Kingdom by the Sea (Romantic Suspense) (43 page)

“Did
you ever find out what the deal was with Abel Kelling dead in your basement?”
Michael inquired, standing up.

“Oh. 
Turns out he was killed by his sociopathic, ne'er-do-well brother in a misfired
attempt to drug and rob him.”

Michael
gave a slow nod.  “Huh.  Don't you hate that?” he deadpanned. 

Puddle
kept close to Michael, licking the snow off his shoes, while Jingle hovered
near Nicole's shin, occasionally yelping for clarification.  “It's okay,
honey,” Nicole told her gently, then fixed her eyes on Michael's.  Again she
said, “What are you doing here?  Am I supposed to believe you were just passing
through?”

“No,”
he admitted.  “No...I mean, I
am
passing through, but I knew you lived
here now and I actually did have another reason for coming back to
Chatham
.”  Skittishly,
she waited.  “I'm moving here,” he said.

“
What?
”

“I
sold my townhouse.”

“Well...why...I
mean, you can't live
here,
” she protested.

“Why
not?”  he challenged, angling his head at her.  When he sharpened his gaze, she
became more flustered.

“Because...”
she scrapped, looking about, “I...I don't want you to!”

“Oh. 
Gee, that's too bad,” he said with mock contrition.  “Because I just put an
offer on a place in town, a two-bedroom over on
Bridgeport
.”

“What!” 
Stunned, she threw her arms out, all her pretend composure out the window.  “I
don't understand this.  What about your real life?  What about your work
or...?”

“I
still have my restaurant investments.  And in a shore town like this?  I
wouldn't mind being a boat mechanic.  I'll be fine, trust me,” he assured her. 
Then his tone lowered, became more serious.  “Nicole—trust me,” he repeated,
deliberately emphasizing the words.

“But—”

“And
as for my 'real life'...”  He stepped through the door without being invited,
snaked his hand around her neck and in one fluid motion, before she could
protest, he pulled her up to him, and descended his mouth on hers.  The kiss
was instant passion, brimming with the ardent desire she had come to associate
with Michael.  As stunned as she was, she nearly melted on contact, the feel of
his hot, insistent mouth and soft seductive lips, and the power of his hands on
her...it was familiar and thrilling all at once.  Helplessly, she gripped the
front of his jacket and allowed him to kiss her.

Then
she regained her senses and pushed back, pulling her face away.  “No,
stop...what are you doing?  This isn't going to work out.”

“Why
not?” he asked her, running his hand over her cheek, but she backed away
again.  Michael shut the door behind him so they were both in the warm entry
foyer.  Puddle was at his heels, Jingle was at hers, still throwing in her
little yelps to be acknowledged.  Normally Nicole catered to her shy-but-hyper
puppy's whims, but right now, God help her, she ignored the little thing.

“People
can't change,” Nicole told him.

“That's
not you.  You don't believe that.  If people can change for the worse, why
can't they change for the better?  Just look at Hazel.”  Quizzically, she
tipped her chin.  “I saw her out there a few minutes ago,” Michael explained,
motioning outside.  “She actually didn't scowl at me or give me one of those
witchy looks.”

“Oh. 
Yeah...well, she got a dog...it kind of mellowed her.  Stacy Gristol's Yorkie
had puppies.  I got one, too—”

“Nicole,”
he interrupted, “I know I hurt you.  But, if you let me start over with you—”

“But
everything was a lie.”

“A
lot of what I told you was true.  I really do love those 'Future is Wild'
shows, you know.”  She failed to be charmed by the lighthearted attempt.  “And
I really did get fired once for punching my boss.”  More intently, he added,
“What happened between us was the truth.” 

Her
heart nearly spun apart.  He sounded so sincere, speaking to her with a raw
veracity that now made her see the difference—the distinction between the con
man and the man.  Michael had always been smooth, he'd always seemed plausible,
but this was different.

Overwhelmed,
she turned from him and walked a few steps away.  He spoke to her spine.  “Are
you afraid I'll bring you trouble again?”

Nicole
shook her head.  “No.  It's not that.”

“I
promise you I won’t.” 

A few
beats passed. 

“Are
you afraid…we'll fall in love again?”

At
the words, tears reached her eyes.  In two steps, Michael was right behind her,
turning her around.  His hug was protective and all-consuming—and she couldn't
help it, she sighed and thought: this was how it would be.  That maybe this was
the reason she hadn't told anyone the truth about him.  That a big thing inside
was no longer missing.  And with her heart overflowing, she hugged him back. 
As though neither of them had ever left.

Jill Winters is
a summa cum laude graduate of
Boston
College
with a degree in history.  She has
published five books with Penguin, which have been featured on multiple
bestseller lists, and her debut novel,
Plum Girl
, was a finalist for the
Dorothy Parker Award of Excellence.

Most recently
Jill has begun a new mystery series featuring spunky young reporter & grad
student, Caitlyn Rocket.  The first book in the series,
The Unprintable Big
Clock Chronicle
, spent several weeks on Amazon's Top 100 Bestseller list
for humorous fiction and also appeared on Amazon’s Top 100 list for cozy
mysteries.  The second Caitlyn Rocket mystery will be out in 2013.

As always, Jill loves to
hear from readers! You can email her via jillwinters.com or follow her updates
on Twitter.