by Terry Spear
Still firmly holding Anna’s hand, he headed in another direction. “Over here is where I smelled a second body.” Nathan pointed to an area between rows of Colorado spruce. “Right in here.”
Bjornolf frowned, recognizing the odor and not liking this scenario. “It smells like Montoya Sanchez, a SEAL I knew about six or seven years ago.”
“A SEAL?” Anna asked, looking up at him with inquisitive, worried eyes. “What about the other man?”
Bjornolf shook his head. “I don’t recognize the other.”
“How well did you know him?” Anna asked.
“About as well as I do anyone I’m serving with during only one mission. He was a good guy. Family man. Kept talking about housebreaking a puppy. I can’t imagine how he could have gotten himself killed here.”
“I’m sorry,” Anna said with real regret.
“A SEAL.” Nathan shuddered. “Damn, if someone could kill one of you guys…” He glanced back in the direction of the gift shop, though they couldn’t see it for the trees. “I should be heading back to work. Any of these trees look all right for our house?”
“Do you have a favorite?” Anna asked.
Nathan’s amber eyes lit up. “Yeah.” He hurried them back in the direction of the gift shop.
Bjornolf admired Anna for thinking so quickly on her feet. He would never have thought to ask the boy if he’d already made a selection.
“This one,” Nathan said, pointing with his free hand. “A blue spruce. Isn’t it beautiful? I kept hoping no one would buy it—not that there aren’t a million trees out here. But all its sides are perfect, and we don’t have to hide a bad spot against a wall. It’s still short enough to fit in the house, isn’t it?” Nathan looked at Bjornolf for his take on it.
He opened his mouth to agree but Anna said, “Sold. Deliver it after you get off work, and tomorrow the two of you can decorate it.”
Nathan looked at Bjornolf.
“She never had a Christmas tree before,” he explained. “She doesn’t know the first thing about decorating one.”
“We’ll show you how,” Nathan said undeterred, tugging at her hand. “It’s easy. I’m off tomorrow until later in the afternoon. We can go to the store and buy decorations.”
“Is Hunter paying expenses?” she asked Bjornolf.
“I’m paying for it,” Bjornolf said. “This is my first Christmas in years, and I’m going to enjoy it.”
Anna looked like she wasn’t sure if he was teasing or telling the truth. Then she sighed and looked as though she was finally willing to play along. A little.
After Bjornolf paid for the tree, Nathan slapped his forehead. “I forgot to give you the ham sandwiches to eat while you were walking through the woods.”
“That’s okay,” Bjornolf said. “You bring them home and we’ll have them for dinner tonight, if you’d like.”
Nathan glanced at Anna, wondering if she was going to fix home-cooked meals the way his mother used to. Anna was looking back in the direction of the trees where they had smelled the scent of the dead men.
“See you later,” Nathan said and gave Anna a hug before he headed back into the gift shop.
“It’s going to snow,” Anna said as she and Bjornolf got into the Land Rover, and he drove out of the parking lot.
“Lightly, maybe an inch or two.” He glanced over at her, meaning to ask if she had gotten anything out of the situation with the dead bodies, but she had closed her eyes, her head leaning against the window.
Ten miles down the road, he pulled into the drive-through of a fast-food restaurant, ordered burgers, fries, and bottled waters, and they continued on their way. Anna hadn’t stirred.
Light snow was falling by the time Bjornolf drove into the driveway of the cottage, and everything was dusted in white powder. Anna had napped all the way back. He guessed she hadn’t had that much time to recuperate from their jungle mission.
“Are you hungry?” Bjornolf asked as he parked the Land Rover.
She lifted her head and sniffed the air in the car. “You picked up hamburgers and french fries?” She sat up a little taller.
“And bottled water. Before we arrived, Hunter said Tessa and Meara bought some groceries for us and stocked the pantry and fridge. For now, I figured we’d just grab some fast food so we wouldn’t have to wait to cook a meal.”
