“I’ll be fine, especially knowing the two of you are next door.” When she opened the door, she touched Caroline’s cheek. “I’m so sorry about Dr. Shipman and that you had to be exposed to more violence. You need a nice, long vacation.”
“I just might take one.”
Cole’s body stiffened beside her and she pushed past him on her way out the door.
He kept pace with her, balancing the plastic container full of brownies on one hand. “Pizza sounds good. How about a movie to go with it? I’m not tired. I can stay awake all night if I have to.”
On her porch, she rounded on him. “Am I your prisoner now?”
“Better mine than the Clallam County Sheriff’s Department.”
She threw open her front door and dropped her purse on the kitchen table. She thrust her phone and the pizza advertisement that had been hanging on her doorknob earlier at him. “Anything but anchovies.”
“And pineapple. I hate pineapple on my pizza.”
He phoned in the order, while she pulled off her boots and turned up the thermostat. Maybe she could lull him to sleep with food, beer and heat.
“Do you want a beer?”
His eyes narrowed. “I’m good.”
“Wine?”
“Don’t drink the stuff, but you knock yourself out.”
She stood at her open refrigerator door. “I think I’ll have a diet soda instead.”
“Caffeinated?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll have the same.”
She stuffed down her irritation as she grabbed the sodas from the fridge. She didn’t want him to think she resented the babysitting. Because if she let that show, he’d suspect that she had plans of running, not that she didn’t. But the less she revealed her emotions to him, the better.
She rinsed the tops of the soda cans and wiped them with a paper towel. “Can okay?”
“Always tastes better from the can.” He’d pulled off his own boots and now sat on her small sofa with his stocking feet propped up on the coffee table.
“Make yourself at home.” She handed him the can and sat on the chair across from him—the only other place to sit in the living room.
“I will, thanks.” He snapped the lid and slurped the foam from the top. “Did you shake this first so it would explode all over my shirt and I’d be forced to go back to my hotel and change?”
“Oh, stop. I’m not going anywhere. It’s time I learn the truth—good or bad.”
He hunched forward, resting his forearms on his knees, clasping his hands lightly. “Seriously, Caroline. It’s for the best and for your own safety. The people after you killed Dr. Shipman. They’re capable of anything.”
“You’re right. I think the only reason I’ve lasted this long is they probably figured out there’s something wrong with me. I haven’t done what they expected me to do. I haven’t told anyone about Johnny. I’ve been pretending to be Linda’s cousin.” She massaged her temples. “Honestly, I don’t know what they think. I didn’t even take that much money from Johnny’s bag. I just needed a little seed money, a head start.”
“Do you want to give me that money now?”
She scooted forward in the chair. “Will that look good for me? If I hand over the money I took?”
“Anything will help.”
She didn’t want it, anyway. She launched herself out of the chair and headed for her bedroom, where she pulled up the rug in the closet. She felt for the uneven floorboard and pushed on one edge until the other side tipped up. She lifted the slat, ran her fingers along the stacks of bills and then collected them all. She replaced the board and the rug and returned to the living room.
“Here you go.” She dumped the cash on the sofa cushion next to Cole.
Raising one eyebrow, he thumbed through the neat stacks. “This is not a small amount.”
“I didn’t know how much I’d need to get started somewhere else. I—I haven’t used that much of it.”
“Do you have a bag or something? I’d hate to stuff this much cash in my pockets—and I’d need some big pockets.”
She pivoted toward the kitchen and pulled a cloth grocery bag from a drawer. “You can have this.”
He took the sack dangling from her fingers and proceeded to tuck the stacks inside. “This will go over well.”
The doorbell rang and they both twitched as if they expected someone had come for the money.
She crept to the window and peered out. “It’s the pizza.”
“I’ll get it.” Cole wedged the bag of money between the sofa and the end table and rose to his feet, reaching for his wallet.
After he paid for the pizza, he took it into the kitchen. “How many pieces?”
“I’ll start with two and work my way up.” Caroline peeled apart two paper plates that had come with the pizza and slapped them down on the counter.
Cole placed two pieces on one plate and three on another. They resumed their positions across from each other and ate for a while in silence.
Cole waved a piece of crust at her. “Have you ever tried to remember on your own?”
“All the time, until my brain hurt.”
“Have you tried self-hypnosis or meditation?”
“Like swinging something in front of my own face and telling myself I’m getting sleepy?”
“A darkened room, a fixed object, silence, relaxation.”
“Yeah, because I’ve had so much silence and time to relax since I’ve been on the run.”
“It’s coming back to you in flashes, though. The trauma of discovering Dr. Shipman’s body prompted a break, didn’t it?”
Caroline covered her mouth and closed her eyes, the horror of that moment creeping back into her psyche after she’d been pushing it aside all night. Dr. Shipman had mentioned in their first session that a trauma might start the flow of memories—she just hadn’t known the trauma would be her own murder.
“What a terrible way to die. There was no struggle in that room. She must’ve known him—or thought she did.”
“He could’ve been posing as a patient.”
