Fate Intended (The Coulter Men Series Book 3) (13 page)

“It was quite a night,” Jane agreed; then said, “Thank you. I owe you much. I know you didn’t want to go to the party, but you did, and it means a lot to me. I don’t really have anyone left but.”

“Pah, just stop. Have another drink. Get sleep. Tomorrow we work.” Sasha toyed with the cap on the vodka bottle as she assured, “We’ll survive.”

“If he starts dating her again, how will I face them? I can’t do it. You should get me a new identity; then I could disappear. Then if I get caught, you won’t be in trouble.” Jane stared at her stocking feet. “Maybe I could go to Mexico, where it is warm. I’m sick of cold places.”

“You are a Sarkhov. And you are Viktor’s daughter. You will wake tomorrow ready for the fight. You will not be like
sookie
and run in fear.”

“Running makes sense sometimes, ya know?”

Sasha shook her head and poured Jane another half cup.

Jane continued, “I wish Poppa would have run. He had to know the KGB was closing in. Why did he stay? Why didn’t he get out of the country?”

“Not Viktor’s style.”

Jane nodded, but the image of her father’s last minutes haunted her. She closed her mind to the memory and downed her vodka. She let out a fiery whoop and set her glass on the counter. Sasha started to refill it, but Jane put her hand over the top to stop her. Sasha screwed the cap on the bottle and put it in the cupboard.

“You’re a good friend, a true comrade,” Jane admitted solemnly.

Sasha wiped away a tear which seemed to cause her a great deal of embarrassment. “Oh, shit. For God’s sake go to bed. We will think on this tomorrow.”

Jane shook her head. “I’m too anxious, and you know how I sleep when I’m nervous. I have had a week without the bad dream. I refuse to have it tonight. I’m going to the machine and get my damn chocolate. You go ahead and go to bed.” Jane overturned the catch-all basket on the counter looking for loose change. She tossed the pennies toward the trash some hitting, some pinging onto the floor, as she complained, “Why do they even make pennies? Who uses them?” She dug out a handful of change and cupped it in her hand. She turned to Sasha with a tight laugh. “No one likes them. No one needs them. And what do we have? A whole basket of them. What is the luck?”

“I hear pennies are good luck. And we may need it, especially if we just spent an evening in a room loaded with covert agents,” Sasha said, her hands shaking a little.

“That really has you spooked, doesn’t it?”

“With everything that has gone wrong this year?” Sasha asked with an eyebrow arched so high it disappeared under her bangs.

Jane sighed. “True. With our luck, they’re all agents and we’re probably headed to the gulag, but before they shackle me and carry me off, I’m getting some friggin’ chocolate.”

Sasha snickered and lit another cigarette as Jane stepped out the door to the elevator.

Jane pushed the button and leaned against the cold block wall to wait. The elevator dinged and she rolled toward the door. When it opened, she only took one step before her path was blocked by five-feet-eight inches of blonde perfection.

Olivia.

Chapter 17

Jane’s head moved side to side slowly as if bored with the constant suckiness of her life. Jane remained quiet, but took a step to her right trying to dodge Olivia without acknowledging she was there.

Olivia would have none of it.

She took a step to the left, thereby blocking Jane’s exit. Jane sighed and took a step left. Olivia followed. Jane planted her hands on her hips and glared at Olivia. “Excuse me?” Jane asked.

Olivia advanced and poked Jane in the chest. Jane stumbled backward a step or two before regaining her balance. Olivia took advantage of Jane’s confusion and made a hasty approach.

Before Jane’s brain even had time to register it was an attack, Olivia was almost nose to nose with her. Olivia’s blue eyes were wide with fury. “Stay the hell away from my boyfriend, or I swear to God, I will have you fired. Someone who steals things from people can’t be trusted.”

Jane took a deep breath and said slowly, “You’d be wise to back off.”

“Don’t tell me what to do, you ignorant Russian slut. You need to understand who you are dealing with.” She poked Jane again, punctuating her words with the action. Olivia must have thought she had Jane intimidated, cowering under her verbal attack, and too afraid to utter a word of defense. Jane’s silence seemed to make her bolder, her pokes to her chest coming with more force.

Olivia probably thought she was winning until a right hook—that she obviously never saw coming—landed square on her nose. Olivia dropped like a pile of bricks to her knees.

Her torrent of abuse was replaced instantly with cries of pain. Olivia squealed and brought her fingers to her nose. She let out a scream when she saw the blood.

Jane’s hand hurt a bit, but she felt good. She side-stepped Olivia’s wailing form and pushed the button yet again. When it arrived with a happy sounding
ding,
Jane turned to her and said, “Maybe
you
should know who you are dealing with, bitch.” The elevator doors closed and so did Jane’s interest. The woman bleeding in the hallway could go to hell, and she could take Trip with her.

