White Wedding Page 9

  There went an opportunity. He turned back to her and placed a quick kiss on her lips. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  Ross picked Shanna up right at closing time, but he was anxious to get her home to have her all to himself. It had been a long day, and he wanted to go over what he’d found out since he left her. Which wasn’t much. After they got to her place, he helped her microwave the takeout meal he’d picked up, and set her table.

  Her glass of wine was halfway to her lips, but she put it down. “Okay, you’ve been quiet all evening,” she said.

  “Sorry, just preoccupied.” He smiled. “I found out a lot today and I’m just trying to process the information.”

  The phone rang. They’d turned on the ringer as soon as they got in, and there’d been a few hang-up calls. “Don’t get up. I’ll get it.” He glanced at the caller ID. Out of area. He pulled out his cell and called Simon before he picked up the receiver. “Go,” he said into his phone, while he listened to the low humming sound on Shanna’s. Five minutes later, there was a click then a dial tone. He hung up. “Tell me you got it.”

  “Following it now,” Simon said.

  The phone rang again, and Ross picked it up. “Same thing,” he said to Simon.

  “I’m going to keep monitoring. Let me call you back.”

  Ross disconnected with Simon but stayed on Shanna’s line until the call ended. Hanging up her phone, he returned to the table.

  “Well?” Shanna asked after he sat down.

  “Simon is chasing it. He’ll call back. Let’s go ahead and finish dinner.”

  “I’m not very hungry. I don’t think I can eat anymore.” She took a sip of her wine.

  He stood up and grabbed both of their plates and took them into the kitchen. The half-empty cartons were out on the counter, so he closed them and placed them in the refrigerator. Shanna came in and rinsed off the plates and utensils he’d placed in the sink. By the time she shut the dishwasher and started it, his cell phone rang. He answered it and took her hand, guiding her back to the sofa.

  ***

  Shanna listened to Ross’ side of the conversation, which wasn’t much. The grin on his face told her maybe something good had happened.

  “Got him,” he said to her after disconnecting.

  “Where are the calls coming from? LaToya’s address?”

  “No. It’s coming from a place in the Hills. Do you know anyone who lives in Beverly Hills?”

  “A few of my clients, but no one who’d know my home phone number or want to call me and then hang up.”

  “Well Simon ran the address against the public real estate listings on file. The house is owned by a production company. Fantasy Productions. They make low-budget commercials and print advertising.”

  “Never heard of them. Are you going to call the police and give them this information?”

  “I spoke to Eboni’s friend on the force already today and looked at your complaint and the police report on the break-in. I have the officer’s card. I’ll give him a call with a tip and he can have the phone company confirm it.”

  “That’s great. Maybe now these damn calls will stop. Except, you know that still doesn’t explain why or who started them in the first place.”

  “I know. Which is why I’m going to go and check the address out tonight for myself, and see what I can find out.”

  “What do you mean, check the address out? Are you going to go knock on the door, or something?”

  His hand moved to play with the ends of her hair and around the pulse point of her neck. She didn’t like the way he tried to distract her or how his eyelids lowered so she couldn’t quite see his eyes.

  “Or something.”

  “Oh my God!” She jerked forward out of his grasp. “You’re going to break in?”

  “Of course not. I’m just going to look around. I may not be back until morning.”

  “Oooh, I get it.” She rubbed her hands together. “A stake-out. I wanna come.”

  “No. Absolutely not.” He got up and paced to the side of the sofa. Ross was a pacer; he liked to be in constant motion. She liked that about him.

  “Why not? Look, this is about me. I want to know who’s been making my life crazier than I’ve already made it myself. I have a right to know what’s going on.”

  “Shanna, come on. Be reasonable. You might end up sleeping in my car all night.”

  “As long as I’m with you, I’ll be fine.”

  Stopping in front of her, he ran his fingers through his hair. She stood and reached up to smooth the loose strands. When he looked into her eyes, she knew she’d won.

  “You will stay in the car and do exactly as I say.”

  “Yes, absolutely, whatever you say.”

  “Promise me.”

  “I promise.” And she meant it. She raised her parted lips to his and he placed his upon her open mouth, breathing her in. That’s all it took before she found herself pushed back on the sofa, pants tossed on the floor and her legs spread-eagle—one leg across the sofa back, the other on the floor, and her man’s chest covering hers. “I thought we needed to leave now.”

  “We have some time,” he said, nipping at her ear as he flexed his hips into the vee between her legs. He left her long enough to finish removing his shirt and slacks before returning to her. She wrapped her leg around his waist to hold him to her—in response, he grabbed her hips, raising her up to meet his thrust.

  “You’re gonna kill me, aren’t you?” he rasped.

  “I’m damn well gonna try.”

  “Promise.” He shifted his hand until her breasts were angled toward his mouth. He wasted no time in sucking on one deeply-tanned nipple, alternating between licking the point with his tongue, and taking small nips at the side. “I’m marking you,” he said.

  “As what?”

  “Mine.”

