Maggie Undercover (5 page)

Alexandra glanced up and waved, her body
quivering with excitement. In the last week she had become a
different child. No longer was she a quiet, polite, if sullen
child, now she exploded with energy. Her laughter filled the
corners of his house and his heart like sunshine. All his doubts
and fears about returning to Council Falls and teaching evaporated
under the warmth of her transformation.

The counselors had told him it would happen
when she was ready. Though loathe to admit it, Jared couldn't help
believing Maggie McCade had triggered the metamorphosis.

Alexandra turned and said something to Maggie
who also looked up. When she started to wave too then stopped and
stared Jared realized he stood bare-chested. Her hungry gaze sent a
shaft of unwanted heat through him. Heart thudding, he turned away,
snatched up his shirt and sweatshirt and headed downstairs.

They waited on the porch while Alexandra
rushed inside to change. Jared sat on the porch swing. Arms crossed
over her chest Maggie perched on the railing and stared out over
the once again leaf-covered lawn. One long, jean-clad leg swung to
a rhythm only she heard. Each motion set her ponytail bobbing, a
reminder of her youth and innocence. But his gaze kept straying
back to her breasts.

"You look like a pumpkin," he blurted.

She dropped her arms and laughed. "Guess I do
at that." Eyes sparkling with mischief, she touched the green trim
at her top's scooped neck and grinned at him. "But the green's in
the wrong place." Her hand rested on the rise of her breast her
little finger just above the outline of her puckered nipple.

He tore his gaze away and stood. Heat and
anger surged through him. "Do you have a jacket?"

Her grin faded. "In the car."

"Get it. It's warm now, but it'll get cool
later. I'll see what's holding up Alexandra."

The pain in Jared's eyes before he turned
away slammed into Maggie. What am I doing? So far she'd found no
reason to believe him guilty of anything, not hacking nor
inappropriate behavior with his students. Why was she teasing the
man?

Because, she admitted to herself, she wanted
him to see her as a woman, not as a girl or a student. She sank
onto the porch swing and groaned. This would never do. She couldn't
afford to feel anything for Jared Blake. Innocent or not, he was a
suspect in an investigation. Nothing more. When this job ended she
was heading back to L.A. as quick as her car could carry her.

The screen door slammed and Alexandra
thundered onto the porch, skidding to a stop in front of Maggie.
"Come on. Let's go." She pulled Maggie up.

She felt Jared following them as Alexandra
tugged her toward his SUV. Brand new, top of the line and loaded
the vehicle's ebony exterior gleamed in the sun.

Maggie whistled and circled the SUV. It
reeked of luxury and security, things that been lacking in her
childhood. "Wow! Teaching must pay well."

Jared cheeks reddened, but it was Alexandra
that answered. Pride rang in her voice. "Daddy used to write
computer programs. He made lots and lots of money. He's rich so he
can buy anything he wants and do what he likes. And he likes
teaching," she finished with a triumphant smile as she crawled into
the back seat of the big vehicle.

"Rich, huh?" Maggie grinned at the flustered
Jared.

"Comfortable," he countered.

She climbed into the front seat and leaned
back into the gray leather. "Very comfortable."

He ignored her gentle sarcasm and told her,
"Put your seat belt on. You too, Alexandra."

His big, solid vehicle and insistence on
safety made her feel cosseted and at the same time vulnerable.

The pumpkin farm lay about thirty minutes out
of town. Warm sun streamed in through the car window heating her
skin. After a while Maggie let herself relax. The investigation
seemed a lifetime away and unimportant. For today she'd forget
computers, hackers and her real life, and enjoy the moment.

Eyes half-closed, she listened in amusement
as Alexandra chattered on about pumpkins and the best way to carve
them, as told by self-proclaimed expert, Bobby.

Other than answering Alexandra's numerous
questions, Jared drove silently through town. The rolling hills and
wooded areas surrounding Council Falls and the river soon gave way
to flat farmland. Field after field of drying cornstalks waved in
the breeze. Islands of color made up of trees and brushes dotted
the fields. Set far apart, houses and barns appeared and
disappeared as they traveled.

