Tempted (In Too Deep) (8 page)

Chapter 20

Colt

Taylor’s grown quieter and more withdrawn each time we’ve talked lately. Which hasn’t been much. “What’s wrong, baby?”

“
Nothing, just tired.” She stifles a yawn. “I went for a run with Reis earlier, then he left to go back home and I’ve been working on that case you gave me most of the day.”

Her voice sounds different. I know something happened, but I won’t push her. “Go lie down. I’ll talk to you till you fall asleep.”

“Colt, it’s only seven! I can’t go to bed yet. No one will be in there though, so I guess I could go relax.”

The sound of her voice and picturing her alone in bed gives me an idea. “I’ve missed you.”

“Me too.”

“Pull down the covers and get in bed, baby. I’ll help you relax.” She releases a soft sigh.

“Are you in bed?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“Are you alone?”

“Yeah,” she breathes.

“Close your eyes,” I whisper.

“Why? What are you going to do to me?” she challenges.

I chuckle at her assumption. “Well I can’t be there to do everything I want to you, so you’re going to have to help me. Your hands are going to have to be my hands. I’ll tell you what I want. Is that…okay?”

She’s quiet.

Shit.

“This is weird.”

She’s thinking too much. As usual. “Let’s just try it, okay? I miss you so damn much my whole body aches.”

“Hm.
Where on your body, exactly?”

I like that she’s playing along.

“God, you’re getting me hard already.” It’s a lie, but I see it’s done its job. She whimpers softly into the phone.

“Colt,
” she whines.

“What do you want, baby? Tell me.”

“You,” she whispers back. “I want you to kiss me.”

“Imagine I’m kissing your neck and breathing in the
smell of your shampoo. I’m kissing your lips, caressing your tongue with mine.

“
Mmm,” she moans. “That’s nice.”

“Uh.
Those noises are going to be the death of me baby. You’re killing me here.”

“Well you could always…” she stops herself.

I drop my voice an octave lower, barely above a whisper. “Tell me what I should do next.”

“Unbuckle your belt,” she whispers.

The sound of her voice works to rouse me. I undo my belt and the buttons on my jeans, and just for good measure describe what I’m doing. She moans into the phone. Just as I’m thinking up what to tell her to do next, I hear the telltale click of the hotel door being unlocked.

“Shit!” I curse into the phone before standing abruptly to pull my jeans up. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

Bria laughs. “This is the living room…might I ask what you’re doing with your hand in your pants?”

I don’t answer. I reach for my phone, which has now slid under the couch.

“You were on the phone?” Bria laughs. “Phone sex operator? Nice Colt. If you were that hard up, you know you could’ve come to me,” she says, loud enough for Taylor to hear her.

I
cringe, and press the phone to my ear. “Taylor?”

The line is dead. Either the call disconnected when my phone hit the floor or Taylor overheard
Bria and hung up on me.

“Why do you insist on destroying everything?” I shout at
Bria.

“Why do you insist on being someone you’re not for someone who doesn’t understand you?”

I weigh her words for a moment, but I know she’s wrong. I feel more alive, more whole with Taylor than I have in a long time. She makes me better, gives me hope that I deserve more. That I’m deserving of love. What I can offer her on the other hand, is still in question. She’s going to be pissed about Bria’s interruption. Which is exactly what Bria wants. And I still haven’t told her that our case is taking longer than expected and we’re going to be here a couple more weeks.

“Just stay out of it.” I close the door to my room, in need of a cold shower.

Chapter
21

Taylor

I expect my ringing phone to be Colt again, and I consider ignoring it, but it’s not Colt. It’s Reis. “Hello?”

“Hi, Shrimp.”

I roll my eyes at the ridiculous nickname he’s given me, until I remember he can’t see me. “Just left and you’re already missing me?” I tease. It’s Sunday night, which means Reis is making the hour drive back home for school tomorrow. Sometimes I worry that if he spends every weekend here with me,
he won’t make friends at his new school. But he doesn’t seem all that concerned with that. And the one time I asked him, he brushed it off, saying he’d only be there one year anyway.

“So I wanted to ask you something. It’s probably stupid, but…” He hesitates.

I sit up in bed, wondering where this is going and if it’s related to our conversation in the bedroom. “What?”

“There’s a homecoming dance at my school this Friday night. And I’ve never actually been to a dance before…
so, I was thinking maybe you’d be my date.”

I frown down at my hands. I had no doubts going to the dance with Reis would be
fun, but I wondered what Colt would say about it… did I even care? He’d been gone for weeks with Bria, sharing a hotel room and clearly indulging her in flirty behavior. “I’d have to get a dress.”

He chuckles.
“Sweet. You’ll go?”

“Yeah.
If it’s okay with Colt,” I add.

