Deadly Deception

by Marissa Garner

  “Babe, stop. Door. Gotta get it.” Sean bit out the words like it was hard to speak.

  She blinked as he climbed off the couch. The ache between her thighs made her whimper. She closed her eyes. Door? Pizza delivery? Cable guy? A hand touched her shoulder.

  “Jess, it’s Luke. He needs to talk to us.”

  The fog cleared instantly. Her eyes popped open. “Mom? Did they find her?”

  Sean’s expression provided the answer before his lips. “I don’t think so. Luke just has some questions.” His eyes shifted to her exposed panties. “I’ll stall him for a minute.”

  “Oh my God.” She jerked upright and then stood. She zipped her shorts and smoothed her blouse. Nodding to Sean at the door, she inhaled a calming breath as she plopped back onto the couch.

  When Luke stepped inside, his eyes shot from Sean to the pillows on the floor and then to her. Crap. Heat ignited in her cheeks. Gulping, she self-consciously ran a hand over her tousled hair and waited for the other deputy to enter.

  “Relax, Jessie. I dropped my partner at the station. I figured I could handle the two of you by myself.” With a Cheshire cat grin, he ambled to a chair. “I guess you set Sean straight about our relationship. Pretty damn funny where his mind went, if you ask me.”

  Sean ran his fingers through his disheveled hair and rolled his eyes before closing the door and dropping into another chair. Suddenly, she felt uneasy on the couch alone, flanked by the two men. She imagined a stark, solitary lightbulb hanging over her head and a disembodied voice saying, Where were you on the night of…?

  Luke withdrew a notebook and pencil from his pocket. “I can see you were busy so I’ll keep this short and sweet,” he said, the corners of his lips twitching with a smile.

  “Any news on Mom?”

  All humor drained from the deputy’s face. “No, sorry. Trust me. We’re doing everything we can. We’ve had a few calls, but when we followed up, they didn’t amount to anything. Don’t give up, though. It’s only been two days.”

  Sean grunted to express the sentiment that two days was two days too long. “What do you need from us?”

  Luke’s gaze fell to his notepad. “I never got an official statement from you.”

  “Me?” Sean’s mouth gaped with disbelief.

  “Luke, seriously,” Jessie said. “You can’t possibly think—”

  His eyes rose and, with them, a frown. “Look, it’s a formality. Mostly. There is”—his knowing gaze lingered on the pillows—“was bad blood between Sean and your family. I mean, just an hour ago, your father was yelling for me to arrest him.” He turned an all-business expression on his friend. “Detective Burke, where were you last Friday from approximately one in the afternoon until about eight that night?”

  A muscle in Sean’s jaw worked. “I was visiting a friend in Valley Center. Got there about noon. I was on my way home when you pulled me over on Highway 67.”

  “Your friend got a name and number?” Luke asked.

  “Yeah. Jake Stone. He’s a security expert and a PI.” Sean shot Jessie an amused glance, and she recalled her earlier bout of jealousy about him visiting a friend. He pulled his phone from his pocket and read off the contact number. “We done?” he asked, slapping the cell on the coffee table.

  “Not quite.” Luke sighed. “Tonight, Hal repeated the same statement he gave Friday night about his whereabouts during those hours. But I need to verify it. That means talking to…” He cleared his throat.

  “No way,” Jessie snapped. Her chest tightened. “My daughter has been traumatized enough already, and she doesn’t even know the truth about her grandmother yet.”

  Luke stroked his chin. “I understand where you’re coming from as a mother, but without some collaboration, Hal doesn’t have an alibi for much of that time on Friday. Especially if we put any stock in the shoeprints Sean found that seem to indicate Molly was walking home.” He arched his eyebrows. “Did Callie say anything to you about what she did Friday afternoon with her grandpa?”

  A tingle of foreboding raised the hair on Jessie’s nape and arms. Remembering Sean’s suspicions, she angled him a glance and then just as quickly dropped her gaze. Hallelujah Ima Freeman. Who are you, Dad? Please don’t be involved in Mom’s disappearance. No way could I handle that. Her heart rate picked up speed, and she shuddered.

