Possession (18 page)

Kat turned in his arms, reached up and took off his sunglasses. “You make it so easy.”

“It’s a barbecue, it’s supposed to be easy and fun. You look hot no matter what you wear. Go get comfortable.” He let her go, replacing his shades on his face. After he snagged the boxes of cookies and cupcakes, they walked in together. “Dinner’s almost ready. Go.” He pressed his hand between her shoulder blades, urging her toward the stairs.

Two racks was a massive understatement. The bed was covered in more clothes, stacks of sleepwear, some robes, bras, panties and workout gear. Flip-flops, sandals and athletic shoes rested on collapsible display tables.

Turning in a circle, she didn’t know what to do. It would be easier to stay in her work clothes. But Sloane had gone to all this trouble. Kat went to the rack of dresses and cover-ups. Exactly as promised, there was a selection of long sundresses. They had spaghetti straps, halter cuts, boat necks, some solid colors, others in island prints.

One dress stood out, white with red swirls. It would cover her leg, yet she would look BBQ-summery. She pulled it off the rack and headed to the bathroom.

A slash of red caught her eyes. A red bikini, reminding her of one she’d had in college. Longing burned in her chest. She fingered the soft material.

Red. Such a powerful color. She wanted more red in her life again. Going downstairs in a bikini was more than she was ready for. Even with a wrap. But she could wear it beneath the dress. And maybe after everyone left, she would show Sloane.

Deciding to try it on, she walked into the en suite. “No way.” Stunned, Kat surveyed the bathroom done in rich chocolate and sand colors. The second vanity had lotions, brushes, hair clips, curling iron, blow dryer. Even deodorant. “He’s crazy.” Or maybe she was. Maybe her parents were right and she had suffered permanent damage from that concussion. Now she lived in an alternate reality where a hot, obscenely rich guy bought her stuff.

A knock on the door startled her.

“Kat?” Sherry called out. “Sloane sent me up here to drag you out to eat.”

“I’ll bet he did.” She kicked off her shoes and undressed.

“He said if he came up here himself, the two of you wouldn’t be down for a while.”

Rolling her eyes, Kat pulled on the swimsuit. The red material was held together by sexy gold rings at her hips. The halter top had a smaller ring between her breasts. She looked in the mirror.

“He also mentioned that if you don’t come down now, he would come up here.”

“Threats are a great way to seduce a girl.”

“Are you dressed?”

“Not exactly.” She stared at her image, glad there wasn’t a full-length mirror in the bathroom. Without seeing her leg, for a few seconds, she could pretend—

The door swung open, and Sherry strolled in. “Oh hell yeah. You rock that bikini.”

Kat lifted a brow. “Come on in.” She reached for the dress and dropped it over her head.

“You’re making me feel underdressed.”

After releasing her ponytail, she brushed her hair out and glanced at Sherry in the mirror. “You need to work on that insecurity.”

Laughing, Sherry grabbed Kat’s arm. “You look great, let’s go.” She tugged Kat out of the bathroom.

“Shoes?”

“Honey, there’s five teenage boys out there, two huge ex-fighters and my two kids. They will plow through all the food and leave us a lettuce leaf to split if we don’t move it. Forget the shoes.”

“I am hungry.” And Sherry had a damn strong grip on her arm. Tagging along behind her, Kat honed in on the tattoo of a shield on her lower back. “Your tat is a smaller version of John’s. It’s cool.” Her hands itched to trace it, learn the lines so she could replicate it on a cake.

Sherry glanced back, her eyes full of love. “He has my back. No matter where I am, what I’m doing, John has my back.”

It was so touching, she didn’t have words. Kat just nodded and slowed her steps as they approached the deck. The huge glass doors had been opened, creating an indoor-outdoor space. Sloane had a hot tub on one end, seating and tables in the middle, and a built-in barbeque kitchen area divided by a bar. Right now, John and Sloane were surrounded by about a half-dozen kids holding plates as the two men passed out burgers and hotdogs from the grill.

Most of the kids appeared to be in their teens, but a younger boy and girl were in the mix.

“I’d better rescue Kylie.”

“That tiny scrap of a girl pushing the boys around to get to the front of the line?”

Sherry grinned. “That would be my daughter.”

“Huh, I’d never have guessed. But given how much Sloane and John are piling on her plate, she’s gonna need some help carrying it.” Looking around, she spotted Drake stretched out on a padded deck chair. While Sherry went to help her daughter, Kat walked over to him.

“Hey, Kat. You look pretty.”

He looked better today. She dragged a chair over and sat. “Do you want anything to eat?”

“I want a beer. Sloane’s being a pansy-ass woman about it too.”

“Yeah?” She glanced over to see that the herd of kids was thinning. “Tell you what. You eat a bit and do okay with that, I’ll split a beer with you.”

Drake pulled off his shades. “Swear?”

“Yep. Unless Sloane catches me, then kills me and dumps my body in the ocean. That would end our deal.”

“What deal?” A warm hand settled on her shoulder.

“Really?” Kat snapped at Drake. “You couldn’t warn me he was sneaking up on me?”

His mouth twitched. “Could have, but the stunned look on his face when you mentioned him catching and killing you was worth it.”

“What are you two plotting?”

Kat looked up at him. “We’re having a serious negotiation. Go away.”

“Hell no. Last time you negotiated with him, I ended up watching a dance show. In my house, on my TV. You two can’t be trusted.”

Shrugging, she stood up. “I’ll go make us a couple plates of food.”

“I’ll help.” Sloane followed her. “By the way, Kitten, you look sexy in that dress.”

