Home Is Where the Heat Is (21 page)

“It’s all tourist shops and casinos.” A tiny mountain town with not much to do but gamble. Fun but small scale. Better to show her an epic good time in a grand theater where she’d hold the audience captive. “Screw that. If we’re going to go, we need to go big.” Marquee lights danced in her eyes as he named their destination. “Vegas.”

“Yes!” She seized the back of his neck and kissed him. “That’s quite a drive. Can we make it a long weekend? I can take Friday off. Or Monday if that’s better for you.”

JT brushed her hair back over her bare shoulder. “I’ll fly us down there.”

Her eyes widened as an excited smile touched her lips. “Do you have you own plane?” She slid her hand over his chest.

“Yep. Bought a little four-passenger plane when I became the boss. It’s not much, but it’ll get us there faster than the interstate.” He stroked her creamy skin. Weekends often flew by, and he didn’t want to waste time traveling when they could be playing with each other.

“My uncle had a two-seater. Why’d you get four?”

Another one of his indulgences. “I splurged for the bigger one because I wanted to take Kaylee and her kids flying with me. She won’t let them go without her.”

“I don’t blame her.” Claire shivered. “You couldn’t choose a less dangerous hobby? Maybe join a motorcycle gang?”

His throat tightened—the one chance he refused to take. “I don’t ride motorcycles.”

She tilted her head, and drew circles on his skin. “I saw a helmet at your house.”

“That belonged to my dad.” His voice cracked. “He wasn’t wearing it the night he was killed. I kept it as a reminder that some risks are too big.”

“I’m sorry.” She laid her head on his chest, pressing her cheek over his pounding heart. “Both my parents are still alive, but I can’t imagine losing one of them… even though they’re too wrapped up in their own drama to care how I feel.”

“Losing him….” JT rubbed his stinging eyes. Years had passed and he thought the grief had faded.
Why does it hurt now?
“I don’t ever want to go through that again.”

Claire looked up at him. “You might have to—your mom’s still alive, right?”

Unreasonable pain sliced through his cold heart. “She’s already dead to me.” But he flinched, tipping his hand.

Claire’s gentle touch soothed his clammy skin. “If she was, she wouldn’t still be hurting you.”

That bitch is gonna live forever.
“My mom thrives on causing pain. She came to my dad’s funeral to show off her new husband, bragging about her big expensive ring and their luxurious honeymoon. Kaylee had just gotten engaged, so my mom took the opportunity to rub that in my face too. I’d just been made foreman, youngest in the company, quite an achievement. But all she had to say was ‘Why are you still single? What’s wrong with you?’ My dad never got remarried, so Mom’s convinced the men in our family are unlovable.” Tension forced his lips closed, cutting off his words, but the pain still flowed.

Claire rubbed his clenched jaw. “She’s wrong.”

“Doesn’t matter what she thinks.”
So why can’t I get past it?
“All relationships end one way or another. I’ve got bigger risks to face.”

***

All relationships end….
A bleak philosophy if she’d ever heard one. It held a certain truth, but Claire refused to acknowledge it or deal with the implications at the moment. “Isn’t flying a huge risk?”

Her question seemed to snap JT out of his grim mood. The familiar playful twinkle returned to his eyes. “Not for me. I’ve had years of experience and training… and good luck.”

She encouraged the change of subject. “How does luck fit into it?”

“I crashed and survived.” His jaw tightened again. “My dad didn’t live through his accident.”

Don’t let him go down that road.
“Don’t you think skill had something to do with it?”

“He was a good rider, but the guy who hit him never saw him. Dad never had a chance.”

But maybe it would be good for him.
JT had confided horrible stories about his mother; maybe he needed her to listen. “What about you?”

He settled back against the pillow, hands behind his head. “One of my engines failed, but I was able to land in a field—wrecked the wings and broke my leg, but it could’ve been a lot worse.” His tone lightened, and the tension in his body eased.

She followed his lead and let his past go. “Sounds like skill to me. I’ve always been impressed by a man’s skills.”

His impish grin made her heart flutter. “I’ve always been good with my hands.”

She snuck her fingers under the blanket wrapped at his waist, teasing his twitching abs. “Prove it.”

