by Gina Kincade
In less than a minute he tensed and climaxed. She rocked him through it and he kissed her again, but this time, all of the fire was gone from his kiss. Instead of hot blatant need, he kissed her gently, worshiping her. His breathing evened and his heartbeat slowed.
"I love you Dakota. I never want you to be scared again. I'd do anything to make sure you're safe. "
The weight of his words rolled over her. "Did you kill him?"
He pushed the hair from her forehead and then kissed it. "Anything."
***
Dakota walked into the kitchen in her robe. The light was on but the entire house was quiet. Mary sat at the table with Jeremiah.
"Hey," she said.
"Hi." Mary smiled at her.
Dakota glanced at the clock. It was close to two a.m.
"What are you guys doing up?" She walked over to the cupboard and pulled out a box of tea.
"Just talking," said Mary.
She held up the tea. "Want some?"
Mary shook her head.
Dakota ran the water and filled the kettle then turned it on.
"Dakota, can we have a minute?" asked Jeremiah.
Tingles ran over her body. "Sure." She set down the tea and walked over to the table.
Mary and Jeremiah sat silent for a moment.
"You know what happened tonight, right? Griffin told you?"
He hadn't told her everything but she'd gotten the gist.
"We left the body in the woods for the scavengers," said Jeremiah. "It will look like an animal attack."
Dakota nodded.
"We think maybe it would be a good idea if you and Griffin came home," said Mary. "He told us he'd been thinking about it after the semester is over but I think it might be better if you leave sooner."
Mary's eyes softened. "People saw you at the park. They saw Caleb. If that man has friends and they report him missing–"
"It's possible it could come back to you and Griffin. It's not probable but it is possible," said Jeremiah.
"But wouldn't leaving make it look worse?" she asked.
Jeremiah shrugged. "Possibly, if they ever connected you to his disappearance, which they won't. Griffin's a decorated military veteran and neither of you have a record, they'll probably let it go. And if they ever do find the body they'll find nothing more than animal DNA and there's me and Mary, Logan and Caleb that will vouch that you two were with us."
"There's more to it than that," said Mary. "Griffin is going to need time. It hasn't quite hit him yet– what he's done. But it will, and when it does, it's going to take the support of the whole pack to pull him through. Him and Caleb. They're gonna need each other especially."
Jeremiah reached across the table and took her hand. "You didn't get a chance to see Griffin when he came home this last time. But you've seen him the other times. You know it gets dark for him sometimes. This will be worse. He won't have the excuse that he was following orders and fighting for his country. He had a choice and he took a life. There's a difference."
They were right. After each successive tour, Griffin had taken longer to recover. Griffin was a good man; killing Lenny wouldn't go over easy.
"Dakota? Dakota!" Griffin's shouts floated down the hallway.
She rushed from the table as he threw open the bedroom door and stormed into the hallway; Bowgie was at his heels.
"I'm here, Griff. I'm right here."
He charged forward and picked her up into his arms. Sweat slicked his body and his muscles trembled.
"It's okay," she said. "I'm right here."
"I woke up and you were gone."
"I'm not gone." She cupped his face and brought his forehead to hers. "I'm not going anywhere, ever."
He sucked air into his lungs in deep, short bursts. They stood there, forehead to forehead for several seconds.
"Come on," she said. "Let's get back to bed."
Griffin looked over her shoulder. "Sorry I woke you."
Dakota glanced at Mary and Jeremiah.
"We were still up, honey." Mary smiled. "You get some rest. Both of you." She looked pointedly at Dakota and Dakota nodded.
She walked back to bed with Griffin– his grip tight on her hand.
Mary was right. He was going to need the whole pack. They both were.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Griffin tapped the pencil on his textbook then threw it down and covered his hands with his face. He couldn't focus. It'd been four weeks and all he could see was Lenny's body, lying on the ground, ripped to shreds. And despite the horror he felt, for having done it, he'd do it again— in a heartbeat.
"You taking a break?" Dakota walked into the room.
He dropped his hands and smiled at her. "Yeah." He'd been putting her through hell the last month. Calling her name in the middle of the night and reaching for her, to make sure she was okay. Between nights at work and nights not sleeping, he'd gotten so far behind in his classes, he didn't know what to do.
Dakota crawled into his lap and pushed him back against the couch. "So I was thinking."
He slid his hands up her thighs and cupped her rear. "Really? Was it good thoughts about me?" He pulled her down for a kiss.
She laughed and pushed away. "Yes. It was. But, I wanted to talk to you about something."
The serious tone of her voice had him paying attention.
"I think we should go home." She looked at him with genuine resolve.
"We talked about it before. When the semester is over–"
"I think we should go now."
"Now?"
She nodded. "I love you and I want the best for you– for us– and being here, away from our family, away from the pack, it's not good for us. You need them. We need them."
The support of family. Of those he trusted. Those he could tell anything to– without fear of judgment. He needed that. He needed them. And so did she.
"What about school? And the house?"
"We'll rent it out. I already found out we can get a bit more than we pay on the mortgage and who cares about school? You can retake the classes. What matters are you and me and our family."
