“Savannah, a fairy must have sprinkled pixie dust over you last night,” Marva said the next day as the two women made their way to a small break room for coffee. “You’ve been smiling all morning.”
“Why shouldn’t I be smiling? It’s a lovely spring day outside and these classes are getting easier or I’m getting smarter,” she joked.
In truth, Savannah did feel happier than she’d ever felt since arriving in Austin. And she was beginning to wonder if the old adage about making up after an argument was even better than not having an argument in the first place.
Something had happened to Chaz last evening after they’d quarreled. She honestly didn’t have a clue as to what or why the change had occurred. She only knew that he’d felt so much closer, so much more willing to share himself with her.
Marva chuckled. “You must be getting smarter, Savannah. I’m still trying to make sense of how one tiny cell of bacteria can turn into an epidemic,” she joked.
The two women entered the break room and headed straight to the coffee machine.
“Actually, I’m a bit excited about this evening, Marva. I’m going out to dinner. With Chaz and his brother and sister-in-law.”
The older woman cast a doubtful look at Savannah. “You’re going out with your bodyguard?”
“Well, it’s not like a date. I mean, yes, he’ll be guarding me, but it’s sort of a family thing, too. You see, Chaz’s sister-in-law is my cousin. A few months ago, my family learned about a bunch of relatives we didn’t know we had. Many of them live here in Austin.”
“Hmm. I’ve noticed the Fortune name popping up here and there around town. Someone told me that the business magnate that owns Robinson Tech is actually a Fortune.”
“That’s right. He’s my uncle. Or half uncle, I guess you’d say. In any case, I’m not sure I’d ever want to meet him.”
Marva frowned. “Why not?”
Savannah waved a dismissive hand through the air. “It’s a long story. So long in fact that I only know portions of it. Some day when we’re not studying about good and bad bacteria I’ll tell you what I do know.”
Marva gave her a sly wink. “I’m going to hold you to that promise.”
“Hey, ladies. How about some cookies to go with that coffee? Got them fresh from the deli this morning.”
Savannah looked around to see Arnold entering the room, waving a white paper bag at them.
“What kind of cookies?” Marva wanted to know.
“I’m not picky,” Savannah told him. “I’ll take one.”
She stirred cream and sugar into her coffee and followed Arnold over to one of the utility tables.
As she started to sit in a chair next to him, the cell phone inside the slash pocket on her skirt began to ring.
Deciding she should check the caller ID to make sure it wasn’t any of her family, or Chaz checking on her, she pulled out the phone and glanced at the screen.
Live Oak Lane Apartments. Why would someone with the apartment complex be calling her?
“Excuse me, you two, I need to answer this.” Savannah stepped away from the table and pressed the accept button.
“Hello, am I speaking with Savannah Fortune?”
“Yes,” she answered cheerfully. “I’m Savannah.”
“This is Loretta Baines. I’m the superintendent for Live Oak Lane Apartments. We talked when you took out the lease.”
“Yes, Loretta. I’ve not forgotten how nice and helpful you were. Is there something—”
“You need to come to your apartment now, Miss Fortune,” the woman interrupted. “There’s been an incident.”
The urgency in the superintendent’s voice alerted Savannah and sent fingers of fear rippling down her spine.
“Incident?” Savannah repeated, her mind whirling. “I have to be back in class in fifteen minutes. I can’t—”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “But the police need to speak with you. Your apartment has been vandalized.”
Police? Her apartment? What was going on? Where was Chaz?
Something cold and heavy hit the pit of Savannah’s stomach as the questions raced through her mind.
“No! That can’t be!” She barely managed to mutter the words.
“Please get here as soon as you can, Miss Fortune.”
The phone connection went dead in Savannah’s ear and the silence broke through the shock that had momentarily frozen her.
“What’s wrong, Savannah?” Arnold asked. “You look white.”
She looked over to her classmates to see Arnold had risen to his feet while Marva was staring, obviously concerned.
