Lucky Streak

CHAPTER SEVEN

AMBER ATE DINNER alone that night, after Mike called to tell her he’d be working late as a last-minute favor for a friend. She was disappointed, but she’d just learned something else about her new husband. She already knew he was a man who cared for his family and now she discovered he was also a good friend. Both were traits she could admire.

Mike was so different from the sleazy characters she’d met on the poker circuit, and he was more settled than most of the guys she’d encountered in Beverly Hills. They’d been aspiring actors or models, men with more love for the face they saw in the mirror than any woman. Not that she’d given any of them a chance.

It wasn’t that Amber didn’t believe in happily ever after. She did. Her family had a healthy history of love and fidelity. Her grandparents had been happily married for a lifetime and if what she’d heard of her parents’ courtship was anything to go by, they’d been deliriously in love. Her mother had given up her career as a showgirl to have Amber and she’d planned to stay at home with her. Only, she’d died while giving birth to her daughter.

Amber shook her head, bringing her thoughts back to the present. To herself and to Mike. In L.A., she’d thought she’d been too busy for a relationship, but she realized now she’d just never met a man who made her want that happily ever after for herself.

Until Mike.

He had longish, dark hair she loved running her fingers through and beautiful blue eyes she could get lost in. And within him, there was a sense of honor and decency she wanted to emulate.

Mike Corwin was the best kind of man. She wanted to be worthy of being part of his life.

This afternoon, she’d loved the chance to do something nice for him, like arranging lunch. And though he’d been upset with her intrusion, the reaction of his fellow cops had helped smooth things over. They’d enjoyed the meal she’d sent over and they’d all eagerly wanted to meet his new bride.

Though Mike had wanted to keep their relationship a dirty little secret, she’d seen the hint of pride in his eyes when they’d referred to her as his wife. It had helped ease her hurt, she admitted to herself. When she’d seen the yearning in his eyes, desire meant for her alone, that hurt had disappeared. And when he’d kissed her, she’d known she was doing the right thing. Now all she had to do was convince him.

A relationship took work and commitment and Amber was willing to give it both. Once Mike understood she’d never betray him again, Amber believed he would give the same.

She’d ordered in a small pizza and had just finished cleaning up and freezing the extra slices when her cell phone rang.

She picked it up from where she’d left it on the counter. “Hello?”

“Amber, it’s Sydney.”

At the sound of the voice of the concierge from the Crown Chandler hotel, a sick feeling spread through Amber’s stomach. “Hey, what’s up?”

“I got that information. I’m sorry, but a new employee gave you up. Those Texans waved some bills around and the guy pulled your employment file. I’m not sure what details they have, but they got a long look. I’m sorry,” she said again. “He’s been fired for violating confidentiality, but that can’t undo the damage.”

Amber closed her eyes and shook her head. “It’s not your fault. I appreciate you getting back to me.” At least now she knew where she stood. “Talk to you soon.”

“Bye.”

Amber disconnected the phone. If nothing else, King Bobby now had her full name. Of course, the only way he could track her down was if he discovered she was now married.

To do that, he’d have to get information on her at the city hall where her marriage license had been filed. If he got Mike’s name and address, she was dead meat.

She bit the inside of her cheek. First thing tomorrow morning, she’d have to find out if anyone had recently requested information on Amber Rose at city hall.

If the worst happened, she’d have to come clean with Mike. She shook her head, fighting frustrated tears. Just as she was starting to make a little headway with him, he’d discover she’d been keeping things from him. After that, he’d never trust her again. And she’d never get another chance with this special man. That possibility scared her more than anything.

She refused to let that happen. Pulling herself together, she renewed her search for Marshall, making phone calls with no luck. When her former partner went underground, he was better than a gopher, she thought, disgusted.

Well, she’d done all she could for tonight. Instead of worrying, she turned her attention to Mike’s father. She’d promised to call Edward, and so she looked through Mike’s phone book for a number she could reach him at.

Once she’d made sure Mike’s dad was okay, she’d wait up for her husband to come home and make him a happy, happy man. Before her world crumbled down around her come morning.

