by Talty, Jen
“Oh, for the love of God,” she spat, unable to take it anymore. “Here.” She took the ponytail holder out of her hair and started to gather up his. “If I didn’t love your hair so much, I’d tell you to chop it all off.”
“You like my hair?” He winked.
“It’s so ‘Indian’ like.” She shoved him in the shoulder and went back to knocking on the wall.
“Wanna be my squaw?”
“Savage.” Unable to resist the familiar banter, she looked over her shoulder and smiled.
The smoldering look he cast her as he closed the gap between them should have frightened her, but all it did was ignite the passion deep within her. His powerful body backed her against the wall and his fierce, steaming eyes made her shiver.
His tongue rolled across his lips as he dipped his head closer. A strong thigh shoved her legs apart as he pushed against her core. Immediate heat poured from her body. It baffled her how one man could make her feel so much, so quickly, allowing her to forget everything else.
There was no denying the passion he invoked in her, and no stopping it either. She slipped her hands under his shirt, feeling the muscles in his back tighten. The warmth of his lips, then the probing of his soft but demanding tongue made her legs feel like rubber.
“Yo, Dark Man, get up here,” Toby called from somewhere above them.
“Busy right now.” Blaine cupped her face, his breathing haggard.
“You’re gonna want to see this; sucking face can wait.”
“Damn,” Blaine muttered. “Be right up.”
A slight chill covered her body as Blaine backed away. “We shouldn’t have been doing that,” she whispered.
“Oh, yes we should.” He pulled her to his chest and kissed her tenderly.
Angry at her own inability to stop him, she slammed her hand against his chest and forced herself to step back. “We can’t.”
“We can and we will.” His stare was filled with need. “You can’t deny how good we are together.”
“We can’t be together.”
“While you’re here, we sure as hell can.” His gaze turned from passion and need to anger and frustration. “When it’s time for you to take care of other things, you can walk away from me if you still want to.”
“I won’t have a choice.”
“We always have choices, but I guess you haven’t learned that yet.” A slow smile appeared across his face. “Trust me,” he whispered, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “And don’t deny yourself simple pleasures.” He patted her bottom and then pushed her toward the stairs.
Simple pleasure, that’s all she was to him, a toy to play with while it lasted. That’s what her father had said about him when they were still in high school. She couldn’t help but wonder if he’d married her years ago because she had been pregnant. That’s what everyone had thought. He had denied it, but if the pregnancy had been what prompted him to propose in the first place, then she’d been right. He hadn’t loved her. When there was no baby, there was no marriage.
“What’d you find?” Blaine said as they approached the top of the stairs.
“We might want to get Dave here.” Emma pointed to a picture in the hallway hanging open unhinged. “Did you know about that safe?”
Kaylee shook her head, confused. She thought she knew everything about this house. She thought everyone was nuts for thinking there was a secret room. Nothing secret in this house but who her biological father was. “I knew about the one in the bedroom and the one in Dad’s den. This one must be new.”
Blaine flipped open his phone and walked away barking out some orders to whoever answered.
Kaylee took a small step toward the painting, one of her father’s favorites. “When we spoke right before he died, he told me he had some news for me.”
“You think he knew who your father was?” Emma asked, standing next to her.
“If he did, he didn’t want to me or anyone else to find out.”
“Why?” Emma asked, as Blaine motioned everyone to the kitchen.
“Because he didn’t want another scandal. He didn’t want people to talk even more than they already were. It was as if we acknowledged my paternity, it would negate the fact that he’d raised me.”
Blaine pulled out a chair, then turned it and straddled it. “Sit,” he ordered to the rest of the room. “We’ll wait for Dave.”
“What crawled up your ass?” Toby asked.
Kaylee winced when Blaine glanced in her direction.
“You have to have some thought about who your father might be,” Blaine said.
“I didn’t even know he wasn’t my father until Deslin died.” She glared at him. “It’s hard to look at any man my parents’ age in this town and wonder if my eyes look like his. Or if I have one of his traits. That’s part of why I left.” Kaylee turned from Blaine’s cold stare. “I never lied to you,” she whispered.
“But you didn’t talk to me either,” he mumbled.
“This whole thing just sucks.” Kaylee sat down and rubbed her temples. “I didn’t want to come back here because I knew everyone would just judge me. Besides, my father didn’t think I could manage on my own.” And the reality of her unsuccessful attempt to have a life of her own came crashing down. “I wanted to prove him wrong.”
“And did you?” Emma asked. Of all the people in the room, she was the only one who seemed like she gave a damn.
“Nope, I made a mess of my life, just like he said I would.”
“Because you worked for an asshole?” Blaine shook his head.
She blinked. “I trusted that asshole and was going to marry him.”
“Did you love him?” Blaine asked, his fingers gripping the chair.
“No.”
“Then why would you marry him?” Emma asked softly.
“Because my father was right. I didn’t have a clue, and while there aren’t voices inside my head telling me to seduce every man in sight, I wasn’t that much different than my mother. I was broken and Nino was there to pick up the pieces. Next thing I knew, he was taking care of me. Just like my father had predicted. I couldn’t do it on my own. And just like my mother, I let someone else think for me.”