  Sean moved to sit next to her on the couch and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Easy, Jess. Luke’s just doing his job. He doesn’t want to hurt Callie or you.”

  She nodded shakily. “I know.” She leaned into him, appreciating his warmth, support, and strength. “When I asked Callie Friday night what she’d done with her grandpa that day, she couldn’t remember.”

  The deputy exhaled frustration. “Jessie, you gotta trust me.”

  “I do, Luke. I’m telling the truth.” She offered a faint smile as she remembered the conversation with her daughter. “Callie was still napping when I got home about six. I woke her and asked about her day. She was really groggy and couldn’t remember what they’d done. She even said something about her brain still being asleep.”

  “Is that normal?” Luke asked.

  She stared down at her hands. “No. She never sleeps that late, and she always wakes up bright and full of energy.”

  He scribbled a note. “Did Hal say anything to you about the afternoon?”

  Her bottom lip began to quiver with the memory. “Dad said they went to the creek to feed the ducks. But…” She hesitated.

  He cocked his head. “But?”

  “Work with him, babe,” Sean coaxed, and gave her a reassuring squeeze.

  She swallowed hard. “But…I found the baggie of breadcrumbs for the ducks in the fridge Saturday morning. Hal…he could’ve simply forgotten them or made another bag himself.”

  Luke studied her for several beats before adding something to his notes. “Anything else?” he asked, not looking up.

  “I don’t recall if Dad mentioned it when you took our statements that night, but he must’ve spread some of the manure Friday afternoon because the place reeked when I got home. And I noticed the tractor was out of the barn.”

  “Yeah, I remember the smell when we went to the house after you found the Buick. Would anyone else have been there during that time frame?”

  “I told you about Drake, right?”

  “Yeah, but we haven’t been able to get our hands on him. After you gave me the phone numbers for his parents earlier today, I called. They didn’t even know their son was in California. We have a deputy working on tracking down his rental car or hotel. Don’t worry. We’ll find him.”

  Sean snorted. “Talk about bad blood between Jess’s family and someone. Drake’s your guy.”

  Luke stiffened. “I said we’ll find him.”

  “I also told you my brother stopped by but said he didn’t see anyone,” Jessie added.

  “Yeah, Nate told me the same thing. Like your stepdad, though, he’s way short of a solid alibi.”

  Luke’s gaze locked on Sean’s with a silent message. Jessie cringed at what it might be.

  * * *

  By the time Sean locked the door behind Luke, he knew the mood had changed. He felt it in his gut, heard it in the silence, and saw it in Jess’s body language. For the best, probably. Although his dick wasn’t convinced, his heart and brain remained steadfast against the possibility he might be taking advantage of Jess’s vulnerability.

  Still standing by the door, he studied her. She’d pulled her legs up in front of her like a barrier again. Her closed expression told him her thoughts were far away—with her mother, no doubt. The dark circles under her eyes were more pronounced now than they’d been just an hour ago.

  “You should go to bed,” he said, returning to the couch. “You look exhausted.”

  “You’re right, but I know I can’t sleep.” She rolled her head from side to side to loosen her neck muscles. “I feel like I should be doing something—anything—to find Mom.”

 
“There’s nothing more you can do tonight.”

  “I just hate this helpless feeling. And I’m getting so scared that…you know.”

  “We’ll find her,” Sean said with certainty. He just wasn’t sure they’d find her alive. Those critical first hours had come and gone without a solid lead. And no ransom demand, although that had never been a serious consideration given the family’s lack of wealth. Unfortunately, most abductions that went on this long didn’t end well. The total lack of clues at the scene hadn’t helped. This case seemed the classic example of “disappeared without a trace.”

  “Do you really think so?” Her eyes pleaded with his, probing, searching for the truth.

  After their discovery of Hal’s relationship-ending deception, Sean didn’t think she wanted another lie, but that meant giving it to her straight. Well, shit. “Yeah, I think we’ll find Molly…just probably not…” Fuck, he couldn’t say the word.

