by Rachel Lee
“It’s okay for me to get involved again?”
“You already are, from what I can tell. Do you see me objecting?”
Despite the night she’d just had, Cat had to smile. “I haven’t heard it.”
“And if you had, you’d become conveniently deaf. Sort of like the cat you’re named after.”
He leaned forward again and reached for a pencil, drumming it on his desk. “What’s your next move?”
“Duke wants to go see Ben Williams. To warn him what might be happening. Is that okay?”
“At this point, I’m saying yes. Your case, your decision.”
Cat walked out of there feeling a whole lot better. Well, in a few ways. The major part of this was going to be impossible to feel any better about.
* * *
WHEN SHE GOT HOME, Duke was waiting for her with coffee and a bag of buttery croissants. The man definitely knew how to spoil a woman.
Feeling almost as if the kitchen table had become the center of her life, she joined him, holding her mug in both hands, trying to warm up her fingers. He had placed a croissant on a plate in front of her, and the open butter dish with a knife.
“Aren’t you going to eat?” she asked.
“I already did. I might have more later. How did it go?”
“It went.”
“Any news about Matt Keller?”
She shook her head. “Not really. They’re holding him for observation for a few hours, but no reports of serious damage. Apparently some good bruises, though. We’ll have to go with him tomorrow for an inventory to find out what’s missing, if anything.”
“Did someone talk to him?”
“A deputy went to the hospital to interview him. Right now, I don’t know any more.” She raised weary eyes to look at him. “I don’t think I’d want to go home today if I were Matt.”
Duke sighed. “I wouldn’t, either.”
Cat felt a stab of anger. “No, but you’ll waltz around this county acting like you don’t believe you might be a target.”
His expression grew flat. He spoke levelly. “I can leave if you’re worried.”
“Worried about what? Your safety? Of course I am. Worried about myself—no way!”
He frowned. “I’m the last person you should worry about. Anything these perps know, I know a thousand times better. Trust me, I may be infantry now, but I used to be Airborne. A long-range sniper rifle is the only thing I need to worry about, and snipers are few and far between.”
She liked his confidence but wasn’t as sure herself.
“I’ve got to get to bed,” she announced. “I won’t be good for anything without some sleep. I’ll phone Ben when I get up.”
But before she rose, she gave him another bit of information. “I’m in charge of these investigations now.”
Then she marched off to bed, hoping her pillow would silence her racing thoughts and give her a break from all of this.
It had been bad enough when she found Larry. The weeds, though, seemed to just keep getting deeper. She needed some fuel for her tank.
* * *
“ANYTHING YET?” THE first man asked the second.
The second guy tossed another flash drive on the small but growing pile beside him. “No. Nothing seems to be hidden or locked. But this guy might have some trouble with the IRS.”
“Why?” asked the third man.
“Because we may have all his business files and spreadsheets. He owns a store, and the litany of numbers is mind-numbing. I’m guessing he kept the information on both his laptop and backup flash drives, which he wouldn’t need if he was using the cloud for storage.”
The first man merely nodded, but the third snorted in disgust. “Cripes,” Man Three said. “What the hell are we doing out here?”
“My guess,” said the first man, “would be any information related in any way to the Army. So nothing personal? Nothing encrypted? Nothing out of place?”
“I’m not done yet. As for personal, I have his 1040-As for the last five years.”
“That’d be great if he was a political candidate,” offered the third guy. But he still sounded disgusted.
“If you don’t find anything there,” the first man said, “the three of us will scope out Ben Williams’s place. He might be a better possibility because he’s known Larry Duke for...how long?”
Man Two looked up. “Emails stretch back almost four years.”
“Four years. Of all the people around here, he might have had Larry Duke’s trust. Better than those poker buddies we’ve been trying to track down.”
The two others nodded. “Then what?” asked Man Three.
“We plan. We might be able to go in tonight.”
The second man looked between the other two. “What the hell happened last night?”
“Somebody chased us while we were leaving Keller’s place.”
“Daniel Duke,” said the first man.
“Then you know him?” asked Man Two.
“Only ran into him once.”
“So he won’t recognize you.”
“No reason he should. But if he gets in my way again, I’m going to take him out.” The first man held out his hands and squeezed them into fists repeatedly.
“But you said...” The second guy trailed off. Then he changed course. “If we don’t find anything at this Williams guy’s house, what then?”
“Then I’m calling the jerk who sent us out here, and I’m telling him we quit. I’ve had enough of this, and I’m sick of the three of us being exposed on a mission that’s poorly directed and conceived.”
For once, nobody mentioned the money.
Then some snowflakes began to fall. Another complication.
* * *
CAT WOKE FROM some unexpectedly steamy dreams about Duke. Oh man, she thought as she scrubbed her eyes awake. She had believed she’d managed to put all that away in some locked box in her brain. It was a complication neither of them needed—not that he’d be in any kind of mood for it, considering why he’d come out here.
