Expired Refuge

by Lisa Phillips

  “Have you ever..?”

  “Goodness, no. She and I wouldn’t last a minute before we drove each other crazy. It isn’t a disaster at work only because I can tell her what to do, and she knows it.” He leaned back in his chair and stretched.

  “So you’ve never…with anyone you work with?”

  “Never.” He decided to give her the truth, hoping she would do the same. “I haven’t really had much in the way of a relationship since Mara. It hit me hard. Only maybe two women have caught my eye up until now. Didn’t really go anywhere though. There aren’t many who understand the life we lead.”

  She nodded. “I always thought that would be an asset.” Her head dipped to the side, and she gave a long exhale. “That two cops could make something work.”

  Conroy was smart enough in his field to read behind the lines, and he could tell there was plenty Mia wasn’t saying.

  Her lashes lowered. She’d taken her medicine. She had food in her stomach. She was safe, and the day was catching up with her.

  “You were involved with someone in your department once?” Conroy guessed. “Tell me what happened.”

  She sighed again, and her eyes drifted closed. “Not quite involved. I thought there was something there, but I was stupid to have thought that. He thought it was a joke that I would think he would ever be attracted to someone like me.” She paused a second. He almost thought she wouldn’t say more. “I guess I wasn’t his type.” She smiled ruefully, eyes still closed.

  Conroy frowned. His smartwatch buzzed. He glanced at it and sighed. Time to head to work.

  Leaving her alone again, while he tried to find this Stiles guy. He didn’t want to just leave Mia right as she was opening up to him, but he couldn’t keep his officers waiting and she’d fallen asleep.

  Conroy made a call so she wouldn’t be alone. Then he set up his security system. He couldn’t take any chances with Mia’s safety. Not with a man like Anthony Stiles after her.

  Fourteen

  Mia’s entire body tensed. She blinked, still sitting on the ratty armchair in Conroy’s command center, which he probably called an office. The chair smelled like pretzels.

  Her arm hurt. And her shoulder. Her knee. She pushed out a breath, not entirely ready to stand up yet. That was only going to hurt more. Even if it was the fastest route to more meds.

  He was gone. A lamp by the desk had been switched on, casting a white glow across the room. Mia had no idea what time it was, and had no recollection of what they’d been talking about. Where had Conroy gone?

  Then she remembered. He’d kissed her. Conroy had told her he would keep her safe because of her. Just because of her. Then he’d leaned in.

  She let her eyes drift shut and pictured his face in her mind. The look in his eyes when he leaned in and gave her the lightest of lip touches had been like nothing else. A kiss. And yet, what a kiss could be was so much more. Or so she’d heard.

  Mia’s relationship history was abysmal. Now Conroy had come along, and everything he did showed he cared about her. Maybe even liked her. Enough to kiss her and tell her he would protect her. Just because it was her.

  She hardly knew what that meant, and yet her brain was happy to invent all kinds of reasons. Maybe she’d read too many sweet romances. Her dark secret. One she’d deny to her grave if anyone ever found out. Mia loved…love. Only problem was, she tried to actually be realistic in life. Now everything in her wanted to leap for joy at the idea that a handsome, strong man was attracted to her. Her. Just when she’d given up on the notion that anyone would ever find her attractive.

  A man who was everything she thought a cop should be. And nothing like the guys she worked with—definitely nothing like the one she thought she’d have a chance with.

  Mia tried not to think of her sister, but the truth was that when Mara fell for him, Mia had been right there. She’d known exactly why he was worth falling for. Now? The man was even more potent. She’d been trying to separate her feelings. Stay professional. He made it hard to do that.

  If he wanted to “protect” her because he was attracted to her? Well, that was fine because Mia had always liked him. More than like. She’d had the biggest crush on him back when she was a teen, watching him treat Mara like she was the loveliest thing he’d ever come across. She’d seen how they’d looked at each other. That became the standard by which Mia had measured every guy. Probably not fair to the unsuspecting men she met, but she’d also never settled for less than what she wanted. Which was why she wasn’t locked in a loveless marriage by now.

