Deadly Games, chapter six

[blue_icy_rose]

Okay, so I know that I said I was going to wait until I was done writing my next chapter before I posted another one on here. As a matter of fact, I even vowed that I wouldn't.

Clearly I also said, screw that vow. I mean, I'm maybe halfway done with the chapter, possibly more. Can I help it if I'm having problems writing a drunken scene? So, here I am, posting a new chapter on here...and also seriously considering using one out of a couple of quotes from the book I'm reading as part of my signature at Lunaverse. Maybe someone else can help me decide. So I'll just post a couple of the ones I'm considering.

Eve: I wasn't sleeping. I was thinking.

Roarke: Yes, I could hear you thinking.

Eve: If that's some smart-ass way of saying I was snoring, bite me.

Roarke: I'd be more than happy to bite you later, but I really believe you'll want to see this.

Or...this one.

Eve: You have candy in here? I've never seen candy in here.

Roarke: I'm just full of surprises. (He waves the candy bar from side to side.) You can have the candy if you sit in my lap.

Eve: That sounds like something perverted old men say to young, stupid, girls.

Roarke: I'm not old and you're not stupid. (He sits and pats his knee.) It's Belgian chocolate.

Eve (sitting): Just because I'm sitting on your lap and eating your candy doesn't mean you can cop a feel.

Roarke: I'll just have to live in hope that you'll change your mind. Which you may when you see what I've found for you.

Eve: Put up, or shut up.

Roarke: That's my line. 

God, I love those two characters. So much sarcasm...plus there's murder mysteries and obviously mixed in with the sarcasm is a bit of romance and this whole other backstory. For those of you who haven't read J.D. Robb's In Death series, I highly recommend it. The first one is Naked In Death. Go. Read it now. ^_^

Now that I'm done ordering you around and typing up quotes (I actually have another that I just like but is too long for a signature that I may type up later just for the fun of it.) I'm going to give you the chapter that I promised.

 

There was something to be said about coming home to a willing female, Will decided as he let himself into his home. One who jumped, fetched, didn't ask questions, was there for him, and loved him unconditionally. He smiled as said female leaped on him and laughed as he looked down her.

"Hey, Jess." he said, staring down into her adoring brown eyes. He crouched down low and raised an eyebrow at the hyperactive young mutt who had yet to grow into her paws. "Did you behave yourself today?" At the question, Jess nudged his hand upwards. Will took that as a yes and stood, motioning for the black and white puppy to follow him. So far, everything looked to be in one piece and he almost heaved a sigh of relief. Today had been a test run. He'd wanted to be sure that if he needed to, he could leave her alone in the house for the day without her destroying something, instead of her staying outside like she normally did. It had been a decision a long time in coming and not one made lightly since he didn't like locking Jess in the house but he didn't like leaving her outside to do nothing but sit in her doghouse if it rained.

He glanced back at her as he pulled a doggy biscuit out of a box. At the sight, Jess started jumping up and down, barking with excitement. Her tail wagged furiously and she stared up at him eagerly. Will shook his head.

"What are you giving me that look for? Do you think I'm just going to give this to you for free? I don't think so. What are you going to do in exchange for this treat?" he asked.

In response, she sat with as much dignity as she could muster and held out one paw for him. He smiled. She was practically quivering with suppressed energy and yet, somehow she managed it. Jess tilted her head to the side and Will got the feeling that if she could talk, she'd be asking him what was taking him so long. Leaning over, he took her paw and gave it one shake before straightening and throwing the biscuit in the air, causing Jess to abandon all impressions of dignity and leap into the air to catch it.

Now that there was no one around to crack jokes or make small talk with, Will dropped down into his favorite chair, a huge monstrosity that was probably one of the ugliest things he'd ever seen but was also extremely comfortable. His head fell back and he closed his eyes before he scowled at the image that appeared when he did.

He had no business thinking of Lila Santos with her exotic eyes and dark hair. Not only would it just complicate things at work but this type of thinking only led to getting involved and he'd vowed four years ago that he wasn't going to risk that type of pain again. He scrubbed a hand down his face as Jess plopped her butt down and her paws on his feet.