IT HADN’T TAKEN LONG. Amber was looking for him already. Marshall tossed his precharged, prepaid, disposable cell phone onto the bed. According to his sources, there hadn’t been a single one of his haunts Amber hadn’t contacted. Marshall would have been pleased if not for the fact that that his contacts had also informed him that big Texas bag of wind, King Bobby Boyd, was also looking for him and asking questions.

That thought made Marshall break into a cold sweat. He wasn’t hiding without reason. King Bobby had enough clout with powerful, dangerous men to put the fear of God into a guy who’d never believed in any higher power except his own good luck.

This mess was stressing him out. He stripped and walked across the bedroom naked, intending to take a long, hot shower in the bathroom of the house he was currently inhabiting. Marshall had all sorts of contacts and this residence belonged to a friend of a friend, who sometimes traveled different gambling circuits when the heat was on in Vegas. This was one of those times, so the house was empty. After paying off the houseboy, Marshall had let himself in and prepared himself to wait this mess out.

They were nice temporary digs except that he was bored. He had too much time on his hands, worrying about whether King Bobby would find him and break his legs-or worse. He knew he could stay underground as long as he needed to without being found. What he wasn’t sure of was whether he could trust Amber to keep her mouth shut about their scam if King Bobby managed to track her down first.

Marshall let steam fill the shower stall and thought about Amber. He didn’t feel too bad about letting her take the heat. King Bobby was a southern gentleman. He wouldn’t hurt a lady, he’d only bully her into telling him Marshall’s whereabouts. Since Amber didn’t know where he was, she couldn’t reveal a thing.

She could, however, tell King Bobby he was a class-A con, confirm the King’s hunch about Marshall cheating that night, and cause him to go on the run. Because King Bobby wouldn’t mind calling out his goons to hurt him.

Marshall could call Amber back on her cell and warn her, but she was already furious with him. She’d never believe him and she’d sure as hell never tell him where to find her.

So he wouldn’t call her.

Yet.

Nor could he look around for her. She had too many contacts. If he asked questions, he was bound to arouse suspicion. Or run into King Bobby, who was on the same path.

But Marshall wasn’t stupid and there was a much easier way to find his beautiful Amber. He’d just let King Bobby do all the work. The man was already hot on her trail. All Marshall needed to do was keep an eye on King Bobby without being seen. The Texan would lead Marshall right to Amber.

He’d show up, remind her of how special their bond was, how lucrative their partnership could still be. By the time he located her, she’d be bored with her cop husband and ready to come back to Marshall.

If not, he’d just have to make her see the error of her ways.

MIKE WASN’T AVOIDING AMBER. He wasn’t. The fact that he’d volunteered to cover someone’s shift tonight when he could have gone home to his wife didn’t mean a thing.

Except that by the time he got in around midnight, Amber was fast asleep and he didn’t have to talk about her visit to the station today. Instead, he walked into his bathroom, and could only marvel at how quickly she’d made herself at home.

His countertops were now filled with feminine things-creams, shampoos, conditioners and other assorted items he didn’t recognize.

He picked up one bottle, opened it and sniffed, inhaling an unfamiliar, feminine scent. An arousing scent.

As an only child, he’d never had to share his space before and Amber’s takeover should have felt like an intrusion. Except it didn’t. She’d made herself at home and he didn’t mind.

He found an odd sense of peace being part of a couple, even though being alone had never bothered him before. While he and his cousins, Derek and Jason, had had to deal with the stigma of being a Corwin man, the women-like Jason’s sisters-had married and thrived in love and life. In Mike’s father’s mind, that fact had also proven the curse was alive and well, kicking male Corwin butt.

Mike headed back to his bedroom to discover Amber had claimed her night table with a box of tissues, a paperback book, what looked like lip gloss and a stack of papers. He grinned and settled into bed, wearing nothing but boxers. He wasn’t about to change his routine for the female sleeping beside him. He propped one arm behind his head and stared into the dark, not at all tired despite the late hour. As he breathed in deep, her scent wrapped around him, awakening him even more.

Go figure. Mike hadn’t been determined to remain a bachelor, but until now the lifestyle had suited him fine. So why did he like all the feminine touches Amber provided in his apartment?

