._ ._.. ._ _ ._ _._ _ ... ._.. _ _ _ ..._ . (Always Love) Ch.10
Title: ._ ._.. ._ _ ._ _._ _ ... ._.. _ _ _ ..._ . (Always Love)
Characters: Beck, Heather, OCs
Rating: PG -- 13
Chapters: 10/?
Disclaimer: Sooo don't own Jericho...
Unbetaed, all mistakes are my own.
I had ended up dismissing my cold feet with Carlos as just a combination of nerves and homesickness. I hadn't even spoken to Lily in a couple of weeks. The last I heard from her, she had been evacuated to Oklahoma City and refused to go any farther south.
"I'm going back," she told me.
"That's crazy," I replied. "A.S. troops are all over Northern Kansas. You wouldn't be able to get past Garden City."
"I'm sorry, Heather, but this place isn't home for me. Despite the hellhole that New Bern became, it's home for me. And I'll take on the entire A.S. army to get back home if I have to."
I sighed, frustrated that I couldn't make her see what she was doing was not only dangerous, it was deadly. She bristled over the phone to my reluctance.
"Look, Heather, I know you've been in San Antonio for a while. May be it feels like home to you now. But that's never going to happen for me."
"San Antonio is not my home. Jericho is. You know that."
"Yeah, well, if that's the case, then you'll understand why I'm going back."
"The going, I understand. The timing, I don't."
"The tide is turning, Heather. And I want to be in my home to celebrate reunification when it happens."
I still had my fears, but Lily was determined.
"Fine. If you want to go, I'm not going to be the one to stop you. Just be careful, please. Do that for me, Lily."
"I will. Take care, Heather. And take care of Beck if you run across him."
"Is he ok? Is he hurt? Is there something you're not telling me, Lily?"
"He's still the Colonel we know and you love," she replied.
I blushed at that, but said nothing. Lily was silent for several moments.
"Look, I've got to go." She paused and then said, "For what it's worth, Heather, I have a feeling he misses you, too. He knows you've been a good friend. And I think he was more balanced when you were around."
"Is he being reckless?"
"No, he was withdrawn, cold after you left. Much colder and withdrawn than when you were with him. Then something happened -“
“What? What happened?”
“I don’t know, Heather. Just one day, he was cold and withdrawn, the next, he was still withdrawn, but kind of at peace, you know? It was just, I don’t know, weird. It kind of creeps me out.”
“What do you mean? Is he ok? What are you not telling me, Lily?”
“I don’t know, Heather. Maybe it’s nothing. But it’s almost as if he’s got some answer that he hasn’t tipped off to the rest of us. And I think, in the end, it's going to make him do something stupid.”
There was a pause and then the sound of paper shuffling in the background.
“Look, chị tôi, I wasn't lying. I need to go."
I wanted to tell her not to go, bit the tip of my tongue for a moment fighting not to say it.
"Take care then, chị. Love you."
“Love you too.”
"Lily?" I said suddenly, not sure if she was still there.
"Yeah, Heather," she replied.
"Thank you."
"Yeah,” she replied. I heard something being zippered.
“Take care of yourself, Heather." Then the phone disconnected.
I stood before the mirror, nervously running my hands down my dress, looking for any wrinkles.
It was a chiffon cocktail dress of sea green. There were single strips of white chiffon running diagonally across the bodice with hand applied rhinestones, giving it a rippled, see through effect. I twisted one way and then the other in the mirror, making sure once again it wasn’t too revealing.
I had my doubts about the dress when I tried it on in the second hand shop I had found it in, but the saleswoman insisted it looked stunning on me. Part of me suspected that she said that because of the $250 price tag on the dress, which still had me in sticker shock a few days later.
I twisted once again and sighed. It was beautiful, and it was a near perfect fit. I hoped I would have the opportunity to have more than one wearing out of it.
I studied my upswept hair and let out another sigh as a curl fell onto my shoulder. It had taken 45 minutes and a fistful of bobby pins to get my hair into its loose chignon.
To heck with it, I thought. If by the end of the night, my hair is down and all of the bobby pins are in my purse, so be it. I’m done messing with it.
I glanced at the clock on the nightstand once more before scooping up my clutch and wrap.
There was a soft knock on the front door. I gave myself one last once over and walked out of the bedroom
“Right on time,” I said as I opened the door.
Carlos stood there, looking crisp and debonair in a charcoal grey suit. A single white rose was clasped in his hand.
He wasn’t saying anything.
I brushed my hand against the back of my neck, checking my chignon and avoiding his gaze.
“You look amazing,” he said.
I looked at him. It was impossible not to see the desire in his look. Chances are if he had the evening his way, we’d be saying to hell with the ball & not leave my room until morning.
His gaze was unwavering. I started to blush.
Ok, maybe leave the room in the morning. More likely leave the room a few mornings later.
A swirl of pleasure floated down my body and curled low in my belly. The idea of making love with him was a thought that I had entertained more and more as the days past.
Then the thought of kissing Edward would float back into my mind, to the point where my body did not know if it was Carlos or Edward that I truly wanted. My nerves sang out in painful frustration.
I quickly stepped out into the hall and shut the door behind me.
There are people relying on us, I thought. You can worry about your hormones.
He handed the rose to me. I buried my nose into the blossom to smell its heady fragrance and clear my mind.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you,” I said.
Carlos reached out and brushed an errant curl from my shoulder. He offered me the crook of his arm and I placed my hand lightly into it. I could feel the heat radiating off his body as my wrist pressed against his suit. He gave my hand a small caress.
“You’re welcome,” he replied.
The ball was well underway by the time Kase arrived with his entourage.
About time, I thought. Another half hour and I would have called the evening a bust. And there was more than one lustful thought that had floated through my mind during the course of the evening about dragging Carlos back to my apartment.
Carlos tipped his head toward a blond-headed man whose gaze had lingered on me for a few seconds when Kase’s group walked in.
I hid a sour look from Carlos. The man he wanted me to distract, John Stanton, gave me an uneasy feeling. When I returned the man’s gaze from across the room, he gave me a slow lopsided smile that made me fight the urge to turn on my heel and walk in the opposite direction. His gaze reduced me to the feeling of a pretty slab of meat on a hook. It didn’t help either when Laura ‘ewwed’ when I told her he’d be my assignment at the Ball.
“He likes to think he’s a lady’s man,” she said with a frown when I asked her what was wrong.
“He thinks?” I asked, cornering her by the water cooler, wanting to know what I had just gotten myself into. “Laura, what do women think of him?”
She gave me a concerned look.
“Just be careful of the guy, Heather. John Stanton is man who thinks that since he’s part of Kase’s group, that whatever he wants, he’ll get. Period.”
“So don’t leave the party with him,” I said.
“Heather, who knows, you might actually like him,” she said, walking away from the water cooler.
“But you don’t think I will.”
“If I were you, Heather, I wouldn’t let Carlos or Will out of your eyesight while you’re dealing with this guy.”
I sighed as Stanton gave me another raking look from head to toe.
This will call for a nice long hot shower when I’m done, I thought, fighting down the buzzing in the back of mind that was screaming ‘Creep alert! Creep alert!’
I headed toward him, trying to find solace in the fact that I was wearing my three inch heels. It followed quickly by the thought that they would likely be meeting up with at least one of his insteps before the evening was through.
“Well, hello there, darlin’,” the tall blond said, tipping his hat up when I presented myself in front of him. “What’s a country girl like you doing in a place like this?”
It wasn’t the exact response I expected and I was unsure how to answer it.
“I’m sorry?” I replied. Confusion seeped through the smile I gave him.
He let out a low chuckle.
“I figured a pretty girl like you must be from the country because you’re the only woman I’ve seen so far that doesn’t seem to be dressed like some cheap whore.”
From the look on his face, I knew he thought he’d given me a whopper of a compliment.
Oh, it was a whopper all right. I couldn’t recall receiving a compliment quite as backhanded as the one he just delivered. Maybe I should just stomp on his instep now and get this done and over with.
I surreptitiously glanced over at Carlos. He and Ambassador Travis were making their way toward Mr. Kase. Maggie was in tow behind them.
