Watching You: KJ Elite Inc. (15 page)

My hands went to the back of his neck and I stepped closer needing the comfort and warmth his body exuded.

“I didn’t tell anyone where I was going, not even Matt’s assistant knows where we are.”

“Doesn’t matter, they’ll find you.”

“No one in Devine is going to tell them where I am. Not to mention, no one even knows I’m here.”

“We can’t take that chance.”

“I haven’t even been to town yet, well, not openly. Just the hospital with Charlie but I was in a stupid disguise.”

“And it’s going to stay that way. I’m sorry, but you cannot leave.” I watched as his face softened a miniscule amount and then harden again clearly remembering why I couldn’t leave.

“Can I go to my parents?” I was prepared to fight to the death if he said no.

“Of course. You’re already on the property, no one is going to be here that shouldn’t be.”

“Then I’ll stay.”

“It wasn’t a question.”

Oh, he must forget who he is talking to.

“Would you rather me cooperate or kick you in the balls and make this a little interesting for you.” I raised a brow in defiant challenge.

“I like the interesting and the cooperation, I do not however like the ball kicking.”

“I’ll think about it.” I smiled and for a moment in time, it was like nothing had changed. He had smiled back at me and I felt like we were teenagers again. Of course, those were much simpler of times and there wasn’t a crazy stalker tracking my every move and threatening those who I loved. Well, there was one of those in high school, but he was a dipstick who got put in the nut house.

“Why don’t you go back to bed? I’ll be right here.” He asked nodding toward the bed, still holding onto me. His hands were stroking up and down my thighs, disappearing into my large sweater and then coming back down again to repeat, over and over, driving me crazy slowly, stoking the fire inside of me.

“I don’t want to sleep right now.”

“Tay.” Tommy said firmly, asserting his position.

“TJ.” I replied, asserting right back at him.

He stood putting one arm under my knees, one arm at my back and lifted me up as he stood straight, then carried me over to the bed. He placed me tenderly in the center without over exerting a single muscle. And good knight were there a lot of muscles; firm, fluid, sinewy and damn delicious looking.

Before he could pull away, I tugged him down and forced him to look into my eyes.

“Don’t make me cry.”

I stuck my lip out for effect. It didn’t work.

The jerk actually chuckled.

“That is not a threat. I’ve seen you cry and it’s not as ugly as everyone makes it out to be.”

“Why do you have to be so perfect and damn unattainable?”

“I’ve already been attained.” He cocked a brow and stood tall.

When I opened my mouth to reply he walked away back towards the rocking chair and blew the light back out plunging the room into black. Then he surprised me when he walked back to the side of the King sized bed and tugged at the neck of his shirt. He lifted it up, off his body, over his head and down his arms. I couldn’t help but strain my eyes trying to catch a peek. Without a word between us but a small giggle, Tommy pulled the covers out from under me and slipped in beside me pulling me into his side.

The house could have caught on fire or been swallowed whole in a twister in that very moment and I would not have moved an inch. His warmth seeping into me, his legs twining with mine and his strong arms wrapping around me holding me like a vice grip to his body, which was strictly muscle for what seemed like miles; the only sound I could hear was his breathing mixing with mine, becoming one. Plastered or not, I couldn’t stand to have this man away from me for one more instant and if he left right now, I would follow him like a sad, lost, little puppy. That’s all I was when he was away from me.

Trying desperately to hold onto this moment in case it were the last one I ever got with him like this, I stretched my arm across his chest and snuggled to him trying to get as close as I could without actually crawling into his skin; tucking myself into his side, like a puzzle piece, I laid my head upon his chest and the rhythmic beating of his heart was what lulled me to sleep.

Waking up the next morning I was alone and feeling rather sheepish. After my actions last night, it doesn’t surprise me that Tommy ran as fast as he could without a word. I rolled my lazy butt all the way to the edge and began to sit up throwing my legs over the edge when there was a knock at the door and I froze.

“Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey!” The voice called through the door cheerfully.

“If you have food, enter, if you do not, prepare to die a most painful death.” I grunted.

The door swung open with a bright eyed and chipper tailed Matthew strutting through the doorway beaming. Upon one look at me, he halted and put a hand in the air.

“Whoa.”

“What?” I snapped.

“Um, birds have found a new home. In your hair. What the hell were you doing?”

“Do you have food or not?”

He smiled again and walked back toward the door.

“I do not have food but your man is almost done cooking it and you have a visitor.”

With this he left and I heard the boots coming up the stairs. Looking around for some kind of reprieve I grabbed for the pair of boyshort undies Tommy had laid out for me, throwing them on and following up with a pair of grey sweats. Just as the boots hit the top landing I suddenly remembered the apparent bird’s nest in my hair and went to make a run for the bathroom when the booming voice slid into the room like honey in hot water.

“Taylor Ann Jameson. Well I’ll be hot damned.”

I turned as slowly and leisurely as I could when I saw a face that had grown so much in the past five years, I almost hadn’t recognized it.

I hadn’t even registered that my jaw was on the floor and when I picked it back up again, I stuttered, “L-Luke?” My eyes nearly bugged out of my head and I could have cried if I let go of the death grip on my girly emotions.

Flashing me that Kane grin I about lost my mind in his exuding maleness taking in every inch of his grown up, sexy as hell body, face to match and all the rippling muscles flowing from toe to six foot four top.

“At your mercy ma’am.”

“Son of a b--”

“Ah-ah!” He warned still grinning, throwing his arms out. “Woman you better come give me a hug before your twin gets here because he is pipin’ hot mad as hell right now.”