“It is. I called him before I called you. He wasn’t in the best mood. But he said he didn’t care. So we’re good there.”

The fact that Colt doesn’t care if I go on a date with his brother stings more than it should. But I correct myself, this isn’t a date. We’re going as friends, that’s all.

The next week passes by quickly, but without an explanation or an apology from Colt about
Bria interrupting us. He just pretends it didn’t happen, and he’s even more withdrawn. Each day that passes without him opening up, I lose a little more faith in us. And it doesn’t help that each day Reis sends me sweet and funny texts that let me know he’s thinking of me.

Desperate to know what’s going on between me and Colt, I seek out Britt in the cafeteria on Friday afternoon. But looks like I’ll have to wait, she’s on the phone. When she spots me, her eyes widen and she muffles her hand over the phone. I
get the sense she’s talking about something she doesn’t want me to hear. My heart clenches. She’s probably on the phone with Bria. Does she know something I don’t? Why is she looking at me with sympathy in her eyes? Oh God, I need to get out of here.

I do the only thing I can do. I log into my computer, punching in the string of commands that will allow me access to Colt’s email account.

I pull a deep breath into my lungs. There aren’t any messages from Bria, just a few work-related things and a status report form Vera of happenings at the school.

I go to the folder for sent items.
There’s an email exchange between him and Bria from yesterday.

I read over the note she wrote to him first.

TO: Colt Palmer

FROM: Bria Simonson

SUBJECT: The dynamic duo of London

When are you going to tell her? You’re the world’s suckiest boyfriend. Not that I’m complaining about that
.

TO: Bria Simonson

FROM: Colt Palmer

SUBJECT: RE: The dynamic duo of London

I just need a little more time. I know you want this all solved and figured out to so we can move on. Just hang in there with me.

Oh God. Is he going to breakup with me? What other explanation can there be? Her note implies that he’s being a bad boyfriend and has something to tell me, and his note assures her that he’ll solve it soon so
they
can move on.

Later MJ finds me in bed. “You skipped last period?” she says, shaking my shoulder to wake me.

“I think Colt’s breaking up with me,” I groan and roll over.

She doesn’t speak, but her eyes convey everything. She’s nursed
girls back from Colt’s heartbreak before. She warned me about this from the beginning. At least she doesn’t say I told you so. She sits down beside me on the bed.

I open the email and show her.

She reads over it slowly, then lets out a string of curse words in every language she knows, possibly even throwing in a few made up ones. “I’ll admit it doesn’t sound good, but you don’t know what that could be referring to.” she says finally.

“
I think it’s pretty damn clear MJ. No matter what might have gone on between him and Bria, I can’t trust him. It’s just a matter of time before he screws up. I can’t go to that dance tonight, MJ. I feel like lying in bed and eating a pint of ice cream.”

She pats my back. “I know. But you can’t stand up Reis. You wouldn’t do that to him.”

I nod. She’s right.

I force myself out of bed and into the shower. The warm water soothes my heartache
just a bit, and I go through the motions of getting ready.

Chapter 22

Colt

I sit at the bar nursing my pint.
The one good thing about being in London – the drinking age. I need a reprieve. Between dealing with Taylor ignoring me, Bria’s mood swings, and managing Geoffrey’s unyielding demands on this never ending case, things have been intense.

I glance at my phone.
Still no word from Taylor despite numerous texts and emails asking her to call me back. We really need to talk, but for some reason, she seems reluctant, and hasn’t been answering her phone.

I realize
it’s Homecoming night and dial up Reis instead. “Hey man. You ready for the dance tonight?”

“Yeah.
I just got Taylor’s corsage out of the fridge, she’ll be here soon.”

“You didn’t pick her up?”

“I know. I wanted to, trust me. But you know how she is. She insisted that was a stupid idea, and I could do little more than nod my head and obey. She’s staying the night here though, sleeping in your old room.”

“Cool. How’s Mrs. Lee?”

“A nervous wreck, waiting in the foyer with her camera ready and poised on the door. But hey, listen we’re dancing around this and we need to talk about what you’re doing to Taylor.”

Now I’m getting shit from my little brother too? Damn, this is not my day.
“Just worry about yourself, Reis.”

“You’re fucking with Taylor’s emotions and we both know it. Come clean with her,”
he says.

“You don’t know shit about my relationship with Taylor.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I’m there when she’s sad because you’ve done something stupid. I’m the one who’s there for her when she’s drunk and sick. And I’m the one she comes to when she wants to laugh. I’ve been the one comforting her when she runs into one of your ex’s.”

Fuck. I hate this. I hate that I’m not there for her. “Don’t get any ideas with me away. She’s not yours.”

“We’ll see. You’re not here for her.”

“I’ll be back eventually, don’t be a dumbass, Reis,” I growl.