She shouldn’t be in the mood for it, either, but it seemed she was. The man had leaped past too many of her defenses in such a short time. When she thought of him now, she no longer felt the spark of irritation. Instead it was as if a kitten had curled up with her.
Dang, he was no kitten. A lion for sure.
She forced her feelings back into the mental safe, then remembered a couple of times when she had thought Duke’s gaze reflected desire. She must have been mistaken. He couldn’t possibly want her, and not under these circumstances.
She indulged a few minutes remembering how broad his shoulders were, how narrow his hips were. The way he smelled after a run and a shower. His comfortable lope when he ran, and his equally comfortable walking stride.
Quite the figure of a man. But more than that, she’d watched him deal with horrific things, watched him face emotions that must have him knotted inside. She was impressed.
She showered and donned some civvies, her favorite jeans and a sweatshirt against the cold that seemed to fill the house.
She paused at the thermostat and turned the heat up a couple of degrees. Reassuringly, the furnace started.
She’d half expected to find Duke in the kitchen, and there he was, phone pressed to his ear, a mug of coffee in front of him, along with some croissants.
At least she didn’t have to think about food yet. She grabbed a croissant for herself, along with a mug of coffee, and sat down with him. She buttered her pastry while he talked.
“I’m just wondering if there’s any scuttlebutt about who is pushing back at me. I know my CO is involved in some way because he signs the reports, but there’s got to be someone higher, and I can’t ask Jeffries. He’d deny it.”
He paused then said, “Thanks, Crash. Whatever’s in the win
d.”
“Crash?” Cat asked as Duke put down his phone.
“Nickname. He and I became buddies back at the academy. Good man.”
“You trust him not to tell anyone you’re asking?”
“Absolutely. I phoned a handful of others I feel the same way about. Maybe we’ll get some intel. I don’t expect it right away, though.”
“Nope,” she agreed and bit into her croissant. She was glad he had people he could trust with this. One of the things she liked about living here was that the people she spent the most time with were people who seemed totally trustworthy. Duke’s friends probably went back a lot further.
“Is there some kind of code?” she asked.
“I’m getting skewered on it right now. The code not to talk. But that’s no guarantee that lips are always zipped. Obviously. And things can be said within the Army that should never be shared with nonsoldiers.”
She’d pretty much gathered that from an earlier conversation, but she felt edgy now that he’d made the calls. Word might get back to the wrong ears.
Nothing she could say or do now, however. Not that she could have argued him out of the calls. He probably would have turned into a brick wall again. “So you think your CO is involved?”
He shrugged. “It’s possible. He is, after all, writing my performance reports. On the other hand, he may be getting some pressure and not even know why. He’s got a career to consider, too.”
That sounded ugly. She tried to shift to something less disturbing. They already had plenty of reasons to be disturbed. “Did you sleep?”
“I snagged a few z’s.”
Her landline rang, and she went to answer it. A short time later, her stomach plummeted to the ground. She hung up and faced Duke, braced for his reaction. Her mouth turned so dry she wasn’t sure she could speak. “Larry’s body is on the way back.”
His entire face tightened. “Good.” The word came out sharply, edged in darkness.
“They’ll take him to the funeral home, the only one here. Do you want him shipped back with you?”
It took him a few minutes as he seemed to stare into some bleak place inside him. “I think Ben should decide.”
She did, too.
He raised his head, suddenly looking gaunt. “Cat... Cat...”
Not knowing what else to do, she moved to wrap her arms around him from behind. Her heart was breaking for him, yet she still enjoyed his scent, the hard strength of his shoulders.
Damn, she was losing it. So inappropriate right now.
But he surprised her, reaching around and tugging her until she could sit on his lap.
“Cat,” he whispered roughly, “this doesn’t make sense, but I...”
She got it. Totally. She didn’t care if it didn’t make sense, didn’t care if this didn’t fit with the concerns that swirled around them. She felt it, too. Needed it.
His arms snaked around her, tightening until he held her close to his heat, until her face rested between his shoulder and neck. She closed her eyes, reveling in his hug, and rested her hand on his chest. The man was nearly as hard as rock, and his embrace made her feel so soft...
Then she felt a shudder rip through him. Oh God, it was hitting him—hitting him hard. Whatever form of denial he’d been using had just been torn away by the news that Larry’s body would arrive soon.
Another shudder took him, but when she tried to move, he just held her closer. She didn’t want to get away; she wanted to be in a better position to comfort him.
But maybe this was what he needed? She couldn’t decide that for him. So she relaxed and remained silent while grief gripped him. Aching for him and feeling utterly foolish for thinking this might ever have been anything else.
She was sure he’d lost others in his life, given the nature of his career, but this had to be different, even worse. As close as he must become with his fellow soldiers in unimaginable circumstances, there must be an even deeper connection with the brother you’d grown up with. Families of different kinds.
