FOUR

Kelly heard the Harley coming up the drive with her stepfather’s truck as the clock flipped over to two in the morning. Her mother had been pacing the house, muttering to herself, worry creasing her brow.

Maria turned to Kelly, her eyes dark as she watched her. “Are you sure?” Maria asked, her voice soft, uncertain.

“For God’s sake.” Kelly felt like snarling the words. “Mom, have you and Ray lost your minds?” Sometimes Kelly thought the attack had been more traumatic on them in a lot of ways. Kelly was never really certain how she

felt about it. Frightened, yes. Terrified sometimes, especially when the

crank calls came. Knowing he was still out there kept her nerves on edge.

“He’s always wanted you.” Maria had never been comfortable with that. Kelly had known it, though they never talked about it. Just as her mother knew Kelly had always wanted Rowdy. It was like some odd fact of life.

“I’m not a little girl anymore,” she sighed, curling up on the sofa, watching her mother pace the living room as the vehicles shut off. “You know they’re both drunk, don’t you?”

One of Rowdy’s friends had called from the bar. He hadn’t been too sober himself, warning them that the two men were heading home, thankfully being driven by friends rather than driving themselves.

“Ray hasn’t been drunk since before we got married.” A smile curved her mother’s lips, and Kelly swore she looked a little too sensual to suit her. A daughter shouldn’t see things like that, she thought with a burst of humor.

“Well, he’s drunk now.” She winced as it sounded like a load of bricks fell on the porch.

“Hell boy, I thought you were holding me up.” Ray’s voice drifted into the house.

“Thought you were holding me up.” Rowdy’s laughter was muffled.

Maria moved for the doorway and pulled it open with a quick jerk as Kelly rose from the couch to stand just inside the living room doorway.

Her eyes met Rowdy’s as a slow, sexy smile curved his lips. He gripped his dad’s arm tighter and led him inside the house. Neither of them were too

steady on their feet.

“Maria, he’s a lousy drunk,” Rowdy grunted as his father threw his arm over Maria’s shoulder and planted a loud, smacking kiss on her cheek. “He didn’t even make it through the first bottle.”

Kelly wrapped her arms across her chest, a smile tugging at her lips as Rowdy winked at her.

“He never did, Douglas, you just keep forgetting,” her mother chastised him firmly.

Rowdy winced. “That’s not my name.”

“That’s what your birth record has. I didn’t see a Rowdy there anywhere, Douglas.”

Rowdy gave her a mock glare. “You’re not being nice to me, Maria.”

“That’s not my job,” she pointed out calmly. “Now move your big feet out of the way so I can get him upstairs. You two should be ashamed of yourselves.”

“I can be ashamed later,” Ray piped in as she led him to the stairs. “Hell. We had fun, sweetheart.”

“I can tell.” Maria laughed softly.

Their voices lowered as they moved away, and finally disappeared. A few minutes later the door at the back of the hallway closed and everything was silent.

Kelly watched Rowdy. His hair was still too short. The spiked military cut suit him, but she had loved his long hair when he was younger. The way it framed his face, emphasized his green eyes. He looked like a fallen angel

come to tempt mortal women when his hair was long. Short, he looked like

the warrior she knew he had to be. A fighter, a Marine. Tall and tough and hard.

He turned to her, placing his hand over his chest, the dark blue material of his cotton shirt stretching across his shoulders.

“Kelly darlin’, you look like an angel standing there.” His smile was a tad goofy and too damned sexy.

Unfortunately, she knew better. She was wearing another of his shirts, one she had stolen the last time he was home. A pair of loose sweatpants and

socks that bunched at her ankles. She looked messy and frightened, and she knew it.

She licked her lips nervously. Facing him was one of the hardest things she had ever done, knowing he knew what had happened to her, terrified he

would blame her. She blamed herself. What she had done was stupid, leaving that window up, stubbornly refusing to give up that pleasure despite the danger she had been warned of.

“I missed you, Rowdy,” she whispered, trying to still the trembling of her lips. “I’m glad you’re home.”

His expression sobered as he moved toward her slowly. She forced herself to stay still, not to retreat. But he was so big, and powerful.

Strong. The memory of hard hands holding her down, a rough voice muttering in her ear as her face was pressed into the pillow, haunted her.

“So why didn’t I get my welcome-home hug?” He stood in front of her, his arms at his sides, his eyes dark and glittering with hunger.

He still wanted her. She could see it in his eyes, just as she had seen it during his infrequent visits over the last four years.

“I…” She swallowed tightly, glancing away as her hands tightened on her arms.

“Just a hug, Kelly-baby?” He whispered the words, his lips quirking gently. “I dream of your hugs, darlin’.”

She stared back at him in surprise.

“You don’t believe me?” He reached out, his arm lifting slowly, his hand moving to her as his fingers reached out to lift a strand of curls from her shoulder.

She glanced quickly at where he held her hair, biting at her lower lip as she tried to still the pounding of her heart. She had dreamed of his touch for so long, waited for him, longed for him. Oh God, this wasn’t fair, she wailed

silently. This was Rowdy. He wouldn’t hurt her. She knew he wouldn’t hurt her.

