by Hahn, Joni
“How ya doing, Brewster? I see you’ve healed from Jacobs’ ass-kicking.”
He breathed out of his nose. “You asshole. Last I heard, Jacobs set you up as jail bait. What are you doing out?”
Dar’s voice held a heavy dose of derision. “Oh? You didn’t hear? Jacobs is my brother.” Looking both ways, he leaned in close to Brewster. “And guess what? Rachel is my sister. Just think – we were almost in-laws.” Dar backed away with a slow nod.
Dar had a brother, and a sister who’d almost married this man. Thank goodness she’d come to her senses. The man exuded arrogance.
“How could that be? How could she and Jacobs be engaged?”
Engaged? Dar’s siblings were engaged?
Dar stood silent a moment. “Different parents, Brewster. Think about it.”
Jocelyn smiled at Dar’s sarcasm. This Brewster character had approached him with the intent to cause trouble. However, Dar’s razor-sharp tongue had rendered him powerless.
“And, just so we’re clear, Brewster, if you or your father try to hurt my family again, I will come after you.”
He gave a half laugh. “You’re worried about us when you’ve got Kate in the family?”
Jocelyn felt Dar stiffen.
“She’s the one that told the old man about the will. You need to check your own backyard. That biatch will do anything for money.”
Dar’s hand grew moist around hers. She could feel the heat and anger emanate off of him. His shoulders seemed to grow right before her eyes, his back a landscape of tension.
“What are you saying, Brewster?”
He gave Dar a confident grin before lowering his voice. “Let me put it this way - she had her own toothbrush in my daddy’s bathroom.”
Brewster passed them to enter the elevator. Turning to stare at Dar, he lifted his middle finger in the air before the doors shut.
An aura of rage surrounded Dar like gravity. Obviously, this Kate was a member of his family and a horrible person.
She laid her palm against his cheek. His stormy, aqua eyes shot to her face. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah.” He grabbed her hand and tucked it in his arm. “I’m sorry you had to hear that.”
“You want to talk about it?”
He gave a half laugh. “Yeah, like I want a lobotomy.”
Raising her knuckles to his lips, he kissed her hand. “Come on. Let’s go get that chocolate.”
Chapter 4
Two afternoons later, Dar sat in the hospital corridor outside Jocelyn’s room, participating in his first video conference as a D.I.R.E. agent. He’d spent the morning playing chess with her and got his ass handed to him.
Obviously, her mind functioned just fine. Her memory had just decided to take a vacation.
Learning Kate had an affair with Jock Brewster hadn’t surprised him. He’d had her pegged from day one. What he didn’t know was whether he should tell Rachel and Aidan.
Or, whether she was using his father, too.
Then again, if she was, the old man deserved it. They were the two, most self-centered people he’d ever met.
“The agents went through all of the barrels on the ranch, Naylor. They couldn’t find the gold.” Tristan grimaced on the screen of Dar’s phone.
Rachel sat beside his brother. “That can’t be, Tris. Ben said it was in the barrels.”
“Well hell, he didn’t say which barrels,” Aidan said, from the opposite side of the table. “Maybe there are more barrels somewhere.”
Dar said, “In an area littered with oil rigs, I think that’s a fair bet, Monroe.”
Cassandra leaned back in her chair. “If you had thirty million in gold, you’d keep it close, wouldn’t you? It has to be on the ranch.”
“What if I took Joce to the ranch? I could look for it
myself.”
Wait for it, Naylor. Wait for it…
“Oh, so it’s Joce, is it?” Cass’s voice held a teasing lilt.
He knew they wouldn’t disappoint him.
“Save it, Cass. Brentwood said she can be discharged but he wants to keep her close for a while.”
Rachel nodded. “That works, Dar. Feel free to take her. My house is your house. Make yourself at home.”
Keeping house with Jocelyn, alone, would take mammoth willpower. The last few days, she’d flirted with him like nobody’s business. She’d eaten him under the table and even challenged him to a wheelchair race in the hallway one night, and won.
