Moriah's Landing Bundle

by Amanda Stevens

  “I think he saw you there,” Jonah said. “But because you were so young—”

  “He didn’t think I would ever remember.” Her eyes widened as she had a thought. “The nightmare. You think I’m starting to remember.”

  He didn’t say a word but she knew that’s exactly what he thought. “But he couldn’t possibly know about the nightmare—” She stopped in midthought. “There was this one night. I was having the nightmare and I woke up. I thought I smelled my mother’s perfume. But I also thought someone was in the room, but by the time my eyes adjusted to the light…”

  She could see the possibility freaked him. If it was true, it wasn’t the first time the killer had been in her house, in her bedroom. She shivered and hugged herself as the ramifications finally caught up with her.

  Had she repressed memories of her mother’s murder? Or was it just a bad dream and nothing more?

  The tears seemed to come out of nowhere. Frustration and fear. It was inconceivable that someone would want to kill her. And more than likely just because she looked like her mother.

  “This is just so…unreal,” she said, her throat tight with tears.

  Jonah started to get up, to comfort her, she was sure. She knew if he touched her, she wouldn’t be able to hold back the tears, and right now she needed to be strong. She needed to be able to take care of herself. Leaning on any man right now would be a mistake. Leaning on Jonah Ries could be the worst mistake she could make.

  She moved to the phone by the front door. “I have to be sure Emily is all right.” She dialed her sister’s best friend’s number. Angela’s mother answered after three rings.

  “Emily? She isn’t here, Kat. Angela’s grounded until after graduation and can’t have any sleepovers. Maybe she’s staying at another friend’s.”

  Kat asked to speak to Angela. “Do you know where Emily is?”

  “She’s in the bathroom right now, but I can have her call you,” Angela said, not realizing their cover had been blown.

  “Try again. Your mother just told me that Emily never had any plans to spend the night at your house. Where is she?”

  “I don’t know. Really. She just told me to cover for her.”

  Kat hung up, more upset than ever.

  “Your sister?” Jonah asked.

  “She’s not at a sleepover like she told me,” she said. “I’m worried that she’s running with the wrong bunch of kids.”

  He stepped to her so quickly, she didn’t have time to deflect his comfort. He pulled her to him. She leaned into him, letting him hold her, seduced by the warmth of his body, by a gentleness she saw in the deep brown of his eyes, all the time telling herself it was wrong. But how could she not believe he possessed special powers? Look at the power he had over her body. Over her emotions. And now, over her life.

  JONAH PULLED BACK, frowning as he suddenly realized something had changed between them.

  She caught his arm to keep him from moving away from her and shook her head. “Don’t.”

  “Kat—”

  She touched a fingertip to his lips. “If you really can feel things that the rest of us can’t…”

  He looked into her eyes. It didn’t take a mind reader for this one. “Are you sure?” he had to ask. Just like on their first date, she looked nervous, definitely scared.

  His gaze met hers, pulling her in as his hand reached to cup her cheek. He saw her take a breath and let it out slowly, her eyes wide with fear, her body tense.

  “Tell me what you sense about me right now,” she whispered.

  He studied her face, her request too easy. “You want me to kiss you again.”

  She took another breath, this one catching in her throat, but she nodded slightly, her eyes locked with his.

  “That isn’t all you want me to do,” he said, surprised how rough his voice sounded. “You want me to make you forget—just for a little while.” His heart thundered in his chest. He couldn’t remember ever feeling like this, as if he were about to plunge off a cliff—even though he knew there would be no turning back, he couldn’t wait to jump.

  Kat let out a sigh. “You can read my mind after all,” she whispered. Her eyes were liquid blue, her gaze as determined as he’d ever seen it.

  “Then why are you so afraid?”

  She shook her head. “Kiss me. Please.”

  He glanced down at her lips, felt her tremble. Her mouth pulled at him like the moon pulled at him. He covered her mouth with his own, her lips soft and warm.

  Then he felt the tentative touch of her tongue and he was engulfed with a desire so strong, he felt his insides clench.

