Tripp in Love (6 page)

Toya moaned. “It might take all night.”

“By all means…”

Chapter Six

Three months later

Toya climbed out of bed, sore and achy. She glanced back at Tripp, but he was dead to the world as usual early in the morning. After searching the room, she located her T-shirt, which she hadn’t worn but five minutes after her shower the night before. Then she dug through her bag for fresh panties.

They were back in Tripp’s town, this time at his ranch style home. She had to admit she liked the place, didn’t mind the quiet at all. Her decision to break off their affair had died a quick death, especially when she had been lying in Tripp’s arms and he’d suggested continuing indefinitely. How could she resist? She still wanted him—even three months after they first slept together.

Still, every time she saw him, she decided this was it. In fact the night before she had suggested it to him. “Maybe we should call it quits or at least take some time to cool off,” she’d said.

He’d frowned and drew her into his arms. When she would have pulled on a pair of shorts, he took them from her hands and tossed them aside. “Why? We’re great in bed together.” She’d begun packing her things. He emptied her bag. “You said you’re between projects. Stay another day or two.”

“Well maybe we’ll ease up on the dates.”

He’d shot that suggestion down as well. The extra day had turned into four. She still had three before she had to get back to New York, but she became more and more afraid the longer time she spent with him. Just the week before, she’d read an article that claimed men were able to handle no-strings-attached relationships a lot better than women. As far as she was concerned, she was already doing bad. Granted, Tripp wasn’t all that strict when it came to the rules of the game. He’d asked her about meeting his brother. She had turned him down flat. No freaking way she was going there. Not if she wanted to come out of this relationship with her heart intact when he was bored of her. Meeting family gave a woman expections, and that would just complicate matters.

She showered and pulled on a pair of panties. Now that it was May, she could put on lighter clothes, so she dressed in the shorts she had intended to wear last night. Coffee would wake up her brain, and Tripp would enjoy it too. He liked his black with so much sweetener he could fall into a sugar coma with one sip. Annoyed that she knew this detail about his routine, she stepped outside to drive ten miles to the nearest Starbucks.

“Small town,” she muttered as she got behind the wheel.

“Hello there,” a male voice called, and she froze. The man walking toward her was almost the spitting image of Tripp, but he had him by a good ten years at least. The dark hair was peppered with grey with more at the temples. Tripp’s older brother, she guessed and cursed under her breath. “Heading out?” he asked. Somehow the smile didn’t seem genuine.

“Yes, do I know you?” She pretended not to pick up on the resemblance.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m John, Tripp’s older brother.” He stuck his hand out, and she took it.

“You call him Tripp too? It’s your last name as well, right?”

He shrugged. “Everyone does.”

“So I’d heard.” Toya didn’t mean to be unfriendly, but she couldn’t get her attitude together. Something Tripp had mentioned the other day made her think John didn’t approve of their relationship.

“Tripp has talked about you a lot lately. I admit I’m surprised the two of you are still going strong. He isn’t known for lasting relationships with women.”

Toya stepped out of the car and slammed the door. She resisted the urge to put her hands on her hips and cuss him to his face. Instead, she kept control. “Is there something I’ve done to offend you?”

The dumbfounded expression pissed her off. “No, of course not.”

“Then what makes you think you can come here and tell me you’re surprised Tripp hasn’t dumped me?”

He held up his hands as if to placate a child. “Okay, there’s no need to get so upset, Taya.”

“Toya!”

“Toya,” he repeated, but she bet her ass he’d messed it up on purpose. “I’m just saying be honest with yourself. Do you really see a future between you and my brother? Not being his type for one, and—”

“His type.” Her resolve left. “Wait a damn minute. Just what the hell are you getting at, you small-minded jerk? What am I the wrong color?”

He fell back a step from her. “I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t have to. It’s written all over the way you’ve been acting since you walked up here.”

The fake, jovial expression he’d maintained the whole time fell away, and she saw the dislike. He didn’t even know her, yet he was judging what kind of person she was by whatever Tripp had told him and his preconceived notions.

“Look, I care about my brother. He’s been hurt bad in the past.”

