Every Time We Touch: A Small Town Firefighter Romance (Redeeming Love Book 5)

by J. E. Parker

“I thought you liked being hurt,” he snarled. “Sure seemed that way when I watched Tuck take you.”

  I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again…

  The man was crazy!

  Not only were his words a complete contradiction to what he’d said minutes before, but they were total horsepuckey.

  I was done.

  Officially done.

  Unable to keep up the charade any longer, every bit of anger and fear that swirled in my belly bubbled up, clouding my judgement, and sending me into a panic-induced rage.

  Like a weak fishing line, I snapped.

  Placing my free hand on his chest, I shoved him backward with all my might. I wasn’t strong by any means, but catching him off guard was key. I mean, Carson wasn’t a big guy like Kyle, Hendrix or Ty, but he was still bigger than me.

  Plus he had a knife.

  And God only knows what else.

  Caught by surprise, he stumbled backward, releasing my arm.

  His eyes flared in shock before they narrowed in rage. “You ungrateful little whore!”

  Five feet separated us.

  It wasn’t enough.

  I’d worked with enough victims of domestic violence to know he was about to charge, and when he did, there would be hell to pay. Unfortunately for him, I would not lay down like a dog and take whatever beating—or worse—he wanted to hand me.

  Like the woman who raised me, and the women who stepped in to finish the job when she was called home to Heaven, I was strong, I was capable, and I was about to prove to the monster standing before me that he’d kidnapped the wrong dang woman.

  “Don’t you dare lay your filthy hands on me!” I shouted, pressing my back against the truck’s door. “Ever again!”

  As expected, he charged.

  But I was ready.

  With as much power as I could muster, I thrusted the heel of my hand upward into his nose.

  Bone cracked.

  Blood sprayed.

  Carson wailed.

  I smiled.

  His hands flew to his face, and he bent slightly, giving me the perfect opening. Grabbing his shoulders, I steadied myself and rammed my kneecap into his privates as hard as I could.

  He buckled.

  Falling to his knees, Carson gasped in pain.

  But I wasn’t done with him yet.

  After everything he’d done, and after the trauma he’d no doubt inflicted on my family and me, he deserved to pay. Plus, I didn’t want him to chase me down once I started to run. After what I’d just done, he’d kill me if I didn’t escape him for good.

  I was taking no chances.

  My life, along with my babies was at stake.

  Kyle’s too.

  He’d once told me that without me, he wouldn’t exist.

  I believed that.

  He’d already lost so much.

  Losing me would be his end.

  Grabbing every ounce of courage I possessed by the throat, I placed my hands on the sides of Carson’s face and shoved my thumbs into his eyes.

  Hard.

  He screamed and made a grab for me, but I’d already dropped my arms and jumped sideways, out of his reach. My heart beat wildly, dumping buckets of adrenaline into my veins as I spun around and ran.

  I had no idea where to go so I just ran.

  Behind me, Carson was silent.

  He wasn’t screaming, wasn’t wailing.

  Wasn’t cussing.

  That terrified me.

  Hiding in the cover of the trees, I kept running, trying my best to stay quiet. When I saw a break in the tree line, I ran harder, not once looking back. At the break, I stopped, leaned against the tree next to me and stared across the wheat field before me.

  It was big—huge—but I could see a road on the far side.

  Which road it was, I didn’t have a clue.

  Didn’t matter.

  A road meant cars and cars meant people.

  It was a risk, a huge one, but one I had to take.

  I was about to take my first step into the field when the distant roar of an engine caught my attention. I held my breath, listening, trying to figure out how far away it was and which direction it was coming from.

  If I could only—

  Headlights came into view.

  They were a ways away but that would give me time to make it across the field.

  I didn’t think twice.

  Lunging into the opening, I ran full bore for the road.

  When I made it twenty yards, I stopped and glanced over my shoulder, but didn’t see Carson anywhere. That didn’t mean he wasn’t back there though. He was an expert at lurking in the shadows.

