He frowned. Since when had he relied on anyone? Since when had Piper become the person he turned to? They were virtually strangers.
He pulled out his phone and checked the reception. Nothing. He put his cell back in his pocket. Stranger or not, it would have been nice to hear her voice.
Should he be worried that she’d snuck in under his radar so quickly?
She fascinated him with her contrast of professional journalist and compassionate soul. Why she’d come to him last night, he didn’t know, but when she’d said she was outside the door, he could have wept.
Well, he did weep, but he couldn’t feel any shame in it. He’d felt so much stronger afterward, especially after they’d kissed.
He smiled. The kiss had been so sweet and he’d wanted to deepen it but the oven timer had brought him back to his senses.
Footsteps behind him made Tai turn around. Adahy stood there, looking at the flowers.
“Is this where …?”
“Yes.”
“Tai, are you coping? This is so similar to Dad—”
“I’m fine.” The words came out a little sharp. “Really, little brother, I just needed a few minutes of quiet.”
“Mom’s here.”
“I saw her when she arrived.” Adahy had a better relationship with their mother. He was six years younger than Tai, and had been only a toddler when their father died. He was too young to remember their mother had been largely absent from their lives for the first few years after that. She’d been working long hours to provide for the family, and never got home until after Eyota had got them both to sleep.
Neither Adahy nor his mother knew Tai had thought she’d blamed him for his father’s death and how her absence had been his punishment.
He walked over and put a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah. I feel sorry for Bradley. That kid is going to have some tough times ahead.”
Tai would do what he could to smooth the road. “Why don’t we head back and you can add some music to the celebrations?”
“Sure.”
Tai followed him back to the house, building up the walls he needed as he went.
***
It was Thursday evening before Piper heard from Tai.
He called her cell phone as she was sitting down to another dinner of snacks she’d found in her cupboard.
“I only just got your text,” he said. “Cell-phone reception is sporadic at best on the rez. I’m in Houston to get some things for the funeral.”
“When is it?”
“Saturday.”
“How are you?” She’d been worried about him.
“Fine,” he said.
She wasn’t sure he meant it, but she let it go. “Have you got time to drop around?” If she could see him, she could tell how fine he was.
“Yeah, if you’re not busy.”
She had her final article to write, but she might be able to knock it out before he arrived. “I’m not busy.”
“All right. I’m at the restaurant. I need to deal with a couple of things and then I’ll be there. Have you had dinner?”
Piper glanced at the snacks on her table. “Not if you’re planning on bringing something from the Spoon.”
He chuckled as she’d hoped he would. “Any preference?”
“No.”
“See you soon.”
Piper smiled as she hung up. He sounded OK. There wasn’t as much heaviness in his voice as when they’d last spoken.
She couldn’t wait to see him but she really should get the article finished before he arrived.
***
There was a knock on her door as she was reading through the final paragraph of the article. She got up to answer it, and glanced around her apartment. She groaned. She hadn’t tidied for days. Her table was strewn with notes and snack packets, her satchel was dumped on her couch with its contents spilling out and the washing she’d done the other day was still heaped in a basket on her coffee table, with Moggy lying comfortably in the middle of it. She’d have to wash it again.
She opened the door to find Tai on her doorstep holding a bag of takeout containers. He was wearing a blue shirt today and blue jeans, but no motorcycle jacket.
“Don’t you have the bike today?” she asked as she let him in.
“I borrowed Adahy’s car.”
He stepped closer and she tilted her head, reaching up to kiss him. It was a simple welcome kiss but she felt it all the way to her toes.
Before she got carried away she turned and walked into the kitchen. “Can I get you a drink?”
“Some juice if you’ve got it.”
“No wine?” she asked, holding up the bottle of white she had in her fridge.
“I don’t drink.”
She didn’t need to ask why. With the amount of substance abuse on the reservation it wasn’t surprising. Her friend Adrian didn’t drink either because his father had been an alcoholic who had abused him and his brother.
“Juice it is.” She put the bottle back and poured two glasses of apple juice.
Tai put the bag of food on the counter and looked at the snack wrappers still littering her table. “Don’t tell me that’s your idea of dinner.”
“I was writing,” she said. “Deadlines wait for no one.”
He turned, concerned. “I can go if you like.”
“No, it’s fine. I finished just as you arrived. I only need to read it over and it will be good to go.”
“Why don’t you do that while I dish up?” he suggested.
She gave him some plates and sat in front of the computer. It was strange how they had gone from complete strangers to this comfortable friendship in such a short period of time.
Not willing to examine it closer, she read through the article and saved it with the others, making a backup copy to her USB stick, which she’d later transfer to her personal laptop.
Tai placed a delicious-smelling turkey dish in front of her, garnished with some berries. Somehow he’d got the presentation perfect, despite the fact it had been transported in take-out containers. She slid her laptop out of the way and cleared a place at the table.
