Things Lost In The Fire (35 page)

She closed her eyes, letting him comfort her. Her arms came around him and held on as the tears threatened to fall again. “I’m going back to my dad’s house. I can’t stand to stay with that woman anymore.”

Brody tensed. “Is the security system in yet?”

“Not for a couple more days, but I don’t care. I’ll manage.”

“I’ll stay with you,” he decided as he pulled away. “You don’t mind, do you?”

She shook her head, both grateful and nervous at the idea. “I’d like that.”

“Just until the system is in, I promise.” He grinned, holding up his hand in a scout’s salute. “Unless at that point you don’t want me to leave. But we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

Sadie’s face broke into a sly smile. “No rent-free living for you, buddy.”

He winked and wrapped his arm over her shoulders. “Damn, and here I thought you were my ticket out of the slums of Venice.”

“You don’t live in a slum.”

“Maybe not. But it sure ain’t Beverly Hills.”

A
FTER A tense and emotional phone call to Tommy, Sadie lay back against the pillows of her bed and closed her eyes. She tried to breathe away the tension that bunched in her shoulders, but nothing seemed to help. That nagging, sick feeling was still there, polluting her body and weighing down her mood. It was just another brick added to the already heavy load of stress she’d been carrying since her return to L.A., and it was by far the most infuriating brick of all.

As much as she resented her mother for pulling a stunt like this, Sadie couldn’t help but feel sorry for making a scene at the restaurant and leaving her to fend for herself. It wasn’t like her to do something so irrational, but she’d been beyond reason at that point. All those heavy bricks had dragged her to her knees, and her mother’s petty lawsuit was enough to break her back at last.

Needing to distract herself, she rose from the bed and went to the second guest bedroom across the hall, where Brody was busy unpacking his duffle bag. He turned when she entered, his eyebrows raised.

“How’d it go?”

Sadie crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe. “My dad’s pissed. They all are.”

“Has he contacted his lawyer?”

Sadie nodded. “They’re handling it.”

“Did you tell him about you being followed?”

She let out a sigh and stared at the floor. “No. I couldn’t do it. Tommy would freak out.”

“And rightfully so,” Brody replied as he walked toward her. He gripped her shoulders, urging her to look up at him. “They’re going to find out eventually. Your dad’s going to ask why you added extra security to his house without telling him.”

She pouted, knowing he was right. “I know. I’ll tell them soon.”

He let his hands fall as a grin brightened his face. “Good. Now, why don’t we grab a bottle of wine and relax?”

She perked up at the thought. “You read my mind.”

He followed her into the kitchen, where she poured them each a glass of Chardonnay. She handed it to him, watching him sniff it before taking a sip.

“It’s Tess’s favorite. I don’t know much about wine,” Sadie admitted as she glanced at the golden bottle with a shrug. “The label says it’s from Santa Barbara.”

Brody chuckled. “Fancy.”

Sadie tasted it herself, delighted by the fragrant scent of honeysuckle and cool, crisp hints of apricot. “Not bad.”

“So other than drinking wine, what do you do to relax these days?” Brody asked, resting his hip against the counter. “If you say you watch baseball I might just have to kiss you again.”

One of her eyebrows lifted as she smiled. “I’ve been known to watch a game now and then. My grandpa is a big fan. He drives my grandma crazy with all his baseball references.”

“Don’t break my heart and tell me he’s a Giants fan.”

Sadie laughed. “Nope. Good ol’ Dodger blue, all the way.”

“Thank God.” Brody grinned, setting his glass on the counter. “Okay, so baseball is a sorta yes. What else?”

“Music,” Sadie said without hesitation, a wistful look coming over her face as she took another drink of wine. “When I have those piano keys under my fingertips, the rest of the world just melts away. It’s the only time I can really let go and…” She caught Brody staring at her in amusement and felt her face redden. “What?”

“Why don’t you play me something?”

“Oh.” She twisted her wine glass around in her hands, nerves getting the better of her at the thought of an audience. It was only Brody, but for some reason she felt the need to impress him. To show off. “Okay, I guess I could.”

She set her wine glass aside and led the way down the hall to the music room, where she settled onto the piano bench. It surprised her when he sat down next to her, urging her to scoot over to make room.

Feeling him so close to her sent nervous shivers down her arms, but she avoided looking at him as she placed her fingers on the keys. She closed her eyes and inhaled once, slow and deep, to center her focus.

Then she began to play.

Perhaps instinctually, she’d chosen a song that told of the long-lost, rosy days of youth. Of running through an endless sea of freshly cut grass, soaring from a swing until it felt like flying, and that first taste of summer in the form of strawberry ice cream. The song absorbed every part of her until she nearly forgot he was there. When she finished the last, bittersweet note, the feel of his hand on her knee brought her back to reality.

Her face turned to his as her eyes fluttered open, almost afraid to see what he might be feeling. But the warmth in his expression soothed her fears and brought a shy smile to her face.

“Well? What’d you think?” she asked.

