Hot for You (14 page)

He smiled and grabbed his duffel as he
climbed out. He shut the truck door behind him, and then strode up
to the house.

She closed the lid of the laptop and held it
in her lap as she waited for him to walk up the porch. Loose
tendrils of her red hair had escaped her braid and floated around
her face in a soft breeze.

When he reached her, she stood, still holding
her laptop as she said, “Good morning.”

The thought of having her waiting for him
every time he came home from getting off a shift sent warmth
through his gut.

He wanted to kiss her, but instead said, “How
are you feeling?”

“So much better.” She walked in through the
doorway as he held the door open for her.

“You wouldn’t just be saying that because you
want to go to Leigh’s?” he said as entered behind her and closed
the door behind them.

She shook her head. “Honest.”

“You’d better be.” His lips quirked as he
tossed his duffel on the loveseat. “Or I’ll have to turn you over
my knee for lying.”

She raised her chin in mock indignation. “I
am not lying, Mr. McBride.” She turned toward the kitchen. “Come on
and have some breakfast.”

“Smells great,” he said as he sniffed the
air. It smelled like baked potatoes and cheese. He followed her
into the kitchen.

“It’s a breakfast casserole.” She opened the
oven and took out a casserole dish with potholders and set it on
the stove. “Hopefully it’s not dry. I’ve been keeping it warm for
you. I managed not to burn it.”

He grinned. “I bet it’s great.”

She grabbed a trivet and he carried the
casserole to the table. “Only taste will tell,” she said.

Over breakfast he described the kids in the
second grade class who had come to the fire station. He and the
other firefighters had enjoyed the kids’ visit and he could tell
that Carilyn enjoyed hearing about it. She told him a little about
what she’d been doing, but told him overall it was pretty boring
compared to having a group of second graders visit.

After breakfast, Cody went outside to take
care of chores. He couldn’t get Carilyn off his mind. More
importantly, he didn’t want to get her off his mind.

He was glad to see that she was feeling
better. It was clear from the animated way she talked, her smile,
and how clear her green eyes were, that she was doing a lot better.
The only thing that bothered him was her insistence that she needed
to go back to Leigh’s. Yes, he was concerned for her safety, but he
enjoyed her company and didn’t want her to go.

Somehow he had to convince her to stay until
they had a better handle on this Firebug thing, or the bastard was
caught.

***

A sick feeling settled in Carilyn’s belly as
she walked into Leigh’s living room. It looked even worse the
second time around. The first time she’d been in shock. Now she was
just angry.

“How dare someone do this?” Her voice came
out hard.

“I don’t like the thought of you staying
here.” Cody’s words were tight. “Like I’ve said before, the bastard
could come back.”

She said nothing as she righted a chair and
adjusted the couch cushions. Cody helped, too, picking up the
pieces of a broken lamp from off the floor.

Carilyn looked at the end table and her skin
went cold. The frame that had contained the photo of Leigh, Misha,
and herself was empty. The photograph was gone.

“Oh, my God.” Carilyn’s heart thumped so hard
her chest ached. “He was here again.”

“What?” Cody was at her side in a couple of
strides. “How do you know?”

Carilyn pointed to the frame. “I picked that
up off the floor when we were here last. The glass was broken but
the photograph was there.” She looked at Cody to see anger on his
features. “He came back.”

“You’re not staying here tonight.” Cody’s
eyes were narrowed as he looked at the empty frame. He turned his
gaze on Carilyn. “No arguments.”

“Believe me, I’m not arguing.” She shuddered.
“Just knowing he was here again makes me sick inside.”

Cody nodded. “I’m calling Reese. Maybe
they’ll get fingerprints this time.”

They didn’t touch the frame in case the
bastard’s fingerprints were on it, and waited for Reese who arrived
with a couple of police officers and a forensics specialist.

Once the officers were there, Carilyn went
through the house again to see if anything else was disturbed that
hadn’t been the last time. They didn’t know if the emailer, the
person who ransacked the house, and the arsonist were related, but
Cody searched for any sign that the arsonist could have tampered
with the house.

After they were done combing the house, the
only thing Carilyn could tell had been touched was the photo. The
forensics guy said the frame had been wiped smooth—even Carilyn’s
fingerprints from when she’d handled it the last time were
gone.