Dolores already had four of his group off to one side, chatting up a storm. A couple of them had a deer in headlights look about them, wondering what had just happened. One attempted to extract himself from the situation, but Dolores easily corralled him back in when he tried to make a break for it.
Will had a companion on each arm. Guessing from their looks, Will had them distracted to the point that Kase could have fallen off the face of the earth and neither of them would have noticed.
I glanced at Carlos once more. He was poised for his final move on Kase. Once that happened, he would need about five minutes to ten minutes to let Travis discuss and rectify the shipping and distribution of the tainted food.
Stanton asked me a question.
“I’m sorry?” I said, having missed his question.
He gave me that lopsided smile again and mumbled something that sounded distinctly like ‘Not as half as much as you will be in the morning.’
I moved my right foot so that it was tilted back on the heel.
“I said why don’t we leave this hole and go some place where we can get to know one another a little better.” He stared blatantly at my body as he stated the last part.
This guy wouldn’t know about subtlety if it hit him over the head with the force of a steel I beam. I gave him a forced grin.
“Oh, but the night is still young. I’d like to have some fun before we leave,” I told him, trying to avoid folding my arms defensively in front of me. I settled for curling one arm up, letting the hand rest against my shoulder while other wrapped itself across my waist.
“I’m all the fun you’ll want or need, darlin’,” he said. He reached out and clasped my elbow.
I evaded him, spinning, taking a couple of steps back, before turning to him again.
If I can just keep him in here. If I can just keep him in public, it will be okay, I thought. But my thoughts did little to calm the panic that was starting to turn my stomach.
“Oh, but I’m having so much fun here. I feel like I could just dance the night away,” I said, gesturing with a tilt of my head to the dance floor. “Don’t you?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Carlos and Travis talking with Kase. A commotion to one side of them forced me to turn my head.
Maggie was draped over a man of slight build. He tried to extricate himself from her and she stumbled, practically toppling them both. She was gesturing wildly at him, obviously apologizing profusely. They wobbled back and forth, righting for a second or two, then collapsed to the floor. The people around them, recognizing the walking disaster before them, gave them a wide berth. Kase’s aide moved to pull himself up. Maggie came up to her hands and knees, grabbing at the table leg for support. As the man stood, she reached for a chair leg that stood behind him and yanked it forward, forcing his legs out from under him. He fell back into the chair, which tipped backward. His head hit the floor with a loud thud, rendering him unconscious.
Maggie blew an errant curl off her face with a huff and in one fluid motion, righted both man and chair. She patted his face, trying to rouse him.
The little twitch at the back of my head buzzed while I watched her. If I didn’t know about her ability to be accident prone, I’d almost say that she treated Kase’s aide as some sort of opponent that needed to be quickly and quietly dispatched without it looking like she was doing just that.
I felt my blond companion walk up to stand next to me. He let out a snicker as he watched the uproar unfolding between Maggie and the aide.
“Serves that pompous little shit right. I oughta buy that girl a beer for knocking Tallis down a few notches. Later, though. I think you and I have some unfinished business to take of, right, darlin’?”
I moved to turn toward him, attempting to elude him one more time. He grabbed my elbow, grasping it tightly. There was nowhere for me to escape.
“So what do you say, darlin’?” he asked. He was already moving us towards an exit. I stopped abruptly, pulling my elbow toward me. I saw stars as he nearly wrench my arm out of its socket.
“Let go. You’re hurting me,” I gasped. He wrapped his fingers around my arm, pulling me to him. I winced in pain. He clamped his hand over my neck, steering us toward the exit once more.
“Oh, I think I’ll be the judge of where and when you’ll be going anywhere, darlin’.”
“You know, if this is Texan hospitality, I have to say I’m under impressed,” said a voice from behind us.
“Beat it, G.I. Joe,” the blond said as he glanced over his shoulder. He gave my arm a twist to move me forward.
I resisted. When I heard that voice, my spine turned to steel, smothering my panic. The Neanderthal in front of me might still succeed in dragging me out of here, but not while I was conscious.
And as I heard the shift in stance from behind me, I figured that Stanton would have to get past Edward Beck as well. And that was going to be a lot, lot harder.
“Aww!” I gasped out as the man yanked me forward a few more steps.
“Let go of her.”
Edward’s voice was absolutely calm. My fear started to scrabble up from my belly again, not so much for the adversary at my arm, but of Edward. The last time I heard him be that calm was when Jake was surrendering to him after Goetz’s death. It wasn’t diplomacy that was reaching out to Stanton right now, nor patience. It was rage.
The hand at my neck squeezed once more and I clamped my eyes shut, trying to ward off the pain. I felt the anger radiating off of Edward.
Stanton had no idea what type of danger he was in.
“Please, Edward, don’t --” I began, twisting to face him. Stanton dug his fingers into my flesh and I saw stars. The blond wrapped an arm around my waist, lifting me off my feet. I jerked forward and all I could see was a pair of shiny black shoes, with another pair behind swimming into my view as my vision cleared.
“Maybe you should listen to the girl,” my assailant said, then repeating his name sarcastically, “Edward.”
“Are you deaf, boy?” Another voice asked, “Let her go.” I had guessed that they came from the man standing to the left of Beck. The set of feet receded into the distance as Stanton drug me into the lobby.
“Apparently so,” said the voice, answering his own question.
I felt the Stanton’s head jerk backward once, then again as the sound of a fist connected against flesh. I slipped out of his arms, sliding forward. I was grabbed by a pair of hands and helped upright. A moment later, I was set gently down onto a couch.
I looked up. Edward and Stanton were circling one another. Stanton took a swing. Edward pivoted to one side, slamming his fist into his assailant’s stomach. The blond staggered back and then lunged at Edward once more, only to be met by Edward’s fist to his face. Stanton fell to his knees.
Edward’s companion shifted from my side. It was Clark, Edward’s second in command. He walked over, picking up Stanton’s discarded cowboy hat and placed it unceremoniously on the fallen man’s head. Clark pulled the man to his feet.
“Well, Tex,” Clark said, “I really do think that the next time a woman tells you to let her go, you should take her up on her advice.”
He escorted Stanton to the door.
“Are you all right?”
Edward had walked over and was now kneeling before me.
“I’m not sure,” I said.
He pressed his fingers along my upper arm. I grimaced a little as they traveled over the angry bruises that were already starting to form.
His touch was warm and comforting at first. But when his fingertips brushed against my collarbone, looking for any defects, I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from shuddering.
Even after being separated after for so long, one touch from him practically undoes me.
His fingertips slid along my shoulder. I kept my eyes locked on them, how they danced over my skin. I was too afraid to look at him, too afraid that the emotions he would see would be as bare as the skin beneath his fingers.
He stood up, finished with examination.
“Nothing appears to be broken.”
“That’s good,” I said, venturing a glance at him.
His gaze burned through me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see his fingers flex, unconsciously moving to touch me again. My breath caught. I looked away. I bit at the inside of my cheek again. Hard.
My heart slammed painfully inside my chest. Between one breath and the next, my body betrayed me. Time compacted into itself and my emotions were back at that cave entrance. I dug my fingers into the soft fabric of the couch.
One touch. Undone in one touch.
“I got some ice,” Clark said, walking over to us with a bag in his hand.
I stood up abruptly and wobbled from the blood rush. Edward’s arm wrapped around my waist.
Clark’s gaze shifted from me to Edward and back again.
“Thank you, John,” Edward replied, taking the bag from Clark. He slid it against the inside of my arm, which had the majority of the bruising.
“I should,” I began, stopped, and took a breath. My nerves sang along every inch of my body.
“I should get back to my companions,” I said, fighting the battle of attraction my body was having with Edward.
“All right,” Edward said. “We’ll walk you back.”
He still had his arm around my waist, likely to keep me steady. But I was fighting down both thoughts and feelings that believed his touch was more than just helpful. It may have been the way he pressed me against his body, the sandalwood and spice of his cologne reawakening a desire in me that had not been touched upon in many months. Or perhaps it was the way his fingers pressed against the curve of my hip, the way they flexed protectively when there was even a hint of unsteadiness in my step and then lingered there afterward. Nor could I miss how his hand cupped my elbow, the pad of his thumb brushing over my skin a half dozen times as we walked between the lobby and my table.
