The Blackstone Heir

by Dani Wade

  KC suppressed a grin. Sometimes changing a man’s focus was way too easy.

  Without further interruption, Vanessa led her husband to the dance floor, Robert’s focus definitely where it should be. Vanessa threw a wink KC’s way as she slid confidently into his arms.

  Jacob glanced between them suspiciously, then shook his head with a grin. “I don’t want to know,” he said.

  He pressed a kiss to her neck, eliciting a shiver. Then he whispered, “Where were we?”

  He had her out the door and hailing a cab before she could answer. Not that she complained. The anticipation of the day had set her senses on high alert. Now she would cap off this romantic night in the perfect way with the man she loved.

  KC’s stomach dropped as if she’d jump-started an elevator. She’d known she was infatuated with Jacob, but she thought she’d been able to wall off all those tender feelings, leaving only the attraction. Seeing so many different sides to him over the past month had only deepened her desire for something more, some permanent attachment to this strong, steady man.

  She had no doubt he would never turn away from Carter, but his son was his blood. He’d turned his life upside down in recent months to help his family. But she wasn’t family... She was expendable.

  The one thing she’d always feared.

  She had been determined to be the strong one, the one who could walk away. And she had, but she couldn’t stay gone. Would she survive if he chose to leave her?

  KC forced herself to shut down her thoughts as Jacob led her into the bedroom of their suite. The moonlight streaming through the gauzy curtains glinted off his blond hair as he peeled himself out of the black jacket of his tux. He unbuttoned his dress shirt, revealing his muscled chest a few inches at a time.

  He pulled the ends of the shirt from his pants, leaving it to hang open as he stalked closer to her. Half sophisticate, half primal male. KC’s heart fluttered in feminine awareness. She backed slowly away.

  Jake kept coming, his intense stare telling her everything he would enjoy doing to her. But first...

  “I’ve been dreaming about what’s underneath this dress since this afternoon, KC,” he said, his deep voice brushing along her senses with the skill of a master musician. “Now I will see it for myself.”

  She smiled up at him. “That was the plan.”

  Reaching to the side, Jacob eased her zipper down until the unique creation slid to the floor, leaving her more vulnerable and exposed than she’d ever been. Not because the corset left little to the imagination with its mesh panels, but because the man before her wasn’t looking for a good time—he was intent on consuming her.

  And she would let him.

  His palms traced the boning from her hips up to her waist, then around to her plump breasts beneath the satin cups. The flesh swelled, threatening to overflow its bounds. “KC,” Jake said, sounding a little strangled. “White satin. Couldn’t be more appropriate for my angel.”

  She didn’t know why he was comparing her to a heavenly being, but she’d savor the reverence in his voice, his touch. He continued to explore, running his hands back down to the garters attached to her stockings, then up the back to the completely unprotected roundness of her backside. With a firm grip, he pulled her against him. The friction of his tuxedo pants and the stockings on her legs sent her head spinning. Her hands dipped beneath his shirttails, meeting warm flesh just above his belt. Part of her ached for more; part of her reveled in the joyous miracle of having Jake in full flesh before her.

  Only this close could she feel the slight tremble in his muscles, feel the sheer sheen of sweat over his skin.

  “KC,” he said with a groan. “I wanted to wait, honey. To make it last. But I can’t.”

  “Then take me, Jake,” she whispered against his skin. “Take all of me.”

  Two steps and he had her balanced on the edge of the dresser, knees spread wide to accommodate him. His touch was rough this time as he dragged the cups of the bustier down to give him full access to the treasure he sought.

  Her heart raced into overdrive as his mouth teased her nipples. Then he gave a soft pull that strengthened the pulse that beat between her thighs. She needed him...needed him...

  He didn’t disappoint.

  Seconds later he was pushing inside her, filling her in the best way imaginable. Physically, emotionally. Stretching her to accept him. Overwhelming her protests. Completing her in a way she’d never thought possible.

  His mouth settled at her neck, sucking along her skin. His thumb pressed against that most precious of spots as she panted out her need. All the while, the hard strokes from his body drove her insane until all the sensations coalesced into a crescendo of heat that detonated in a single blinding second. Jake’s hoarse cries in her ear pulled her back from heavenly nothingness to the precious gift of his own release.

  They drifted back to reality together, aftershocks rocking them for long, long moments. Then he tried to pull away—and stumbled. Shocked, she clutched at him.

  Beneath her fingers, a rumble started, then grew into laughter. Jake’s laughter was that much more precious for being so rare. “What’s so funny?” she asked.

  “My pants are still around my ankles,” he confessed.

  She couldn’t help it. She had to laugh, too. “Well, let’s get you properly undressed before you fall and we have to spend the evening in the emergency room rather than the bedroom.”

  He was already stripping himself down. “Yes, ma’am. That sounds like a perfect plan to me.”

  Twelve

  The ringing of the phone roused KC from the deepest sleep she’d ever had. At least, it felt that way. Maybe because she’d so rarely gotten a full night’s sleep since Carter was born—

  Carter!

