Chapter 16
Heather stretched luxuriously and Scott watched in amazement at the beauty of her limbs. Even with the odd spots of burned skin. After the hard and fast in the kitchen, he’d taken his time to explore every gorgeous inch of her. It had been amazing. As good as the first time in Vermont, maybe even better.
How would she feel now? Earlier she’d been out of her mind with anger and despair. Had that been why she’d been wild and reckless? Or had she finally decided he wasn’t such a bad guy after all? They had started something before the house blew up.
Damn and fuck. Who the hell had blown up her house? The red tape, accidents, even accusing him of assault had been minor compared to this. Someone had tried to kill them. Or had it only been her and he’d been collateral damage? No way he’d sit around and let someone hurt Heather. She was beginning to mean something to him. Maybe she had for a while but he’d simply been too stupid to notice.
Running his finger over her exposed skin, he wondered if she’d want to continue this relationship. It was a question he’d been asking himself too. Both Jack and Chris were enjoying wedded bliss, making it look easy and exciting. He’d always figured it was something he’d do much later in life. Get his career in shape and enjoy being free before he chained himself to a woman forever.
Stroking Heather’s arm, he wondered if she wanted that too. Her independence had always been strong. She took great pride in not relying on anyone else for anything. He wouldn’t mind having her lean on him, occasionally.
“Mmm,” she hummed and turned onto her back. One eye opened, a smile lighting her face when she saw him. “That’s nice. Don’t stop.”
“Your wish is my command.” Lowering the sheet to her waist, he skimmed his lips over her neck to her throat then finally reached the stiff peaks that always made his dick turn to concrete.
“Fulfilling my wishes now, are we?”
“Absolutely.”
Her eyes stared at a spot on the ceiling and began to darken. She must be thinking about the house explosion again. Best get her mind on something else.
For the next half hour he did his best to distract her by playing with her body. And she played right back. God, this woman was refreshing, fun, and didn’t seem to have any hang-ups about exploring her sexuality.
As he lay replete with her straddling his hips, holding herself up with her hands on his chest, he again thought about forever. He didn’t think he’d ever get tired of her sparkling personality and sarcastic wit. It stimulated him.
Her wiggling hips did that too. How the hell did she get him this excited in such a short period of time?
“If you keep doing that, princess, I’ll have to flip you over and go for round three.”
Her sassy smile twitched. “I think it might be round four.”
Shit, she was right. He’d have no energy left if they kept going. It was only…he glanced at the clock…damn, it was after nine. It was a work morning and he’d been hanging out in bed.
“Good thing my boss is an understanding guy,” he said, sitting up, licking a path across her shoulder.
Heather chuckled. “My boss is a real bitch, but I think she has a thing for you. Could you get me out of trouble for not being there on time?”
“Sure, I can start right now.” Running his hands up her back, he pulled her closer, kissing her soundly. The ringing of the doorbell broke through the passionate haze, and he groaned.
“Don’t answer it,” she begged, her own hands running over his shoulders then down his back.
That sounded perfect, but after what happened last night with her house, it could be something important.
Scooting out of bed, he lowered her down to the mattress and kissed her lips. “Stay here. I’ll deal with whoever it is.” Pulling his discarded sleep pants on, he hoped round four wouldn’t be too far away.
The bell buzzed again as he walked toward it, a T-shirt in his hands. He’d grabbed it to put it on then realized the front of his pants tented out dramatically. Best use it to hide his condition.
He opened the door to Heather’s parents and sister standing there, concern etched all over their faces. Had Heather called them?
“Mr. and Mrs. Silva, Charlotte, come in.” Now he was glad he had the T-shirt, though the sight of her parents here did plenty to deflate him.
“We’re assuming Heather is here,” Mr. Silva said, his tone filled with both strength and fear.
They all moved into the living room and Heather’s mom held her hand to the pearls around her neck. “She never called to say they were releasing her from the hospital.”
“We called this morning and they said she’d been discharged,” Domenic stated. “With you. Is she here?”
“I’m here, Dad,” Heather said, as she walked past the dining set to them. She wore one of his button-down shirts that hung almost to her knees. Nothing else.
“Darling,” Mrs. Silva cooed, rushing over to Heather and wrapping her in a hug. “We were worried. Why didn’t you call us to come get you?”
“I’m sorry, Mom, Dad.” She hugged her father then Charlotte. “Things were crazy and I was more than a little overwhelmed. I let Scott take care of me and handle everything.”
“How are you feeling now?” Charlotte asked.
“And why didn’t you come home?” Her mother’s posture was stiff, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.
Tugging on a button of his shirt, she said, “I’m better. Scott offered to let me stay here since I obviously couldn’t go back to my house.”
Tears filled her eyes and he wanted to rush over, hold her. Her sister filled in for him.