  He moved his mouth to hers and continued to take nips at her tongue. The rest of his body also took pleasure in claiming her. He felt the strength of her muscles as she held him inside her. Close, they were both so close. And he knew exactly what to do to take them both over the lovers’ edge. If he had more time they’d do it slower, but he promised himself he’d do it that way later. After they got back he’d take all the time in the world. Meanwhile, he needed to give his woman her release.

  He pulled out of her and turned her around, placing her on her knees with her hands on the end of the sofa. He entered her canal from behind, rubbing her back as he pumped into her. He loved the sound of his balls slapping against her skin. He angled each stroke so his swollen head hit her sensitized bud every time he withdrew to the edge. Her body moved in counter-rhythm with his, back and forth. Her inner muscles flexed then clenched around him, and her back arched, her head tilted back. With a cry she drenched him. That was all he needed to chase after her.

  Chapter Twelve

  It hadn’t been a good idea to bring Shanna along. Like he really had a choice. Right. He glanced away from the house they were watching to her sitting in the passenger seat. No one would guess just half an hour ago he was buried inside of her, but he sure as hell couldn’t forget it. He wanted to be there again, but her gaze was glued to the front of the house they’d found. Maybe that was a good thing, because if she’d turned to look at him he’d have her spread wide open in the backseat before she could say, "Let’s go." He sighed, turning his attention back to the house across the street. Business first.

  When they’d first gotten there, it hadn’t been late by Hollywood standards, but it was difficult to tell if anyone was home. It wasn’t one of the newer or renovated mansions like others on the street, but rather a large house with beautiful grounds. It was older, but well-kept with a stucco façade, nestled on the side of the hill, about thirty-five-hundred square feet with a short circular drive off the main road.

  Ross had already made his way around the place on foot. Shanna didn’t like being left in the car, but she understood the need for her to stay put. There was a closed two-ca
r garage with no windows. He couldn’t see through all the windows on the first floor of the house; the curtains were drawn closed on some. The rooms he could see into had boxes on the floor and not much furniture, indicating someone was moving out or had recently moved in. Since Simon told him the listing was new, within the last three months, he opted for someone still moving in. He got back to the car and moved it down the street a little beside a corner lot with a sale sign on it, so they weren’t parked directly in front of anyone’s window. Far enough so no one in the house looking out would see the car, but near enough they’d be able to see if anyone came or went. They were lucky the house wasn’t in one of the restricted sections of the Hills. Otherwise they wouldn’t be able to park on the street.

  “How often do you have to do stuff like this?” Shanna asked.

  “It’s been awhile. And I’m fast remembering why I don’t like it.”

  “You know, I’ve told you a lot about me, but I really don’t know that much about you other than you have a security business. What did you do before that?”

  “Before that I was a Ranger in the Army. I gave them thirteen years and thought that was a good number to resign in. A few buddies of mine felt the same way and we started the Guardian Agency together. That was five years ago and I’ve never looked back.”

  “Wow. I bet the training comes in handy.”

  “Since I was a security specialist in the Rangers, yeah, it does, but it also comes in handy for my core of bodyguards.”

  “So why are you still single?”

  He made sure she was staring directly at him instead of at the house before he answered her question. “Because I hadn’t met you yet.”

  “Ross…I.…”

  He didn’t let her finish. Leaning across the console, he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her. He tried to tell her with his body, his lips, all that he was, how he felt about her, how much she meant to him.

  Raising his head slightly, he whispered, “And I think you didn’t get married, couldn’t get married ‘cause…” A light appeared on the crest of the dark road before a car followed behind it. Without pulling away from her, he twisted so he could watch the car drive past them and turn into the driveway for the house they’d been watching. The darkened windows on the car prevented him from seeing who was in it.

  “Bingo!” He released her from his embrace and sat back, grabbing the binoculars he’d placed on the dash. The car, a dark-colored Lexus, pulled up and stopped at the front door. The driver’s side door opened and a tall, familiar looking black man got out.

  “What the hell!”

  He looked at Shanna. “Here,” he said, handing her the binoculars.

  She placed them over her eyes and exclaimed, “Son of a bitch! That’s Kevin.”

  He took the binoculars away from her in time to see Kevin pushing the front door open. No one appeared to be in the lit entryway, so maybe he had a key. Then he closed the door behind him.

  “What’s going on?” she asked. “Why is Kevin here? Did he have something to do with those phone calls? If he’s the bastard scaring me to death, I’m gonna kill him.” When she reached for her door handle, he grabbed her other hand to stop her.

  “Exactly what do you think you’re doing?”

  “I’m gonna confront his ass and find out what the hell he’s up to.”

  “I’m not so sure that would be a good idea.”

  “And why is that?”

  “Not sure, just a gut feeling. Let’s wait and see what he does, then let me do some further checking. Besides, if you confront him now he could lie. Just because he’s at the house we traced the calls to, it doesn’t mean he’s the one who’s been making them.”

  “Who else could it be? I’m starting to really believe LaToya is not the one.”

  “Maybe. I think we need to know all the facts before we start making accusations. Give me until tomorrow to try to piece this together. I’ll get Simon on it now.”

  She glanced at her watch. “Must be a full-time job you all have.”

