Because I Love You (7 page)

Quiet and reflective, Tris spoke of his family with fondness and love. He was right, he had told her tidbits here and there, but now he was diving into stories. Leah loved how much his family was like hers. Different, but the same. It told her so much about him and that the two of them, so driven with their careers, really came from similar places.

“My mum would like you. She doesn't suffer fools, and she'd like how no-nonsense you are. It's amazing she married my father, who was such a scatterbrain.”

“My mother was a refined debutante, my father a loud Scot. But they love each other like nothing else,” Leah said. “They sound lovely, your parents. And what an idyllic existence, growing up on a school campus.”

“Idyllic? I don't know. It was one step above a poorhouse, but we did get excellent educations. My father left Mum with some debt, and no nest egg, when he died.” He was thinking. “We never had much. We lived in a house the school provided the headmaster. The place was old, filled with books. Looking back it's a miracle it didn't burn to the ground. We played together, did our schoolwork, and did our chores.”

“That doesn't sound so different than my growing up.”

“Yeah, but you didn't have to worry about the roof over your head leaking. Lovely people, my parents, but flakey as hell.” Maybe so, but the affection in his voice was obvious.

“So your mum lives alone? No family nearby?”

“I bought her a cottage in town. She still has friends there and my aunt lives just a few streets down. But she does miss us. I'm supposed to go there for Christmas.”

“I'm glad you'll get to see them. Are any of you married?”

“No, and Mum is dying for grandchildren.”

Leah thought about her own mum, who was over-the-moon happy about her first grandchild. It made Leah a little sad. She'd always wanted children. Now she didn't know if she'd ever have them. Settling against his shoulder, Leah loved how easy it was to be with him. She admitted to herself a couple of weeks ago that Tristan was damn near irresistible.

But she had resisted him, and she'd continue to do so.

*  *  *

Waking up to the bright sunshine streaming through the bedroom windows, Leah stretched and rolled her head around as her eyes adjusted. A deep moan from next to her reminded her that she wasn't alone, but as the sleep fog vacated her brain, and she began to come awake, the truth slapped her upside the head. She'd fallen asleep in Tristan's bed.

“Shit!” She bolted upright, startling Tristan awake.

“What? Ahhh! Damn. I shouldn't have moved so fast.” His arms were wrapped around his midsection. “Shit.”

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry.”

It took a moment, but he managed to draw a deep breath and ask a question. “What's the problem?”

“It's daylight. Damn. Eight-thirty.” Leah was up and out of bed, though, thinking more about the fact that the entire farm was awake and there was no way for her to get back in the house undetected. Yes, she was thirty years old, and nothing happened, but she was the baby of the family and her father was an overprotective bear. “He's going to kill me.” She stopped. Turned. “No.
No
. He's going to kill
you
. Oh. My. God. What was I thinking?”

Trying to get her hair to behave, she suddenly felt his arms wrap around her from behind. The contact, the warmth seeped into her. “It's fine.”

This was a dangerous position. He wasn't being suggestive, or inappropriate—he was trying to calm her down—but she could feel his morning erection pressing into her. And it was delicious. All she had to do was turn around . . .

“He's
not
going to kill me, as you say.”

“No?” she asked, unsure.

“No. Now please calm down. It's going to be fine. Nothing happened. I'll tell him the truth. You came up to keep me company and we both fell asleep.”

Without hesitation, Leah turned and wrapped her arms around his waist. She wasn't planning on it, but it seemed like the only thing to do, and without hesitation, he pulled her in, holding her close. She'd never felt more content in her life. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“I'm batshit crazy most of the time. I'm too intense. I jump to conclusions. You just . . . you just seem to get me.”

Tris tilted her face toward his and dropped a soft kiss on her lips. God, she loved his kisses. It was the kind of kiss meant to soothe and comfort, but between them, it was dangerous. “I find the craziness, the intensity, quite wonderful, actually. You're passionate and loyal. And you're never boring.”

Leah felt the heat rise in her face. “Really?”

