Kiss of Fire (St. James Family) (30 page)

“
I'm going, come say goodbye.”

“
Alright.” Toni stood, and Vivica grabbed her arm.

“
Don't tell him I'm here. Please.”

“
I won't,” Toni said, giving her cousin a reassuring smile as she pulled the door closed behind her.
Well, things just got a whole hell of a lot more interesting,
Toni thought, as she hurried back down the stairs. Her brain was buzzing, and for the first time in a long time, Sebastian O'Donovan was not at the center of the storm. He was barely a blip on her radar.

Take that, O'Donovan, you jerk!

***

O'Donovan knew it was time for drastic action. He'd rung up to her apartment building on 100th, and she didn't answer. She also wasn't answering his calls. So he did the only other thing he could think of. With a defeated sigh, he dragged his ass up the stoop of the townhouse and knocked on the big door. The lights were on, so he knew someone was home. He ran a hand through his hair, waiting and wondering who he was going to see on the other side.

“Well, it's about damn time,” Christophe Van der Kind said as he swung open the door. O'Donovan groaned inwardly at Van der Kind's carefree smile. He was dressed like he'd just come home from the office, his tie loose around the neck of his starched white shirt. “Come in,” Van der Kind said, motioning him in. O'Donovan nodded, following him into the warmth of the townhouse.

“
You want a drink?” Van der Kind asked, pointing to the kitchen. “Annie is late at work, so it's just us. Lucky for you. I don't know if Annie is looking too kindly on you these days,” he said with a laugh.

“
I fucked up. I can admit that,” O'Donovan said with a shrug. He had no ego left, he realized. His sole goal in life was to patch things up with Toni, and he would get down on his knees if he had to.

“
You don't have to explain to me,” Van der Kind said, strolling into the kitchen and getting two glasses out of the cabinet.

“
I know that,” O'Donovan said, leaning on the counter, not able to stop himself from glancing in the room off the kitchen, remembering all the filthy and unforgettable things he'd done to Toni in there, on the expensive leather couch. He licked his lips, remembering how good she tasted. He was going to get her back, goddammit. There was no other option, as far as he was concerned.

Van der Kind slid a drink across the counter and O'Donovan took a swig of the smooth, smokey whiskey.

“Good, right?” Van der Kind said. O'Donovan nodded, the liquid warming his throat.

“
I don't want to know how much it fucking costs,” O'Donovan said. Van der Kind threw his head back and laughed.

“
I won't bore you with the details,” he said.

“
I appreciate that,” O'Donovan said, tossing back the rest of the whiskey, savoring the taste. Jameson was his drink of choice, but damn if the expensive shit didn't taste real good.

“
Alright, so I promised Toni once I would say this to you, so I'm going to say it,” Van der Kind said. “You ready?”

“
Lay it on me.”

“
You're a motherfucking jackass if you don't see how awesome she is,” he said, finishing with a curt nod.

“
Is that it?”

“
Yeah. That's it.”

“
Well, I can't say I disagree,” O'Donovan said, setting his empty glass on the marble countertop. Van der Kind immediately refilled it, and O'Donovan knocked it back just as quickly.

“
So what are you going to do about it?”

“
I don't know,” O'Donovan said with a chuckle although the situation wasn't funny in the least.

“
Not that it's any of my business, but if you want to talk about it—” Van der Kind held up his hands nonchalantly. “I'm currently available.”

“
I don't want to talk about it.”

“
Fair enough,” he took another drink of the smooth whiskey.

“
I dumped her for someone else,” O'Donovan blurted out, surprising himself.

“
Are you crazy?” Van der Kind asked, his drink paused in mid-air. “You don't leave a St. James woman for someone else. They leave you, if you're unlucky enough to piss them off.”

“
I'm just now figuring that out, but thanks for the advice.”

“
I spent seven years chasing Annie. Seven long, long years,” Van der Kind said, gazing off into the living room, a distant look on his face. “I always thought I was a catch, right? Rich, good-looking, good in the sack. But to her, all of that didn't mean shit. To her, that was just a reason to get as far away from me as possible.”

“
Okay, here's the fucking thing,” O'Donovan leaned forward. “You guys spoil the shit out of Toni, and I can't fucking stand it. Why does she give Toni everything if she had to work for everything?”

“
Because Toni is different. She's not hard like Annie.”

“
She's sweet as pie and diplomatic as hell,” O'Donovan offered. God, he loved that about her. “I told her she should be a politician,” O'Donovan said, laughing at the memory.

“
Right,” Van der Kind said, giving him a knowing look. “She makes it easy to spoil her. And it makes my wife happy when she's happy, so win-win.” Van der Kind dropped his eyes to his glass. “I know that Toni's accident really shook Annie up. Annie's kept Toni close ever since.”

O'Donovan nodded, flashes of memories of the accident replaying again in his mind. The thought of how close Toni had come to death made his chest hurt. He didn't like to think about what would have happened if he hadn't found her, or if he hadn't gotten there in time... he shook his head, trying to getting rid of the pointless thoughts.

“The thing is my ex-wife is a real piece of work,” O'Donovan said, changing the subject and reaching for the whiskey. “She was born rich and expects everyone to give her everything. I can't deal with that shit again.”

“
Toni's not like that,” Van der Kind said.

“
No, she's not,” O'Donovan said, taking another deep drink.

“
If it makes you feel better, that apartment we gave her was a really good deal,” Van der Kind said.

“
How the fuck am I supposed to pretend you didn't give her an apartment, mate?” O'Donovan said. “How do I not have to unzip my nuts and leave my balls outside the door every time I go over there?”

“
Fuck if I know,” Van der Kind laughed. “But if it makes you feel any better, this is Annie's house. I moved in after she'd already bought it. It still feels like my home though, because I have everything I want and need inside.”

