After the Rain (The Callahans) (9 page)

She looked over at him, her bloodshot, blue eyes narrowed. “No one else has been able to.”

Their eyes remained locked and before he could stop it, his fingers reached up and brushed against her face, softly. “Maybe you just haven’t had the right guy until now.”

Color flooded her cheeks, but she didn’t turn away. Not even when he lowered his mouth to hers, barely brushing her lips before pulling away to see her reaction. Her eyes slowly fluttered shut and that was all the encouragement he needed. His mouth came down a little more aggressively this time. He reached behind her, his hand tangling in her hair as he deepened the kiss, his tongue gently moving through her parted lips. He anticipated her tensing up, but she didn’t. She melted against him, her small hand reaching up and grasping the front of his shirt.

He was instantly turned on beyond belief, which was not a good thing, considering her history. He pulled back, letting out a breath as he swore. “This is probably a very bad idea.”

Her hand dropped from his chest, abruptly. “Probably.”

“I’ve got baggage of my own, Kylie. My ex was a miserable excuse for a wife.” He’d never really admitted that fact to anyone besides his family before. He’d never cared enough to.

“So maybe I can help you too.”

He studied the sincerity in those eyes. She was beautiful. So different from Shayna—so different from any other woman he’d ever known. “And if it doesn’t work out?” he finally dared to ask.

“I don’t know,” she said, honestly.

The sound of Trey’s cell phone chirping from his belt interrupted their discussion. Checking the ID, he grimaced. It was Faye. That was when he realized that the clock read nine PM. He was nearly two hours late for the party. “I think I’m in trouble,” he said, not bothering to answer the call.

She looked at him, confused.

“Faye had a party planned for you at the grill tonight. She invited a bunch of people so you could meet everyone around here.” He grimaced as the phone chirped again. “Crap, she’s pissed.”

“I don’t feel much like being around people right now. Can we just sit for a while?”

He pushed the mute button on his phone and shoved it back into his belt clip. “It’s getting kind of cold, Montana. Maybe we should head back.”

She looked at him unsurely. “Maybe we can sit a little closer together and keep warm. I just want to watch the sky for a little longer.”

There was no way he was going to reject her. He scooted in behind her, careful about giving her a little space, while cautiously wrapping his arms over hers to ward off the cold. When she leaned back against his chest, her head just under his chin, he knew he’d made some progress. She wasn’t scared of him anymore.

“Thank you,” she said, quietly.

“For what?”

“For being here—and for caring.”

He tightened his grip on her a little, his fingers finding hers and entwining with them. “Yeah, baby. You’re welcome.”

By the time they headed back down the hill and toward the bar, it was after ten. Trey’s phone had continued ringing and Kylie knew Faye was infuriated, not that she could blame her. She had obviously gone to a lot of trouble to set up this party and Kylie had forced Trey to blow her off.

Trey climbed off the motorcycle after they pulled in and parked at the grill. He rolled his eyes as his phone chirped again. “She’s persistent.”

Kylie smiled at that, snuggling deeper into the sweatshirt Trey had pulled from a compartment on the bike. “She always has been. I won’t let her yell at you.”

He chuckled at that. “I’m a big boy. I can handle Faye.”

“Is that right?” an irritated female voice said from behind them.

Trey and Kylie both grinned as they turned around. They were caught. Faye stood, her hands on her hips, just outside the entrance to the bar. She had a frown on her face as she glared from Trey to Kylie and then back again. “You promised.”

“I didn’t
promise
anything,” Trey cleared up immediately. “And I got her here, didn’t I?”

Faye tapped her watch, irritably. “Three hours late.”

“It wasn’t his fault,” Kylie said, quickly. “We were talking and I wanted to stay.”

Faye narrowed her gaze, surprised. “Where were you?”

“Watching the sunset,” Kylie said, simply, a smile on her face. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”

Faye looked up at Trey again. He looked away. Faye’s frown grew more pronounced. “I was worried.”

“You usually are,” Trey told her. “You knew she was with me. I’m the sheriff for cryin’ out loud—and your fiancé’s brother.”

“I thought you were working tonight,” Faye reminded him, though her frown lessened somewhat.

“I have my phone.”

“One wouldn’t know it by how often you actually answer it.”

Trey didn’t bother touching that one.