“There’s been an emergency at my apartment. I have to go. Now. Will one of you please explain my absence to the professor?”
“Of course,” Marva insisted. “We’ll take care of it.”
Arnold promptly shooed Savannah out the door. “You go, Savannah, and do what you need to do.”
Outside the building, Savannah caught a taxi and on the way to the apartment complex, she called Chaz’s number several times. Each time the ring sounded odd and his voice mail answered.
Earlier this morning when he dropped her off at the science building, he’d told her he was planning to make a trip to the winery while she was at class. Apparently, there was a problem with his phone, or the signal was spotty in his area. Whatever the reason, she desperately wished she could hear his voice. She needed him now more than ever.
Chaz was working on a security buzzer on the main door leading into the fermenting room when his phone signaled a new text message had arrived.
Figuring one of his brothers was simply saying hello, he finished connecting the electrical wires before he put down his tools and pulled the phone from his pocket.
The number attached to the message didn’t register with Chaz. But the content was chillingly clear.
Miss Fortune’s apartment has been vandalized.
Oh, God! Savannah! Where was she? Had she gone back to her apartment for something? Had she been harmed? Taken?
Horrible scenarios flashed through his mind as he punched her cell number and waited for the sound of her voice.
No answer!
He trotted down the hallway and was nearly to the main office when Esteban stepped through the door.
“Chaz, I was just coming after you. I’ve made a fresh pot of coffee and—”
“Later, Dad. Something has happened with Savannah and I have to go. I’ll deal with the door alarm later.”
Esteban looked horrified. “Savannah? What—”
“I don’t know! I’ll get in touch with you and Carlo later.”
Throughout the drive back to the apartment complex, Chaz continued to ring Savannah’s phone, but each time it went to voice mail. He then tried the science building on campus and after a long wait was told she wasn’t present in Professor Barcroft’s class. The information pushed his fear to outright panic.
Damn it! He should have been on campus or at the apartment. He shouldn’t have gone to the winery for any reason.
Chaz realized his thinking was irrational, but he couldn’t stop the self-condemning thoughts. Savannah was precious to him. Very precious. If anything had happened to her, he’d never forgive himself. He’d never get over it.
As soon as he turned onto the street running adjacent to Savannah’s apartment, he spotted two police cars parked in front of her unit and a small group of onlookers huddled together on a nearby lawn.
Once he found a place to leave his car, he trotted to the apartment and discovered the door wide open. His heart racing, he stepped inside and was immediately stopped by a police officer.
“Sorry. This is a crime scene,” he explained. “Do you have a connection to the victim?”
Victim? Chaz flashed him his identification. “I’m Miss Fortune’s bodyguard,” he answered. “What’s happened here?”
“Sorry,” he began again. “You’ll have to—”
He didn’t wait to hear more. In spite of the bulky frame of the officer, Chaz managed to plow his way forward and into the living room.
Even though part of his gaze registered the upturned furniture, ripped drapes, broken lamps and other damage, Savannah was his main focus. To see her standing in the middle of the shambles, being questioned by two police officers, was like a knife in the chest. Especially when he spotted a track of tears on her cheeks. Yet, the enormity of his relief of finding her here and unharmed was so great his knees went weak.
The police officer who’d been guarding the door suddenly came up behind him. “Sir, you’re going to have to leave. This is—”
“My business,” Chaz told him bluntly. “I’m her bodyguard.”
And I want to be so much more.
The thought was whispering through his head when Savannah suddenly looked up and spotted him.
“Chaz! Oh, Chaz!”
Sobbing openly, she rushed straight to him and flung her arms around his neck.
Chaz gathered her in the tight circle of his arms. “Please don’t cry, Savannah. We’ll get this mess cleaned up later. You’re okay. That’s all that matters.”
“Oh, Chaz, I don’t care about me—or this mess! When you didn’t answer the phone, I was terrified. I thought the vandals might’ve done something to you!”