  He stepped back, holding her at arm’s length. “I can’t do this.”

  “Is it me?” She looked as though she might cry.

  He shook his head. “It’s the man who hurt you.”

  She seemed startled. She bit her lip for a moment as if holding back emotions she’d had bottled up for a long time. “I made a mistake a few years go.” She started to cry, the words coming hard. “He…he hurt me—physically and emotionally.”

  Jonah silenced her with a finger to her lips. “I know.”

  She didn’t question how he knew. Her eyes overflowed with tears.

  “I’m so sorry. But it wasn’t your fault.” He pulled her to him again, encircling her in his arms, her body small and fragile. He could feel her jerking, hear her muffled sobs.

  Everything in him wanted to protect her from now until eternity. But he was smart enough to know he wouldn’t be there. She would want someone very different from him. She didn’t know it, but the day would come when she’d want a painted white house that overlooked the ocean and three kids playing out in the yard. He could never give her that.

  It took him a moment to still the anger he felt for the man who’d hurt her. He gave her the time she needed as well.

  Then he drew back, wiped her tears with a tissue and, cupping her face in his hands, looked into her eyes. He could no more not kiss her than not take his next breath.

  The kiss was long and sweet, slow and easy. He slid his hand along the bare skin between her jeans and cotton top. Her flesh felt warm, as inviting as a dip in the Atlantic, as his fingertips ran up the hollow of her back. No bra. He pulled her closer and felt her sigh against him, her body softening into him, her bare breasts beneath the crop top full and firm.

  Her skin felt sun-warm and smooth. Her lips parted in invitation as a small gasp escaped, and he felt her tremble against him, this time with desire rather than fear.

  “Please, Jonah,” she whispered against his mouth.

  Or maybe he just heard it in his head.

  He pulled back to look into all that blue, now bright with desire, his own body alive with the feel of her, the need for her.

  “Kat, someday you’re going to want more than I can give you,” he said, holding her at arm’s length.

  “All I want is you now. It might be all we have.”

  Didn’t he know it. He took her in his arms. At least they had the rest of the night.

  KAT HAD ALREADY KNOWN what Jonah could do to her senses. She’d only imagined what he could do to her body. But she’d had no idea what he could do to her heart.

  He carried her up the stairs and laid her gently on the bed. Then he lay down beside her and slowly began to make love to her with his mouth, his hands, his body.

  It was as if she’d never made love before. She gave herself, surrendering to him with heart and soul. There was no turning back. She’d known that the moment she’d seen the hurt in his eyes when she’d told him about her disastrous past relationship.

  She had never felt more love for anyone than at that moment. Nor had she realized the extent to which she’d blamed herself for that earlier mistake.

  Jonah kissed away her fears, caressing away the hurt and pain, showing her what lovemaking should be. Tender. Sweet. Wonderful. It was as if he knew exactly what she wanted, what she needed, what would make her capable of loving again.


  When it was over, she curled in his arms, warm against him, and slept, safe. For a few hours, she forgot there was a killer after her. For a few hours, she could lean on Jonah Ries.

  WHEN KAT WOKE to the sun, the bed beside her was empty, but she knew Jonah wasn’t gone. She put on her robe and went downstairs. She heard the sound of the shower running and thought for a moment about joining him.

  But she felt strangely shy, remembering the wonderful things he’d done to her, the emotions he’d elicited with just a touch, a word, a look. She started toward the kitchen, planning to make coffee, when the doorbell rang.

  Emily? Had she forgotten her key? Or had she seen Jonah’s motorcycle and thought she’d better ring the bell first?

  Kat hurried to the door, upset with her sister. But when she opened it, there was no one waiting on the porch. At first all she saw was Jonah’s bike, lying on its side where someone had knocked it over. It startled her and scared her at the same time.

  Then she looked down and saw the daisies, the same type of bouquet she’d been getting, tied with another piece of worn red ribbon. Only these daisies looked as if someone had stomped them viciously with a boot heel.

