Need You Tonight (27 page)

TWENTY-SIX

Kade swirled his spoon in his chocolate chip cookie dough shake, contemplating it
like it was some exotic foreign food he’d never tasted.

Tessa rolled her eyes. “I told you I was just kidding about coming here. We could’ve
gone somewhere else. I know you’re used to haute cuisine, Mr. Vandergriff.”

He lifted his gaze from his dessert with a smirk. “It’s not that, smartass. I’m just
not used to indulging like this. I gave up fast food sophomore year after getting
oinked at one too many times. It still feels like the enemy, I guess.”

She tilted her head. “I never understood why they called you those names. You weren’t
overweight when I met you.”

“The universe granted me mercy and I had a growth spurt at sixteen that, along with
my diet, thinned me out some. But it didn’t matter to the other kids. You know how
things stick. Though, to their credit, they did shift over to teasing me more about
the stutter instead since that was still fair game.”

She took a bite of her sundae, remembering how he’d stumble over his words the more
nervous he got. Part of it had been kind of cute and endearing because she could tell
when she was knocking him off balance, but she’d seen how brutal the other boys were
when the stutter would appear at school. She remembered wishing with everything she
had that Kade’s mouth would just cooperate with him. “How’d you get past that? You
can’t even tell that you used to struggle with it.”

He held out his spoon so she could taste his dessert. “When I moved in with my dad,
he got me a top-notch speech therapist and had me see a psychologist. They think a
lot of my problem was tied to all the stress at home and the social anxiety of being
bullied or whatever. Either way, by my third year in college, it was almost completely
gone.”

“And smooth and charming Kade Vandergriff emerged,” she said, trying to sound upbeat
even though she knew he was glossing over the story about why he’d been in therapy.
Gibson had made it clear Kade had been going through more than dealing with a stutter.

He shrugged. “I don’t know about all that, but I owe my father a lot. He didn’t have
to accept me into his life like he did. He didn’t even know me. But he took me on
like a project. Taught me about life, confidence, and business.”

“Are you still close?”

“Yeah. He retired a few years ago and spends a lot of time on the coast now, but we
get together pretty often. I also have two half-sisters who live in town. One took
over my dad’s restaurant supply business, the other is a teacher.”

“Wow, that had to be crazy walking into an entirely new family with relatives you
had no idea existed.”

“Yeah, it was overwhelming. But after the initial shock, they took me in like I’d
been part of the family my whole life. Maybe because I look just like my dad—that
made it more believable. I eventually did the DNA test thing, but really, that was
more for my reassurance than theirs. I’d never experienced that kind of open acceptance
before. I mean, my mom loved me, but she had her problems. And I knew that when it
came down to it, she’d always choose my stepdad over me. So for a while, I didn’t
trust the Vandergriffs.”

She smirked. “I know how that is. When new foster parents were nice to me, I was more
likely to be suspicious than thankful. Normal families still freak me out a little.”

“As if there’s such a thing as normal.” He went back to staring at his cup for a while,
lost in thought, and she knew his mind had drifted back to his own fractured family.
He let out a long, tired breath. “So why are we here, Tess? You haven’t wanted to
go out in public since day one. Why now?”

She watched him, trying to choose her words carefully. “Gibson kind of told me about
your situation with your daughter and ex-wife.”

His expression turned wry, but he didn’t look up. “Gibson has a big mouth.”

“He cares about you.”

He leaned back in his chair, meeting her gaze head-on. “One doesn’t negate the other.”

“He told me I should break things off with you.”

He shifted forward so swiftly the table rattled. “He
what
?”

She wet her lips, that glare of his scrambling her thoughts for a minute. “He told
me to set you free so that you could find someone to date for real or to step up and
be on your arm in public.”

Kade’s expression darkened like spring storms rolling in over a formerly sunny day.
“It wasn’t his place to give you that ultimatum. My problem isn’t yours. And even
if it was, I think Gib’s plan is shaky at best. Having a girlfriend on my arm isn’t
going to really prove anything. I don’t exactly have the best track record with long-term
relationships. The court date is in less than three months. Who’s going to care that
I’ve been seeing some chick for a few months? They’ll just think it’s another fling.”