Carlos and Travis were sitting down. Carlos had his head tilted toward the Ambassador, listening to what Travis was saying and toying with his glass. He laughed. As he did, he looked up, his mood sobering instantly. I could see his eyes go from me to the ice bag tucked into my arm down to see Edward’s arms about me, then up to Edward, stopping there for a fraction of a second before returning to me. I stiffened as he gazed at me. Edward’s grip tightened for a moment, but when I did not relax, his hands began to fall away. Carlos was already on his feet, moving toward me.
“Heather, what happened?” he asked, stopping before me. I stepped toward him, sliding out of Edward’s grasp.
“It’s nothing,” I said, trying to assure him. “Stanton just tried to get friendlier with me than I was willing to be with him.”
Carlos pulled the bag away from my arm, gingerly pulling my elbow toward him. The bruises were bright cherry red blotches, perfectly matching the span of a large hand. I looked at him as he looked at my arm. I could see the skin stretch back across his temple as the rocks worked in his jaw.
“Where is he?” Carlos whispered, not letting go of my elbow.
“Major Clark escorted Mr. Stanton to the door after I persuaded him to cease from detaining Miss Lisinski against her wishes,” Edward replied.
Carlos looked up. His eyes were dark.
“Thank you,” he said, his gaze not wavering from mine.
My pulse thrummed as his hand traveled down my arm to clasp my hand. He led me over to a chair and sat me down.
Though what attracted me to Edward Beck and Carlos Mazzello was different, my hormones reacted to both of them exactly the same. Like so many taunt strings waiting to be plucked.
And had I not been in public, I’d be inclined to give free reign to those hormones and they were not picky about the choice being either Carlos or Edward.
“Hell, why not both?” A Lily-like voice blurted out in my head.
Enough, I thought, clamping down on any and all rampant thoughts. Right now what Carlos needs is reassurance so he doesn’t go out, hunt down Stanton and beat him within an inch of his life.
I clasped his hand in my mine, ignoring the fact that Dolores just walked up to the table. I could see her perplexed look out of the corner of my eye, turning to a look of mild surprise when she saw Carlos’ hand clasped in mine.
So much for the office romance staying quiet now.
“I’m fine,” I said to him, “Really.”
He looked down at my hand, giving it the smallest caress with his thumb.
“Okay,” he said.
There was an awkward silence.
Not wanting to be the continued center of attention, I turned to Dolores and started to ask who won the bet between Will and herself.
I was saved even from that by the arrival of Maggie. Her heel caught against the carpet and she grabbed the back of a chair, fighting to keep her balance.
My empathy for her embarrassment was outweighed by my relief that the attention that was so acutely focused on me a moment before had now switched to her. Despite my misgivings about her, I don’t think she realized just how grateful I was to see her.
Maggie blushed when she realized all the eyes at the table were trained on her.
“Did I miss something?” she asked.
“No, not at all, dear,” Dolores replied. “The Ambassador here was just about to tell us how things went.
I shot Dolores a grateful look.
Maggie surveyed the scene before her, then looked around the room.
“Where’s Will?” she asked when she turned back to us.
Travis looked around.
“I have a feeling Will’s companions are probably giving him a run for his money in the charm department. I doubt we’ll see him for some time, if at all, this evening.”
Maggie took a seat. Travis introduced Edward and Clark to the others, motioning them to join us at the table. Carlos slid into the seat behind me.
“All in all, it went rather well,” said Travis, recounting the evening once all were seated. I felt Edward’s eyes on me as he and Clark each took a seat at the table.
Carlos’ breath caressed my shoulder as he leaned forward in his chair.
“You’re sure you’re okay?” he whispered as Travis began to make introductions and discuss their encounter with Kase.
I wasn’t. But it had nothing to do with me almost getting dragged off by some psychopath and everything to do with the proximity of the two men I found myself deeply attracted to.
I nodded mutely, focusing on the water glass before me instead of the man before or behind me.
“Mr. Kase wasn’t being inclined to see the situation from our point of view,” said Travis.
“He wasn’t much inclined toward anything but scowling at us and answering in monosyllabic words,” Carlos muttered.
I stifled a giggle, half nervous, half amused, when the Ambassador shot us a look.
“When it was obvious that he wasn’t going to budge on the matter, I hailed down a server that had a tray of hors d’oeuvres. What Kase didn’t know was that Carlos met up with said server early in the evening.”
Which explained why he disappeared for twenty minutes shortly after we arrived.
“Carlos apparently whipped up a few nasty concoctions to help Mr. Kase take some edge off of his perspective and help see things our way.”
“Carlos,” Dolores began. I could hear the hesitation in her voice, the wanting to know dueling with the not wanting to know.
“Carlos, what did you put in the hors d’oeurves?” she asked.
“Nothing horrible,” he said, “Just some canned meat, mayo, vinegar . . . “
He looked up at the ceiling as he spoke, as if he were being asked to repeat the contents of some lengthy recipe. I refrained from rolling my eyes, but couldn’t suppress a grin.
“Oh, yeah, and some Alpo,” he finished.
“Eww!” Maggie said, making a face.
I looked down at the table. In the middle sat the platter of questionable appetizers. Travis reached out, grabbing one off the tray and popping it into his mouth.
“Actually they’re not bad, really. The vinegar just makes them taste a little off. I always did believe my dogs ate better than I did,” he replied.
Maggie, I noticed, was squirming in her seat and trying hard not to turn about thirty shades of green.
“Anyway,” Carlos continued, “When we got the desired reaction out of Mr. Kase, I asked him if he liked them. He, of course, said no. I told him, ‘Well, that’s a shame. I mean, considering how we got this specifically from the canned products that you’ve been distributing to the evacuees. I would think you, of all people, would enjoy the product, considering how you produce it.’”
“You actually said that to him?” I asked. It was a pretty gutsy move to pull on Kase.
“Yup, he turned all shades of green,” Carlos replied. He looked over at Maggie and said, “Kind of like you are right now. Are you okay, Maggie?”
“Hmm? Oh, yes,” she said, though it was obvious she wasn’t. “Um, if you don’t need me for the rest of the evening, I’m going to call it a night.”
Carlos looked over at Travis, who gave him a single nod.
“Sure, Maggie, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.”
Maggie stood up and within an instant all the men at the table were standing with her.
“Uh, thank you, all of you, it was a nice -- . Um, yeah, have a good --,” Maggie stammered. At this point, her complexion was close to ashen.
“Well, bye,” she finally said, making a hasty exit for the door and not looking back.
“I think she’s lead a sheltered life,” Dolores replied, nodding her head to the rapidly retreating figure.
“I suspect so,” Travis said.
We were all silent for a minute. I guess some of us were trying hard not to laugh about the whole thing because it would not have been the polite thing to do.
“So,” said Edward, breaking the silence. I jumped a little, my nerves still being on edge.
“What was the outcome of your ruse?”
“Mr. Kase promised he’d look into it very thoroughly. Said he’d have his inspectors get in contact with us on Monday morning to pinpoint the specific locations of the tainted product,” Travis replied.
“As if he doesn’t know already,” Dolores said with a roll of her eyes. “What makes you so sure he’s not going to welsh on the deal?”
“Oh, just the promise of signing him up for his own hor d’oeuvre of the month club,” Carlos said.
The way Carlos said it convinced me and likely convinced Kase as well that he would be in this special club until the day he died if he did renege on the deal. It made Carlos look both attractive and scary.
“Remind me never to cross you,” I whispered to him.
He looked at me with that special look.
“You? Never.”
I gave him a radiant smile. I turned back still wearing it and looked at Edward.
My smile immediately faltered. The look on his face could be best described as disappointment. He looked away, but not before I saw another emotion flicker there and disappear.
It was the same look Jake had when he saw Emily talking to Roger.
Edward was - envious? No. Jealous? Yes, that was it.
To say I was shocked by that revelation was understating it. Of course, I had fallen for Edward, but I kept my emotions hidden as well as I could. It wasn’t fair to play on whatever he may have felt for me while there was the possibility that Lisa and Angel may still be alive.
But that didn’t mean I could turn my attentions to someone else. Someone who didn’t have the attachments and commitments Edward did. Couldn’t I?
Well, couldn’t I?
