BlackJack (A Standish Bay Romance Book 1) (12 page)

“Friends,” she
said, emphasizing every single letter.

Shannon looked
at Rachel, pleading for help. Rachel shrugged her shoulders. “Hey, don’t look
at me to come to the rescue. I’m dying for juicy details. He is,” she sighed
and fluttered her lashes, “sexy as hell. If you don’t want him, I’ll take him.”

Now, Bridget
shot Rachel the look.

Shannon loved
her sisters, but they were nosy. She didn’t pry into their love lives, did she?
Well, maybe she did occasionally. Especially Bridget’s as she was so tight
lipped.

“Okay, okay,
we’re.” Lovers. In love. Made for one another. Screwing each other’s brains out?
Okay, a little crude, but true as of last night. “I guess you could say we’re
dating.” Could she possibly hope that would be the end of the discussion on
Cole as she turned her back and proceeded to make up three sandwiches? She
would make one fresh for Cole when he came down. And she had the feeling he
wouldn’t until her sisters left.

After carrying
the food to the table, she sat down to eat. Bridget and Rachel joined her,
bringing bottles of water. The next question had her nearly choking to death on
her sandwich. As close as her sisters were, they usually didn’t discuss the
intimate details of their relationships. So needless to say, Shannon sat facing
her sisters shocked speechless.

“Well. Are you
having sex with him?” This interrogation came from Rachel, her supposed ally.

Shannon could
have killed her traitorous body for blushing and her hands for shaking so badly
she had to drop them to her lap.

Bridget gasped.
“How could you have sex with him? Need I remind you he spent years in prison? Do
you
know
what happens in prison? He could have any number of sexually
transmitted diseases, including AIDs. And let’s not forget to mention why he
was there in the first place. Such as the fact he
killed
his wife. What
were you thinking?” Her voice rose several octaves on the last sentence.

Shannon looked
from Bridget, whose face flushed red with anger, to Rachel. Rachel looked a
little sympathetic toward her.
Thank you Rachel
!

Before she
spoke, Shannon steadied her voice to keep out her growing frustration. “What I
think is, it’s none of your damn business. Now, I’m going to eat lunch and you
two are more than welcome to stay, but the discussion about what’s taking place
between me and Cole is over. I
will not
discuss it again.”

She was so
thankful when her sisters gathered their things to leave. As much as she loved them,
the relationship between her and Cole was still new and fragile and she wanted
to spend what little time they had together with him alone. Without the
interference of her beloved, but opinionated and nosy sisters.

Bridget gave
her a hug. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

Rachel hugged her
next. “Sorry, you know how Bridget can be. Will we see you at Mom and Dad’s on
Sunday for Dad’s sixtieth birthday?”

Shannon
couldn’t help herself from groaning, knowing she’d get an ear full from her
family that day. “Yes, I’ll be there. Who do I owe for the present?”

“Mitch,” Bridget
replied. “He bought a really nice bird bath at this garden shop. We each owe
him forty bucks.” Even though Mitch was the only male among her siblings, he
always seemed to take care of the details when it came to present buying or
parties. If and when he settled down, Shannon knew the woman he chose would be
extremely lucky.

When Shannon
closed the door after her sisters, she leaned back against it and tried to
breathe steadily. She felt as though she’d gone ten rounds in the ring without
her boxing gloves. Ten long rounds being beaten to a bloody pulp. Why was
everyone so quick to judge Cole before they got to know him? The sound of her
phone chiming away on the counter had her running up the stairs to the kitchen.

“Hello,” she
said as her finger slid the arrow.

“Hey Shannon,
how’s it going?”

She smiled and
sank onto a stool. “Hey Kevin, why do I get the feeling this is not a business
call?”

Well for
starters,” Kevin said and she could picture his shit-eating grin from ear to
ear. “A certain male with a sexy as sin voice called me recently. Want to tell
me about it?”

Shannon found
herself laughing and glad he called when he had. She needed this light, teasing
banter they did so well. “Think you can handle it?” she goaded.

“Well maybe,
just don’t shock me. Seriously, is he there in your home?”

“Ya,” she
breathed out, her heart going still. “He’s here, thanks to you giving him my
address.”

