The Lost Locket

by Marie Harte

  “What can files tell him?” Rory couldn’t believe they discussed psychic abilities way beyond the norm as if they were everyday occurrences.

  “Well, our client didn’t just have pictures and files of the locket. He has the original case the locket was supposedly housed in.”

  “He does?” That bothered her.

  “Yeah. So that might help us, or it might not. The locket has been missing from his family for over two hundred years. But we’re not sure how long it’s been missing from the case.”

  “My mom always wore it around her neck. She never took it off,” Rory added quietly.

  “That’s a lot longer than a year. Hell.” Keegan swore. “I’m sorry I took it off you, okay? But if I hadn’t, you would have bolted.” And she still might. Rory didn’t like her burgeoning feelings for these two men she barely knew. Yet for all that they’d just met, she didn’t want to leave them. And that wasn’t normal. Rory used to live day to day. Except for her desire to own and run a jewelry store, everything else in life happened the way it happened. No planning or forethought went into what she ate or what she wore unless it contributed in some way to her dream of financial independence and success. Of stability.

  But she wanted to stick around James and Keegan. She’d even had a few thoughts about spending some time in Oregon after their mission, to check out that part of the West Coast.

  “Rory?” Keegan’s gruff voice dragged her from her musings. “I’m sorry, darlin’.

  Okay?” She leaned close to kiss him. “Okay. But we’re getting it back. And you owe me.”

  James looked smug.

  “You’re not off the hook, either, James,” she added.

  “You can collect anytime, Rory.” Keegan winked. “I’m your man.”

  “Me too.” James nodded. “Keegan? Find us an exit and pull over at the nearest pharmacy. While I’m getting the info we need to track down the locket, you can go in and buy some condoms.”

  Rory blushed and turned to see James’s broad grin.

  “A big box. It’s all about priorities, Rory.”

  “And that’s why he’s along for the ride,” Keegan explained with a straight face.

  “Man has a head for logistics.”

  Chapter Ten

  By the time Keegan returned to the vehicle, James had an address as well as a general direction. To his relief, they could continue west, hopefully not veering too much from their deadline to return. They needed to detour into Colorado to cut off Bobby and Frederick Landers.

  He handed the notes he’d taken to Keegan. “Avery gave me this address. Said to expect a confrontation. But that’s all he would tell me.” Sometimes Avery knew more than he said, and sometimes he simply couldn’t make out more than a possible future. Either way, James knew they’d find Rory’s locket soon enough. He’d been tempted to ask Avery what the man saw in Rory’s future, but with her sitting in the front seat during his call, he hadn’t had the opportunity. That, and he was scared to know.

  James wanted the beautiful blonde to stay with them. He needed time to find out how to worm his way past her defenses, to see what motivated her and find a way to give it to her. So far the sex had worked, and he planned on using it to get as close to the secretive woman as possible.

  “So Rory, you know about my background and Keegan’s. What about yours?” he asked as they continued on their course to retrieve the locket.

  She turned around in her seat to face him and shrugged. “Not much to tell. I grew up in Pennsylvania just north of Philly. Just me, my mom, and dad. They were good parents until they died. Car crash in the snow. I wasn’t with them when it happened.”

  “Sorry.”

  “That had to be tough,” Keegan sympathized. “It was.” She cleared her throat. “My mom has four brothers, my dad three sisters. And all of them are constantly in and out of jail. I didn’t really have a place to grow up, and by sixteen, I was on my own.”

  James thought she’d been on her own longer than that. How tough it must have been to lose everything with no one for support. “My parents died when I was little, but I had my cousins and their parents to help. It would have been really hard to not have that kind of stability.”

  She shrugged. “You get over it quick. It hurt, I won’t lie. When my parents were alive, we teased about their troubled relatives, but my aunts and uncle seemed nice enough from a distance. We’d see them at holidays and birthdays, and my dad’s family was always pretty nice. My mom’s? Not so much.”

  “I could tell from last night,” Keegan muttered.

