Broken Pasts (5 page)

“
Jamie!”
I said as I grabbed her arm. “Knock it off. Sorry, Mr.
Sutherland,” I said, wondering if he was going to quit right
then and there. His smile was back though and he seemed amused
rather than offended. “Please, just eat your food and go. I
have to shower and get down to the office.” Jamie scoffed at
me.

“
It's
your day off!” she protested as Nathaniel resumed his quiet,
unassuming tough guy position. Thing was, he was just too damned
good looking to really blend into the furniture. It was a nice try
though. “Now I'm definitely not leaving until you tell me why
you're going in today. That's complete bullshit, Theresa.” A
knock at the door was all the excuse I needed to slip around her and,
with Nathaniel in tow, have him check out the peephole.

“
It's
a package,” he told me with a frown. “Are you expecting
anything?” I shook my head, my cold, wet hair flying around my
face. I must've looked like a disaster in my horrible, pink
nightmare of a robe. Jamie was completely off her rocker if she
thought anyone would find me attractive in it. “If you'll
excuse me,” he said as he opened the door and checked the
address label. “Gary Harper sent this,” he said and his
mood completely switched gears. I hadn't seen him serious yet. This
was serious to him. His full lips were stretched into an angry frown
and his green eyes were dark. “My suggestion would be to get
rid of it immediately. If you would like to see what's in it, I'll
open it for you.” Jamie came up next to us but said nothing.

“
I
… ” I wanted to take Nathaniel's advice, but part of me
was curious.
Curiosity killed the cat, remember, Theresa?
“Can
we please open it?” I was obviously an idiot. Just take a
look at my dating history and you'll see. Nathaniel nodded briskly
and pulled a pocket knife from his coat. He sliced the tape on the
top and folded back the cardboard. Inside was a mound of white
peanuts that he carefully pushed aside until he found the contents.
There were a couple of stuffed animals, a stack of video games, boxes
of chocolate and books of pornography. It was an odd assortment,
certainly, and it scared the crap out of me. There was also a note
which Nathaniel read and then passed to me.

Dear
Theresa,

You
know that I love you with all of my heart. The more time we spend
apart, the more I realize this. I want to have a family with you and
Rhea. Just because you're a barren witch doesn't mean we can't adopt
more children. I think about you every moment of the day and during
the night I –

I
crumpled the page up in my fist and only stopped when Nathaniel
wrapped his warm hand around mine. Despite the disturbing contents
of the note, my blood rushed to my head and I felt dizzy on my feet
as I looked up and found his eyes. There was strength there and even
if it was only for hire, for the moment, it was mine. I stood there
absorbing his gaze, enjoying the lingering touch of his hand.

“
You'll
need this for evidence,” he told me as he carefully unfolded my
fingers and pulled the paper out, straightened it, and put it in his
pocket.

“
Throw
it away,” I said, trying not to let him see how disturbed I
was. “Just throw it all away.”

CHAPTER 6

By
six o'clock that same night, I had taken most of Nathaniel's
suggestions. I had gone to the police station, changed my phone
number and my e-mail, installed chain locks on the doors, and asked
Glen to take Rhea for the week. I just hoped she wouldn't hold it
against me, but I knew it was for the best. It was either that or
hire another guard to follow her to school and I knew she'd never
forgive me for that. I had decided not to stop by the office and
check in which meant tomorrow, there would be chaos. Right now,
however, all I was concerned with was getting into something comfy
and relaxing with a glass of wine. Or a bottle.

“
I
could get used to this,” I said as I sat in the back of
Nathaniel's Chrysler. “Having someone drive me around, I mean.
This is nice.” I caught his smile in the rearview mirror and
even though his eyes were fully focused on the road, I would swear
that he was looking right at me. Since I knew that was impossible, I
took a moment to straighten out my dress and fluff my hair. When I'd
finally gotten the chance to clean myself up and come out of the
bathroom, Nathaniel's eyes had definitely lingered. And I mean more
than in just a professional sense.
He checked you out, Theresa.
There was no doubt in my mind about that.

“
I'm
glad you're enjoying yourself,” Nathaniel said and his voice
was low and sexy, like we were lovers rather than strangers. “My
partner, Cedric, likes to tell his clients that they should try to
think of him as a help rather than a hindrance.” He paused and
as I watched him in the rearview, he ran his tongue gently over his
lower lip. “Sometimes it's hard to adjust, especially for
people that are used to doing everything for themselves, but that's
what we're here for, to take the burden off your shoulders so that
you can relax.” We hit the roundabout near my house and
started looping around towards my street.