I stared at Edward, who seemed to be steadfastly ignoring me.
Anger flashed up bright and hot within me.
Damn him! Where does he think he gets off thinking that just because he can’t have me because he already has a wife and child that nobody else can have me either? I am not your rainy day girl, Edward Beck. You cannot run to me when everything is bad outside and then shove me aside when it all clears up. I’m not going to be anyone’s second best.
Still seething, I turned back to Carlos. Almost immediately, my anger seemed to cool a notch or two. I hadn’t noticed that before now. The way he had a calming effect on me. Just being around him calmed my emotions, allowing me to deal with them one by one instead of a jumbled mess. I needed that tranquility right now. I needed to get away from Edward. I needed to straighten things out in my mind.
“Would you care to dance?” I asked Carlos.
He looked at me in surprise.
“Are you sure you’re up to it?”
I gave him a soft smile.
“Just be gentle with me, okay?”
“It will be my pleasure,” he whispered in my ear as he moved to stand up. The timbre of his voice was rough and seductive. I bit the inside of my cheek to suppress a shiver and pointedly ignored Edward as I stood up.
“If you’ll excuse us,” Carlos said to the others as he clasped my hand, “Miss Lisinski and I are going out to test the boards on the dance floor.”
I saw Ambassador Travis roll his eyes out of the corner of my eye.
“They’re a cute couple, aren’t they?” Dolores said in a not so quite whisper to Travis as we walked toward the dance floor.
Travis gave a non-committal harrumph as an answer.
Carlos led us over to the D.J.’s stand. I must have looked a little confused, because he just smiled and gave me a quick peck on the temple.
“Give me just a second, I’ll be right back.”
He walked over to the D.J. They had some sort of discussion that I could not hear due to one of the speakers being between me and them. The D.J. gave him a questioning look. Apparently, Carlos clarified, because then the man nodded his head furiously and began rummaging through CDs. He gave a nod of the head when he found what he was looking for and handed it to Carlos. Carlos scanned the CD for a moment and pointed something out to the DJ. The man gave him a thumbs up, looked at me, and said something else to Carlos. Carlos nodded his head and walked back to me.
“What?” I said as Carlos clasped my hand.
“What?” he repeated. He smiled innocently at me.
“What did he say when he looked over at me?”
I arched an eyebrow at him and he knew that I was not going to let it go.
“He said that you were a very beautiful woman and that I was very lucky to have you. I agreed with him.”
He turned, pulling me into his arms, waiting for the music to begin. I stared at where my hand rested on his shoulder, blushing furiously.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“I’m guessing no one has ever really told you that. Well then, it will just have to be my duty to tell you that all the time.”
I leaned my forehead against his chest. The orange and cedar of the cologne he always wore wafted around me. A gentle touch cupped the bottom of my shoulder blade and enveloped my waiting hand. Calmness unwound slowly with in me, centering me, grounding me, as he held me in his arms.
“I’m lucky to have you, too,” I replied, looking back up at him as the music began.
He just grinned as he pushed me back a step, glided to the side, then forward, then another glide over to the beginning again.
I listened to the music he picked for the waltz. It wasn’t a song I heard before, the man singing it sounded like a bit of a crooner. Someone you’d find in the easy listening section of a music store. Not my normal fair for music.
The song, however, was both beautiful and sad.
“Can’t believe it’s over, I watched the whole thing fall
And I never saw the writing that was on the wall
If I only knew that days were slipping past
That the good things would never last, that you were crying”
I looked out into the crowd. Our table came into my view and I could see that Edward was watching us dance.
It was as if we were back in his office all over again with me admitting I stole the page out of the binder.
He looked that hurt and betrayed.
I turned my head away. Emotions swirled around in me. I faltered on a step. Looking up at Carlos with an apologetic smile, I tried to push the thoughts and feelings that Edward was invoking in me aside.
It wasn’t working very well. Why did he think I betrayed him? Again? The mere thought of him accusing me of that, if only in a glance, wounded me to my core. Part of me wanted to walk straight over to him and give a solid piece of my mind on why I deserved to have a life and why he was being such a jerk. Another part of me just wanted to go home, curl up on the bed, and cry. Yet another part wanted me to thumb my nose at him, who did he think he was, my parent, telling me who I could see or not and expressing how disappointed he was in my choice of mates?
Didn’t I have a chance to be just as happy with Carlos as Edward had been with his family?
I peaked over Carlos’ shoulder again as the song played. That hurt look was still staring back at us, at me.
Do you think it’s too late for us, Edward? How can it be too late for something that never was? You made sure of that. Angel and Lisa will make sure of that. Don’t push me like this, Edward, don’t make me choose or I’ll make sure of it now.
“Heather, are you all right?” Carlos asked. His breath caressed the shell of my ear and I shivered in his arms.
I looked up at him, giving him a wide smile and said, “Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking is all.”
“About what?”
“Home.”
“Ah.”
We danced down a turn of the floor before I had the nerve to continue. It was time to discuss this. I had been avoiding my feelings for Edward. I was going to get this out straightened, one way or another, I thought. I had to get him alone without Carlos wondering what was going on, however. Carlos didn’t deserve to be dragged into this mess.
“I was thinking I could catch up on what’s going on with the Colonel when we get back to the table,” I said.
Carlos looked up.
“I think that’s going to be a little difficult,” he said.
“Why?”
“He’s gone.”
“What?”
I stopped in mid-step, turning my head back toward the table. Beck was gone, as was the Ambassador. Dolores saw us looking over at the table and gave a little wave. I gave her a small smile.
“How are you doing?” Carlos asked, placing a finger under my chin so that I would look up at him.
The look in his eyes was so tender that I immediately felt guilty having my thoughts distracted by Edward. I should be paying attention to him, not a married man. If I couldn’t fix this tonight, I would at the next opportunity.
If there was a next opportunity.
The events of the evening weighed down on me. I stared at Carlos. He was waiting for an answer.
“I’m a little tired,” I admitted.
He cupped my cheek in my hand.
“Ready to call it a night?”
I nodded my head. Carlos walked me back to the table where we said our goodbyes to Dolores and Major Clark.
“The ambassador asked me to tell you that there will be a meeting with him, Colonel Beck and myself in his office at 0830 Monday morning and that he expects you to join us,” Clark said to Carlos.
“So you and the Colonel will be here for a few days?” I asked. Perhaps there would be another opportunity.
“Probably a week or so, depending on our orders, ma’am.
“We’ll be sure to show you some true Texan hospitality then, Major,” Dolores said to Clark.
Clark smiled and said to her, “We’ll definitely appreciate the R & R, ma’am.”
Carlos placed his hand against my elbow.
“Well, then, we’ll be off,” he said, shaking Clark’s hand as the man stood to bid us farewell.
“It was a pleasure meeting you,” Carlos said to him, then turning to his coworker, “Have a good weekend, Dolores.”
I nodded good bye and we turned away. I scanned the ballroom for Edward, my hopes of resolving this tonight rapidly diminishing when he was nowhere to be seen. I gave a mental sigh before stopping and turning back to the table. Clark was in the middle of sitting down when he caught my movement, standing straight again as I faced him.
“Tell Colonel Beck and the Ambassador good night, please,” I said.
“I will. Good night, Miss Lisinski,” he replied with a nod of his head.
A/N:
chị: sister
chị tôi: my sister
I figured that even though Lily is American born and raised, she, and to some extent Heather, have been influenced by Francine, who was born and spent part of her life in Vietnam. I'm not sure if what I used was the diminutive (I'm a lot more familiar with Japanese and Spanish than Vietnamese) or if there is a diminutive, so if anyone is available to correct me, I would appreciate it.
Hmm, my apologies for making Stanton a bit of a straw man. Though no apologies for Maggie beating Kase's aide though -- revenge for memories of a bad date.
As for Maggie, I'm still trying to round out her character a bit. I hope I was a little more successful this time around.
I have another side story with Beck coming up in the works. I'll post it to give everyone something to read as I continue on this one.
As for the music, I had been thinking of Beck and Heather sharing a dance, but in the end, I thought this actually worked out better. There is one song out there though that does make me think of Carlos and Heather as a couple, "Paralyzer" by Finger Eleven. I can so see Heather and Carlos having some sort of intimate moment when I hear that song. Maybe because I think that a song like that is very appropriate for Karl Urban. (shrugs)
Characters: Beck, Heather, OCs
Rating: PG -- 13
Chapters: 10/?