“Rowdy…” Her throat tightened as she fought herself, the fear and the needs warring inside her.

“It’s real easy, baby,” he crooned, his dark velvet voice washing over her. “You just lift your arms and put them around my neck.” He let go of her

hair, fingers curling around her wrists as he lifted her arms, urging them up until they curled around his neck. “Then you come up real close to me, so I can hug you back.” His arms went around her, slowly, so slowly, pulling her against him until her head rested on his chest.

“There we go.”

She was shaking, but was it fear or something more? She didn’t know what she was feeling, didn’t know how to assimilate the sensations and emotions washing through her.

“I came home for you, Kelly,” he whispered, his breath caressing her ear as she jerked against him. “I came home to touch you, to taste you, to claim you. Do you know what I would have done if I had known you were home when I pulled in?”

She shook her head, a jerky movement as a small whimper left her lips.

“I would have come to your room and kissed you awake. I would have seen your pretty eyes opening, knowing it’s me beside you, my lips touching yours. I want that real bad, Kelly. Even though I know if Dad caught me he’d skin me alive.” He breathed in roughly; the feel of his chest rasping

against her breasts sent a shudder racing through her.

“Now,” he whispered, “I really don’t care if does skin me.”

She stiffened against him, needing to draw away, needing to get closer to him. God, she hated this. Hated the fear holding her back, hated not knowing, not understanding the emotions raging through her mind and body.

“Rowdy…”

“Shh.” He stilled her protest as he rubbed his head against hers.

“Just settle here against me, baby. Let me hold you for a minute; let me know you’re okay. Just that.”

“But I’m not okay.” Her hands clenched in the fabric of his shirt as she finally admitted it to herself. “I’m scared, Rowdy. I’m so scared.” She pressed her head against his chest, the words slipping free after nearly a year of burying them. She was terrified.

“I know, baby.” He kissed her head, his hands running over her back.

“But I won’t let you be scared of me. You know that. I’d never hurt you.

I’d die before I’d hurt you, Kelly.”

She heard the pain in his voice, felt it tighten her chest. No, Rowdy would never hurt her, but fear was an insidious disease, and fighting it took more courage than she thought she had.

“We’re going to take this nice and easy,” he crooned. “We’re going to go upstairs and you’re going to sleep, baby. I’m going to lie right beside you so you know no one can get to you, no one can hurt you as long as I’m there.

Okay?”

“In my bed?” She jerked back, staring up at him. “Ray will skin us both alive.”

“Dad will deal with it.” His expression hardened, determination glittering his eyes. “He already is. You’re not sleeping, you’re not eating.

We’re going to change that, starting tonight.”

“Oh, are we now?” The highhandedness in his voice pricked at her.

“Kelly.” He tilted his head, staring down at her, a smile quirking at his lips. “Are you going to fight me, baby? Really? Remember the last fight we got into?”

“You put another snake in my drawer, and I’ll start calling you Douglas,” she sniped. “I can’t believe you’d threaten me like that.”

She stared back at him, incredulous. She hated snakes, any kind of snake, especially those mean little green snakes.

He smirked, his gaze drowsy, his expression so sensual it was enough to make her panties damp. And they were damp. Yeah, she was scared spitless at times at the thought of touching him, having him touch her, but he could make her so wet, so fast, that it wasn’t even surprising anymore.

“I’m just going to lie beside you, that’s all,” he whispered. “If you can’t sleep, then I’ll lie on the floor. But I’ll be there, Kelly. Will you trust me enough to let me be there?”

She was breathing roughly, the realization of it forced her to try to regulate it. She hated this weakness, this fear. Even the sessions with the psychologist hadn’t been able to erase it.

“I would trust you with my life, Rowdy,” she whispered, knowing she did. “Come on then.” His arm wrapped around her as he led her to the stairs.

“Let’s go on up and see if we can get some sleep. I don’t know about you, Kelly, but I’m dead tired.”

She hadn’t had nightmares in months, she thought as he turned out the lights and led her upstairs. She wasn’t sleeping well, but when she did sleep, she wasn’t waking screaming as she did in those first months.

It should be safe. She could have something she had always dreamed of. Rowdy in her bed, sharing his warmth with her. Maybe even holding her. Surely she could handle that?

Kelly finally eased into sleep hours later. Rowdy felt her relax against him, felt the soft sigh that left her lips. Moving slowly, he eased the blanket further over her shoulders, feeling her head on his arm, her silky hair

against his chest as he held her. It was killing him, the pain, the fear he knew she had to have endured. He could feel his heart breaking in his chest even as a killing rage burned in his soul.

She was his. She had been his as long as he had known her and by God he wasn’t letting her go. She knew him, knew he would cut out his own heart before he’d hurt her—that trust was still within her. If it weren’t, she would never have been able to sleep in his arms, to allow him to hold her, her sweet body tucked so close against his own.

He stared into the dimly lit bedroom, his eyes narrowed, his mind working. Whoever dared to hurt her, to stalk her, wouldn’t be breathing for long. He wouldn’t be breathing two seconds past the time Rowdy learned who he

was. And that was a silent promise, a vow he made to Kelly. She would never be hurt again.