Mistaken Identities (23 page)

Instant headache. Bryce did the party scene when he was young, but now he would prefer a cold beer and his television rather than deal with this crowd. The looks he got as he passed showed many were interested but, hell, he had eyes set on only one person—the woman dancing at the far end of the room, dressed in burgundy leather jeans and her ‘fuck-me boots.’ The heels were so tall and slender he wondered how the hell she was standing on them, let alone moving her body the way she was. She was like liquid fire—heat and seduction rolled into one. Watching her, his body was instantly aroused. The guy behind her looked like he was in seventh heaven; his hands were at her hips and running up and down her thighs.
I’ll break his hands
.

Bryce walked over and pulled her away. “Playtime is over. You’re going home.”

Stasia’s face first showed surprise and then anger when she saw who had grabbed her. “I don’t live here, remember? I’m on vacation and having a bit of fun.”

The guy who had been dancing with her stood tall and tried to push Bryce. “Hey, she’s having fun, didn’t you hear her?”

Bryce shoved him right back. “Listen, I’m a cop and I have no problem kicking your ass and then locking you the fuck up in a cell. Step off.”

The guy held his hands up and walked away.

Stasia shook her head. “They don’t make men like they used to.”

“Time to go,” Bryce growled as Cole strolled over casually.

“Oh, I see your guard dog called you.” Stasia flicked a glance over at Cole.

“Happy to see you, too, Ruby House reject,” Cole drawled.

“You say that now that he’s holding my arm,” Stasia snarled. By now they were getting more than just casual glances from the other patrons and security. Yelling over the music was obviously even bothering the DJ who turned it down so he could hear what they were saying. “Tell him to let me go and then say it. See if I don’t knock your teeth in the back of your head.”

“Meow, you’ve grown claws,” Cole retorted. “Better watch out, Bryce, she may scratch.”

“I’ve always had claws. Remember, you tried to see them,” Stasia taunted. “It was that night that Kim shut you down and you wanted to show me how much better you were than Bryce because you thought he was sneaking around with me.”

“What?” Bryce snarled and whirled on a very pale Cole.

“Uh-oh, did I just spill the beans, Cole?” Stasia looked from one to the other innocently batting her eyes and laughed. “Oh, even he was keeping secrets from you, Bryce. Man, who can you trust?”

Cole held up his hands. “Bryce, it was just a bad night for me. I had one too many beers.”

“Yeah, and you came after this Ruby House reject, right?” Stasia picked up her drink by the table close by and took a sip. “Don’t start nothing and there won’t be nothing, Cole, I thought you knew that.”

“You come back to town and bring all this shit back with you,” Cole snarled. “You should’ve just stayed away.”

Stasia pointed to Bryce. “Blame him for that. And that’s what Caldwell County builds into you, huh? Hide the secrets and the dirty laundry from the light, pretend it’s all good and push the bad stuff under the rug. Was that what you were doing for Kim, pretending she wasn’t molested so she didn’t seem dirty to you, Cole? Maybe she couldn’t stand your pretense and your so-called help. Trying to get in her panties while pretending you were helping.”

“Damn you,” Cole snarled.

“Right back ‘atcha.” Stasia tilted her glass in a salute.

Security started to walk towards them and Bryce pushed past his anger to deal with the situation. He held up his badge. “There’s no problem here, guys, I’m taking them outside and off the premises.”

“Please do,” the big, burly man said.

Bryce grabbed her hand and shoved Cole in front of him and moved them towards the door. The music was back to eardrum-bursting level and people were back to enjoying the night before they even reached the exit. The cool night breeze hit him and cleared the smell of sweat and alcohol from his nose. None of them spoke as they went down the escalators and walked towards where he had parked his car. Bryce was steaming mad and it seemed Stasia and Cole could sense that and were eerily quiet. There was a limit to how far he could be pushed and he was one step over that line.

Cole put his hand on Bryce’s shoulder. “Listen, you know it was a long time ago and I wasn’t myself that night.”

Bryce reared back and punched Cole directly in the face. Blood gushed from his nose and Bryce was pleased. Stasia gave a small screech and rushed forward to help Cole. She stripped off the light blue bolero jacket she had on over her white tank shirt and held it to Cole’s nose.