  The door was now open. Did Conroy really want to step through it? She could hardly believe she might be the woman he made so lucky. How he had remained unmarried all these years was a mystery in itself.

  Mia figured there was no point delaying the inevitable. Plus, she wanted to see where Conroy was. She hauled herself up from the chair, hissing out a breath as she did.

  On the computer keyboard was a sticky note that had been scrawled on with what looked like a man’s handwriting—no cute loops, no hearts dotting the i’s, no pink gel pen.

  At the office. Will call.

  It was signed simply, “C.” But just the sight of it made her heart flutter. Then she rolled her eyes. Heart flutters, really? She needed to figure this out, or she was going to wind up in some kind of romantic delusion.

  Considering there was a man who appeared to be trying to get revenge on her, she didn’t figure being distracted by her attraction to Conroy would help. Right now she needed to stay safe. Wait for whatever he came at her with next so she could be prepared.

  The computer chimed.

  Right after, the screen illuminated. A map loaded, along with a red, flashing dot. She recognized the area. Her dad often hunted up there.

  Mia hovered the mouse over the red dot. A string of numbers appeared in a tiny window. Her dad’s phone number.

  This was her dad’s GPS location?

  She took a step back. Strode to the kitchen, tugged the meds from her purse, and got a glass of water. She downed the whole thing along with the pain pill.

  Her dad’s GPS. It could mean nothing, except that Conroy was keeping tabs on him. He knew where her father was. Presumably her dad knew this, and maybe he’d even asked Conroy to have the information. After all, every year during hunting season, people went missing. If her dad was out there alone then there was every reason to be worried and give someone information as to where he was. It was just a safety thing.

  No reason to think much of it. Except that it was her father, and it was Conroy. Two men who should have been at odds over what had happened to Rich’s daughter, who, at the time, supposedly had been under her boyfriend’s protection. Conroy should have looked after Mara but he hadn’t, and now she was dead. And now, not only was Mia having sweet, romantic delusions about Conroy, he and her father were “friends.” They were a part of each other’s lives.

  Mia reached for her cell phone. Was he tracking her too? That could be how he’d found her when she’d been walking down that path. He’d pulled up beside her and acted like he stumbled across her randomly. It wasn’t like she and her father were on the same phone plan, but maybe he’d known where she was all along.

  A shiver rolled through her. She needed food or her stomach would have issues with the medicine.

  Just because it’s you, Mia.

  She’d asked him, straight out, if all this was because of her sister. He’d kissed her. But now that she knew he had her dad’s GPS location, and he might have hers as well, things felt different. Conroy had a bent to protect her family. An imperative, born out of the fact he’d failed once before. Now he was keeping her dad safe. He was keeping her safe.

  He probably figured he owed her family after what he’d done. Or not done.

  And if she fell for him for real, that would keep her closer. It would reduce the likelihood she might take off. He probably figured if feelings were involved, then she would stick with him. Trust him.

&nb
sp; She didn’t want to forgive him if he was only playing her. Pretending he liked her so he could do his job more easily than he would be able to otherwise.

  Anthony Stiles was out there, looking for revenge for Thompson’s death. Meanwhile, Conroy intended to be the one who stood between her and Anthony’s next attempt.

  If he wanted her to forgive him for Mara’s death, then saving her life was poetic almost. The perfect scenario for her to come to the realization that he was such a good guy after all. Not someone she should hate, but someone she should trust and forgive.

  Life had taught her more than just what she’d learned from losing her sister.

  Mia had lived more years since then. She’d worked. She’d allowed her emotions to sweep her up. She’d been torn down.

  A car explosion. A dog bite.

  The dead guy could be completely unrelated, except for the gunshot to his abdomen, but the other two things? The cynic in her wanted to see it as Conroy trying to force her to trust him. Taking the opportunity to prove to her that he was “good” by manufacturing scenarios where he saved her life. A true knight in shining armor to a single woman recovering from a serious situation. She could have died, and she had been injured. Alone. Fighting for her life. Now Conroy was here. Strong, and determined to protect her.

