The Blackstone Legacy

by Rochelle Alers

  “I’ll be nearby if you need me.”

  “Thank you, Tricia.” He gave her a wry smile. “I seem to be thanking you a lot lately.”

  Tricia resisted the urge to kiss him, because at that moment he appeared boyish and carefree. The way she had remembered him. “Hush, now, and try to get some sleep.”

  Grinning, he saluted her. “Aye, aye, ma’am.”

  She sat on the club chair, slipped out of her sandals, rested her bare feet on the ottoman and closed her eyes. She was exhausted. Jeremy rarely slept throughout the night and whenever he moaned or cried out in his sleep she left her bed to check on him. She always held him until he settled back to sleep, listening in shock as he mumbled about the horrors he had experienced during his ill-fated mission. These were the times when she felt like a voyeur. Willing her mind blank, she felt her chest rise and fall in an even rhythm, and she fell asleep.

  Noise startled her, and she was jolted awake. Tricia sat up and stared at Jeremy. He was talking in his sleep again. She pushed up off the chair and sat on the side of the mattress.

  “It’s all right, Jeremy,” she crooned softly.

  “Forgive me, Tricia.”

  She leaned over him. “It’s all right, darling. I forgive you.”

  “I…I did not want to…to leave…you,” he mumbled, still not opening his eyes.

  Getting into the bed with him, Tricia rested an arm over his chest, blinking back tears. “I love you,” she whispered in his ear. Rising on an elbow, she kissed him.

  Without warning Jeremy’s eyes opened and he stared at her as if he had never seen her before. Tricia’s heart beat a double-time rhythm. Had he heard her?

  She met his questioning gaze. “You were talking in your sleep again.”

  “What did I say?”

  She decided to tell him the truth. “You asked me to forgive you.”

  He closed his eyes, long black lashes resting on his high cheekbones. “For what?”

  She hesitated and he opened his eyes. “For leaving me.”

  Jeremy’s gaze fused with her dark-brown eyes. “I should’ve never left you, Tricia, but I took the coward’s way out and ran, after Russell told me about the two of you.”

  She gasped, her mind reeling in confusion. Was that why he’d asked her if she had slept with Russell? Her breath burned in her throat as she swallowed the hateful words poised to explode from her mouth. They had wasted too many years, and she had lost a child because she’d refused to come back to the farm because of a spiteful man’s lies.

  “I don’t care what Russell told you, but I never slept with him.”

  Jeremy’s raven eyebrows lifted as he pushed up on an elbow. “He lied?”

  “Of course he lied,” she spat out. “Why didn’t you ask me, Jeremy?”

  A muscle quivered at his jaw. If he ever ran into Russell again he would make him sorry he ever drew breath. The SOB had lied to him about sleeping with Tricia.

  “Why didn’t you ask me?” she asked again.

  Jeremy shook his head. He did not have an answer. “I don’t know. And don’t think I haven’t asked myself the same question over and over every time I came back here.”

  A look of distress crossed her face. “What hurts most is that you did not trust me. How could you profess to love me when you didn’t trust me to be faithful to you?”

  He frowned. “Loving you had nothing to do with not trusting you.”

  Tricia sat up. “Love is trust. You cannot have one without the other.”

  There was a prolonged silence before Jeremy said, “Do you still love me, Tricia?”

  She felt as if all of her emotions were under attack and wanted to lie. But only minutes before she had openly confessed to loving him.

  He had been her first lover, the man who unknowingly had made her a mother. She shook her head. “No,” she said softly, “not the way I used to love you.”

  “Do you hate me?”

  Smiling, Tricia shook her head again. “No, Jeremy, I don’t hate you.”

  Sitting up, Jeremy shifted to his right side and kissed her. He inhaled the very essence of Tricia: her smell, the velvet softness of her mouth, the press of her breasts against his arm. He took his time kissing her mouth, eyes and face. She trembled when his lips brushed the curve of her eyebrows.

  Tricia opened her mouth to his probing tongue, swallowing his breath. What had begun as a soft, tender joining flowed into a dreamy intimacy she had forgotten existed.