“Don't ever doubt how much all that means, Leah. Women who lead with their hearts are a rare breed these days.”

She didn't mention to him that there weren't many men who did either. It made it hard to tell who could be trusted. “I should go. I have to call in and let them know I'm working from home today.”

“I think I'm going back to the city. I feel well enough, and I've imposed on your family long enough.”

“You don't have to leave. My family is very happy to have you here as long as you need, and I'd like you to stay one more day. You've even gotten Sally's seal of approval.”

“Did I?” He grinned looking quite pleased with himself. “What did she say?”

Leah went up and gave him a peck on the cheek. “She said I could do worse. I didn't have a chance to tell her we're just friends.”

“High praise.” His hands made slow movements from her shoulder to her elbow and back again. Over and over. “Alright, one more day. But only if you'll be here for dinner.”

“I'd love it.” She moved in to kiss him. It seemed like the thing to do, but she stopped herself. “But, um, I'm going to go face the music and get the inquisition over with.”

“Alright. I'll change and see you in a bit for breakfast.”

“Breakfast? You don't have to . . .”

“You have to face them, so do I. Now get going; I have to shower.”

“This is going to be awkward,” she groaned. “We did nothing and it's still going to be weird.”

Tris shrugged and chuckled. “Probably a little, but you're tough, you can take it.”

She left him with a last kiss and a shake of the head. “You surprise me at every turn, Tristan Wade.”

The second she opened the cottage door, Sally stepped out onto the back porch, hands on her hips and an ear-to-ear grin.

“Good morning, Sally!” Looking back over her shoulder, Leah discovered Tristan was behind her, waving from the doorway. “Are you of a mind to feed me this morning, even though I'm just an English bastard?”

Sally's eyes narrowed, amused. “I'll have to think about it. I might have some stale biscuits for ya.”

“Lovely. Be there in a bit.”

The man was smooth, she couldn't deny that, and he had Sally wrapped around his little finger. Grinning to herself as she made her way to the house, Leah admitted she was pretty much under his spell, too.

“Leah?” Uh oh.
Da
.

Her father was standing at the corner of the house, fingering some ivy that was making its way up a trellis. “Morning,” Leah said. “Any sign of our foal yet?”

“Not yet.” He was quiet. Unusual for her father. “Leah, I know you're an adult and that you have your own life.”

“Da, I—” He cut her off with a shake of his head.

“Please indulge your mother and me. While you're under our roof, let us believe you are still our sweet, innocent child.”

“Da, nothing happened. I went to keep him company and fell asleep. That's it.”

“Oh, Leah, please don't lie.”

“I'm not lying.”

“It's not only awkward with you, but with Tristan as well. He is friends with Nate . . .”

Leah didn't know how to respond to her father's concern. Especially since nothing had gone on except a baseball game and a whole lot of sleeping. A week ago she might have shot off her mouth about her brother being the golden child who could do no wrong, but today, wanting to keep the peace she was forging with Jenna and her brother, she didn't lash out.

“Da, I understand what you're saying, but Nate's life and mine are separate. Could you please give me that consideration? I'm sure he would agree with me.”

He would. He might not have liked her relationship with Tris, but her brother was an extremely fair man and he understood that Leah could make her own decisions. But the staid look on her father's face told her this wasn't going to be easy for him to swallow. She definitely got the feeling there was something else going on.

“Da, is everything alright? This isn't like you.”

He looked away, a sure sign he was hiding something. “I don't know whatcher talking about.”

Leah reached out and took her father's hand. “Okay. You'll tell me when you're ready,” she said. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, my stubborn girl. But the same goes. Maybe you'll give some thought to telling us what has you so sad. I don't want you hurt again, Leah. And don't deny it. I know someone broke that heart of yours.”

She hadn't been expecting that. But then, her father had always been good at surprising her. There was nothing to say,
unfortunately. Nothing she could do to ease her father's mind or help him understand what had forced the change in her three years ago.

She hated keeping secrets from him and her mother. They'd always been her biggest cheerleaders, and every time they asked a question, and she didn't give a straight answer, she felt guilty.

