The Negotiator (22 page)

Taking a deep breath, he forced the air way down into his lungs and calmed the racing of his heart. Now wasn’t the time, but it would come. As sure as night followed day, his time would come.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Cally pulled a sheet over Jack and leaned down to press a kiss against his cheek. His eyelids fluttered, but he remained asleep. With a soft sigh, she left the bedroom, pulling the door closed behind her. Andy was sprawled on the couch.

“How is he?” he asked.

Heat crept over her cheeks. Memories of their kiss were still fresh, no matter how hard she tried to push them to the far recesses of her mind. She averted her gaze. Nerves jangled in her belly, but she cleared her throat and forced herself to answer.

“He’s fine. I think he was asleep again before his head hit the pillow.”

“Come here, Cally.” The words were uttered softly, but there was no escaping the intensity of feeling in the dark eyes that captured hers.

Jittery as a virgin, she walked slowly toward him. Her heart hammered so loudly, she was sure he could hear it and her palms were suddenly damp with perspiration. Perching herself on the very edge of the couch, as far away from him as possible, she drew in a deep breath.

“I’m not going to bite.” He grinned and patted the spot next to him.

She moved about half an inch closer. Humor tugged at his lips. Their eyes meshed again and she could no longer drag hers away. She watched in fascination as the laughter faded and was replaced by hot, molten desire.

“What are you afraid of, Cally?” he whispered, his voice husky.

She shrugged wordlessly.

His voice pitched lower. “Do you even know?”

Again, she shrugged, unable to form the words.

“Do you know what I think?”

She tore her gaze away, not at all sure she wanted to hear what he had to say.

“Look at me, Cally,” he commanded softly.

Her gaze met his again and her heartbeat doubled its pace. She waited for him to speak.

“I think you’re afraid to trust your heart. You’ve been wrong in the past and you don’t know if you can risk being wrong again. Am I right?”

She screwed her eyes shut. “Maybe.” Her voice was a ragged whisper. All at once, her fears overwhelmed her and her breath came out in a rush. He was there in an instant, sliding across the old leather couch to take her into his arms.

At first, the tears fell slowly, but when he pulled her into his lap and cradled her head against his chest, it was like a dam had suddenly broken. She sobbed against the soft cotton of his T-shirt. She couldn’t even remember the last time she’d been held tenderly by a man. In fact, she didn’t think she’d ever been held that way.

“
Shh,
” he whispered, his lips moving against her hair.

She tried to bring a halt to them, but the shuddering sobs continued. His shirt was wet beneath her cheek and still, the tears kept falling.

“It’s okay. Let it all out, sweetheart. I bet you haven’t cried properly since it happened.”

She shook her head and murmured her disagreement. Her words were muffled against his shirt. Gently tilting her chin up, his gaze met hers.

“I’m sorry? I didn’t catch that. Were you trying to tell me something?” His eyes were now soft and teasing.

She offered him a shaky grin. Relief flooded his face. She swiped at her eyes. “I said, you’re wrong. I can’t remember how many nights I cried myself to sleep during those first few months.”

Snuggling back against his chest, she whispered hoarsely. “I was only a teenager, pregnant and abandoned by everyone I thought loved me. I was so scared—for me and for the baby. I didn’t know what was going to happen.”

Andy’s arms tightened about her. She drew in a shaky breath and continued. “And then Aunt Mary saved me. She must have heard me crying, night after night, but she never said anything. Instead, she came to me one evening just after dinner and told me how glad she was that I’d come to stay with her.”

Cally turned her tear-stained face up to his. “As if it had been my choice. As if there was no scandal. As if it was perfectly normal for me to arrive on her doorstep, pregnant and unloved, and move into her life.” Her voice cracked.

“She told me she understood how scared I was feeling and how she was there to help me in any way she could. She told me to think about my unborn baby and to try, for just a little time each day, to feed him a bit of happiness.”

‘Babies feel your emotions, Cally,’ she told me. ‘You don’t want your baby to be swimming in your sadness. I know it feels like you’re never going to be happy again, but you will, dear girl, trust me. And until you actually feel like smiling again, you need to force yourself to think at least one happy thought a day.’