  When I looked back at the road, the vehicle was closer, moving faster.

  Bathed in the light from the full moon, I took off running once more.

  Heart pounding, I pumped my legs as hard as I could, willing them to carry me to where I needed to go. When I made it to the center of the field, I squinted my eyes, attempting to get a better look at the vehicle roaring closer and closer with each second that ticked by.

  Recognition dawned, my heart stopped, and for the first time since being held at knifepoint and forced into Carson’s truck, I took a breath, because there, in the distance was my guy.

  Kyle.

  I’d recognize his truck anywhere.

  Drained, I lost my footing and fell forward, landing on my knees.

  I screamed in agony as bolts of pain shot through my kneecaps and into my thighs.

  Knowing he may not see me on the ground, I forced myself to my feet.

  Arms in the air, I waved as I started to run again.

  This time slower.

  “Kyle!” I screamed.

  The trucks tires squealed as he slammed on the brakes.

  I cried out as he, along with Ty, jumped out of the big black Chevy and started running my way. Clearing the shoddy fencing that stood between them and I in one leap, their feet hit the ground and they started moving.

  It’s over, I told myself. Kyle’s here.

  Except, it wasn’t over.

  Footsteps sounded from behind me and I knew Carson was coming.

  “Kyle, please!” I screamed, franticly. “Help me!”

  “Carissa!” he yelled.

  I opened my mouth to yell back but didn’t get the chance.

  The footsteps grew louder, the sound of heavy breathing came closer.

  Then, impact.

  My back hit the ground and before I could blink, Carson was on me.

  His hands found my throat, stealing my ability to breathe.

  All I could think as my vision tunneled was, please, Kyle, hurry…

  FORTY-TWO

  Kyle

  Come on, baby, where are you?

  Ty and I had been driving for the past thirty minutes, and we were no closer to finding Carissa than when we had started. So many damn emotions welled up inside me, sucking the life force right out of me. I didn’t know whether to scream, cry, or fucking punch something.

  Part of me wanted to do all three, while the other part just wanted my girl.

  Not knowing where she was, if she was hurt, or if she was still breathing was killing me.

  If I didn’t find her soon, I’d lose my goddamn mind.

  “Fuck!” Ty yelled, punching my dash. “Where would that son of a bitch take her?”

  If possible, Ty was in as bad of shape as me.

  I’d never admitted it, or even acknowledged it, but losing Lily had screwed him up as well. He’d loved her too, saw her as the little sister he never had.

  I wasn’t the only one left broken after her death.

  That was for damn sure.

  “I don’t—”

  The radio Anthony had given me crackled, cutting me off.

  I waited with bated breath for someone to say something.

  Thank Christ, it was only seconds before they did.

  Static, followed by a man’s voice, filled the silent cab of my truck. “Possible ki
dnap sighting. Victim: Carissa Ann Johnson. Person of Interest: Carson Dale Rogers. Vehicle: White 4 Door Pick Up. License Plate Number: Unknown. Vehicle Location: 4500 Highway 3, Toluca County.”

  My entire body went rigid.

  “4500?” Ty asked, the anger is his voice thick. “Where the fuck is that?”

  Completely frozen, I couldn’t speak, couldn’t move.

  Hell, I could barely control the steering wheel.

  Ty took notice of my fucked-up state, and realization sunk into this thick head. “No, no, no!” he yelled, punching the dash with each word. “Fuck no!”

  “It’s Lily’s field,” I managed to say, feeling my gut twist into a million knots. “The one where they found her…”

  “I know!” Ty screamed, completely losing his mind. “Goddammit, Kyle, floor it!”

  I didn’t need to be told twice.

  Slamming my foot down on the gas pedal, I gripped the leather steering wheel tight as the engine roared and my truck lurched forward, rocketing down the highway.

  “Faster!”

  “I’ve got it floored!”

  A second voice, this one belonging to a female came through the radio. “4500 Highway 3. Possible kidnap sighting. All units proceed with caution.”