“Don’t mention
it. Do me a favor and tell him I said hi.”

Shannon laughed
once again. “Sure, I’ll tell him. But you do remember what I said?”

“And what would
that be?” he teased.

“He likes
women.”

“Oh, that,” he
croaked out. “I know, I can dream, can’t I?”

She giggled. “Sure
Kevin, you can dream. I, on the other hand,
have lived
the dream.”

“You loose
woman you. Oh shit, I have to go...love you. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

“Now why would
I do that? Bye, love you. Oh, Kevin? Thanks for looking out for me?”

“Anytime
sweetheart. Anytime,” he replied.

As soon as she hit
the end button, she ran up the two flights of stairs to her bedroom to find
Cole. When she caught sight of him, her heart melted. He’d braved the freezing cold
balcony, lying in a lounge chair, looking uncomfortable as hell. His teeth
chattered loudly, and his lips were tinged blue.

“Are you coming
in? You must be freezing?” she asked, concerned for his health as he wasn’t
used to New England weather.

“Come out,” he
said, sounding and looking defeated.

Shannon grabbed
the quilt off her bed and joined him. He opened his legs for her to sit between
them and wrapped his arms around her as she covered them with the quilt. With
her help, it wasn’t long before he burned hot against her.

“I’m sorry,” whispered
Shannon. “My sister Bridget can come across a little harsh.

She felt him
take a large breath, his chest rising and falling with it. “You have nothing to
be sorry for. They are your sisters and obviously Bridget loves you and is
concerned about you. There was a time when I was proud of my name and who I was
and what I had accomplished in my life.” As he spoke, his voice became
melancholy. “By twenty-three, I’d had it all. And believe me, I’d worked
fucking hard for it. But the most pathetic thing about it was that I didn’t
appreciate it at the time. I never thought it would end so quickly and so badly.”

“When I was
arrested, I believed in the judicial system, innocent until proven guilty.” He
paused to gather his thoughts. “Boy was I wrong. Was it because of who I was,
or what I represented? Why did everyone despise me? I will never forget the
contempt and hatred vibes I felt coming from the jurors from the beginning of
the trial. They were biased from the get-go. But, stupid me,” he snorted. “I
still believed I’d be found innocent. How could I be found guilty when I didn’t
do it?”

Shannon hung
onto every word Cole said, and she wept for the young man he’d been and for his
idealistic beliefs. Then he continued, his voice just as mellow. “When they
read the verdict, I thought I’d die on the spot. I physically felt the thrust
in my heart shattering my world, my beliefs that justice would prevail. I cried
for Lindsey because I loved her regardless of our unconventional marriage and
because the person who had killed her would go unpunished and free.” He
tightened his arms around her, buried his face in her hair and breathed.

“When my appeal
was denied, I died. When I was in jail waiting for my trial, I knew it would
only be a matter of time before I was free,” he huffed. “Could I’ve been more
wrong? The day I arrived at the maximum security prison after being convicted,
I really didn’t care whether I lived or died. There were many days I prayed for
death.”

He sniffed and
cleared his throat. “Then one day I’m in the shower. It’s amazing what your
mind can overcome and the strength your body possesses when there are those
trying to violate you.”

A groan escaped
Shannon’s lips and she held her breath, waiting for him to go on as her heart
broke apart for him.

“Needless to
say, I spent quite a bit of time in the beginning in solitary confinement. Which,
trust me, I preferred. Eventually I gained the other inmates’ respect, and they
left me alone. And I’m relieved and so thankful to say my sexual experiences in
prison were limited to my own lonely, overworked hand.”

Shannon
swallowed, trying to cool the fire burning in her throat from her tears. “Cole,
you don’t have to tell me all of this. I love you anyway.”

“I know, but I
wanted to tell you. There’s more.” He shifted in the chaise lounge and
continued, “I became addicted to books, my music and song writing. It killed me
I didn’t have a guitar, but fortunately for me I could hear the music in my
head. I thanked God every day I hadn’t lost the sound of the music. Anyway, AJ,
once a month, sent me a package that contained books and other such things that
were allowed. He mailed me every one of yours, among other authors. I spent so
much time reading your books over and over. I would stare at your picture endlessly—I
swore I could feel you looking at me, smiling at me. Before I even met you, I
felt a connection.” He laughed nervously. “I think I was halfway in love with
you before we even met, weird huh?”

