Last Night (36 page)

"
Hold it,
"
he muttered half under his breath. She was much better off with some corporate wienie or another attorney than she was with him. She
'
d said she loved him and he
'
d given her the big kiss-off. What right did he have to be jealous?

Christ, she was gorgeous though. He
'
d hate to be a lawyer trying to concentrate in her court. There was something about Dana
'
s striking green eyes and dark blonde hair that made her even more breat
h
taking than her sister.

Keep your distance, he cautioned himself, knowing he had a hard time staying away from her. He
'
d
gone to Lillian Hurley
'
s memorial service just so he could see Dana. Her tribute had almost undone
him.
The best way to love anything is as if it might be lost.

He'd lost all right—big time.

"Rob, great to see you.
"

He found Gwen Sihida at his shoulder smiling that smile he remembered only too well from the time he
'
d taken her out. "Great day for Dana, isn't it?
"

"
Sure is.
"
He tried to sound upbeat.

"
So
…
what have you been up to?
"
Gwen asked, but he didn
'
t want to talk.

He politely muttered something and went to find Zach. No way could he stand around the rest of the night and watch Dana with another man. Rob wandered through the crowd, smiling, but he would rather have walked barefoot through the Sahara. His chest tightened each time someone called his name, each time he paused and had to say a few words. Every second he wondered who was out to get him—and why.

He should have listened to his sixth sense. All along he
'
d felt that Big Daddy wasn
'
t behind Dana
'
s problems. Goin
g to Kau Ranch had been a wild-
goose chase. So had the trip to Gomper's Bend. Granted, it had helped Dana, but he wasn
'
t one bit closer to finding the blackmailer.

He finally found Zach and Jason on the lanai, teaching the parrot some new four-letter words.

Typical boys. "Hey, guys, cut it out. Try teaching him
'
Puni wants a cracker.
'
"

Zach howled and Jason collapsed in a fit of giggles. Even Puni ruffled his feathers in disgust. Obviously Rob wasn
'
t cool.

"
I'm ready to go,
"
Rob said.

"
We were just putting Puni to bed,
"
Zach responded.

"
Put him in his cage, then meet me out front by the fountain.
"

He returned to the living room, meaning to go straight to the fountain, but he stopped, half-hidden behind a fern that belonged on a Tarzan set, his eyes on Dana. The crowd had thinned; the party was drawing to a close. The nerd with Dana headed for the bar with two empty glasses. Zach emerged from the kitchen and walked right up to Dana. Uh-oh.

"The Stand
was way cool,
"
he heard Zach tell Dana as he walked over, set to stop Zach before he said something that might upset her.

"I
'
m glad you liked it,
"
Dana said, her eyes now on Rob.

"
Congrats
…
Your Honor,
"
Rob joked.

Dana
'
s dynamic green eyes met his, and beneath the surface he detected a depth charge of hurt and betrayal. How well he knew that feeling. But he
'
d done the right thing. Dana had the appointment she
'
d coveted. He hadn
'
t drawn her into quicksand that would drag them both under.

For a moment they stood transfixed, unspoken feelings eddying between them. He wanted to say
something—anything—to show her he wasn
'
t a complete bastard, b
ut he was hopelessly lost at ex
pressing himself. He attempted a smile. "I like your hair. Why the change?
"

"
Everything in my life has changed.
"
The serrated edge to her voice softened as she glanced at Zach.
"
It
'
s the new me.
"

Rob got the message. "Well, congratulations on the appointment.
"

A bewildering surge of tenderness swept through him. He leaned down, meaning to quickly brush her cheek with a kiss, but he found his lips touching hers. His knees turned to putty.

This might be all he
'
d ever have of the woman he truly loved. He couldn
'
t resist putting his arms around her and drawing her close. Passion flared inside him, hot and breathtakingly intense. She arched the small of her back, torturing him with the lush softness of her breasts as they molded against his torso.

The feel of her mouth beneath his sent the pit of his stomach into a wild swirl as his tongue found hers, his hardening body pressing against hers. He wanted to kiss her until
…
until the world went away. Hell, he really wanted to spirit her away to some secluded spot on the beach where he could peel off the wisp of a dress she was wearing and make slow, shattering love to her all night.

From some distant corner of his mind a warning bell sounded. You
'
re out of control, it said. But he
didn
'
t want to listen. She belonged with him, cradled in his arms like this. Forever.

This was the last time he was going to be able to hold her and kiss her. He
'
d lost her, and knowing that made this moment, this kiss even more precious. He longed to tell her how much he loved her, truly loved her.
Love you forever.

Dana tried to move away, but he wouldn
'
t let her go. He kept kissing her, his eyes squeezed shut to keep the cold, stark world of reality at bay a few seconds longer.

