Taking Care Of Leah (15 page)

She pulled away from him. “You’re as bad as she is,” she sneered, turning to face Leah. “You’re welcome to him. You two deserve each other.”

“Rainie, please,” Leah begged.

“You know Ty isn’t all he appears. Perhaps you should ask Ty how he can afford such a lavish home and lifestyle on a caretaker’s wage.” Her voice broke, and tears streamed down her ruddy cheeks as she ran out.

Leah didn’t know what to do. She wanted to go after her, but dressed in Ty’s T-shirt with ruined makeup… “This is your fault,” she snapped, pointing an accusatory finger at Jerry.

“I’ve just seen Rainie, she said—” Ty came into the room.

“I need to go home,” Leah interrupted, holding on to Ty’s biceps.

“What’s going on?”

“Ask your
friend
.”

Ty looked toward Jerry. “You fucking cunt!” He leaped forward, clenched fist smacking into Jerry’s face. Leah heard the crunch as his nose crumbled beneath Ty’s weight. Both men landed on the floor. Ty dug his knee into Jerry’s chest, pinning him into place as he smashed down with furious punches.

“Stop!” Leah screeched, grabbing his arm and tugging him backward. “Stop now!”

Jerry struggled to stand, clutching at his face. The white bandage was bloodied. He half ran, half stumbled out of the bedroom, and locked himself into the bathroom.

“I didn’t…” Leah shook her head frantically.

“I know.”

“I promise, I didn’t…”

“I know,” Ty assured her, wrapping his arms around her shaking frame, holding her so close that she thought she might become a part of him. She rested her head against his chest, listening to the rapid beat of his heart. “I know,” he soothed, kissing the top of her head.

* * * *

The fight had ended the party rather abruptly. Lance began to turf guests into the street, but Rainie stayed. She sat on the sofa, sobbing into her palms. She felt naked and alone. What an idiot she had been. How stupid for her to think that someone like Leah Beauchamp could be a loyal friend. How ridiculous that Jerry could be a potential boyfriend. She was destined to be a lonely, crazy cat lady.

“Jerry can be…” Lance blew out a breath. “A twat.” He sat beside her, wrapping his palm around his fist, massaging his knuckles. “Don’t take him too seriously.”

“Go away,” she cried.

“We’ve all had a lot to drink. Things always get out of hand at Jerry’s parties.”

“But Leah…”

“Leah?” He sounded surprised by the mention of her name. “You think…? Oh shit. I doubt it. Ty made it very clear that she was a no-go area.”

Rainie closed her eyes. Realization settled.

* * * *

Yells and shouts echoed down the street. Neighbors twitched curtains, a couple with phones clutched to their heads, calling the police, Leah presumed. She watched as Ty dragged Jerry through the house and out of the front door in a flurry of expletives and threats.

“You’ll fucking suffer,” Jerry bellowed, standing in the middle of the drive, giving his chest a thump. “You’ll be sorry.”

“No, I won’t,” Ty said, blocking the doorway. “I’m not putting up with your shit anymore. Oh, and don’t worry, I’ll make sure your brother knows
exactly
why you’ve been evicted.”

Jerry lurched for the door, and Leah hid in the lounge, not wanting to see the fight that was bound to ensue, a fight that was all her doing.

“I’m sorry,” Rainie spluttered.

Lance was comforting her, and not standing up for his so-called friend. Leah didn’t trust his intent and chose to stay by the wall, arms folded in front of her chest.

“I’m so sorry.” Rainie stood and embraced Leah. “I don’t know…” The words came out between sobs.

“It’s okay,” Leah sniffed, returning the hug. “He’s a manipulative prick. You’re too good for him.”

Lance took hold of her elbow. “Things always look better in the morning,” he said, and led her upstairs.

Ty entered the room, a red mark across his cheek, a thin red line on his lower lip. Leah lifted her hand, using the pad of her thumb to wipe droplets of blood away. He hissed a breath at her touch, wincing away and gripping her hand in his. “I need to explain a few things,” he said.

“Yes,” she said, nodding. “You do. Let’s start with who you really are, why you let Jerry walk all over you and why you’re really working at the school.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Ty was unsure where to begin. “I’ve known Jerry for a long time.” He walked across the room and sat down. Leah remained by the wall, her face etched with stern confusion. It broke him to see her so dejected. “Since we were teenagers. At first it was just stuff every lad does, you know?”

