by Sara Davison
“What’s wrong?”
She started to turn away. “Nothing.”
“Nicole.” He touched her arm. “Come on. Something is obviously bothering you.”
She faced him. “You don’t know me, Gage. Don’t pretend you know how I’m feeling.”
His hand dropped. “You’re right. I don’t know you, not nearly as well as I’d like to, anyway. Hence the whole ...” he gestured toward the food on the counter, “... dating thing. But I don’t have to know you that well to see that you’re upset about something. I know I didn’t call you for a few days, but that wasn’t because I didn’t want to, it was because I didn’t want to come on too strong. Is that what you’re upset about?”
“Of course not. There’s nothing between us. You don’t have to report in to me.” The words were sharp, and she saw the wounding in his eyes.
His face, though, and his voice, when he spoke, remained carefully controlled. “What, then?”
“Maybe we shouldn’t get into it right now. Let’s eat first.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Okay, fine.” Nicole straightened her shoulders. “I don’t want this.”
His gaze flicked to the paper bag on the counter. “That’s okay. We can order piz—”
Nicole shook her head. “No. I mean, I don’t want this.” She waved a hand between them. “You and me.”
“You don’t want this.”
The dullness in his tone cut into her. She hadn’t meant to hurt him. Better now than later, though. “That’s right.” Her voice threatened to break, and she bit her lip. “In fact, maybe you should just take your food and leave now.”
For a few agonizing seconds neither of them moved, then Gage stepped closer and rested a hand on the counter on either side of her. When he spoke, his voice was low and soft. “I thought you weren’t going to run.”
Her pulse pounded in her throat. “I’m not. It’s just that I don’t see this going anywhere, so I think it’s best to end it now before either of us has too much invested.”
His jaw tightened. “Well, I hate to burst your nice, neat little bubble here, but I already care about you, Nicole, a lot, so it may be a little late for that.”
“All the more reason to end it now, before—”
He leaned in and found her mouth. His hands lifted to her face, and he pulled her to him as he crushed his lips to hers.
Heat streaked through her. She held herself rigid for two seconds before her knees weakened and she leaned against him. Her hands rested on his hips, gripping his T-shirt in both fists. She kissed him too, frantically. For a few seconds Nicole filled her senses with the feel and smell and taste of him. Then fear welled up, dousing desire, and she broke away, flushed and breathless.
His dark eyes probed hers. Her chest tightened until it hurt to draw a breath. He saw too much when he looked at her like that. She felt naked and exposed. The anger that slashed through her gave her the strength to pull herself up to her full height, right below his chin, and meet his gaze. “Sex wouldn’t change anything.”
Gage recoiled, as if she had slapped him across the face. “Sex? Who said anything about sex?” His hands, clenched into fists, dropped to his sides. He took a step backward, his eyes blazing. “Is that what you think all this is about? That I’m trying to get you into bed?”
Nicole closed her eyes and took a deep, shaky breath, trying to compose herself. This conversation was not going at all like she had planned. He was supposed to see the reason in her calmly worded arguments and walk out the door, and out of her life, without either of them getting upset. Nice and easy. She sighed and opened her eyes. “I only meant—”
Gage lifted both hands to stop her, then raked them through his long, dark hair and turned around, clasping them behind his head as he walked toward the window above the sink. “God, help us.”
His words cut deeply into her chest. He hadn’t spoken them lightly, like a cliché. Gage obviously knew the one he was calling on. This would be a lot easier if he didn’t. Nicole’s cheeks burned. She pressed her crossed arms tightly against her abdomen, misery thickening her throat.
He stood in front of the glass for a moment, staring up at the sky, before he dropped his arms and turned and strode toward her. She stiffened, but he stopped inches from her and didn’t touch her. “Okay, look.” Gage was clearly forcing calm into his voice, although a tiny vein throbbed in his forehead. “I’m not going to lie to you and tell you I haven’t thought about it. I’m a guy, and you’re a beautiful woman. And I have feelings for you. But I won’t sleep with you.”
Nicole blinked.
Gage drew in a deep breath. “And since it would be really great if at least one of us was being honest here, I’ll tell you that I’ve made that mistake before. It was a mistake, and I spent hours on my knees repenting over it. I won’t go down that road again unless—and I may really make you run here, but I’m going to take my chances—we get married. Which, in spite of your insistence that this isn’t going anywhere, I can see happening someday. If you quit pushing me away, that is.” His eyes swept over her and he exhaled loudly. “They really messed you up, didn’t they?”
Her throat tightened. “Who?”
“Your parents, for starters. And whoever else you feel abandoned you in your life. Maybe your best friend in third grade moved away, or your date in high school left you for the prom queen, or maybe you were the prom queen, I don’t know. But I want to know. That and every other little thing about you, like your favorite kind of ice cream and how you spend Saturday mornings, and what types of books you read. Everything. But most of all, what I’d like to know is how any of those people could have ever walked away from you. Because I’ve only known you for a couple of weeks and I can’t do it, and you’re shoving me out the door as hard as you can.”
“I’m not shoving you.” Her voice was strained. “I’m being realistic about our chances. And I don’t like you accusing me of not being honest.”
