by King, Ann
“Well, it’s convenient that Peter’s not around to embarrass him as he would say, right?”
“So? What does that have to do with us?” Like I already knew the answer and anger seeped into my veins as I clutched the paper skimming the article in disbelief. That two-faced, no good-son-of-a…
“Well, if you ever had a suspicion about Brentwood, now would not be a good time to make that public. That man is a power hungry freak. He’d do anything to win and keep his dirty little secrets hidden. And he’d probably take anybody out who threatened his chance of winning. Image is everything in that game.”
“Tell me about it,” I responded, bitterness hung on the edge of my words.
My eyes glanced over the headline again as if that would make more sense. But it didn’t.
Former DA to Run for Mayor
Well, look at that.
It looked as if I had to make a slight change in my plan. And part of that plan involved ensuring Kate would be protected in all of this.
“So let me guess, he’s probably going to use the fact that his son died in a tragic accident as a platform for pity. Hoping he could win some sympathy votes or something.”
Evan shrugged.
“So what about you and Kate?” Evan asked.
I shrugged. “Don’t know. What about us?”
“What do you mean, you don’t know?” he persisted. “What else did you guys talk about in the van that day when you were stuck together?”
“Nothing much,” I said. Did I really want to go into what else really happened? The last thing I wanted him to think was that Kate was easy. Because she was anything but easy.
What was it about Kate? Why was I so protective over her?
I was always protective over her, wasn’t I? There was something so innocent about her. I really connected in her in a weird kind of way. I didn’t want her to get hurt in anyway—not her body or her mind or her reputation. She was off limits as far as conversations over intimacy was concerned. I might have spoke in the past about the others girls I’d slept with but Kate was different.
That’s one of the reasons I wanted to give her some space. I hadn’t seen her much since the hospital visit. Maybe once or twice the day after but that was it. I told her I had things to do. Yeah, like sort my head out. Before meeting Kate again, I had one thing on my mind. Revenge. Revenge over Peter’s death and his dad trying to pin the blame on the guys and me. It was all I could think of.
But then Kate came back into the picture and everything changed. I wanted to protect her. I actually wanted to see if I could sort myself out and have some kind of a life with her. But how? How was I going to do that now with Brentwood’s lie hanging over my head like an axe ready to drop.
And speak of the devil. Just then Kate walked into the gym.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Kate Samuels
“Hey, guys,” I said, trying to pretend that I didn’t just overhear the conversation Cory had with his brother, Evan. What were they talking about? Peter’s dad being corrupt? The truth surrounding Peter’s death?
My ears burned when I heard them mention that dark past I was trying so hard to forget. The past I fought hard not to be consumed by. But it wasn’t over yet, was it? It never would be. I had a feeling there was more to the story than Cory had told me when we were stranded in his SUV during the storm.
“Hey,” Cory said.
“Good to see you again, Kate. You’re looking well,” Evan said.
“Thanks,” I replied.
The feelings of dread over what Cory had said about Peter were soon replaced as I walked closer to Cory seeing him sitting up on the bench press seat, sweating, his naked chest exposed.
Cory had the body of a sex god. No, a Greek god. He was perfect. His chiselled muscles and sculpted abs, his bulging biceps. Ripped to perfection. Okay, I was standing there drooling over him. My inner thighs pulsed hard in remembrance of the hot passion that consumed me when Cory made hard and crazy love to me in his SUV while we were stranded in the middle of the ice storm.
He was dripping with charm and sexiness. Did he even know how hot he was? How much he made my legs weak looking at his hot, sexy body. How addictive his soft, erotic touch was for me? No man had ever touched me the way Cory had. No man had ever had that type of crazy effect on me before. Not even with Peter, my only other intimate partner, before Cory.
My God, Cory gave me my first real orgasm, and I felt my body explode with all kinds of delicious sensations, all from his magical touch and caresses. I thought scream-out-loud, toe-curling sex only happened in the movies. The way he drove into me, pleasuring me in all kinds of wicked and erotic ways was mind-blowing.
I could feel my nipples hardening inside my bra remembering how amazing and beautiful he felt as he moved his hard erection inside me, thrusting until I came so hard I didn’t know my own name—I only screamed out his.
The truth was, I was going crazy all week not seeing Cory.
I hated that he didn’t want to see me because he was too busy with other stuff to take care of. I was going crazy for his touch, his warm body next to me, inside me. I longed to feel the touch of his strong muscular arms around me. All I could do was fantasize and dream about him day and night.
So that was what the girls used to talk about. One hit from Cory and you’re an addict. Girls would go insane when he dumped them. They would do anything to be with him—on his terms.
Stop gaping, Kate. His brother’s right there.
Cory’s mouth twitched with amusement as he watched me gaping.
“I’ll leave you two alone,” Evan finally broke the awkward silence as he looked from Cory to me and back to Cory. Evan smirked then swung his towel over his shoulder and picked up his gym bag. “I’m gonna go hit the shower. Catch you later, Cory.” Evan gave me a nod and walked off.
