Читать книгу By Request Collection 1 - Jackie Braun - Страница 37

YOU had to worship a man who brought you breakfast in bed on a silver tray after a night of carnal pleasure, especially if he was naked and built like a bronzed god. A bowl of fruit, poached eggs—hard—with toast and jam to follow. In addition to his pot of tea, he’d made her an instant coffee. She’d have preferred her early morning latté but he’d not familiarised himself with that piece of kitchen technology. And it wasn’t early. It was well after midday.

‘So what made you think I was a virgin?’ she asked, around a mouthful of mango.

He grinned at her. ‘Could be because you mentioned “after all this time” the first time I kissed you.’

She smiled, took another bite. ‘That’s because I’d only been waiting years and couldn’t believe you were attracted to me.’

Blake leaned forward, licked the juice from her mouth. ‘Believe it.’ He smoothed her back and studied her. She wore the smile of a well-satisfied woman. ‘You know, you have the most beautiful eyes I ever saw.’ He hesitated. ‘But sometimes … there’s something there … like last night, when I hauled you into the bathroom at Gilda’s.’

Her smile dropped away. ‘I was surprised, that’s all.’

He shook his head. ‘Not all.’

Something didn’t fit with her normally casual, easy-going style. And he was absolutely, one-hundred-per-cent through seeing that startled, hunted look that stole into her eyes at odd times. All the more concerning when she was usually warm, willing and with him on so many levels.

A man, he was sure of it. ‘What happened, Lissa? Who hurt you?’

‘No one important.’ Her eyes turned dull, flat. Distant.

A knot tightened in his chest. He touched her chin lightly and turned her head so she had no choice but to face him. ‘What did he do? Tell me,’ he demanded, when she didn’t reply.

‘I don’t want to talk about it.’

‘Would you rather I asked your brother?’

She stiffened, her eyes widening. ‘You wouldn’t.’

‘If it helped, yes, I damn well would.’

‘Jared doesn’t know anything about him and I want to keep it that way.’ She pushed his hand away. ‘I’m not a kid and I don’t need him or anyone else to fight my battles. He was a guy I met a year ago. Todd. We had a relationship.’ Hesitation. ‘An abusive relationship. He got a real kick out of seeing me scared.’

Anger didn’t begin to describe what boiled up inside him as he looked at Lissa. So small and delicate. So vulnerable to the wrong sort. What cowardly scum got off on scaring a woman who’d put her trust in him? Worse, Lissa had called him abusive. What else had the low-life done?

Blake didn’t need her to tell him. His imagination filled in the rest. ‘The bastard.’

‘That’s what I told the cops. There was a restraining order. Haven’t seen him for months. Last I heard he’d moved interstate.’

‘You should’ve told Jared.’

She shook her head. ‘No.’

‘Yes.’ He cupped her cheeks in both palms. ‘Why the hell not?’

‘Because I told you. We had a disagreement.’ Her voice was clipped. Angry. Hurting. ‘He’s made a point of not coming here unless specifically invited ever since.’ Her eyes filled with moisture. ‘And there’s a distance between us that was never there before.’

He tightened his fingers on her face. ‘Ah, Lissa. He’s your brother and he loves you. That’ll never change.’

‘I know,’ she whispered, those tears spilling over.

Lissa covered his hands with hers on her cheeks, wanting to put this conversation away before she lost what was left of her composure. ‘But the bad’s in the past and I just want to move on. In lots of ways you’ve helped me do that. And the best thing you can do for me now is not to mention it again.

‘You made me happy, Blake, last night and I hope I did the same for you. I haven’t felt this good in a long long time. And it’s not just the sex. It’s you.’

‘Lissa …’

She could almost hear his alarm bells ringing. ‘It’s okay,’ she said quietly, drawing his hands away. ‘You’ve been a true friend in my hour of need and you’re already a great business partner, but sex does have a way of complicating things and we’ll deal with it. The thing to remember is that you’re not looking for an ongoing relationship and neither am I.’

Except this was Blake. The man she’d never got completely out of her thoughts. She picked up her coffee, stared into its depths. She wanted what they had for as long as it lasted and her heart was so going to pay for this later, but right now she couldn’t see the thorns for the roses.