Tucking her head beneath his chin, he stroked a hand down her silky hair. “I thought the same about you. I thank God you’re safe.”
She clung to him and Chaz realized her whole body was trembling. He pulled her closer and looked over at the officers, who were regarding the two of them with interest.
“I don’t think she can deal with any more of this,” Chaz told them. “If you have all the information you need for now, I’d like to take her out of here.”
After a quick conference between them, the elder of the two lawmen stepped forward. “Okay, you two can leave. After we finish here, we’ll have the superintendent lock up. If you find anything missing, call the police department and let us know. Otherwise, if we get any information on the vandals, we’ll contact Miss Fortune.”
Chaz seriously doubted they’d hear anything from the police. But he hardly needed them or anyone else to tell him who was behind this malicious act. He had no doubt that this devastation of Savannah’s apartment was Charlotte Robinson’s work.
He thanked the officer for his consideration and drew Savannah aside and out of the earshot of the three men.
“Savannah, I really don’t think it’s safe to stay here now. The place is in shambles anyway.”
Nodding numbly, she looked at him and Chaz couldn’t mistake the fear clouding her eyes.
“I’m not going to argue. I don’t feel safe here, Chaz. I’m not sure I’ll ever feel safe again,” she said, her voice threatening to break from another bout of tears.
Swamped with the need to comfort her, Chaz gently wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Come on. Gather up whatever essentials you’ll want with you for tonight and we’ll get out of here.”
A half hour later, they arrived at Chaz’s apartment. The living quarters weren’t nearly as posh as Savannah’s residence at Live Oak Lane, but it was comfortable. And Chaz felt confident that no one had followed them here. Which was somewhat of a relief, but was hardly enough to make him feel completely safe.
If Charlotte had already learned about Savannah’s presence in Austin and located her apartment that meant she most likely knew about Chaz, too. The thugs who’d demolished the apartment had obviously known that he, or Savannah, wasn’t at home when they’d made their hit.
So how long would it take Charlotte to figure out where Chaz lived? And would she dare to come after them here?
He tried to hide his dire thoughts from Savannah as he helped her to the brown leather couch in the small living room, but she seemed to pick up on them anyway.
“You’re worried,” she said. “I can see it on your face.”
He pressed her hands between the two of his. Her fingers felt cold and her face was as pale as his white shirt.
“I am worried,” he said. “About you. You’re still shaking. I don’t want you going into shock.”
She tried to smile, but her lips only managed a wobbly slant.
“Don’t be silly, Chaz. I’m just feeling a little cold. I’m okay now. Especially now that we’re away from Live Oak Lane. Really.”
He wasn’t convinced. “Don’t move. I’ll be right back.”
Savannah watched as he picked up the bags they’d brought with them from her apartment and left the room. Once he was out of sight, she leaned her head back against the couch and closed her eyes.
She’d never felt so stupid or shallow in her life. From the moment she’d arrived in Austin and learned that Chaz was her bodyguard, she’d believed the whole issue of her safety had been ridiculous. She’d believed her father had blown everything out of proportion. Now, she had to admit that her father, Chaz, even her brother Nolan had been right. The New Orleans Fortunes were just as much a target for Charlotte as the Austin or Houston branches of the family.
Besides ruining the furnishings in the apartment, many of her personal things had been torn and smashed. The viciousness had appalled her and the invasion of her private space had left her sick to her stomach.
Eventually, her father would have to be told about the break-in and the devastation. But she was going to have to pull herself together before she shared the news with any of her family. For one thing, as soon as her father was told, he’d send Nolan over here and her brother would most likely insist on her moving in with him. And Savannah wasn’t about to let that happen. Not only did she want her privacy, but she understood that as newlyweds, Lizzie and Nolan needed theirs also. Savannah would go back to New Orleans before she disrupted their lives.
Footsteps sounded nearby and she opened her eyes to see Chaz returning. A folded patchwork quilt was jammed beneath one arm while he carefully balanced a steaming cup on a saucer.