“Leah darlin', please mind your heart. You really don't know him.”

Slipping her arms around his waist, she rested her head on his chest and squeezed tight.

“I'll be fine, Da. I will. But think about it, how well do you really know anyone?”

He didn't say anything further, which meant she'd made her point. However, Leah knew her father well enough to know he didn't believe her—not for one second. But he accepted what she said enough to let the issue drop. For now.

Leah was poring over a case that would be better served by arbitration between the parties. However, one of the partners had gotten involved in the case she was working on, so there was no easy way out of this. The investor, who was a friend of her boss, got greedy, and the financial advisor had a history of making very risky buys. The result was the investor got burned. Stupid people shouldn't have access to so much money, but there had been nothing illegal about the deal. Sure, there was language that needed to be clarified, but it was nothing more than someone losing money in the market.

It happened every day.

Ginger Kyle was in the office continuing the work she and Leah had started at the Long Island office, and Leah didn't like her any better here than she did out east. There was something disingenuous about the woman, and Leah couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Her assistant, Sarah, popped her head into her office. “Leah, you have a visitor.”

“A visitor? Did I have an appointment?”

“No, he said he's a friend of yours and to tell you he and his brother wanted to take you to lunch. His name is Tristan Wade?”

Oh, wow. He was here. In her office. Unannounced, and apparently with his brother the Royal Marine. She rose and looked out at the cubicles. There stood Tristan, perfectly gorgeous in an expensive suit with a wide smile. It had been ten days since his fall off the horse, and he'd been back at his apartment for the last week. She'd been there almost every night, hanging out, making sure he ate, and even changing a dressing here and there.

They'd settled into a wonderfully content routine, much like lovers who had been together for ages.

But other than sitting close on the couch, there was no physical contact. She wanted it, craved it if she was honest. The memory of Tristan's hands on her skin, of his hot kisses, made her acutely aware of everything she was missing.

Next to him was a tall man, his brother Nick, who possessed the same dark hair and eyes as Tristan, but he was huge, and more rugged than handsome. He had the look of someone who could do real harm with one hand tied behind his back. He was dressed in a pair of tan slacks, a blue shirt, and a classic blue blazer. His clothes fit well over his broad shoulders and back, and spanned his body just enough to let the casual observer know that he was an impressive physical specimen.

The way the women in the office had gravitated to the area, it was obvious the Wade brothers were sending off some powerful pheromones. She expected ovaries were exploding all over the office.

Sarah breathed out. “Are you dating him?”

“No, we're just friends.”

Whipping her head around, her assistant was stunned. “What? Are you ill? How could you
not
be dating him? No sane woman would relegate that man to the friend zone.”

“I don't know. That's just the way it is.” And it was crazy. Leah had to agree, but friends. They were friends. “I guess I'm going to lunch.”

“If you don't jump the two of them I may never forgive you.”

“Both of them? Together? What made you say that?”

Biting her lip, Sarah grinned. “I'd do them both. Together, separately. They can decide.”

Leah had never heard her very proper assistant so much as mutter a mild oath, and here she was talking about threesomes. Yeah, those Wade boys were putting out some powerful sexual juju.

Leah waved her hand at Sarah. “That's a visual I didn't need.”

Sarah bit her lip and smiled when Nick caught her looking. “I'm going to replay that visual over and over,” she said.

“Stop it!” Leah snapped. “Just stop. I'm going to get my coat.”

“Have fun . . .”

“Sarah, there will be no more talk about jumping anyone. Okay? You can think it all you want, but talking . . . no.” She grabbed her purse. “I'm going to tell them they're never to come here again. It's not safe.”

“Pssht,” Sarah said, grinning. “You are no fun.”

Greeting Tristan with a kiss on the cheek, she smiled at his very large brother. “Nick, isn't it? I'm Leah. Very nice to meet you.”

“And you, Leah. My brother's description of you does not do your beauty justice.”

