by Elle James
JoJo laughed breathlessly. “I guess you heard?”
“Yes.” RJ held her at arm’s length. “I couldn’t believe it. Your apartment exploded?”
“If it hadn’t been for Max…” JoJo shot a glance toward the man.
Jake shook hands with Max. “You okay, buddy?”
Max nodded. “Other than a little residual ringing in the ears, I’m fine.”
“You were lucky,” Gunny said. “I talked to the sheriff. He said the apartment was pretty much destroyed.”
“Everything I owned was in that apartment.” JoJo snorted softly. “Not that it was much.”
“Don’t you worry about it,” RJ said. “We’ll take care of you.”
JoJo frowned. “So much for taking care of myself.”
“You’re alive, aren’t you?” RJ said. “I’ve got some clothes you can wear. They might be big on you, but you can wear them until we can get you to Colorado Springs to do some shopping.” She squeezed JoJo’s arms and gave her a crooked smile. “Can’t think of a better excuse to go shopping.”
JoJo shook her head. “But we don’t have time. We’ve got the campaign staff event this weekend.”
RJ stood back and looked at JoJo. “You know, I think you and Emily might be the same height. I’ll ask her if she can bring some things out for you when she comes tomorrow. Next week, we’ll plan a shopping trip. Did you have renter’s insurance?”
JoJo nodded. “I did. It wasn’t much, but then I didn’t have much.”
“We’ll get in touch with the insurance company tomorrow and see what we can get. It’ll at least be a start. In the meantime, you’re staying here at the lodge as long as you need to.” RJ hugged JoJo again. “I’m just thankful you’re alive.” She reached out a hand to Max. “Thank you for being there for her.”
“And to think I didn’t want him to follow me,” JoJo said, shaking her head.
“Come on. Let’s get you inside.” RJ herded her toward the front door like a mother hen. “I’m sure you’re ready for bed.”
JoJo nodded. “And we have an early morning tomorrow.”
RJ shook her head. “Not for you. You can sleep in.”
JoJo’s brow knit. “Since when have I ever slept in?”
“Since you got knocked flat on your ass and you need to.” RJ shrugged. “Whatever, let’s at least get you to bed so you can get some sleep.”
Stover and Curry stepped out on the porch.
“What’s all the commotion?” Stover asked.
“Nothing for you to worry about,” Gunny said.
Curry frowned. “What’s this I hear about an explosion?”
Gunny glance toward the man. “Where’d you hear about that?”
“We heard it over the radio,” Stover said. “I like to dial into the police scanner. It gives me a good idea of what’s going on in the area and what kinds of crimes are prevalent. I’m glad to see you two are all right. Were there any other casualties?”
JoJo shook her head. “No, thank goodness. Just some shaken residents.”
“Did the fire chief give you any idea what caused the explosion?” Currie asked.
“They’re going to conduct an investigation,” Max said. “But I smelled rotten eggs. There was a gas leak somewhere.”
“You would think that the building regulations in an apartment complex would keep that from happening,” Stover said.
Max’s eyes narrowed. “Unless somebody wanted it to happen.”
Stover’s eyebrows rose. “You think the explosion was intentional? That somebody caused that leak?”
JoJo met Max’s gaze. “We don’t know what to think. We’re going to let the fire chief do his investigation and determine the cause.”
“In the meantime,” RJ said, “JoJo is staying with us.”
“Do you have enough rooms for her and the rest of my staff?” Stover asked. “Because if you don’t, I can put some of my people up at the casino.”
“No, we’ll have enough room,” RJ said. “We have one other person coming out to help tomorrow. She can bunk with me when she arrives.” RJ slipped an arm around JoJo’s waist. “Come on, let’s get you upstairs.” RJ looked over her shoulder at Gunny. “I don’t suppose you’d make a cup of hot cocoa for JoJo…?”
Gunny’s forehead wrinkled. “You bet I can. Anything for my girls.” He leaned in and gave JoJo a big hug. “I’m glad you’re okay, and I’m glad you’re staying with us.” He turned to the rest and said, “Okay, people. Show’s over. We have a busy day tomorrow. Let’s hit the sack.”
