A Glimpse of the Dream (34 page)

“Simon, tell me about this skill of yours in finding treasures,” Mrs. Marks asked.

“I can sense them or almost smell them out. It’s like they call to me,” said Simon.

“Oh God, here we go,” Tea said. Clearly she’d been through this conversation before.

“She’s jealous, since she doesn’t have my gift.”

“Tell me about this rolltop desk. I might have a need for one.”

I knew Simon had settled on the edge of the bed. I heard the springs give. “So glad you asked.”

Tea leaned over me. “This could be a while.”

I wanted to pull her from the room, to find a closet so we could use the time in a far more enjoyable pursuit. If I could see, we’d already be halfway down the hall.

“Maybe we should find a closet,” she whispered in my ear. My dick pressed into my jeans.

“I was just thinking that.”

“I know you were.”

“Later, Tea.”

Goose bumps rose on her skin as her arms wrapped around my shoulders. “Can’t wait.”

Tea straightened, because Simon and Mrs. Marks were done with their powwow. “Let’s talk about your lawyer,” Tea said. She never was one to pull a punch.

“You want to know why I asked him to inventory the house.”

“You were hoping to catch him trying to steal from you.”

I heard surprise in Mrs. Marks voice. “Yes, how did you know that?”

“Just made sense based on what we’ve learned about him. But if you suspected he was up to no good, why didn’t you just fire him?”

“I was going to, but I was asked not to.”

It was Tea who sounded surprised now. “By who?”

“Richard Bowen.”

Now I was surprised. “Camille’s dad asked you not to fire him?”

“He was the one who suggested I tell him I wanted to sell, that I needed him to catalog the contents of the house.”

“He’s looking for his own leverage.” It was Simon’s voice this time, full of admiration.

“What do you mean by that?” Mrs. Marks asked.

Tea leaned into me, probably cocking her hip. She did that when she ranted. “We believe that Mr. Sleazy, your lawyer—”

Mrs. Marks interrupted Tea. “You call him Sleazy?”

“
Mr.
Sleazy. I’m respectful,” Tea said. There was silence for a beat, which was followed by a genuine belly laugh from Mrs. Marks.

“Well thank goodness you’re being respectful.”

A touch of humor laced Tea’s voice when she continued. “We think Mr. Sleazy has something on Bowen, which is why he hired the man despite his shady past. Mr. Sleazy and Camille went to Yale together. We think she told him about Raven’s Peak. He has a penchant for stealing. He used whatever he has on Bowen to get into his firm, so he could represent you and get into Raven’s Peak. He’s never allowed in the house unaccompanied, and he doesn’t like that.”

“Interesting. So my lawyer
is
trying to steal from me.”

“You don’t sound all that surprised,” I said.

“I’m not. Lawson’s been looking into Falco, because he thought the situation odd, and Richard’s a friend. We decided to dangle the carrot, so to speak, and see how Dimitri reacted.”

“What do you mean by that?” I asked.

“He’s supposed to be inventorying, but Lawson hasn’t gotten one thing from the man, and he’s been at it since I’ve been in here. He isn’t even trying to be surreptitious. So if he’s not inventorying, what’s he doing in my house?”

“Isn’t it a risk to have him there at all? I mean, we’ve been watching him, but he could come when we’re not around.” Tea was still angry.

“The house is covered. Lawson’s made sure of that.”

“You’re loving every second of this detective stuff,” Tea said with admiration.

“Oh, I absolutely am.” Mrs. Marks’s voice softened. “You all got involved because of worry for me, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, we aren’t going to let them steal from you.” Tea sounded a bit incredulous.

“Them?”

“Oh, we think Camille may be selecting the items she wants whenever she visits Kane,” Tea said, but there was a note of skepticism in her tone.

“You don’t sound so convinced of that, Tea. What’s up?” I asked.

“Remembering Camille from when we were younger, I don’t know, she really may be coming to see you.”

“I always had the sense she liked the house more than me.”

“Or maybe she just wants you to think that so you don’t object to her friendly visits.”

“To what end?” Mrs. Marks asked.

