Whispers in the Dark

by Chris Eboch

  His hands moved to my hips as he smiled down at me. “It’s not a very big bed.”

  I said softly, “I’ve been sleeping on a twenty-inch-wide pad. I’m sure we can manage.” I licked my lips and saw his gaze drop to my mouth.

  He took a quick breath and said, “I would sure hate for you to have a nightmare and wake up all alone.”

  I leaned in and stretched up to whisper against his mouth. “Hold me tonight.”

  He crushed his mouth down on mine, dragging me tight against his body. We dove into the kiss like jumping off the high dive and plunging into deep, warm water. I melted against him until I didn’t know where I ended and he began.

  Some time later he loosened his grip, and we edged apart, gasping. He turned me toward the bedroom door and patted my butt. “You go on in, I just have to turn off the lights and brush my teeth.”

  I strolled to the bedroom door with a coy glance over my shoulder. He watched me with the hungry eyes of a predator. I couldn’t wait to be devoured.

  I crawled into his bed and snuggled against the pillow, inhaling the faint, musky scent of him. What a night I’d had. It felt more like a week. We still had too many questions unanswered, about Sean, about Jerry, about the future. I still had to sort out how I felt about some of the things that had happened, some of the things I’d done. But I knew one thing—I wanted Danesh. He excited me like no one ever had, and yet I felt safe with him. I needed the safety. I wanted the excitement. I’d found someone who offered both, and I wasn’t about to give that up.

  I lay with my eyes closed, my body heavy and aching with fatigue. My mind drifted. When Danesh came in a minute later, I tried to open my eyes, but could only manage a flutter of eyelids.

  He slipped in next to me and put an arm around my waist. I heard him chuckle and say softly, “I guess I should have skipped brushing my teeth.”

  I turned to snuggle against him, murmured something incomprehensible even to me, and fell asleep.

  Chapter 28

  I woke once in the night. I’m not sure what I was dreaming, but I must have been thrashing or making some noise, because Danesh was pulling me closer with soothing whispers. My heart raced and I gasped for breath, but he stroked my hair and promised me everything was all right. I burrowed against him, my breathing slowed, and I drifted back to sleep.

  When I woke again, light filtered through the curtains and I lay alone. I blinked groggily at the room until memories streamed back and I realized where I was and why. I yawned and stretched. My body ached and I felt like another five or ten hours of sleep wouldn’t hurt me. But the smell of coffee sent my stomach rumbling, and I had to pee.

  I sat up on the edge of the bed. The room seemed to sway a moment and then settle. I pushed myself up with a grunt and limped toward the bathroom, my leg muscles complaining and my sore feet a reminder of running around in sandals and then socks. My ankle felt stiff, but I could put my weight on it, and the pain hardly competed with all the other aches.

  In the bathroom, I glanced at the shower and decided it was too much trouble. I was clean enough from last night, so I forced my hair into a ponytail, splashed water on my face, rewrapped my ankle, and called it good.

  I smiled ruefully at my reflection. I hardly looked like the woman dressed up and ready for a night on the town—had it been only twelve or fifteen hours ago? At least Danesh had seen me much worse and didn’t seem to mind. And if he could handle my aggressive come-on last night, followed by the quick if accidental turn down, he could probably handle anything I might throw at him.

  If he was disappointed, I’d just have to make it up to him. I smiled and headed out to find him.

  He was making eggs in the kitchen. “Morning, sunshine.” He pulled me close for a quick kiss and then went back to his work. “Coffee’s ready. I heard you stirring so I started breakfast. I don’t know about you, but I’m famished.”

  “Ravenous.” I leaned closer and sniffed at the pan. It seemed to be some kind of omelet with hash browns, onions, and peppers. He grabbed a pile of shredded cheese and sprinkled that on top.

  “Are you sure that’s enough food?” I said. “Don’t let my size fool you. I have a big appetite.”

  He laughed. “I have sausage broiling and toast in the toaster. I promise you won’t leave here hungry.”

  I poured myself coffee with plenty of milk and sugar while Danesh set the table. Minutes later we were eating, and although we exchanged glances and smiles, I was too busy to talk.

