Save Me

by Grady, D. R.

  “I’ve also been thinking about how well you have been doing. You’ve had some good nights, and not many bad ones, so a nightmare was sure to happen eventually,” Mallen agreed with his sister.

  “Why?” She could hear the frustration in her own voice.

  He cuddled her. “That’s part of the healing process, love.”

  “How long does this process take?”

  “As long as it needs to.” Giselle squeezed her hand when she answered.

  “Where have you three been?” Lila jumped them as soon as they entered the breakfast room.

  The three passed guilty looks between them.

  Mallen finally answered. “Mom, the girls ganged up on me.”

  This nefarious statement caused gasps from Julia and Giselle, and definite plans of retribution.

  “And it appears we need to do so again,” Giselle retorted, fire in her eyes.

  “Absolutely.” Julia hoped she showed fire in her eyes.

  They both started tickling, but Mallen, again, showed that incredible speed. He zoomed behind Lila and stuck his tongue out at both of them from his safe zone.

  The girls regarded him in disgust. “It’s a good thing we know where he sleeps,” Julia managed to utter through her curled lip.

  “Most certainly.”

  He grinned, completely complacent. “Please, come to my room,” he looked directly at her, “any time you’d like.”

  Her girls started clamoring to meet Mallen’s boys, and she had to turn her attention inward to deal with the revolution he set off without compunction. She didn’t even have time to send him another look of antipathy.

  Mallen rocked back on his heels, fairly certain of what he had just created inside Julia. At least he hoped he created some discord. It nearly killed him to remain brotherly when every cell in his being urged him to throw her over his shoulder and drag her to the newer equivalent of his cave. There he’d proceed to see about speeding up her healing process.

  Of course, desire was a two-edged sword and he had to clamp down on the images that rose to greet him whenever he wasn’t careful. No other woman had ever effected him the way Julia McNeal did. She seemed to effortlessly entice him. He had no idea such things as ankles, wrists, innocent laughter, a sweet smile, or the curve of a woman’s jaw could be so tempting.

  Never would he have believed a curvy, brilliant research scientist would one day cause him to start counting his bachelor days. He began to see the reason men turned all moony eyed over a woman. He even understood why they wanted to marry.

  Mallen had always believed marriage was about protecting a woman you liked and thought you could live with for the rest of your life. He had never expected to feel like he couldn’t function without her. Like he couldn’t stand to not know where she was at all times.

  To want to simply watch her breathe.

  To see her smile, because she enjoyed being with him. He never understood the heady feeling of being able to make another person laugh. Julia understood his sense of humor. She didn’t appear to be intimidated by him or his size, even after being abused. She even adored Sebastian.

  “If you children are finished taunting each other, I wonder if we can eat?” his mother interrupted his train of thought and Mallen was grateful. Julia needed more time to heal before he sprung his ideas on her. Then a horrible possibility occurred to him.

  What if George had put Julia off men permanently?

  Chapter 12

  The day proved to be bright and sunny, a perfect Saturday. But Julia decided she needed to do something productive with her time, something not related to the lab. That something needed to be inside, since the weather was supposed to be sunny but cold and windy.

  She remembered Mallen talking to Annie on the plane. He said something then about not saying no to some of Jared’s special sugar cookies. She also had a hankering for some of those cookies and she could make some of her secret cranberry scones. Like her Mallen seemed to favor anything cranberry.

  He probably deserved a little spoiling. Since he had traveled across the ocean to save her, and then made her feel like a part of his family, gave her time and space to heal, teased her incessantly, and rocked her to sleep after an awful nightmare. Then he stayed with her for the remainder of the night in case the nightmares returned.

  Julia nodded. Yes, the man definitely deserved some treats.

  “I know you’ve heard this before, but have you seen Julia?”

  “No, but I’m smelling the fruits of her labor,” his sister answered.

  Unwittingly, that statement called to Mallen’s mind a swollen, ripe Julia. Rounded with his child. His loins clenched and he gritted his teeth as he fought to force himself back under control.

  “She’s baking,” Giselle further provided.

  “Baking?”

  “Yes, my big mockingbird, baking,” she didn’t exactly sound exasperated.

  His interest perked. “Baking what?”

  “From the smell of it, sugar cookies and scones.”

  “Thanks for the info. I’ll talk to you later Gissy.”

  “Yeah, anytime. Bring me one of each.”

  Mallen grinned. He’d be happy to deliver some goodies, provided he sampled them first.

  He hit the kitchen at the same time Julia bent over to retrieve another tray of scones. He didn’t miss the bright red specks in the flaky, delectable smelling confections. Or the way her skirt tightened over the alluring curves of her backside.

  “Whatcha making?” he asked enthusiastically, as he seated himself at the bar where she deposited them. She looked like she’d taken a bath in flour but Julia hummed as she transferred the hot confections to a cooling rack.

  “Scones, Einstein.” She flicked his nose.

  He grinned. “You’re the one with flour on your nose. What kind?”

  She brushed at the flour, which only added more white and asked, “How good have you been today?”

  “Oh, very.”

  She pursed her lips. “That’s not what I remember.”