“I brought you stuff to wear,” Charlotte said, holding up a bag she’d brought in with her. It had the Silvaggio’s name on it. “Figured you wouldn’t have much with you.”
“We would have been here sooner except Charlotte insisted on stopping at the downtown store to get you these.” A frown appeared as he glanced at his youngest daughter.
Scott searched Heather’s face to see if she was embarrassed to be found in his apartment, wearing his shirt. It didn’t appear that way.
“Thank you, Char,” Heather said, taking the bag from her sister. “I think I’ll get dressed if everyone doesn’t mind.”
“I’ll come with you,” Charlotte answered, her impish grin directed at her parents.
Great, that left him alone with Heather’s parents. From the curious look on Charlotte’s face it might be a while before Heather satisfied her sister’s questions.
“Can I offer you some coffee, Mr. and Mrs. Silva?”
Heather’s dad sighed and nodded. “I’d love some. And please, it’s Domenic and Nicoletta.”
Moving his hands to indicate they should sit on the couch, Scott shuffled toward the kitchen. The T-shirt was still in his hands so he pulled it over his head and began to make coffee. Looked like round four was being postponed due to interference. Damn.
* * * *
“Thanks for bringing me something to wear,” Heather said as they entered Scott’s bedroom. “I was wearing a tank and shorts. They’re covered in burn holes.”
Charlotte glanced around. “A girl’s got to have something better to wear than—” She pointed to Scott’s shirt that Heather had grabbed when she’d heard her dad’s voice. “Although you are totally rocking the boyfriend look.” Plopping on the bed, Heather reached in the bag taking out a sundress, shorts, a few tops, and half a dozen pair of lacy underwear. A pair of strappy flat sandals rested at the bottom of the bag.
“I wasn’t sure what you’d be in the mood for so I got a few things.”
After pulling the tags off, she slid the panties up her legs then took off Scott’s shirt. Charlotte’s gasp had her looking over her shoulder to where her sister gaped at her back. The burns. She’d forgotten they were there. Well, she hadn’t actually forgotten, but many other things took precedence over a little sting.
“Scott pulled us out in time, but we got hit with the blast. They’re minor, though, so don’t worry.”
Her sister’s expression was still one of concern as Heather slipped into the sundress. It was light and airy and didn’t cling too much to her damaged skin. Although it certainly was short. Charlotte always did like to show a little leg. Hers were spectacular.
“No bra, huh?” She peeked in the bag again.
“Sorry.” Charlotte grinned and looked down at her own small chest. “I never think along those lines.”
The sisters weren’t that dissimilar in height, but even though Heather was thin, she had some meat on her bones. Charlotte was wisplike and ethereal, almost fragile. A heart condition had kept her from being too physically active. Their parents had basically spoiled her growing up. Even more than Scott thought she was spoiled.
“So, how was it?”
Turning, she tilted her head at Charlotte’s question. “How was what? Getting my house blown up?”
Charlotte rolled her eyes. “No, sex with the stud out there.”
Heat rushed to her face and she turned away to buckle one of the sandals. “Who says we had sex?”
“There’s only one bedroom.”
“What if Scott was a gentleman and slept on the couch?”
Laughing, Charlotte said, “Please, this room reeks of sex. Don’t try and deny it.”
“How do you know what sex smells like?” She and Charlotte were close but Heather liked to keep her sex life private. Especially since Charlotte was four years younger than her.
“I’m not a little girl anymore, Heather.”
“You’re only twenty-three.”
Lifting her nose in the air Charlotte sniffed, ignoring Heather’s words. “And it’s strong. You guys must have done it at least twice, right?”
More heat rose to her face.
“Three times?” Charlotte’s voice rose in excitement.
“We were going for four when you got here. Although the first time was in the kitchen.”
Charlotte pretended to swoon then fanned her face. “With the color of your face, I’m assuming it was good.”
“That’s none of your business, little sister. Now we should probably go and rescue Scott from Mom and Dad.”
A thoughtful look crossed her sister’s face. “Dad will be cross-examining him on his intentions toward you. Mom will be having an apoplectic fit because Scott doesn’t have the right breeding and manners.”
“Too bad for both of them. It’s our lives and we can decide what we want from it.”
Charlotte stopped her before she opened the bedroom door. “And what do you want?”
With Scott, she didn’t know. That would have to play out in real time. “I want my house back.”
“I’m so sorry, sweetness,” Charlotte said, as she wrapped her arms around Heather’s waist. “I was trying to keep your mind off that.”
“I know.” She nodded.
Their parents were sitting at the dining table with coffee cups and cinnamon rolls in front of them when they came out of the bedroom. Heather poured a cup, grabbed a piece of pastry, and sat with them. Charlotte nosed around the kitchen.
“Where’s Scott?”
Her mother pointed to the bathroom. “He’s taking a shower.”
