Arrested By Love (18 page)

Pissed, Kyle grabbed the cards and envelope, intending to rip them into tiny pieces, but stopped himself in time. He had to keep believing this separation was only temporary. That Tiffany would once again be in his arms and they would look back on these weeks with laughter at the silliness of it all. This hope, however, was getting more and more difficult for him to hold on to as more time passed. She refused to see him, receive any mail from him, or even talk to him and he was running out of ideas as to how he could change that.

Thoroughly depressed now, Kyle gave himself a mental kick. He wasn't the sort of man who just gave in or gave up. There had to be a way he could convince Tiffany to just talk to him. Deciding it was past time he did something to change his situation rather than simply bemoan it, Kyle finally accepted that he would need help. So, sitting down, he started to put together a plan.

The next day, Kyle sought out the two people who would be most likely to help him in his venture, by driving over to Jim's house. Even though Kelly and Jim were engaged, he was still surprised when Kelly opened the door.

"Kyle!" she said, her pleasure at seeing him again obvious in her expression, Kelly leaned forward to give him a hug then waved him inside. "Come on in. Jim! We've got company," she called.

"You're looking very happy, Kelly," Kyle remarked noticing a glow on the face of his former girlfriend and sub that he didn't recall ever seeing before.

"I am," she admitted with a pretty blush. He watched as she slipped an arm about Jim's waist when he walked over to join them. Jim immediately put his arm back around her and placed a kiss on the top of her head before turning to Kyle.

"Kyle. Come on in, bud, and have a beer with me. Kelly, could you do the honors, darlin'?"

"Sure," she said, and headed toward the kitchen while Jim led Kyle into the living room.

"What's wrong?" Jim asked quietly once Kelly had left.

"What isn't?" Kyle said. "I can't just sit around and wait any longer, Jim. I've got to do something to get Tiffany back. It's driving me crazy."

"Been there, done that," Jim said, smiling back at Kelly when she walked in with their beers. "Thanks, darlin'. Kyle and I need to discuss some private guy stuff, so can I be rude and ask you to make yourself scarce for a bit?"

Kelly looked a little disappointed but gave an immediate nod of agreement. "No problem." Turning she smiled at Kyle. "Nice to see you again."

He stood. "Same here."

He thought he saw a light sheen of tears in her eyes, but she gave Jim a quick kiss then took off to the bedroom.

Jim watched her leave with pure male appreciation. Yeah, the cowboy clearly had it bad for his sub and soon-to-be-wife.

"I hear congratulations are in order," Kyle said, pulling Jim's attention away from Kelly's shapely posterior. "Kelly told me you two are planning to get married in October."

"She did, did she?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"October is just a little too late in my mind. I told her she better be ready by the first if she didn't want to be getting five swats on her bared behind for every day she postponed things beyond then. I think she thought I was kidding."

"And you're not?"

"Nope. Not about that, I'm not. I want that filly tied to me as soon as possible, and I want a passel of kids that I intend to get started on right away. Speaking of startin' families, tell me what's goin' on now between you and Tiffany."

Kyle quickly filled Jim in on the latest, including the packet he received yesterday.

"So, they're still blockin' your calls?"

Nodding, Kyle said, "I knew her family was protective. Her dad especially, but they've got her guarded more securely than the secret service guards our President."

Jim chuckled. "Well, my phone's unlisted and only a few people have the number. You're welcome to try callin' from here, if you think it'd help."

"At this point, Jim, I'm willing to try almost anything." Jim rose to leave, but Kyle waved him back. "Stay. I may need moral support if this goes badly.

Picking up Jim's phone, Kyle dialed and almost dropped the receiver when he heard Chrissy answer in a slightly sexy voice, "Walter?"

Quickly, Kyle said, "Chrissy, let me speak with Tiffany, please."

"You bastard!" the teenager growled back at him. "How dare you try and call here after what you did to my sister. She loved you, and you destroyed her!"

Kyle worried a little over Chrissy's use of the past tense, but snapped back, "Christine Marie Morgan! You should have your mouth washed out with soap and your butt paddled for using language like that."

"Fuck you!" she replied and hung up the phone. Slammed it down, more likely.

