Heaven With You Read online

  A sneaking suspicion filled me. “You gave us money,” I said slowly, finally understanding.

  He shrugged as if it was no big deal.

  After all these years, why couldn’t the past just stay where it belonged instead of creeping up when I least expected it? “How much do I owe you?”

  He looked surprised. “I didn’t say that to make you feel bad, and I don’t want your money.”

  Everyone wanted something. It made me sick to think of what he was implying, but I should have known better than to believe he was so different from other men. He hadn’t hung around to make sure I’d gotten home safely from the bar, Captain McAllister had finally decided to collect on a debt.

  When he got out of the car, I felt like I was going to throw up. McAllister came around and opened my door for me, a gallant gesture for a man that wouldn’t allow me to repay my debt to him with cash. Once again, I’d been a complete fool where a man was concerned.

  Shaking, I got out of the car and led him upstairs to my apartment. Loud music blared from the downstairs tenant below me, but I was used to it and it didn’t bother me. Glancing at McAllister, he looked irritated.

  He had my keys so when we got to my apartment he opened the door and went inside before me. For an instant, I thought about running away but I’d learned that problems had a way of catching up with me. I followed him, reluctantly, inside.

  “Stay here,” he told me. Then he stalked off toward my bedroom.

  I had no idea what kind of game he was playing, but I knew I despised it. Taking off after him, I found him coming out of my bathroom.

  Kicking off my boots, I unbuttoned my jeans and shoved them down my legs. Next, I slipped the black lace tank top over my head so that I was standing before Captain McAllister in only a flesh-colored pair of panties and bra. Flipping my dark hair over my shoulder, I lifted my chin and tried to act confident and unaffected by what was killing me inside.

  He froze in the doorway, looking stunned.

  My heart pounded.

  His gaze slid down me once before locking his eyes with mine.

  “Isabelle?”

  I heard the uncertainty in his tone but didn’t understand it. “You’d better get undressed fast before I change my mind.”

  He didn’t move.

  “Look, I’m not sure that I can go through with this. If you want me to pay you back, get undressed. Now.” The words trembled and I felt tears sting my eyes, but I was too good at pretending I was fine to break down.

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “I probably don’t have all of it now, but if you’ve changed your mind about taking money I can get it. I promise.”

  Something flashed in his eyes. “You think I want you to have sex with me to pay off a debt.” It wasn’t a question, and I could tell the idea didn’t sit well with him.

  I didn’t know what was going on. “You said you wouldn’t take my money. Then you came up to my apartment.” The words were laced with bitter accusation. “If you don’t want sex, then what are you doing here?”

  “Jesus. I just wanted to check to make sure your apartment was secure. I do the same for Ellie and Cora all the time.”

  “You were checking to make sure there was no one in my apartment?” I couldn’t believe anyone would do something like that. Suddenly, embarrassed I picked up my clothes and quickly put them back on.

  Unbelievably, McAllister turned his back while I dressed. He probably would have left the room, but I was blocking the door.

  “I’m done,” I told him, feeling my cheeks flush. Would there be no end to the amount of times I’d make a fool of myself in front of this man?

  He turned around and his gaze tangled with mine.

  “Isabelle, if you’re ever in a situation like this again, I want you to call me. I’ll give you the damned money. You’re worth too much for this.”

  “You act like this kind of thing happens to me a lot. It doesn’t. This is the first time, and in case you’re wondering, I’d never have slept with anyone else in this situation. Only you.”

  “Why me?”

  “Figure it out.”

  His brow lifted. “Isabelle—“

  “Don’t say anything.” I shook my head. “Do you want something to drink? Coffee, tea, juice?” Great, I sounded like a waitress or a nutcase. Maybe both.

  “Coffee.”

  I hadn’t expected him to accept so my brows shot up in surprise at his answer. Holding my head high, I stalked passed him and he followed me into the kitchen. As I started a pot of coffee with trembling hands, he stood at the bar watching me.