Disclaimer: Sooo don't own Jericho...
Unbetaed, all mistakes are my own.
I had ended up dismissing my cold feet with Carlos as just a combination of nerves and homesickness. I hadn't even spoken to Lily in a couple of weeks. The last I heard from her, she had been evacuated to Oklahoma City and refused to go any farther south.
"I'm going back," she told me.
"That's crazy," I replied. "A.S. troops are all over Northern Kansas. You wouldn't be able to get past Garden City."
"I'm sorry, Heather, but this place isn't home for me. Despite the hellhole that New Bern became, it's home for me. And I'll take on the entire A.S. army to get back home if I have to."
I sighed, frustrated that I couldn't make her see what she was doing was not only dangerous, it was deadly. She bristled over the phone to my reluctance.
"Look, Heather, I know you've been in San Antonio for a while. May be it feels like home to you now. But that's never going to happen for me."
"San Antonio is not my home. Jericho is. You know that."
"Yeah, well, if that's the case, then you'll understand why I'm going back."
"The going, I understand. The timing, I don't."
"The tide is turning, Heather. And I want to be in my home to celebrate reunification when it happens."
I still had my fears, but Lily was determined.
"Fine. If you want to go, I'm not going to be the one to stop you. Just be careful, please. Do that for me, Lily."
"I will. Take care, Heather. And take care of Beck if you run across him."
"Is he ok? Is he hurt? Is there something you're not telling me, Lily?"
"He's still the Colonel we know and you love," she replied.
I blushed at that, but said nothing. Lily was silent for several moments.
"Look, I've got to go." She paused and then said, "For what it's worth, Heather, I have a feeling he misses you, too. He knows you've been a good friend. And I think he was more balanced when you were around."
"Is he being reckless?"
"No, he was withdrawn, cold after you left. Much colder and withdrawn than when you were with him. Then something happened -“
“What? What happened?”
“I don’t know, Heather. Just one day, he was cold and withdrawn, the next, he was still withdrawn, but kind of at peace, you know? It was just, I don’t know, weird. It kind of creeps me out.”
“What do you mean? Is he ok? What are you not telling me, Lily?”
“I don’t know, Heather. Maybe it’s nothing. But it’s almost as if he’s got some answer that he hasn’t tipped off to the rest of us. And I think, in the end, it's going to make him do something stupid.”
There was a pause and then the sound of paper shuffling in the background.
“Look, chị tôi, I wasn't lying. I need to go."
I wanted to tell her not to go, bit the tip of my tongue for a moment fighting not to say it.
"Take care then, chị. Love you."
“Love you too.”
"Lily?" I said suddenly, not sure if she was still there.
"Yeah, Heather," she replied.
"Thank you."
"Yeah,” she replied. I heard something being zippered.
“Take care of yourself, Heather." Then the phone disconnected.
I stood before the mirror, nervously running my hands down my dress, looking for any wrinkles.
It was a chiffon cocktail dress of sea green. There were single strips of white chiffon running diagonally across the bodice with hand applied rhinestones, giving it a rippled, see through effect. I twisted one way and then the other in the mirror, making sure once again it wasn’t too revealing.
I had my doubts about the dress when I tried it on in the second hand shop I had found it in, but the saleswoman insisted it looked stunning on me. Part of me suspected that she said that because of the $250 price tag on the dress, which still had me in sticker shock a few days later.
I twisted once again and sighed. It was beautiful, and it was a near perfect fit. I hoped I would have the opportunity to have more than one wearing out of it.
I studied my upswept hair and let out another sigh as a curl fell onto my shoulder. It had taken 45 minutes and a fistful of bobby pins to get my hair into its loose chignon.
To heck with it, I thought. If by the end of the night, my hair is down and all of the bobby pins are in my purse, so be it. I’m done messing with it.
I glanced at the clock on the nightstand once more before scooping up my clutch and wrap.
There was a soft knock on the front door. I gave myself one last once over and walked out of the bedroom
“Right on time,” I said as I opened the door.
Carlos stood there, looking crisp and debonair in a charcoal grey suit. A single white rose was clasped in his hand.
He wasn’t saying anything.
I brushed my hand against the back of my neck, checking my chignon and avoiding his gaze.
“You look amazing,” he said.
I looked at him. It was impossible not to see the desire in his look. Chances are if he had the evening his way, we’d be saying to hell with the ball & not leave my room until morning.
His gaze was unwavering. I started to blush.
Ok, maybe leave the room in the morning. More likely leave the room a few mornings later.
A swirl of pleasure floated down my body and curled low in my belly. The idea of making love with him was a thought that I had entertained more and more as the days past.
Then the thought of kissing Edward would float back into my mind, to the point where my body did not know if it was Carlos or Edward that I truly wanted. My nerves sang out in painful frustration.
I quickly stepped out into the hall and shut the door behind me.
There are people relying on us, I thought. You can worry about your hormones.
He handed the rose to me. I buried my nose into the blossom to smell its heady fragrance and clear my mind.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you,” I said.
Carlos reached out and brushed an errant curl from my shoulder. He offered me the crook of his arm and I placed my hand lightly into it. I could feel the heat radiating off his body as my wrist pressed against his suit. He gave my hand a small caress.
“You’re welcome,” he replied.
The ball was well underway by the time Kase arrived with his entourage.
About time, I thought. Another half hour and I would have called the evening a bust. And there was more than one lustful thought that had floated through my mind during the course of the evening about dragging Carlos back to my apartment.
Carlos tipped his head toward a blond-headed man whose gaze had lingered on me for a few seconds when Kase’s group walked in.
I hid a sour look from Carlos. The man he wanted me to distract, John Stanton, gave me an uneasy feeling. When I returned the man’s gaze from across the room, he gave me a slow lopsided smile that made me fight the urge to turn on my heel and walk in the opposite direction. His gaze reduced me to the feeling of a pretty slab of meat on a hook. It didn’t help either when Laura ‘ewwed’ when I told her he’d be my assignment at the Ball.
“He likes to think he’s a lady’s man,” she said with a frown when I asked her what was wrong.
“He thinks?” I asked, cornering her by the water cooler, wanting to know what I had just gotten myself into. “Laura, what do women think of him?”
She gave me a concerned look.
“Just be careful of the guy, Heather. John Stanton is man who thinks that since he’s part of Kase’s group, that whatever he wants, he’ll get. Period.”
“So don’t leave the party with him,” I said.
“Heather, who knows, you might actually like him,” she said, walking away from the water cooler.
“But you don’t think I will.”
“If I were you, Heather, I wouldn’t let Carlos or Will out of your eyesight while you’re dealing with this guy.”
I sighed as Stanton gave me another raking look from head to toe.
This will call for a nice long hot shower when I’m done, I thought, fighting down the buzzing in the back of mind that was screaming ‘Creep alert! Creep alert!’
I headed toward him, trying to find solace in the fact that I was wearing my three inch heels. It followed quickly by the thought that they would likely be meeting up with at least one of his insteps before the evening was through.
“Well, hello there, darlin’,” the tall blond said, tipping his hat up when I presented myself in front of him. “What’s a country girl like you doing in a place like this?”
It wasn’t the exact response I expected and I was unsure how to answer it.
“I’m sorry?” I replied. Confusion seeped through the smile I gave him.
He let out a low chuckle.
“I figured a pretty girl like you must be from the country because you’re the only woman I’ve seen so far that doesn’t seem to be dressed like some cheap whore.”
From the look on his face, I knew he thought he’d given me a whopper of a compliment.
Oh, it was a whopper all right. I couldn’t recall receiving a compliment quite as backhanded as the one he just delivered. Maybe I should just stomp on his instep now and get this done and over with.
I surreptitiously glanced over at Carlos. He and Ambassador Travis were making their way toward Mr. Kase. Maggie was in tow behind them.
Dolores already had four of his group off to one side, chatting up a storm. A couple of them had a deer in headlights look about them, wondering what had just happened. One attempted to extract himself from the situation, but Dolores easily corralled him back in when he tried to make a break for it.