  KC was standing next to the bed before she even realized she’d moved. Her vision blurred for a moment before she blinked, her body swaying in confusion. Who was she kidding? It was always hard to wake up.

  With deliberate focus, she found Jacob sitting on the bed with his back to her, phone to his ear. Had his movement woken her or the phone? Confusion once more clouded her mind for a moment until he stood and ended the call.

  “Get dressed,” Jacob said, clipped and to the point. “We need to go.”

  Carter?

  Concentration was hard to come by, but KC forced herself to snap to it. By then, the passionate, compelling lover of last night had been replaced by a man in full action mode. Jacob was already dressed in cargo pants and a casual polo for traveling. He swept out the bedroom door with his phone, leaving her on her own.

  With the urgency of a worried mother, she quickly followed him. “Is Carter all right?”

  Jacob didn’t answer. She moved around the couch to see his phone in his hands, his fingers speeding across the screen.

  “Jacob, what’s wrong?”

  Still no answer. Anger swept through her this time. His focus was so intent that she got close without him even noticing. She reached out her hand and covered the phone so he couldn’t see it.

  He glanced up, frowning in her direction.

  “Is Carter okay?” she asked, enunciating each word.

  He blinked, and she could almost see the realization steal into his eyes. Yes, dear, you left something out. “I’m sorry, KC. Yes, Carter is perfectly fine.”

  “Then what’s wrong?”

  “Just something out at the mill,” he said, but his normally straightforward gaze slid away. He stepped back, dropping the phone to his side. “But I really need to be on the next flight home.”

  What was going on? Why was Jacob avoiding the issue with her? Or was he so focused on what was happening back home that his mind had already traveled there, leaving her behind? She returned to the bedroom to dress and pack, but her thoughts lingered on the ma
n who was already back furiously texting once more. After last night, she would have described them as being closer than ever.

  So why had he pulled away?

  As they left the hotel, her heart mourned the short duration of their time alone together. They were supposed to have been here for two more days, but whatever was going on at the mill was important enough to cut their visit short. The delicious ache between her thighs reminded her just what she was forfeiting. But it had to be bad for Jacob to need to be home so quickly, didn’t it? Hopefully everyone was all right.

  Not that Jacob was talking. She finally closed her eyes on the plane and attempted to make up for the lack of sleep the previous night. Jacob’s restlessness beside her kept her from more than dozing, but at least she got some rest and felt better able to handle an afternoon alone with Carter. Obviously Jacob wouldn’t be there to help.

  “I’ll take you to your mother’s to get Carter, then I’ll need to head out for a while,” he said as they collected the car from long-term parking. “There are some things I need to check into with Aiden.”

  Not wanting to pry but hating the timidness of her question, she asked, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  A sharp shake of his head was the only answer. His silence frustrated her, but she refused to beg. So she backed off after that, spending the rest of the ride to town in silence. As long as her son was okay, she could handle anything else.

  Or so she thought.

  As they neared Lola’s, the space between the bar’s parking lot and her mother’s small house was occupied with a couple of city police cars and a whole crowd of people. Fear pounded inside KC’s chest as if she was having a heart attack. Instead of stopping, Jacob accelerated past the building.

  “What? Wait!”

  Confusion and panic had her twisting in her seat. Jacob parked on the side of the road a little way down. “I thought you said Carter was okay,” KC gasped. Jacob barely had time to stop the car before she had her door open and was running for the house.

  It wasn’t until she started pushing through the crowd that she realized Jacob wasn’t with her. She glanced back over her shoulder and saw him slowly approaching, but then she broke through to the other side of the crowd and her thoughts were only for her family.

  As she mounted the first step to the porch, the door opened and a few of the local deputies she recognized from the bar came out. Surprise jolted through her as her brother appeared between them. Faces grim, they all crossed the porch together and filed down the steps. Murmuring from the crowd behind her swelled, but she only had eyes for Zachary. One of the officers had his hands on Zachary’s arm, which told her he wasn’t just going for a joyride.

  “Zachary?” she called, but somehow Jacob was there, holding her out of the way of the approaching party.

  The deputy escorting her brother paused, giving her a better look. No handcuffs. “Zachary,” she whispered, fear double-timing her pulse.

  “It’s okay, KC,” her brother said, his face carefully unconcerned. “Everything will be fine.”

  But she didn’t believe him. Especially when they escorted him to a cop car and into the backseat. Jacob remained silent the whole time. Behind her, the screen door banged. Turning, KC found her mother on the porch. “Mom?” KC’s voice broke as she rushed up the steps, Jacob finally letting her go.

  “They said something about some crops he dusted last week,” her mother murmured, her eyes glued to the cop cars backing out of the driveway. “Said they’re dying or something. They had lots of questions for him.”

  KC turned accusing eyes on Jacob. She could read his knowledge of the situation in his body language. He’d known. And hadn’t told her.

  As if he could read her body language, too, Jacob said, “KC, I’m sorry. I didn’t know they’d be here. I thought they’d pick him up at his apartment.”

  “He was here helping me fix the sink,” KC’s mom said. “It was clogged. I guess his landlord told them where to find him.”

