Last Night (33 page)

"
I
'
m sorry.
"
Dana stopped in front of him, her flawless green eyes filled with concern. "I wasn
'
t thinking. What more do we want? We want Zach to weather this crisis. We want him to live with you and be happy.
"

"
Yeah,
"
was all he could say. Like a swimmer caught in one of the north shore
'
s deadly undertows, he was being swept so far away from shore that nothing could save him.

"
Do you want to talk about it?
"
Dana
'
s eyes bored through his, seeking his soul.

Rob was tempted to spill his guts, but he held back. He could still hear the joyful echo in the kitchen when she
'
d said she might be named to that vacancy on the superior court. With luck she
'
d get that appointment before he was arrested. Sure as
hell, he didn
'
t want her defending him and ruining her chances.

Dana twined her arms around his neck, moving closer and gently pressing her body against his until the soft swells of her bosom molded against his chest. She looked him directly in the eyes.
"
I love you, Rob.
"

He couldn't help himself, he honestly couldn
'
t, yet he tried. He gripped the counter with both hands for a second. The tender, expectant look in her eyes touched him in a
way he never could have antici
pated. He threw his arms around her, anchoring her to his chest.

The air left Dana
'
s lungs in a soft gasp as Rob hugged her. Feeling the tears spring to her eyes, she closed them. Thank God, she said to herself. Rob had been acting so strangely that she hadn't known where she stood.

This at least was familiar territory; she wasn
'
t adrift in some uncharted sea. Her lips trembling, she returned his kiss. A shiver of longing tripped up her spine, sending chills across her breasts. This was what she wanted and needed. Someone special, someone who cared about her, someone she could truly love. She sighed and rested her head against his sturdy chest, content.

His hands skimmed across her body and paused to caress her intimately while his tongue danced with hers. Roving fingers found their way under her blouse to the clasp of her bra. With a flick of his
wrist it was undone and her breast was cradled in the palm of his hand.

"You're beautiful, so beautiful,
"
Rob whispered.

"Yes,
"
she whispered, believing for the first time in her body
'
s beauty instead of being afraid of it. She pressed her hips forward as her nipple tightened under the pressure of his thumb. Both breasts felt hot and achy now. She wanted his mouth on them the way it had been the other night.

Her pulse pounded in her temples, making her head spin, and she knew she was out of control. Images flashed through her mind so quickly she didn
'
t have time to react: She was backed up against the refrigerator, her blouse dangling from one wrist; then she was sliding to the floor in slow motion; suddenly she was naked, yet she had no memory of undressing or being undressed.

Maybe she wasn
'
t out of control. Perhaps it was Rob who
'
d gone over some invisible edge. He was everywhere at once, his touch tender but undeniably urgent—as if he couldn
'
t get enough of her.

"Slow down,
"
she whispered, wanting to make this last—forever.

He misunderstood and thought she wasn
'
t aroused enough. His lips left hers and traced a moist trail down the sensitive curve of her neck. She buried her face against his neck and inhaled his sensuous earthy scent, clutching his hair, threading its soft fullness through her fingers, comparing it to the wiry hair on his chest as it abraded her sensitive nipples.

Rob!
She thought.
Rob…
oh, Rob!

She
'
d waited so long—all her life—to be swept away like this. Once such domination, such unbridled passion would have frightened her. Not anymore.

His turgid erection pulsed against her naked thigh and she tried to remember when he
'
d taken off his clothes, but quickly decided it didn
'
t matter. All that mattered was the subtle movement of his tongue as it glided down past her navel, tasting, circling, tasting again.

"
Oh, my…
more. Give me more,
"
she cried.

"
You got it, babe.
"
His hands were under her now, digging into the softness of her buttocks and gently spreading her legs apart. The sensitive skin responded with a flare of heat that centered in her groin.

"
Oh, yes,
"
she cried out.

That spurred him on; he centered himself between her legs and blew across the cluster of curls. His hot breath felt cool against the moist skin—and unbelievably erotic. His head dipped and his tongue invaded her most intimate places with smooth, sure strokes.

She clutched at his powerful shoulders and held him there, mesmerized by the prospect of imminent release. Ripples of anticipation coursed through her with each tantalizing stroke of his tongue. Suddenly he was inside her, with a jolt that felt as if he
'
d shot right through her. She welcomed him with an instinctive upward thrust of her hips, wrapping her
legs around him and matching his ever increasing rhythm with her own.