“I never saw any of her patients. Well, just one, a dark-skinned man with longish hair. I’m sure the police have tracked down all her clients.” Caroline lunged for the remote. “Could we just watch a movie? Something mindless?”
“I’m all for mindless entertainment. What’s on?”
“Linda and Louise have premium cable in here, so we should have lots of choices.”
Caroline paused at a raunchy comedy about drug dealers, and Cole shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
She flipped through a few more shows and gestured to a romantic comedy. “Is this better?”
“This is one of my sister’s favorite movies. I could really impress her and score points if I actually watched it. Do you want to watch it?”
“Romance and comedy? Just what I need.” Caroline curled her feet beneath her in the straight-back chair.
“More pizza?” Cole held up his empty plate.
“Maybe later.”
He pushed out of the sofa, took their paper plates and napkins to the kitchen and returned with one glass of wine. He patted the cushion next to him. “Why don’t you come over here and get comfortable. You could use a glass of wine, too. You’re still suffering from the shock of Dr. Shipman. I can see it in your eyes.”
Her gaze darted from the sofa to the wine to his face. Caroline wanted all three more than anything right now. She uncurled her body from the chair and joined him.
Hell, she might be in jail by tomorrow night. Might as well live it up.
She cupped the wineglass in her hands. “Are you sure you don’t want a glass or a beer?”
“After everything that’s gone on today? I’d rather sta
y alert.”
She eased back against the cushion, taking a sip of wine. It warmed her chest and belly and made her fingertips tingle. “Ahh.”
“I thought so.” Cole squeezed her knee. “Take it easy and enjoy the movie.”
They laughed in the right places and she even sniffled once or twice—must be the wine. When the story slowed down, she found her heavy eyelids drooping over her eyes. Her head dipped to the side and hit Cole’s shoulder. She jerked it upright.
“Are you falling asleep?”
“No.” She put the wineglass on the table beside the sofa—right next to the bag of money. She focused on the movie again and the foolish woman who couldn’t see that the hometown boy from her childhood loved her so much more than the rich fiancé from New York.
Did she have a man in her life somewhere who loved her like that? Impossible. A man like that would’ve moved heaven and earth to find her. A man like that would’ve never allowed Johnny Diamond to take her. A man like that would be there for her, regardless of what she did or who she was.
Cole’s arm crept around her shoulders and he wrapped a lock of her hair around his finger. “That fiancé guy’s an idiot. He needs an ass-kicking.”
She giggled, and the act must’ve been too much effort because she yawned at the end of it. Her head dropped to Cole’s shoulder again and it felt too heavy to lift this time, so she left it there.
His arm around her tightened, and his chin rested on top of her head.
The swell of the violins indicated that the girl with the big-city job must’ve finally realized that the hometown boy was the one for her.
Caroline must’ve drifted off, because the next thing she knew, Cole had swept her up in his arms and was carrying her to the bedroom. As he placed her on the bed, she grasped his shirt, terrified of being alone, terrified of finding out who she was tomorrow.
“Don’t leave me, Cole. I couldn’t stand it if you left me.”
The mattress dipped as he stretched out beside her on the bed, cradling her head against his chest.
“I’m not going to leave you, Caroline Johnson, or whoever the hell you are. I know you didn’t kill anyone. As crazy as your story sounds, I believe it. I believe you. And whatever you did to get mixed up with Diamond, I’m going to be right by your side to see you through it.”
“What if I’ve done something terrible? How will you be able to stand beside me?”
“If you did do something terrible, you’re going to need a friend even more. Can you trust me? If not, then this between us, right now, means nothing. But if you can, then God, I want you.”
Chapter Fourteen
Oh, God. She wanted him, too. She couldn’t possibly have another man waiting for her somewhere when she felt so strongly about this one. Wouldn’t a husband or boyfriend be the first thing she would’ve remembered from her session with Dr. Shipman?
She rolled onto her side to face Cole. “I do trust you.”
He brushed his warm lips across hers, while curling an arm around her waist to draw her closer. His green eyes held a question, and she wanted to answer that question with a resounding yes.
Opening her mouth against his, she slipped her hands beneath his shirt and smoothed them across the hard, flat planes of his back.
He deepened their kiss, his tongue probing her mouth before tangling with her own tongue. His hands wandered over her body, stroking, brushing, but never grabbing, as if giving her every opportunity to halt his exploration.
She didn’t. She wouldn’t.
She ran her fingernails along his back and trailed them onto his belly, outlining the six-pack she’d known would be there.
He tightened his abs even more and sucked in a breath. “That tickles.”
“Mmm, that’s useful information.” She pinched his side before grabbing the hem of his shirt. “May I?”
He raised his arms and she pulled the long-sleeved knit shirt over his head and dropped it to the floor. She skimmed her hands across his chest and along his chiseled pecs. “You’re a work of art, Cole Pierson.”
“And you’re a tease. Why do I have my shirt off and you still have yours on?” He yanked off the sweatshirt she’d been wearing and the T-shirt beneath.
