Crystals (23 page)

He didn’t give a fuck who that bitch or her mother
was. Being in possession of her little recording meant nothing to him. They
were going to pay for every insult they had thrown his way.

Standing before his bedroom mirror, Ollie studied his
reflection as an idea began to take shape. He already knew he would kill them.
Crystal would be first and he would make Shane watch. For the second time that
night his cock hardened at the contemplation of taking a life.

From the first time he had seen Shane, he had wanted
him. Finally, he was going to get his chance. Easing down his zipper, he palmed
his cock. With his eyes closed, he began to think of all the ways he would take
Shane once he was at his mercy.

A crash sounded at his front door and was followed by
repeated blows. Fixing his clothing, he rushed towards the sound. Making it
only as far as the top of the stairs, he faced a throng of uniformed and plain
clothed police.

“What is the meaning of this?”

“Oliver Sinclair, you are under arrest for the murder
of Lisa, Tiffany and Abbott Sinclair.”

How could they possibly know what he had done? Was
Tiffany or his father still alive? No, of course they weren’t. He’d just been
informed that he was being arrested for their murder.

“You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your
defence if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely
on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.”

“You have made a grave mistake in entering my house in
this way!”

As they handcuffed him and led him away, Ollie
overheard the mumblings of one of the officers’.

“Being rich enough to have staff bring you breakfast
in bed every morning didn’t save them, but the old pervert’s secret camera came
in handy!”

All protests died
on his tongue. How could he have forgotten the existence of that
camera.
After all, on his rare visits home from school,
those recordings had been his first lesson in the enjoyment that
could be had
with multiple partners of both sexes.

Chapter 19

While he negotiated the quiet streets, Shane wrestled
with his thoughts. All he could think about was how Crystal now saw him because
of his actions towards Ollie.

“Are you okay,
Crys?”

“I’m fine. Are you
alright?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry
you had to witness what I did back there.”

“I know you are.”

Shane didn’t know
what else to say so for the remainder of the drive they just listened to the
radio in silence.

Inside her
apartment, he still couldn’t get over the lack of warmth the place generated.
By mutual consent, while they attempted to rekindle their fractured
relationship, they had spent their time together outside of each other’s homes.
For him, doing otherwise would have seemed as though they were playing house
instead of dealing with the causes of their separation. And he didn’t regret
their decision.

On the occasions
he picked her up for dates, the first place his eyes travelled to, was the spot
just above the mantel. But he never found what he sought.

Shrugging out of
his coat, he dropped it on the sofa and threw himself down beside it. Crystal
watched him as he stretched out his legs and folded his arms behind his head.

Closing his eyes,
he followed her every movement in his mind. He heard her soft sigh and felt the
ruffle of material as she picked up his discarded coat and placed it over the
back of the sofa. Then she walked to the kitchen and switched on the kettle.
Shane couldn’t help but smile as a cup of tea was her go-to drink for every occasion.

He heard the
cupboard doors open, the clang of mugs
being placed
on
the counter, followed by the sound of pouring water. At this point, he tuned
her out, his mind returning to the events of the night and how she now saw him.

“I made us some
tea.”

“Got anything
stronger?”

“No, sorry.”

“Okay, tea sounds
good.”

Reaching for the
mug, their eyes landed on his hand. His knuckles still bore the evidence of his
loss of control. Glancing at Crystal he saw her grimace and instinctively tried
to hide his hand.

“I’ll go and get
something to take care of that.”

Placing the mugs
aside, she left the room. When she returned, she carried a first aid kit and a
bowl of water. Sitting beside him, she gathered and placed his hand on her lap.
He tried to pull away, but she wouldn’t allow it.

“I never wanted
you to see me like that.”

“Has it happened
before?” Crystal asked without any pretense of misunderstanding what he
referred to.

“Once.”

“Tell me.”

Just thinking
about the incident made his blood boil but he knew he had to tell her
everything. “It was when I was around fifteen. Some no-mark came into our ‘
ouse
and tried
ter
disrespect me
muvver
–”

“What does that
even mean, Shane?”