“Sounds good.” She seized the bag of food.
Bjornolf got the front door. “Nathan’s hurting, you know.”
“I know.” She sighed, then changed the subject as Bjornolf closed the front door. “Nathan wasn’t trying to make you jealous, by the way.”
Bjornolf followed her into the kitchen and pulled blue-and-white floral plates out of the cupboard. “You mean when he held your hand and wouldn’t let go?”
She placed the foil-wrapped hamburgers on the plates. “Yeah. You didn’t need to put your arm around me to show ownership.”
He dumped the fries onto the plates, pulled a bottle of ketchup out of the fridge, and poured some on his plate. After taking a seat, he dipped a fry into the ketchup and met her darkened gaze. “He was afraid you wanted to run away. He was trying to make you feel needed.”
She shook her head. “He was feeling needy. You didn’t have to act so possessive.”
He laughed. “Part of the honeymoon, Anna. You didn’t think I was going to let our nephew hold your hand while I stood in the wings watching, did you?”
She shook her head as if she couldn’t believe he’d say that. She took a bite of her hamburger and made the sexiest sound. “Hmm, you know just how I like it.”
“I know a lot about you,” he said with a smirk. In fact, he knew practically everything about her. Well, nearly everything.
“Really? You know which movies that I love to watch?”
“Yeah, when you were sleeping on the plane, I asked if Hunter knew. Adventure, historical, epic, lots of fighting, swords, martial arts, that sort of thing.”
“Did you get us some movies?”
“I asked if he’d drop a few by the cottage. He was going to have someone do that when they filled up the fridge and pantry. We’ll need to get ready for the pack open house.”
She didn’t say anything, her expression saying she stubbornly resisted the idea.
“Anna, Nathan’s putting on a show, pretending that everything’s all right. That he’s happy to take part in Christmas. That everything’s normal. But it isn’t. I imagine he’d like nothing better than to run away.”
Having finished her meal, Anna stood up, trying to look as though what he said didn’t bother her. But his words hit her like an iron fist to the jaw. “I know. All right, Bjornolf? I’ve been there, okay?”
Bjornolf stared at her, saw the same wounded look in her eyes that he’d seen in Nathan’s, and felt horrible for not recognizing she had some real issues. He skirted the kitchen table, pulled her into his arms, and kissed her like he had at the jungle-village cabana. Just like he knew she had wanted him to.
At first she stiffened at his brushing kiss, his mouth sweeping gently over hers, willing her to give in, just a bit.
Enough, her body language said as she started to pull away.
“No,” he whispered against her lips. “Let me in, Anna. Don’t push me away.”
Her eyes were bright with tears as she looked up at him, confused and unsure.
“Hell,” he said and clasped her to his chest, holding her tight. He wanted to destroy every chink in her armor and give her whatever solace she needed. He tried kissing her again, and this time she lifted her face to his, cupped the back of his head, and pulled him closer.
That about undid him—made him forget who he was, who she was, what they were doing here.
Their tongues tangled as he pressed his body against hers, his cock instantly springing to life. He pressed his knee between her legs, wanting to get inside her, to feel every inch of her against his body. She slid her hand up his shirt and ran her warm fingers over his abdomen. “Ha
rd,” she whispered.
Hell, yeah. All over.
That’s when he heard the truck pull into the drive, and before he could disengage from Anna, the front door opened. Wishing they could have prolonged the intimacy, he fought scowling at the intrusion.
Anna jumped away from him. She wiped tears away and quickly said, “I’ve got to unpack.” Then she hurried off down the hall.
Nathan stood in the doorway, shifted his shocked gaze from Anna to Bjornolf, then glowered at him. “Why was she crying?”
* * *
After setting up the tree and settling on the couch to watch one of the movies, Nathan set the plate of ham sandwiches on the coffee table. He had already found Bjornolf’s bags in the guest room, so he knew something was up between Bjornolf and Anna.