Will had a companion on each arm. Guessing from their looks, Will had them distracted to the point that Kase could have fallen off the face of the earth and neither of them would have noticed.
I glanced at Carlos once more. He was poised for his final move on Kase. Once that happened, he would need about five minutes to ten minutes to let Travis discuss and rectify the shipping and distribution of the tainted food.
Stanton asked me a question.
“I’m sorry?” I said, having missed his question.
He gave me that lopsided smile again and mumbled something that sounded distinctly like ‘Not as half as much as you will be in the morning.’
I moved my right foot so that it was tilted back on the heel.
“I said why don’t we leave this hole and go some place where we can get to know one another a little better.” He stared blatantly at my body as he stated the last part.
This guy wouldn’t know about subtlety if it hit him over the head with the force of a steel I beam. I gave him a forced grin.
“Oh, but the night is still young. I’d like to have some fun before we leave,” I told him, trying to avoid folding my arms defensively in front of me. I settled for curling one arm up, letting the hand rest against my shoulder while other wrapped itself across my waist.
“I’m all the fun you’ll want or need, darlin’,” he said. He reached out and clasped my elbow.
I evaded him, spinning, taking a couple of steps back, before turning to him again.
If I can just keep him in here. If I can just keep him in public, it will be okay, I thought. But my thoughts did little to calm the panic that was starting to turn my stomach.
“Oh, but I’m having so much fun here. I feel like I could just dance the night away,” I said, gesturing with a tilt of my head to the dance floor. “Don’t you?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Carlos and Travis talking with Kase. A commotion to one side of them forced me to turn my head.
Maggie was draped over a man of slight build. He tried to extricate himself from her and she stumbled, practically toppling them both. She was gesturing wildly at him, obviously apologizing profusely. They wobbled back and forth, righting for a second or two, then collapsed to the floor. The people around them, recognizing the walking disaster before them, gave them a wide berth. Kase’s aide moved to pull himself up. Maggie came up to her hands and knees, grabbing at the table leg for support. As the man stood, she reached for a chair leg that stood behind him and yanked it forward, forcing his legs out from under him. He fell back into the chair, which tipped backward. His head hit the floor with a loud thud, rendering him unconscious.
Maggie blew an errant curl off her face with a huff and in one fluid motion, righted both man and chair. She patted his face, trying to rouse him.
The little twitch at the back of my head buzzed while I watched her. If I didn’t know about her ability to be accident prone, I’d almost say that she treated Kase’s aide as some sort of opponent that needed to be quickly and quietly dispatched without it looking like she was doing just that.
I felt my blond companion walk up to stand next to me. He let out a snicker as he watched the uproar unfolding between Maggie and the aide.
“Serves that pompous little shit right. I oughta buy that girl a beer for knocking Tallis down a few notches. Later, though. I think you and I have some unfinished business to take of, right, darlin’?”
I moved to turn toward him, attempting to elude him one more time. He grabbed my elbow, grasping it tightly. There was nowhere for me to escape.
“So what do you say, darlin’?” he asked. He was already moving us towards an exit. I stopped abruptly, pulling my elbow toward me. I saw stars as he nearly wrench my arm out of its socket.
“Let go. You’re hurting me,” I gasped. He wrapped his fingers around my arm, pulling me to him. I winced in pain. He clamped his hand over my neck, steering us toward the exit once more.
“Oh, I think I’ll be the judge of where and when you’ll be going anywhere, darlin’.”
“You know, if this is Texan hospitality, I have to say I’m under impressed,” said a voice from behind us.
“Beat it, G.I. Joe,” the blond said as he glanced over his shoulder. He gave my arm a twist to move me forward.
I resisted. When I heard that voice, my spine turned to steel, smothering my panic. The Neanderthal in front of me might still succeed in dragging me out of here, but not while I was conscious.
And as I heard the shift in stance from behind me, I figured that Stanton would have to get past Edward Beck as well. And that was going to be a lot, lot harder.
“Aww!” I gasped out as the man yanked me forward a few more steps.
“Let go of her.”
Edward’s voice was absolutely calm. My fear started to scrabble up from my belly again, not so much for the adversary at my arm, but of Edward. The last time I heard him be that calm was when Jake was surrendering to him after Goetz’s death. It wasn’t diplomacy that was reaching out to Stanton right now, nor patience. It was rage.
The hand at my neck squeezed once more and I clamped my eyes shut, trying to ward off the pain. I felt the anger radiating off of Edward.
Stanton had no idea what type of danger he was in.
“Please, Edward, don’t --” I began, twisting to face him. Stanton dug his fingers into my flesh and I saw stars. The blond wrapped an arm around my waist, lifting me off my feet. I jerked forward and all I could see was a pair of shiny black shoes, with another pair behind swimming into my view as my vision cleared.
“Maybe you should listen to the girl,” my assailant said, then repeating his name sarcastically, “Edward.”
“Are you deaf, boy?” Another voice asked, “Let her go.” I had guessed that they came from the man standing to the left of Beck. The set of feet receded into the distance as Stanton drug me into the lobby.
“Apparently so,” said the voice, answering his own question.
I felt the Stanton’s head jerk backward once, then again as the sound of a fist connected against flesh. I slipped out of his arms, sliding forward. I was grabbed by a pair of hands and helped upright. A moment later, I was set gently down onto a couch.
I looked up. Edward and Stanton were circling one another. Stanton took a swing. Edward pivoted to one side, slamming his fist into his assailant’s stomach. The blond staggered back and then lunged at Edward once more, only to be met by Edward’s fist to his face. Stanton fell to his knees.
Edward’s companion shifted from my side. It was Clark, Edward’s second in command. He walked over, picking up Stanton’s discarded cowboy hat and placed it unceremoniously on the fallen man’s head. Clark pulled the man to his feet.
“Well, Tex,” Clark said, “I really do think that the next time a woman tells you to let her go, you should take her up on her advice.”
He escorted Stanton to the door.
“Are you all right?”
Edward had walked over and was now kneeling before me.
“I’m not sure,” I said.
He pressed his fingers along my upper arm. I grimaced a little as they traveled over the angry bruises that were already starting to form.
His touch was warm and comforting at first. But when his fingertips brushed against my collarbone, looking for any defects, I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from shuddering.
Even after being separated after for so long, one touch from him practically undoes me.
His fingertips slid along my shoulder. I kept my eyes locked on them, how they danced over my skin. I was too afraid to look at him, too afraid that the emotions he would see would be as bare as the skin beneath his fingers.
He stood up, finished with examination.
“Nothing appears to be broken.”
“That’s good,” I said, venturing a glance at him.
His gaze burned through me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see his fingers flex, unconsciously moving to touch me again. My breath caught. I looked away. I bit at the inside of my cheek again. Hard.
My heart slammed painfully inside my chest. Between one breath and the next, my body betrayed me. Time compacted into itself and my emotions were back at that cave entrance. I dug my fingers into the soft fabric of the couch.
One touch. Undone in one touch.
“I got some ice,” Clark said, walking over to us with a bag in his hand.
I stood up abruptly and wobbled from the blood rush. Edward’s arm wrapped around my waist.
Clark’s gaze shifted from me to Edward and back again.
“Thank you, John,” Edward replied, taking the bag from Clark. He slid it against the inside of my arm, which had the majority of the bruising.
“I should,” I began, stopped, and took a breath. My nerves sang along every inch of my body.
“I should get back to my companions,” I said, fighting the battle of attraction my body was having with Edward.
“All right,” Edward said. “We’ll walk you back.”
He still had his arm around my waist, likely to keep me steady. But I was fighting down both thoughts and feelings that believed his touch was more than just helpful. It may have been the way he pressed me against his body, the sandalwood and spice of his cologne reawakening a desire in me that had not been touched upon in many months. Or perhaps it was the way his fingers pressed against the curve of my hip, the way they flexed protectively when there was even a hint of unsteadiness in my step and then lingered there afterward. Nor could I miss how his hand cupped my elbow, the pad of his thumb brushing over my skin a half dozen times as we walked between the lobby and my table.