Brody squeezed her knee, then nudged her out of the way and placed his own hands over the keys. “I think it’s my turn now.”

A surprised laugh escaped her lips as he began to play the first notes of Billy Joel’s “Only The Good Die Young.” It took him a few tries to remember the notes, but once he got going his skill surprised her. She couldn’t stop smiling as he jumped into the song, singing about letting go of tradition and having fun for once. He smiled at her and winked as he launched into the chorus, charming her to pieces. And when he was done, he leaned in to press a hot and fast kiss to her mouth that sent her heart fluttering.

“Wow,” she said, bemused. “I didn’t know you could do that.”

“Don’t you remember my mom used to make me take lessons after school? I’m not about to sing to a packed house at The Hollywood Bowl, but I do all right,” he joked, nudging her with his elbow. “I would say that last song was dedicated to you, but I think this one is more fitting.”

His fingers danced over the keys, re-creating the timeless sound of Paul McCartney’s “Maybe I’m Amazed.” She watched him play, feeling the muscles of her body loosen and relax, her heart lighten. When he wasn’t concentrating on the keys, he was staring at her with those dark eyes of his that combined reckless charm and warm intensity all at once. She couldn’t look away as she inched closer to him.

He noticed the light come into her eyes and brighten there, casting that sea foam green an impossibly bluer shade. She smiled before resting her head against his shoulder, her hand trailing along his leg as he finished the song.

“That was beautiful,” she mused, pleased when his arm came around her and pulled her close. She tilted back her face to look at him, more at ease than she’d been in weeks. “Just when I think I’ve got you figured out, you turn everything upside down again.”

“No one’s ever accused me of being predictable.” He pressed his lips to the top of her head, then voiced a concern he’d been holding back since earlier that day. “So who was that guy having lunch with you and the big bad witch today?”

Sadie rolled her eyes and slipped from his grasp. “Just some guy—a fan—I met at a coffee shop that I keep running into by accident. I think he’s got a crush on me or something.”

His eyebrows rose. “A crush, huh?”

She noticed more than just curiosity on his face and started to laugh. “Are you jealous or something?”

He grinned. “Not really. You’re here with me, not that guy. So I’d say I’m winning.”

“It’s not a competition.” She toyed with strands of her hair, unsure why the thought of him competing for her affections thrilled her so much. “And to be fair, you’re only here because I might have a stalker.”

“Fair enough, but I’d probably be here even if you didn’t.”

She bit back a smile and averted her eyes. “Either way, I’m glad you are.”

“You sure you wouldn’t prefer Mr. Abercrombie & Fitch over me?” Brody teased, brushing aside a strand of her hair to reveal her face. “You know,
he
could be your stalker. Crazed fan wanting you all to himself. Haven’t you seen
The Bodyguard
?”

“Yes, I have. And no, I don’t think Drew is the same creep that’s been following me,” Sadie replied. “He might be annoyingly persistent, but he’s a nice guy.”

“Don’t you know it’s the nice ones you have to worry about?” he reminded her, running his hand down her back. When she tilted her face up to his, he grinned. “At least assholes like me are honest about what we are.”

“I don’t think you’re an asshole.”

He watched her lips curve, forming that dimple he had such a weakness for. Combined with the soft, warm way she was looking at him, he felt his humor fade behind a rising need. His hand rose to the back of her neck, bringing her face closer to his. “Clearly you haven’t been paying attention, Sadie.”

He closed the distance between them, his mouth finding hers. He heard a small, helpless whimper escape her throat when he changed the angle of the kiss, his tongue sliding along hers. His hand tightened in her hair as he dove deeper, somehow needing to prove to her that he meant what he said. He wasn’t a good person and didn’t deserve to be treated like one. Not by anyone, and most definitely not by her.

He knew he could easily take advantage of the situation. Everything from the way her body leaned into his to the way her breath caught in her throat indicated she’d let him in. All he had to do was ask. Instigate. Take.

The devil on his shoulder cheered him on. It would be easy. But the side of him that was more gentleman than asshole reminded him that she deserved better.

He eased back from her, fighting to keep a nonchalant smile on his face. Her eyes opened slowly, as though waking from a dream. She blinked, seeming surprised by the swift change of mood.

“Is everything okay?” she asked.

“I’m gonna grab us some more wine.” He rose to his feet and didn’t look back as he left the room, needing to cool his blood and distance himself before he changed his mind.

Back at the piano, Sadie let out a soft sigh. She turned to the keys, striking a few notes absently as her pulse settled and her heart ached. She wanted him, more than she knew was probably healthy. So why did he keep pulling away? What was he so afraid of?

SLEEP EVADED him. He lay awake staring at the ceiling of the guest bedroom, restless knowing she was just a room away.

Before she’d gone to bed, he’d walked of the outside perimeter of the house and inspected the darkest corners of the backyard. Then he’d checked all the locks, twice, before shutting off the lights and closing her inside her bedroom. She’d be safe. For tonight, anyway. It was all he could offer her for now.