“Don’t be stupid.” Love didn’t come into the equation with Allie. He just enjoyed her company. And her body. And holding her in his arms as he fell asleep each night.

That was lust, not love.

True, it was more powerful than anything he’d felt before, but it would pass. And while he was in the grips of it, he would enjoy it, enjoy her. Every lovely curve.

He forced his mind off Allie and focused on the business at hand. He loved his work. Breathed it. Lived it. But he had a surprise for Allie tonight, and like a schoolboy, he couldn’t wait to see her reaction.

“Trevor?”

He blinked at Alex. “Right, let’s run the numbers.”

***

After Alex left, Trevor decided to play hooky and take a swim with Allison in the grotto. He’d given Arnold strict instructions. Trevor didn’t care if the bloody house was on fire, they were not to be disturbed. And that especially applied to his parents.

He and Allie swam and splashed each other, playing like a couple of kids. Then she sucked him off beneath the waterfall. The cool water washing over him, her hot mouth on his cock. It’d made him crazy. And it was the most relaxing afternoon he could remember.

After dinner, he told her to throw on some warm clothes and a jacket. He’d given no other details, and she had been quizzing him ever since.

“What are we doing? Where are we going?” she asked for the fourth time.

“You’re like an annoying child, really.” He drove the sedan out of town, past the lights and the crowds, and into the desert.

“If you’re taking me to the brothels, you’re in big trouble.”

He laughed and snatched her hand, bringing it to rest on his leg. “Why would I take you to a brothel?”

“I couldn’t begin to imagine.”

He didn’t let go of her hand. “You’ll just have to be patient, love.”

After a few minutes, he pulled the car off the road. “We’re here.”

She turned to look at him. “Are you planning on burying me out here? Do I have to dig my own grave too?”

“You’re an idiot.” He leaned forward and kissed the tip of her nose. Then he hopped out of the car and walked to the trunk where he removed a large duffel bag.

“What’s that?” Allie asked.

“That is a telescope. You said your dad used to bring you and your sisters to look at the stars.” He closed the trunk and began walking away from the car. “I thought you might enjoy this. We’re meant to have a good view of Orion this time of year.”

Allie stopped in her tracks. It took Trevor a moment to realize she wasn’t walking next to him. He spun around. “What’s wrong, love?” He walked back and rubbed her arm through her down-filled coat. “Are you warm enough?”

“Um, yeah.” She cleared her throat. “I’m just surprised, that’s all. Come on,” she said, tugging on his hand, “let’s have a look.”

She didn’t seem like herself, yet she wasn’t angry or upset. He shrugged it off and allowed himself to be led further away from the road. He glanced toward the sky as he walked. It was a fine, clear night for stargazing. “You know, my grandfather used to have a telescope set up in his study. He always said if you think the stars look small, imagine how insignificant you appear to them.” Trevor pulled a flashlight out of his pocket. “Here”—he handed it to her—“hold this.”

She trained the light on the bag while Trevor unpacked the telescope and tripod. He set it up and punched a few numbers into the remote. He’d already preprogrammed it for their location.

“He was a good man, your grandfather?” Allie asked.

“Yes.” Trevor looked into the eyepiece. “I spent my holidays at his pile outside Kent.”

“What about your mom and dad?”

He raised his head from the finderscope and pulled her to him. “Look at this, Allie. It’s magnificent.”

She stepped toward him and lowered her head. “It’s beautiful.” She stayed that way for some minutes.

“Let me move it a little for you.” He hit another button on the remote. “Should be able to see Sirius.”

She leaned her head down to the scope. “Your grandfather was right. I do feel insignificant.” She stepped back and let him have a turn. “So you never spent any time with your parents?”

“My mother used to take me for a week, sometimes two. I rarely had her undivided attention. You know how she loves drama. So if by chance she was getting along with her husband du jour, she would make a big show playing happy families. But it was always a cockup. Either my stepsiblings and I didn’t get along, or she and her husband would fight. Eventually, I told her if she wanted to see me, she could come visit Grandfather. She rarely did, unless she was between husbands. I think I just saw a shooting star. Come look, maybe you’ll see one too.”

“You’re supposed to make a wish, I think,” she said, scooting in front of him.

“Wishes are for children.” He placed his hands on her hips as she gazed at the sky.

“What about your dad?” she asked.

“He’s very much a child.”

Allie scoffed but didn’t raise her head. “No, did you see him at all?”

“He would come up to school every once in a while and take me to dinner. He would say a hell of a lot of nothing, give me some pocket money, and before I knew it, he was married again. Then I wouldn’t see him for months on end.”

“I think they’re here for you, Trevor.”

“The stars?”

“Your parents.”

“I thought they just wanted to annoy the shit out of me. And they’re doing a smashing job.” He stepped back and looked up into the sky. “It’s amazing that all those lights are made of gas and dust.”

“They love you.”

“Stars don’t love. Look.” He pointed. “The Little Dipper.”

Allie tipped her head back. “See it.” She wrapped her arm around his waist. “They are self-absorbed. But they’re trying to make amends.”

Trevor grabbed her ass. Such a nice, firm little thing. He gave it a squeeze. “Ever fucked out in the desert, beneath the stars?”

“Ever given me a straight answer?”

“I’ll take that as a no,” he said. “I brought a blanket.”

Allie shivered. “Too cold.”

They spent the next hour looking through the lens at the stars. When Allie’s teeth started chattering, Trevor wrapped his arms around her.

“Thank you for this.” She leaned her head against his chest.

He kissed her crown. “You’re welcome.”

“Take me home to bed.”

Home. He liked the way she said that, as if she belonged there.

He dismantled the telescope while she held the flashlight. “I’ll just say this and then I’ll drop it,” she said.

He stopped to look at her. “Allison, you’re a terrible liar.”

“You’re right. I’ll keep bringing it up until you listen to me. You don’t have to be best friends with them, but I think you should forgive them.”

He finished packing up the equipment and zipped the bag closed. “I’m sure it would be good for my soul.” He stood and took the flashlight from her hand and began walking toward the car.

Allie jogged to keep up with him. “I miss my mom so much, and if I thought she’d died without my forgiveness, that she’d tried to make something right and I’d shunned her…”

He stopped and stared down at her. “I’m letting them stay in my bloody fucking house. What more do you want from me?” He blew out a sigh and ran a hand through his hair.

Allie stood on her toes and kissed his chin. “I want you to be happy.”

Chapter 19

When Allie awoke the next morning, he was gone. The filtered light shone through the curtain, and the dent he’d left in the pillow was cold. Since Trevor had started sleeping in her room, Frances hadn’t been coming in to wake Allie in the mornings, probably at Trevor’s request. When she looked at the clock, she realized that if Frances didn’t wake her up, she would have to start setting an alarm.

He’d kept her up half the night, accepting her challenge to his sexual prowess, as he put it. She had been a big fool to tease him about having only two orgasms. And last night he’d been out for vengeance.