Chapter 17
Seventeen
Creeping along in the truck, Beck took one last trip around the perimeter of the property, shining his flashlight into the bushes and calling for Dash until he was almost as hoarse as Travis.
Beck felt utterly defeated. He hadn’t kept the vandals off the property, a man had been gravely injured, a million-dollar home reduced to rubble, and Travis’s beloved dog was missing.
When Travis first proposed the security chief job, Beck saw it as a bullshit post at a posh resort.
He’d scoffed at the freefall his career had taken, from FBI special agent to babysitter of the rich and pampered.
But once he saw what Travis was doing here, he wanted to be part of it.
Apparently, though, he couldn’t even do a bullshit job right.
Unable to think of anywhere else to look for Dash, he pulled into his parking space at the clubhouse and got out of the truck.
“Peter!”
At the sound of Jessie’s voice, he turned to her, remembering for the first time in hours what they had been on the verge of doing when she spotted the flames.
“Are you all right?” she asked, breathless from her jog across the parking lot.
“Yeah,” he croaked.
“Oh you sound awful!” She tucked the flashlight under her arm and reached out to him.
He took a step back. “I’m filthy.”
“I don’t care about that! I was so worried. It’d be just like you to run into a fire if someone needed you.”
“I had to tackle Travis to keep him out of there. We think Dash. . .”
“I know,” she said, caressing his face. “I heard. Is there anything I can do?”
He shook his head.
“Why are you blaming yourself for what someone else did?”
“Because! If I’d been here instead of frolicking at the beach with you this might not have happened.” He expected that to anger her, to force her to step back from him, but instead she looped her arms around his neck and held on tighter.
“You’re not allowed to take any time off?”
“That’s not the point,” he said, trying to shake her loose, but she wouldn’t budge.
“Come with me. Take a shower at my place, have something to eat.”
“I have stuff I need to do.”
“There’s nothing more you can do tonight, and you know it.” Her hands slid down over his arms to capture his hands. Walking backward, she led him to The Tower. He stopped her so he could grab a bag from the cab of his truck.
They were quiet as they rode the elevator to her apartment. Once there, she steered him in the direction of the bathroom and got out a towel for him.
“Take your time,” she said, reaching up to brush some dirt from his face.
“Thanks.”
In the shower, Beck hung his head under the spray, wishing it could wash away the shame and disgust that had plagued him since the vandals began targeting North Point.
When he thought about the man they’d found in the house, that someone could have been killed on his watch .
. . Beck shuddered and forced the thought from his mind.
Tomorrow they would start all over. They’d rework the patrol schedules, shake things up, and find the bastards who were doing this.
One way or another, he would find them and make them pay for causing Travis a minute of unease.
That was the part that bothered Beck the most—seeing Travis so upset.
He had poured his heart and soul into this place, not to mention millions of dollars.
And to see him weeping over his lost dog. . .
Beck dried off and pulled on the shorts and T-shirt he kept in the truck for emergencies.
Was this an emergency? It sure felt that way.
Jessie was waiting for him, but after what he said to her he wouldn’t blame her if she wanted nothing more to do with him.
That thought made him sadder than all the others put together as he prepared himself to face her.
While she was alone in Travis’s apartment, Liana called her mother.
“Hi, honey,” Agnes said.
“Did I wake you?”
“I wish. I’m studying.”
Liana chuckled. “That still sounds funny coming from you.”
“I’m glad you’re amused.”
Liana told her mother about the fire and how Dash was missing.
“Oh, honey, his beautiful dog!” Agnes cried. “He loves her so much.”
“I know,” Liana sighed. “He’s heartbroken. He’s out looking for her now.”
“Please tell him I’ll say a prayer for Dash tonight.”
“He’ll appreciate that. Were you out with David earlier?”
“Just for a quick dinner, and then I sent him home so I could study.”
“I’ll bet he can’t wait until you’re done. I wouldn’t be surprised if he asked you to marry him now that you’re out of the closet.”
“He asked me quite some time ago, actually.”
“Well, now you can say yes.”
“Can I?”
“Of course you can. I told you I want you to be happy, Mom. If David makes you happy then marry him.”
“Thank you, honey. Your support means everything to me.”
“I like knowing you have someone taking care of you when I can’t.”
“And I like having you right across town and in the same time zone as me.”
“Speaking of across town, Travis offered me a job coordinating weddings at North Point.”
“Did he now? What did you say?”
“Nothing yet. He asked me to think about it, but I don’t know.”
“What don’t you know?”
“If I’m ready to give up modeling, if I could handle planning a bunch of weddings all at once, if I could handle being with him every day.”
“I’d think that would be the easy part.”
“He didn’t say anything about us when he mentioned the job. It was strictly a business discussion.”