Her lungs were burning from lack of air and her eyes were watering—she wasn
'
t sure why—when she realized she was seconds from climaxing. Too soon, she tried to shout, but the pounding of hips and the ramrod ha
r
dness between her thighs silenced her.

He stopped, still buried to the hilt inside her, and gazed into her eyes.
"
I
'
m the one. The only one— and don
'
t you ever forget it.
"

"
I know,
"
she whispered.
"
You are the one.
"

She wanted this exquisite feeling to last forever, but it didn
'
t. In a starburst of ecstasy that bordered on pain, she catapulted over the edge. Seconds later Rob followed, colla
psing on top of her, utterly ex
hausted. She held him to her breast, not wanting the experience to end.

She honestly couldn
'
t recall being this happy, this content. Yet here she was buck naked on the kitchen floor with her elbow in Molly
'
s Meow Mix—euphorically happy. So this was love.

It was minutes before she found her voice. By then Rob had rolled off her and was staring at the kitchen ceiling. He seemed troubled.

"
Maybe we should put the steaks on the barbecue,
"
she suggested, thinking they should talk.

Rob levered himself up on one elbow and ran his hand over the supple curve of her hip and glided between her thighs with his ta
lented f
ingers.
"
Screw the steaks.
"

In seconds they were in her bedroom on top of the new comforter she
'
d splurged on. This time he drew her to him more gently, his earlier intensity replaced by such tenderness it made her heart ache.

Too soon morning came, an apricot glow that backlit Koko Head in a wreath of light. Dana cracked one eye, realizing she must have fallen asleep. When had they stopped making love?

She turned to touch his cheek and make sure this was real, not some erotic dream, but he was gone. Nothing more than an indentation in the pillow said he'd ever been there. Suddenly a hollow feeling of being lost swept over her. It was the same helpless sensation she
'
d had at her parents
'
funeral when she
'
d stared at the twin caskets and realized they were never coming back.

The beckoning scent of coffee brewing brought her to her senses. Rob was in the kitchen. Was she ever going to stop being so insecure?

She hopped out of bed and dashed into the bathroom, where she found her robe.
"
Oh, Lordy,
"
she moaned at her reflection.

Dark circles shadowed her eyes and her hair was a mass of tangles, but she looked as happy as Molly after a bowl of stinky fish. She quickly splashed cold water on her fac
e and brushed her teeth. Rob ap
peared with a mug of coffee as she struggled to get the comb through her hair.
"
It'll be a week before you get a brush through the back of your hair.
"
He gave her a triumphant smile. "After last night.
"

She giggled, accepting the mug with a heartfel
t
smile.
"
You rat.
"

The words wiped the grin off his face.
"
Come on. Let
'
s talk.
"

She followed him to the kitchen with a growing sense of apprehensi
on that she kept telling herself
was unfounded. She
'
d been paranoid, thinking everyone was against her, and she
'
d been wrong.

I
'
m the one.

Yes. As wild as it seemed, Rob Tagett was the one for her. The only one. If she
'
d had any doubts about that last night changed her mind.

He faced her with the hard-edged reporter
'
s expression that she remembered so well from the days when she
'
d first seen him around the courthouse.
"
I
don't know any way to say this but to be completely honest.
"

A primitive warning sounded in her brain. Suddenly she felt as hollow as his voice sounded.

"
I
'
m not going to be seeing you anymore.
"

The statement was so cold, so matter-of-fact, it caused her heart to lurch painfully as she stood transfixed, staring at him. Could this be Rob, the man who
'
d so tenderly made love to her all night? There had to be an explanation. Then it dawned on her.

"
We can work around Zach. I realize that he
'
ll take most of your time. I won
'
t be able to stay over
night or have you here because you
'
ll need to be with him, but—
"

Rob raised his hand to cut her off. "It's not just Zach. It
'
s
…
"

He seemed to be searching for words that wouldn
'
t come, and she heard his harsh intake of breath. The transformation took but the flicker of her lashes. Suddenly, anything that had been between them was gone.

