“I know. I’m glad he was here with you, and especially that we had the alarm system to alert both you and me.”
“I’m sorry I gave you such a hard time about it. You were right. We needed it, but I still don’t understand why Kent Barnard is so bent on hurting us.”
“I don’t understand it, either. I suppose we’re expecting an irrational man to make sense. That won’t happen.”
She yawned again. “I’m sorry. I need to go to bed.”
“You go ahead. I’ll be in shortly.”
She had settled in on her side of the bed when Rob joined her, pulling her toward him. “I hope you’re in the mood to snuggle tonight because I want to hold you in my arms.”
She nodded and moved in closer. “I love you, Rob. I’m glad you’re here.”
“I love you, too, MJ. I’m glad you’re safe.”
She heard Maverick’s tags jingle as he lay down on the floor at the end of the bed. “Thank you, Maverick, for keeping me safe.”
“Yeah, thanks. You’re a good warrior dog, bravo cane guerriero. Good night, boy.” Rob leaned over to kiss her. “Good night, sweetheart. Sleep well. We’ve got you. You’re safe and sound.”
She breathed in Rob’s scent and allowed it to calm her. She felt him stroking her hair, and allowed herself to relax into his touch, drifting breath by breath toward sleep.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Something sharp jabbed Rob’s ribs. “No, no!” a female voice cried. He shook the cobwebs from his brain, as her body rolled into him.
“MJ! Wake up! You’re safe!” He reached for her, and she struck out with a fist, nearly coldcocking him. Her eyes, although open, were unseeing.
“Honey, wake up!” He rolled onto her and captured her arms.
Her feet kicked out as she fought him. “No! Leave me alone!”
“MJ, it’s me. Rob. You’re safe. Nobody can hurt you.” He stroked her face gently with his thumb as he held her in place.
Her eyes suddenly focused, and he hated the look of fear. Luckily, it cleared as she recognized him.
“Rob? What’s happening?”
“You had a dream, honey. A scary one.”
She shuddered and closed her eyes as she inhaled sharply. “It was awful, Rob. I dreamed Kent Barnard got to us before the police arrived. Maverick tried to protect me, but Kent stabbed him with a knife, and then came after me.” Tears rolled down her face as she recounted the dream.
“Oh, honey, I’m so sorry. You’re safe.” A cold nose nudged his arm. “Maverick’s right here. You’re okay, aren’t you, boy? Va bene.”
MJ struggled to sit up and peer over the side of the bed at the concerned canine. “Oh, Maverick. I dreamed you tried to save me, but he hurt you.” She shook her head as if to shake the image away. “I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you.” She reached her hand out, and the dog licked it.
“You’re both okay, MJ. The police got here in time. You protected him by locking both of you in the bathroom. Hopefully, Barnard’s out of our lives for good. With luck, they’ll keep him in jail until the trial.”
“Do you really think so?”
Rob nodded and held her tight. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here.”
“Don’t blame yourself. I’m just glad we had the security system. It gave me enough time to call 9-1-1.”
He didn’t even want to think about what might have happened if the security system hadn’t alerted them. What the hell did Barnard intend to do with that knife? Rob felt sick to his stomach every time he thought about the man breaking into the house and attempting to get into the bathroom where MJ and Maverick hid.
He pulled her to his chest and stroked her back.
She snuggled closer. “Make me forget, Rob.”
He pulled back to assess her mood. What was she asking?
She looked up at him, her heart in her eyes. “Please, Rob. Make love to me.”
He leaned in and placed a tender kiss on her lips, caressing her chin and jaw with his thumb. His fingers traced down to the place on her neck where her pulse beat strong, and she told him how much she wanted this. He pulled her nightshirt up and over her head, and she responded with a sigh.
“I love you, MJ,” he murmured, giving her heartfelt kisses where his fingers had been moments before.
She sighed and her breath caught as his tongue traced a path down her body. “Oh, Rob.” As his mouth traveled down to her breasts, she gasped as he took one erect nipple and suckled it before turning to the other.
She groaned. “Oh, yes.” She pulled on his hair as she held him to her, and the small tweak of pain drove his arousal higher.
Her body undulated in response to each touch, and he wanted more. His hands roamed her soft curves as he kissed his way down her body again. The feel of her skin against his made him hard as stone.
Moments later, he broke away from her to rip off his boxer briefs. They followed the same direction as her nightshirt.
He heard her let out a sigh, followed by a moan, as he caressed her wet center with his fingers, before planting his face between her legs.
“Yes-s-s-s,” she hissed as he flicked his tongue over the sensitive collection of nerves. He could both smell and taste her arousal, and it turned him on even more. Moments later, she erupted in a sustained climax, as his fingers invaded her tight channel while still sucking and flicking her with his mouth.
“That’s right, honey. Let go.” He loved the way she responded to him. He loved touching her, pleasuring her. He’d never get enough. A quiver of anxiety hit as he thought how the evening might have ended, but he banished the thought by pulling her closer.
“Please, Rob. Make love to me. I want to feel you deep inside me.”