  Maybe, like the teammate she’d fallen for, it was all a scam. Conroy could be staging things so he was the one who was there to protect her. The person who just happened to be right there, exactly when she needed saving.

  Sure, it was seriously cynical to think Conroy was behind the explosion. Or the dog being poisoned. She didn’t really believe it. But she couldn’t help the fact she’d thought of it, and now that she had, her brain wouldn’t let the idea go.

  She’d been tossed aside too many times. Manipulated, and then laughed at.

  There was no way Mia would allow anyone else to do that to her.

  Not again.

  She walked to the patio door and looked out over the valley behind his house. The scenery was amazing, but the beauty of it didn’t take away the sour taste in her mouth.

  She called her father, considering he had a cell signal right now. Conroy’s computer wouldn’t show his GPS signal unless his cell was in range of a tower.

  “Yeah.”

  “Dad.” Her voice broke. She sounded choked up. “How’s hunting?”

  “That really why you called?”

  “No.”

  They were honest with each other. Probably too honest sometimes. But Mara was gone, and Meena never told the truth about anything. Her younger sister had played them both. All of it, Mia’s education of a cynic.

  “So say it.”

  “Conroy thinks someone is after me.” She told him about his car exploding, and the dog bite. Followed by the intruder. “One of Ed Summers’s men was murdered. Maybe it’s connected, maybe not. But I saw a guy running away from the scene.”

  Anthony Stiles.

  “He keeping you safe?”

  She watched a rabbit hop at the end of what should be Conroy’s yard but was just an expanse of grass. “Why does Conroy have to do it? I can take care of myself.”

  He said, “I know you can.” Like she was a hormonal teenager he was trying to placate.

  “I was doing just fine, Dad.”

  “Is that true?”

  She pressed her lips together. “When will you be back?”

  “When I’m back.”

  She pushed out a breath.

  “Thought you didn’t need anyone.”

  “Conroy moved me into his house.” She waited. “No opinion about that?” She wasn’t going to tell him about the kiss. “He killed Mara.”

  She heard her dad’s sigh blow across the microphone. “If he wants to help, maybe you should let him.”

  “After what he did to us?”

  “You’re all fired up to protect yourself, but it’s okay to lean on other people.”

  “I’d be leaning on you, but you’re not here,” she pointed out.

  “Because you can take care of yourself, remember? Also when you’re in pain, you’re no fun to be around.”

  “Reminds me of someone else I know.” She turned back to the kitchen, considering she still needed to eat something. “Remember when you broke your ankle?”

  “Don’t remind me.”

  He’d been a bear. Uncomfortable. Calling every day to complain, even though the older church ladies let themselves in his front door twice a day, bringing food. Taking care of him until he was sick of it, griping about how he couldn’t get a second alone. But he didn’t ask her to fly there and take care of him herself. He’d just wanted to be miserable because he hurt.

  Was that what she was doing?

  Mia pulled open the refrigerator, chuckling about those church ladies. Most of them single and searching. Then she saw the contents. “All he has is liquid egg whites, every green vegetable you can imagine, and heavy whipping cream. Who eats like this?”

  Her dad chuckled. “I’ll text you the number for the pizza place in town. They deliver.”

  “Tha—”

  Two arms banded around her. One squeezed across her diaphragm and cut off the air in her lungs. The other snaked across her shoulder, and a hand covered her mouth.

  A male body. Every instinct in her fired, and she knew only one thing. Get away. Run.

  Mia tried to breathe but could only choke. He swung her around, and she saw the open patio door. She hadn’t even heard it slide open, too distracted by her conversation with her dad.

  Hot breath puffed over her ear. “Now you pay.”

  Her phone fell to the floor, and she heard it shatter.

  Fifteen

  “You like her.” The old man’s eyes glinted in the lamplight, shimmering with the edge of pain. Constant pain. His voice was barely audible.

