Fixing Justice (7 page)

She had yearned for the sort of heart pounding lovemaking she’d read about in books, but alas, mild-mannered Keith wasn’t going to rise to that standard.
Ever
. Tori wondered if men like the titillating alpha males she was drawn to in the literary realm actually existed in real life. Wallace certainly hadn’t fit the bill either. Just thinking about him made her skin crawl and bile rise in her throat.

Where the hell was that package of coffee pods she’d just bought? Thinking of the smarmy, two-timing Earl made quickly downing a jolt of caffeine an absolute necessity. Even the slightest reminder of the way she’d been deluded by his suave, aristocratic approach got her anger up. Unfortunately, a cabinet door got the worst of it as she slammed it shut with a resounding smack.

Scuffling around the tiny kitchen, she finally located the coffee and made fast work of getting a steaming hot beverage in her hand. Would it help her think more clearly and be less of a grump? Probably not. Her sleepless night was the result of fantasizing about the yummy Draegyn St. John, not the unctuous Wallace Evingham. The two men could not have been more different.

She’d been surprised and swept off her feet when Wallace had taken an interest in her. During the year they were together, the Earl had been painstakingly sincere and respectful while insisting their relationship take a slow course. At the time, she’d thought it wonderfully romantic even though it meant the sum total of their physical relationship consisted of a few kisses and one, less than stellar, make-out session. Being wooed and fawned over by any man, aristocrat or not, was every girl’s secret wish, wasn’t it? Finding out it was all a ruse made her feel stupid and naïve.

She wanted what her parents had when it came to romance. Her mom and dad had been so in love; at least that was how everyone who knew the happy couple told the story. Her mother had been a twenty-one year old beauty queen when she met and fell hopelessly in love with a young lawyer from Atlanta. She and her lover eloped just months after they’d met with Victoria arriving a year later. They lived a charmed and perfect life for ten years until illness claimed her father’s young life. Their love had been so powerful and infinite that all these years later, her beautiful, talented, successful mother had not only never remarried, she rarely if ever toyed with the dating scene.

Comparing her parents’ love story with some conceited aristocratic jerk didn’t come close to the image of the perfect mate she’d dreamed of since girlhood. And then there was Draegyn. The hard-bodied, sexy secret agent might be making her panties damp, but he was not to be taken seriously. There was no way to fix that kind of self-important belief system. He’d always be a dog, sniffing after every available female’s skirt he could find.

Still, after lights out, her thoughts conjured up Draegyn sneaking into her bed. She imagined the blond Adonis teasing her with risqué suggestions. She’d fallen asleep while visions of hot and sweaty sex with the fair-haired super-hunk played out in her mind. She awoke feeling more exhausted and edgy than when she’d fallen into bed.

Letting loose with the mother of all heavy sighs, Tori glanced at the time and saw she needed to be getting ready for work. In the bathroom, she stared at herself in the mirror, taking detailed stock of her appearance. Wearing a threadbare concert t-shirt that had actually been her mother’s, she couldn’t help but scowl at her uninspiring reflection. Whipping the t-shirt over her head and tossing into a nearby hamper, the image staring back at her was of someone who had woken up on the wrong side of the bed. Without much in the way of boobage, and a figure that was plain-vanilla at best, the sloppy hair and wretched glower defined her way more than her body did. People rarely looked past what was visible on the outside. Maybe that was why her love life had been less than stellar. She was hardly the type to inspire great passion in a lover.

Oh, for heaven’s sake
, she thought. This was ridiculous. Why did everything always have to circle around to that? Couldn’t she just focus on work and be content? Crying for something she’d never had, and probably didn’t really exist anyway, was no way to live.

Besides, men like Draegyn were not boyfriend or husband material. He lived in a world occupied by polished, worldly-wise women. Supermodels and actresses. She’d checked him out online. If you believed everything written about him in the media, he had a sexual history as long as her arm, with a cast of glamorous, elegant females who knew how to satisfy a man like him. He was trouble with a capital T and way, way, way out of her league.

Switching on the shower and turning the temperature to sizzle, Tori stepped under the stinging spray and tried to erase these vexing thoughts from her mind. Best she remember the shit storm her life was recovering from before she did or said something stupid. Draegyn St. John might be the sexiest man alive but he was also technically her boss and a step too far down a road she best not travel. No, women like her were doomed to be sensible. Being practical and down-to-earth was her lot in life. Plain and simple.

After another busy day, Tori was home trying to relax but Jesus, her nerves were frayed. It didn’t help any that she’d lost her appetite for anything except oceans of coffee and the occasional bowl of ice cream.

It had been two weeks of sheer hell at work as she tried to steer clear of Draegyn, which was no easy feat. No matter what else was going on around the compound, he found time daily to stop by and spend time with his brother. Avoiding him was impossible considering how closely she worked with Alex.

It didn’t help that he was constantly goading her any time they were alone or near each other for longer than five seconds. He wanted her to lose control and throw a hissy fit. She could feel it. That was why he tried so hard to get under her skin. Unfortunately, it was working. Though she fought to remain impassive, his attitude was messing with her head. Two weeks of it had all but wiped her out.

Grabbing her cell phone, she flipped through a bunch of playlists until she found one that wouldn’t make her weepy or get her all worked up. Snapping the phone into the music system dock, she adjusted the volume as a classic soft rock song came through the speakers. It was just what she needed to unwind and relax on a Friday night.

