Blind Faith (27 page)

“I was…out of line,” he conceded, though it was obvious he did so with reluctance.  “I realize that now and hope you’ll both forgive me.”

“Apology accepted,” Will said from behind her.

Serena held out her arms, so relieved she could have cried.  “I suppose if Will can forgive you, I can too.”  Being hugged by her father made her feel like a little girl again
and
she welcomed the precious moment of closeness.  “I love you, Daddy,” she smiled up at him, “even if you are a bear sometimes.”

“I love you too, little girl.  I…uh…do have one question before I go.”

“What is it?”

“Will tells me he’s in love with you.  He also seems pretty confident you feel the same way about him.”

Serena’s heart lodged in her throat. 
Was that the part she missed when she covered her ears? 
She turned back towards Will, a radiant smile on her face.  How could she do anything
but
smile when she was practically bursting with happiness?

“Will’s confidence is justified,” she said softly.  “I love him with all my heart.”

She had no recollection of stepping away from her father or moving towards Will, but she must have because suddenly she was back in his arms.  The rasp of stubble from his evening beard against her cheek sent a shiver racing up her spine.  Memories of how tenderly he’d made love to her earlier came flooding back in a heated rush.  She had an uncontrollable desire to shoo her Dad off so she could crawl back into bed with Will and prayed it didn’t show on her face when the embrace ended and she turned back around.

“Would you tell Mom not to worry, that I’m fine?  More than fine.”

“I will,” her Dad promised.  “And McKinley?  What do you want me to tell her?”

“Tell her…” Serena paused. 

What message do you send to someone who has done everything in her power to sabotage your relationship with the man you love?  McKinley wanted everyone to believe
that
her poor, blind sister was weak and vulnerable, that she was a mental
cripple who was incapable of making sound decisions on her own.  Her reasons for doing it didn’t even matter anymore.  McKinley had finally gone too far and would have to answer to their parents for the stunt she’d pulled tonight.  Their
father
firmly believed there was no excuse for dishonesty, and though he seemed calm now, he wasn’t about to let it slide.  Not that McKinley would apologize for her behavior, but at least she
would
know her attempt to cause trouble for Will had failed.

“It’s up to you, Dad.  But I think once you tell McKinley how Will and I feel about each other, she won’t hear anything else you have to say.”

“Oh, she’ll hear every word, I guarantee it,” Tony said in that same stern tone she’d heard him take with her brothers when they
had
over stepped the line.

Will slipped his arm around Serena’s waist.  “We’ll walk you to the door.” 

Considering the abominable treatment Will had received from her father, it amazed
Serena
that he could sound completely at ease, as if they
had
spent the last half hour in pleasant conversation.  When they reached the foyer, her father dropped a kiss on her cheek.  She felt Will lean forward and the ripple of movement as the two men shook hands.

“I misjudged you, Will,” Tony said.  “But I’ve got to tell you, this is one time I’m happy to admit I was wrong.”

“No hard feelings, Mr. Cross.  You know, it might make Serena’s mother feel better if she got the chance to know me.  If you’re both free next Saturday evening, would you like to join us for dinner?”

“That’s very considerate of you, Will.  I’m sure it will put Leslie’s mind at ease if she can see for herself how much you care for Serena.  We’ll see you next Saturday.”

Serena was a bit dazed by everything that had transpired.  As soon as Will closed the door, she breathed a sigh of relief.  “How did a situation that started out with you and Dad butting heads end up with a handshake and dinner date with my parents?”

Will drew her into his arms, hugging her to him as if he
would
never let go.  “It’s late.  Why don’t we dissect it tomorrow?”

There was a strangeness to his voice Serena couldn’t quite define.  “Will, are you okay?  You sound…funny.”

“I’m fine, sweetheart.  I’m just glad everything worked out.”

“You weren’t worried I would believe the things McKinley told Dad, were you?”

“Let’s not talk about it anymore tonight.
 
All I want to do right now is take you back to bed and hold you.”

Will kissed her then, but it was different than any kiss he’d given her before.  There
was
such
an urgency
to it, an almost desperate quality that tugged at her heart.  Until that moment, when she felt the possessiveness in his arms as he crushed her to his chest and the tremor in his lips, it hadn’t occurred to Serena that this big, strong man needed the assurance of
her
love.  That he was just as scared of losing her as she was of losing him seemed impossible, yet she knew with undying certainty it was true.

When he finally let her up for air, Serena framed his face with her hands.  “I’m madly in love with you, Will Duncan, and I want you to know there isn’t anything McKinley can do or say that will ever make me doubt you.”

“She won’t stop trying,” he said with a ruefulness she couldn’t miss.  “The talk your Dad intends to have with her may slow McKinley down for a while but we both know she’ll be scheming again in no time.”

“I don’t understand her,” Serena said.  “She could have any man she wanted, why does she keep trying to put a wedge between us so she steal you away from me?”

