“Hey, babe.” Reed breezed in and planted a kiss on her cheek. “How about we order pizza tonight? Samantha brought it up and I think it’s a great idea. No need to cook. I also need to tell you about a phone call I just got. It was from Logan.”
“I’m on board with the pizza idea.” She picked up her phone from the kitchen counter. “Should we get salad and breadsticks, too?”
“Sounds perfect. And get a lot. Josh is a growing teenage boy. When I was his age, I would eat dinner and then eat a second one around bedtime.”
Kaylee sighed, punching in the order. “They’re both growing up so fast. I was talking to Josh the other day about colleges.”
“We have a little more time with Samantha. But we don’t stop being Josh’s parents just because he leaves for school.”
No, but it would be different. Right now everything felt so…warm. So cozy. She’d known she’d wanted to be a mother but she hadn’t realized how having two children in the house would change things. It was louder, more lively, and so full of love. Out of habit, her fingers strayed down to the spot where a scar – faded now - sat in remembrance of that day many years ago. She’d been shot and almost hadn’t made it.
I am such a lucky woman.
She completed the order and waited for the confirmation to arrive. Thirty minutes from now they should be eating.
“Now tell me about your call with Logan. What’s going on? Do you need to go into the office?”
“Actually, I need to fly to Corville,” Reed replied with a grimace. “Would you be okay here with the kids if I went with Logan?”
“Of course, I’ll be fine. I thought Eli was going to Corville to investigate the dead bodies.”
“That was the original plan but since then Drake has found three more bodies in a similar state. It’s looking more like a serial.”
Three more bodies?
“That doesn’t explain why you and Logan are going. I know that Eli can handle a case like that.”
“He certainly can. The reason Logan is going is that the town is demanding that he be there. Apparently, they don’t trust anyone but him. I would be going to give him some moral support. He doesn’t want to go and for good reason. He didn’t ask me to but I offered. It seemed like the right thing to do.”
Corville seemed to have a casual relationship with the truth. They blamed Ava and Logan for wiping out Bryson Industries, but not Wade Bryson for being a vicious serial killer. It made no sense. Even Ava’s own sister acted like she was somehow a victim. It was seriously crazy.
“Then you should go and be there for him,” Kaylee said. “I can handle the home front. We’ll be fine.”
“You’re leaving?”
They hadn’t heard Josh join them in the kitchen. He was standing in the doorway wearing a frown, his gaze darting back and forth between Reed and Kaylee.
“Business trip,” Reed replied. “I won’t be gone long, though. Maybe a few days?”
“We ordered pizza for dinner,” Kaylee said. “It should be here soon. Are you and Samantha hungry?”
Josh nodded, tossing a glance over his shoulder. “Sami is watching the end of the movie and then she’ll be ready to eat.”
“You don’t like the movie?” Kaylee asked.
“I’ve seen it,” Josh said with a shrug. “Several times. The ending doesn’t change. So why are you going? Has there been a murder?”
They’d explained to Josh in the beginning exactly what Reed did for a living and the teenager had been intrigued. He was always asking questions and had shown an interest in law enforcement work. Lately, he’d been earning extra money by helping Kaylee and Ava with some research for their latest book, plus doing some administrative tasks.
“There have been several,” Reed confirmed. “It’s Logan’s hometown so we’re going to go for a few days and take a look. Help the citizens calm down. Understandably, they’re scared and upset.”
“Is it a serial killer?”
“It could be,” Reed replied. “It could also be drug related. We don’t know for sure.”
“It sounds interesting. I wish I could go with you.”
Reed’s brows shot up. “You want to go? Why?”
Josh shrugged. “I just think it would be interesting. I know you keep saying that cop work is usually boring and repetitive but this sounds different.”
“You have finals this week,” Kaylee reminded him. “Just four more days of school and you’ll be done.”
Reed stroked his chin, his beard heavy at the end of the day. Logan had made a comment about Colt helping out this summer and had suggested that Josh might want in on it, too. They were both at the age where they wanted to make some extra cash.
“I can’t take you with me this time, but maybe you can help out at the office a couple of days a week this summer.”
Josh’s serious expression immediately turned into a happy grin. “Really? You mean it?”
“You’re not going to visit any crime scenes,” Reed warned him with a laugh. “Or look at autopsy photos but yes, you can help.”
Kaylee playfully made a sour face. “Wait a minute. He’s helping me and Ava. You can’t steal my best employee.”
“I can do both,” Josh said eagerly. “I can. Please, Mom?”
Her son had only recently started calling her mom. While Samantha had called them Mom and Dad within six months, Josh had taken much longer. They hadn’t rushed either one of them, letting them do it in their own time.
But hearing it never got old. At least to Kaylee. And when he said it, she was kind of a pushover.
“Of course, you can help your father at the office. But I don’t want you to work every day. I want you to enjoy your summer as well. This might be the last one where you have free time.”
Soon he’d be studying for his SATs, doing internships, and egad…dating. And driving. She couldn’t decide which she was more nervous about. Probably the driving. He’d survive his first broken heart, but a car accident? That was a different story.