  Her face crumpled, and her eyes filled. “Not alive, right? That’s what I’ve started to think. And I feel like such a traitor for losing hope.”

  “Having a loved one abducted is an agonizing ordeal. People cope with it in all sorts of ways. There’s no right or wrong. And no one’s a traitor for being realistic. It softens the blow when reality finally strikes.”

  “Oh, Sean, I can’t imagine losing Mom…forever.” Burying her face in her hands, she shook with heartbreaking sobs.

  In three long strides, he was beside her. “C’mon, Jess. You need sleep to deal with this.”

  He pulled her up from the couch, wrapped his arm around her waist, and guided her into the master bedroom. With her seated on the side of the bed, he knelt to remove her shoes and socks. His eyes panned over the rest of her clothes. Nope, he couldn’t handle undressing her.

  Standing, he swiveled her legs onto the bed and laid her head on his pillow. After fluffing the sheet over her and Callie, he kissed Jess’s forehead and left the bedroom.

  Stopping in the hallway outside the closed door, Sean wrestled with himself. His Y chromosomes urged him to return to the bedroom and crawl into bed beside Jess’s warm, supple body. He didn’t have to make love to her; he just wanted to hold her, comfort her, and protect her. His brain, on the other hand, believed she needed to sort this out for herself. And pushing her while her emotions were overloaded could only produce bad results.

  He trudged back to the living room and slouched onto the couch. The need to do something to get his mind off Jess or to help find Molly burned in his gut, but he couldn’t leave the apartment. He could, however, give Stone a kick in the butt. Sean slipped his cell from his pocket and dialed.

  “Yes?” Jake Stone answered.

  “Any news on the prints or the hard drive?”

  Jake hesitated.

  “What?” Sean came to his feet. “You got something?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “Stop with the word games, Stone. I’m not in the mood.”

  “Down, boy, down. It’s what I don’t have that’s interesting.”

  “Meaning?”

  “My FBI contact called me. Said he had a ‘situation’ with the prints I’d sent him. I tried to press him for more info, but he clammed up tight.”

  Sean began to pace. “What’s the problem?”

  “Well, if the prints do, in fact, belong to an escapee, the feds might want to get their hands on him. And that puts my guy in a bind because he was running the prints on the down-low for me.”

  “Damn, this guy escaped twenty-seven years ago. Why the hell would they care that much unless… Fuck.” His gut tied itself in a knot.

  “Yeah. Fuck.”

  “When will you know something?” Sean stopped pacing, shoved his fingers through his hair.

  “Not sure.”

  “Look, we’re well past forty-eight hours since Molly disappeared.”

  “Relax, Burke. I know that, but there isn’t a damn thing I can do. I explained to my guy that the prints could be evidence in an abduction case, so he understands the urgency. He’ll get back to me ASAP.”

  “Sorry, man. It’s killing me to see Jess suffer.”

  “Are you preparing her for the worst?”

  “A little.” He sighed. “She…understands.”

  Stone swore. “If it’s Hallelujah, let’s nail his ass for her.”

  “Yeah, finding out it was her stepdad will make it so much better.”

  “Sorry, wasn’t thinking. Anyway, when I know, you’ll know.”

  The phone went dead.

  Sean paced the living room for another hour. But the activity did little to uncoil him. The news about the prints still had him on edge. Knowing Jess was sleeping in his bed again didn’t help either. And what the hell was on that hard drive? Stone hadn’t mentioned any progress on getting past the password prompt.

  Finally giving up, he got ready for bed and crashed on the futon. Still, he couldn’t unwind. He tossed and turned.

  Memories surfaced that hadn’t appeared in years. He allowed them to crowd out the present. Of course, Jess was the star in every one. Meeting at a high school football game freshman year. Homecoming dances. Making out at the movies. Stolen kisses in odd places. Making love the first time. Prom. Discovering their insatiable desire for each other. Saying good-bye when he left for college. Coming home to see Jess. Skinny-dipping in the creek. Loving all summer long.

  Slowly, gradually, the stress eased, replaced by the hard-on from hell. Damn, he just couldn’t catch a break.

  “Sean?”

