Hell or High Water (16 page)

She all but stumbled down the hall, reeling from Nate’s use of the old cliché. Damn him. Trust was a commodity she didn’t issue without reason. He’d protect her all right, but at what cost to her heart?
 

****

“Tyrell placed the tracking device on Hank’s car.” Nate breathed easier as he watched the ball bounce in place. Hank was home.

Sitting across from him at her kitchen table, Kaycie smiled over the top of her computer screen.
 

“Did you call off the in-person surveillance and send Tyrell home?”

“No. We’ll keep the tail on Hank. The tracer allows us to stay further back. Undetected. Close enough to move if something breaks.”
 

Her long slender fingers rubbed her temples. Dark circles under her normally feisty eyes worried Nate. Her sluggish movements confirmed his suspicions. Kaycie was exhausted.
 

He should’ve insisted she wait until morning to meet Tomas at the jail. After she’d dug through the evidence bag and didn’t find the missing ring, her nerves had crashed faster than a blowout at Daytona. She needed rest, but here she sat, refusing to quit.

“Let’s get you to bed.”

“Holly’s probably not sleeping.” Kaycie’s gaze dropped to her laptop screen. “I’m reviewing the case files she downloaded. According to three CPS investigators, the missing girls Leann’s age are all from one geographical area.”

“Show me.” Nate finished linking his cell with Hank’s tracer then moved next to her.

“This area.” She drew a circle around Handle Park. “They all lived within twenty miles of each other. Different schools. Probably different friends.”

Nate reached for her cell. His arm passed close to her breasts, and her breath hitched setting off blood spikes to his system. She’d showered and changed into a pair of gray warm-up pants and a yellow T-shirt. Her hair hung in loose waves down her back. He imagined burying his face in those mahogany tresses.
 

Nate finished setting up her phone and then leaned in to study the map on her screen.

“These girls hung out somewhere. Click nearby venues and then shopping. You might’ve found the kidnapper’s hunting ground.” She turned and met his gaze with hers.

The dark circles under her eyes tore him apart. Tomorrow morning was soon enough for her to continue researching. “You are going to bed. I’ll try to narrow down the likely places.”

“I’ll get you a pillow.” She rose and walked slowly out of the room, moving as if putting one foot in front of the other required major effort.
 

Nate hopped into the shower, expecting her to be sound asleep when he emerged. Not only was her light still on, but she hadn’t returned with the promised pillow.
 

He rushed down the hall and found her on the floor in front of her closet. The room looked as if it had exploded. Drawers were ajar, and everything had been dragged out and opened.
 

She whispered, “I searched again.”

“I see that.”
 

He dropped behind her, leaned her back against his chest and rocked.
 

His heart folded. A knot formed in his throat as he scrambled for the right words to comfort her.

“Shh.” He stroked her sweet-smelling hair away from her face, smoothing his fingers across the soft skin on her cheek. His body tensed at the contact of her body against his. “Did you get a phone call while I was in the shower?”

He almost missed her slight headshake. She held up a small box. No way was he letting her out of his embrace, so he flipped off the lid with one hand. Inside, he saw a charm bracelet with red parrots and white cockatiels interspaced around the circle. He understood immediately.

“Holly’s birthday?”

“Next week.” Her words were soft yet saturated with pain.

“We’ll have her home before then.”

Kaycie twisted in his arms, turning her tear-stained face toward him. Her gaze searched his, no doubt looking for the truth.

He kissed her. Her lips parted, and her tongue found his. She tunneled her fingers into his hair, pulling and tugging him closer. His body reacted immediately.

Her touch sent flames licking through his blood, blanking his mind to the outside world. Soft skin vibrated under his touch.
 

She scrambled to fully face him. Straddling him, she settled her crotch directly over his throbbing erection, rocking back and forth. Her gaze drifted down and then back up. The soft moan might have been his. Her eyes, now black as night, fluttered closed when he brought his lips down to hers.
 

Jesus. He ravaged the inside of her mouth with his tongue. Need boiled from deep inside his soul as he spread his fingers on her back and pressed her breasts to his chest.

He’d missed this. Missed her. Missed feeling alive.

Her hands coursed across his shoulders, rubbing, touching, and kneading his flesh. Her body molded against his, imprinting, bringing the past forward.
 

He couldn’t do this to her. Couldn’t have sex with her when she was in this state. Couldn’t.
 

His erection didn’t agree with his brain, and it strained against his jeans.

Shit. He grasped her shoulders and reluctantly peeled her off him. The smoldering in her eyes sparked with surprise and stirred a longing deep inside his soul. Her kiss-swollen lips leaned into him once again. Her tongue slid across his closed mouth, seeking entrance.
 

Desire pushed forcefully against his zipper. Painfully hard, he stopped her hand right before she covered him.
 

She wasn’t looking for sex. Her heart was breaking, and she needed escape. She’d be full of remorse in the morning if they made love tonight. He couldn’t deal with seeing regret in her soulful eyes.
 

“Kaycie.” His voice croaked like a frog.
 

He got to his feet and then swung her into his arms. She moaned softly into his neck, her warm breath blistering his flesh. Oh, hell. She’d misread his intentions.
 

Fighting the lust consuming his body, he moved across the room. He jerked the covers back and then laid her on the bed.
 

“Sleep.” He slid the sheet over her, leaned down and kissed her forehead.

Her fingers wrapped around his wrist, sending rockets of electricity up his arm.

“You don’t want me?” The circles under her eyes contradicted the desire in her gaze.
 

