Because I Love You (3 page)

“Nate told me. That must have been nice.”

Leah nodded, remembering the summers with her siblings, before their older brother died. But Leah pulled herself from the past and back to the present. “Thank you for saving me with the family. You didn't have to throw yourself under the bus like that.”

“I know. I wanted to help you out. You don't need all those prying questions about Tristan.”

“No, I don't.”

Easing closer, Jenna grinned. “And there was no way you could honestly answer without sending your parents and Sally under the table, could you?”

“Are you fishing for information?” Leah had to admit, Jenna was smooth.

“No, pssht. No.” Jenna shook her head and looked away.

“No? Okay. Good.”

“Oh, for Pete's sake! Of course I'm fishing. Well? Was it hot? I know you went home with him, Leah.”

“Why should I tell you? You're going to tell Nate!”

“Tell Nate what?” Now her sister Amy had joined them. “That you slept with Tristan?”

“Why does everyone assume that? I haven't said anything. I mean we are friends, but . . .”

“But nothing,” Amy said. “You aren't stupid, Leah, and not taking that man to bed would be very stupid. I'm not saying you should marry him, but doing him is definitely worth your time.”

“Especially considering the way he was looking at you,” Jenna added. “
Hot
.”

There was no getting around it anymore. They both had her dead to rights, and if her sister and her sister-in-law knew what was going on, Leah would, at least, have people to talk to about it. Tris was already messing with her head in a big way. Amy and Jenna could keep her securely on the friends-with-bennies path because she couldn't let herself get attached to him, no matter how tempted she was to do so.

With a flash, a memory from the previous night blew through her mind. A memory so hot, Leah ached for him from
the inside out.

Closing her eyes she saw him, felt him, and at the same time denied anything was going on. “You two are speculating.”

Amy grinned and looked out at the water before poking Leah in the ribs and locking eyes with her. “I guess we are, but you're evading, counselor, and the evidence is stacked up against you. How do you plead?”

Leah gave up.

“Guilty.”

Breaking up a Tuesday by blowing your entire calorie quota on the best tiramisu in the city was a good day, indeed. Doing it with your sister was even better. Even if she did constantly give you a hard time. Leah and Amy made a point of having lunch together at least once a week. They met between their offices at a pretty restaurant in Little Italy where they ate like teenage boys and talked nonstop. Even though they spoke on the phone every day, the two never ran out of things to say, and frankly, the women were so entwined in each other's lives, Leah wouldn't know what to do without her sister. Through every problem, every crisis, Amy had been Leah's advisor and confidant. The two were Irish twins, born ten months apart, and complete opposites.

Amy was tall, slender, and blond like their mother. A refined package with emerald-green eyes and creamy, fair skin, she was an architect specializing in the restoration of historic buildings and she was currently working on bringing a large brownstone in Williamsburg back to its former elegance. Amy was sweet, and levelheaded on the surface. Underneath the polished exterior she had a take-no-prisoners attitude that Leah had always envied. An excellent judge of character, she inherently knew what to say to put people at ease—she was subtle, refined, and for the life of her, Leah couldn't figure out why Tristan was with her when her sister was available.

Next to Amy, Leah felt a bit like the ugly duckling. She knew, even today when they were at lunch, that the waiter would fawn all over her beautiful sister. And while Leah would be treated politely, she was just another guest at the table. Amy was a goddess, perfect and lovely. Leah, on the other hand, was a leprechaun, with a riot of freckles across her nose and a hot temper.

The temper was her curse. Passionate and impatient, Leah didn't have a natural ability with people like the rest of her family. She said things without thought. Amy was constantly coaching her, trying to help her finesse her reactions rather than being quite so direct. It was her flaw, and the thing that got her in so much trouble. When everything went south at her job three years earlier, the only person who knew the whole story was Amy. Now, the thing with Tris . . . or the non-thing with Tris, was driving her nuts, so she was hoping Amy could help her make sense of it. If she couldn't, her sister would, at the very least, tease her mercilessly and beg for details. If nothing else, that would be a distraction.

Tristan confused her. He made her feel, he made her want, and she hadn't reacted that way in a very long time. Over the past several years, Leah had built a pretty solid wall between herself and the outside world. She didn't let anyone in; she just kept her eye on her objective, and plowed forward. Then a tall, velvet-eyed Brit walked into her view, and she was done for.

She didn't expect it, didn't plan for it, and she certainly didn't realize she'd be so damned transparent.

Amy swept into the restaurant, dropped her briefcase on the chair with a thud, and threw her leather jacket on top of it. “Since when does it take an hour to get to Little Italy from Brooklyn? When? I could have walked here faster.”

