Darkest Desire (13 page)

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Authors: Tawny Taylor

BOOK: Darkest Desire
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“It's okay. Rest.”
His lips curled into a hint of a smile. “Talen, make sure nobody's following us.” Then he leaned his head back and closed his eyes. Within minutes, his breathing was slow and even. In his sleep, he slumped a little, leaning against her. Eventually, his head flopped onto her shoulder.
Talen's eyes flicked to hers in the rearview mirror. “How's he doing?”
“Sleeping,” she said as quietly as possible.
“Good. Don't let the act fool you. He's in a lot of pain. He just doesn't want you to know.”
“I figured as much.”
“Listen, while you're out here, by yourselves, don't let him do anything stupid.”
“I won't. Then again, the man can be rather bullheaded.”
“We all can be. It's a family trait.”
“I feel for Rin, then.”
“Drako's the worst. But your sister seems to know how to handle him.” Talen chuckled. “She's got him wrapped around her little finger right now. Especially with the baby coming.”
Lei couldn't help smiling. “I can't wait to be an aunt.”
“And I can't wait to be an uncle.”
“So, once Malek gets married, will it be your turn?”
Talen grunted. She took that as a yes.
“What's the deal? Why do you
have
to be married?” she asked, gently repositioning Malek's head.
“It's a condition of our inheritance.” Talen's gaze met hers in the mirror again. “Don't tell my brothers I said this, but it's probably a good thing we have to get married. I didn't feel that way a few months ago. But now, seeing Drako and your sister... I'm not dreading it as much as I was.”
“Malek seems to be one hundred percent on board with the idea.”
“That doesn't surprise me.”
She almost told Talen about Malek's proposal, but she didn't. She could imagine Talen giving Malek a hard time about her refusal. She didn't want to be responsible for that kind of humiliation.
Instead, she sat back and closed her eyes. “How long will we be on the road?”
“A couple hours.”
She glanced at the truck's clock, then shut her eyes again. Two hours. If she could fall asleep, the time would fly by.
13
S
he woke up with her head inclined to one side, resting on top of Malek's tipped head. Blinking, she checked the window. The truck had stopped. They were parked in a wooded area. The view out the window revealed a thick forest and snow as far as the eye could see. The view from the other side of the vehicle was quite different. A house. Contemporary. Boxy. With lots of windows. A parking area, shoveled, front walk, shoveled.
“Okay,” Talen said. He cut off the engine. “We're here. Wake up, you two.”
“I'm awake,” Malek grumbled, sounding like he was far from awake.
Lei unfastened her seat belt, and after Malek removed his head from her shoulder, she scooted toward the door and opened it. A blast of arctic air whooshed into the car, taking her breath away for a moment. She wrapped her arms around herself and hurried around the front of the truck.
Talen was already helping Malek out by the time she had circled around the side. “Trunk's open,” he said.
She slip-slided around to the back, lifted the hatch, and pulled out a couple of bags. Luggage dragging behind her, she followed the men up the front walk to the door.
Talen let them inside.
Lei stepped into a wide, open living area, inhaled the earthy scents of pine and lemon polish and a wood-burning fire, and looked up. The ceiling above soared at least two stories up. And the sun shone through the expansive windows, warming her face. It looked like a mountain lodge, all wood-paneled and rustic—a very large, expensively furnished mountain lodge.
“This place is gorgeous.” She parked the luggage in a safe spot where nobody would trip over it.
“Glad you like it.” Malek gritted his teeth as he bent to lower himself onto a nearby couch.
Lei rushed to his side and offered some help. He grabbed one of her hands, but didn't use her for support. Once he was sitting, she tried to back away, but he wouldn't let go.
“Sit with me for a few,” he said.
She pointed at the door. “But the luggage.”
“Talen can get it.” Malek pulled on her hand, forcing her to bend at the waist. His gaze wandered a little south of her face, halting at about boob level. His lips curled into a sexy smile. “Hmmm. Nice view.”
Lei glanced down, realized her V-neck T-shirt was gaping, and clapped her free hand against her chest. “You are a—”
“Hungry man,” he finished for her.
