Flirting with Destiny Read online

  Now wasn’t the time and the men’s locker room certainly wasn’t the place, but she had a feeling Dev wouldn’t let her put this off after she’d let the cat out of the bag.

  She drew in another deep breath and decided to go with the Band-Aid removal method. All at once. “Reno, October 2003. Desert Kings Casino.”

  His brows dropped into a deep V over his eyes and she could tell he was trying to put the pieces together. “Yeah, I used to go there often. What about Reno?”

  “Well, like you said, you were there, gambling, and doing quite well, I might add. I was a dancer in the nightly revue.” She waved a hand down the front of her jacket. “Not wearing much more than I’ve got on now. Replace this with sequins and feathers and a pair of heels I used to be able to run a city block in...”

  His eyes grew wide as recognition dawned. “That was you?”

  She nodded. “So when you said over lunch on Monday that you thought we knew each other in another life, you were right. It was another life—for me, anyway.”

  “I remember that trip. Sort of.” Dev rubbed the edge of one finger across the bridge of his nose, as if the action would help his memory. “Hell, that was back in my ‘partying hard’ days. I was there with a group of friends and I could’ve sworn I’d met a girl the last night of our stay. Her name was... It was...” He snapped his fingers. “Tannie!”

  Surprised at how much it hurt to hear her old nickname on his lips, Tanya forced a smile. “Yes, that was the name I went by back then.”

  “But that was almost ten years ago.” Sudden horror lit his expression. “You couldn’t have been much older than—”

  “I was twenty-one at the time.”

  The look of relief on his face was almost comical. “Wow, that’s good to know. It’s all coming back to me now. Dinner, dancing, winning big money.” His eyes focused on her, the icy blue deepening as his voice softened. “The elevator, the hotel room, the bed...waking up alone the next morning.”

  She swallowed hard. “Yes, well, I thought that was for the best.”

  “So is that why you haven’t told me all this before now? Because I didn’t recognize you? Because it was just a night of wild, hot monkey sex to you?”

  “No!” Tanya laid her hand over his mouth. “Shhh! There was no sex. Hot monkey or any other style. Look, can we finish this discussion at another time? Someplace a bit more private?”

  Dev yanked her hand away. “What do you mean there was no sex? I remember holding you in my arms, kissing you, peeling off that little black dress with my teeth.”

  “Yes, there was all that.” Her tone grew exasperated. “And then you promptly passed out on me while digging in your wallet for a condom!”

  * * *

  Twenty-four hours later, Devlin still felt like a schmuck.

  To say that Tanya had shocked him yesterday morning would be putting it mildly.

  He still couldn’t get over the revelation that they’d shared an amazing night a decade ago.

  A night he’d been too wasted to finish what he’d—what they’d—started.

  He’d been a drunken fool.

  Then he’d been another kind of fool yesterday as he’d just stood there while she’d raced from the changing room.

  Not smart enough to follow her, he’d taken her advice and taken a nice, long shower, remaining beneath the pounding hot spray of water until one of the male staff had come into the locker room to check on him at Tanya’s request. But by the time he was changed, she’d left the fitness center.

  He glanced at the clock and shut down his current project. There was a meeting scheduled in his brother’s office in a few minutes and there was no way he was missing it.

  Liam had made himself scarce since they’d talked at the diner on Monday, and Bryant and Laurie hadn’t arrived home from Chicago until late last night.

  Pushing away from his desk, Dev grabbed the cane. He’d been sore this morning, but it was a good soreness. The kind that came from working out. He had Tanya and the bingo ladies to thank for that.

  He also suspected he had Tanya to thank for getting at least six solid hours of sleep last night before the familiar searing pain reared to life again. What he would’ve given to have her and her magic fingers there beside him in his bed as he tried to relieve the leg cramp by himself.

  Hell, he wanted her in his bed for reasons not related to her job talents at all.

  Good thing he’d fired her yesterday.

  Wanting to concentrate on this much-needed discussion with his brothers, Dev mentally set aside any thought of the acupuncturist/former showgirl and stopped by his first-floor bedroom suite to pick up a couple of things needed for this meeting.

  Grabbing two bottles by their foil-covered necks with one hand, he made his way back across the great room in the huge log building that served as both his family’s home and the headquarters for Murphy Mountain Log Homes.

  An oversize stone fireplace surrounded by comfortable rustic leather furniture served as the reception area during business hours. The company’s offices, conference rooms and a wide staircase that led to guest quarters on the second floor all branched out from here.

  The private family area was in the wings that jutted from either side of the house with his parents in one and just him and Liam still living in the other wing. Ric, the only other single Murphy brother without kids, had left for the Air Force last fall and was now serving at a base in Italy.

  He evaded the front desk where Katie still sat even though she’d been promoted from receptionist to executive assistant last fall, seeing how she basically took care of all the Murphy brothers’ business dealings. Avoiding Nolan’s office was easy, too, as his door was shut, a sign that the architect was hunched over his drafting table and didn’t want to be disturbed.

  Devlin couldn’t guarantee that he’d respect Nolan’s wishes.

