Authors: Mackenzie Crowne
“She obviously has feelings for you.”
“Maybe, or maybe I’m just a means to an end.”
“Why would you say that?” Disapproval wrinkled her nose. “You’ve dated too many groupies. They’ve made you cynical.”
“True, but not in this case.” He set the beer aside and jammed the fingers of both hands through his hair.
CC might have feelings for him. Damn, he hoped so, but less than two weeks ago she’d seen him as simply a way to attain her goals, and now that she’d begun to open up to him about her past, he understood her single-minded determination to change her reality.
The men who planned and executed her kidnapping would spend most of their lives in a cage, but the punishment didn’t fit the crime, in his opinion. As for her father… What a fucking prick. What kind of animal did that to his kid?
All of them deserved to suffer the way she had. The way she still did. If he could get his hands on them, he’d tear them limb from limb, but that wasn’t reality. Reality was the brave woman fighting to reclaim her life. Her strength of will humbled him as much as her sunny smiles, sassy personality, and beautiful body turned him on.
She’d compared him to her father that first day and, considering her justifiable feelings for the man, Tuck was fighting an uphill battle. In her mind, he was still the gigolo she’d called him. Unless he could somehow change her opinion, he’d be out on his ass in less than two weeks.
He dropped his hands to his thighs and turned his head to meet Gracie’s gaze. “The thing is, this relationship between us? It started because she couldn’t breathe.”
“And now?”
“And now I’m the one who can’t. She takes my breath away.”
Her smile went dopey, and he sighed.
“I’m screwed, Gracie. I haven’t even slept with her yet, but I can’t shake her from my mind.” He dragged a hand over his face in frustration. “She’s like…a tick.”
“Oh, my. That’s flattering.”
Her tinkling laughter made him smile. “Fine. A funny, irresistible,
sexy
tick.”
“Much better.” She leaned her elbows onto her knees. “So, what’s the problem?”
He looked away, and his gaze landed on the thick line of tall pines that had spooked CC the other day. Her past, her identity, wasn’t his to share. She’d known too much betrayal in her life. He wouldn’t add to it, but Gracie wouldn’t let him get away without some sort of explanation.
He turned his head. “I told you about the panic attack.”
She nodded.
“It wasn’t an isolated event. Apparently, she’s suffered from them most of her life, with good reason. I can’t share the details, but she went through some major shit when she was no more than a kid. I’m talking the kind of stuff that will give you nightmares.”
Her smile fell and concern darkened her eyes. Picking up his beer, he shared a carefully edited version of CC’s proposition and her reasons behind it.
When he’d finished, confusion creased Gracie’s forehead. “I’m not sure I understand.”
“Neither did I, at first. Long story short, she agreed to date me, temporarily, in order to test her theory.”
“You’re kidding?”
“I wish.”
“How temporary?”
“Three weeks.” At the mention of the fast approaching deadline, apprehension landed a solid blow to his gut. He shook off the vehement denial echoing through his head with a practiced shrug. “I jumped at the opportunity because you know me. That’s about how long most of my relationships last, and with training camp coming up, I’ll be leaving anyway.”
“And?”
“And as screwy as it sounds, her theory’s working. With each date, she’s grown less skittish and more confident. Hell, she hasn’t given me a reason to kiss the breath back into her in days.” The beach didn’t count. What happened between them this morning had nothing to do with panic attacks or the terrors of her past and, damn it, if not for the interruption, she’d know it, too.
She grinned at his frown.
He picked at the label on his beer with his thumbnail. “Whether she knows it or not, she’s healing. The problem is, the more time we spend together, the more I want that for her, but although I’ve had some success dimming the shadows in her eyes, only she can banish them completely. I plan to be there when it happens.”
“Why, Tuck, who knew you were a romantic at heart?”
He blew a scoffing laugh. Romantic, hell. He was a sap and most likely a fool. To heal completely, CC would need to conquer all her demons, including her father, but from the way she reacted when he suggested it might be time to face him, she hadn’t appreciated his effort to help. If he pushed too hard, she’d be gone.
Gracie leaned forward to lay a hand on his arm. “Sounds a lot like love.”
“Hello, asshole. I didn’t hear you arrive.”
Gracie glanced behind them to smile at her approaching husband.
