Saving Dallas 2 Making the Cut (3 page)

“I love you too, Luke.” And I did. I stood on
my toes to kiss him, and then grabbed his hand to lead him to
bed.

Once we were settled, he turned off the T.V.
and the light and pulled me to him. I was wide awake. I knew I
couldn’t sleep even if my life depended on it. “Luke,” I said into
the darkness.

“Hmm,” was his weak response. Luke was tired
and needed sleep. I could entertain myself, surely. Maybe. “What is
it, baby?” he asked a little more alert this time.

“I’m not sleepy.” I couldn’t see him, but I
knew he was smiling.

“You want a sleeping pill?” he asked with
laughter in his voice.

“No, I hear those things are addictive,” I
responded, wondering why he was so anxious to get me to sleep that
he was willing to give me a narcotic.

“I wasn’t talking about that kind of sleeping
pill,” he said, kissing my neck. Warmth flooded my body and there
was nothing more I wanted than him inside me once again, but Luke
needed sleep and it was time for me to stop being so selfish.

“No, I’m okay,” I said breathless. My body
was involuntarily pushing up against him even as I said it.

“You sure? I don’t mind fucking you until you
pass out,” he said, his mouth still trailing kisses down my neck
and onto my shoulder.

Luke was a strong guy. He could handle
another few minutes of no sleep. I turned my body so that I was
facing him then rolled him to his back. His eyes were heavy, but I
could see the darkness in them as I straddled him and began kissing
his chest.

“Turn over,” I demanded in a soft voice. He
looked at me quizzically, but obliged. My Luke had been too good to
me. The least I could do was make him feel better. He rolled onto
his stomach, raising his arms on each side of his head. I sat on
his ass with my knees bent, then leaned over him and began to
massage his back. My effort was rewarded when I heard a few soft
grunts coming from his mouth that were muffled by the pillows. I
examined his hard, muscular back, running my fingers over the
muscles that were beginning to relax. Luke’s back was beautiful. It
looked like a photo that had been edited. His tan skin was flawless
and wrapped around every muscular plane like a glove. His shoulders
and neck were broad and although I didn’t know the name of most of
the muscles that I ran my hands over, I knew that they too were
absolutely perfect.

As my hands roamed his body, my mind began to
wander. Who was this man laying beneath me? Was I even sure of his
love and devotion to me? I knew that he loved me, but how much did
that love cost? Tomorrow would be a big day for me. I would have
the answers to all of my questions, but I wasn’t sure if the
answers were ones that I could handle.
Oh stop, being a pussy
Dallas
. I could handle it. I had no other choice.

I looked down at the left side of Luke’s
face. His lips were slightly parted and he was breathing deep.
Sound asleep. I leaned down and supporting my body weight on my
arms so that I wouldn’t wake him, I planted a light kiss on his
temple and quietly got out of bed. Neo was somewhere with one of
the club members, so the house was quiet without him around. I
wandered into the living room and sat on the couch, putting my
elbows on my knees and my head in my hands. My life had been
nothing but a big fucking whirlwind since I was seventeen years
old. Losing both parents, moving to another state, being a constant
fuck-up, losing my grandmother, starting my own business, being
hated by everyone, getting dumped, finding love, being betrayed by
said love, being poisoned, being held at gun point, being sexually
assaulted and tied up in a barn, being saved by the man I love only
to find out by my captor that he had been paid to protect me… My
life was completely and utterly fucked. The worst part about it? I
knew that no matter what Luke told me, I could never live without
him. I needed him. I needed his club and I deserved happiness. I
had never felt like I belonged somewhere as much I did when I was
with him. Even with all the crazy shit that was happening; I knew
that this was where I wanted to be.

I lay back on the couch, staring up at the
ceiling. Maybe I would invest in some of those lights like my
assistant and new found friend, Lindsey, had. I remember when I had
my first fight with Luke; it was her that I had called and she had
taken me to her house, treated me like family, and taught me a
valuable lesson-friendship for me was not impossible. Laying in her
bed that night, I remember looking up at the ceiling seeing the
stars glittering above me and thinking of Luke, until thoughts of
him consumed my entire brain and lulled me to sleep—much like this
time.