  “This isn’t going to make things awkward between us, is it? I mean we don’t have to make a big deal of it. Misunderstandings like this happen all the time, right?” I asked hopefully.

  “No, not really. You’re the only one of Ellie’s friends that has offered to sleep with me.”

  “I bet I’m not the only one that’s thought about it.”

  He didn’t reply, and he seemed uncomfortable.

  “Do you have a girlfriend Captain McAllister?”

  “Hunter.”

  “You’re girlfriend’s name is Hunter?” I teased.

  I saw a smile tug at the corners of his mouth. “I don’t have girlfriend Isabelle.”

  “No? I thought Ellie mentioned you were seeing someone.” Jealousy burned inside of me.

  Hunter McAllister actually blushed. “She’s not my girlfriend,” he told me with obvious reluctance.

  “You’re not exclusive?” I asked, intrigued with his answer. “Or is she like a fuck buddy?”

  Feeling the pull of his gaze, I glanced over at him and my eyes met his.

  “No, to the first question. Hell no, to the second. I don’t like that term and would never use it to describe any woman I’ve ever been with. She’s a friend.”

  “A friend that you sleep with?” I persisted, wishing it didn’t matter as much as it did.

  “Yes, Isabelle. What about you? Do you have a boyfriend?”

  “No. My boyfriend broke up with me last month.”

  “That’s too bad—for him.”

  My heart swelled. It wasn’t as if I needed any more of a reason to fall for Hunter McAllister. “I hope your girl-friend won’t be upset that I offered to sleep with you. For the record, I’d never have done it had I known about her.”

  His gaze held mine.

  “Does Ellie know about this?”

  “I don’t talk about my sex life with my daughter.”

  “Right. That was a stupid question.”

  “It’s my turn,” he said as I slid a mug of coffee in front of him.

  I got the cream out of the refrigerator and poured a healthy dose in my coffee along with several scoops of sugar. I didn’t bother to ask him if he wanted any in his because I knew that he drank it black, which was kind of pathetic since I hadn’t been around him all that much.

  “That night that Reed called me, what happened with your boyfriend?”

  “You’re still thinking about that? I’ve long forgotten it, I promise you,” I lied.

  “That’s not an answer.” Something about the way he was looking at me made me wonder if he could see through the shallow persona I showed the rest of the world. I think he could.

  “You don’t really want to hear this story.”

  “I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want to know.”

  “It’s not as bad as you think. I thought this super popular guy was into me, just because he gave me a few beers at a bonfire party and asked me out. I gave him my virginity, and he never spoke to me again. Didn’t I tell you all this?”

  “You told me you didn’t want to do it.” He spoke the words softly, carefully, as if speaking to someone he thought might snap.

  Rolling my eyes, I glanced away, unable to look at him and lie. “I can’t believe you remember that. Well, yeah I said that but it was too late. It wasn’t like he raped me if that’s what you’re thinking.”
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br />   His gaze sharpened. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

  “You can relax. I’m fine.”

  “What about your dad, did he ever hit you?”

  “What is it with you, McAllister, can’t you leave things alone? I’m not Ellie. You don’t need to try and fix my problems.”

  He didn’t say anything for a long moment, and I wondered if I’d offended him and he’d leave now. I started to apologize when he spoke. “I’m sorry, Isabelle. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  He sighed and raked a hand through his hair, drawing my gaze to the bunch of his bicep. Even through the shirt I could tell that he was ripped.

  “I grew up a lot like you and Reed did. I never knew my dad, but my mom had enough loser boyfriends that I didn’t really miss not having a dad. She finally ran off for good with one of them when I was sixteen.

  I froze, my coffee mug suspended halfway to my lips. It never occurred to me that we had that in common. I’d just assumed he’d had the normal life with two loving parents, a nice house with a backyard and, maybe a dog.

  The need to comfort him had me reaching out to touch his hand, but I stopped, realizing what I was doing. “I’m sorry.”

  “I just wanted you to know that you can trust me.”

