She let her head fall back, wanting him to take what had always been his.
He pulled away, his eyes gazing into hers. “I don’t want to rush this between us.” He breathed heavily and leaned his forehead on hers. “I’ll see you at the game tomorrow.”
“You don’t want me to make you lasagna?”
“If I stay here another minute, this very thin nightshirt will be on the floor. What you and I have… it runs deep. I don’t want to screw it up. Rain check?”
Jade stifled a heavy sigh. “Absolutely.” She’d waited a long time for Bryce to want her this way, and what she wouldn’t give to have him strip her bare that minute. But he was right, and she wasn’t going to be the one to ruin it.
HARTWICK HAD BEEN OPENLY HOSTILE about Jade during his first police interview, and Neal looked forward to interrogating him further. Driving over the Aurora Bridge, he smiled when he pictured the eighteen-foot concrete troll that loomed below. As he entered Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood, a sign welcomed him to the “Center of the Universe.” He followed his GPS to Timothy’s street, where contemporary stucco homes with sharp modern lines stood.
Timothy Hartwick had won the house in his third divorce settlement and was still paying off his half of the loan.
Neal pulled into the driveway of the gray stucco. The garage door stood wide open, providing him a view of a shiny black Porsche 911 Carrera. Beside it sat two ATVs and a Ski-Doo.
Explains why the man is up to his eyeballs in debt.
Neal walked to the front porch and knocked on the door. A woman half Hartwick’s age answered. Since he had no children, she might be a girlfriend.
“Detective Neal Hawkins, ma’am.” He flashed his badge. “May I speak to Timothy Hartwick?”
“What can I do for you, Detective?” Hartwick walked up behind her and placed a hand on her hip.
“I have a few questions for you about Jade Buchanan. Mind if I come in?”
Hartwick’s eyes widened ever so slightly before he regained control. “Sure, come on in. Mandy, honey, why don’t you go upstairs for a few minutes.” He lightly slapped her butt.
Neal walked into the house. It was deeper than it was wide. He passed a kitchen with white quartz countertops and stainless steel appliances. Bare white walls gave way to windows lining the back of the house. “Great view.” The sunset over Lake Union with the Olympic Mountains in the background was spectacular.
“So what’s this about Jade? I already told you I worked late, and then I went out to a movie with Mandy the night Jade was attacked. ”
“The movie started at nine-fifteen, and no one could corroborate what time you left work, and that includes the recordings from the garage’s security cameras.” Neal focused on Hartwick, who sat on a white leather couch facing a white marble gas fireplace. There was no color in the house, with the exception of the black carpet under the glass coffee table. “I spoke to a few employees, and they all seem to think you don’t like Jade.”
“I don’t know where they got that idea.” Hartwick blinked twice.
Neal pulled out a folded-up piece of paper from his pocket and read the printed email. “This is my department and you have no business micromanaging me.”
Hartwick cleared his throat.
“What about… ‘I’ll handle the repairs myself. Butt out.’”
Hartwick leaned forward, his hands clasped together. “Okay, look, it’s not that I don’t like her per se, it’s just that the girl is making rash decisions and getting in everyone’s business.”
“She’s not keeping her nose where it belongs.” Neal quoted the first anonymous note that Jade had received.
“Exactly.” Hartwick nodded, with no sign that he understood the reference.
“You like sailing?” Neal glanced at a photograph on the fireplace mantel.
Hartwick’s smile was that of a proud father. “She’s a thirty-eight foot Catalina.”
“Ever take Arnie Thompson out on her?”
“Arnie? Haven’t heard that name in a while. I usually take the ladies out for a spin.”
I bet you do. “So you never took Arnie?”
“Sure I took Arnie out with a few others at work. Why, what’s this about? Hey—are you thinking he was on my boat when he drowned?”
“Where were you on the day he died?” Neal rattled off a date.
Hartwick stood, and his right eye twitched. “You’ve got to be kidding me. I don’t know where I was over two years ago.”