Josh promised and then headed back to his room, leaving Kaylee and Reed alone in the kitchen.
“Promise me that he won’t see a bunch of grisly murder scene photos. He’s too young.”
“I promise. But I will say that he’s got a keen interest in law enforcement. I’ve tried to discourage it a bit but he’s really excited about it. If it’s what he wants to do…”
“I won’t hold him back,” Kaylee sighed. “I just want him to do something that he loves. But I also want him to experience more and then decide. I don’t want him to be a cop because he wants to impress you.”
“I don’t want that either. Let’s just take it one day at a time. I don’t have anything against him being a cop if that’s what he truly wants to do. Law enforcement has been good to me, after all. I just want to make sure that he knows what he’s getting into.”
One day at a time. That was pretty standard in the Mitchell household.
Reed stepped closer, leaning down to brush his lips against her jaw. His breath was warm on her cheek. “How about you and me have a little married couple time later? After the kids go to bed?”
“Josh is fifteen years old, Reed. He doesn’t have a bedtime. He might be up late studying for finals.”
Chuckling, her husband slid his arms around her middle, his strong hands warm wherever they touched. A zing of electricity ran up her spine and she pressed herself closer.
“I guess we’ll need to be extra quiet then, won’t we?”
“We will. Meet you in the bathtub about ten o’clock?”
“It’s a date.”
Squeaky clean fun with her husband? She’d take it.
The dishwasher was started. The doors were locked. Sami had brushed her teeth and was currently sleeping peacefully in her room while Josh was up late studying for finals. When Kaylee had passed by his bedroom door, she’d heard music playing softly in the background. All the downstairs lights were off and television was on in the master bedroom just
loud enough to drown out any noise they might make in the bathtub.
Ah, the bathtub.
When Reed and Kaylee had renovated their bathroom two years ago, the one thing she’d wanted was a huge tub to have a long soak in. One that would cover her knees and boobs at the same time. Bonus points if it could fit two people.
Reed had done them one better. He’d found a gigantic tub with jets. That’s right. Jetted water points directly at the sore spots on her lower back and in between her shoulders.
Or at least most times that’s where they were pointed. Tonight? That tub was going to see some steamy action.
Reed was still downstairs checking his email about his upcoming trip but Kaylee decided that it would be fun to get the party started now. She stripped down and stepped into the tub, the water swirling around her body as she eased down into the hot water. A sigh escaped her lips and a day’s worth of tension seemed to fall away in that instant.
Pure bliss.
She wriggled her toes and placed a foot in front of one of the jets, letting it massage her aching arches. Shifting in the tub, she found just the right positioning so that two jets were pointed directly at her lower back. Sheer heaven.
Her eyelids drifted shut and her fingers slid down over her abdomen and then between her legs. Just thinking about tonight had made her half-aroused all evening, and she was already wet and slick. Her finger circled her swollen clit, over and over, knowing exactly what she needed to send her into the stars. Within only a few minutes she was right there. So close. Every muscle in her body tensed for the explosion.
“Looks like you started without me.”
Her eyes flew open but her orgasm had already begun, too late to stop it. Reed watched her hungrily as the climax washed over her, an evil smile on his face. He wasn’t angry in the least and she hadn’t expected it, to be honest. If anything, he loved to watch her, his own arousal stoked when she gave herself pleasure.
“I was just getting things warmed up,” she said when she could finally speak again. Reed had come closer, sitting on the edge of the tub but he’d never lifted his gaze from her. “Are you going to join me?”
“That’s definitely the plan.”
But he still didn’t move, seemingly content to just…look.
“You probably don’t want to get your clothes wet.”
He looked down at himself and smiled. “I am wearing too many clothes. I should get rid of these.”
Yes, a wholehearted affirmative. Kaylee could never get enough of looking at her husband in the nude. It was as if his body was carved out of marble or maybe like one of those Spartan warriors she’d seen in a movie years ago.
Levering up, he popped open the button on his faded blue jeans and then slowly lowered the zipper. He knew what he was doing, and he was going to draw it out, too. Such a tease. But then the two of them had always liked to play in the bedroom. It certainly kept things interesting.
“You gonna take those off, handsome?”
He didn’t respond, instead sliding them and his boxer briefs down his powerful thighs and then off, kicking them aside. He pulled his blue t-shirt over his head and tossed it carelessly as well. He stood towering over her, every mouthwatering inch of him looking amazing.
“What are you thinking?” he asked, taking a step closer so that his knees were right against the edge of the tub. “You have a wicked expression on your face.”
Getting on her knees, she ran her wet hands up his legs, cupping his length that was already hot, hard, and ready. “I’m thinking about this, actually.”
She teased the tip with her tongue, drawing a low groan from him. His fingers tangled in her hair, tugging her closer so she would take more of him. She loved it when he was like this, firmly in control. She could sit back and just enjoy it all. Reed was in charge. In her overly scheduled and busy life, this was a luxury she looked forward to. She’d trust him with anything, especially her pleasure.
He began to thrust in and out of her mouth, and she tried to relax her throat as much as she could. She fluttered her tongue with each stroke, delighted when’s he heard his quick intake of breath. But he pulled away, albeit rather reluctantly, stepping into the bathtub with her.