He was silent a moment, then nodded slowly. ‘Let’s take it one step at a time, then.’ Darkly clouded eyes clashed with hers. Not the kind that wept soft rain but clouds that promised a cracking good lightning display, all light and heat and unleashed power.

‘The business first,’ he said. ‘We should have a launch party. Get your name out there.’

‘A party.’ Taking his cue, she made a concerted effort to shake off the intensity of the last few moments. ‘That’s a brilliant idea. I’ve thought of a name. Lissa’s Interior Design. Gilda—Oh-my-gosh …’

She grabbed her mobile, checked the time and sprang off the bed, spilling crumbs over the sheet. ‘I arranged to be there in twenty minutes to check with her about the curtains. I’d better shower and get my act together.’ She took a last look at the naked man ogling her bare butt as she slid through the doorway. ‘Thank you, Blake. For every thing.’

Blake watched the pool’s sunny reflections ripple across the ceiling. He’d been so relaxed last night he’d woken pain free from a dreamless sleep. In a bed that smelled of a warm, sated woman.

A woman who’d been used by a man in the worst possible way.

His fists tightened against the mattress. Pond scum. Low-life. He threw back the sheet and stalked to the window where he glared at the sun sparking off the river. Lissa wanted to forget and move on. So he’d not mention it again.

But he wouldn’t forget.

He turned from the view and, in an automatic move, picked up his clothes from the floor, folded them and set them on a chair. And what of Blake Everett? Was he any more worthy of someone like her? He was a wanderer. A loner. A lasting relationship for him and someone like Lissa, or anyone else for that matter, was never going to happen. Home and family weren’t in his destiny.

Lissa, on the other hand, needed that security, that bond of family. If there was one thing he could do for Lissa before he left, it would be to get some open and honest conversation between her and Jared happening again.

She’d told him she wasn’t looking for an ongoing relationship and he could understand why she might feel that way at present. But given time to heal, that might change.

Whereas for them … they’d had great sex. Mutually satisfying sex.

And mutually satisfying sex was all it was. All it could be. He refused to acknowledge anything more. He’d been cruising through life just fine on his own. Okay, his ship-mates were as close as family and navy life offered little privacy, but on shore leave or one of his rare recreational night dives—in the quiet, solitary times he’d found peace. Or close to it.

Until last month.

His bare toes connected with the brass bed base and pain ricocheted up his shin and he swore like the sailor he was. Yeah, he thought almost savagely, Lissa, with her sheltered upbringing, knew nothing of the murky depths beneath the surface of his civilian persona. She’d never understand the trauma of watching someone dying before her eyes and to wake up and know there’d been nothing she could have done to stop it.

And yet she’d offered him comfort when he’d woken downstairs the other night. She’d listened. Really listened. She’d talked—sensibly, with maturity and sensitivity—about post-traumatic stress. He’d been the one to cut off the communication because he still refused to believe that was what he suffered from. Never reveal your weaknesses.

He stared down at the place where they’d made love. Last night, lying beside her, he’d felt something he’d never experienced. Something warm, something worthwhile, like … trust?

Jaw tightening, he turned away. No. His father had wanted nothing to do with him. His mother had been trusted to put on a good benefit show, but when it had come to her only son, she’d fallen far short. That innate trust in the love and comfort of family had been wiped clean at an early age.

He thought of Janine. He’d fallen for her hook, line and sinker. He’d ripped out his scarred heart and laid it at her feet and she’d crushed it beneath her heel with her lies and betrayal.

So much for trust. He would never lay himself on the line that way for anyone, ever again.

He stalked to the bathroom and had just switched on the spray when his mobile buzzed on the bedside table. He switched the water off again, swiped a towel from the rail and went to answer it. Jared’s familiar voice caught him off guard.

‘Hey. What are you doing up so early?’ Blake turned from the sight of sex-rumpled sheets and one of Lissa’s gold hair ribbons and moved away from the bed. The last person he wanted to talk to with the scent of Lissa on his body was her big brother. ‘What time is it there?’

