She shrugged and threw the question back at him. “What made you become a cop?”
“I asked first.” Norris smiled.
She pulled her scarf tighter around her shoulders and knotted it. “I don’t know. I didn’t want to stay here. I wanted to do something that mattered. You know, help people.”
Norris flicked a charm on her bracelet. “When I saw this, I thought maybe you were a vet or animal activist. Were the bracelet and charms gifts?”
“The bracelet, yes. The charms... Most of them I bought.” Her fingers found the dragonfly. Stefan had bought it for her while they were in Palm Springs.
“Is that one special?”
Norris’ lips parted slightly while he waited for answers to questions she wasn’t prepared to give.
“Not really,” she lied, while she let the charm slip from her fingers. She shook the bracelet to lose sight of it. “I like otters. I think they’re fun. They symbolize joy.” She didn’t tell him the creatures also embodied transition and healing.
She quickened her step and headed up the beach to the path that led to the lot where she’d parked her SUV. “It must be getting late. I’ve got to go, in case Martina needs my help with Lia.”
She knew the odds of Lia waking and not being soothed by Martina were very low. The child was exhausted and Martina had the singing voice of an angel and could lull any child back to sleep with its calming timbre.
Jolene heard the muted sound Norris’ soles on the sand behind her.
She turned around to face him and immediately put her hand out and made contact with his solid chest. “You don’t need to walk me to my car.”
He pointed past her. “I’m parked beside you.”
“Oh.” Right. He had followed her. Ignoring his smirk, she turned and clutched the ends of her scarf. She’d hadn’t seen him following her and that was a rookie mistake. He knew she hadn’t spotted him.
What the hell had she been thinking about? She hadn’t picked up his tail. Aware of what was happening behind her was one of her best assets. Her C.U.F.F. team members swore she had eyes in the back of her head and that was why she wore her hair so short. For God’s sake, she’d ridden in Norris’ Jeep only hours before. She should’ve seen him.
Jolene spun around and bit down hard on her lip. She’d been condemning herself for her lack of mothering skills. Fuck it. She wasn’t a mother. She was a badass federal agent. Saving the world was what she did.
At the edge of the lot she stopped and dropped her sandals to the ground. She lost her balance trying to remain upright while wiggling her feet into them instead of bending over and presenting her ass to the hunk behind her.
Norris’ hands gripped her hips and steadied her. Immediately, she felt the urge to lean back into his hard body and bring his hands to her breasts, but doing so wouldn’t be the right move for so many reasons.
The more time she spent with Norris the more she wanted to get down and sweaty with the sexy chief of police, but she also liked the man he was and didn’t want to hurt him. She would be leaving when this case was through, which could be as early as tomorrow morning if Lia turned out to be the missing Burgess girl. She sensed Norris needed something more than a quick lay anyway. He might not say it or believe it himself for some reason but she thought he longed for a lasting relationship. She didn’t do those.
“Thanks,” she said over her shoulder, shoving her left foot into her strapless sandal. She quickly found her footing, but he held her in place.
“Did I do or say something wrong?” His breath stroked the back of her neck.
A shiver of excitement tumbled down her spine and she shivered. “No.” She stepped out of his hold.
While crossing the lot, she pulled her keys from her pocket and hit the unlock button on her key fob. Her running lights flashed quick and bright like blinking cat’s eyes in a dark alley.
At her vehicle’s front fender, Norris grabbed her elbow and stopped her from reaching her car door. She spun to face him.
“If nothing is wrong, why are you in such a hurry all of a sudden?” Norris asked.
She shrugged. “I simply think I should get back to Lia.”
His cocked eyebrow indicated he didn’t believe her. “I put her in Martina’s care under your advisement. Are you now saying you don’t trust your sister and brother-in-law to watch over her?”
“No.”
“And if Lia’s DNA doesn’t match the Burgess couple, are you planning to babysit while I work the case? Because I thought you’d told SA Carter you were working the case with me.” His head tilted in the opposite direction of hers and he stared down at her waiting for a reply.