He couldn’t give in to this attraction. To do so would be grossly unfair to her. She didn’t know her own history, let alone his.
Damn this freaking honor. Did Robinson install it without him knowing?
“Has anyone run a history on her?” Dar said. “What do we know?”
Aidan cleared his throat. “Now that you’re a part of D.I.R.E., I can tell you. Piecing together official records and information from our interrogations, she was born in nineteen twenty, the daughter of Nathan and Elizabeth Chalmers. Elizabeth died of tuberculosis in nineteen twenty-five. Jocelyn was raised by Nathan until-“
“Angela showed up.”
“Yep,” Aidan said. “In nineteen thirty. Because she was a female, Jocelyn wasn’t allowed official entrance into the Institute for Advanced Studies. But, because her father was a member, she was allowed to unofficially study beside him.”
“She worked in a soup kitchen twice a week and supported a women’s rights group. Otherwise, there isn’t much on her at all. It’s like she just falls off the map.”
Dar looked back into Jocelyn’s room. She napped
peacefully.
“I found a set of dog tags in her bag for a John Horner.
Is there anything in her file on him?”
Aidan sifted through some papers on the table. “Nothing. I’ll see what I can find.”
“Has she remembered anything yet, Naylor?” Tristan said.
He couldn’t contain the humor in his voice. “She remembered watching a jungle man in a movie.”
Rachel barked out a laugh. “How did she remember that?”
“My hair. She said she’s not used to seeing men with long hair.”
“Should we start calling you Darzan?” Aidan snickered.
Dar gave a reluctant grin. “Shut it, Monroe. I’m going to kick your ass when I get back up there.”
“Then I’ll have to kick yours,” Cass chimed in.
Aidan waggled his brows. “I love when she talks dirty.”
Tristan chuckled. “Mitchell’s really pushing Robinson to get your system ready. He wants to get you back to nineteen forty-four ASAP.”
“Speaking of…” Cass folded her hands in front of her. “Why would these people think they could come forward with the same defenses and gain different results? Surely, they got the message when we sent back an empty time machine? That had to tell them someone got vaporized.”
Aidan said, “That makes them more dangerous than ever. No telling what they’ll use next time. They have access to Einstein, for cripes sake.”
Would Chalmers arrive himself to collect his daughter? Or, did he give a rat’s ass about her at all?
VonFussenhoffer had taken a great loss due to D.I.R.E. If he was anything like the Furor, he wouldn’t rest until he got what he wanted.
“Ask Mitchell to call Brentwood and have Jocelyn released to me. We’ll set up at the ranch. If I can get her to remember, maybe she can help me find a way to stop them by the time I’m ready to go.”
#####
“Up and at ‘em, Chalmers.”
Jocelyn woke the next morning to a smiling Dar and a single pink rose on her lap. The fragrant scent smelled heavenly, the bright pink color bringing life to the room.
She held it to her nose. “For me?”
A boyish grin blossomed on his face. “No, me. I just thought you’d like to see it.”
Laughing, she slapped at his arm. “Too bad. It’s mine now. My mother used to wear rosewater.”
He g
azed at her with raised brows. “Another memory?”
It was another memory. Thank God. Maybe she would remember everything soon.
When she did, would he leave her?
He helped her up from the bed. She smiled at him.
“You’re good for me, d’Artagnan.”
“That’s a first.”
The tone behind the words bothered her. Had no one ever told him he was loved? Needed?
“Perhaps, it’s an only.”
Why did she say that? She hadn’t been out of bed two minutes and she had already flirted with him. For some reason, she couldn’t simply talk to Dar without doing so.
“Keep staring at me like that, Chalmers, and you’ll never get rid of me.”
The thought made her heart sing. She closed the distance between them.
“You’re all ready to go, Miss Chalmers.” Dr. Brentwood entered the room.
She jumped away from Dar. “I’m being discharged?”
Brentwood looked at Dar. “You didn’t tell her?”