He punched up his pillow and rolled onto his side, hoping to somehow take the edge off his arousal and fall asleep. Suddenly Amber sighed and wrapped her arm around his waist. From behind, she cushioned him in head-to-toe contact and warmth, snuggling in with another deep sigh.

He shut his eyes, but how could he even think of sleep when he was surrounded by a new female in his bed and his life?

An enigma named Amber, full of surprises and secrets.

MIKE AWOKE with a morning hard-on and Amber’s hand on his groin. Helluva wake-up call, he thought. The woman was obviously put on this earth to make him a very happy-but insane-man.

Mike knew he should get some answers from Amber while he had her cornered here, but he couldn’t think about anything except the warmth racking his body. He rolled over to find Amber staring at him, sultry heat in her gaze and a smile on her lips.

“Morning,” she murmured.

“Morning,” he said gruffly.

“How was work last night?”

She wanted him to think, let alone have a coherent conversation while her hand was wrapped around him?

She slid her grasp up and down the length of him and he groaned.

Amber grinned. “I take it you like that?”

He pushed her hair back off her face. Even first thing in the morning, while tousled and sleepy, she was too damn appealing.

“What’s not to like?” Encouraged, she picked up the pace, making damn fine use of her palm and her fingers, taking him closer and closer to the edge of climax. He knew it wouldn’t take much for him to come.

But he didn’t want to fall alone. “Hang on.” He reached for his nightstand, opened the drawer and retrieved a condom, making quick work of the foil and sliding it on.

He turned to Amber, who had pulled off her soft negligee and now lay naked and waiting for him. One of the things he found special and refreshing was the honest way she gave herself to him each time they made love. She seemed so open and honest with her body and even her soul. It made the lies and omissions seem out of character. Every time he touched her, he wanted to believe in her again.

Pushing those thoughts aside, he straddled her and looked into her eyes. Warm, welcoming eyes that matched the softness of her body as he slid inside. She was wet and ready, as he knew she would be, accepting all of him quickly, her gaze never leaving his face.

She bent her knees and pulled him in deeper and the sensation was so incredible, he couldn’t keep his mind focused on anything except the building friction between their bodies. Heat licked at him like rising flames attacking him from all sides.

He threaded his hands through her hair and began to glide in, then out again, possessing her, taking her faster and faster still.

Amber was lost. Everything inside her was concentrated on the pressure point between her body and Mike’s. His every thrust brought her closer. Waves pummeled her, bringing her higher as the feelings inside her tightened, coiling, building with each hard, demanding push.

She matched his rhythm easily now, knew what would make her feel best as she rolled her hips, seeking deeper, more intimate contact until suddenly she was there.

Climaxing.

Milking Mike’s body so she could prolong the exquisite sensations, never wanting them to end. And they didn’t. Her orgasm seemed to go on and on until he collapsed on top of her. Even then, she was able to wring one last wave of pleasure from her body before his breathing evened out.

Finally he rolled off her.

By the time she caught her breath and opened her eyes, he’d returned from the bathroom and climbed back into bed.

“You’re something else,” he said, pulling her into his arms.

He no longer seemed to fight their closeness and she snuggled in beside him, wanting this connection as much, if not more, than she’d wanted sex.

“So how was your night?” she asked.

“Pretty routine.” His hand brushed the back of her hair.

She liked the feeling.

“You never did tell me why you decided to become a cop.” Amber was fascinated by this man she’d married.

He shrugged. “I never really thought about why.”

Amber laughed. “Liar. I have a feeling you think most things through.”

He wondered how she knew him so well. “I wanted a career that made sense, something that had rules, where things were black and white.”

Amber swallowed hard. “Why?” she asked, wishing he’d confide in her. Trust her.

For a few painful seconds, silence created a cavern between them. Until he finally spoke. “Because things at home were anything but stable.”

Thank you, she said to herself, grateful he’d opened up. “I understand.”

He cleared his throat. “You were out cold by the time I got home,” he said, changing the subject.

She laughed. “Yeah, I made your life pretty easy. You didn’t have to come home and deal with your wife.”

