by Lora Leigh
Sadie held Samantha away from her and shook her head. “Just look at you. All grown up.” She glanced back at Hunter then rolled her eyes. “Oh boy! Well, I guess I can’t kick your smart-mouthed little ass out this time. So, have a good time, but stay out of trouble, you hear? I bet I can still call your momma,” she said, grinning. Sadie patted her cheek. “It’s so good to see ya, hon. Y’all want somethin’ to eat?”
“Maybe in a bit, Sadie.” Samantha didn’t take her eyes off Hunter.
“Okie doke. Y’all holler when you’re ready.”
“Will do,” Hunter answered, as he slid into the booth across from Samantha and pushed a bottle across the table for her.
“Thanks,” she said, keeping her eyes on him as she took a pull from the bottle. Those old butterflies that made her feel queasy ten years ago were coming back to life in the pit of her stomach.
He was leaning forward, watching her. “I saw you come in. Didn’t expect to see you here.”
Samantha rolled her lips inward to hide her grin. Something about sitting across from Hunter Steele in the Night Hawk, drinking a beer, seemed funny to her at the moment. “I thought it’d be fun to visit legally.”
“Well, I’m here alone this time, Pixie. I don’t have a date for you to harass.” The way he held her gaze was like a dare, a challenge. It sent tingles rioting through her body.
“I guess I’ll just have to harass you then, huh?”
He raised a brow as a slow grin revealed straight white teeth. He must have given up smoking, Samantha thought. Those teeth were too white for a smoker. “Uh-huh, well, you just be careful that you don’t bite off more than you can chew.” His eyes were full of mischief, making her want to test that warning. “So, listen, Sam. I’ve been thinkin’.”
“Uh-oh.” She winked at him, as she took another drink of her beer. “That could be dangerous.”
“Ha. Ha.” He narrowed his eyes, but his smile stayed in place. “About what Henderson said. It would be an awful lot easier for you to work with me on this, if you were working for me.”
“You mean as a deputy?” Stunned, she stared at him.
“No. I need a housekeeper,” he grunted, then chuckled when she kicked him under the table. “Yeah, as a deputy.”
No way. There was just no way. There were a million reasons why that wouldn’t work.
“I appreciate that. But I’ll have to decline,” she finally breathed out heavily, regretfully.
Working with Hunter was far different from working for Hunter in the sheriff’s department, she assured herself. Yet, she couldn’t help but be tempted as he stared back at her, his expression determined.
“Sam, you know this isn’t likely to wrap up all nice and tidy in two weeks’ time.” He watched her too intently as he took a drink from the bottle.
Unfortunately, she had a feeling he was right, not that she wanted to admit to it. At least, not just yet.
“Yeah, well, we’ll see.” She looked down and picked at the label on her bottle as she sorted through the tangled web of responsibilities in her brain. “I’ve sent an email. I’m hoping the captain will maybe give me an extra two weeks.”
She seriously doubted it. She hadn’t accrued that much vacation or that many sick days. She’d be taking them without pay. Everything felt so open-ended and up in the air at the moment. It was going to take a lot of focus.
“Look. I know you don’t have a lot of time to decide, but sleep on it. Let me know what you decide. I can get all the paperwork taken care of pretty quick. Henderson is all for it, so it won’t be a problem.”
If Henderson was all for it, then they might have a problem, she thought, frowning. She didn’t like the mayor. There was something just wrong about him. That oily false charm of his set off warning signals in her like fireworks.
“Yeah, as if that’s a positive.” She snorted. “What’s it pay?”
“Really?” Hunter chuckled and shook his head.
The amount he stated was ridiculous compared to what she was making.
“You’re kidding me.” That was probably the best they could do for Deerhaven. She just wanted to give Hunter a hard time. She feigned a scowl, crossed her arms and leaned back against the padded booth. “Dude, I make twelve grand more than that, and I only have five years’ experience on the Detroit force.”
“Dude.” The corner of Hunter’s mouth lifted. “That’s all I got to give you. And benefits.”