Carlos and Travis were sitting down. Carlos had his head tilted toward the Ambassador, listening to what Travis was saying and toying with his glass. He laughed. As he did, he looked up, his mood sobering instantly. I could see his eyes go from me to the ice bag tucked into my arm down to see Edward’s arms about me, then up to Edward, stopping there for a fraction of a second before returning to me. I stiffened as he gazed at me. Edward’s grip tightened for a moment, but when I did not relax, his hands began to fall away. Carlos was already on his feet, moving toward me.
“Heather, what happened?” he asked, stopping before me. I stepped toward him, sliding out of Edward’s grasp.
“It’s nothing,” I said, trying to assure him. “Stanton just tried to get friendlier with me than I was willing to be with him.”
Carlos pulled the bag away from my arm, gingerly pulling my elbow toward him. The bruises were bright cherry red blotches, perfectly matching the span of a large hand. I looked at him as he looked at my arm. I could see the skin stretch back across his temple as the rocks worked in his jaw.
“Where is he?” Carlos whispered, not letting go of my elbow.
“Major Clark escorted Mr. Stanton to the door after I persuaded him to cease from detaining Miss Lisinski against her wishes,” Edward replied.
Carlos looked up. His eyes were dark.
“Thank you,” he said, his gaze not wavering from mine.
My pulse thrummed as his hand traveled down my arm to clasp my hand. He led me over to a chair and sat me down.
Though what attracted me to Edward Beck and Carlos Mazzello was different, my hormones reacted to both of them exactly the same. Like so many taunt strings waiting to be plucked.
And had I not been in public, I’d be inclined to give free reign to those hormones and they were not picky about the choice being either Carlos or Edward.
“Hell, why not both?” A Lily-like voice blurted out in my head.
Enough, I thought, clamping down on any and all rampant thoughts. Right now what Carlos needs is reassurance so he doesn’t go out, hunt down Stanton and beat him within an inch of his life.
I clasped his hand in my mine, ignoring the fact that Dolores just walked up to the table. I could see her perplexed look out of the corner of my eye, turning to a look of mild surprise when she saw Carlos’ hand clasped in mine.
So much for the office romance staying quiet now.
“I’m fine,” I said to him, “Really.”
He looked down at my hand, giving it the smallest caress with his thumb.
“Okay,” he said.
There was an awkward silence.
Not wanting to be the continued center of attention, I turned to Dolores and started to ask who won the bet between Will and herself.
I was saved even from that by the arrival of Maggie. Her heel caught against the carpet and she grabbed the back of a chair, fighting to keep her balance.
My empathy for her embarrassment was outweighed by my relief that the attention that was so acutely focused on me a moment before had now switched to her. Despite my misgivings about her, I don’t think she realized just how grateful I was to see her.
Maggie blushed when she realized all the eyes at the table were trained on her.
“Did I miss something?” she asked.
“No, not at all, dear,” Dolores replied. “The Ambassador here was just about to tell us how things went.
I shot Dolores a grateful look.
Maggie surveyed the scene before her, then looked around the room.
“Where’s Will?” she asked when she turned back to us.
Travis looked around.
“I have a feeling Will’s companions are probably giving him a run for his money in the charm department. I doubt we’ll see him for some time, if at all, this evening.”
Maggie took a seat. Travis introduced Edward and Clark to the others, motioning them to join us at the table. Carlos slid into the seat behind me.
“All in all, it went rather well,” said Travis, recounting the evening once all were seated. I felt Edward’s eyes on me as he and Clark each took a seat at the table.
Carlos’ breath caressed my shoulder as he leaned forward in his chair.
“You’re sure you’re okay?” he whispered as Travis began to make introductions and discuss their encounter with Kase.
I wasn’t. But it had nothing to do with me almost getting dragged off by some psychopath and everything to do with the proximity of the two men I found myself deeply attracted to.
I nodded mutely, focusing on the water glass before me instead of the man before or behind me.
“Mr. Kase wasn’t being inclined to see the situation from our point of view,” said Travis.
“He wasn’t much inclined toward anything but scowling at us and answering in monosyllabic words,” Carlos muttered.
I stifled a giggle, half nervous, half amused, when the Ambassador shot us a look.
“When it was obvious that he wasn’t going to budge on the matter, I hailed down a server that had a tray of hors d’oeuvres. What Kase didn’t know was that Carlos met up with said server early in the evening.”
Which explained why he disappeared for twenty minutes shortly after we arrived.
“Carlos apparently whipped up a few nasty concoctions to help Mr. Kase take some edge off of his perspective and help see things our way.”
“Carlos,” Dolores began. I could hear the hesitation in her voice, the wanting to know dueling with the not wanting to know.
“Carlos, what did you put in the hors d’oeurves?” she asked.
“Nothing horrible,” he said, “Just some canned meat, mayo, vinegar . . . “
He looked up at the ceiling as he spoke, as if he were being asked to repeat the contents of some lengthy recipe. I refrained from rolling my eyes, but couldn’t suppress a grin.
“Oh, yeah, and some Alpo,” he finished.
“Eww!” Maggie said, making a face.
I looked down at the table. In the middle sat the platter of questionable appetizers. Travis reached out, grabbing one off the tray and popping it into his mouth.
“Actually they’re not bad, really. The vinegar just makes them taste a little off. I always did believe my dogs ate better than I did,” he replied.
Maggie, I noticed, was squirming in her seat and trying hard not to turn about thirty shades of green.
“Anyway,” Carlos continued, “When we got the desired reaction out of Mr. Kase, I asked him if he liked them. He, of course, said no. I told him, ‘Well, that’s a shame. I mean, considering how we got this specifically from the canned products that you’ve been distributing to the evacuees. I would think you, of all people, would enjoy the product, considering how you produce it.’”
“You actually said that to him?” I asked. It was a pretty gutsy move to pull on Kase.
“Yup, he turned all shades of green,” Carlos replied. He looked over at Maggie and said, “Kind of like you are right now. Are you okay, Maggie?”
“Hmm? Oh, yes,” she said, though it was obvious she wasn’t. “Um, if you don’t need me for the rest of the evening, I’m going to call it a night.”
Carlos looked over at Travis, who gave him a single nod.
“Sure, Maggie, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.”
Maggie stood up and within an instant all the men at the table were standing with her.
“Uh, thank you, all of you, it was a nice -- . Um, yeah, have a good --,” Maggie stammered. At this point, her complexion was close to ashen.
“Well, bye,” she finally said, making a hasty exit for the door and not looking back.
“I think she’s lead a sheltered life,” Dolores replied, nodding her head to the rapidly retreating figure.
“I suspect so,” Travis said.
We were all silent for a minute. I guess some of us were trying hard not to laugh about the whole thing because it would not have been the polite thing to do.
“So,” said Edward, breaking the silence. I jumped a little, my nerves still being on edge.
“What was the outcome of your ruse?”
“Mr. Kase promised he’d look into it very thoroughly. Said he’d have his inspectors get in contact with us on Monday morning to pinpoint the specific locations of the tainted product,” Travis replied.
“As if he doesn’t know already,” Dolores said with a roll of her eyes. “What makes you so sure he’s not going to welsh on the deal?”
“Oh, just the promise of signing him up for his own hor d’oeuvre of the month club,” Carlos said.
The way Carlos said it convinced me and likely convinced Kase as well that he would be in this special club until the day he died if he did renege on the deal. It made Carlos look both attractive and scary.
“Remind me never to cross you,” I whispered to him.
He looked at me with that special look.
“You? Never.”
I gave him a radiant smile. I turned back still wearing it and looked at Edward.
My smile immediately faltered. The look on his face could be best described as disappointment. He looked away, but not before I saw another emotion flicker there and disappear.
It was the same look Jake had when he saw Emily talking to Roger.
Edward was - envious? No. Jealous? Yes, that was it.
To say I was shocked by that revelation was understating it. Of course, I had fallen for Edward, but I kept my emotions hidden as well as I could. It wasn’t fair to play on whatever he may have felt for me while there was the possibility that Lisa and Angel may still be alive.
But that didn’t mean I could turn my attentions to someone else. Someone who didn’t have the attachments and commitments Edward did. Couldn’t I?
Well, couldn’t I?
I stared at Edward, who seemed to be steadfastly ignoring me.
Anger flashed up bright and hot within me.