Agnes laughed. “Get real, Liana. He wants to keep you in his life, or he never would’ve offered you the job. He’s competing against the pull of your glamorous world with the only thing he’s got—his business and the life he’s building there.”
“I don’t think it has anything to do with us as a couple.”
“I saw the way he looks at you, Liana. Maybe you’re so used to men looking at you that you can’t see the difference in how he looks at you.”
Liana thought about the way he’d looked at her during the meeting with Justine and Tom. She had wondered then if what she saw in his eyes was love. Could that be what her mother had seen, too? “If he loves me why doesn’t he just say so?”
“Because he thinks you don’t want it, honey. You told him you’re going back to work next Sunday, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then he’s got to protect himself from getting hurt. If he tells you he loves you and you still leave, what’s he going to do?”
“I don’t know,” Liana said in a small voice.
“If you want him to love you, Liana, then make room in your life for him.”
“I don’t know if I’m ready to do that.”
“Until you figure it out, don’t expect him to throw himself at your feet and beg. He’s not that kind of man. If he was you wouldn’t be interested in him, and you certainly wouldn’t love him.”
“When did you get so smart? Is it all that college?”
Agnes laughed. “It’s called life, honey. It’s what you pick up along the way. Why don’t you just tell him how you feel?”
“I can’t,” Liana said with a sigh. “Not when I was the one who insisted on no strings.”
“Rules were made to be broken. Think about it.”
“I like knowing you’re right up the street, too, Mom.”
“Good luck with the wedding tomorrow. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you.”
“Keep them crossed for Justine, the bride. She’s got an inexperienced wedding coordinator overseeing the biggest day of her life.”
“You’ll be great,” Agnes assured her. “Travis wouldn’t let you do it if he didn’t think you could handle it.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence. Let’s do something on Sunday, okay?”
“It’s a date.”
Liana hung up and hugged the phone to her chest. She pulled her feet up under her and rested her head against the back of the sofa.
If you want him to love you then make room for him.
Her mother’s words of wisdom echoed through her mind while she waited for Travis to come back.
She hurt for him as she imagined him out in the dark searching for his beloved dog.
He had been gone for more than an hour when Liana heard the elevator chime to announce his return. She held her breath, hoping he would have Dash with him.
But the doors opened, and Travis walked into the apartment by himself, his head hung with despair.
Liana got up and went to him. “No sign of her?”
He fell into her embrace. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I said those things to you.”
She kissed his cheek, his forehead, his lips. “You’re worried about Dash. I understand.”
“I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”
Cradling his face in her hands, she kissed away his apology. “You were right about something.”
“I was?”
“Uh huh,” she said as she kissed him again. “I knew you’d be there for me if we got more than we bargained for out of our fling.”
“I would be,” he insisted.
“I know, Travis,” She buried her fingers in his hair. “I know that.”
He held her tight for a long, quiet moment.
“How would you feel about helping me out with another new experience?” she asked with a coy smile.
“What’s that?”
She tugged on the button to his jeans. “Make-up sex.”
“Oh,” he said with one of those grins she loved even if his eyes were still sad. “That’s the best kind.”
“So I’ve heard.”
He scooped her up and carried her to bed.
An hour later, Liana lay facing him. “Travis?”
He didn’t open his eyes when he said, “Hmm?”
“Can we fight again tomorrow?”
He laughed, reached for her hand, and held it to his chest. “I’m sure we’ll have words during the wedding.”
“I hope so,” Liana said with a yawn.
“So I guess this means you like make-up sex.”
“Oh yeah. I’ve definitely been missing out.”
“Thanks for taking care of me tonight and for putting up with me.”
“You’re pretty tough to put up with.” She tugged her hand free of his so she could caress his tired face. “My mother wanted me to tell you she’s going to say a prayer for Dash tonight.”
“That’s good. Make sure you thank her for me.”
“I will.”
“You’re too far away over there.”
Liana moved into his arms and sighed with contentment as a light bay breeze drifted in though the open bedroom windows.
She rubbed his back and his breathing grew heavy with sleep.
Liana fought to stay awake, wanting to watch him sleep and enjoy being held by him.
Soon enough she would be sleeping alone again, and she’d be left with only memories of moments such as this.
Even in sleep he was so handsome she couldn’t resist skimming her hand lightly over his face.
If I were going to make room for anyone it would be you.
I just don’t know if I’m ready. If only we had more time and everything didn’t feel so urgent.
I’m so busy trying to decide what to do about you I’m afraid I’ll stop enjoying you.
I can’t let that happen. I need to live in the present and stop worrying about the future.
After all, the future will take care of itself.
At least I hope so. She smoothed the hair off his forehead and touched her lips to his.
He awakened with a start, his eyes holding hers with an intensity that stopped her heart.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”
With his hand buried in her hair he brought her mouth to his, devouring her as he rolled her under him and took her to the place she could only go with him.