RJ walked JoJo up the stairs. “I put you in the room next to mine. You’ll be in between me and Max. If you want to bunk with me, I’d be happy to have you in my room.”
JoJo shook her head. “I’d rather not disturb you in the night. After what happened today, I don’t know what’s going to happen tonight in my dreams.”
RJ nodded. “Well, there are connecting doors between your room and mine and your room and Max’s. If you need either one of us, just knock on the door.” RJ led her down the hall and pushed a door open. “So, you can stay in here for as long as you’d like. Sadly, you’ll have to share the bathroom with me, Max and Jake. It’s across the hall. We’re all pretty quick, so it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. There are fresh towels in there. I’m sure you’re going to want to use the bathroom to shower all of the dust off of you.”
JoJo sighed. “I hate this.”
“Oh, sweetie.” RJ stared down at her. “Why?”
“I didn’t want to be a burden on anybody,” JoJo said.
RJ hugged her. “You’re never a burden. You’re family. You’re the sister I always wanted. You’re here most of the time anyway, so you might as well stay the nights.”
“You and Gunny have done so much for me. I owe you guys so much.”
“You don’t owe us anything. We’re blessed that you’re a part of our family and our lives. Now, you head off to the bathroom. I’ll bring you some fresh night clothes and something to wear for tomorrow. And if you give me the clothes you’re wearing now, I’ll get those washed tonight so that you’ll have them for whenever you need them.”
“Thank you, RJ,” JoJo said, tears welling in her eyes.
RJ had matching tears. “I just wonder what our lives would’ve been like had we been able to fulfill our plan and both of us go into the military at the same time. Somehow, I feel responsible for what happened to you because I wasn’t there to protect you.”
JoJo shook her head. “No, no, no, RJ, you cannot even begin to feel responsible for what happened to me. You weren’t even there.”
“Yes, but I should have been.”
“Maybe it was all fate, and this was all supposed to happen to me.”
RJ squeezed her eyes shut. “Then fate can be a huge pain in the ass.”
JoJo grinned. “You know the saying, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”
RJ’s laughter choked on a sob. “Now that’s not funny.”
“No, but I’ve got to believe that everything happens for a reason. Maybe the reason why it happened to me, and I lived, is so that I could bring this person to justice who could be doing the same thing to other women.”
“All the more reason for you to let me talk to Hank and see if his guy Swede can dig up anything about the investigation, the people on that base or anything else that might help nail that bastard.”
JoJo’s lips pressed together tightly. She drew in a deep breath through her nose and blew it out through her mouth. “Okay, let’s let him dig in.”
RJ smiled. “Good. I’ve got his number. I’ll give him a call tonight.”
JoJo shook her head. “This late?”
“From what Jake tells me about Hank, he doesn’t care what time you call him. If you need something, he’s there for you.”
“I’d like to meet that man,” JoJo said.
“I think you eventually will. I can’t imagine him setting up shop here in Colorado and not coming down to visit
his team here.” RJ stood back. “Now, go. Get your shower. I’ll slip some clothes inside the door. And if you don’t feel up to going downstairs for the cocoa, I’ll bring it up to you.”
“Don’t do that. I can go down.”
“Good, because I’m feeling kind of snack-ish. I think I’m going to make a sandwich, too. Do you want half a sandwich with me?”
JoJo nodded. “Sounds good.” With nothing of her own to take with her, JoJo walked across the hall and entered the bathroom. After she closed the door, she leaned against the wood panels. Everything that had happened to her hit her like a tsunami, and a sob rose up her throat. A soft knock sounded at the door. JoJo scrubbed the tears from her face and swallowed hard on the lump lodged in her throat. She turned to open the door, expecting to see RJ standing there with a handful of clothes. Instead, it was Max.
“Hey,” he said, “are you all right?”
She tried to keep it together, but she couldn’t. The tears welling in her eyes spilled down her cheeks.