Zach yanked on his arm, bringing him back to the present. Releasing her was almost impossible. He knew he'd spend the rest of his life missing her. Longing for her kiss, her soft laugh, her loving touch. There are no sadder words than
what might have been.

Rob pulled away and saw that the nerd had returned and was glaring at him. He beamed his
"
fuck you
"
grin at the jerk and walked away.

"
Jeez, Dad, did you have to cause a scene?
"

33

I
t was more than an hour later when they walked out of McDonald's on Waikiki with three Big Macs, two jumbo fries, and a chocolate shake under Zach
'
s belt. Rob hadn
'
t eaten a thing. He couldn't remember the last time he
'
d been hungry.

Unlocking his Porsche, he heard the phone ringing.

"
You left before I could talk to you,
"
Garth told him.

"Yeah, well
…
"
What could he say? After making an ass out of himself with Dana, he
'
d gladly let Zach drag him out for fast food. He slid behind the wheel, then reached over and unlocked the door for his son.

"I have some news,
"
Garth said, a smile in his voice. "The DA dropped the case. You
'
re not going to be arrested.
"

Rob gasped, the air leaving his chest in a painful rush.
Thank you, God.
His breath seeped back into
his lungs and he prayed he wasn't dreaming this.
Please let this be true.

"You have Dana to thank,
"
Garth continued. "She went to the DA and convinced him to show her the evidence against you.
"

"How did she know that I was being charged? I never told her a thing.
"

"Well
…
ah, I suspect I might have a leak around here.
"

Vanessa had told Dana, Rob decided. "She did this before her appointment came through, didn't she?
"

"Right. She risked getting hit with an obstruction of justice charge.
"

She loved him, she truly loved him. A suffocating sensation tightened his throat. He hadn't cried in years and he wasn
'
t going to break down now, but he felt like it. Instead, he leaned his head against the side window and closed his eyes for a second. He didn
'
t deserve to have her risk everything for him. How had he gotten so damn lucky?

"Rob, are you there?
"

"Yeah.
"
He lifted his head, aware that Zach was watching him. "I guess they didn
'
t have any real evidence since they folded so easily.
"

"They had a damn good case. That tourist IDed your picture; you were seen at Panama Jack's. And here
'
s the kicker. Your pubic hairs came up on a comb-through with one of the victims
'
.
"

"
That
'
s impossible,
"
Rob said flatly.

"No. They were yours. Remember the sample you
gave for the Internal Affairs investigation? The lab analysis was on file. A perfect match.
"

"
How the hell did that happen?
"

"Dana figured it out. Somebody bribed one of the clerks in the evidence unit. The sample you gave was still in the evidence locker. Under pressure the clerk admitted he was bribed to switch your sample with the hairs found on the victim.
"

"Son of a bitch!
"
He could have been convicted— easily. He glanced at Zach, who was staring at him with questioning eyes. Dana had put her career on the line for him. Knowing what she risked made him unbearably grateful—and madder than hell. When he caught the person behind this, swear to God, he
'
d kill him. "Who bribed the clerk? Big Daddy?
"

"
No. Vanessa and I met with him. I
'
m positive he won
'
t do anything to jeopardize his relationship with Jason. The bribe was handled over the phone and the clerk was paid in cash, so it
'
s hard to trace, but the DA's investigating.
"

"
Let me know the minute you find out.
"

He hung up, then bear-hugged Zach even though he knew his son wa
s at the age where he hated dis
plays of affection. Rob couldn
'
t help himself, any more than he could have kept himself from kissing Dana earlier.

"
Jeez, Dad, what happened?
"

Rob slowly told Zach about the evidence against him, then explained what Dana had done.

"She believed in you, Dad. Why didn
'
t you tell her to begin with?
"

"I didn
'
t want to hurt her chances of being appointed to superior court.
"

Zach shook his head, his thick hair shifting across his forehead so the maroon tint caught the light. "You didn
'
t trust Dana. You thought she
'
d bail out on you the way Mom did.
"

"No—
"
Rob started to protest. But Zach was right. Rob had told himself that he was protecting Dana. In reality he
'
d been shielding himself from another devastating betrayal. He honestly couldn
'
t have faced an ordeal like this, expecting Dana to stand by his side only to have her desert him. He
'
d been through that once, and he hadn
'
t been willing to risk it again. So he
'
d taken the easy way out.

"
Go to her,
"
Zach said.
"
Tell her you love her. Don
'
t blow this.
"

"I thought you didn
'
t like her. This was the woman you tried to scare off, remember?'