“Kane and I weren’t together; maybe she was hoping to wear him down, get him used to her company, so he’d actually want her company.” Silence reigned for a beat before Tea continued. “We’ve kept you too long, Mrs. Marks. Sorry. We’ll let you get some sleep.”

“I enjoyed the visit, but I am tired. It was nice to meet you, Simon.”

“Likewise.”

Standing, I felt Zeus follow. Tea’s hand found mine. She moved us forward to the bed, placing my hand just above Mrs. Marks’s head. Leaning over, I pressed my lips on her forehead. “Sleep well.”

I didn’t need to see to know she smiled.

“Tea, I forgot there’s a thing tonight at the O’Malleys’. I’m going to talk to Kevin there. Will you come with me?” I asked.

“Yep.” We were in the library, and Tea was looking for a book. We had just made love on our sofa, my body still sated, and yet her scent was turning me hard again. Amazing how one could improvise, making love without shedding clothes. When there was a will . . .

I heard the footfalls first, Mr. Clancy’s even, determined stride, and another, shorter pace, heels on the wood. A woman.

“Kane, Teagan, you have a visitor.” I rose from the sofa, glad Mr. Clancy hadn’t arrive five minutes sooner; he would have gotten an eyeful, namely Tea riding my dick. Tea joined me, pressing herself to my side.

“Sorry to just drop by, but I just visited with Mrs. Marks and wanted to see how you were doing.”

Mrs. T’s grandniece, the woman I’d claimed I had left Tea for. Doreen. Shit.

“Hi, I’m Doreen. You must be Teagan. I’ve heard so much about you.”

Tea went still, every muscle in her body rigid, and her voice was cold. “Nice to meet you.”

I felt the air stir around me, the tip of Doreen’s shoe touching my foot, her body leaning into me, her lips brushing over my cheek. “You look good, Kane.”

Tea was gone, the warmth of her body no longer close. She was still in the room, but she wasn’t at my side anymore.

“How are you, Doreen?”

“Good, I’m really good. How about you? I heard you were doing it, turning this place into an inn. That’s wonderful.”

“I’ll leave you two,” Tea, but not my Tea, said. Her voice was dead. What the hell was she thinking? Fear clawed at me. I didn’t like hearing her sound that way.

“Sorry, you’ve caught us at a bad time, Doreen,” I said hastily.

“I understand, I should have called first. I’ll be around for a few days. If you have the time, I’d love to catch up. I’m so glad to see you doing well.” I could hear disappointment in Doreen’s voice, but she needed to leave. I needed to talk to Tea.

She was gone, her footsteps hurried. I had hurt her feelings. I felt bad about that, but Tea was my priority.

“Tea?”

I knew she was in the room, I felt her, and yet she stayed quiet. “Talk to me.”

“I hate her.”

I wasn’t expecting that, or maybe I was. “Doreen?”

“I hate her.” Her voice was barely a whisper, but it was full of conviction—it had an edge. “I fucking hate her.” She was louder now, and there was anger laced through her words. But under the anger there was pain, so much fucking pain.

“I never dated her, that was a lie. There’s no need to hate her.”

I never heard Tea sound the way she did when she spoke again. Broken. “It doesn’t matter. She took my life, you made me believe that. I hate her. I’ll always hate her. That’s on you—you set the stage and placed the players. My whole world’s happiness was taken away by Doreen. Hearing her name brings it all back. The hours, months, that I contemplated ending it because I couldn’t bear the thought of life without you, that I hadn’t been good enough for you, that you had moved on, that you had left me. She will always be all of those horrible, nightmarish feelings rolled into one. I moved on, I picked up the pieces, but I never got over it. I hate her, Kane. And there’s a part of me that hates you too for making me have to live through the lie.”

I knew she was gone. I felt her leave and my heart bled. Sinking back onto the sofa, my head in my hands, tears fell from my sightless eyes. In trying to protect my Tea, I’d broken her.

