Crazy For You (22 page)

Frank smiled. He’d won. Reclaiming her lips, he
crushed her to him. His mouth throbbed with the passion that’d been
lying dormant inside him for the last five years.

He was shocked at the effect the kiss had on him. It
was hard to control himself. He hadn’t planned on this. He had won
the battle, but his plans would have to change if he intended to
win the war. Besides, it wouldn’t be so bad. He’d always enjoyed
making love to Roxanne.

He cupped her face in his hands. “You know that I’ve
always loved you,” he said, only because he knew it was what she
wanted to hear.

The fact that it could be true was beside the point.
It ran so much deeper than that. He supposed, deep down, he’d have
to admit that he did love her. But he wanted to hate her more than
he needed to love her. He wanted her to pay for the betrayal. But
mostly, she had to pay for keeping his son away from him.

Glancing up and down the beach, he realized they’d
walked so far that there were no houses or buildings in sight. And
because of the rain, he doubted anyone would happen upon them.

Frank slid his hands under her skirt and they fell
easily together, dropping down to the wet sand. He rolled on top of
her and showered her with ardent kisses.

She welcomed his demanding kisses because she needed
him so badly. She wanted Frank to make love to her. She needed to
feel him inside of her. She’d made love with only two other men
since disappearing all those years ago. In the end, she’d wanted
nothing more than for both of those men to be Frank.

Right now, she could have the real thing. She knew
her aspirations were wrong but she didn’t care. She knew Frank
Garrett would be her downfall sooner or later. She just didn’t know
if she needed to protect herself from him more than she needed to
be with him.

“Make love to me, Frankie,” she whispered, giving
way to desire.

Frank pushed his way inside her, feeling her urgency
grabbing at him. This made his own passion grow with even more
excitement. They made love. There on the beach. In the rain. And
it’s not that he didn’t enjoy it, because he did. It’s just that he
had more reasons for doing it, than passion’s sake. Even so, he’d
derived more satisfaction from the experience than he’d willingly
admit, even to himself.

Inside his mind, a plan came to him. If he married
Roxanne, he could talk her into giving him legal rights to his son.
Once that happened, he’d find a way to take Frankie away from her.
Completely.

The rain subsided as she settled into Frank’s cozy
embrace, exhausted.

Roxanne thought she’d never be able to feel these
things with Frank again. Still, in all her indulgence she could
only perceive the lie disguised so well as desire. It was a good
lie, as far as lies go. But it was still a lie. Deep down inside
she knew Frank was out to get her. And worse yet, she couldn’t do
anything to stop him.

I could let you back in

If it wasn’t for my foolish pride

If I gave you the chance

Would you take my heart for another ride

But now that you’ve come back to me

It’s so plain to see

Even here in the rain

Things still remain the same

They walked hand-in-hand back to his car and Roxanne
glanced at the ocean. The raindrops had ceased disturbing the water
and she felt a little better about things now. Still, she couldn’t
shake the feeling that things weren’t going to go quite as easy as
it currently seemed.

***

Chapter 19

W
ithin a week the Rodgers
family—who lived next door to Roxanne and Candy—sold out to the
eccentric rock star Rich Hollander.

He’d made them an offer that was too good to refuse,
including covering the expense to move to their new home. He had
also supervised their progress because the faster they moved out,
the sooner he could move in.

If Rich lived next door to Candy, it’d be a lot
easier for him to look after her.

***

Chapter 20

L
ittle Frankie had been
waiting eagerly for Roxanne’s return. She’d gone to the pharmacy,
and in all his excitement, she put the prescription bag on the
table in the foyer and went into the living room to talk to
him.

“Mommy…when is Daddy coming back home?” Frankie
looked at Roxanne with hauntingly familiar eyes.

That was a scary thought. One that she’d wager had
found its way onto her face in the form of a puzzling
expression.

“He stayed with us while Aunt Candy was in the
hospital,” he said. “Why isn’t he here now?”

“Do you want me to ask him if he wants to stay with
us for good now?”

Frankie nodded.

Sure, that’d please little Frankie, but it scared
the crap out of Roxanne.

