Shades of Temptation
Page 28
“You won’t get away, you know. The cops will find you. They won’t rest until you’re behind bars. And for what? Because some idiots made fun of you? Because you didn’t have the guts to believe that Nora would like you just the way you were?”
Turner frowned. “She did like me. But she liked Tony more. And the ones I killed were shallow. Too involved in their own beauty to care about anyone else.”
“What about Lana?”
“I just… You’d gotten too close…made me feel weak…. I needed to prove myself....”
“By killing a woman who wanted only to help you?”
He looked as if he was going to argue with her some more. But then he smiled evilly. “Hey, maybe I’m getting used to it. Maybe I’m starting to like how it feels to be the one with power. With the control. You know all about that, don’t you? Isn’t that why people become cops? Because they get off on controlling others?”
As Carrie looked at Turner’s angelic face and mocking smile, she felt a veil of confidence settle over her. No. She’d chosen to be a cop because she thought she’d be good at it. Because she wanted to do good.
Like Jase.
Turner had shifted his knife when he talked. Only a few inches, but it was no longer pressed against Jase’s throat.
She remembered how Lana had spoken to Turner in that television interview. How she’d thought of him as a victim. A product of a cruel world.
It no longer mattered.
Victim or not. Sick or not. Youthful or old. She’d thought it before, but until now, she’d never truly believed it.
She locked eyes with Jase. And said his middle name. “David.”
Simultaneously, she fired her weapon.
Jase wrenched himself to the side. The bullet lodged in Turner’s brain before Jase even hit the ground. Turner stumbled back, his eyes flickering with disbelief before going blank. He tumbled down like a building detonated with dynamite. Right on top of Jase.
Carrie raced over and pushed Turner off Jase. Jase’s eyes were closed, and he was breathing shallowly. She ripped open his shirt, shredding the fabric so she could hold it firmly over his bleeding wounds. He grimaced at the pressure, but she didn’t back off. His eyes were open now, and he was looking at her. Unbelievably, he had a slight smile on his face.
“Carrie…” he said. He coughed, his lungs wheezing noisily when he tried to catch his breath.
She shook her head. “Shh. It’s okay. You’re going to be okay.”
“You did it.”
She nodded. “We did it, Jase. We. I couldn’t have done it without you. I love you, Jase. Please hang on.”
He smiled again. “I love you,” he responded quietly before his body went limp and he closed his eyes.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
JASE PUT THE FINISHING touches on the table. His table. Not theirs. Even though they spent virtually every night together, Carrie still hadn’t agreed to move in with him.
Not yet.
The bouquet of peonies he’d gotten her spilled out of a crystal vase that reflected the light of the fire. He set down two bottles of beer. A dark pilsner for him and a Bud Light for Carrie. He always stocked up on both. Not that they spent a lot of their time together drinking.
But tonight was a special occasion.
At least, that’s what Carrie had told him on the phone.
He was really hoping the specialness of this occasion included the frothy piece of lingerie she’d worn a few nights back. When he’d seen her in the feminine little number, it had just about destroyed him. Not just because she was sexy, though God knows that was a given, but because it showed him how far they’d come. Slowly but surely, she was showing him the individual facets of herself. The strong parts, and the vulnerable ones. She was also becoming more secure in her feminine appeal and he couldn’t think of anything sexier than that.
It made all his patience over the past two months worth it. No, he hadn’t pushed her to move in with him, but it hadn’t been easy for him to refrain from doing so.
She’d told him she wanted them to start working a normal routine again—together yet independently, not as partners glued together in a crisis situation. They loved each other—there was no question about that—but she wanted to be sure he knew exactly what he’d be “getting into” by making a life with her. While it bothered him that she still had insecurities, he understood why his stubborn warrior-woman wouldn’t allow herself to fall blindly even if that’s what she wholeheartedly wanted to do. Sooner or later, she’d accept what was so patently obvious to him: he loved her and he wanted her and that wasn’t ever going to change.
He heard a sound behind him and turned, watching as Carrie walked toward him, her gait smooth. Sometimes, depending on how hard they pushed themselves, they walked with identical limps. Healing was going to take time, but at least they had each other to speed things along.
Her gaze sought his and the love he saw there caused his battered heart to dance.
They’d stopped not just one killer but two. Although they hadn’t saved as many lives as they’d wanted to, they’d saved Maria Nelson and had stopped Odell Bowers and Brad Turner from taking more lives.
Lana’s funeral had been a somber occasion, one that had cast a seemingly permanent pal over the SIG team. Simon walked around grimmer than ever and Jase could only hope that, with Mac’s return, he’d take some time off to heal.
In a few nights, both Jase and Carrie would be recognized for their outstanding service at an awards banquet put on by the mayor. It would obviously help Carrie and the department oppose Martha Porter’s civil suit. As far as their careers were concerned, they’d have opportunities now that they hadn’t had before.
But nothing was as important as what they’d found with each other. Not even the job that had made it possible.
As Carrie walked toward him, all he could think was, My God, she’s beautiful. Beautiful and brave. Strong and compassionate.
The woman of his dreams.
The partner of his heart.
Together they’d survived the worst kind of monsters, and although there would be more of them in their future, there’d also be pleasure. Happiness and joy.
For him, there’d be Carrie.
Always.
* * * * *
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ISBN: 9781459241213
Copyright © 2012 by Virna DePaul
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