before he rattled her cage a little bit.

  “You disappoint me, McKinley,” Will said with a mocking shake of his head. “I expected something a little more creative than using your sister to get at me but then again, maybe you saw this as your chance to kill two birds with one stone.”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “Oh, I think you do. It’s still a thorn in your side that I didn’t throw myself at your feet and declare my undying devotion after one brief, insignificant kiss seven years ago. And if it’s that important to get even with me, then by all means give it your best shot. I’m a big boy, I can handle whatever you dish out. But trying to rob Serena of the happiness she’s found with me simply for the sake of your own petty jealousy is…”

  “Petty jealousy,” she shrieked. “What do I have to be jealous about; a blind sister who practically goes into convulsions whenever a man comes anywhere near her? I am not jealous of any woman, least of all her.”

  “Keep telling yourself that, McKinley. You may even convince yourself of it one day, but you don’t fool me. You’re jealous because she stole your spotlight. The whole world revolved around you until Serena was attacked and suddenly everyone’s attention was focused on her. Your parents and brothers devoted all their time to taking care of her and making sure she got everything she needed while poor, spoiled McKinley got shuffled to the background.”

  “That’s not true,” she hissed.

  “Deny it all you want, but your actions tonight just prove what I’m saying. It was bad enough that your family lost interest in the drama you created, but the kids at school and even the teachers didn’t want to hear about your wild antics anymore. They were more concerned about Serena and you resented her for it. But the real kick in the teeth was finding out I had moved in with her because somewhere in that warped little mind of yours, you believe she has taken something else that should have been yours.”

  McKinley was fuming, her cheeks a brilliant shade of scarlet that matched the blood red lipstick she wore. “You think you’re so clever, don’t you? Did you honestly think you could goad me into losing my temper and admitting to that pile of crap you just unloaded? What were you hoping to hear, Will; that I was crushed when I lost my status as the most popular girl in school and became known as Serena’s sister? Or did you think I would pull a boo hoo about how I suddenly ceased to exist and hated her for getting all the attention?”

  “Isn’t that how it was, McKinley?”

  “No, that is not how it was,” she said so vehemently it almost rang true. Almost.

  “You really expect me to believe that after the stunt you just pulled?”

  “I don’t give a rat’s ass what you believe. If it makes you happy to think I have ulterior motives in coming here, there’s not much I can do to persuade you otherwise. Quite frankly, I think you’re attacking me to detract from your own selfish motives for being here.”

  Will didn’t have a clue where she was going with this and might have been curious enough to see what crazy logic she applied to that statement if he wasn’t growing so anxious about checking on Serena. He’d known all along that McKinley’s heart was frigid; he just hadn’t realized it had reached subarctic temperatures until now.<
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  “We’ll have to finish this conversation later,” he told her. “I’m going to check on Serena. If you plan on sticking around, I suggest you put on your concerned sister act because I won’t have you upsetting her any more than you already have.”

  “Make my excuses, I’m leaving.” She got as far as the entranceway before turning back to Will. “Just so we understand each other, this isn’t over, not by a long shot. I want you out of Serena’s life and I will do whatever it takes to make sure that happens.”

  Will didn’t bother to respond. He would deal with McKinley later when he was capable of behaving rationally instead of lashing out at her, which is what he felt like doing at that moment. When she realized he wasn’t going to take the bait she’d tossed out, McKinley thumbed her nose up at him then made a production of stomping down the hallway and slamming the front door behind her. Only after he heard the roar of her engine and was sure she was gone did he head for Serena’s bedroom.