Teagan

Sitting on the beach, I tried to work through all the emotions tearing me up. My reaction surprised even me, but seeing her, the woman I believed was the source of all my pain, I couldn’t help it. I felt all of it again, the helplessness, the despair. I knew she hadn’t done anything, but it didn’t matter.

The look on his face when I’d told him I hated him hurt worse. I didn’t want to hurt him, but in that moment I did. I wanted him to feel some of the pain I had lived through, wanted him to know what it felt like. I didn’t have his scars and I could see, but I had lived in hell too.

“You okay?” Simon asked as he settled next to me on the sand.

“I met Doreen.”

“Shit, that couldn’t have been fun.”

“I flipped out on Kane. Told him I hated her, hated him too.”

“I’m sure he understands. He knows at least in some measure what he put you through.”

“I should be over it. We’ve moved past that.”

Resting back on his hands, he focused on the sea. “Why? You’re human. Seeing the woman you believed was the cause of your world crashing and burning would have pissed off anyone.” His head turned in my direction. “There’s more. What’s wrong?”

“You told me I couldn’t keep putting his blindness between us, but that’s what he does. He disengages. I get it, he’s learning to live an entirely different way, but he’s still pushing me away. Not as drastically as he did before, but there’s still a part of him I can’t reach.”

“And that’s a problem.”

“Yeah, I’ve had all of Kane. I’m not going to settle for most of him.”

“That’s fair. What are you going to do?”

“I’m hoping he figures it out on his own. He can’t hold me to a standard and not follow it himself.”

“Where is he now?”

“I left him in the library.”

“I think he left. I heard the car before I came down here.”

My heart squeezed in my chest. I’d told him I’d come with him to the O’Malleys’, and then I left him alone.

Simon reached for my hand, my gaze turning to him. “What you’ve both been through—there’s no rule book, Teagan. There’s no right way to handle it. What’s important is that you’re here together, that you work through the lingering issues together. There’s nine years of baggage, sweetie; it’s going to take more than a few weeks to heal those wounds.”

“You’re right, I do know that.”

“So don’t be so hard on yourself or him. And give him some space. You could both use it. Once emotions cool, you can talk. Until then, just be glad you found each other again and are willing to make it work this time. The rest will come.”

Resting my head on his shoulder, I grinned. “I’ve said it before, but I’m saying it again. You are very wise.”

“Yes, I am.”

It was late when I felt the bed dip, felt Kane—his arm coming around my waist, pulling me back into the cradle of his body.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

“You’ve nothing to be sorry for. I’m the one who’s sorry, sorry I put you through that.”

Turning to face him, I tried to speak, but he stopped me. “My intention was to protect you, but if I’m being completely honest, it was more than that. I was being selfish. I wanted to preserve the beauty of what we’d had. I didn’t want it blemished with the nightmare. I was so consumed by my own hell, battling my own demons, that I didn’t really think about what I was doing to you. I should have pulled you close, but bringing you into all of that would have altered all the memories of you that helped pull me through to the other side. Sounds stupid, but it’s the truth. I needed to find my way without you. I always knew the way with you, but I needed to know I could do it alone. Does that make sense?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry I broke you.”

Tears filled his eyes, and one rolled down his cheek. I wiped it away and pressed a kiss there. “I don’t hate you.”

“I’d hate me.”

“You always were very hard on yourself.”

His arms tightened around me. “Are we okay?”

“Yeah, we have some shit to work through, but I love you, so we’ll figure it out.”

He exhaled. “You have every right to be angry. You’re right. It’s on me. I’m sorry.”

Lifting his hand, I pressed a kiss in his palm. “Did you go to the O’Malleys’ house?”

“Yeah.”

“Sorry I didn’t come with you.”

“Under the circumstances, I wasn’t expecting you to.”

“Did you talk to him?”

“I did, but he didn’t have much to say—only relaying to me that Mr. Bowen wants to talk.”

I perked up at that. “Really?”

“Yep, have a meeting scheduled with him on Monday. He wanted to meet sooner, but Mrs. Marks is coming home tomorrow. I wasn’t going to miss that.”

“I bet Mrs. T is baking a cake,” I teased.

“I know she is.”