“I want to be inside of you.”
She wanted that, too. She would have been happy to finish him with her mouth but this…was far better. She allowed him to position her in the tub so that a jet was pointed directly at her clit. She wouldn’t be able to hold on for long. He must have read her mind.
“Now, I don’t want you to come until I say it’s okay. I want you to hold back. Can you do that for me, sweetheart?”
Probably. Maybe. She’d sure as hell try.
“I can,” she said with more confidence than she felt. “I can do that. But don’t make me wait too long.”
“I won’t. I just want us to enjoy this.”
With her bent over the edge, he pressed into her from behind until he was into the hilt, full and snug and perfect. As he’d promised, he didn’t make her wait, immediately beginning to piston in and out, rubbing at all of those sensitive spots inside while the jet hummed against her already sensitive clit. She was instantly climbing and it wouldn’t take much to send her over.
Her forehead rested on the porcelain of the tub, the surface cool against her heated flesh. His hands gripped her hips as he thrust, building up speed as he fucked her harder and faster. That evil jet was doing exactly what it was supposed to do and she needed to come. Now.
“Reed,” she gasped. “I need—I need…”
She couldn’t even form sentences at this point. The heat that had begun in her belly has spread throughout her body all the way down to her curled toes and she was being consumed by the flames. She squeezed her eyes shut to try and control a climax that was barreling toward her like a boulder down a hill.
“Just hold back a minute more. It’s going to make it so much better if you do.”
Her nails clawed at the tub, her mind desperately trying to control a body that simply didn’t want to listen. She mewled in frustration as the feeling built to an excruciating crescendo, her body beginning to shake with the effort of holding back.
“Come for me, baby. Come hard.”
Kaylee went off like a rocket, straight into the sky. Arching her back, she called out Reed’s name as he, too, fell over the cliff. She gripped his hand and rode the seemingly endless waves of pleasure that were almost painful in their intensity.
When it was over, they collapsed into the tub together, her lounging against Reed’s chest. He played with her long hair, tickling her nose with a strand while whispering how beautiful and amazing she was. His fingers lingered on the scar on her lower belly where she’d been shot. It had faded some as time had passed but neither one of them ever looked at it and didn’t feel gratitude that she’d survived against all odds. It all could have turned out so differently. They’d been given a second chance and they weren’t going to blow it. They’d walked through the flames and come out the other side. Stronger.
She loved this man, and she knew with every bone in her body that he loved her.
She’d never take that for granted.
“Reed?”
“Hmmmm?”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Such simple words, but they held so much meaning and emotion.
There was no doubt in her mind. They were meant to be together.
10
Logan was surprised to see Dare Turner pick them up at the airport early the next morning. In an effort to get to their destination as soon as possible, Logan’s partner Jason had chartered a jet to fly them there before dawn. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon as the aircraft touched down.
Dare was a real piece of work. He had to easily be the grouchiest person Logan had ever met in his life. The man had a heart of gold and would give a friend the shirt off of his back, but he wore a perpetual expression of pure fucking pissed-the-hell-off. T
he only thing that seemed to make him smile was his wife Rayne and his two daughters Cherish and Hope. Rayne, on the other hand, was a free spirit who smiled constantly and had a fervent zest for life.
The airport they’d landed in was small and meant mostly for private planes so they exited right onto the tarmac, grabbing their suitcases before hopping into Dare’s official SUV.
“We expected Seth to pick us up, but it’s good to see you instead,” Reed said as the truck accelerated smoothly. “Where are we headed?”
“Seth was originally set to come but he had to deal with an issue in Harper this morning. He’s going to meet us in Corville. Drake has set up something of a command center there. Griffin will be joining us later, too,” Dare replied. “All of law enforcement in the area is on high alert. Just because he’s dumping bodies near Corville doesn’t mean any of our towns couldn’t be next. By the way, Drake found a sixth body last night.”
“Six?” Reed asked. “Same method of death?”
“The very same,” Dare confirmed. “Grisly as all fuck.”
“Any identifications made yet?” Logan asked, the tension inside of him growing as the SUV ate up the miles. They’d be in Corville far too soon. “I think victimology is going to be king here on this case. What do all of these men have in common?”
Dare nodded in agreement. “I think you’re right. We’ve got some preliminary IDs but we still have a few John Does. Hopefully, we can give them names by the end of the day. Drake has deputies combing through missing person reports in the area.”
Jared was doing the same from Seattle, casting a wider net in case the victims weren’t local.
“You need to know that the national news is here,” Dare said a few minutes later. “They’re definitely going to want to talk to both of you.”
Fuck ‘em. Logan didn’t have any intention to give any interviews or even a fucking statement, if he could help it. He was here to do a job and that job was to calm down the citizens of Corville. After all of these years, they should have had more confidence in Drake but some people - especially these people - didn’t like change all that much. Logan hadn’t been the sheriff in town for almost fifteen years and yet they still thought they could summon him like a genie out of a bottle.
Forgiven Justice (Cowboy Justice Association Book 14) Page 7