Glaring at him, she yanked her other hand out of his grasp. “If you're hungry, then I suggest you let me go help your brother. I'm not going to make Talen carry all my crap in by himself.” Sporting a burning face, she hurried outside.
Talen seemed to be trying to hide a laugh as he passed her on the front porch. “Everything okay?” he asked.
“Your brother is a brat.”
“That's not news to me.”
She grabbed as much stuff as she could carry and hauled it to the house, passing Talen on the way inside. He gave her a glittery-eyed grin.
When she dumped her load, Malek called her name.
“I'm not done yet,” she said, making a one-eighty to head back outside.
It took another five trips to the car before everything was inside. Talen sighed as he dropped the last piece of luggage. “Whew. I never realized traveling with a woman could be so exhausting. There's a car in the garage, in case you need to run to the store for supplies. The refrigerator, freezer, and cupboards should be stocked....” He headed for the kitchen, which was open to the living area, pulled open the stainless-steel refrigerator door, and peered inside. “Looks like you're set for at least a week.”
“Wow, what service,” Lei said. “Does this place come with a full-time cook, too?”
“No, you're on your own there.” Talen headed over to his brother. “I kept a close eye on traffic, and I'm sure nobody followed us. Nobody knows you're here but me and Drako. I'd better head back. Do you need anything else?”
“Nope. All set. Thanks.”
Talen gave Malek a thump on the shoulder and then beamed at Lei. “Okay, you two. Stay safe. I'll keep you posted, let you know when it's safe to come back.”
“The sooner the better,” Lei said.
Talen slid Malek a glance. “Of course.”
He left.
Once again, she was alone with Malek. But now she was alone, alone. Out in the middle of nowhere. In this . . . gorgeous, cozy, romantic place.
If she didn't know better, she'd wonder if he'd arranged to have those thugs beat him up so they'd have to go into hiding.
“Lei?” he said.
“What is it?”
He let his head fall back and closed his eyes. “I'm sorry, Lei.”
She hadn't seen that coming. Why would he apologize to her? “Sorry? For what?”
“If I'd taken care of those two assholes when I had the chance, we wouldn't have to be out here hiding like a couple of moles.”
Lei's heart swelled. “Ohmygod, Malek. This isn't your fault. You fought hard. You fought damn hard. When I made that comment about you not being Special Ops, I didn't mean you weren't brave and strong. There were two of them and only one of you. You could have been the biggest, baddest Army Ranger alive and still they might have kicked your ass.”
“It shouldn't have mattered. I should've been able to take care of them. There's no excuse. None.” He was staring straight up at the ceiling, but still Lei could see the anger and frustration in his eyes. “I fucked up. I am a fuckup.”
“No.” She knelt in front of him and placed her hands on his knee. “I respect you so much for what you did. Nobody has ever put their life on the line for me the way you did. And I will forever be grateful to you for that. Who knows what might have happened if you hadn't. I might've been the next woman lying dead in an alley.”
He slammed his fists down into the couch seat. “I hate that I can't do a damn thing right now.”
“You have to give yourself time to heal.”
His gaze slid to hers at last. Now his eyes were cold and hard. She'd never seen him look like that before. It was as if she were looking into the eyes of a stranger, and that frightened her a little. Correction, it frightened her a lot. “When I find those bastards, I'm going to kill them.”
“Those guys deserve it, after what they did to you. But you can't do that, stoop to their level. It's wrong.”
“I won't be caught,” he snapped. “I'll make sure of it.”
“Malek, I've known you for months. That's not a long time. But I'd like to think it's long enough to know that you aren't a cold-blooded killer.”
He didn't speak. She wanted him to. She needed him to.
She continued, “Since I've come to live with you, you've been the only man I've been able to even remotely trust. Look at how close we've become, in such a short time. I never thought that was possible.”
His expression softened slightly.
“The reason I've been able to trust you is because I believe you are a good man, honorable, trustworthy, honest, self-sacrificing.”
He shook his head. “I'm just a man. Not perfect. Not a god.”
“I don't need you to be perfect or a god. I just need you to be the man you've been the past few weeks.”
Silence.
