Love on the Forbidden Side

by Mariah Ankenman

  “Yumf wonff?” The muffled question was unintelligible, but completely understandable.

  “No, I won’t.”

  Her face relaxed in relief as he handed her a napkin, which she quickly grabbed and brought to her mouth, emptying the contents into it.

  “Coffee?” Something even he couldn’t screw up.

  At her nod, he passed her a cup. She took a long swig, swishing it around her mouth before swallowing.

  “Better?”

  “Much, thank you.”

  “No, thank you for trying to suffer though my horrible attempt at breakfast.”

  “It wasn’t…that bad.”

  He arched a brow. “Really? Then would you like to try some more? I can—”

  “No!” She threw up her hands. “I mean, that’s not necessary.”

  Laughter pouring out of him, he shook his head at her reluctance to insult his cooking. She soon joined in until they both had tears in the corners of their eyes.

  “Oh my God, Liam. How the heck can you go from a delicious dinner last night to this pile of inedible garbage this morning?”

  “Hey, I thought you said it wasn’t bad.”

  “I was trying to be nice, but even I have my limits.” She motioned to the food. “Seriously, how did this happen?”

  Grabbing his own coffee, he took a sip before replying, “I can only make one thing. My mother’s jerk steak, and that’s simply rubbing spices on meat and popping it and veggies in the oven for a specific amount of time. Hard to screw up.”

  “Eggs and bacon aren’t all that hard,” she teased, pushing the food around on her plate with her fork. “And how the heck did you manage to burn the toast? It’s on a timer.”

  “I have no idea,” he confessed.

  Standing, she grabbed both plates, leaning down to kiss his cheek before heading to the sink. “Well, it was sweet of you to try and feed me, but I think we should save our stomachs and head into town. Merle’s opens early, and he makes some killer omelets.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me.” He stood, joining her at the sink as she scraped his pathetic attempt at romance into the sink. “How’s the beas—Wind Chaser doing?” He corrected his wording at the murderous glare she gave him.

  “She’s doing just fine. I think she’s happier at home. She’s not as social as most horses. Being cooped up at the Denning ranch with the others gives her anxiety.”

  He didn’t even know horses could have anxiety. Did they have a pill for that?

  “Don’t worry about the dishes,” he told her, glancing at the pile of dirty pans and bowls. “I’ll handle them after we get back from breakfast.”

  “Let’s put them in the dishwasher. That way we don’t have to deal with them later,” she countered.

  “My mother always yelled at us if we put her good pans in the dishwasher. She said it ruins them. Does Ryder hand wash his or go the easy route?”

  She shrugged, placing the dirty pans in the washer. “What my brother doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

  And that brought him right back around to last night. Guilt pricked at his conscious. He hated to think of what his buddy would do when he found out Liam bedded his little sister. But even the thought of losing Ryder as a friend couldn’t make him regret last night. It had been amazing and hot and so damn satisfying. Never had he experienced such passion and connection with a lover. Julie had well and truly ruined him for other women.

  He wasn’t complaining. Hell, he was pretty sure if the woman let him, he would spend the rest of his days repeating last night over and over again.

  They hadn’t talked about anything yet—what they were doing, where this thing was going—but based on her “take it one day at a time” statement this morning, she wasn’t mailing out change of address forms anytime soon.

  Nothing saying he couldn’t change his address. He was at a crossroads at work. Wasn’t that what this whole trip was about? Finding his new place in life? That place could be with Julie.

  “There. All done.” She stood, wiping her hand off on a dishtowel. “Now we don’t have to worry about coming home to a messy house.”

  He pulled her close, mouth hovering over hers. “Great. I can think of much better ways to spend our time than cleaning.”

  Eyes sparkling with unchecked lust, she grinned back at him. “Save it for later, city boy. Us cowgirls need sustenance after our morning chores, and your very sweet but pathetic attempt at breakfast just isn’t going to cut it.”

  He feigned offense, but she was right. They needed food and a moment to think with their clothes on, to discuss what they were doing and where they saw this thing headed.

