If I Loved You (Harper Falls Book 1) (20 page)

“What did she want?”

Jack couldn't have guessed what Rose’s
reaction would be, but he'd expected something more than a flat,
monotone question.

“I’m not sure. She did this creepy come-on
routine but it was so obvious and over the top it’s hard to believe
she was serious.”

“Oh, she was serious.” Rose felt all the
happiness that she'd experienced during the last two days draining
out of her body. Just knowing that Louise had been nearby was
enough to suddenly make her fifteen years old again trapped in a
horror show that was her aunt’s life. Harper Falls had always been
a safe haven from that. A place Louise avoided thought was beneath
her notice. And now she’d tried to sprinkle her unique brand of
poison on Jack.

“You should go.” Rose needed to be alone, to
find her heaviest blanket and borrow inside. She had to find a way
to combat the cold that was seeping into her bones.

“Let me call Drew and tell him I can’t make
it.” Jack had never seen Rose like this. It was almost as though
she was shrinking into herself. He took her hand, alarmed at how
icy it had become.

“No,” she pulled away. It took all the
effort she could muster, but Rose forced herself to stand. With
deliberate steps she walked to the door. Grasping the knob she
pulled it open and leaned against it for support. “Go to work,
Jack.”

“I’m not leaving you alone. Jesus, Rose,
you’re trembling.”

“I'm tired.” She couldn’t explain it to him.
But she didn’t want him to see her like this. She was crawling into
a hole that was dark and confining, one that took a lot of time and
effort to climb out of. Jack couldn’t be a part of that.

“I’ll go, but only if you promise to call
Tyler or Dani. Hell, call them both.” She started to protest, but
Jack wasn’t going to budge on this. “Call them, Rose. I’ll be in my
SUV, but I’m not driving away until I see one of them arrive.”

“Fine.” She wanted to be angry. But she
couldn’t generate enough heat to do more than pick up her phone and
hit speed dial. Satisfied that she wasn't going be alone, Jack
finally left.

Rose watched the door close then shuffled
back to the sofa, sinking into a boneless heap. With a sigh she
raised the phone to her ear.

“Dani?” It wasn't until she heard the catch
in her voice that Rose realized Jack had been right; she needed her
friends. “Can you come over? And bring Tyler.”

IT TOOK SIX hours and endless pots of tea
but Rose finally felt warm again.

Tyler and Dani had arrived within minutes of
her call. There were no long explanations necessary. While Dani
gathered thick socks and a downy comforter, Tyler heated the water
for tea. She also called the local diner and ordered hot soup to be
delivered. From then on it was just a matter of them being there.
Bracketing her on the sofa, lending their warmth
unconditionally.

At some point she must have dozed off, the
exhaustion finally pulling her under. When she finally opened her
eyes again, her head felt a little fuzzy, and she found herself
stretched out on the couch alone. The clock on the far wall read
four o’clock and since it was still light outside she figured that
was p.m. not a.m. Slowly she became aware of muffled voices coming
from the kitchen. She wasn’t surprised. Dani and Tyler wouldn’t
have left her by herself.

“Ready for more soup?”

“Bathroom.” Any more liquid and she would
float away.

When she came back, Rose felt like she just
might be on her way to being counted among the living. It was
amazing what brushing your teeth and splashing some cold water on
your face could do for your outlook on life.

She found her friends waiting for her in the
living room. And though they didn't say, it was obvious they were
still concerned. This had hit quicker and harder than ever before,
and neither of them had any prior experience to draw from.

“I was happy.” Rose didn’t know how else to
begin. “I had no defenses to fight it because I’d let them all
down. Jack must have thought I was crazy. He didn't even say her
name—just
your
aunt
—and I was practically catatonic.”

“He didn’t leave until we got here,” Dani
pointed out.

“If he’s smart he’ll never come back.”

“That's crazy and you know it.” Tyler would
only let her wallow so long. Now that Rose had her feet back under
her it was time for some tough love. “When you were fifteen you had
no choice. She was your legal guardian; you had to go with her. But
she can’t hurt you now unless you let her.”