“Do you have a social calendar? Perhaps your work calendar?”
“I don’t know.” Hartwick ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe. I’ll check it and call you tomorrow.”
“That would be fine. Do you know where your boat was moored two years ago?”
“Yeah, sure, I’ve never moved it. It’s at Elliot Bay Marina. You can check that.” Timothy pointed at his notepad.
“I intend to. That’s all I need at this time, Mr. Hartwick. Oh, one more thing…”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t leave town without letting me know.”
“Uh, yeah, sure.” Hartwick’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down when he swallowed hard.
“I’ll be in touch.” Neal let himself out. The boat was his first viable clue. Between that, and Hartwick’s obvious dislike for Jade, the guy just jumped to the top of Neal’s suspect list.
CHAPTER 22
JADE COULDN’T WAIT to see Bryce at the game. She found a spot in the empty parking lot of a nearby company that was closed during the weekend. The business park was impressive, with its walking trails and ball fields mixed between one-story business complexes. The fields were full of soccer players, kids playing with Frisbees, and families walking their dogs. She eventually found the right field by spotting Kenzie’s bright red hair from a distance.
Jade rarely made it to the east side of Lake Washington, where the suburbs were. There were a lot more cedars out here, most well over a hundred feet tall. Houses with large grassy yards nestled between the trees.
Jade waved to Kenzie when she got closer.
“I didn’t think you were going to make it in time.” Kenzie handed her a water bottle.
“Thanks. I’ve been driving around here for a while.” Jade motioned around the business park. “I couldn’t figure out which field you were on.” She didn’t mention her method of finding it. “Where’s Bryce?”
“Over there.” Kenzie pointed to Bryce, surrounded by four other women.
Jade put a hand on her hip and sipped from the water bottle. She watched the women crowd around Bryce and his friends. “Bryce wasn’t kidding, was he?”
“About what?”
“About needing you to keep the women away.”
Kenzie laughed. “No, he wasn’t kidding. He calls it his curse. He practically begs me to go places with him. He can’t stand all the attention, and the guys razz him for it.”
“Did he beg you to come today?” Jade asked.
“Nah, I’ve been coming to these games for years. I hope you don’t mind. I’m sorry about the misunderstanding at the office—as soon as you left I realized what it must have looked like, and Bryce had no clue.” Kenzie gave her a bright smile.
“I don’t mind at all,” Jade said truthfully. She waved to Bryce when he finally saw her.
A fantastic smile spread across his face as he waved and jogged over to her. “I didn’t think you were going to make it.” He draped an arm casually over her shoulder.
“Wouldn’t miss it. I don’t exactly know the rules of the game.”
“Mackenzie will teach you. Won’t you, Kenzie?”
“It’s not hard really. You cheer when they clobber the other team. When they run the ball to the end of the field, you jump up and down and start screaming.”
“Hey.” Bryce tousled Kenzie’s hair. “There’s more to the game than that.”
“Well, I think that will be enough to get me started.” Jade laughed.
“Gotta warm up. I’ll see
you at half time.” He squeezed Jade’s arm and was about to leave when she gave him a quick peck on the lips.
Bryce pulled away as if he were embarrassed.
What was that about?
BRYCE JOGGED BACK to the team, grateful Jade hadn’t seemed to notice his hesitation. He’d never been comfortable with public displays of affection. Whenever he’d caught his dad kissing his mother, Dad had usually been drinking, and the kissing almost always led to a backhand across his mother’s face or worse. It was stupid to still feel this way as an adult. He really needed to get over his eleven-year-old boy insecurities.
He only had a minute of peace before the guys started hassling him.
“Who’s the babe?” Richard asked as they stretched their hamstrings.
“That’s Jade.”
Richard smacked his arm. “That’s the CEO? You’ve been holding back on me.”
Bryce laughed. “Yeah, I know.”
“Man, you said she was young and pretty, but she’s drop-dead gorgeous.”
Jade pulled her hair into a ponytail. Her tank top rose, exposing her stomach.