  Rory gave a bitter laugh. “Oh, you haven’t seen them at their worst, trust me.

  The Landers brothers are real con men. They pretend they’re friendly right before they stab you in the back. But they taught me a lot in the short time I lived with them.”

  James watched her fingers stroke the hollow of her throat and inwardly winced when she hurriedly dropped her hand. He almost felt responsible for the locket being stolen. Maybe if he and Keegan had let her keep it, she’d still have it.

  And he did think of it as hers. No matter what Jack or their client said, James instinctively knew Rory hadn’t lied about the locket or that it had belonged to her mother.

  “So how did you live when you left home?” he asked.

  Keegan’s gaze met his in the rearview. “A little personal, don’t you think?

  Maybe Rory’s had enough of the James Foreman question-and-answer period.”

  “It’s okay, Keegan.” Rory shot James a challenging look. “Would it shock you to know I stole for a living? I was really good at it. Pickpocketing, small cons, minor thefts.”

  “Actually, no.” James chuckled. “I don’t doubt you could smile your way out of trouble every time.”

  “Well, I am charming.” She batted her eyes, and he laughed again. “My affinity for gems would tell me which mark to track, who could offer me the most value for the stone, and after some study, I’d see who could afford to lose it. You can tell a lot from what people wear and what they drive.”

  “So you’re a thief with principles? Stealing from the rich?” Keegan snorted.

  “Was a thief. And I prefer the term collector.” Her eyes gleamed with naughty amusement that sobered when she added, “I’m not ashamed of what I had to do to survive. Trust me, foster care is not all it’s cracked up to be. I was sometimes safer living on the streets.”

  James shook his head. “With your looks, I’m not surprised.” She blushed, a fascinating contradiction of shyness at odds with the assertive, stunning woman he’d thought her to be. “Yeah, well, I eventually built up enough that I didn’t feel so frantic to keep risking jail time with each take. I started saving and even investing. Went to school, completed my GED, and even some college.”

  “Studying what?” Keegan asked.

  “Investing and finance. What else?”

  “So you’re no longer a thief. You’re what? You mentioned opening up a jewelry store.”

  “Not yet. But I will be. I’ve spent the last few years interning at smaller shops, working behind the counters of specialty jewelry stores, the ones that have quality stones.”

  “How?” James frowned. “If your history is spotty, no way you’d have passed scrutiny with the security paperwork needed to work for a jeweler.”

  “Let’s just say I had help with my background.”

  “Forged documents. It’s what I’d do.” Keegan nodded.

  “I’m neither confirming nor denying that.” Keegan snorted.

  “But I will say I’ve been pretty successful with everything I’ve learned. This last year, I’ve been adding to my collection. I—”

  “Collection?” James looked from her to the back of the vehicle. “That red bag, right?”

  Rory’s good humor faded. “No, that’s something else. Some keepsakes I’ve gathered from here and there. Nothing special.”

  James sighed. “Rory, I’m not going to take anything from you. Neither is Keegan.”r />
  “Right. And I’m supposed to believe this after you took my locket?”

  “We’re going after it right now. We could have left you behind, you know,” James said softly. “We could have left you behind right from the start.”

  “Then why didn’t you?” she challenged.

  “Because you’re special, and Keegan and I sensed it from the beginning. When you touched me, I felt a spark all the way to my toes. You felt it too.”

  “Maybe.”

  Next to her, Keegan touched her cheek. “With me you did. I saw it in your eyes.”

  “So? Sexual attraction is a powerful thing.”

  James disagreed. “It’d be easier if it was just physical. But we all know it’s not.

  Hell, look at me and Keegan. The man wants me, and he can’t help himself. But if it was as easy as getting off, he wouldn’t look so hunted all the time.” Keegan returned his hand to the steering wheel, gripping it with clenched fingers. “This isn’t about me.”

  Rory’s defensiveness seemed to fade as she considered Keegan, which James had intended when he’d shifted the attention to his buddy. “Have you ever been with a guy before James?” she asked.

  Keegan scowled. “We were talking about you.”