  Jeremy eased back, staring at her. “Do you know how long I’ve waited to kiss your mouth, eyes?”

  Her gaze widened. “No.” The single word was whispered.

  “Forever,” he whispered back, then took possession of her mouth again.

  She emitted a soft moan. “We shouldn’t be doing this.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I’m your nurse.”

  “That excuse is starting to sound lame,” he crooned, gently biting her earlobe.

  Tricia fortified herself against his sensual assault and placed a hand in the middle of his chest. “We can’t go back to who we were. Too much time has passed and we’re not the same people. I’ve changed and you’ve changed.”

  Reaching out, he pulled her effortlessly to sit on his lap, her back pressed to his chest. Her legs were cradled between his outstretched ones. “I don’t want to go back, Tricia,” he whispered in her ear. “Why can’t we move forward?” He tightened his hold under her breasts.

  A wave of desire flooded Tricia’s body and she melted against the hardness of his chest. “That’s not possible.”

  “Why not?”

  “We don’t have the time. I’m only going to be here for another three weeks.”

  Jeremy stared at the back of her head. He kissed her nape. “Three weeks is more than enough time.” What he did not tell Tricia was that each hour, minute and second was precious, because he remembered counting down the seconds, minutes and hours while he and the others on his team lay waiting for death.

  He wanted Tricia without a commitment or declaration of love. He wasn’t ready to risk losing his heart to her again. “I’ve never asked anything from you, sweetheart,” he continued, unaware that the endearment had slipped out, “not your love or your body. Those you gave willingly. What I am asking for is the next three weeks of your life.”

  Tricia was certain Jeremy could feel the flutters in her chest. “What happens after that?”

  “Whatever it is you want to happen.”

  Shifting on his thighs, she turned in his loose embrace. His gaze was steady. “I’m leaving as planned on August fifteenth, so whatever we will share up to that time will become a part of our past.”

  Jeremy lifted his eyebrows. “Okay,” he agreed. “When it comes time for you to leave I promise not to put any pressure on you to force you to stay.”

  Lowering her gaze, she smiled. “Thank you.”

  He angled his head and kissed her again. “Will you go out with me tonight?”

  She gave him a sassy smile. “Are you asking me on a date?”

  Pressing his forehead to hers, Jeremy flashed his brilliant white-toothed smile. “As a matter of fact, I am.”

  “Where do you want to go?”

  “Out to dinner, then we’ll take in a movie.”

  Tricia chuckled. “I believe we should begin with dinner. Sitting in a movie theater with your leg in a cast is a stretch.”

  Jeremy kissed the end of her nose. “I wasn’t talking about a movie theater. We can eat out, then come back here and watch a movie.”

  He had used the home theater in the family room exactly twice since he’d purchased it two years before. A collection of DVDs stacked on several shelves were still in their original cellophane packaging. Whenever he came home on leave, he stayed in his house because he had come to value his privacy. But it had never felt like home…until now.

  Curving her arms around his neck, Tricia rested her head on his shoulder. “You’ve got yourself a date. I
’ll call the dining hall and cancel dinner,” she said, and rose to leave.

  “And where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

  “I’m going over to my grandfather’s to find something to wear.”

  Jeremy chuckled, the sound coming from deep within his chest. “I hope you’re not going to wear that yellow dress.”

  Tricia gave him a long, penetrating stare. “What’s with you and that dress?”

  A sensual flame fired his eyes like flints of steel. “Nothing.”

  “If that’s the case, then I’ll wear it tonight.”

  His expression changed, becoming tight, strained. “Please don’t, Tricia.” He held up his left hand. “I still can’t quite make a fist, so I won’t be able to punch out some guy for leering at your breasts.”

  She sucked her teeth. “I thought you gave up brawling a long time ago.”

  “I did. Remember, the only times I got into fights were because of you.”

  Tricia ran a finger down the length of his nose seconds before she pressed her mouth to his. “I never wanted you to fight for me.”