She breathed deep. The scents of new car,
leather, the faint smell of burning leaves and occasional odor of
well-seasoned manure wafted through the car. Beneath them all lay a
more enticing aroma – the woodsy tang of Jared's cologne.

"We're here." Jared's voice roused her.

She blinked and opened her eyes to find him
looking at her an odd almost pained expression on his face. "I'm
sorry. I must have dozed off."

"Burning the candles at both ends?" he
asked.

A yawn caught her unawares.

His gaze focused on the movement of her
breasts as she raised her arms over her head in a stretch. Then he
jerked his head around and got out of the car.

Her nipples tightened in response to his
interest. Or was it the cool air pouring in from the open car
door?

"Come on. I think Alexandra's in a
hurry."

Maggie looked out the window. The girl was
already out of the car headed toward a field strewn with orange
boulders.

She got out of the car and shivered. Though
the sun was warm on her head, a cool breeze blew across the flat,
open ground of the pumpkin field. She rubbed her hands up and down
her arms.

"Where's your jacket?" Jared asked.

"I think I forgot it." She gave him a
sheepish look. "I can't seem to remember this isn't
California."

He heaved a sigh, but it held no censor.
"Here. Take mine."

"What about you?"

He shrugged out of his leather jacket and
draped it over her shoulders. She shivered again, but not with
cold, as his warm hand brushed against the nape of her neck.

"I have a sweatshirt on. I'll be warm
enough."

Maggie slipped on the jacket still warm from
Jared's body. She inhaled the smell of well-worn leather and
cologne. It smelled like home.

She stiffened. Home had never smelled like
this. Home had stunk of stale cigarette smoke, booze, vomit and
rancid food. She shook off old memories. That part of her life was
over. No matter what else happened in her life she'd never end up
back there.

Following him across the field where the SUV
was parked, she stumbled over a rut. He caught her upper arm to
steady her. Tiny electrical shocks raced up her arm. Her gaze
locked on his. Sexual awareness flowed hot and heavy between them.
Neither of them spoke or moved. Breath caught in her throat.

His eyes went blank and he jerked away.

"Let's catch up with Alexandra before we lose
her to the Great Pumpkin." Voice cool, he pointed toward the field
swarming with dozens of children and resigned parents. Laughter and
shouts filled the crisp fall air.

The next few hours passed in a pleasant blur.
Maggie chased Alexandra from pumpkin to pumpkin. Like connoisseurs
of fine wine they compared the attributes of each pumpkin, size,
shape, color and even smell. Distracted at first, soon Jared
entered the game, thumping each pumpkin with his knuckles and
declaring whether it was filled with seeds or contained Peter
Pumpkin's wife, making Alexandra giggle.

By the time they chose a dozen pumpkins of
various shapes and sizes, two each for Jared and Alexandra, one
each for Bobby and Lisa, and the rest just because, mud caked their
shoes and hands and streaked their faces. Pumpkins loaded into the
SUV they started to leave.

"I'm hungry. Can I have something to eat
first?" Alexandra asked.

"There's a concession stand here. How do some
hot dogs and hot apple cider sound?" Jared asked.

"Great."

"Are you in a hurry to get home, Maggie?"

"No. I've got all afternoon." Warmth seeped
into her. He called her Maggie, rather than Ms. McCade.

"She promised to help us carve our pumpkins.
Oh no. We forgot to get a pumpkin for Maggie." Alexandra looked
devastated. "We have to go get another one for her."

"You look tired," Jared said.

"I'm not tired. Just hungry." Alexandra
frowned and her voice rose in a telltale whine.

"Let's see how you feel after we eat. Don't
worry. We have more than enough pumpkins to share."

While Jared went to the concession stand to
get the food, Maggie took Alexandra to the restroom to wash up.
Tired and starting to get cranky, Alexandra finished washing her
hands and didn't wait for Maggie. Hands still wet Maggie hurried
out after her. Assured that Alexandra was with her father at a
picnic table, she started to go back into the restroom when a noise
caught her attention.

Wiping her hands on her jeans she stopped and
listened. Behind the restrooms lay a narrow strip of wooded land.
On the other side was the highway. Below the roar of cars whipping
by, the low, plaintive moan came again.

