Nauti Intentions (12 page)

a male grimace of frustration pul ed at his expression, before he leaned against the truck as Crista headed to the front door.

His sister looked maternal and happy. The baby bulge of her stomach gave her a cute little almost waddle. He’d considered teasing her about it,

but damn, her temper had been a little iffy lately.

He moved to the door and opened it as she stepped up to the porch. Dawg lifted his hand in greeting, though he was stil scowling.

“Dawg’s not al owed to come in and play today?†Alex laughed as Crista stepped into the house.

Crista ducked her head and hid her smile as Alex closed the door behind her.

“Dawg’s been playing games again.†She rol ed her eyes. “He’s already avoided Natches’s fist this morning. I don’t want to

risk you two fighting.â€

“Wouldn’t be a lot of fight to it, sis,†he promised her, kissing her cheek. “Want me to make you some decaf coffee?â€

It was a tease. Crista hated decaf coffee. She glared at him for his efforts. “Don’t start with me, Alex.â€

He held his hands up in surrender as he laughed. “So why is Dawg stuck outside while you visit me?â€

Alex had a feeling his sister hadn’t just dropped by to check on him.

“How’s your leg doing? Did you go to the doctor this week yet?†she asked as she moved to the fridge, opened the door, and checked it out.

She moved to the cabinets next. “You need groceries, Alex.â€

“I went to the doctor,†he reported. “The leg is healing. And I haven’t exactly been at the house a lot this week. I’ve been eating out.â€

She turned to face him, crossing her arms over her breasts and resting them on the bulge of her stomach as she leaned back against the counter. Her

brow creased thoughtful y.

She final y nodded. “Janey’s a good cook. Maybe she’l fatten you up some.â€

Alex’s brows arched. “Janey doesn’t cook.â€

Crista’s lips twitched. “She’s an excel ent cook. The weeks she stayed with us, I swear I gained ten pounds.â€

Alex scratched his jaw. “She doesn’t cook for me.â€

“You probably pissed her off,†she teased him. “What did you do to her?â€

Alex stared back at her. “Don’t fish, Crista. Get it off your chest.â€

Crista nibbled at her lip. “Are you sleeping with her?â€

“Would she cook for me if I were?â€

She rol ed her expressive eyes. “Probably. Dawg’s convinced you’re sleeping with her.â€

“It’s none of Dawg’s business.â€

“Janey’s vulnerable, Alex.â€

“Crista, are you here to warn me out of Janey’s bed?†He frowned back at her. “Because if you are, then I think I’d rather visit with

Dawg. I can hit him if he pisses me off.â€

“Which is why I’m in here instead of Dawg,†Crista pointed out.

“And it’s the reason why you can trot your little butt right back out there with him,†he told her. “For Christ’s sake. I wouldn’t tel you

if I was sleeping with her. It’s none of your business. Do I question you about your sex life?â€

It was bad enough that he knew she had one. And even worse that she had one with one of the wildest men in the county.

“Wel , she’s not cooking for you, so obviously you’re not exactly in her good graces.†Crista laughed back at him. “So I don’t

have to worry about Natches castrating you and ending the Jansen line forever. Right?â€

Alex stared back at her broodingly.

“You’re not going to sleep with her, right, Alex?â€

Sleeping wasn’t exactly what he had on his mind. “I wasn’t making any hard and fast plans in that direction,†he final y said, sliding past

the question. “Stop interrogating me before I cal Cranston and let him know how damned good you are at it.â€

She was stil watching him worriedly. “I talked to Janey this morning.â€

His brow arched. “Oh yeah?†Exactly how close
were
Janey and Crista?

“She hedged, too.â€

Alex ignored her and walked back to the coffeepot, where he refil ed his cup before turning back to stare at her.

If there was one person in this world that Alex al owed himself to love, then it was this woman. His baby sister. She was everything that was good and

right in his world. Damn if he wanted to hurt her, but she was poking her nose in too deep here.

