His Trouble in Tallulah: In the Line of Duty, Book 2 Read online

  Tallulah fiddled with the thick silver band on her finger, and as she thought about the man who put it there—a man she’d soon be sharing a bed with—warm ribbons of heat licked through her. She blinked to clear the erotic visions, wanting to think about something else beside the two of them under the covers together.

  She focused on Kat. “You know you’re always welcome to stay with me until you find a place of your own, and I’m sure the hospital could use another great physical therapist.”

  “I wouldn’t want to interfere…if you know what I mean.”

  Tallulah gave a feeble smile, guilt eating at her for not telling her best friend the truth.

  “So tell me,” Kat began, her eyes glinting. “Does he have a…you know?”

  Certain this was a conversation she didn’t want to be having in public, or private, or anywhere for that matter, Tallulah took a huge sip of her daiquiri and said, “No, I don’t know.”

  “Come on, Lu.” Kat exhaled an exaggerated breath. “Help a friend out. I’ve been on such a dry spell lately that the least you can do is tell me all about your sex life so I can live vicariously through you.”

  “Why have you been on a dry spell?”

  Kat slouched in her seat. “The guys around here are so damn dull. Christ, they couldn’t find a woman’s g-spot even with the aid of GPS. Then again,” she added, looking like the cat about to swallow the canary, “now that Ving’s army pals are all here for the wedding things are definitely starting to look up.” She stopped and narrowed her eyes. “Hey, stop trying to change the subject. We’re talking about you and your sex life here, not mine.”

  Tallulah lifted her chin. “I don’t kiss and tell.”

  Kat gave a cheeky grin. “It’s not his kissing I’m asking about. What I want to know about lies a little farther south.” Kat finished off her drink, slid it across the table and said, “But if you really need to me spell it out for you, I’m wondering if he has a big cock and just how good he is at using it. Does he use it like a jackhammer and make you come hard?”

  Tallulah choked on an ice cube, shock widening her eyes. “Ah, I think we should talk about something else.”

  “Fine, but I’ll get the truth out of you yet. I always do.” Kat leaned back in her chair, gestured for the waitress to bring two more drinks, then compressed her lips in worry. In a serious voice she asked, “Does Jason know?”

  Tallulah’s gut clenched. “I’m sure he does by now. When we left Mom’s she was already reaching for the phone.”

  “News travel faster than brush fire around these parts. How do you think he’s going to react?”

  “We were never in love, Kat, and he just wanted a dutiful wife on his arm when dealing with grieving families. To him I was a safety net in case he didn’t meet anyone else. To his family I was the nice girl they deemed suitable for the position of wife and assistant to the funeral director.”

  Kat nodded in total agreement. “You’re right, but now that Jason has taken over his father’s business I can’t blame you for not wanting to be an undertaker’s wife. It’s creepy.” She shivered, and pulled a sour face that conveyed her distaste. Then again, Kat never was a fan of Jason’s. She said there was another side to him, and one day it would end up coming out.

  After the waitress delivered two more drinks, Kat took a huge sip and shook her head. “I still can’t believe you didn’t tell me you were engaged, or that you were even dating such an Adonis.”

  Tallulah’s stomach turned at the genuine sadness on her friend’s face, and honestly she couldn’t blame Kat for being upset. They’d shared everything over the years, and keeping secrets from her best friend—especially something as big as this one—was out of character for Tallulah.

  Once again guilt settled heavy in her gut and she reached out and closed her hand over Kat’s, needing in the most desperate ways to tell her friend the truth. Kat had her back, and would keep her secret. She always had before and there was a good chance she might need her friend to run interference at some point. Besides, if she didn’t tell someone soon, she feared she’d burst at the seams, and all the lies would come spilling out at once.

  “I need to tell you something.”

  Sulking, and feigning disinterest, Kat waved a dismissive hand. “Unless it’s all the dirty details of your sex life I don’t want to hear it.”

  “Oh, believe me, you’re going to want to hear this.”

  Kat sat up straighter, her interest clearly piqued. “Oh yeah? Do tell then.”

