Lies in Love (33 page)

Halfway through the meal,
Alice and Derek were arguing over the last dinner roll when a couple
of stray kicks landed in her direction. As Talia winced, she tried to
laugh through the pain realizing this was the life of a family, the
sights and sounds and smells. It was all rather enjoyable until the
front door burst open and a very inebriated man came stumbling in the
door.

“There’s the
birthday boy.” A mess of gray hair covered the man’s
head, his eyes bloodshot and a half-empty bottle of Jim Beam in his
hand. “I guess my invitation got lost in the mail.” His
words were slurred as he swatted Dawson on the back.

“What are you doing
here?” Landon stood up from the table, anger marring his face.

“It’s Dawson’s
birthday. You didn’t think I’d miss it, did ya?”
The man slammed his whiskey bottle on the table, sloshing droplets on
the surface. “Landon, be a good boy and pay my cab fare.”

Landon rounded the table
and, without a word, hauled the man outside.

“What’s going
on?” Talia stared at the door that Landon had just exited. Out
of the corner of her eye, she saw Dawson look at Mya, their eyes
clearly doing the talking before Dawson got up and left the table,
following Landon and the drunk man outside.

“Who was that?”
Talia looked to Mya for answers, but Millie quickly interrupted.

“Mommy, when are we
having cake?” Millie was bouncing in her seat with the
exuberance of a child in search of a sugar high.

“In just a bit
sweetheart.” Mya patted Millie on the back and began clearing
the table.

Talia quickly realized she’d
be getting no answers from her. She got up from the table, gathering
up a few of the dishes, and carried them into the kitchen. “Is
everything okay, Mya?”

The sound of the front door
kept her silent and Dawson walked into the kitchen.

“I’m going to
take Abel to a hotel for the night. I’ll be back in a bit.”
Dawson leaned over to kiss his wife, but her hand lifted to his chest
and stopped him.

“Dawson, it’s
your birthday.”

“It’s fine, Mya.
Just let me take care of this.” He leaned in once again and
gave her a quick kiss before he left the house.

Mya immediately turned to
the sink and began filling it with soapy water. Talia could see
frustration building in the creases next to her eyes.

“Mya?” Talia
took a step toward her.

“Could you get the
rest of the dishes for me please? I need to get these in the
dishwasher before Dawson gets back.”

Talia returned to the dining
room, where the children were throwing pieces of wadded-up napkin at
each other. “Hey, hey, hey.” Talia laughed and began
gathering up the pieces of napkin that were scattered about the
table. The children continued to throw the pieces as she tried to
gather the refuse.

“Hey. Quit that,”
Landon ordered when he returned from outside. He looked out of
breath, his once-tucked shirt now pulled half way out of his jeans.
“Alice, Derek, pick up the rest of the dishes and take them to
your mother.”

“I want cake,”
Mille demanded.

“You can have cake
when your daddy gets back. He had to run an errand but he’ll be
back soon.”

“I want cake now.”
She was a persistent little thing.

“Millie.”
Landon’s voice was gentle but firm. He picked her up from her
chair and carried her out of the room, leaving Talia alone.

She looked at the remaining
dishes on the table and gathered them up to carry them into the
kitchen. When she entered, a chorus of whispers ceased and Derek and
Alice took off running out of the room. “Can I help you with
anything else?” Talia had quickly realized she wouldn’t
be getting any answer from Mya, not this evening.

“Oh no, dear. I can
handle the rest. Thank you.” Mya never turned around to
acknowledge Talia. She continued to scrub at the dishes like her life
depended on it.

Talia headed for the living
room and found Landon on the couch with Millie back in his lap. He
looked so comfortable with her, with all of the children. She
wondered if children were something he hoped to have in his life one
day. She imagined the beautiful babies he would make, but quickly
scolded herself for getting wrapped up in such permanent thoughts.
She shouldn’t have been thinking that far into the future.

Leaning against the doorjamb
of the living room, she watched Landon interact with Millie. He was
an amazing uncle, bringing laughter and joy into her innocent life.
When Millie pointed at Talia, Landon’s eyes looked up to hers
and he smiled a pained smile. Something was bothering him. Whoever
that man was had an unfortunate effect on the entire family.

“I’ll see you
soon, Millie,” he whispered before she leaned up to kiss him on
the cheek.

“Bye, Uncie Landon.”
She hopped from his lap and ran out of the room.

Talia continued to lean
against the door as Landon stood and moved closer to her. “Is
everything okay?”

“We should go.”
He reached a hand to her, but she pulled away.

In a heated whisper she
asked, “What is going on?”

“I’ll tell you
later.” When Talia didn’t take his hand he continued past
her and walked out of the house.

She quickly followed him,
frustrated that no one had answered her questions. When she got
outside, Landon was already on his motorcycle holding Talia’s
helmet in his hands. She stood indignant. “Well?”

“Get on, Tal. I don’t
want to do this here.”

Who the hell was that man
and why did he have such an adverse effect on everyone? Talia
begrudgingly took the helmet, rolling her eyes as she strapped it on
and climbed on the back of the bike. She was full of questions, but
was smart enough to know that she wouldn’t get them hanging
around here so she climbed on his bike for the trip home.

“Who was that,
Landon?” Talia couldn’t wait any longer. She’d been
obsessing over the drunk intruder the entire ride home and now that
they were back in the safety of their apartment, she had to know the
truth. She couldn’t allow Landon to put it off any longer.

Landon dropped his jacket
from his shoulders and hung it on the coat rack just inside the door
before he headed for the bedroom, never answering her question.