“She slept so soundly I didn’t want to wake her until the last minute. My gut tells me she gets grumpy if she doesn’t get her rest.”
This man was just full of mischief. “You haven’t seen grumpy until you tease me too much.”
Brentwood laughed. “Careful, Naylor. You may be visiting our emergency room soon.” He turned to her. “Jocelyn, how are you feeling today?”
Doing a mental checklist, she actually felt great. Dar had absolutely nothing to do with that.
Believe what you will, Jocelyn. He’s the center of your universe at the moment.
“I feel good, Doctor. No headaches, no nightmares.”
“Good.” He handed papers to Dar. “Here is her paperwork. Just call the nurses station when you’re ready to leave. They have to escort her out in a wheelchair.”
Dar shook his hand. “Thanks, Doctor. I’ll keep in touch.”
She went to the restroom to freshen up. “Do I have clothes?”
Looking in the mirror, she winced. Her face shown a pale watercolor of greens, blues and purples, her chin sporting a big, brown scab. Her left eye looked made up, the other bare.
Good God. No wonder he didn’t flirt with her.
He spoke around the door. “My sister’s friend, Glenna, dropped off a dress and some other stuff. It’s hanging on the back of the door.”
Shutting the door completely, she did indeed have a pretty dress in bold shades of blue and green hanging on the hook. A pair of strappy, blue sandals hung in a bag.
No undergarments?
Pulling on the dress, she studied herself in the mirror. Now she knew why she needed no bra. The halter dress hooked at her neck and exposed her back down to her waist.
Could she wear something so risqué in broad daylight?
It fit a bit snug in the bust and fell to her ankles rather than her calves. The sandals were a size too big but she could manage. They would do until she got her own clothes.
She wrenched open the door. “Where are my clothes?”
Dar stared at her, mouth agape, as he took in her still form. Had she forgotten to fasten something?
“Put back on the hospital gown.”
A laugh bubbled from her throat. “Why?”
He gave her another slow perusal, his eyes teal in color. His fists clenched at his sides.
“You’re killing me, Joce.”
The tense set of his body, his dark gaze, brought her own arousal to the surface. Prickling skittered along her arms, her lower belly swirling in anticipation. She’d thought the dress fit snug in the bust before but, with his heated gaze staring at her chest, her breathing felt restricted.
“You have a thing for women who look like they brawl, do you?” Was that breathy voice hers?
Closing in on her, his nostrils flared. “The notion’s growing on me...”
Oh my. An aroused Dar Naylor appeared like a bull in front of a red flag. His lips found the area behind her ear.
Her breath caught. “My clothes, Naylor?”
Stilling, he straightened away to look at her. “You only had the clothes on your back and they were ruined in the accident. Until we can get you, uh, home, we’ll have to make do.”
Wait a minute… “So, where are we going now? I’m not going home?”
He took her hand in his big fist. “My sister has a ranch just outside of town. We’re going there until we can figure out how to get you home.”
Her heart told her she belonged with him.
The fear told her to be wary.
She backed away. “You want me to go somewhere alone with you?”
The scowl on his face puzzled her.
“If you’ve got a better offer, I’ll leave right now.”
Fear stole her breath. Without Dar, she stood alone in a strange town, with her empty mind. If he walked out now, she’d lose what was left of it.
“I’m sorry, Dar. You’ve been nothing but nice and attentive-“
“Save it.” He waved away her words. “I’ll see if the agency can send someone else.”
Grabbing his arm, she turned him around to face her. “No, you save it.”
His aqua eyes glittered.
“I don’t want someone else.”
“You don’t want me, you don’t want someone else. What do you want, Joce?”
Staring at his mouth, her heart pounded. She knew what she wanted. No doubt. The question was whether she could entertain her desires.
“I want you, Dar.” She trailed her hands up his chest to wrap around his neck.
His narrowed gaze took in every feature of her face before dropping to her breasts crushed against him. His woodsy spearmint scent hypnotized her with its sweetness.