  He’d been pissed as hell to find out Liam and Bryant had taken up flying lessons, even more so that the family had made the decision not to tell him about it. And now he wanted some answers.

  He walked into Liam’s office, not surprised to find the company president behind his desk and on the phone. Bryant was sitting across from him, his nose buried in a financial report.

  Devlin closed the door behind him with the tip of his cane and then sat the two bottles of champagne on Liam’s desk with a loud thunk, glad to put them down.

  His action caused both his brothers to finally look at him.

  “Ah, my ten o’clock appointment just walked in,” Liam said into the phone. “I’ll call you back.”

  He hung up and both he and Bryant stared at the booze for a long moment before looking at Dev.

  There was another empty chair, and the pain shooting across his lower back told him to sit, but Dev wanted the advantage of standing tall—while he still could—seeing how all of the Murphy brothers were close to six feet when on their feet.

  “Well, hello there, Dev.” Bryant finally spoke first as he folded his report in half, taking the time to crease the center before tucking it down next to him in the chair. “Isn’t it a bit early for a cocktail?”

  “Where in hell did you get those?” Liam asked.

  “White’s Liquors. Where else?”

  Liam and Bryant shared a surprised look that their alcoholic brother had actually ventured into a liquor store. Yeah, Dev had made sure he was good and pissed about the reason why before he even got out of his Jeep.

  As it was, he’d been in and out of the place in ten minutes.

  “Why?” Liam pushed. “Why do you have those bottles with you?”

  “Oh, these aren’t mine. They’re for you two. Don’t we have some celebrating to do? Aren’t you guys just a few flight lessons short of being full-fledged pilots?” Dev’s words came out hard. “Please, don’t tell
me you kept your lessons a secret from everyone.”

  “You’re pissed,” Bryant said, leaning back in his chair.

  Dev turned to stare at him. “Really? You figured that out all on your own? Good thing we let you handle all the money around here.”

  “What I don’t get is why,” Bryant continued. “We talked about this, about Liam being your backup for the helo this time last year when we first got the chopper. When you announced in the hospital you didn’t plan on flying again—”

  “Yeah, I thought the family decision had been no one was flying again,” Dev interrupted. “That having a helicopter was a risk the business didn’t want to continue to have on the books. But I guess I was wrong. Now we have a matching set of flyboys around here, don’t we? The ‘Flying Murphy Brothers.’ Sounds like a damned circus act.”

  “Look, you made your decision not to fly again and we respect that.” Liam leaned forward, his elbows perched on his desk. “Everyone knows the accident wasn’t your fault and no one in this company, or this family, blames you for it. Your license has been reinstated. You want to pilot the new helo. Fine.”

  Dev heard the sincerity in his brother’s words, but he didn’t believe him. He couldn’t. No matter what the official report had said about what happened that last day of July, the pilot was always responsible for his machine, both on the ground and in the air.

  “Wait a minute.” He’d finally caught up with what Liam had said. “Did you say new helo?”

  Liam nodded. “We’re in the process of purchasing a replacement helicopter for the business. That’s what this is, Dev. A business decision. You know how much we came to depend on that piece of machinery in the few short months we had it.”

  “At what risk?” Devlin heard the door open behind him, but he didn’t turn around, not caring who was standing there. “Is having that damn thing worth it? What if there’s another crash? Those babies are expensive, you know. Just because one of the Murphy boys broke his toy doesn’t mean we just run out and get another one.”

  Bryant pushed to his feet. “Hold on a minute, Dev—”

  “What about your wife, Bry? Don’t tell me Laurie is okay with the idea of you flying off into the wild blue yonder.”

  “Of course she’s okay with this,” Bryant snapped. “Look, no one is trying to clip your wings—”

  “You want to know why I clipped my own wings?” Dev cut his brother off again, the fear and anger deep inside of him reaching a boiling point that was about to explode. “Because I’m scared! I’m damn scared of getting back in the air again. Scared of losing control while I have someone else up there with me.”

  “I’d fly with you again in a heartbeat.”

  Dev turned and found his eldest brother, Adam, standing there.

  Adam, who’d served in the military for twenty years and had seen action in any number of far distant lands only to find his life in danger because his brother had crashed and burned last year, stranding them both for almost three days.

  “I trust you with my life.” Adam took a step closer. “I trust you with the lives of every single member of our family and if you ever need me to ride shotgun, I’m there.”

  “Me, too,” Bryant added.

  “Ditto,” Liam chimed in.

  “Are you all crazy?” Ignoring how his brothers’ declarations made his heart swell, Dev barked out a sharp, humorless laugh, his gaze darting from one man to the next. “What if this happens again? What if we aren’t so lucky next time? What if somebody winds up dead?”

  Chapter Seven

  Missing the days when the stomp of his boots echoed across the huge deck behind his family’s home, Devlin settled for the quiet thud of canvas sneakers as he gingerly made his way down the steps and past the in-ground pool.

  It was tough to stay pissed without the gratification of an old-fashioned boot stomping, but he’d been too unsteady on his feet this morning to pull on his handmade Tony Lamas.