He opened his arms. “I’m not pushing this, but if you want me to hold you…”
JoJo fell into his arms and buried her cheek against his chest. She sobbed quietly, standing there in the hallway barely aware of when RJ stepped around them to put clothes inside on the counter in the bathroom. She didn’t say a word but disappeared. JoJo stood in the shelter of Max’s arms for how long she didn’t know. All she did know was that was the only place where she felt safe.
When her sobs subsided, he tipped her chin up with his finger and brushed a thumb across her cheek, wiping away some of the tears.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” JoJo said. “I never cry. It seems I’ve cried more in these last couple of days than I have my entire life. Even after I woke up in the dirt in the desert, I didn’t cry this much.”
“There’s no shame in tears,” he said. “Maybe it’s your body’s way of letting go of the hurt and anger. In that case, cry all you can.”
She shook her head. “I need the anger. It’s the fuel I need to find the man who did this to me. Now, it seems I need to find the man who destroyed my apartment tonight.” She looked up through her tear-washed eyes and into Max’s. “Could they be the same person?”
Max frowned. “The same person as who?”
JoJo went on as if he hadn’t asked a question. “The people who were on that base where I was deployed to have to be back in the States by now. It’s a scary thought, but it could be the same person.” JoJo’s jaw hardened and her eyes narrowed. “I hope the hell it is.”
Max’s frown deepened. “Not sure what you’re talking about, JoJo.”
She continued. “If it is him, I hope he comes after me again. It might be the only way to find him.”
“Whoever it is seems pretty determined to get to you. I mean, if he tried to get into your apartment and couldn’t, and then came back and did…he’s persistent.” He frowned down at her. “Promise me something.”
“What?” she asked.
He swept a strand of her hair back from her forehead and tucked it behind her ear. “Promise me you won’t go anywhere without me.”
She laughed. “I can’t tie up all of your time chasing after me. You have a life. Potentially, you’ll have other assignments. We have no idea how long this will go on.”
“To hell with my life and assignments. I’m worried about your life.” He brushed another tear with his thumb and lowered that same thumb to brush it across her lips. “I’m worried about you.” He frowned and started to pull his hand away. “But maybe, that’s not what you want to hear.”
JoJo caught his wrist and turned her face to press her lips into his palm. His hands were so strong and yet so gentle. After the attack that had left her nearly dead, she’d thought she’d never want another man to touch her. But then she hadn’t known Max.
He kissed her forehead. “Get your shower. Gunny’s got some hot chocolate ready for you downstairs. I’m going to get a shower after you.”
She nodded and stepped away, feeling very bereft without his strong arms around her. JoJo entered the bathroom, closed the door and turned on the shower. She stripped out of her clothes and studied herself in the mirror. Other than a few cuts and scrapes, she was all right. They were just surface wounds. It was the wounds in her mind and heart she struggled with most.
The gentleness of Max’s kiss on her forehead gave her hope.
JoJo climbed into the shower and rinsed the dust and grit from her body. She washed her hair, applied conditioner and rinsed quickly. Knowing Max would be in there next, she didn’t take too long.
RJ had left pajamas, a robe and a cute pair of lacy pink underwear on the counter. JoJo stepped into the items and smiled at her reflection in the mirror. RJ was a good five or six inches taller than JoJo. The legs and arms of the pajamas were too long, but JoJo was glad to have them.
She rolled up the sleeves and the pantlegs, slipped the robe over her shoulders and tied it around her waist. The ever-thoughtful RJ had left a brush on the counter as well. JoJo eased the tangles out of her hair. When she was done, she felt a little closer to normal. She stepped out of the bathroom and found Max leaning against the wall, his shaving kit in his hand.
JoJo smiled. “It’s all yours.”
“Thanks. I’ll be down in a minute.” He frowned. “Unless you want to wait in your room until I’m done and can go down with you.”
With a twisted grin, she shook her head. “I think I’ll be fine by myself in the lodge. I’ll see you downstairs.” JoJo carried her dirty clothes down the stairs to the laundry room near the kitchen, dropping her clothes in a basket. She entered the kitchen to find Gunny, RJ, Jake and Cage Weaver busy making sandwiches and hot chocolate.