He chuckled. "Family huh? I thought you weren't sold on having kids right now."
"Well it's a bit late for that." She bit her lip.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean about six weeks too late." She pulled a white stick from her back pocket and showed it to him. It had two pink lines on the front.
Griffin stared at it. "You're pregnant?"
A broad smile spread across her face. He couldn't help but smile as well.
"We're having a baby?"
She nodded.
He kissed her hard and then squeezed her tight. "We're having a baby."
He let go of her and looked her over.
"It's fine Griff. You can still hug me. You aren't going to break me."
He set his palm over her belly. A piece of his heart clicked into place and that was it. More than anything now he had to focus on her and their child.
"Let's go home," he said.
Bowgie trotted in carrying his leash and both of them chuckled.
She cupped Griffin's cheeks and kissed him. "Home to Wolf River."
Sinfully Mine Tierney O'Malley
Chapter One
What in the world just happened? Shayne Monaghan was thinking about dinner one minute then she found herself surrounded by the Seattle police and two of the most intimidating agents she’d ever seen in her life the next. Twice now, she’d been somehow, involved in a shooting. God, why her? Today was the only time in two weeks she had managed to get away from work and join the orchestra again. A wonderful reprieve from her demanding schedule at the hospital because she’d been in a lot of stress at work.
More and more doctors had been recommending her to do a heart surgery. She felt flattered of course, but now it felt like she’d been living in the operating room. Most of the time, she would go in at night and leave the hospital at night. Her schedule could probably b
eat the president’s busy day at the White House. Needless to say, she didn’t need this.
I need music. My only escape from the harsh reality of life!
Shayne looked down at her knees. Oh, dear, oh dear. Ouch! All she wanted had been to sit down and have a rootbeer. Instead, she ended up having ugly scrapes on her knees. Well, she would take scratches anytime compared to having a bullet lodged in her body. She could have been laying at the morgue or being cut up in the hospital with tubes all over her body if she hadn’t had the foresight to dive onto the pavement as soon as she heard gunshots.
Sadly, her cello didn’t have the same luck. The agent who took it said they would have to take it to the lab for forensics and ballistic testing. Crud! Sounded like her cello died and they needed to do an autopsy. Shayne groaned so loud at the thought of the instrument. That thing was irreplaceable. Ugh!
Shayne rotated her shoulder. Her arm hurt, too. She would live, but boy oh boy, she felt like crying. She overheard one for the police officers say that what happened today couldn’t have been a random shooting. It had to be connected with last week’s tragedy that killed her neighbor Lisa Mae. That poor girl was so young. Shayne doubted someone wanted her dead.
Someone was out to kill. But who? Could it be that she’d been the target? But then, why would anyone shoot her? Maybe the officer was wrong about his assumption. Perhaps this whole thing was the result of a trigger-happy madman, gone berserk. Shayne groaned. The presence of the two NBI agents told her something deeper was going on here.
Now, if the shooter’s goal was to kill her, why? Her stomach tightened. All of a sudden, she wanted her random theory to be correct. As a doctor, she worked hard to save lives. She highly doubted one of her patients got pissed at her and wanted her out. Damn it. If anyone had a beef with her, why not talk to her? Not shoot an innocent cello!
Poor cello didn’t have a chance at all when a bullet went through the case and shattered the wood. It was beyond repair. Crapola! It once belonged to a world-renowned cellist who’d been kind enough to donate it to Seattle Symphony Orchestra. The rare bow was also broken in half. Damn it. It cost more than twenty thousand dollars and made by 19th-century German bow maker Heinrich Knopf.
She shouldn’t have had accepted the cello, but the SSO director thought she deserved to use it because, according to him, she was the best. Well, the instrument had been in her keeping only for a month and now it was shot! How in the world would she explain the bullet hole? Oh, god. She would have a lot of explaining to do. Plus, where would she get the money to have it replaced? She could easily ask her dad for help. Money wouldn’t be an issue to him, but he would ask questions and then would start to worry. No, she wouldn’t bother her dad. Wait, maybe she should just let those tough looking agents do the talking?
Oh, god. Why did this happen to me? Am I paying for the one time I smoked marijuana and shared it with my friend who got sick and ended up in the hospital? Or for blue-balling three boyfriends in high school? No, no. Maybe for letting a married man think that I was interested in going on a date with him, then laughed about it. Damn.
Shayne was trying to understand what was happening when her phone rang. She picked it up from the coffee table and was glad to see who was calling. “Hi, Dad.”
“Hello, pumpkin. How are you?”
Hearing her father’s voice made her want to cry. But she forced herself to sound cheerful. Last thing she wanted was for her father to worry. He had enough on his plate. “Good, Dad.”
“How’s North Carolina treating you?”
“Very well. Today, it’s hot enough to wear spaghetti straps.”
“Good. I know you love the sun. Remember though, your skin is too sensitive. I remember you’d get eczema when you were little just by being outside in the sun for a few minutes. Remember?”
“Dad, I was just three when that happened. I don’t get eczema anymore. Ewww!” Hearing her father chuckle, Shayne smiled.
“Everything okay, Shayne?”
