Sweet Seduction Serenade (20 page)

"Derek," I said in a strained voice, "let's talk about this out the back."

"I say fuck that, Eva babe. Tell me right here, right now, what the
fuck
is going on?"

He took a menacing step towards me. I really don't think he intended it to appear so confrontational, so threatening. But it did. And Detective Pierce, being a Police Detective, did what Police Detectives do. He intercepted him, lifting a hand up to stop his progress and growling a sound that made me jump.

Derek went to push him out of the way, Pierce counteracted the move with one of his own, making me take a frantic step back so as not to be stood on, or pushed off the stage, and suddenly an arm was wrapped around me and my body was hauled against a hard, hot chest several feet away.

Pierce stood off against Derek, whose eyes were taking in Nick's arms about my waist and nose nestled in my hair.

"Angel," Nick murmured against my cheek. "Are you all right?"

No. No I was not all right. I was embarrassed. Mortified. Guilty I hadn't stopped this before it reached this stage and beginning to be outright pissed off. I was so far from all right, it wasn't funny.

"I'm fine," I muttered and Nick stiffened slightly, then after nothing further from me, he started to relax. Maybe he thought he'd misread my body language, maybe he just wanted me to calm down. Either way I snuggled further into his arms without thinking and watched as Derek reached Defcon 1.

His deep Tennessee accent broke into my stalled moment, making me jump again. "What the fuck, Eva babe? What. The. Fuck?"

I pulled back from a reluctantly releasing Nick and lifted my head to face Derek. Nick, wrapped an arm around my shoulders immediately, not allowing me to stand unsupported for a second - and I was thinking ensuring he continued to "stake his claim". I ignored it for the moment, too over-awed by everything Derek had just done in front of
everyone
to fight more than one battle at a time.

"I can't do this right now," I answered Derek, feeling like the room was about to close in on me. So many people witnessing this embarrassing moment. I may have been a performer, but what I perform is an act. This was real life unfolding before them. Me wrapped up in the middle of it. Unable to hide behind a persona I'd created for the crowd. I wanted to tell Derek once and for all that I had made my decision and things were over, but I was too stunned at the situation to find those words right now. Instead I heard myself say, "I'm being harassed by my cousins, you know." He blinked slowly at the sudden change of topic - at least it appeared sudden to him. "Five dumbasses who think they can bully me with their fists. Have done all my life. But since my Dad's about to die and has a little money, albeit a very little money, put aside, their equally trailer-trash mother has decided I need to be scared off too. So Dad will forget me - again - and leave everything to them instead. It's a mess. It's my life. And I just can't deal with anything else right now."

Derek stared at me, stunned - or confused - for several seconds. I'd not told him a thing about my past - we were casual, it had never crossed my mind - nothing of my childhood, my upbringing and least of all why I was returning to New Zealand for a holiday. It would have been a shock to hear I came from such screwed up relations, not to mention that my Dad was dying and that's why I was here. I think it was exactly why I'd said it the way I'd said it and didn't that make me feel darn bad. I
wanted
to shock Derek. I wanted the shock of my current predicament and my history and all of the crap that includes Aunty Jessie and the Russell boys, to scare him off and make him leave.

So I wouldn't have to do it.

I was a darn coward and I knew it and it made me feel like crap.

"Babe," he said softly, then his eyes hardened on Nick's arm around my shoulders, having obviously forgotten how close to Nick's side I was. "Come here," he instructed, but not exactly in his usual gruff, but sexy tone that made me do just as he said with a small smile on my lips. Derek was a cowboy and as such he could play the macho man to a "T", but right then he hadn't commanded me to come to him for a cuddle and some lovin', he'd commanded me to come to him to get me away from Nick.

I understood his motive, I just didn't appreciate the tone.

"Derek," I started, deciding despite the fact my head hurt and we had an audience right then that made me feel like a tool, that I had to do the right thing here and tell him I wasn't interested in a relationship with him - casual or otherwise - once and for all.

But I didn't get to go on, because
again
he interrupted.

"Eva, I don't know what the fuck's got into you, but we have a good thing, you and me, and I'm not gonna let you throw it away on some guy you've just met who happened to be here when you needed a shoulder to cry on. Now, I get that shoulder to cry on should've been mine, and I regret that I didn't come sooner, but I had to get someone to cover my run and Eva, babe, I'm here now, so tell him to fuck off and we'll forget it ever happened. Yeah?"

"You got it all wrong, bud," Nick said on a drawl, finally entering the conversation. I was thinking he was doing the drawl on purpose though, taking the piss out of Derek's Southern twang. And that only got my back up and made me turn in his arms and glare at him. When
that
didn't work, I jerked my shoulder trying to break free. Nick only tightened his hold as he went on, saying, "Eva and I have known each other for eight years. And we know each other pretty fucking well. Yeah?"

Derek took another menacing step towards us - Pierce let him, I'm not sure why - towering over me, but matching Nick’s height pretty evenly, although the cowboy hat did give him the optical illusion of several inches on Nick, and Derek wasn't opposed to using it.

"I don't know how they do it here,
bud
, but when a woman tries to pull free of your arms, it's only polite to let her step away." Obviously choosing to ignore the fact I'd been trying to pull - or push - free of his embrace moments earlier. Then he reached forward and wrapped a hand around my arm closest to him and yanked my body away from Nick. Surprisingly Nick let me go.

But then he was in Derek's face, an inch, no more, between their noses, saying in a deadly but deceptively calm voice, "And where I come from, if another man has his arm wrapped around your girl, she ain't your girl any longer. Take the hint and go home."

You have got to be kidding me! Now Nick wanted to cause a scene in front of the entire room?

