CHAPTER ONE - DUNCAN KELLEY
Last night must have been one wild ride.
The woman next to me was growing hotter by the second and not because of her looks, but because her body heat was more than I could stand. I pulled back the covers and let in some air, exposing her tight little ass in the process.
Sure, she was hot, but things wouldn’t go any further with her than the sex we’d had the night before. Though she was a nice girl, her personality left a lot to be desired. I needed a woman that had talent aside from giving good head, and passion for something other than how to spend my money. I wasn’t in the market for a girl who acted like the only reason she existed was to please me. Don’t get me wrong, there was a time when that much would have been appealing, but I’d learned well enough that it only goes so far. At the end of the day, I wanted someone I could stand talking to about nothing in particular; someone who might have an opinion other than what they thought I wanted to hear.
Even the absence of the covers wasn’t making things any better with the inferno curled up against me. I slid away from her and sat up hoping she’d wake up soon so I could show her the door. I had a few things I needed to take care of today and playing host to another one-night-stand wasn’t on the list.
The phone rang and as I went to silence it, Katherine rolled over and opened her eyes. I got up and headed to the bathroom with my phone.
“Hello,” I said as I took care of my morning duties.
“Do you have to answer the phone while you’re taking a piss, Duncan?” My sister’s tone was as always grating at that time of morning.
“Yes. It’s not my fault you called and woke me up.” I had told her for years to stop calling when the crickets were still chirping, but she had never gotten the hint. Katherine walked in once I was finished and turned on the shower.
“Want to join me?” she asked with a whisper.
I shook my head, but Shauna was already onto me. “Duncan Kelley, you’ve got company? This time of morning? You’ll never change.”
“What’s so bad about that?” I made my way to the kitchen where I washed my hands at the sink and then started a pot of coffee before grabbing a bagel.
“What’s so bad? Oh, so I suppose I will be meeting the lovely lady? What’s her name, Lexi? Roxie? Vixen? Dancer? Prancer?”
Despite my sister’s accusations, I hadn’t graced a strip club in some time.
“No, there won’t be any meeting, and her name is Katherine.” I hated that my sister felt the need for me to explain my lifestyle. I was a bachelor and ex-SEAL, and I’d earned my right to live any damned way I wanted. Besides, it wasn’t like I was going to fall in love. I’d given up my heart years ago and other than amazing sex, I didn’t have much to offer.
She made a sound of aggravation, and it rattled through the phone. “I just think—”
“I know what you think, Sis, and you swore to me that we wouldn’t talk about that.”
“You mean her.”
I froze, and my coffee turned bitter in my mouth. Not only had my sister promised not to nag me about my social life, but we’d sworn years ago not to talk about my old relationship with her best friend, Rachel Dean.
“Yeah, that and other things, but I suppose since you brought her up there’s no harm in me asking how she is.” I had often wondered what she turned up doing. Had she married, had children? The hollow spot in my chest grew tender.
“You mean you really want to know?” My sister had never forgiven me for leaving things with Rachel the way I had, but I had never taken the time to explain things to her. Rachel was too young to devote her life to me. When I was preparing to leave for the military, she was only a sophomore, and I hadn’t wanted her to put her dreams on hold for mine. She had so much talent
and life in her that I knew she’d have a great future ahead. Her father knew it too and had his plans all laid out for her. As much as I regretted to this day what I’d done, the way I’d done it would haunt me to my dying day. She’d deserved so much better.
He’d been the town’s leading attorney, so naturally, he’d wanted his daughter to follow in his footsteps. But I could never see it, not my Rachel. She was too much a free spirit to be cooped up in a courtroom. She needed a paintbrush in one hand and a book in the other. She was going to be so much more, and waiting for me was never an option.
“Yeah, so is she a powerhouse attorney like her old man wanted?” Her adventurous spirit and artistic dreams were more fitting for a gallery or a trip around the world, always had been.
“She’s fine. Just fine. But that’s not what I called to talk to talk to you about.”
And just like that, the conversation about Rachel was over, as usual. I had asked for it though. I’d been the one who wanted to keep my memories preserved, and the tiny pieces of whatever lay hardened and stone-like in that dark cavity where my heart should be left untouched.
“So, spill it, I haven’t got all day, I’ve got to run Katherine out so I can salvage what’s left of my weekend.” With any luck at all, I’d make nine holes and get my car washed and diapered dry.
“You’re impossible. I thought you might like to know that there’s a new job opening up. Harris called me about it last night. It’s perfect for you.” Her fiancé, Harris Connor had helped me land some of my more eccentric clients, but the money had always out-weighed the drama that came with them.
“Yeah, well all my guys are tied up in contracts. So, it will have to be me.” We’d been so busy lately that I’d had to start taking on jobs again instead of only managing the business. I didn’t mind doing a job or two, as long as it was something interesting. Harris’ connections usually were.
She let out a breath. “Yes, I remember you saying that. This one is tailor-made for you. I wouldn’t want you trusting it to just anyone.”