He could sense that she was telling the truth, or at least mostly the truth, since he knew about the maps and her search for someone named Molly. “You picked a strange place to have an adventure,” he said, grinning at her. “This is about as exciting as it gets in Prospect.”
She smiled at him. “I’m embarrassed to admit that this is the most excitement I’ve had in quite a while,” she said. “People always think that living in a city like New York is exciting, but the truth is that it can make you feel very alone. At least here you have lots of friends and neighbors who actually talk to you.”
Michael reached out and covered her hand with his. “I’ve enjoyed tonight too,” he said.
Their eyes met, and he felt something click into place deep inside him, but it was quickly followed by a moment of panic. He looked away, his heart pounding with more than just desire, then noticed that the room had cleared out. “Looks like they’re starting to clean up. We’d better go and let them get on with it.”
Amy looked around. “Oh, dear, I didn’t realize it had gotten so late,” she said, getting to her feet. “We’d better go.”
When they walked out of the high school, the night had grown cold, but he barely noticed at first, his mind spinning with what he’d just felt. It had gone away quickly, but that one second had been enough to tell him that he was on shaky ground, and it scared the hell out of him. Trying not to look at Amy, he walked next to her, but he felt her shiver and looked over at her, suddenly realizing that she was cold.
“Here, take my coat; you look like you’re freezing,” he said, draping it around her shoulders.
She looked up at him and smiled. “Thanks. I didn’t realize how cold it would get after the sun went down. It feels like winter is on the way.”
“Hopefully not quite yet,” he said, unable to stop himself from putting his hand on the small of her back as they walked to his truck.
When they got to the truck, he reached around her, unlocked the door, and opened for her. She took the coat off and turned around to look at him, and suddenly they were face to face, her lips only inches from his, the coat the only thing between their bodies. He got a whiff of her perfume, something sweet but spicy, and his body began to tingle. Resisting the urge to kiss her only worked until she ran her tongue over her slightly parted lips and looked directly into his eyes.
Instinct kicked in, and there was nothing he could do to stop himself from leaning down and capturing her lips with his. She stiffened in his arms only a second and then seemed to melt into his, her arms snaking up his chest and around his neck. He pressed her body against his and deepened the kiss, exploring her mouth with his tongue until they were both breathless.
He was reluctant to let her go, wanted to take a deep breath and kiss her again, but in those few seconds, his brain began working again. “I guess I should take you home,” he said, but even he could tell that he didn’t mean it.
“I suppose it is kind of late,” Amy said, handing him his jacket and climbing into the truck.
They drove back to the cabin in silence, but the air between them was charged with the passion they’d just awoken. He parked the truck in front of her cabin, then turned to face her. “I had a nice time tonight Amy,” he said, thinking about kissing her again.
But she didn’t give him a chance. “I did too, Michael. Thank you for a wonderful dinner; it was much better than staying home alone,” she said, then opened the door and jumped out.
He watched her until she was inside, a smile on his face that almost hurt, then headed for his mother’s house. She hadn’t been very happy when he’d canceled on her earlier, but they would probably all still be there, and he needed an update on the demon situation. When he walked in, they were all exactly where he thought they would be: at the kitchen table with the remains of a huge chocolate cake.
“Well, I see you’ve finally decided to join us,” Gabriel said when he saw him standing in the doorway.
“Why are you smiling like that?” his mother demanded, narrowing her eyes at him. “I know where you were tonight; the phone has been ringing off the hook. What were you thinking taking that woman to the high school?”
“Oh, Mother, I was just doing my job,” he said. “I need to find out how she knows Molly, and dinner seemed like a good way to do that without making her suspicious.”
His mother crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him, then finally said, “From what I heard, you were doing a little more than your job.”
For a minute, he started to panic, thinking that someone had seen him kiss Amy, but then his mother said, “I heard that you asked for a corner table and that you two only had eyes for each other. I hate being the topic of town gossip, Michael, you know that.”
He sighed, knowing that it was going to take a while to calm his mother down, but deep inside, he was still humming with the pleasure of kissing Amy. “Mother, it wasn’t anything like that, and I did find out some interesting things about our visitor today.”
***Amy***
Amy snuggled down deeper under the covers and looked out the window at the stars twinkling in the sky, thinking that it had been a magical night. The last thing she’d expected to find on this trip was romance, but it had found her, and in the last place she would have thought to look. Of course, she’d never been a very good judge of men, had time and again picked the wrong man only to find out the truth after it was too late.
After the last one, she’d given up on love and decided that living alone was better than having her heart broken and her dreams shattered over and over. She wasn’t deceiving herself about Michael; she knew that it was a fling, that in a few days she’d leave, and he would just be a memory. But what she’d felt when he kissed her had been so wonderful, she wasn’t going to turn her back on it, even if it meant a little heartache later.
She was a grown woman, and if she wasn’t destined to find someone to spend the rest of her life with, then she’d take what she could get and what Michael was offering was a few days of bliss. The little tinges of guilt she felt when she realized that she’d completely forgotten about Molly couldn’t block the pleasure of the night, so she pushed them away. Promising herself that she’d get up early in the morning and get back to looking for Molly, she closed her eyes and let Michael invade her dreams.