“Is that a—”
“Belly-button ring?” Heat shot straight to Bryce’s groin. Before Jade, he’d never been interested in women with body piercings or unconventionally colored hair. He liked classy, predictable women. Exactly the opposite of Jade. But now that he was with her, now that she’d unleashed that uncontrollable passion within him, she was driving him absolutely crazy.
“You two checking her out too?” Jim fell into the stretch routine. “She one of Kenzie’s friends?”
“It’s Jade,” Richard filled in.
“That pretty little thing is the one who’s been getting your gut in a spin?”
“She’s the one.” Bryce laughed.
“She doesn’t look so tough,” Jim finally said.
Bryce tightened his shoelaces. “Yeah, well, wait until you meet her.”
“Uh-oh,” Jim said, getting the attention of Bryce and Richard.
Jade had her arms wrapped around the neck of a man her age. Even worse, he looked like James Bond, with short black hair and dark eyes.
Bryce’s stomach tightened. “Who the hell is that?”
“STEVE! I CAN’T BELIEVE IT’S YOU.” Jade hung on tight as he spun her around.
“Jade, what are you doing here? I thought you were still in California.” Steve pulled away from her so he could see her face.
“I came home after Gran died. What are you doing here? I haven’t seen you since your parents moved to Arizona.”
“I decided to come back after I graduated from Berkley.”
“You were at Berkley, and you never looked me up? What were you thinking?”
“I don’t know, didn’t know if you’d remember me.”
“Of course I’d remember you. I—”
A whistle blew.
“Uh, game time. Gotta go.” Steve grabbed her hand. “Listen, can we get together soon?”
“I’d love to. What are you doing for dinner tonight?”
“Don’t have any plans,” he said, starting for the field, but holding her hand as long as he could reach it.
“Good. You’re joining us tonight.”
“Talk more after the game.” He smiled then ran onto the field, opposite Bryce’s team.
BRYCE COULDN’T TAKE HIS EYES off Jade.
“Let’s go. Game time,” Jim said to the team.
“You guys start without me.” Bryce darted off the field. He was not going to let some preppy James Bond wannabe upstage him.
Jade stood when Bryce approached her. “What’s wrong?”
“I forgot something.”
“What?”
“This.” Bryce placed his hands on either side of her face as he leaned in to kiss her. Her surprised look was priceless. His bad memories were not going to get in the way of showing every man on this field that she was his.
When he pulled away, Jade studied him. “What was that for?”
“For good luck.” He grinned.
“Spill it, Radisson. What was that for?”
“Just making sure everyone here knows you’re mine.”
“Hmm. I don’t think that little peck on the lips shows anyone I’m any more than a friend. If I’m yours…” This time Jade smiled, stepping in close to him. She slid her arms around his neck and stood on her toes so she was at eye level. “Show me I’m yours.”
Bryce glanced at Kenzie, then out to the field. He stepped away.
Jade pulled him back in. “Show me,” she whispered, a grin spreading across her lips. “Show me I’m yours.”
“I, uh, need to get back on the field. But I’ll show you tonight when we’re alone. Okay?” Bryce hoped that would satisfy her. He’d stepped out of his comfort zone and kissed her in front of everyone. Granted, it was a small step, but it was still a step.
“Okay,” Jade said, pulling away. “If we’re just friends”—she shrugged—“I guess you don’t mind if I cheer for the other team.”
Not happening. As Jade stepped away, Bryce drew her into his arms and pressed his lips to hers. A sudden need in him took root, something he’d never felt before. He wrapped his arms around Jade, pulling her into a slow deep kiss, meant to tell her—and the world—she was his.
Bryce was vaguely aware that Jim and Richard had stopped on the field during a play. For the first time in his life, he didn’t care who was watching him in a personal embrace. He ignored the groans of the women who were constantly after him and Kenzie’s mouth open in shock. At that moment, there was nothing he cared about more than Jade.
