Discovering Pride (Pride Series) (26 page)

Mr. Stevens stopped when he saw Todd. “Oh, Hello Todd.” He walked over and gripped Todd’s hand in a firm hand shake. “It’s good to see you again, I’d forgotten you lived around here.” Mrs. Stevens walked over as well.

“Todd this is my wife, Elizabeth. This is Todd Jordan, owner of Jordan Shipping, we meet a few years back at a conference in Singapore.”

“Nice to meet you, I didn’t know you were in town.” Todd tightened his hold a little on Lacey when she tried to squirm away.

“Oh, we’re just here for about a week visiting our son, Aaron.” Aaron’s mother chimed in.

Todd’s mind sharpened. He’d pieced it together when he’d met Bradford that he was Dr. Stevens’ son. But, hadn’t put the pieces together that this was Aaron’s father.

Just then another woman walked up to stand next to them.

“Todd, this is Jennifer Andrews, Aaron’s fiancee. Jennifer, Todd runs a very prominent shipping company, one of last year’s fortunes five hundred’s if my memory serves me.” Bradford said.

Lacey felt a shiver down her back; she took a quick peek at Jennifer and could almost see dollar signs in her eyes.

Todd’s arm tightened when he heard  “Aaron’s fiancee” If Lacey knew anything about her brother, she knew that right about now, Todd was thinking of a million ways to kill the town’s doctor. Reaching up she put a protective arm around her brother, restraining him.

“Oh.” Todd said under his breath. “I didn’t know  Aaron was engaged.” Lacey heard the heat in the statement and nudged her brother. “Pardon my rudeness, Mr. & Mrs. Stevens this is my sister Lacey. She owns and runs the Golden Oar.”

Lacey nodded to the pair. They looked her over from head to toe. It was obvious that the pair had been present during her fainting spell. Embarrassment caused her face to flush. Aaron’s father took her small hand. “Oh, yes, how are you dear? That was a nasty spell you had in there.” Aaron’s mother gave her no more then a quick nod.

“If you will excuse me, I need to get my sister home. It was nice seeing you again.” Todd turned, keeping Lacey close and walked them to his car.

Once inside, she laid her head back on the head rest and silently cried. Todd, being the kind brother he was, let her cry it out.

When he stopped the car a few minutes later, she noticed that it was at his house instead of hers.

“Todd, I just want to go home.” she began.

“No, I’m not letting you deal with alone. He fooled us all Lacey. I’m not going to leave you by yourself during this. Besides, I’m going to go pick up Megan and the baby from the hospital soon, and I know she would really enjoy the help and company.”

Lacey ended up staying the night. Little Matthew and the company of her family were a comfort to her. She cooked them all dinner and fell asleep on their couch. When Todd carried her to their extra bedroom, she woke briefly and ended up crying silently most of the night.

Where the hell was she? Her car was still at the restaurant, someone had said she’d left hours ago. He now sat outside her place in his car, after pounding on her front door for ten minutes, he just sat there waiting. Bernard was curled up on the doormat waiting too. He was sure she was upstairs ignoring him. At one point, he thought about climbing up a wall to peak in the high windows.

Didn’t she know what she was doing to him? It had been murder not having her there last night, he was unsure whether he could go without her another night. He sat there in his truck watching the rain pour off his windshield until he saw headlights in his rear-view mirror. It was a quarter to one. But instead of Lacey, Iian got out of the sedan.

Iian rushed to Aaron’s door, pulling it open and had Aaron out of the truck by his jacket, so fast, he didn’t have time to respond.

“What the..” Aaron didn’t get a chance to finish before Iian’s fist plowed into his face, snapping his head back against the door.

Aaron had taken several beatings in school, boarding schools were full of bullies, but this one had more power and feeling behind it than any he’d ever felt before. Putting up his hands, he stopped the next blow, then pushed Iian back a few feet, he quickly signed.

“What was that for?”

Iian signed back. “You know what that was for, that’s for Lacey and the next one is from me.” He began to swing again, but Aaron was ready and dodged the blow.

He signed again. “Hang on a minute.” Then he yelled, “Hold on!” when Iian swung again.

“What’s going on? Where’s Lacey?” he signed quickly when Iian stopped swinging.

“She’s somewhere you can’t get to her again.” Iian signed back. “You need to just leave her alone. If you ever come near her again…”

“What do you mean?” Aaron interrupted. “I haven’t done anything to her.”

“You’re engaged or did you forget?” Iian signed.

