Resurrecting Charlie's Girl (4 page)

"I'm
sorry." She gazed at the floor. "I don't mean to be so much
trouble."

"None
of this is your fault." Tom moved toward the bedroom door. "Go take a
bath and then we'll get some food in your belly."

Chapter Four

"There
you are." Tom set his cell phone on the table and stood.

"I
found the bag on the bed." She tugged her sweater. "It means more
than anyone knows for me to wear brand new clothes. I haven't—"

"No
problem. Sally is a great administrative assistant. She's used to doing odd
jobs for us at headquarters." Tom ambled into the kitchen. "She makes
sure we have clothes, supplies, and information wherever we go. I swear she has
more contacts across the United States helping her out than the
president."

Tom
carried two plates to the small kitchen table. "Nothing tastes better than
breakfast for dinner."

He
pushed a plate over in front of her. The eggs and hash browns tasted great to
her. They lapsed into a comfortable silence while they ate.

When
he glanced over at her, she pointed her fork at her plate and nodded. "I'm
impressed."

He
flashed his dimple. "I'm glad you're enjoying breakfast-slash-dinner. You
were running on empty, and this is comfort food. It always helps me to have a
full stomach."

"So,
how did you learn to cook?" she asked.

"My
mom raised me and my two sisters by herself. We took turns cooking growing
up." Tom shrugged. "The girls babysat after school, so cooking dinner
fell to me, and I found out I enjoyed making a meal."

"Hm…"
Charlise swallowed a bit of food and nodded.

She
understood the whole single parent role. Her Dad had been a single parent.
Thank God they'd lived close to a Chinese restaurant, or they would have
starved. Neither of them could do more than boil water.

With
a couple of bites of toast left, she pushed her plate away and groaned. "I
don't remember the last time I ate so much."

Tom
propped his elbows on the table and grinned at her. The expression made the
corners of his eyes crinkle. She darted her gaze away and rose to put her plate
in the sink. A woman could seriously fall for a man like him.

She
grabbed Tom's plate and moved to the sink."I'll do dishes."

Escaping
into the kitchen, she frowned when her hand shook on the faucet. She needed the
time alone.

Whatever
her attraction to Tom meant, she didn't need it distracting her from the
problem at hand. She placed the last plate in the dish strainer. When she
reached up to close the kitchen blinds, headlights flashed through the slats,
straight into the house. She ducked below the sink cabinet. Shit!

"Charlise,
stay down" Tom's loud whisper came from the other side of the kitchen
island.

He
crawled into the kitchen from the dining room and moved to lean against the
cabinets next to her. "I'm gonna go check outside."

Charlise
grabbed his arm. "You can't. He's just trying to draw you out to get to
me. He'll kill you."

"He
can try. No one's getting past me." He tilted his head. "When are you
going to trust me?"

He
removed the nine-millimeter pistol from his underarm holster and slipped the
clip in. Faster than lightning, she reached out and caught his arm in a death
grip.

"Don't
do it."

"Stay
here, below the window. I'll be back." Tom cocked an eyebrow at her in
challenge.

Her
chin went up. He was about to find out how stubborn she could be. She wasn't
going to let him go outside and get himself killed.

"You're
a fool if you think he won't kill you." She set her mouth.

She
refused to back down. It wasn't only his life, but her life at stake too.

"Don't
worry, Charlise." He leaned closer and took her lips in a hard kiss.

Surprised,
Charlise loosened her strangle hold on his arm as warm jolts of pleasure shot
through her body.

The
kiss was hard and fast, and by the time she gained her equilibrium, he'd
already scrambled across the floor and out of sight. She touched her lips with
her fingertips and kicked out at the floor. Damn him.

What
kind of person let a kiss distract them from the situation at hand? The lack of
sleep, plus the stress of having Jared on her tail was hampering her good
judgment. She wanted her life back. One that didn't involve a man who
controlled her.

What's
wrong with me? First Jared and now Tom. I should be put in a mental
institution.

The
simple fact she sat on the floor because Tom ordered her to stay there burned a
hole in her stomach. The way he used his masculinity to leave her breathless
and forgetful irritated her. The waves of pleasure he produced low in her belly
just plain pissed her off.

The
slamming door interrupted Charlise's thoughts. She crouched on the balls of her
feet and tried to hear past the roaring in her ears for footfalls. I need a
weapon.

She
reached up and opened the silverware drawer. Peering over the edge of the
drawer, her fingers made quick work at picking out the biggest weapon. A steak
knife would do, but she'd have given anything for a machine gun.

Charlise
slid the knife in the back pocket of her jeans. She knew a knife wouldn't hold
Jared back, but if he made a grab for her, it might do enough damage to gain
her freedom.

The
squeak of shoes echoed across the hardwood floor toward her. She held her
breath and spread her arms wide. She'd knock him down and try to get past him
first. If that didn't work, she'd stab him.

He
came closer. Her chest, so tight, her pulse vibrated her whole body. She leaned
onto the balls of her feet.

Ready.

Set.

Go!

Launching
from the tips of her toes, she sprang up, put her head down, and threw her
whole body at the shadowed figure that dared to enter the kitchen. Her shoulder
slammed into the person. She ricocheted off the human steel wall, and found
herself falling backward.

Pain
radiated down her back, and paralyzed her. A pair of strong hands grabbed her
shoulders and yanked her upright.

"What
the hell are you doing?" Tom gave her a shake that rattled her teeth.

The
bravery whooshed out of her at the realization Tom held her imprisoned against
him, and not her ex-husband.

"Didn't
I tell you to stay on the floor?" He thrust her back to look at her face,
but didn't relax his hold. "You know how serious this situation is. Jesus,
woman, if anything happened to you—" Tom brought her back within the
circle of his arms and smashed her against his chest.