Brush and brambles tugged at Maggie as she
followed the faint sound. In the weed filled ditch alongside the
four lane road someone had dumped a black plastic garbage bag.

She looked up and down the road then back at
the bag. She prodded the bag with her foot. It moved. She jumped.
"What the hell!"

The plastic stretched and tore. A shaggy head
poked through the hole. Bright, black button eyes peered out from
under matted fur of an undetermined color and latched onto her. The
creature's mouth opened revealing a moist pink tongue that lolled
comically.

"Yip," it barked.

A dog? No, a puppy. Gangly legs ended with
large paws. Through patches of fur and dirt she could see the
outline of its ribs. Its large head with long, floppy ears wobbled
as it tried to untangle itself from the bag. Anger sizzled through
her. Someone had put a puppy in a garbage bag and thrown it out of
their car alongside the road.

She knelt in the weeds next to the bag. Not
stopping to worry about how it might react she reached for the
puppy. "You poor little thing. Let's see if you're okay."

The puppy trembled as she lifted it from the
now shredded plastic. Though skinny its body felt warm and solid.
It licked her arm as she held it and ran her hands over its dirty
fur.

"Well, I'm no vet, but you're a little boy
dog. You seem all in one piece. The weeds must have cushioned the
impact. Nothing feels broken. And you don't act like you're
hurt."

He gave a small woof of agreement and nipped
at her fingers.

"Hungry, are you?"

Body shivering, its long bushy tail went
wild.

"Maggie?"

"Where are you?"

From a distance she heard Jared and Alexandra
calling for her.

"I wonder if puppies like hot dogs," she
mused as she stuffed the puppy inside Jared's jacket. With a
contented sigh, it settled against her chest. Hungry, dirty, cold
and tired, now in a warm, secure place it fell asleep. Even abused
and abandoned, it gave her its unquestioning trust. Only an
occasional shudder revealed the trauma it had already endured
during its young life. Too bad people weren't as resilient.

After the physical and verbal abuse she'd
suffered at the hands of her drunken parents, it had taken her
years to learn to trust again. Even now she found it hard to let
anyone get close enough to hurt her, physically or emotionally.

~~~~~

CHAPTER FIVE

Relief flooded through Jared when Maggie,
arms wrapped protectively around her chest, stepped out of the
woods behind the restrooms. Though crime was rare in this area and
the pumpkin farm was well attended, when she'd disappeared his
heart had jolted. The highway ran just a few yards away. Anything
could have happened to her. "Where were you?" Fear made his tone
harsher than he intended.

She shot him a sharp look then shrugged.
"Just checking something out."

"Our cider's getting cold," Alexandra
complained. Without waiting she trotted back to the picnic
table.

"Don't wander off like that again." He turned
to follow her.

Maggie touched his arm. "I'm sorry if you
were worried."

He stopped, but unwilling for her to see what
was in his eyes, didn't turn around.

Worry didn't begin to describe the unreasoned
panic that had invaded him when she vanished for those few minutes.
She aroused primitive, protective instincts he thought only
Alexandra could stir. Wanting to deny the feelings Maggie created
inside him he said, "As your teacher, if anything were to happen to
you while in my care, I'd be held responsible."

He heard her suck in her breath. When she
spoke her voice was cool and controlled. "I'm a big girl, Mr.
Blake. I can take care of myself." He remained frozen as she strode
ahead to the picnic table and sat next to Alexandra. In seconds the
two were involved in conversation. Maggie's laughter sounded
strained.

Though she was running low on energy and
becoming a bit cranky, Alexandra settled down once they started
home. Jared couldn't contain his smile as she turned often in her
seat to admire the pumpkins in the rear.

Maggie huddled against the passenger door,
staring out the window. Whatever she was thinking didn't show on
her face. Since his statement, she hadn't addressed a word to
him.

Well, he wondered in growing irritation, what
did she expect of him? He was her teacher.

Thirty long, silent minutes later he pulled
into his drive. Filled with renewed energy Alexandra bounded out of
the car and ran around to open the rear door. "Come on,
Maggie."