F
rank entered Roxanne’s
house and, passing through the foyer, he noticed the pharmacy bag
on the table. He picked it up, out of curiosity more than anything
else. Then he saw Roxanne’s name on the label. This piqued his
interest. He opened the bag and shook the prescription bottles into
his hand.

Thorazine
,
Elavil
, and
Valium
.
He knew what
Valium
was. And he could make a pretty good
guess about the other two. He’d been through this before with
Roxanne. He’d put a stop to it then and he was going to put a stop
to it now.

Racing up the stairs, he bellowed out her name and
rushed into her bedroom.

She was in her study, located down the hall.

Hearing his powerful
I’m-in-charge
voice made
her nervous.

She hurried down the hall to her bedroom and stopped
at her bathroom doorway. “Frankie? What’s the matter?”

Frank was rummaging through the medicine cabinet,
snapping lids off her near-empty pill bottles and dumping the
contents in the toilet.

She watched anxiously as he flushed her meds down
the drain. “What’d you do that for?” she asked in a troubled
tone.

“Roxie, you don’t need that stuff,” he said. “All
you need in this world is me.”

Maybe so, but reality was a different affair.
Without the medication, reality was whatever Roxanne’s mind decided
it was going to be at any given moment. Frank hadn’t been there
when she had no concept of reality whatsoever. He hadn’t been there
to witness the way she lost touch with reality, succumbing to all
her delusions of grandeur and the sharply defined moods of
depression. Or the way she’d become suspicious of, and indifferent
to, everyone around her. He hadn’t been there when she couldn’t
distinguish New York City from Florida, or separate the past from
the present.

“Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Remember…I helped you
through this before. I’ll help you through it again.”

Softly, she let the words escape, “You don’t
understand.” And neither did she. Not when her thoughts got jumbled
up. Like now.

Trounced by extreme fright, she wasn’t sure if she
could remember what to do.

Jerry. That’s it. She’d call Jerry. He would help
her. He’d know what to do.

Roxanne headed back to her study, closed the door
and locked herself inside. She sat down at her desk, picked up the
telephone and dialed the number to Jerry’s private line.

Confidence washed over her, knowing Jerry would fix
everything. He always had. No reason to think he wouldn’t now.

“Yes,” Jerry’s voice poured across the wire.

“Jerry?” she whispered. “It’s me, Roxanne.”

“What’s up?” he asked. “Why are you whispering?”

“Frankie.”

He had no idea which Frankie she was talking about.
But that was nothing new. She’d referred to Frank as Frankie, more
often than not, for as long as Jerry had known her.

“He flushed my meds down the toilet,” she said.

“I’ll be right there.”

“I’ll wait in my study,” she continued to whisper.
“And I’m not coming out until you get here.”

It was becoming painfully clear to Jerry that Frank
Garrett was going to make a nuisance of himself. He’d more than
likely interfere with any recovery Roxanne could sustain at this
time.

What Jerry really needed was a way to get rid of
him.

F
rank hovered behind
Jameson like a wildcat guarding his prey as the man answered the
ringing doorbell.

“Good afternoon, Dr. Sterling.” Jameson’s casual
greeting told Frank this man had been there before.

“Roxanne is expecting me.” Jerry ignored Frank as he
passed through the foyer and headed toward the stairs.

“Wait a minute.” Frank followed him. “She doesn’t
need a doctor. She’s not sick.”

Jerry stopped at the bottom of the stairs and turned
to Frank. “First of all…I’m not that kind of doctor. Secondly,
Roxanne is my patient and I would thank you not to interfere.”
Saying what he had to say, Jerry headed up the stairs.

“What the hell kind of doctor are you then?” Frank
chased after Jerry.

Jerry stopped again, halfway up the stairs this
time. Glancing over his shoulder, he glared at Frank in a less than
friendly manner. “If it’s any of your business…I’m a psychiatrist,”
he said, annoyed.

“She doesn’t need a shrink.”

Jerry bit back his temper. “Let me tell you
something about Roxanne Simon…I’ve been treating her for more than
five years. She suffers from a mental disorder called
manic-depressive psychosis.” Jerry’s patience was waning. He really
had to get rid of this guy. “Now, whether you choose to trust my
professional judgment or not…is neither here nor there.”