Damn him! Where does he think he gets off thinking that just because he can’t have me because he already has a wife and child that nobody else can have me either? I am not your rainy day girl, Edward Beck. You cannot run to me when everything is bad outside and then shove me aside when it all clears up. I’m not going to be anyone’s second best.
Still seething, I turned back to Carlos. Almost immediately, my anger seemed to cool a notch or two. I hadn’t noticed that before now. The way he had a calming effect on me. Just being around him calmed my emotions, allowing me to deal with them one by one instead of a jumbled mess. I needed that tranquility right now. I needed to get away from Edward. I needed to straighten things out in my mind.
“Would you care to dance?” I asked Carlos.
He looked at me in surprise.
“Are you sure you’re up to it?”
I gave him a soft smile.
“Just be gentle with me, okay?”
“It will be my pleasure,” he whispered in my ear as he moved to stand up. The timbre of his voice was rough and seductive. I bit the inside of my cheek to suppress a shiver and pointedly ignored Edward as I stood up.
“If you’ll excuse us,” Carlos said to the others as he clasped my hand, “Miss Lisinski and I are going out to test the boards on the dance floor.”
I saw Ambassador Travis roll his eyes out of the corner of my eye.
“They’re a cute couple, aren’t they?” Dolores said in a not so quite whisper to Travis as we walked toward the dance floor.
Travis gave a non-committal harrumph as an answer.
Carlos led us over to the D.J.’s stand. I must have looked a little confused, because he just smiled and gave me a quick peck on the temple.
“Give me just a second, I’ll be right back.”
He walked over to the D.J. They had some sort of discussion that I could not hear due to one of the speakers being between me and them. The D.J. gave him a questioning look. Apparently, Carlos clarified, because then the man nodded his head furiously and began rummaging through CDs. He gave a nod of the head when he found what he was looking for and handed it to Carlos. Carlos scanned the CD for a moment and pointed something out to the DJ. The man gave him a thumbs up, looked at me, and said something else to Carlos. Carlos nodded his head and walked back to me.
“What?” I said as Carlos clasped my hand.
“What?” he repeated. He smiled innocently at me.
“What did he say when he looked over at me?”
I arched an eyebrow at him and he knew that I was not going to let it go.
“He said that you were a very beautiful woman and that I was very lucky to have you. I agreed with him.”
He turned, pulling me into his arms, waiting for the music to begin. I stared at where my hand rested on his shoulder, blushing furiously.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“I’m guessing no one has ever really told you that. Well then, it will just have to be my duty to tell you that all the time.”
I leaned my forehead against his chest. The orange and cedar of the cologne he always wore wafted around me. A gentle touch cupped the bottom of my shoulder blade and enveloped my waiting hand. Calmness unwound slowly with in me, centering me, grounding me, as he held me in his arms.
“I’m lucky to have you, too,” I replied, looking back up at him as the music began.
He just grinned as he pushed me back a step, glided to the side, then forward, then another glide over to the beginning again.
I listened to the music he picked for the waltz. It wasn’t a song I heard before, the man singing it sounded like a bit of a crooner. Someone you’d find in the easy listening section of a music store. Not my normal fair for music.
The song, however, was both beautiful and sad.
“Can’t believe it’s over, I watched the whole thing fall
And I never saw the writing that was on the wall
If I only knew that days were slipping past
That the good things would never last, that you were crying”
I looked out into the crowd. Our table came into my view and I could see that Edward was watching us dance.
It was as if we were back in his office all over again with me admitting I stole the page out of the binder.
He looked that hurt and betrayed.
I turned my head away. Emotions swirled around in me. I faltered on a step. Looking up at Carlos with an apologetic smile, I tried to push the thoughts and feelings that Edward was invoking in me aside.
It wasn’t working very well. Why did he think I betrayed him? Again? The mere thought of him accusing me of that, if only in a glance, wounded me to my core. Part of me wanted to walk straight over to him and give a solid piece of my mind on why I deserved to have a life and why he was being such a jerk. Another part of me just wanted to go home, curl up on the bed, and cry. Yet another part wanted me to thumb my nose at him, who did he think he was, my parent, telling me who I could see or not and expressing how disappointed he was in my choice of mates?
Didn’t I have a chance to be just as happy with Carlos as Edward had been with his family?
I peaked over Carlos’ shoulder again as the song played. That hurt look was still staring back at us, at me.
Do you think it’s too late for us, Edward? How can it be too late for something that never was? You made sure of that. Angel and Lisa will make sure of that. Don’t push me like this, Edward, don’t make me choose or I’ll make sure of it now.
“Heather, are you all right?” Carlos asked. His breath caressed the shell of my ear and I shivered in his arms.
I looked up at him, giving him a wide smile and said, “Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking is all.”
“About what?”
“Home.”
“Ah.”
We danced down a turn of the floor before I had the nerve to continue. It was time to discuss this. I had been avoiding my feelings for Edward. I was going to get this out straightened, one way or another, I thought. I had to get him alone without Carlos wondering what was going on, however. Carlos didn’t deserve to be dragged into this mess.
“I was thinking I could catch up on what’s going on with the Colonel when we get back to the table,” I said.
Carlos looked up.
“I think that’s going to be a little difficult,” he said.
“Why?”
“He’s gone.”
“What?”
I stopped in mid-step, turning my head back toward the table. Beck was gone, as was the Ambassador. Dolores saw us looking over at the table and gave a little wave. I gave her a small smile.
“How are you doing?” Carlos asked, placing a finger under my chin so that I would look up at him.
The look in his eyes was so tender that I immediately felt guilty having my thoughts distracted by Edward. I should be paying attention to him, not a married man. If I couldn’t fix this tonight, I would at the next opportunity.
If there was a next opportunity.
The events of the evening weighed down on me. I stared at Carlos. He was waiting for an answer.
“I’m a little tired,” I admitted.
He cupped my cheek in my hand.
“Ready to call it a night?”
I nodded my head. Carlos walked me back to the table where we said our goodbyes to Dolores and Major Clark.
“The ambassador asked me to tell you that there will be a meeting with him, Colonel Beck and myself in his office at 0830 Monday morning and that he expects you to join us,” Clark said to Carlos.
“So you and the Colonel will be here for a few days?” I asked. Perhaps there would be another opportunity.
“Probably a week or so, depending on our orders, ma’am.
“We’ll be sure to show you some true Texan hospitality then, Major,” Dolores said to Clark.
Clark smiled and said to her, “We’ll definitely appreciate the R & R, ma’am.”
Carlos placed his hand against my elbow.
“Well, then, we’ll be off,” he said, shaking Clark’s hand as the man stood to bid us farewell.
“It was a pleasure meeting you,” Carlos said to him, then turning to his coworker, “Have a good weekend, Dolores.”
I nodded good bye and we turned away. I scanned the ballroom for Edward, my hopes of resolving this tonight rapidly diminishing when he was nowhere to be seen. I gave a mental sigh before stopping and turning back to the table. Clark was in the middle of sitting down when he caught my movement, standing straight again as I faced him.
“Tell Colonel Beck and the Ambassador good night, please,” I said.
“I will. Good night, Miss Lisinski,” he replied with a nod of his head.
A/N:
chị: sister
chị tôi: my sister
I figured that even though Lily is American born and raised, she, and to some extent Heather, have been influenced by Francine, who was born and spent part of her life in Vietnam. I'm not sure if what I used was the diminutive (I'm a lot more familiar with Japanese and Spanish than Vietnamese) or if there is a diminutive, so if anyone is available to correct me, I would appreciate it.
Hmm, my apologies for making Stanton a bit of a straw man. Though no apologies for Maggie beating Kase's aide though -- revenge for memories of a bad date.
As for Maggie, I'm still trying to round out her character a bit. I hope I was a little more successful this time around.
I have another side story with Beck coming up in the works. I'll post it to give everyone something to read as I continue on this one.
As for the music, I had been thinking of Beck and Heather sharing a dance, but in the end, I thought this actually worked out better. There is one song out there though that does make me think of Carlos and Heather as a couple, "Paralyzer" by Finger Eleven. I can so see Heather and Carlos having some sort of intimate moment when I hear that song. Maybe because I think that a song like that is very appropriate for Karl Urban. (shrugs)