by Geri Krotow
“No more bodies, if that’s what you’re asking.” Nash’s direct answer was predictable, but she still felt as though he could read her mind. And if that in turn meant he was able to read her heart, it spelled trouble. As she watched him love on Greta, she felt a tug under her rib cage, suspiciously near her heart. Baby daddy or not, Nash was a man she could fall for. If she’d lost him today...
“How did she get cut, Nash?” Staying in the present always proved handy for keeping the what-ifs at bay.
He stood up and walked closer to her. “There was another diver there, an unknown. Good chance it was the same guy who tried to come after you both times, but no way of telling with all the dive equipment on both of us. I couldn’t see the color of his eyes. He cut my lifeline and messed up my tanks. I couldn’t go after him, but between the other dive officer and me, the dive team was able to verify that it was a spot used to exchange drugs or money. Or both. I saw him swim off with two plastic containers before I had to surface.”
His frustration was palpable in the small space between them. The clinic beyond her office was bustling as routine appointments were handled and techs walked dogs to and from the back fenced area and training yard.
“You’re lucky you’re still here, Nash.” She didn’t have to tell him it’d been a close call. And she didn’t want to tell him how much it had shaken her. He’d been her rock over the past two days.
“If I’d seen him first, we’d have the contraband, if that’s what it is. And he’d be in cuffs.” His gaze never faltered. “If something had happened to me, what would you have done? I mean, about the baby?”
She saw the question in his eyes, deeper than the one he verbalized. He wondered if she had been worried about him.
“I’m glad you’re okay, if that’s what you’re asking. If the worst happened—and it didn’t—nothing would be different. I would raise the baby like I’m going to. On my own.” She took a step back, but her calves hit her chair and she wobbled. When he grasped her upper arms and steadied her she felt the connection to her very center. A whoosh of air left her lungs and the tension left her body. Nash was okay. He’d survived.
“Are you sure about that, Patience? Why are you still so bent on your independence?” His hazel eyes glittered. It reminded her of the night they’d spent together, of how intensely intimate it had been.
“Of—of course I’m sure. You say ‘independence’ like it’s a bad thing.” She couldn’t help licking her lips as he stared at her. He looked hungry. Starving. Her body leaned closer, any resistance to her attraction to Nash futile.
“I think you’re might be overlooking the obvious.” He closed the gap and his lips came down on hers with the most delicious amount of purpose. She wrapped her arms around his neck and gave the kiss, the embrace, Nash her all. It was too hard not to.
* * *
Nash loved the feel of Patience in his arms, and liked the taste of her lips even more. He nudged her lips apart with his tongue and hers was there, waiting for him. The friction of their tongues after a life-threatening scenario proved as intimate as making love, and he pulled her against him, not satisfied with just mouth contact.
Patience groaned and the sheer need in her voice mirrored what he felt, as his desire for her went from a spark to combustion in two seconds flat. He wanted—no, he needed—her to feel what he’d experienced in the lake, under the water, too far from her. The pure terror that he might never see her again, never hold her like this. That he might never meet his unborn son or daughter.
Patience pulled back and removed her hands from around his neck, but at least she let them rest on his chest as she stared at him. A small comfort. Did she have any idea how desirable she was? Her eyes were big and dark, shining from the ardor of their embrace, and her lips were swollen. He was proud of that, that his kiss did this to her.
“What?” He bent to nuzzle behind her ear, inhaling her scent.
“Nash.” Her hands were firmer this time as she pushed on his chest, just a little. “We’re at work.”
“So?” He watched her eyes reflect arousal, amusement, frustration. He took a step back and shook his head. Had he suffered from more oxygen deprivation than he’d initially thought? “Heck, Patience, I’m sorry. You’re right. I think the dive, and how messed up it got, has me leaving my manners at the door.”
“It’s not your manners, Nash.” She looked at her door before running her hand down his arm in a conciliatory gesture. “It’s the fact that we could be seen at any point. It’d be one thing if we were, you know. A couple. I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea.”
A chill ran down his back, quickly followed by a rush of heat. “Whatever.”
She shook her head. “I don’t mean it like that, Nash.”
“Like what? Like you have absolutely no interest in getting to know me past the sex we’ve shared? Like you’re embarrassed to be caught with me, a regular kind of guy without a trust fund?”
She blinked and swayed as if his words were physical. Remorse flooded him, but he held his ground. Patience needed to get used to him being around, because she was going to have his child and he was going to be a participatory father.
“You know I don’t care how much is in your, or anyone else’s, bank account.” She looked away, as if it were her fault he’d snapped.
“I know you don’t. I’m sorry. It’s been a long day. It wasn’t fun, this dive.”
She nodded. “Are you okay to drive?”
“Yes. If I had any doubt, I wouldn’t.”
“Okay, then, I’ll see you back at the cabin. Do you mind if Greta stays with me? I’d like to keep an eye on her for the rest of the day, just in case she shows any other effects of the dive.”
“That’s fine.” He had so much to catch up on at the station, and he wanted to be home when the kids got off school. His aunt and uncle were doing a great job, no doubt, but he didn’t want any of his siblings to think that he’d abandoned them. “I’ve got to stop in and see the kids.”