Cory offered me a sip of his water. I shook my head. He then held the bottle to his sweet lips and took a drink. His Adam’s apple bobbing as the drink went down his throat.
I put my bag down on the bench beside his and sat down. “So, you guys had a good workout?” I asked, my heart thumping in my chest.
“Yeah, it was all right. How did you know I was here?” he said, wasting no time.
“Oh, I called your house and your grandmother said you were working out with Evan.”
Cory rolled his eyes. “Right.”
Cory’s grandmother’s bus was delayed during the storm but she ended up coming in two days later. She’d been staying with them ever since. She was a real sweetie. She came to visit me at the hospital before I got my discharge to go home. She’d brought in some homemade cookies and chicken soup. God bless her.
A part of me longed to be a part of Cory’s family. He seemed to have it all together. I was so thankful to have my grandparents, but it was just pretty much us. Cory seemed to have a whole network of family and friends for support.
“So how are you feeling?” he asked.
“Fine.” I said, touching an apparatus as if admiring the steel texture. I tried to avoid his eyes right now. I didn’t want him to see me drooling over him.
“I know you didn’t come here just to admire the equipment,” he said.
“I didn’t.” I finally peeled my eyes away from the equipment.
“How much of the conversation did you hear?” His voice was stern and hard. I flinched at the sound of his icy tone. How did he know?
“What makes you think I heard any of your—“
“Come on now Kate.” He patted himself off with his towel casting a knowing glare in my direction. He then slung the towel over his left shoulder. God, his body was so ripped in all the right places. His chiselled physique was driving me crazy. I longed to reach out and touch him again, stroking his firm, smooth skin and running my fingers down his sculpted muscles.
“Okay, maybe I heard a little,” I said, my heart racing. “But not much.”
I didn’t want to admit it at first that I’d heard anything, but i
t was no use. I could never lie to Cory. There was just something about him that made it difficult to even think about deceiving him. He made it easy to confront him. Just as he did back when we were stranded in the storm together.
“Not much, huh?”
I shrugged.
“I’m gonna wash up and then we’ll go and get something to eat.” His tone had an air of finality to it. It was more of a command than an invitation. Cory was pissed that I overheard a part of his conversation with Evan. I could tell. He didn’t know just how much I’d heard—or he might be a little more disturbed about it. But it wasn’t as if I was purposely eves dropping. I planned to play it cool and see if he would tell me on his own. That’s what I would do.
Now that I know something was up with Peter’s death, I’m involved now. I want to know more. But more than anything, something was bothering Cory and I wanted to be with him—I wanted to be around him, working with him to sort out whatever the hell he had to sort out. I wanted to be a part of him. And I didn’t want to ever let him out of my sight again.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Kate Samuels
“You’re blowing my mind, do you know that?” I asked Cory. We both sat at the Starbucks drinking cups of steaming hot coffee.
“I do?” he said, his eyes gleaming.
And he was. My body was still on fire for him. He’d ignited something so deep inside me when just days ago he’d made incredible love to me. And brought me to soaring heights and I discovered things about my own body that I didn’t even know about.
This was dangerous.
Very dangerous.
I had held Cory responsible for Peter’s death not knowing the truth. And now? I wanted Cory more than I wanted anything else in my life.
“Yes. I just don’t know where we stand.”
“It should be obvious shouldn’t it?”
“How so? We’ve spent the day stuck together in your SUV during a snow storm.”
He smiled. That gleam in his dark, sexy eyes again penetrated me and I can’t think. I can’t breathe. I can’t think about anything else, but Cory.
“Cory. We need to talk.”
“About?” he grinned.
“About Peter.”
His smile vanished.
“And a lot of other things,” I said.
“Hey, why do you have to bring that all up now?”
“Because I want to know the truth. Do you think…well, if his father had anything to do with…you know what. Then we have to go to the police.”
“No. We don’t. Not unless we have enough evidence.”
“I know now. So we’re both mixed up in this together.”
“You’re not mixed up in anything. Just let me and my guys handle it all right.”
“But Peter still meant a lot to me.” I didn’t know why I just said that. Peter had used me, according to what Cory blurted out in the SUV during the storm.
Sure, Peter was my first official boyfriend, but it turned out that he’d lied to me. About everything. But if someone caused his death, I can’t possibly leave it alone. I needed to do something. I didn’t know what. But I had a sick feeling that Cory was about to do something drastic and for some even sicker feeling, I wanted to do something about it. I already lost Peter, but Cory had my heart and he meant the world to me right now. I sure as hell wasn’t going to lose him, too.
“I don’t want you involved, Kate. Just go home and rest. You have a new job starting in a few weeks.”
“How can I go home and rest and pretend nothing happened, Cory.”
“Try.”
“Are you being sarcastic?”
“I’m being realistic. Do you have any idea what could be involved?”
I paused for a moment, breathing hard. He had a point. I had my new job starting soon. I’d read this morning that Brentwood was thinking about running for mayor. It was probably not in my best interest—or Cory’s for that matter to go digging up dirt on a political candidate. That could get ugly real fast. Never mind that, it could get dangerous. Suddenly getting stranded in a storm didn’t seem half as dangerous as a possible cover up to a possible murder.
