No Limit

by L. P. Dover

  Breathing hard, he rolled us onto our sides, still connected. We’d made love until all our energy was spent. Lying face to face, he kissed my hand, his eyes growing heavy.

  “When we go our separate ways, I don’t want you to forget me,” I whispered.

  “That’s not going to be possible, firecracker.”

  “Will you miss me?”

  His eyes closed and he smiled. “Every day.”

  I laid there, waiting on him to open his eyes and say more, but he didn’t. It was obvious we were going our separate ways. Tears fell down my cheeks, soaking the pillow beneath me, but I didn’t dare let it be known. For over an hour, I watched him fall into a deep sleep until my touch couldn’t even stir him.

  In that moment, I made my choice.

  I woke up feeling the best I had ever felt in my life. It was my last day in Vegas and I couldn’t wait to get the hell out of there and start my new life. Turning over, I found Aylee’s side of the bed cold. “Aylee?” I called. There was no answer. Knowing her, she probably went down to the bakery to get some pastries. My phone beeped and I grabbed it off the nightstand.

  Tyler: Everything’s all ready for tonight.

  Me: Good. Be there at 7.

  For the past week, I’d had a lot to think about, mainly the situation with Aylee. I should’ve told her how I felt earlier, but I wanted everything to be a surprise. Getting out of bed, I hurried into the bathroom and took a quick shower. When I got out, I called for her again. “Aylee, you here?”

  Still no answer. I threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt before opening the bedroom door. Everything was quiet. Sliding my wallet in my pocket, I grabbed the room key and walked out. Once the elevator took me down, I went straight to the bakery.

  “Mr. Avery,” Jeanine announced. She was the lady who always helped me every time I came down to get breakfast pastries. She was a petite woman with short brown hair and beady brown eyes.

  “Good morning, Jeanine.”

  She grabbed a box and opened it. “The usual this morning?”

  “Yes, please.” She packaged up my pastries and I gave her my card. “You haven’t by any chance seen Aylee have you?”

  Her brows furrowed. “No, sugar, I haven’t. I wouldn’t be able to miss that red hair of hers. Is everything okay?” She handed my card back, along with the box of pastries.

  “I think so. She wasn’t in the room this morning. I thought she’d be down here.”

  She shook her head. “Sorry, I haven’t seen her.”

  “Thanks anyway.” Pastries in hand, I started toward the elevator and rode back up to the room. Once inside, I set the box down and dialed her number. It rang and rang, but she never picked up.

  Me: Where are you?

  I thought she’d text or call back by the time I ate breakfast, but she didn’t. What the fuck was going on? Picking up the phone, I dialed her number again. After several rings, it went straight to her voicemail. “Aylee, it’s me. Where are you? Call me back. I have a lot planned for us today and I can’t wait to get started.”

  After an hour of waiting, I couldn’t do it anymore. There was only one person she was close to in Vegas. I didn’t care if it was stalkerish, I had to know where she was. After almost losing her once, I didn’t want to imagine anything happening to her. I dialed Diane’s number and she picked up on the second ring.

  “Hello, Jason.”

  “Good morning, Diane. Have you seen or talked to Aylee this morning?”

  “No, why? I wasn’t planning on seeing her until the surprise party tonight. Is everything okay?”

  Running a hand through my hair, I sighed. “I don’t know. She’s not here and she’s not answering her phone.”

  “Hmm, that’s strange. How did things go last night?” she asked curiously.

  “Great, or at least, I thought they did. What all did you two talk about yesterday?”

  “Lots of things. She’s worried about you not wanting to be with her because of the distance thing. I told her to be patient with you. I figured you’d tell her how you felt last night.”

  “I was saving it for after the party. You know what I have planned.”

  “I do, but she doesn’t. I wasn’t about to tell her.”

  “Fuck me. I should’ve known it was a mistake to wait.”