  “Fuck caution!” Ty continued, punching the dash again.

  “Ty,” I said, my voice deceptively calm. “I need you to do something for me.”

  He didn’t reply, but I could feel his eyes on me. “If Carissa isn’t…” Feeling sick to my stomach over the words that sat perched on the end of my tongue, I paused. “If he’s hurt her and I can’t save her, I need you to take care of Mama and Heidi for me, yeah?”

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “I can’t lose her.” That was nothing but the truth. “If that son of a bitch killed her, if she’s gone”—my fingers tightened further—“I wont be able to handle that.”

  A heavy silence fell between us.

  Then, “Carissa isn’t going anywhere, Tuck, so don’t say that shit,” Ty said, his voice calmer than moments before. “She’s not—” He snapped his mouth shut, mulling over his words before continuing. “C is strong and smart as hell. If anybody can make it through something like this, it’s her.”

  I wanted to believe him, but I knew better than to hope.

  At twelve years old, I’d learned what a bitter bitch life could be, and although I didn’t blame myself for Lily’s death anymore, I wouldn’t forgive myself if something happened to Carissa or our baby.

  Never.

  “Listen, shithead,” Ty snapped. “Nothing is going to happen to Carissa so get it out of your head. We’re going to find her and you’re going to kiss the hell out of her while I beat the shit out of the ex-rookie. Then we’re all going to go home, have some of Dottie’s pie, a couple shots of the Crazy Old Biddy’s moonshine, and I’m going to take your future sister-in-law and lock her in my apartment ’cause I’m about sick of her shit.”

  It was not the time for Ty to start bitching about Heidi.

  Did that stop him? Hell no.

  “I ask her out on a date, she tells me no. But then she turns around and tells Chase she wants to try dating other guys.” He growled. “I told her, I see her with another man, they’d die. Plain and simple.”

  Attention focused on getting to Carissa, I ignored him.

  Didn’t stop him from yapping though. “I’m almost thirty years old. I am way too damn old for these games, but I’m going to show her little ass. She wants to play hard to get, I’ll play. Other than Maddie, and that doesn’t count, I have never been turned down by a woman. They throw themselves at me all the time, but the only one I want is busy either sending me flirty smiles or rolling her eyes. Girl can’t make up her damn mind, and I—”

  I’d had enough.

  “Would you shut the fuck—”

  The words died on my tongue when the field where Lily had been found came into view. Thanks to the full moon, I could see every square inch of it, all the way to the tree line that wound its way along the far side. I took my foot off the gas, letting the truck naturally slow.

  I held my breath as my eyes scanned the field.

  Without knowing where Carson was parked—though I had a good idea—I didn’t have a plan of attack. The smartest thing for me to do was drive by and park along the road half a mile away and run it back.

  That way he wouldn’t hear my approach.

  But I didn’t have time for that shit.

  I needed to move—

  Wait…

  I narrowed my eyes, focusing my vision.

  A second later, my goddamn heart nearly exploded when Carissa came into view.

  “Carissa!” I screamed from inside the cab. “Fuck, she’s alive!”

  Without thinking, I jammed my foot down on the brake, locking the wheels. The truck started to slide, the ass-end whipping around, but by some miracle I maintained control. Didn’t really matter though. We could have flipped, rolled into the ditch or been hit by an oncoming semi; none of that would stop me from going after my woman.

  Shifting the transmission into park, I left the engine running and jumped out.

  I didn’t take a single breath as I ran toward her, clearing the shitty fence that surrounded the field with ease.

  “I told you she’d make it!”

  I didn’t reply to Ty as I dug my booted feet into the damp ground, pushing myself to run harder than I ever had, hellbent on reaching the woman who was my entire world. A smile spread across my face as my heart hammered against my ribcage, my adrenaline peaking.

  I opened my mouth to yell her name again when movement from behind her caught my attention.