Bjornolf had started a movie, but Nathan still wanted to know what was going on. “I thought you said you were both going to be sharing the master bedroom.”
“I changed my mind for the time being.”
Nathan lifted his can of soda off the table. “You mean she changed your mind for you.”
The kid was too bright for his own good.
“Did she fight you for it?” Nathan asked, sitting a little taller.
Unable to contain his amusement, Bjornolf shook his head. “Some battles are not worth fighting… right away.”
“Wait until I’m around when you decide to change her mind. You said you’d teach me everything you knew about fighting.”
That wasn’t exactly what Bjornolf had in mind.
While Nathan ate both of the sandwiches, Bjornolf drank a cup of coffee.
“Anna is… kind of upset,” Bjornolf said quietly.
“Yeah,” Nathan said, folding his arms over his chest. “I could see that much.”
Bjornolf let out his breath in exasperation. “Not because of me.”
Nathan turned his attention to focus on Bjornolf and waited to hear the truth of the matter.
“Christmas isn’t her thing.”
Nathan’s eyes widened. “Who doesn’t like Christmas?”
Bjornolf shrugged. “Anna, apparently. Maybe something happened when she was a kid. I don’t know. Sometimes adults lose the spirit of Christmas.”
“Anna’s alone,” Nathan said, finally getting the picture. “So she never celebrates Christmas.” He frowned at Bjornolf. “What about you?”
“Sometimes. When you get older, sometimes it’s just not as important as it used to be. If there’s no one to share it with…” He shrugged.
Nathan was frowning at him again. “I’m not going to give it up, ever.”
Bjornolf managed a smile. “Good.”
Nathan ran his hand over his pant leg. “We’re still going to have Christmas, aren’t we? I don’t want Anna to be sad. Can we… help her somehow?”
“We can’t fix others.” As much as Bjornolf would like to make Anna feel wonderful, he knew he couldn’t. She would have to reach within herself to find that which would make her whole. “But I sure as hell want to do anything I can to make her feel better about the holidays.”
Nathan looked skeptical. “Then don’t kiss her anymore. You made her cry.” He turned his attention back to the movie, and that was the end of the discussion.
* * *
Anna tried, but was damned if she couldn’t sleep. She flopped this way, then that. She’d napped too much during the day. She tried not to think of the kiss. Or how she’d encouraged it. Or how she would have liked to take it further if Nathan hadn’t arrived when he did.
The fighting in the movie had been so loud that she couldn’t hear what Nathan and Bjornolf were saying, but she guessed it had been about her.
Nathan had looked so shocked to see her crying that she was certain he would be angry with Bjornolf for making her cry. Yet he hadn’t. She wasn’t even sure why she was in such a funk.
After the guys went to bed and the house had been quiet for a while, she got up, slipped on a pair of black jeans with same color turtleneck, socks, and boots. She grabbed her weapons belt, a black ski hat, and a jacket.
She intended to check out the Christmas tree farm while everyone was gone, and she wanted to be alone, with no distraction in the form of one sexy SEAL.
While walking quietly toward the living room, she saw the blue spruce. It was beautiful, even without decorations, making her feel as though some of the woods had made a home here. She breathed in the smell of it and couldn’t help but love it. She felt bad that she might ruin Nathan’s Christmas after he had just lost his parents, so she dropped her gear on the couch and walked into the kitchen. After rummaging through the cabinets, she found packages of microwaveable popcorn. She returned to the bedroom where she found a sewing kit, and with it in hand, she walked back to the kitchen.
After popping two bags—no way could she smell the mouthwatering popcorn aroma and not eat some of it—she sat down on the couch. She began stringing the popcorn together, inserting the needle and thread in the center of one kernel and then the next. When she’d finished the last of the popcorn in the bowl, she tied off the string, got up from the couch, and went over to the tree. She began to wind the garland around the fragrant branches. Once she was done, she stepped back and admired her handiwork. Perfect, she thought, a smile curving her mouth. Her part in decorating the tree. It hadn’t even killed her.