Zach drummed his fingers on his thigh.
"
I was dead wrong. What did you used to tell me?
Love you forever.
She loves you. Dad. Can
'
t you see it? This is her way of saying she
'
ll love you forever.
"

Rob was too astonished to say anything. Sometimes his son seemed incredibly immature for his age—searching for a T-Rex and playing with a parrot—but at other times he had the insight of a world-weary old man. Dana did love him. She wasn
'
t the cooey, kissy-face type like Ellen, who
tossed the word
love
around like a two-bit coin. Dana had said it only once. But she meant it.

Love you forever.

"
Have I told you lately that I love you?
"
he asked Zach.

"Aw, Dad, don't start.
"
He leaned over and turned the key in the ignition.
"
Drive over to Dana's and tell it to her.
"

"
She
'
s probably with—
"

"
The nerd. That
'
s why you better get there quick.
"

Rob stepped on the accelerator and bullied his way into the stream of traffic, thinking he had a helluva lot of explaining to do. Dana would want to know why he hadn
'
t confided in her. He
'
d pushed, insisting she trust him—then he hadn't trusted her. Damn it. He loved her. That meant he should have trusted her.

Would she even consider taking him back? After the cruel way he
'
d said
"
What
about last night,
"
he wouldn
'
t blame her if she told him to fuck off and die. He was mulling over what he'd say to Dana when the phone rang. It was Garth again.

"
Vanessa just found something quite disturbing. Lots of guests brought flowers or cards to the party. She found a Li-See among them.
"

"
Really?
"
The red envelopes were given on special occasions. They contained money and were supposed to bring luck. The Chinese tradition had been adopted by Hawaiians. Naturally people would have brought Li-Sees to Dana.

"
The Li-See didn't have money in it,
"
Garth said.
"
It had a note that said:
The night marchers are on the way.
"

"
Meaning Dana
'
s going to die.
"

"
That's exactly what Vanessa thought. Maybe she
'
s overreacting, but Vanessa thinks the blackmailer plans to kill Dana. We tried to reach her, but no one answered. She was going out to dinner with the guy who brought her to the party.
"

"
We
'
ll go over there and wait for her.
"
Rob hung up, the fine hairs ac
ross the back of his neck prick
ling. He yanked the steering wheel to the right and gunned the en
gine, swerving around the slow-
moving car in front of them.

"What
'
s wrong, Dad?
"

He explained to Zach about the blackmailer, glossing over the part about the rape and the stabbing as best he could without lying. Zach
'
s eyes were wide with surprise when he finished.

"
Do you think someone is trying to kill Dana?
"

Rob spun onto the side street that led to Dana's house.
"
I hope not, but all along we
'
ve misjudged the blackmailer. We
'
ve got to warn her,
"
he said, praying it wasn
'
t already too late.

"
Party-time!
"
Zach said as they neared Dana
'
s home and found cars lining both sides of the street.

Rob spotted a sleek black Lexus in Dana's driveway. "She
'
s home.
"

"
The nerd
'
s with her.
"

"
Looks like it.
"
Rob drove farther down the street and shoehorned the Porsche into a spot.
"
I
'
m getting rid of the jerk.
"

"
Way to go, Dad.
"

Rob swung open the door. "Stay here. I
'
ll be right back.
"

"Uh-huh.
"
Zach seemed more interested in the kids streaming into the party than anything Rob was saying.

The soft breeze carried the sweet scent of plumeria and the raucous sounds of heavy-metal music. Rob crossed the street, alarmed because Dana
'
s porch light was off and only
a dim light, probably the night
light, seemed to be on in the living room. He rushed up the drive, dodging the Lexus. A loud noise from the party across the street stopped him, and he glanced over his shoulder.

The moonlight gleamed off the car
'
s windshield, and he spotted the blue and gold security sticker. The sticker admitted cars to the courthouse
'
s security garage. Okay, so maybe she
'
d come home with another judge or someone from the DA's office. They all worked in the same building.

His sixth sense kicked in. Son of a bitch! Why hadn
'
t he figured it out before now? It had been totally, completely obvious. But he
'
d been too distracted by everything else going on to realize who was after Dana.

Was it too late? Now the house was as dark as a crypt. Someone had turned off the night-light. His pulse thrummed in his temples, making it hard to think. He had to get in there; he didn
'
t have time to go for help.
Just don't let it be too late.

Guided by the bright light of the full moon, he
went around to the back of the house and peered in the windows. Not a light in the whole place. He tried the back door and discovered it was unlocked. He eased it open and stepped inside, squinting into the blackness.

"
Watch out!
"
He instantly recognized Dana's voice.

Pain exploded along the side of his head in a thousand pinpricks of light. He staggered forward, his pulse kicking into overdrive.
Dana is in trouble. Don
'
t let her down now.