He’s quiet for a second. “Why do you have to have this girl? You’ll fuck anything that moves.”

His assessment of m
e would have been true a few months ago, but Taylor’s changed that. It sucks to know that’s what he still thinks of me though. Some big brother I turned out to be. What if Taylor is better off with him? Someone her own age, who doesn’t have a shaky past, who isn’t running an international corporation, someone who can take her to regular stuff – like high school dances. Reis can give her things I can’t. “If that’s what she decides she wants, I’ll step away, but until then, no fucking way.” I won’t just hand her over to him.

“You can’t have it both ways, Colt You’re not here.”

Maybe it is selfish of me to try and keep her. If she really is interested in Reis, though it will kill me, I’ll walk away. “Treat her right tonight.”

“I always do,”
he says, ending the call.

Chapter 23

Taylor

I pull
into the circular driveway of Reis and Colt’s massive house and hobble up the brick walkway in my too high heels, tugging at the hem of the tiny silver dress MJ lent me. My curves fill it out in ways MJ said Reis would approve of, but I felt overexposed.

I reach the door and before I can knock, it’s pulled open by a tiny As
ian woman smiling at me. “Hello,” I say.

“
My dear, come inside, come inside.” She grips my hands and pulls me in. She’s standing there, still holding onto me, grinning from ear to ear while she studies me.

“Mrs. Lee?” I guess.

She nods vigorously.

Reis rounds
the corner, chuckling at us. “Mrs. Lee, give her a break.” Once she steps back, his eyes travel from mine down the length of my body, down my legs and stop at my open toed heels. His mouth drops open. “Damn, Shrimp. You look sexy.”

Mrs. Lee nudges him in the side, a
nd he starts chuckling again. He crosses the room, lifting me in a full embrace until my feet leave the floor.

Mrs. Lee
poses us together in various positions, clicking away with her camera repeatedly. After we’ve posed for photos in front of the fireplace and in the backyard, Reis slips a beautiful corsage of purple flowers on my wrist and ties it in place with a silver ribbon that matches my dress. Then we’re on our way.

I steal glances at him once we’re inside the Jeep. He looks good in his suit.
His shoulders fill out the black suit jacket and crisp white dress shirt. It’s simple and classic. And with his silver tie, we sort of match.

He finds my hand and gives it a squeeze. It’s a short drive to his high school, but once we park, he hesitates, fidgeting with his key
s and makes no move to get out. “I have something to tell you before we go in.”

My stomach lurches.
He looks so nervous, I’m desperate to know what it is he wants to get off his chest. I pray it doesn’t have anything to do with Colt. I can’t handle hearing from Reis that Colt’s done with me. I won’t make it out of this Jeep if that’s the case.

He swallows. “I sort of told everyone you’re my girlfriend.”

I slug him in the arm, which ends up hurting my hand and has no effect on his arm whatsoever. I frown and rub my knuckles. “Why on earth did you do that?”

“Because.
I’m new here, I don’t have many friends. They’ve all gone to school together since forever.” He waves a hand absently toward the school. “And I’m always spending time with you and when someone assumed you were a girlfriend, I just never corrected anyone.”

I stare out the smeared windshield and watch as a group
of guys escort a group of girls in dresses of every color. I don’t like that Reis has felt so alone here. I guess for one night, if people think I’m his girlfriend, so what? “Well then you better come around and open my door to help me out, because I have very high expectations of my boyfriend.”

He grins. “You’re the best, Shrimp.”
He hops out of the Jeep and jogs around to help me out.

The school is much like my old school, smelli
ng of disinfectant and plastic with chipped tiles and germ-infested drinking fountains. The decorations in the gym are subtle, but the low lighting and disco ball send little sparkles and stars skittering across the shiny wood floor. It’s nice. Sort of comforting, in a regular high school kind of way. I’m glad Reis brought me. Being here with him beats lying on my bed worrying over Colt. And I’ve never seen Reis so excited or proud. He keeps his hand on the small of my back and introduces me as we mingle in the gym. He seems to know everyone. A few of the guys give him fist bumps and nods of approval when they meet me. Apparently, some of them thought I didn’t exist.

His claim that he doesn’t have many friends here is clearly a farce. But then I realize he’s spent every weekend since school started with me. He probably hasn’t developed any true friendships because I’ve monopolized his time. But he seemed to like spending time with me too, so I didn’t dwell on it too much.

Reis leads me to the center of the gym. He pulls me into his chest, nestling my head under his chin. He’s really making the most of this girlfriend experience. But somehow I don’t think it’s for show. His heart thuds against mine as we sway to the music.

We stay in the center of the crowd,
moving at our own pace regardless of the song changes. It’s nice having him hold me.  After several songs, he’s ditched his jacket, and rolled his sleeves up to his elbows, and I’ve slipped off my shoes, evoking a whole new round of comments on my height as if Reis had forgotten in the last few hours what my true height was.