  My smile vanished as Carissa’s beautiful face contorted with a mixture of panic and terror. She’d heard the sounds Carson made as he ran toward her, his face a mask of rage and intent. My girl, as innocent and sweet as she was, knew a monster bared down on her, ready to take what wasn’t his to have.

  No way in hell would I allow that.

  “Kyle, please!” she screamed. “Help me!”

  Chills raced down my spine.

  The words Carissa had just yelled were the exact words Lily had used as she fought to get away from Edgar Louis, the day he stole her from my family. Images of my little sister fighting to get away from him, as I fought to reach her, flashed before my eyes.

  One after the other.

  In the space of a heartbeat, every single wound Carissa had stitched back together broke wide open, bursting at the seams, all in time for me to see a second monster, this one just as evil as the first, go after my future wife and child.

  “Carissa!”

  Her mouth fell open, and she started to scream, but then Carson dove for her, slamming his body into hers, knocking them both to the ground. Unable to do anything but run, I watched in horror as he flipped her to her back on a bed of smashed wheat and wrapped his bony ass fingers around her neck.

  Then he squeezed. Hard.

  He was choking her, stripping her life away.

  Just like Lily…

  Something inside me broke.

  Rage liked I’d never experienced before took over.

  My hearing dulled, my limbs grew numb, and my eyes homed in on Carson.

  Within striking distance, my body moved on autopilot as I dove for the monster who was trying his damndest to rip apart my entire world, knocking him off the most important person in my life. He grunted as his back hit the ground and before he could throw a single punch, I was on him.

  My legs straddled his bony hips and my fist met his face, furthering the damage that someone had already done to his nose. Mentally checked out and consumed by fury, I paid no attention to anything happening around me.

  I wanted nothing more than to turn around and pull Carissa into my arms, but that was something I couldn’t do. Not yet. Her safety was the most important thing, and to keep her safe, I needed to get rid of the vile fucking evil that tried to take her from me.r />
  “You motherfucker!”

  Wanting him to feel what he’d made Carissa feel, I slipped both of my hands around his neck and squeezed—hard. He clawed at my hands and punched my side in an attempt to get me off him, but it didn’t matter.

  I wasn’t moving.

  At least that’s what I told myself.

  But the moment Carissa called out to me, those plans changed.

  “Kyle,” she cried, “I need... y-you.” Her voice was weak, her throat clogged with tears. “Please.”

  I didn’t think twice before releasing Carson and closing the space between Carissa and me. Laying flat on the ground next to a kneeling Ty, her gorgeous hair fanned out all around her, she looked up at me with tear-filled eyes.

  “Shh, baby, I’m here.”

  Ty stood and walked over to the place that Carson laid on the ground, his legs pulled into his belly and his arms covering his face as he cowered like the pussy he was.

  Didn’t matter though.

  His position did little to ward off the kick Ty planted on his side. “Piece of shit motherfucker!” he yelled. “I hope you rot in prison!”

  Knowing Ty may lose it at any second, I moved, blocking Carissa’s view of what was happening behind me. “Beautiful Girl,” I said, gently placing my hands on the sides of her neck. “I want nothing more than to scoop you up and kiss the fuck outta you right now, but I can’t. I need to get you to the hospital, so they can check you over first. Without any equipment, I can’t tell how bad you’re hurt.”

  And I have to get you out of here…

  My hands shook the slightest bit against her, and she yelped as the small movements caused pain to spread through her reddened neck.

  I bit back a curse.

  “Carissa, listen to me, baby.” Tears spilled from her eyes and it nearly killed me. “Before I move you I need to know what hurts.”

  “Just the front…”

  “… front of your throat?” I asked, finishing for her.

  She nodded. “I’m okay, Kyle. I promise. Just… please, just get me out of here.”

  Transporting her like this went against every bit of training I’d ever received, but I couldn’t tell her no. Not when she was in pain, scared to death, and I had the demons of my past nipping at my heels.

  Moving slowly, I lifted her into my arms, holding her against my chest.