“
I'll
try,” I said as I watched the neighborhood flash by. Most of
the houses still had their Christmas lights up, twinkling like tiny
stars on the eaves of houses, across the fences that were never meant
to keep anyone out, and strung over bushes and mailboxes in a sea of
green and red. “A glass of wine or two should go a long way to
accomplishing that goal. I think that – ” As we
approached my house, I saw the white car parked across the street.
It was the same one Gary had been driving the night before. “That's
him,” I told Nathaniel, trying to stay calm. I couldn't
pretend that Gary was just heartbroken, that he was just a lonely man
desperate for attention. Not anymore. The note had been …
horrible, sick even. Seeing that car there terrified me more than I
wanted to admit. “What do I do?” I looked into the
rearview mirror for help. Nathaniel was frowning and his face was
back to that serious stillness he had exhibited with the package.

“
Unfortunately,”
he told me and I knew I was not going to like what he had to say.
“The difficulty with stalking cases is that we can't do
anything. As bizarre as you and I know his behavior is, the law
can't and won't get involved unless he actually does something
illegal. Sitting on a public street is not illegal. We can't prove
he's doing anything wrong.” I stared at him, hoping his radar
vision would pick up on the shock in my face.

“
So
he just gets to sit outside my house and scare the shit out of me?”
Nathaniel pulled his car into the driveway alongside mine.

“
We'll
take some photos and record the incident. Once I think you have
enough evidence, we'll take it back to the police and they'll help
you get an order of protection. If he breaks that, then they'll have
an actual crime to charge him with. That's how we get him.”

“
What
if … ” I paused, swallowed. “What if he tries to
shoot me or something?”

“
Well
then,” Nathaniel said as he looked over his shoulder and tried
to smile at me. “You'll have me.” He took a big breath
and his smile faded just a bit, bared a little of his soul for me.
He was doing it on purpose, I could tell, although I hadn't the
slightest idea why. Nathaniel didn't know a thing about me, but he
seemed genuinely concerned. Was this the way he was with all his
clients or was there something special about me that had grabbed his
attention? “If you'll excuse me for a moment?” I nodded
and he climbed out of the vehicle, long legs unfolding beneath him,
dark slacks cutting perfect lines down the sides of his muscular
legs. He locked the car and disappeared around the edge of the
house. Moments later, Gary came stumbling out from behind the
hedges.

“
Who
the fuck are you?” he said as he moved down the driveway.
Nathaniel was walking towards him, not touching him, not talking to
him, just walking. Gary was moving back like he was being threatened
and maybe he was. It was hard to tell through the tinted window in
the back, but if I was seeing what I thought I saw on Nathaniel's
face, then Gary had a right to be afraid.

Those
green eyes were burning with hatred, no,
loathing.
The way
Nathaniel was looking at Gary, you'd have thought they were arch
enemies, childhood nemeses, soldiers on opposite sides of a fierce
battle. There was definitely something going on beneath Nathaniel's
picture perfect exterior. Despite Gary's proximity, I felt a little
thrill of excitement. There was a mystery in that man and I wanted
to solve it.

“
I
suggest you exit the premises,” Nathaniel said, perfectly
professional, voice polished and smooth as onyx. “Before I
escort you off of them.” He reached into his jacket and for a
second there, I had been convinced he was about to draw a gun.
Instead, out came a camera which he promptly raised and snapped
several photos of Gary with. He even took a few of the white car,
following my ex until he unlocked the vehicle and climbed inside.
Nathaniel took a few shots of the license plate and moved out of the
road before Gary could run him over in his haste to get away. Once
he was gone, I climbed out of the vehicle with a big grin on my face.
If Gary ever showed up again, I'd be surprised. He was a bit of a
coward, after all.

“
That
was incredible,” I said as Nathaniel turned to me and smiled.
His face was wicked sexy in the glow from my neighbor's white
Christmas lights. They highlighted the strength in his jaw, the
definition of his cheekbones and the smooth, straight planes of his
nose. “I've never seen anyone be so … aggressive
without actually being, you know,
aggressive.
” I wasn't
making any sense again. I was like a tongue tied teenager, outside
after a first date, wondering if I should let the boy kiss me
chastely on the lips. Only Nathaniel wasn't trying to kiss me, he
was trying to save my life, and even though it was just for money, it
was admirable. I blinked a few times, trying to throw off the
horrible white knight syndrome I was currently experiencing, and
smiled. I'd just met the man, but I was interested.

“
Thank
you,” he said as he moved through the grass and paused next to
me. “It's not often that I get complimented for my work.”

“
You
risk your life for people and you don't even get a 'thank you?'”

“
I
get a paycheck,” he said and maybe it was my imagination, but I
think he took a small step closer to me. I had to raise my chin a
bit to meet his eyes. “And satisfaction.” My eyebrows
rose a bit. If that didn't pass for sexual innuendo then I had no
idea what did. “Job satisfaction, that is,” he corrected
himself with a small, overtly innocent smile. “That makes it
more than worth it to me.”