  Pulling from his grasp, she turned and headed to the door. He watched the supple sway of her ass and grew hard with the memory of how perfectly those sweet cheeks fit into his palms.

  “You coming?” she asked, glancing at him over her shoulder.

  “Pretty damn close,” he muttered under his breath and then louder, “Yep, I’m right behind you.”

  “Just where I like you.” She gave him a wink and headed out the door.

  Liam followed, wondering how long a man could last with a raging erection. Breakfast had better be quick. Now that he’d had Julie, he wanted to lock them both in the house and stay for a week.

  A smile crossed his face as he realized he could do just that. “Does Peak Town have delivery?”

  “Not really. I think Peak Pizza might deliver, but most places only do take out.”

  Unfortunate. They were going to have to stock up on frozen meals at the store then, because he could only make jerk steak so many times, and he didn’t want to be spending all his time in town. Not when he could be spending it at the house, naked with Julie.

  The image made him move even faster to catch up to her. This breakfast was going to be the quickest in history. He glanced at the beautiful woman beside him. Heat and anticipation coursed through his body. Food might be necessary, but so was this driving need to have Julie again. Yes, the meal would be quick, but what he planned to do after would take all…day…long.

  Chapter 19

  After eight in the morning on a weekday, the crowd at Merle’s wasn’t too bad. A few of the older, retired men sat at a back table drinking coffee like they did every time Julie came in. A few tables had one or two people sitting eating breakfast. She knew a lot of the local business owners ate here before opening their stores, but judging by the time, they were all open now.

  Delicious smells hit her nostrils: coffee, bacon, eggs, pancakes. Her stomach rumbled with hunger. It was sweet of Liam to try and fix her breakfast, but the meal had been truly unpalatable. She didn’t mind. A lack of cooking skills certainly wasn’t a deal breaker in her book. The guy was so damned perfect, it was nice to discover he had flaws.

  “Julie and her FBI man. Hello again, you two. Come for breakfast?”

  She smiled as Ellen came around the counter, menus in hand. “You know it. I had a craving for Merle’s famous French toast.” She ignored the part where Ellen called Liam her man. It sounded lovely, but she didn’t want to jinx anything, in case he wanted to be more casual with this thing than she did.

  “Ugh, don’t flatter him by calling it famous. He just puts cinnamon in the batter.”

  “Stop giving away all my secret recipes, woman.” Merle’s head popped out the window between the kitchen and dining area.

  “It’s not a secret. It’s a very commonly used spice, you old fool.”

  A chuckle rose within her. She loved the playful banter between these two. They’d been married forever and still teased each other like grade school kids.

  “How can it be a secret when you keep blabbing it to the whole dang county?”

  “Go handle your orders.”

  The old man bobbed two big, bushy white eyebrows. “I’d rather handle you.”

  A faint blush stained wrinkled cheeks. “Oh, stuff it you old hound dog and get back to the kitchen.”

  Merle made a howling noi
se before returning to his cooking. Ellen smiled, tucking a stray gray strand of hair into her bun. “Don’t you mind him. Just sit anywhere you like and I’ll get ya’ll some coffee.”

  “Are they always like that?” Liam asked as they chose a small table near the front window.

  “Yes. I think it’s their version of sweet talk.”

  Blond brows rose. “Strangest sweet talk I’ve ever heard.”

  “To each their own, I guess.” She found it adorable. Thinking back over how she and Liam teased each other, she felt her heart warm. The similarity between their banter and the elderly diner owners gave her hope that this thing between them had a depth. Something lasting…she hoped.

  Ellen arrived carrying two mugs of coffee and a bowl of creamers. “So, what’ll it be?”

  She didn’t even have to look at the menu. Merle’s hadn’t changed much since she lived in town. “I’ll have the French toast with bacon, two eggs over easy, and a side of homefries.”

  Ellen nodded, not bothering to write it down. After so many years running the place, the woman’s mind had to be a steel trap of food orders.

  “Sounds delicious, make it two.” Liam smiled at her, handing over his menu.

