Love Me Knots (10 page)

David watched Krista carefully, his heart physically aching at the tears filling her eyes. He wanted to put his arms around her, especially when it looked like her tears were about to get the better of her, but she swallowed down the emotion well enough to talk again. And fill him with pride he had no right to feel.

“I love you, too, Daddy. I do, but I will not allow you to control my life or think you have the right to make decisions for me. Those days are gone. They aren’t coming back. Not for you, not for anyone.”

David waited for her to glance his way again, but the softly said words seemed to be more for her than for him.

“If you want to be part of my life, you’re welcome. But only if you’re able to accept the choices I make. No more schemes. No judgments.” She reached out her hand and took hold of David’s, moving to stand next to him. It was only then that he could tell she was shuddering. “You owe my fiancé an apology.”

Elmore James’s mottle shifted from red to near purple.

“That’s good enough for me,” David murmured, unsure if too loud a noise might push the man into complete cardiac arrest. Krista glanced up, her mouth curved with that touch of intimate connection that sent sparklers going off along his nerves.

She squeezed his hand once and moved away, wrapping her arms around her surprised father. James actually looked to David as if he might have a clue what the right thing to do in that situation might be. David could only shrug and poke his hands into his pockets. His only experience with fathers was reminding them to eat from time to time and sorting obscure mathematical equations. Finally, James folded his arms around her and sighed.

“I’m still mad at you,” Krista added, hugging him tighter for another few seconds. She let go, disengaging with a sniff. “Like, seriously angry, but…well, there’s bigger things in the world to worry about. And let’s face it, I should have known it was you when no one wanted to take my case but David.”

“Why is that, Ellison?” James squinted at David, his color fading to a less disturbing pink. “Everyone else in their right mind would have known better than to antagonize me.”

“It’s simple, sir,” David answered, shifting to move ahead of them and open the French door. “I took one look at your daughter and no longer cared about you in the slightest.”

James’s expression wasn’t amused. “I don’t think I like you, Ellison.”

“You’re welcome to join the club, sir.”

Krista rolled her eyes. “
I
like him, which is all that matters.”

Like. It was a tame word. Too tame, given the way he felt about her. Which is probably what prompted him to say what he shouldn’t have, as father and daughter moved toward the door. “Yes, you and the baby.”

“
Baby?
” Elmore James’s eyes widened and he jerked a glance down at Krista, who stared at David in openmouthed shock.

The next thing he knew was the bright flash of a fist smashing into his eye and the cold rush of water as he flew over the railing.

“Here, slap this on it.”

David glanced up at the stranger in blue with a distinct lack of trust. But at least this guy was offering something with a plate’s worth of distance. Even if the something was a three-inch-thick steak, it was better than the complete lack of distance from the guy who’d “rescued” him from the water.

“Trust me, man. If anyone has gotten a black eye around here, it’s me.”

Doubting the meat could do anything but rot on his face, David picked it up and pressed it gingerly to his puffy eye. He leaned his head back against the wall, allowing his body to relax into the couch with a sigh. “Thank you…”

“Jake,” the stranger informed him gruffly.

David nodded. At least the meat was cold.

“You shouldn’t hold anything against Cobb,” Jake continued, causing David to open his unfettered eye. “He’s easily excited.”

“Yes,” David agreed flatly. “I noticed.”

Jake’s mouth twitched, though David wasn’t sure if he were trying not to laugh or thinking the better of explaining why the man, Cobb, had gone from flirting with Krista the night before to screaming and diving into the water to rescue a man who wasn’t drowning. He’d had to hit the guy in the mouth with his elbow or face actual grave danger. Dragging the strange man to the shore hadn’t been easy either, not with the guy clinging and rubbing his cheek on David’s shoulder.

He didn’t want to think about what else had rubbed against him. It was possibly the most bizarre rescue ever.

“It was just like an episode of Baywatch!” a blond man was exclaiming to Cobb across the room while his identical twin held a cloth napkin full of ice to Cobb’s swollen lip. The one with the ice kept throwing angry glares David’s way.

“Knock it off, Ricky,” Jake suddenly barked. “A busted lip never killed anyone.”

“It completely destroys his symmetry,” Ricky grumbled, but it couldn’t have been so bad since he let go of the ice soon after.

“How’s my nose?” Cobb asked, sounding mortally concerned.

“I didn’t hit your nose.” David wondered exactly why these four men were in Krista’s bungalow when they had one literally twenty feet away.

“Perfect.” The standing blond patted Cobb on the shoulder sympathetically.

“Will someone please tell me exactly what the hell is going on?” Elmore James fairly exploded from the dining room where Krista had been wrapping his hand in ice. “Who invited the gay paramedics?”