He rolled over her and swept her fears away with a groping kiss that showed him a master of touch.

She sighed and clutched him close. There’d be time to listen later… if their relationship didn’t take a nosedive first.

Chapter 15

The monitor flickered to life the instant Claire flipped the power switch, but the hard drive took longer to respond. “Come on, come on!” The thing finally booted up, and she immediately opened Alex’s calendar to write her name in the first available appointment. She had plenty of time to request next Friday off, but after JT’s dire relationship prediction last night, an urgent need to make concrete plans consumed her.

She glanced at the clock and remembered her boss’s sly grin when he’d said he’d be in late. “Crap.” She moved her name from nine a.m. to noon. It would cut into her lunch break, but she didn’t need the whole hour.

The morning rushed by as if hurtling toward an inevitable end. Alex walked in a few minutes after ten as promised, but ran out the door again. When he came back, he glanced over Claire’s shoulder at his calendar while she pressed the phone to her ear and typed up another brief.

“We have a lunch date?” He grinned and loosened his tie.

“Huh?” She hung up and clicked the document closed. “No, I just need your attention for a few minutes.”

“Come into my office.” Alex held the door for her while she gathered her wits. He sat behind his desk and motioned for her to sit too. “What’s up?”

She got right to the point. “I’d like to take next Friday off.”

He checked his schedule and typed ‘Claire out’ in all caps. “Okay. Anything else?”

As easy as she’d expected. “Nope, that’s it.”

“Big plans?” His eyebrows wiggled.

Should I tell him?
She bit her lip, but couldn’t say no to his evil smile. “I’m going to Las Vegas for the weekend.”

“Alone?”

Cheese and rice!
She’d walked right into this cross examination. “No, with a friend.” Why did she bother trying to evade him?

“A man?”

“Yes.”
Ha.
He’d asked a yes or no question. Now he had nowhere to go with it. She braced her hands on the armrests and rose.

“How did you meet him?”

Claire sighed and plopped down in the chair. “Mutual friend.” She clasped her trembling hands in her lap.

“What’s his name?”

Alex knew every detail of every case better than he knew his long and impressive resume. He’d remember a name like JT Luck. “Jared.”

“Does he have a last name?”

She couldn’t help it. “Yes.”

The skeptical prosecutor raised an eyebrow.

Last name, last name… why can’t I think of anything but….
“Langston. And don’t you dare run a background check.”

Alex laughed. “Vegas, huh? That’s where bad girls go.”

“Spare me the expert testimony.” But wait…. Why not subject
him
to a cross examination? He’d never kept his unconventional relationship a secret from her, and he was the resident expert on getting what he wanted.

“How did Talia…?”
What am I thinking?
She couldn’t put him on the spot and expect to win. “Never mind.” She stood. “Thank you for the day off.”

He got up and followed her. “How did Talia what?”

“Oh, I can’t….” Claire stopped and turned to him. Her face flashed hot as she framed one question after another, rejecting them all. Finally, she blurted out, “How did Talia talk you and Will into a threesome?”

Alex kicked the door shut. “I don’t remember a lot of talking.”

Claire curled her fist over her mouth to keep from pressuring him. She’d let him confess on his own.

“I remember at least one bottle of wine.” He grinned, then leveled his gaze at her. “Why do you want to know?”

As anticipated, he’d turned it against her. “I was just… daydreaming. Sometimes women do that.”

“Uh-huh. You know I can read liars better than anyone, right?”

“Is my phone ringing?” She turned and grabbed the doorknob.

“No, it isn’t.” He slapped his palm against the solid oak and shoved it shut. “Listen to me, Claire.” His commanding tone forced her to face him. “Daydreams are fun, but reality is a gamble.”

JT would love to hear that.
She pushed the wayward thought aside and nodded. “I know.”

“Have fun, but be careful. I went through hell and back to make this thing work. I’d hate to see that happen to you.”

She took a deep, shaking breath. What was she thinking anyway? Did she really believe JT and—
oh my God
—Kurt would agree to three-way sex?
But if I get the chance, I just might do it.
“I’m stronger than I look.”

“Damn right.” He winked and stepped back. “Before you go to lunch, will you print the briefs you wrote this morning?”