Samantha narrowed her eyes. “What kind of benefits?”
“Well.” With a suggestive glint in Hunter’s eyes, he leaned forward. “Besides bein’ under me”—his eyebrow lifted—“you’d get medical and dental. Optical too, but to be honest, it’s shit.”
She smiled at him before finally shaking her head. “I appreciate it, Hunter, but I’m going to pass.”
She waved at Sadie to come back over and ordered a bacon cheeseburger with fries and a Coke. Hunter ordered the same.
“So, did you miss me?” Hunter asked with a smirk once Sadie walked away, apparently dropping the idea of her taking a position as deputy.
“Nah, haven’t really thought about you,” Samantha lied, holding his gaze. Since the last time she saw him, she’d thought about him often. It had been little more than a brief glance before he’d turned away. But the memory of how he had looked at her had stuck with her over the years. That was the first time anyone had looked at her like anything other than a little girl.
“Well, it has been awful quiet around here since you left.” He grinned.
“Really?” She didn’t hide the sarcasm.
“Yep. Nobody has gotten me into as much trouble or as many fights, that’s for sure,” he stated.
She laughed, remembering some of the problems she’d caused him. “Aww, sounds so boring.”
Lifting her beer and sipping again, she noticed the way his gaze slid to her lips before easing back to her eyes. That flirtatious glint had an edge of arrogant demand as well that was far too sexy to ignore.
“True enough. You really haven’t changed all that much either, have you?” he suggested.
“Psh. Have too.” She laughed, thinking about the wild child she once was.
“Well.” He paused, tilting his head as he looked her over. “You have brushed your hair.”
They both laughed. He had a soft, bass rumble of a laugh that made her wonder how it would sound with her ear pressed to his chest.
“And you’ve filled out.” Hunger darkened his gaze. A male sexual hunger that had her breath catching a bit.
“Is that your way of saying I’m fat?” She scowled at him, trying to lighten her own response to him.
He scowled back at her. “You know what I mean. You’re no longer a waif.”
He looked pointedly at her cleavage, lingered there a moment before clearing his throat.
“Nah, I’m just ‘Pixie Pest,’ remember?” Her brow arched mockingly.
“Oh yeah.” He grinned. “You drove me nuts. You know, Amanda still hasn’t recovered from the time you dumped that plastic pail of sand and duck poo on her head at the lake.”
That memory was one of her better ones. She hadn’t liked Amanda Whatshername at all.
“Good, I never liked her. Oh Lord, you didn’t marry her, did you?” The idea was horrific. Amanda was a pretentious, feckless, attention-seeker. Being stuck with her would have been the worst!
“Hell no! I didn’t like her all that much either, but she was easy, Sam, and I wasn’t choosy back then.” He took a long pull from his beer.
Samantha nodded slowly, watching his throat work, feeling her body heat.
“Oh man, thwarted by a devious, ten-year-old pest.” She sighed, almost laughing. “I’m certain you were devastated.”
“Yeah.” He nodded, his smile wistful. “I’d spank you, but you probably did me a favor at the time.”
Her eyes widened at the thought of Hunter warming her naked backside with his hand. She quickly drove that image from her mind. “Hey
, maybe does this mean you owe me?”
“Hell no. God knows I couldn’t afford it, knowing you. I did get married, though.” His smile fell as he continued. “I married Kelly. You might remember her. She was with me the day I ran into you and your dad—”
“Yes! I do remember,” she interrupted. She’d never forget it and was surprised that he remembered.
He dropped his gaze and nodded. “Yeah, that didn’t work out.” He took another drink and cleared his throat. “We’ve been divorced for a while now.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” She could tell there was some residual pain but didn’t pry.
“Don’t be. It is what it is.” He shrugged and smiled, meeting her gaze. A thin ring of dark stormy gray bordered the cool silver of his irises, yet there was warmth in them. That wicked smile that curved his well-defined lips had always made her heart skip a beat. Maybe she’d had a little crush on him from the beginning.