“
Well,”
I said, pausing as I started to turn back towards the house. “Thank
you anyway, Nathaniel.” His smile dropped into something more
genuine, taking away just a bit of that practiced perfection. It
took him from handsome to downright fascinating. I knew then that
even if it was a bad idea, a horrible idea, a terrible, disastrous
mistake that I was going to try to solve the mystery that I had seen
in Nathaniel.

Here's
to hoping that it wasn't going to be Mr. Sutherland in the library
with the candlestick.

***

I
picked out the sexiest pajamas that I owned which actually ended up
depressing me since they were nothing more than a clean, sky blue
tank top and a pair of silky, cream colored pj pants.
At least he
won't think I'm trying to get his attention,
I thought. Because
I wasn't, truly. Just because I wanted to find out what had put that
hatred into his eyes and that pretty smile on his face did not mean
that I was romantically interested. Sexually maybe, but then that
was another issue altogether.

“
Glass
of wine?” I asked as I poured myself a heaping goblet.
Nathaniel shook his head.

“
Under
a different set of circumstances, I'd have loved to have said yes.
As of right now, I'm sorry, but I can't.” I nodded.

“
No
drinking on the job, eh?” I looked up at him as I sliced
myself a piece of bread. “What about eating?” He
smiled.

“
I've
got granola bars to hold me over until Cedric gets here.” I
frowned at that and spread a lump of brie cheese across the bread
before trying to hand it to him.

“
Stop
being so professional,” I said as I shook the food at him.
“You're here to calm me down, not make me nervous, right?”
Surprisingly, Nathaniel took it and held it gingerly between his
long fingers.

“
I
want to apologize to you,” he said as he took a small bite of
the bread, chewed it and swallowed it, all without getting a single
crumb on the dark lines of his suit. “Because I haven't
exactly been very professional. I shouldn't even be eating this.
And I shouldn't have said some of the things that I said.” I
watched him carefully from the opposite side of the kitchen island.
I'd only turned on the single light above the stove, letting the warm
yellow glow bathe the room in gold. White light just seemed too
invasive for nighttime. It was making his dark hair gleam and his
green eyes sparkle, giving him an almost ethereal sort of look that I
liked.

“
Why?”
I asked as he finished the piece of bread and recrossed his hands in
front of himself. “I mean, I haven't been offended by anything
you've said, but if you thought it was unprofessional, why did you do
it?” Nathaniel's eyes softened a bit around the edges, taking
his bad ass look down a notch. He still looked tough standing there
with his clothes clinging to his muscles like only a really expensive
suit can, but there was also this vulnerability shining through. It
wasn't much, but I saw it. And only because he let me. Honestly,
although we had just met, I was certain that Nathaniel Sutherland was
a man who did not let his emotions get the better of him. If he
wanted to hide them from me, I was sure that he could have at the
drop of a hat.

“
You
remind me of someone,” he said and from the tone in his voice,
I could tell that it had been someone important to him. “Quite
a lot actually, enough to make me forget that they're not around
anymore.” He paused and a frown cut across his face like a
wound.
There's your first clue, Theresa. Nathaniel has a past
and from the look on his face, it isn't a very good one.
“I
apologize, Ms. McMaster. I haven't felt at all like myself today.”

“
Theresa,”
I said as I refilled my wine glass, stuffed a container of ice cream
under my arm and started towards the living room. “Please,
call me Theresa.” Nathaniel nodded but didn't speak. I think
he'd somehow decided that he'd crossed the client/employee line more
than enough for one day. I let him follow me and sat down on the
couch, pulling an emerald green throw over my legs as I turned on the
TV and tried to find something to watch. I glanced up until I found
Nathaniel's chin. He was standing directly behind the couch, eyes
focused not on the screen but on the mirror above the fireplace. He
wasn't looking at his reflection either; he was just staring as if he
were looking at everything and nothing all at once. He must've been
in this business awhile to have picked up that kind of skill.
“Would you like to sit down?” I asked and got an instant
smile in return, a really nasty, dirty, delicious smile. My heart
started to thump in my chest and I found myself clenching my thighs
to keep other parts of myself in check.
Holy crap.
I could
not believe the effect he was having on me.

“
You're
trying the limits of my self-control, Ms. McMaster,” he said
and that was it. He remained standing behind the couch as if he
hadn't just flirted with me. And he had. There was no way I was
imagining it.

“
Why's
that?” I asked as casually as possible, tilting my head back
down so that I was looking at the TV and not at him.

“
I'm
sorry,” he said and his voice was neutral this time, almost too
neutral. “But you'll be safest if I maintain my position
here.”

And
you're trying the limits of
my
self-control,
I thought.
You can't just throw me a few clues and then take it all back. I
will figure you out, I swear it.