“Malek, up until now, you've been trying to help me learn to trust. You've been focused on healing me. Those assholes nearly took your life. That was a horrible thing. And they deserve to be caught, to spend the rest of their lives in prison. At least this will give me a chance to help you, too. To help you heal.”
He blinked. His lips thinned and he sniffled. “You are a remarkable woman. I've never met anyone like you before.”
She smiled. “You're pretty damn remarkable yourself.” When he set a hand on her head, she laid it on his knees and closed her eyes. Sitting there, with him sweetly stroking her hair, she realized something surprising.
Malek needed her.
Needing was a lot different than wanting. Definitely different from lusting.
Well, if he needed her, he could have her. The broken, imperfect woman she was. For as long as necessary.
But only as a friend.
Not a wife.
Not a lover.
She could have sat like that for hours. But the rumble of his stomach inspired her to finally get going. He grumbled a little when she lifted her head, but when she told him, “I'm going to get you some lunch,” he didn't complain.
While she made them some sandwiches, he watched her, silent, but not quite so brooding. She hoped he'd somewhat accepted the fact that their hiding wasn't his fault, that it was just an inconvenience. And maybe, just maybe, they could make the best of it.
That was exactly what she planned on doing, now that she felt somewhat confident that she'd done all she could to help Kate and Heather. It was up to Vasquez now. She hoped he'd have better luck than she had.
After they finished eating, she took care of the dishes, then threw some more logs on the fire and settled on the couch next to Malek.
“It's so quiet and peaceful here,” she said.
“Too quiet.”
“Is there such a thing as too quiet for a writer?”
He grunted and shrugged.
“Would you like me to get your computer? Would you like to get some writing done?”
Another grunt.
She took that as a yes and went in search of his computer. She found a laptop in the first bedroom she checked. After making sure he had everything he needed, she excused herself to do some reading, figuring he'd be less distracted if she left the room.
But an hour later, she was tired of being alone. She'd unpacked and done some snooping, and now she was craving some company. His company. She tiptoed out to the living room and discovered he was asleep, his computer in his lap, his body slightly slumped to one side.
So much for getting some work done.
Chuckling softly, she admired him for a moment.
He really was a remarkable man. Not just drop-dead gorgeous, but patient and strong and sexy, too.
And also determined. Stubborn.
If she had any notion of marrying, he was the only one who'd come even close to being a potential husband. He'd even worked long and hard at gaining her trust. That right there earned him a second thought.
But . . . marriage?
He saved my life. Obviously he cares a lot about me. And he needs me.
Marriage.
Maybe it won't be as bad as I thought? Maybe I won't fail him.
Her phone rang, and recognizing the ring tone, she scurried off to find it. She caught it on the third ring.
“Lei, are you okay?” Rin asked, sounding extremely worried.
“Of course. Why wouldn't I be?”
“Well . . . I heard Drako talking to Talen . . .”
“And what? Talen brought us out to a gorgeous place out in the middle of nowhere so we'd be safe. Was there another murder? Or did Talen find something? Was there a threat?”
“No, it's nothing about that.”
“Then what?”
Rin hesitated.
“Rin, what the hell is going on?”
“Okay, okay.” Rin sighed. “I heard Drako talking to Talen about Malek's wedding. He's chosen his wife. It isn't you.”
Lei's heart stopped. Literally. She stopped breathing, too. Rin's words had slammed her harder than any kick or punch ever had. Mostly because they'd come out of nowhere.
Moments ago, Lei had thought—assumed—he was waiting for her to change her mind about his proposal.
“Lei?” Rin said weakly. “Are you still there?”
“Yeah.”
“I thought he would have told you by now.”
“Maybe he just hasn't gotten around to it yet.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Rin sighed again.
Lei echoed her. “Don't worry. It's for the better if he marries someone else. I'm a train wreck. Speaking of which, how are you feeling?”
“Better, I guess. I'm not so tired, but I throw up a lot. Especially in the morning. The doctor said that's normal.”
“I'm glad you're doing okay.”
“Yeah.”
Lei couldn't help hearing the guilt in Rin's voice. “Rin, don't worry. I'm fine. I mean, I don't want to be anyone's wife. I've always felt that way.”

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