‘A tick before the crack of dawn. Isaac’s an early riser.’ Blake heard a muffled sound then a distant, ‘Hey buddy, put that down, Mummy’ll have my b—Isaac.’ A crash. ‘Never mind, I’ll buy her another one.’ He sounded resigned, then spoke into the phone again. ‘You still there?’

‘Still here. Kids, eh?’

‘Yeah. Who’d have ‘em?’

But Blake heard an exuberance of love in his mate’s voice. ‘I bet he’s a firecracker.’

‘You got that right.’ There was a hesitation through the phone, then Jared’s voice turned serious. ‘Before I speak to Lissa, I’ve been talking to Soph and we’re wondering if we should cut short our trip and come home.’

And wouldn’t that throw everything into a spin?

No mention of the business, Blake noted, and cleared his throat. Damn it. Lissa obviously hadn’t contacted him herself yet. ‘She hasn’t called?’

‘No. And her phone’s been switched off for hours.’

‘We were at a party till late—’

‘You and Liss …?’

He heard the surprise in his old mate’s voice. ‘Yeah.’ Moving right along. ‘She’s next door at the moment, doing up a quote for a nursery. I’ll get her to call you when she comes back.’

‘So she’s getting some work. That’s one good thing I suppose. How’s she taking the boat disaster, do you think?’

‘She’s doing okay. Still a little shocked but—’

‘Not enough to prevent her from partying obviously.’

‘It was a charity thing,’ Blake felt obliged to point out in her defence.

‘She wants to start her own business. It concerns me a lot. I don’t think she’s ready for it. Has she mentioned anything about that to you? I guess she’s got enough to think about right now.’

Blake paced the carpet, feeling as if he were sinking further into quicksand with every step he took. Yet here was an opportunity to get them talking. ‘I’ll let her tell you about it.’

‘I was hoping to hear your opinion.’

Blake really didn’t want to get into anything serious here after doing the wild thing with her all night. ‘Better coming from her, mate,’ he said, scrubbing a hand down his face. ‘She’ll call as soon as she gets in.’

‘Blake … we were buddies a long while. Is there something I should know here?’

Hell. His grip tightened on the phone. He couldn’t talk about their business arrangement because he’d given his word to Lissa, even though he knew that wasn’t what his mate was asking. ‘She’s an adult, Jared. She makes her own decisions.’

Silence. ‘What the hell’s that supposed to mean?’

‘Like I said, she’ll tell you herself.’

‘So there is something going on.’

‘At ease, mate, nothing to be alarmed about.’

‘She’s my sister. I don’t want to see her hurt.’ There was an edge to his voice that could slice through steel.

‘Nor do I.’

‘Tell her to call me via webcam. I want to see how she’s taking this—and whatever else—for myself.’

‘No worries. The moment she’s back.’

Jared disconnected without another word.

Blake stared at the dead phone. ‘That went well,’ he muttered, and headed back to the bathroom to take his shower.

He thought about Jared’s concern as he put his room back into some kind of order. Despite her pride in her independence, Lissa was a family girl at heart. She’d probably tire of her party ways eventually and settle down. Marry an easy-going Mr Joe-Average Nice-Guy with no emotional baggage and have two stunning kids, a boisterous dog and a comfortable four-bedroom home overlooking the beach.

Not for him. It was time to look at purchasing his own boat. Time to get moving, explore all the dives along the coast. Use the stars as his compass and live the dream before it was too late. Wasn’t that what it was all about?

He collected Lissa’s ribbons and hairpins and took them down the hall, but stopped in her bedroom doorway. Was there a bed somewhere beneath those shopping bags? How did someone who’d just lost everything manage to accumulate such a chaos in a single day?

The en-suite fared no better. Lotions of every description and bottles with tops off littered the vanity. A wet towel trailed from the basin. He left her ribbons beside her hairbrush and screwed the lid back on the toothpaste. Another reason they’d never work out. He liked his life ordered. He liked his space clear. She’d drive him crazy.

What they had was just temporary, he assured himself again as he walked away. A fling. She’d drive someone else crazy some day.