  JONAH CAME OUT of the bathroom in his jeans, a towel in his hand, and saw Kat in the doorway. He could tell that something was wrong and rushed to her. The moment he saw his bike, he knew. He didn’t need to see the daisies crushed on the doorstep.

  “It’s okay,” he said, reaching for her. Her reaction surprised him.

  “It’s not okay,” she snapped, turning around to glare at him. “I’m damn tired of being scared. That’s what he’s trying to do, you know. Scare me. If he had any guts at all he’d just come after me and get it over with.”

  Jonah looked into her face and had to smile. He’d expected her to be in tears, running scared. Any woman would be at this point. But not Kat. She was coming out fighting.

  “The bastard put the same bouquet on my mother’s casket,” she said.

  Jonah felt a jolt. “How do you know that?”

  She closed the door and went into the other room, coming back with a newspaper clipping. Jonah stared at the bouquet in the photo, then at her.

  “Kat, you know this man,” he said. “He’s someone in this town, someone your mother knew.” Jonah could feel the man’s desperate desire for Kat, the same desire he’d had for her mother—but nothing more. If only that sense of knowing would let him see the man’s face.

  “I’m going to find him.”

  “We’re going to find him,” he corrected her. He had a couple of thoughts on where they could start. But first he needed to bag the daisies. Even though he doubted the lab could get prints off the ribbon, he had to try. They had thirty-six hours before the moon was full. Time was running out.

  KAT LOOKED at the list of suspects—those people who had been seen on the town green that night near the time of the murder. “You think it’s one of them?”

  Jonah nodded. “We know it’s a man, so that narrows it down some.”

  “You can’t just look at this list and ‘sense’ which one?” she asked, only half joking.

  He shook his head.

  “Well, until I see these powers at work, you don’t mind if I remain skeptical?”

  He smiled then, a real smile. “I would be disappointed if you didn’t.”

  She looked down at the list in her hand. Until last night, Kat had discounted what Jonah thought, discounted his concern for her because she didn’t trust him. No, she thought, because she didn’t believe in his instincts or legends about ghosts or witches or…warlocks. And she was scared to death of the way she felt when she was around him because of her attraction to him.

  She looked up at Jonah, realizing with a jolt that she was now trusting his instincts—and not just because of what they had shared last night. “You think this guy could have left her bouquets of daisies before he killed her?”

  Jonah nodded. “I think he had a thing for her, a secret crush, maybe. For whatever reason, he was afraid to tell her. Maybe he was too young for her or too old, or was too poor or too rich.”

  She felt cold inside. “Then he could have been any one of these men. Men who were too young for her, like Brody Ries and Marley Glasglow. Or men whose social standing would never have allowed them to “love” her outright, like Geoffrey Pierce or Dr. Leland Manning or even Ernie McDougal.”

  Jonah nodded. “There is someone else who might have seen the killer that night as well. Arabella Leigh.”

  For just a moment, Kat had been hopeful. “Arabella’s been out of her head for years.”

  “Even before your mother’s murder?”

  Kat nodded and glanced at her watch. “I have to find my sister and go to my office—at least for a little while.” She could see that he didn’t want her out of his sight, but it was also clear that he had things to do. And it was daylight, and if he was right, she had nothing to fear until tomorrow night when the moon was finally full. It was also time for her to stand on her own two feet for a while. Hopefully, he sensed that.

  She started to head for the stairs, but he pulled her to him, leaned down and kissed her, a slow, sweet, full-mouth kiss that made her knees weak. “Be careful.”

  “Always.” She touched his face with her fingertips. “We have thirty-six hours. Between the two of us, we’ll find him.”

  JONAH HOPED TO HELL she was right as he neared his apartment over the Wharf Rat, but he wasn’t worried about her because his instincts told him the killer wouldn’t hurt her until the moon was full.

  The dental floss was still in the door where he’d left it. Once inside, he booted up his computer.

  “I was worried,” flashed on the screen. “Got a name on those prints. Sitting down?”