“She knew exactly what to say to me, Andy. She knew if I only thought about myself and the mess my life was in, I wouldn’t have made the effort to come to terms with the position I found myself in. She knew by bringing Jack into it, I’d find the strength from somewhere to drag myself out of the depths of the blackness and head toward the light, at least for a little while each day.”

He murmured against the softness of her hair. “She loved you.”

“Yes.” She sighed heavily. “She did.”

* * *

“So what happened? How did you and Jack end up in Sydney?”

They were still on the couch, but Andy had maneuvered them backwards until they lay stretched out with Cally tight against his side. She breathed in his spicy, sun-kissed scent and took comfort from the reassuring feel of his heart beating solidly beneath her cheek.

“My aunt got Alzheimer’s.”

His arms tightened around her. “Oh, how awful. For all of you.”

“Yes. It was. At first, we barely noticed anything different, but it’s an insidious disease. When it took a hold of her, it didn’t let go.” She shuddered.

His voice was quiet. “She needed specialists’ care.”

“Yes. The house was sold to cover the costs. Jack and I moved into a little apartment on the outskirts of town. It was only a bed-sit, really. A tiny bedroom, a bathroom and one room for everything else. It was cheap though, which was all that mattered.”

“How long were you there?”

Sadness filled her. “My aunt died about six months after she went into the nursing home. I guess it was a blessing in a lot of ways. Toward the end, most days she didn’t even know who we were.”

“What brought you to Sydney? It’s a long way from Armidale.”

Her smile turned wistful. “I don’t know exactly. I’d had enough of small country towns and I was looking for something different. For once in my life, I wanted to be able to walk down the street without anyone recognizing me. I might have moved to the next town, but the rumors followed me.”

She sighed. “My father was well known amongst the university community that made up so much of the population of Armidale. Jack was eight then, but there were still plenty of pitying looks and whispers behind covered mouths as people recalled who I was—the girl who’d brought such shame to her family, the daughter of the upstanding principal of Watervale High.”

Twisting her head, she looked up at him. “I wanted anonymity. What better place to find it than the biggest city in Australia?”

Andy grinned down at her. “You have that right. I couldn’t even tell you the names of the people who live in my condominium block. How’s that for anonymity?”

Cally smiled back at him. “Exactly. But you know, sometimes it’s nice to meet a familiar face. I guess I do miss that a little bit.”

“How often do you go back?”

She bit her lip. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “We haven’t been back to Armidale since my aunt died. I’ve never been back to Watervale.”

His arms tightened around her again and his lips pressed against her hair. “Thank you for telling me.”

They lay in silence, listening to the sounds of the old house as it settled in for the night. Her eyes were sore and heavy. A day at the beach, topped with her emotional outburst had left her drained and exhausted. The comforting feel of Andy’s warm chest and the strong, steady beat of his heart made her feel safe and secure. Her eyes drifted closed.

* * *

Cally’s breathing deepened. Andy moved slightly, trying to find a more comfortable position. Protectiveness surged through him. It hadn’t been easy for her to relive memories that brought her so much pain—just as it hadn’t been for him. He couldn’t help but admire her courage.

She’d been abandoned by everyone she’d loved—her jerk of a boyfriend, her callous parents. Even her beloved aunt had abandoned her in death. And yet, she’d risen above it, proving she was a fighter. She’d finished her schooling and had gone to college. She’d secured a job in her profession. She’d raised a son almost on her own and had forged a life for them both.

Lately, times had been a little tough, but she hadn’t given up. She’d found a second job and when that hadn’t resolved their problems, she’d come up with another solution.

He couldn’t help feeling grateful that it had been him she’d come to that night, asking for permission to hang up her notice. That small stroke of luck meant he now found himself in this moment—lying on a couch in the dark with the woman of his dreams in his arms.

He smiled softly at the irony of him growing up in Tamworth with Cally living only an hour away and couldn’t help but wonder what might have happened if their paths had crossed earlier.