“Are you insane?” she asked.

Bryce looked at her incredulously. “Am I insane? Really, you’re asking me this after he insulted you and I have to practically pull you out of a fight with each other? I can’t take this, it’s fucking enough. You have a hair across your ass because you were wrongly accused and spent twelve years away from home. Stasia Copeland, if your ass wasn’t hanging out with Dani in the first place and you didn’t agree to go with her that night you wouldn’t even be in this situation. You could’ve walked away or said no at any time so take some goddamn responsibility. Cole, you knew full well I cared for Stasia and, still, as soon as Kim said no, you went behind my back. Low, brother, way damn low for my so-called best friend.”

By this time Bryce was in a full-on rage and didn’t care who heard what he was saying. They stood in front of his car warily watching him walk back and forth while he vented.

“I know I should’ve been there for Kim. God knows I beat myself up for it every night,” Bryce continued. “It tears me up inside knowing that I wasn’t, but I accepted my part in her life being fucked up. But, like me, she had to take responsibility and could’ve come to me. I would never put the McDowell family name in front of her, never! Cole, you asshole, when we find her, marry her and go to counseling with her. If you love her like you say, then you’ll do it or if it’s too much, let her go and let her live. Stasia, grow the fuck up and stop blaming everyone for the shit you went through. Eighty percent of it was yours. Get past the damn Ruby Houses stigma and become the woman you want to be. I love you, but I won’t be your damn whipping boy. Both of you in the car now and don’t say one word to me.”

“But—” Stasia began.

He pointed to her. “Did you not understand what I just said?”

“You broke his nose,” Stasia pointed out.

“Well, it was too straight anyway. He can fix it himself,” Bryce said without pity, “in the car.”

Cole got in on one side of the backseat and Stasia got in on the other. No one chose the passenger seat. As Bryce drove he could feel her looking at him and Cole glaring. He was fine with both. He felt refreshed—well, kind of—that he finally spoke his mind. He still worried for Kim but at lease the two in the backseat knew exactly where he stood. He was done being everyone’s pack mule for guilt. He pulled up in front of Cole’s home and waited for him to get out.

Cole tried to hand Stasia her bloodied coat. “Um, here, and, um, thanks.”

She waved it away. “Keep it. It’s kinda yours now with the blood and all.”

“I’ll replace it,” Cole said.

“You don’t have to do that. It was old anyway,” she replied.

“Stop beating around the bush. Just say sorry so I can leave,” Bryce snapped, tired of the dancing around.

“Jesus, I was getting to it,” Cole shot back “I’m sorry about the shit I said, Stasia, you are good for coming back to help Kim.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry I got you punched in the face,” Stasia replied.

“No worries. I was working towards it all on my own.” Cole looked at Bryce. “You’re right, man, I’m sorry for being such a dick.”

“Yeah, okay,” Bryce said. That was all he was willing to say for now. His temper was still simmering.

“You’re like my brother and I don’t want to lose your friendship,” Cole persisted.

“You won’t, you ass. Go fix your nose,” Bryce said softening his stance just a little.

“Goodnight.” Cole slammed the door and walked towards his house.

Bryce drove on silently.

“I think I should point out that you went by my hotel to take Cole home and now we’re not heading towards my hotel but in the opposite direction,” Stasia commented from the back seat.

“You’re staying at my place tonight,” Bryce answered.

“Oh, really? How nice. I don’t have my toothbrush,” Stasia said sarcastically.

He didn’t answer so she stayed quiet as he navigated the streets of Charlotte to his condo. He opened the back door of the car and she followed him in dutifully to his home.

“You said you loved me. Is it true?” She said the words quietly.

“It is,” he stated flatly.

“Don’t sound so excited about it,” she muttered.

He looked at her. “Would you? The way we’re at each other’s throat, one step forward, two steps back.”

“It won’t make me stay, you loving me,” Stasia said.