  “Hit me.” He’d managed to get Cassandra’s glass last night out of the poker room and picked up by a courier to take to the print lab. But still he hadn’t expected results this quickly.

  “Cassandra Quintana—real name Sandra Langston. Born Sandra Ries, daughter of Eli and Celia Ries. A relative?”

  Jonah stared at the screen, pulse pounding, then slowly typed, “Cousin.” One he didn’t know existed. His uncle Eli and aunt Celia had moved away before he was born. “Record?”

  “Just a driving-while-under-the-influence years ago.”

  That would explain why they had her prints.

  “Odd, though, Sandra used the name Ridgemont for a job reference twenty-two years ago. Leslie Ridgemont. Put her down as friend. Mean anything?”

  Jonah let out a low whistle. “Interesting.” Boy, was that putting it mildly.

  “Still no boat?”

  “No.” Nothing on their lost agent either. “But have tour of Manning’s lab tonight.”

  “Maybe we’ll get lucky.”

  Why did he doubt that?

  He typed, “Later,” then signed off, put the computer back under the sofa and locked up on his way out.

  CASSANDRA QUINTANA, aka Sandra Ries Langston, had hooked a sucker. From a distance, Jonah watched her turn the tarot cards. A middle-aged woman with dyed blond hair and a Florida tan listened intently as Cassandra read the cards in a soft and serious hypnotic tone.

  Whatever Cassandra was saying, the middle-aged woman was eating it up. He wondered what was missing in the woman’s life that Cassandra was now promising her. Money? A man? Happiness?

  The woman thanked the fortune-teller, laying a couple of twenties on the velvet. Cassandra scooped up the money as quickly as she did the cards.

  “You’re good,” he said, stepping in front of her booth as she shuffled the deck. “But then, you come by it naturally.”

  She looked up as if she’d known he was there. She probably did, given her genes. But it could just be her talent for noticing even the smallest of things—and using them to her advantage.

  “Why didn’t you tell me who you were?” he demanded, keeping his voice down. He didn’t need to advertise another Ries relative, not after years of trying to distan
ce himself from the whole clan. Or coven, in this case.

  She lifted an eyebrow and continued shuffling the tarot cards. “Maybe I don’t want anyone to know who I am any more than you do.”

  He could buy that. “The best way to do that is stay as far from Moriah’s Landing as possible—not come back here.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Want to tell me what brought you back here after all these years?” he asked, ignoring her implied question.

  “Maybe I missed my roots.”

  Yeah, right.

  “And you?”

  He shrugged. “I didn’t have anywhere else to go after the feds gave me the boot.”

  She smiled. “Maybe you can get a bonehead like Brody to believe that, but I’m from the smart side of the Ries family. The…sensitive side.”

  “Or at least that’s what you want people to believe,” he said, wondering how much of her psychic ability was a con—and how much just might be real.

  She flipped over a card on the velvet. The lovers card and lifted an eyebrow. “You’re right. She is in danger.”

  He didn’t even blink an eye. “Who?”

  Cassandra smiled. “Kat. And it does have to do with the sins of the mother. Interesting that the two of you have that in common.”

  He clenched his fists, trying to still the anger at even the mention of his mother. His mother had fallen in love with a Ries, knowing he had the “gift.” Because her side of the family had their own bewitching talents, Jonah got a double whammy. They had given him the “gift,” but it had killed them both, just as he suspected it would kill him one day. If he let it. Was it any wonder he’d fought it all these years? But now it was the one thing that would let him know how to save Kat and, ironically, it was too weak to sense just exactly who the killer was who was after her.

  He looked at Cassandra, wondering if it was possible that she knew.

  She flipped over another card, but before it could hit the velvet he covered it and her hand with his own.

  “No more cards,” he said from between gritted teeth. “No more games. Tell me who he is.”

  She shook her head. “You know as well as I do how the gift works.” Gift his foot. It was a curse. She pushed his hand aside and looked down at the card lying on the table. “It is someone who feels betrayed by her.” Cassandra met his gaze. “That is all I can tell you.”