Destiny (23 page)

He shivered, though he wasn’t cold. He thought those dreams had been put to rest years before. Unwilling to go down that dark road, Dare focused on the present.

On Tess, who brought light, laughter, and a smart mouth into all their lives. Thank God they’d judged Tess and Kelly’s mother correctly. As they’d all hoped, just the threat of a scandal had panicked the couple.

Ethan had sworn to reveal their dirty laundry in a custody scandal he assured them would be covered by their local news. And Ethan had enough contacts in enough places to guarantee placement. It was one thing for Muldoon to drink and be a functioning alcoholic, quite another to let the world know the truth. And if their country club friends found out Leah had abandoned her daughter and not enrolled her in an exclusive boarding school as she’d claimed, the lives they enjoyed would be over. Leah and her husband only wanted Tess as a trophy to parade around so Leah could claim she was as good a mother as the other women at her club. In twenty minutes, Ethan had destroyed their plan and had signed papers giving him and Kelly custody of Tess.

For such a big threat, it had been handled quickly, efficiently, and easily, but the emotional damage would take longer to recover from.

Still, it was over.

“Hey.” Tess bounced over and sat next to him on the couch. She curled her legs beneath her and looked into his eyes. “Why are you sitting by yourself?”

“I’m just resting. I worked a long shift last night.”

“Do you like being a cop?” she asked, wrinkling her nose at the mention of his profession.

“Brat,” he said, laughing. “You say that like it’s a disease.”

“You said it,” she muttered.

He rolled his eyes. But he knew her question was a serious one. “I like it a lot,” he told her. It was the one way he felt he could atone for past sins. Not that he’d admit that to his fourteen-year-old sister. “I like knowing I’m doing good things, like protecting people,” he said instead.

She nodded. “That’s cool, I guess.”

“If you say so.” Dare studied her.

She wore a pair of skinny jeans, a tank top with a sweater over it, and a headband that pulled her dark brown hair back from her face. She looked like a fresh-faced teen, so unlike the juvenile delinquent who’d arrived on Ethan’s doorstep a few months ago.

“Hey, kid?” He liked the nicknames he used for her.

“Yeah?”

He braced his arm on the back of the sofa and turned to face her. “Did I tell you I’m really glad you’re one of us?”

Her eyes opened wide. “No.” She stared at him with serious mistrust.

Given how her mother had treated her, Tess had good reason to be wary. She’d come far in a short time, but Dare knew any serious talk or show of affection between them had been rare. In the beginning, he’d tried to reach her on the casual level he thought she’d relate to and she’d responded.

But now? He felt protective of her and damned if he didn’t adore the little brat. “I mean it, Tess. I love you.” He heard the gruff tone in his voice and wondered how she’d react to the admission.

To his surprise, she jumped forward and hugged him tight. Her skinny arms wrapped around his neck and he felt like a goddamn hero.

Then she was gone, running across the room to Kelly, who stood in the circle of Nash’s arms. Come to think of it, Faith was wrapped in Ethan’s embrace too.

Dare groaned. The room was thick with romance and love. As happy as he was for his siblings, Dare was just fine with his single status and his bachelor life. At twenty-five, he was in no rush to commit like his brothers had done.

His cell phone rang and he grabbed it, grateful for the distraction.

A quick glance told him it was work and he answered immediately. One of his longtime friends on the force knew there was one person Dare kept track of and he let Dare know if the guy was picked up, whether or not Dare was on call.

Brian McKnight, a screwed-up rich boy, who’d thrown the party that changed Dare’s life forever. McKnight had been trouble at sixteen and hadn’t improved himself since. Apparently he’d been arrested outside Joe’s tonight on a drunk and disorderly.

For Dare, this party was over.

He made it his mission to make sure McKnight’s screwups didn’t go unpunished. At least he tried to. Unfortunately, his sister usually managed to show up with a high-priced attorney and a bunch of bullshit excuses on her brother’s behalf.

Liza McKnight had been getting under Dare’s skin since he was a horny teenager. He might have told his brothers he’d gone to that party to hang out with the older guys, but the truth was he’d gone to see her. An older, rich girl way out of his league.

If Dare had listened to his brain and not his cock, he’d never have been a witness on that fateful day. Never have run away with his friends without calling the cops. Maybe Stuart Rossman would still be alive. And who knew how different Dare’s life might have been? After all, Liza hadn’t been home and the party had been a bust for Dare in more ways than one.