The sunshine coming through her bedroom window woke her the next morning; her first thought was of Michael, and a smile spread across her face. But then she remembered why she was there and the smile disappeared. It had been easy to forget her fears last night with Michael. Now they came rushing back at her, and she wondered if she’d be able to get out of town this morning, and if she should just keep going if she did.
After she’d showered and dressed, she stood staring at her suitcase for a long time, trying to decide, then made up her mind and left her clothes right where they were. She didn’t think about how much her decision was based on the hunky sheriff who’d kissed her breathless last night, telling herself instead that she’d made a promise to find Molly, and that was exactly what she was going to do.
When she walked out of the door into the bright sunshine, she stood, letting it soak into her skin for a minute before heading to her car. The chill of the night before was gone and it looked like it was going to be a beautiful fall day, and she wished that she were free to enjoy it. The trees were draped in brilliant shades of orange, yellow, and red, and although it was warm, there was a crispness in the air that spoke of the cold to come.
She was so distracted by the beauty around her, she almost missed the flat tire that made the car sit slightly crooked. Her heart sinking, she stood staring at it, thinking that she just couldn’t get a break: first the road closure and now a flat tire. Fear rushed through her when she realized that she was once again stuck in town. Looking around her, she saw the curtains move in the office and wanted to give Miranda a hand gesture that wasn’t very nice.
But instead, she headed for Main Street, thinking that it wasn’t
that far to the garage where she’d be able to get some help with her tire. She was just passing the restaurant when Michael pulled up and parked, then leaped out and stopped her. “Where are you off to this morning?” he asked.
Amy sighed. “I have a flat tire,” she said. “I thought I’d walk over to the garage and see if Jimmy could help me.”
“How about some breakfast first?” he asked, shooting her a grin. “It’s a long walk over there.”
Amy studied him for a minute, wondering if he was purposely distracting her. “Okay, I guess I’m not in any hurry,” she said, feeling the exact opposite.
“Great,” he said, holding open the door.
As soon as they sat down, Michael got out his phone and made a call, grinning at her the entire time. “Jimmy,” he said into the phone. “It’s Sheriff Anderson. I need you to go to the cabins and take care of a flat tire for me.”
When he hung up, she said, “Thank you, but I could have walked over there.”
He shrugged. “It’s no big deal. I’m just glad I can help.”
Amy relaxed into the booth and picked up her menu, a smile on her face, her heart beating frantically in her chest, her worries forgotten. Molly would forgive her for having breakfast while she waited for her car to be fixed, especially if she could see her breakfast companion. Thinking about the look on Molly’s face if she knew what was happening made her smile even bigger and miss her friend even more.
Chapter Ten
***Michael***
Michael hadn’t expected Amy to find her flat tire quite so soon, but he’d been prepared since he was the one responsible. He felt guilty for sneaking over and sticking the nail in her tire in the middle of the night, but he needed to be sure that she didn’t leave town. More and more, he realized how important it was that he figure out why she’d tracked Molly here, and if she could be trusted with the truth.
But he knew that trust wasn’t really the issue. First, she’d have to believe him, and that wasn’t very likely to happen. He needed Molly here to tell her what was really happening and why she’d suddenly disappeared, and she wasn’t going to be home for at least another week. It wasn’t going to be easy to distract Amy for that long; there was only so much to do in Prospect Falls. What he needed was to make her think that her maps were wrong.
First, he’d have to get her to show them to him, which wasn’t going to happen unless he could get her to mention Molly first. With that in mind, he finished his breakfast, making idle chat with her about the weather and what winter was like in Prospect Falls. He had a plan in place for the day, but tomorrow was gaping in front of him, and he wasn’t sure he could distract her that much longer. Eventually, she was going to slip away from him.
After he paid the check, he put his plan into action. “Since you can’t go wherever you were off to this morning, how about I show you around town? It’s a beautiful day; I hear the trees in the park are at their peak.”
Amy smiled at him. “How long will it take Jimmy to fix my car?” she asked, clearly having a hard time deciding.
“He said it would be after lunch before he could get to it,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.
“Oh, that long,” Amy said, looking through the window at the beautiful day. “I guess a tour would be nice.”
He got up and held out his hand. “Then let’s be on our way,” he said.
For the next hour, they walked around town hand in hand, and for a little while, he forgot that he was talking to a stranger. Amy listened to him talk about the town and his family, interjecting questions and exclaiming over the unique architecture of the many old buildings that had survived the wages of time. He wondered what she was thinking, if the town seemed strange to her with its medieval flair and old-world feeling.
When they got to the park, he bought them hot chocolate from the concession booth attached to the bandstand, and then led her to a bench in the sun. They sat in silence, admiring the vibrant colors in the trees around them and watching the squirrels scamper around, picking up the nuts that had fallen from the branches.