  “And now we’re talking about you.” Rory refused to back down. “So how long have you two known each other?”

  “Three years,” James answered, pleased to finally air the issue out in the open.

  “And in all that time, you two have never…?”

  Keegan flushed. “No.”

  “Not until our little road trip. And trust me, I wanted him. But Keegan’s not gay. I knew that. Just like it is with you, Rory, there’s something special between me and the cowboy, though he refuses to see it.”

  “Bullshit. If I refused to see it, I wouldn’t have been fucking you the past couple days, now would I?” Keegan shot Rory a disgruntled glance. “And don’t think you can turn all this on me. You want us both, but you don’t want to. You’re used to bein’ alone, used to bein’ around folks you can’t trust. And then comes me and Wonderboy back there,” he said as he thumbed at James in the backseat. “We’re throwin’ you for a loop, darlin’. We can see that. But if I’m not allowed to hide from him, you’re not allowed to hide from us.”

  James caught Keegan’s threatening stare in the mirror, aware he’d pay for this confrontation later.

  “Quit being so scared, Rory,” Keegan dared her. “It’s not like we don’t have feelings for you.”

  James blinked at that.

  “Oh? How do you feel, Keegan? You barely know me.” James leaned closer and saw her cross her arms over her chest, her chin out, her manner testy.

  “I know plenty. Hey, GQ, you want to answer her?” Keegan asked James.

  “You’re Mr. Sensitive, after all.”

  “Ass.” To Rory, he said, “You’re like us, which is special all on its own. We don’t have to hide who we are with you, and that’s rare.” James snapped, and flame licked at his thumb before he let it wink out. “You’re courageous, beautiful, sexy as hell, and loyal.”

  “How do know that?”

  “You helped us get out of Jackson Heights when you could have ditched us right after we broke you out of jail,” Keegan said.

  James added, “You gave that ring to Millie, when we both know you could have kept your find a secret and never said a word.”

  She shifted in her seat. “Maybe.”

  “And Rory, you gave yourself to us last night. It was more than simple pleasure, it was a sharing.” Of souls, James wanted to add, but didn’t want to overwhelm his two less-sensitive lovers.

  “I just wanted to get off, and you two are hot. You know it, so don’t pretend to be modest.”

  “Of course he knows it,” Keegan taunted. “I call him GQ for a reason. Everyone loves James. Even you, I’d bet, if you were honest with yourself.” Rory looked away from James and turned to face front once more. “I barely know you two.”

  “Which makes it so much harder to acknowledge how you feel.” James nodded.

  “You and Keegan have so much in common. Self-denial, discomfort over your appeal, stubbornness in spades…”

  “Shut up, James,” they both said at the same time, and James grinned.

  Into the sudden silence, Keegan spoke. “Rory, you like country music, don’t you?”

  James’s grin left him, and he groaned. “Not again. Please.”

  “I love it, Keegan. It’s like you’re reading my mind.” She turned her head and flashed James an evil grin. “And I like it loud. I guess we really are alike.” They stopped four hellish hours later for a bathroom break. While Keegan refueled the vehicle, James and Rory made use of the bathrooms in the convenience store. And he decided to put his new plan of attack into play.

  The more he learned about Rory, the more he wanted to know about her. He and Keegan both wanted her, and if Keegan’s earlier comments meant anything, the big guy was hooked on the tempting blonde trying to keep just out of reach.

  James liked her bonding with Keegan in her quest to drive him insane with the radio. He’d endure torturous crooning about dogs, deadbeat daddies, and cheating wives if it meant she’d smile and joke with Keegan more.

  Keegan entered the store and zeroed in on him. “Pay for the gas, would you? I need a pit stop myself.”

  “Sure. You want anything to eat?”

  “Some chips maybe.”

  James grabbed a few snacks and drinks, paid their bill, then rejoined Rory at the SUV. Seeing her stretch, watching that mouthwatering body bend this way and that and her smile grow under the blaze of the afternoon sun, gave him the hard-on from hell.