Well, hell. He'd just have to forget about it and that's all there was to it. He'd have to get over it, especially before his mother got any ideas in her head. She would too, she always did and his father wasn't any help when it came to that department. So he'd forget about Lila Santos and any ideas he might be getting, himself. And he'd start by walking it off.

"What do you think, Jess? How about a walk?" he asked. At the mere mention of the word walk, Jess took off running, paws sliding on the wood floors and causing her to bump into a wall. That didn't stop her though and by the time he reached her, she was waiting at the door, leash hanging out of her mouth. She scratched at the door and glanced back at him in a silent plea. He shook his head as he bent over and took the leash, fastening it to her collar.

"Okay, we're going, we're going. But let's just get one thing straight here and now. If you're going to try and run off with that low life from down the street again once we get to the park, I'm never letting you off this leash again, understand? He's no good for you, you know. You may not see it now, but you will." Jess gave him a completely innocent look. "Don't give me that look. I know you've been cheating on me with that no good Golden Retriever. And when he breaks your heart, who are you going to come to? Me, that's who. I can see it already. He's going to leave you for that tramp, the Labrador, from the next block over and you'll be devastated. It can't end well." When Jess merely snorted (or he thought it was a snort) at him, Will shook his head and opened the door, leading her out.

"Women." he muttered.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

        Lila smiled when she answered the phone and heard her sister's voice.

"Please tell me that the reason you were out later than usual was because of a man." Sophia Santos Walker demanded. Lila let out a laugh as she kicked her shoes off.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Sophia, but I was at the office." she replied. On the other end of the line, Sophia groaned.

"You can't be serious. Can't you find a guy and date him? A nice guy?" she asked.

"Is this some sort of sickness that all married women get? I mean it. Do they all try to make other people fall in love? And why do you think that is?"

"So you don't become the crazy old lady who has no one but her cats to depend on." Sophia replied dryly.

"I like dogs."

"Fine then, so you don't become the crazy old lady who has no one but her dogs to depend on. But the cats fit that picture better, if you ask me."

"Which I didn't." Lila replied sweetly.

"Do I ever let little details like that bother me?" Sophia asked. Lila sighed.

"Unfortunately, no. Now, what's the real reason you're calling?"

"Dinner." was Sophia's prompt response. "My place. Matt and I haven't seen you in awhile and we thought it'd be nice if you came over."

"I don't know, Sophia." Lila trailed off as she stared at the pile of papers. Sophia almost laughed. Lila was wavering already. Time to pull out the big guns.

"Derek's been asking for you."

Lila grinned at the mention of her four-year-old nephew. "Twist my arm, then, you dirty fighter. What time should I be there?"

"About six. And by the way, we're having lasagna." Sophia added casually. Lila sighed.

"Cheater. Now you know I'll be there. You know I can't resist your lasagna."

Sophia laughed. "That was the idea."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

        Lila grinned as she gave a brief knock before pushing open the door to her sister's house. She looked around as she entered and raised an eyebrow at the sight that met her in the living room.

        Derek stared critically at the town he had built out of blocks and then the action started. Light sabers crashed and buildings collapsed as Luke Skywalker fought Darth Vader. It looked to be a fight to the death.

"So, who's winning?" she asked, stopping in the doorway. His head flew up and he gave her a wide smile.

"Darth Vader!" he exclaimed. Lila shook her head.

"There's something wrong with that picture, kid. The force is with Luke." she replied, going further into the room and kneeling down next to him. Derek shrugged.

"Yeah but Mom wouldn't let me kill the bad guys so right now they're winning." he explained. Lila nodded.

"I see. And why wouldn't your mom let you kill the bad guys?"

"'Cause they were going to die by getting thrown out the window upstairs." He frowned. "Now I don't know how they're going to die."

Lila's lips twitched and she held back a laugh. "Why don't you try putting them in a cup of water and then putting that into the freezer. Then they'll be blocks of ice." she suggested. Derek's eyes widened.