Jolene’s jaw clenched. He was playing her good. She glared up at him. “No.”
“No. You’re not babysitting or no you’re not going to help me find out who put Lia in the flimsy raft on the ocean to die?”
He didn’t know who she was because she hadn’t proven anything to him yet. “We’ll find who did this to her whether she’s the Burgess child or not.”
“I thought that would be your answer.” He stepped closer to her. “So then Lia isn’t the problem. So what’s your hurry to get away from me?”
“I think you know.”
While they tried to read each other the attraction between them grew stronger. The heat from his body rolled toward her, circling her like strong arms and pleaded with her to draw closer.
Jolene ran her tongue over her suddenly dry lips. “This between us ... I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“What thing?”
He was the devil and he was going to make her say the words when he damn well knew what she meant.
She cocked her head to the side and glared. Maybe if she were brutally honest she would make him back off. “If we hadn’t found Lia yesterday maybe you and I would’ve hooked up last night. I think both of us need to get laid, but” —she raised her chin—“we’re working a case together now, and I don’t get involved with men I work with.”
Norris remained silent for only a second, studying her face. “Well fuck, if I’d known that I would’ve refused your help.”
“Well you didn’t and we are, so let’s step back.” She laid her hands on his solid chest and immediately she considered breaking her own rule, just this once. Only this one night.
On his face, in his eyes, she saw her own desire to be held and loved reflected back to her.
He moved closer.
She caved against his charm and slid her hands higher over his beating heart. Immediately his earthy scent, which the ocean breezes had kept at bay, filled her nostrils. She felt her insides quiver.
Norris cupped her jaw, tilting her face higher and ran a finger over her bottom lip. “One kiss.”
Jolene admired the breadth of his shoulders while under her palm his heartbeat matched hers. “That would be a bad idea,” she said.
Norris’ lips curled upward. “Maybe I wouldn’t enjoy it.”
She latched on to his amused gaze. He was going to kiss her. Unless she jabbed her knee into his groin he was going... To. Kiss. Her. “You really think you won’t enjoy it?”
“Only one way to find out.” He pulled her closer, winding his strong arms around her, lifting her up against him. Then his head dipped and those lips she’d been admiring for the last day and a half brushed against hers in a soft tantalizing caress. He gently kissed her again, but this time he parted her lips with his tongue and sweetly claimed her mouth.
As the heat between them grew, Jolene’s resolve disappeared and she willingly melted against Norris’ hard chest. The fire in her belly grew to a roaring inferno and when he tried to pull back, she fisted her hands around his shirt, held him in place and kissed him harder, wanting more.
Behind them a car pulled into the lot and the highlight’s bright beams found them.
There was no way the driver missed the way Jolene jumped back from Norris.
“Step away from vehicle, sir,” called a static voice
over a loud speaker.
Realization hit and Norris expression turned livid. He shook his head and held up a hand, shielding his eyes from the light. “Pickett,” he growled. He looked at her and inhaled. “I’m going to kill the bastard. You better not watch.”
Jolene had to admit she was also annoyed at Pickett’s intrusion but maybe it was a sign that hooking up with Norris wasn’t a great idea. She laughed, hoping that would dispel some of the chief’s anger toward his deputy.
The lights cut off and they heard a car door open before their vision had time to adjust to the dim lighting.
“Hey, Chief.” Pickett remained by the front of his car.
“What the hell do you want?” Norris snapped.
Whatever Pickett needed to talk to him about had better be important, because Jolene sensed Norris was pretty pissed at the interruption. She wouldn’t want to be in the deputy’s shoes.
“Apparently, he needs to talk to you in private,” Jolene said softly. “I’m going to go.”
“Don’t.” Norris touched her arm, stopping her.
She smiled. “I think it’s for the best.” She opened her door and climbed inside. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning bright and early, Chief Stiles.”