  The proprietor took the menus, tucking them under her arm. Glancing at Julie, the old woman winked. “Delicious indeed. That’ll be right up.”

  “Did I miss something?” Liam asked when Ellen left.

  Holding in a chuckle, she shook her head. “I think she might be sweet on you.”

  “Oh no, I’m not going there.” He held up his hands. “I know what kind of knives chefs have in their kitchen. I have a feeling Merle would chop me up and serve me for the lunch special if I so much as glanced at his wife wrong.”

  The laughter bubbled out of her. “You’d be right about that, but don’t worry. They’re so crazy in love they’d never stray. Ellen just likes to ‘glance at the menu now and then’ or so she says.”

  They doctored up their drinks, well, she did. Liam took his coffee black. Yuck! How could anyone drink something so bitter? She liked a little coffee in her cream and sugar. The sweeter the better.

  As they waited for their food, an awkward silence settled upon them. She wanted to hold his hand, touch him, kiss him, but she didn’t know if he would welcome a public display of affection. Last night had been amazing, but did their passion in the bedroom bleed out into the real world? Did Liam want to keep their relationship secret or shout it from the rooftops like she did?

  Pffft, relationship.

  There was no relationship. They had sex, amazing sex, mind-blowing sex, but there’d been no talk of what came after. She didn’t know if she had the right to touch him in public, and it bothered her.

  Some of her distress must have shown on her face because his brow furrowed. Reaching across the table, he gathered her hands in his own.

  Guess that answered the touching question.

  “What’s wrong, honey?”

  Calling her a pet name in public was a good indicator, but did she have the guts to ask?

  “I was just wondering… I mean, I don’t want to put any pressure on you, and I know we said we’d take this one day at a time and all, but I just don’t know what the proper protocol for this type of situation is. I’m not really experienced with stuff like this and—”

  “Jules, you’re rambling and, frankly, not making much sense.”

  How could she make any sense out of this when her mind was going a thousand miles a minute, and her heart was pounding like a jackhammer?

  Mentally pulling on her big girl panties, she took a deep breath and let it out before continuing. “I was just wondering how public you wanted this thing to be.”

  His head tilted, a puzzled frown marring his face.

  “This—” She lifted their joined hands. “I didn’t know if you wanted to keep it secret or…”

  Understanding dawned in a dazzling smile. “Sweetheart, if this town had a bell tower, I’d be running to the top of it right now to shout out the news.”

  “You want the whole town to know we had sex?”

  An adorable flush rose on his face. “No, but I wouldn’t mind everyone knowing you’re my girl.”

  His girl? Liam wanted her to be his?

  A rush of joy washed over her. Pulse racing, she tried to catch the breath currently stuck in her throat. He’d done such a one eighty from the other day when he opposed their getting involved. Who knew all it took was doing the guy to get him to change his tune?

  “Your girl?” She clucked her tongue, unable to resist teasing him. “What is this, nineteen-fifty?”

  Leaning over the narrow table, he brushed his nose against hers. “As someone recently told me, I’m an old guy, so I guess I say old fashioned things.”

  “I only said that because you kept harping on my age.”

  Warm lips brushed against her like warm chocolate, delicious and oh so tempting. Her breasts tingled, nipples tightening with the memories of last night. The world melted away, leaving only her and Liam. She could kiss this man for days and never come up for air. Who needed air when you had Liam’s amazing lips?

  The clearing of a throat caused them to pull apart. She glanced up to see Ellen standing at their table, food in hand, knowing grin on her face.

  A flush of embarrassment covered Julie from head to toe. She sat back in her seat, trying as hard as she could to disappear into the chair. “Sorry, Ellen.” Geeze, it was like getting caught by your aunt or something. She’d known Ellen most of her life, the woman was practically family. “We were just…”

  “Looked like sucking face from here,” Merle’s voice called from the kitchen.

  She groaned, covering her face with her hands. If Ellen was like an old aunt, Merle was definitely the old pervy uncle.

  “Quiet, you old coot!” The diner owner placed their food in front of them. “I didn’t see anything. I’m just here to deliver food. Just remember this is a family establishment. Keep it PG you two.”