These days, their differences were just as pronounced. As a cop, Dare was still out of her class and out of her league. He rarely saw her now, except when she showed up to bail out her bother. Out of jail, of trouble, sometimes both.

Dare rose and headed for his family, saying his good-byes and excusing himself to go to work. It wasn’t just that he wanted to make sure Brian got what was coming to him.

He still liked to see Liza when he could. He still thought with the wrong head. As much as he hated to admit it, if there was a chance Liza might appear, Dare hated to miss the show.

And now a special excerpt from
Carly Phillips’s next Serendipity novel…

Karma

Coming Spring 2012 from Berkley!

Dare Barron heard the commotion in the police station
earlier as his least favorite offender was brought in on a drunk and disorderly charge. Dare had been out on a nuisance call when the man had gone before a judge at the courthouse next door, but he was back now, in the cell downstairs.

Dare glanced at his watch, wondering how long before
she
came to bail her brother out. She being Brian McKnight’s sister, Liza. Every time McKnight got himself in trouble, older sister Liza was never far behind to clean up his mess.

McKnight was a rich bastard who thought his family money entitled him to special privileges. And Liza… Dare didn’t know what she thought. He only knew he looked forward to seeing her each and every time she walked in the precinct door.

A damned contrast to how he felt about her brother. Dare wished like hell he’d never heard of Brian McKnight, and those feelings dated back to his teen years. McKnight had thrown a party. Dare, who at fifteen, acted like he was much older, had gone, and his life had never been the same. Though Dare knew better than to think he could change the past, everything he’d done since then had been with his own atonement in mind.

But whoever coined the phrase “No deed goes unpunished” had never met Brian McKnight.

Or his sister, Liza.

Dare glanced up from his seat behind his desk to see her stride in like she owned the place. He wasn’t above admitting he’d had a thing for her since he was a teenager. She was three years older and her parents had pulled her and Brian from public school, but the times she’d come to town with her friends, Liza had been hard to miss.

She still was. And Dare stared at her now without disguising his interest. She wore a basic black skirt and turquoise blue silk blouse. A simple outfit on anyone else. Liza McKnight was anything but simple. The skirt was long enough to be decent but short enough to call attention to seductively long legs. As did her black patent mile-high heels accented by a delicate bow at the back. All in all, a ladylike yet siren-sexy contradiction.

Her chestnut brown hair hung straight over her shoulders, her bangs not long enough to disguise her golden brown stare.

She reached his desk, propped both hands on the cold metal surface, and leaned in close. “I want to post bail for my brother.”

Big surprise,
he thought sarcastically. Dare shook his head, unable to conceal his disappointment. “Still enabling him, I see.”

She frowned, but the expression only served to showcase her dimples and make her look even sexier. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”

She was probably right.

He inhaled her warm, exotic scent. Vanilla, musky and damned hot, just like she was. “I’m sure everyone is working to release him as quickly as possible,” he said, glad he had the desk to hide exactly what she did to him.

She straightened her posture but still managed to look calm and in control. “He was granted bail more than a half hour ago. I can’t imagine what the holdup is. Can you at least get the paperwork on this end started?”

He shook his head. “Sorry. I’m not the arresting officer. You’ll have to take a seat and wait to talk to him.”

There were three chairs in the waiting area at the far end of the room. She settled into the one across from Dare’s desk, crossing one delectably long leg over the other.

“So, what’s he in for this time?” Dare asked, though he already knew. Conversation was conversation and Brian’s record was what they had in common.

“Drunk and disorderly conduct,” she stated without emotion.

According to the report Officer Sam Marsden had filed, her brother had left Joe’s Bar drunk, walked out back to his car—which he shouldn’t have been going anywhere near in his inebriated state—and paused to take a leak, singing at the top of his lungs the entire time.

“In other words, the usual,” Dare said.

She closed her eyes for a brief second. Dark lashes fluttered over her soft skin, giving her a vulnerable look that made him want to pull her into his arms and comfort her.

“It wouldn’t be the usual if Officer Marsden had just driven Brian home and let it go.” Liza pinned him with a questioning look, the vulnerability gone as quickly as it had appeared.

Dare shook his head, frustration gnawing at his gut. “So we should just let him break the law?”