“Okay.” Norris’ shoulders drooped in surrender and he pushed her door closed.
Jolene eased her car from the parking spot.
His fingers lingered on the door as long they could.
Leaving was the right move. She knew it. But damn she felt empty as she widened the distance.
She looked in the rearview mirror. Norris watched her for a full three seconds before he swept his hand through his hair and stalked toward his deputy.
Jolene touched her lips. Norris’ kiss was probably the best first kiss she’d ever received. Too bad she wouldn’t find out if he was good in the sack. She’d bet a year’s salary he was great.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
From my position, I watch him via the reflection each time he passes by. He wears me out with his tedious pacing back and forth, working his thumbnail between his teeth.
I know he knows about Lia now. He had to have found her.
I know he’ll take care of her—he’s a good man, despite the fact he keeps me locked away.
He wouldn’t give her back, would he? He can’t. I love her.
What will he do with her?
She’s my daughter, damn it!
I don’t regret taking Lia. She stole my heart the moment I saw her chubby little face. I was alive, enjoying freedom, for the first time in decades—thanks to my sweet mother—when I found her. She brought me such joy and fulfilled a deep-seated need I never had a chance to experience before.
I’m evil for taking her. I know it. And it should break my heart he’s so worried, but it doesn’t. He’s lived a good life while mine has been an empty shell.
I can’t stop picking away at this wall. My existence depends on me breaking free again. I want my baby.
Damn him.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Norris yawned. With his elbow propped on his desk, he pinched the corners of his eyes and then blinked several times. He hadn’t slept well. He’d spent the night on his office couch, again, listening to the normal radio chatter between Larry, who manned the desk last night, and Pickett and Frank who had patrolled the streets and answered calls. While he’d tossed and turned he thought about the woman whose kiss started a blaze inside him. Even hours later the fire still demanded to be fed.
He swiped a hand down over his face and shook his head. Kissing Jolene had been a totally unprofessional move, and it was one he could not take again. No woman, not even his ex-girlfriend had ever tempted him in the primal way Jolene now did.
Over the last few days he’d seen Jolene in many roles: playful vixen, daring soldier, clever agent, fair-minded mediator, and loving family member. Though tough, he knew she was a compassionate human being. Each facet revealed to him made her more and more interesting too. And made him long to learn everything else about her.
He’d heard it said that things happen in life for a reason. Something at home had caused Jolene to take a walk on the beach. What it was, was a mystery to him. If it hadn’t happened, he wouldn’t have seen her pull out of the gas station and then he wouldn’t have followed her there. They wouldn’t have walked the beach together, getting to know a little more about each other. And they wouldn’t have been there to tell the M80 guys to stop their dangerous games. Then he wouldn’t have put the call in to one of his officers to watch out for them. The responding officer, Pickett, wouldn’t have swung by the parking lot looking for him at the very moment his lips had met Jolene’s...
If fate wanted them together, why do so much to put them together, only to have something pull them apart?
He heard a chair scrape the floor and looked up to see Ted rise from his desk chair. Passing Norris’ office, he kept his eyes trained forward and headed to the station’s restroom.
Norris leaned back on his chair, sighed and stretched. He had so many questions running through his head about so many different things and right now he had to concentrate on his job.
He rose and walked into the main office and stood next to Pickett’s desk. He scanned the list of places his officers had already gone to show Lia’s picture to business owners and their staff. They had covered all of the hotels, B&Bs, campgrounds, gas stations and most of the businesses along the half-mile boardwalk. So far no one remembered seeing her.
He noted that Pickett had even contacted all the staff who had worked the public restrooms yesterday.
Next on the list were the town businesses and then, working on the premise Lia might be a local child, they would start with the pre-schools and local churches to see if anyone recognized her. They’d done a hell of a lot of work in the forty hours since Lia was plucked from the ocean.