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I don’t.”

“We had an air rifle and used to take pot shots at signs. We broke a neighbor’s window once. Blowing shit up, setting fire to deodorant cans—”

“Sounds like a riot.”

“We were boys,” he argued. “It got out of hand, though. It started with shoplifting—cans of Coke, sweets, that sort of stuff. Then cars. We started joyriding. One night we stole a Golf. We didn’t know that it had been souped up. We were fifteen and couldn’t handle it. I was driving, lost control and smashed it into a shop window.” The memory hit him in the gut. “We were lucky and got away without a scratch. But we were caught. Jerry said he was driving, though. His brother, Craig, was a constable at the time. Strings were pulled and he got a suspended sentence. I got a warning.” He saw the disapproving look she gave him and it hurt more than any words or slap ever could. “But then Jerry…” He took a sharp breath, filling his lungs before exhaling it. “We left school and went to college and Jerry… I guess you could say he joined the wrong crowd. He started taking drugs.”

“And you?”

“No.” He shook his head fiercely. “I had dreams of running my own gym. I was going to be a personal trainer, my body was a temple and all that crap. I never once put any of that shit into me. But Jerry was a friend.”

“And you stood by him.”

“I owed him. Then there was a fight at college. One of Jerry’s new mates got beaten up pretty bad. The police were called and I was arrested.”

Leah closed her eyes as she absorbed his past, leaning against the wall for the support he couldn’t give her.

“It wasn’t me, though. I was just there. Craig made sure that we were released. But we still got kicked out of college. Jerry thought it was a joke. Life is one big joke to him. I took it hard and started fighting. Craig was dating Candice at the time and got me a job at the club.”

“Candice, as in… I thought she said that you two…”

“Yeah, once upon a time. But not until after they’d split up. Once I started working at the club, I stopped talking to Jerry. I wanted him out of my life. I worked my arse off.”

“I didn’t realize doormen got paid well enough to buy two houses.”

“My granddad died and left me a bit of money…” He hesitated. “Not much, but enough to buy the flat outright, and get a mortgage on this place. I thought it would be a good investment,” he added nonchalantly. “But I stayed on at the club. I enjoyed working there, and Candice was the only person willing to hire me.”

“And the school? Why did you leave the club?”

“I was at Kiss-Kiss, working. Jerry turned up. It was obvious he was using again. I shouldn’t have let him in, but I did. I found him dealing.”

Leah blinked. “Dealing?”

“It was only cannabis and pills, but yeah. A fight started over money, and I intervened. When I realized what he was doing, I took the drugs off him and told him to go. It was stupid, I know, but I thought… Shit, I don’t know what I thought. The police had already been called, though, and when they arrived, they saw me with a pocket full of speed and a guy high as a kite, with a bloody nose.”

“You got arrested.”

“Yeah. Candice had no choice. She had to fire me. The charges were dropped, though. Thanks to Craig. I let Jerry move in with me. I owed it to him to help him get clean. I got that part right, but he’ll never be anything more than a sponging dick.”

Leah snorted a laugh. She relaxed her arms, letting them hang by her body, and went to him. Sitting down, she held on to his hands, lifting them to her lips and kissing his knuckles. “You’re a good person. And you’re not that teenager anymore.”

“Don’t be too quick to judge. I used women as much as he did.”

“But not me.”

“No,” he said, lifting a hand, smoothing his thumb down her cheek. “Never you.”

“What about the school? If you have a criminal record.”

“That’s the other confession I need to make. Hilary Davis gave me the job… She’s my aunt. She gave me a job when nobody else would. Friends in high places cleared my police check, and in today’s economy I’d be lucky to find anything else right now. I took it because it was available. Plus it keeps my mum happy. Hilary is a hard bitch, though, and if I so much as smudge the line, never mind step over it, she will destroy me.”

A smile cracked Leah’s lips. “Yeah, I can sort of see that. Why didn’t you just tell me?”

“It’s not exactly an impressive chat-up line. Hi, I’m Tybalt, named after a Shakespearean character because my mum’s an actress. I’ve been arrested several times for joyriding, fighting and drug dealing and now work for my aunt because nobody else will hire me.”

“I guess not. But…you could have told me.”

“I know that now. And I’m sorry I kept any of it from you. I suppose after you told me about Kyle, I was just wary. You already knew about my sexual preferences, and I didn’t want any of my history to cloud your opinions of me.”