Taking a deep
breath, he paused at her question. It was only then that he realized how he sounded.

“A man my mother
knew when she was a young woman, before me… before she met my father came to
our house and propositioned her for sex. I was sitting in the room, but that
didn’t matter to him. I said something to him, I forget what, and he took a swing
at me. Things ended much like they did with Ollie. That was the first and last
time I was ever in trouble with the law.”

“I see.”

“Is that all you
have to say?”

“If you expect me
to judge you—I won’t. But, if we’re going to try to make a go of our relationship,
this is the last time this loss of self-control can happen.”

“Okay, I promise.”

“Really, you can
promise me that without even giving it a moment’s thought?”

Promising so
quickly had been a mistake and he should have known she would call him on it.
He had agreed so readily because so much was on the line. Glad she had
questioned him, Shane felt relief at the chance to be completely open.

“Honestly Crys, I
don’t know. If someone tried to hurt you… I’d probably rip their
fuc
… head off.”

Finished with his
hand, he realized he hadn’t felt a thing while she had administered to him.
Meeting her gaze, he was surprised to see the echoes of a smile. Unsure of what
it meant, his brows furrowed in confusion.

“What’s funny?”

“I really like
you, do you know that?”

“Bloody hell,
Crys. I don’t want you to like me—I want you to love me.”

“In my opinion,
that’s where a lot of relationships fall down. Couples don’t really like each
other. They just get caught up in loving the idea of being in love.”

“What’s wrong with
just loving each other?”

“There’s nothing
wrong with being in love and loving someone. I don’t know if what I’m about to
say is true for anyone else, but for me, liking and respecting someone is my
foundation for loving that person.”

Recognizing the
importance of what she was saying, Shane took hold of her face and stared
deeply into her eyes. “You already told me that you like me. So what about the
respect part?”

“It’s there.”

“And the love
part?”

“It never went
away.”

Relief washed over
him and he closed his eyes and breathed in her essence. “God Crys, me too. I
never stopped loving you. I never stopped thinking about you. I didn’t even try
to because you’re the part of me that I never want to forget.”

“I need you to say
that you love me.”

“I love you,
Crystal-Grace Buchanan—now and for always.”

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

“I’d show you, but
this room is too uninspiring.” Standing, Shane scooped her into his arms.

“Well, while you
wait for inspiration, you should fill me in on some of the possibilities. Make
them as graphic as you can,” Crystal finished with a cheeky grin.

“Bloody hell, does
Princess Crystal want me to talk dirty?”

“Yes please,” she
said with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

If he didn’t love
her so much already, he would have fallen hard. She had been through so much
because of him, yet here she was, still loving him. Although she had yet to say
the words, he knew she would when she was ready.

“I’m game if you
are. Where should I begin?” He mused. The shrill ring of his phone pierced into
their intimacy and interrupted his train of thought.

Deciding to ignore
it, he was pleased when the sound abruptly stopped. Turning his attention back
to Crystal with every intention of picking up exactly where they had left off,
the phone rang again.

“Go ahead and
answer it. If someone is calling you this time of the morning, it’s probably
important. I’m going to take a bath. You can join me when you’re done.”

Shane knew she was
right, so he set her down and watched her until she left the room. Only then
did he retrieve his phone from the pocket of his coat.

“Emmie, this had
better be good!”

“Shane, thank God!
Ollie’s been arrested!”

“Hold on, arrested
for what?”

“He phoned, his
assistant. Can you believe the man didn’t have anyone else to call? It doesn’t
surprise me, but you would have thought–”

“Emily, don’t get
on me nerves. I don’t give a shit about Ollie, so unless you get to the point
in exactly two seconds, I’m hanging up!”

“Apparently,
earlier this morning, he murdered his father and his wife.”

Shane’s blood ran
cold, not because of Ollie’s situation, he didn’t care about that. Rather, he
shuddered at the fact that he had inadvertently put Crystal in harm’s way by
going to his house.