Aaron took a step back and leaned against his car door, his face turned white. Iian could see the shocked look, his left eye was starting to swell and he felt a little pride knowing the doctor would soon have a black eye.

“No.” Aaron said out loud.

“No, what?” Iian signed. “No, you didn’t forget? Or No, you’re sorry Lacey found out about it? You used my sister.” It made him so mad he started to take a step towards Aaron again, maybe to blacken the other eye, when Aaron said.

“No, I’m not engaged.” He had said it rather then signing it, and because it was fairly dark out, with the only light coming from the front porch, Iian had to sign and ask him to repeat his last statement.

“I was engaged last year, to Jennifer, I broke it off shortly after. I’m not engaged to her and would never marry her. I’m in love with your sister.” Aaron signed.

Iian took a step back. Looked deep into the doctor’s eyes and saw the truth. Then he let out a bark of  laughter and punched the man’s arm brotherly.

He signed, “Well, I guess you better come in and explain it all and maybe put something on that eye.” he smiled.

Lacey woke in the spare bedroom at Todd and Megan’s. Taking a deep cleansing breath she opened her eyes and screamed. Aaron sat over her looking down into her face.

“Sorry.” he mumbled and started to move back.

She swung out and caught him on the chin, which caused him to fall backwards off the side of the bed, hitting his head on the dresser. He let out of string of low curses while rubbing the side of his head.

“Out! Get out!” Lacey gathered the pillows and standing on the bed began throwing them in his direction. “Now! Get out now!” She threw the next thing that was free; a small alarm clock hit the dresser just above where his head was.

“Damn it Lacey, would you stop for just a minute?” he said rushing over and grabbing her. Flipping her over so that she lay underneath him, her chest rising and falling with quick breaths.

“Get off me.” she said under her breath trying to push him away with her legs. She tried to twist and get her hands free from his iron hold.

He could see the tears building up in her eyes, eye’s that had dark circles under them, and were puffy.

“I am not engaged to Jennifer anymore! I broke it off before I moved here.” he blurted out.

She stopped fighting and looked at him for the first time. His left eye was swollen and purple, she could see his eye was a bright red under all the swelling. He had a fat lip as well.

“What?” she asked taking it all in.

“I’m not engaged, period!” he said holding her down and enjoying the feel of her under him. She was wearing a large white T-shirt and large gray sweat pants.

“Oh, then why…?” she trailed off.

“I don’t know why my parents and Jennifer won’t accept that I called it off. They won’t leave me alone about it. She still has the stupid ring I bought her. I think they’re all delusional. The only one I want to be with now is you. Just you.” he said smiling down at her.

She took a few deep breaths to steady herself.

“Did I do that to you?” she nodded towards his eye and lip.

He released her with one hand and touched his eye lightly.

“No, the eye is from Iian, the lip is from Todd. But, from what I hear, I guess I deserved it. Listen, I should have told you earlier, I guess I just…”

She reached around with her free hand and pulled him down into a kiss. She’d meant to show him everything that she’d been feeling the last day, the hunger, the loneliness, and the want.

She was soft and warm; and smelled like home and tasted the same. He couldn’t get enough. He reached under the light shirt and touched her soft skin. He heard a moan and realized it was his own, then he pulled her hand that had been desperately trying to untuck his shirt from his pants, above her head to join her other one.

“Lacey.” he said, breathing hard. “Your family is down stairs.” She ran kisses up and down his neck causing small bumps to rise on his arms. He was shaking so bad, he thought everyone in the house would feel it.

“They won’t mind, let me just…mmmm.” she said taking his ear lobe into her mouth, causing his eyes to cross. She was moving underneath him again, this time in a slow more sensual rhythm. He knew they needed to finish talking and what he had to say, he couldn’t completely concentration if they stayed in their current position. So, he pulled her up to a sitting position quickly before he could change his mind.

Turning her towards him, he continued. “Lacey, I should have told you from the start. I’m sorry I let things get this way.” He looked down at their  joined fingers, they were both breathing hard.

“I asked Jennifer to marry me early last year; we were only engaged for a few months. But at a friends party, I caught her with a co-worker of mine. I called it off.” He took a deep breath trying to steady his breathing.

“I overheard her saying that she was just marrying me for my money and that they would continue their affair after the marriage.” He looked up into her eyes. “I thought she’d broken my heart.” Lacey reached up and placed her hand on his cheek.

“My parents don’t know the whole story, all they know is that I called it off, and a few months later moved here. They think all of this is some kind of sabbatical.”