He glanced up at the wall clock above Pickett’s desk. It was nearly zero nine hundred hours. Within the next hour or two they should have the answer to whether or not the little girl was Abigail Burgess.
Having to wait a few hours to get the results had Norris antsy. He needed to know which direction this case would take and if he’d remain in charge, Thankfully, patience was one of his virtues. He began to prioritize other tasks and assign them to whomever he felt could handle them the best. They still had regular duties to perform in the small community now engorged with tourists.
He laid down the spreadsheet his deputy had produced before going home at six to catch a few hours of sleep. Picket had spent the night working calls and planned on being back by noon and ready to work another eighteen-hour shift, if necessary.
Behind him, he heard the slap of Ted’s shoes growing louder. Norris noted Ted’s chalky skin looked even paler. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah. Okay.” Ted tucked his belt into the spot below his paunch. “Mackey is still snoring away.”
Norris understood Mackey. He’d come back from serving his country to find his wife had written him off and built a life with another man. From then on, Mackey had never regained his footing and with each passing year grief had hardened his heart.
Do you want me to heave him out of here before the SA gets here?”
“Nah. We don’t need the cell. Let him sleep. It’s probably the best night he’s had since the last time we picked him up.”
“It’s you’re call, boss.”
By the sweat beads forming on Ted’s forehead and the fact he’d used the john several times since his arrival to work at eight, Norris knew Ted was nervous over the outcome of the DNA testing. There was a fifty percent chance the man’s head would be on the chopping block with the mayor if it wasn’t a match.
He was glad he wasn’t in the guy’s shoes.
The front door to the station opened with its usual grazing of the planked floors that had been polished several hundred times since the small jail was built in 1902.
Norris had expected to see Jolene come through the door before the federal
agent but it was SA Carter wearing another expensive suit and red tie who crossed the small lobby.
“Morning, Officer.” Carter flashed his badge to Sandy Lehane who manned the front desk.
The smile Sandy flashed at the pretty boy made Norris shudder.
Of course, Carter ignored her and passed by Sandy without a second glance. He entered the police den and scanned the area while clipping his badge to his breast pocket. Finally, he met Norris’ gaze. “Good morning, Chief.”
Skimming over Carter’s pristine pressed suit, Norris was glad he’d taken the time to change into a clean uniform that morning. He would lay down a large bet that Carter even looked official while he slept.
That image made him wonder if Jolene would choose to cuddle up to such a stuffy guy at night. He doubted it. She would prefer a lover who was confident, without pretension.
“Is it good?” The Fed seemed a lot more relaxed than he had yesterday. Had Carter learned the DNA results already?
“So far. There’s nothing more relaxing than waking up to the sound of the ocean. You’re lucky to live here.”
“Some days I feel that way, others not so much. Did you get the DNA results yet?”
Carter shook his head while checking his expensive watch’s time against the time on the wall clock. “We should hear something soon though.”
The front door of the station burst open and shouting covered up the familiar scraping noise. Mr. Burgess, shielding Mrs. Burgess from the onslaught of reporters snapping their pictures, pushed through the door. Exasperated, Mr. Burgess shoved it closed behind them, knocking a camera from one reporter’s hand.
Norris and Ted helped keep the media on the other side of the door, while Sandy ushered Darren and Bonnie Burgess to a waiting area in the back corner, usually reserved for law breakers.
Norris ordered the reporters to remain on the public sidewalk and not block entrance to the building. He ignored their questions and returned inside where he ordered Sandy to arrest any of the media who tried to cross the threshold. Then he walked into the den and turned his glare toward Ted who had returned to his desk. Ted with his head bent down, was apparently trying not to be noticed. He didn’t want the couple to know he was the one who had called them. He would wait until the DNA results were in and then either quickly disappear or strut over to the Burgess couple and get his ego stroked. Ted’s actions had never been about the girl or the young couple and that pissed Norris off. Ted was the kind of officer he didn’t want on his force.
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