“And you made sure I didn’t have to deal with you first thing this morning, either.”

She glanced at him.

His hot gaze conveyed pure sexual heat, but clear understanding, as well.

Cornered, Amber thought. She’d hoped to distract him with sex. Keep him happy and he wouldn’t think about things like divorce.

“Well, I think you dealt with me pretty well,” she said coyly. The man did know how to satisfy her.

“Very funny.” But his arms around her squeezed tighter.

So far, at least, he wasn’t letting her go. “I called to check on your father last night,” she said, hoping she wasn’t about to destroy the peace between them.

He groaned. “You didn’t.”

“I did.” She rested her head against his shoulder. “He’d asked us to call and I didn’t know if you were too busy, so I did. I tried the number in your phone book and it had been disconnected. So I tried the other number you had listed and got his cell. Did you know he disconnected his home phone?”

“I knew. He has some crazy notion about spirits traveling through the phone lines.”

Amber disagreed. “Actually I think he’s just looking for attention.”

“Excuse me?” Mike stiffened at her suggestion and she patted his chest to calm him.

The warmth of his skin nearly distracted her into picking up where she’d started this morning. But she needed to bond with him outside of the bedroom. They needed to talk about things that were important to them both and he’d begun bridging the distance by admitting how hard his childhood had been. She was merely drawing some deeper conclusions, things someone close to the situation wouldn’t be able to see as easily.

“Your father has been alone for so long, he thinks that’s the way it has to be. But the crazy things he’s doing to your cousin Derek and his wife, and cutting off his landline…” Amber drew a deep breath. “It looks like a cry for attention. I don’t think he really believes in voodoo.”

“And the curse? Are you telling me he suddenly thinks it doesn’t exist?”

She let out a sigh. “No, after talking to him, hearing his concern about you not falling in love, I can tell the curse is real to him.”

“Just not the other things, like voodoo?”

She shrugged. “I’m not entirely sure. But he kept me on the phone for an hour last night, asking a lot of questions interspersed with long silences that told me he didn’t want to hang up or be alone.” She paused, then asked, “Did you ever get yourself into a situation you couldn’t undo, no matter how much you wanted to?”

“Well…”

She nudged him in the side with her elbow. “I do not mean our marriage. I think you like being with me, no matter how much you’re fighting it.”

He didn’t immediately argue the point, giving her a real flicker of hope.

“I’m talking about backing yourself into a corner like your father has done by isolating himself,” Amber clarified.

Mike cleared his throat. “It’s more than isolation. My father hasn’t spoken to my Uncle Thomas in over thirty years. He blames the curse, but he’s willingly retreated behind walls for years.”

Amber heard his voice crack. Her heart in her throat, she rolled over and stroked his cheek. “I believe he’s lonely. I think he does the crazy things he does because it’s the only way people notice him.”

“And you know this from a quick meeting and an hour phone call?”

She smiled. “I know this because I’m good at reading people. It’s what I do-I mean, what I did for a living for years.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Keep talking. I want to know more about you. Like what kind of partner this Marshall was to you, why you ended your association, anything and everything about you,” he said.

He was as interested in knowing her as she wanted to understand him, but unlike Amber, Mike’s curiosity ran deeper. She’d told him why she’d left him in Vegas, but her answers only scratched the surface. He clearly wanted to understand why she’d associate with Marshall in the first place, why she was being followed, what she was still hiding from him.

And she wasn’t ready to shine the light of day on those things just yet. So she’d tell him about the areas of her life she was proud of, the parts she enjoyed, those she wanted him to know because he’d get an insight into who Amber Rose…Amber Corwin…really was.

She drew a deep breath and began. “I used to be a concierge in L.A. and I loved it. I worked at the Crown Chandler in Beverly Hills and people skills are my forte. I have a photographic memory and it really helped in my line of work. Remembering names and faces is a crucial part of the job, but it was never a problem for me. I met A-list celebrities and made it a point to accommodate their every wish. I was the master,” she said, remembering.

“What happened? You said you used to be a concierge. Why not anymore?” he asked.

Clearly he didn’t mind her rambling.