He wasted no time flicking the bra straps from her shoulders and cupping her breasts with both hands. Ducking his head, he sucked one nipple into his mouth. The pleasure of it ached between her legs, and she threw her head back in ecstasy.
As his tongue toyed with her other nipple, his hand slid to the waistband of her pants. With sure fingers, he undid her fly and peeled her jeans away from her hips.
He gave her jeans a tug. “Do you wanna help out here, or are you going to make me work for it?”
Arching her back, she lifted her hips from the mattress and he pulled down her jeans and kicked them off the foot of the bed.
His gaze hungrily devoured her body, and she tingled in all the right places. She hoped that if and when she regained her memory, she wouldn’t lose Caroline’s, because this was a moment she never wanted to forget.
As if in a hurry to see the rest of her, Cole unclasped her bra and rolled her panties over her hips and down her thighs. He rolled back to his side, propping his head up with his hand, his elbow digging into the pillow.
He didn’t touch her, but the way his eyes flicked over her naked body made her breasts feel heavy with desire and her pulse throb with need. She squirmed beneath his gaze, pinning her thighs together, suddenly shy.
Then, with one finger, he traced the line of her jaw and circled her throbbing lips. He pressed the pad of his thumb against her bottom lip, then dragged his finger over her chin to the base of her throat, where her pulse was fluttering wildly.
She released a small moan as his gentle, slow touch ignited a fire in her belly. When his finger skimmed over her mound and nudged between her thighs to feel her wetness, the moan turned into a gasp and she grabbed his wrist.
“Do you want me to stop?”
His voice, rough around the edges, gave her a thrill, since it revealed she wasn’t the only one being tortured by unspent passion.
She hooked her fingers in the belt loops of his jeans and pulled herself closer to him. “If you stop now, I’m going to be a quivering mess, but why am I the only one who’s naked here?”
“I just wanted a minute or two to...commit your body to my memory.”
She blinked and gave him a shaky smile. She knew what he meant, but didn’t want to acknowledge it. If there was ever a time for forgetting, it was now. She wanted only to lose herself in this moment.
“Well, now it’s my turn.” She unbuttoned his fly and pressed her palm against the bulge that was barely contained by his briefs. “D-do I turn you on that much?”
“You have no idea.” He swung his legs over the side of the bed and pulled off his jeans, underwear and socks all at once. He reached into a pocket of his pants and pulled out his wallet. He withdrew something from the billfold and held up a condom between two fingers.
She had no idea if he’d bought that here or if he always carried a spare, but it didn’t matter. It was a nod to the truth that they hardly knew each other. In fact, knew each other less than if this were a one-night stand from a bar pickup.
It didn’t matter. She knew all she needed to know about Cole Pierson, and she had to have this night with him before she went to the police station tomorrow, because she may never have this chance again.
Batting her eyelashes, she whispered in a husky voice, “I like a man who’s prepared.”
He got back on the bed, and she nudged him onto his back. “Didn’t I tell you I wanted my turn?”
She pressed the front of her body against his side, hooked her leg over his thigh and trailed her fingernails along the tight skin of his erection. She leaned over an
d took his brown nipple gently between her teeth as she slid her hand up and down his shaft.
Cole shivered and closed his eyes. “That feels out of this world.”
She sculpted his body with her hands, kneading and stroking his warm flesh. Her lips and tongue soon followed, but she couldn’t concentrate as he began to touch her—everywhere.
With a groan, he pulled her into his arms, on top of him, and scattered kisses across her face. His lips locked on to hers as he buried his hands in her hair, driving his erection between her moist thighs.
He smoothed one hand over her derriere, and their hips rocked together. Then he flipped her on her back and straddled her body, with a knee on either side of her hips. He ripped open the condom, and she took it from him.
She plucked it out of its foil packet and ran her tongue along his tip before fitting the condom over it and rolling it down the length of him.
Scooping his hands beneath her bottom, he tilted up her hips and eased into her inch by delicious inch. Once he’d entered her fully, he drew out again and drove home.
She winced and grabbed on to his shoulders. Clearly, she was no virgin, but maybe it had been a while since she’d had a man. Making love with Cole wasn’t bringing back any memories—only making them.
He pulled out and nuzzled her neck. “Are you okay?”
She grasped his buttocks, digging her nails into his muscled flesh. “I will be as soon as you’re back inside me.”
The man didn’t need an engraved invitation. He took up where he’d left off without missing a beat. As he drove into her over and over, he showered her with kisses and nipped at her breasts. He tickled her with his tongue and explored her with his fingers.
She didn’t know what direction was up, and as he took her to the edge, all she could do was hold on to him.
Because she’d been riding high, his assault on her body and senses complete and unwavering, her orgasm hit her like a sledgehammer. It took her breath away and she felt like she was in a freefall from an awesome height.
When the first wave of pleasure subsided, another clawed through her belly. But before she even had time to process it, Cole’s body stiffened and a sheen of sweat broke out across his smooth chest.
In the Arms of the Enemy Page 15