Tuck dropped his head to the back of his chair with a thud. “Fuck.”
Jake rounded their chairs, bent to drop a kiss on his wife’s mouth, and straightened. He glanced over his shoulder at the twins. “Hey, girls. Uncle Tuck said the F word.” He turned back with a sneering grin.
Angel paused in her chase of Murphy. “But he doesn’t have a swear jar.”
“That’s okay.” Gracie sat back and reclined on her chair once more. She crossed her bare feet. “Jake does, and they’re each going to put five dollars in his jar. Aren’t you, boys?” She smiled at her groom.
“That’s ten dollars,” Charlie added helpfully.
Tuck snickered at Jake’s scowl. Family life had introduced his friend to a whole host of new experiences, including a curse-free vocabulary, backed up by financial penalties.
Jake crossed his arms. “Making time with another man’s wife is dangerous for a man in your position, my friend. It’s hard to catch a ball with a broken arm.”
Gracie laughed and patted the lounge at her hip. “Sit down, you idiot. Your best friend is in the middle of a crisis.”
Jake dropped to sit beside her. His fingers ran absently along the length of her bare leg as he flashed his teeth in a taunting grin. “Of his own making, I’m sure.”
“Look who’s talking.” Tuck made his smile sly. “How’s the checkbook? Things are slow in the league front office. It’s only a matter of time before you give them another reason to fine you.”
“Haven’t you heard? I’m officially off Doug Costa’s hit list.” Jake squeezed Gracie’s knee. “The league commissioner loves my wife
and
her baked ziti. I believe
you’re
his new target.”
She crossed her arms. “Are you two done swapping testosterone bombs?”
They traded grins. “Yeah,” they said in tandem.
“Good, because Tuck’s in love with CC.”
Jake’s head whipped around to stare at her before jerking back.
Tuck groaned. So much for hoping to keep that little gem a secret. He pinned her with a glare.
“What? You thought I wasn’t going to tell him?”
He sat forward, ignoring Jake’s intent gaze, to wrap his arms around his bent knees. “Since I’m not completely sure how I feel, I was hoping you’d keep your big mouth shut.”
His insult didn’t seem to register. She sent Jake a knowing smile. “Tuck’s scared.”
Jake laughed. “Tuck’s a pussy.”
“Fuck you.”
Dual little girl voices called out from the other side of the pool. “Twenty dollars!”
Pride lit Gracie’s features. “That’s exactly right, girls. You’re getting so good at adding.”
“I’m outta here.” Tuck rose from the chair to jam his bare feet into his flip-flops. “Talk about a zoo.”
Gracie sat forward. “Do you want my help? I could talk to CC for you.”
“No, thanks.” He sliced a disgusted grimace her way. “I think you’ve helped enough already.” He ground his molars at Jake’s booming laughter and turned to cross the flagstones toward the back of the house. Mere feet separated him from escape when Jake suddenly stopped laughing.
“Wait. Why does he need help? What’s going on?”
“I’ll explain it to you later, Malone.”
Tuck dropped his head to his chest as he grabbed the doorknob. “Shit.”
“Twenty-five,” all four Malones yelled at his back.
Chapter 16
“I’m sorry, Cees. I’m such an idiot. I should never have brought up the subject.” Kris hovered at the center of the studio. Her restless fingers, mangling the strap of her purse, displayed her remorse.
CC flipped the lock on Walter’s cage. He squeezed from between the bars before the door swung open and trotted over to his box of toys. She rounded her workbench and waved off her cousin’s concern. “Don’t worry about it. You know Mom. If not the Arts Council’s offer, she’d have found some other topic to hassle me over.”
Her cousin dipped her chin in a nod and tipped her head as if in contemplation. “Like Curt. What’s that all about? I know she still loves him, despite everything he’s done, but why the sudden push to get the two of you together?”
CC shrugged out of her light jacket, damp from the drizzling rain falling on the city, and tossed it onto the couch. “Beats me.”
As expected, her mother had badgered her about Curt throughout dinner, switching subjects to the Art Council’s offer when CC proved stubborn.
Kris eased a hip onto the corner of her workbench and crossed her legs. “What are you going to do?”