Shannon laughed
nervously as well. “Not so weird, I felt the same way about you. Every time I
saw you on television, in the paper or in the gossip magazines, it was like you
were looking inside me, and I could see inside you. There was a connection. There
is
a connection. How else can we explain how and why we met and came
together? And I must say, I had strong feelings for you, feelings for a total
stranger I’d never met. But when I did meet you, the connection was
instantaneous. It was real, it is real and extremely powerful.”

Cole traced
little circles with his fingers on Shannon’s arms, causing her body to quiver
and her pulse to soar.

“When I was finally
paroled early, the first thing I did was hire an escort to spend the whole
night with me. I needed to feel like a man. To be with someone who would not
judge me. And I wanted someone to hold me through the night. Fifteen years is a
long time to sleep on a springy mattress in a cold cell with nobody to hold
onto but yourself.”

Shannon sat up
and shifted her body so she straddled him. She needed to look into his eyes, his
golden brown eyes shining glassy with tears.

“Cole?”

He put his
finger on her lips. “Shh. I want to clear the air and I don’t want your pity. I
didn’t tell you for the pity. I told you because I wanted you to know. I don’t
want you having questions or wondering about things and being afraid or
embarrassed to ask. I need to clear the air between us.” He placed his warm
hand on her cheek and she leaned into it. “As the woman I love, I wanted you to
know.”

Shannon closed
her eyes and let her tears fall as everything he’d just said registered in her
brain. When she finally opened her eyes, she smiled with all the warmth,
compassion and love she could muster. Then she lowered herself down and kissed
the tears from Cole’s face. Salty tears from pain. Tears from loneliness. Tears
from love.

“I love you
Cole,” she choked out.

***

He slid one
hand up to the nape of her neck and brought her lips down to his, reveling in
the sensations ricocheting inside his body. There was a connection all right. The
joining of body, heart and soul. What stronger connection could there be?

Shannon
adjusted her body, lay down with her head on his chest and Cole knew the moment
she drifted off to dreamland. Her breathing slowed and her body relaxed and
became heavier. He relaxed back himself and smiled at how lucky he was to have
found her, and he joined her in sleep, enjoying every minute of holding her and
feeling her head and hand on his heart. The heart that belonged to her
exclusively, now and forever.

That night Cole
cooked his famous omelet for Shannon and Cameron. And afterwards they sat in
the family room, fireplace roaring, and Cameron and he played guitars while
Shannon sat curled on the chair, eyes and ears transfixed on the two males in
the room.

Cole spent the latter
part of the evening making love to Shannon, and then he held her through the
night, content once again to sleep soundly. Reveling again in the love she so
freely lavished on him.

    ***

Shannon and
Cole awoke the next morning to the sound of a door banging and a loud, angry
voice yelling, “Shannon, I’m coming up.” Her pulse instantly soared and she sat
up, clutching the sheet to her bare breasts as she listened to her ex-husband
stomping, none too quietly, up her stairs. What the hell did he think he was
doing? She’d had just about enough of his meddling in her life when it came to
Cole. And she could just imagine how he came to find out Cole was here.
Bridget
.
Wait until Shannon got a hold of her tattletale of a sister.

Cole
immediately jumped out of bed and had just managed to pull on his jeans when
the door burst open and John stood there face red with anger, hands fisted at
his sides and the veins pulsing at his temples. The three of them stared at one
another, eyes switching from one face to the next until Shannon couldn’t take
it anymore and broke the silence.

“John, what are
you doing coming in here like this, acting like a lunatic?” She didn’t bother
keeping the anger out of her voice.

***

John stood
speechless as he took in Shannon’s appearance. She’d let the sheet drop and her
breasts bounced, exposed to his gaze. He swallowed hard. He had forgotten how
beautiful she was. He quickly looked away, trying to calm his suddenly pounding
heart. Christ, he had no business seeing her like this. And he would not
acknowledge the fact he was turned on by the sight of her nakedness. And
definitely would not acknowledge the sudden strain against the front of his
jeans.