The elevator stopped in the lobby, and she stepped off. Turning to the right, she bumped into a body. “Excuse me,” she offered as she walked onward, head bent, eyes on the ground. She was startled when that
body
grabbed hold of her arm and tugged her back. Alarm was replaced with a strange mix of satisfaction and annoyance. She recognized the smell of him, the curve of his throat.

“Trip.” She stumbled and fell into his chest. She tried to right herself quickly, tried to craft her reaction to appearing cool, calm, and indifferent. Instead, she stood, face to face, bodies so near she could feel the heat of his on hers.

Punch him too
, her mind screamed,
bloody his nose. Then he and his girlfriend can cry together!
Instead she did nothing. She mumbled something, not really a hello, something that sounded more like uh, oh, um rather than words. Her cheeks flamed red as she tried to pull away. This was
not
the posture she wanted to take.

“I’m in a hurry,” Jane muttered. Trip still held her arm and didn’t seem inclined to let go.

“Where you headed?”

“Please, Trip.” She was about to cry. She could feel it. It was coming from somewhere deep inside, and it wasn’t going to be pretty. She yanked on her arm and bolted.

He was right behind her, calling her name. She ignored him as she ran blindly, not sure which way she needed to go to get away. He caught up with her in no time and grabbed her arm, pulling her back to him. His grip was like iron. She was shocked by the fierceness of his hold. He held her close, his hands gripping her to him as he asked, “What’s wrong?”

She shook her head. She couldn’t answer. Couldn’t hold back the tears. Trip brushed them away with his thumb and pressed her head to his chest. He kissed the top of her head. “What is it? What happened?”

“My father is sick, and I have to go home. I’m leaving in the morning.”

Trip took a step back and looked down at her as if she lost her mind. She took advantage of the separation and dashed toward the fire escape. She realized it wasn’t the bravest way to deal with her situation, but she didn’t care at the moment. She hit the metal door with a thud, shoving it open, escaping into the cool hollow stairwell. She was only two steps down when Trip caught up with her and grabbed her by the waist and swung her up into his arms where he held her eye to eye.

For a quiet guy, his voice echoed off the concrete walls and rang in her ears, making her flinch. He was mad at her. Her initial shock and twinge of fear faded as she felt her spine stiffen at his audacity to man-handle her. She stood up straight and tried to wiggle free. He squeezed tighter. “What’s going on, Jane? You told me your father died. Why are you lying to me?”

“
Me,
lying to
you
? You pig.” She hit him in the chest. “Let go of me! You have no right.” He ignored her, his arms tightened around her. “I said, let me go!” She tried to wriggle free, but she couldn’t get loose, so she swung at him with her free hand and slapped his cheek. “I am sick of you. Go away!” She stuck her chin out at him and glared. Her nostrils flared as she hit him again and again in the shoulder and arm. He didn’t even flinch or try to stop her. “My father is dead. And you’re lucky for that or he’d bust your nose like your girlfriend’s.”

“What the hell? Jane, you make no sense.”

“I make no sense?” she shrieked. “Me? Let’s talk about you. Let’s talk of how much sense your stories make. Why did you make me leave the party? Tell me of your
important
business….”

Trip sighed, he closed his eyes for a moment, and then opened them and frowned. “Olivia. Olivia was my business.”

Jane’s mouth dropped open for a moment, then closed with a snap. “So. Well, then go to hell…,” she tried again to jerk away, “and take the bitch with you…I don’t want you here.”

“No.” He loosened his grip on her, but not enough for her to get away. “I’m not leaving you. I love you, Jane. You.” He tried to talk as she tried to pull away. “Are you going to listen to me?” He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her head back until she was looking up at him. Her mouth dropped open. He wasn’t hurting her, but if she moved, it tugged, and if she tried to go either too far left, right, or back, it hurt. She was shocked speechless. She supposed she would hear his lies, get herself free, and then bloody his nose. He eased his grip as she calmed. “You will hear me out, Jane. I won’t lose you because of a misunderstanding, do you hear me?”

Lose her? He was throwing her away. But he sounded scared, desperate. None of it made sense. She finally looked up at him, and she saw the man… the man she loved even if he had just lied to her. She loved the soft brown of his eyes, the firm jaw.

But she couldn’t let love interfere with honor. A tear rolled down her cheek. Trip closed his eyes, and his words sounded pained as he said, “Baby, don’t cry. I can explain everything.” He pulled her into him and hugged her, rubbing his cheek against hers. He took a step back and took a breath. “Olivia was at the party.”

“Why did you lie to me? I knew she was your reason for making me leave! And you could have told me the truth, but you lied.” Her body stiffened. “The only reason to lie is to hide things. If you want to be with her, then be with her. Don’t shuffle me out the back door, her in through the front. I am not a whore who is okay with being the other woman.” She shoved hard against his shoulder, trying to get free. “You can’t have it both ways!” She finished her words through clenched teeth. Her cheeks were red, and her hand stung. “I am not a fool, Trip. I may be a lot of things, but I am not a fool.”

