Desiring the Reilly Brothers: The Tempting Mrs Reilly / Whatever Reilly Wants... / The Last Reilly Standing

Chapter Four

Connor’s laughter still ringing in his ears, Brian winced as he pulled into the driveway. What his brother had found so damned funny, Tina was sure to be pissed about.

He’d known going in that the trick would never work. Just the fact that he’d let Connor try to put one over on Tina proved the level of Brian’s desperation. And in a weird sort of way, he was glad it hadn’t. At least he knew that Tina could still tell him apart from his brothers. It had always been like that. Even though everyone else considered the Reilly triplets interchangeable, Tina was different. So different from every other woman on the face of the damn planet, that if Brian couldn’t get her to leave town soon, he was a dead man. He’d never survive the bet with his brothers.

Hell, any other time, Tina’s visit would have been bad enough. She was a distraction no matter how you looked at it. But now, when he was already a man on the edge, Tina was enough to push him over.

He’d never wanted another woman as badly as Tina. And that still held true. They’d been apart for five years, but just knowing she was in town had his body tightening and his blood pumping. Knowing that she was alone, in the house next door, made sleep impossible and every waking moment a torture.

Oh, yeah. He was in bad shape.

Still grumbling about the coming confrontation with Tina, he stepped out of the car into the cool of twilight. The sun was down, the first stars were just starting to wink into life and jasmine scented the air.

The front door to the main house was open, lamplight spilling into the darkening yard, laying out a path of welcome that he was willing to bet Tina hadn’t meant for him. Brian scowled at the house and told himself he didn’t give a damn what she thought about his plan. He’d had to try, and it didn’t really matter if she was mad about it or not. He didn’t owe her anything anymore. They were exes.

So why then, did he feel so blasted guilty?

And so damned hesitant about facing her?

Hell, he was a Marine.

Trained for combat.

Which, he told himself as he started for the door, might just come in handy when talking to Tina Coretti Reilly.

He took the steps in a couple of long strides and stood in the slice of lamplight, staring through the screen door. From the living room, came the muted, plaintive wail of good jazz playing on the stereo. The dogs had to be outside, or they’d have had their nasty little faces pressed to the screen in an attempt to chew right through the mesh and get to him. So, there was one good point. No dogs to deal with.

He knocked. No response.

He knocked again, louder this time.

“Brian?” she called, “Is that you?”

“Yeah, it’s me.”

“Come in.”

Well, so far, she sounded reasonable. Good. That was good. He stepped into the house, walked through the living room and tossed his USMC cap at the closest table. He rounded the corner into the kitchen and found her sitting at the table, a glass of white wine in her hand.

She was mad. He could see it. Her eyes danced with it. And damned if she didn’t look great. That extra sparkle in her eyes appealed to him, which let Brian know he was in deep trouble.

“Sit down.”

“No, thanks,” he said, letting his gaze slide over her smooth, tanned legs, her pale green cotton shorts and one of the skimpiest tank tops he’d ever seen. No, he wouldn’t sit down. He wouldn’t be staying that long. Couldn’t afford to be around a woman who could torment him this easily. So, best to just say what he had to say and get out of there. “Look, Tina, I’m sorry about—”

“—sending Connor to get rid of me?” she finished for him, then paused for a sip of wine.

He lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “Well, yeah.”

“That’s it?” She swiveled on her chair, crossed her legs and swung her foot lazily.

Her toes were painted a soft pink and she wore a silver toe ring. Oh, man.

“That’s all you’ve got to say?” One finely arched dark eyebrow lifted.

Brian scraped one hand across his jaw. “What do you want from me? I gave it a shot.” Oh, he had to get out of the room. Fast.

She stood up, set her wine on the table and took a step toward him. Her tank top had those tiny little spaghetti straps and they were the only straps across her smooth shoulders. No bra. His gaze dipped to her pebbled nipples, outlined to perfection beneath the clingy, white fabric. Oh, man.

“Why are you so anxious to get me out of town, Brian?”

“Not anxious,” he said, then corrected silently, desperate. But he couldn’t say that to her. Couldn’t let her know what she could still do to him with a single look.

“Connor didn’t fool me,” she said, hitching one hip a little higher than the other and tapping her bare toes against the cream-colored linoleum.

“Yeah, I know,” Brian said, doing his best to keep his gaze locked with hers. It wasn’t safe, God knew, since her big brown eyes had a way of sucking him in and holding him close. But it was safer than admiring her skin or the way her tank top rode up on her flat belly or the way her shorts molded so nicely to the curve of her behind. Oh, yeah. Safer.

“Why’d you do it, Brian?” she asked, and her amazing eyes locked on to him again.

She was like a damn polygraph. Looking into Tina’s eyes forced a man to tell the truth. At least, that’s how her deep brown eyes had always affected him.

“Because,” he muttered thickly, “I just don’t want you around.”

Her head snapped back as if he’d slapped her, and he cursed himself silently. Then she took a step closer and Brian caught of a whiff of her cologne. She still wore the stuff she’d worn five years ago. A magical blend of flowers and citrus, it smelled like summer and warm nights in her arms and, damn it, he told himself, stop breathing.

