Truth and Humility (10 page)

Austin, deeming it safe to emerge from behind the island, moved to help her push the oven just enough to put some slack in the cord.  Then he pulled it out when it was free.  With her pushing from behind, the huge oven rolled out effortlessly.  Then his penis jumped back to life when she appeared from behind the oven and tore off the large square of cloth that was dangling loosely from her tattered camisole.  Her bared midriff was covered in tanned firm skin and she had an adorable belly button that presented itself just above the waistband of her jeans.  Before he could stop the thought, he wondered how many men in her past had tasted that navel.  When he opened his mouth, his voice was rough.  “Put the shirt back on, Danny.”

Her heart discharged at the sound, for his command was heavily laden with sexual tension.  The thought of him being aroused by the site of her bare midriff caused her own insides to heat up.  It was ridiculous, of course.  He was a Cahill.  But he was an incredibly sexy one, and the thought of
his
bare flesh crept into her brain.

She had to admit it happened frequently.  After all, she was a female and he was built like a brick shithouse.  It was nothing but base animal instinct… and it was completely unfair.

Danny jumped when her phone came to life in the midst of slipping her arms back through the long sleeves.

“Aren’t you going to answer that?” Austin asked smoothly behind her.

Danny knew it was because he was hoping for a call from her brother.  She removed the phone from the clip at her waist, turned to hide it Ked cau from him and checked the name.  “Yes, in fact, I believe I will.”  She held it up to show him it wasn’t Derek calling her after all, but a female.  “But I’ll do it
privately
in my room.”

Now, his parents had always taught him not to eavesdrop, but Austin couldn’t help it.  His drive to lure Derek out into the open was more powerful than his urge to respect Danny’s privacy. 

“I’ve been working,” he heard through her closed door.  “God, I miss you, too ... I know, I know, I just can’t call him yet ... I can’t explain it, maybe some day ... How are they? ... No, don’t tell them you talked to me ... I’d love to, but I can’t ... Because I have a night job, too, and I’ll never get done in time ... Nine?  I don’t know … I know it’s Friday, Melanie, but I have a lot of schoolwork to catch up on and ... Oh, man, I could sure use one of those ... Okay, I’ll try ... Someplace further north ... Isn’t that a gay bar? ... Oh,
Kelly’s.
  That’s fine ... Love you, too.”

From her half of the conversation, Austin deduced Danny had just made plans for the night.  At the thought of meeting this Melanie friend of hers – so
meone he just might introduce himself to – he decided he’d found the way to lure his old pal, Derek, out into the open.

Because nothing traveled faster than gossip between girls.

It was no easy feat, but Danny managed to complete her evening duties by eight o’clock.  She showered, scrubbed the smell of disinfectant from her skin and shampooed the diesel fumes out of her hair.  As usual, the showers were empty by the time she was ready to take one, which worked perfectly with her schedule.  Once back in her room, she located her make-up bag, threw on some shadow, liner, mascara and blush and decided the lip gloss could wait until she got to the bar.  With the style brush and blow dryer, she was able to coax some body into her layered waves.  A few more flicks here and there as she directed it artfully around her face, then she turned to survey her appearance in the closet mirror.

She had chosen a sleeveless babydoll-style top in shades of rose and white to go with a pair of white skinny jeans that ended at the calf.  Her summer platform wedge sandals added five inches to her height and their beige color blended nicely with her tanned legs.

It was nice being a girl again.  Dangly earrings, bracelets and all.  After spending most of her time with men, dressing like them, working like them and sweating like them, she craved the opportunity to connect with her feminine side.  This night with Melanie was exactly what she needed after the hellacious week she’d spent in the Cahill compound.

Her Jeep Wrangler was still parked in the employee parking lot by the strip of private rooms.  If she were very qui NHeret, she could make it behind the wheel without anyone noticing.  The last thing she needed was to re-ignite the sexist comments just after she’d managed to stop them. 

“Well, look at you!”

Danny jumped and spun around just as she was about to insert the key.  “Frank!  You scared the hell out of me!”

Frank chuckled, leaned against the rear of her Jeep and crossed his arms.  His light eyes sparkled with harmless appreciation.  “You sure clean up nice, Danny.  Gotta date?”

“Yes,” she replied, taking the compliment as a sincere one.  “And thank you, Frank.  I hope we can…you know…keep this between us.”

“My lips are sealed, Monkey.”  With a chuckle, he unfolded his limbs and sauntered toward his room.  “Have a good time!”

Well,
Danny thought as she slid into the driver’s seat and shut the door. 
That wasn’t so bad.

Twenty minutes later, she was in the parking lot of Kelly’s bar applying her lip gloss in the rearview mirror.  Her heart pumped with excitement at seeing her friend’s lovely face, nervous about what she might reveal after consuming that promised margarita.  When she walked through the door, her eyes adjusted to the dim interior and spotted a familiar blond head in one of the booths.  The platform sandals put a natural swing to her hips as she headed that way.

At the soft touch on her shoulder, Melanie looked up and sprang out of the booth.  The woman emitted a shriek that gained some attention and the girls giggled, hugged, commented on how great the other looked.

Danny had known the woman since the fifth grade and Melanie was always able to pull off the cutest outfits.  The purple, lacy little number she chose for this night was a chopped-off thing that made her boobs say “come hither” and her legs a mile long.  More of a nightclub dress, really, Danny thought, feeling slightly underdressed in comparison.

“And you’re wearing the blouse I got you for your birthday!”

Danny shrugged, struck a pose.  “What can I say?  I love it.”