“I don't believe I described her to you, Nick. So you can turn down the charm.” Was that jealousy she heard in Tristan's voice? This could be fun.

“You are charming, Major. It is
Major
, isn't it?” He offered his arm, and she slipped hers through.

“Just promoted.” He smiled. “
Lieutenant-colonel
.”

“I didn't know you were promoted.” Tristan was trailing behind as they walked to the elevator. “When did that happen?”

“A month ago. Maybe you should stay in touch, brother. However, I could forgive you if you're giving all your attention to this charming creature.”

“Hardly,” she said. “He and I are just friends. He's married to his work.” She grinned at Tristan over her shoulder, only to be met with a rather healthy scowl. Oh, yes. He was angry.

“Well then, he is an idiot.” Nick smiled down at her and winked. “And this is my lucky day.”

*  *  *

Tristan followed Leah and his brother down the block toward their favorite lunch spot. The little bistro had great soups and sandwiches, and while he was recovering from his accident, he and Leah would meet for a meal one or two times a week. His favorite thing to do was to catch her early for breakfast, before she went to the office. Leah had a sweet tooth and it was
actually fun watching her dive into a stack of stuffed French toast, or a plateful of cheese blintzes.

She loved to eat, and after witnessing too many women pick at grilled chicken and salad, it was great to see a woman who liked food and didn't apologize. Granted, Leah was athletic, so she allowed herself the indulgence of comfort food. She would try to ride a couple of times a week, and if she couldn't get out to her parents' house to visit with the horses, she'd go to class at a yoga studio near her apartment. The last time they had dinner she was telling him that yoga made her body feel good, but she thought she might be too high-strung for the spiritual aspect of the practice.

“I'm crazy as a loon, and I'm not changing. These people are all so centered and calm. I really want to spike the instructor's water with vodka and see what happens.”

He chuckled at the memory, and found that aside from the sexual chemistry that he and Leah had, he really liked her. She was smart as a whip, so he could talk to her about anything. Throw in loyal, funny, and sexy as hell, and Tristan could see she was everything he wanted in a woman. But there would be no romance because they were friends.
Friends
.

Of course, at that moment, the woman was driving him mad because she was totally taken with his lug of a brother.

Nick was a brave marine, but there was no way he could keep up with brainy Leah. Unless, of course, Leah wasn't looking for conversation. It was possible she was simply looking for a warm body.

Feeling jealous and threatened was completely new for Tris.

He now knew he fucking hated it.

His brother was a good man, and they'd never been competitive, except in a good football match. In any other situation, he'd be telling Nick to enjoy Leah's company. But now, watching them walk arm in arm down the block, Tris wanted to kill Nick.

Dead.

Leah laughed and the sound caught in his head and drifted around, reminding him of the first night they'd spent together. Her laughter was like a drug; he loved hearing it because he'd discovered that making Leah happy was very important to him.

Tristan felt like a drowning man. Thoughts of this woman consumed him. Filled him and threatened to cut off his air.

Never had he felt like this. His only other serious relationship had been cold and passionless. Leah was anything but.

Thoughts of her swam around his head. Every giggle, every snarky comment made him smile. She was dynamic and Tristan was honestly concerned he might lose her. If not to Nick, to someone else, if he didn't do something.

*  *  *

Nick Wade was a very attractive man. He sat across from Leah at a wonderful Italian restaurant in Chelsea telling war stories. She should have been horrified, but his stories didn't detail the horrors of battle, instead he painted wonderfully detailed portraits of his men and the locals where he'd been deployed.

No doubt, she could listen to him all night long. He was charming.

“So, love, what's going on with you and my brother? I'm going to have to sleep with my knife close by, because when I was getting ready for our dinner, Tris looked like he wanted to do me violence.”

“We're just friends,” Leah responded. “Good friends, but that's all.”

“Friends? I think there's more than that going on. I've watched my brother wine, dine, and bed his share of women. He was a gentleman to the end, but the way he looks at you, Leah, is different.” He paused. “I'm a simple man, a military officer. I'm not a learned man, but I am an excellent judge of character. I can tell this much—my brother has fallen for you.”