  He bolted upright.

  Wearing only her bra and panties, Jess stood in the doorway. He gulped.

  “I want you,” she whispered.

  “I want you, too, babe…so bad it’s killing me.”

  After closing the door, she tiptoed to the futon and fell into his arms. He toppled backward with her on top.

  “Were you expecting me?” she asked.

  Don’t blow it, Burke. “Uh, no. Why?”

  She giggled. “You’re already hard.”

  “What can I say? You have that effect on me even from the other room.”

  “It was always like that…back in the day.”

  “Yeah. I remember having to carry my backpack in front of my fly so often that the guys caught on and teased the shit outta me. They made it even tougher. Especially Luke.”

  “Did you…ever think about those days? After we broke up, I mean.”

  “For a long time, Jess. But it was ripping me apart, so I finally quit. How about you?”

  She rolled off and snuggled against him. “Because I was married, I tried not to. But you often showed up in my dreams. I lived in fear that Drake would hear me mumble your name in my sleep.”

  “Would’ve served the asshole right.”

  “But it would’ve been me who suffered.”

  He shifted so he could wrap his arms around her. “I wish I could undo those years.”

  “Wishing doesn’t make it so. Those years came and went, changing both of us in innumerable ways. Forever.”

  He wiggled his eyebrows and pumped his swollen dick against her thigh. “Some things haven’t changed.”

  “Thank God.”

  When her expressive eyes connected with his, he read want and need in them. Yeah, thank God. Gently, he pressed his lips to hers. She moaned as she shut her eyes. Teasing her lips apart, he deepened the kiss, his tongue probing, stroking. He groaned with the realization she tasted the same. Something else that hadn’t changed.

  She leaned forward so he could unfasten her bra. After disposing of it, Sean turned Jess onto her back and positioned himself between her legs. He inhaled the sight of her like a starving man gorging on gourmet food. His hands cupped both breasts, molded, kneaded. Slipping his lips over a puckered nipple, he sucked and licked until Jess squirmed. His breath came faster, and his heart beat a happy, rapid rhythm.

  Then his mouth made a leisurely journey down her body—kissing, sucking, licking—to her navel and beyond. He slid
his fingers under the elastic of her panties, back and forth, back and forth, farther each time until he reached her pubic hair.

  She gasped.

  He froze. “Jess, babe, you’re good with this, right?”

  She blinked her eyes open. “Damn right I am. But if you don’t get inside me quick, I’m gonna come without you.”

  “Not a problem. But let’s get these out of the way.”

  While she lifted her hips, he grasped the panties and removed them. But instead of settling over her, he scooted down the bed until his face was between her thighs. His tongue darted out for a taste.

  “Sean, I…I…”

  “Come for me, Jess. Like you always did.”

  He pressed his mouth to her, his tongue furrowing between her folds, dipping into her hot wetness. His thumb found her most sensitive spot. Tongue and thumb stroked in perfect harmony. Moments later, she cried out with her climax.

  Only after she’d floated back to earth and recovered did he move over her. His rigid dick caressed her before the head probed the entrance.

  “Look at me, babe,” he whispered.

  Once their gazes met, he plunged inside. He clenched his teeth and stilled or he would’ve come right then. Slow, deep breaths pulled him away from the edge. After he regained control, his hips began a measured rhythm. But urgency built toward frenzy when Jess wrapped her legs around him. Unable to hold back any longer, he thrust hard and deep. She grabbed his shoulders and held on. Faster. Deeper. Faster. Deeper.

  At the first wave of her orgasm, he exploded with a climax that seemed to go on forever. His entire body shuddered from the welcome release. Then he collapsed and rolled to the side, pulling her with him.

  They lay entangled for a long time.

  “I have to go,” Jess said.

  “Pee?” he mumbled, half asleep.

  She snorted softly. “No, back to sleep with Callie.”

  “Stay.” He tightened his embrace.

  Jess grimaced. “I tried to tell you I’ve changed. I’m a mother now. I can’t just do what I’d like; I always put Callie first. And she’d be frightened if she woke up alone in an unfamiliar bedroom.”