  “What’s going to happen?” KC asked.

  Jacob slowly shook his head, his eyes once more guarded. He glanced at the people behind him. The crowd was diminishing, but those remaining seemed very interested in KC and Jacob’s presence. “Let’s get you and Carter home. Quietly. You can rest while I look into it.”

  But he knew more than he was saying. More than he would share. Which proved to KC that there was something important going on—but he wasn’t going to include her.

  “Don’t bother,” she said, taking a step back up toward the porch. “Mom will get me home.”

  Even though she wanted to believe he had a reason for his actions, nothing hurt worse than his turning and walking away—without a word.

  * * *

  “Your sister is going to come after me with a cast-iron skillet if I don’t come home with the right answers soon,” Jacob said to the man sitting across from him in the local police station’s tiny interrogation room.

  Not to mention that I’ll be back to sleeping on the couch tonight.

  Zachary smirked as if he could read Jacob’s mind. “Well, you’re the one who played mute. Why didn’t you just tell her what was going on? Trust me, KC can take it.”

  Obviously a lot better than Jacob. He hadn’t known what to say or how to say it, so he’d said nothing. He’d let his business mode take over, oblivious to KC’s need to know.

  Plus, the crowd had made him nervous. Who knew if the saboteur was watching, enjoying the drama, waiting for Zachary to be charged with a crime he didn’t commit? At least intentionally. Or had he?

  This situation was majorly screwed up. So Jacob had remained silent. Something he just knew KC would make him pay for, with relish.

  “Just tell me again what happened,” he said, hoping to block that out for a few more minutes.

  Luckily the local police knew Jacob, had been working with him and Aiden and management to try to catch whoever was sabotaging things at the mill. He also saw the sheriff a couple of times a month at the local country club, so they’d let him in to see Zachary, who wasn’t technically under arrest...yet.

  “After my army gig, I missed flying, so I bought a little Cessna to do some crop-dusting work during the growing and harvest seasons. People like me because I do good work and am reasonably priced, so almost ninety percent of the farmers around here use me.”

  Zachary rubbed his hand over his shaggy black hair. “A few days ago I took the plane out to dust pesticides over a lot of the cotton crops in the area. Did the rest of my customers the next day. Well, apparently those crops have started dying. All of them.”

  Jacob sucked in a breath and held it for a moment, then let it out in a rush. “How bad?”

  Zachary’s green-brown eyes, so like his sister’s, met Jacob’s. “If all of them die...? We’re talking total devastation for this community. I think all of those farms sell to the mill, so you’ll have practically no raw material come harvesttime.” Zachary’s fists clenched. “Not to mention the number of families who no longer have cash for their crops this year. How could somebody do this?”

  “So you didn’t do it?”

  Once more Zachary’s gaze met his. “Oh, I did it. I flew the plane. But I have no idea how I could have dumped something that would kill the plants. When I loaded, those tanks were marked for common pesticides.”

  “Tell me what happened from the moment you arrived at the airfield.”

  He knew Zachary had to be tired of repeating the story, but Jacob had to be sure the man was telling the truth. For himself and the company. But most of all for KC.

  But Zachary didn’t falter as he related step by step how he checked in, confirmed and loaded the tanks and prepared for takeoff. Behind him, the deputy nodded. Seemed as if Zachary was telling the truth.

  “Why would someone want to do t
his?” Zachary demanded. “And why through me? I hate that.”

  Jacob sympathized with Zachary’s anger. And admired his calm. After all, he was sitting in a police station. The deputy had said, depending on what happened, he could be facing destruction-of-property charges for every family that had been harmed. That was a lot of charges.

  Hopefully, Jacob could prevent that.

  “What do you think was used?”

  Zachary shrugged, his palms opening in a “how should I know” gesture. “Honestly, I haven’t seen any of the plants, so I’m not sure. The chemical tests will tell them what they need to know.”

  The door opened and the local police chief walked in with Aiden. The police chief spoke first, confirming that they’d been listening through the speakers. “We’ve sent samples off, but it will take a while for them to come back.”

  “I loaded the right tanks,” Zachary insisted. “I double-checked myself.”

  Aiden jumped in, his narrowed gaze not leaving Zachary for a second. “Look, I don’t know anything about farming. That’s not a secret. But something wiped out those plants, and a lot of livelihoods with it.”

  “One of the deputies on the scene confirmed that the tanks are marked and were checked into inventory as pesticides,” the police chief said. “Not that it would stop someone from putting something else inside them.”

  Jacob found himself defending Zachary, even though Aiden was clearly suspicious. “Why would he kill plants and his own income with them?” he asked.

  Zachary snorted. “Damn straight. Shut down the mill, the farmers and my own earnings in the process.”

  Aiden nodded. “Makes sense.”

  Jacob could see his brother mulling it over as he started to pace. It did make sense as a defense. But would it be enough?

  “Although,” Aiden continued, flashing a concerned look in Jacob’s direction, “if you were paid to do this, it would be a lot more than the income you normally make.”