  Refusing to sit while he and his brothers had argued about fears, faults and replacing the helo meant his entire body was now in pain, from the headache threatening to split open his skull to the killer leg cramp just waiting to cripple him again.

  Whether it was a physical reaction caused by his ongoing medical issues or from the burn of humiliation after admitting he was once again a loser, with a capital L, he didn’t want to analyze it at the moment.

  Adam trailed him, along with Adam’s dog, Shadow, who had lived up to his name ever since he’d found the animal abandoned in a parking lot last summer.

  Thankfully his brother remained silent, even if he stayed with him as Dev kept walking, concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other. The last thing he needed was to catch the tip of his cane in the flagstone crevices that surrounded the pool and have to be rescued.

  Again.

  He slowed a bit when the flagstone turned into a walkway that meandered past the gazebo, his mother’s expansive flower beds and the log homes where Nolan and Bryant lived. Glancing at the almost finished cabin closest to the lake that would soon be Liam’s place, he was surprised at how much work had been done already this spring. He’d never even noticed.

  He’d been too damn busy thinking about himself.

  Not ready to stop yet, he kept going until he passed the boathouse at the water’s edge and stepped onto the wooden dock that stretched out twenty feet over the deep blue water of the lake. The walking was taking its toll on his already weak legs, but he refused to stop until he was damn good and ready.

  “It’s still a bit early in the season for a swim.” Adam finally spoke. “But I’ve heard Mom say she’s going to open the pool this weekend thanks to this unseasonably warm spring we’ve been having. Of course, the fact that the water can be heated to her preferred sauna level is another reason—”

  “I don’t need a babysitter, thanks just the same.” Dev kept his gaze focused on the water. “Walking out of Liam’s office was my way of ending a losing argument. You should’ve stayed with the winning team.”

  “We’re all on the same team, Little D.”

  The childhood nickname, short for Little Devil, caused a sudden sting in Dev’s eyes that he blinked away.

  When Bryant, who was four years younger than him, had first been learning to speak, he’d had a hard time pronouncing Dev’s name—it came out sounding like the word devil instead. Of course, his brothers picked up on it right away and the moniker stuck. Even his mother got in on the teasing, saying the title fit her middle son perfectly.

  “Well, if you think I’m going to take a running leap off the end of the dock—even if I could—believe me, I’m not that far gone.”

  “You brought two bottles of booze into your boss’s office.”

  Dev sighed and headed for the bench on the side of the boathouse. “I was trying to make a point.”

  Adam sat next to him and Shadow dropped to lie at his feet. “Yeah, we got that.”

  “I’m sure Liam has the champagne under lock and key by now.”

  “Why would he? We never locked up the booze from you before.”

  His brother had a point, but still...

  Dev let his head drop back against the log wall, his gaze on the blue skies above. The morning sun felt good on his face and a deep breath brought in the earthy pungency of the land waking up and welcoming a new season.

  “I was only an alcoholic before. Now, I’m a washed up pilot who crashed and burned within six months of getting his license. I can barely lift my arms over my head and if I go twenty-four hours without falling on my ass I consider it a good day.”

  Adam leaned forward, his head moving back and forth as he looked around.

  “What are you doing?” Dev asked.

  “Waiting for your pity party guests to arrive. I’m expecting a guy with a violin to
appear any minute.”

  “Very funny, jerk.”

  They sat in silence for a few minutes before Adam spoke, his elbows on his knees, his gaze on the deck. “That accident was hell.”

  “Yeah, I know. I was there, remember?”

  “It’s okay to be scared. We all have our demons.”

  Dev looked at his brother knowing he was referring to something more than what they experienced last summer.

  Post-traumatic stress had Adam seeking help from the local Veterans’ Center after his return from Afghanistan, and he continued counseling for a while after the crash. He didn’t go anymore, but the two of them had talked a few times while Dev had been hospitalized about the crash and the memories it had brought back to life.

  “Yeah, I didn’t do you any favors by dropping our asses in the forest, huh?”

  “I never blamed you, Dev.” Adam turned to him, his gaze strong. “I told you that when you finally came to that first day in the woods. Geez, I’m the one who came out with just a few scratches. And I’m doing much better. Mentally. Thanks to Fay and my little boy. The two of them are anchors I never knew I needed until they came into my life.”

  Dev tightened his grip on his cane and hefted it in the air. “I guess this is my anchor.”

  “For now, maybe. Not forever. You’ll find what you’re looking for.”

  Not sure how to answer that, Dev turned his attention to the lake and stayed silent, remembering all the amazing times he and his family had had growing up here.

  From swimming to waterskiing to fishing, the Murphy place had always been the favorite hangout for the brothers and their friends. Even now, with two of his brothers married and a new generation of kids added to the mix, they still enjoyed both working and playing together.

  Adam gave him an easy jab to the ribs, jolting Dev from his thoughts. “You know, when I mentioned taking a swim, I really was talking about the pool.” He pointed back toward the yard. “Of course, Mom would be the only Wet Nana around...”

  Dev groaned. He’d wondered last night how long it would take for the news to get around. “Who told you? Damn, that was only yesterday morning.”