The song changes, this one is slow and sweet. The lights
drop even lower to set the mood. Reis wraps his arms around my waist, pressing me close. His fingertips massage my lower back and he drops his head down to my ear. “How’s that feel?” he whispers.

“I like it,” I say back.

He moves with me, holding me against him. I’m very aware of our nearness. And the fact that I make no move to set any boundaries between us. Just his presence comforts me. Even though it probably shouldn’t.

“I want
to kiss you,” he whispers against my temple, giving me time to decide, time to say no, pull away, something. But I freeze in his arms, waiting in anticipation. He lowers his mouth flush with mine and gently presses forward. His lips are soft and slightly damp. A thrill runs through me settling in the base of my spine. His hands press into my lower back, urging me even closer and deepening the kiss. His kisses are different than Colt’s. He’s more eager, less controlled and not as precise as he tries to find the right angle to bring us together. But it’s nice. His tongue sweeps against mine and I turn off my brain, letting myself enjoy his kiss.

After our kiss on the dance floor, I made an excise to use the restroom and spent fifteen minutes locked in a stall nearly hyperventilating. I even considered calling Colt to confess. But Reis
finds me and talked me out, saying he’s sorry, he got caught up in the moment of pretending I was his girlfriend and it wouldn’t happen again, unless I wanted it to. I could almost believe that was all it was, until I caught sight of the mirror, and my flushed, swollen lips. I had no right to be breathless and warm from his kiss.

Once we get home, Mrs. Lee is gone. Reis failed to mention I was staying over, saying she’d be pissed. I remove my shoes and he carries my bag upstairs.
He drops it in the doorway to Colt’s room and gives me a quick hug goodnight, thanking me again for going with him. I can do little more than nod and murmur my agreement. I’m numb, confused and utterly disgraced that I kissed Reis. Or rather that I allowed Reis to kiss me. 

After changing into
shorts and a tank top I wash my face, then collapse onto the bed. I pull out my phone. I’ve missed three calls from Colt tonight. He knew it was the night of the dance, so I don’t know why he’d be calling. His name flashes on the screen. He’s calling again.

I answer it before I chicken out. “Hello?” Right away I can tell we have a bad connection. Static crackles in the background.

“Taylor?”

He never calls me by my name, instead choosing baby or another endearment.
It sends off warning signals in my brain.

“This trip…something happened…didn’t go as expected…”

“Colt? I can’t hear you, you’re breaking up.”

But he keeps going uninterrupted. “…between me and
Bria. I’m sorry.”

“What? What about you and
Bria?” I press the phone more tightly to my ear, waiting to hear my worst suspicion confirmed, that he and Bria had hooked up.

“I’m s
orry. I didn’t want to hurt you…but her and I…” he says before cutting off again. “I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

My heart slams against my chest, thudding painfully. After several seconds of silence, he speaks again. “Taylor, say something.”

While I try to figure out what there is to say, mercifully, the phone connection is lost just as the tears begin to flow and tumble down my cheeks.

I curl into a ball and sob into the pillow.
The pillow that still smells like Colt, which must be the universe’s idea of a sick joke.

“Shrimp?”
Reis peeks inside the cracked door.

When his eyes meet mine, he sees that I’m crying, and comes toward the bed.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have kissed you. I’ll tell Colt, it was my fault. You did nothing wrong.”

Yeah, nothing wrong, other than enjoy it and let it happen.
Stupid, Taylor. Stupid. That kiss shouldn’t have happened. I was still with Colt then.

“It’s not that,” I manage between sniffles.

“What’s wrong then, sweetheart?” He gently rubs my back, coaxing the words from me.

“I talked to Colt.”

His hand freezes on my back while he processes my words. Then he begins rubbing again. “Did he tell you?”

I sit up suddenly, tears staining my cheeks. “You knew?
About him and Bria?”

He nods.
“Yeah. I wanted to say something, but he wanted to be the one to tell you.”

I reach for the pillow and pull it to my chest, burying my face. Reis knew. Britt probably knew.
And of course Bria and is probably celebrating behind my back. I let the tears come, not even trying anymore to hold them back.

“
Shh, it’s going to be okay.” Reis continues rubbing the length of my back. “Everything will be fine when he gets home, you’ll see. You guys will figure this out.”

I lift my head from the pillow. “No. He’s messed up one too many times.”

I cry until I’m spent, emotionally and physically drained. Reis just sits quietly beside me, rubbing my back and smoothing my hair, and shushing away the harder sobs that rack my chest. Eventually when I quiet into just hiccups, he lies down beside me, cradling my body with his. A few minutes later, Reis gets up from the bed, untangling his limbs from mine.