Lies That Bind (11 page)

“Do you think Derek took his own life?” Yeah, Tessa asked the question out loud. In light of this new information, that was plausible. Derek had watched his mother die a slow and painful death due to cancer. He wouldn’t have wanted the same for himself.

Her question seemed to weigh Robert down. Guilt etched his weary face. “I honestly don’t know.” He scrubbed his hand over his eyes. “Trust me…no one wants that autopsy report more than me.”

Tessa would argue that. As bad as it was for Derek, and she knew it was bad, she didn’t want to think he’d committed suicide. But then, she never would have believed he’d keep something like this—cancer—from her either.

Why not? You made yourself very clear you wanted nothing more to do with any of them
. Yes, and she was regretting it more and more with every passing second.

Chapter Eight

How was it possible to feel exhausted, yet have his insides coiled so tight Tyler thought they’d explode? He’d locked himself rigidly in place during the ride back. The stench of blood sickened him. It saturated the entire rear area of the vehicle.

Tyler allowed himself a quiet huff. Was there any place in the vehicle
not
smeared with blood? It looked like they’d butchered a hog in here.

“Shit, I didn’t realize how late it was.”

Tyler wasn’t sure if Rex was talking to them or to himself. The hour was pretty clear. The schedule at Rustlers right on time. He could smell the wood smoke the minute Rex pulled through the gate. The band they’d hired was setting up on the makeshift stage. The rest of their crew were working the grills, stacking up the plates and utensils, checking the wooden tables and benches for splinters. A few guests wandered around, taking pictures. Over toward the corral, Brett helped settle the horses after a long day, giving each a pat on the rump before setting it off in the adjacent pasture for some leisure time.

“There’s no way we’re going to be able to slip into the barn to get that arrow out of your quiver without the guests seeing us,” Rex said.

“You’re not as bloody as we are,” Tyler replied. “Park at the ranch house and go over.” Nate had been pretty insistent they get it tonight and put it in a secure location before Tito started sniffing around. “I don’t want to involve Brett.”

“I’ll figure something out. You two need to get cleaned up.” Rex took the right fork toward the bungalows.

Home never looked sweeter, except when it contained Tessa. Safe and secure, once upon a time. What the hell happened to their happily ever after? Tyler couldn’t wait to wash the day away under a warm shower. Too bad he couldn’t banish the guilt along with it.

Why hadn’t Derek told them he was terminal? Better yet, why hadn’t they noticed? In hindsight, the clues were there. Derek had complained about headaches. He’d taken to wearing dark sunglasses inside and out during the day, even in cloudy weather. They never saw him at night. He stayed away from the events. Of course, the noise and bright lights might have been too much. Frequent trips to Austin, they had attributed to a lover. And while they had since learned there had been a significant other, those trips had most likely been to see specialists and get treatment.

Why had Derek shut them out? Did he think they wouldn’t care? Did he think his imminent demise would cause them worry? They would have, no doubt about that. But he’d kept them from supporting him in this, locked out a man who cared deeply for him.

Tyler pinched the bridge of his nose. Poor Robert. To be without the one you loved…forever. Tyler couldn’t imagine a world without Tessa in it. Being separated this past year paled in comparison, and it had hurt pretty damn bad. But forever? Hell on earth.

Tessa twisted his way. “Do you mind if I come with you?”

Something else slithered beneath Tyler’s tension. Something that flicked the coil inside. Other parts tightened and swelled. He didn’t have the energy to hide it. It felt wrong to want her, considering all that had happened today. Thinking of losing her forever changed his mind. She was here now, and he wasn’t going to waste a single second.

“I’d like that very much.”

She tilted her head Rex’s way. “And you?”

“Can’t. Someone’s got to put in some face time with the guests. I might even be able to sneak the arrow out of the barn. Though what we’ll do after that, I have no idea.”

Talk about stench. The flies were probably all over it by now. Not to mention the cats or mice. Cold as it sounded, Tyler prayed they didn’t rip up his gear trying to get to it.

“We can wrap it in a plastic bag and stick it in the freezer.” Tessa brushed her arms and stared out the window, but he caught her grimace first.

“Won’t freezing it destroy evidence?” Rex asked.

“No more than insects and animals,” Tyler mumbled.