“Of course you do. Normally I would insist you go back home, but I have to admit I’m worried, Nash. I keep thinking the Lake Killer is behind the next corner. Since I can’t go to your place, as the kids’ safety comes first, you need to do so. And take whatever time you need to.”
“I didn’t peg you as the maternal type.” Of course, he’d only ever interacted with her in the clinic during training and Greta’s exams, before their physical relationship began.
“You don’t seem like the fatherly type, either, but you’re doing it.” She tilted her head. “We don’t know one another very well at all, do we?”
“Oh, I’d say we know one another very well.” He winked at her and enjoyed watching the blush color her cheeks. Patience Colton was worldly and sophisticated, yet still humble and very flirt-worthy. “Seriously, I do feel like I’ve known you longer than I have.” Yet she spoke the truth: they needed to know one another better.
“We’ve worked together a long while—what, at least the past three years, since I got out of vet school, right?”
“Something like that.” He remembered hearing that she’d been a prodigy of sorts and completed college and vet school earlier than most. But there wasn’t time to talk about it now. They both had work to do.
“I’ll see you later.” He knelt and scratched Greta under her chin, to avoid disturbing her cut. “You be good for Patience.”
“See you back h—at the cabin.” Patience almost said home. She watched him, something alight in her eyes that he didn’t want to explore.
He left her office and told himself the pang deep in his chest had to be from Greta getting hurt this morning. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t live without Patience Colton.
Chapter 10
Patience sat in the booth at the front window of the restaurant. As she watched her older sister walk into their favorite Red Ridge café she
couldn’t keep the smile from her face. Nash would be angry if he knew she’d sneaked out of the clinic to meet Layla for a late lunch, but Patience had taken precautions by wearing a bulky hooded jacket and driving an RRPD civilian vehicle. She hadn’t noticed anyone following her, and felt reasonably safe in the local restaurant.
She waved Layla over from the hostess’s desk.
Patience’s only full sibling, Bea, was as eager as their father for the Groom Killer to be caught, as it was eating into her bridal business, too. But Bea, compassionate and kind, was nothing like Fenwick. Patience spent time with Bea as she was able, but Bea had never been the sister she’d bonded the most closely with. Layla had. She saw Blake often enough, as Juliette was an RRPD K9 officer, and their youngest sister, Gemma, came around to the clinic every now and then as she spent her time fund-raising for animal causes. But neither Bea nor Gemma knew her like Layla did.
Patience thought she and Layla had bonded because they’d both inherited the Colton drive. Layla, as VP of Colton Energy, directed her strengths to the family business, while Patience threw herself into the K9 clinic. Patience had never had an interest in business at all but from a career standpoint understood Layla’s need to succeed.
They were so different people often forgot they were sisters, even with the same last name. Layla was polished from head to toe. Her blond bob was sleek as ever today and contrasted sharply with her ice-blue power suit that matched her eyes. She had never given a nod to living in a more rural area by adopting comfortable shoes or cowboy boots, and was wearing her classic black designer stilettos. Sometimes Patience wondered if Layla hid her sweet nature behind her corporate look. Layla was determined to keep the family business going no matter what.
“Hey, sis.” Layla kissed Patience on the cheek before she eased into the booth after grabbing a napkin and wiping the seat off. She grinned at Patience. “It’s wonderful to see you. How are you doing?”
Patience froze. The baby. Would Layla see it? Notice her big belly?
“I’m great. I missed you.”
“I’ve missed you, too. Let’s order so that we can talk.” Layla opened her menu, but then craned her head toward the large blackboard behind the coffee bar. “What are today’s specials?”
“Pan-fried trout, an endive-and-citrus salad and their carrot cake.”
Layla turned to face her. “Split a slice with me?”
“You know it.”
The waitress delivered ice water and asked for their orders. Patience wasn’t sure about fish with the baby, so she stuck to a plain grilled cheese, while Layla went for the endive salad.
“We’re going to split a piece of the carrot cake later.” Layla handed her menu to the waitress, as did Patience.
Once the server was out of earshot, Patience spoke. “It’s okay to wait to order dessert. Are you afraid it’ll disappear before we get to eat it?” She couldn’t help poking at Layla. It was what they did—criticizing one another so that no one else could surprise them with their slams. It was an old habit from when they were kids and bullied for being so wealthy. They’d never told their father or mothers about it because they’d begged to go to the public school and had all their friends there. But they also had a few enemies.
“You know my sweet tooth. And why aren’t you drinking your usual diet soda?”
Darn Layla and her sharp power of observation.
“I thought I’d try to be healthier. Besides, the caffeine’s been bothering my sleep.”
“Really?” Layla’s perfectly made-up face was breathtaking in its beauty and Patience wondered for the millionth time why her sister would agree to marry Hamlin Harrington just to save Colton Energy. How could she sign away her own happiness that way?
“Hmm.” She was not going there with Layla. Not today.
“You look like you’re disappointed in me again, Patience. Please tell me we’re not going to rehash the Hamlin issue.”
