“Maybe?” Jerry challenged, and Reed didn’t think it was his imagination that the man suddenly seemed very uncomfortable. Also, that wasn’t a benign glance he aimed at Billy. And then Charla.
“Maybe,” Livvy repeated, keeping a poker face. She walked out past Charla and into the hall.
Since there were lots of people milling around, too many, Reed didn’t want to say anything that would be overheard and reported to Charla and the men. He waited until they were outside and away from the protestors.
“Smart move,” he said under his breath, “to let them think you might have some evidence to prove Shane’s innocence. And maybe their guilt.”
“Well, I wanted to say something to shake them up a bit.”
Mission accomplished. Now, they would have to wait to see who would react, and how, to the possibility that the charges against Shane weren’t a done deal.
“I’m sorry Jerry brought up your mother,” Reed told her.
“Not your fault. And this has nothing to do with her. That was an attempt to muddy the waters on his part. Makes you wonder just how deep he is into this. After all, other than Jonah, Jerry has the strongest motive because Marcie could have sent him to jail for years.”
“Yeah, and he doesn’t have Jonah’s big bankroll to fight a long legal battle.”
Livvy stayed quiet a moment. “So, of all our suspects who would be most likely to kill a woman and set up her former lover to take the blame?”
“Jerry,” Reed said without hesitation. Still, that didn’t mean Jonah or someone else hadn’t put him up to it or even assisted. “While you’re reexamining the gun, I want to talk to Shane again. Maybe he remembers something that’ll help us unravel all of this.”
He heard Livvy respond, but he didn’t actually grasp what she said. That was because Reed saw something that got his complete attention.
The black rental car parked just up the street less than a block from his office.
“That’s the vehicle that nearly ran me down,” he told Livvy.
She put her hand over the butt of her service pistol. Reed did the same and tried to walk ahead of her so he could place himself between the car and her. Of course, Livvy wouldn’t have any part of that. She fell in step beside him, and they made their way to the car.
“Can you see if anyone’s inside?” she asked.
“No. The windows are too dark.” And with the sunlight spewing in that direction, there was also a glare.
With each step they took, Reed’s heart rate kicked up. It certainly couldn’t be Billy, Charla or Jerry in that car since he’d just left them in Jerry’s office, but it could be someone who’d been hired to intimidate Livvy and him.
Reed and Livvy were only a few yards away when the engine roared to life.
Livvy stopped and drew her weapon. Reed was about to push her out of harm’s way, but it was already too late. The driver slammed on the accelerator, the tires squealing against the hot asphalt.
Reed cursed as the car sped past them. He cursed again when he got a glimpse of the driver.
This time it was Shane’s father, Ben Tolbert.
Chapter Ten
Livvy stepped from the claw-footed tub and wrapped the thick terry-cloth towel around her. The hot bath had helped soothe some of her tight back and shoulder muscles, but it hadn’t soothed her mind.
She dried off, slipped on her cotton nightgown and smeared her hand over the steam-coated mirror. A troubled face stared back at her, and she tried to assure herself that neither her career nor her personal life were in deep trouble.
But they were.
The Ranger captain had hit the roof when he learned about the destroyed crime scene, and it didn’t help matters that she hadn’t been able to confirm the arrest of their main suspect.
In fact, she’d done the opposite.
She’d created doubt with her questions about the murder weapon, and those doubts were fueling animosity between the Native American community and the rest of the town. According to the inn’s owner, Betty Alice, there were whispers that Livvy was trying to clear Shane because of her personal involvement with Reed.
Maybe the new lab tests she’d ordered on the gun would help. Well, they might help clear Shane anyway, so they could concentrate on other suspects. But that wouldn’t clear the rumors about Reed and her.
Worse, those rumors were partly true.
Other than that kiss, Reed and she hadn’t acted on this crazy attraction, but that was no guarantee it wouldn’t happen in the future.
And that was a sobering thought.
Despite all the problems a relationship with Reed would cause, she still wanted him. Bad. She wanted more than kisses. Livvy wanted sex.
No.
Sex wouldn’t have been as unnerving as the fact that Livvy wanted Reed to make love to her. Something long, slow and very, very hot. And not a one-time shot, either. She was thinking of starting an affair with a lawman who could put some serious dents not just in her heart but in her professional reputation.
Cursing herself, Livvy brushed her teeth and reached for the door.
She heard it then.
A soft bump.
The sound had come from the bedroom.
Livvy turned to reach for her gun, only to realize she’d left it holstered on the nightstand. She hadn’t wanted the gun in the steamy bathroom with all the moisture and humidity. Thankfully, she remembered she did have her cell phone with her though, because she had been concerned that she might not be able to hear it ring while the bathwater was running.
Of course, she’d locked the door to the room, and it was entirely possible that Betty Alice had come up to bring her some towels or something. Still, with everything that’d happened, Livvy wished she had her gun.
She walked closer to the bathroom door, listening. And it didn’t take long before she heard a second thump. Then, footsteps.
Someone was definitely in her room.
“Betty Alice?” she called out.
Nothing. The heavy footsteps stopped just outside the bathroom door.