A heartbeat later, she’d recovered. “That’s honest, at least. Why?”

He tore his gaze from her eyes, stepped past her and picked up her wine. Chugging a long drink of the cold, white liquid, he swallowed hard and glanced over his shoulder at her. “What’s the point, Tina?”

Tina watched him avoid looking directly at her and a ping of something sad and empty resounded inside her. She’d been so furious all afternoon, waiting to face him, and now that the time was here, all she could think was how different they were together now. The attraction was still there, no doubt about that.

She’d seen his eyes glaze over when he first walked into the room and she’d felt that instant rush of something powerful sweep through her. But then he’d distanced himself without moving a step and she’d felt as though she could reach for him for years and never really touch him.

But she wouldn’t let herself be hurt. Wouldn’t allow him to chase her off. Not until she’d done what she came here to do. And if that meant that she had to fight past his defenses, then she was just the woman to do it.

“Geez, Brian,” she said, just a little hotly, “does there have to be a point? Can’t we just be friends again?”

He laughed shortly and set her wineglass carefully back down. “We were never friends, Tina.”

True. She hated to admit that even to herself, but it was true. From the moment they’d first met, they’d been lovers. There’d been no “friendship” period between them. It was all flash fires and fireworks. It was need and hunger and passion.

If they’d been friends, too, maybe they would have lasted. Maybe Brian wouldn’t have been able to walk away as easily as he had.

“We could be now,” she said.

“Why?”

“Because you meant something to me once,” she said and hoped to heaven he couldn’t see that he still meant something. What, she wasn’t sure, but it was there. “Because what we had was good.”

“What we had is over.”

His quiet voice jabbed at her with the strength of a punch to the stomach, but she didn’t waver. Didn’t let him see how much it hurt to know that all he wanted from her was for her to be gone.

Instead, she asked the question that had been haunting her for five years. After all, if he wanted to be distant, he could give her the reason. He could tell her why he’d suddenly announced he wanted a divorce—without ever saying why.

“It’s over because you decided it would be.”

He sighed. “Tina—”

“Tell me why, Brian,” she said and took a step closer. She saw his blue eyes darken, his expression tighten. “Tell me why you threw us away and maybe I’ll think about leaving.”

She wouldn’t but he didn’t have to know that.

“It was five years ago, Tina. Let it go.”

“You still won’t tell me?” she asked. “Not even for the chance of getting rid of me?”

One corner of his mouth quirked, and Tina felt a tug of reaction down low in her belly. Brian Reilly had one great mouth. Instantly, her brain filled with images of just what that mouth was capable of. Memories crowded into her brain, stealing her breath and making her blood hum with a sense of expectation.

“You wouldn’t leave,” he said, shaking his head. “Not until you’re good and ready.”

Still feeling the rush of attraction, she smiled and admitted, “True.”

“You always were a hard head.”

“Coming from the Rock of Gibraltar, not much of an insult.”

“Didn’t mean it as an insult,” he admitted. “I always sort of enjoyed our arguments—at least, I enjoyed the making up part.”

A rush of heat swamped her, and Tina had to breathe deeply a few times, just to keep her brain on track. “If you enjoyed our marriage so damn much, why’d you—”

“So, why’re you here?” He interrupted her neatly, clearly refusing to talk about the past. Again. Shifting position slightly, he leaned one hip against the chipped, blue tile counter. “Why now?”

He looked dangerous.

Always had, which she had to admit, if only silently, had been part of his appeal. Black hair, blue eyes, a broad chest, narrow hips and the ability to wear blue jeans like no one else she’d ever known. Of course he could get to her in a heartbeat. There probably wasn’t a woman on the planet between the ages of sixteen and sixty he wouldn’t affect.

Swallowing hard against a sudden knot of need that had lodged in her throat, Tina said, “Nana went to Italy. She needed help with Muffin and Peaches.”

“And that’s it?” he asked, eyeing her suspiciously. “The only reason? You didn’t talk to my brothers or anything?”

“What are you talking about?” she asked, trying and failing to read his expression. “The only one of your brothers I’ve talked to is Connor.”

He didn’t look as though he completely believed her, and she wondered what he was thinking. Wondered just what else was going on. And even as she wondered, Tina knew she’d never find out from Brian, so she’d just have to snoop around a little.

Brian had the decency to wince when she said Connor’s name. “Yeah. Sorry about that. I knew it wouldn’t work and still let him try.” Clearing his throat, he added wryly, “If it’s any consolation, you scared the hell out of him.”

Tina smiled. “Actually, yes, it is some consolation. But it doesn’t tell me what I want to know. Which is, why’d you do it in the first place? Why is it so important to get me out of town?”

His features closed up and a shutter dropped over his eyes. It was the only way to describe the sudden distance in him. One moment he’d been less than a foot away from her and the next, he might as well have been on Venus.

“Doesn’t matter anymore.”

“It does to me,” she admitted.

“Just forget it all right?” He pushed away from the counter and half turned toward the back door.

“The dogs are out there.”