It was becoming all too clear that she still wanted his attention, an altogether different kind of attention than she had wanted as a kid. Having the most popular guy in high school watching your back was awesome. She’d been cool by association. Well, within her circle anyway.
Probably didn’t help his reputation much that she was always running to him to get her pre-adolescent, ornery hide out of trouble. Years had passed, they weren’t kids anymore, and they knew very little about each other. Strangers really, but somehow there was a familiar, comfortable connection between them. A very strong and hot connection. Oh, she had to shut that down quickly. An affair with Hunter would seriously complicate everything.
“What?” His question broke her train of thought.
“What, what?” she asked a little too quickly.
“Your expression completely changed. What were you thinking?” His brows furrowed.
Scrambling for a reasonable explanation, she took another drink and cleared her throat. “Just thinking.”
“About?” Suspicion was clear in his tone.
She sighed heavily and went with a half-truth. “Well, let’s see. My aunt just died and was most likely murdered.” She held out a hand, gesturing toward him. “I have two weeks to work with you on figuring out who did it and make sure they’re brought to justice, all without getting us both in trouble or worse.”
He grabbed her hand and held it. His thumb brushed over her palm, sending tingles rioting through her. “We’ll be fine. I’ve always kept you out of trouble. Haven’t I?”
She looked down at his thumb making suggestive circles in her palm before lifting her gaze back to his. “You know, I can take care of myself now, right?”
He nodded, smiling broadly. “Yeah, I’m sure ya can.”
“I just might be the one keeping you out of trouble this time.”
“Hey, could happen. Ya never know, crazy stuff happens all the time.” Amused doubt filled his expression as well as the teasing flirtatiousness from earlier.
Samantha snickered. “Indeed.”
She wondered how in the world the icy bottle of beer stayed cold in his hands when she felt so warm from his touch. In truth she didn’t want him to stop at all. She wanted much, much more. It wasn’t until he lifted one brow that she finally pulled her hand away. “Back to your playboy status, Hunter?”
“Nah, not really.” He grinned. Laugh lines fanned out from the corner of his eyes, softening the hard, edgy expression he often wore. Same with the lines that bracketed his oh-so-sexy mouth. “How ’bout you? You get married?”
Samantha thought of Tom Novak and cringed. “Almost, but not quite. I escaped just in time.”
Boy, was that a true statement.
Hunter’s eyes narrowed as he leaned forward. “What happened? Was he mean to you? Want me to kick his ass?”
Her eyes widened, and for a second she wondered if he actually saw something in her expression or he was just joking around.
She quickly decided to go with the latter and laughed. “Nah, I think I handled it fine. What makes you think I wasn’t the mean one? Maybe I just got tired of him and kicked him to the curb.”
He watched her silently for a moment, his eyes glittering with something she didn’t want to define.
“I don’t. Maybe you did.” He shrugged, finished his beer, and set the bottle aside. “Still kick his ass for ya.”
“Aw, thanks, Hunter.” She winked at him. “I keep trying to tell you I’m quite capable of doing my own ass-kicking.”
His laugh was deep and rich; it rumbled low, and she could have sworn she felt the vibrations from it. “I have no doubt, Pixie. No doubt at all.”
Samantha shifted in the booth as her body reacted. She felt too warm and tingly. She watched him, amazed at the way she was feeling. She wondered if he was feeling the chemistry between them or if it was her imagination. Just that teenage lust in full bloom.
Sadie saved her from possibly doing something wicked by bringing their food. She set their plates and glasses in front of them. “Y’all good?”
“Yes. Looks great! Thanks, Sadie.” Samantha smiled up at her.
“Yep. All good,” Hunter confirmed.
Sadie looked at Hunter then to Samantha, then back to Hunter again.
“Mmm-hmmm.” Sadie narrowed her eyes. “Y’all holler if you need anything else.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Hunter grinned up at her.
Sadie kept giving him her narrow-eyed stare.