“You just trusted the wrong guy,” Toby said.
She let out a dry laugh. “I’ve always trusted the wrong guy.”
Blaine’s chair scratched across the floor as he pushed it and stood. “I think Dave’s here,” he muttered, then added a few choice curses as he marched toward the kitchen door.
Kaylee watched Blaine close the door with a gentle tug instead of slamming it like she sensed he really wanted to do. Out the window, she could see Dave’s pickup roll down the long drive.
“You okay?” Emma asked after Toby had gotten up and left the room.
“No,” Kaylee said.
“Don’t let him get to you.”
“You’re all getting to me, but I’m glad you’re here.”
Emma smiled. “I wanted to hate you, but that seems to be impossible.”
“Thanks,” Kaylee said.
“You’re not the warm and fuzzy type, are you?” Emma asked with open arms. “My family’s extremely affectionate. I can’t walk into my parents’ home without a big hug and kiss.”
“My parents didn’t understand the meaning of human contact. That was really hard for me when Blaine and I first married, but I got used to it until… I think I’d like a hug.” Kaylee walked into Emma’s open arms. It was an uncomfortable feeling at first, but Kaylee could get used to it.
“Aww, can I join in? Better yet, can I take pictures?” Toby teased as he waltzed back into the kitchen.
“Damned pig. Never going to happen, so you can just forget it,” Emma said.
“You two naked? Together? Or me watching?”
“Oh… my…God. How the hell did I ever end up in love with an idiot like you?”
“I’m easy to love; it’s the loving back part that’s got me all confused.” Toby’s smile was as warm as the a
ffection and love he had in his eyes.
He circled his arms around them both, whispering to Kaylee, “After he finds out who did this, and you take care of your little problem, give him--and yourself--the chance to heal and find each other again.” Toby gave Emma a kiss on the temple, then turned and met Blaine and Dave by the door.
Find each other again. Had they ever truly had each other? At this point, she wasn’t so sure. They hadn’t trusted in each other, or their love, to make it work. She’d seen other people come together in times of tragedy, but their own personal pain pulled them apart, destroying them.
“Kaylee,” Dave said slipping out of his wet coat. “Do you have any problems with us searching this house?”
Kaylee glanced at Emma, who nodded. “Do what you need to.”
“You realize anything we find, incriminating or otherwise, could be taken in as evidence,” Dave added.
“I understand.” Boy did she ever. The never-ending process of looking for a better suspect. She wondered if she would end up getting arrested by default. Might not be a bad idea considering her other problems.
Just then the house phone rang.
“Should I answer it?” She didn’t feel like this was her home anymore and didn’t know who would be calling her anyway.
“Answer it,” Blaine said.
Kaylee picked up the receiver. “Hello?”
“Darling, I’ve been looking for you,” the voice on the other end of the phone echoed in her ears.
She gripped the receiver and swallowed. Her heart pounded frantically against her ribs, and when she opened her mouth she couldn’t form any words.
Nino had found her.
“Come now, sweetheart, I can hear you breathing.”
Kaylee glanced down; Emma had taken her hand as if she knew who was on the other end of the line.
“Who is it?” Blaine whispered behind a clenched jaw.
“What do you want, Nino?” Kaylee asked.
“I just want you to come home where you belong.”
“We’re through, Nino. You don’t love me; you’ve made that painfully clear.”
Dave had flipped open his cell while Blaine motioned to her to keep him talking.
“Oh, but I do love you, and you must come home. Please don’t make me have someone come find you.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“Oh, baby, not at all. You see, there is this matter of a criminal case and those documents you stole. I don’t want to have to subpoena you. Or worse…have you arrested. You are an important witness, and you must come and testify.”
“No, Nino, I won’t lie for you.”
“Don’t be foolish. You know what could happen.”
A sudden, sharp twist in her muscle reminded her of what could happen. She could feel herself begin to weaken, but she knew if she caved this time, she’d be dead as soon as she put the receiver down. “I’m not frightened of you anymore.”
“Your ex-husband can’t help you. As a matter of fact, I could take him out right now.”
Kaylee glanced at Blaine, who was staring out the window in the breakfast nook off the kitchen. “Blaine!” she shouted. “Get away from the window!”
Everyone in the room rushed to her side as she buckled to the ground. “Nino, please don’t do this,” she whispered, but all Nino did was laugh as the phone went dead.
Chapter Eleven
Kaylee swallowed, crossing her arms around her middle. The safe in the den had a secret compartment, which is where she’d hid Nino’s documents. She’d sworn to Emma that nothing had been in there and now she knew why. Her father had a safe that no one knew existed.
“Are you sure you want to do this now?” Dave asked.
Kaylee felt the blood drain from her face. “Do it.”
“We can open the safe another time,” Dave said with soft, caring eyes.
“I think now is good,” Blaine said, not looking up from his tools that would safely blow up the safe, at least according to him. Kaylee had to wonder.
“I can’t take much more of this. Please, just open the damn thing.” She wrinkled her nose. “That stuff smells.”
Blaine glanced up, his eyes sparkling like a kid in a candy store. Kaylee got the distinct feeling he enjoyed doing this. “You get used to it.”