  “I’m not the one who threatened wet willies.”

  “That’s true. Help yourself.”

  His eyes lit up and Julia grinned. She used her head to gesture where he could find the butter. Mallen didn’t wait for a second offer. He selected one, slathered on the butter, and popped the treat into his mouth.

  “Wonnerful,” he commended as he reached for his second helping before swallowing the first.

  Julia laughed. She really liked spending time with him and actually missed the bum when he wasn’t around. What did that mean?

  He grinned at her amusement, swallowed, and buttered the other scone.

  “There are sugar cookies on that counter.” She flicked a finger at them.

  He paused in his buttering process. “Like Jared makes?”

  She shook her head. “Mine are better than his.”

  “I’ll have to try one.”

  Her brow rose.

  “What?”

  “Only one cookie?”

  “I can’t count,” he told her with an innocent, boyish grin.

  “Right.” She chucked him under the chin before removing the rest of the scones.

  She turned to put the next batch into the oven and nearly landed on her bottom for her efforts. “Oooffff,” she exclaimed as she struggled to stay on her feet.

  Mallen caught her. “Sorry.” He sounded apologetic. He held two cookies.

  “Weren’t you just sitting over there?” She pointed to his recently vacated seat.

  “I was.” She sent him an exasperated look before opening the oven door and sliding the tray inside. She set the timer, turned again and experienced an alarming case of déjà vu.

  “What are you doing?” This time she used him to catch herself, since her hands were free.

  “You’ve still got flour on your nose.”

  Julia reached up and swiped her dusty finger across his nose. “So do you.”

  Mallen rolled his eyes,
but he didn’t try to hide his grin. “You’re a brat, did I tell you that yet today?”

  “I think you did.”

  “Oh yes, around the time you threatened wet willies,” he remembered.

  She shook her head sadly. “That’s right.”

  “I don’t know too many people who like wet tongues in their ears.” The cookies in his hand disappeared rapidly.

  “I see,” she stated. “I think that’s the idea, though.”

  “Probably,” he agreed huskily. He swallowed the last bite of cookie.

  Julia couldn’t help but notice his sudden, apparent fixation with her lips. She noticed she seemed to be having similar troubles with his.

  They stared at each other for a time. Julia contemplated the consequences of kissing this man. She wanted to taste him worse than she had ever wanted or needed chocolate.

  Touching her lips to his didn’t seem like the wrong thing to do, yet it didn’t exactly seem like the right thing, either. Too soon, too soon, her brain chastised her. Kiss him now, please now, please, now, her body clamored.

  She did nothing but stare at those tantalizing lips and debate if she should. He wasn’t much help as he appeared to grapple with similar thoughts, although his finger did trace down her nose before trailing across her cheek, her chin. His hand then curled under her jaw and his thumb traced across her lips. She sighed. She liked his caress. She liked him.

  It appeared he liked her, too. She stared at him, he stared at her. Both wanting the same thing, both knowing the time was far too soon. The timer dinged on the oven and Julia knew relief and exasperation. She wanted the moment, yet she didn’t.

  With a sigh, she picked up a hot pad and removed the tray from the oven. She took her time lifting the hot pastries from the tray, relieved to have something to do other than concentrate on Mallen Saltaire’s potency. He was like a drug she desperately wanted to try but was frightened of becoming addicted to.

  His phone rang, making her jump and she appreciated the regret in his eyes when he spoke to the person who called. She realized immediately he had to leave her, and again his hand found her jaw as though magnetized. Caressing her skin, expressing his disappointment. Julia hoped her eyes conveyed her dismay, but she said nothing.

  She finally discovered his type of drug might be her only cure.

  Mallen took off down the hall wondering if he had done the right thing back in the kitchen. While part of him felt grateful to be pulled from Julia’s side, another part resented the interruption.

  He entered his office and punched in the code for the line his call held on.

  “Stefen, what brings your call today?” Remorse continued to barrel through his body.

  “Greetings to you, friend,” came Stefen’s answer. “How is Celeste?”

  Mallen frowned at his phone. “Could you repeat that, Stef?”

  “How is Celeste?”

  “That’s what I thought you said.” Mallen ran a hand through his hair. “Stef, Celeste was killed over a year ago.”

  The silence that greeted him led Mallen to believe this was the first time Stefen had heard of her death, yet he himself had used this very phone to contact his friend with the news.

  “Celeste was the sister killed, not Giselle?” Mallen picked up the quiet, intense tone, heard the nuances, but didn’t understand.

  “Correct.”

  “I thought Giselle had died.”

  “What is the significance, I don’t understand? You were engaged to Celeste.”

  “That statement is untrue. I am engaged to Giselle,” his friend corrected.

  Ramifications exploded into his head as he grasped the severity of the situation.

  “How were you engaged to Giselle without us knowing this? We had all believed you to be engaged to Celeste, including Celeste.”

  “Go to your father’s computer, Mallen,” Stefen suggested quietly.

  “I can access all of Dad’s files from mine.” Mallen clicked on his father’s hard drive.