“You'll have to redesign the train line,” Leah responded.

“Pssht.” Amy poured a glass of red wine from the bottle on the table. “A civil engineer has to design it. I'll turn the stations into pieces of art, though.”

Her sister leaned in and gave her a big hug. “Okay, first things first. What's going on with the hot English guy who has you all aflutter?”

“I don't think I'm
aflutter
, as you say.” Leah had practically tied the white cloth napkin into a knot. “He wants to keep things casual, you know, which is fine. I don't have time for a relationship, but . . .”

Amy jumped all over her. “But you really like him, you want a relationship, and you're afraid you'll be hurt. Does that sum it up?”

Once again, Amy nailed it. “Yes, pretty much. But, look, we have a nice thing going as friends and he's going to be part of Reliance. That's a complication neither of us needs. It was fun and a great way to blow off some steam, but it was a onetime thing. It's not happening again,” she said, taking a sip of her water. “Besides, I'm not his type.”

“Oh, for fuck's sake. Are we still going to do this?” Amy swore so seldom, it made Leah realize how pathetic she sounded. “You are so damn gorgeous, Leah. Why don't you see it?”

“Thank you, but not compared to you.”

“Oh, please.” Her sister reached for the bread. It was warm and fragrant, and Leah hadn't touched it, because even a bite would mean her clothes wouldn't fit right. It was bad enough she was going to have pasta today. “I'm just your average run-of-the-mill blonde. You? You're unique. You draw attention. Your eyes alone are enough to own a man.”

“I don't see it. But going past my looks, why would he want to? I'm not that nice.” She used to be. She wasn't anymore.

“Just a little self-control issue. Maybe he likes difficult women?”

“Well, I am that.”

“Look, you're nice to people who deserve it.
Like Tristan
. Now tell me about him. He's so damn hot. He looks like a pirate off the cover of a romance novel.”

“He makes love like a romance hero. That's for sure.”

Amy slapped both her hands flat on the table. “Okay. Now you have to spill. What got you into his bed? You're
extremely
picky, he must have really wowed you.”

It had been something so simple, really. She'd found Tristan attractive from the get-go, but Leah was admittedly gun-shy—overly cautious. Then they'd gotten to know each other a little and he didn't judge her. He didn't expect her to be deferential and sweet. There were so many things she liked about him, but only one thing got her into his bed last weekend.

“He touched me.”

Amy froze, the glass of wine touching her lips. “Excuse me?”

“He touched me, Amy. We were at that dinner party the other night and he reached out and stroked my cheek with his thumb. I don't know . . . he said something about my freckles.” She smiled at the memory. “But when he touched me, and looked in my eyes, that was it.”

The contact drove home how wickedly appealing he was; every fiber of her being responded to him, and it scared her to death. “He touched me and he owned me. I guess I'm easier than I thought.”

“You're damn smart is what you are, I've said that before. He's a good guy. But let's be clear about this, you don't just like him, you like him
a lot.”

“I do, but I'm not sure of him. I have to keep my feelings out of the equation. It's too risky, like I said, and I have to stay focused on work.”

Leah's phone buzzed and before she could react Amy had grabbed it. Her sister keyed in her password because, predictably, Leah used the same password for everything. Then Amy smiled.

“It's Tris. He wants to meet for dinner.” Amy bit her lip as she grinned. “What should I tell him?”

Leah shrugged. “Yep. It's Tuesday. We always meet for burgers on Tuesday.” This was going to be a calorie day from hell.

“He said something about a new place that just opened near his apartment. Lantana?”

“That's a five-star restaurant. It's impossible to get in.”

“Nice. You're going.” Amy started to type.

“No! I'm not. This isn't what we usually do. Our Tuesday dinners are very relaxed and casual. Hell, I usually wear yoga pants.”

“You do not go out with a billionaire in yoga pants. Please tell me you're lying.”

Leah rolled her eyes. “You do remember our brother is one of those billionaires, and we aren't doing too badly. My portfolio is solidly in the seven figures.”

“Blah, blah. Whatever. Go out to the fancy restaurant.”

For once, Leah wanted Amy to listen to her. Just once. The phone, however, stayed in her sister's hand. “Yes, I'd love to go to dinner,” Amy said as she typed. “Can't wait!”

“Amy! Why did you do that?” Leah loved her sister, but sometimes she was a pain in the ass.

“What? You want to see him again. You're practically giddy when you talk about him.”

Leah ran her thumb up and down the condensation on the water glass. “I see him pretty often. But let's not turn this into something it's not.”

“But nothing,” Amy snapped. “You deserve this. You deserve him.”

“We're having fun together, I'm good with that.”