"Okay!" he exclaimed. Suddenly there was a turn in luck for Luke and Darth Vader was being taken away to freeze to death. Lila looked up as Derek ran out of the room and gave Sophia an unrepentant smile as she stood up. Sophia sighed and shook her head.

"He's going to be as destructive as you were when you were his age," she said.

"Well, sure. But you forget that I learned all of that from you." Lila replied in an airy voice. She slung an arm over her shoulder. "Now, tell me where the lasagna is and I just might take him to the park so you and your husband can have a free hour or so later on." Sophia smiled. She loved her son but it had been a while since she and Matt had gotten to have any time to themselves.

"Why didn't you say so?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

        Will smiled as Jess happily chased after a squirrel that had run in front of her. He looked around and realized that while he may not know all of the people there personally, he knew many of them by face. Those were the people who liked to come to the park daily and just sit or watch their children or dogs play.

        It was one of the things that Will liked about the town of Baronsville. It almost seemed like the semi-small town was split in half. All the businesses were on one side of town and all the homes were on the other. It was this quality that made neighborhoods so close nit and allowed you to recognize people whose names you would never know. This was the reason that so many people decided against moving away.

        It was one of the reasons that Anna had left.

        Will shook his head before he could think about that anymore and remember the other reason that she had left. It wouldn't do to think of that. He took a deep breath and pushed the feeling away before looking up.

        He stopped and then scowled a bit. What was she doing there? He'd come to the park so that he could forget about her and then she had the nerve to show up? Where was the justice in that? He looked up at the sky and shook his head.

        "Boy, I must've really ticked you off." he muttered. Then his gaze wandered back to her. She was sitting on the edge of the grass that met the sand of the playground watching the kids. She smiled faintly.

        Before she could notice him staring at her, he turned his gaze back to the playground where Jess was now having fun running around the kids. He grinned, though he felt a slight pang. She loved playing with kids. He watched as she chased after one of the kids and then stood up quickly when the kid tripped and fell.

        "Oh crap." he said, jogging over. He knelt down next to the boy and grabbed at Jess' collar, who had begun to sniff and lick at the boy. "Get off the poor kid, you mutt. Do we need to go over your manners again?" He turned his attention to the boy as someone ran up. "Are you okay?" he asked as he studied the boy. He was a cute kid with brown hair and big hazel eyes.

        "Derek? Sweetie, are you okay?" the other person asked. Will froze. No way. He looked up and found himself staring at Lila who was ignoring him as she checked over the boy, Derek. His gaze flew back to Derek and he studied him again.

        "Yeah." Derek sat up and grinned up at Will. "Is that your dog?" he asked, fall forgotten. Lila looked up and her eyes widened as she saw who her nephew was talking to. Will looked down at Derek and gave him a smile.

        "Yeah, she is." He turned to Jess and gave her a bit of a look. "Alright, Jess, here's your chance to redeem yourself. This is Derek. Right?" He looked over at him for confirmation and Derek nodded. "Okay. Jess, this is Derek. Derek, this is Jess. Shake the man's hand and prove that you're not uncivilized." In response, Jess sat down, much as she had in the kitchen earlier and held out a paw. Derek's grin and eyes widened and he glanced at Lila, who nodded, before taking the paw and giving it a shake before letting go.

        "Neat." he said simply. "Do you think I can have a dog?" he asked, turning to Lila. Lila paused.

        "Well.I don't know. Maybe someday." she replied. Derek nodded and turned back to Jess while Will looked at her over their heads. As Derek laughed and Jess yipped happily, there was just one thought that crossed through his head and one that he couldn't get over.

        She had a son?

        "You're.son is cute." he said to her, fighting to keep his voice casual. Lila looked up quickly.

        "What?" She shook her head. "No, Derek's my nephew. I just thought I'd give my sister and her husband some free time. And Derek loves the park."

        The feeling of relief that swept through him when she said that didn't sit well with him and he struggled not to frown.

        Okay, so forgetting her was going to be harder than he thought. Well then, he'd just have to work at it.

        It was either that or go crazy. With one other option that he just wasn't going to think about. He wasn't getting involved with her.

        No way.