Twisted Desire (The Twisted Series) (27 page)

“What do you mean,
too late
?”

“She died.”  Harley seems a little choked up, so he
clears his throat.  “I’m a rotten person.  Hannah was dealt a raw
deal.  Her mother became terminally ill and her father was M.I.A. 
She had no one.  Her grandparents refused to come to her rescue and my
sister was too young to get involved.  Hannah deserves a better father and
you deserve a better man.  Maybe I’m just not cut out for the job.”

“Last I checked,
my man
didn’t come with a job
description.  But that can be arranged,” she teases, trying to lighten the
situation.

Harley finally smiles, and it eases the tension squeezing at
her heart.

She thinks better than to delve any deeper into his past,
but she just has to know.  “How did you get your daughter back?”

“That’s the funny thing.  I didn’t plan to get her
back.  But I just had to know that she was okay.  When I finally
found her, and I saw Hannah for the first time, all that changed.  I
couldn’t leave her in the foster system; not when she is my blood.”

Aliah rests her hand on top of his, to show she
understands.  She brushes her thumb over the veins in his hand and smiles
into his eyes.  “You’re not all bad.”

He nods, but it’s not to agree.  It’s clear he’s done
with his story and she worries when he finally reconnects with her eyes.

“Why do you find it so hard to love?”

Aliah tries to act like that question hasn’t thrown her for
a loop, but she’s dizzy like she’s just been spinning on a
merry-go-round.  “Who said I don’t know how to love?”

“I didn’t say you don’t
know
how.  I said that
you find it hard.”

“No, I don’t,” she snaps.  “Loving you has been much
too easy.”  Aliah slaps her hand over her mouth, choking on a strangled
cry.

Harley smiles, taking a lot of pride in her response. 
“Does it really kill you that much to admit it out loud?”

Her hand slips to the floor and he collects it in his. 
She gulps, not one hundred percent sure that she’s ready to repeat it.

“Tell me.  What happened to you?”

Aliah sighs, but decides it’s about time she get it off her
chest.  She can’t seem to face him though, so she looks away.  He
squeezes her hand ever so slightly, and it gives her the push she needs to
admit it.

“The day those babies were born was the day I officially
retreated from the idea of a relationship.  I was ruined. 
Jealous.  Callous.  Even I hated being around me.  I told
myself… No man, means no problems.  No kids, means no stretch marks. 
And no love, means no heart break.  The plan
was
foolproof.”

“
Was
?”

She tries to hide the terror in her eyes, when he catches
the slip of her tongue that describes exactly how she feels without a need for
further explanation.

He’s blown her plan out of the water.

She swallows, but it does nothing to retrieve the ball of
cotton from her throat.  Aliah licks at her lips, and that will have to
do.  “I only wish I could find a man to hold up his end of the
bargain.  But they always press for more.”

“They?” he asks.

“You.”

Harley’s done beating around the bush.  “Why won’t you
kiss me?  I want to understand.”

Aliah pauses, drumming up the courage to tell him how she
truly feels.  She awkwardly clears her throat, but he turns her chin
toward him.

“Why won’t you kiss me?” he repeats, his lips as soft as his
eyes.

“Because I can’t,” she whispers.

“But you can, Aliah.  It hurts me to know that you
don’t want to feel my lips moving against yours.  It’s the most intimate
way to show someone you…”  He’s almost said it, but he fills the blank
with the next best thing. “…care about them.”

Aliah gulps, knowing exactly what he was going to say. 
It is too soon to be throwing around that four letter word.  Aliah starts
back stepping, not knowing any other way to escape the feelings exploding from
her body.

“Maybe we’ve taken this too far already.”  She turns
and walks away.

“That’s B.S.  I know you love me.  Don’t say
it.  Fine.  But don’t stand there and act like you didn’t know it was
coming to this.”

Even though she has put a lot of distance between them, it
feels as though she’s run away from her heart; having left it clutched in his
hands.  Harley’s voice is no less painful, but she can’t possibly respond
to that.

“I might as well come clean, while we’re pouring our hearts
out,” he adds.  “I’m an investigator.  I investigate people.  I
was hired to look into you.”

There it is – the lie that has been tagging along this
entire time.

She can’t even think of the words to say and she doesn’t
have to, because Harley keeps talking.

“The night we met was completely concocted to see if I could
earn your trust.  I attracted your eye.  I ignored you, knowing it
would only gain your interest.  Then I kissed you.”

I’m not going to cry.

“The guns,” she recalls out loud, mostly to herself. 
That
explains that. 
“The number you gave me?”

“My cell.  The message is depersonalized.”

She narrows her eyes at him, to give him her full
reaction.  “You fucking prick.”

He lifts a hand, in an attempt to explain.  “I decided
to turn in your case.  I didn’t give her any info on you.  Except
that I thought you were innocent.”

Aliah hears what he’s saying but she refuses to believe
another word from that filthy, lying, no-good mouth.  “Was that before or
after you fucked me with your tongue?”

“Before… After...”  He’s clearly torn.  “I
honestly don’t know anymore.”

“You don’t know?  Or you don’t have the balls to admit
that you duped me?  You tricked me and you fucked me, like a recycled
piece of trash.  You stole my information, and you took advantage of me
after I let my guard down.”  She brings her hand to her forehead and
shakes it side to side.  “Stupid, stupid girl.”

“You were always willing.”  His words only make it hurt
that much more.

“Don’t use that sexy voice on me.”  She huffs.  “I
trusted you.”  And his deceit only seems to cast a shadow over everything
he’s ever said or done.

Harley takes a deep breath.  “I know.  And I’m
sorry.  But you weren’t exactly forthcoming about your work.”

“I guess I was right to trust my instincts.  I knew
something wasn’t quite right about you.”