She smiled. “Glad I found the party.”
“You’re just in time,” Gunny said. He poured hot cocoa from a pan into a mug. “Careful, it’s hot.” He pointed to some bowls on the counter. “Put what you want in it.”
JoJo grinned. “It’s like old times, isn’t it?”
RJ smiled. “Gunny always knows how to make hot chocolate interesting, doesn’t he?”
JoJo couldn’t decide between all the bowls of toppings that she could put into her hot cocoa. She started with crushed candy canes to give it a peppermint flavor, added a pinch of cayenne to give it a little kick, then she squirted a little chocolate syrup in and dropped a handful of mini marshmallows on top. She wrapped her hands around the mug, enjoying the warmth. As she waited for it to cool enough so that she could take a sip, she watched as the others worked.
RJ sliced a sandwich in half and laid it on a platter with a dozen other sandwiches.
JoJo laughed. “You’d think we were feeding an army.”
RJ rolled her eyes. “You ought to see these guys eat. They have stomachs like teenage boys.”
“I wish,” Jake said. “It was a lot easier to keep a sixpack back then.” He patted his flat belly. “Right now, I’m working on a keg.”
RJ rolled her eyes. “As if. You don’t have an ounce of fat on you.”
He slipped his arms around her and pulled her back against his front. “That won’t be the case if you keep feeding me this way.”
She leaned into him, a sweet smile on her face.
JoJo was happy for her friend.
Gunny poured the rest of the hot cocoa into mugs and laid the mugs on a tray. When he was done, Weaver stepped up.
“I’ll take the cocoa into the dining room,” Weaver said.
“Good,” Gunny said. “I’ll get the toppings and bring them in.” He set all the bowls on a tray and fished a can of whipped topping out of the refrigerator. Jake took the platter of sandwiches, and RJ went to the cupboard and pulled out several bags of potato chips in a variety of flavors.
“Now that you’ve got it all taken care of,” JoJo said, “what can I do to help?”
Gunny grinned. “Just come in and sit down. We’ll enjoy your company.”
They arranged the food and drin
ks on a buffet in the dining room, but once they had their cups and sandwiches, they adjourned to the great room and settled onto the large bomber-jacket-brown leather couches. Gunny stirred up the fire in the fireplace and added a log.
By that time, Max came down the stairs and helped himself to a mug of cocoa, squirting the whipped topping across the top of it.
JoJo settled on a loveseat, whether subconsciously hoping that Max would sit beside her, she didn’t know, but he did. She smiled at the big dollop of whipped cream on top of his cocoa. “Never would have taken you for a whipped cream kind of guy.”
He grinned. “Told you I had a sweet tooth.”
“I thought you were making that up just so you could follow me into town.” She took a careful sip of her hot cocoa.
“I did. I had plenty of peppermints, but it gave me a good excuse to follow you into town, didn’t it?”
She shook her head and took another tentative sip of her drink.
Curry and Stover came in from outside.
Gunny tipped his head toward the dining room. “You guys, help yourself to the cocoa on the buffet and come join us.”
Maybe it was selfish of JoJo, but she really didn’t want the politician and his aide to join them in the great room. She liked the current composition of the gathering just the way it was.
“I don’t suppose you have some coffee?” Stover asked.
“As a matter of fact, I do,” Gunny said. “Here, let me get it for you.”
“If you’ll just tell me where it is, I’ll get it myself,” Stover said.
“Easier to show you than tell you.” Gunny walked with the man to the kitchen.
Miles Curry helped himself to the cocoa bar and took a seat in the dining room on the edge of the great room.
JoJo was glad that Max was sitting between her and Curry. Stover’s aide had an odd way of looking at people, as if he were studying them under a microscope. Was he looking for their weaknesses?
JoJo shook her head. Once again, she was reading into traits that might not even be there.
Gunny and Stover returned, and Stover took his seat next to Curry at the dining table on the edge of the great room. Curry pulled out a computer tablet and propped it up in front of Stover. They put their heads together and talked softly between them.