“Stop.” Tessa waved her hand. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

“Fine by me.” Rex drove toward the little houses at a leisurely speed. Anything faster would have drawn too much attention. “I’ll clean up, put on a smile, and lay on the charm. I’m sure some people will want to know about the plane.”

True enough. An airplane sometimes meant a high-profile visitor, and it always intrigued their guests to think a celebrity visited. It’d be interesting to see which celebrity the gossip rags placed here.

Tyler cringed. That meant paparazzi would start to hover. The day kept getting better and better. “This truck stinks and will only get worse. I’m gonna clean it out.”

He jolted when Tessa’s fingers slid over his knee. “I’ll help. It’ll get the job done faster.” She feathered her fingers halfway up his thigh, then glided away.

Tyler wanted to draw her astride his lap and kiss their worries away. One glance at his hands, at the blood caked under his nails, banished the fantasy. He’d scrubbed his fingers raw in the hospital restroom, to no avail. How could he touch her, looking like this?

“I’ll catch up with y’all later.” Rex parked and opened his door. “I’ll bring dinner.”

Fear rippled through Tyler. They were separated, easily targeted. Just like him and Nate earlier that day. Rex took off before Tyler could caution him they needed to stay together. Ah, paranoia, his new best friend.

“It’s okay.” Tessa unbuckled her seat belt, but her eyes were on Rex, watching him walk to the bungalow next door.

“No, it’s not. It won’t be okay until I find the son of a bitch who’s doing this. I’m not going to sit around with my tail tucked between my legs.” Tyler pushed the truck door open, got out, and started for the storage shed at the back of the carport.

Tessa blocked his path, her palm on his chest. “We’ll figure this out together. I’m going to grab a few things from Rex’s place and be right back.”

She dropped a kiss on his lips. He longed to deepen it, draw her close, and never let go. Anything to wipe the nightmare away. All too quickly, she walked off.

“Fair warning,” he called to her back. “I’m not the domestic god that Rex is.”

Tessa flashed him a smile over her shoulder. “But still a god nonetheless.”

Her wink lifted his spirits. The blood soaking his shirt dampened them. He stripped down to skin, tossing the shirt and T-shirt onto the porch in his haste to reach the shed and the supplies inside. By the time she returned, he had the wet vac running.

“Need your house keys.” She slid her hand into his front pocket to retrieve them.

“I’d forgotten what a flirt you could be,” he said with a smile. “Dig a little farther, and you might find something else that interests you.”

“I do hope so.” She hip-butted him, caught the keys, and walked away.

Tyler enjoyed the view as she bent over to pick up his clothing, then returned to his work once she’d stepped inside. In less time than it took to think about it, she was back at his side ready to work.

They did so in silence, fighting dusk. It was a losing battle but better than nothing. An hour later, he stood back to survey their handiwork.

“Even with the windows open, it’ll take forever to dry in this humidity,” Tessa said.

“It’ll be fine. If not, we can drop it off for a professional detail tomorrow when we pick up Nate and go to the funeral home.” He grabbed the wet vac. Tessa snagged the buckets.

They stank of blood and sweat. Fear and anger crowded back in, and then came the desperate need to wipe it all away. His cock screamed for release, hard and tense as his muscles worked to the breaking point, more from stress than honest work.

After he’d locked the shed door, Tessa looped her arm through his.

“Come on. A hot shower’s calling our names.”

Her voice was deep, husky. A tone that promised everything he’d been missing and the relief that came with it.

Tyler’s heart skipped a few beats, skittered again when she pressed her palms to his chest. The look in her eyes ate him alive.

“Last one in is a rotten egg?” he teased.

A gleam lit her eyes as she closed the minute distance between them. Tessa snaked one hand down his torso, smiling when the muscles bunched under her touch. “I was thinking more along the lines of sharing.” She stabbed her fingers behind his buckle and gently tugged. “Coming?”

Tyler was pretty close to it. “Lead the way, sugar cakes.”

On tiptoe, she flashed her tongue over his chin. “My pleasure. You wash my back, I’ll wash yours.”

Grinning, he wrapped a one-armed hug around her. “Now where’s the fun in that?”

“Don’t worry. I promise I’ll take good care of you.”