“Jane.” He cradled her face in his hands. “I never thought you were a fool.” The muscle in his jaw twitched. “And you’re certainly not a whore.”

“Well, you didn’t have to lie to me. I knew there was nothing between us. You could have just
said that Olivia was back, good-bye.”

He shook his head. “I have no intention of saying good-bye to you, because you are wrong. Dead wrong. There is most certainly something between us.”

Jane rolled her eyes, but warmth spread through her limbs. She supposed it was relief, but she had to be smart. He was probably still telling her lies. She looked away. She couldn’t look at him and not believe him.

“Look at me, Jane.”

“No,” she whispered.

He moved his face until he was in front of her and looking eye to eye. “Baby, I need you, and I definitely want you in my life.” Jane closed her eyes. She wouldn’t cry…or believe him just because he said pretty things. His tone was more intense, almost urgent. “You make me feel like, for the first time, everything in this crazy universe is connected. When I’m with you, more of the world makes sense, and the things that don’t make sense? Hell, they don’t seem to matter anymore.” A fat tear rolled down her cheek as she decided he was reading her mind and telling her exactly what she wanted to hear. She squeezed her eyes closed as he explained. “I don’t want you to be my friend. I definitely don’t want you to walk away, and I sure as hell don’t want you to leave me.” That said; he let her go.

Jane wiped away the tears and stepped back. She looked into his eyes and read for herself whether or not he was telling the truth. He seemed sincere, but then things could seem one way and turn out another. She knew that far too well. “So why did you…?”

Trip took a deep breath. “My mother didn’t know I was bringing you to the party. I wanted to surprise her. Before I left six months ago, Olivia and I had our differences, but we were still a couple…so to speak. But it wasn’t working….you know that. You saw one of the fights firsthand. And when I left, Olivia ignored me. Didn’t respond to a single email.”

Jane bit her lip and nodded.

Trip shrugged. “I figured the silence spoke volumes. That ‘we’ didn’t work. But evidently what I considered a breakup, she considered a…hell, I don’t know what Olivia thought. She kept up the ruse of us being a couple to all our friends, and when my mother planned this party, she naturally invited Olivia, thinking we were still together.” Trip reached out for her hand, but Jane pulled away. He sighed. “I swear. I had no idea she would be there. And since she was, I felt like I had to talk to her and make myself perfectly clear.” He grabbed her arm and held it gently. “But I also didn’t want to embarrass her in front of all those people, and I didn’t want her to see you and make a scene.” Jane nodded, as if agreeing was against her will. Trip took a step closer. “I should have explained to you right then, but when Sasha was so hell bent on getting out of the house, I guess I just rolled with it.”

Jane swallowed; tears blurred her vision. “So, why are you here?”

“I said I was coming. And, of course, I missed you.” He pulled her close, this time holding her gently, her head resting on his chest. Trip brushed dampened hair away from her cheek as he explained, “I planned on spending my whole evening with you. I missed you…and…” He kissed her forehead. “I was disappointed…robbed of my time with you. So, I came here for my Jane fix, so I can sleep tonight.”

Jane relaxed against him, rubbing her cheek against his shirt to dry her tears. She enjoyed the warmth of his chest, relished the beat of his heart. After all that had happened, after her worst fears were confronted, he was here, holding her, not Olivia.

Jane pictured Olivia clutching her bloody nose in the hallway. A shiver of fear ran down her spine. Trip will find out; he might run back to his ex and blame Jane for hurting her. Jane squeezed her eyes closed. Trip’s arms closed tighter around her as if he felt her worry. Jane took a breath and admitted, “I uh, ran into Olivia on the elevator and we argued.”

“Are you all right?” Trip tipped her chin up till he could see her.

“I punched her,” Jane said lifting her hand; the one that delivered the leveling blow. It was bleeding. Blood trickled down her wrist like thin streaks of paint.

“What the hell?” Trip grabbed her hand and gently pried it open. The coins had cut into the soft flesh. Trip emptied her hand and wiped at the blood with his thumb. “We need to get this clean.”

“It’s fine,” Jane assured him. She bit the side of her cheek and whispered. “I punched her in the nose.”

“You should never punch someone with your hand full. The force of the blow drives any object into your hand, dammit.”

Jane shrugged. “That’s not what Poppa taught me.”

She saw the shock on Trip’s face, but she ignored it. He mumbled something, but she chose not to ask what. He took her by the hand and led her down the steps without any more conversation. She was grateful. She didn’t want to explain to him what kind of father teaches his daughter to fight dirty in street brawls, to hold a roll of coins in her fist to strengthen the blow. It wasn’t very lady-like, or very humanitarian. Guilt washed over her, and without thinking, she said, “I suppose you should go check on Olivia.”

Then she frowned. Why would she suggest that?