“Is that for me?”
He placed the drink on a low coffee table, then shook out the quilt and draped it over her legs. “All for you. I want you to get warm and relaxed.”
She patted the cushion next to her. “Just sit by me, Chaz. That will be enough to get me warm.”
He eased down beside her and handed her the cup. “Drink this. It’s hot and sweet.”
Since her hands were still trembling, she wrapped them both around the cup and gripped it tightly.
“This doesn’t look like coffee,” she said, peering curiously at the light brown liquid.
“It’s tea. Plain Earl Grey. And before you ask, yes, I do drink hot tea on occasion. It’s good for you.”
She didn’t want anything to drink. All she wanted was to have him close to her. But because he’d gone to the trouble of making it for her, she took a few sips.
“You’re good for me, Chaz. After today, I realize that more than ever.”
A quizzical look came over his face and then he groaned and shook his head. “Just like I thought. You’re in shock. You don’t know what you’re saying.”
She placed the cup back on the coffee table, then reached for his hands. A spurt of joy rushed through her when, instead of pulling away, his fingers curled tightly around hers.
“You’re wrong,” she told him. “My mind is very lucid.”
He was nowhere near convinced. “You’ve been traumatized.”
“Sometimes danger can open a person’s eyes. And earlier today, when I couldn’t get you on the phone, I was so scared that you were in the apartment when the vandals hit. If you’d been there—if they’d hurt you—I couldn’t bear that, Chaz.”
His gaze was warm and gentle on her face. “If something had happened to you—” his hands released hers and curled tightly around her shoulders “—it would have been my fault, Savannah. How do you think I could have lived with that kind of guilt?”
“No, Chaz. You can’t think that way.” Her hands framed his face, her thumbs reaching out to caress the lean hollows beneath his cheekbones. “And anyway, you’re here and I’m here and that’s all that matters.”
His gaze dropped to her lips and Savannah’s heart slowed to an anxious thud. During the drive from her apartment to Chaz’s, something had happened to Savannah. Maybe the fear she’d gone through had affected her thinking. Or maybe it was facing the truth about being a target of Charlotte’s. Or maybe those things had nothing to do with the way she was feeling. She couldn’t put a finger on what had caused the change. She only knew that when she’d looked away from the police officers and saw Chaz standing in the middle of the ransacked apartment, it was like a ray of sunshine had filled her heart.
“You’re making things very hard for me, Savannah.”
“Not any harder than you’ve been making them for me.”
His face drew closer, until a tiny space was all that remained between their lips.
“I said I wouldn’t kiss you again.”
“I’m forgetting that you said that,” she said boldly. “I’m forgetting everything but the two of us—together—like this.”
She closed the gap between their lips and the contact created an instant combustion. Desire shot straight to her brain, wiping away every thought in her mind, except making love to him. And with a tiny moan, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her upper body to his.
Her response was like an accelerant being tossed on a fire that was already raging. The desperate search of his lips rocketed her senses to another dimension, where nothing existed, except for the dark mysterious taste of him, the heat of his body next to hers and his strong arms cradling her close. So close.
Over and over, he kissed her until her swollen lips ached with pleasure and the heat inside her had grown, until it was radiating up and down to every pore, every cell of her body.
The intensity of the embrace was like nothing she’d experienced before and her reactions to him were instinctive, hungry and reckless. She couldn’t hide her longing for him. Nor did she want to.
Eventually, his lips parted from hers and he turned his attention to her neck. She closed her eyes and tried to breathe as he pressed tiny kisses against the throbbing pulse at the base of her throat.
Groaning, she let her head fall back to expose the creamy column of her throat. His fingers traced her lips, then marked a downward path over her chin and onto the hollow between her collarbones. All the while, his lips were making tiny circles upon her skin, taunting and teasing her with promises of better things to come. And she wanted every delicious experience he could give her.