  With that warning, Ellen left, and Julie prayed for the ground to swallow her up.

  “Why did that feel like the time I got caught making out with the neighbor girl by my great Aunt Marie?”

  She laughed at Liam’s apt description. “Because Ellen is everyone’s pseudo aunt in this town.”

  “Wonderful, now everyone is going to think I’m some big bad city boy, corrupting Peak Town’s favorite hometown girl.”

  Shaking her head, she laughed. “Ellen knows we’re two consenting adults enjoying each other’s company. Besides, I’m not the hometown favorite. That would be Jamie Thompson. Smartest girl in town. She got into Harvard. Sweet as apple pie, too.”

  They dug into their breakfast, Liam commenting on the amazing flavor before digging into his meal with gusto. She had to agree. Merle made the most scrumptious food. As delicious as it was, though, she still couldn’t help but compare it to this morning’s disaster of a breakfast. Bad, yes, but the caring and thoughtfulness that went into it made the meal one she would never forget.

  Ellen came by to refill their coffee. The old woman gave Julie another conspicuous wink, making her laugh. Everything was perfect—delicious food, amazing company. Could her life get any better?

  Her cell chimed with an incoming text. She pulled it out and glanced at the screen. Cold dread settled in her gut as she read the message. She should have known better than to tempt fate with happiness.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Liam’s deep voice sounded far away.

  “Jules? Julie.”

  Her head snapped up, black cloud dissipating. “Huh?”

  “Bad news?”

  You could say that. Her boss just texted to let her know a CCTV caught footage of Jason Kline in the same area where they found Pam. A cold chill settled over her as the text went on to say another person connected to the case had been killed. Carrie Hart, the court stenographer, had been found in her apartment after not showing up for work. Fourteen stab wounds in her
body.

  There was no more denying Jason hadn’t left town. In fact, it looked like he was staying around to handle unfinished business. True to his word, he was going after everyone connected to his case.

  “I’ll kill you, bitch. If it’s the last thing I do, I’ll get out and kill you!”

  Terrifying words he screamed at her as they took him to jail. Lots of perps hurled threats to her when the sentencing didn’t go their way, but none had ever escaped prison. Not until Jason.

  “Um, it’s…” She wanted to lie, to keep this ugliness away from Liam and their new blissful arrangement.

  “Don’t even think about lying to me.” His dark voice held a touch of anger, but also a note of concern. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

  Sucking in a deep breath, she blew it out. “Well, there’s this guy, Jason Kline—”

  “The man you put away for murdering his girlfriend?”

  Shock made her lose her train of thought. “You follow my cases?”

  “Focus, Julie. What about Jason?”

  Right, the killer who was after her. “Oh, um, so he kind of escaped the courthouse at his last appeal hearing. A few people connected to the case have been…killed.” A weighty ache settled in her chest thinking of Carrie. She hadn’t known the woman well, but they’d worked in the same courtroom for years, and she was always pleasant to talk to. Poor woman didn’t deserve what happened to her. Despair and terror warred within her. “Jason had been seen in the area.”

  Weighted silence hung in the air around them. Liam sat still as stone, a dark scowl on his face. Fidgeting in her seat, she waited for him to say something.

  “So,” he drew out the word. “You aren’t just up here for vacation. You’re hiding from Kline. You lied.”

  How dare he speak to her in such an accusatory way? Crossing her arms over her chest, she glared right back. “You lied, too, remember?”

  “This is serious, Julie.”

  “You think I don’t know that?”

  “Why the hell aren’t you in WITSEC?”

  Ugh, she knew he would say that. “Because I don’t turn tail and run every time there’s a possible threat to me.”

  Dark crimson coloring bled over his face, it looked like Liam might blow his top. The sight gave her pause, she’d never seen him so angry before. A quick glance around revealed they had the attention of everyone in the diner. Not wanting to cause a scene, she leaned toward him, speaking in a hushed tone, “Can we discuss this later? Somewhere more private?”