A_Little_Harmless_Fascination (23 page)

Conner hadn't said anything about it after they made love,
or in the three days since then. She hadn’t been expecting it, but she had felt
oddly depressed that he hadn't. She usually kept her feelings hidden. The only
person she was so open with was Maura, but how did she call a woman and tell
her she loved her brother but the butthead wasn't being nice about it?

Oh, he had been nice in his way, she thought. The lovemaking
had been beyond what she had experienced before, even with him. Yes, she had
felt cherished, loved in a way she never thought possible. She had also felt as
if it had taken her to another level—as if he had claimed her. Since then, it
had been the same. She’d had no real thought other than what pleasure he would
give her. Every time they were making love, she had given him complete and
utter control over her, and she didn’t regret it.

Before this, she would have thought it enough for her.
Commitment wasn’t something she liked because it tied her to something for too
long. She was truthful the other night. She didn’t expect an answering
declaration from him—but she had hoped for something from him. For once in her
life, the words were really important.

"I'm going in to talk to Micah about this. Mick is
downstairs."

She glanced over her shoulder. It was surprising that he was
even thinking of leaving her alone. She had told him she had work to do. Not
that she thought she would be able to write with her emotions so unsettled.

"So you trust him now?" she asked.

"I told you I did. Plus, even if I didn’t ask, he and Alex
see this as their job now. They want nothing to happen to you."

She shrugged and picked up her mug of tea. Usually, her Zen
tea calmed her, but it wasn't doing her any good today. She was unsettled in
some way, as if she was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"You need to be careful."

She felt silly after saying it. Something told her that she
was saying it more for herself than for him.

He walked over to her and slipped his arms around her waist
then pulled her back against him. He dropped his chin on top of her head.

"After we figure this out, why don't you come to Miami
for a visit?"

She guessed it was an offering, something that she should be
happy with right now. And normally, she would be. But now she wanted something
beyond a vacation fling or even an affair.

That annoyed her more than anything else.

"I'll see if I can work it into the schedule."

She sensed he wasn’t happy with that answer, but he said
nothing. That was the problem. They weren’t connected enough to be truthful.
She had upset him with her declaration, but she wouldn’t hide it. She loved
him, and if she had to deal with it, so did he.

"If I had my way, I'd order you to Miami right now.”

She slipped away from him. "Order me?"

He shook his head. “I’d rather have you in my house, locked
up safe.”

"I’m safe. People will see anyone who shows up, and
well, Mick can beat the shit out of them. It’s been almost a week since the
brakes, and with this weather, there won’t be anyone coming to this side of the
island. I’ll be okay. Go on, talk to Micah."

He looked unsure of himself, and there was a part of her
that really enjoyed that. He sighed, gave her a brief kiss that had her heart
turning over and her blood churning. He set his forehead against hers.

"I'll be back soon."

With another quick kiss, he walked out of the room. She
watched as he stepped out into her yard where Mick was standing.

She opened the window. "Hey, be careful. A storm like
this could get you stuck on the other side of the island."

He looked up at her and gave her that heart-stopping smile
of his. "Don't worry about me, love. I'll make it back to you no matter
what."

“So one of those neighbors is protecting her?” Micah asked.

Conner nodded, but he didn’t stop moving. He couldn’t. He
had never felt so fucking useless in his life.

“I probably should have stayed.”

But he was a coward. He had left because he couldn’t deal
with the emotions. It wasn’t like him at all, since he was used to facing all his
trouble head on. With Jillian, he didn’t seem to be able to handle anything.

“She’s safe. I have a feeling even a gorilla wouldn’t be
able to get past the biker. Truth is, your stalker could be gone.”

He shrugged as he looked at the dark video screens. It was
the middle of the day so the club wasn’t open. “HPD said the same thing.”

Conner didn’t believe it, couldn’t. It was bothering him in
a way that it had when Dee had been attacked years earlier. His gut feelings
were usually right. He started pacing again.

"Will you quit walking around? You're making my head
hurt. Shit," Micah said from behind his desk. “It's bad enough I have to
put up with Devon right now."

"Hey, I'll leave you with Dee and you can handle the
weepies all by yourself," Devon said.

Micah made a face, and Conner couldn't help but laugh.
"So the hormones are going crazy?"

Micah sighed. "I swear if I look at her wrong, she
starts crying. It is either that or sex. She has turned into a maniac."

Devon groaned and made a face. "Oh, lord, please, don't
talk about sex and my sister while I am in the room."

Conner smiled. "I have to agree with you there. I think
of her as a little sister."

"But you never saw Jillian that way?" Micah asked.

He thought back to when he met her and knew that he hadn't.
"I wasn't interested in her then. Hell, the only thing I had on my mind
was my sister and the job. I checked her and that insane family out, and knew
that Maura had a good roommate. And I was right. But I don't think I ever put
her in the category of sister."

"That's good because that would be gross," Devon
commented.

"She's a few years older than your sister?" Micah
asked.

"Yeah, Maura went to school so much earlier than people
her own age. And Jillian, she seemed kind of worldly."

"Like she had been around?" Devon asked.

"Excuse my brother-in-law."

Conner shook his head. "That's okay, the CIA is known
for being uncouth."

Devon stuck up his middle finger.

"And to answer the question, no. It was more that she
was wary of men in general, of everyone.” Conner blew out a breath. “With her
family, it is understandable."

"She was raised by her grandmother?" Micah asked.

He nodded and settled in the chair in front of Micah's desk.
"Her white grandmother who reminded her every day that she was lucky to be
there. She really had no options."

"If so, it's odd what she did with the will,"
Devon commented.

He glanced at Devon. "What do you mean?"

"She's in charge."

“What do you mean?” he asked. "In charge of what?"