  She snorted. “I swear men have the worst possible timing. Aylee is an impatient woman. Making her wait to hear how you feel probably wasn’t the smartest move. Are her things still there?”

  I charged toward the other bedroom and slammed open the door. “Goddammit, she’s fucking gone. None of her stuff is here.”

  “This isn’t good,” she added.

  “No shit. I need to find her.”

  “Do you need her address? She gave it to me yesterday.”

  Rushing to my room, I threw my suitcase onto the bed, cramming my clothes into it. When I grabbed my laptop, I knew exactly what to do. “No, I know just how to find her.”

  One call and one text. I’d been gone for almost a full day and Jason had only called me one fucking time. I almost broke down and called him back after listening to his message, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Not after I left him in the middle of the night. I thought it’d be easier not having to deal with the awkward goodbye. By now, he most likely realized I’d left to spare us both the heartache. It was obvious he didn’t mind. Luckily, I had my uncle and Regis to keep me occupied.

  “Come here, Regis Finn!” I called. I didn’t realize how much I’d missed the giant blanket until the moment I pulled into the driveway and he ran over the hill to greet me with his tongue lolling out to the side. He was a tri-colored, Cavalier King Charles Cocker Spaniel. Adrian had given him to me as a Christmas present one year and ever since then he had been our dog.

  “What all did Adrian say when he dropped off Regis?” I asked.

  My uncle put his arm around me and kissed my head. “He thought you’d want the little rascal back. From what I hear, he loves New York. Have you talked to him?”

  Closing my eyes, I breathed in the cool, crisp air and then opened them. “No, but I’m glad he’s happy.”

  We walked up to the top of a small hill over-looking the grounds, and took in the view. The white plantation style home had been transformed into a bed and breakfast back in the seventies when my uncle bought it. We had our own pond, walking trails, and wide open fields that you could get lost in for hours.

  Regis hopped up on my legs. I sat down on the ground so he could tackle me. I giggled as he licked my face and lied down beside me.

  “When you called in the middle of the night, I thought something was wrong.”

  I looked up at him, his expression troubled. “Nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to come home.”

  He sat down beside me and rubbed Regis’ head. “You can’t lie to me, peanut. Is it that cop you were with? Did he do something to hurt you?”

  Shaking my head, I looked away, trying desperately to keep the tears at bay. “He didn’t hurt me, Uncle G. I just thought after everything we’d been through . . . it wouldn’t just end. He never said he wanted to make things work between us once we moved home.”

  “Did you?”

  I closed my eyes. “No.”

  “Then you can only blame yourself, sweetheart. You weren’t raised to be scared of a fight. You fight for your country and for the good of man, maybe you should start learning how to fight for love.” He squeezed my chin and then got to his feet.

  “Gary!” Mitchell shouted, his voice echoing from the house. Mitchell was my uncle’s significant other; they both ran the B&B together.

  Gary turned around and I squinted against the sun so I could look up at him. “Yeah?” he called.

  “Tell peanut she has a visitor!”

  I stood up quickly, pulse racing. Regis jumped to attention and barked as I got to my feet. Was it Jason? Surely, it couldn’t be him. “Who do you think it could be?”

  Uncle G and I walked down the hill together,
followed by Regis. “Don’t know. It could be the news. I bet they want to interview you for the local paper. You’re a hero now; all the people in town are proud of you.”

  I didn’t want to be on the news again. Jason and I had more time in the spotlight in the past week than I’d care to have in my entire lifetime. When we got down to the house, I didn’t see a news van anywhere, but I did see . . .

  “Adrian,” I gasped. He jumped off the front porch stairs and raced toward me. My heart didn’t race the way it did when Jason was around, but it was still good to see him. He looked the same with his blond, spiked hair.

  My uncle smiled and nudged me forward. “He was worried about you. I called him when I knew you were coming home.”

  Adrian scooped me up in his arms. “Thank God you’re okay. I couldn’t wait to see you.” He set me down and Gary waved at us before disappearing inside the house. Regis ran in circles around him until he bent down to play with him. “I missed you too, Regis Finn McFadden.”