Leaning up on my elbow, I saw the grin curve his lips. “How do you know?”

“I may have asked her to, even given her some suggestions.”

“You and that sweet tooth.”

He moved so fast, pinning me under him, and then his mouth was on my neck and he started moving slowly down my body. He looked wicked when his head lifted. “Sweet.”

I laughed. He moved lower. I moaned and spread my legs wider.

“It’s so good to be home.” Mrs. Marks was settled in the kitchen. She wanted to be in the heart of the house and not alone in her room. Mrs. T feverishly cooked her homecoming meal, Simon helping, though he was doing more eating than helping. Mr. Clancy was at the table with Kane and me.

“It has been too long since we’ve all been together like this,” Mrs. T commented as she whipped egg whites for the soufflés she was making.

“You’re not wrong, Mrs. T, and I’m glad for it, because I have an announcement,” Mrs. Marks said, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. “I’ve worked with Mr. Lawson and have had papers drawn up. I’m deeding the house to Kane and Teagan.”

“What?” Kane and I said at the exact same time.

“I was doing it anyway, and, after this scare, I decided not to wait. Now, before everyone goes crazy, this is as much for me as it is for you. I want to see Raven’s Peak as an inn, but mostly I want to witness its transformation. I love this old, drafty place; it’s been in my family for a long time and it will continue to be as long as Kane and Teagan, and hopefully their children, have a part in it.”

“Absolutely, it’ll never fall out of the family. But are you sure?” I asked. I couldn’t believe she was handing over Raven’s Peak. I knew how much she loved her home.

“I had intended for my Danny to have it, but he died, and for so long I worried what would become of it, and then I was blessed with you. I remember when you both came here. Kane, when your mom brought you with her to work that first time, you were just a baby, so beautiful—from the very beginning you were a source of joy, bringing laughter back into this house. I know you think you are the lucky one, but I am the one who was blessed. You’re a beautiful soul, Kane, and I have so enjoyed seeing you grow from that small little bundle to the man before me, honored that I was there to help you along the way when your mother felt she no longer could be.”

The expression on Kane’s face gave me a glimpse of the wide-eyed boy he had been.

“And you, Teagan, arriving with such sadness in your eyes. Watching you find each other, comforting and healing your hurts, turned us from a group of old folks into a family. I would be honored for my ancestral home to go to you, because you are all the family of my heart.”

I was full-on crying, blubbering without words. Kane pulled me up against him. “You took two lost children and you gave us a home. We’d been honored to carry on your legacy,” he said, voicing exactly what I was feeling.

Mrs. Marks was crying too, and Simon was alternately handing her and me tissues. “Excellent,” she said through her tears. “Now, I’m starving, what’s for dinner?”

That night, Kane and I lay silently in bed, both of us thinking about Mrs. Marks’s words from earlier.

“I want children with you, Tea.”

Sitting up, I turned to him. His hands behind his head, his sightless gaze shifting in my direction. “Where did that come from?”

“I’ve been thinking it for a while. I want to feel my baby growing in you—our child, the blending of us, the enduring symbol of what we feel for each other.”

“I want that too. I’d like a bunch of kids.”

“Now that she’s made it official, we need to start working on the inn,” he said.

“Yeah, any idea where we start?” I asked.

“I’ve a few.” He grabbed me and pulled me down on top of him. “But first, let’s work on that baby.” And then he was kissing me. Work had never been so much fun.

“Places,” I called from my spot near the fireplace. “Simon, let me explain it to you. When the lights go out, you run. Only the murderer knows who his or her victim is. If you are the chosen one, scream loudly so we can discover your body. And that’s when the guessing on who did it begins.”

“Okay, I got it,” Simon said. He sounded cheerful. Maybe he was the murderer.

“Mrs. Marks, are you ready?” I asked. She was dressed as Miss Scarlet and sitting in her favorite chair. She wasn’t going to be moving around—the game would come back to her. She looked good, though, stronger than she had when she’d returned home a couple days ago.

“Yes, dear. I’m ready for some good old-fashioned bloodshed.”