He deepened the kiss, needing more, yet not wanting to rush it. He pulled her in, wanting to feel her body against his. One hand roamed to the small of her back, while the other held her close. All coherent thoughts were gone. It was just the two of them now. He needed her. Later he could rationalize why that need shouldn’t scare the hell out of him.
Jade’s arms roamed down his back. The heat of their bodies rose as the sun beat down on them from above and the kiss lingered on.
“You’re mine,” he whispered to her.
Jade grinned. “I am,” she whispered back.
They turned in surprise when his teammates erupted in cheers and whistles. Everyone on the field was looking at the two of them.
Jim yelled, “Bryce, get out here and play ball.”
Bryce placed another quick kiss on her lips. “See you at half time.” He pulled away reluctantly and ran out to the field.
Jim clutched Bryce’s shoulder when he ran up to him. “You’ve lost it, you know that. You’re totally nuts over her.”
“Yeah.” Bryce laughed. “But don’t tell anyone.”
HER DIRTY LITTLE GRIN mirrored the thoughts swirling in Jade’s head.
“You must be one heck of a CEO.” Kenzie said from behind her.
Jade turned. “What do you mean?”
“Bryce doesn’t like to show his emotions in public. You knew exactly what to say. Do you always get what you want?” Kenzie sat down in a nylon chair and placed her water bottle in the cup holder.
“No.” Jade sat down next to her. “Well, yeah… mostly.” Except when it came to Gran.
“It makes me feel better, you know.”
“What does?”
“Oh!” Kenzie grabbed Jade’s arm, pulling them both up. “See there. Bryce has the ball. Go Bryce!” she screamed. “And he’s trying to get to that end.” She pointed away from the side they were sitting on.
When three very large men, including Steve, jumped on top of Bryce and threw him to the ground, Jade’s hands flew to her mouth. “Is he all right?” Jade asked and started toward the field.
Kenzie pulled her back. “He’s fine. That’s called a ruck, and when he’s tackled, he’s supposed to let go of the ball.”
Jade waited. When the three men were pulled from Bryce, he was all right. She jumped up and down, clapping and screaming, along with the fans on their side of the fiel
d.
Bryce stood and looked in her direction. When she yelled “Go Bryce!” he shot her a crooked smile. He took his next position, waiting for the whistle, and kept glancing at her.
“So what makes you feel better?” Jade asked, taking her seat again.
Kenzie sat down and took a drink from her water bottle. “It doesn’t matter. I probably shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Kenzie.” Jade waited until she looked at her. “What makes you feel better?”
“Well… I never really understood why Bryce could never make a relationship work. He never fought with any of the girls he dated, and—”
“Never?”
“Bryce doesn’t like to disagree.”
Jade laughed, and Kenzie’s eyebrows drew together in confusion. “Oh, sorry, it’s just that Bryce and I argue all the time.”
“Really? But you two haven’t been dating for long. You’ve only…” Kenzie’s eyes grew wide. “You mean you fight at work?”
“All the time. The employees make wagers on who will win. They think we don’t know about it.”
“Yeah, well, it’s not a fair wager. I’m sure you win them all.”
“Not really.” Jade kept an eye on the game while she kept the conversation going. “He wins about half.”
Kenzie turned to the field and didn’t say anything for a moment. “It’s strange to realize I’ve known Bryce forever, and I still I don’t know him as well as I thought I did.”
“So you were saying you feel better about something?” Jade wouldn’t stop until she knew what it was Kenzie was going to say.
“When I saw you two just now, well, I’ve never seen Bryce look at anyone the way he looks at you.”
“Oh!” This time Jade grabbed Kenzie, pulling her up. “Is that, is that?” She pointed to the end zone.
“Yes, they scored a try. It’s like a touchdown in football.” Kenzie shrieked, and they both hugged each other. Jim scored, as Bryce blocked the guy trying to get to him.
“This game is much more exciting than I thought it would be.” A whistle blew twice. “What was that for?” Jade asked.
Synergy: New Adult Romantic Suspense (U-District, #1) Page 18