He reached for the nightstand and pulled out a condom, ripping it open with his teeth. He put it on as quickly as he could manage and then pushed into her until he’d gone as deep as possible. He began to move, slowly at first, then picking up speed, as she met each stroke to push him even deeper.
The sound of their coupling filled the room, and Rob saw dark brown eyes watching them from the side of the bed.
“Va bene, Maverick.” The Malinois cocked his head and continued to stare. “Lie down. You’re disrupting my concentration.”
It was as if his comment had flipped a switch. The absurdity of the situation hit him, and he shook his head as he started to laugh. MJ’s body shook beneath him, and her giggles broke through. Together they held onto each other, while spasms of laughter rocked them, adding to the hilarity, and setting off repeated rounds of gasping belly laughs.
“Stop.” MJ held up her hand. “My stomach hurts,” she finally said.
His hard-on slipped out, and softened, and he flopped down next to her, as they both continued to laugh. He nearly got himself under control when he looked over again at the puzzled expression on Maverick’s face. Another round of giggles erupted. Finally, weak with laughter, they got themselves under control.
“Well, so much for romance,” Rob observed, which made MJ giggle again.
“Stop! I can’t take any more.” She snuggled into him and put her hand across his chest. “I can’t remember the last time I laughed like that.”
He sobered. “Me either. We needed it.”
He felt her nod against him.
“But next time, let’s lock Maverick out of the bedroom.”
She snickered in response, and then let out a huge yawn.
“We’d better postpone our love-making. You need some sleep.” He peered at the clock on the nightstand. “You’ve got to get up in a few hours.”
She sighed and acknowledged the wisdom of his idea. “All right.” She yawned again, and he responded with his own.
“Goodnight, MJ.” He gathered her close to him, comforted by the feel of her in his arms. “I love you.”
“You, too,” she murmured, and she settled into her pillow. In only moments, she’d drifted off to sleep again.
Rob lay next to her, listening t
o her soft breathing, and thinking how important this woman had become to him in such a short time. This was it for him. MJ was the woman with whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life. Now, he needed to work on the logistics of staying in Ridgeview.
***
The sound of the alarm clock woke her with a start. She groped around and silenced it. Hadn’t she just gone to sleep after that horrible nightmare? She shuddered. She felt the big, warm body next to her stir, as strong arms pulled her closer.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” His deep voice stirred sensations in her lady-parts, and his sentiments touched her heart.
She shook her head. “I’m okay. Just shadows of that nightmare and everything that happened last night.” She looked at the clock. “I’d love to spend the day in bed with you, making love, but I have to get ready for work.”
“I know.” He leaned in and kissed her. “I’ll take Maverick out.”
She rolled over and petted the dog, now stationed next to the bed, his eyes shifting back and forth between her and Rob. Maverick seemed to grin as Rob pulled on his jeans and a clean T-shirt.
“C’mon, boy. Let’s go.”
She sighed as she struggled to her feet. She felt hung over. She peered at herself in the bathroom mirror. Ugh. Her eyes were swollen, and her face blotchy with the remnants of her emotional meltdown. A headache lingered in her temple. She ran cold water in the sink and wet a washcloth, holding it over her eyes.
She debated whether to shower. Just the sight of the bathtub made her think how vulnerable she’d been when the alarm went off. She shuddered. She needed to stop thinking about what could have happened. She squared her shoulders and took a deep breath, relieved to see determination replace the look of fear that moments ago had graced her reflection in the mirror.
After washing her face and combing her hair, she applied concealer to the dark circles under the eyes and added a light application of mascara. She brushed some mineral powder over her blotchy face. She’d pass muster for work. She dressed in her favorite blouse and pants and put on a colorful scarf to draw attention from her face. Now she was ready for coffee.
Rob and Maverick had returned, and the dog’s nose was buried in his food bowl. “Want some bacon and eggs?”
“No, don’t bother. I’ll have yogurt and a piece of cinnamon toast.” She helped herself to a cup of coffee and put two slices of bread in the toaster. “Want one?”
“Yeah, cinnamon toast sounds great.” He pulled out bacon and eggs and began cooking his usual breakfast as she buttered their toast and applied liberal amounts of cinnamon sugar.
“Cinnamon toast is such a wonderful comfort food,” she said as they sat together eating their breakfast. “I hate to eat and run, but I need to pick the book for the children’s group this morning.”
She leaned down and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Have a good day.”
“You, too. Think of me.” He arched his eyebrows and gave her a sexy look.
“I always do.” She gathered her things and looked back over her shoulder at her man and dog. “Be good, both of you.”
The day passed quickly, as kids flooded the library for Children’s Story Hour, followed by a steady stream of children and teens after school.
“Hi, Miss Van Buren,” several teenagers greeted her as they entered and claimed a large table in the reference area.
She waved, and made her rounds of the building, checking in with each child to see what help they needed. The computers rapidly filled, and she offered directions on how to use search engines to find reference materials, even though she knew their teachers had covered this in class. Not everybody was comfortable online. She walked the novice users through the steps and made sure they had success finding what they were looking for. Part of the challenge came with their choice of keywords to search, and spelling was always an issue.