  I didn’t trust easily, but his admission melted something that had long ago been frozen inside of me. “Thank you.”

  Although I couldn’t say exactly why, I did trust him. I trusted Hunter more than I’d ever trusted any man, and that absolutely terrified me.

  Chapter Three

  “Izzy, do you believe in heaven?”

  I looked over at eight-year-old Sam, a cancer patient, and my heart twisted.

  “Sure, I do.”

  “Do you think I’ll go to heaven?”

  “Someday.”

  Sam’s steady gaze held on to mine, and I saw a deep understanding that belied his tender years. “You know that I’m out of remission. I’m just tired of always being sick.”

  “I know.” I reached over and took his hand. “Sam, you can’t quit fighting. It’s not easy, but you have to keep trying to find a little joy in every day and never give up hope.”

  “You’re right,” Sam said, dropping his gaze. “Sometimes I wonder if I’ll ever leave here. I want to go outside and play. I want to see the sun.”

  I went to the window and pulled the curtains open wider so that beams of sunlight filled the room. “What else can I do?” I asked him.

  “Can you work a miracle?”

  I took a sheet of paper from my pocket, tore it up and placed the pieces beneath Sam’s pillow. Tapping twice on the pillow, I asked him to look for the paper.

  He peered curiously beneath the pillow. “Where is it?”

  “Look again.”

  Sam looked beneath the pillow and his eyes widened when he saw the tiny paper airplane. “How did you do that?”

  “Magic.”

  “Really?”

  “Anything is possible.”

  “Thanks, Izzy.”

  Reaching down I squeezed his hand, and he smiled. “Keep fighting, Sam.”

  My phone vibrated as I headed to the hospital cafeteria to meet Ellie. Glancing down, my heart lurched as I read the text.

  Scott: Who’s the guy you left with last night?

  He was following me. The creepy feeling that made my skin crawl slithered over me, leaving me more than a little freaked out and totally confused as to why he’d bother.

  Hunter had called a buddy to pick him up at my place last night, and the text messages started up as soon as he was gone.

  I’d turned off the phone, but still I couldn’t sleep. Every noise played havoc on my nerves even after I’d checked and doubled checked to make sure my doors were locked.

  “What’s wrong?” Ellie asked.

  “Nothing,” I told her shaking my head. I glanced at the two cups of coffee in front of her, and reached for a cup. “Thanks, you’re the best.”

  “It’s Scott again, isn’t it?”

  Ellie knew me too well. “Yeah, he’ll get tired of harassing me. It’s no big deal.”

  She didn’t look sure. “It’s been a month, Isabelle. Maybe you should talk to someone. My dad might be able to help.”

  “Ellie, it’s just a few texts. Look at me. I’m a clown. Scott is a respected doctor. No one is going to take this seriously.”

  “Dad would.”

  I tended to believe she was right, but I didn’t want to look like an even bigger idiot in front of Hunter McAllister than I already was. “I don’t want to bother him with this. Let’s just drop it, please. Tell me what’s going on with you. How’s my brother doing?”

  An odd look crossed her face. “He’s doing great. I think he may get the Ilizarov off his leg sooner than expected.”

  The Ilizarov was a metal device that encircled my brother’s lower leg and treated his tibia and fibula breaks. “That’s great. I know he’ll be happy to be able to have it off his leg.” I frowned, thinking about Amber’s concern that Reed was seeing someone else. “Ellie, have you seen any women at Reed’s house?”

  “No. Amber still thinks he’s seeing someone else?”

  “Yeah. I keep telling her I think they’ll get back together.” My phone vibrated again, and I jumped. Looking up, I saw Ellie watching me carefully.

  “What did it say?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. I’m not even going to read it.”

  “Let me see the phone.”

  I shook my head. “Forget it, Ellie.”

  “I’ll forget it, after I see the text.”

  Sighing, I reluctantly handed her the phone. She glanced down, her eyes scanning the screen and the color drained from her face. “You’ve got to tell someone about this.”