Despite the numerous government-funded therapists he’d endured as a child during the long, uncertain years after the shootings, the wounds he carried from that awful time were still bone deep. The dark moments when he blamed himself for what had happened and questioned whether he deserved to find happiness would catch him off guard when he least expected it and he would see once again his little sister—beautiful, innocent Grace—who hadn’t been given such a chance.

After telling Cally about his past, the pain didn’t hurt quite so much, but it was still there, just like the pain he felt each time he thought of Wayne Tucker. He squeezed his eyes shut against the rush of memories of what had occurred earlier in the week.

Tom and the other negotiators had assured him it was normal; that the self-blame of losing a man you were responsible for never went away. Over time, it lessened, but it was best if he accepted it would always be a part of his life.

It was what made his job matter. It spurred him on to try again, to try and eradicate the pain of failure, with the sweet relief of success. Tom had urged Andy yet again to focus on his successes. It was the only way to survive.

Andy hoped Tom knew what he was talking about. He couldn’t bear to think about giving up his job. From the time he was ten, he’d wanted to be a negotiator; he wanted to prove they could win. Time and time again, he had. And then Wayne Tucker had happened…

Andy sighed heavily and resettled himself on the couch in an effort to get comfortable. Cally’s face was peaceful in sleep. Even though his arm had gone numb beneath her, he was loathe to wake her. Resigning himself to lying there a little longer, he closed his eyes and also sought the succor of sleep.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Andy’s cell phone rang, waking him from a deep sleep. It had been way past late when he woke on the couch with Cally still asleep in his arms. He’d carefully carried her to her bedroom, knowing she’d be more comfortable there. For long moments, he’d stared down at her sleeping form, praying for the day he could join her. Now, he reached for his phone on the nightstand and glanced at the caller ID.

It was Will.

“Hey, mate. A bit early to be calling, isn’t it?”

“Yes, sorry, but I couldn’t wait to tell you. Savannah went into labor early this morning. I’m a father! I have a son!”

A pang of envy went through Andy, even as he smiled at the excitement and awe in Will’s voice. “Congratulations, that’s great news,” he said and meant it. “I assume everything went well?”

“Aside from the fact he arrived a couple of weeks early, everything’s fine. Savannah’s resting and Cole’s screaming the hospital down. For such a little fellow, he has a darn fine set of lungs.”

Andy’s heart clenched. “You named him after your brother.”

Will’s voice was rough with emotion. “Yeah. Cole Dylan, after
my brother and Savannah’s.”

Andy recalled the heartaches Savannah and Will faced a little over a year earlier when each of them lost their only sibling in tragic circumstances.

“He sounds perfect,” Andy said, his voice thick.

“He
is
perfect,” Will replied quietly. “He looks just like his mother.”

* * *

Cally pulled the back door closed quietly behind her and double-checked the lock before walking with Jack toward their car. She hadn’t seen Andy that morning and could only assume he was still asleep. Thrusting aside the surge of disappointment, she focused on the check she had in her handbag and reminded herself to look in the phone book after work and find a tire dealer. She hadn’t seen a whisker of the blue Camry since Andy moved in, but driving around without a spare still made her nervous.

Climbing in, she reached over the back to unlock Jack’s door. The remote control on her car keys died a long time ago and she didn’t have the money to replace it. She was lucky her early model Toyota could be opened manually, otherwise she’d have to get it fixed. Just another occasion when the money didn’t stretch as far as it needed to.

But that could all change now with the check Andy had given her. It would certainly come in handy for the many things they needed and had gone a long time without. She still couldn’t believe he’d paid so much rent in advance. He was either a good saver or police work paid more than she’d assumed.

A third possibility occurred to her and she frowned. He could have borrowed the money off a friend, like he’d borrowed the truck and trailer. He could be trying to impress her with his wealth when all along, he was as broke as she was.

That would explain his reluctance to show them his condominium. If he did live in Bondi, which she was now beginning to seriously doubt, it was probably in some awful dump at the bottom of someone else’s basement. She’d been warned about places like that by one of the realtor’s she’d contacted when she’d been in the rental market herself.