“Damn it.” He did a quick about-face and stalked across the kitchen and into the living room.

Tina was right behind him.

He snatched up his cap off the table and marched across the dimly lit living room to the front door. As he stepped out, Tina reached for him and grabbed his upper arm.

He stopped dead, as if he’d been shot. He looked down at her hand on his arm, then slowly lifted his gaze to hers.

She knew what he wanted, but she didn’t let go of him. It wasn’t only stubbornness that had her hanging on, it was also the direct heat that had zipped through her body at the first touch of him. Electric. It felt as though live wires were dancing and skittering inside her veins and she didn’t want to lose that sensation so quickly. It had been way too long since she’d felt it.

“I’m not leaving,” she said firmly, meeting his gaze so tightly, she saw the shift of emotions in his eyes, but they came and went too fast to identify them. “I’m going to be here for three weeks, Brian. So you’d better find a way to deal with that.”

His jaw clenched and she was pretty sure he was grinding his teeth. Which, actually, made her feel a lot better about the whole situation. Sure he wanted her out of town. Sure, he didn’t want her to touch him.

Because whether he wanted to admit it or not, he experienced the same short-circuiting sense of excitement from her that she did from him.

Which meant, all in all, that Tina was going to have an easier time seducing him than she’d thought she would.

After all, that’s why she was here, right?

To get Brian into bed.

To get pregnant.

And then to leave.

She let him go on that thought because the idea of leaving was less pleasant than the other thoughts had been and she didn’t want him to see any hesitation on her face.

“Fine.” He nodded and stepped out onto the porch. Settling his cap on his head, he looked at her from eyes shadowed by the black brim of the cap. “Three weeks. I can handle it if you can.”

Then he stomped down the steps, circled the house and headed for the stairs to his apartment. The dogs erupted into howls, yips and barks and Tina chuckled when she heard Brian mutter, “Shut up, you little beasts.”

Handle it?

He might think he’d be able to handle it, but Tina knew that she was getting to him. Knew that before the next week was up, she’d have him just where she wanted him.

The only question was, would she be able to handle leaving him again when the three weeks were over?

Bright and early the next morning, Tina dressed carefully in cream-colored linen slacks and a pale russet blouse. Then she snapped Peaches and Muffin onto their leashes and headed down the street.

It felt strange to go for a walk. Too long in California, she thought. Out there, people drove a half a block to a store rather than walking. Traffic was awful because carpooling had never taken off. Californians liked their cars and their sense of independence too much to share rides. They wanted to be able to go, when and where they wanted to.

Here in Baywater though, the quiet streets were made for walking. The sidewalks rose and fell like waves on the ocean as they climbed over tree roots. But when the sidewalks split, the city came out and patched the cement. A much better solution to Tina’s way of thinking, than the California answer to growing trees—which was to rip them out at the roots and plant newer, smaller trees. And then when they grew, rip them out and start over again.

The trees in Baywater, left alone to do what trees did best, stretched out leafy arms toward each other, making thick green arches over the wide streets. Kids rolled by on skateboards, neighbors worked in the garden and everyone had a swing on the front porch, just made for sitting and watching the world roll by.

God, she’d missed it.

“Hi, Mrs. Donovan,” she called and grinned when the old woman pruning her roses lifted a hand and smiled.

“That’s another thing,” Tina said, talking to the dogs as they pulled her forward, “neighbors actually talk to you here. They smile. Nobody ever smiles on the freeway.”

The dogs didn’t care.

Tina’d never really thought about the differences between South Carolina and California much before. Mainly, she guessed now, because if she had, the homesickness would have crippled her. Always before, her visits to her grandmother were quick and so full of activity or just plain sitting at the kitchen table talking, that she didn’t get the chance to wander around her hometown. To appreciate the quiet beauty and the peaceful atmosphere. To give herself a chance to wind down from all the hurry up and wait in California.

Now that she had, it was addictive.

Muffin and Peaches strained at their leashes, wandering back and forth until the twin, red leather straps were hopelessly tangled and they were just short of strangling each other in their enthusiasm. Tina laughed and skipped over Peaches as she darted backward to smell something she’d missed.

Quickly, Tina bent down and did a hand over hand thing with the leashes until they were straight again. “Now, how about single file?” she muttered and laughed as Muffin’s tongue did a quick swipe across her chin.

Straightening up, she started walking again and as the dogs’ tiny nails clicked against the sidewalk, she thought about her latest plan.

Tina had spent a long, sleepless night thinking about Brian and what he’d said. Or more importantly, what he hadn’t said. And just before the first streaks of light crossed the dawn sky, she’d realized what she had to do.

Talk to the one Reilly brother who wouldn’t lie to her. The one man she knew who was obliged, by virtue of his career, to tell her the absolute truth.

Father Liam.

Chapter Five

The rectory at St. Sebastian’s Catholic church was old and elegant. Built in the same style as the small church, the rectory, or priest’s house, looked like a tiny castle, squatting alongside the church itself. Ancient magnolia trees filled the yard and their wide, silky leaves rustled in a barely felt breeze as Tina approached.