“I’m sorry, Faye. It was my fault. We were talking. I kind of unloaded on him.” Kylie walked over and gave her friend a hug, surprising Faye, to say the least. “Don’t be mad.”

“I’m…..not,” Faye said, looking quizzically at Trey over Kylie’s shoulder. He just shrugged, standing up straight and twirling his keys around his finger.

“I need to check in at the office. You got things from here?”

Kylie turned, a little disappointed that he was taking off so quickly. “Are you coming back?”

Trey looked a little uneasy as he glanced from Kylie to Faye and then back again. “Yeah, sure,” he finally said, though his face said otherwise. “I just need to check in with Cia and make sure everything’s alright.”

“You can’t do rounds on a hog,” Faye said, pointedly.

“Don’t worry about me,” he said, tightly. “I’ll see you later.”

Kylie knew her expression fell slightly and she worked at making a quick recovery. “Thanks for the ride.” She looked at him a moment longer, wondering what had turned him cold all of the sudden. He’d been so caring and gentle up on the hill. He turned, obviously avoiding her gaze.

“Okay then,” she finally said and let Faye tug her away from him and into the bar.

10

Trey stood outside the bar, his indecision eating at him. He knew Kylie had to be irritated with him. He’d seen the question in her eyes when he’d bailed on her earlier. He’d been abrupt and cold. He wasn’t sure exactly why, except that Faye’s mother hen routine had eaten at him. Kylie was fragile with her mental state. She’d been hurt in the worst way a man could hurt a woman and he wasn’t sure he was up for the challenge of dealing with that kind of emotion.

On the other hand, he was attracted to her in an intense way. Just sitting with her and staring out at the sky, he’d been content. He probably would have sat there with her all night if she’d asked. And that scared him. He wasn’t used to having feelings like this. He’d experienced plenty of lust and attraction in his life. He loved women, after all. He’d always been able to have his share at his beckon call. He dated for a while, then walked away. So why was this one getting under his skin?

He leaned against his bike for a moment, almost wishing he’d checked in at the station and gone home. He’d pretty much planned to do just that. Unfortunately, those eyes had made their way into his head again. Those damned sad, blue eyes, large and round and full of sincerity.
Shit
. He knew he was falling for her and he wanted to fight it.

“She’s having fun. You should come in.”

He looked up to see Dusty standing outside the doors to the bar.

“Faye said you were being a dick,” he added.

Trey chuckled at that, not able to deny the accusation. Then, thinking of Kylie, he grew serious. “She’s got a lot of baggage, Dust.”

“Yeah. You have a little of your own too. We all do.” Dusty stepped closer, eyeing his brother, curiously. “You’ve got it bad, don’t you?”

Trey didn’t bother to dignify that with a response.

“So what are you going to do about it?”

Trey shook his head, then finally shrugged his shoulders.

“You could at least come inside and hang out a while. Faye wouldn’t be so mad at you then.”

“Faye’s always mad at someone. It’s part of her charm.”

Dusty grinned at that. “Yeah. But everyone is having a great time. Elle’s blitzed. Joe’s got Kylie well on her way.” Dusty raised a brow. “It’s probably in your best interest if you go in there and stake your claim.”

“I don’t have a claim, Dustin.”

“You want Joey moving in on her?”

No, he didn’t. But he didn’t say that out loud. He thought things over for a moment, then let out a sigh and stepped away from his bike. He couldn’t just walk away without saying goodbye. She deserved more than that after the honesty she’d showed him earlier.

He and Dusty entered the bar, which was jam-packed with people. Everyone in town was there. He was not in the mood for a crowd and he frowned.

“Faye doesn’t do things half way,” Dusty observed. “Get a beer and loosen up.”

He didn’t want a beer but he followed his brother to the bar anyway. Faye was behind it, filling drink orders by the dozens. When she saw him, she gave him a knowing smile. “I knew you’d be back,” she called over the sound of loud music and voices. He followed her gaze to the middle of the dance floor where Elle was doing some dance or another, while trying to teach Kylie the moves.

“I’m warning you, she has two left feet. Don’t let it change your mind about her.” Faye grinned at him. He didn’t acknowledge the remark, just took the beer she offered him and kept watching the girls dance. Kylie was laughing, her head thrown back and her hands clasped together in front of her. It reminded him of the afternoon they had spent splashing around in the lake. Those were the only two times since he had met her that she had let go and allowed herself to have fun. She became a different person when she managed to let her guard down.