But then Amy broke the silence. “Prospect Falls reminds me of England,” she said, looking over at the courthouse. “Some of the little villages look exactly like this.”
“You’ve been to England?” he asked, surprised.
“I spent every summer there until I was fourteen,” she said, nodding, a wistful look in her eyes. “My grandmother died and I never went back, but it almost feels like I’m there now.”
“You mentioned your grandmother, but I didn’t realize,” he said. “I’m sorry, Amy, you must miss her a lot.”
“It was years ago, but sometimes I can still hear her telling me her stories,” she said. “Being here only makes her voice that much clearer.”
Michael nodded. “This town has a strange effect on people,” he said. “But I’m not surprised that you feel right at home here.”
She laughed. “Prospect Falls certainly does have a medieval feel to it,” she said. “Maybe I should make it a required field trip.”
He laughed. “I’m not sure the people here would like that,” he said.
“No, I suppose not; a bunch of rowdy college students might be a bit of a nuisance,” Amy said. “Besides, they’re barely tolerating me.”
“Oh, come on, it’s not that bad,” he said.
Amy looked at him surprised. “Well, let's see: Miranda tracks my every movement, and she came into my cabin and snooped through my stuff. People stare at me everywhere I go, talk behind my back. Jimmy is the only one who’s been nice to me.”
Michael looked hurt. “What about me?” he asked.
She blushed. “Oh, I mean besides you,” she said. “It’s okay, I understand, small town and all that. Maybe if I stayed around a while, they’d get used to me, but I don’t think I’ll be here that long.”
Michael felt his stomach contract at her words, and he was filled with a sense of disappointment when he thought about her leaving. “I guess you can’t stay here forever,” he said, taking her hand. “But I’ll take what I can get.”
She smiled up at him. “I guess I’m not in all that big of a hurry, but there is something I need to take care of this afternoon, something I’ve been putting off for too long.”
“Is it something I can help with?” he asked as casually as he could.
Amy studied him for a long time, and he knew that she was trying to decide if she could trust him. “I haven’t been totally honest with you,” she finally said. “I know I probably should have come to see you when I got into town, but everyone acted so strangely, I don’t know, I got freaked out.”
He turned to face her a little more. “Amy, what’s going on? You have to tell me; you're worrying me.”
She took a deep breath, took a second to collect her thoughts. “About three months ago, my friend Molly left New York for a new life, but it looks like she never made it. She was texting me every morning and every night, and then they just stopped. We were using location sharing and this is the last place her phone had a signal,” she said, her words coming out rushed, her eyes searching his face for a reaction.
***Amy***
Amy was watching Michael carefully, hoping that her leap of faith wasn’t going to backfire on her. But his face remained blank. Then he shook his head. “I don’t remember anyone coming through town a few months ago, but I don’t see everyone who comes through. You should ask Jimmy. He’d know better than anyone if she were here,” he said.
She let out the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding and sat back again the bench again, sighing. “I did, and he doesn’t remember her either,” she said.
“Have you filed a missing person’s report?” he asked, full of concern.
“No one will let me. They all say there’s no proof that she’s missing,” Amy said, wondering if she should mention the maps. “I have a pretty good idea where she was the last time her phone was working; it’s a few miles out of town.”
Michae
l looked surprised. “You mean it wasn’t here in town?” he asked.
She shook her head. “That’s where I’ve been trying to go. I keep thinking that if I can find her car, someone will believe me,” she said.
“Well, then let’s go find that car,” Michael said, getting to his feet. “I wish you would have told me this from the beginning. I could have saved you a lot of headaches.”
Amy laughed. “I know this is going to sound crazy, but I... well, I thought that if someone here did something to her, I might not be safe if they knew I was looking for her.”
Michael put his arm around her shoulders. “I can promise you one thing,” he said. “You have nothing to worry about. As unfriendly as we are, no one here hurt Molly.”
She sighed. “I see that now,” she said.
“Now, where is it that we need to go?” he asked.
“I have a map I made at the cabin. We could go get it,” she offered.
“Sounds like a good first step,” Michael said. “We’ll go check it out, and if we don’t find anything, I’ll make some phone calls.”
Amy finally felt better, felt like something was going to work for a change. “Thank you, Michael. I was beginning to lose hope.”
“We’ll have none of that,” he said, giving her a quick peck on the lips. “Now, let’s go see if we can find your friend.”
She tried not to grin like a fool as they walked back to the cabin, but it was almost impossible with Michael’s warm hand in hers. It was a relief to share her burden and have someone finally believe her, and she realized that she’d been so paranoid, she’d created problems where there weren’t any.
When they got back to the cabin, she showed him all her research and the map on her computer. “Hmm,” he said, leafing through the pages slowly. “You’ve done a good job. Are you sure you’re not a private investigator?”
Amy laughed. “I didn’t do that much, and from what I’ve seen, it doesn’t take a genius to be one,” she said. “What do you think?”
Dragon Mate's Secret (Guardian Dragons 0f Prospect Falls Book 2) Page 6