“It doesn’t have anything to do with
wanting me
for herself.  There’s more to it.”

“You seem pretty sure of that.”

“I am.  I don’t have anything to go on except my gut feeling, but I know I’m right.”  Will covered her hands with his, pressing a kiss into each palm before urging her towards the bedroom.  “No more talk about McKinley.  We’ll figure it out sooner or later, but not tonight.”

She heard Rufus trailing behind them and wondered if the poor dog was still upset, but once they got to the bedroom he settled down at the foot of the bed as usual.  As soon as Will slipped into bed beside her, Serena forgot about Rufus and McKinley and pretty much everything else except the joy she found in being close to him.  Snuggling into his warmth, she drifted into a peaceful sleep, a smile of contentment on her lips and in her heart.

                      
                                        
***

Will made a grab for the bowl as it skittered across the counter, rescuing their dinner salad from certain disaster just as it teetered on the edge.  Serena mumbled an apology when he set the bowl next to the chopping board but she was so distracted, he knew it was only a matter of time before she sent the bowl flying again.  Will watched her brandish the knife with mounting anxiety; certain the attack on the helpless vegetables would result in the loss of a finger or two.  He kept silent for as long as he could and finally decided saving Serena’s fingers from peril would also put a halt to his own heart
palpitations and Rufus’ restless pacing.  Leaning forward, he gripped her wrist without warning and used his free hand to pluck the knife away.

“Stop playing around and give me the knife,” Serena demanded irritably.

“So you can hack off your hand?  No, I have a better idea.  I’ll finish making the salad while you relax by taking a nice long soak in the tub.”

“I’m perfectly capable of cutting up a few vegetables,” she said with an indignant huff.

Will’s lips twitched in amusement.  She’d been pretty prickly all day
,
but in the past few hours it had grown progressively difficult to carry on a conversation with her.  If he asked a question, her answers were short and clipped.  And apparently, offering to help make dinner was a greater sin than trying to talk to her. 
I’m not completely inept, you know,
she’d informed him in a tone as crisp and frosty as a winter morning
.
 

For the most part, he and Rufus had stayed out of her way, but he refused to stand idly by while she endangered herself because she was too stressed out to remain focused.  Placing the knife on the counter well out of her reach, Will told her to turn around.  With an impatient sigh, Serena complied
, although
it was obvious by her tightly drawn lips that she was annoyed with him.  Well, he
would
just have to do something about that too, wouldn’t he?  Trapped as she was between the counter and his body, it didn’t take more than a few seconds for her to sense the sizzle of physical awareness that seemed to have dominated their lives in the past week since they
had
become lovers.

Will felt it too.  Being this close to her made his whole body tingle, as if the undercurrent of a live wire pulsed through his veins.  He knew what would happen when they touched, and Serena knew it too.  One kiss.  That’s all it would take to subdue her and vanquish the surly mood she was in.  Very unsporting of him perhaps, but if that’s what it took to exorcize the tyrant out of her, it was a sacrifice he
would
just have to make.

“
I
am going to finish making the salad,” his tone broached no argument.  “But first, you
are
going to tell me why you’re so wound up.  You’re an excellent cook and it’s not as if you’ve never made dinner for your parents before
,
so what is it?”

Serena’s lip quivered.  “I’ve been so horrible to you today, and I…I really didn’t mean to be.  It’s just that…you don’t know how direct my mother can be.  It wouldn’t surprise me at all if she came right out and asked if you
were
sleeping with me.  She’ll drill you about everything; your family, your past, your plans for the future.”

“I don’t understand why that would upset you.  Isn’t that what this evening is all about, giving your parents the chance to know me better?”

“I know, but you have no idea how uncomfortable it will be for all of us.  I love my Mom to death, but she could have been a professional interrogator.”

Will smothered the laugh tickling the back of his throat.  “She can’t be that bad, honey.  You don’t think you might be exaggerating just a wee bit?”

“No, I’m not,” she
insisted
.  “And heaven help you if she thinks you’re hiding something.  She
will
keep at you, chipping away until you start spewing out secrets you
have
never divulged to anyone because she makes you feel as if somehow she
knows
.”

“Ah, I get it now.  You’re afraid I’ll confess about kiss-and-tell-Mel, aren’t you?”

Serena stuck her lip out in a pretty pout.  “It’s not funny, Will.  I never even tried to lie because I’d seen how she dragged the truth out of my brothers and knew if
they
couldn’t hold out, I didn’t stand a chance.”

“If she’s that good at it, how did McKinley become such an accomplished liar?” 

“Well, the boys would eventually come clean because they felt guilty for betraying my parents trust and then lying about it.  But McKinley…” she shook her head.  “I overheard her bragging to her friends about
how
easy it was to fool our parents.  McKinley thought of it as a game.  She said it was a challenge; the bigger the whopper she told, the greater her
sense of
victory when she got away with it.”

“She must have gotten tripped up by her lies at least
some
of the time, didn’t she?”