When they were finished, the officers left
and just Reese remained. “You’ve received no other contact from
Firebug, have you?” he asked Carilyn.

She shook her head. “No.”

Reese looked from her to Cody. “No unusual
visitors to the ranch?”

“Only Gisele, the mail carrier, and Tom, the
ranch hand,” Carilyn said. “No one else has come by Cody’s ranch
since I’ve been there.”

“Have you noticed anything else strange that
you can think of?” Reese asked.

“No,” Carilyn responded.

“Unknown callers, hang ups?” he asked.

She frowned. The only one to call her had
been Sam, and she’d missed his calls. “No one,” she said.

Reese looked at Cody who shook his head.
Reese finished questioning them and pulled Cody aside. Carilyn
wondered what they were talking about, but turned and looked around
her at the violation.

Feeling even sicker than before, Carilyn
started to clean up the mess again.

Cody rested his hand on her shoulder,
startling her. “I don’t think we should stay.” He met her gaze. “If
it’s the arsonist, he could target this house.”

A helpless feeling weighted down on her as
she looked from Cody to Reese. “I don’t want Leigh to return home
to a mess.”

“There’s plenty of time,” Cody said. “She
won’t be back for almost a month. By then the police will have
caught the bastard.”

“I hope you’re right.” Carilyn blew out her
breath. “Let’s go.”

Reese and Cody made sure all of the doors and
windows were locked while she waited for them in the living room.
Apparently the back door had been jimmied, so Cody was going to
have someone fix it and put on a bolt lock.

She stared at the empty picture frame. Why
would the person who ransacked Leigh’s home come back for the
photo? Cold traveled down her spine again and she shivered.

“Everything’s locked up tight.” Cody’s voice
jerked her out of her thoughts and she whirled to face him.

“I wish Leigh had an alarm system,” Carilyn
said.

“So do I,” Cody said grimly.

Reese left with Cody and Carilyn. She gave
Reese a little wave as he pulled away in his unmarked vehicle.

They were quiet on the way back to the ranch,
Carilyn lost in her thoughts and Cody seemed to be, too.

They were almost to the ranch when he spoke.
“Why don’t we go out tonight? Jo-Jo’s has happy hour ’til
seven.”

“Okay.” Carilyn looked at him. She could use
a distraction. “Is Jo-Jo’s a bar?”

“Probably the nicest one in Prescott.” He
smiled. “Although Nectars is classy, too, it’s just hard to compare
the two.”

“I think I saw Nectars when I went to the
Hummingbird.” She swallowed. “The day my car was burned up.”

“Yes, it’s right next door.” He glanced at
her before looking at the road again. “Wasn’t planning on taking
you there since that’s where it happened.”

She nodded.

“My cousin, Tate’s, wife owns Jo-Jo’s,” Cody
said. “His brother, my cousin Gage’s, in-laws own the Hummingbird
and Nectars.”

Carilyn couldn’t help a laugh. “You McBrides
do get around.”

He grinned and looked at her. “You should see
the Johnsons.”

* * * * *

Before they left, Carilyn took a long bath to
relax and get her mind off of all that had happened. It wasn’t
easy, but she finally set it aside so that she could enjoy a night
out with Cody.

After she had dried off, she dressed in a
matching black bra and panty set. She slipped into the sleeveless
emerald green dress she had picked out on impulse when she and
Leigh had gone shopping. The dress reached a few inches above her
knees and she had to admit it looked great on her. She stepped into
black strappy heels she’d also picked out that matched a small
black purse with a long strap. She brushed out her hair and let it
fall around her shoulders. She usually kept it back but today she
felt like leaving it down. After she grabbed the purse, she left
her room to meet Cody.

“Hello, gorgeous,” he said the moment she
walked into the living room. Her cheeks heated and she knew she was
blushing as he looked at her with appreciation in his gaze. “You
always look beautiful.”

“Thank you.” She smiled at him.

He opened the door for her then touched the
small of her back as he escorted her to the truck. Her heels
wobbled a little on the uneven ground and he caught her by her
upper arm and steadied her. When they reached the truck, he opened
the passenger door and helped her up and into the truck, and then
closed the door behind her. He went around to the driver’s side,
climbed in, and started the vehicle.