By the end of the day, the headache that had been niggling much of the day had blossomed into a persistent pain that throbbed with each heartbeat. She dreaded having to go to the police station and give another statement. It was necessary, but the last thing she wanted was to relive last night.
She called Rob to let him know she was leaving the library.
“Why don’t you come home, and we’ll go together. Then we can grab dinner afterward. I’ll walk Maverick now, so he’ll be able to last until we get home.”
“That sounds like a great idea. I’ll be there soon.”
When they got to the Ridgeview Police Station, she stopped at the window, gave their names, and asked for Officer Ryan or Detective Bailey.
Several minutes later, a tired-looking man in his forties introduced himself as Detective Bailey. “Officer Ryan is off, and I’ve taken over the investigation. I read the statement you gave last night, and I have a few questions for each of you. If you’ll come with me, we can get started.”
He separated them, explaining that he needed to talk with each of them alone. After bringing her a soft drink, the detective started a recording. He identified himself for the recording, and indicated this was an interview with Mary Jane Van Buren, along with giving the date and a case number. “Now then, please tell me what happened last night.”
She told him what happened from the time the alarm went off announcing someone was in the yard. He stopped her occasionally to ask for clarification or more details. When she’d explained everything, he asked about her history with Kent Barnard.
“I don’t really know him. He was at the IGA one day while we were there, and he was harassing our dog, who was waiting in the truck.”
She explained what she knew of his contacts with Rob. “I don’t really understand why he targeted us, or why he wanted to break in and hurt me.”
Detective Bailey’s compassionate demeanor made him easy to talk to, even though he didn’t offer any explanations for Kent’s behavior. After what seemed like hours, the detective thanked her and asked her to wait. As he exited the room, she laid her head down on the table, suddenly too tired to hold it up.
She must have fallen asleep, because she jumped when the door opened again.
“Sorry for keeping you waiting,” Detective Bailey said. “That’s all I need for now.”
Rob was behind him and gave her a slow, sexy smile. “Let’s go get some pizza, MJ.”
“Sounds great, but let’s order it to take out. I’m not sure I can hold my head up enough to sit in a restaurant.”
As they ate their pizza, sprawled on the living room couch, they compared notes about their interviews. It turned out Rob hadn’t told her everything about his interactions with Kent Barnard.
“I wasn’t trying to keep it from you. I just didn’t want to worry you by telling you what he’d said about you.”
“Don’t do that, Rob. You don’t need to protect me. We need to be honest with each other.”
“Sorry. You’re right. I guess I should tell you that Detective Bailey let it slip that Barnard had a can of gasoline with him. He left it behind the garage.”
“What? Why would he want to burn us out?”
“I’m not sure what he had planned.” He looked like he didn’t want to say more.
The pieces fell into place. “He had a knife. He planned to burn down the house to cover up a crime, didn’t he?”
“I don’t know, MJ. I don’t know what he would have done, but I’m glad you’re okay.”
She felt sick to her stomach, and shoved the slice of pizza aside, appetite gone. Tears came again as she imagined what the man had intended.
Rob pulled her onto his lap, stroking her hair and back. “Honey, you’re okay. They’re building a good case against him, and they’ll put him away for a long time. Don’t let him into your head. Don’t let him scare you. We’re both fine. Maverick’s fine. Remember, they have a case against him for sexual abuse of his own baby, too. He’s going away for a very long time. He won’t get bail this time.”
“Do you think he was responsible for the fire at your apa
rtment?”
“I don’t know, but I suspect the police are looking at that carefully.”
She shuddered, and he pulled her close and held her. “I love you, MJ. We’re okay. We’ll make sure he can’t do anything to hurt you.”
His touch comforted her the way it always did. Rob would do whatever was necessary to protect her. Whether or not he realized it, she was his. She didn’t know when it had happened, exactly, but the love she’d once felt for Trevor, she now knew to the depths of her soul had been a teenage infatuation. Somehow, the love she felt for Rob was deeper, more real, and with luck, lasting.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Rob had just stepped out of the shower after PT the next morning when his phone rang. He dropped his towel and grabbed the cell off the counter. He didn’t recognize the local number. He’d be pissed if it was a telemarketer.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Rob, this is Tyler Mathews. We met at the support group.”
“How are you doing?”
“That’s what I wanted to ask you. I read about the break-in at your house. Is your girlfriend okay?”
“Yeah. The security system warned her he was in the yard, and she called 9-1-1 and locked herself in the bathroom. He got into the house and was at the bathroom door trying to get in when the police arrived.” He shuddered for the hundredth time, thinking about what could have happened if they’d been slower to respond.
“Man, that’s terrible.”
“Tell me about it. At least he’s in jail.”
“Glad to hear it. If you’re up to it, I want to invite you out to the ranch. I’d like for you to see my operation and maybe give me some input.”
“That sounds great. Much better than sitting around.”
Tyler gave him directions to Wayward Ranch, which was in the southern part of Ridgeview County. “Don’t bother with GPS. It doesn’t work out here and will most likely take you to the edge of a lake and tell you to drive in.” They both laughed, familiar with the lack of accuracy the technology had in rural areas.
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