At some point, the two of them tilted sideways on the couch, until she found herself lying flat on the cushions with his body partially draped over hers.
As his lips continued on a downward exploration, his hands were everywhere. Stroking her arms and across her rib cage, cupping her breasts, then sliding downward to her hips. When his fingers eventually dipped beneath the hem of her skirt and marched up her bare thigh, she tangled her fingers in his hair and urged his mouth back to hers.
The kiss was hot and all consuming, causing need to stab her from all directions. Her lower body reacted by arching toward his. Somewhere beyond the roaring in her ears, she heard him groan and then the hard bulge of his erection was pressing into the juncture of her thighs, telling her in no uncertain terms how much he wanted to be inside her.
The thought shot her senses to an even higher level of desire and by the time his fingers reached the silky fabric of her panties, she was frantic to have him make love to her. Mindlessly, her hips twisted back and forth against his hand, while the mewing sounds in her throat were like a kitten pleading to be fed.
With one hand, he peeled her panties away, then shoved the folds of her skirt up to her waist. His fingertips gently brushed against the intimate folds between her legs and she waited breathlessly for him to deepen the exploration.
Instead, he tore his mouth from hers and looked down at her. His eyes were glittering with golden flecks of light, turning his gaze molten.
“Chaz—oh, please—make love to me!”
Her choked plea brought his lips back to hers and he whispered against them, “Savannah. My sweet, sweet Savannah.”
He kissed her once, twice, and then his head dipped to where his hand was wedging her thighs apart. She was mindless, unaware of his intentions, until his tongue suddenly slipped inside her.
The incredible sensation caused to her cry out and as she felt herself spinning away, her hands latched on to his shoulders and gripped the solid ridges. As though holding on to him would stop her from losing all control. But nothing could stop the wild feelings rushing through her, burning her with exquisite pleasure.
While his mouth tasted her, something deeper inside her began to coil tighter and tighter until she couldn’t breathe or think. All she could do was hang on to him and let herself be transported to wonderland.
All too soon, the aching need splintered and wave after wave of pleasure undulated through her body. White-hot stars sprinkled over her, touching every inch of her heated skin. Whimpering and stunned, she shuddered against him.
Just as she floated back to earth, he moved away from her and when she opened her eyes, she realized she was seeing him through a glaze of tears.
The emotional reaction of what had just occurred between them should have embarrassed her. But it didn’t. Everything she did with Chaz felt open, and perfect, and right.
Sitting up on the edge of the couch, he thrust his fingers through his hair and stared at the floor. “Savannah. I—I didn’t mean for that to happen. I don’t know why I let it happen!”
The rapturous glow inside her suddenly turned to icy disbelief and she quickly shoved her skirt back in place. “What are you saying, Chaz? I wanted that and more to happen. It still can. I—”
“No! Don’t say anymore!” he said gruffly, then rising to his feet, he looked ruefully down at her. “Ever since I met you, I’ve turned into an idiot.”
“Thank you,” she said, her voice heavy with sarcasm. “That was my goal from the first moment I laid eyes on you—to turn you into an idiot.”
He walked across the room and stood facing a picture window covered with slatted blinds. “Savannah, I understand what’s going on, even if you don’t.”
She shot off the couch and walked up behind him. “Really? What exactly do you understand?”
He turned toward her and the tenderness she saw in his eyes brought a lump of tears to her throat. Was it crazy to think he might possibly care for her? Or was she the one who’d turned into an idiot?
“You’ve just gone through a traumatic experience,” he said gently. “You’re vulnerable and shaken. You think you need me and—”
“I do need you. And not just as a bodyguard. I realize you don’t want to hear me say this. But I have to say it. I can’t go on without saying it.”
His groan was full of frustration as he placed his hands upon her shoulders. “Savannah, you need to think beyond this—well, hot chemistry between us. I’m not a man who could ever fit into your life. I don’t have to tell you that your father is expecting great things from you. And that doesn’t include hooking yourself up to a man like me.”