Nate dropped to his knee next to the bed, afraid to touch her. Afraid he’d lose control, climb on top of her and bury himself deep inside her body. Afraid she’d despise him in the morning for taking advantage tonight.
 

“Sweetheart, I want to rip those clothes off you and kiss every inch of your body. I want your pupils to do that sexy flare when I slide inside. I want to hear you cry out my name when you come. I want that more than the very air I breathe. But you’d hate me in the morning, and I don’t want that.”

He stroked the back of his hand down her ivory cheek, reluctantly eased from the room and flicked off the light on his way out. His boots weighed at least a thousand pounds. Aches screamed through his body in places he didn’t know could hurt.
 

“Nate?”

He froze, standing still in the dark. “I’m right here in the hall.”
 

“When did you get out?”

“A couple of years ago.” That she’d asked the question didn’t surprise him. He hated to answer while her exhaustion had her emotions and nerves raw.
 

“Why didn’t you come home?”

A heavy weight filled his chest. “After the military, I ran a few off-the-record ops for the government. My head wasn’t in a good place. To get it back on straight, I turned down the last job they offered and kicked back for a while. Shot the rapids in Colorado. Let the universe talk me down.” He waited a split second. Had his answer satisfied her? “Goodnight, Kaycie.”

“Will you stay until I fall sleep?”

He closed his eyes for a moment. Crawling in bed with her would be a true test of his control. He returned to her bedside, toed off his boots, lay down, and spooned her against him. No words were necessary as he draped her body with his to give her comfort.
 

Soon her breathing settled into a nice steady rhythm. This was his shift and no way he’d close his eyes. Besides, he didn’t need to be wrapped around her when he dreamed. Not with his nightmares.
 

He refused to move, torturing himself with each inhale and exhale. In and out. In and out. The citrusy scent of her hair flooded his senses. Her warmth burned his skin through the bedclothes. Her body molded against his causing fire in his groin. Need swept over him. Yet, he refused to move for fear he’d disturb her much-needed rest.
 

He worried they wouldn’t find Holly alive. Truth was, and Kaycie knew the odds, most kidnappers didn’t allow eyewitnesses to live. She’d never forgive herself or him if Holly died.
 

Chapter 16

Kay forced her way out of the dream where she and Nate were in bed, snuggled against each other. A ringing noise disturbed her peaceful sleep.
 

The throwaway phone.
 

“Oh my God,” she gasped, kicking the covers to untangle her feet.

The mattress shifted, and cold air washed across her back. Nate. She’d asked him to stay, and she’d fallen asleep inside the protection of his strong arms. His body radiated incredible heat. Her skin chilled from missing his warmth. He turned on the small lamp next to her bed as she swung her feet to the floor.

“You awake enough to talk?”

She nodded.

“Ask for proof of life.”

“Okay.” She pressed the button. “Yes?”

“How can you sleep when your friend needs you?” The tone sounded angry, venomous.

“Please don’t hurt her.”

“I will if you don’t bring me the ring.”

“There is no ring.” Frustration poured through Kay’s words.

“Find it and be ready to meet next time I call. Unless you want me to kill her.”
 

“How do I know you haven’t already?”

“You’ll have to take my word for it.”

“Let me talk to her.”
 

“No.”

“Don’t hang up.” Kay’s blood ran icy. “Hello?”

“Asshole’s gone,” Nate growled out his words.

“God. I’d kill this bastard if I could.” Kay shivered at her own declaration. She’d wanted to smack a few parents but never hated another human being. Until now.
 

Nate knelt in front of her. His hands caught hers. She remembered how he used to bury his feelings. Worked hard at hiding his emotions. Not now. The picture of doom on his face was easy to read. Like her, he feared Holly might already be dead. No. She had to believe her friend was alive.

He grabbed his cell and connected with the tracker, turning the screen at an angle, allowing her to see. “Walsh’s car is at his apartment,” Nate said to her.
 

“Tyrell would’ve called if Hank had gone out. Wouldn’t he?”

“If Walsh budged, we’d have heard. The fact he’s not babysitting Holly makes me think he’s high up in the organization. Got somebody doing his dirty work for him.”

Kay ran her fingers through her tangled hair, pulling up and clipping the whole mess to the back of her head. “Damn it. I should’ve asked what the ring looked like.”

“Let me see the throwaway.”

She passed it over and waited while he pushed keys with a frown. “What?”

“His number is blocked. I checked the calls received the other day, but since we were doubling back I wanted to try again.”

“So he’s tech smart.”

“Yeah. He’s made sure you can’t track him down. He’ll call back. You can ask for a description then.”

Nate rocked back on his heels, staring at the wall. The tendon in his jaw jerked.
 

“What are you thinking?” Kay asked.

He shook his head as if trying to break out of a fog. “Something about the voice on the phone.”
 

His gaze met hers. The dark expression scared her. “You recognized him?”
 

“Not him. His intonation. He’s a killer. Cold. Calculating. Deliberate.”

“You knew people like him?”

“I was him.” His words, void of emotions, came cold and harsh.

Kay crawled across the bed to sit next to him. Cupping his cheek in her palm, she forced his distant gaze to meet hers. Nate had gone somewhere else in his mind. The icy stare sliced right through her. She had to bring him back.
 

She ignored the warning her heart sent, accepting she’d face one hell of a heartbreak when he left. But right now, tonight, he needed her, and her body ached for his touch.
 

“No. You did what you had to do. What you were trained to do. That’s not who you are.”