  Conroy leaned forward, his full attention on the chief. “Yeah, I do.”

  The nurse had told him when he got to the office that the chief didn’t have much longer. He’d ordered Jess home so she could get some sleep.

  The old man shot him a knowing look. “It wasn’t good. Your relationship with the sister, and all that had happened. Was it?”

  Conroy didn’t especially want to talk about Mara. She was coming up a lot lately considering how hard he’d worked to put her and what had happened behind him. To leave it in the past.

  “Drives you.”

  Conroy said, “You should rest. Try to get some sleep.”

  The old man chuckled.

  Conroy didn’t need to be told what he already knew. Namely, that the tragedy between him and Mara did drive him and his need to prove himself. He just said, “Alan.”

  “Don’t chide me, son.”

  “That’s not my intention. You’re the chief. I’m not sure I could ever see you as anything else.” He’d been someone Conroy respected before he ever even thought about putting the badge on. Becoming a cop was another thing that drove Conroy. Since the night Mara died.

  Alan Ridgeman had been a Lieutenant back then. He’d shown up to the scene first and stayed to the end. His work as a cop at the accident was what made Conroy want to do this job. Follow in his footsteps.

  “I’m tired.”

  “I know.” Conroy knew what the old man wasn’t saying, as well.

  “Take care of Jessie.”

  Officer Ridgeman would likely object to being taken care of, despite the fact she was one of his youngest officers. Still, Conroy nodded.

  “Find happy.” The chief’s eyes closed. “Convince her.”

  Conroy squeezed the old man’s hand. He had to stand up so he could dig his cell from the pocket of his dark blue jeans. Rich was calling?

  Conroy said, “Barnes.”

  “We were on the phone.” Mia’s father sounded flustered. It definitely wasn’t the normal, relaxed-but-exhausted demeanor he was used to hearing while talking with Rich after ten days of hunting.

  “What?”

  “Mia. We
were talking, and then she dropped the phone or something. I heard her cry out.”

  Conroy let himself out of the chief’s office. “Are you sure?”

  “Boy, would I—”

  “Okay, okay, dumb question. Sorry.” He squeezed the bridge of his nose. “I have a friend in the neighborhood. And I’ll call someone to stay with the chief and get home. See what I can see.”

  “Make it fast. He said she would pay. If someone took her…” Rich’s voice trailed off.

  Conroy knew what he wasn’t saying. He’d been at plenty of major crimes, always after the fact. He just couldn’t imagine it from Rich’s perspective. Hearing his daughter’s voice.

  He quickly told Bill, the dispatcher in the corner office, what was happening. The other officer in the building nodded when Conroy asked him to sit with the chief. Then Conroy told Rich. “Hudson is outside the house.”

  “Good. Now tell me what is going on.”

  “I will,” Conroy said. “After I locate Mia and ascertain her situation.” He winced as he hung up on her father, but there was nothing else he could do. Right now Conroy had to be the police lieutenant and not a friend of the victim’s father. Later he could tell Rich all about the Stiles brothers, and what they thought was going on.

  He grabbed his keys and made a phone call on the way out the front door.

  “Hudson.” Tate Hudson, local PI and former FBI.

  “Where is she?” Conroy climbed into his truck and fired up the engine. It was after midnight. He hadn’t been gone but a few hours. A little work while Mia took a nap in his chair. He’d planned to return in the morning with coffee and breakfast. Now that idea was out the window.

  He’d dearly wanted to try for another kiss. Maybe a longer one this time.

  After they talked it over, of course.

  Tate Hudson, local PI, had the radio blasting in his ancient beater. The car he swore up and down did better on icy roads than any new vehicle. “Headed west on Francesca.”

  “You wanna tell me how this happened?”

  “Apart from your WiFi sucks?” Hudson had a tone. Then again, unless he was talking to a pretty woman, he always had a tone. And a scowl on his face. “Feeds cut out. Then she was on the phone in the kitchen.”