"It
'
s Ellen, isn
'
t it?
"
she asked, bitterness underscoring each word despite her valiant attempt to remain calm. "Zach said you were getting back together. Is it true?
"

His gaze, so level before, shifted to Molly, who was at his feet, rubbing shamelessly against his legs. "Yeah. Ellen and I are going to give it another try. Zach needs both his parents right now.
"

"What about us?
"
she whispered, positive if her voice rose she'd be screaming at him.
"
What about last night?
"

30

B
y the time Dana reached her office she
'
d stopped trembling. Hurt had flared into anger, making her so furious she could hardly think. How dare Rob spend the night with her—then blithely announce that he was going back to his wife? She should have known better than to trust him. Every fiber of her being had warned her again and again, but she hadn
'
t listened.
Well, look at it as a valuable lesson. Lead with your head, not your heart.

Still his parting words echoed through her soul.

"
What about last night?
"
he
'
d said, parroting back her own words with the emphasis on
what.

The air suspended in her lungs, she had salvaged what little of her pride remained and shoved him out the door, slamming it so hard Molly ran and hid under the sofa.

"
That jerk!" she said to the security camera scanning the entrance to the courthouse. The words didn
'
t bring much comfort as she shouldered her way through the swinging doors into the building.

She smiled bravely at the attendant monitoring the metal detector, but her smile vanished long before she reached her office.

Betrayal whiplashed through her, bringing a sheen of tears to her eyes. The ache in her chest swelled to a sob. It took all her willpower not to break down as she passed people in the hall. Her tightly knit emotions unraveled like an old sweater, a host of conflicting emotions warring inside her.

She loved him. No. She hated him.

She
had
to hate him. It was the only way to survive. Anger and work, she decided. The emotional vise eased a bit as she thought about work. Grinding, hard work that would keep her busy until she was ready to drop was the solution.

Inside her chambers she gazed morosely at the mountain of papers on her desk. Thank God she wasn
'
t due in juvenile court until afternoon, she thought, looking at the Wyland sea-life print. She wasn
'
t certain how long she
'
d been staring at the picture when she heard a knock.

Vanessa entered and sat in one of the wing chairs opposite Dana
'
s desk.
"
I tried to reach you last night, but your phone was out of order
…
or something.
"

Dana came around the desk to sit beside her sister, not wanting to tell her that Rob had taken the phone off the hook so they wouldn
'
t be disturbed. She should be able to discuss this with Vanessa, she decided as she sat down. If there was distance between them, wasn
'
t that due to her inability to talk about her feelings?

"
Rob came over—
"
Dana began, then broke off, not knowing how to explain what happened.

"
I knew it.
"
Vanessa smiled.
"
He
'
s crazy about you.
"

"
He
'
s crazy, all right, crazy enough to tell me we
'
re
'
committed,
'
then go back to his ex-wife.
"
The wellspring of hurt that she'd been suppressing erupted with startling vehemence.
"
He
'
s a real bastard.
"

"Why would he go back to her—after all this time?
"

"His son
'
s having problems. Rob thinks a solid family will help.
"

"But they
'
ve been divorced for years.
"

"It doesn
'
t make sense, does it? But what do you expect? He
'
s a man.
"

Vanessa studied her for a moment, her dazzling blue eyes solemn. "I thought we'd worked through all that when we talked. Don
'
t tar all men with the same brush.
"

"
You
'
re right,
"
Dana admitted with a sigh. "Garth
'
s a treasure, and Pinsky and Hwang are wonderful too. I guess I just don
'
t have luck with my personal relationships.
"

"
I suspect something is troubling Rob,
"
Vanessa said. "That's why I came to see you. Last night I overheard Garth talking on the phone about evidence. When I asked him about it he said it was
confidential. I may be mistaken, but I thought he was talking about evidence against Rob.
"

"
I don't give a damn about him.
"

Vanessa put her hand on Dana
'
s shoulder and gazed into her eyes. "There
'
s one thing Garth taught me that
'
s priceless. Face the truth and it isn
'
t nearly as frightening. Once I accepted what Big Daddy had done, I could deal with it. You need to accept the possibility that Rob has chosen his ex-wife over you. Don
'
t deny it by saying you don
'
t care—when you do.
"

It took Dana a minute to bring herself to say, "You
'
re right. I care about him, that
'
s why I
'
m so angry. That
'
s why this hurts so much.
"

"Do you love him?
"

"Yes,
"
she admitted, experiencing an overwhelming sense of relief. Sharing this with her sister wouldn
'
t take away the pain, but the ache eased a bit. "How could I be so wrong about him?
"

"
Trust your heart,
"
Vanessa said quietly. "If you think he
'
s the one, then I'll bet he is. Everything will work out, you
'
ll see.
"

The one.
The words brought a too familiar stab of regret. Of longing. Of loneliness too long denied. Of what might have been, but was never to be.

