A Love to Treasure (Sunriver Dreams Book 1) (23 page)

Panic covered the man’s face.

Nicole stopped and frantically looked from side-to-side, presumably for a safe place to escape.

Mark skirted toward her, staying low and using the shrubs as cover.

The suspect moved faster and yanked her from the bike, holding her in a headlock. “My friend and I don’t want any trouble. You cops clear out of here, and no one gets hurt.”

Mark’s brain froze. Wild-eyed, Nicole whimpered and tugged at the man’s arms.

“Let the woman go.” Spencer edged into the street separating them.

He sneered and spat on the dirt.

Mark couldn’t let this thug hurt Nicole. Nausea gripped his stomach as memories of Tracy’s death flooded his mind. If only she’d answered her phone when he’d tried to warn her. He shrugged away the memory. This time had to be different, but why hadn’t he tried harder to warn Nicole to stay away? If she got hurt, it’d be his fault—again!

His breathing slowed as peace washed over him. He took a deep breath and willed himself to stay calm and wait. So far he’d gone undetected, which they could use to their advantage.

“I can’t let you leave with her.” Spencer’s voice was calm, but firm.

“Well we ain’t leaving here without her.”

Mark clenched his jaw. All things are possible with God, that’s what the Bible said, and that’s what he was counting on this very moment.

Inching forward slowly toward the giant of a man, Spencer chose a friendly tone. “The way I see it, you have a better chance of getting out of this alive by letting her go. You hurt her, and I’ll hurt you.”

“I’ll claim police brutality, and then you’ll be sorry.”

“Not if you’re dead.”

Mark heard the steel in Spencer’s voice and hoped the guy understood he meant business.

Their backup stood shielded by the Sheriff’s SUV with guns pointed at Nicole’s captor. Mark had a clean shot of the guy, but not if Nicole moved. It was too risky.

“The D.A. may cut you a deal if you cooperate. I can put a good word in for you—explain how cooperative you were.”

The man’s stance relaxed and his hold on Nicole appeared to loosen. “I’m no nark.”

“Fine, but don’t add assault and abduction to your charges. Let her go.”

Indecision warred on the man’s face. “How do I know, the second I let her go, you won’t shoot me dead.”

“I’m a man of my word. You let her go, you live. You don’t . . .”

Mark crept up behind the giant holding Nicole.

“It’s now or never.” Spencer held the man’s attention.

Mark took another step closer.

“Hold on. I’m thinking.”

The other guy stepped outside. “What’s taking so—” His eyes widened, and he dropped the box. The sound of glass shattering split the air.

The big guy released his hold on Nicole. Mark tased him. The man buckled to his knees. Spencer leapt forward, yanked the robber’s arms behind his back, and slapped on handcuffs. Their backup moved in and arrested the other guy.

Nicole rushed to Mark.

“You okay?” He grasped her forearms and looked into her shimmering eyes.

“I am now, thanks to you.”

He tugged her close, and she trembled in his arms. “You’re safe.” He kissed the top of her head and ducked down to look into her eyes. “Hey, it’s over.” The adrenaline rush he’d had subsided, and his legs shook. “Let’s go over to your place.” He motioned to Spencer where he was headed and guided Nicole to her deck. She hadn’t spoken again but allowed him to lead her into the nearest chair.

He pulled another seat across from her, and they sat knee to knee. “Talk to me, Nicole.” Had she been traumatized beyond her ability to cope? He grasped her freezing hands and rubbed them. Clearly she was in shock.

Her eyes met his. “I’m okay.” She spoke slowly as if coming out of a daze. Color crept back into her pale face.

“Yes, you’re okay. I tried to warn you, but you didn’t pick up.” Like Tracy, but this time the outcome had been different. It finally clicked in his head that Tracy’s death wasn’t his fault. Sure he knew technically it wasn’t his fault, but today he realized that no matter what he did, God was in control, not him. The guilt he’d been carrying finally subsided. He’d left Tracy a message warning her of the bomb, but she hadn’t listened. He’d told Nicole to stay put but hadn’t told her what was going down, and the result was the same. They’d both walked into danger. He couldn’t control people or their actions. But praise the Lord, things ended much differently this time.

“I was riding and couldn’t manage the bike and the phone, so let it go to voicemail. I pulled over and listened to your message. You could’ve told me not to go home!” The glazed look in her eyes shifted to anger. Her expression turned stormy. “You asked me to trust you. I did and then I was held at gunpoint.”

Mark sat back letting her hands fall into her lap. She wasn’t thinking clearly, or she never would have said that. “You’re in shock.”

“No. I’m angry. You could have warned me, but you didn’t. All you said in your message was stay put—for all I knew you wanted to meet me there and save me a trip home. I had no idea I was riding into danger. You could have told me what was happening. I never would have come home.”

He sighed.

The gate swung open, and Spencer stood there with her bike. “Where would you like this?”

“Park it there.” She stood and looked down at him, her hands still shaking from what she’d been through. “I don’t think I’ll be free tomorrow. Thanks for not getting me killed.” She walked past Spencer without even looking back.