“It sort of makes sense, you know.”

“What does?”

“You being related to Hilary. You’re far too well-spoken to be a common caretaker slash ex-bouncer.” She nudged him with her arm. “I’m glad you told me, though. What are you going to do now?”

“Face the music? I’ll have to explain to Craig why I’ve kicked Jerry out. At some point I’ll have to let him back in to collect his stuff, though.” Ty let out a nasal sigh. “I feel like I’ve failed. I promised Craig I’d keep him straight.”

“Jerry is an adult. He shouldn’t need you to look after him. He needs a kick up the backside. You can’t keep risking your own life for him.” She ran a hand over his head, raking her fingers through his hair. “I won’t let you.”

Ty turned to face her, cupping her chin and guiding her closer to him. He pressed his mouth on hers, placing soft kisses along her bottom lip. She bared herself to him without hesitation, allowing his tongue to slide over hers. The heat of her breath rushed over his cheek as the kiss became more passionate. Her hands clasped at the back of his head. He echoed the movement, his fingers twisting in her blonde waves.

“Crap,” he breathed.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, her mouth still over his.

“Nothing. Absolutely nothing.” He kissed her again. “It’s just that I’ve realized something.”

“What?”

“I’m falling in love with you.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

A fist rapped against the door. The sun had begun its ascent, breaking the dark sky with shards of orange and white. Streetlights flickered, fighting for their lives, against the new day. A man and a woman, dressed in police uniforms, stood on the steps.

Leah blinked, hesitant in her greeting. She’d gathered that at least one upset neighbor would call them, but she hadn’t expected them to turn up.

“We had a call about a disturbance,” the woman said, peering around Leah’s arm. She was shorter than Leah, and skinny beneath the uniform and stab vest. “We need to talk to Tybalt Sinclair please.” She looked Leah up and down, raising a quizzical eyebrow. Leah followed her stare and realized she was still wearing Ty’s oversize T-shirt.

“The party’s finished now,” Leah explained, blocking their path, realizing that they were probably wondering what type of ‘party’ had been going on. They didn’t need to see the path of destruction that had been left. “Everyone’s gone. We’re really sorry. There was a fight. You know how these things get—”

“Yes, that’s precisely why we need to speak to Mr. Sinclair,” the man said. He was tall, well over six foot, and it was obvious that he worked on his physique.

“What’s going on?” Ty spoke from behind her.

“Somebody called the police,” Leah said, stepping aside and letting them pass.

Ty took them into the front room, leaving Leah in the hall. “Why don’t you check on Rainie?” he suggested, placing a reassuring hand on her arm. “I’ll get this cleared up and then we can go to bed.”

She didn’t like being shut out. She didn’t like that Ty was talking to the police after everything he had just revealed. But he wanted to handle it on his own, and he obviously knew what he was doing.

With two coffees in hand, Leah went to rouse her friend.

As she pushed through Jerry’s door, the scene she walked into was not one she’d expected. Plain sky-blue sheets tumbled across the bed. The floor was strewn with clothes that had been removed in lustful haste. Leah wrinkled her nose at the musky scent of used bodies. She’d started to step backward when Rainie appeared from beneath the duvet. Her hair was a mussed and twisted bird’s nest and her eyes were red and puffy.

“I brought coffee,” Leah said, lifting the two mugs up. “But I’ll come back later.”

“It’s fine,” croaked a voice from beneath the confines of the blankets. Lance shifted the sheets back, revealing his naked frame. Leah looked away as he clambered out and came over to her, taking the mugs from her grip.

“Actually one of those… Never mind. The police are here.”

“Shit.” Lance groaned, flopping back to the bed, leaving the mugs on the bedside table. “Where’s Jerry?”

Leah shrugged. “Don’t know. But I think he’s one of the reasons they’re here. They wanted to talk to Ty about a disturbance.”

“Not the first time,” Lance said, seemingly unbothered by the police presence.

“I should… Yeah…” Leah went into the next room and began her search for clothes.

Dressed in her jeans, which still held a faint aroma of acetone and paint, and a better fitting T-shirt of Ty’s, she went downstairs to make herself a new cup of coffee. Ty’s voice could be heard through the closed door of the lounge. She hovered on the bottom step, straining to hear the words, but needn’t have bothered since in the next breath the door was opened and the policeman escorted Ty toward their car.