“I don’t want you and Natches to fight,†Crista told him firmly. “I wouldn’t be happy, Alex.â€

He set the coffee cup on the counter and tightened his lips. “Fine. I’l castrate Dawg. Since sisters are al off-limits here, I think I’m about

due my pound of flesh.†He nodded to the bulge of her stomach. “A lot of years overdue, Crista. Dawg didn’t exactly do you any favors when

you were eighteen, but I let him live.â€

A shadow of pain crossed her face. The night she had spent with Dawg when she was eighteen had resulted in another pregnancy. A child she had lost.

It had nearly destroyed her, and caused her to leave home for almost eight years.

The fact that Dawg had been too damned drunk to even realize what the hel he had done hadn’t mattered. The son of a bitch should have kept his

head enough to leave her alone. But Crista had been an adult. Alex had raised her to be an adult. And as angry as he had been over it, in some ways,

Alex had known the other man cared more for her than he had let on.

“You’re fourteen years older than she is,†Crista final y said hesitantly. “Janey hasn’t had a chance to live yet, Alex.â€

“Enough.â€

“Alex, I know you,†she said softly. “I can see it in your face. Something’s going on, and I’m afraid it could end up hurting al of us.â€

“Only if Natches decides to make me his business.†He stared back at her implacably.

“Janey’s his business,†she warned him. “I heard him and Dawg talking, Alex. He’s not stupid. He knows something’s going

on.â€

“Crista, go home with your husband.†He picked up his cup and moved to the sink, rinsing it out before laying it in the bowl. “Take care of

Dawg and that little niece or nephew of mine and stay out of this. Natches and I can deal with each other without your interference.â€

“You’re al my family now, Alex,†she whispered, hurt fil ing her tone. “I know you and Natches both. He’s just got Janey back in his life.

He’s like a father with her. He’s already so ful of guilt that he couldn’t make things easier for her that it eats at him. And we both know

you’re not in love with her. If you have an affair with her and walk away like you always do, then you’l deserve the fight he brings you.â€

“Crista, go home.â€

He wasn’t fighting with his pregnant sister, and he damned sure wasn’t going to let the anger building inside him erupt against her. When the

hel had the Mackays decided he had nothing more to do than use a tender, vulnerable virgin and then toss her aside like garbage? When had his own

fucking sister decided to go along with it?

“Alex . . .â€

“Do you think I haven’t tried to stay the fuck away from her?†The words tore from him as he faced her, watching her eyes widen in surprise.

“Do you think I got up one morning and planned to have a king-sized hard-on for that woman, Crista? What the hel is in your mind? Since when do

you take me for some bastard that doesn’t give a damn who he hurts?â€

Her lips parted. “You are sleeping with her?â€

“I’m not sleeping with her, Crista,†he bit out. “Do you want me to swear I’m not going to sleep with her?â€

She breathed out slowly. “Could you?â€

“Not in this lifetime.†He shook his head, knowing it was only a matter of time. “And Natches wil just have to deal with it if it happens.

Won’t he?â€

She stared back at him in surprise. “Are you . . . in love with her?†she asked hesitantly, then grimaced at the scathing look he tossed her. “Ah

yeah. Forgot. Love doesn’t exist for Alex Jansen.†Then she grinned. And that grin was enough to make a smart man run for the hil s.

Unfortunately, Alex was too pissed to be smart. It was bad enough the Mackays thought he was some bastard without morals, but his sister?

“Crista. Look. I have things to do, and making my pregnant baby sister cry isn’t one of them,†he assured her in irritation. “So why

don’t you go home with your husband, and stop worrying about Janey.â€

Her expression, surprisingly, brightened. She straightened from the counter, walked around the room, and before he could stop her she grabbed his

wrists and burrowed against his chest.

wrists and burrowed against his chest.

Hel . He hugged her. Because she was his sister and she’d got him used to her hugs while she was stil in diapers. Sometimes he even missed

them.

“You know I love you, Alexander Jansen,†she whispered as he let his arms tighten around her, just a little bit. “And you are the best brother in

the world.â€

He grunted at that. “Yeah, wel . You’re not bad for a sister either.†He kissed the top of her head and let her go, shaking his head at her

moods as she left the house and moved along the walk to where her husband was cooling his heels at the truck.