The euphoria of a moment ago vanished. His gut wrenched. He hadn’t thought about this from her point of view. Maybe he should have told her exactly what they suspected, but he did what he thought was best at the time, and he couldn’t afford to second-guess himself. Hopefully Nicole would see that once she calmed down.

“Hey, man. Don’t worry. She’ll come around.” Spencer clapped him on the back. “You ready to process the scene?”

Mark glanced inside the house and noted Nicole. “Yeah, I guess.” He stood. “I messed up.”

“No. We caught the thieves, and no one got hurt. It was a success, and everyone will be a lot safer with those guys behind bars. Don’t beat yourself up. Give her time. She’s in shock. I’ll get her statement once we’re done here.”

He marched beside Spencer to the unmarked car sitting in Nicole’s driveway. If he could do a rewind, he’d have told her everything regardless of the risk that she would inadvertently mention it to Sarah. Maybe he wasn’t cut out to be a cop anymore.

Chapter Twenty

Nicole climbed the stairs to the loft and sat in the recliner. This had possibly been the longest day of her life. She rested her head back against the chair and ran through everything that had happened. It didn’t take long to realize she owed Mark an apology. Sure he could have said don’t go home, but she knew he hadn’t purposefully allowed her to come into harm’s way.

She’d give him a call a little later and invite him over, or better yet maybe she’d surprise him tomorrow morning and show up at his place with one of those giant donuts from the bakery. She would call now, but she’d heard one of the officers say it’d be a long night and didn’t want to disturb him.

Needing something to do with the rest of the evening, she went to the bookshelf and looked over the titles. The spine of a Bible grabbed her attention. “That’s it!” Why hadn’t she thought of this sooner? She took what appeared to be her grandmother’s personal Bible from the middle shelf. It had been there the whole time, yet she hadn’t realized its significance until now. “Home is where the heart is.” Grams had always said she felt at home in God’s Word.

She cradled the Bible between her hands and sank into the chair. Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly then opened the cover. Tucked inside she found a folded piece of paper. She opened it and read.

The game is nearly over. If you ever had any doubt, please know that I love you almost as much as I love my Lord and Savior. But He loves you more than I am capable.

Dear one, I urge you to return to your first love. Don’t shut Him out a moment longer. I know it’s been a rough couple of years, but Jesus loves you. He will always be there for you, even though I can’t be.

You are more special to Him than you can fathom. Let Him comfort and guide you.

Matthew 6:25-34

XOXO,

Grams

Nicole blinked away tears. “Oh, Grams. I miss you.” She gently folded the paper, turned to Matthew 6, and read. Grams was right as usual. God cared, and He would take care of her. She’d thought that when she came to Sunriver and started praying again, she’d moved beyond her old habits, but now she knew differently. She didn’t need to stress about her job situation or anything else because He really was taking care of her.

He had provided this amazing summer vacation via Grams, and she had met Mark.

“Lord, I’m sorry for not trusting You completely and shutting You out of areas of my life. Please forgive me.” Peace like she hadn’t felt since she was a child washed over her. A smile tugged at her lips, and she knew that everything would be okay. She wasn’t naïve enough to believe life would be perfect, but she would trust God with her future.

She leaned to the side, and the Bible wobbled. A business card fell out and floated to the floor. How odd. She reached for the card and noted Grams’ handwriting on the back.

Call him.

Love, Grams

It seemed everything Grams had done had been for a reason. Well, whatever the reason, it would have to wait until tomorrow.

The following morning Mark sat on his back deck with his feet up on the railing and sipped coffee while skimming the headlines on his phone. Though tempted to call in sick today, he wouldn’t. Yesterday had been tough and the night had been long, but today had to be better.

The first thing he needed to do was stop by the grocery store and pick up another bouquet of flowers for Nicole. She couldn’t stay mad at him forever, and flowers did the trick last time. Then again, she was pretty angry yesterday. Maybe he should stop in at the candy shop too and buy a box of chocolates.

“Knock. Knock.”

His feet smacked the deck as he stood.

“Ungrateful woman seeking permission to enter her rescuer’s lair.”

He held back a chuckle. “Permission granted.”

She pulled a bakery box from behind her and held it out. “I come with a peace offering.” She raised the lid.

He stepped closer. “What have we here?” He peeked inside the box, and his mouth watered. “Maiden, you have pleased me greatly.”

She grinned wide. “Good. I was hoping that giant donut would convince you to forgive and forget my poor attitude yesterday.”

He grasped the chocolate glazed donut, took a bite, and then washed it down with the remainder of his coffee. “You made my day. And here I thought I needed to apologize to you. I’d planned flowers and chocolate.”

She snapped her fingers. “My timing stinks!”

He chuckled and placed the pastry in the box. He stepped close to her and grasped her hands. “I’m so thankful you weren’t hurt. I thought my heart would stop when you were grabbed.”

She opened her mouth, and he placed a finger over her lips. “Shh.” Cradling the side of her face gently with one hand, he lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers. “You are one surprise after another,” he whispered.

Her eyes opened slowly. “Back at you.” She cleared her throat. “So I take it we’re good.”

“Absolutely.”

He glanced at his watch. “I hate to say it, but I have to get to work. Can we do dinner tonight? I’ll cook.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Great. Six o’clock?”

“Perfect.”