“Well, my dad got sick and I had to come back to Vegas. He didn’t have health insurance, so I became his primary caregiver.”

“That must’ve been tough.” He pulled her closer, his fingertips stroking her arm.

She appreciated his strength and support, two things she hadn’t had enough of lately. She’d thought she was used to being independent. She realized now just because she’d been used to it didn’t mean she’d enjoyed it.

She sighed. “It wasn’t easy. I took a job at my friend Paul’s bar because he would let me leave whenever Dad had an emergency. I’d hoped the progression of his disease would be slow, but it wasn’t.”

Mike continued to run his fingers over her arm, comforting her. “Do you want to tell me about it?”

“There’s nothing to tell really. It’s a sad, degenerative thing. I kept him home as long as possible until one day the neighbor who checked on him for me called to say he’d wandered off.” The fear Amber had experienced that day washed over her, nearly choking her again now. “We canvassed the neighborhood, all his favorite places.”

“Where was he?” Mike asked.

“Wandering downtown on the Strip, looking for an old casino where he’d first met my mother. It was torn down years ago.”

“That’s awful.”

She saw her chance to link her life and experience to his. “It’s similar to how your father lives in his own world. Except when you talk to Edward, he’s present. He’s there, in front of you, aware. Does that make sense?”

He nodded. “It does. But let’s not talk about Dad right now. What happened once you found your father? And what’s his name? I’d like to refer to him as a real person.”

She smiled. “His name is Sam, and you would have liked him,” she mused aloud. “That night, I brought him back home and the next day, I immediately went in search of a clean, well-run nursing home for him. And that, as they say, is that.”

She had to get Mike off this subject before he probed too much deeper.

She’d have to lie or omit information and she just didn’t want to do that to him. To them.

She pushed herself upright, holding the sheet against her chest. “Mike, what I’m trying to get at is that with my father, all opportunities to communicate and have a relationship are gone. But you still have that chance with Edward.”

He frowned, clearly unhappy with her subject change. “Don’t you think I do what I can? But if I want to save my own sanity, I have to limit the time I spend with him. It’s too hard, too painful.”

She smiled in understanding. “But I’m here now. And I can be the buffer. I can help you and Edward. In fact, I want to.” Leaning over, she kissed Mike full on the lips. “You have to shower and get dressed for work.”

He groaned, but tossed the covers off himself and rose. “Don’t think this get-to-know-you stuff is finished. There’s a lot you didn’t tell me,” he said in warning.

She grinned, keeping things light. She didn’t want him to sense she was deliberately hiding things. “I’ll make breakfast while you shower,” she told him.

His gaze met hers and lingered. “You’ll spoil me if I let you.”

“So let me,” she said softly.

Without replying, he turned and started for the bathroom. Her gaze followed his strong, firm rear end as he walked until the closed door changed the view.

She stood and pulled on one of Mike’s shirts, something she was growing fond of doing, before heading to the kitchen to make breakfast.

She might as well keep busy now. She wouldn’t be able to find out if anyone had pulled her marriage certificate from city hall until 9:00 a.m. Las Vegas time.

She whipped up scrambled eggs, orange juice and hot coffee, then waited for Mike to join her. She wanted to give him as many positive memories of them as a couple as possible before she was forced to disillusion him once more.

Amber sighed. She was a survivor. She’d always known how to get by, and if Mike followed through on the divorce, she knew she’d get through that, too. But that didn’t mean she wouldn’t fight-for herself and for him. If the time came, she’d walk away knowing she’d given it her all.

KING BOBBY WAS in a celebratin’ mood. “Amber Rose married Michael Corwin this past weekend. Whoo-wee! I got me some information!” He tossed his hat in the air, Texas style. His sources had come through again.

He had a name and an address, though there were no signs of her at her Vegas apartment. He’d have to set his sights on the husband, then. Detective Michael Corwin.

“Dang woman married a cop,” King Bobby muttered. Which meant he couldn’t head East and show up at the cop’s place, guns blazin’.

He’d have to go slow and subtle-like. He picked up the phone in his office and dialed home. “Emmy Lou?” he bellowed. “Book me a flight to Boston!”

Some things a man had to handle for himself.