Kyle simple stared at the receiver in his hand. That sassy little girl was going to prove a handful for some guy one day. Closing his eyes, he carefully replaced the phone's receiver back into its cradle.

"Charming youngin'," Jim said with a smile. "Tiffany's little sister I guess?"

Kyle sighed. "Yeah. About five years younger and with enough attitude to match an ankle-biting Jack Russell."

Jim leaned forward. "I'll admit that I'm not the most sensitive of guys, but I can tell you're real upset, bud, and I'm thinkin' you and I should just chew the fat for awhile to see what we can come up with to get your girl back."

"Much appreciated," Kyle said, resuming his seat.

"Now, I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but if Tiffany were my girl, I'd show up at her house, barge in if I had to, then hog tie and even gag her if she didn't come quietly, and basically take her out of there the 'old fashioned' way."

"Though I shouldn't admit it, as extreme as that sounds, but kidnapping holds a certain appeal for me right now. Except, I know I'd have to go through her father to get to her, and I don't want to hurt him."

Jim shrugged. "Show your badge, then."

Chuckling, Kyle said, "I suppose that might work as a last ditch effort. Though it'll be kind of hard to explain to the Captain just why I thought gaining entry as a police officer under false pretenses was a good idea, especially after Patrick Morgan files charges against me. And he'd do it, too."

"Then, you'll simply have to take some time off and do your own stakeout. She has to leave the house sometime. When she does, grab her. Gettin' her is half the battle, and once you've done that, I'm sure you'll figure out how to get her to listen."

"Well, you've given me a few ideas at least, which is more than I had before. However, I'm also afraid I could get arrested for doing any one of them."

"Yeah, you could. Possibly. But you won't. Once you get Tiffany in your arms, I'm certain all will be forgiven."

"We can only hope," Kyle said, rising to leave. "Thanks, Jim."

"Only too glad to help, bud. Kelly!" Jim called. "Kyle is leaving."

Kelly opened the door to their bedroom and stood within the door frame, giving Kyle a soft, sad smile. "Before you go, I wanted to say again how sorry I am for causing all the problems you're currently having with Tiffany."

Kyle shook his head. "I don't blame you, Kelly. I'm not exactly pleased about what you said, but the truth needed to come out, and I was the one keeping secrets, not you. So, you shouldn't feel at fault for what happened."

Looking back at Jim, Kelly waited until he gave her a nod, then she rushed over to Kyle and hugged him. "It will all work out, eventually, Kyle. I'm convinced that Tiffany will come around in time. You just need to have a little more patience." Kyle was surprised to see tears flowing down Kelly's face as she looked at him. "I just wish things hadn't happened the way they did."

Kyle was a little stunned. It had been two weeks since he'd even held a woman, the last time being the brief hug he'd shared with Kelly in the car, and he realized now just how much he missed it. Even so, Kelly's obvious remorse over Tiffany's attitude aroused Kyle's suspicions, so he looked to Jim, who simply shrugged back. He clearly had no idea what was making his girl feel so guilty, either.

"Kellly..." Jim warned, dragging out her name a little to let her know he was suspicious she'd done something.

Releasing Kyle, she turned and regarded Jim through wide, innocent-looking blue eyes. And Kyle got the very uncomfortable feeling there was more to her apology than either of them had suspected.

"What are you lookin' so guilty about now, Kelly girl?. Did you say somethin' to Tiffany?"

Bowing her head, Kelly gave a short nod. Reacting without thinking, Kyle grabbed Kelly's arm and turned her back to face him, causing her to let out a little yelp of surprise.

Jim did not hesitate to give Kyle a sharp warning. "Let her go, bud. She's not yours to handle anymore. And if you forget and touch her like that again, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave."

Feeling a little ashamed, Kyle immediately dropped his hand and gave Kelly an embarrassed smile. "Sorry, Kelly. I didn't mean to frighten you, but I really need to know what happened between you and Tiffany."

She gave a small shrug. "After you and I talked, I realized just how badly I'd messed up things for you, which made me want to see if I could do anything to help. So, I went to see Tiffany myself."

"You didn't tell her, did you?"

"What? That you were once my Dom, and we were lovers? No, Kyle. I'm not stupid. I know that would break her heart. Tiffany and I work at the same company."