  She held out the phone and I felt sick.

  Scott: Did you fuck him? ANSWER ME!

  “Who’s the guy he’s talking about?”

  I didn’t want to worry Ellie by telling her that Scott was ranting about her dad. “No one. Scott is jealous and he’s imagining things.”

  “I can go with you to the sheriff’s office if you want.”

  “No. I’ll take care of this, Ellie. You don’t need to worry.”

  “Well, I am worried. You promise to go today?”

  “Sure,” I lied. Ellie was a good a person, but she didn’t understand that sometimes things just didn’t work out for the best. I’d be laughed out of the police station if I tried to file a complaint against Dr. Scott Fray. Once they’d found out that I’d been in a relationship with him, had voluntarily had sex with him, they would shake their heads and send me on my way.

  Ellie relaxed. “It’ll work out. You’ll see.”

  “You’re probably right,” I agreed. “Are we still on for Saturday?” We’d made plans to go out on the lake one last time before the weather turned cool.

  “Absolutely, can’t wait.”

  Passing the sheriff’s office, I parked my car on the street by Reed’s house. He was playing cards with his buddies tonight, so I didn’t bother knocking on his door and interrupting guys’ night. I got out of the car, already dressed in my running clothes and hit the playlist on my ipod. The great thing about Reed’s neighborhood was the thick threes, parks, and running trails.

  I tried not to think about Hunter, but when I passed the street he lived on I had to resist the urge to get off the trail and go see if he was home. After last night, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. Looking back, I could not believe I’d actually thought he’d want to sleep with me. Men that looked like Hunter could have their pick of women, and I’m sure he’d pick someone more sophisticated with less baggage than me. Because he was a good guy, he tried to help me with my problems even though they were none of his concern.

  My feet hit the pavement and I lost myself in the music as I ran through the wooded trails. Five miles later the path opened up providing a spectacular view of Lake Houston. I turned to see a boat gliding t
hrough the water, which is why I didn’t see the man in front of me.

  I slammed into a solid wall of muscle and gasped. Strong arms reached out to steady me, but I gasped and jumped back. I didn’t like to be touched.

  “Izzy, it’s me.”

  Hunter’s voice penetrated the fog of panic that was like a thick cloud in my mind. Forcing myself to take deep, calming breaths I lifted my chin and met Hunter’s questioning gaze. He probably thought I was a nutcase since I’d practically tackled him and then freaked out when he tried to stop me from falling.

  “Hunter.”

  “I didn’t mean to scare you.” He spoke in a low, cautious tone that people used on someone they thought might lose it.

  “I don’t like to be touched.” I hadn’t meant to say that aloud, wished I could take the words back but Hunter’s gaze snapped to mine and I knew he wasn’t going to let it go.

  “At all or just by strange men?”

  I began to fiddle with one of my ear-buds that had fallen out. “It doesn’t matter. I didn’t mean to say that.”

  I felt him watching me, and I shifted uncomfortably, afraid that he was seeing far more than I intended.

  “I’m sorry.”

  Shaking my head, I asked, “Why? I’m the one that tackled you.”

  “You’re the one that’s upset about it.”

  “I’m not upset.” Okay, I sounded kind of upset and maybe even a little crazy.

  “Okay.” He spoke calmly. “Since neither one of us is upset, maybe we can take a break and talk. Unless you’re in a hurry.”

  He gestured toward a picnic table, and I got my first real look at Hunter McAllister wearing black athletic shorts, running shoes and one of those expensive quick-dry shirts, also in black. My gaze slid down his hard body, pausing to admire the muscles that rippled beneath his shirt and flattened at his trim waist. He also had the legs of an athlete, carved with muscle and strong.

  I glanced up and locked eyes with Hunter, who was watching me check him out. My face heated and I braced myself for a comment from him, but it never came. He stood silently, his expression stoic, apparently waiting for me to make the next move.

  “I’ve got nowhere to be.”