  “Look under a file titled Bannette Holdings.” He clicked on the file, thinking of the Bannette Company. Stefen’s father had died unexpectedly three years ago, leaving Stefen in charge. They were the largest holding in Sandovia, and a major contributor for Europe as well. Much of Sandovia’s wealth came from the Bannette Holdings. To which the Saltaire’s held shares. But Stefen was the largest shareholder.

  Mallen hadn’t seen Stefen much in the past year, now those reasons were becoming all too clear.

  “I’m in the Bannette folder.”

  “Look for a folder with either my name or Giselle’s.”

  “How about one that says, Stefen/Giselle?”

  “That’s probably the one.” Stefen laughed hollowly. “Open it.”

  He did as instructed, already beginning to understand the situation. “This is the royal contract between my father and you for your betrothal to Giselle.”

  “Yes. Celeste was sweet, but not to my tastes. I should have verified which sister passed. I have sunken into despair this past year, but now you have given me hope. Giselle is the sister I want. She has always been my choice.”

  “How is it possible we thought Celeste to be your intended?”

  “Did your father not mention my betrothed’s actual name?”

  “No, he did not, and he died soon after. We thought Celeste would rule in his place, not realizing he had instead intended for me to do so.”

  “You have not yet read through all of his papers?”

  “Of course not. He’s got files that date back to my great-great-grandfather’s reign. The cellars are packed,” he scoffed.

  Stefen laughed again.

  “Knowing you were in charge of Bannette Holdings, I didn’t bother with that file until such time as I had to. There are so many others that have required my attention first.”

  “I understand. I’ve been doing the same for three years.”

  “You’ve had three years and still haven’t read through all your father’s papers?” He made his voice sound mock condemning.

  His friend’s snort made him smile. He could concur. “No, my father also had files from a great-grandfather’s ‘reign’ if you will. With trying to run this company and learn all the holdings, I could not.”

  “I understand.”

  “The true purpose of my call was to see if you, your mother, and sister,” Mallen didn’t miss the slightly possessive way Stefen enunciated sister, “and your guest, of course, would be available to attend a dinner party I’m hosting on Tuesday?”

  “I’ll ask the social director if we’re available.”

  “And how is your mother?” Humor laced Stef’s voice.

  “She’s fine. She misses Dad, of course.”

  “I understand. My mother is the same.”

  “Yes, she would.” Stef would hear the empathy in his voice. “Julia’s presence has helped.” Mallen smiled as he thought that while they had given her time to heal, helping her through the healing process had helped them too.

  “Julia being your delightful guest I’ve heard so much of?”

  “The same,” Mallen confirmed.

  “I am most anxious to meet her.”

  “And so you shall, my friend, perhaps on Tuesday evening.”

  “Mallen?”

  “Yes?”

  “Since Giselle remains among the living and I did have a contract with your father, perhaps we could announce the betrothal Tuesday evening?”

  “Stef, this is the first I’ve heard of your betrothal, so Giselle certainly hasn’t. Give me some time to assess her emotional state on the matter. She too was under the impression your betrothal was to Celeste, not her.”

  “I understand. But be advised, I’ve waited over a year already, I’m not about to wait much longer for Giselle.” He heard the steel behind the words and wondered how long he’d be willing to wait for Julia.

  “I have never been aware that you held an interest in Giselle.”

  “I think I’ve
been in love with her since we were children. Now that I know she’s alive I’m not waiting much longer.”

  “I do need to assess her feelings.”

  “She feels the same way I do, which is why I’m shocked to learn she accepted my engagement to Celeste.”

  “Giselle would not refute our father’s wishes.”

  “No, she would not. Yet another reason I love her. Oh, and Mallen?”

  “Yes?”

  “Please allow me to tell Giselle of the betrothal.”

  “If you believe I’d ever attempt to do so, you would be wrong.”

  “I shall tell her. I would appreciate a copy of the file you just read.”

  “I’ll e-mail it now.” He sent the file, hoping his friend knew what he was doing.

  The two hung up soon after and Mallen leaned back in his chair. Giselle and Stefen? He was amazed he hadn’t caught on to their relationship.

  There was no doubt to Stefen’s feelings. Those had come through very clearly to him. He had known Stef too long to doubt him. But Giselle – how did she feel? Contrary to popular belief, he had no intention of marrying her off to his childhood friend, even if he provided one of their country’s main sources of income, if she wasn’t agreeable.

  He thought about Giselle’s reaction to Stefen and Celeste’s supposed engagement. Giselle had been out of the country at the time and by the time she returned home, the engagement was an accepted thing. Soon after, Celeste was murdered.

  Mallen propped an elbow on the armrest and settled his chin in his hand. He thought about Giselle’s fervor at finding Celeste’s killer. She had slept in a cave, gone without meals and been obsessed with locating Malcolm. There had been no doubt to him that they would find Celeste’s killer. Giselle had been determined to locate him and bring him to justice.

  Leaning forward, he hit the intercom to her office. “Giselle! Come!” he bellowed into the phone, figuring his obnoxious command would bring her faster than any other way, if only to beat him for his order. Despite his worries, he grinned.