She swirled her ice cream with her spoon, watching the vanilla melt and become one
with the peanut butter syrup. Nerves were flailing around in her stomach like epileptic
sparrows, but she kept her expression smooth. “Agreed. That probably wouldn’t matter.”

“So why are we even worrying about it?” He shoved a spoonful of ice cream into his
mouth, almost as if he was in combat with his dessert.

She took a deep breath. “Because having a new girl on your arm won’t make a difference,
but having your former high school crush and brand new fiancée who you’ve been dating
in secret for six months on your arm is an entirely different matter.”

Kade went still and silent, spoon abandoned in his cup.

“Think about it,” she hurried on, worried that if she didn’t barrel forward, she’d
chicken out and run away screaming for the hills. This was so completely off her fucking
list and life plan that she may as well have transported herself to a new dimension.
She knew the smart thing to do would be to break it off now, let him be with someone
else. But after seeing him with his daughter today, she couldn’t bring herself to
go through with it. Her heart had broken, watching him fall apart after his little
girl had left. He needed someone to be there for him. He needed her. “I haven’t dated
anyone in a year and you haven’t been seen with anyone publicly in a while, so the
timing is totally believable, especially since we knew each other before.”

“You’re being serious right now?” Kade asked, something akin to awe in his voice.

“I know it sounds insane, but we’d only have to keep up appearances until your court
date. And you know the local press would eat it up. My ex will freak the hell out,
but the more I think about it, the more I might kind of enjoy that.”

“Tess, do you even know what you’re saying? What that would involve? It’s everything
you hate . . .”

She glanced past him toward the window, staring out at the orange and red shafts of
setting sun and absorbing his very valid warning. Yes, it was everything she dreaded.
Playing a fake role for everyone else. The media turning their evaluating eyes on
her and dredging up her past. All of it had her near the breathing in a paper bag
stage. But once upon a time there was a boy who’d needed her to stand up for him and
she hadn’t. “Kade . . . I saw you, when your daughter left. I saw how much this is
killing you. And how much she didn’t want to go.”

He made a sound in the back of his throat, and she could almost feel him bracing to
keep the grief from surfacing again, to stay the cool, calm Kade.

She turned back to him and reached across to thread her fingers with his. They were
chilled, whether from being wrapped around his shake or from the bomb she was dropping
on him, she wasn’t sure. “I want to help. So what do you say? Will you accept my proposal
or do I need to get down on one knee?”

The emotion that broke over his face nearly unraveled her. She was so used to the
strong, nothing-bothers-me version of Kade that the flash of raw vulnerability left
her breathless. He stood, tugging her up with him, and gathered her against his chest.
“Tessa, I can’t even, this is . . . I don’t know what to say.”

“Just say yes. Let me do this for you.” She pushed up on the balls of her feet to
give him a peck. But Kade wasn’t satisfied with that. He grabbed her legs, lifted
her off her feet, and wrapped her legs around his waist, going in for a real kiss.
She let out a little gasp of surprise but quickly melted into his hold. He tasted
like cookies and vanilla and pure temptation.

A few teenage boys who’d been eating burgers in a corner booth sent catcalls their
way, reminding her where they were. She broke off the kiss with a laugh.

Kade grinned and set her down. “Maybe we should get out of here. Don’t want to traumatize
anyone.”

“Good idea.” They gathered their trash in a rush, tossed it, and were out the door
before the manager who’d been giving them the stink eye could give them a stern talking
to. When they climbed into the car, she looked over at him. “My place or yours?”

He stuck the key in the ignition. “Yours is closer. I’ll drive you back to the park
to pick up your car first, though. It’s not safe to leave it there too late at night.”

They did the car exchange in record time, and he followed her to her house. Her body
was still buzzing from the kiss and all the adrenaline over the decision she’d made,
so by the time she turned the corner onto her street, she was ready to ravage and
be ravaged. But the unfamiliar car parked in her driveway had her slowing down.

Her phone rang. Kade. She hit the speaker button on her steering wheel. “Looks like
you have company, Tess. Expecting any?”