  “Hey, Rory, why don’t you join me in the backseat for a while? Give me some company to make up for being such an evil woman.”

  She snickered. “You had it coming. You are an arrogant SOB, you know.”

  “But I’m pretty, so that makes up for my shortcomings.” She huffed. “You wish.” She paused. “I saw you flirting in there with the girl behind the counter.”

  “Huh?” He’d joked with the cashier for all of two seconds before he’d left the store with his purchases.

  Rory planted a hand on her hip and stared at him. “You don’t even know you do it.”

  “Do what?” “Flirt,” Keegan said from behind him. “It’s not his fault, Rory. People just seem to gravitate to him. I don’t see it, personally. He’s a huge pain in the ass. But he’s good when you want to get information. You should have seen Deputy Stanton falling all over himself to tell us all about you.”

  “Is that so?”

  James smiled. “Now, now. Don’t be jealous. There’s enough of me to go around.” He liked Keegan’s frown almost as much as he liked Rory’s annoyance. The hint of jealousy in the air was a boost to his ego. “Come on. Another three hours and we should hit Denver.”

  “Where Uncle Bobby and Uncle Fred are currently hanging out. Funny, I never thought they’d leave North Carolina.” Rory sighed. “Okay, James. I’ll join you.

  Keegan’s driving is a bit wild, anyway. It’s probably better if I don’t see what he’s almost hitting.”

  “Hey.”

  James ignored Keegan and entered the backseat, but not before patting his back pocket, where he’d stashed one of the many condoms Keegan had purchased earlier.

  God, he couldn’t wait to put his plan into action.

  Twenty minutes into their trip, he scooted closer to Rory, who looked immersed in a book.

  “Do you like it? I read it during our trip to Arizona last week.”

  “It’s good.” Rory subtly shifted under his hand when he placed it on her upper thigh.

  He leaned closer, as if to see what page she was on. When he grazed her hand to lower the book, he caught sight of her hard nipples and bit back a grin. He slid his fingers over hers and up her forearm.

  She licked her lips. “Ah, James?”

  “What’s that, sweetheart?” A glan
ce at Keegan showed the man enrapt in his music, his eyes glued to the road.

  “You’re crowding me.”

  “Not as much as I intend to,” he murmured, hot to feel her pussy around him once more. Hell, they had time to kill. No better way to handle a boring road trip than to add some spice to the drive. “I’m sorry, Rory. Why don’t you sit like this and make it more comfortable for yourself?”

  Before she could protest, he lifted her over his lap and straddled her over his waist. The motion put her face right in front of his, her lips so close, he could feel her breath.

  “Can I kiss you, Rory? It’s all I’ve been thinking about.”

  “Y-yes.” She leaned into him, and he inched a hand under her T-shirt. The slide of his palm over her warm skin urged him to move closer. His lips met hers, and he moaned into her mouth.

  “Shee-it.” Keegan swore up in the front seat. “When you didn’t fight me for the keys after we stopped, I knew you were up to something.” James said against her lips, “Just drive, cowboy. I’m busy back here.”

  “You are such a dick.”

  James ignored him and returned to her mouth, licking her lips and kissing her with a gentle touch, wanting to draw out Rory’s pleasure.

  She moaned when he cupped her breast and toyed with the peak of her nipple.

  Grinding against him, she told him exactly what she wanted.

  Him.

  James smiled and deepened the kiss, adding his other hand underneath her shirt, thoroughly grateful for the SUV’s tinted windows. He unfastened her bra and rubbed her back, then circled his hands around her front.

  “Your tits are so fucking pretty. I want to see them again, Rory. Show me.” He leaned back and watched as she blinked her eyes open. Rory put her hands on the hem of her shirt and looked into his eyes. “I think you’re the pretty one, James.” She kissed him on the mouth. “Your eyes are so dark and sexy, it makes me want to eat you up.”

  Keegan groaned from the front seat.

  “But I don’t want your mouth on me this time, Rory. I want that wet pussy. I want to feel you around my cock when I come.”