Truth and Humility (26 page)

“You forgot to assign me a job.”

Austin turned, his expression wrought with professionalism.  The woman of his thoughts was gearing up for work, ready to take on the day with no hint of sexual tension, no moony-eyed expectations.  It appeared, in fact, that she was as determined to ignore their time together as he was.

Good.  That would make this a whole lot simpler.

“Come with me.”

Danny followed him to his office without question.  She couldn’t help but feel as if she were about to be dressed down…and not in the physical sense.  As they entered the room that was still so ripe with memories, they both ignored the couch as if they’d turn to ashes with one glance.

“Sit down,” he ordered, leaving the office door open, and took his own seat behind the desk.  He pulled a form out of the inbox and proceeded to write.  “As of today, I’m relieving you of your debt.  All I need is your signature and you’re free to go home.”

Everything went still.  Her eyes carefully scanned the document he pushed toward her then slowly moved upward.  His were kept solidly trained on the computer screen.  “You’re letting me go?”

“Well,” he sighed in a very businesslike manner, “you saved a man’s life, and you also managed to rescue a twenty-thousand dollar piece of equipment in the process.  I’d say you’re paid up.”

“Just like that?”

The vein in his neck pumped.  “Just like that.”  But he still wouldn’t look at her.

Now, Danny Bennett was a smart girl.  It didn’t take a genius to figure out his agenda this time.  “This is because of what happened between us yesterday, isn’t it?”

His lips hardened to a thin line and he finally turned away from the computer to bestow her with a look of resolve.  “Partly,” he admitted, “but what I said is true.  I can’t, in good conscience, hold you to a debt that has already been paid.”

“You’ve made plenty of moves within the last few weeks that were absent a good conscience, Austin.  Why start now?”

“Danny…”

“You know what,” she held up a hand, took a moment, changed her course.  “Scratch that.  I can figure it out for myself.  You were obviously spooked when you realized I was a virgin.  Somehow it changes things since your good conscience could handle a round of spontaneous sex with a Bennett, but not one that might actually mean something.  Am I w.&nw it changarm?”

“No!”  Austin shot out of his chair and moved around the desk to shut the door.  He should have known his attempt to keep the conversation professional due to an audience in the next room would be a futile one.  Danny wasn’t one to hold back.  He took a deep breath, collected himself and moved to the window once again to re-focus.  He had to remember what was important, what needed to be done.

“It wasn’t meaningless.  But it was wrong.  I should have never been your first time, Danny.”

“I wasn’t complaining.”

His back stiffened.  “You aren’t thinking about the long-term right now.  But when it hits you, you’ll understand why I’m doing this.”

“Because a Cahill and a Bennett can never coexist.”

He turned the upper portion of his body to glare at her.  “You can’t deny you don’t have misgivings about sleeping with me.”

Danny remained carefully calm in her swivel chair.  “In fact I don’t.  I can honestly say it was the most…incredible experience I’ve ever had.  But you are bound and determined to turn it into a mistake.”

“It
was
a mistake.  I should have never taken things that far.”

“As if you pulled all the strings.”

“Your virginity is something precious, Danny.  Your first time should have been much better than it was.  You describe it as an incredible experience, but you’re too
in
-experienced to know better.  When a man and woman come together, there should be pleasure on both sides, it should be something special.”

Ignoring the ache in her heart caused by his impervious comment, Danny’s eyes narrowed.  “You’re talking about orgasm.”  A moment of silence as he digested her bold observation.  “I may be inexperienced, Austin, but I
am
twenty-one.  Heard
tons
about it from Melanie, been felt up a few times, pressured by plenty of guys.”  She stood now, bent over the form and scribbled her name by the X.

He wanted her to agree with him.  He wanted her to ease his conscience.  Well, too bad.

“And you may regret having sex with me, but I don’t.”  She plopped the pen back down on the desk and straightened to face him without reservation.  “In fact, I feel…liberated!”  A tiny smile of wonder formed on her lips.  “And now that I know what sex is like, now that I don’t have that burden of uncertainty weighing me down, I can’t wait to learn more.”  With flourish, “I can’t wait for my next time so the man I share e mat it with can teach me what my body is capable of.  To finally understand what it’s like to be a part of something special.”

Austin tensed, yet kept his visage blank.  Was she really as co
ol as she appeared?  Or was she hurting every bit as much as he was at that moment?  It was difficult to tell, to see through that unsettling look of wellbeing on her upturned face.  Then, before he could chew on it, she turned and headed for the door.

“Danny.”

His voice was soft.  Danny turned, met his gaze and gave him one last chance to change his course.  But it was not to be.

“Be careful.”

The reserved advice effectively put the distance between them.  Her insides shattered into a thousand pieces.

But her expression remained impervious as she passed by Sue’s desk and gave the shocked woman – who obviously heard enough to understand the nature of her retreat – a parting salute.

Mary Bennett put her cross-stitch down and glanced at the clock.  It was too early for her boys to be in from work, but one of them was definitely sneaking through the laundry room door.  She was halfway to the kitchen when she heard the unmistakable sound of a large duffel bag drop to the linoleum floor.  Hope bloomed in her chest as it had countless times in almost three weeks.  Her large brown eyes peeked through the entryway from the kitchen.  She gasped.