“He told me about that. His ex-wife cheated on him. Everyone who’s been in a relationship has had their heart broken. I feel for him, but it’s also life, and I don’t get how you think I shouldn’t be with him because he’s been hurt.”

To her surprise, he reached out to touch her shoulder, but she shifted so he missed. He swung around as if he’d been stretching the whole time and looked toward the house. Toya suppressed a laugh. All the anger she’d been feeling ebbed away.

John reached inside his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. He opened it and retrieved a picture. “Look at it.”

Toya took the picture and peered down at it. The image was of a beautiful woman with long auburn hair. An adorable little boy about two sat in her arms. The resemblance between the two of them was obvious, but his blue eyes were what made her run cold. She’d been staring into those same eyes every weekend for the last three months. Her stomach stirred, and she felt like she was going to throw up.

“That’s his ex-wife. Sharon still loves him. She made a mistake that cost her, but she’s been trying to rebuild a relationship with him ever since. They go out sometimes, but the one thing Tripp has been constant about is that he never gets serious with anyone else. He might not be ready to let Sharon back into his heart, but don’t you think the two of them deserve a chance?”

Toya didn’t answer. She couldn’t formulate words. When John realized she wouldn’t respond, he eased the picture from her numb fingers and stuffed it back into his wallet. He turned and walked away. She heard a vehicle start up nearby and drive off. This must be the reason he’d come, knowing Tripp had taken off work and would sleep in. He could catch her on the way out.

Deep in thought, she drove the ten miles to get coffee and came back. As she climbed out of the car, Tripp was just stepping from the house in full uniform. A neighbor stood outside watering her lawn. She waved. “Hey, Tripp. Hey, Toya.”

Toya nodded, pressing her lips together and forcing a smile. Tripp tugged her into his arms, but she turned her head so he couldn’t kiss her. “Baby, what’s wrong?”

“Not in front of your neighbor,” she muttered.

He gave her a squeeze around the waist and took the coffee she offered him. “Mm, that’s good. I’m so sorry I have to go in. One of the guys called in sick. I promise I’ll be back soon. Nothing much ever happens out here.”

Nothing except you lying about having a child and getting back with your ex.
Her heart ached. She thought about telling him she wouldn’t be here when he got back.

“I have something to talk to you about. Promise you’ll wait for me.” He drew her closer despite her protests. Toya tried to wiggle out of his hold, but he tightened his grip and forced her chin up. She melted under his kiss, hating how weak she was to his touch. “Promise,” he insisted.

“Okay, okay,” she grumbled. “I guess it is time we talked. “I can do some sketching while you’re gone. What time are we talking?”

“Four.” He smacked her on the ass and climbed into his patrol car, which he’d driven home. Toya turned to go move her car, but he whipped his around hers driving on the lawn and was off down the street before she could blink.

Toya spent the rest of the morning telling herself to pack up and leave. She didn’t owe Tripp a thing except to get the heck out of there and never answer his calls again. She drove instead to the town’s center where there were a few shopping stores, and left her belongings at Tripp’s house. He’d given her his key in case she needed to go to the store. The feeling of the cold steel in her palm was weighty and so not the time to have it.

The first store she checked out sold dresses but none she would wear. A small section toward the back held two racks of T-shirts. She liked to wear big ones around the apartment. A couple would do.

“Hey, Mildred,” a woman called as she entered the store.

“Good morning, sweetie, and how’s my little man doing?” the store owner responded.

Toya whirled around, but the woman was blond and plain, not at all like Tripp’s ex. That would be too coincidental. They were the last two people she wanted to lay eyes on. But her nervousness and unsettled stomach made the decision for her. She’d never allowed herself to be used by a man, and she wasn’t starting today.

Her purchases in a bag, she strolled down the street while speed-dialing Tripp. He answered on the second ring. “Hi, baby, you’re missing me already?”

“I called to tell you I’m leaving.”

The line went silent.

“Tripp?”

“I thought we said we’d talk later. Why the sudden change?”

She couldn’t tell if he was angry, sad, or glad. He spoke in a monotone, which served to agitate her more. “I’m going to be honest. I think I want to end things now before it gets too serious.”