“This is your last chance to change your mind about which article I use,” she said to him. She was still hoping he would reconsider.
“I didn’t think they were due for another couple of weeks.”
“Geraldine suddenly wants them all tomorrow,” Piper told him. “It’s been a busy week.”
He pursed his lips together. “Let me read them again after dinner.”
Piper bit into the turkey dish and moaned. “I do not know how you do it, but everything you make is sensational.”
He grinned. “It’s all about the spice.”
“Maybe I should attend one of your cooking classes. Though then I’d need the time to cook and there never is any.”
“I’ll teach you a couple of quick and easy ones,” he told her.
She liked that idea. Liked the thought of Tai standing in an apron and not much else while teaching her how to cook. It definitely had merit. “You’re on.”
“How’s your week been?” Tai asked. “You look tired.”
She shrugged. She was sure hers hadn’t been anywhere near as draining as his. “As I said, Geraldine told me on Monday that she wanted all the articles by Friday. That’s a hell of a lot of extra work, with the research, then the interview and finally writing the article. I’m so glad we did yours on the weekend.”
“So am I.” His gaze sent a lovely shiver down her spine.
She shoved a forkful of food into her mouth before she could say something stupid. She’d never been so aware of someone before.
Wanting to change the topic and to make sure he was coping she asked, “How’s Bradley?”
“I’m not sure.” Tai paused. “He seems to be doing OK. He’s staying in Jerry’s house with his aunt, and he’s insisting on helping to organize the funeral and making sure all the traditions are followed.�
� There was pride mixed with worry on his face. “But no decision has been made as to who he’ll live with afterward. His father and his mother don’t want him.”
“What about other aunts, uncles or cousins?”
“Jerry only had two kids. Teresa lives in Austin and doesn’t have any children. I don’t think she wants that to change. Carl isn’t fit to look after Bradley even if he wanted to. Ka’ sa’ is the next closest relative, being Jerry’s aunt. That makes her Bradley’s great great aunt.”
“Would Eyota take him in?”
“Of course. The only problem is, she has so many kids who rely on her after school and on weekends. I’m worried about her health. We need some kind of youth center to lessen her load. Then she would be able to have Bradley live with her.”
“You’d need staff then, wouldn’t you? That would be good for the community.”
“Only if we could pay them, and I’m not sure if we could. I’ll have to search for available grants and funding. The tribe relies heavily on the government for money as it is.” He sighed. “Some people would volunteer, so we might get enough from them.”
Piper had led such a sheltered upbringing. She’d had two parents who loved her and each other; the family had had a stable income and a lovely house. All children should be able to live like that. “Could we raise some money?” She spoke her thoughts out loud. “We’d need to find out how much a center would cost, check to make sure the tribal council approved it, find some land and work out staffing. We may even be able to find some people willing to volunteer their time to help build it.” George’s father, Hank, came to mind immediately.
“The elders support it. They’ve spoken about something like this for a few years but it’s the money that’s a problem.”
“I’m sure we can come up with something,” she said, her mind racing. “Let me get through the rest of the week and submit the articles, and then I can focus on it.”
“This isn’t your problem, Piper,” Tai said.
She frowned at him. “Of course it is. There are underprivileged kids out there who need help – they need a proper education and support. That’s everyone’s problem.”
Tai was quiet for a long moment before he said, “You’re amazing.” He leaned over and kissed her.
She smiled. “Thank you. I’m not sure what I did to deserve that, but I’ll take it.”
“The number of people I run into who believe my people have it easy, living on handouts from the government, and that we all just like to complain, far exceeds the number of people who really understand.”
“So we need to do something about it. We start by submitting the article about your work on the reservation.”
“Let me read it again,” he said.
She brought up the two articles and cleared their plates while he read through them.
“All right,” he said finally. “Submit the one about the rez. It’s worth a shot. It might raise some discussion.”
Piper grinned. “Thank you.” At least one of her articles would have some substance behind it. That was better than none.
He got to his feet and walked toward her and straight away her article was the last thing on her mind. Tai stood in front of her. “I’m glad you don’t give up easily,” he said and smiled. Then he lowered his head and kissed her.
Piper wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back. She’d been waiting for this, this passion, this strength behind his kiss.
Her head went light and her body warmed as the kiss deepened. She ran her hands over his back, down to his butt, cupping his cheeks. She wanted him closer.
His tongue parted her lips and she was tasting him, the spicy flavors of his dinner and the taste that was exclusive to him. Sensations swamped her body. She wanted him, more than she’d wanted anyone before.
Tai stroked her breast and she leaned into him. She ran her hands up underneath his T-shirt, and a surge of satisfaction ran through her when he moaned. “This way,” she said and led him through to her bedroom.
She hadn’t made her bed that morning but it made it all the easier to fall into.
“Piper,” he said, and for a moment she thought he was going to refuse, to say he wasn’t interested.