Frank laughed.

Some fruitcake shrink was trying to tell him that
Roxanne was crazy. He refused to believe that. “She’s not
crazy.”

“She has a problem,” Jerry said. “And for the life
of me…I can’t figure out why, but you seem to be the root of that
problem.” Jerry shook his head. “If you don’t back-off and let me
do my job...you are going to kill her.” Jerry turned around and
started up the stairs again. This time, he was determined not to
stop.

Frank didn’t move from his spot on the stairs.
“She’s not crazy,” he insisted in a low voice. “You, on the other
hand, are quite insane. But she is not crazy.”

Jerry didn’t stop until he got to Roxanne’s study.
He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Frank hadn’t followed him
up, then tapped lightly on the door. “Roxanne,” he called out
softly. “It’s Jerry.”

The door opened, but only far enough for her to
reach out and pull him inside. She looked flushed and drained of
all her self-worth. “Is he out there still?” she asked in a soft
whisper.

“Yes,” Jerry said in his normal tone. “Roxanne…” He
hesitated, but not for much more than a second or two. “If he
upsets you so…why don’t you just tell him to leave?”

“I can’t do that,” she answered, definite. “Frankie
needs his father.”

“When was the last time you had your
medication?”

“Couple hours ago.”

“Have you been taking it at regular intervals?”

“Yes.” She nodded.

Jerry sat down on the corner of her desk. “Roxanne,
I’m going to change your medication.”

She glanced at him anxiously.

“Don’t worry. I’m going to give you something
that’ll help you cope a little better.” And if he hoped to do that,
he’d have to exchange the Elavil for a small dose of Lithane. Even
though he was worried about Roxanne taking the drug, the Elavil was
no match for Frank Garrett. “I’m going to give you something that
you’ve never taken before…but you’ve got to promise me you’ll be
careful with it.” He hesitated. Roxanne usually heeded his
direction, but still, a bad feeling washed over him on this one.
“Take it only as I prescribe it.”

“What is it?”

“Lithane. It’s a Lithium derivative.”

That didn’t mean a whole lot to Roxanne, but she
trusted his judgment. Hell, Jerry was the only man on earth that
she did trust. Well, except for maybe Jason. But she didn’t trust
Frank. At all. “Can you talk to him for me?”

“Yes. I promise…Frank won’t take your pills
again.”

Roxanne sighed. She knew Jerry would keep his
word.

He gave her a sedative and sent her to her bedroom,
saying she’d fall asleep soon. He promised he’d see to it that
Frank left her and her meds alone.

Knowing that she’d get some rest now, Jerry headed
downstairs to look for Frank. In his opinion, the best thing that
could happen to Roxanne would be for Frank Garrett to fall off the
face of the earth. For some un-godly reason she thought she needed
him. Jerry worried that taking away what she thought she needed
could do more damage than trying to protect her from it.

Finding Frank and little Frankie in the living room
watching television, Jerry turned his attention to the boy. “Hello,
Frankie. I think your Mom needs a hug…so why don’t you go on
upstairs and give her one?” he said calmly.

“Okay, Dr. Jerry.” Frankie hopped down off the couch
and left the room.

Jerry waited until Frankie had disappeared upstairs,
and then said, “I’m going phone the pharmacy with new prescriptions
for Roxanne. I want you to go pick them up right away.”

Frank shook his head, readying for an objection.

Jerry gave him a stern look. “If you choose to
withhold her medication again—” He turned his tone sharp and
professional. “—or if you try to interfere with her treatment in
any way…you’ll leave me no choice but to commit her…so she can get
the proper care she needs.”

Committed
, Frank thought. What a novel idea.
But not this way. Not now. Not before he married her. And certainly
not before she signed the papers confirming him as Frankie’s legal
and biological father. There couldn’t be any maybes here. He didn’t
want to have to fight any court battles. Especially with Candy.
Right now Frank had to do his part to keep Roxanne sane. For the
moment anyway. At least until they were married and she signed the
papers. Then and only then, if what Jerry had told him was true,
attaining his goal would be easier than ever.