She rubbed her nose. “Not.”
“I thought they taught you how to diffuse them, not make them.” Dave laced his fingers around Kaylee’s forearm. “Maybe we should take a step back.”
Blaine smacked his putty on the safe, stuck a wire in it, and stepped back with a smile. “If I can’t build one, I can’t take one apart. If I can’t take them apart without blowing myself up, I should go into a different line of work.” He winked. “Watch this.”
A loud pop filled the room as the door to the safe flew from the wall, crashing into the other wall before landing on the floor with a thud.
“Oops. I guess I used too much.” Blaine whipped off some of the soot that had reared up and landed on him.
“Glad I stuck with homicide,” Dave muttered.
“You have to be homicidal to work bomb squad,” Blaine teased.
“Doesn’t make any of us feel any better,” Emma said.
Kaylee rolled her eyes. “God, I can’t believe you did shit like that for a living.”
“And survived,” Toby added, rubbing his scruffy face. “Man, I’m impressed.”
“Kaylee, why don’t you take a look inside,” Dave instructed, looping his arm around her.
She took small tentative steps toward the hole in the wall. “Can you see anything?” she asked Blaine.
“Just a shoe box.” He gave her a reassuring smile, but it didn’t really help. She didn’t know why she was so afraid. It wasn’t like Nino would jump out and kill her or something.
“I can’t do this.” Kaylee froze.
“Can I look?” Blaine reached into the safe, pulling out a box.”
Kaylee just nodded.
“Well?” Dave said.
“Pictures,” Blaine said not looking up, but flipping through them.
“Of what?” Dave asked.
“I think I’ll leave the room,” Kaylee said, but Dave kept a strong arm on her, foiling her escape.
“What do we know about Rachael and this boyfriend of hers?” Blaine asked, shifting things around in the box.
“Rachael?” Kaylee ran her trembling fingers across her throat. “What does she have to do with this?”
“Not sure.” Blaine raised his gaze, showing his darkly intense eyes.
“She told me she thinks he’s the one,” Kaylee added.
“Poor, unsuspecting bastard, someone should warn him about that wacko,” Toby said.
“She’s not a wacko,” Kaylee argued.
“Wanna bet? She had the balls to claim I was the father of a baby who didn’t even exist.”
“Why would she do that?” Kaylee glanced around the room. “She doesn’t even like you.” Although in high school they’d both agreed Toby was hot. And do-able.
“All that woman wants is to get married and have a kid,” Toby said. “And she doesn’t give a damn who it’s with. Or who it hurts.”
“You and Rachael?” Kaylee asked, staring at Toby.
“Eons ago.”
“This has nothing to do with her present love life.” Blaine huffed.
“What do Rachael and her love life have to do with what is in that box?” Dave asked.
“By the looks of these pictures, Rachael had an affair with Rutherford.”
“Oh, God, no.” Kaylee rushed forward and yanked the pictures from Blaine’s hands. There had to be some mistake. “Holy shit! Oh, Daddy, what the hell were you thinking?”
Blaine held up note. “And it looks like she was blackmailing him.”
Kaylee crumpled to the floor. “This isn’t happening. She was my friend, why the hell would she sleep with my father? Why would my father sleep with her?” The wall felt cold against her back, and the r
ancid smell of the tacky crap Blaine had put on the safe tickled the back of her throat sending gag messages to her stomach.
“Kaylee,” Dave said as he knelt down beside her and glanced at the photos in her hands. “I need to take these pictures, okay?”
She nodded. “Next thing, you’ll tell me the nice Police Chief here is my dad.”
“Impossible… and not funny,” Dave muttered, lifting a brow.
“I’m sorry, but my life has become a comic strip. I need a drink.”
Blaine took her by the hand and led her into the family room. Getting good and drunk would solve her immediate problems.
“Sit down.” Blaine motioned to her father’s favorite wingback chair.
The soft fabric felt good against her arms. She’d also loved this chair. It was like a fine suede suit that fit your body like your own skin.
Blaine handed her a small glass of light brown liquid. She didn’t give a damn what was in the cup, just so long as it took the edge off. The liquor felt warm against her lips, hot going down her throat, and by the time it hit her stomach, it was on fire.
“Whoa.” She shook her head. “Just what the doctor ordered.”
“What is it about Rachael that appeals to you?” Blaine asked. “I mean, she was always trying to out-do you. Be better than you. Hell, she even made a pass at me while we were together.”
Oh, boy. That was certainly a good question. One she’d wondered about herself. “We’ve been friends since we could talk.”
“But she always tried to put you down.”
Kaylee took another long, slow sip. This time it didn’t burn as much, but her stomach did sour, sending a warm chill across her middle. “Not really.”
“She tried to break us up.” He leaned against the bookcase, legs crossed at the ankles in that sexy stance of his.
“So did your parents, my parents, and half this damn town.”
“Point taken, but I still don’t understand.”
“Take you and Toby.”
“Toby has never done anything hurtful to me.”
“Maybe not, but he did tell you we were making a mistake.” She tossed back the rest of her drink and then let out a little belch. “Sorry.”