Warmth surrounded me as I was engulfed in
arms and lifted in the air. Kisses were placed on my forehead as
Luke cradled me into his hard chest. “What’s wrong?” I asked
sleepily.

“Shhh. Nothing is wrong, babe. Go back to
sleep, I’m just carrying you to bed,” Luke whispered in my ear. I
nodded into his chest as a response and allowed him to carry me,
effortlessly, to bed. He pushed back the covers and pulled me to
him, my back to his front, and nuzzled his face in my hair.

“You okay?” Luke asked, splaying his hand
across my stomach and rubbing his thumb back and forth. The gesture
was nurturing and comforting. I snuggled deeper into him and nodded
my head. Within minutes, I was asleep once again.

I woke to a cold bed. Outside, the sun was
just beginning to peak through the windows and I could tell that if
this was a work day, I would be late. I looked at the clock and it
was a little after seven. Thoughts of last night came to mind and I
knew today was the day I would get some answers. I got out of bed
and headed towards the bathroom. I looked at the reflection of my
face in the mirror, which was marginally better than yesterday. The
healing process was slow, but I was making progress.

I stepped in the shower, washing away the
events of yesterday then went to the closet and pulled on some
jeans and a white, fitted t-shirt. Yesterday’s dress got me thrown
up against a wall and fucked, so jeans it was. I didn’t need Luke
distracting me from my questions with his sex antics.

I found Luke sitting at the bar, coffee in
hand, and a large box-the same box I found in his closet-sitting
before him.

“Good morning!” I said in an effort to ease
the tension that had formed in the room. Luke turned to me and
smirked. He was wearing a black ball cap with DFFD stitched on it,
turned backwards on his head. His white t-shirt clung to his
shoulders and arms, but fit loose at his waist. The tattoos that
ran from his shoulders to his wrists looked even darker against the
white t-shirt that looked even whiter against his tanned skin. He
had a pair of faded, ripped jeans on and once again, was barefoot
in my kitchen. The sight of him was mouthwatering. I swallowed hard
and proceeded into the kitchen, grabbing a coffee mug and pouring
myself a cup of Luke’s famous java.

“You look good this morning, babe,” Luke said
to me, smiling. I smiled back, but my gaze drifted from his face to
the items before him. My stomach fell at the memory of when I found
the box and all of its contents. I was in Luke’s house looking for
my suitcase when I stumbled upon a box in his closet that contained
personal information about me. Pictures, phone numbers,
addresses-information that was gathered before I even knew Luke. Of
course, Luke took the easy way out-accusing me of “going through
his shit” when I had no business. I knew he was throwing the blame
off on me just so he wouldn’t look like a dick. The thought pissed
me off and reminded me why I was here and what I was going to
accomplish today. I walked up to the bar, standing across from him
and placing my elbows on the counter-holding my coffee between my
hands

“Where did you get this?” I asked, nodding
towards the box that sat between us.

“Let’s start off small,” Luke replied softly,
which did nothing but piss me off more.

“No, how about I ask the fucking questions
and you answer them. Truthfully,” I snapped back at him. This was
the Dallas I was before he came into my life. I was a bitter bitch
and Luke had helped me become a better person, but the bitch was
still inside and now was a good time to let her show. Or so I
thought.

“Watch your mouth, Dallas,” Luke said, his
own fury growing.

“No, you watch your mouth, Luke. I’m not the
one who has anything to prove.”

Luke’s head snapped back as if he had been
slapped. He seemed to gather himself and his face turned to stone.
“Kirkley gave me a file. I added to it. Most of these photos were
taken by me or by people employed by me.” I stared at him in shock.
Mayor Kirkley? What the fuck?

“What do you mean, he gave you a file?” I
asked, totally taken aback by what he just told me.

“Kirkley owed your father some favors. When
your mother was killed, he planned to send you to Mississippi to
live with your grandmother. The agreement was that Kirkley kept an
eye on you and your father gave him a shit-load of land and a
promised position as Mayor as long as he held up his end of the
bargain. Some paperwork was drawn up and the land that he loved
would have gone to Stacy, if anything happened to you. That deal
expired on your twenty-fifth birthday. A day your father thought he
would live to see, although he didn’t.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I
could feel my heart beat in my ear and suddenly it was too hot in
the kitchen.