No, dad. “Yup. Just tired. Busy at the hospital.”
“When are you not? You work too much. Shayne, come home and—”
“Dad, we already talked about this.”
“I know, I know. You want to build your own life. The life of a doctor.”
Shayne was thankful her dad hadn’t heard about the shooting. Otherwise, he would insist she go back to Seattle. “Good to hear from you, Dad. But considering you’ve been busier than pollinating bee during the growing season, makes me wonder. Why are you calling? Must be really important.”
“Well, yes. Your sister is getting married and she asked for you, specifically, to be her maid of honor.’
“Eh? She’s engaged again? Is she really going to get married now, or she just likes the idea of being engaged and looking for a wedding dress?”
“Be nice, Shayne. You know your sister. She’s just easy to fall in love.”
My ass. “So, who is the victim this time?” Shayne shook her head when her dad let out a loud sigh.
“Brett. They’ve been dating for three months.”
“Oh, wow. Three long months,” she replied sarcastically.
“Long or short engagement. Why did it matter? If both parties are in love. It took me only a glance to fall in love with your mother.”
“I know, Dad.” She’d heard about her parents romantic meeting more times than she could count.
“Pumpkin, you should be thinking about your—”
“So, Dad. Nadia wants me to be the maid-of-honor. But why?” Shayne cut in. God. If her dad started talking about her love life or the lack of it, she would just go outside and ask the shooter to just shoot her.
“Shayne, you are Nadia’s step-sister, yes. But a sister nonetheless.”
Her. Nadia’s maid of honor. Shocker! Nadia couldn’t even stand breathing the same air with her. She couldn’t imagine any good reason why that woman would want to include Shayne in the wedding, except maybe to throw nasty remarks at her. That woman hated her. Why? Who knows?
Shayne contemplated all kinds of excuses to avoid the wedding. Being busy at the hospital wouldn’t be a good excuse. What about if she contracted some kind of contagious disease? Gonorrhea? Hepatitis? Oh, god. “When is the wedding?”
“Well, in two weeks. She wants you to come this week to learn the details.”
“What? And I’m only hearing about this now? Dad, I have work. My schedule is really tight. I can’t just leave.”
“I know pumpkin. But your sister…this is a very important day for her.”
“I know.” She’d never met anyone as impulsive as Nadia. When that woman set her mind on something, she would move heaven and earth to make it happen. The sad thing was, Nadia’s mom and her dad would let her.
“You’d break my heart, sweets, if you don’t come. Besides, Nadia has picked a dress for you already.”
“Oh, my god.”
Her dad actually laughed.
Shayne found herself laughing with him. How could she break her father’s heart? He’d been the only ally, only friend, and only member of her family who would truly rejoice to see Shayne. “Dad, I’ll come. For you.”
“Thank you, sweetheart.”
“You have no idea how happy I am to hear your voice, Dad. I miss you so much.”
“I miss you, too.”
Shayne noticed the tallest agent staring at her with a scowl. She imagined sticking her tongue out at him. What a grumpy grumpington. “See you in a few days.”
“I’ll arrange a ride for you.”
“Don’t worry about it, Dad. I’ll let you know if I need anything.”
“You are such an independent child. Take care, pumpkin.”
She hung up then leaned back on the couch. Sighing, she stared at the ceiling thinking about her dream wedding. A simple one with just her dad and a few of her friends around. It would be on a sunny day. She would wear a spaghetti strap gown, flowers in her hair, and no shoes. The wedding would be at the Lake View P
ark where she jogged every morning. She would decorate the picnic tables with pictures and wooden crates she’d seen on Pinterest and hang terrariums on a string, fill them with water and fresh flowers. There she and her groom would stand as they exchanged their vows while close friends and family watched. Ah, what a silly thought. But who didn’t dream about their wedding, right?
All girls, as young as Lisa Mae dream of walking the isle looking so beautiful. A stab in the heart made her gasp. Shayne would never forget the last time she saw Lisa Mae. She stopped to admire the small garden planted outside her apartment complex. Shayne was on her way home when Lisa Mae, who lived five doors away from her, stood beside her, then pointed at her cello. “I dream of playing an instrument someday.”
“Really? What kind?” Shayne asked.
“Like yours.”
“A cello.”
“Yup. And wear nice dresses like you.”
“It’ll happen.”
“Yup. My mom said it’s good to start with a dream.” Lisa Mae laughed then ran towards her mother who waited for her.
Shayne had laughed too, waved at Liza Mae’s mother, then turned towards her apartment door. She didn’t even get to take another step when she heard something akin to a gunshot followed by a scream. She turned to look and saw Lisa Mae’s mother kneeling on the ground. It took only a heartbeat for Shayne to realize what had happened. With her heart pounding so hard against her chest, she took off running as far as her feet could carry her. But as soon as she saw Lisa Mae, she knew right away that nothing she could do would save her. As a doctor, though, she still tried to apply CPR. Her counting in sync with the mother’s screaming.
The first responders were there in a span of eight minutes. They took Lisa Mae. Police questioned Shayne. When everyone had left, she went into her apartment and took a long shower. There, she cried for who knew how long.