“I have no intention of that. Not at all. But really, Layla, you just called your own fiancé an ‘issue.’ You can’t tell me you’re in love with the man.”
“Some things are more important than personal happiness. Like family and legacy.” Layla’s resignation saddened Patience.
“Layla, please know I only want what’s best for you. You deserve to be happy. When it’s the right person, it’s not a sacrifice.”
Layla flashed her a surprised glance. Shoot. She’d meant what she’d said, more proof that she was getting in deep with Nash. Too deep.
“Wait, what? You’re dating someone, aren’t you?” Layla leaned over the table, her pearls glistening as the midday sun shone through the café’s front window.
Patience held her eye contact without flinching. “No. Absolutely not.”
“Come on, Patience. Spill it.”
“There’s nothing to spill. I’m single, unattached.” Liar. At least where the baby was concerned.
Layla kept giving her the look that only a sister can. The “I’m going to sit here and wait until you dish” look.
Patience groaned. “You have to promise not to tell Daddy.” No matter how angry she or Layla got at their often absent father, they still referred to him with their childhood label.
“Cross my heart. As long as you stop harassing me over Hamlin.”
“Deal. But you can’t tell Bea, Blake or Gemma, either. I mean it.” Patience took a sip of water. It was the most fortifying beverage of choice, since caffeine and alcohol were off-limits. “I’m pregnant.”
Layla’s expression didn’t change. She blinked once, twice. “Shut. The. Front. Door.”
Patience nodded, and before she knew they were threatening, tears spilled down her cheeks. “I wasn’t planning it, of course. In fact, we used precautions.”
Layla squealed with delight and got up to come around the table and give Patience a warm hug. “Congratulations! This is very exciting.” She sat back down and took a drink of water.
“I’m glad you’re happy about it.”
“Cut to the chase. Who’s your baby daddy?” Layla at least had the sense to keep her voice low and limited to their booth. Patience looked around the full café. Most of the customers were strangers or distant acquaintances. No threat of anyone they knew overhearing, anyway.
“I don’t want to reveal that yet.”
“Is he going to step up to the plate and help you with the baby?”
“Why do you assume I want or need help raising a child?”
“It’s me, Patience. Your loving sister. We’re Coltons. We like to have children. It’s the raising them right that we struggle with. All I’m saying is that it might not be a bad idea for you to have the other parent there alongside you to balance your quirks.”
Patience laughed. “That’s not an understatement.” Fenwick had always meant well, but he’d been an absent father at best, always putting work first. “Daddy’s still a business-first guy, but he has seemed happier lately, when we’re all together.”
“What, at Christmas after a few single-malt scotches?” Layla shrugged. “We’re a modern family. It’s a miracle we all get under one roof together to celebrate anything these days.”
The waitress brought their food and they paused until she walked away.
“Have you heard anything on the Groom Killer?” Layla spoke as she smoothed three paper napkins over her lap and suit front.
Patience laughed. “I’m amused at how you treat that suit. And admit it—you’re excited about being an auntie.” She didn’t want to talk about any killer during her time with Layla.
“Yes, once the shock wears off, I will pester you for a list of what you’d like for the baby. So, no news on the case?”
“No, nothing new, but you should know I’m going to be living at my cabin for the foreseeable future.” She explained what had happened. Layla’s eyes widened when Patience said �
��Lake Killer” and she put down her fork.
“You could have been killed, Patience! You have to come stay with me.” Layla shuddered. “It can’t be fun having a stranger, even a cop, stay with you day in and day out.”
“Are you kidding? Did you hear what I said? I can’t stay at Nash Maddox’s because he’s got four young siblings at home. We can’t risk the killer following me there. No way do I want you in danger, either.” She personally felt Layla had enough on her hands with her slimy fiancé, but kept the thought to herself. “Besides, it’s part of my job description, even if it’s unusual. I know the RRPD K9s and their handlers as well as I know my family. We’re a team and we help each other.”
Layla sighed. “I wish I had that. The work-is-a-family thing. You know I love my job and the challenges it brings, but I can’t say there’s a lot of camaraderie at Colton Energy.”
“It’s all about pleasing one man, that’s why. Fenwick Colton. And you and he are working together all the time, with just your staff to support you. I work for the community when it comes down to it. The RRPD and the K9 teams all serve the public. We have to work together, no matter the personalities.”
“Are you going to be able to work there after the baby comes?”
“Of course. I’ll need to find childcare, of course, but nothing more than any other working woman faces. And I make a good living.” She thought about her vet techs and some of the RRPD support staff. They often struggled to make ends meet, and affordable day care was often an issue.
“You don’t have to work, Patience. You could take a leave of absence. In fact, maybe you should do it now. You can disappear for a while, go abroad until they catch the man you saw on the lake. Did you tell Daddy about all of this?”
“No, not yet. I don’t want him, or you, thinking that the clinic is more of a liability than an asset.”
Layla stared at her. “Even I know it’s not a business asset. Red Ridge needs your clinic, and I’ll do my best to keep the funding on track. It’s not about that, anyhow. It’s your mother’s legacy to the community.”