Now it was time to do some murder investigation work and put aside all thoughts of the holidays.
Gun tucked in her holster, she closed the door behind her, locked it, then hurried to her vehicle, hoping Bjornolf wouldn’t hear her leave. He’d follow her in short order if he did.
Like she often did on the job, she wanted to concentrate on this part of the work alone.
Chapter 9
Bjornolf didn’t intend to intrude on whatever Anna was up to. As long as she stayed in the cottage, he was satisfied with listening to her move about the house. He thought of pretending to need something to drink and seeing what she was up to. It was killing him not knowing. Besides, he still wanted to settle things between them.
He was wearing out the plush beige carpeting with his pacing. Then, making a decision, he threw on his clothes and headed for the bedroom door. That’s when he heard the front door open and click shut. Hell.
She had to be on her way back to the tree farm to investigate the crime scene, but she wasn’t doing it alone. No matter how often she might have done such a thing in the past, they were together in this. A team. She’d quickly learn that one way or another.
He was hurrying straight for the front door, when he spied a bowl of half-eaten popcorn and another that was empty. Then the tree caught his attention. His jaw dropped. Well, he’d be damned. A warm glow worked its way through his chest as he stared at the sight of the festive-looking country popcorn garland wrapped around the tree. The work had taken her time, energy, and patience, and yet she had done it.
Breaking away from his surprise and the admiration he had for her all over again, he hurried to the Land Rover and took off for the Christmas tree farm, hoping he could catch up to her before she began working alone.
Bjornolf still hadn’t caught up to Anna when he eased up on the gas and began to analyze the situation further. She was a professional. He knew from studying her profile that she did a good job investigating situations alone. Just as she did a good job working with a team. If she felt the need to investigate this on her own for now, he’d let her.
Except she wouldn’t exactly be on her own. He had every intention of watching her back like the ghost he could be.
* * *
Anna thought Bjornolf was following her, but then figured she had assumed wrong when he never caught up to her. She was almost disappointed, but there was no way she would have woken him to ask him go with her, just because she couldn’t sleep.
Driving the speed limit while on a mission was important as she did not want to get stopped for a ticket. A cop would remember her if something went wrong during her investigation. S
he hadn’t seen any headlights behind her for the past half hour. Nathan and Bjornolf were probably snoring in happy unison.
Patches of ice made her tires slip a little as ghostly snowflakes drifted from the heavens in the dark night. By the time she arrived at the tree farm, the light snow had covered everything in a sheet of pristine white. She drove past the gift shop and parking lot. The shop’s sign was still lit and a few security lights illuminated the ghostly mist of snow in the chilly air, but the store windows were dark.
She parked off to the side of the road alongside a chain link fence. In the dark, she supposed she was safe enough from discovery. She climbed over the fence, hating the way the metal rattled. To her wolf’s hearing it sounded as loud as an ear-piercing alarm signal.
With barely a sound, she landed on the other side in a soft snowdrift, then headed toward the area where she had smelled the dead bodies. Half an hour later, as she was poking around the pine-needle-covered ground with the toe of her boot, using a small flashlight to aid her, she discovered something. She swept away the light layer of snow and found a small piece of half-buried metal. When she tugged, it pulled free of the matted pine needles, and she found it was attached to a long chain. Dog tags.
She gave a little involuntary shudder. Had the other man been a SEAL, too? Or just another former service member?
Her heart quickening, she shoved the dog tags in her pocket, anxious to get this information back to Bjornolf and Hunter. She wondered why the dog tags had been left there. They wouldn’t have fallen off the man. The killer wouldn’t have tugged them off and discarded them, leaving evidence behind. The pine needles wouldn’t have buried the tags from seasons past since the deaths had occurred very recently unless the mulch was applied lately. In the dead of winter? She didn’t think so.
Had the man struggled with his murderer here? Was he able to remove his dog tags and bury them with the hope that someone might discover the truth?