  He laughed. “We’re on call twenty-four-seven.” Taking out his phone, he called Simon and explained what they’d found and what he needed.

  “Are you going to tell the police what we found out?”

  He returned his phone to his jacket pocket before replying. “We’ve already contacted them and told them we think the calls are coming from this address. The cops probably won’t do anything until the phone company can confirm it. Once they do, the police can investigate but that might take the phone company awhile.” Meanwhile, I want to dig a little deeper into who owns this house and maybe talk to LaToya again. See if she’s been here, and if so, with who.”

  She sighed. “I’d rather just walk over there, knock on the door, and have you hold Kevin down while I slap him a time or two until he tells me the damn truth.”

  He grinned. They both turned when they heard the sound of a door closing. Kevin walked around to the driver’s side and got in, taking off in the other direction.

  “Well, aren’t you going to follow him?”

  “No. That’s not necessary. I think we can call it a night. Let’s go home.”

  “Which home?”

  He turned to look at her, making sure she saw the desire in his eyes.

  “Yours is closer.”

  ***

  Had it only been a couple of days since he’d been back in her life? It was like he’d never been gone. She could neither deny how much she missed him, nor how having him back in her life made her feel alive again. Between desperately wanting to be with Ross and those harassing phone calls, she hadn’t been sleeping much. Her entire body seemed to be on pause. It had been waiting, waiting for him to come and awaken her again.

  She’d fallen asleep right after they’d made love, but it was morning now. The sun coming into the room through the blinds warmed her skin, and she didn’t have to open her eyes to know Ross wasn’t there with her. When she did open her eyes she saw her bedroom door was open, and muted sounds were coming from the direction of her kitchen. She smiled.

  Her body ached in so many places. Ross never left any part of her untouched or unsatisfied. She stretched then got up, hurrying through her shower and morning routine. She decided to go into the salon late today; she wanted to spend the morning with Ross.

  Then she remembered what happened last night. “Damn.”

  She grabbed her phone and turned the ringer back on. There were a few hang-up calls, and one from her mother. She’d have to call her back. When she changed her number she had to tell her parents that she’d been getting hang-up calls, but that was all she'd said. There was no need to worry them.

  As she returned the receiver to its base, she felt a familiar presence behind her. Turning on the bed she saw her lover framed in the doorway. His chest was bare, reminding her of another time he stood framed in the doorway, except then he had no pants on. As if reading her thoughts, he grinned that lopsided grin she loved to kiss.

  “You are so beautiful,” he said. He came to her and pulled her up against him. “I want nothing more than to lay you down on that bed and make love to you all day.”

  “Mmm, sounds like a workable plan.” She linked her hands around the back of his neck, drawing his mouth down to hers. The phone rang. They drew back.

  “Damn, forgot to turn it back off.” She glanced at the caller ID screen and saw it was her sister. “Let me get this.”

  He released her. “Okay. Come out when you’re done. I’ve made breakfast.”

  She lifted the receiver but was too busy watching him walk out of the room to respond to her sister’s hello. “Sorry about that, Eboni. What did you say?”

  “I said I saw Ben and LaToya last night. They were standing beside a car and, girl, they were all over each other. So much for Ben being gay, because he sure as hell was giving her some serious mouth to mouth. Then he opens the car door and she gets in and he climbs in the back seat with her. The windows were dark so I couldn’t see anyt
hing, but you know damn well what they were doing back there. LaToya was always ready to give it up. So much for wanting Kevin.”

  “Where were they parked?” She realized she hadn’t told her sister about what she and Ross had found out about the threesome that included Kevin.

  “They weren’t. They were standing on the curb in front of some restaurant. The car pulled up. They got in and it drove off. I was just going into the club across the street so they never saw me. Good thing, too. You know I still have a few choice words for Ms. LaToya. I don’t care who she’s kissing on.”

  “It was probably Kevin driving the car.”

  “What?”

  “Was it a dark-colored Lexus?”

  “Yeah, come to think of it. I think it was and that is the kind of car Kevin drives. What’s going on?”

  “I spoke to LaToya yesterday.”

  “Yeah, and you never called me to tell me what happened.”

  “Well I’ll tell you now. She’s been having an affair with Kevin all this time.”

  “Son of a bitch!”

  “And Ben.”

  “Whoa! Both of them.”

  “At the same time.”

  There was silence on the line. Shanna could barely hear the sound of her sister’s breathing before she spoke again. “What do you mean ‘at the same time’?”

  “You heard me.”

  “You mean like a threesome?”

  “I mean that exactly.”

  “Good Lord! Kevin and Ben and LaToya?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Wow!” Eboni laughed. “So what? They needed you for a fourth and you said no? Is that what really happened?”

  “No. I knew nothing about their ménage until yesterday, and want no part of it.”

  “You know now a lot of stuff is starting to make more sense. So what, Kevin and Ben are bi?”

  “I have no idea really, but LaToya says Ben is. Kevin’s straight.”

  “Say what? Look, this is just too confusing for me. Just tell me you’re not going back to Kevin, and you slapped LaToya’s backstabbin' ass? Ben’s, too, come to think of it. Although, who knows? They might like that.”