“What? Are you guys so hard up for arrests that you can’t find a real criminal to harass?”

He rolled his eyes. “Your brother is a real criminal.” Dare spoke in a soft but realistic tone, almost feeling sorry for her.

She jumped up from her seat, suddenly a flurry of nervous energy, pacing in front of his desk. Her long legs ate up so much space she took two steps, turned, and started the process all over again.

From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of his buddy Sam Marsden walking out of the holding area. “There’s the arresting officer. He should know when your brother will be brought up.”

Dare softened his tone, not wanting to upset her any further. He didn’t know why he baited her in the first place except that he hated her turning a blind eye to the truth about her sibling.

“Thank you.” She actually smiled at him, her brown eyes sparkling with genuine gratitude.

Then she paused, drawing a deep calming breath and causing Dare’s gaze to focus on the rise and fall of her breasts. Oblivious to his interest, she turned and zeroed in on Sam, heading over to deal with her brother’s problems without looking back.

Dare rubbed the back of his neck, where a steady pain had begun to throb. It drove him nuts that she made excuses for her screwed-up brother. Hell, he knew what it was like to have a troubled family member and not once had Dare made excuses for Ethan. Then again, that immovable attitude had kept him estranged from his brother when he could have been working toward reconciliation. Good thing he and their middle sibling, Nash, had eventually come around. The difference was, Ethan had changed and made an effort to fix the past. Brian McKnight showed no remorse and Liza didn’t seem to care.

It shouldn’t bother him. Wasn’t his problem. But she was a bright, educated woman. A talented architect. She had to know right from wrong, and yet she consistently bailed out a man whom, brother or not, she ought to have wiped her hands of a long time ago. Brian needed to be held accountable for his actions.

And Dare wanted Liza in his bed.

He jerked his head, wondering where
that
thought had come from. Not that it was a secret. He’d never denied it to himself. He’d always wanted her, even though he knew she was out of his league. But that hadn’t been on his mind at the moment. Or maybe it had been. He’d been waiting for her arrival, his entire body on alert.

The scary truth was that Dare almost looked forward to the times McKnight got hauled in, because it gave him a chance to see her. Scarier, he’d cut school ten years ago and gone to that damned party because it had been at her house and he’d had the chance to see the girl of his teenage dreams.

But Liza hadn’t been home that day and Dare’s life had been forever altered by the events of that afternoon.

More than a decade had passed, one in which he’d seen major growth, both in his personal and professional life and in his feelings for Liza. Before, she’d been a teenage crush, someone he’d thought of and, yeah, jerked off to. But now? He’d grown up, and each time he met up with her she got to him on a level no other woman ever had.

In Liza, he saw light and possibilities beyond the darkness he hid inside him. But he didn’t kid himself. Though he liked to think of her as a sweet girl from the right side of town, that wasn’t her at all. She enabled her brother, thereby condoning his behavior. All of his behavior, the past included.

Yet that didn’t stop Dare from wanting her and damned if the yearning wasn’t more than just physical. He was curious about who she was and what made her tick. Why last time she’d been at the station late at night she’d been wearing high black boots with killer heels covering long legs encased in tight denim, her long hair cascading in sexy curls down her back. A far cry from the more proper outfit she wore today. Of course he was equally attracted to her no matter what she had on.

Not that it mattered. She’d never once looked at him as more than a pain-in-the-ass cop she had to deal with whenever her brother found himself in trouble.

He glanced at his watch and smiled. He was officially off duty. Dare grabbed his keys and rose from his seat.

“Heading home?” Sam asked.

“Yeah. Shift’s over,” he said.

“Sure you don’t want to wait?” Sam asked, eyeing him curiously.

“For what?” Dare asked.

Sam let out a whoop of laughter. “You really want to play dumb? Fine. Don’t you want to wait until Ms. McKnight’s brother pays his bail? She’s waiting for him in the outer hall.”

Dare clenched his jaw, which didn’t help his building headache. “And why would I want to do that?” Yeah, he was playing it dumb. Why the hell would he want to admit to his feelings and set himself up to be the butt of Sam’s jokes?

“Because I see how you look at her, man. Only a blind fool could miss it.” Sam leaned against the desk, eying Dare with way too much humor.

Okay, no need to admit it. Apparently Dare wore his feelings on his uniform. Fucking swell.