  Finally I leaned back with a sigh. “That was wonderful. You can make me breakfast any day.” It was just an offhand comment, but he studied me seriously. “What?” I asked.

  “Maybe this is a good time to bring up the idea I had.”

  I raised my eyebrows and waited. He smiled shyly—I was getting to recognize every nuance of those subtle smiles—and went on. “I thought you might like to stay here for a couple of days. You need to recover from everything you went through yesterday, and I’ll bet a bed and shower will help. Not to mention some good meals—which I’ll happily supply.”

  I felt my smile growing and couldn’t resist teasing. “Are you asking me to move in with you?”

  He gave a nervous laugh, and I could see his blush even through his tan. “I know it’s early to talk about the future. I know you might be leaving in a few weeks.”

  He got up, paced across the room, came back, sat down. He looked up, took a deep breath. Looked down at the table and released it. I tried not to laugh.

  When he finally met my eyes, his gaze pierced me and the laughter died. His husky voice sent an answering tremor through me. “I hope we can work out some way to be together, because you’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever met, and I can’t stand the thought of you walking out of my life.”

  He shook his head. “I wasn’t going to bring all that up now. I don’t want to add to your stress.” As our glances held, I felt a little thrill of recognition—like I was looking at my soul mate.

  I had wondered if I’d be able to let myself trust again. I realized it wasn’t a simple matter of choice. I did trust Danesh. That didn’t mean our relationship would be perfect or even easy—but I was ready to dive into life again, to take a chance on love and work my butt off to help us succeed.

  He added softly, “I want to hold you at night and make the nightmares go away. I want to watch you work and take you dancing and learn everything about you.”

  I got up and slowly moved around the table, my gaze still locked to his. He pushed his chair back. Before he could stand, I put a hand on his shoulder and slid onto his lap, straddling him. “I think that’s a very good idea. Is it too early to tell you that I’ve already started looking for jobs in this area? Even before I came out here—it’s like some part of me knew.”

  His hands slid over my hips and he smiled, his dark eyes holding a kind of fire. I leaned in.

  I paused with my lips an inch from his, savoring the tingle of anticipation, the warmth slowly spreading from my belly to my limbs. His smile filled with promises. He lifted a hand to stroke across my neck and around the back of my head. His fingers tangled in my hair and with gentle pressure he pulled me closer.

  Our lips met with a sigh of welcome. We drifted into a languid, lazy kiss full of warmth and comfort. I could almost sense the universe spinning around us while his hands held me firmly grounded.

  I gave a little murmur of pleasure and wriggled even closer. His hand still on my hip slipped under my T-shirt and stroked my back. My breasts pressed against his chest, reminding me that I wasn’t wearing a bra.

  Suddenly the thin fabric of our T-shirts seemed far too much of a barrier between us. I nipped at his lip and then moved to feast on his delicious neck, rocking my hips and rubbing my body against his. His head fell back and he groaned.

  He slid his hips forward in the chair as his arms banded around me and hauled me close. Desire flooded me, leaving me breathless and dizzy. I threaded my fingers in his hair and ravaged his mouth
.

  His hands slid up my sides, taking my T-shirt with them and baring my breasts. One hand closed over my breast and I gasped.

  He leaned me back in his lap and dipped his head toward my breast, flicking the nipple with his tongue. I clutched at his shoulders for balance as my ragged breathing echoed in my ears. His mouth closed over me and I thought I would burst into flames.

  “Oh my God,” I panted. “I want you. Now.”

  The doorbell rang.

  I jumped and we stared at each other. It took a good five seconds before my brain really processed what I’d heard. Danesh shook his head like a man waking from a dream.

  We sat gasping for a moment. The doorbell rang again, a long demand that erased any hope the intruder would just go away. I blew out a breath and then started laughing. “Is something wrong with my timing?”

  Danesh stood, lifting me with him, and set me on my feet. He glanced down and shifted himself in his jeans, and then pulled out his T-shirt to hide the bulge. He sighed and looked toward the door as the bell rang again. “I’d ignore it, but it could be the police. I told them we’d check in today, but they might be getting impatient.”