Gage moved a step closer. “Okay, you want a chance to show me how honest you’re being? And I don’t just mean with me, I mean with yourself? Answer one question before you toss me out.”
She clasped her hands together to keep them from shaking. “Fine. But then you go.” His eyes burned into her, but Nicole refused to look away.
“Do you really not want this, or are you scared of how much you want it?”
Tell him you don’t want it. He’ll walk out the door and you’ll never have to see him again. She opened her mouth then shut it again. A revelation streaked across her consciousness like a flare. The thought of not seeing him again was even more terrifying than the thought of getting close to him. She pressed her eyes shut tightly. “I’m scared.”
Gage wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him. “Good. I can work with scared.” He spoke the words softly in her ear. A shiver moved through her and his arms tightened. “I’m not going anywhere, Nicole.”
She rested her head on his chest. His heart thudded beneath her cheek, driving away the cold fear that had settled in her stomach. They stood like that for several moments, until he eased back and looked at her. “Okay?”
Nicole managed a weak smile. “Okay.”
“Can we eat now?”
Her laugh was shaky. “It’ll be cold.”
“That’s what microwaves are for.” Gage took her hand and led her to the table. “Sit down. I’ll get the food.”
He warmed it up and set a plate in front of her. “You actually do like Chinese food, right? Because that would be a deal breaker.”
She laughed. “I do, don’t worry.”
“Good.”
Nicole watched him as he went back for one for himself. “The knives and forks are on the counter.”
He waved a hand at her. “Knives and forks are for the unadventurous.” Gage grabbed chopsticks out of the bag and brought them over to the table. “Which, clearly, we are not.”
“Oh, no.” Wrinkling her nose, she grabbed a se
t and made a futile attempt to pick up some rice. “Talk about getting to know someone. This is not going to be pretty.”
“It might not be pretty, but it will be worth the effort, I promise.”
Nicole looked up and met his gaze. His long, dark eyelashes framed smiling eyes that locked with hers and held them. Her heart rate quickened. Neither moved for a few seconds, until a grin quirked the corners of her mouth. “Shelley Silverstone.”
“Who?”
“Shelley Silverstone. She was our prom queen.”
Gage leaned back in his chair. “Wow. She must have been some kind of gorgeous to have beaten you out.”
Nicole tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Gorgeous enough that I’m not going to show you her picture.”
His eyebrows rose as he looked around the room. “You have her picture?”
Nicole grinned. “Not in here. I don’t keep it on my fridge or anything. And I said I wasn’t going to show it to you.”
He leaned forward and caught her hand, pressing one finger to his mouth. “Okay, fine. I’ll just have to look at you then.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “You don’t give up easily, do you?”
“Nope.” He kissed another finger. “Not when I know it’s right. And in spite of what I told you earlier, which we can talk about any time you want, I’ve never felt this right about a relationship before in my life. I’ll fight for us, Nic. And I won’t walk away.”
Don’t make a promise you can’t keep, Nicole. She lifted her chin. “Then I won’t run.”
Chapter Eight
Daniel slapped the light onto the front dash then had to grab it as Sharleen took the next corner on two wheels.
She shot him a sideways glance. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” He held on to the light with his left hand and clung to the handle of the door with his right. “We have to get there.” Thankfully, since it was the middle of the night, traffic was light and the few drivers who were on the roads had the good sense to pull over to the right to let them pass.
A concerned citizen had called 911 to say he’d seen a man wearing a black wool cap pulled down over his face creeping around the backyard of his neighbor’s house. Daniel let go of the door handle long enough to check his watch. 1:11. The call had come in seven minutes earlier, and they were still two minutes out. Would they get there in time? If there was any chance this was their elusive child abductor, Daniel was desperate to arrive at the scene in time to catch him in the act. This was the first real break they’d gotten, the only credible lead they’d come across in this case, and he did not want to blow it.
Sharleen squealed around another corner, and Daniel grabbed the handle again. They’d called for back-up, but had requested no lights or sirens, not wanting to give the guy any warning that they were coming, so he had no idea whether anyone else was close. Sharleen approached the final turn before the street where the man had been seen. Daniel yanked the light from the dash, switched it off, and tossed it into the back seat.
His partner slowed for the final turn and eased up on the gas as she turned onto the street. Daniel leaned forward to peer through the front window, scanning the neighborhood for any signs of life. He stabbed a finger through the air in front of him. “There!”
In the dim light of a street lamp, he could make out a dark sedan idling at the curb half a block ahead. As they drew closer, a figure strode down the driveway of a house and approached the rear passenger door. “He’s carrying something.”
Sharleen pressed down on the gas again. Caught in their headlights, the man turned his head in their direction as the door of the waiting vehicle opened. Just as quickly, he looked away and thrust the bundle he’d been carrying into the arms that reached for it then slammed the door shut. The vehicle squealed away from the curb, and the man spun on his heel and sprinted toward the back of the house.
“Let me out. You go after the car.” Daniel shoved open the door and jumped out onto the sidewalk before Sharleen had come to a full stop. He barely managed to slam the door shut before she peeled away again in pursuit of the sedan and, quite possibly, their fourth abducted child.