“Tell me what you
know!”

~~~

Crystal’s bathroom
was the only room in her home that wasn’t white. She had stolen space from the
oversized hallway and extended the room to meet her exact specifications.

This was where she
came after a long day pandering to exacting, never satisfied clients. This was
her sanctuary. From her reclined position in the free-standing tub, she again
took in her surroundings.

She loved the
earthen hues that were such an integral part of the design. Her bathtub was a
hollowed out granite slab that took pride of place in the middle of the room.
Enjoying the tactile sensation, she ran her hands along the undulating sides as
her fingers passed along the many indentations.

Lush green plants
broke up the harshness of the granite vanity tops and the flooring. But her
favorite item in the room was a single piece of art she had commissioned years
ago. The stonework depicted battle ready female warriors, their tall shields
taking pride of place before them. The piece
was made
entirely out of polished Amazonite.

Pulled from her
musings, Crystal watched as Shane entered the bathroom. He seemed lost in
thought, and she said nothing as he stripped out of his clothes and stepped
into the shower cubical.

Curious, she
watched him as he stood perfectly still under what sounded like the highest
setting of the shower. He didn’t move a muscle. Slowly the steam built and
blurred the glass leaving only an indistinct outline of his body. Everything
about his actions screamed that something terrible had happened.

When he came out,
he walked to the bath and slid in behind her. Settled, he wrapped his arms
around her and buried his face in her neck.

Reaching up,
Crystal slid her hand around his head and stroked his hair. She said nothing as
they held on to each other. She just gave him whatever time he needed.

“That phone call
was from, Emmie.”

Hoping she hid the
emotion from him, Crystal couldn’t help the tendrils of jealousy that gripped
her.

“You don’t have to
worry about, Emmie. She’s like a big sister to me.”

“What did she
want?” Crystal asked embarrassed at her jealousy but pleased with his
reassurance.

“She called to
tell me that Ollie’s been arrested for murder.”

“Murder,” Crystal
gasped attempting to push away so she could look at him. But he didn’t budge.
“Who did he murder?”

“Apparently, when
we met up with him, he had just got back from killing his father and his new
wife.”

“My God, that
man’s insane!”

“I realize that
now, and I’m sorry I put you in danger by taking you into his house.”

“You didn’t put me
in danger and you know it. But I love you for being so protective of me.”

“Do you… love me I
mean?”

“You know I do.”

“How am I supposed
to know, Crys? You haven’t said those words to me in five years.”

She knew remnants
of the past had been holding her back. After what he had suffered, maybe he
needed the words even more than she. “I love you, Shane.”

“God Crys,
sometimes I wondered if I would ever hear you say that to me again.”

“I never stopped
loving you.” Once the words were spoken contentment wash over her. Shane was
back in her life and she had finally voiced what was in her heart.

Shane got out of
the bath. Reaching for a towel he stopped as he noticed her artwork. He said
nothing as he studied the carving for long moments. When he glanced over his
shoulder, Crystal drew in her breath at the look of love and understanding
reflected in his eyes.

He strolled
towards her. Pausing by the side of the tub, he held out a towel and waited. As
she stood, the fragrant oils she had added to the water glistened and ran down
her body, causing her skin to shimmer.

Wrapping the towel
around her, Shane lifted her out of the water to stand in front of him. With
tender strokes, he patted her dry, his eyes never leaving hers. The intensity
of his golden orbs pierced through her, causing her nipples to tighten. He
moved his hands between her legs and she jerked in reaction to the abrasive
feel of the cloth.

He then bunched
the material around her waist, and used it to draw her closer. When flesh
finally touched flesh, he tossed the towel aside without a care.

Leaning forward he
placed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. At that moment, Crystal
would have given anything to have been able to know what he was thinking.

Lifting her arms,
he placed them around his neck and drew her in so that their bodies were flush
from chest to thigh. He felt wonderful as her breasts pressed against the hard
wall of his chest. Crystal reveled in their contact as he brushed his
fingertips along her back.

Their lips touched
for a brief moment before Shane pulled away. The second kiss lasted only
fractionally longer and she unknowingly followed when he retreated. When they
touched again, Crystal locked her hands around his head and held him in place.