“Oooh, that sounds—” Stevie stumbled forward onto his hands when his brother kicked him none too lightly.

“These are my friends, Dad.” Krista sounded tired as she stood, pushing her chair back to the table edge and walking out into the living room where the rest of them were attending each other. “They just wanted to help.” She looked around at the men—notably skipping himself, David realized—and gave a weary smile. “Thanks for…” She colored, probably trying to come up with some kind of word to describe whatever had happened since David hit the water.

“No problem.” Jake clapped a hand on her shoulder. “Time to clear out, guys.” Within seconds, the big man had maneuvered the other three out the double French doors, only allowing Cobb a bizarre finger wave in David’s direction before closing them and leaving the trio in silence.

Krista blew a breath out, tilting her head to the side with what seemed a resigned slump to her shoulders. Before David could ask what was wrong, Elmore stepped into the living room, not as blustery but definitely still out of sorts.

“I’m pregnant,” Krista blurted out, clapping her hands in front of her then bouncing them twice on her hips and nodding as if this were news. “Nine weeks. So you’ll be meeting your grandchild in early September or so.”

Elmore’s dark gaze went from Krista to David, then back again.

“Killing him not only won’t help, there’s no reason for it. And I should probably remind you that I wouldn’t even have met him if it hadn’t been for you.” When her father made to say something, she added, “And yes, it was partially my own fault. I
was
out of control, being an ungrateful spoiled brat, going the wrong way about getting your attention. But I grew up. And now I’m getting married. So you have nothing to worry about. David and I are going to be just fine.”

She said it so confidently that when her father glanced his way, David didn’t even have to nod. Not that he could have. He wasn’t nearly so confident that this wasn’t all a smokescreen to make her father accept her decisions.

“Where do I factor in?” Elmore finally asked quietly. “Or don’t I?”

Krista’s smile quivered at the edges. “You could give me away at the wedding.”

Elmore brightened.

“As soon as you relinquish access to my trust account,” she added, walking over to hug him again when the scowl returned.

David watched, quiet as always, wondering how it must feel to be so free and affectionate with a parent. Hugs were practically anathema to his own father, but love wasn’t. Their bond was different, he knew, but it was just as strong. Just as meaningful. It was something he could pass on to his own child and maybe, just maybe, he’d get the chance.

“You should go for a little while and we can meet you for dinner. David and I have a few things we need to work out.”

Not good things, David figured. But, he thought as Elmore nodded and quietly left the bungalow, there wasn’t much that could happen that was more demeaning than being punched out by a man twice his age and then rubbed up on by a stranger. With that in mind, odds were in his favor for a positive outcome.

But one thing he knew about odds…you just never knew when someone would come along and blow them away.

{

Krista watched her father leave with a sense of relief and dread. Alone with David. With all the things they needed to say to each other. Just the thought of it was exhausting.

She turned, her heart flipping like a trained monkey at the sight of him sitting in yesterday’s wet clothes, draped in towels, a flaccid slab of meat over one eye, the other trained on her as if he were awaiting execution. She owed him some kind of serious apology. The only question was where to begin.

“How’s the eye?”

“Intact.” His gaze was so wary. As if he expected her to hurt him somehow. Or maybe, she accepted with a sigh, to hurt him
more
.

She crossed in front of him, pulling the thick steak off with a thumb and forefinger. He proffered the plate and she plunked it down. He set the plate on the next cushion, still watching her. She touched the side of his face, where the imprint of her father’s knuckles was already staining an angry deep rose shade. The whole of his eye and cheekbone was dotted with the juice from the steak. The towels hadn’t done much to dry him. He was rumpled, bruised, embarrassed and cautious. She couldn’t do much about the cautiousness, but she knew how to soothe the other things. She reached out her hand. “Come with me.”

He frowned slightly, his brows knitting together, but he took her hand and let her pull him to his feet. Walking backward, she led him toward her bedroom and the grand bathroom tucked into its side. He didn’t stop her when she started unbuttoning his shirt. He simply watched her, silent and still.

Risking the lack of contact, she opened the glass doors of the octagonal shower stall. She pressed the pre-programmed button and all twelve showerheads burst to life, streaming warm water from nearly every angle.

David took off the shirt, clearly waiting for her next cue. If she had another few days to just stare at him, at the smooth pectoral muscles, the lean definition of him, she’d be a happy woman. She’d kissed every angular line, caressed each and every muscle along his belly. She’d seen him in shadow and in sunlight, shown him every part of her body and reveled in the touch only he could give. But she hadn’t truly trusted him with her heart. Hadn’t once tried to give him even the smallest sliver of it, afraid of his power over her. So she’d lied and the lie had corroded her until she couldn’t bear it anymore.