  Tallulah shifted her chair closer, and looked around to make sure they couldn’t be overheard. When she spotted Garrett watching her, a hungry gleam in those perceptive blue eyes, ribbons of heat reverberated through her blood. She shivered, almost violently, then exhaled slowly as she turned her focus back to her friend.

  “Wow,” Kat said after witnessing the exchange. She fanned her face and pushed her chair back on two legs. “I can feel the heat between you two from here.”

  “We’re not engaged,” Tallulah confessed.

  Kat’s head came back with a start, the front legs of her chair slamming down on the old plank floor. “What are you talking about, Lu?”

  Tallulah lowered her voice even more. “It’s a ruse. He’s not my fiancé. Not really.”

  “Whoa!” Kat said. “What the hell is going on?”

  She told Kat the whole story, relaying every detail from how they met on the plane to how Garrett thought they could both help each other out by pretending they were engaged. She even went so far as to tell Kat how they touched, and shared a kiss, in an effort to better acquaint themselves and make it look real.

  After taking a moment to absorb everything, Kat said, “I don’t know why you don’t just tell Jason you moved on and the pact was a stupid idea.”

  “I just don’t want to get into it with him, or battle with my folks.” Her hand closed over her stomach. “Besides, I actually considered going through with it for a while there.”

  Kat gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, concern moving into her eyes. “Don’t worry, Lu. You’ll get your baby. One way or another you’ll get your baby. You’ll see.”

  Even though she wasn’t so sure herself, Tallulah loved her friend’s support, loved that Kat was in her corner no matter what. Tallulah nodded and returned the comforting squeeze. “Just keep this between us, okay?”

  “You know your secret is safe with me.” Kat lowered her voice to match Tallulah’s and asked, “So what’s in it for Garrett? Does he get to exercise his fiancé rights?” She arched a curious yet hopeful brow. “Please tell me that’s how you’ll be helping him out.”

  “No, nothing like that. Just a little tit for tat.”

  “Oooh, I like the sounds of that even better.”

  Tallulah rolled her eyes. “Get your mind out of the gutter. What I mean is I’ll be pretending to be his fiancée back home to help him land a job.”

  Kat frowned. “Well that’s boring.”

  “It’s not boring…it just is. Besides,” she added, “he’s not my type.”

  Kat threw her head back and gave a big loud belly laugh, seeing right through her fib. But, Kat knew her better than anyone so it shouldn’t have surprised Tallulah. “Oh yeah right. Who are you trying to kid? He’s every woman’s type. Even my eighty-year-old grandma would be standing in line to go a few rounds with him.”

  Tallulah couldn’t help but smile, small butterflies taking flight in her stomach as she stole another glance at her betrothed. She couldn’t deny that he was the sexiest guy in the room, his mere presence garnering quite a bit of attention from the other members of the bridal party.

  “Okay, fine. You’re right,” she conceded. “I’m attracted to him but we’re nothing alike and he’s not into long-term relationships, which means its hands off behind closed doors.”

  Kat wagged her finger back and forth between the two of them. “Hey, if you don’t think opposites attract, just look at us. And besides, who said anything about havin
g a relationship?”

  Tallulah folded her hands on the countertop. “You know me better than that, Kat. I don’t do one-night stands.”

  “Maybe not, but you’ve just been given a free ticket, girlfriend. He’s your fiancé, pretend or not, and if I were you I’d be enjoying the benefits that came with that. As long as you have no expectations coming out, then you should be seriously letting him in, if you know what I mean.”

  Oh, she knew what she meant. They both turned their attention to their frosty drinks, and silence hovered as they became lost in their own thoughts.

  After a long moment, Kat broke the quiet, leaned in to her and asked, “So what do you think? Are you going to seduce him?”

  Tallulah’s stomach lurched. She’d dated in Austin, of course. Even had a couple long-term relationships, but she’d never straight up and seduced a guy before. “I’m not even sure I’d know how.”

  “Then it’s a good thing you got me,” Kat said, giving her a smug look.

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah, here’s what you do. Tonight when you both go back to your room, slip into something short and slinky and bend over a lot.”