His
hands roamed over her back. Charlise's whole body shook in silent frustration.
Who did he think he was to order her around? She'd survived on her own this
long. She pushed against his chest and stepped back.

She
slammed her hands down on her hips and glared at him. "You dumbass! Don't
you ever again tell me what to do. You have no right!"

Tom's
eyes narrowed. He rubbed his chin and then a grin appeared on his face. The
dimples that drove her wild appeared on his cheeks. When Tom relaxed his
stance, it infuriated her more.

Emitting
a low, guttural scream of frustration, she moved to step around him, but
punched her fist into his gut as she did. She was rewarded with an,
"Oomph!" as Tom doubled over. She continued toward the living room.

"Hey,
now. Stop." He caught up with her and spun her around with a hand on her
arm. "You can be riled up and mad at me all you want, but you'll follow
orders when it comes to your safety. A stupid move like what you just pulled
could get us both killed."

"Riled
up? You didn't mean—" She shoved the hair out of her face. "I'm
pissed. I'm so tired of being told what I can do or what I can't do." She
clamped her mouth shut, and breathed deep through her nose. "You kissed
me!"

The
corner of Tom's mouth lifted. "Yeah, I did."

"See!
You think you can use your manliness to make me do whatever you want. Just like
Jar—"

"Whoa,
Charlise." Tom's mouth hardened and he narrowed his eyes. "Stop,
right there. That's not what happened and you know it."

"I
don't know what the hell happened, because you didn't give me a choice."
The fever in her voice faded, and to her shame, tears gathered. "Oh, never
mind."

The
emotional rollercoaster of her life was definitely getting to her. One minute
Jared's after her, and the next, Tom kissed her. Kissed me!

She
marched up the stairs. Her fingers moved over her lips still warmed with Tom's
kiss.

"Charlise?"
Tom's voice came from the bottom of the stairs.

She
paused at the upstairs landing, but didn't turn around. She only wanted to go
to her room and shut out the outside world.

"The
light outside—" Tom cleared his throat. "Was the neighborhood
security guard on his nightly rounds. The advantages of small-town
living."

Tangled
up in the emotional mess Tom brought out of her, she forgot all about the
threat outside upon seeing him alive. A security guard? Another person Jared
will need to move out of the way of his goal to get her back. Did it never end?

She
couldn't make herself turn around and thank him, yet she couldn't walk away
either. Lowering her hand, she stood there waiting for common sense to come
crashing down on her and tell her what to say, to do.

Tom
took her need to decide away from her when he joined her upstairs. His hand on
her arm kicked her into motion. She turned to face him on the landing and
crossed her arms. "You kissed me."

He
ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah, I did."

She
tilted her head. "Why?" Groaning, she shook her head. "Never
mind. Don't answer that—"

Before
she could move away, Tom's hands cupped her face and his lips captured her open
mouth. His tongue swept inside and danced with hers. Charlise mewed. This
wasn't the fast kiss from a moment ago. This one was soft and warm. Her body
melted and she grabbed the front of his shirt to hang on. Sweet pleasure washed
away her anger.

Tom
pulled back. His eyes were dark with desire. "Earlier, that was a kiss to
shock you into not following me. That kiss I just gave you…was a kiss you can
be pissed over." He kissed her forehead, turned, and walked back down the
stairs." Good night Charlise."

Chapter Five

A
heavy snore woke Charlise up. She lay still, eyes closed and tried to figure
out where she was. When another snore resounded in the room, she realized it
wasn't Jared beside her, thank God.

For
one thing, Jared didn't snore. Such an imperfection meant Jared wasn't perfect,
and that he couldn't conquer something he'd view as a weakness. No, he'd never
live with himself if she mentioned he rocked the walls with the noise he made
in his slumber.

Her
eyes flew open when another wheeze and bark erupted close by. Tom's face was
mere inches from hers, his head resting on her pillow.

As
her heart rate slowed down, her lips quivered with amusement. Snoring made him
human, and—Oh, my God, what is he doing in my bed?

"Tom."

There
was a brief snore and he squirmed beside her. "Hm…"

"Tom!"
She poked him in the chest. "Get up. You're in my bed."

The
still sleeping man wrapped his arms around Charlise and pulled her closer. His
body molded around hers.

"Tom?"
She squealed and fought the desire to succumb to the furnace-like heat
radiating off him.

His
hold on her was soft, yet his body remained hard and unmovable.

She
dared not move. "Tom—"

"You
had a nightmare." He yawned hugely. "You calmed down after I got in
bed with you."

"Oh."
She remembered now. The backrub he gave her lulled her back to sleep. Her
stomach fluttered. It was the first time that she could recall being put to
sleep that way.

"I'll
get up in a second. Let me wake up." His eyes remained closed and he
stretched his legs out next to hers.

"Don't
bullshit me. I can…feel you." She pressed against his hips to prove her
point.

Tom's
arms tightened, and he nuzzled the sensitive skin at the base of her neck.
"I can feel you, too." His lips moved against her ear, and sent
shivers down her body. "You feel good, you know that?"

"Don't
make me mad. Get up, before I—" Charlise fought to keep her wits when his
mouth sucked on her neck. "Before I…"

Tom's
mouth trailed along the curve of her throat to her collarbone. She moaned. The
velvet texture of his tongue skimmed a path up her neck to the tip of her chin.
Before she could protest again, he captured her lips with his.

Under
the cocoon of blankets and in Tom's arms, Charlise lost herself in the pleasure
from his kiss. Her nipples hardened and she nibbled on his lower lip, tasting,
licking, Tom groaned, kissed her one more time, and pulled back. She ran her
tongue across her lips, already missing him.