  I grimaced, hating the thought of facing uniforms again. They held bad associations, even if the police had always been on my side.

  Danesh frowned. “Or it could be the press. If it is, I’ll get rid of them. Stay out of sight for a minute.”

  The press. The omelet suddenly felt heavy in my stomach. I did not want to do interviews, especially not now—before we’d sorted everything out about Jerry and learned what happened to Sean. I hurried to the bedroom as Danesh opened the front door.

  I jolted when I recognized the voice from the next room. “Oh, Danny, what happened?” Maureen wailed. “They won’t tell me anything, the police or the hospital, just that he’s in serious condition and I can’t even see him.”

  I felt a stab of guilt because I’d forgotten Maureen completely. I heard Danesh murmuring to her and decided to stay out of it. I didn’t want to go over the story again, trying to hide Jerry’s guilt. I didn’t want to see Maureen’s reaction, to know how much Jerry really meant to her—or didn’t.

  I glanced at the bed with a sigh. The tragedies of the real world had come crashing in, putting desire on hold. At least I had something to look forward to, and any lingering fears of intimacy had vanished. My mind had been so swamped with feelings for Danesh that no trauma from the past could get close.

  I looked around Danesh’s bedroom, trying to ignore the conversation in the next room. Bookshelves filled one wall. I scanned the titles and found German philosophy, English poetry, Native American folklore, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, and The Tao of Pooh. One shelf held mysteries set in the Southwest by authors like J. Michael Orenduff, Steve Brewer, and Beth Groundwater, along with a set of “Learn Spanish” books and practice tapes. National Geographic magazines filled one entire row. The bottom shelf featured oversized books—collections of photographs of the Southwest, photography instruction manuals, and three well-worn collections of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons.

  I felt an odd sense of homecoming and smiled. I started to reach for one of the Calvin and Hobbes books, but the thought of home made me hesitate. Danesh had mentioned the press. Was this a big enough story to get picked up nationwide? Would my name be mentioned?

  Even if it wasn’t, any story about a woman archaeologist getting in trouble at Lost Valley would be enough to alarm my parents. I decided I’d better call home.

  I wasn’t sure where my phone was, but I found Danesh’s and decided he wouldn’t mind me using it. I dialed my parents’ number and smiled as my mother answered on the second ring. “Hi, Mom.”

  “Kylie! How are you? Are you having a fun trip?”

  “A lot has happened.”

  “Well, tell me! Anything fit for a mother’s ears, at least.”

  Where should I start, and how could I tell it all? Memories tumbled through my mind—the canyon, Sean falling, the police station, falling asleep in Danesh’s arms….

  “I think I’m in love.” I hadn’t known I was going to say that. But I suddenly realized it was true and more important than anything else.

  “Honey, that’s wonderful! Tell me about him.”

  I tried to explain another person, to capture in words the nuances that made him special—his brilliant flash of smile, his annoying bossiness and deep compassion, his quirky humor and love of nature.

  “Well, he sounds very nice,” my mother said.

  “And Mom, some stuff’s been happening here, you might hear about it on the news, but don’t worry. I’m all right.” And I knew then that I was.

  Chapter 29

  Danesh tapped on the half-open door. “We’re going to the hospital. Like to come?”

  Maureen stood behind him, her eyes huge and shiny but her makeup somehow still intact. She stared at me, but I’m not sure she really saw me. I nodded and went to join them. Maureen wasn’t the only one who wanted answers.

  Danesh said, “After that, we can head out to the park. You can pick up your things, and I should check in at the office. Given the circumstances, we’re closing for the day, but I left the visitors center unlocked last night so the search team could use it as a base.”

  He led us outside, where a little red sports car was parked at a crazy angle to the curb. Maureen pulled out her keys. Danesh glanced at her shaking hands and took the keys from her. “Kylie, do you want to drive Maureen’s car and follow me, or do you feel comfortable driving the truck?”

  I wasn’t sure what I would say to Maureen during the drive, but I wasn’t confident with the truck in traffic. I took the keys.