  Tallulah laughed, but when she saw the calculating look on her friend’s face, it quickly dissolved. “Wait! You’re serious aren’t you?”

  “If you want to seduce this guy, then you should listen to me. I know what I’m talking about.”

  Tallulah planted her elbows on the table and rested her chin in her palms. “I’d hate to be the guy who tried to tame you, Kat. He’s in for one hell of a ride.”

  “Tame me? Hell, girlfriend, no guy is ever going to break my will.” She gave a playful wink. “Of course I might let him bend it a little. Bending is always fun.”

  They shared a laugh, then Tallulah caught Garrett’s glance once again. When those deep eyes were looking directly at her, she forgot every serious thought, forgot why keeping her distance was a good idea.

  Then again, if she knew what she was getting herself into…

  “Maybe I should just share a room with you.”

  Kat eyed Matt James, Ving’s best man, as he cut across the floor. “Sure, if you don’t mind joining a party of two.” Then she said, “Come on, Tallulah, if you don’t share his room, you’re going to blow your cover. And if I were you, there are other things I’d be thinking about blowing.”

  Tallulah groaned. “It won’t work, Kat. I don’t have anything short or slinky.”

  “No problem. Tell him you forgot your nightgown and ask to borrow one of his T-shirts. Guys dig that kind of shit.”

  Tallulah took a moment to visualize herself in his shirt, his warm scent engulfing her as the rough material brushed over her sensitive flesh. Her skin tightened and her nipples hardened almost painfully as she pictured herself parading around in something so skimpy, bending over to pick up some imaginary object and seducing him out of his pants. God, it was just so indecent. So naughty.

  So not her.

  But oh how she wanted it to be. Honest to God, she might be inexperienced in the art of seduction, but when it came right down to it she was damn tired of vanilla sex. The guys she’d been with—the marrying kind—cared little about her needs and left her wanting so much more. But Garrett…she’d just bet he’d never walk away leaving a woman unsatisfied. No, he might not be the marrying kind—the kind her mother expected her to bring home—but he most definitely was the kind to give her earth-shattering sex that would totally rock the hell right out of her world.

  She’d be crazy to turn her back on the opportunity, wouldn’t she? After all, they were both consenting adults, and, for all intents and purposes, they were engaged.

  Just then Garrett leaned over the table, that sexy ass of his taunting her libido and urging her to go for it. While her body trembled, aching to know what it would be like to be touched by his hands, his mouth…his tongue, there was a part of her brain that warned her to walk—no, run—the other away. But then again there was another small, reckless part of her, one that demanded she shed her inhibitions and step out of character for just one night. Could she really do that? She felt a quick flash of panic, then drew a breath to calm herself.

  Tallulah shook her head. “This is a really, really bad idea.”

  “Yes it is,” Kat agreed with a sassy grin. “But aren’t those the best kind?”

  “You want to get your mind off my damn sister and back on to the game,” Ving scowled, and jabbed his elbow into Garrett’s stomach with much more force than necessary.

  Turning his attention to the table as the gut punch jostled him back to the present, Garrett scanned the balls, placed his beer bottle on the edge, then bent over to take the winning shot. “Double or nothing?” he asked as the eight ball slid into the corner pocket.

  Ving tossed a few bills on the table. “I’m out,” he announced when Jenny came sidling up to him.

  She gave him a wink. “Hey, fly boy, you want to call it a night?”

  Ving offered Garrett his back and turned his full attention to Jenny. Warmth sounded in his voice when he answered with, “Hell yeah.”

  Ving slipped his arm around Jenny’s shoulders, but before they left, she turned back to Garrett, “Don’t forget about the bridal luncheon tomorrow. Twelve sharp in the hotel restaurant.”

  “Or the bachelor party tomorrow night,” Ving added, a wry grin tugging the corners of his mouth up as he cast Garrett a quick glance. “Nine sharp.” He pointed downward. “Right here.”

  Jenny placed her hand on Ving’s shoulder, her big diamond ring glistening in the overhead lights. “Now that Garrett is spoken for, at least I don’t have to worry about him corrupting you tomorrow night.”