"Guys," I said exasperatedly, my eyes flicking over the crowd, noting none of them had lost interest yet. Great.

"You pick up all your tail when they're vulnerable?" Derek asked, poking a finger in Nick's chest and escalating the entire episode beyond the chest thumping it had been. I heard excited murmurs rumble through the enthralled crowd.

"You make a habit of hanging around when you're no longer wanted?" Nick threw back with a shove of both hands on Derek's shoulders. Oh, darn it all to hell.

"Boys please," I said pleadingly, my eyes scanning the ASI men still bracketing the stage we were on. None seemed to be interested in intervening - maybe enjoying the show as much as the public right then?

"She was mine first!" Derek growled in a truly brilliant display of caveman-like behaviour.

"She's fucking not anymore!" Nick replied matching Derek's tone, but just staying shy of caveman. Then he went and stepped right in the caveman shit, up to his friggin' neck. "Does she purr for you when your tongue is down her throat? Does she moan for more when your hand is wrapped around her breast?"

Kill me right now. How could this be happening? In a packed room, in front of an audience who came here to see me sing. In front of Sweet Seduction staff, Genevieve Cain and her best friend Kelly Quayle who attended the same high school as me. In front of ASI black clad security men. Two cops. A gay couple. And my best friend who'd come all the way from Nashville to see me and now probably thought all Kiwis were attention seeking, romantic losers who liked their love life to be on display for all to see.

My frantic eyes found Adam's, who appeared to be the only one prepared to help out in the declining state of international affairs on the stage, as he was working his way through the ASI guys towards us, a set look on his face.

"Gentlemen," he said, extricating me from Derek's fingers still holding my upper arm. "Perhaps you'd like to take this outside? In the meantime, I'll take Eva home."

"No you fucking won't," Derek exploded. I whimpered, feeling my face burn with another flush of heat.

"Stand down, Savill," Nick commanded in his best I'm-the-boss-of-you voice.

"You're both acting like idiots," Adam said calmly and I thought quite bravely considering both Derek and Nick had turned their undeniable rage on him at once. "What the hell would Eva want with either of you, acting like fucking children? Get your shit together. Both of you."

And with that he took my hand and led me from the store, the crowd parting like the Red Sea before us. Everyone watching him go, with a mixture of looks that clearly stated,
you are so fucking dead now, mate, what the hell are you doing coming between the Neanderthals and ruining our show?

I wasn't sure what to think, but I knew I couldn't handle any more of this male testosterone posturing that had been going on since Derek arrived. I knew that part of the problem was mine to claim, as I hadn't made it clear to Derek from the moment I set eyes on him in Auckland, that I was no longer into him at all. But he barely let me get a word in edgewise and without an opening, it could hardly be entirely my fault if I hadn't said the right words yet. And as for Nick. I had strangely expected more, but he was acting like a schoolboy, marking his territory and fighting any threat that came within ten feet of what was his. Up on stage!

I didn't understand why Nick was acting this way. He had always seemed in control and well balanced. But right now I was rethinking my desire to be with him. And certainly I was wondering if he was the true holder of my heart at all.

Could I love a man who was so consumed in jealousy he'd behave in this ridiculous way? I wasn't so sure, and right now with the threat of Levi and his brothers doing unpredictable and dangerous things hanging over my head, I really didn't have the energy to work it out. The only answer was to step back, place some distance between us and hope that it would all fall into place.

Adam was silent in the SUV as we headed towards Eden Terrace. His perception of my mood a relief. I chanced a glance at his profile and let a quiet sigh of disappointment out that I just didn't get that ohmigod feeling when I looked at him. It would be so easy to let Adam take me away from all of this, but it would be a lie. Because I realised I was about as attracted to him as I was to Derek - and that was not at all now.

Darn Nicholas Anscombe and his sexy ice-blue perfect cowboy eyes. Even when he was acting like an immature jerk, he still made it impossible for me to look at anyone else and be turned on.

As we pulled up outside my father's flat Adam finally spoke.

"You know, I've known Nick for five years now and I've never seen him act this way before."

I humphed and crossed my arms over my chest.

He turned an amused smile my way, but I kept my face resolutely tipped forward, staring at the floor of the car with a frown.

"I think he's scared shitless," he admitted and even though he'd piqued my interest, I forced myself not to lift my head. "It's like his life depends on keeping you for himself, he can't see that he's pushing you further away." My head came up at that, but Adam wasn't watching me, he was staring into the distance, his eyes a little glazed. "I don't know what's happened in the past to make him behave this way, but I'm guessing he lost something precious once and he thinks you're what will fill that gap. He's desperate to keep you, because without you he's... I don't know" - he ran a hand over his head in obvious frustration or perhaps doubt - "he's..."

"Missing a piece of his heart," I finished for him and watched as Adam's deep blue eyes came to mine.

"Ah," he said with dawning understanding, "Maybe you two are more suited than I thought."

"Peas in a pod," I said, as I opened the door and stepped out onto the kerb.

Adam didn't say anything as he rounded the car to my side and I didn't bother to break the silence as we headed up the pathway to Dad's front door. I'd said enough for him to be thinking on and he'd sure as darn hell said enough to occupy my mind as well.

So, that's why I didn't notice the note pinned to the middle of the wooden door. Adam, not being as closely related to my scrambled and totally lovesick life, did. He reached out with one hand, while his other pressed back into my frame to stop me from opening the door. I couldn't see what it said, as he purposely kept it at an angle so I wouldn't be able to read the handwritten message.

The only thing I had to go on, was his low growled out, "Fuck!"

You wanna see your father again before he dies,

you get on the next plane to America

and stay the fuck out of his life.

For good!