“Mmm-hmmm,” she murmured again as she walked away.
They ate, chatted a little in between. Hunter got Samantha up to speed on the folks still in town and those that had left.
“So do you actually have an opening in the department or were you going to create one?” she asked.
“Create one.”
“That’s really sweet of you,” she said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
“Yeah. I know.” He grinned before taking another big bite of his burger.
He studied her intently while he chewed. It was damned disconcerting. She took an equally big bite of her own burger and lifted her brows.
Hunter took a drink of his Coke and chuckled. “Does everything have to be a challenge with you, girl?”
She shrugged, the corner of her mouth tilted slightly as she swallowed. “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He shook his head and kept eating.
“So how many deputies do you have?” she asked him several minutes later.
“Three.” He was watching her too closely, too intently.
“Do you trust them?” Honestly, she was just trying to focus on the subject at hand, instead of Hunter’s mouth. She watched the muscle in his jaw pulse as he ate, and she wondered how his stubble would feel gently rasping over her most tender areas. Ah jeez, she thought. Lusting after Hunter was only going to muddy the waters. She needed to lead with her brain, not her libido.
His eyes met hers without lifting his head. “One. To an extent.” He finished off his burger and wiped his mouth with his napkin.
“To an extent?” Her voice was a little too breathy.
“Does anyone really know someone?” His eyes narrowed slightly.
Good point. She knew very little about who Hunter was now, but she had no choice but to trust him. “I found something today. Do you have a secure server at work?”
His gaze sharpened and his voice was low. “Can’t talk freely here. Let’s go. I know a place we can talk without being overheard. And woman, if you keep lookin’ at me like that, people are gonna notice.”
“I wasn’t looking at you a way.” Her denial wasn’t one bit believable. “Where are we going?”
He paused for a moment, thinking. “Do you have a pen?”
“Probably,” she drawled. Of course she had a pen.
“Slip it to me under the table?”
Without looking away, she felt around in her purse at her hip, found one, and did as he asked. “Is this really necessary?”
“Girl, you know this town. Let’s at least attempt to keep th
is on the down low.” He smiled for effect.
“Right.” She picked up his lead. Just casually hanging out with an old friend. “Have the burgers here always been this good?”
He nodded and glanced down briefly. “Best burgers in the world as far as I’m concerned.” He placed a crumpled napkin on the table, sliding it a little closer to the middle, then patted her hand. “It’s great to see you again, Sam. Hang out here another half hour and then head out.” He scooted out of the booth. “I got the check. You have a good night.”
“Aww, thanks. You too, Hunter.” She watched him walk away, lips pursing just a bit.
Damn, he still looked just too good. She was in trouble here and she knew it.
chapter four
Jacob Donovan’s cabin was empty while he was away, and being that Hunter was the only person Jacob trusted, he had the key. He was reasonably confident Sam would be able to find it; his directions were very detailed.
Just in case, he’d added his cell number to the note.
Times had changed a lot, even in Deerhaven. Civilization had begun to creep up the mountains. Broken- down shacks had been torn down. A few of the old sprawling homesteads had been divided up into smaller lots or quaint little subdivisions.
George and Drusilla Golding were one older couple that sold their family farm and moved down the mountains for the convenience of being closer to town. Like most folks in Deerhaven, they waved as he passed, and he honked in return.
He turned onto the narrow two-lane road that curved and twisted its way up the mountain. There were still places farther up that were off-road and secluded, and therefore, private. Jacob’s cabin was one such place.
It was a bitch and three quarters to get to. Good thing Sam had an SUV. It should be able to handle the long, pitted road with its large rocks, deep eroded ruts, and broken brush. As long as she found the spot to turn off, she’d be fine.
However, he didn’t feel all that comfortable going too much farther up Jacob’s road without being sure she’d find it. He didn’t have a sat phone with him, and the iffy cell reception wasn’t going to cut it if she got lost and tried to call. He stopped right after he pulled onto the drive and cut the lights.