“What land?” I asked Luke. He was still
sitting with his back straight and his face was still stone. He
looked like a robot and I was sure it was a tactic he used to try
and keep his temper in check.

“The land on ninety-eight.”

“But, I just purchased that land from him.” I
thought back to Mason and Nathalie’s engagement dinner. I had
purposefully worn that particular dress just to woo the mayor out
of that property. I had a client begging to put a strip mall out
there and I had convinced the Mayor that it was for personal
use.

“No, you bought a fraction of the land from
the Mayor, and let me guess, he wanted Carmical Construction to
clear the timber? Said he owed me a favor? Well, let me tell you
something, sweetheart, Paul Kirkley knew that this would happen. It
just so happens that I was the lucky guy who ended up in your bed
and not some other shithead. That’s why he wants me to cut the
timber. He wants you to think we’re friends. He wants me to get
close to you, so that I can gather as much information about what
you plan to do with that property. Your tight lipped assistant
won’t tell anything and we all know that trying to get something
out of you is like trying to chisel cement with a spoon. So, what
does he do? He waits ‘til I get in your panties and goes in for the
kill.”

I couldn’t breathe. This was not happening.
Luke loves me. I know he loves me. Why is he talking to me this
way? Why was that property so important to Kirkley? I started to
ask him, when he interrupted me.

“Regardless of what you think, Dallas, your
dad was not a good man. He was a fucking crook. You were just a
stupid, naïve little girl. You thought your daddy hung the moon. He
was a murderer. A thief. A-”

“Shut-up!” I couldn’t take anymore. “You
don’t know what you’re talking about. You think, I was naïve? Do
you really think that I didn’t see through all his bullshit? I know
who he was, but I’ll be damned if I let you stand here and slander
his name! You have no idea what really happened!” There it was. I
said it. All these years, I had kept shit bottled up inside me,
knowing, that if it ever came out, it would destroy me. I had
secrets that I never wanted to be discovered. I had shit that I
never wanted anyone to know, yet here I was exposing myself. I had
become vulnerable and now Luke knew that I knew the truth. I could
tell by the surprise on his face. Of course I knew my father was
not a good man. He was good to his family. He was a wonderful
father, a wonderful husband and a wonderful friend. But even though
he tried to hide it, he couldn’t. He climbed his way to the top by
stepping on other people. But, the world was not a fair place and
he did what he had to do to get by.

“What do you know, Dallas?” Luke asked. His
voice just above a whisper. I shook my head at him.

“No, I’m still asking the questions around
here. Why the fuck did Kirkley want that land so bad?” I spit
between my teeth. I was angry at Luke. I was angry at Kirkley. I
was angry at my father, but most of all, I was angry at myself. I
wanted Luke to believe that I was naïve and stupid, but now that
the cat was out of the bag, I had no other options.

“The pipeline. They have been trying to lay
one across that highway for years, but it keeps getting rejected.
As promised, your dad got Kirkley in as Mayor and he passed it.
They are supposed to begin construction next year. He wanted to
know what business you planned to put there so he could invest in
businesses that would coincide with yours, pulling everyone from
downtown, out to the highway. He knew you wouldn’t fail, you never
do,” Luke said seriously. I could see respect and approval written
on his face. I didn’t need either one.

“I just did,” I said, turning and placing my
full cup of coffee in the sink. My mind was blank. Fun, flirty
Dallas was gone. It was time for me to go back to being the cold
bitch that I was. For years, it helped me avoid shit like this. It
was my shield, my armor, and I knew that the moment I let my guard
down this shit would happen. Luke Carmical would be a memory of
mine. Just like all the others.

When I turned, Luke was standing at the bar.
The look on his face let me know that he knew he fucked up and that
he was sorry. It was a little late for that.

“I assume Red knows the details,” I stated,
giving him a cold stare. He nodded, confirming my assumption. I
didn’t need a friend or a confidant. I needed the fucking truth and
she would give it to me, if I had to beat it out of her.