“I have no idea.” She slipped onto her stool. “What aggravates me most is she made some good points. About the show, not about seeing Curt.” She scowled. “He proved long ago fatherhood isn’t his thing. I mean, it’s been sixteen years. I’ve heard from him, what? Four times, including last week’s two calls?”
“He must want
something
.”
“Yeah, but what? Apparently, aged rockers and their classic tunes are all the rage in certain circles. By all accounts, his career is rock solid these days. Even if it weren’t, dredging up the kidnapping to get press would be a waste of time. Two decades have passed, and I’m hardly the sympathetic figure I was when he paraded me around for profit. A reclusive daughter who spends her time twisting wire into shapes in her studio would bring nothing but yawns from the music industry news junkies.”
A grimace wrinkled Kris’s nose. “Except, you haven’t been spending
all
your time in your studio. Not lately, anyway.”
“Shit. Do you think he knows about Tuck?”
Walter bumped her knee as he slid between the stool and the bench leg to drop to the floor, where he proceeded to maul a rawhide bone.
Kris’s shoulders jerked in a shrug. “There’s been nothing about the two of you in the papers, that I’ve seen, but this is Manhattan and Curt knows a lot of people. Someone could have seen you together and mentioned it to him.”
She dropped her forehead to the workbench and groaned.
“Or maybe he’s had an epiphany and wants to beg your forgiveness for being a prick and a rotten father.”
Turning her head, she met her cousin’s gaze and sat up.
“No frigging way,” they said in unison, then grinned.
Kris leaned her hands back on the desk. “Screw it. He can’t play whatever hand he has up his sleeve unless you cooperate. Tell him to piss in his guitar case and forget about him.”
For the first time since her mother’s call saying she was in town, CC laughed.
Kris swung out her legs and slid to her feet. “In the meantime, I have the next few days off. I’ll run interference with your mother until she leaves town.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“But I want to.” She cocked a hip and tugged the strap of her purse over her shoulder. “Don’t take this wrong, but she was right when she said you’ll never truly be healed until you face the world like the strong woman you are.”
CC swiveled on the stool to face her. “And like I told her, I’m working on it.” Stepping outside of her safety zone hadn’t been easy, but she’d done it, even before she’d made her deal with Tuck.
“I know.” Kris’s teeth flashed. “And it shows. Remind me to give Tuck a big fat kiss next time I see him.”
Crossing her arms, she smirked. “Yeah, I’ll be sure to do that. What do you mean it shows?”
She winced at the sting as Kris flicked a fingertip down her sunburned nose. “When was the last time you willingly went to the beach or to a barbeque?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “But it’s more than that. Despite your mother being in town and your father’s sudden calls, not to mention the dweeb pushing you to do a show, you look happy, Cees.”
Did she? Was she? She scrunched her nose in a silent examination of her feelings. Was that happiness lightening her heart, and was the subtle easing of the terror that had held her in its grip for so long the reason or was a certain sexy wide receiver responsible for her growing sense of optimism? Ultimately, the answer didn’t matter, since she never would have found the former without the latter. God knew she’d made little progress overcoming her ghosts on her own. Despite her efforts to fulfill her birthday promise, each consequent step outside her safety zone had been as frightening as the last. She hadn’t been making the kind of progress she’d hoped for, but from the moment Tuck had barreled into her life that had changed. She wasn’t cured. Not by a long shot, but for the first time, she believed she might actually have the chance at a somewhat normal life.
“Whatever Tuck is doing, it’s working.”
Tugged from her musings, she blinked at her cousin. The memory of his head, dipped to her breast as his tongue swirled around the tip, brought the heat of a blush to her cheeks.
A sly smile tipped the corners of her cousin’s mouth. “I rest my case. He’s good for you, cuz.”
For
her? That was debatable, but there was no doubt he was good. She spun away and began to straighten the tools littered about the bench top. “You have no idea.”
“Shut. Up!”
CC turned to look at Kris.
Kris’s arms dropped to her sides as if they had turned to lead. “Did you sleep with him? Tell me you slept with him and, for God’s sake, don’t leave out any of the details.”
“I haven’t slept with him, so there’s nothing to tell.” She glanced down at her lap. Okay, that wasn’t technically true. There was plenty to tell. She’d come as close to having carnal knowledge of Tuck as a woman could, but no way could she give the details. They were too personal, too intimate, to share, even with Kris.