Alex watched and almost chuckled. The fierce, devil-may-care Dawg Mackay was a fool for his wife. And it was a damned good thing; otherwise Alex

real y would have kil ed him.

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Crista let Dawg help her into the truck, snapping her seat belt as he loped around the front of the vehicle and then stepped into the driver’s side.

“Wel , at least you’re not crying.†He sighed as he started the truck and pul ed out of the drive. “You stil should have let me go in. I could

have at least made him mad before we left.â€

Crista chuckled. “He has enough problems.â€

“How do you figure?†He cast her a wary glance. “What kind of problems?â€

“I’m not tel ing you.†She laughed.

“Why not?†He glowered back at her. “We don’t have secrets, Crista. Remember?â€

Her lips twitched. “I’m not tel ing you, Dawg.â€

“Why?†he demanded incredulously. “I keep your secrets real good.â€

“But this is Alex’s secret.â€

He frowned. “He’s sleeping with her?â€

“He’s definitely not sleeping with her.â€

“He’s doing something besides sleeping with her?†He slid her a look from the corner of his eyes. “Things Natches would go ape shit

over?â€

“Nope.†She shook her head.

“Then what’s the secret?â€

She leaned closer and grinned. “That’s for me to know, and you to convince me to tel .â€

Immediately, lust slammed into him, seared his guts and tightened his bal s. Okay, he could play with that one.

“I’l make you scream it,†he decided. “Oh, baby. This one wil be fun.â€

“I’l never tel ,†she drawled.

“Ah, a chal enge?†He headed for home. “I can deal with that. Now let’s see if you can.â€

He knew a variety of ways of making his wife talk. And he knew she loved every damned one of them. Yeah, Dawg was so good when he was bad.

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Janey slipped from her apartment that evening, made her way to the restaurant office, then sneaked back out the back door and onto the next street. She

ducked into the pizza shop there and cal ed a cab, waited impatiently until it pul ed up outside, and then she was out of there.

Alex was due to arrive at dark, and it was almost that now. It was edging past five and she had agreed to meet Rogue at the bar outside of town at six.

She would be a little early, but it would be worth it. She had a feeling Alex wasn’t going to be al about letting her go barhopping with Rogue.

Strangely, despite the fact that Rogue had been injured six months ago because of the information she’d overheard in the investigation against

Dayle Mackay, the other woman had stil sought her out.

Rogue had come to the restaurant several times, made her friends come. Al that leather in one place could be a bit intimidating, but Janey had liked

her friends. The big rough-and-tough biker types. The ones Rogue rode with had hearts of gold, even if they were hard-talking and just as hard-drinking.

With her long red gold hair and violet eyes, Rogue wasn’t a woman Janey would have imagined enjoyed the crowd she ran with. But there was no

doubt she did.

She and Rogue had shared lunch several times in the restaurant before it opened, talking about Dayle and Nadine Mackay. Talking about Somerset.

Rogue was better than a psychologist. And she had a way of getting to the heart of a matter without asking a single question.

Rogue reminded Janey a lot of herself, too. She wasn’t the touchy-feely type, so Janey didn’t have to worry about that. But she was fun, she

liked to laugh, and Janey had never real y had friends before. She could have friends now, she thought, as she paid the cabdriver nearly a half hour later

and entered the bar. She had that option and she intended to take advantage of it.

“You’re early.†Rogue looked up in surprise from the bar where she was sitting. “And here I was afraid you wouldn’t make it at al .â€

“I told you I wouldn’t cancel out this time.†Janey slid onto the barstool beside her friend and looked at the bartender. “A beer please?

Very cold.â€

He nodded and turned away.

“Yeah, you said you’d be here,†Rogue agreed. “But you’ve been real y short on the phone when I cal . I thought maybe you were

rethinking our friendship.â€

Rogue’s grin was knowing as she tipped her own beer to her lips and took a drink.

“It’s been hel week,†Janey muttered, grateful y accepting her beer and taking a long, cold drink.