“Two years of therapy and I’m still a mess.
A mess with a train wreck attached.” Rose finally felt a stirring
of anger. “I can’t force the bitch to stay away. Now that she has
the scent she's bound to make another run at Jack—especially since
I’m involved with him.”

“You don’t think Jack would…?” The thought
was too disturbing for Dani to finish.

“God, no.” The last thing Rose was worried
about was Jack being seduced by Louise. “But if I keep seeing him
I’m going to have to tell him everything.”

“What exactly are you worried about,
Rose?”

“What
aren’t
I worried about?” Rose paused to gather her thoughts. Most of her
worries were irrational but knowing that didn’t magically erase
them. “The last time I talked about any of this was to my therapist
and that was almost ten years ago. I’m happy to say I rarely think
about it anymore.”

“That’s good.” Dani squeezed her hand.

“But what if I tell him and he thinks I’ve
blown it all out of proportion.”

“Rose—” Tyler began.

“No, hear me out. I wasn’t physically
harmed, not really. There are people who go through much worse, for
much longer periods of time.”

“She drugged you,” Tyler exclaimed.
Unfortunately, it was all too easy to conjure up the image of Rose,
too thin and hooked up to an IV, lying in a hospital bed. “She took
a laughing, happy girl and, in the course of a few months, turned
her into a withdrawn bundle of nerves. Jack won’t try to diminish
that.”

“No,” she agreed. Jack would be
compassionate, which brought her to her biggest fear. “I don’t want
him to see me as a victim. If he knows everything I suddenly become
that girl with the troubled
past.
Jack grew up in an Ozzie and
Harriet world. Why would he want to take me on?”

“
Ozzie and
Harriet
?” Tyler scoffed. “
Jack
?”

For the first time in hours Rose smiled.
“With a few minor differences. The Nelsons were in black and
white—Jack lives in vivid Technicolor.” With an even bigger smile,
she added “And Jack would never get a G rating.”

“More like…?” Tyler urged.

“Most days, PG-13. In private? XXX.”

“Oh, we will need details,” Dani declared.
“But for now I’ll give you some advice and I hope you take it.
There was nothing wrong with your life before you started seeing
Jack so if you break up with him it won't be the end of the world.
But he makes you happy, Rose. And there’s something to be said for
a man with XXX sensibilities. I say take a chance. Go for the
happy.”

“And the great sex,” Tyler chimed in.

“There is that.” Rose would have to think on
it. But for now she wanted to clear her mind of her problems and
binge out on someone else’s.

“I have
Outlander
DVR’d. Anybody for ice cream and some
time travel?”

JACK WAS PISSED. It didn’t often happen, and
it never lasted long. Oh, he could hold a grudge with the best of
them. But he’d never let it consume him. He’d put it away and deal
with it if and when the problem reared its head. But, for the most
part, Jack Winston did not stew.

Drew had given Jack plenty of room for the
past few days. But whatever had happened with Rose was eating at
Jack, and while he didn’t know the details, he understood that his
best friend was in a bad place. It was his duty to either leave him
be, get him drunk or find something for him to hit. He’d done the
first, and he knew that after what happened the last time he
couldn’t get him drunk again. So that only left one option.

“Get off your, ass. We’re going to the
gym.”

“Fuck off.” Jack didn’t bother to look up,
he just growled and went back to work.

“Downstairs, now. If I have to come back up
here to get you, there will be blood.” And since he knew not all of
it would be Jack's, Drew hoped like hell Jack followed him.

Jack didn’t hurry. In fact, part of him
hoped Drew
would
come back. A little
spilled blood sounded good about now. But after thinking about it
for a few minutes he finally gave in. Shutting down his computer
and headed to the gym. It was a short trip but by the time he got
there he was ready to rip Drew a new one.

The last few days had been hell. He hadn’t
slept more than a few restless hours each night; Rose wasn’t
answering her phone and his pride wouldn’t let him beat down her
door. The last thing he wanted was Drew trying to help him work out
his frustrations. He slammed into the gym expecting a one on one
confrontation. What he found was Drew and five hulking strangers in
workout clothes.

“You want to explain?”

“You need to hit something; these gentlemen
have volunteered.”

Jack gave Drew a '
you
have got to be shitting me'
look. “I repeat, you want to
explain?”