The water wasn’t running so he must be done. Which meant he’d be coming out any second with a towel wrapped around his gorgeous body. Good thing Charlotte was in the kitchen. Heather had seen how her younger sister ogled him when they first got here and he was bare chested.
The bathroom door opened and Scott came out, fully dressed, a pair of light brown Carhartts paired with a black T-shirt.
“Where—?” she began, tilting her head in question.
“I had clean clothes in the dryer.”
His hair had been hastily rubbed with a towel and the waves stood out in a few spots. She wanted to run her fingers through it, push it back into place. Having her parents here prohibited that, for now. Perhaps at some point in the future.
“Have they figured out what caused your house to explode?” her dad asked, setting his coffee cup down on the table.
“Scott and I smelled gas right before it happened. There must have been a leak.” How much did she want to tell her parents about what had been happening? They knew there’d been a few paperwork snafus, but she hadn’t confided the rest because she didn’t want to worry them.
“Whenever you’re ready, we can bring you home.” Her mother took a dainty sip from her coffee. The large ceramic mug looked out of place in Nicoletta Silva’s hand. She was used to fine china or porcelain.
“I need to check in at the office then do some errands.” She’d lost everything in that explosion. Where did she even start?
“I can drive you around,” Charlotte offered. “You can even stay with me at my apartment if you want.”
“It might be better to stay at home. I have lots of people who can help you get things settled.”
“I appreciate that, Dad, Charlotte. But I need to do this myself. I’m not sure staying with either of you is the best thing for me.”
“You’re not thinking of staying in a hotel, dear, are you?” her mother said with disapproval in her eyes. “How would that look if you didn’t stay with your family?”
Sneaking a peek at Scott, who kept his face neutral, she took a deep breath. “I think I’ll stay with Scott.”
All eyes swung to him. His calm demeanor was only disturbed by a tiny twitch of his lips as he said, “You’re more than welcome here, Heather.”
“I’m not sure you’re thinking this through well enough,” her father said, disapproval now apparent in his expression. “No offense to Scott, but he’s had a nasty brush with the law recently.”
“If you’re talking about the assault charges, they’ve been dropped. The woman admitted she lied to the police.”
Scott’s posture was so stiff he could pass for a mannequin. Why wasn’t he defending himself?
“Even so, dear, it simply wouldn’t be right.”
“That I’m staying with a guy? Please, Mom, this isn’t the Victorian era. And I honestly feel safer here with Scott. I wouldn’t want any of you to get hurt.”
“Why would we get hurt?” her father thundered, his eyes blazing. “Is there something you aren’t telling us?”
Sitting up straight, Scott cleared his throat. “We’ve had some mishaps on this new construction venture. At first we thought they were all coincidence, but between the bogus charges against me and Heather’s house, it might be more than that.”
“You’re saying someone might be trying to kill you? Both of you? Are the police aware of this?”
“The prosecutor who was trying my case is aware someone had it out for me, trying to put me in jail. She wanted us to let her know if anything else questionable happened. I consider this questionable. I was planning to speak with her and the police today. And my cousin, Jack, still has friends in the FBI. He’ll be contacting them.”
“Hearing this new information, I definitely think you need to stay with us, Heather.”
“I don’t want to, Dad. I don’t want any of you getting hurt because of me.”
“Then give up this project. It’s not worth getting killed over.”
“I agree, but it’s too late now,” she told her father. “We’ll be looking further into what the building was used for and who might want us out. I’m not losing the money I put into the project because I’m scared.”
“No money is worth your life.”
“Now that I’m involved it may not matter if I stop the project.”
“Then I’ll get a security guard to be with you.”
“With all due respect, sir,” Scott started, “I can keep her safe. I’ve got military training and I know what to look for.”
“How safe did you keep her when her house blew up?”
“Dad.” She reached over, squeezing her father’s hand. “If it wasn’t for Scott, I’d be dead right now. He stopped by to check on me. He was the one who smelled the gas and got us out of there. I was ready to wait and call the gas company but he wouldn’t even let me get my phone before he grabbed me and ran.”
“Which is why you didn’t answer when we called,” her mother said.
Her father took a deep breath in then exhaled slowly. “I didn’t realize. Thank you, Scott, for saving Heather’s life. I still don’t like the idea of her not being with us but I guess I have to respect her wishes.”
Wow, she hadn’t expected that from her dad. Was he finally seeing her as more than his little helpless girl?
Looking at Scott, he said, “I’m trusting you to keep her safe. And if you need any of my resources, do not hesitate to ask. Whether it’s money, people I know, or simply vehicles or tools, they’re yours if you need them.”
“Thank you, sir,” Scott said. “I promise I’ll do everything I can to keep her safe. And find out who’s behind this. She’s come to mean a lot to me.”
Scott had come to mean a lot to her too. But what exactly was she to him? A friend, business partner, lover, more? She wished she knew, not only for him but for herself.