  “Someone had to protect you.”

  “And you did, Jeremy.” She’d lost count of the number of black eyes and bloody noses he had inflicted on a few of the farm kids. “I wrote in my diary that you were my knight in shining armor. I used to refer to you as Sir Blackstone, the Black Knight.”

  He nuzzled her neck. “Do you need my protection now?”

  “No,” she said in a quiet voice. “I’ve learned to protect myself.” She slipped off the bed and put on her shoes. “Please stay in bed until I get back.”

  Jeremy’s expression was one of faint amusement. He wanted to tell Tricia that he was quite capable of getting in and out of bed without her assistance as long as the crutches were within reach. Already he could groom and dress himself, navigate the stairs and feed himself. He still couldn’t drive or walk distances, but, that would come in time.

  He winked at her, then rested his head on the pillows and waited for her return.

  When Tricia arrived at her grandfather’s house, his truck wasn’t in its usual parking space, which meant he was probably having dinner in the dining hall. The temporary solitude gave Tricia a chance to think about her relationship with her grandfather.

  She usually visited with him every morning after Sheldon came to see Jeremy. She’d sit with Gus on the porch in easy silence. In the past, their relationship had been anything but easy. In fact, Gus still did not approve of her involvement with the owner’s son. She wanted to tell Gus there was no need to torment himself about her and Jeremy because in three weeks she would leave Blackstone Farms, her ex-lover and return to her orderly life in Baltimore. However, this time when she left Virginia it would be without the tortured questions and memories.

  She went into her bedroom and selected a black linen dress. Black lacy underwear and strappy black sling-back sandals completed her outfit. She showered, dressed, applied a light coat of makeup and set out for Jeremy’s house. He was sitting on the porch waiting for her.

  Her gaze raced over his off-white linen suit, matching shirt and tie. He wore the shapeless boot with Velcro fasteners and a black loafer. Walking slowly up the porch stairs, her gaze widened in appreciation. The light color of the suit was the perfect foil for his deeply tanned olive coloring.

  Reaching for the crutches, Jeremy pulled himself up. “I thought I’d save some time and change before you got back.”

  She stared at his clean-shaven jaw. “I told you to wait for me.”

  Jeremy rested the crutches under his armpits. “I wasn’t alone. Ryan came over with the baby. He left just before you drove up.” A wide grin crinkled the skin around his luminous eyes. “Even though Vivienne is only a few days old, she’s a beauty. She looks just like Kelly. To say that Ryan is a proud papa is putting it mildly,” he said. “I don’t remember Ryan being this excited when Sean was born.”

  Tricia returned his smile. “That’s because this time he can really appreciate what it means to be a father.”

  “I guess you’re right.” He angled his head and looked her up and down, his gaze lingering on her long legs in the three-inch heels. “By the way, you look stunning.”

  She could not stop the heat from stealing into her cheeks. “Thank you.”

  Jeremy took a step. “Are you ready?”

  Tricia nodded. “Yes.”

  She was ready, ready for Jeremy and the next three weeks.

  Chapter Five

  Tricia turned the key in the ignition, adjusted the air-conditioning, backed out of the driveway and drove along the main road that led away from Black stone Farms.

  She gave Jeremy a sidelong glance. “Where are we going?”

  “Take 64 to 81, then I’ll tell you where to turn off.”

  “How far is it from here?”

  “About thirty clicks.”

  She smiled. How could she have forgotten that Jeremy had been a Marine and was now a special agent with the DEA? The military jargon had just slipped out.

  Nodding, she concentrated on driving instead of on the man sitting next to her. She had agreed to become involved with him again, but refused to think of the depth of their involvement. She doubted whether they would make love, because of his injury, but having an emotional relationship rather than a physical one was not an option either. If they became emotionally involved it would make their eventual separation that much harder…at least for her. Besides, it had been more than ten years since she had slept with a man.

  Tricia increased her speed, passing the Blackstone property marker and headed for the interstate. Security devices and closed-circuit cameras mounted on poles and fences surrounding the horse farm monitored everyone entering or leaving the ten-thousand-acre compound.