“Yes, sir.” She walked back to her desk and polished up the last document before sending them all to the printer. She hadn’t even noticed the machine failing to respond until she grabbed her purse, intending to drop the papers on Alex’s desk on her way to lunch. “Cheese and crackers, I’m going to throw this thing out the window!”

“Did it crash again?” Alex chuckled as he straightened his tie and headed out the door.

Claire marched to her desk and looked up Kurt’s direct extension. He answered on the first ring. “Kurt! Get up here and fix my printer.” She slammed the phone down without waiting for a response.

Seconds later, the timid geek poked his head inside the office. “Is it safe to come in?”

She raised her head and snarled, then curled her fingers around the nearest heavy object. When he ducked, thinking she’d actually throw it at him, she released the stapler. “Yes. I’m not mad at you.” He nearly fell into the room as she opened the door and ushered him in.

The guilt lurking in his eyes made her wonder if he’d purposely avoided fixing the printer just so he could see her whenever it crashed.
But Kurt isn’t a schemer. Alex on the other hand….
“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you and Alex were conspiring against me.”

The heavy lid slipped and crashed on Kurt’s fingers. “Ow, damn it!” He squeezed his reddened hand. “Conspiring how?” He wouldn’t look at her.

Working for Alex all this time had taught her how to catch a lie. “Can it be fixed?” An amateur yes or no question, but one wrong word, or the right one, would convict him.

“Yes,” he mumbled, hunching over the inanimate machine.

“Look at me.”

He straightened and shoved his glasses up his nose. His brilliant green eyes pleaded for mercy. “Yes. But it will fail… repeatedly. You’ll have to replace it.”

“And I’ll have to call you until Alex gets a new one.”

“Me, or anyone at the helpdesk.”

“No,
you.”
That’s what Kurt wanted, she realized, for her to need him. Since the day they first met, he’d fallen all over himself and climbed over anyone in his way to be the first to respond when she called for help.
Why have I never seen it before?
She’d wasted so much time searching for a man who adored her, but Kurt worshipped her right at her feet.

A trembling smile touched his face. “It does seem to work out that way.”

He couldn’t tell her. She’d given him the perfect opportunity to confess, but he faltered.

“What are you afraid of?”

“Ogres and orks. Those red dragons are some nasty bastards, too.”

She stepped closer to him, expecting him to shrink back as she met his gaze on her most intimidating four-inch heels, but he stood strong, and deep in his shining eyes, a light of hope danced.

She couldn’t extinguish it. Letting it live might be cruel, but if he chose to delude himself, who was she to argue? Besides, her unattainable fantasy still bloomed in the deepest reaches of her mind, so on that level, they understood each other.

“I’m afraid of spiders and competitive sports,” she returned.

“I’m a pro at killing spiders.” His lips no longer quivered and the flicker in his eyes flared. “And I’m starting to like basketball.”

Maybe I could too.
“Work your magic, but when Alex gets back, I’m letting him know I’m on to you two.”

Her playful threat seemed to boost his confidence. “If you insist, but I could find something else to break. It’s just a matter of rerouting a few networks, crossing some wires….”

She smiled at him and jammed her hands on her hips. “I’d like to see you try.”

He grinned and made a couple of adjustments to the printer, then changed something on her computer. “That should keep it working until you get a new machine. I’ll put in the request before I leave for CES. You’ll have it by Tuesday at the latest.”

“What’s CES?” Claire perched on the edge of her desk and watched the monitor over his shoulder.

He spun, meeting her face to face. “The Consumer Electronics Show. I’ll be out of the office all next week.” The light in his eyes dimmed a bit, as if he was disappointed she hadn’t memorized every detail of his schedule like she had Alex’s.

“Oh right, you told me that.” She remembered something about being able to reach him by text or Skype if she needed him.
Wow, the guy has a serious crush.

“Someone else will need to install it, but I’ll double check it when I get back.”

“Thank you, Kurt.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “You’re so good to me.”

An instant blush colored his face. “Yes. Yes, I am.”

Claire’s desk phone rang, and she snatched the receiver, turning her back to the hopeful geek as she paid no attention to the voice on the other end. She shouldn’t have encouraged him—shouldn’t have fed his hope—but the thought of hurting him tore her apart.