Daniel ran along the side of the house and into the yard. The man had almost reached the fence at the edge of the property. Daniel increased his speed. If the guy got over the fence and into the maze of streets and alleys on the other side, Daniel could easily lose him. A shaft of moonlight sliced through a break in the clouds, and he caught a glimpse of the man, dressed all in black, ski mask still pulled down over his face, leaping toward the fence and grabbing the top of it. Daniel closed the gap between them as the suspect swung a leg up over the top rail. Reaching deep, Daniel surged forward. The man swung his other leg over the fence as Daniel reached it.
One of the man’s sleeves got snagged on a nail. Daniel lunged forward and hit the fence with one foot, propelling himself upward. He managed to grasp the man’s hat and rip it from his head before grabbing hold of a post to steady himself. For two seconds their eyes locked. In the dim moonlight, he attempted to memorize the man’s features. Then the suspect yanked his arm free, drove his elbow up under Daniel’s chin, snatched his hat out of Daniel’s hand, and dropped out of sight.
Daniel lost his grip on the fence and dropped back into the yard. The sound of a vehicle screeching to a stop sent a new rush of adrenaline coursing through him. Ignoring the throbbing pain in his jaw, he scrambled to his feet, took a running leap, and hauled himself over the fence and into the neighboring yard. No sign of a vehicle, or of the man. Daniel ran to the sidewalk and stopped, scanning the street in both directions. He couldn’t see anything moving and, as hard as he strained to listen, couldn’t hear anything but the distant hum of an engine rapidly growing fainter.
Daniel grabbed the cell phone from the inside pocket of his jacket and called it in, asking for anyone in the direction of the fading sound to be on the lookout for a speeding vehicle. How could the guy have disappeared so quickly? How did whoever was driving the vehicle know when and where to pick him up? It was as though the man had been plucked from the street and carried to safety like something from the scene of an action movie. Or maybe he had never been there at all. If it weren’t for the pain in his jaw and neck, and the vague image of the man’s face burned into his brain like the imprint of a sudden, bright light slashing through darkness, Daniel might have wondered if he actually had seen someone, or if his desire to catch the abductor had been strong enough to conjure up the sighting.
Biting back an oath, he jogged around the block, knowing he wouldn’t find anything. Whoever this person was, he was good. These child-snatchings were clearly well-planned, or he couldn’t have escaped detection this long. At least now they knew the man wasn’t acting alone. Someone was driving the getaway car. And a minimum of two people had to have been in the vehicle that took the child, one to drive and the one who took the child from the kidnapper. Maybe Sharleen would have better luck than he’d had and be able to overtake them. And he should be able to give a halfway-decent description of the person he’d been chasing to a police artist. We’re further ahead than we were an hour ago. Except that another child might be gone. Daniel kicked at an empty pop can in his path. It clattered across the sidewalk and hit a fire hydrant with a dull clank that shattered the pre-dawn silence of the neighborhood. That little fact would not go over well with Detective Sergeant Lector. He winced. Well, it doesn’t go over well with me, either. One way or another, they had to stop these people.
He rounded the corner onto the street where they’d seen the man hand off the child. Sharleen pulled up in front of the house as he approached. Not a good sign. Obviously, she’d lost the car she’d been chasing. Not that he blamed her. The city frowned on police chases through their streets, and the cops had been warned to avoid them if at all possible. And if the dark sedan was as prepared for escape as the suspect had been, she likely never had a chance anyway. He could only hope she or her dash cam had caught a good look at the plates at so
me point during the pursuit. She climbed out of the vehicle and glanced over at him. The grimace on her face extinguished the flicker of hope he’d been nurturing.
“I called it in, gave them what I had.” Sharleen slammed the car door and rounded the front of the vehicle to meet him on the sidewalk. “No luck?”
“Not really. I got close enough to him to rip off his mask and catch a quick glimpse of his face before he knocked me back off the fence. By the time I got over, he was gone.”
“Do you still have the hat? We should be able to get a DNA—”
Daniel shook his head. “He grabbed it from me before he disappeared.”
His partner exhaled. “Can you give the artist a description?”
“I’m sure going to try.”
A second police car pulled up to the curb. Daniel quickly filled in the two female officers, Fernandez and Penner, who had joined them on the sidewalk. When he finished, he inclined his head in the direction of the back yard. “Why don’t you two look around behind the house, see if he happened to drop something on his way in or out. We’ll go talk to whoever’s inside. I’m guessing from the silence that they’re still asleep and have no idea their child has been taken.”
Fernandez winced. “I don’t envy you that conversation.”
Daniel got that. Being the bearer of bad news to horrified family members was the part of his job he hated the most. And what news could be worse than this? He trudged to the front door after Sharleen. When they reached it, she pressed the doorbell. The low bonging sound echoed through the silent house.
Daniel gritted his teeth. They’d come so close. His fingers curled into a ball and he smacked the brick wall of the house with the side of his fist. Not nearly close enough. And now that they knew how well-organized this operation was, chances were good that they would never come this close again.