She frowned. “What do you mean a man like you? As far as I can see, you’re a respectable, upright man. And don’t you think I should be allowed to choose what sort of man I want in my life?”
“Yes. But you’re not thinking clearly right now. Later on, after this ordeal is over and you’re back in New Orleans, you’ll realize how things between us would’ve never worked.”
He sounded resolute, but Savannah wasn’t one to back down or give up. “Because?”
A shuttered look came over his face and he moved a few steps away from her. “I shouldn’t have to point out our differences to you, Savannah. Look at you. You’re a graduate student studying a subject I can hardly pronounce. Your clothes are designer labels. Mine are off the rack.” He used his hand to gesture at the room they were standing in. “This is the type of digs I can afford. It’s respectable and comfortable, but nothing like the luxury of your apartment. Get it?”
“No. As of this moment, your apartment looks a hell of a lot better than mine. And who cares if I have more money than you? Or if my college degree is different than yours? None of that is important.”
“Your father cares. And probably the rest of the family. And yes, it is important. I know.”
Sensing he was holding something back, she closed the distance between them. “How do you know? You’re not telling me something, Chaz. And after what just happened between us, I think I have a right to an honest answer.”
Grimacing, he walked over to the couch and sat down. Savannah followed, but was careful to keep a short space between them. The last thing she wanted to do was make him feel as though she were crowding him.
“All right, you asked, so I’ll tell you. I was engaged once—a long time ago. We dated all through high school and I thought she was the woman I’d spend the rest of my life with. Even though we still had college ahead of us, we made plans for a future together.”
Engaged! Chaz had loved a woman enough to want to marry her? She was jealous and surprised at the same time. “Obviously, something happened between you.”
His lips twisted to a bitter slant. “Something didn’t happen. Like a wedding. Like a future together. I went to college through the ROTC. She went to college in New York.”
“You lived in Miami at that time?”
He nodded. “You see, Allison was from a rich family. Not nearly as wealthy as yours, but financially they were far above the Mendozas. Her parents wanted her to have the best of everything and they insisted she attend an elite college where she could study the arts. Now that I look back on it, I figure sending her away had actually been her parents’ way of separating us. And they were successful. Trying to keep up a long-distance engagement hadn’t worked. But it wouldn’t have worked anyway. She eventually confessed that she’d fallen out of love with me.”
“But you believe she ended things because she was more in love with her wealthy lifestyle than with you.”
“Something like that,” he admitted. “Anyway, after the engagement ended I was pretty down about everything. I guess my father could see I’d lost my purpose. He jumped in the middle of me and ordered me to grow up and be a man. He’d advised me that there were plenty of other women in the world to take Allison’s place.” He let out a cynical snort. “And God knows Dad has made his rounds with most of them.”
Savannah desperately wanted to touch him, to hold him tight and assure him that nothing about his past or his family made him any less worthy of the loftiest princess in the world. But she understood it was going to take more than a hug and a few words to make him see this.
“So you grew up by entering the army,” she stated the obvious.
“Eight years of growing up. And since then, I’ve been very careful about the women I’ve dated. Very cautious not to trust, or care, or give.”
But he’d given to her, she mentally argued. Perhaps he wasn’t aware that he had, but she was. He’d given her company and conversation. Laughter and tears. Anger and smiles. He’d given her heart something else to dwell on besides the loss of her friend and the years she’d not allowed herself to be a whole woman.
“Surely you don’t want to live that way for the rest of your life.”
“Why not? It’s been working for me.”
He wasn’t being flippant. He was serious. And that made everything about his words so much worse.
Fighting back a sigh, she glanced over at the couch where only minutes ago, he’d thrilled her with his kisses, his touch.
Was that all he wanted or ever intended to have with a woman? Just physical pleasure with no meaning or emotion attached to it?
She had to think not. Otherwise, her heart was in deep, deep trouble.