  “Thank you for bringing him here.”

  He ruffled Regis’ ears and stood. “You’re welcome. He’s always been your dog more so than mine.”

  “That’s probably because I snuggle him more than you.”

  “True,” he chuckled.

  “How’s New York? Do you like the hospital?”

  “It’s amazing. I never thought I’d like living in a big city, but it’s grown on me.”

  “And the people, are they friendly? I bet they aren’t like those around these parts.”

  His hazel eyes sparkled. “Not all of them, but I’ve met quite a few who are. It’s one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you. After watching the way you looked at your partner on the news, I don’t feel so bad.”

  Grinning wide, I grabbed his hands. “Oh my God, are you seeing someone?”

  He shook his head. “Not officially. She wants to be, but I wanted to clear things up with you first. I know I mentioned us getting back together, but then you left and I went to New York. It just all happened so fast.”

  “You don’t need to explain. I’m so happy for you. Is she a doctor too?”

  “She is, a very smart one at that. How about we go to dinner and catch up? I can tell you all about her and you can tell me about Vegas. I’d love to hear what happened.”

  Holding onto his arm, I walked with him to his car. “Brace yourself because it’s one long, crazy ride. I might need a blood orange margarita or twelve to get through it.”

  He chuckled. “I have all weekend.”

  “You sure you’re okay?” Adrian asked, helping me up the stairs. We’d eaten at my favorite restaurant in Hallowell that was positioned right on the Kennebec River. They made the best margaritas in town.

  Giggling, I reached for one of the patio chairs and fell into it. “I’m fine. I think those margaritas were a little strong.”

  Adrian sat down in the chair beside me and laughed. “Well, you drank four of them. I don’t blame you after what you’ve been through.”

  Sighing, I leaned my head against the house and looked out at the stars. They were so bright in the dark sky. It was something I missed in Vegas. With all the lights, you couldn’t enjoy the true beauty of night. My head was fuzzy from the alcohol and all I could concentrate on was Jason. I wanted to know what he was doing and where he was at. Most importantly, I wanted to know if he missed me as much as I missed him.

  “Are you thinking about him?”

  “It’s hard not to,” I confessed.

  “Then why did you leave him? You ran away when you should’ve stayed. It doesn’t look like it made things easier. If anything, you made them a whole hell of a lot harder.”

  “Gee, thanks for the pep talk, pal.” I shook my head and shrugged. “I don’t know . . . I guess I didn’t want to get hurt. At least this way, I didn’t have to pretend to be strong when he turned me down. I didn’t have to look in his eyes when he said it.”

  “Who says he was going to turn you down? You never gave him a chance.”

  I scoffed. “He had plenty of chances. He had the whole week.”

  “Maybe,” he said. “I guess you’ll never know.”

  “I guess not,” I whispered. The night air grew colder and I shivered. “You about ready to head inside? I can get us some wine.” I tried to get up but needed a little assistance. I wasn’t drunk, but with the jet lag and time difference, it was all wearing on me.

  “I think you’ve had enough. How about I help you to your room?”

  “Sounds good. It’d suck to survive being attacked in Vegas only to come home and die from falling down the stairs.”

  He guffawed. “You’re absolutely right. Come on.” We started for the door, but a set of headlights flashed behind us. “Who would be coming in this late?”

  “It’s probably just some of the guests.” I opened the door and took a step inside, only to be stopped by the sound of my name.

  “Aylee!”

  Frozen in place, I sucked in a breath, afraid to turn around. Adrian nudged me with his elbow. “Aylee, it’s Jason. He came for you.” Jason’s footsteps grew closer until I heard him step up onto the porch. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Adrian step forward, his hand extended. “I’m Adrian, Aylee’s friend. I wanted to thank you for saving her.”

  Jason shook his hand, his focus completely on me. “There was no other way.”