“And you appear to be in one piece, no bruises or visible scars…”

For a moment, Danny thought her whereabouts of the past week had been found out.  But Melanie dispelled those fears by explaining she’d promised Derek a report if she saw her.

“But you won’t tell him you saw me, right?  That was part of the deal.”

Melanie sighed and scanned the crowd.  “No.  I won’t.  But, Danny, he is so worried about you.  So, I am begging you to at least call him, let him know you’re okay.”  She leaned in so the others wouldn’t hear.  “His anxiety is starting to interfere with my sex life.”

Danny rolled her eyes, made a silent
‘oh please’
through heavily glossed lips and hiked up her strappy purse.  “You promised to keep those details to yourself.  Last thing I want to hear is how good my brother is in bed.”

“
In
bed,
out
of it... you have no idea, girl!”

“Enough!”  Danny covered her ears and laughed.  “You’re awful!”

A voice piped in from below.  “Aren’t you going to introduce your friend, Mel?”

Disinterestedly, Danny turned toward the two men in the booth Melanie had vacated.  One was mildly handsome, longish face with dark hair that was pulled back into a stubby ponytail.  The other was better looking with light, meticulously groomed hair, intelligent green eyes and a slight under-bite that emphasized a thick neck and strong jaw.  He reminded Danny of a college football player.

“Danny, the dark-haired one is my date Randy, and this handsome gentleman is
your
date.”

Danny extended her hand and quickly shook the first, then the second, bracelets rattling.  Truth was, she wasn’t interested in the “blind date” aspect of this outing.  With any luck, she and Mel could mostly talk amongst themselves.  Share a drink.  Get back to her slave quarters in time to sleep off the alcohol, be fresh for her studies and a little work in the morning.

“Brett,” the college prep offered when he stood up to take her hand.  “Brett Lockton.”

The predatory sparkle in the man’s eyes immediately put Danny on high alert.  A sixth sense?  Blind dates of any kind were never her thing, but Danny already decided this one was headed nowhere.  But if she could get the guy to produce a margarita, she’d call it good.  After all, she had no money.

There was a few minutes of mild conversation in the crowded bar before the waitress came and took drink orders.  The place was lit with deep amber wall sconces and about five wide-screen televisions in various corners of the seating area.  The booths were cozy and dark, the bar at the end long and colorfully arrayed with liquor bottles and incandescent lighting.

The men mainly talked to and about themselves, which was perfect.  It gave the girls an excuse to carry on with their own thing.  A few bits and pieces sparked her interest enough to pay attention and Danny quickly figured out that Brett and Randy were college roommates.  No football, oddly enough.  Frat parties, alcohol, sleazy pranks, an over-used gym membership and lots of sexual liaisons.

Dang, did they have any classes?  A test?  Study group?  If so, it didn’t rate for conversation.

“Brett is a climber too, Danny,” Melanie piped in with a telling look.

Brett took it from there, sent Danny a smoldering gaze.  “Yes, I’m training in wilderness search and rescue.”  His look lingered with expectation.

Danny guessed this was her cue to swoon.  “Oh...so, you climb with ropes and stuff.”

He leaned back, stretched an arm over the bench directly behind her shoulders.  How cute was this girl?  “Yes, ropes, anchors, ascenders, grapples and such.  It requires great endurance.  Mental stamina.  I plan to finish my training in Yosemite where I could perform possibly hundreds of rescues a year.  You never know when that little female hiker with something to prove will get lost on a mountainside, hey, Randy?”

The men grinned at each other like fools.

The urge to gag was relentless.  Danny tamped it down and stifled a yawn instead.  “Huh.  How interesting,”

“Danny climbs, too,” Melanie provided cheekily.

Something told Danny that Brett wasn’t too interested in competition.

“Is that right?” he said with repressed amusement.  “Do you also use...ropes and stuff?”

He was mocking her.  Her eyelids drooped.  “Ropes are for pussies.”

“Danny!”

Brett pretended not to hear, but Danny knew better and was instantly bored with the topic.

It was concluded that Melanie needed a wake-up call when it came to her choices in men.  Other than Derek, the woman had struck out in Danny’s book.  But Melanie’s constant quest for sex, though tiring, could be mildly amusing.  She just hoped that insatiable “on button” wouldn’t get her friend in trouble one day... and subsequently drag her brother down with her.  More than once, Danny found her mind going to that dreaded place.  Sometimes it wasn’t easy, this strange relationship they three shared.  And she knew perfectly well Derek was no slouch when it came to women.  But, was he exercising the appropriate amount of caution every time Melanie begged him to scratch
her
itch?

Once again, Danny removed Brett’s wandering hand from her thigh.  Snake.  But rather than shrink away, she considered slugging him the next time he tried it.  The man was possessive, arrogant, and slimy, but she decided he at least deserved a fair warning.

“Are those fingers important to you, Mr. Lockton?” she purred charmingly.

It took him a moment to absorb her words as a threat.  When their meaning sank in, Brett instantly stiffened.  But instead of retreating, his face inched closer, gaze masked over ever so slightly, challenging.  “You need to lighten up, sweetheart.  The night is young.”

It was as if he knew something she didn’t.  Slug.  To make a point to Melanie, Danny lifted her half-empty margarita glass and glared at her friend over the rim of salt. 
I’ll get you for this,
her look said. 
Bite me,
Melanie threw back with a wink.  Danny laughed, tipped more alcohol into her mouth.  Then her eyes caught site of a group of men entering the bar.