“Danny!  Oh, thank God, Mary Mother and Joseph, you’re home!”

Danny accepted her mother’s fierce embrace, in desperate need of the TLC.  “Hi, Mom.”

Mary pulled away, held her daughter at arm’s length and scoped her out with anxious worry.  “You appear to be in one piece, at least until your Pop comes home.  Oh…”  Tears sprang forth and she took her bottom lip between her teeth to keep the emotions at bay.  “Look at your beautiful face.”

Danny managed a tired smile and lied.  “A work-related accident.  It’s fine.”

“Work!  Don’t even mention the word around Pop, he’ll fillet ya in two strokes.  But you come into this house, young lady, and explain to
me
where the blazes you’ve been all this time!”

The smells of home did much to soothe the building storm in her gut.  Danny pulled a chair from the dining room table and collapsed into it, inhaled deeply.  Fresh laundry, the lingering scent of bacon, her mother’s shampoo…  “I found a job in the city,” she began as Mary fixed two glasses of iced-tea.  “It didn’t work out.  But, Mom, I canp; Bmpot give up on Columbia University.  I’ll find another job if I have to… but I’d rather stay and work here.”

“As long as you don’t burn up all our Internet on those college courses of yours,” Mary imitated her husband to a tee on her way to the table.  She set the tall glasses down and took a seat.  “You know, just because you ran away doesn’t mean your pop has changed his stance.  It would take a miracle to do that.”

The tea was cold, sweet, heavenly.  “I’m too old to run away, Mom.  You can call it ‘exploring my options.’ ”

Mary’s teeth set.  “Well, next time you decide to explore your options, know the Cahills aren’t one of them you foolish girl!”

“You
told
her?”

Derek aborted the hug fearing eminent death.  There were a thousand questions warring to come out ever since he’d spied Danny’s Jeep in the driveway, yet his sister obviously needed some assurance first.  “Come on, Danny, you know I can’t lie to her.  She has that…
truth
stare that used to make me pee my pants when I was five.”

Her scowl was mean.  “In this case, you should have changed your drawers and called it good!”

His hands came out helplessly.  “She wasn’t going to say anything.  As long as I kept her updated, she promised not to tell Pop or anyone else.”

And that, Danny could believe.

But still…to be on the receiving end of her mother’s disappointment was crushing.  And Danny had absorbed plenty of disappointed looks that afternoon.  Still grumbly, she finally accepted her brother’s hug, returned it.  “I’m going to the pond after dinner.  You coming?”

A small rock plunked into the water only inches from her face.  “Hey!” Danny frowned, wiped the droplets from her eyes.

Derek lounged on the flat rock overhang while she played.  He’d already cleaned up and didn’t feel like a swim.  “So, he just relieved you of your debt.  Just like that.”

A million hurtful thoughts jammed her brain, but she kept her story vague while she floated in the cool, clear depths of the pond.  “I saved his backhoe.  He was grateful.”

“Yeah, he was grateful.  But it didn’t look to me like he was ready to let you go anytime soon.”

She kept her eyes closed, relaxed on her back.  “I guess he slept on it.”

The water lapped at her ears and gave her a moment’s reprieve from the topic at hand.  She enjoyed the subme oyedth="48"rsed trickling sounds until another rock splashed.  “That one almost hit me,” she groused and swam upright again.

“I asked you if he tried anything since our fight.”

“Like what?”

Derek’s eyes rolled and he sat up.  “You know what I mean.”

“Look,” she dipped her head back to smooth her hair.  “How many times do I have to tell you?  He wasn’t interested in me that way.”

“Oh…” Derek couldn’t hold back the sardonic laugh, “he was interested.  I just want to make sure he let you leave a virgin.”

Water invaded her windpipe and she coughed violently.

Derek’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

Sensing her brother’s suspicion, she recovered and sidestepped.  “What makes you think I
arrived
a virgin?”

Again, the eyes rolled.  “I happen to be pretty tight with your best friend.  She keeps no secrets from me.  In fact, she thinks that’s why Brett drugged you, so he could loosen you up.”

Danny blew out a breath, shook her head.  So, her virginity had been public knowledge thanks to good ole’ Mel.  “
You
are my best friend, Derek.  Melanie’s been off the grid since that whole Brett incident.”  After a moment’s hesitation, Danny gave in to her concern.  “How is she, anyway?”

He moved a shoulder.  “Still a little gun shy, I guess.  At least with most people.”

“But not you?”  His answering smile made her smile back.  “Does that mean you two are exclusive now?”

The smile faded.  “Seeing her like that really shook me up, Danny.  I guess I didn’t know how much I cared about her.”

“Well,” Danny made it to shore with one last powerful stroke, climbed up the steep rock and squeezed water from her hair.  “I always suspected, but you both were too busy exploring your independence to notice.”

Derek took one more look at the fading bruise on his sister’s ribcage as she settled beside him.  The bikini she wore was modest enough, but the peach color accented the discoloration.  “I spent the night with her when she called me after work Monday.  She has nightmares about that ball bag kicking your ass.”

“Well, the night ended a whole lot worse for him than it did for me.  I’m over it.”