Livvy grabbed her phone from the vanity, flipped it open but then hesitated. Calling Reed wasn’t at the top of her list of things she wanted to do, but she might not have a choice.
“Who’s out there?” she tried again.
No answer.
So, she waited, debating what she should do. She wasn’t defenseless since she’d had some martial arts and hand-to-hand combat training, but she didn’t want to go hand-to-hand with someone who was armed.
Like Marcie’s killer.
The doorknob moved, and her heart dropped to her knees. This wasn’t Betty Alice or even someone with friendly intentions, or the person would already have answered her.
There was another rattle of the doorknob, and then someone bashed against the door. That caused her heart to bash against her ribs. Oh, God. The door held, but Livvy knew she had no choice. She called Reed.
“This is Livvy. There’s an intruder outside my door.”
She didn’t stay on the line. Livvy tossed the phone back onto the vanity so she could free her hands for a fight.
The person rammed against the door again, and she heard some mumbled profanity. She was almost positive it was a man’s voice.
Another bash, and this time the wood cracked. It wouldn’t hold up much longer, and she had to do something to improve her chances of survival if this turned into a full-fledged assault.
Livvy grabbed the scissors from her makeup bag and slapped off the lights. Since the lights were still on in her room, she hoped the intruder’s eyes wouldn’t have time to adjust to the darkness if he managed to get through that door.
Or rather when he got through.
The next bash sent the door flying open right at her, and Livvy jumped to the edge of the tub so she wouldn’t get hit. Her heart was pounding. Her breathing was way too fast. And she had no hopes of being concealed in the dark room since her white nightgown would no doubt act as a beacon.
Because the room was dark, Livvy couldn’t see his face, but she caught his scent, a mixture of sweat and whiskey. He reached for her, but she swung the scissors at him and connected with his arm. She heard the sound of tearing fabric, and prayed she’d cut skin as well. He cursed in a raspy growling voice.
A voice she didn’t recognize.
In the back of her mind, she was trying to identify this intruder. No. He was an assailant now, not merely an intruder, and with the profanity still hissing from his throat, he latched on to her hair and dragged her away from the tub. His grip was strong, and was obviously being fed with booze and adrenaline. Still, Livvy didn’t just stand there and let him assault her.
Using the scissors again, she slashed at his midsection and followed it with a kick aimed at his shin. She missed. But he released the grip he had on her.
“Livvy?” someone shouted.
Reed.
She’d never been more thankful to hear someone call out her name. Better yet, he was nearby, and she could hear him barreling up the stairs. Her attacker must have heard Reed as well because he turned and raced out of the bathroom.
Livvy went after him.
Only the lamp was on, but she had no trouble seeing the man’s back as he dove through the open window that led to the second-floor balcony.
“Livvy!” Reed shouted again.
He banged on the door, which was obviously still locked because the intruder hadn’t entered that way. He’d apparently entered the same way he exited through the window. A window she was certain she’d locked as well because the balcony had steps that led down in the garden. She had known full well it was a weak security point.
Livvy hurried across the room to unlock the door, threw it open and faced a very concerned-looking Reed. “Are you okay?” There were beads of sweat on his face, and his breath was gusting.
Livvy didn’t trust her voice. There’d be too much fear and emotion in it. Instead she pointed to the window where the evening breeze was billowing the pink curtains.
She dropped the scissors on the nightstand and grabbed her gun so she could go in pursuit, but Reed beat her to it.
He bolted through the window and started running.
REED RACED across the balcony, following the sounds of footsteps.
Unfortunately, whoever had broken into Livvy’s room had a good head start, and Reed caught just a glimpse of the shadowy figure when he leaped off the bottom step and raced through the English-style country gardens that were thick with plants and shrubs.
There were too many places to hide.
And worse, too many ways to escape.
Reed barreled down the steps, but he no longer had a visual on the guy. Heck, he couldn’t even hear footsteps on the grounds. Since finding him would be a crap shoot, Reed ran straight ahead because where the gardens ended there was a thick cluster of mature oaks. Beyond that was a greenbelt and then another street lined with businesses that would already be closed for the night. If the intruder was local, then he knew all he had to do was duck into one of the many alleys or other recesses.
And that was probably what had happened.
Because once Reed tore his way through the greenbelt and onto the street, he saw no one.
He stopped, listened and tried to hear any sound over the heartbeat that was pulsing in his ears.
Nothing.
Well, nothing except for his racing imagination. Maybe the escape had been a ruse. Maybe the guy was doubling back so he could have another go at Livvy. That put a knot in Reed’s gut, and he whirled around and raced toward the inn.
A dozen scenarios went through his head. None were good. But he forced himself to remember that Livvy could take care of herself. Most of the time.
Tonight had obviously been the exception.
It might take a lifetime or two for Reed to forget the look of sheer terror he’d seen on her face when she’d unlocked the door to let him in.
He took out his cell phone and called his office so he could request backup. “Get any and all officers to Wade Street and the area back of the Bluebonnet Inn,” he told the dispatcher. “We’re looking for an unidentified male. About six feet tall. Dressed in black. Find him!” he ordered.