Cursing under his breath, he removed her hands from around his neck. He grabbed her leather bag from the chair and held out the rose to her.
She snatched it away without touching him.
“Let’s go,” he said. “We’ll sneak out a side door.”
He placed a big, warm hand at the small of her bare back. A violent shiver of arousal raced through her. Moisture pooled at her thighs.
He stopped mid-step. “Joce, hell, if I can’t even touch you…”
She whipped around, her chest heaving. “Dar, all I want you to do is touch me…”
Raising up on tiptoes, she crushed her mouth to his in a blatant, take-me-please kiss full of frustration and mind-boggling desire.
Wrapping his arms around her, his mouth felt warm, firm against hers. Her lip burned where it tugged her tender skin, but it didn’t detract from the absolute rightness she felt in his embrace.
Touching her tongue to the seam of his lips, he opened for her. She pushed inside. He tasted of peppermint and heaven, his own tongue welcoming her with feverish impatience.
When his arms tightened, she dropped her flower and tried to wrap both arms around his neck. Struggling to reach, he lifted her off the floor, never breaking the kiss. She smiled against his mouth.
“I want you with me, Dar.” She ran her fingers through his shaggy hair.
Giving her a sweet, lingering kiss, he said, “I wouldn’t be here unless I wanted to be.”
She didn’t know why her nightmares had led her to him. Perhaps, her subconscious knew her better than she knew herself.
He set her on the ground. “But, we can’t do this, Jocelyn.”
“I think we just did.” She rose on her toes and gave him another soft kiss.
Clutching the back of her head, he deepened it. Her heart raced against her ribs.
Perhaps, she’d been a little hasty in her earlier assumption. That first kiss had nothing on this one. This one raised the hair on her arms, caused her lungs to work sporadically, and made every nerve ending in her body buzz.
The man was giving her a lesson in the art, the absolute art, of kissing. Every stroke, every brush of his tongue painted a thrill along her spine. The sudden need to strip off her clothes rushed over her heated skin.
Breaking away, her breath came in short puffs. She slipped off her shoes and reached for the hem of his shirt.
He stayed her hand with a strained laugh. “Hey, slow down, tiger.”
“All right…” She reached behind her neck for her clasp.
“Joce.” He laughed again before taking both of her hands in his. “Do you ever approach anything with caution?”
She stilled. “I don’t know, actually.”
“Exactly.” He lowered his voice. “I don’t want this to be something you regret.”
Her fingers trailed over his strong jaw. “I’ll never regret you, Dar.”
The heat in his aqua gaze cooled to frosted ice. Bending down, he picked up the rose and handed it to her. “Never say never, baby.”
Chapter 5
Brody Tybeck kept a running, one-way conversation as he drove them out to Rachel’s ranch. He looked as country as Cody Brewster, but without the asshole angle. His weathered face had seen more than its share of sun and dirt, and he smelled of tobacco and minty mouthwash. He spoke to Jocelyn with ma’ams and missies, to Dar with sirs.
Dar admired the respect he’d shown despite the fact he’d never met them. That attitude was so foreign to Dar’s former way of life it stood out like a bright star in a black hole. Just one of many things he’d learned to recognize.
Stopping at the ranch entrance, Brody got out to unlock the gate. As if she did it every day, Jocelyn slid over to the driver’s seat and drove the truck through the gate after he swung it open.
“Well, you remember how to drive.”
Jocelyn whipped around to stare at him, her eyes wide in her beautiful face. Scooting back to the middle of the seat, she settled beside him. “I do, don’t I?”
Brody climbed back in the truck. “Thanks, missy. You saved me some steps.”
She gave him a brilliant smile. “You’re welcome. What are all of these barrels?”
Hundreds of black barrels lined the drive up to the big, white rock house. Now he understood why the D.I.R.E. agents had gotten so frustrated. If he’d been assigned to dump out each barrel, replant the foliage inside, and do it in the hot sun, he’d be pissed, too.
“Those are oil barrels. The ranch has several working oil rigs.”