  Speaking of corrupting…

  Garrett angled his head in time to see Tallulah watching him, her friend Kat grinning mischievously as she whispered something in Tallulah’s ear. After a quick trip to their shared hotel room earlier that evening to drop off their luggage, Tallulah had changed into a country girl dress fit for any sweet and sensitive daycare teacher. Everything about her screamed inexperience, and while that dress would make any church-going parent proud, it turned Garrett inside out, his mind conjuring up naughty images. Images like peeling it from her lush body, laying her out on the king-size bed they were forced to share, and showing her just how good he could make it for her. His cock thickened, and a low growl crawled out of his throat.

  Jesus, she really was sweet and innocent, and so damn easy to like, which gave credence to his logic to keep his distance. He associated with “one night” kind of women for a reason. They never asked him for anything more than a good, hard fuck. At least between the sheets he’d never let anyone down.

  Just then Brad Crosby, Garrett’s childhood best friend and fellow comrade came up to the table and grabbed the rack. Garrett pulled the balls from the pockets and rolled them down the table.

  “So, Tallulah, huh?” Brad asked, his perceptive eyes gauging Garrett’s reactions as he gathered the balls and arranged them in the rack.

  “Yeah, that’s right.”

  Brad’s gaze catalogued the room before settling on Tallulah, and oddly enough, Garrett didn’t like the way his friend looked at her, locking her in his cross hairs like a predator marking its prey. “I never thought I’d see the day a woman ball and chained you, pal.”

  Ignoring him, Garrett tossed a coin, and called heads to see who’d go first.

  Brad widened his stance, his shrewd glance assessing Garrett. “It’s almost hard to believe.”

  “Well, believe it,” Garrett said, and chalked his cue before breaking.

  As the balls scattered, Brad looked at Tallulah again and gave a low wolf whistle. “If she wasn’t attached—”

  “Well she is, so back the fuck off.” Garrett’s reaction was strong, stronger than it should have been considering they were merely pretending to be engaged, but hell, at least it would go a long way in convincing his friend this scam was real.

  Brad held his hands up palm
s out in a truce. “Whoa, easy, Garrett.”

  “Just back off, okay?”

  “Come on. You know I’d never hone in on your territory.”

  It was true. Garrett knew that that. The two went way back, and cared a hell of a lot about each other. Honestly, he loved the guy, he really did. Brad wasn’t just his best friend, he was his brother—blood or not—and Garrett would die for him any day. But when it came to women Brad was even more fucked up than Garrett, which meant he was the last guy a nice girl like Tallulah needed to be around.

  Brad gave a shake of his head. “Strange how this is the first I’ve heard about it.”

  “Nothing strange about it. We were just keeping things low key.”

  “Hmm.”

  “What?”

  “So I take it I’m going to be your best man.”

  He gave a noncommittal shrug. “Yeah, sure.”

  A long pause and then suspicious eyes moved to the white band where his pinky ring used to be. “She must be pretty special if you gave her your dad’s ring.”

  A lump gathered in Garrett’s throat at the mention of the ring. Only Brad could know how much he treasured the ring his father had willed to him—a ring his old man had received for exceptional bravery on his job—because Brad was the one who’d found Garrett the night after the funeral, drunk as a goddamn skunk, and babbling about how much of a fuckup he was.

  He forced himself not to think about the engraving on the inside band. Shit, everyone wrote nice things on the heirlooms they left to their children, right? He knew his father wasn’t proud of him. Never had been. And why would he be? Unlike his sister, Garrett was a lousy student, preferring hands-on and relying on instincts over books, which meant he never got the grades. When it came to sports, Garrett excelled at baseball, but a fight over a bad call got him kicked out of the dugout the day the scouts came to town.

  Then, if that wasn’t enough, not only did he and his dad butt heads on just about everything, Garrett rebelled when his father wanted him to follow in his footsteps. Even though Garrett wanted to join the police force, he knew he would only end up disappointing the man who was larger than life, a man who was undaunted by anyone or anything. Garrett joined the army instead, hoping on some level he could save the world and earn his father’s approval, and maybe even his own. Except he couldn’t save anyone, and could barely take care of himself. The scar on his face was proof of that.