They chatted on the way to town and Jo-Jo’s.
Carilyn was looking forward to meeting more of Cody’s relatives and
friends. From the way Cody talked about his cousins, they seemed
like a cohesive family. They had their differences like any family,
but they were all fairly close.

She liked when he told stories about his
family. It made her feel like she was a part of the town and his
life. And as she thought that, she wondered if just maybe she was
starting to get too comfortable there and care for Cody too
much.

When she grew quiet, Cody said, “Are you all
right, Carilyn?”

She nodded and gave him a smile. “Great,” she
said.

It wasn’t too long before they reached town
and made it to Jo-Jo’s. After parking, they walked into the bar. It
was a weeknight, and Cody said it wasn’t as crowded as it would be
on weekends, but it was still busy.

A tall, leggy, beautiful woman approached
them. She had hair that was a darker shade of red than Carilyn’s
and her figure-hugging sparkling dress was short, showing off her
long legs and her gorgeous figure.

“Carilyn, this is Jo Burke McBride,” Cody
said. “She’s married to my cousin, Tate.” Cody turned to the woman,
“Jo, this is Carilyn Thompson. She’s Leigh’s friend from Kansas and
is staying while Leigh is in Europe.”

“Great to meet you.” Jo’s smile was
brilliant. “Welcome to Prescott, and welcome to Jo-Jo’s.”

Carilyn liked Jo at once. “Your place is
great,” Carilyn said to Jo. “It looks like you have fun around
here.”

“That we do.” Jo’s smile was sensual as she
looked at a tall, dark-haired man with green eyes who reached hem.
“This is my husband, Tate.” In turn she introduced Carilyn to Tate
and they shook hands and greeted each other. According to Cody, Jo
and Tate were around ten years older than Carilyn and Cody, but
they certainly didn’t look it to Carilyn.

“Have a seat over here.” Jo nodded to a
corner. “That’s where ‘the girls’ and I sit whenever we’re having a
girls’ night out.”

“That sounds like fun,” Carilyn said with a
smile.

“The first round of drinks is on the house,”
Jo said as they reached the table.

When they were seated, a server with a
nametag that read “Tanya” arrived and took their drink orders.
Dark-haired Tanya had a cute figure and her skirt was almost as
short as Jo’s dress.

Carilyn decided on a pineapple mojito while
Jo ordered a cosmo and the men asked for domestic beers.

They had barely settled in when another
cousin and his wife arrived. Garrett and Ricki had just married a
few weeks ago.

Carilyn was surprised at how easy it was to
not think about Firebug or Leigh’s ransacked house or her burned up
car…much. A couple of times the thoughts flashed through Carilyn’s
mind, but she easily slipped back into listening to the cousins and
their wives as well as Cody.

After her second mojito, Carilyn excused
herself to go to the ladies’ room. She headed across the bar and
down a hall to the restroom. Five minutes later she opened the
restroom door to leave.

As she entered the hallway someone ran into
her from behind, almost knocking her off her feet. She braced her
hand on a wall to steady herself.

“Are you okay?” A pudgy guy, who looked like
a stereotypical geek, moved into her line of vision and peered at
her, his hand on her upper arm, a look of concern on his round,
bearded features. “Sorry for running into you like that.”

With a smile, she said, “No problem. I’m
perfectly fine.”

“Let me buy you a drink.” He looked down at
his feet, his longish hair falling into his pale blue eyes. He
glanced up again. “It’s the least I can do.”

“Thanks, but you don’t need to do that,” she
said.

“But I want to.” He gave her a pleading look.
“Please?”

Feeling uncomfortable with the way he was
looking at her, she fixed a smile on her face. “I’m here with
someone and he’ll miss me if I don’t come right back.” The man’s
face fell and Carilyn couldn’t help but feel bad. “I appreciate the
offer, though.”

He nodded. “Yeah, sure.” He turned away,
headed down the hall and then vanished into the crowd beyond
it.

She let out her breath and shook her head.
That was weird. She felt bad for some reason, but there was no
sense in letting the guy get his hopes up by allowing him to buy a
drink for her. It had been clear that he was interested in her
beyond trying to make up for running into her.