“How much has she had?” he finally asked Faye, who shrugged.

“Enough, probably. She’s not much of a drinker.” Faye followed his gaze. “It’s nice to see her laugh.”

“Yeah,” he agreed. He watched as Elle did a spin, tugging Kylie with her. The girls landed on the floor in a fit of giggles.

“Uh oh,” Faye said.

Trey rolled his eyes. He’d seen his sister like this a few times before. She didn’t get out much, but when she did, she did up the town in style. He set his beer down and headed for the dance floor, when it was apparent that neither girl was getting up on her own. When he reached them, he leaned down to Kylie’s ear. “Do you realize you are about to get trampled?”

She looked up, obviously surprised to see him.

“Whas up, big brother?” Elle said on a slurred hiccup and then burst into a fit of laughter.

“Jeeze, how much have you had?” Leo asked, stepping up to the scene and reaching for his wife.

“She’s obviously had enough,” Trey said, reaching down for Kylie. “Okay, up you go.” He pulled her to her feet and she staggered a bit.

“You came back. I thought you went home without me.” She grinned up at him, widely. “Did you do your rounds with your pig?”

He had to crack a smile at that. “That’s
hog
, baby.”

She frowned. “Did you tell me that?”

“What hog?” Elle wanted to know. “Your bike? Oooohh, let’s go for a ride.”

“Hell no,” Leo said, stepping up and taking hold of Elle’s arm. Something tells me we are gonna have a long night. Let’s go.” He all but dragged Elle from the dance floor.

“We could dance. Elle taught me all kinds of cool moves.” Kylie did a twirl for him, nearly knocking a couple down in the process.

“Oops,” she said, trying to stifle a laugh.

Trey grabbed hold of her arm and tugged her back toward him, sending the couple an apologetic look. Then he glanced down at her, a crooked smile on his face. “You’re drunk, Montana.”

“Nooooooo. I’m just having fun. Where did Elle go?”

“Home to puke, probably.”

“That’s too bad. Things were just getting fun. Maybe Joey could make me another one of those candy things.”

“I think you’ve had enough.”

She frowned for a moment, then shrugged her shoulders, finally giving in and leaning her head against his chest. “We could dance,” she said again. “You smell good,” she added, once her nose was buried in his shirt.

“You’re lit,” he said back, his hands reaching up to tangle in her hair. He tipped her face up so he could look into her eyes. They were definitely bloodshot. “How much have you had?”

She smiled again. “I don’t know. I don’t usually drink.” She hiccupped, and then let her head fall against his chest again. “Don’t you ever take this thing off?” She poked at his gun, nestled snugly in its holster beneath the jacket he had picked up at the station.

“Nope. Not when I’m working.”

She didn’t reply to that, just burrowed in closer to him. He shut his eyes and counted to ten. This felt way too good. Just holding her close to him felt good—even if she was three sheets to the wind. Giving in to temptation, he wrapped his arms around her waist and let his head rest against hers. They swayed that way for a while, neither saying anything.

“Trey?”

He lifted his head and looked down at her. “Yeah, baby.”

“Maybe we should go outside and get some air. It’s really hot in here.”

“Uh oh.” He tugged on her arm, not liking the pasty look to her skin. He pulled her through the crowd and beyond the bar, into a back room. She barely made it as far as the bathroom before she threw up all over the floor.

11

Kylie opened her eyes, trying desperately to ignore the pounding in her head. A marching band was trampling over her forehead, she was sure of it. The light from the window was like a nail scratching against her eyeballs and she groaned. What the hell had happened to her?

Turning over, she looked around the room. She was home in the Callahan house, in Elle’s old room. The clock on the bedside table read eleven-thirty. She sat up abruptly and winced as the pounding in her head escalated.

Slowly, the events of the night before came back to her. She remembered going on a motorcycle ride with Trey. She remembered them talking. She’d told him about the rape. And then she’d gotten drunk off her ass at the bar. She didn’t remember coming home. She didn’t even remember undressing or getting into bed. She’d never had much to drink before. It obviously didn’t affect her well.