“I want to take it slow,” he said.
She grinned. Slow was good. “Come here then.”
Chapter 9
It was some time before Piper summoned up the energy to move. Her body was well and truly sated. Tai was lying across her where he’d collapsed after cleaning up. As far as she was concerned, it was the best place to be, lying underneath a sexy, intelligent man who’d just given her the best sex of her life. His fingers continued to trace lines over her skin and his breath was warm on her neck.
She didn’t think she could possibly be aroused again but damn, his hands did something to her.
His whole body did.
Reaching out, she ran her hand over his side, down to his butt. He shifted to look at her and his gaze was so intense that her insides squeezed.
“You want to go for round two?” he asked.
She laughed. “You’re insatiable.”
“I was thinking you were.”
She shook her head in disbelief. “I have no words.” She kept touching him and he stirred, shifting a little so she had better access.
“I said I wanted slow,” he said with a wicked grin that made her heart beat so much faster.
“You did,” she admitted. And she would never complain about slow again in her life. But they hadn’t gone slowly when it came to his pleasure. And really that was hardly fair.
She rolled over, surprising him, and used her advantage to straddle him. “It’s my turn,” she said and bent down to kiss him.
***
Sometime later they came up for air. Piper lay in the crook of Tai’s arm, her arm across his chest, more content than she had been in a long time.
“Slow is good,” she said.
He chuckled. “Slow is great, but had I realized how torturous it is to be on the receiving end, I might have been a little faster.”
No one had ever reciprocated the favor? Piper couldn’t comprehend it. This man’s body was a playground for exploring.
“Keep it in mind next time,” she said. She was looking forward to next time very much.
He kissed her forehead and slowly moved out from under her. “I should go.”
Disappointment zapped through her. She wasn’t ready for him to leave. She wanted to fall asleep with him next to her.
She sat up, surprised by the thought. It was the first time she’d wanted someone to spend the night. What was she thinking? She ran a hand through her hair. “Are you heading back to the reservation tomorrow?”
He nodded, his face suddenly serious. He stood up and got dressed.
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
“No.” He turned away and Piper frowned. He was cutting her out.
Tai swore under his breath, and turned back. “Yes,” he said, moving over and pulling her to her feet. “You help just by being here.”
The admission soothed her. The way he gazed at her, the way he held her in his arms, told her she meant something to him.
“I’m glad. Call me if you need me.” She slipped on a T-shirt and followed him to the door, kissing him once more before he left.
Shutting the door behind him she leaned back against it, pressing a hand against her chest. Her body felt amazing and she couldn’t wipe the smile off her face.
In such a short space of time Tai had come to mean so much to her. She wished the next time she would see him wasn’t so far away. Were they moving too fast? If she wasn’t careful, she’d be in danger of losing her heart to him.
She tapped her palm on her chest, keeping time with her heartbeat.
Was she already too late?
***
On Saturday evening Piper drove around to Elle and George’s house. She’d had a brief phone call from Tai yesterday but he wasn’t going to call her toda
y. Today was the funeral and there would be rituals and celebrations lasting into the evening.
She was glad to be meeting her friends. She needed some girl time, some space to figure out what to do about Tai.
Piper was the last one to arrive and Toby was saying good night to everyone. He requested Imogen read him a story, so she went with him while Elle poured Piper a drink and led her to a comfortable chair in the living room. Piper sank into it gratefully.
“Hard day?” Libby asked.
“The usual, but this week Geraldine wanted everything yesterday.” She was more than ready for her day off.
“Did you get the articles done?” Elle asked.
“Yeah, and Tai agreed to the article about the reservation.”
“You saw him again?” Libby asked, an eyebrow raised.
Piper flushed. “We’re kind of seeing each other,” she admitted. Surely she could say that. They hadn’t discussed it, but they’d slept together, and Tai had said she helped him.
“Get out!” Libby exclaimed. “That’s amazing. Why haven’t you told us sooner?”
“Told us what?” Imogen asked as she walked in. To Elle she said, “He was out like a light.”
Elle smiled and said, “Piper’s dating Tai.”
“Wow. I never would have guessed it. He’s not your usual type.”
Annoyance flittered through Piper and she smoothed out her frown. “What’s my normal type?”
“Fun-loving, casual. Tai strikes me more as a serious guy.”
“Serious can be good.” Her skin warmed as she remembered their night together. She cleared her throat. “He’s a lot of fun as well.”
“Tell us more about him,” Libby said. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you talk like this about any guy.”
The rest of her friends waited expectantly.
Piper sighed. “He’s different. He’s so dedicated to his tribe, and he cares so much. He’s passionate about his cooking and when he focuses on me … well, I lose all my focus.”
Imogen grinned. “It sounds serious.”
She shrugged. “We haven’t discussed it.”
“Do you want it to be serious?” Libby asked her.
The Texan Quartet (Books 1-4) Omnibus Page 90