He smirks, trying to lighten up the conversation.  “I’m
not a serial killer.”

She doesn’t respond.  It’s like he’s stuffed her heart
back in her chest cavity, but he’s already stabbed what is left of it, leaving
the other half flagging from its mass.

He can see that she’s not handling this very well. 
“You continued to see me after you learned about my investigation into
Cavanagh.”

Is that supposed to make it all okay?

She shakes her head and stares up at the ceiling. 
“Gah!” 
Why is she making excuses for him?
  “The sex is good,”
she admits.

She makes him smile.  Even in this situation. 
“That is true.”

“Just because I’m educated, doesn’t mean I’m all that
smart.”

He tilts his head, not for one second buying into what she’s
selling.  He doesn’t’ want her to go.  “Stay with me.”

Oh, she’s tempted.  So she can use his face as a
punching bag.  “You must think I’m really stupid.”  A tear slips down
her cheek, as she rushes out her front door and drops into the driver’s seat of
her car.  She admits she doesn’t want Harley to follow her, but she’s
surprised when he doesn’t.

Four long weeks later.

Harley stumbles into the living room, where Hannah’s on her
tablet watching her favorite music videos on YouTube.

“Hannah, I think we need to talk.”

She acts like she hasn’t heard him, when he knows that she
has.

“Hannah!”  The force of his voice catches Hannah’s
attention in an instant.

“Really, dad?  Do we have to?” she moans, like a
typical teenager.

“Quit with that.  It’s important, okay?”

Hannah flops back onto the sofa and kicks up her feet,
making herself comfortable.  Does she really think this is going to take
that long?

“I just wanted to ask how things have been going.” 
Harley struggles to say the right thing.

Hannah shrugs her shoulders.  She doesn’t even give a
peep.

“Nothing, Hannah?  Work with me here, please.  I’m
trying.”

She props herself up on her elbows and glances at him. 
Her facial expression changes, when she realizes that he’s being serious. 
“You’re going to have to think of a better question, unless you want my one
word answer.”

Now she’s got him curious.  “What’s the one word?”

She smiles, loving how he can’t escape his child-like
inquisitiveness.  “Good.”

Harley’s smile grows equally as fast.  “That’s good.”

“Okay, dad.  I get it.  You want to talk about
Aliah.  You don’t have to beat around the bush.  I know you like
her.  Is that all?”

He can’t even keep the stunned expression from his
face.  He hadn’t realized Hannah has been paying that close of attention
to him.  Apparently she has.

“I know a lot has changed in a pretty short period of
time.  These past few weeks I’ve been around a lot more than I used to
be.  Aliah had been taking away my evenings and stealing most of our
weekends together.  How does that make you feel?”

“How does that make you feel?” she mocks, in her best
tight-wad psychiatrist voice.  After giggling, she answers him. 
“It’s okay, dad.  I’m happy for you.  You should do what makes
you
happy.”

“You make me happy,” he admits, wanting to make sure she
knows that.

“Yeah, but that’s not the only kind of happy I’m talking
about.  You’ve been stodgy and miserable without Aliah in your life. 
I like Aliah.  I’m glad she’s your first.”

“My first?”

Hannah smiles really big.  “The first girl you’ve
brought home to me.  I feel like I have a new girlfriend, or
something.  She’s really cool.”

Harley shakes his head.  “I cannot believe it,” he
pauses, thoughtfully.  “Thank you.”

Hannah swings her feet to the floor.  “You hardly need
to be thanking me.  I should be thanking her.  You were in such a
good mood when you two were hanging out and it’s amazing what Aliah has done
for my social life.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes.  Aliah might appear all hard and cruel on the
outside, but I think she’s like a Cadbury egg.  She’s sweet.”

He wants to agree with her, but he doesn’t dare with the
lewd comparisons he wants to make.  Harley clears his voice, growing
uncomfortable in his own head.

“Like, when we were chatting the other night…” Hannah
starts.

“You were chatting with Aliah?”

“Yeah.  Just because you dumped her, doesn’t mean we
can’t still be friends.”

Harley mumbles.  “I never dumped her.  She ran
from me.”

“As I was saying!” Hannah interrupts dramatically. 
“When we were chatting, your name came up.”

Harley closes his eyes and keeps them squeezed shut. 
“Did the conversation involve Aliah’s fists and my face?”

“Ha ha, dad.  That’s none of your business.  But I
did tell her that she shouldn’t take you so seriously.  You get like this
all the time when you get into an investigation.  You’ll lie, cheat and
steal to get to the bottom of it.  But I also told her that if you said
that you love her then she should believe it, because that’s the one thing I
know for a fact that you would never lie about.”

Harley reopens his eyes to connect with his daughter. 
“You said that?”

She looks so grown up right now.  “I did.”

“Thank you.”

Hannah just smiles through the thoughtful silence. 
“I’ve been working on her for you.  I think she’s ready to see you
again.  I think you should make your move already.  That is, if you
still want her.”

Hah!  Dumb question.  But not something he’s
likely ever to discuss with Hannah.

“I’m going out tonight.  Is everything okay here then?”

“Yes, dad.  Everything’s fine.  Go.  Get your
girl back.”  She smiles at him and his heart clenches in his chest.

He can’t believe she’s taking this so well.  “You’re
sure you’re okay with me seeing this girl.”

“Do you like her?” Hannah asks frankly.

He tilts his head to the side, suddenly uncomfortable
sharing his emotions by voice.  He starts to mumble, but he can’t lie to
his daughter.  “I like her a lot.”

“Then go.”

“I want you to be happy though.”

“If you’re happy, I’m happy.”  Hannah’s voice tightens
up and she swallows before making her next statement.  “Mom isn’t coming
back.  I know you didn’t love her.  It’s okay.  I
understand.  She explained it to me a long time ago.”