“Then I suppose you’ve also seen how she doesn’t return the sentiment?”

“God, you men are dumb!” This from Cara Hartley, another cop and good friend. The three tended to pull the same shifts and hang out together when they were off duty.

“Where’d you come from?” Dare asked.

Cara laughed, her dark ponytail flipping over her shoulder. “I’m stealthy. I walked over while you two were talking about Liza McKnight. But you’re still both dumb.”

Dare shook his head and stifled a groan. “I really don’t want to know what you’re thinking.”

“Yeah you do.” Cara deliberately bumped her hip against his. “You think she doesn’t notice you. I’m here to tell you you’re wrong.”

He blinked in surprise.

Sam’s grin was so wide Dare was surprised his face didn’t split. Dare didn’t need the two of them on his case about a woman.

“The thing is, every time you talk to Liza, you judge her for bailing out her brother. So tell me why she should think you’re hot for her? Not to mention why should she want to bother with you?”

Dare reached for the back of his neck once more, the muscle spasms getting worse. “Can we not talk about this?”

“Nope. It’s on the table and it’s staying there until I’m finished. Now let’s say you happened to… I don’t know… change your attitude toward her? Something tells me she just might alter hers.” Cara raised her eyebrows over her blue eyes.

Despite not wanting to give Cara a green light to get into his head, Dare mulled over her words.

“You thinking what I’m thinking?” Sam asked Dare. “That our girl here makes sense?”

Cara glanced at Sam with a pout on her lips. “I’m not your anything,” she muttered. Cara, being Cara, hated any hint of condescension toward her as a woman. Touchy was her nickname.

“And I’m not thinking anything,” Dare said. Nor was he conceding his feelings out loud.

“Just remember, I have a feeling you can turn this around. If you want to that is.” Cara shrugged.

“Is that feeling your female intuition?” Sam asked. “Because Cara’s is usually damn good,” he reminded Dare.

Cara grinned, nodding her head in agreement. “Thanks for the compliment, Sam. Maybe I’ll let that earlier rude comment slide. I might even let you buy me a drink at Joe’s on Wednesday night.” They usually hit Joe’s for Ladies’ Night, since they were all off on Thursdays.

Dare laughed, but Sam was right. Cara’s gut instincts, on the job and off, were usually on target.

“Got a plan?” Sam asked Dare.

He rolled his eyes. “I’m going home, like I said.”

“But—” Cara shook her head and groaned. “Never mind, do what you want. Nobody ever listens to me, even though I’m always right.”

Sam grinned.

“As long as you’re leaving, I’ll walk out with you,” Cara said to Dare. “I’m off duty too. You coming, Sam?”

He shook his head. “Not until McKnight’s been released on bail. Catch you guys tomorrow.”

Dare nodded Sam’s way. “Night.”

He headed out alongside Cara, who talked about the weekend police and firefighters festival where they would man the policemen’s booth in order to raise money for the youth center where they all volunteered. Dare laughed at her jokes and admired her sense of humor, but being with Cara did nothing to make him forget about Liza, whom he just happened to pass as he left the precinct. She sat alone, waiting for her brother’s release, alternately looking pissed and vulnerable, bringing up protective instincts Dare had never felt toward any other woman before.

Liza drummed her fingers against her purse as she
waited for Brian to be brought up from the holding area.

She wondered if the cell in the back of the police station had a plaque engraved with her brother’s name on it. God knew he’d been hauled in often enough. Just the thought was enough to give her a stomachache.

She shook her head and stifled a groan. “At least be honest with yourself,” she muttered.

It wasn’t her brother’s most recent arrest making her stomach churn. It was
Dare Barron.
The cop who always seemed to be around when her brother was brought in. The sexy man who managed to make her feel like she was either the hottest thing this side of a hot fudge sundae or the dumbest enabler on the planet.

Like she wasn’t aware of what she was doing? She was. She just had no choice. Brian was family. He was her brother. Besides, she owed him.

However, she didn’t have to explain herself to Dare, even if he did have big bad cop written all over him. His dark brown hair with flecks of gold and those gorgeous brown eyes were enough to melt her on the spot. But that didn’t mean she had to answer to anyone but herself. That’s how it had been for longer than she cared to remember. But she wouldn’t trade her independence for anyone ever again.