I didn’t pause to even give it a second thought; running straight over to him I threw my arms around his center and squeezed. I breathed him in, smelling sweat mixed with hay and a soft hint of his cologne. Old spice, the original scent. Damn did this little boy grow up. And up, and up, and up. Adulthood has done him quite nicely. Lucas was two years behind us in school and the smartest one of us all. The man standing before me, holding me, was the most absolute proof that nerd could be very, very hot.

Luke gave me an extra squeeze, kissed the top of my head and pushed me off of him toward the bathroom when we heard a truck pull up out front. I ran into the bathroom, pulled a brush through my strawberry blonde locks and threw it all up into a messy ponytail. Waiting for me, Luke extended his hand, smiled at me sweetly and pulled me with him down the stairs. Literally. If he hadn’t of been holding me up I probably would have tumbled all the way down them. Just as we reached the bottom landing, without so much as a knock, Tommy’s door was nearly knocked down by the force with which it was thrown open.

“Hey!” Tommy yelled at the intruder. “Respect the house or you can have this conversation yelling through the door.”

“Fuck you. Where is she?” Mostly angry but with a mix of disbelief. A fuming man who looked identical to me wearing his strawberry blonde hair in a high and tight, long sleeve plaid shirt rolled up to the elbows and jeans with muddy boots whipped his head around until he spotted me moving out from behind Luke.

First I saw outrage, then it shifted to annoyance and finally morphed into absolute love and relief.

“Say it ain’t so, Annie O.” Nearly plowing me over, he ran straight for me and enveloped me in the tightest bear hug in his arsenal. “Oh hell, sister.”

That was it. I simply couldn’t hold a single tear back any longer. Releasing a flood, my heart knew I was coming home but my head wasn’t quite in the loop yet.

“Ooh wee.” He sighed into my hair, alleviation breaking his voice.

“Dammit girl, we missed you somethin’ fierce.”

Peyton took a deep breath and placed a kiss on my head too.

"Why did I just find out?" He paused. “How you’ve been here, hiding out from a batshit crazy stalker for over a week now, with a friend.” I could hear the sadness in his voice. “You could have called you know? Instead of some text.”

“Wait,” I pulled back. “Someone text you? Who? And did they text mama or Miss Cyn?” Worry now snaked my words and at that he grimaced.

“Damn right, you better be worried, but no, not yet.”

I opened my mouth to pry it out of him but he put a finger over my lips and smiled wide.

“I ain’t no snitch but I will be more than happy to inform you of who it was that let us
all
know.”

He wiggled his eyebrows and I knew this was going to come at a cost.

“What?” I simply asked.

“Just the ending to your Ravage series.” He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. “I swear I’m gonna lose it if you don’t tell me who the killer is. I don’t give two fucks if they end up together or separated by a continent, I have to know who pulled all that shit off.”

Peyton’s eyes, a mirror image of my emerald green, glowed mischievously. I had hoped to keep my books a secret from everyone but in the end, it was really just Tommy I didn’t want to know. Why? Well, hell, even I hadn’t figured that one out yet. It wasn’t like he didn’t know I wrote or that it was my only dream. Well, not my only dream, I guess.

You know what they say about a woman scorned? I might not have been scorned per say, but a hurt woman can be just as crazy. I should have known though, that he would find me all on his own, eventually. He always did. Not a peep from the family or a subtle hint, he just knew all along. Tommy always knew me better than I knew myself and surely knew that he was the sole inspiration for the steamy scenes in every one of my books.

I laughed from the bottom of my belly and it threw my head back.

“Fine, you tell me first and then I’ll tell you.”

Peyton eyed me skeptically and he had damn good right to do so.

He leaned in real close and said, “Thomas James Kane,” pointing his finger backwards pegging my secret husband without even looking back.

I scowled at him then looked back to my twin and whispered in his ear, “I have no fucking idea. I know what they’re doing and when they’re doing it, I just haven’t figured out who I want it to be yet!”

After a few seconds of processing, Pey pulled back and smiled a stupid little smile that said he ought to have known better and he released me as if he were punishing me.

“You are one evil lady my little duplicate.”

I bowed and shot a smile back at him that was mirrored perfectly.

“You look good brother.”

We may be twins and we may not have one of those little languages other twins did, but we definitely had a sense of each other and we could communicate solely through looks. That was enough. And it drove our parents crazy!

“I’m glad you think so. I have been worried sick about you since I haven’t heard from you in two weeks.” I scoffed in disbelief thinking he was exaggerating.

“No, seriously Tay. He has been asking every one of us every twenty minutes for the past two weeks if we have heard from you. He was talking about buying a ticket up to New York when I text him.” Tommy spoke up.

Nice to know he still had a voice and remembered I was here.

“Thank God too, because I was going out of my mind.”

I hugged him to me again and gave an extra squeeze to show how much I appreciated his loving concern.

“I’m here. No worries.”

“That’s bullshit.” Matt, Tommy, Luke and Peyton all semi-shouted at the same time. I fought a laugh off, on the tail end of losing when Matty pointed out how I still had a stalker out there destined to find me and destroy my pretty little face. Putting on a brave front, I chanced a glance over at TJ and saw him watching me down the hall, while he continued frying bacon in the kitchen. I looked away before I had a chance to be disappointed.

Again.

Peyton began to pull away but instead picked me up so my feet dangled and began spinning while he hooted and hollered his joy and relief. I just couldn’t remember a time when I felt this protected or loved in the past, nearly, six years. This mini army of muscle bound men would never let a thing harm me, come hell or high water. That was a super advantage of being the only girl in the family. And they were all family.  

Pretending to be annoyed, I heaved out a sigh but he just kept spinning me around from room to room until we fell over onto the couch in the sitting room. We both fell into a fit of laughs and the rest of them joined in watching us try to move independently swaying to the left and falling over and over.