Micah apparently read his mood. "Please explain to
Dillon what you mean or he might beat you up."

The younger man snorted. “He could try, but we all know that
the FBI is bad at killing, and we always win in a fist fight. What I mean is
that she is in charge of the money. Every major expense goes through her.
Nothing is done in Bentley Industries without her approval."

“She said that she had to be there when they voted for
things. Like she was part of the board.”

Something niggled at the back of his mind, and the hair on the
back of his neck tickled. He stood and walked over to where Devon sat with his
computer, and Micah joined them.

"Show me."

Devon pulled up the court documents.

"It took me a while to find them. There were a lot of
cases on it, filings. The cousins, aunts, and uncles fought the will. They said
that Jillian had tricked her grandmother, that she had used something as
leverage to get all the money. But your woman has a lot of money, from her
father and from her writing, so she didn't really need this stuff. And who
would? From what I found, your woman’s family is insane. I mean crazy beyond
just being an old southern family with some loose nuts. They sue each other at
the drop of a hat.”

“And the will held up without an issue?” Micah asked. Conner
couldn’t form a question because he was still taking it all in.

“Yeah. Partly because Jillian has a lot of money, as I said.
Even before the writing, her father and mother made sure there was money for
her. The court dismissed every one of the cases. It helped that the grandmother
had a former Georgia Supreme Court Justice write the will."

"You found all that in there?" Conner asked.

"Well, you asked me to be thorough. She is in charge of
a corporation that makes billions of dollars."

He was still trying to take it in. He knew she had money,
knew that she was definitely beyond comfortable. She had kept it all to
herself, not wanting to let him know that part of her life. He had known there
were things she hadn’t told him, but knowing the truth of it hurt more than he expected.
"And she lives in a little house and acts like none of it matters."

"Because it doesn't," Micah said.

"If it didn't, she would have told me. She never
mentioned this. And if they know this, they would know where she was."

"I can't tell you that, but what I can tell you is that
some cousin of hers is on the island."

"Who?"

"Brent Edwards. And he isn’t happy with her. From the
communication that I could read—"

"Wait. What laws did you break with my computer?"
Micah asked.

The younger man shrugged. "Just a few. Nothing big. And
nothing the FBI could find."

Conner’s frustration boiled over into anger. "Just stop
the arguing and tell me where he's staying,"

Devon glanced at Micah then back to him. "In
Ko’Olina."

"He has no money but he's staying there?" Micah
asked.

"You know how rich people are. They somehow figure out
a way to do things like that. Always."

Conner knew he spoke from the experience of growing up with
a mob father. And he was probably right. There was always a chance Brent would
just disappear when he was done here, and the hotel would have to fight him for
the money.

“Let’s go,” Conner said.

"And you need to call Jillian. She needs to know that
nut is here," Micah said.

He called her number as they headed out of the door of Rough
‘n Ready. The wind just about blew him over as they stepped onto the sidewalk
next to the club. There were dark clouds gathering. She picked up after a
couple of rings.

"Sorry, I was moving my grill in. The wind is just
insane and the rain is hitting us now. How is it over there?"

"Fine. Why didn't you tell me that you are in charge of
Bentley Industries?"

She didn't say anything, and he didn't blame her. He had
planned on asking her calmly after they sorted everything out with her cousin.
Instead, it had come out as an accusation. He should have waited, but until
that moment, he hadn’t realized that her not telling him had hurt so much.

When she finally answered, her voice was very measured, as
if trying to make sure that she didn’t reveal too much. "I'm not really in
charge. I just handle the money that goes to the family. I sit on the board,
but I only go in for the annual meeting or if there is an emergency."

He stopped and Micah and Devon gave him some privacy. It was
hard to talk on the phone with the wind blowing like it was, but he knew he
needed to try and at least apologize. "Sorry, I didn't mean to be a
bastard about it, but your cousin is here in the islands."

“Brent? He's harmless."

It rankled that she wasn’t taking it seriously. "Why is
he here then?"

She sighed. "He has a temper, but believe me, it’s only
when he drinks, and he wouldn't fly over the ocean to deal with me. That isn't
his style. That would take a lot of concentration, and that’s something Brent’s
never had."

"Still, we're going out to Ko'Olina to talk to
him."

“We?"

“Micah and Devon are coming with me."

She sighed again, and this time it sounded more like relief.
"Okay you have a local."

"Think I can't handle myself?” he asked.

“No, but Micah will know that the weather can look like paradise
one minute and be a disaster the next. Locals know better how to handle it, and
they know better ways to get around the island. Plus, there is a chance that
you might have to wait the storm out over there.

“I’m not going to allow that. We’re going to take care of
this, then I will be back.”

He didn’t want to say it, but something was really feeling
wrong to him. Other than his usual worries, that gut feeling that told him
something bad was about to happen was in full force. It had never let him down
before, but Conner hoped that this one time it would.

“Call me when you get there."

He waited for her to say she loved him, but she didn't. She
hadn’t said it since that night when she had first told him.

"I will. Bye, Jillian."

"Bye. Oh, and Conner?”

“What?”

She hesitated. “I love you." She hung up before he
could respond, but it didn’t lessen the affect. Warmth spread through his chest
as he felt his lips curve. Damn, if the woman didn’t make him happy. Micah
beeped the horn on his car, and Conner jogged over to get in. As soon as this
was straightened out, Jillian and he were going to have a talk.

He was just starting to realize that he didn’t want to
contemplate living without her. She was just going to have to accept it.

The ride out to Ko’Olina was as aggravating as the entire
issue had been. It was long, and the slow pace of Hawaii was no longer
enjoyable. He had to get there and see that bastard of a cousin. Once he did,
he would know that he could control the situation.