As carefully as he held her, as much as his arms supported her, she began to feel restless. This wasn’t exactly a natural position, not for long.
His shuddering had passed, and maybe this was a time she could move. His arms hadn’t loosened any, and she didn’t want to make him feel any worse, but still...
Carefully, slowly, she pulled away a little.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice low and quiet. “You’ve got to be uncomfortable.”
“A little,” she admitted, “but don’t apologize.”
Slipping off his lap, she bent a little side to side while keeping her attention on him. His eyes were closed, but there was no sign of tears on his cheeks. He’d gone through the storm without a tear. She’d have been blubbering her head off, as she knew from when her mother had died. Tears were a release, an expression of feelings for which there were no adequate words.
“Duke?” She spoke quietly.
His eyes opened, and he looked hollow. “Yeah?”
“Can I get you something? Coffee? Beer? Milk?” Useless questions, answering only her own need to do something for him. “Do you want anything?”
“You,” he said.
Her heart slammed, and her knees turned to water.
* * *
CAT BARELY REMEMBERED getting to the bedroom. Like a scene from a movie, the world turned into a blur as they pulled clothes away and stumbled into her bedroom, kissing wildly all the while. She’d never believed those scenes. Now she did, with the haziest of memories to support it.
All that mattered was how quickly they’d come to be lying naked on her bed. The curtains were still drawn, and little light seeped into the room, leaving a twilight that felt right for the unreality that had seized her. Bright light would have interfered, made everything stand out starkly. Would have kept her from slipping away into a place where nothing existed except Duke and the desire that poured through her like lava.
Heavy breathing. Palms stroking skin as if trying to create fire from friction and unleashing a very different kind of fire. Damn, his skin felt good, and his touch felt even better. She skimmed over what felt like scars, stories yet to be told.
She gasped as he caressed her, a merciless reconnaissance of her every curve and hollow. His hands and fingers took liberties that left her moaning as he teased her breasts, then slipped his hand between her legs, pressing until she arched, needing ever so much more. She grabbed his shoulders like a life preserver in dangerous waters, feeling as if she would drown in him and never return.
Then his mouth followed his hands. She nearly went mad, writhing under his every touch, trying to reach him and reciprocate, but he wouldn’t let her. He was in command this time, and she finally let it be. His need for control was hardly surprising, and she was willing to grant it to him. Another time...
Coherent thoughts were few and far between and becoming rarer by the second. Swept away by his demanding desire, she let him carry her to wherever he wanted.
Like the eternal current carrying them both. She felt herself rising as if on a rogue wave, higher and higher until she felt a fear of tipping into the trough below. Then a fear of not tipping over at all.
He slipped inside her, filling her until she ached from it. When he started moving, she followed helplessly, needing it, needing him.
She fell over the edge, feeling him fall with her, jerking suddenly against her, giving her one last trip to the top before she tumbled into peace.
* * *
THEY LAY TOGETHER in a tangled mess of bodies and bedcovers. At some point Duke rose up to grab a pillow and place it under both their heads, but then she disappeared once again into his embrace.
Cat had never had such an experience. Never. Delicious, fraught with a maelstrom of sensation and feelings that kept her on a scary edge until the moment when releas
e set her free.
Wild.
Never before had she felt quite as satisfied, either. As if no part of her had escaped the experience.
He stirred a little, his hand running along her back. “Magic,” he murmured.
“Yeah,” she breathed. Oh yeah.
Then, bringing the beautiful moments to an abrupt end, he stiffened. “Ben.”
“Oh God.” She wiggled, breaking free, and sat up. “You’re sure he might be in danger?”
“I don’t want to risk it.”
“Neither do I. You grab a shower while I call him. We’ll go over there, if you want.”
“I want. But...”
Cat paused as she pulled on her robe over her cooling body. “What?”
“This isn’t romantic.”
She leaned over him, resting her hands on the bed. “If the past hour wasn’t romantic, I don’t know what is. I’m a grown-up, Duke. I don’t need flowers, or lingering in bed, or taking showers together. Another time. Now get your butt in gear.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She thought she heard a tremor of amusement in his voice as she hurried to the phone.
Before she could pick it up, it began ringing. Her heart slammed with the fear. What now? She had a sudden memory of the old sheriff, Nate Tate, remarking once on another case since she’d moved here, “This county’s going to hell in a handbasket.” Apparently, it had been his signature complaint, but never in her time here had it seemed more true.
“Jansen,” she said into the phone.
“Gage,” said the familiar voice. “I got the forensics report.”
She swallowed hard, sensing what was coming. “It’s bad.”
“As bad as our worst fears. You don’t need the details, but Larry was definitely tortured. Maybe for an hour.”
“Oh my God,” she whispered, closing her eyes. “I suspected, but...”
“We all did. Being human, we hoped it wasn’t true. Larry’s remains should be arriving at the funeral home tomorrow afternoon. Unless there’s another plan.”