“No, I don’t recognize the car.”

“Want me to lay low until you know who it is?”

She frowned as she pulled in front of her house, squinting to see if she could see
who was in the car. “No, if we’re going public, we don’t need to hide. Maybe someone
has the wrong house.”

She parked her car in the driveway, and Kade pulled his along the curb. When she climbed
out, she could see that her visitor had helped himself to her porch swing. Even in
the dark, the shadowed figure was all too familiar. Doug had a certain way of holding
himself, like he had a steel rod up his shirt. “Fuck.”

A warm hand touched the small of her back as Kade stepped up behind her. “What’s wrong?”

“I guess this is the answer to the question: What happens if Tessa changes her number
and doesn’t answer his calls?”

Tessa could feel Kade shift gears almost instantly, like a tuning fork being struck.
And the energy vibrating off of him wasn’t at all friendly.

“Well, isn’t that sweet?” Doug said, strolling down the porch, his ever-present suit
swishing in the silence. “Did I interrupt date night again?”

The words were spoken with a light tone but there was no misinterpreting the cold
maliciousness in his gaze. Kade stiffened next to her.

“What are you doing here, Doug?” Tess said, stepping forward in front of Kade, almost
in a protective motion—like they’d slid backward on their timeline and Kade was still
the kid who could be protected by the power of the popular girl.

Doug ignored her, something he was well-practiced at, and gave Kade and his casual
jeans and T-shirt attire a dismissive once-over. He stuck his hand out toward Kade
like he was the president of the fucking United States greeting a mere mortal. “Douglas
Barrett.”

Kade ignored the outstretched hand and moved next to Tessa. “I know who you are.”

Doug’s eyes narrowed, and he lowered his hand. His attention shifted to Tessa. “Is
this the same jerkoff I talked to a few weeks ago or are you on a leg-spreading rotation?
Hard to keep up.”

Kade lurched forward, biblical-level wrath in his eyes, but Tessa scrambled in front
of him, putting her hands to his chest and a plea in her voice. “Don’t. Please. Not
worth it.”

Plus, she was afraid if let loose, Kade could possibly kill Doug. She didn’t know
exactly what had happened that night between them all those years ago, but she sensed
murder might not be an unjustified response.

Doug chuckled behind her. “Ready to attack already? Who is this guy?”

She turned around, Kade at her back. “You need to leave. I didn’t invite you and you’re
not welcome.”

The amused expression faded. “You haven’t answered my calls, and I still haven’t found
my grandfather’s watch. And now my dad’s coin collection is missing, too. You need
to let me in that house, so I can get what you obviously took.”

She scoffed. “You’re so full of shit. You know I don’t have those things. You’re here
because you can’t stand that I’m ignoring you.”

“Maybe you took them to pay off the bills at your pathetic little pet project. I’ve
heard it’s quite the cash sieve.”

Calling the charity pathetic sent all her bitch buttons blinking, but if she let herself
get out of control, it’d only be minutes before the guys were scrapping on her lawn
like junkyard dogs. “I don’t need your help with my charity anymore. I’m handling
it.”

“Sure you are.” He nodded at Kade. “Hope your pockets are deep, my friend, and that
the pussy’s worth it.”

A bomb went off behind her. It happened too fast for her to intervene, her hands grasping
air as Kade flew past her. Kade grabbed Doug by his lapels and hauled him up the porch
and against the wall with a crushing bang. Tess ran after them.

Kade’s voice was murderously calm. “If I were you, Douggie, I’d be real careful what
you say next. You want to know who this guy is? Maybe I should stutter and jog your
memory. I’m the guy who despises you enough that jail might be worth the chance to
beat you until you cry and beg and break. Maybe I should do to you exactly what you
did to me.”

Doug’s eyes went wide at that, and it was the first time Tessa could recall seeing
real fear flicker there. Doug’s gaze darted to her then back to Kade. “Fowler?”

“Apologize to Tess for being a crude and obnoxious prick tonight,” Kade said, his
grip on Doug not relenting.

Doug’s jaw clenched and she could tell, though he was wary of Kade, he wasn’t quite
ready to concede. “I apologize, Tessa.”