  I needn’t have worried about making conversation. Maureen was too distracted even to comment on the fact that I’d spent the night with Danesh. She stared out the window, silent except for an occasional short, jerky breath.

  Danesh turned into a parking lot a few minutes later. If it weren’t for the signs, I wouldn’t have recognized it as a hospital, since the low building had little in common with the mammoth complexes I knew in Boston.

  Maureen jumped out and ran for the building, not even bothering to close her door properly. I took care of that and went in with Danesh. We found Maureen at the counter, babbling and gesturing wildly. The pretty young woman behind the counter gazed at her complacently.

  The receptionist turned to Danesh. “Hey sweetie, how’s the hero?” Sweetie? And I couldn’t help noticing her long, glossy brown hair and great figure.

  He put his arm around me. “I don’t know, you’ll have to ask Kylie. Kylie, my cousin Alice.”

  “Oh.” I blinked at her as she turned her curious gaze on me. “Pleased to meet you.” A cousin was all right. Then I processed the rest of their conversation. Hero? I didn’t feel like a hero. I didn’t even know yet if I was a murderer. Not murderer, I reminded myself—it was self-defense. But still, I’d caused someone’s death. Manslaughterer, maybe.

  “Please, can I see Jerry?” Maureen wailed.

  “I’ll check,” Alice said. She headed down the hallway.

  “But if she can see him, why can’t I see him?” Maureen demanded.

  Danesh took her arm and steered her toward the waiting area. “She works here. Just be patient.” He nudged Maureen into a chair.

  I sat nearby and stared at the posters on the wall without really seeing them. Would I ever be able to enter a police station or hospital again without triggering unpleasant memories? I wanted to go to Danesh, to ask him to hold me, but Maureen needed him more than I did.

  I breathed deeply and started doing my grounding exercises. Surely I’d proven one thing last night—that I could keep going when the going got tough. I hadn’t forgotten the blind panic that sent me climbing up to the Castle. And trying to explain to the police the logic behind that had not been easy, since I now saw there wasn’t any. Still, for every stupid situation I’d gotten myself into, I’d gotten myself out again. No way was I a her
o, but I’d done something. I’d shown up. I could hold onto that.

  Alice came back a minute later. “You can see him, but only one at a time.” As Maureen started to rise, Alice gestured to Danesh and added, “He wants to see you first.”

  Maureen froze halfway to her feet. “Not... not me?”

  Danesh patted her shoulder. “I’m sure he wants to see you, too. I’ll just be a minute. Then he’ll be all yours.”

  Maureen settled back in her chair with a little whimper and stared after Danesh as he followed Alice down the hall. She hardly seemed aware of me.

  I hoped Jerry wouldn’t ask to see me. What could I say to him? You nearly got me killed, you made me hurt people, maybe kill one, but it’s all right? It wasn’t all right, and I didn’t want to face any of the criminals involved.

  But Jerry was in the hospital, seriously injured. Two men were in jail, facing long sentences. Sean was probably dead. I was healthy except for bruises and blisters that would heal in a few days. I was free, and now I had Danesh and a future. I was clearly the winner, if there was such a thing. Maybe that didn’t make up for the terror that would still haunt me, but I could count my blessings.

  I moved to the chair next to Maureen and spoke gently. “I’m sure he’ll be all right. He must be conscious if he asked for Danesh.”

  She turned tear-filled eyes on me. “I love him,” she whispered. “I really do love him, and I’ve been so hard on him... pushing him to get a better job, nagging him about money. I might have lost him last night. I’ve been worrying about how well we’re going to live, when we should just be living. We should be starting a family. He’s a good man and he’ll be a good father. I don’t want to waste any more time.”

  She put her hand over her mouth and started crying. I patted her arm awkwardly and mumbled something meaningless.

  A minute later, Maureen jumped up and raced for the hallway. Alice turned back with her while Danesh joined me. He sat with a sigh. “Jerry wanted me to apologize. He feels terrible that he put you in danger. He swears he didn’t mean to—you scared him when you came in with that story of seeing Sean, and he panicked. He called Sean to warn him, but he thought they’d just run.”