Talia followed after him,
furious that he was avoiding the question yet again. She watched as
he pulled his shirt over his head and dropped it on the bedroom
floor. Aggravated, she hissed, “Landon.”
If
he thinks for one second I’m sleeping with him, he’s got
another thing coming.

He continued disrobing,
pulling the belt from his waistband then unfastening his jeans and
letting them fall to the floor, his impeccable frame on full display.
He left them where they lay and entered the bathroom.

“What the fuck are you
doing?”

“I need a shower.”

Talia was glad he was
talking, but he still wasn’t answering her question. His boxer
briefs fell to the floor and Talia was stalled in place. He really
was a beautiful specimen with his well-defined back and sculpted,
thick legs. He leaned over to activate the spray of the shower,
giving her a perfect view of his toned ass. When he was satisfied
with the temperature, he pulled back the transparent curtain to climb
inside. She could see the muscles of his legs ripple as he stepped
inside the shower, still avoiding her. Her voice softened, scared of
what he was hiding, what was eating him up inside. With her voice
just above a whisper, she tried one more time. “Landon?”

“What, Talia?”
He sounded overwhelmed, standing beneath the spray.

Did she really have to ask
again? She hated sounding like a broken record, but she opened her
mouth to question when he began talking.

“That was Abel…”
Landon’s head leaned against the shower wall, the spray beating
down his back. “My father.”

Stunned, Talia stood in
silence, overcome with what to say or how to comfort him.

“He wasn’t
supposed to be there.” He still didn’t move. “Those
kids were never supposed to see their grandfather that way. I didn’t
want
you
to see him like that.” His voice had dwindled to a murmur.

Talia couldn’t take
anymore. She quickly undressed and climbed in the shower behind him,
wrapping her arms firmly around him.

“That man isn’t
my dad anymore. He’s just an empty shell.”

Talia squeezed him tighter,
creating one body, wishing their union would take away all of the
agony he was feeling. His fist pounded against the tile as she held
him in her grasp.

“I lost both of my
parents the day my mother died. And no matter what I do, I can’t
get my dad back.” He turned in her arms, water washing over his
face as his shattered eyes looked down at her. “I hate what
he’s become.”

Talia reached her hands up
to clutch his face. She gingerly kissed his cheeks amid the water
dripping over them. “It’s okay.” Her lips softly
caressed his, trying to ease his pain.

“I need you so much.”
He continued to kiss her, his hands wrapping around her neck as he
leaned her into the shower wall.

Talia’s arms snaked
around him as she stood on tiptoes just to get that much closer to
him. When his hands encircled her waist, she lifted one leg around
his thigh trying to meld their bodies together. He took that as an
invitation and lifted her to his abdomen, her legs quickly winding
around him and crossing behind his back to hold her in place. He
gently lowered her onto his thick member and continued to kiss her
softly. Moving her gradually up and down his shaft, he breathed
slowly with each stroke.

Talia tried to match his
movements until they were breathing as one, kissing as one, moving as
one. Using her legs, she sensually moved up and down, unhurriedly
riding his full length, feeling him in every part of her. Their
kisses ceased as his forehead fell against hers and their eyes locked
in an intimate gaze. She’d never felt so vulnerable than she
did now. He held every part of her with that look. Forgetting about
the world and everything around them, they continued to move as one,
up and down, in and out. A swell in her chest formed as those deep
blue eyes seared into her. She was lost to the moment. She couldn’t
have stopped if she wanted to. All willpower was lost to the mating
of their bodies and souls, her instincts leading her to the place he
needed her to be.

Surrounded by the sensations
and emotions, Talia held tight to him, moving beneath the spray,
feeling everything in him deep inside her. Staring deep into his
sapphire depths, they continued to move, feeling that intense build
of ecstasy within. Their movements pulsed and their breathing
quickened. His thumbs pressed deep into her hips as she felt his
climax escalating. With his quick, even thrusts, her head fell back
against the tile and she came apart in his arms. She was quivering
around him as he took one final plunge inside of her and fell apart.

Landon
woke just before five in the morning in desperate need of a run. His
father had ruined his brother’s birthday party and exposed his
nieces and nephews to his drunken state. He’d hoped keeping his
father hours away would have prevented that, but Abel’s
selfishness clearly knew no bounds. Now Talia had been dragged into
his father’s addiction and it was all becoming too much to live
with. He decided a nice, brisk run would do him some good. He needed
to forget about the pain he felt each time his father’s
egotistical nature reared its ugly head. He tiptoed from the bed in
search of some sweats when he heard Talia stirring behind him.

“Where
are you going?” Her voice wasn’t much more than a
whisper.

He
stopped in his tracks and looked back at her. “I’m just
going for a run. Go back to sleep.” He watched her sit up in
bed, rubbing her eyes.

“Can
I go with you?”

Landon
took a step back, shocked by her question. He didn’t know how
to turn her down without offending her. “You don’t want
to get some more sleep?”

She
shook her head and stared at him with heavy lidded eyes.

He
reluctantly retorted, “Come on.”

She
crawled from the bed, trudging into her slippers before digging
through her drawers, moving about like a zombie, barely awake.
Landon couldn’t help but laugh at her persistence. When she had
an outfit in her hands, she slipped into the bathroom, putting Landon
back on task. He found a pair of gray cut off sweats and his purple
TCU sweatshirt, quickly shrugging them on before Talia emerged. She
came out looking a little more alert, and super sexy in her clingy
yoga pants and ratty old Galveston souvenir sweatshirt. Landon was
still amazed that no matter what she wore, she looked absolutely
remarkable. Her hazel eyes twinkled ever so slightly as she neared.

“Are
you ready?” She looked up at him through her lashes with a hint
of a smile.