“Toya, where are you?”

“It doesn’t matter. I—”

“Where. Are. You?”

She frowned and looked around. “In the town square or whatever. You have to work, and I understand that. I should go now since I have a long drive.”

“About five miles down Main Street, you’ll come across an old barn on the right side. Meet me there now.”

“Tripp…”

“Meet me!” He broke the connection.

“Damn stubborn man,” she grumbled. “Who does he think he is, and why can’t he let this all be simple? We could have ended it without any drama.” She did as he asked and drove down to the place he mentioned, but it would make no difference. She’d tell him to his face that they were done, and he could be as pigheaded as he wanted to.

Toya parked the car and got out. A dirt drive led up to the barn, and around the outside of the building was overrun with weeds. The barn itself needed a paint job bad. Other than that, the place seemed sturdy. No one had been around in forever if she had to guess.

A car engine sounded in the distance, and then Tripp’s police car turned in between rows of corn lining the drive. Her heartbeat picked up, and she tried not to be glad to see him even though it had been just a few hours since they’d left his house. He cut the engine and stepped out of the car. She schooled her face to appear indifferent.

“What’s going on, baby?” He took her hand and pulled her close. Toya couldn’t breathe, and tears welled up in her eyes.
No, you’re stronger than this. Get a freaking grip!
“I thought we were good. Better than good, Toya. That’s part of what I wanted to talk to you about.”

She broke from his hold and walked a few steps away. “I’m done. I…” She closed her eyes and just blurted it out. “I know about your son. I know you lied. You didn’t have a reason to. Shoot, everybody has a past. It’s so not a big deal. But when you tell me your ex is—”

“Hold it right there.” The command was as harsh as anything he must have said to a perpetrator because it went through her and made her clamp her lips together. He caught her shoulder and turned her to face him. His touch wasn’t painful, but it brooked no arguments. “First, I do not have a child. I don’t know why you think so.”

She glared at him. “I saw the picture, Tripp. He looks just like you. Same eyes. I’d know them anywhere.”

“You’re right. Now tell me who showed you the picture.”

She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Your brother. He came by and…” Her mouth fell open. “Oh damn.” She’d never considered that the father might be his brother, and John obviously didn’t like her. Of course he knew what she would think. That’s what he wanted. He hoped she’d tell Tripp to kiss her ass and just walk away from him.

“Tell me everything he said,” Tripp ordered.

He towered above her, more imposing in his policeman’s uniform and the heavy gun at his hip. She tried getting some space, but he held on. In fact, he marched her in reverse so that she bumped the squad car, keeping her from escape. She told him everything.

“And you believed that?”

“How could I not, Tripp? We’re lovers, nothing more. We talk and stuff but nothing deep. It’s all about sex with us, and that’s what we agreed on from the beginning. Hell, I’m surprised we lasted this long.”

“Even if this was all about sex, from what you do know about me, you think I’m the kind of man who would fuck one woman while trying to patch it up with another?”

“I—”

“How can you be so worldly on one hand and be so ignorant on the other?” The wonder and confusion in his expression was just like it had been when he first met her. She felt like they’d gone full circle. He kissed her, and she couldn’t help but give into it, enjoying the touch of his lips. “Now
I’ll
talk.”

She nodded her consent but knew he wasn’t asking for it.

“I admit that I was ashamed to tell you the full truth, that the man I walked in on with my wife was my own brother. We didn’t speak for two years. But when I started getting to know my nephew, I wanted to make amends with my brother, if only so that he could have a relationship with his father. I figured I could nudge him to do the right thing by his son and be a part of his life. I thought he and I could move forward, but this incident shows me it may never happen. If he causes me to lose you, I will kill him.”

She shook from head to toe and forced herself to address what it sounded like he was saying. “You make it sound like you care about me.”

“Foolish woman, I love you.” He pressed her tight to the car, his hard-on obvious against her stomach. “
Only
you. I don’t want another woman, least of all my ex. I wanted to talk to you tonight about becoming a more permanent part of my life. Not as lovers only, but with a commitment.”