“We have a few openings with the security
crew and these guys have applied. Let’s call this their preliminary
interview. If they can get through you, they move on to stage
two.”

Jack could have argued. There was no such
thing as a preliminary interview. But he was in the mood to hit
something. Earlier that morning he'd gone several rounds with a
punching bag but since it didn't hit back he hadn't gotten much
satisfaction.

“Give me a minute to change.” He took a
moment to look at his would-be opponents. They were big and looked
strong, but they were young. “You guys take the time while I'm gone
to think this over. And you,” he called to Drew. “Fill them in on
what to expect. I don’t plan on taking it easy. If any of them
wants to back out, don’t let the others give them a hard time. In
fact, the ones that leave might just be the smartest guys in the
room.”

ROSE PULLED HER car to a stop. The parking
lot outside
H&W Security
was
fuller than she’d expected. She was hoping to find Jack alone so
they could talk without any interruptions. Maybe now wasn't a good
time. But then what would be? She was here, and she needed to get
this over with. She’d been ignoring Jack’s calls and pretty much
hiding out for three days. He deserved an explanation. After that
the rest was up to him.

Before she could even hit the intercom
button, the doors clicked open. Surprised, Rose looked over at the
reception desk to see Pam waving her in.

“Thank goodness. I’m afraid they’re going to
kill him.”

That didn’t sound good. Should she panic? In
spite of her rather inflammatory greeting, Pam seemed relatively
calm. Rose decided to save her panicking until she had a few more
details.

“Who’s going to kill whom?”

“Five brutes, in the gym, with Jack.”

Jack and brutes were all Rose needed to
hear.

“The stairs are to the right,” Pam called
out after her.

She remembered. It only took her a minute to
get down the two flights but then she had to stop and get her
bearings. Pool, then weight room, then gym.

It seemed awfully quiet, Rose thought as she
hurried towards the door at the far end of the pool. If someone was
trying to kill Jack shouldn’t there be yelling? That night outside
the tavern she distinctly remembered a lot of yelling.

Afraid of what she was going to find, Rose
hit the door at a run. There was no yelling, but the three guys on
the floor were groaning up a storm. She was relieved to see that
none of them was Jack. She didn’t see him anywhere, but she did see
Drew. He didn’t seem overly concerned about the bruised and
bleeding men and at the moment she wasn't either.

“Is Jack alright?”

Drew grinned and nodded. “
He
hit
them
,” he
indicated the men who were helping each other stagger to their
feet. “And then he hit the shower. You’ll find him in there.”

Jack leaned his forearm against the tile and
let the multiple jets of water beat over his body. It hadn’t been
much a contest. Big kids, little training equaled three big booms
and a couple of bloody noses. They’d be fine. More hurt pride than
anything else. Jack, on the other hand, was no longer angry, which
meant the adrenaline that had been keeping him on his feet had worn
off. All he wanted was to finish his shower and head home. Well, he
also wanted Rose, but there wasn’t anything he could do about that
right now.

“Need your back washed?”

His eyes popped open, but he didn’t
straighten. Instead, he watched under his raised arm as Rose
removed the last of her clothes and walked towards him through the
steam and water. She pushed the lever on the soap dispenser,
letting the liquid pool in her hand. Moving behind him, she rubbed
the soap into his back until a lather formed and ran down his
spine. The scent of lemon filled the shower, sharp and clean. Jack
put both hands on the wall in front of him. He arched his back,
savoring the feel of her soap slicked hands as they moved up his
tense muscles, stopping so she could firmly message the space
between his neck and shoulders.

“Relax, let me take care of you.”

Rose could feel the knots under her hands
slowly loosen. Moving closer she rubbed against him, her nipples
hardening. She followed the disappearing soap with a trail of soft
kisses. He smelled so good, like nothing else, masculine,
clean—like Jack. She slipped her hand around his body wanting to
feel his arousal. She wanted to give him pleasure. But before she
could reach her goal, Jack took her and pulled her in front of him.
He lifted her hands above her head and pinned them to the wet tile
with one of his. His mouth opened over hers, greedy and demanding
as the water cascaded over them in warm waves.