With a new group of visitors arriving on Monday for a series of training events, Family Justice was gathering for the evening in the big conference room for a movie night before things got hectic. Carmen said it was a chance for everyone to chill in advance of a busy week. She’d been invited, of course. Everyone was. But she was feeling fuzzy, tired, and vulnerable. Not a good time to be socializing.

Eyeing the stack of books on the side table, she decided against diving into one. A racy, erotic story wasn’t what she needed right now. No, that wouldn’t do at all. Her dreams starring the sexy secret agent were torment enough. Adding literary sexual frustration to that seemed sort of stupid.

Two glasses of wine later, she was camped out on the big comfy loveseat, long after the sunset had shifted to darkness. Tori loved the simple stillness of the desert nights. It was so quiet and calming. When one of her all-time favorite oldies started playing, she couldn’t help but sing along. Maybe it was the wine, or maybe it was the long sleepless nights that filled her voice with emotion, all she knew was how the song made her feel. The emotions it was unleashing in her soul. And just like that, out of nowhere, she burst out crying. What started as a sniveling whimper quickly escalated to a full-on crying jag.

Okay.
This nonsense has gone on long enough
, Drae thought as he looked around the room filled with people and nodded his head for the hundredth time in realization that Victoria hadn’t come out for the evening’s get-together. He wasn’t stupid. Ever since he caught her eating him alive with her eyes out by the pool, she’d been avoiding him. When it became apparent that she was going to be a no-show, his irritation level went up by degrees as the evening wore on.

He tried to ignore the heavy feeling invading his groin but the thought of Victoria and her ballsy attitude kept flitting in and out of his mind. Why his cock woke up and made an unwelcome guest appearance every damn time he thought about her, which was often, was a continuing puzzle. She just wasn’t his type by any stretch of the imagination. His usual modus operandi with a beautiful woman was to imagine her naked in his bed. If his libido seemed interested, game on. With the little mouse though, picturing her naked wasn’t so easy. He had no idea what kind of body lurked under the hideous clothes she wore. Confusing matters even more was her talent for making herself so bland and unremarkable as to be rendered nearly invisible.

Just about the time the group of super-heroes joined forces to defeat a movie-perfect villain, Drae threw in the towel and quietly slipped away from the group screening. He needed to find out what little miss do-gooder was up to.

There were a couple of studio-style apartments on the property where he learned Victoria had been staying. Living in town had been an option. Not everyone was a resident in the main compound, but according to Carmen, who seemed to know a little bit of everything, Victoria preferred some privacy, staying mostly to herself when not working. All signs pointed to someone who was running. Or hiding. Maybe a combination of both.

Climbing the stairs with a light tread, he arrived outside her door, tapping lightly to get her attention. When the sound of sobbing was the only indication that she was home, his gut tightened. What the hell, man? Was that her weeping for all she was worth? He tried knocking again, this time a bit harder. “Victoria. Open up.”

Still nothing.
Shit
. Oh well. Resting one hand at his waist and raking the other across his head till he was gripping the back of his neck, he thought,
maybe it is best this way
. He shouldn’t involve himself in whatever was fueling her tears. That was not the way he was built. When his feet started to move in retreat, he paused for half a second, long enough for her whimpering sobs to reach inside his chest and give a mighty squeeze. Reflexively, his hand tested the doorknob and finding it unlocked, gave a little shove, opening the door to the scene inside.

She was huddled in the corner of a small loveseat, arms crossed on the padded back while her head hung and shoulders visibly shook. Deep shuddering sobs wracked her body, giving the impression of a rag doll caught in the throes of overwhelming sorrow. It was too much for his brain to take in so his body took over, forcing him to move toward the despondent woman.

“Victoria?” Gulping at the ragged sound of his own voice, he had the distinct impression that the floor was falling away underneath him.

Her head jolted when he spoke. Red-rimmed eyes overflowing with tears pinned him to the spot. “Get out!” she screamed as a sob ripped from her throat.

“No,” he gritted at her, surprising himself with uncharacteristic emotion clogging his voice. He gestured at her dishevelment and asked, “What’s wrong?”

She scrambled off the loveseat, jumping to her feet in a tangle of shaking arms and legs. “You can’t come in here!” she wailed.

While his mind analyzed her distress, taking note of every word and action, his libido fired up at the sight of her in a pair of baby-doll style pajamas that sent his pulses racing. He didn’t need to wonder anymore what was under the ugly clothes.

At a little over six feet, Drae might be the smallest in stature compared to Cam’s impressive height and Alex’s solid build, but next to her he was a generous half-foot in height taller. The picture she presented was delightfully feminine with an added fragility from her crying jag which only added to her appeal. She had beautifully shaped legs with small feet and delicate looking ankles. Wondering what those legs would feel like wrapped around his hips and if she would dig her feet into his butt as he rode her into oblivion shouldn’t have been a thought he entertained in this situation. But he did, dammit.

The cut and style of her pajama top wasn’t revealing until she went to snatch a tissue from the coffee table. As she bent over, the top gaped enough for him to get a clear view of her perfect breasts. The way they swung and the modest handful in size told him they were all natural, topped with tantalizingly puckered nipples that made his mouth actually water.
Down boy, down
, he chanted silently as his cock woke up and stood at attention.