  Her narrowed gaze lingered on the dark clouds in the distance. “It looks like rain.”

  Jeremy studied the gunmetal-gray sky. A heat wave had held the Shenandoah Valley and the surrounding environs in a brutal grip for a month. Sheldon had ordered the trainers to limit most outdoor activities for the horses until the ninety-plus degrees and oppressive humidity eased, while in-ground sprinklers worked around the clock to keep the grazing pastures verdant.

  “We need more than a passing thunderstorm,” he stated matter-of-factly. As soon as the words were out of his mouth a roll of thunder shook the earth, followed by a flash of lightning that came dangerously close to the ground.

  Tricia’s jaw tightened as she stared straight ahead. The daytime running lights on her car shimmered eerily in the encroaching darkness. It was only minutes after seven.

  “Pull off at the next exit,” Jeremy ordered in a strained voice.

  “Why?”

  “Because I don’t want you to drive.”

  She frowned. “But, you can’t drive.”

  “I know I can’t drive,” he snapped angrily. “I’m not going to let you drive along a mountain road during a thunderstorm.” Having grown up in the western part of the state, both Tricia and Jeremy knew of the number of accidents and fatalities that resulted from landslides and falling rocks during violent storms each year.

  “Where do you want me to go?”

  “I don’t know. There’s bound to be a motel close by.”

  Tricia left the interstate and drove along a county road. There came another roll of thunder, followed by lightning, then rain. Fat drops spattered the windshield.

  Jeremy was hard-pressed not to tell Tricia to pull over on the shoulder and switch seats with him. Her car was an automatic and he didn’t need his left foot to drive.

  “Over there,” he said, pointing to his right. A sign advertising a bed-and-breakfast appeared out of nowhere. The outline of a large white Victorian structure came into the sweep of the headlights.

  Decelerating, Tricia maneuvered along a path leading to the Lind Rose bed-and-breakfast, parking under a porte cochere behind several SUVs. She cut off the engine, stepped out into the oppressive humidity and
came around to assist Jeremy.

  A side door to the three-story house opened and a tiny woman with short snow-white hair emerged. “Oh, you poor dears. Please come in out of the rain.” The shadowy figure of a tall man joined her.

  Tricia lagged behind Jeremy as he made his way toward the couple. He had left his jacket in the car, and despite the air-conditioning his shirt was pasted to his back. She felt her mouth go dry as she studied his broad shoulders under the finely woven shirt, the slimness of his waist and hips and long legs. His beautifully proportioned body equaled his classically handsome features.

  “Welcome to the Lind Rose,” a deep voice rumbled in the darkness. “I’m Lindbergh and this is my wife, Rose. We just heard on the scanner that the storm is a bad one. Hear tell a bridge near Craigsville was washed out, and the state police just shut down a portion of the interstate outside of Staunton.”

  Jeremy smiled at the tall gaunt man with a head of shocking white hair as he neared him. “I’m glad we stopped because we were planning to go through Craigsville.”

  “You’re in luck tonight,” Rose said, gesturing toward Jeremy’s leg with the unattractive boot. “We happen to have a room on the first floor. Most folks who come here want to stay on the second or third floor because they want to sit out on the veranda and look at the mountains.”

  Jeremy nodded. “My wife and I need a room, and if it’s not too late we’d also like to have dinner.” The request had come out as if Jeremy had said it many times before.

  Tricia stared at the smooth, taut, olive skin over the elegant ridge of his high cheekbones, her breath catching in her chest. He had referred to her as his wife.

  Rose smiled. “Would you like to eat in the dining room or in your room?”

  “The dining room.”

  “In our room.” Tricia and Jeremy had spoken in unison as the older couple exchanged a knowing glance.

  “Sweetheart, if it’s all right with you I’d like to get off my feet,” Jeremy said in a quiet tone.

  Tricia wanted to glare and bare her teeth at him, but smiled sweetly instead. “Of course, darling. We’ll dine in the room.”