I looked around the café. It was quiet today. Not many patrons in. But Cory and I had a cozy booth in the far back. Still, we had to keep our voices down.
Later, after we’d finished our meals, Cory drove me back to my grandmother’s house. We drove in silence for a good while. There was definitely tension there. Tension so thick you could cut it with a knife.
“What else’s on your mind?” he said, finally breaking the silence.
“Nothing.”
“Oh, come on now. I can practically see your mind racing.”
“How? Aren’t your eyes supposed to be on the road?”
He grinned. “Very funny, Kate. What’s up?”
“A lot of things, Cory.”
“Such as?”
“Where we stand.”
His expression turned serious. “Where we stand? What do you mean by that?”
“I mean just that. After that night in your van, and the hospital, I never saw you again.”
“I told you, I’ve been busy.”
I rolled my eyes. “Too busy to talk?”
“There’s a lot of things going on right now, Kate.”
I didn’t want to sound desperate like those other girls who practically threw themselves at Cory’s feet but I didn’t want to be brushed off, either.
“Kate, the truth is,” he said, as he pulled over to the curb outside Smyth’s Travel Agency. “I really like you, a lot.”
I felt my heart squeeze. I said nothing for a moment. I looked around. There was snow on the ground but at least the wind was more stable and it wasn’t actively snowing like it had been the previous few days. The travel agency was open. “Why are we here?”
“It’s on the way to your house, I just thought I’d stop in for a second. Wait here.”
“Oh, no. I’m not waiting in here.”
He got out of his vehicle and came around to the other side to open my side of the door like a true gentleman. “Fine. But just let me do all the talking.”
“Talking? Cory what exactly are you up to?”
“I knew I should have taken you home first.”
I persisted. “I need to know. Is this about Peter?”
His expression tensed up. He led me through the snow bank as we made our way to the entrance of the agency. “Yes.”
When we got inside, Cory greeted the receptionist who seemed to recognize him. He motioned for me to stay in the waiting area while he went up to her desk and started talking to her in a low voice. She keyed in some information on her computer and showed him the screen. They talked a little while longer then he told her thank you and left.
“Come on,” he said, gently holding my arm.
“What is it?”
Cory was beginning to frighten me. The expression on his handsome face was deadly. He said nothing as he drove me to my home.
When we’d arrived, he got out of his SUV and walked to the passenger side to open the door for me and walked me up to the pathway of my grandparent’s home. They were at the community club with the other seniors in the area right now. Sometimes a group of them got together to play bridge. At least Cory and I could be alone…for now.
“Are you going to tell me what the hell is going on now?” I asked when we got inside the house. I dropped my bag on the counter and motioned for Cory to follow me into the kitchen. I offered him some coffee and he politely refused. I put the kettle on to make a cup of tea. For some reason, I just felt like drinking some green tea.
“Kate, I can’t explain everything right now,” he said, as he sat down at the breakfast island. “But I might be mixed up in something that I don’t want you involved in.”
“Like what? Cory, stop keep me in the dark about this whole situation,” I said, leaning against the kitchen counter.
“Why are you doing this, Kate? Don’t you know how hard it is for
me?”
“Doing what?”
“Trying to get so close to me,” he said, his fingers combing through his hair. “Kate, this is really fucked up for me right now. That night in the storm, I felt something I’ve never felt before.”
He got up and moved closer to me and held me tight. I felt his energy again, his warm body. It drove my senses wild. My inner thighs pulsed again. Didn’t Cory see how much he meant to me? Couldn’t he sense it? I loved everything about him. I wanted nothing more right now than to be with him—in every way. But there was some barrier, emotional barrier keeping us apart. What was going on inside his head?
“The truth is Kate, I care a lot about you, girl. You mean the world to me, but right now I don’t know if I can give you what you need.”
Stunned by his words, I stuttered. “W-what do you mean?”
“Time, Kate. You deserve my time, all of me. But there’s so much going on right now and I might get my hands dirty soon.”
“What is this thing about Peter,” I said, pulling away. “What did that travel agent say?”
“The receptionist knows the Brentwoods. They’ve been using that agency since the beginning of time.”
“So?”
“So, I went to confirm some information about Patrick.”
“Peter’s twin brother? The one that’s in Mexico?”
“That’s just it. He’s not in Mexico.”
“What?”
“Patrick had a ticket to go to Mexico but he cancelled the flight. Or someone else cancelled it for him.”
Lost and confused, I shook my head. “I don’t get it. If he’s been in town this whole time, why didn’t he just come to Peter’s funeral?”
“There’s a lot of missing pieces to this puzzle, Kate. But Peter’s dad’s been blaming me for too long for Peter’s death. And I want to clear my name and make sure that creep is away where he can’t do any harm.”
“Are you saying that he killed his other son, too?”
“No. I’m saying that there’s more to what we saw at Peter’s funeral.”
“Like what?”