When both Kyle and Jim looked surprised, Kelly laughed. "You guys don't know much about corporations, do you? J.C. Medical and Dorman Pharmaceuticals are both owned by Skylabs. They have different management, but do attend some of the same functions and meetings together. I saw Tiffany shortly after the break-up. She looked tired and a little thinner, but seemed to be managing pretty well, so I thought I could help things along by getting her to realize just how much she missed you, Kyle."

"When exactly did all this happen, Kelly?" Jim asked.

Kelly turned back to face him. "Last Saturday. The 25th."

Jim scowled. "You told me you were goin' shoppin', Kelly girl, not visitin'. Did you lie to me?"

Paling, Kelly immediately shook her head. "No, Sir. I did go shopping. You remember. I brought home that cute sun dress you like on me so much because the back comes--"

"I remember," he said gruffly cutting her off. "Go on."

Kelly shrugged. "There's not much else to tell, really. I told her I'd seen her at the annual, and that she'd looked sad. So, I asked if she'd like a fellow police officer's girlfriend talk to. She didn't remember me, so I reminded her who I was. Then she remembered that terrible scene at the station a few weeks back."

Chapter Twelve

When Kyle realized Kelly's actions had only reminded Tiffany of something he was hoping she'd forget, he groaned and put his hands over his face. Jim merely crooked his finger, so Kelly walked over and stood before him. The Dom then encircled his sub's hips so that his hands crossed and rested lightly over her backside. "Did she remember what you said?" He asked gently.

Wrinkling her nose slightly, Kelly answered, "Yeah, unfortunately. She asked me what I'd meant when I said that Kyle was supposed to be with me. I had to think up something quick, since I suspected the actual truth would only upset her even more."

Kyle just groaned again. This was getting worse and worse.

"So, what did you tell her, Kelly girl?" Jim asked, keeping his tone even and firm. As a fellow Dom, Kyle knew Jim was gently informing Kelly that he knew she went to see Tiffany without discussing it with him first, because she suspected he would not have allowed her to do it had he known of her intentions beforehand.

Clearly uncomfortable looking her stern Dom in the eye, Kelly began playing with the buttons on his shirt, while she said. "I sort of told her that I knew she had been watching our fight at the station, and I was jealous that she and Kyle had been able to work out so well, while you and I seemed to keep quarreling, so I'd attacked Kyle."

With a nod, Jim removed his right hand and tilted Kelly's chin up so she had to look at him. "What else?" he asked with firm insistence.

Kyle could see Kelly's lower lip tremble when she admitted, "Well, I was afraid to out and out lie, because I assumed Kyle would want to tell Tiffany the truth about us one day. So, when Tiffany asked if Kyle and I had a date scheduled that Thursday night, I admitted that we'd dated awhile back, and that I'd showed up at the station earlier that day demanding to know why Kyle had offered to marry Tiffany and not me.

"I didn't admit that you and I hadn't even met, yet. Instead, I kind of implied we'd had a fight the night before, and I was sort of hysterical." She glanced back at Kyle. "I'm sorry, but I didn't know what else to do."

Kyle nodded, but Jim gave Kelly's butt a light smack with his left hand, so she'd turn back to face him again. "I'm sure you told Tiffany more than that, Kelly. So, continue, please."

Giving a wince, Kelly slumped a little. A sure sign she knew was going to be punished for what she did, but to her credit she continued bravely on. "I told her, since I was so upset, Kyle agreed to go out with me that night."

Kyle groaned and slipped back into his chair to put his hands over his face. When Jim continued to scowl, Kelly cringed. "I said that I thought it was a date, but Kyle merely handed me back to you, and ordered the two of us to talk. However, I didn't think it was necessary for me to admit that your idea of a conversation was to make me strip, then chain me up."

"Little wiseacre," he said without heat. "So what happened then?" Jim asked, both his hands resting on her backside again.

"Tiffany cried a little," Kelly confessed, "Then admitted, sort of quietly, that deep down she'd hoped it had really been just a misunderstanding between her and Kyle. However, given what I'd just said it seemed Kyle actually did break a date with her to be with another woman. Me. I wanted to contradict her and explain, except I didn't think that would help, either," Kelly admitted, gazing back into Jim's face. "I didn't mean to, but I think I may have actually made things a little worse instead of better."