She’s never needed me
, he’d said, fully believing it. And then she’d blamed him for not putting himself out there first. Jake was right—she had given herself a way out of their relationship. But not anymore. She didn’t want out. She wanted him and if that meant pulling slowly at his reserve to find the treasure underneath that she knew was there, she could do it. One step at a time.

With steady fingers, she reached for the knot securing the patterned pareo above her breasts, loosening the fabric and letting it slip like silk to the ground. David kept his eyes locked on hers, but she could tell from the rigid set of his jaw that it wasn’t easy. She moved close to him, letting the tips of her breasts just touch the hard planes of his chest, and cupped his face in her hands. He hadn’t shaved yet, the dark stubble adding to the tactile pleasure of letting herself touch him again. When he didn’t stop her, she slid her hands down to his shoulders, molding over the strong tendons and down the lengths of his arms. Maintaining the intense eye contact, she reached for his belt.

A grip like steel wrapped around her wrist. “What are you doing, Krista?”

She smiled up at him. “Touching you.”

His frown spoke only of confusion. “I don’t understand. Last night, you didn’t want anything to do with me. Now, suddenly, you’ve changed your mind?”

“Yes.” She shook his hand off when his eyes widened. The belt opened in a flash. “And no.” Before he could ask more questions, she undid the zipper and reached in to find his hardness, hot and smooth beneath his briefs. He groaned, eyes closing, his head lowering until his forehead touched the top of hers. She stroked the shaft, applying the pressure she knew he preferred, gently leading him closer to the doors.

“You’ll have to explain.”

“I intend to.” She used her free hand to touch his cheek, lifting on her toes to brush his lips with hers. “Come into the shower, David.”

“We should talk…first,” he whispered, swallowing when she let her fingers drift lower, grazing his testicles gently.

“We will.” She pulled her hand out and backed up another step. “In the shower.” She waited until his eyes opened, dazed, before shimmying out of her panties and stepping into the stall. The water, warm and streaming, slicked her hair down her back.

Finally, just as she was starting to worry, David stepped in. He closed the door behind himself, then followed her into the center of the streams. He didn’t seem to notice the luxury of the shower at all, simply reaching for her and pulling her flush against him. His arms, she noticed, clamped hers to her sides, rendering her unable to use her hands to distract him.

“Explain.”

If she didn’t feel she owed it to him to say this to his face, she’d lay her cheek on the tempting stretch of his chest. But it was thinking like that which had gotten her into this mess. No more hiding from the things that needed to be said, in any way.

“I’ve been lying to you.” His only response was a tightening of his mouth. “I told you that our relationship was all right with me the way it was, when it wasn’t. It wasn’t fair to be angry at you because you didn’t feel the same way. I’m sorry if I hurt you. I just couldn’t keep going the way we were. I wanted more.”

“Do you still? Want more, I mean.” He released his hold to smooth her wet hair off her brow. It wasn’t a move designed to calm her or lull her into seeing things his way. It was just one of those quietly caring gestures he always made, like the way he made sure to keep a hand on the small of her back when they walked together, that she’d stopped noticing. She had done so on purpose, unable to believe they might be signs of something more. She needed to stop second-guessing and start taking him at face value. The way he expected her to.

“Yes.” She couldn’t be lax about what she needed anymore. “I was serious when I said I need a man who loves me. Who can
show
me that he loves me.”

“When you said that, you didn’t think that man could be me.”

“
You
said it could.” Even with the water misting around them, creating droplets on her lashes, she didn’t want to tear her gaze from his. She needed to see every response, honestly and without the filter of her own insecurities. “From the moment this started, you’ve been trying to get me to hear you. You came all the way out here, pushed and prodded, you even antagonized my father. If there’s one thing I know about you, you don’t do anything without a reason. I finally realized that you’ve been showing me all along how you felt, I was just too wrapped up in myself to see it.”

His entire face brightened, a smile erupting across his features that had her breath and her heartbeat stuttering to a stop. She suddenly realized she wasn’t as crazy as she’d thought to find every other man in the world seriously lacking.

“But,” she added, regretting that when his smile lost some of its sparkle, “I still need more than you’ve been giving.” She could see the frown returning. “You already talk to me, but you’ve got to start talking about what matters to you. What matters to me.”

“Feelings,” he concluded, losing his firm hold.

Krista pulled him closer, determined not to let him retreat. “Feelings.”

He remained quiet for a while, the sound of the water all she could hear. She took heart when his hands began to massage the skin at her waist. “I’m not good at them. But I want to get better. I want to give you what you need.”