  Clearing his throat, Adrian backed up toward the door. “I think I’ll just go to my room and give you two some privacy.” Once he stepped inside, he winked. “Good luck. See you in the morning.”

  As soon as he was gone, I turned to Jason, my heart thudding in my chest. His clenched jaw and tight fists spoke louder than anything. “Are you angry with me?” I asked.

  He scoffed. “You mean for leaving me in the middle of the night? Yeah, just a little. What the fuck, Aylee? I woke up and you weren’t there. And I guess you’re back with your ex now too?”

  “No! It’s not what it looks like. He came here to welcome me home and to also tell me about his new love interest.”

  “So you didn’t come back to be with him?”

  Sighing, I shook my head. He was so close, I wanted to reach out and touch him. “If you want the truth, I didn’t think I could say goodbye to you. It was easier to just let you go.”

  He stepped forward. “Is that what you want? Because it sure as hell is not what I want.”

  “What? But I thought—”

  “That I didn’t want this to work? Have you lost your fucking mind? All you had to do was give me a little more time.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I gave you plenty of time.”

  “Not long enough. Tonight was going to be our night. I had it all planned.”

  “Planned? What do you mean?”

  Cupping my face with his hand, I leaned into his touch, wishing he’d kiss me. “I had a whole party planned for us. Everyone was going to be there to say goodbye. Diane was helping put it together.”

  I gasped. “What the hell? I’m so sorry. Let me guess, she’s the one who gave you my address?”

  He shook his head and winked. “I have my own ways, remember?”

  “Okay, stalker. You know that’s all kinds of creepy, right? I don’t know if I like being traced like that. Especially, when you can track my every move and I have no clue where you are.”

  His green gaze lit up in amusement. “I’m here, firecracker. And I don’t plan on leaving.”

  “Excuse me?” I exclaimed, wide-eyed.

  Chuckling, he kissed me and pressed his forehead to mine. “I lied to you the other day. I didn’t purchase a plane ticket for North Carolina, I bought two flights to Maine. One for me and one for you.”

  “What are you saying?” I breathed.

  He rubbed his thumbs across my cheeks. “I’m saying that if you want me to, I’ll stay. I’ll find a house and then one day when you’re ready, we can take things to the next level.”

  “Are you flippin’ serious right now?”


  “More serious than I’ve ever been about anything. I love you, Aylee. I want this to work and I’m willing to do what it takes.”

  Tears streamed down my cheeks and he wiped them away. The thought was tempting, but I couldn’t let him do it. “I’m sorry, Jason, but you can’t leave everything for me. You have a life in North Carolina. I’m not about to take all of that away.”

  His hands tightened on my face, his gaze raw. “Are you saying you don’t want me up here?”

  I nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m saying.” I leaned up and kissed him gently on the lips. “Which is why I’ll be going home with you.” My lips spread into a wide grin as I watched him realize what I was saying.

  “What about your uncle?”

  “He’ll be more than fine without me. Besides, it would be selfish of me to take you away from so many people you love. I figure North Carolina could be a new adventure.”

  Lifting me in his arms, I could feel his heart beating against my own. “Is all of this what you were waiting for me to say?” he murmured.

  I nodded. “More than anything. I just wanted to hear that nothing could stand in our way; that we could make things work.”

  Tucking the hair behind my ear, he smiled. “Baby, you have nothing to worry about. I don’t plan on ever letting you go.”

  Six Months Later

  “What do you want to do now?” I asked, climbing on top of Jason. We’d only been back three days from solving another case in Florida and I was ready to take a break. Ever since I’d moved in with him, we’d taken every single case together. Now we were on a three week vacation, free to do whatever we pleased.

  Jason smiled up at me, pushing his hips into mine. “As much as I want to make love to you right now, I think we need to get something to eat.”

  My stomach growled. “Sounds good. The Carolina Tavern sounds mighty tasty right now.”

  He patted my thigh. “Then get dressed.”