Leah didn't say anything right away. It seemed odd to her to be out to dinner with one man, while talking about another. But she was out with Tristan's brother, so it didn't get much stranger than that. “I like Tristan, but he sees us as friends only.”

“Leah, I know my brother, and there's no way he sees you only as a friend. You're important to him. I always knew when it happened to Tris, he'd go down fast and furious.”

“It's very hard to read him.” She sipped her wine and examined Nick's face. He was really handsome, not in the refined Tristan way, but in a simpler, more down-to-earth way. He was several inches taller than Tristan and had at least twenty pounds on him, making the contrast even more obvious.

“My brother is easily readable, if you take the time to look. He wants you, and I'm going to make sure he knows that I'm interested. That should get him moving.”

“You're really quite a scoundrel, Nick. What if I said I'm good with the way things are? Friendship might suit me fine.”

“I'd tell you you were deluded. You two are so combustible, you send off smoke signals.”

Leah laughed. “You're incorrigible, aren't you?”

“I do my best, ma'am.”

He was an adorable scoundrel, but he was talking about manipulating his brother.

“I don't know, Nick. I really believe these things have to take their course, although I do appreciate your faith in me. I care about Tristan, but if he wants to make a go of this, he has to do it on his own.”

Nick reached across the table and took Leah's hand. “You're an honorable woman.”

“I'm a scared woman.”

“Trust me, he's pretty scared himself.”

*  *  *

Leah dropped her keys in the bowl on her coffee table and flipped through her mail. Dinner with Nick had been enlightening, to say the least. He gave her some insight into Tristan, mostly through stories of how they grew up. Sure, she knew the basics, but hearing about how he was teased by the wealthy students who attended the boarding school where their parents worked broke her heart.

Small, skinny, and clad in hand-me-downs that didn't quite fit, Tristan developed an inner fire. Instead of letting the circumstances beat him down, he used the experiences to push him forward. Apparently, he worked harder than anyone to
succeed—and it didn't matter what it was—school, sports, or business, Tristan wanted to be the best.

Leah could relate. She wasn't teased so much, but Leah always felt invisible, and the fight she always found herself in was the fight for visibility.

Her respect for him, her attraction, increased with every word his brother uttered. He never quit, he didn't feel sorry for himself, and he thrived when he was able to do things for the people he cared about.

Nick said he threw his money around sometimes, but that was only because it never occurred to him not to do it. That explained a lot. Tris didn't think about impressing someone with his wealth, but he didn't hesitate to use it if it looked like something he bought would make a person happy.

He was straightforward, never pulling punches, and his siblings' only problem with their middle brother was that they didn't see him enough.

Nick, who was a war hero, admired Tristan with a ferocity and a loyalty, that warmed Leah's heart.

“I've served with some of the bravest men in the world, Leah.” Nick smiled warmly. “My brother is one of the best people I know. Is he a little arrogant? Aren't we all? But he won't hurt people. He won't betray someone, even when they might deserve it.”

Those words seemed to be just for her.
“He won't betray someone . . .”

Picking up her phone, she saw there were three missed texts from her sister, and one from Tris.

Amy's were the usual, but Tristan's had come in only a minute ago. It simply said,
Hi.

Leah responded in kind, figuring she'd let him take the lead. This could be fun. According to Nick, Tristan had settled on the couch in his loft with a six-pack of beer and the remote. Apparently, the billionaire was sulking.

Did my brother behave or should I think of a place to hide his body?
Tristan asked.

Again, Leah chuckled
. He was very nice. You don't have to hurt him.

There was a pause between messages. She could see he was typing a response, but he kept stopping and starting
.

Nick is here until next Tuesday. Can I see you for dinner that day? Our usual?

It would be nice and safe to go back to their routine, but Leah was feeling adventurous. And she figured it was time to take a chance. Based on everything she'd learned, brash, arrogant billionaire Tristan Wade was a good risk, and Leah was tired of being afraid. Who'd have thought?