“Um, why are you going to settle?”

“I don't consider this settling. I consider it being realistic. I mean, Tris and I are good together in bed, and we get along great. He's a good friend, but that's it.”

“A friend? Leah, you don't need a friend.”

Now she was getting annoyed. Why did Amy care? “You know, you don't have anyone, why are you so set on me being
part of a couple? Worry about yourself!”

“I can't be in a relationship right now.” Her sister's tone deepened, her hands clenched. “I've accepted a new position,” she choked out. “It's going to require me to relocate.”

“What?” Leah's stomach vibrated with discomfort. Her eyes burned just at the thought of her sister being too far away. Even when they were in college, they were only an hour's car ride from each other. “Where are you going?”

“It's a great opportunity,” she shot out. “The work I'll be doing is so important. The buildings are historic landmarks, pieces of art—”

“Where are you moving to, Amy?”

“Scotland,” she whispered.

Everything went quiet, even though they were sitting in the middle of a crowded restaurant. Leah heard nothing but a single word rattling around in her brain.

Scotland
.

Scotland?
Five hours by plane, and an ocean between them. They'd never been this far apart, at least not with any permanence. “There aren't opportunities closer to home? New York is filled with historic buildings.”

“Not like Europe. Domestically, buildings are a few hundred years old, tops. With my new firm, I could be working on structures built a thousand years ago. I can't pass this up.”

Leah was holding it together pretty well, considering. She hadn't even shed a tear yet, but there was still time. “Have you told Mum and Da about this?”

“Not yet. And you can't tell them. We'll all be at the farm on Sunday for Sally's birthday, so I'll break it to them then.”

“They're going to be devastated.” She could only imagine how her parents would react, especially Mum, whose health was still a big question mark.

Her head was swimming. Amy wasn't just her sister, she was her best friend. There had never been sibling rivalry, competition, or jealousy—the two of them had been inseparable growing up and as adults they depended on each other. They shared every milestone, every tragedy, and told each other all their secrets.

“This will be good for both of us,” Amy said with complete authority. “We're always up each other's butts.”

Leah may have been upset, but she hadn't lost her ability to interpret subtext. Her sister was sending a message. “What do you mean
both of us
?”

Amy looked away, avoiding eye contact until she was sure of what she wanted to say. When she spoke, it was crushing. “You depend on me a lot. Maybe too much.”

“Seriously? You're the one whose nose is all up in my business, and you're telling me that I'm needy?”

“I care about you, and I never said
needy
.”

If her sister had slapped her, she wouldn't have felt any more of a sting. She didn't know what to say. How do you respond to someone telling you they don't want to be around you? The ache spread from Leah's heart through her body. Pain,
betrayal, confusion. Amy was her sister, she was a busybody, but they'd always been so close. God, this hurt. Miraculously, she didn't break down. Quietly gathering her things, Leah put forty dollars on the table and nodded to her sister.

“Leah, please wait . . .”

“I'll see you Sunday. Don't worry, your secret is safe.”

Amy was the one who had tears in her eyes. She knew exactly what she'd done, and all she could do was acknowledge the words. She felt bad, no doubt there, but once Amy made up her mind, there was no turning back, no matter what anyone else thought.

Leah wasn't going to turn back, either. Without another word, she stood, and walked out of the restaurant.

*  *  *

Tristan glanced at his watch and was amazed he managed to arrive at Leah's apartment on time. His meeting uptown had run long, and getting to anywhere in the city during the dinner hour was next to impossible. Thankfully, seeing Leah would put him in a better mood. She had thrown up such a wall the other day, he was surprised she'd said yes to dinner. But he wasn't complaining, in fact it was quite the contrary.

He hadn't been able to get her out of his head since she'd left his apartment two days ago. This was unusual for him, and Tris decided to pull out all the stops. He made reservations at a restaurant in Tribeca that was impossible to get into, rather than meeting her for their usual weekly dinner. He was trying to impress her, openly, and he hoped she noticed.

Climbing the steps of her brownstone, Tristan found her name and rang the buzzer. It didn't take long for her to answer.

“Yes?”

“Hi, it's me.”

“Tristan?”
Uh oh
. “What are you doing here?”

Alright, he didn't expect that kind of reaction. “We're having dinner. At least that's what I thought.”

“Oh, damn.”

“I have the text to prove it.”

She swore quietly, and he heard the door click open. He may have gotten in, but he already could see that this evening wasn't going to turn out the way he thought. Not at all.

Her flat was on the third floor of a stunning prewar building that sported high ceilings, heavy moldings, and carved, ornate doors. He lived in a converted industrial space, which he loved, but it had none of the charm of Leah's West Village neighborhood.