Vanessa rose. "Why don
'
t you come by for dinner tonight?
"

Dana wished her sister the best and truly believed she would find happiness with Garth, but tonight she couldn
'
t bear to be with the lovebirds.
"
There's
a sunset service for Lillian Hurley. I
'
m going there, then home to sleep.
"

Vanessa started to protest, but stopped.
"
Call me if you need me. And definitely let me know if Rob's in trouble. No matter what happened between you two, he
'
s really helped us.
"

Vanessa left, and Dana called for Gus Mahala, certain her bailiff would know the latest courthouse gossip. Gus was the open, gregarious type, who inspired confidences even though he didn
'
t gossip himself. No
t
only that, Gus had numerous relatives sprinkled throughout the court system, giving him lots of contacts.

Gus came through the door, beaming.
"
You need me?
"

She motioned for him to close the door, not wanting anyone to overhear them.
"
I don
'
t usually listen to gossip, but I heard a disturbing rumor. I wonder if you would help me verify it?
"
She inhaled a calming breath as he nodded. "Is Rob Tagett in some kind of trouble?
"

"
My cousin Theo let it slip after a few brews,
"
Gus confessed.
"
Don
'
t mention his name. He
'
ll lose his job in the police department.
"

"
I won
'
t say a word.
"

"I don't know much. Theo just said Tagett
'
s going to be charged with the Panama Jack
'
s rapes.
"

Totally astonished, Dana vaulted to her feet. A thousand possibilities had whirled through her mind, but not this. Never this. "That
'
s impossible. They can
'
t have any evidence.
"

"I dunno. They must have something. The police department sent the case to the DA.
"

Dana couldn
'
t suppress a shudder. The police department sent only cases with enough evidence to prosecute to the district attorney. What could they possibly have on Rob?

P
ropping himself up on one elbow, Rob watched his son struggling with his windsurfer at Ho
'
okipa Beach on the north shore not far from his house. Rob had left Dana
'
s early that morning, disgusted with himself and thoroughly disheartened. Christ, he was a real bastard.

I love you.

Dana
'
s words echoed through his head, touching the secret reaches of his soul. The way she
'
d whis
pered the words, almost a plea, threatened to bring tears to his eyes. He longed to change things, but wishing and hoping wouldn
'
t make any difference. If he was going to be arrested—for damn sure it looked that way—he wasn't going to drag her down with him.

"
Okay, did you have to be such a schmuck about it?
"
he muttered to himself.

Letting her go was the hardest damn thing he
'
d ever done. He honestly hadn't had a clue what to say until she mentioned him getting back together with Ellen. That gave him the out he needed, all right. He
'
d been a real prick, but he didn
'
t have a choice.

He gazed at the windsurfers, trying to forget what
a bastard he
'
d been, as Zach stumbled onshore, dragging his windsurfer, clearly discouraged. He collapsed beside Rob saying, "Nukin
'
winds, man. Never seen anything like it.
"

Rob almost chuckled. Nukin
'
winds—killer winds. What did Zach expect? Ho
'
okipa Beach was
the
windsurfing mecca. Just because Zach could ride the waves in California didn
'
t mean he could cut it here—without a lot of work.

"Aren
'
t you going back?
"
Rob asked as his son reached for his backpack.

"Nah. I
'
m reading.
"

"Really? What?
"

Zach held up Stephen King's
The Stand.
"Dana gave it to me. Saved me from having to talk to Mom
'
s nerdy friends in Maui.
"

Dana? Rob leaned back and studied the pure white strafers that clouded the north shore
'
s sky, while his son buried his nose in the book. Rob closed his eyes, hearing the mournful sound of the door slamming when Dana threw him out. It echoed over and over and over, reminding him of all he
'
d lost.

"What did you think of Dana?
"
Rob ventured.

Zach didn
'
t look up. "She
'
s okay
…
I guess.
"

Okay
didn
'
t come close, but Rob refused to draw his son into a comparison of two distinctly different women—Ellen and Dana Hamilton. In his heart, though, he knew the difference.

"Zach, did you tell Dana that your mother and I are getting back together?
"

His son studied the page for a time before looking up. Rob pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head so he could look directly into Zach's eyes.

"Yeah. I wanted to scare her off.
"

"Why? I barely mentioned her."

"I could tell that you
'
re hot for her. I wanted to get rid of her.
"
Zach began reading his book again.