Tyler needed taking care of, in more ways than one. Right now, the sexual craving overrode everything else warring inside him—guilt, anger, fear, and the urge to hunt and seek revenge. The last frightened him more than anything. Tyler hated conflict and violence, yet here it was, clawing for freedom.

Arm in arm, they walked to his home.

“It looks like a tornado tore through here,” she said when they closed the door behind them. “And all this time, I blamed Rex.”

“It was Rex. He turned traitor and became a nester.” The truth was they’d more or less reversed roles. When the three of them shared the ranch house with Mike and Derek, Tyler cared about making it nice while Rex spread out like it was his God-given right. When Tessa left, Rex had needed order while Tyler no longer gave a crap.

“If it matters, the place is more or less clean. This is all clutter.”

“The only thing that matters is you.” Tessa brushed her hand over his back. She stepped close, bracketing him with her warmth, shielding him from the world. She tugged his shirt free of his jeans. “I’ve missed you so much.” Her whisper seeped into the marrow of his bones.

“It tore my heart out to let you go.”

“I know that now. I’m so sorry.”

Tessa kneaded her fingertips down his forearms. The tension in his forearms released.

“I hurt too.”

She didn’t know how close he and Rex had come to following in her footsteps. Tyler didn’t know if it was greed, duty, or damn stubbornness that had kept them here. They’d worked so hard to make Rustlers what it was today, had brought the place back from the brink.

“Let’s not dwell or pick it apart tonight, Tyler,” she said. “We’ll take it as it comes. Take what we can get and worry about the rest later. Go undress and get in the shower. I’ll be right behind you. I want to put our clothes in the washer.”

He gave her what he hoped was a sly smile. “No slow strip seduction?”

“How would I find my clothes afterward in all this?” She waved her hand toward the clutter spreading from living room to kitchen.

“Undress and get in the shower.” She tugged his belt buckle hard. “I won’t be long.”

Two seconds was too long. Tyler wanted to kneel before her, wrap his arms around her knees, and never let go. Wanted to weep for all they’d lost, all they’d never had.
Better this than death
. Yes, and he’d take it.

Tyler walked into the bedroom and somehow managed to get his boots off without sitting on the bed. His clothes found the basket she slid into the bedroom. Her clothing was already inside. Images of her naked mere feet away swarmed through his head. His cock urged him to seek her out. Common sense prevailed, though not by much.

He shoved aside the aqua shower curtain, stepped into the tub, and twisted the knobs on full blast. The warm spray engulfing him told Tyler he’d made the right choice. He lathered his hands quickly and swept them over his body just as fast, washing the day away. Too bad the memories wouldn’t go with it.

He closed his eyes and lifted his face into the spray, counting the seconds until she joined him. His cock grew heavier. His balls hugged his body. Tyler braced one hand on the wall and idly stroked himself.

“Now that’s quite a sight,” Tessa said.

He pulled upright, still fisting his erection. She stood outside, gloriously naked, hair down, all his.

“I have the water running for you. It should be nice and hot by now.”

“As hot as you?” A grin pulled up one corner of her mouth.

“Not quite.” He peeled back the aqua shower curtain, beckoning her inside. He wanted to take his time looking her over. The bloodstains marring her full breasts stopped him cold, made him sick inside, and reminded him of how badly he’d failed today.

“Tyler…”

One step brought her in with him. He swore she’d glided his way. She brushed her fingers down his arm until she reached his hand.

“Come.” He tugged her closer until she stood beneath the shower with him. Tyler scooped the water over her breasts, washing evidence of this horrible day away, refusing to look at the remnants trickling down the drain. She was his focus. She was all that mattered.

He traced the edges of her perfect breasts, mesmerized by the dark areolas that peaked from the sensation. One thumb flick earned him her sharp gasp. How could so small a thing make him feel all-powerful? He drew her flush against him, wedging his cock against her stomach. He stroked against it, then clamped his hands over her ass and raked harder.

Fingers traced his spine. Short nails bit into his ass. Tyler groaned and thrust harder. Tessa toyed with his crack, going lower with every stroke until she found his hole.

“Uh-uh.” He hoisted her hips higher, pressed her into the tile, and plunged into her pussy. Now her ass was all his.