“Did I ask you to?” Bryce asked. “Maybe I want to go with you and get out of this place. Maybe it’s smothering me with its old time religion and values, its lies and…” He sank into the chair behind him and stared at his hands. “I went to that old house on the hill today after I left you at Lake Norman. The one I used to look on with such pride until I knew what went on behind the walls. I saw my mother and she acted like she didn’t know who Kim was, then went on to talk about baking that man pies, pies for raping their daughter. As if she is rewarding him. I can’t…anymore. I can’t look at her or smell those damn pies. I can’t not hear Kim’s tears, the ones she must have cried wanting our mother to help her, anyone to help her, me… I told Jackie she could have it because if it were up to me I’d burn the place down.”

“Bryce,” Stasia said his name and knelt in front of him to take him in her arms.

He let her because only God knew how much he needed to feel something other than guilt, anger and grief. He understood that Caldwell was slowly choking off his air supply and now it had become very hard to breathe. He only stayed for Kim and look how that ended up. He wanted Stasia to love him but for the right reasons, not because of some schoolgirl crush but because of the man he was now. The egotistical jock was no one to love but the man who was trying to make everything right was. But could she ever see past her anger and what happened in the past?

“God, Bryce, you can’t take blame for your father’s evil or any of it.” Stasia’s breath was warm against his ear. “You put the bastard in jail, you took away his power, and Kim began to thrive. I’m sorry that I kept pushing at you about Kim.”

He cupped her face and pressed his forehead against hers. “Can we get past the hurt and the anger? Is there anything that can salvage us or give us a chance?”

“We have to do something about that, don’t we?” Stasia sighed. “I’ve spent so long with that anger burning a hole in my chest, fueling my rage and my survival. Now I don’t need it anymore and I can be me, but I don’t know how to exist without the fuel. I am going to do so much with my life, things I was denied. But you’re right. My choices put me in that store with Dani and Kim that night. I carry guilt because maybe if I was still home I could’ve gotten her help or given her the strength to speak out. I abandoned her that night to save my own skin. So you’re not alone, by no means are you alone.”

“Then let’s bury these demons together. Regardless of the outcome with Kim, let’s handle it together and say goodbye to this place. Let’s go somewhere and build a life together and heal. We’ll point to the map and where ever our fingers land we’ll go there. I’ll transfer and be a cop anywhere, but I can’t stay here.”

“I want to say yes, let’s run away,” Stasia admitted, “but my demons may be more than yours and far harder to kill. I can ask you to give me time and let me bury them my own way, but I can’t expect you to.”

He kissed her hard until she moaned. “I’ve waited for you since you were a teenager, then in the blink of an eye you were gone. I felt your loss, never got over it and worked my way up in the police force always looking for ways to clear your name. I’d have moved heaven and hell to have you then and you think asking me to wait would change that now?”

Stasia shook her head. “But I’m not that girl anymore. That girl lost something when she was on a Greyhound bus alone, wishing her mama loved her, wishing that someone would save her. That girl grew up hard, from having to hustle when the money ran out to having to convince people she was eighteen to get a job. She stopped dreaming about the future and only thought of surviving. She got tired and lost hope until there was only herself left. I’m just this broke thing now that used to be that girl who looked at you with stars in her eyes, hoping for one kiss that would change everything. But I stopped dreaming, Bryce. I don’t expect things to work out for me unless I make them.”

“Then we’re on the right track. We’re going to have to fight for what’s important and build something solid that will last.” Bryce kissed her again. “Wishing on stars and believing in pipe dreams isn’t our way. The castle we built will be ours because we fought for it.”

Stasia stood and held out her hand. “You brought me here, show me your bedroom and let’s start building.”

He took her hand. “This won’t be a battle to see who wins. I’m going to make love to you and show you we belong together.”

“I can’t say I love you, Bryce, not yet,” Stasia admitted. “To me, this isn’t real yet and if it’s a dream you always wake up with the I love you.”

He grinned. “Your body does enough talking, Stace. I knew you loved me from the time you accepted my offer back at your apartment in Arizona.”

“Stop being smug about it,” she grouched.

“I’m not being smug, I’m overjoyed.” Bryce pulled her into his arms. “Come here and kiss me, because I’ll never let you go again after this.”

Stasia slipped into his arms willingly and he let the feeling of exultation take hold and bleed the last of his anger away. They had always been leading up to where they were now regardless of two years or twelve. His heart would have waited for Stasia forever if that was what was meant to be. But fate had them intertwined from long ago, so feeling her in his arms felt perfect and right.