Reed didn’t have to make it all the way back to the inn before he spotted Livvy. Dressed in her gown and bathrobe—and armed—she was making her way down the balcony stairs.
“Did you catch him?” she called out.
“No.” And even from the twenty feet or so of distance between them, he saw her expression. The fear had been quickly replaced by anger.
Reed understood that emotion because he was well beyond the anger stage. He wanted to get the guy responsible for putting Livvy through this.
“Are you hurt?” he asked. He closed the distance between them and glanced around to make sure they weren’t about to be ambushed.
“I’m fine,” Livvy insisted.
But they both knew that was a lie. He caught onto her arm to lead her back up the steps because he didn’t want her out in the open.
“Betty Alice called a couple of minutes ago,” Livvy explained. Her voice sounded calm enough. It was a cop’s tone. Clinical, detached. She would have pulled it off, too, if he hadn’t been touching her. Reed could feel her trembling. “She heard the noise and wanted to know what was going on. I told her to stay put and make sure all the windows and doors were locked.”
“Good.” He didn’t want anyone in the path of his guy. Because it was entirely possible they weren’t just dealing with an intruder but a killer.
Marcie’s killer.
Reed led her back into her room, and closed the gaping window that had been used as the escape route. Because he didn’t want anyone seeing their silhouettes, he turned off the lights as well.
“He broke through the bathroom door,” Livvy explained. Her voice was soft now, practically a mumble, and she cleared her throat. “It was dark, and I couldn’t see his face.”
“But you’re sure it was a man?”
“Positive. He smelled of sweat and liquor. And he had a strong grip.” She rubbed her wrist. Even though she was a peace officer, that didn’t make her bulletproof or spare her the emotion that came with an attack. Soon, very soon, the adrenaline would cause her to crash. “I’d left my gun in here so I couldn’t get to it.”
The fear in her voice was hard for Reed to hear, but he wouldn’t be doing either of them any favors if he gave in to it. He had to have more answers if they hoped to catch this guy.
“Did he have a weapon?” Reed asked.
She hesitated a moment and then shook her head. “If he did, he didn’t use it. He just grabbed me.”
Now, that was odd. A killer, especially the one who’d shot Marcie, would likely have a gun. Or he could have grabbed Livvy’s own weapon before going after her in the bathroom. But he hadn’t.
Why?
Maybe this wasn’t about harming Livvy but rather about scaring her. Again. If so, this SOB was persistent.
“I might have cut him with those scissors,” Livvy added, tipping her head to where they lay on the nightstand. “I need to bag them.”
“Later,” Reed insisted. The scissors could wait.
She was shaking harder now, and Reed looped his arm around her and eased her down onto the bed so they were sitting on the edge. It wouldn’t be long, maybe a few minutes, before he got an update from the deputies. If they got lucky, they might already have the attacker in custody. But just in case, Reed wanted to hear more.
“What about the possibility of transfer of DNA from him to you?” he asked.
“No,” she answered immediately. “I wasn’t able to scratch him, and other than his hand on my wrist, there was no physical contact.”
Reed was thankful for that. Livvy hadn’t been hurt. But the DNA proof would have been a good thing to have. Still, if she’d managed to cut him, that would give them the sample they needed.
“The door was locke
d,” she continued, “but I guess he broke in through the window.” Her voice cracked. The trembling got even worse.
And Reed gave up his fight to stay detached and impersonal. He pulled her even closer against him, until she was deep into his arms, and he brushed what he hoped was a comforting kiss on her forehead.
It didn’t stay at the comfort level.
Livvy looked up at him, and even though the only illumination was coming from the outside security lights filtering through the curtains, he could clearly see her face. Yes, the fatigue and fear were there. But there was also an instant recognition that he was there, too, touching her.
Maybe it was just the adrenaline reaction, but Reed forgot all about that possibility when he lowered his head and kissed her.
There it was. That jolt. It slammed through him. So did her taste. After just one brief touch of their mouths, Reed knew he wanted more.
He slid his hand around the back of her neck so he could angle her head and deepen the kiss.
Yeah, it was stupid.
French-kissing his temporary partner and subordinate was a dumb-as-dirt kind of thing to do, but he also knew he had no plans to stop. He could justify that this was somehow easing Livvy’s fear, but that was BS. This wasn’t about fear. It was about this white-hot attraction that had flared between them since they first met.
Livvy didn’t exactly cool things down, either. She latched on to him, bunching up his shirt in her fist, and she kissed him as if he were the cure to the trauma she’d just experienced.
And maybe he was.
Maybe they both needed this to make it through the next few minutes.
Her gown was thin. Reed quickly realized that when her chest landed against his. No bra. He could feel her breasts warm and soft against him. He felt even more of them when Livvy wound herself around him, leaning closer and closer until it was hard to tell where she started and he began.
Reed made it even closer.
He hauled her into his lap. Again, it was a bad idea. Really bad. But his body was having a hard time remembering why it was so bad because Livvy landed not just on his lap but with her legs straddling his hips.
The kisses continued. It was a fierce battle, and they got even more intense. So did the body contact. Specifically, her sex against his. And that was when Reed knew. This might have started as a kiss of comfort, but this was now down-and-dirty foreplay.
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