“Still not telling you.” She snagged two plates and surveyed the food. Hamburgers and hotdogs might be too hard to digest. Then she saw the boneless chicken breasts. Drake was probably sick of poultry, but it was easier on a tender stomach than beef. She almost felt guilty making a hamburger for herself, but she was starved.

Behind her, Sloane fingered the halter strap of her dress. “You’re wearing a bikini under this.”

Tremors raced through her. “Yes.” Kat was surprised how sexy she felt just knowing she had it on. Turning around, she looked up at him. “Thank you, it was lovely of you to do this. But I can’t accept any more.”

“You will.” He reached around her and piled two burgers and a hotdog on a plate.

Kat rolled her eyes. “Hungry?”

Sloane leaned in close. “Starved to see that bikini on you, then rip it off. Since I’m the one who will be destroying your clothes, I’ll be buying them for you.” He picked up his plate and hers, leaving Drake’s for her to carry.

Grabbing a beer and a water, she then joined the others. A few teenage boys wearing board-shorts and shades just like Sloane and John pulled up chairs. In time she sorted out the kids. Ben, the youngest of the boys, was John and Sherry’s son. The other five boys, ranging from about twelve to sixteen, were kids that Sloane, John and Drake mentored. The kids were talking about being out on Sloane’s boat earlier that day. And they were trying to get a game of volleyball going after eating.

Kat eyed the volleyball area set up on the sand just down the deck stairs. Sand and a bunch of teenaged boys trying to prove themselves to a couple ex-UFC fighters sounded like a recipe for pain to her. Now if it was just her and Sloane? She could distract him with her bikini.

She got up, located a paper cup and poured a little beer in it while they all argued about teams. After returning to her seat, she twisted around to hand the cup to Drake while everyone was occupied.

“Sick-looking scars on your leg. How’d you get them?”

Drake grabbed the cup when Kat nearly spilled the beer. Whipping her head around, she looked at the boy who had spoken. She thought his name was Ryan but wasn’t sure. Everyone else stopped talking. Sloane’s gaze settled on her, warm and supportive, but he didn’t say anything.

Suddenly it wasn’t all that big of a deal. The kid had asked a question. She shrugged and pulled her dress up, revealing her leg. “Baseball bat shattered my tibia. It took two plates and a handful of screws to hold it all together.”

“Cool.”

“Awesome.”

Kylie slipped up next to her, all big blue eyes. “Did it hurt a lot?”

She looked so worried, Kat wanted to hug her. Regretting that she’d mentioned a baseball bat, she tried to reassure the little girl. “I was in the hospital. They took care of me and gave me medicine, so I was okay.”

“Does it hurt now? Can I touch it?”

“Kylie.” Sherry stood up.

Kat shook her head at Sherry. “Sure, you can touch it. It only hurts a little bit when I do too much.”

Kylie bent down, skimming the scars with butterfly-soft touches. “It’s kind of bumpy.”

The boys started gathering in. “You could get some ink. That’d be righteous.”

“Oh.” Kylie stood up. “Pretty flowers growing out of the scars. That’d be nice, right, Mommy?”

“Sure, sweetie,” Sherry agreed. “If that’s what Kat wants. It’s her leg.”

Sloane said, “Let’s clean up and get the game going. The team that wins gets first pick of the cupcakes and cookies Kat brought.”

Just like that the moment was over. Everyone jumped up, clearing plates and gathering up leftover food. Kat started to get up.

Sloane leaned over her. “Not you. You’re in time-out for sneaking Drake beer. Now you have to sit there and relax with Drake.”

“That sucks.”

He grinned, took hold of her chin and kissed her. “You’re amazing. You handled that great. How’d it feel?”

His praise made her heart flutter. “Pretty damn good.” Freeing, actually. As if something inside her had unlocked in Sloane’s arms Friday night.

“If my team wins, you lose the dress and I get to show you off in the hot tub. Deal?”

With Sloane this close to her, bravery sang through her. “Deal.”

Chapter Thirteen

Sloane relaxed on his sofa as everyone sprawled on furniture or the floor watching the movie he’d put on. Kat had smirked when Sloane’s team lost, the little tease. Now she sat on the floor with Kylie, drawing out cake designs that thrilled the little girl. He was pretty sure they had gone through his entire supply of printer paper.

The boys were tossing out suggestions. Somehow, she’d ended up promising them all a special cake on their birthdays.

The woman was ridiculously generous and yet she balked when he bought her a few clothes.

“Movie’s over.” John stood up. “Clean up. Time to get the boys home.”

Sloane switched off the DVD player, returning the TV to the station he’d had it on before the movie, and picked up his phone. He sent Ethan a text to bring the limo around in ten minutes to take all the kids home.

“Hey, Sloane, that’s you. And Kat,” Kevin, the kid he’d been mentoring for two years now, said.

What the hell? The video from yesterday morning when Kat had been ambushed by the media played on his TV screen. Hitting the info button, he snarled at what he saw. “
Afterburn
.” The pseudo-legitimate show tracking crime victims and their families to expose the after burn of their pain. Fucking assholes.

The tape showed yesterday morning exactly as he remembered. Sloane wearing the sweats he’d barely thought to pull on, bursting out of the gates at a dead run. The videographer had caught his enraged expression when Sloane had seen the photographer alternating between banging on Kat’s car window and shooting pictures.

And Kat’s face. Christ, it had been frozen in pale terror.

The shot went wider as Sloane threw the photographer aside and yanked open the door. Then he lifted Kat, his entire body curling around her to shield her from what was happening.