“
Hmm.” O'Donovan murmured, draining another glass of the whiskey.

“
So you love her?” Van der Kind said, his voice low.

“
I do,” O'Donovan said.

“
Good. I'd hate to have to beat your ass,” Van der Kind said with another big laugh.

“
Yeah, I'd pay to see that,” O'Donovan scoffed.

“
I like you,” Van der Kind said after a minute. “You put a big-ass dent in my ten thousand dollar bottle of whiskey, but I like you.”

“
How much?” O'Donovan said.

“
Ten thousand, but that's beside the point,” Van der Kind said, like it was nothing, even though he was the one that brought it up.

“
I'm Irish. I can drink your ass under the table, any fucking day.”

“
I'm going to take you up on that,” he said with a smile. “You hungry? I can order something.” Van der Kind opened the drawer with the takeout menus.

“
No offense, Van der Kind, but I'm kind of looking for someone. Any idea where Toni might be?”

“
Yes, actually. She's in New Orleans.” Van der Kind held up two menus. “Pizza or Chinese?”

***

Toni woke on the floor of Granny's guest bedroom to the sound of pounding above her head. She rolled over, furrowing her brow at the racket. She checked the time on her phone. It was eight in the morning, and she knew she had to get up, but she didn't want to. She'd been having a really good dream, one that involved O'Donovan, his tongue, and two fingers, driving her mad. Ever. So. Slowly.

She sat up, wiping the sleep out of her eyes, and realized she was still in her clothes from the night before. She'd fallen asleep on the floor, after giggling and talking with Vivica like they were teenagers again, well into the night. The bed was made, but Vivica was nowhere to be found. She stood and stretched, her muscles crying out. She was stiff from the hard floor, and starving to boot. She wandered downstairs, the smell of coffee beckoning her to the kitchen. She poured herself a cup in a Garfield mug that was probably older than she was.

The Louisiana heat was already beckoning, despite the early hour. Toni walked out onto the porch, cradling her cup of hot coffee, and found her grandmother, in the old bentwood rocker in the corner. “Morning,” she murmured, blowing on her steaming coffee.

“
You girls kept me up all night with your carrying on,” she said, giving Toni the evil eye, but Toni could see she was trying not to smile.

“
You're half-deaf,” Toni said, leaning on the railing. “I doubt you heard anything.”

“
You think you just know it all, don't you?” Granny said, rocking back and forth benignly.

“
No, you're mistaking me for my sister,” Toni giggled, and then scowled as the banging from the roof louder above them grew louder. “What is going on up there?” Toni asked, jogging down the porch stairs to the patchy grass of the lawn. She put her hand up to her head as she cleared the house, shielding her eyes from the sun. Her mouth dropped open as she saw Vivica crouched on the roof, banging around with a hammer. “What the hell is she doing?!” Toni exclaimed, alarmed.

“
She got it in her head to fix the roof,” Granny said with a shrug. “My Vivvy always could do whatever she put her mind to.”

“
Granny! That's dangerous!” Toni screamed.

“
She's alright. Leave her be,” Granny said waving her off. “She wants to keep busy, who am I to stop her? Especially since I'm tired of the roof leaking.”

“
Why don't you let Nat or Dad pay someone to fix it then? A professional, perhaps?!” Toni said, but the situation was so ridiculous that she couldn't help but laugh. Vivica waved, silhouetted against the sun. Toni waved back and then shook her head, giving up. She walked back up on the porch.

“
You can't keep her a secret forever, you know. One of these days Mommy or Daddy is going to come over and see her.”

“
Well, I'll deal with that when it happens. For now, she wants me to hush up, and that's just what I'm going to do. She's helping me out and I'm happy to have her here.”

“
It's just... it's weird, Granny,” Toni said. “When was the last time you heard from her before she showed up?”

“
She called me one morning from some hotel in London and she sounded so down. I told her to bring her ass on home, where she belongs. And thank the Lord, she actually listened for a change.”

“
Hmm,” Toni murmured, taking a sip of her coffee.

“
And don't you go spouting your mouth off to your daddy. I don't need to hear his thoughts on the matter.”

“
Yes, ma'am.”

“
Now, what do you want for breakfast? I can whip up some pancakes. And some grits. Both of you girls need some meat on your bones.”

“
Oh, don't worry about it—” Toni tried, but her grandmother was already pushing slowly out of her chair. She rushed over to help, but she got waved off.

“
Don't treat me like an old lady. I know I am, but I don't need to be reminded of it all the time,” Granny said, then shuffled her way to the kitchen, humming in that low way she did. Toni sighed, and the banging continued, echoing across the field and in Toni's ears. She moaned and went inside.

She had her meeting with the president of the ballet company at noon, and after her grandmother prepared a huge breakfast and stuffed she and a dusty Vivica full of food, she took a shower and got dressed. She borrowed her grandmother's ancient Caddy and drove into the city. She had no high hopes for the company and she wasn't disappointed. It was small and not really a place where she saw a future, unless she wanted to teach. She wasn't ready to teach yet, and she had no intentions of moving back to Louisiana, so it was a decided waste of time. But the trip to Louisiana was mostly a way for her to run from her problems and put some distance between she and O'Donovan anyway, if she was honest with herself.

On her way back to her grandmother's house, she pulled to a stop at a red light. A tattoo parlor was on the right corner, its green neon sign catching her attention. She turned her eyes back to the road and continued on, but an idea had taken root. She had never gotten a tattoo before, and they were generally frowned upon amongst dancers, but if she got something small and hidden... why not? She thought about it more and more, and by the time she pulled up in Granny's gravel driveway, she was already trying to decide what she was going to get.